Bye bye!

I've moved to wordpress for my general musings.

Fairtrade Fortnight in Keighley

Fairtrade fortnight is in full swing. Sarah and Matthew are out now as I speak with the Bradford FairTrade camper van, giving out quizzes and free samples. Matthew was having fun, but has only got the idea of handing out the teabags- not letting people take them!

They will be out again in the Keighley area on Tuesday, at Silsden co-op in the morning, and Sainsburys in the afternoon.

Being a Doctor Who fan...

Someone told me that the BBC Doctor Who website has a trailer for the new series starting at Easter. It puts me in the mood to see this new series. Which is a shame as I probably won't be able to see much of it this year due to the move... but more about that in another post.

Thinking back six years to when the Russell T Davies revival was first announced, I felt ambivalent about the revival. Russell was a good writer and loved the series. I'd seen his Channel 4 series, and heard good stuff about the serials he did for children's TV.

I was prepared not to like it. As a thirty-something male fan of the original series I realised that I had no right to like it- it would have to primarily grab the attention of the younger audience. If us old school fans liked it too, that would be a bonus, if not then we still had the tapes of the old series, and the CDs made by Big Finish.

But the younger audience liked it. And I got my bonus- I thought it was great too. It was better than anyone had any right to expect. What's more to cap it all it all, lots of other people liked it and it became incredibly popular.

It doesn't always hit the mark. But, by and large, it has a better hit rate than the old series, and you need your rose tinted glasses to pretty deeply coloured to think otherwise.

Doctor Who has just come to the end of a golden age, and is entering a new one, with a new chief writer, and lead actors. It may not repeat the success of the Davies-Tennant era, but five years of top-notch TV was more than any fan had any right to expect.


Anyway- talking of Doctor Who nostalgia: Prior to the move I'm trying to flog as much of my stuff that gathers dust in attics as possible. I don't think it's fair to ask my parents to store more stuff while not doing anything with all the boxes that have remained untouched for five or more years.

My old New Adventures seem to have gone like hot cakes on Amazon marketplace, and the few ten to twenty year old copies of Doctor Who Magazine that were still intact have found new homes courtesy of eBay. Who would have thought it.

I'm having more difficulty getting rid of the remainants of my collection of video tapes. Who fans are typically quicker to adopt new technology than people in general, so have no desire to pick up episodes on an old format. I got rid of a few tapes at work to people wanting to show their kids what they used to watch back in the day, but I think I'm going to have to take drastic action with the rest.

The life laundry is therapeutic. It feels better to know this stuff is with people who will appreciate it, rather than just taking up room or being pulped to become part of next weeks Daily Mail.

Spot the human?

I have proof that David Cameron is in league with...

OK, let's look at the facts.

The image on the left was taken from a campaign poster. The image on the right, just a regular photograph. Spot the difference?

The one on the left, so smooth, almost plasticy. It's an auton replica!!

David Cameron is in league with the autons and is using at least one of them to help him out with his campaigning. Must be.

Or it's the result of over done make-up, or even a photoshop job.

Nah.

It's the end, but the moment had been prepared for.

I had most of the end of 2009 off work, and happily spent it with my lovely wife and son. And we did have a nice time.

Things I have not been doing included:

• Blogging


• Decorating


• Reading discussion forums

So... anything happen over Christmas? The main thing, according to the BBC was the finalé of the Russell T Davies era of Doctor Who. I don't think the climax to a TV series had ever had so much build up. The two-parter over christmas seemed to be the now traditional series finale and the Christmas episode.

I enjoyed it. I thought the end was overblown and self-indulgent, but I enjoyed that too. Russel and David had certainly earned that self indulgence.

So, for Doctor Who, it's the end of an era. Wonder what the new one will be like?

New year's resolutions

I'm still deciding what they are.

I have several options.

One is to avoid spending too much money in the vending machine at work. Easier said than done, but a lot easier than other options.

Another is to get a grip of my reaction to stressful situations. Also a toughie.

A third is to develop a more relaxed attitude to ignorance and cynicism. Knee jerk cynicism is not the same as intelligent scepticism. It's a corrosive attitude. We need more sceptics and fewer cynics in my view.

Happy Boxing Day!

Yes, the Radio Times is wrong. In 2009 Boxing day is today!

Boxing day falls on the first weekday after Christmas day. Which isn't necessarily the 26th of December.

So... now you know!

End of an era

Back in September, new regulations meant old fashioned incandescent (OFI) light bulbs can only now be sold in clear types.

In our house we were down to one light fitting with an old fashioned bulb in it. The R63 spots in the kitchen were replaced this time last year, following an assignment for an OU course on sustainable living. I've not regretted it either. The bulbs light the room just as well as the ones they replace, and they have outlasted enough of the old type to be saving me money.

Which left one solitary light fitting in the bathroom unable to accommodate the now standard compact florescent bulb. Which, to be honest, needs a bulb equivalent to 100w to provide sufficient light. We've all known for some time that the end of the 100w bulb was due, but we just didn't get round to getting that light replaced.

Fortunately there was a solution. It has to be noted that compact florescent bulbs come in a variety of different shapes and wattages. But I'd already tried and failed to squeeze one into the space available. CF bulbs are not the only type of bulb out there, Philips and GE produce a halogen bulb that is the same shape and size as the OFI 100w bulb. I bought the 100w equivalent and it is a brilliant stop-gap measure. It lights the room just as well as the bulb it replaces, and fits in the same amount of space.

It's a shame that it's come to this to be honest. It would be nice if we could all have gradually moved ourselves onto the new technology, and restricted our purchases of 100w OFI bulbs for those few remaining fittings where a standard CF bulb of the required brightness won't fit. But too many of us were sticking with old fashioned bulbs for reasons other than the merely practical. The ignorant "Wah shud ah"s have basically spoilt it for the rest of us.

I'm certainly nice enough to be embarrassed by my intransigence, rather than incandescent (ha ha) at the inconvenience.

Local news

This pilbox is in the field behind both where I work and the cemetary at the end of my street.

Funny to see something so close to home in the paper.

This. Has got. To Stop.

We seem to be becoming increasingly paranoid about photographers. People taking photographs are being frequently challenged by police. We have increasingly weird ideas of image rights and what permission is needed to take photographs in public spaces.

This is just the latest case.

It is often argued that people taking photographs of things some people don't think are interesting should expect to have to justify themselves. This is a bad and small minded argument, however it doesn't even apply here. He was photographing a church. An actual architectural landmark. Surely that point could be appreciated by even the most unimaginative of idiots?

Apparently not.

Austin Mitchell MP raised an early day motion about police intimidation of photographers. It hasn't seemed to work so follwing this case he has submitted a new one.

Petitions about photography on the Number 10 website have been met with the response that photography in public places is not illegal. This misses the point- it needs to be made clear to the police that it's not illegal and a greater degree of suspision is required before challenging people who photograph in public places. ACPO have in the past issued guidance on what the legal position of Police Officers challenging photographers is. The message appeared not to be getting through to the officers on the ground. Now worried by reports of misconduct in the press, ACPO are issuing their members with a warning. I hope it gets through to beat officers this time.

I'm wondering whether the mistrust of photographers is a problem with police culture, or one in society as a whole which is affecting some individual officers conduct. Either way- the paranoia must stop.

Being watchful and careful in public will make us safer as a nation. But this must be done calmly and intelligently. Fear, paranoia and mistrust do not make us safer.

Further reading:

LibDem Voice:

Tis the Season to be Wary - Lib Dem Voice

Warning: Do not take this picture - The Independent

Police U-turn on photographers and anti-terror laws - The Independent

Is Photography the new Crime? - Andrew Reeves