Objects of desire
At greenbelt2005, I discovered a new thing that I want. One of the fringe stalls was new – The Music Room, which sold musical instruments (guitars, banjos, mandolins, piano accordians, squeezeboxes, recorders, bodhrans and more). My downfall, though, was their electric fiddles, from Bridge Instruments. These are expensive (~£1000) but gorgeous. Hollow carbon-fibre bodies mean that they actually have a real acoustic sound – not as loud as a normal fiddle, of course, but very respectable. This means that the amplified sound is lovely, too, not too electric. They also, and importantly, play nicely (although I didn’t like their carbon-fibre bows). So, if I manage to save enough, I might trade in my acoustic fiddle for one of these!
pax et bonum
Track with co.mments
Track with del.icio.usNew job!
After nearly 6 years of freelancing, I’ve taken on the yoke of employment once more. From 12th September, I’ll be working for Cambridge University Press in the Education group. I’ve been feeling a bit jaded recently and this will give me some new challenges. Plus, of course, a regular pay cheque will ease a few headaches along the way!
So, for the first time in my life (except for a few months after my degree when I was in a Job Club) I’ll have to don a shirt and tie. And I’ll have to leave the house – every day! For 8 hours! And take a packed lunch! How will I cope? 
pax et bonum
I've done a bad thing!
I made the mistake of singing the Badger song in front of Adam (aged 3) this evening. And now he’s started singing it, too. He’s even invented his own words:
Masher, masher, masher
Masher, masher, masher
Potato, tato!
Masher, masher, masher
Masher, masher, masher
Potato, tato!
etc.
pax et bonum
Download music label
Warner has decided to launch a specific label for download music only. This is a huge step towards sanity for the record companies. The plan is that emerging bands or established bands with loyal fans but who might not be “chart material” any longer can release clusters of tracks whenever convenient, rather than waiting for expensive studio-produced albums. One to keep an eye on, I think.
pax et bonum
Civil liberties
The Register is reporting a recent study showing that the British people seem to be getting blasé about their civil liberties, in the face of government propaganda about terrorism and the recent bombings in London.
Three out of four Brits would happily hand over their civil liberties in exchange for better security against terrorist attacks, according figures from pollsters ICM. It is interesting to note that this is the same general public that rails against any attempts to make them drive more slowly, or with more care. This is in spite of the fact that in 2004, 671 pedestrians were killed in traffic accidents, and a further 2,550 people died in other road accidents…
Further, 62 per cent of respondents were in favour of deporting foreign radical Islamists, even if that deportation was to a country that used torture. Only 19 per cent directly opposed this idea.
It’s rather scary that the public are becoming so scared (or indoctrinated) that they’re willing to give up – for good – customary freedoms for a spurious sense of security. Thousands might die in road-traffic accidents each year but no-one countenances any restrictions on their “right” to drive as fast as they want; however, let a hundred people die in a bombing and suddenly people are keen to relinquish far more important rights if they can only feel a little safer. The really sad thing, though, is that these proposed “security” measures would do almost nothing to stop terrorism, or organised crime. They would make it easier for the Government to keep track of ordinary people, but wouldn’t stop those who seriously try to get around the regulations.
Worst of all, people are now eager to deport “radicals”, even if they would face torture or death if they were deported. Have we really come to the point where we would send someone to pain or death simply because we don’t like their words? And lest anyone say “this means terrorists”, it cannot be that. Our laws already have plenty of ways to deal with convicted terrorists! We are talking here about people who espouse a different view of the world. We might disagree with them. We might even find them distasteful. But is this any reason to send them into harm’s way? I believe firmly that people welcomed into this country have a duty to act responsibly towards us and not encourage those who would harm us; if someone persists in doing so, there must be consequences (deportation to a safe country, for example). Just not torture or death.
pax et bonum
Stress Test
Feeling stressed? Try this test to find out how much.
(_Thanks to Kathryn for the tip_)
Uncyclopedia
Uncyclopedia – the suppository of all knowledge and wisdom. Try the entries about Jesus, for example
I Think I Can Help, Mr. Bush
Chris at Infinite Wisdom or Absolute Idiocy has an excellent plan for GW Bush to follow.
Free world TV
Beeline TV lets you watch TV channels from more than 30 countries for free on your PC. Provided you’ve got a broadband connection, of course, you can stream broadcasts from the UK, USA, Australia, France, Germany, Arabia, China, Japan, Thailand, and lots more. A few of the feeds offer only a sampler, and a few need paid subs for anything more, but there’s still a huge variety of stuff available. Even Aunty Beeb (the BBC) has some offerings on there!
pax et bonum
Holes in the field
For the past couple of days, we’ve been watching some large holes being dug in the field at the end of our garden.
We like living next to this field – Cambridge is quite built up and we’re lucky to be living on the edge like this. So, we’ve been curious about what’s going on out there. Have Time Team come visiting to see whether there’s an Iron Age village or a Roman fort down there? Unfortunately, I don’t think it’s quite that exciting – there are plans to build a housing estate on this field in the next couple of years, so we suspect that they’re simply looking at the underlying geology 
Either way, that’s a lot of very pretty, different-coloured piles of earth out there!
pax et bonum
Quicksilver
A while back, I read somewhere that Neal Stephenson’s Baroque Cycle was definitely worth a read. So, when I bought some books for my birthday, I bought the first of these, Quicksilver. Now, this is a mammoth book, nearly 1000 pages worth, and it’s only the first part of a trilogy; it’s taken me a while to get it finished! Fortunately, my recent holiday gave me the chance to do just that. And it was a very worthwhile task. I’ve read some Stephenson before and he’s a very good writer or gripping stories. However, this book is something of a change of area – it’s still science fiction, but it’s historical science fiction. The science it’s concerned with is the work of Newton and Leibniz on gravity, calculus, telescopes, clocks, chemistry and much more – the first flowerings of Natural Philosophy as it emerged from the seeds planted by the Alchemists. But it’s also concerned with the development of trade, banking and currencies, with the politics of royalty and the passing of power, with the place of Vagabonds and Puritans in society, and with many other things. Suffice to say that, even though it’s 1000 pages long, it’s not a page too long. It has that page-turning quality that keeps you coming back and stops you leaving even if the light has totally faded, forcing you to read by torchlight
So, that’s the last of my birthday books finished. Next!
pax et bonum
Marcus Cole - dead or alive?
I’ve just been watching my DVDs of Babylon 5, series 5. (If you’re not a fan of this series, stop reading now – it’ll bore you ) The interesting thing is that I spotted the “Easter Egg” on the Special Features disc, which is a little piece that clears up what really happened to Marcus Cole. Marcus, if you remember, was the ranger who (because of his great love for her) gave his life so that Susan Ivanova could be healed of her fatal injuries. The question has always been, though, is Marcus really dead or was he cryogenically frozen (as is alluded to in the episode)?
The answer? He’s frozen – dead, but not completely so. JMS (the creator of the series) has written a short story telling what happens to Marcus. He is revived about 500 years later, and has the chance to recreate Ivanova (presumably, with the same technology we saw used in Deconstruction of Falling Stars). He does so, and they live happily ever after together. No, really – JMS is just an old softy, really!
Not a terribly important thing, really, but it made me happy
pax et bonum
Terry Pratchett and J.K. Rowling
There’s been some fuss in the news about who said what about whom. Terry Pratchett has clarified what he actually said, and why.
Back from holidays!
Well, I’m back! We spent a lovely week at Rudyard lake in Staffordshire, staying in a cottage/chalet/shack owned by my aunt and uncle.
It’s much more decadent than when I stayed there as a boy – running water and real toilets! Heating is still a wood-burning stove, which is nice, and that kept us all warm during the nights (the lake is only about 10 metres away and does make it cold at night even in the summer!). Rowing on the lake and trips on the 10-inch gauge mini railway kept Adam happy, as did the trip to the Ceramica museum in Stoke on Trent. Most popular with both children, though, was probably eating ice cream on the grass
After four days there, it was up to stay with my parents for the wedding of Anne’s cousin and her Italian beau Enrico. It all went swimmingly, including a reading in English, French and Italian, as well as speeches in both English and Italian! It was nice to spend a few days with my parents, too. Anne and the children are now staying with her parents for a few days while I come home to work. And to redecorate Ruth’s bedroom, which hasn’t been decorated since we moved into this house 8 years ago! So, I’ve got a lovely week ahead of me
Other things vying for attention after the holiday will have to wait until tomorrow, though. I need to sleep!
pax et bonum
