The Blog...

Welcome Back

Tuesday 07 June 2016, 8.30pm

I've been persuaded to update the website again, this time with even more facilities. I hope you like it.

It is just me or does everyone love stock images?

Road Rage

Friday 30 January 2015, 9.20pm

(Merry Christmas, and all that...)

People who know me will, I hope, think I'm a calm and good-humoured sort of guy. But if there is one thing to wind me up it's lazy driving. I cannot stand people who just roll down the road without any consideration for fellow road users. Do they not realise that they are sitting in a half-tonne weapon that could kill or maim at any moment, particularly if they are not paying attention. You may be asking yourself, "What heinous act has prompted this outburst?" Well, I was driving down the road which is a half-mile long straight single-lane road that split into two lanes at the junction controlled by a set of traffic lights - I'm sure you're familiar with the scenario. Traffic on this road is always heavy, especially so at rush hour. After sitting on this road and only moving at walking pace for 20 minutes (half a mile!) The car in front gets to the junction and wanting to turn right sits right in the middle of the two lanes waiting to turn and because of their stupidity they are blocking the road for people going straight on or turning left. This person, who has sat in the same traffic as everyone else caused by morons like them not getting into lane properly and blocking the road, is now doing the very thing that is causing the problem. Is it spite? Or just bloody stupidity? Oh how I wish I was driving a tank and I could push my way past. Having a touch of breading I restrain myself to only a quick toot of the horn but I wish I could get these people off the road - one way or another!

Incidentally, this is the image I was going to use with this article. I'm still undecided so thought I would put both.

For those who don't recognise her (shame on you) this is Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on one of her usual tours of the Royal Parks. The authenticity of this image is disputed.

Big Head?

Saturday 22 November 2014, 1.00pm

Those of you who are regular readers of this site - yes, there may be some - might have noticed that this post was not posted in November as the date might suggest but in fact only appeared in January. Well yes, that is true. But as I've sat down to write the next post I realised that although I had written this post I hadn't actually posted it, so here it would have been:

It is still pouring but as least now my sister and mother are not leaving the country! (see October post)

I was worried that these posts appear to be self-indulgent and egotistical, why does anyone outside my immediate circle care what I think? Its an odd concept but writing a blog is hardly a unique thing, there are millions of them and why would anyone care what anyone has to say? There are, of course, many instances where genuine journalistic or scientific comment is presented in the convenient form of blogs but there are also a great many more blogs written by people who can hardy be described as an expert on much, not least the subject they are choosing to comment on - and I include myself in that. So why do people choose to publish their opinion? Perhaps people are egotistical, or perhaps its a form of self-therapy? I'm sure there is a blog out there somewhere with an opinion if I could be bothered to find it.

When It Rains It Pours

Saturday 04 October 2014, 11.55am

They say, “When it rains it pours”. While that may not necessarily be always true it does seem to be the case in a disproportionate number of cases. For the second time in recent times I am faced with personal issues that cause great hardship and conflict. Now, don’t get me wrong, these issues I am faced with are not on the scale of fleeing a warzone or famine, and it is with these examples in the back of my mind that I am genuinely very grateful for the life I have the privilege of living. But, on a day-to-day basis, having worse things going on in the world does not make our personal issues any less important. I believe Humans are innately selfish animals, we’re not that different from our cave dwelling ancestors whose primary goal was survival, the caveman’s primary goal was survival for himself and then his immediate family and Humans lived like that for thousands of years. It is only in modern times (and I’m talking hundreds of years here) that man has become so secure in themselves that they have the capacity for sympathy for strangers. I’ve gone off on a bit of a tangent here but the point is that I don’t think people should feel guilty for worrying about their own problems even in the context of terrible things going on in the world.

Last year my mother became ill round about the time I was planning my wedding. We decided that we wouldn’t let the disease take up any more of our lives than it had too so we continued with the wedding, we were delighted that although undergoing treatment she was well enough to attend. The conflict between getting married and potentially loosing ones mother is not an enviable one to put it mildly, I can’t think of many things – on a personal level – that are happier and sadder. My mother is fine now thankfully. Recently my wife and I decided to move house. Moving house is generally considered to be one of the most stressful things behind getting married, death and birth, for us it affords us a great opportunity to move up to a much bigger house in a nicer area and still not be that far away from our friends and family, so despite the stress of actually moving overall it’s a positive thing. At this time we’ve recently learnt that a close friend is ill, like last time we cannot let it take over all our life but it is still very sad news. Also, my sister, her partner and my mother are emigrating. On the one hand I’m so pleased for them as it will give them the lifestyle they want and affords them great opportunities, I’m sure they will be happy and they deserve it, but of course it’s sad that they won’t be around as much. We have been much closer as a family recently (particularly since the wedding) and it will be sad and happy.

I don’t know where I’m going with this; perhaps the point is simply “When it rains it pours”.

New (to me) Words

Saturday 16 August 2014, 4.15pm

I learnt a new word this week: vituperative, meaning bitter and abusive, as in “That was a particularly vituperative outburst.” I love it when there is a high-minded word to describe low-minded behaviour – as there usually is. My nickname at school could have been: Mark ‘unnecessarily complicated words’ O’Callaghan (or should that be: Mark ‘sesquipedalian’ O’Callaghan?) although my nickname more often would be based on an apparent difficulty in pronouncing O’Callaghan - "Cauliflower" was one, how is that any easier or shorter than Callaghan?

Anyway, the tendency to use overly complicated words does still sneak in now-and-again but I do try to suppress it, not only so that I do not appear to be a snob or condescending, but also, as I appear to becoming increasingly forgetful I sometimes use incorrect words which just make me look stupid. That said; I still like learning new words. New words in English is one thing, a new language is another. Perhaps one of my greatest regrets from school (aside from the general failure and the crappy nicknames) is not taking the opportunity of learning a new language. It didn’t seem particularly important to me at the time but it's one of the few things I would like to go back and try again.

Well... that was fun

Saturday 02 August 2014, 8.40pm

The first day of the blog. Having committed to writing this thing I am now devoid of inspiration. I've used all my creative juices in creating the content for the pages of this website. I've been meaning to revamp my online presence for a while now but not quite made it over the apathy hurdles, until now. Introducing my new website, please give it a read and I would love to read your feedback. If I receive some nice comments there is facility within the website builder I'm using to allow for live comments to be left and I may upgrade the package to allow me to do so - but only if you're nice.