Telesales with a difference...

I'm pleased to report that my registration with TPS has lived up to my expectations and on the very rare occasion I do get an unwanted call, a brief reminder that I'm registered with TPS sends them running with their tails between their legs.

To date, I've been fairly lucky in avoiding unwanted texts and calls to my mobile, so when I got a telesales call on it this week, I was caught a little off guard...

CPW: Hi, this is the O2 team at Carphone Warehouse. We're just calling to see that everything is going OK
Me: Erm... yes... everything has been just fine
CPW: Well I don't know if you've realised, but you've reached the end of your initial contract and qualify for a free upgrade on your handset
(I become immediately suspicious at the propect of something for nothing)
Me: Well I say everything is fine; to tell the truth I've been pretty unlucky [careless] with my handset and had to replace it. I've bought a pay as you go model and switched my SIM card
CPW: Oh, sorry to hear that...
(I'm now expecting serious sales pitch on the benefits of their insurance policies)
CPW: What sort of handset do you like? Is there any particular make you prefer?
Me: Well yes, but I've replaced it so recently that I'm quite happy with it and don't need to consider replacing it just yet
CPW: Fine, I understand. Well perhaps we could just reduce your monthly payment by £10 a month and you'll still get your 200 minutes and 200 texts included

Clearly, I took them up on their generous offer. Gobsmacked is hardly the word - fancy receiving a sales call and ending up with something I actually wanted...

Em to please...

I know this is my second stats related post in just over a week, but I just spotted another one that amused me.

Eight people from the last twenty that ended up here from search engines were looking for Emily Maitlis, presumably as a result of the recent "flashing" incident which offended some BBC viewers.

She was only ever been mentioned on this blog once before today when I stated in one of the comments last April that I'd just Googled her. Unfortunately, it sounds as sordid now as it did back then.

Now I don't usually post celebrity photos as there's plenty of other sites out there providing a more than adequate service. Apparently. All the same, it's fair to say that she would brighten the place up a bit.

Most importantly, I feel obliged to post a picture if for no other reason than to offend the kind of small minded moron who takes offence at the thought of an attractive newsreader having legs...

Short Film Review...

Many would say this is inconceivable, but I never really got into the Star Wars thing. In fact, I've only ever seen the first three. Well, the second three. Well, the fourth, fifth & sixth. You know which ones I mean - the first three to be released.

I've never really done the "short film" thing either. In my experience they always concentrate too much on being arty farty rather than trying to get a decent story or message across. Sweeping generalisation I know.

That all changed this morning. Unable to sleep at a ridiculous hour, I went through and put the TV on and caught a great little film on the Sci Fi Channel called "George Lucas in Love" which I supposed you could say is the real first episode of Star Wars.

Fortunately, people have had the foresight to post it on YouTube so take a look for yourselves here - I think it's 8 minutes of movie that's well worth seeing...

Height of ignorance...

Until recently, I'd never really given much thought as to why the Americans have elevation signs at the roadside, but when Pete mentioned how some people suffer from elevation sickness, I decided that perhaps it was time to look into it further.

I'm not a big fan of heights; it's rare enough that I'll work at the top of a step ladder, although if I'm in an enclosed environment such as a plane, car, or a building observation deck then it's never been a problem.

Now I've had a chance to put things in perspective and in my typically geeky fashion, I plotted the elevation of the various stages of our forthcoming trip and although it is exaggerated by our visit to Pikes Peak in the Rocky Mountains but a considerable remainder of the trip is around 3000 feet:



The dotted red line represents the height of Mam Tor in the Peak District which is probably the highest place I've ever been. It doesn't look that significant here at a mere 1696 feet, although it seemed bloody high up at the time, especially when we thought my mate Rob had jumped off. (There was in fact a plateau beyond the point that we'd believed to be the escarpment edge and we'd bottled out before getting that close).

So, I guess I'll find out when I get there and in the meantime, assume that's what people are referring to when they talk about a natural high...


Update: I've been reminded that I have actually been higher than Mam Tor - the Sears Tower Skydeck is 1353 feet high, but 1948 feet above sea level, so the graph has been updated accordingly. I'm sure you were all really concerned...

Doctor Seany...

I continue to be fascinated by the reasons people end up here and enjoy the diversity of referrals I get, but this morning I found something a little different.

Although I appreciate that most of my ramblings are about working too hard, partying too hard (is that possible?) or being pestered by morons on my daily commute, there's seldom much very sensible to be found here. Pictures of bunny girls or Samantha Janus (sadly I have no combination of the two) continue to reign as the most popular reason for landing here from search engines.

I'm sure you can imagine my surprise when I found an incoming referral from Right Health website with a direct link to one of my posts in their Best of Health section. Ironically, the post in question was about my planning a lazy day, having eaten far too much from a meat pack I'd won from the pub.

Hmmm, what a shining example of healthy living I must be...

Suddenly I see...

A week or so ago I thought it might be fun to see if there are any interesting gigs that coincide with our American tour next month and was quite pleased when I spotted somewhere that KT Tunstall was playing in St Louis on one of the nights we would be there.

Whilst suggesting the idea to Pete yesterday, I was having difficulty finding any ticket details on either hers or the venue's website despite the fact that elsewhere it clearly said that she would be playing there on 20th September. All we could find were tickets for a gig in New York (sadly not on our already extensive agenda) or reviews for the last time she'd played there.

It was only after some extensive searching that the penny finally dropped and I realised that St Louis was actually included in her U.S. Tour - on 20th September 2006...

Road Trip...

It's quite a few weeks now since I last posted about this year's holiday and having spent three and a half hours on the phone discussing plans this afternoon, I'm now as excited as a child on Christmas morning. And there are still three weeks to go yet.

Yes, three weeks today I should be at Pete's place in St Louis making the last minute preparations for what I hope will be the holiday of a lifetime. Basically, we'll be driving from St Louis to San Diego and back again, taking in Kansas, Colorado, New Mexico, California, Mexico, Texas and Oklahoma along the way.

We've pre-booked hotels to coincide with our loosely planned agenda, but the true beauty of this trip is that it will be mainly spontaneous. If one particular place really appeals we could stay longer and conversely, if something doesn't live up to our expectations we can just move on elsewhere.

All told, we will be driving around 4,200 miles over a period of 70-odd hours and earthquakes, dust storms, tornados, etc. permitting, we should get to take in some of the most breathtaking scenery in the world.

I suppose you could say it's just a really extravagant way of taking a trip to the zoo...

Difficult time...

I was saddened to receive a phone call from my mate Steve this morning telling me that his Mum finally lost her battle against cancer and passed away yesterday morning.

These situations are never easy to deal with, but much as we are all extremely upset at her passing, I'm afraid I can't also deny a sense of relief that she's no longer facing her daily battle against unimaginable pain and discomfort.

An incredibly brave woman with an enormous sense of loyalty for her family, I'm pleased to have known her and to have bestowed upon her the dubious honour of being the nearest anyone has got to date to becoming my mother-in-law.

After all of the challenges that the last few years have presented, the phrase rest in peace does actually feel incredibly appropriate...

The big barbie...

The Tap football team had their annual fundraising barbie this weekend and I'm pleased to say that once again it delivered everything we expected.

It was certainly no place for non-carnivores, although there was some very tasty red snapper to be had. There were the obligatory scattered showers which failed to dampen the spirits and on the subject of spirits, there were plenty of cut price drinks to help wash the food down and toast Julie on her 50th birthday.

Quite how the two most determined of us had managed to finish off in a nightclub three and a half miles away and nine hours later is another story entirely. Luckily, I know myself well enough now to book following days to such events off work and keep both my job and my driving license intact...

Life imitating art...

I guess it's been on the cards for some time that with such an important project coming to fruition at work this week, I would have to put in quite a few hours from home this weekend.

Still, having worked into the small hours this morning and been awake enough to start again about 6 hours later, I felt that I'd earnt the right to stop mid afternoon, get a few chores out of the way then plant myself with a cuppa in front of the telly for a couple of hours.

The listings didn't have a lot to offer, but I did spot Groundhog Day was on again. Yes, I know we've all seen it plenty of times before but it is one of the few films I can watch time and time again, still laugh at the same jokes in all of the same places and enjoy from beginning to end.

Good job I don't have the DVD, I could watch it again already. Then watch it again...

Life imitating art...

I guess it's been on the cards for some time that with such an important project coming to fruition at work this week, I would have to put in quite a few hours from home this weekend.

Still, having worked into the small hours this morning and been awake enough to start again about 6 hours later, I felt that I'd earnt the right to stop mid afternoon, get a few chores out of the way then plant myself with a cuppa in front of the telly for a couple of hours.

The listings didn't have a lot to offer, but I did spot Groundhog Day was on again. Yes, I know we've all seen it plenty of times before but it is one of the few films I can watch time and time again, still laugh at the same jokes in all of the same places and enjoy from beginning to end.

Good job I don't have the DVD, I could watch it again already. Then watch it again...