Sunday, February 29, 2004

Wow its been ages - how remiss of me.

Not a great deal has been happening - had a lovely weekend with the girls - except a casual comment that Bryony wants to move with me actually seemed to be something they'd all discussed which put a slight worry over our time together. I discussed with their mum when I dropped them back and it seems to be born of the fact they don't get on. I know Bryony is a handful - very strong willed, think she knows it all and is fiercely independent - and I know she can dominate proceeding and loose her temper and hasn't learnt when to just chill......and it'd be great to have her with me but its not really viable for many many reasons. Its long a complicated as well, my ex chose to move to Scotland, he chose a path that meant I see less of them, in the early days of splitting up she chose to cut me out of all day to day issues and not to have a say in their lives.....she may find it all hard work now, and it may spoil and strain her cosy harmony but this is not the solution......even if I only worked 9-5 and lived closer to work the environment I could provide Bryony is a lot different to what she has now.....and then there's Kate to consider too.....so I think that one's put to bed for now but am a bit miffed I wasn't given time to think about it and be prepared when I had them rather than have Bryony and Kate tell me they'd all talked about it whilst we were having dinner and making it sound like it was me that was saying no!!!!!!!

Anyhow we had a nice time playing ten pin bowling and watching a film and I took their chocolate fondue up and made it over the boiling kettle in the hotel room!!!

I've just been to the gym and was pleased to have lost another 3ibs, which at 14st 8lbs means I've lost 22lbs in 2 months - YAY!!!
posted by Listener at 12:29 PM

Tuesday, February 24, 2004

Little Britain is one of the funniest things around these days - the Beeb have kindly allowed you to listen into the latest Radio series online anytime :D
posted by Listener at 10:02 AM

Wednesday, February 18, 2004

you've prolly seen Penguin Meppin (yeti hits penguin across snow) but there's also 'hit The Penguin over at Coole Games - Online spelletjes spelen! which if anything is even funnier :)
posted by Listener at 10:44 PM


The BBC have a really good learning french course here.

All is well at the moment, am quite excited because I am going up to see the girls on Friday. The plan is to leave early and try to get up there before they leave school. Kate's quite excited about me meeting her and Bryony's given me instructions for where I can meet her....naturally its 'round the corner' rather than immediately outside where I could possibly embarrass her in front of her friends!

then we're staying at a Travelodge overnight armned with a chocolate fondue and marshmallows. Saturday we'll prolly go to the cinema and see Cheaper By The Dozen and a spot of shopping. I'm coming back Saturday night as I can't afford two nights but it will still be ace :)

Frustrating couple of days at work trying to get ome of the team 'motivated'.....I just can;t seem to make them see the bigger picture......however am getting resigned to the fact that this is just the way it is!!! Don't really want to blog too much about it for 'professional reasons' unfortunately!
posted by Listener at 10:38 PM

Saturday, February 14, 2004

What a lovely Valentine's Day :)

D. and I woke up late, I made her breakfast in bed and got the paper, we lazed around. I got her the awesome new Snow Patrol CD and she got me the world :D

We went to see the excellent School of Rock this afternoon.....its very, very funny Jack Black rocks!!!!

This evening I cooked a meal, we had Grilled Lemon Chicken Kebabs with Gremolata, grilled aubergines and peppers stuffed with a mix of rice, tomatoes, carrots, mushrooms, tomatoes, parmesan and herbs and seasoning. It was yummy if I say so myself.

For pud we had baked apples stuffed with rasons and cinammon and creme fraiche :)

Am a little tipsey and am ignoring my Valentine so gonna go :) xxxx
posted by Listener at 10:50 PM

Wednesday, February 11, 2004

Desperately trying to downlaod a Japanese Language Pack for Windows 2000 for D........not as easy as it first seems (well for me anyway). They said this would work even tho its for XP and I believed them - more fool me. However methinks Download.com have the business, its 100Mb and keeps shelling out so am glad for Netscape SmartDownload
posted by Listener at 10:38 PM


Lost in Translation soundtrack came today - YAY! :)

Work is a struggle at the mo, am really enjoying it but its so hard trying to motivate people and get them to do things.....it really shouldn't be like that should it? I am not asking for anything out the ordinary, I'm just trying to get us more organised and efficient and so that we can say 'hey look at all this good stuff we do' and so that the customer is made happy quicker and, and, and.....

Anyhow it seems that answer is yes it is ;out of the ordinary', well for my lot anyway lol....still I will persevere :)

Blueness from weekend has kinda passed, am missing the girls hugely.....but then as D. says I always miss them more when I'm just about to see them.....and that's the 20th which is like only 9 days away :)
posted by Listener at 7:25 PM

Monday, February 09, 2004

There's a really cool documentary on about 'early' home computers circa 1980s - its ace a real throw back....they've just expalined how to load a game onto the Sinclair Spectrum:

Insert casette into playe
type load "game" (the speech marks are very important apparantly)
swith on casette
press 'return'
wait 10 minutes
.....................................and so on lol!!!
posted by Listener at 10:21 PM


musicplasma : the music visual search engine - very cool and very clever :)
posted by Listener at 7:28 PM

Sunday, February 08, 2004

Shit things that have happened this weekend:

Visiting Dad - well that wasn't shit but it always leaves me feeling sad, in particular we were doing a crossword (he's saved a load from the past few months Saturday papers!) and we did quite well but then I had to get back so he started looking for the 'next weeks' answers but he couldn't find them, unfortunately we were doing Saturday 30th August 2002, the next Saturday after that was the first day after Mum passed away......I'm not sure if the dates actually fell into place for Dad but I was left feeling a little sadder than ussual on the way home.

Crap phone call with the girls....it just was.....its really hard at the moment, I'm not bitter but I do get a bit pissed off that Bryony isn't having a new outfit for my sister's wedding and she's always telling me mum's hard up and then I hear they're getting some top of the range volvo for their second car.....meanwhile muggings is having to pay prolly the ebst part of £100 to go up and have them for one night!!!!!

And then to top it all I seem to have upset D. somehow.

Aww fuck it I'm going to bed :o/
posted by Listener at 11:32 PM


Now I know everyone is raving about iTunes, but I'm not wholly sure....see I don't quite 'get' how it works....are you supposed to have everything in the iTunes library (copy it across from Explorer or how? Or do you just just set up playlists when you want? I have a music collection on my PC but when I 'look' at it in iTunes none of the 'info' is logged - just the title, so do I have to resave everything? Otherwise what's the benefit of iTunes over any other player if you can't use all the clever sorting and data fields and stuff.....maybe I am missing the point somewhat......

hmmmm pos-post note....k I'm getting used to it a bit more now.......its not too bad actually lol
posted by Listener at 6:02 PM

Saturday, February 07, 2004

Funny Link, cheers John (oh keep pressing F5)
posted by Listener at 6:46 PM


Coffee For One

Coffee for one for me today
No not to stay, I'll take away
No-one to share it with you see
So coffee for one it is for me

No-one to sit with and have a chat
No-one to talk of this and that
No-one to share the papers today
So coffe for one and I'll take away

I used to sit just over there
When there was someone here to share
We'd while away an hour or two
Talking of what we were going to do

But that all changed some time ago
And the only thing that I now know
Is its coffe for one to take away
Coffee for one, for me each day
posted by Listener at 5:40 PM

Wednesday, February 04, 2004

One Huuuundred And Eiiiighty - cool darts game :)

And even cooler Pingu game......Crazy Sledging :)
posted by Listener at 10:02 PM


Oh yeah also, herbal tea....basically bleurgh, it tastes thin and has no edge, apart from an occasional mint tea I can't stand it. But D. found Redbush Tea and its ace, its pretty much like normal tea only with no tannin nor cafeine....but mostly its bloody yummy :)
posted by Listener at 10:00 PM


I am feeling very very good at the moment.......I mean I feel well, and fit, and 'lighter'....I have more energy and feel deeply contented and happy.

I have felt happy and contented for a long time now, that's down to the lovely D. but I am genuinely surprised about how different the 'Diet' is making me feel. Before Christmas I felt bloated and lethargic and generally lacking energy....but not these days and that's a really good thing.

One of the most noticeable things is my knees used to ache and be quite painful when getting out of the car or from kneeling, lying down. They still ache (I have always had 'weak knees' that's not a D. thing too...well only metaphorically lol) but aren't painful. I put this down to loosing a stone in weight....I have closed my first milestone (dropping below 16 stone) and am well on the way to the next one (below 15). My BMI (not that I hold much faith in these things) is 12.5 stone but I haven't been that since 21 and I was 'skinny' then.....I don't want to be skinny again so am setting myself around the 14.5 stone mark and see how that feels.

What I want more than anything is to have a flat stomach. I had one briefly after 3 months of back packing (the diet and all that walking countersetting the beer!) and would really like to have on again.

So my personal goals are a flat stomach and feeling fit and energetic and I am getting there.

Y'see I've never been much of one for 'looking after myself'. I've always tended to let it look after itself (although of late it hasn't hence the change in lifestyle). I drank too much coffee, smoked too many cigarettes and drank too much alcohol....I've always eaten healthily-ish, being blessed with only a minor sweet tooth but a strong desire for savory snacks.....I guess a little too little moderation....and that's what I have now...moderation....I feel like I can indulge when I want too (or will once I reach my 'targets') as I have a lifestyle which includes moderation to fall back on.

I always thought it would be quite hard work to live like that (or was that 'lazy-Listener whispering in my ear) but I find its not.

I have noticed too I have an extra edge at work, its making me think clearer and be more focused, its helping me do things and not put them off.

I'm glad I am feeling like this.
posted by Listener at 9:54 PM