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Eastercon

Friday, March 21st, 2008

Thanks to my EeePC (and a very slow network), I’m able to blog live from a science fiction convention for the first time ever.

If the batteries hold out, that is 😉

Random entries will find their way to either here or my LJ (which is more writing oriented).

This morning I surprised myself by getting up at seven—yesterday’s drinking session nonwithstanding—and getting to the venue (Edwardian Raddissson, Heathrow) by nine, only to find that the registration doesn’t open until ten.

But I could hardly miss the first panel, could I? ‘Russell T Davies: Best of British or Fan Boy Let Loose?’

For tomorrow I’ve brought a hall costume. Watch out for the Sweeper of Souls. (“Isn’t that Death?” “Death tends to drop things, and Hell needs a street cleaner 😉 “)

Posted in events, Short Trips | 6 Comments »

FlickrBye

Monday, February 4th, 2008

Flickr is part of Yahoo, and Yahoo is about to be swallowed up by Microsoft.

I’m one of several hundred users who are preparing to up sticks and remove their photostream from Flickr if that happens.

However, it’s not as simple as backing up the entire stream on a bunch of CDs, or even on my website. I have a lot of photos, a basic hosting package and no CD burner (no, really!) I also don’t believe in hard drives, which is why I just bought an EeePC with a 4 (four) GB solid state drive.

As you can probably tell, I believe that the future is in online storage and web-based applications. Even if that means putting my trust in Google, for now.

But this makes it difficult to export my Flickr photostream to another photo sharing site.

Until I discovered the Flickr Importer Tool on Ipernity.com (via the Microsoft: keep your evil grubby hands off of our Flickr pool, natch).

This smart little script imports 200 of your photos at a time, starting at the beginning and keeps right on going.
[read on]

Posted in computers and gadgets, Travel | 2 Comments »

Houseguests

Sunday, February 3rd, 2008

The sun is still shining. But to compensate, blizzards and storms have left hundreds of cars stranded in the north of England and driven two ships aground.

Meanwhile we are snuggling up next to the heater with our two new houseguests. Meet Albert and Cedric, our mates’ Norwegian Forest Cats. We’re looking after them while their owners are travelling China:

Cedric and Albert

Posted in Travel | Comments Off on Houseguests

An OLPC for Grownups

Friday, January 11th, 2008

Have you noticed how brats are always the first to get access to decent computers? I bet that back in 1997 there were more laptops per primary school child than per postdoc, by about an order of magnitude. That’s not to say that I don’t think the OLPC project isn’t a great initiative (even if I would like to see it go out to older children first).

But it does mean that I’m (lime-)green with envy.

Harumph.

Having missed out on the buy one-give one campaign, I had a look at Ebay and I must say that the XO looks—well—childish.

However, it’s obviously an idea whose time has come, because my prayers from years ago seem to have been answered. An ultralight, mobile, capable laptop—for adults

Roll on the Asus EeePC (Easy to work, easy to learn, easy to play).

Watch this space.


Photo by luisramirezuchile

Posted in computers and gadgets, Travel | 1 Comment »

Santa Claus is coming to Town!

Wednesday, December 19th, 2007

Santas at Great Scotland Yard

Once a year, hundreds of Santas invade the city of London for the annual Santacon shenanigans.

Santa Tux Santas of all shapes and sizes gather at a central location to spread Christmas cheer and holiday goodwill, and of course they would not be complete without their companions and associates. Those Pesky Reindeer Again!

As for me, I was accompanied by Knecht Ruprecht, the grumpy servant who is always at Santa’s side on St. Nicholaus Day in Germany to deal with the naughty children.

Badass Knecht Ruprecht

If only the assorted assistants, servants and companions would keep from fighting for five minutes…Did I Spot a Reindeer?

Despite Santa’s best effort, open conflict was only narrowly avoided, and Santa has the sprout marks to prove it! (Those pesky elves got me while Knecht Ruprecht was busy with the reindeer…)

So long, until next year!

Super Santa meets Body Idol

P.S. I’m currently baking a black cake or three, and if it works out I will blog the recipe both here and on Flickr, even though it’s too late to start one now. (Well, you could simmer the fruit in alcohol for half an hour and soak overnight, but it’s not quite as authentic…)

Posted in events, Travel | Comments Off on Santa Claus is coming to Town!

Back in Blighty

Friday, December 7th, 2007

Corralejo Beach

We had a great time. The Canaries are Europe’s playground: people come for a stress-free holiday and the islands don’t disappoint. But being part of the tourism-mill, we didn’t get to hear about the irrigation problems, rising property prices, or the fate of the boatpeople arriving constantly from Africa. So there isn’t much to talk about.

We ate, we drank, we snorkelled and we were merry. We had a happy holiday in surprisingly pleasant surroundings. Some of the islands—Fuerteventura among them—have put a stop to ugly high-rise developments, and Corralejo is an attractive, lively resort with the soul of the fishing port it once was still in there somewhere.

Alas, it seems not even a package holiday comes without the requisite near-death experience. I’m not a happy flyer, but I thought I was used to it by now. After all, people take their families on holiday—it’s not a high-risk undertaking.

But I swear the plane did a rabbit-hop upon landing at Gatwick, with all the wheels leaving the tarmac, accompanied by a frightening shudder.

“Turbulence,” John said when I unrolled myself from the crash position (I put my knees and arms up out of sheer reflex). “Pilot had to make a correction. No worries.”

No worries? The pilot had to make a correction?

Why do you think I’m scared of flying in the first place? What if he’d flipped the wrong switch?

That’s all for now. It is rainy and stormy outside and I only venture out of doors to buy milk or go to the pub. Meanwhile, I’ll keep updating the Flickr set (I have to insert a lot of descriptions and write up my holiday recipes, featuring—among others—stewed rabbit and goat).

I’ll see you again at next week’s Santacon!

Posted in Short Trips, Travel | 1 Comment »

All set to go

Thursday, November 15th, 2007

I must say the autumn colours are spectacular:

Autumn on the Stud Farm

But it is cold. And in a few days, the leaves will be gone.

So, today I ironed the crinkles out of my viscose dress (so that my butt doesn’t look big in it), fished out the tickets and travel docs, heaped the clothes which have accumulated in a pile on the floor into the backpack (leaving behind what didn’t fit inside), finished my NaNoWriMo quota (>30k words) and aliquoted two dozen different spices in small zip-lock bags ready for use in the kitchen.

Tomorrow morning we’re off. I may or may not blog about this trip, depending on internet access, timing and mood.

In other news: Borth has its own Flickr Pool!

Posted in Short Trips, Travel | Comments Off on All set to go

A Package Holiday, you say?

Saturday, November 10th, 2007

Yep—on Friday John and I will (hopefully) be departing for a break in the sun.

I rather spend two weeks with him in Fuerteventura than a month alone in Cuba. But as luck would have it, I can do both, although I’m not yet entirely sure about my wintering destination, other than it has to be somewhere tropical and laid-back. No mad travelling this time: I want a beach hut and somewhere to sit and write.

Posted in Travel | 1 Comment »

Towards Tokyo

Thursday, October 25th, 2007

Ueno Sunset

10/09/2007

JR East run double-decker Shinkansen in and out of Tokyo. They seem to move at various speeds: e.g. the 17:44 Max 218 from Utsonomiya to Tokyo would go at a maximum of 218km/h—significantly faster than the train I got on the way up. It pays to note these little details, because the whole of the central area seems to be one big commuter belt.

The train’s layout means that when you sit downstairs, you’re so close to the tracks that it feels like sitting in a racing car hugging the pavement. Or it would do, if the damn track wasn’t walled in by noise-barriers.

I moved upstairs, leaving the backpack in a corner. Although the train was much bigger than the ones I’ve travelled on so far, it was more crowded and I wanted to avoid bumping into people with my pack. Of course the crowds meant that all the window seats were taken.

I excused myself at the next stop and moved back downstairs, worried about my backpack: not that it might disappear, but that it might trigger a terrorism alert. But nobody had taken any notice—and the walls were gone!

Face pressed against the glass, hands cupped to block out the cabin light, I saw Japan streak past one last time, the city lights glittering like jewels against the darkening sky.

I had a lump in my throat. Today was the final day on my JR pass. For a moment I thought about taking the train back out of Tokyo, catching one last exhilarating ride, but all good things must come to an end.

And then it was over, like a dream. We pulled into Ueno Station and a quick glance at the map confirmed that I’d better get off here.

I found myself in the termite hill that is Greater Tokyo.

</END TRAVELOGUE>

# # # # #

Tokyo: Ueno Station Area

Posted in Japan without a Clue, Travel | 1 Comment »

Nikko: Rain and Shrine

Thursday, October 25th, 2007

Nikko: rain and shrine

10/09/2007

I was glad for the umbrella I bought on the way: at first it’d just looked like a brief shower, but by the time the train approached Nikko, heavy clouds had closed in from all sides.

They say that, for three days after a Typhoon, the weather is completely clear. Too bad that today was Day Four post-Fitow.
[read on]

Posted in Japan without a Clue, Travel | 1 Comment »

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