Sod this.

I quit.

Okay, I’ve resized the NaNoWriMo image on the project pages so those viewing on smaller screen resolutions shouldn’t have to scroll down miles to start reading now. Unfortunately the image quality isn’t as good anymore, so I’ll refaff with that at some point. (Fixed)

Please feel free to let me know of any other imcompatibility issues with IE/different screen resolutions etc, as although I do test I don’t always catch them!

Thanks for giving me the heads up, Ed & Sylvia.

Well we’ve arrived back safe and sound from the wedding and only a little worse for wear. The bride was stunning, it was a lovely day and a great time was had by all.

The main problem (as with all weddings) is the length of time you are drinking before any food arrives. Our champagne glasses were miraculously topped up at every opportunity and I’m so hopelessly out of practise at the heavy drinking lark now, that I was hopelessly sozzled by about 4pm.

We were sat on the “roudy friends” table the furthest away from the bride & groom as possible. Probably just as well as we then decided to have a sweepstake on how long the speeches would take. The timing starting at the first “ting ting” of the spoon on a glass, to the best man placing both cheeks on the seat…

Unfortunately someone tipped off the top table and they proceeded to do the speeches in a record 1 minute 26 seconds by each one standing in turn and saying a quick thanks to whoever they were supposed to be toasting at the time. It got a cheap laugh anyway, then the real speeches commenced (a whopping 51 minutes long in total – but they were funny and the wine kept coming, so all was good).

The hangover kicked in at 10.30pm. Ugh. Still, at least it was all through my system by the morning so I really enjoyed my hotel cooked english breakfast as a result.

… to a wedding in Cirencester. Have a good weekend all. Back tomorrow.

This isn’t something that I really thought I’d ever have to post, but obviously I need to make an explicit statement.

I’m reasonably flexible with my comments – I’ve allowed comments to remain that some other bloggers would probably have removed from their own sites. However, I really object to a stranger using them as a blatant advert for a site/products when they have never posted here before. I don’t just mean the “I’ve got a blog too, come and see!” type posts – they’re fairly innocuous and we’re all a bit guilty of that to a degree (although most of us have the decency to at least respond to the topic being discussed). I’m talking about something where money may be involved. Especially when it’s attached to a product I reviewed – which then, to my eyes, detracts from the objectivity of the review.

Even when I was on blogspot, I paid to have the adverts removed from the top. I do not like adverts associated with my personal site that I have spent a lot of effort on, and I do not intend to change that at any time in the future.

In this instance, I have left the comment there as it was a competition for free goods rather than trying directly to sell a product, but I see it as sitting on a very dark grey line and I will not be as tolerant in the future. Any adverts left in my comments without my permission will be immediately removed and the commenter’s IP banned.

I hope everyone is now clear. Normal service will be resumed shortly.

Update: Have received a very nice apology from the person concerned. Apology accepted. Am a bit more calm now… honest.

New character added to the profiles here.

I’m finding this character generating really difficult and I’m sure it shouldn’t be! The little wotsits keep becoming stereotypes every time I turn my back…

Moving from Croydon to the more rural location of Worcester was always going to be a little bit of a culture shock, but it appears that I am more settled than some of the people living around here.

Apparently, loads of people have recently complained to Environmental Health about the smell of muck spreading prevalent over the last week. The smell has been reasonably pungent, I’ll admit, but only really got a waft about 3 times for a maximum of an hour. Seeing as how a farm is only a stones throw away from here it’s hardly surprising or worth complaining about. Farms and manure tend to go hand in hand certain times of the year – I at least remember that much from my childhood in Wales. Don’t want to smell it? Avoid living near farmland. I think some people get too wrapped up in picture postcard countryside living to remember what it’s really like.

Woo hoo … I’m less citified than some of the rural folk!

I am *so* tired today. I’m not really with it, so I do apologise.

Went to Wacky Warehouse this morning and had great fun climbing up and going down the slides into the ballpits. Oh, Akra Jr quite liked it too.

Got new frames for my glasses and some new disposable contacts for emergencies. Now £79 poorer. Oh well, at least I can now see again.

Not feeling 100% well at the moment… not really ill but just feeling a bit bleugh. Hope I’m not going down with anything. Could do with sleeping for a week, but I don’t think Akra Jr would be too impressed.

Going out for a meal tonight with some old friends. Anyone got some eye-propping-open matchsticks I can borrow?

Warning: do not click on this link if you are eating or in any way easily grossed out.

What were they THINKING?! This is really a vile toy – even worse than Playdoh Dr Drill & Fill (a dentist playdoh game)

And the day goes from bad to worse.

Some ignorant little prick decides to ball me out on the doorstep for daring to leave a catalogue through the door. Apparently I am meant to be psychic and automatically know which houses take delight in browsing through the contents of said catalogue and those which loathe the sight of them.

Apparently he has told other distributors not to distribute there – great, but catalogue distribution doesn’t work like that I’m afraid – we’re working blind (and for a pittance so give us a fucking break).

In addition, he thinks that the catalogue being posted through was an advert that he was away for a few days. What? He can’t do what every other person does who goes away on holiday – ask a neighbour to look after his post? What’s he going to do with the mountains of free papers that are going to accumulate?! Why doesn’t he put up a sign saying “no free papers, catalogues or salespeople” that some houses have – I know not everyone honours them, but I always do.

Instead, it probably made his day to have someone lowlier than him to be obnoxious to. In case you’re wondering, I was unfailingly polite to his face and apologised profusely, crossing him off my delivery list. Mouthing off is what blogs are for.

Wanker.

I’m a bit cross. You may have noticed.

Oh, and (different house now) Mr Slimy Creep I will *NOT* be going into your house while you search high and low for what you did with the catalogue. Thanks all the same.

The things we do for money. Or no money as the case may be.

On the up side, a thousand blessings on those nice people who not only put out their catalogue on the day requested but went the extra mile and put the order form at the front so I could see they hadn’t ordered. It’s so much easier than rummaging through the pack to check before you leave (yes, there are some people that don’t put their address on their orders – you don’t want to leave the premises before checking).