Posts (page 2)
Interestingly, I scored half a point less at my interview than the other candidate. I still exceeded all the requirements for the job and was expecting the other candidate to turn it down as she said she didn't want to have to travel 30+ miles from Liverpool to Manchester every day. But in the event, she decided to take it, so from 1 July I shall be deemed 'surplus.'
I have mixed feelings about this. First of all, they're not just going to make me redundant. They're obliged to help me find another suitable job at my grade and as I'm surplus, I'll be guaranteed an interview for any job for which I'm elgible and for which I apply. Having said that, there are not a lot of jobs around, as we're still reducing headcount across the whole UK civil service. Ot they may put me on 'project' work indefinitely. I have an interview with our HR manager on Tuesday to discuss my options.
What's on your "To-Do" list today? What are you most looking forward to and what are you most dreading?
1. Take cat to vet for results of blood tests and check infected eye.
2. Go to work, prepare for interview taking place tomorrow.
3. Pick up wife from work to take to doctor.
4. Paint remaining fence panels this evening if weather is OK and I can be bothered.
Looking forward to: Can't think of anything right now.
Dreading: Being successful at interview and getting the job, which I don't really want, but have to take as my current job will cease to exist on 1 July.
If you had to write your autobiography in 6 words, what would you write?
Submitted by mitzie.
I'd write my autobiography in six words, of course.
Stupid question.
What could we do to create a world with less violence?
Toast.
That's what we need.
Get people to sit down together and eat toast, along with a beverage of their choice.
Let's face it, no government has succeeded in reducing violence (and quite a number of them are the main protagonists) but it's hard to get argumentative with someone with whom you share a few minutes to consume hot buttered toast.
God knew exactly what he/she was doing when he/she created toast.
Who was the meanest teacher you had in school?
Mr D. When I was 7 or 8 I got promoted a class and Mr D was the teacher. He had it in for me right from the start, or so I thought, but in the end I think he had it in for a lot of kids. He had wild tempers if you didn't understand something he was tryingto 'teach' you. I had a lot of problems with mathematics and all he did was make me try to do it when the rest of the class was doing gym. He didn't try to help me, just made me sit and stare at the book and try to work out what I was supposed to be doing by osmosis.
I got to be so scared of him that I refused to go to school. My mum had to see the head teacher about it, and he was very understanding and said I should go to see him whenever I was worried about what was going on. I saw him a few times and at the end of term Mr D left without explanation. I suspect he was asked to leave by the Head because there were so many complaints about him./
What did you do for fun when you were a kid? How is it different from what you see kids doing now?
Submitted by jaklumen.
We used to explore. We'd ride our bikes around town, and down to the River Mersey and just mess around in the fields and woods. We weren't worried that there were paedophiles around every corner and we didn't have mobile phones so our mums couldn't keep in contact with us all the time (there wasn't even a land line in my house up to when I left at 18). We'd go out in the early morning and not go home until we were hungry; or if we'd made sandwiches to take with us, and a drink, we'd be out all day. In those days there was no day time TV, it only came on around 4pm, so there was plenty of incentive to get out of the house. There were no console or computer games, and PCs hadn't even been thought of.
We climbed a lot of trees and got chased out of the parks by the keepers because that wasn't allowed. We'd borrow some rope and make swings in the trees. We also got chased for riding our bikes in the parks as that wasn't allowed either.
We used to make model military planes, then make airfields for them in our gardens. Then we'd shoot them up with air guns.
We'd play football (that's soccer, not American football) in the park with any kids who were there, so sometimes the teams would have 20 or more players and in the summer we'd play cricket.
We'd go train spotting, which was a lot more fun in the days of steam, as the engines were much more interesting than the diesel and electric ones today. We'd visit the train sheds and goods yards and see if we could get into the cabs of any engines. Quite often the drivers would let us on board to have a look.
And we used to race toy cars to see whose would go furthest along our road. There were a lot less cars in those days and we lived on a side road anyway, so there was no through traffic.
This is the sort of music I was grooving to in my teens. And I'm glad to see Mr W is back to playing in that style again, like Traffic at its very best, but now with Eric Clapton thrown in for good measure. Listen to the long version at http://www.stevewinwood.com/
What happened the first time you were left home alone as a child?
Submitted by Warhead.
Since I submitted this one I guess I'd better post about my own experiences.
I think the first time I was left alone at all was Saturday nights, when I was 8 or 9 and my parents would go to the pub and my sister was out with her friends. I stayed home and watched 'Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea' or 'Laredo,' drink a whole litre bottle of Coke and switch on all the bars on the electric fire until the room was like an oven. This always pissed off my dad, who was the kind of guy who'd switch off the fire when he left the room, even though other members of the family were still there.
The first time I was home alone overnight was when I about 16, I think. We were supposed to be going on holiday, but the day we were to drive to Wales coincided with the day I was to compete in the regional cycling championships. So my dad and step-mother went off and I was to follow them the next day ... on my bike. Only 109 miles.
So when I got home after the cycling, the first thing I did was rig up a speaker from the stereo in my bedroom so I could listen to my sounds downstairs. I only has enough cable to reach half way down the stairs, but that was enough for my needs, if I cranked it up to the max. I needed this so I could listen while I attempted to cook something for my evening meal, because at that time amost all my waking hours were accompanied by rock music when I was at home. Remember, this was the days before the invention of the Walkman, so you had to be near your hi-fi to be able to hear the music.
I can't remember what I cooked, but it would have been something experimental (and probably crappy) as I'd never had to cook for myself before, but that didn't matter because I had the house to myself, I could listen to my music without my dad yelling at me to turn it down and watch whatever I liked on TV.
I didn't burn or break anything, but I still remember that first unique feeling of freedom at having the house to myself.
What is your favorite quote and why?
Currently, it's the one from my profile, "You're not responsible for all the stuff that's carried out in your name." Eric Idle
They may not be the exact words, but they're close. I was watching the documentary about Monty Python's Spamalot and Eric was talking about some of the bad stuff going on on the planet and how people felt about it, and then he said something along the lines of "You're not responsible for all the stuff that's carried out in your name," and I thought, god dammit, he's right. I mean, I knew this already, but I'd never actually realised it, and suddenly I felt a lot better about some of the crappy decisions our government makes, that I really don't agree with, but feel pretty powerless to do anything about.
When I left secondary school in 1972 one of the guys thought it would be fun to meet up in a few years, but realising we could be at the far flung corners of the universe, he suggested we meet up on 29 February (easy date to remember, right?), at the Portland Dive Bars in Manchester, eight years after we'd all gone our separate ways. That way he wouldn't have to try to keep in touch with everyone, or post an announcement in the papers, and of course, in those days, there was no internet and no Friends Reunited.
I stayed in touch with a couple of guys from school, and when the time came we remembered our leap year date. In our last year there were around 80 students and about 15 turned up for the first reunion. It was not an organised affair; no speeches, no band, no refreshments, except what you bought from the bar. It was interesting to see how people had progressed in eight years, who was working, who was climbing the greasy pole in their chosen field, who was dead, in prison, missing in action, etc. A few of the guys went on to a club later, but that was never my scene, so I called it a night at that point.
Geoff, the guy who's been organising this thing, keeps an old school notebook, and every time we meed he records who's there, what time they arrived and changes of address. Of course, these days it's easier to keep tabs on people through email, even if they've moved house several times.
I didn't go to the last one. I'd been going to each one and it became the same old thing each time. The same dozen guys turning up, talking about the same old things but eight years ago I realised I wasn't enjoying it, and when the last one came around I really didn't fancy it. So, when Geoff rang me I told him I'd had enough and wouldn't be going again.
That would have been the case this time too, except that Malcolm, an old friend of mine who'd moved to Canada in 71, is back in England doing a Masters Degree in Graphic Design at Sunderland Uni. He came to stay with us between Christmas and New Year, and my wife organised for three of our best school friends who we've managed to keep in touch with, to come around and chew the fat. One of the guys mentioned that the reunion was coming up and Malcolm said it might be fun to go, seeing as he'd only seen the four of us on a couple of occasions since he left. We all agreed to go, and I picked up Malcolm from the station on the 29th and we had our traditional Friday night chip-shop tea before heading down to the pub in Didsbury.
It was pretty weird for Malcolm, because two of the guys who turned up had been really good friends with us during our school days, and I'd seen them at previous reunions, but Malcolm hadn't seen them for 35 years and not only did he not recognise them, they didn't recognise him!!
As before, around a dozen of us turned up and we had a small room in the pub almost to ourselves which meant we could all hear most of the conversations that were going on. Having Malcolm there meant that a lot of very old stuff was talked about, not just what had happened since the last meet up. Things were mentioned that either I didn't remember at all, or remembered differently. That was very strange for me. What had been insignificant to me stuck firmly in other people's minds, some of it specifically involving me.
It also seemed that the guys had mellowed since the last time I met them. They were more laid back, possibly less bothered about telling everyone about their glittering careers, and a couple were hoping to retire soon. One or two had had near death experiences and serious health problems, which I suppose is only to be expected in our advancing years and I'm sure this will have affected their outlook on life.
So it wasn't the ordeal I'd been expecting after all and assuming I'm still around in 2012 I'll probably go to the next one.
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