Off to Ely for the pre-breakfast event “Business Support is Changing”. Arriving for a 7:30am reception, this meant that the parking in the all day car park had not yet started; anyone arriving before 8:30 had to leave the car park after 90 minutes.
After the meeting there was a bacon butty breakfast, to be followed by a consultation between the county council and interested businesses.
The start of the consultation was briefly interrupted as the realisation set in that our cars were at risk of exceeding the 90 minute parking time. Indeed, a car park attendant was counting down the minutes and gave us a good natured good morning as we all dashed out to move our cars to another car park before returning.
The main message of the meeting was that business support was being dramatically pared down by the UK, whilst there was still free support from EU programs promoting cross border partnering between businesses.
After lunch and catching up with mail, I photographed the watercolour paintings that author Alan James wished to use in his book. The images were optimised for contrast and then both colour and grayscale versions saved.
The afternoon passed quickly with other work interspersed with an uncharacteristic number of Skype calls.
My mind was slightly disconnected by the early start and so some of the messages that I received took on separate meanings.
A tweet by London's Mayor, Boris Johnson, “Mayor secures more than £11m to boost homeless hostels in London...” raised the spectre of a fleet of hostels without a home. A friend attending a meeting “Inspiring Entrepreneurs” was equally ambiguous.
Later that evening, watching “Midsommer Murders”, one of the key items was protection of apple blossom from frost damage by “smudging” - creating a protective smoke blanket to keep frost at bay.
A search revealed that smudging was indeed a possible method for frost protection as listed in an Ontario Factsheet. However there more successful methods that could be used, including using the downdraft of a helicopter to displace the cold air boundary close to the ground. Spreading lots of small heating units through out an orchard would also work - more so than fewer large heaters which would create counterproductive convection, drawing in colder air from the surroundings.
The other reason that I would also have thought that smudging was less adviseable is that if the smoke is generated by combustion, it will invariably contain significant amounts of ethlylene, a gas known for its ability to induce senescence of leaves and flowers. Indeed this ethylene effect had beenfirst seen when the first gas street lights were installed – causing damage to nearby trees.
The most horrific news story of the day was of Ugandan children being trafficked into the UK (several hundred a year) for abuse in black magic blood rituals. Apparently the perceived value of blood in rituals is rising.
Showing posts with label weather. Show all posts
Showing posts with label weather. Show all posts
Wednesday, 12 October 2011
Monday, 27 June 2011
Mr Straus' cards, routes to e-book creation and the hottest day of the year so far
Today marked the completion of the business card designs for Mr Straus and his new venture, The Wine & Spirit Training Consultancy International (WSTC International). The design had evolved through a number of permutations and corrections – but today it was off to the printer.
The pleasurable was mingled with the difficult. Talking to and writing to two clients for whom we had not been able to find contacts in the UK, despite considerable effort expended. The one consolation is that this is a phenomenon in the minority.
We have permission to use the audio recording that I made and edited of Mrs Evans' interview on the Cambridge Open Studios website and I will address this possibly tomorrow.
Late afternoon and evening was directed to trying to convert both Word and Open Office documents into e-book formats via a variety of routes and with the use of different program sets. Examples were use of Mobipocket Creator and Calibre to convert either Word processing formats directly or via conversion to the internet language HTML. The test-ebooks generated in their myriad forms were then tested both on Kindle emulators and on the Kindle itself. I feel that I am getting a much better grasp of the process and possibilities.
Todays temperatures reached 30 degrees centigrade in the shade. The news claimed this to be the hottest day for years. Working in my windowed office afforded me the opportunity to practice dealing with heat up to 35 deg C whilst working, in preparation for an Egypt trip later in the year.
The pleasurable was mingled with the difficult. Talking to and writing to two clients for whom we had not been able to find contacts in the UK, despite considerable effort expended. The one consolation is that this is a phenomenon in the minority.
We have permission to use the audio recording that I made and edited of Mrs Evans' interview on the Cambridge Open Studios website and I will address this possibly tomorrow.
Late afternoon and evening was directed to trying to convert both Word and Open Office documents into e-book formats via a variety of routes and with the use of different program sets. Examples were use of Mobipocket Creator and Calibre to convert either Word processing formats directly or via conversion to the internet language HTML. The test-ebooks generated in their myriad forms were then tested both on Kindle emulators and on the Kindle itself. I feel that I am getting a much better grasp of the process and possibilities.
Todays temperatures reached 30 degrees centigrade in the shade. The news claimed this to be the hottest day for years. Working in my windowed office afforded me the opportunity to practice dealing with heat up to 35 deg C whilst working, in preparation for an Egypt trip later in the year.
Friday, 10 June 2011
Meetings and traditional sausages
Yesterday's The Inspired Group meeting had generated a new idea that continued fermenting in the hours before sleep. Almost the first task of the day was to encapsulate the idea and its ramifications into a document that was then sent off for consideration, in confidence, by both Mr Wishart and a further contact. The internet conspired against me by failing temporarily, thus delaying my departure for the weekly Huntingdonshire Business Network meeting.
Fortunately, my journey to Huntingdon was without incident, though I noted with some concern, the sudden cessation of flow and the rapidly growing queues on the other carriageway once past the Godmanchester exit. Arriving at the HBN venue of the Indoor Bowls Club, I was delighted to see Ms J Buck, a ray of light amongst business people through her radiant smile, dynamism and dedication to her successful Aloe Vera business. Just passing by, I was fortunate to see her before she departed for another meeting.
Today's topics ranged from promoting tourism in Huntingdonshire, over the best e-book reader, including feedback and impressions of yesterday's TIG meeting. I hit a technical hitch trying to convert a document with a colour image into mobi e-book format for Ms Ekblom; a task I tackled in the evening, finding that failure appeared to be the paucity of text in the initial attempt as subsequent trials with additional text functioned perfectly.
After HBN, on to Over for Tutorcloud. Mrs Farndale had brought along the business cards printed according to my design, which had turned out well. Joined by Mr Beal and Ms Heeneman, we progressed through the procedural mechanisms underlying the continued development of the matchmaking site.
I spent some time afterwards in conversation with Mr Beal and minor troubleshooting of the Cambridge Open Studios blog functionality.
On the way home, I stopped off at the Rose farm in Swavesey to purchase sausages from the last batch of pork to be prepared before Autumn, coming away with Lincolnshire and Old English pork sausages to freeze at home.
Volcanic activity appears to the the rage as there were news pictures of increasing lava activity in Hawaii. A detailed article in the Berliner Morgenpost http://www.morgenpost.de/web-wissen/article1668413/Lueckenlose-Indizienkette-weist-zu-Bio-Sprossen.html on the E. coli outbreak reports that the accumulated evidence from epidemiological studies poitns to the bean sprout producer in Bienenbuettel, Lowe Saxony. Infection clusters and photographic evidence of meals in pictures taken by restaurant visitors all contributed to the evidence.
Our region of East Anglia has been officially declared to be in a drought, though there was no threat to water supplies as yet.
Fortunately, my journey to Huntingdon was without incident, though I noted with some concern, the sudden cessation of flow and the rapidly growing queues on the other carriageway once past the Godmanchester exit. Arriving at the HBN venue of the Indoor Bowls Club, I was delighted to see Ms J Buck, a ray of light amongst business people through her radiant smile, dynamism and dedication to her successful Aloe Vera business. Just passing by, I was fortunate to see her before she departed for another meeting.
Today's topics ranged from promoting tourism in Huntingdonshire, over the best e-book reader, including feedback and impressions of yesterday's TIG meeting. I hit a technical hitch trying to convert a document with a colour image into mobi e-book format for Ms Ekblom; a task I tackled in the evening, finding that failure appeared to be the paucity of text in the initial attempt as subsequent trials with additional text functioned perfectly.
After HBN, on to Over for Tutorcloud. Mrs Farndale had brought along the business cards printed according to my design, which had turned out well. Joined by Mr Beal and Ms Heeneman, we progressed through the procedural mechanisms underlying the continued development of the matchmaking site.
I spent some time afterwards in conversation with Mr Beal and minor troubleshooting of the Cambridge Open Studios blog functionality.
On the way home, I stopped off at the Rose farm in Swavesey to purchase sausages from the last batch of pork to be prepared before Autumn, coming away with Lincolnshire and Old English pork sausages to freeze at home.
Volcanic activity appears to the the rage as there were news pictures of increasing lava activity in Hawaii. A detailed article in the Berliner Morgenpost http://www.morgenpost.de/web-wissen/article1668413/Lueckenlose-Indizienkette-weist-zu-Bio-Sprossen.html on the E. coli outbreak reports that the accumulated evidence from epidemiological studies poitns to the bean sprout producer in Bienenbuettel, Lowe Saxony. Infection clusters and photographic evidence of meals in pictures taken by restaurant visitors all contributed to the evidence.
Our region of East Anglia has been officially declared to be in a drought, though there was no threat to water supplies as yet.
Saturday, 4 June 2011
Return journey to Lincoln and the Architecture Students exhibition
This morning was the last foray to let the chickens of our neighbours before the latter returned from their holiday in Yorkshire. I was rewarded with an egg, pristine and still slightly warm, nestling on the hay where moments before a chicken had roosted.
Toast, tea and a boiled egg later, Mrs T and I set off for Lincoln, to collect Miss T for the summer break after her second year at University.
We traversed the dangerous stretch of the A14 to Huntingdon at a remarkable speed and without incident and left Cambridgeshire on the delightfully six-laned and quiet A1 North. Past Peterborough, the road began to undulate on the increasing but gentle rolling hills. The fields were looking greener here, compared to the severely drought ridden Eastern counties.
Twice, we saw red kites with their distinctive forked tails and slightly raffish wings, wheeling above us as we thundered past at 70 miles per hour. At Newark, we turned off onto the A46 in anticipation of having made good time to Lincoln, only to encounter a temporary queue within a couple of miles of the city.
Miss T kept an eye out for us and directed the car to a small hidden car park, a short walk along the quay to her accommodation for a short break. For lunch we dropped in on Prezzos, for salads or soups according to taste. As part of my campaign towards a reduced waistline, I thoroughly enjoyed the lighter option of king prawns on pizza bread with a good mixed salad. The latter enjoyed all the more in the knowledge that the UK has not been affected by the plateauing E. coli outbreak in Germany, now tentatively linked with a Northern German restaurant in Luebeck and another in Hamburg.
Miss T invited us to view the exhibits by architecture students in their third and fifth years. We spent an hour wandering around and I was increasingly frustrated with the presentation of the otherwise excellent and imaginative displays. In most instances, there was little attempt at clearly presenting a story that the visitor could follow. The exceptions were some of the third year students, who added legible labels and had a clear flow in their exhibits for the eye to follow through.
From my experience of attending Ecobuild and accompanying German companies in the Green, restoration and retrofitting sector, I was also surprised by the apparent lack of obvious major inclusion of energy efficient and other green features in many of the works.
We then returned for a cup of tea to the student lodgings and took on the surprisingly simple task of collecting Miss T's packed luggage and possessions. I was even more surprised that the economy of materials to be returned home left the rear windscreen of the car still clear for visibility.
The journey back passed equally well and without problems, with high cloud gradually coming from the West as a harbinger of the meteorlogical change to cooler wetter weather expected tomorrow.
Toast, tea and a boiled egg later, Mrs T and I set off for Lincoln, to collect Miss T for the summer break after her second year at University.
We traversed the dangerous stretch of the A14 to Huntingdon at a remarkable speed and without incident and left Cambridgeshire on the delightfully six-laned and quiet A1 North. Past Peterborough, the road began to undulate on the increasing but gentle rolling hills. The fields were looking greener here, compared to the severely drought ridden Eastern counties.
Twice, we saw red kites with their distinctive forked tails and slightly raffish wings, wheeling above us as we thundered past at 70 miles per hour. At Newark, we turned off onto the A46 in anticipation of having made good time to Lincoln, only to encounter a temporary queue within a couple of miles of the city.
Miss T kept an eye out for us and directed the car to a small hidden car park, a short walk along the quay to her accommodation for a short break. For lunch we dropped in on Prezzos, for salads or soups according to taste. As part of my campaign towards a reduced waistline, I thoroughly enjoyed the lighter option of king prawns on pizza bread with a good mixed salad. The latter enjoyed all the more in the knowledge that the UK has not been affected by the plateauing E. coli outbreak in Germany, now tentatively linked with a Northern German restaurant in Luebeck and another in Hamburg.
Miss T invited us to view the exhibits by architecture students in their third and fifth years. We spent an hour wandering around and I was increasingly frustrated with the presentation of the otherwise excellent and imaginative displays. In most instances, there was little attempt at clearly presenting a story that the visitor could follow. The exceptions were some of the third year students, who added legible labels and had a clear flow in their exhibits for the eye to follow through.
From my experience of attending Ecobuild and accompanying German companies in the Green, restoration and retrofitting sector, I was also surprised by the apparent lack of obvious major inclusion of energy efficient and other green features in many of the works.
We then returned for a cup of tea to the student lodgings and took on the surprisingly simple task of collecting Miss T's packed luggage and possessions. I was even more surprised that the economy of materials to be returned home left the rear windscreen of the car still clear for visibility.
The journey back passed equally well and without problems, with high cloud gradually coming from the West as a harbinger of the meteorlogical change to cooler wetter weather expected tomorrow.
Thursday, 26 May 2011
From Picadilly Circus to night-time photos of the Tower bridge
Having learnt yesterday’s bus travel lesson, I forsook the opportunity of taking the number 9 from Milton and instead made way way rapidly to the Park and Ride on the other side of Butt Lane. This time I made the 8:15 to Kings Cross with minutes to spare. It took an interminable walk to reach the Circle Line and travel the one stop on to Euston Square and a more gentle stroll down Gower Street to meet Mr Straus. Indeed I was so early that I was able to have a cup of tea in the hotel's breakfast room whilst Mr Straus finalised his packing andwe set off amiably together to catch a number 14 bus to Piccadilly Circus. Roadworks conspired against us, forcing us to alight at Green Bank, however, this meant that we discovered the restaurant in the Royal Academy for a preparatory conversation.
With rain spitting occasionally upon our heads, we met up with Mr Scholz and his companion and walked along to the offices of Hakkasan in Wardour Street to our first appointment of the day. This was most interesting to both parties, as demonstrated by it's duration of over an hour. With our last appointment destined to be at the Chesterfield later in the afternoon, we returned to the new found treasure, the RA restaurant for a small luncheon.
Mr Straus ran his experienced eye over the wine menu and made a point of congratulating the lady serving us, who directed him to the Manager, to deliver the compliment in person. Whilst some may say, that Mr Straus is generally eloquent, his expertise and conversation is riveting when directed to his expert area, wine. In recognition of expert appreciation, we suddenly found ourselves the recipients of a complimentary tasting of two wines, including the house wine Tracy Emin. My crab salad was exquisite; I now know where to eat well at a reasonable price when next in London. In particular it was such a positive delight to see an establishment where the service was excellent and considerate, in a city where sheer exploitation and fleecing of the London visitors is more the norm.
Our final meeting in the genteel lounge of the Chesterfield brought a relaxed close to the business of the day. We parted company with Mr Straus who made his way back to his beloved IOD for another meeting. The heaven's opened so we took a taxi to Westminster Bridge, running to the public subway to shelter from the deluge. The water floods cascaded down the stairs, attempting to make up for the drought experienced over the past months.
Mr Scholz, his companion and I took a water taxi to Tower Bridge, to walk in the returning evening sunshine past the Tower and admire the Tower Bridge. Walking on, we reached St Katherine's Docks where Thames sailing barges were moored along modern yachts. Crossing the bascule over the lock, we attempted to find food at the Dicken's Inn which was unfortunately fully booked. Instead, we dined at the Mala Indian restaurant.
Our final parting was on Tower Bridge later that evening as Mr Scholz and companion caught the number 78 bus back to their hotel for a 3am start back to Germany.
Tower bridge was now illuminated in the twilight, a good time for photography, but the access to the bank by the Tower was blocked. I suddenly found myself in the company of three third year students dressed for a masquerade, who had similarly wanted to go along the bank to reach the pier. We now had to walk all around the Tower, where we went our separate ways.
I continued down to the pier and found a good vantage point to photograph Tower Bridge, both in a single shot, and also in an attempt at a panorama in 3 separate photos. The lighting was so low that the camera was indicating an exposure of between one eighth and a fifteenth of a second. Whilst this is practically impossible to take handheld for me, I was using the small olympus camera with anti-shake and appeared to get a few clear, if slightly grainer images.
At last, I strolled to the tube station, past the street performer with his sign “What do I have to do to make you love me?” (Give me a hug!) to catch the circle line back to Kings Cross, where I caught the 10:15pm to Cambridge. A chance comment to a fellow passenger revealed another networker and speaker who I will connect with on Linkedin. Back home by 11:45pm!
Major news this evening – Radko Mladic, indited for commanding the Sebrenica Massacre and the Sarayevo Siege, arrested at last! Doctors in some hospitals having to prescribe water for elderly patients due the poor care and positive neglect they were subjected to.
With rain spitting occasionally upon our heads, we met up with Mr Scholz and his companion and walked along to the offices of Hakkasan in Wardour Street to our first appointment of the day. This was most interesting to both parties, as demonstrated by it's duration of over an hour. With our last appointment destined to be at the Chesterfield later in the afternoon, we returned to the new found treasure, the RA restaurant for a small luncheon.
Mr Straus ran his experienced eye over the wine menu and made a point of congratulating the lady serving us, who directed him to the Manager, to deliver the compliment in person. Whilst some may say, that Mr Straus is generally eloquent, his expertise and conversation is riveting when directed to his expert area, wine. In recognition of expert appreciation, we suddenly found ourselves the recipients of a complimentary tasting of two wines, including the house wine Tracy Emin. My crab salad was exquisite; I now know where to eat well at a reasonable price when next in London. In particular it was such a positive delight to see an establishment where the service was excellent and considerate, in a city where sheer exploitation and fleecing of the London visitors is more the norm.
Our final meeting in the genteel lounge of the Chesterfield brought a relaxed close to the business of the day. We parted company with Mr Straus who made his way back to his beloved IOD for another meeting. The heaven's opened so we took a taxi to Westminster Bridge, running to the public subway to shelter from the deluge. The water floods cascaded down the stairs, attempting to make up for the drought experienced over the past months.
Mr Scholz, his companion and I took a water taxi to Tower Bridge, to walk in the returning evening sunshine past the Tower and admire the Tower Bridge. Walking on, we reached St Katherine's Docks where Thames sailing barges were moored along modern yachts. Crossing the bascule over the lock, we attempted to find food at the Dicken's Inn which was unfortunately fully booked. Instead, we dined at the Mala Indian restaurant.
Our final parting was on Tower Bridge later that evening as Mr Scholz and companion caught the number 78 bus back to their hotel for a 3am start back to Germany.
Tower bridge was now illuminated in the twilight, a good time for photography, but the access to the bank by the Tower was blocked. I suddenly found myself in the company of three third year students dressed for a masquerade, who had similarly wanted to go along the bank to reach the pier. We now had to walk all around the Tower, where we went our separate ways.
I continued down to the pier and found a good vantage point to photograph Tower Bridge, both in a single shot, and also in an attempt at a panorama in 3 separate photos. The lighting was so low that the camera was indicating an exposure of between one eighth and a fifteenth of a second. Whilst this is practically impossible to take handheld for me, I was using the small olympus camera with anti-shake and appeared to get a few clear, if slightly grainer images.
At last, I strolled to the tube station, past the street performer with his sign “What do I have to do to make you love me?” (Give me a hug!) to catch the circle line back to Kings Cross, where I caught the 10:15pm to Cambridge. A chance comment to a fellow passenger revealed another networker and speaker who I will connect with on Linkedin. Back home by 11:45pm!
Major news this evening – Radko Mladic, indited for commanding the Sebrenica Massacre and the Sarayevo Siege, arrested at last! Doctors in some hospitals having to prescribe water for elderly patients due the poor care and positive neglect they were subjected to.
Sunday, 22 May 2011
Eruption of Grimsvotn Volcano to protest storms in Spain
A year after the last volcanic eruption in Iceland, it's greatest volcano, Grimsvotn, is in the news due to its sudden flare-up. This eruption is larger than the Eyjafjallajokull blast but thought to be likely to be less disruptive for two reasons; 1. Winds are blowing the ashes away to the north of Iceland and 2. The ash is heavier and therefore likely to settle out more rapidly.
However, since I am anticipating meeting a visitor from Germany at Luton airport on Tuesday, there is the distinct possibility that the predictions turn out to be inaccurate and a fluke in the weather does bring ash our way!
Another storm brewing on the continent is the mass peaceful demonstrations in Spain against unemployment. With over 21% unemployment overall and more than 40% of young people unemployed in Spain, the peaceful nature of the demonstrations is admirable.
A search on the Eurostat website found the table on unemployment rates, month by month, for EU countries revealed that after Spain, Ireland had the next highest unemployment rate at 14.7%. On average, unemployment in the expanded European Union was 9.5% in April. See http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/tgm/table.do?tab=table&language=en&pcode=teilm020&tableSelection=1&plugin=1
Storm winds in the UK are affecting Scotland and northern England with the threat of damage and even here in the East, it was a very blustery day.
The evening was spent with varying success painting the different flowers photographed at Anglesey Abbey last week.
However, since I am anticipating meeting a visitor from Germany at Luton airport on Tuesday, there is the distinct possibility that the predictions turn out to be inaccurate and a fluke in the weather does bring ash our way!
Another storm brewing on the continent is the mass peaceful demonstrations in Spain against unemployment. With over 21% unemployment overall and more than 40% of young people unemployed in Spain, the peaceful nature of the demonstrations is admirable.
A search on the Eurostat website found the table on unemployment rates, month by month, for EU countries revealed that after Spain, Ireland had the next highest unemployment rate at 14.7%. On average, unemployment in the expanded European Union was 9.5% in April. See http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/tgm/table.do?tab=table&language=en&pcode=teilm020&tableSelection=1&plugin=1
Storm winds in the UK are affecting Scotland and northern England with the threat of damage and even here in the East, it was a very blustery day.
The evening was spent with varying success painting the different flowers photographed at Anglesey Abbey last week.
Thursday, 17 March 2011
Misprints and the psychology of colour
My good friend Mr Straus was somewhat perturbed to find that a misprint on his new business card proof had transformed him from a Wine Trainer to a Wine Strainer. Since he was bereft of any facial hair to perform any such filtration, I considered his remonstration fair and implemented the correction forthwith.
The afternoon digressed into an investigation into the values ascribed to different colours. This was prompted by an observation by my now departed German guests, when perusing the bountiful wares in large shopping establishments, about the preponderance of stygian shades in products labels. It appears that black with gold or silver lettering is efficacious in conveying the impression of quality, whilst bright red and expanses of white are more suggestive of products at the lower end of the price spectrum.
Whilst we dine in relative comfort within our homes, the situation in Japan appears to be deteriorating with poor weather and problems in the distribution of food. Current figures deaths due to the catastrophes now exceed 15,000.
The media focus still remains on the Fukushima reactors and the hyperbole has led to the begin of migration out of the unaffected city of Tokyo, many miles to the south, and an exodus of foreigners. A Russian expert commenting to Reuters believed that, in the absence of combustible graphite rods in these nuclear reactors, there was not a risk of a Chernobyl like incident. What was needed was a restoration of power to the reactor cooling pumps.
The United Nations reach an unexpected agreement in passing a resolution permitting the implementation of a no-fly zone in Libya and an immediate cessation of hostilities. It remains to be seen whether it has arrived too late to assist the popular uprising now almost restricted to Benghazi.
In contrast, there is a muted western response to the suppression of the uprising in Bahrain with troops from Saudi Arabia.
The afternoon digressed into an investigation into the values ascribed to different colours. This was prompted by an observation by my now departed German guests, when perusing the bountiful wares in large shopping establishments, about the preponderance of stygian shades in products labels. It appears that black with gold or silver lettering is efficacious in conveying the impression of quality, whilst bright red and expanses of white are more suggestive of products at the lower end of the price spectrum.
Whilst we dine in relative comfort within our homes, the situation in Japan appears to be deteriorating with poor weather and problems in the distribution of food. Current figures deaths due to the catastrophes now exceed 15,000.
The media focus still remains on the Fukushima reactors and the hyperbole has led to the begin of migration out of the unaffected city of Tokyo, many miles to the south, and an exodus of foreigners. A Russian expert commenting to Reuters believed that, in the absence of combustible graphite rods in these nuclear reactors, there was not a risk of a Chernobyl like incident. What was needed was a restoration of power to the reactor cooling pumps.
The United Nations reach an unexpected agreement in passing a resolution permitting the implementation of a no-fly zone in Libya and an immediate cessation of hostilities. It remains to be seen whether it has arrived too late to assist the popular uprising now almost restricted to Benghazi.
In contrast, there is a muted western response to the suppression of the uprising in Bahrain with troops from Saudi Arabia.
Wednesday, 16 March 2011
A grey day and the beneficial effects of Jalapeño
It was indubitably a day that matched the grey clammy skies and penetrating bitter wind. Our spirits hit a mid-morning low in the surreal surroundings of the Butcher's Hook and Cleaver public house. A closed Underground destination; arriving three hours after the close of Smithfields market; promised appointments that never materialised. It appeared a to be a day that required rewinding and total reconfiguration.
So we squared up and accepted the irrevocability of the situation from a business perspective, noting the possible causes - and looked to make the best of the day. Since the ladies had missed seeing some of the sights of our capital, we determined that we should rectify this during the last hours of their stay, before their return to Germany.
We found our way to the Tower of London, once gateway to the city and gruesome prison, and marvelled at Tower Bridge looming out of the clearing mists.
Having flown to this country, travelled the city's roads in Hansom cabs, rocketed through the countryside by train and had our fill of the subterranean Underground, it was only natural to take to Father Thames by boat.
Seated in the warmth of a cavernous cabin, right at the front with a panoramic view through the large windows, we enjoyed the sights along the river as we sailed to Westminster. We walked past the Houses of Parliament and sauntered through St James' Park to the chime of Big Ben, until reaching Buckingham Palace. From there we took a cab to Harrods where we marvelled at the Food Halls.
Our spirits were lifted by the time it came to the guests departure on the Gatwick Express.
The challenge and excitement of accompanying our guest now removed, lethargy threatened to descend upon me with a return to melancholy by the time I boarded my own train at Kings Cross Station. This was dispelled by my evening meal of a chicken and chorizo sandwich, liberally spiced with slices of hot Jalapeño peppers. The burst of capsaicin upon the palate burnt through to the brain, imparting sufficient invigoration to see me home to the warm welcome by my wife.
So we squared up and accepted the irrevocability of the situation from a business perspective, noting the possible causes - and looked to make the best of the day. Since the ladies had missed seeing some of the sights of our capital, we determined that we should rectify this during the last hours of their stay, before their return to Germany.
We found our way to the Tower of London, once gateway to the city and gruesome prison, and marvelled at Tower Bridge looming out of the clearing mists.
Having flown to this country, travelled the city's roads in Hansom cabs, rocketed through the countryside by train and had our fill of the subterranean Underground, it was only natural to take to Father Thames by boat.
Seated in the warmth of a cavernous cabin, right at the front with a panoramic view through the large windows, we enjoyed the sights along the river as we sailed to Westminster. We walked past the Houses of Parliament and sauntered through St James' Park to the chime of Big Ben, until reaching Buckingham Palace. From there we took a cab to Harrods where we marvelled at the Food Halls.
Our spirits were lifted by the time it came to the guests departure on the Gatwick Express.
The challenge and excitement of accompanying our guest now removed, lethargy threatened to descend upon me with a return to melancholy by the time I boarded my own train at Kings Cross Station. This was dispelled by my evening meal of a chicken and chorizo sandwich, liberally spiced with slices of hot Jalapeño peppers. The burst of capsaicin upon the palate burnt through to the brain, imparting sufficient invigoration to see me home to the warm welcome by my wife.
Saturday, 12 March 2011
On Photograph editing and Nuclear Accidents
Set about completing the selection and editing of the photographs that I took at Mr Thrussel's business, Siga Electronics, on Wednesday, despite it being a Saturday. This on account of travelling to London tomorrow,to assist two travellers from Germany on their visit to the International Food and Drink Exhibition.
The labour was not onerous but did consume much time in the repeated cycles of selecting, cropping, contrast optimisation and fine tuning of the saturation of individual colours in each of the 120 images. Wrote a short article expounding the diversity of applications and locations of Mr Thrussel's company's products.
Was alarmed to hear that there had been an explosion at the Fukushima Daiichi 1 power plant after the Tsunami. The British Broadcasting Corporation reporters making much of the potential for dire consequences. However, upon researching nuclear accidents on the World Wide Web, I came upon a very informed article by the World Nuclear Association (http://www.world-nuclear.org/info/inf06.html) on the safety of such reactors.
It revealed that the danger posed by Western Nuclear Power Plant accidents is far less than propounded. There are several levels of physical containment; even when a meltdown occurs, it tends to self contain the radioactive material in the molten sludge. With the notorious Three Mile Island accident, the meltdown by a full half of the core proceeded a mere 15mm towards China, rather than tunneling through the centre of the earth as feared in the so called "China Syndrome". For those doommongers crying "Chernoby!", they should note that the old Russian reactors lacked the level of containment utilised in the West; this allowing the explosive distribution of radioactive contamination.
As the day progressed, the lesser hazard appeared to fit the Fukushima Daiichi 1 accident. However, the hacks were now directing their attention to a second reactor where cooling has also failed.
This was out of all proportion, compared to the emerging news that one small Japanese estuarine town, Minamisanriku, had literally disappeared from the face of the Earth and 10000 people were missing. A true tragedy.
Milton basked in balmy sunshine today, in marked contrast to the unfortunate Scots who, in the far North, are struggling with blizzards and snowdrifts.
The labour was not onerous but did consume much time in the repeated cycles of selecting, cropping, contrast optimisation and fine tuning of the saturation of individual colours in each of the 120 images. Wrote a short article expounding the diversity of applications and locations of Mr Thrussel's company's products.
Was alarmed to hear that there had been an explosion at the Fukushima Daiichi 1 power plant after the Tsunami. The British Broadcasting Corporation reporters making much of the potential for dire consequences. However, upon researching nuclear accidents on the World Wide Web, I came upon a very informed article by the World Nuclear Association (http://www.world-nuclear.org/info/inf06.html) on the safety of such reactors.
It revealed that the danger posed by Western Nuclear Power Plant accidents is far less than propounded. There are several levels of physical containment; even when a meltdown occurs, it tends to self contain the radioactive material in the molten sludge. With the notorious Three Mile Island accident, the meltdown by a full half of the core proceeded a mere 15mm towards China, rather than tunneling through the centre of the earth as feared in the so called "China Syndrome". For those doommongers crying "Chernoby!", they should note that the old Russian reactors lacked the level of containment utilised in the West; this allowing the explosive distribution of radioactive contamination.
As the day progressed, the lesser hazard appeared to fit the Fukushima Daiichi 1 accident. However, the hacks were now directing their attention to a second reactor where cooling has also failed.
This was out of all proportion, compared to the emerging news that one small Japanese estuarine town, Minamisanriku, had literally disappeared from the face of the Earth and 10000 people were missing. A true tragedy.
Milton basked in balmy sunshine today, in marked contrast to the unfortunate Scots who, in the far North, are struggling with blizzards and snowdrifts.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)