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Category: Moblog

Entries containing images photographed with my mobile phone's camera whilst out and about.

This category also has the following subcategories [number of entries in brackets]:


Tomy and Guy hair salon

A new venture between the well-known hair stylists and a toy company of my youth?

In: Moblog & China / Sinomoblog

2009 / 10 / 02 – 15:16 Top


Six things: Coffee, drinks, cakes, relax, music, bread.

My new favourite sign in Suzhou, at a new Italian cafe. I like to imagine the meeting:

Right, what do we sell? Coffee … er, other drinks … ooo cakes, yes! What else? ‘Relax’? We don’t sell ‘relax’. That’s a verb! Oh all right, we sell relax. And …? Music? Again, we don’t so much sell that as play-the-same-mp3s-over-and-over. Okay, I suppose that’s all … Wait! Bread!

In: Moblog & China / Sinomoblog

2009 / 07 / 26 – 10:51  | Comment [2]Top


A man picking up the last of his noodles from the road and carrying them back to his bike

My taxi had to wait [horn honking the entire time, naturally] which this chap scooped up the noodles that had spilled off the back of his bike. They were uncooked, and I can’t help but worry about where he was taking them. This street has a plethora of restaurants, some of which I have been known to frequent in the past. Rice for me from now on, I think!

In: Moblog & China / Sinomoblog

2009 / 05 / 07 – 21:11 Top


A single tree being transported horizontally on a bike

People transplanting trees and flowers is a familiar sight as Spring approaches and the city artificially increases the rate of blooming, but I think this chap has started a little early.

In: Moblog & China / Sinomoblog

2009 / 02 / 09 – 15:25 Top


A clothing shop called Bblluuee

I see this clothing shop every day when I wait for the bus, and every time I’m standing there I read the name in a kind of echoey voice: Bur-bur-bur… lur-lur-lur… oo-oo-oo … ee-ee-ee. [In my head, I hasten to add.]

The Chinese name 粉蓝 actually means “powderblue”, which sounds a lot nicer and I don’t know why they didn’t just translate it directly.

In: Moblog & China / Sinomoblog

2008 / 12 / 15 – 10:10 Top


A small boy peers into a manhole as two workmen climb down a ladder into it

Despite repeated offers, this boy didn't want to go down the drain too. Coward.

In: Moblog & China / Sinomoblog

2008 / 11 / 01 – 10:10  | Comment [2]Top


A rack of English-language magazines, including the monthly publication of a well-known human rights organisation

A surprising member of the magazine rack at one of the training centres where I do some part-time work. I’m assuming it was snuck into the country in someone’s luggage.

In: Moblog & China / Sinomoblog

2008 / 10 / 31 – 10:40  | Comment [1]Top


Two hammerhead sharks on a bed of ice

On sale at the local supermarket—that's your bog-standard, huge, foreign-owned supermarket, not some small speciality fishmonger—a couple of whole hammerhead sharks, about three feet in length. Anyone got any tasty recipe suggestions?

In: Food and Drink & Moblog & China / Sinomoblog

2008 / 10 / 18 – 19:45  | Comment [1]Top


Mid-Autumn Festival

Today farmers and families here are celebrating Zhongqiu Jie—Mid-Autumn Festival. The celebrations have many aspects, but the most important of these seems to be the eating of moon cakes.

The nomenclature is a little misleading as the cakes can be meat- or bean-paste-filled as well as sweet, and to be honest I don’t find them all that palatable. But the extra day off work I get is pretty tasty.

In: Moblog & China / Sinomoblog

2008 / 09 / 14 – 16:50  | Comment [4]Top


A long queue of people waiting outside Suzhou Public Library

After my comments on the conduct of the public when boarding the underground, in the interests of balance I took a photo of something I see every Saturday morning on my walk to teach: a long queue of people [mostly students], snaking several times back on itself, patiently waiting for Suzhou Library to open.

Like many important [or old] buildings, it uses traditional Chinese characters instead of the simplified versions that were introduced during the 1950s and ’60s. In traditional script, the first character of Suzhou is written , whose two components and mean fish and cereal crops respectively, giving more of an insight into what the region was historically known for.

In: Moblog & China / Sinomoblog

2008 / 08 / 02 – 13:18 Top


We don't need no Western toilets, steenkin' or otherwise

The only Western-style toilet in this public bathroom is used as a storage area.

As an aside, the Chinese for London 伦敦 is a homophone for “in turn, squat” 轮蹲.

In: Moblog & China / Sinomoblog

2008 / 08 / 01 – 11:53 Top


Sign on the floor of the subway platform indicating where to stand and board the carriages

Indicating where to stand as the subway train pulls up, following well-established international norms: passengers wanting to board should wait on either side, in order that passengers wanting to disembark can exit along the centre—with handy footprints just in case you’re not a Chinese-reader. This was taken in Nanjing but you can see similar signs in Shanghai and, I imagine [and especially], in Beijing. I translate the characters on the far left 《文明乘车》 as “Civilised boarding.”

In reality, the people who want to get on crowd around the middle, and start to push their way into the carriage as soon as the doors open. I don’t think this is rudeness on their part—I think it’s just a mindset that has developed over generations in such a vastly-populated country: you’ve got to scramble to the front if you want to get a seat or a good place to lean, and the fact that you can see there is plenty of room in the carriage does little to change this behaviour, despite the best efforts of the government in the lead up to the Olympics.

In: Moblog & China / Sinomoblog

2008 / 08 / 01 – 10:29 Top


No tat here

For China's nouveau riche, perhaps.

In: Moblog & China / Sinomoblog

2008 / 07 / 31 – 22:06 Top


Boxes and bags of my possessions outside my old building

Fifth flat in just over two years, I’m getting good at this packing lark.

My new place is much more convenient for work and studying at the university—I can walk to either in under half an hour—and, much more importantly, is a stone’s throw from most of my friends’ homes, as well as the majority of bars, cafes and restaurants I usually frequent. No more wasting money on taxis home at the end of the evening!

Furthermore, the rent is two-thirds that of my last flat, and the neighbourhood is quieter and more traditionally “Chinese” than the wide-streeted, characterless district that I’ve been living in for the past fifteen months or so. It’s good fun discovering all the local shops, getting to know the best places to buy fresh fruit and vegetables. The only apparent downside is that the landlady lives in the flat directly opposite, which means we’ll have to be model tenants for a while before we throw our housewarming party.

In: Moblog & China / Sinomoblog

2008 / 03 / 24 – 21:56 Top


Snow-covered trees and pavement along a main street

The view from my bedroom window this afternoon. This is the first time we’ve had snow that actually settled since I moved here. Apparently, much like in London, it used to snow here most winters, but in recent years the December-to-February period has been merely very cold. It’s nice to have a bit of a pay-off for pulling on the thermals every day.

In: Moblog & China / Sinomoblog

2008 / 01 / 26 – 14:49  | Comment [1]Top


A canal disappearing into the fog

After a couple of months of unseasonal blue skies and warm weather, winter has at last descended onto Suzhou, with a very foggy past week and drizzly rain throughout the days.

The good news is: I have magically landed over a month’s holiday over the Chinese New Year period, so I can escape the dreary weather and head to warmer—or at least more visually-spectacular—climes in a few weeks. Time to start perusing my trusty Rough Guide once more.

In: Moblog & China / Sinomoblog

2008 / 01 / 12 – 13:18  | Comment [2]Top


On the third day of Christmas, my landlord gave to me...

…a shiny new washing machine! One that isn’t possessed by evil spirits, sings a happy tune to me when it finishes a load, and even has a self-cleaning setting. [I’m a bit scared to use that particular setting in case the machine implodes in on itself into a singularity, like a snake eating its own tail.]

In: Moblog & China / Sinomoblog

2007 / 12 / 31 – 10:24 Top


Cartoon winking face with 'Excited' written underneath

And I just can't hide it.

On display at kindergarten at which I teach, a whole generation of children will express their excitement through the medium of winks.

In: Moblog & China / Sinomoblog

2007 / 10 / 28 – 10:57  | Comment [1]Top


My feet covered in blue plastic socks

One of my new teaching duties takes me about an hour out of Suzhou, to a technology company that insists I cover my filthy shoes with these fetching plastic socks.

In: Moblog & China / Sinomoblog

2007 / 09 / 18 – 11:32  | Comment [3]Top


English countryside landscape near Caterham, South London

Fresh air; blue skies; big clouds; deer running through the forest; nettle stings immediately soothed by nearby dock leaves; pub lunch. You can’t beat a bit of English countryside.

In: Moblog

2007 / 08 / 07 – 14:13  | Comment [1]Top


Cheap Chinese knock-off England football shirt, misspelling the country as 'Englund'

So where’s all this rain I’ve been hearing about? Landed yesterday afternoon at Heathrow to blue skies and warm sunshine. I think you’ve been making it all up just get to me to come back.

In: Moblog & China / Sinomoblog

2007 / 08 / 02 – 11:04  | Comment [2]Top


Menu displaying 'snake' and 'sandwish' amongst other treats

Although “sandwish” is clearly a mistake, there’s a small chance that this trendy new coffee house really does have snake on the menu.

In: Moblog & China / Sinomoblog

2007 / 05 / 07 – 21:22 Top


A large teapot made of flowers, with a decidedly evil expression on its face

Floral stationary “floats” are appearing all over Suzhou, some with an Olympic theme, and some, like this one, a little bit creepy. Reminds me of the Stay Puff Marshmallow Man from Ghostbusters.

In: Moblog & China / Sinomoblog

2007 / 04 / 26 – 08:27  | Comment [1]Top


A whole pineapple on a plate

Pineapple season has arrived, and they’re particularly delicious this year. For just 30p you get a whole pineapple carved into this pleasing shape for your eating pleasure.

I’d like to take this opportunity to go on the record and say that pineapple—or indeed, any fruit—on pizza, is just wrong. [Tomatoes are the obvious exception to this rule.]

In: Moblog & China / Sinomoblog

2007 / 04 / 17 – 08:40  | Comment [2]Top


Happy hour sign in really quite terrible English

Despite their dubious Special Offers signage, the Korean-owned Lai Bar in Suzhou is actually not a bad little place for a quiet drink.

In: Moblog & China / Sinomoblog

2007 / 04 / 16 – 17:23 Top


Apparently it’s Easter weekend—I’d not realised until I started to receive a few e-cards and greetings. This is as eggy as I could manage at short notice: fried-egg sandwiches and a bowl of M&Ms….

Read the rest of “Egg-ish”…

2007 / 04 / 08 – 16:12 | Comment [1]Top


Check twice before entering……

Read the rest of “Doubly-sure?”…

2007 / 04 / 03 – 18:53 | Comment [2]Top


It’s always the way isn’t it? There’s always one decoration you forget to take down—the sprig of holly over the painting in the spare room; the piece of tinsel around the cat’s collar; the Christmas candle behind the clock…

Read the rest of “February”…

2007 / 02 / 01 – 19:39 | Comment [1]Top


Publically-displayed statue of a gurning gentleman enjoying using his “pestle & mortar” a little too much……

Read the rest of “I don’t think they really thought this statue through”…

2007 / 01 / 29 – 21:28 Top


Some of my primary school students taking their end-of-term English test. They all did really well, with six students scoring 98% and one achieving 100%! This could have been something to do with their Chinese teacher looking at their…

Read the rest of “Concentration”…

2007 / 01 / 14 – 08:44 Top


I’d never even heard of it before I moved into my new flat, but I have since discovered that many of the posher kitchens here come equipped with one of these: a crockery and cutlery sterilising [and drying] cabinet…

Read the rest of “Baby, baby, baby, fight my germs”…

2007 / 01 / 04 – 16:06 | Comment [2]Top


Maybe it’s just my sense of humour, but I can’t help reading this card in a deadpan, sarcastic manner….

Read the rest of “Sarcardsm”…

2006 / 12 / 21 – 05:28 | Comment [2]Top


A relatively painless move last weekend found me in my new [temporary] home, and it’s a lot nicer than my last place! Proper heating throughout [as opposed to a single electric radiator], comfy sofas [as opposed to hard wooden…

Read the rest of “New digs”…

2006 / 12 / 14 – 13:16 | Comment [5]Top


One of the exhibits at last month’s Suzhou Institute of Art and Design’s FiberArt [sic] exhibition: all the works of art were made from fibre-based raw materials. Each of these hands were individually-knitted gloves….

Read the rest of “Lend us a…”…

2006 / 11 / 28 – 14:44 | Comment [1]Top


The cake for Tara’s surprise leaving party: chocolate icing, topped with grapes, kiwi fruit, peach, pineapple, pear, and … erm, tomato—garnished with a sprig of parsley. Okay, so tomato is technically a fruit [but not legally, at least in…

Read the rest of “Fruitcake”…

2006 / 10 / 30 – 14:21 | Comment [5]Top


If only all shops could claim this. Oh wait, that wouldn’t actually be very useful, would it?…

Read the rest of “No need to haggle”…

2006 / 09 / 18 – 07:00 | Comment [4]Top


Sometimes you just want some easy-to-make comfort food, like beans on toast. But do you want it enough to eat it using chopsticks? [Er. No, of course not. Luckily they do have knives and forks out here.]…

Read the rest of “The ultimate challenge”…

2006 / 08 / 25 – 22:32 | Comment [3]Top


This praying mantis-like insect suddenly appeared on my chest and started to crawl up towards my face as I tried to take his photo….

Read the rest of “Super-realistic brooches are all the rage here”…

2006 / 07 / 03 – 07:59 | Comment [3]Top


I’ve no reason for posting this photo aside from the slight resemblance that the water droplets have to a smile….

Read the rest of “Empty but happy”…

2006 / 06 / 26 – 23:57 | Comment [4]Top


Due to being stuck on a train between cities, I unfortunately missed nearly all the fun of the annual Dragon-Boat Festival, held on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month of the Chinese calendar. However, I did get…

Read the rest of “Dragon-boat Festival”…

2006 / 06 / 04 – 02:01 Top


Here’s Emma, my Chinese teacher [on the right], being taught how to conjour a bottle opener through a loop of string. The waitress at one of our local haunts knows plenty of card tricks and illusions, and usually only…

Read the rest of “Tricky”…

2006 / 05 / 27 – 01:28 Top


2006 / 05 / 10 – 03:07 | Comment [2]Top


These are the typical sizes one uses out here. But which one is more unlike its Western cousins?…

Read the rest of “Enormous bottle or tiny glass?”…

2006 / 04 / 07 – 13:37 | Comment [7]Top


Thanks to Felicity, I am once again Jaffa Caking myself into oblivion….

Read the rest of “Jaffas!”…

2006 / 04 / 03 – 07:44 | Comment [4]Top


I wonder if it follows you around, silently purifying the air moments before you take a lungful?…

Read the rest of “Could be handy in cities like this”…

2006 / 03 / 29 – 02:06 Top


So that I can associate the name with the dish and get better at ordering what I want, I’m trying to take photos of the food I have in our local restaurants. So far I have remembered to do…

Read the rest of “Hóng shaō tǔ dòu”…

2006 / 03 / 23 – 14:01 | Comment [1]Top


The perfect St. Patrick’s Day present: a nicely-timed parcel containing delicious Irish tea, courtesy of my Dad. And it appeared to be un-tampered-with en route too. Yes, yes, I know, sending tea to China—I believe he’s shipped some coals…

Read the rest of “It’s not Barry’s, it’s mine”…

2006 / 03 / 18 – 20:37 | Comment [2]Top


The sign on the left is pretty obvious: no heavy trucks. Likewise, the sign in the middle, whilst possibly first being interpreted as “no bugling”, can soon be figured out: no car-horn honking. But sign number three? “No driving…

Read the rest of “Mysterious roadsigns”…

2006 / 03 / 07 – 14:19 Top


The students here often give their teachers gifts; the other day I got my first, only a week into the job. I must be doing something right. Or, looking at it again, perhaps I’m doing it all utterly wrong….

Read the rest of “My first gift”…

2006 / 03 / 03 – 14:09 Top


It appears someone left the window open….

Read the rest of “Not just draughty”…

2006 / 02 / 27 – 11:05 Top


And 5kg under the weight limit too….

Read the rest of “Packed!”…

2006 / 02 / 16 – 14:00 | Comment [1]Top


The spirit of Elvis visited our fireplace this evening….

Read the rest of “Thankewverymushhh”…

2006 / 02 / 15 – 23:06 Top


There are certain stickers I think I should remove from my guitar case before leaving for China….

Read the rest of “My guitar case? No, never seen it before in my life, honest…”…

2006 / 02 / 15 – 14:21 | Comment [2]Top


Is it safe to say that if the thermometer is frozen into a solid block of ice, the fridge is set a little bit too cold?…

Read the rest of “Chilly”…

2006 / 02 / 06 – 20:03 Top


As part of my pre-China aclimatisation training, I’m spending a couple of days in the west of Ireland, where it’s hovering somewhere around the zero degrees centigrade mark. Plenty of activities to keep me warm though: sitting by the…

Read the rest of “Cold in Caledonia”…

2006 / 01 / 31 – 10:56 | Comment [3]Top


I’ve just picked up my working visa from the Chinese Embassy in Portland Place. Having booked my flight last week and sorted out my insurance yesterday, I’m go for launch. T minus 23 days and counting……

Read the rest of “Mr Ambassador, you’re really spoiling us”…

2006 / 01 / 24 – 10:41 | Comment [2]Top


2006 / 01 / 24 – 08:01 | Comment [4]Top


Amazon need to invest in some medium-sized boxes: sending this huge thing containing just a stack of blank DVDs [and copious padding] meant they had to use Parcelforce instead of the Royal Mail. Good job I wasn’t the one…

Read the rest of “Box not-very-clever”…

2006 / 01 / 12 – 16:31 Top


You didn’t think I could go a whole month without posting something, did you? It’s the last day of my holiday, and I’m back where I started, in Buenos Aires, after a fantastic month of seeing some beautiful scenery,…

Read the rest of “South America blogging”…

2005 / 11 / 29 – 12:22 | Comment [9]Top


This is, in fact, the beer of a man, i.e. me, who has just, i.e. today, submitted his PhD thesis. Woo!…

Read the rest of “This is no ordinary beer”…

2005 / 10 / 27 – 17:23 | Comment [10]Top


Skip getting full? Thinking of getting it emptied, or ordering a second one? Don’t! Just build up the sides with old doors and tabletops and keep on filling. Sure it’ll make it impossible to collect when you’re done with…

Read the rest of “Skippy”…

2005 / 09 / 20 – 07:13 | Comment [3]Top


Even though it was only on the 55°C setting, it was too hot for this plastic tub. Update: Dishwashers, not dishwaters. Idiot….

Read the rest of “I always forget how hot dishwashers get”…

2005 / 09 / 12 – 17:59 | Comment [15]Top


Ace

The legendary-if-you’ve-heard-of-it Ace Cafe in London, where I was treated to a very nice birthday burger and chips. Highly recommended….

Read the rest of “Ace”…

2005 / 09 / 09 – 16:42 Top


Taking a stroll on Parliament Hill. Update: This is the thity-feet-tall sculpture The Writer by Giancarlo Neri, currently installed on Parliament Hill. Despite it being really rather large, I had a bit of a struggle finding it, but that…

Read the rest of “Can I sit at the big table?”…

2005 / 09 / 02 – 16:28 | Comment [2]Top


“Never wash a teapot,” my grandmother probably used to say; it’s the kind of wisdom grandmothers are prone to spouting. But she never saw just how shiny a dishwasher can make things….

Read the rest of “Shiny shiny, shiny pot of tea”…

2005 / 08 / 29 – 07:00 | Comment [7]Top


After lots of panicking over the fact that I Have Too Much Stuff [and being blessed by Lovely Friends who agreed to store some of it for collection at a later date, and Other Lovely Friends who helped me…

Read the rest of “Moved”…

2005 / 08 / 26 – 22:00 Top


2005 / 08 / 26 – 21:51 Top


The University. Specifically, the Maths Department therein. They very kindly gave me my first degree, and even more kindly let me come back and do my Ph.D without any kind of formal interview. I’ve made many, many good friends…

Read the rest of “Things I’ll miss about Leicester [#4]”…

2005 / 08 / 26 – 21:50 | Comment [2]Top


The Lansdowne. Also known as The Land’s Down, The Lamb’s Down, The Lonsdale, and several other not-quite-homophones. Good food, good whiskey, comfy sofas. Best pub in Leicester….

Read the rest of “Things I’ll miss about Leicester [#3]”…

2005 / 08 / 26 – 21:25 | Comment [2]Top


My armchair, which has just been sent to the Great Armchair [and Sofa] Home in the Sky [or Somewhere]. Okay, it may be the most hideously-covered piece of furniture you’ve ever seen outside of the Seventies, but it was…

Read the rest of “Things I’ll miss about Leicester [#2]”…

2005 / 08 / 22 – 13:11 Top


The shoe shop that wants to be a pizza parlour….

Read the rest of “Things I’ll miss about Leicester [#1]”…

2005 / 08 / 20 – 07:45 | Comment [1]Top


One of the stranger sights I’ve seen out of my office window: two of the lecturers having a sword fight. Or, on closer inspection, one lecturer having a sword-fighting lesson from another. They practised for about half an hour;…

Read the rest of “Stand off”…

2005 / 08 / 17 – 13:01 Top


Looks like the neighbour’s son is getting married today; half of Leicester just poured themselves into this limo….

Read the rest of “Take one ordinary SUV and strrrrreeeetch”…

2005 / 08 / 13 – 08:50 | Comment [5]Top


[With apologies to Lennon & McCartney.] So it’s official: the house I live in has been sold, and I’m decamping down to London before the end of the month. This has been, without a doubt, the nicest of the…

Read the rest of “He’s Leaving Home”…

2005 / 08 / 09 – 17:20 | Comment [2]Top


I’ve always wanted to arrange to meet friends outside this building. Yesterday I achieved this ambition. [We didn’t go in, opting for the pub down the road instead.]…

Read the rest of “The Friends Meeting House”…

2005 / 07 / 19 – 09:28 | Comment [1]Top


From a recipe at Chef2Chef. Ingredients Loaf 1/2 cup of unsalted butter 1/4 cup of finely chopped lemon balm 1 cup of sugar 2 large eggs 1 pinch of salt 1 1/2 cups sifted flour 1 teaspoon baking powder…

Read the rest of “Lemon balm loaf”…

2005 / 06 / 28 – 13:04 | Comment [2]Top


A photograph of my own photographs, sitting atop the piano of which they are photographs. [Winks is bemused.]…

Read the rest of “Meta meta”…

2005 / 06 / 01 – 16:39 | Comment [1]Top


The set of crockery originally consisted of four dinner plates, four side plates, four bowls, and four mugs, all matching. I have broken one dinner plate [some time ago] and now one bowl. So the question is: do I…

Read the rest of “Smashing”…

2005 / 05 / 27 – 19:19 | Comment [6]Top


Nice walk in the afternoon sun before spending the next two hours in a stuffy exam hall, invigilating. Still, at least I’m not sitting the exams. Update: Hmm, something’s gone awry with the Moblog script, which resulted in the…

Read the rest of “Lovely day”…

2005 / 05 / 27 – 12:49 | Comment [2]Top


It seems that, after two faulty devices, I finally have a working replacement phone. Here’s a moblog post of my desk to celebrate….

Read the rest of “Third time’s a charm”…

2005 / 05 / 17 – 10:08 | Comment [6]Top


I discovered that the reason my camera’s photos haven’t been of the best quality lately was that the lens was covered in a fairly thick layer of dust, a result of the ‘phone living in my pockets since August….

Read the rest of “Instant quality boost”…

2005 / 04 / 01 – 08:43 | Comment [1]Top


An entire day of talks on something or other yesterday. By the time of the last talk, the only people left were the hardcore mathematicians. And me….

Read the rest of “Another well-attended maths talk”…

2005 / 04 / 01 – 08:05 Top


A very enjoyable Faculty of Science Annual Lecture at the University this evening, given by popular-science writer Simon Singh—nice blend of information and jokes, although much of the humour was highly derivative of things I’ve already seen elsewhere, and…

Read the rest of “Simon Singh at the University of Leicester”…

2005 / 03 / 17 – 22:49 | Comment [5]Top


Found lying on my driveway this morning. I could see no further directions, so can only assume it’s happening at the old couples’ place across the street. Think I’ll give this one a miss……

Read the rest of “Hot-tubbing, anyone?”…

2005 / 02 / 05 – 13:47 | Comment [1]Top


The gales which have been battering the UK for the last couple of days plonked this sign in my front garden sometime during the night; it worryingly made it over the six-foot hedge and from the house over the…

Read the rest of “Windy city”…

2005 / 01 / 08 – 16:56 Top


Create cool heeeuuuge versions of your favourite photos with The Rasterbator. They look even better if you can be bothered to trim the white borders [or if you own a printer which prints to the edge of the page]….

Read the rest of “Rasterbation”…

2004 / 12 / 05 – 18:43 | Comment [2]Top


According to the sticker on the side, this is the “focal plane camera” for the Swift Gamma Ray Burst Explorer, which “will carry three instruments to enable the most detailed observations of gamma ray bursts to date”. And where…

Read the rest of “Gonna send it to outer space”…

2004 / 11 / 10 – 18:42 | Comment [2]Top


The awesome diplodocus skeleton at the Natural History Museum….

Read the rest of “Diplodocus”…

2004 / 11 / 01 – 13:44 | Comment [9]Top


The impressive front entrance to the Natural History Museum….

Read the rest of “Natural History Museum”…

2004 / 11 / 01 – 13:43 Top


Dr Brown pretending to look interested in the poster I made for today’s grand opening….

Read the rest of “We’re open”…

2004 / 10 / 20 – 14:23 | Comment [2]Top


As was suspected, the statue is indeed of Sir Isaac. What I didn’t know was that it appears to also be a sundial—although I’ve not actually been able to see if it works [and is at all accurate] due…

Read the rest of “Newton is a sundial”…

2004 / 10 / 17 – 16:37 | Comment [21]Top


There’s been a flurry of activity around the building in which I [sometimes] work lately—cleaning, polishing, putting up monitors displaying impressive-looking but generally meaningless simulations, getting everything all nice and finished-off before the official opening in a couple of…

Read the rest of “Dusting for plinths”…

2004 / 10 / 12 – 18:13 | Comment [6]Top


For anyone who has seen Shaun of the Dead, this, apparently, is the place where a scene involving someone chasing a pigeon was filmed, in Crouch End, North London. The shop where the character worked is directly behind me,…

Read the rest of “Lawn of the Dead”…

2004 / 10 / 12 – 07:43 | Comment [3]Top


The perfect weather to be stuck in your local coffee house….

Read the rest of “Rained in”…

2004 / 10 / 02 – 16:07 Top


When I got back from my travels, everything seemed fine with the house—all fish accounted for and no signs of a disturbance. Sadly the phantom grass-cutter hadn’t visited so the lawn is in severe need of mowing, but something…

Read the rest of “Take a fence”…

2004 / 09 / 25 – 12:30 | Comment [1]Top


<Dramatic movie-trailer voice>Passata: one man’s obsession with intensely tomato-based dishes.</Dramatic movie-trailer voice> I do love me some red sauce….

Read the rest of “Idea for a movie”…

2004 / 09 / 24 – 13:39 | Comment [3]Top


Fulfilling my legal obligation, as a “man born in the 70s”, to own the ultimate [at least, until George Lucas decides to revamp them yet again] versions of the Star Wars trilogy….

Read the rest of “It’s here”…

2004 / 09 / 23 – 18:06 Top


This came through the letter-box today—let’s hope their work is of a higher standard than their proof-reading skills….

Read the rest of “It’s their attention to detail that sold me”…

2004 / 08 / 31 – 21:58 | Comment [3]Top


Not many people out and about for a Bank Holiday Monday….

Read the rest of “Deserted carriage”…

2004 / 08 / 30 – 12:10 | Comment [7]Top


Winks is also loving the Bluetoothiness! [Trunk call, anyone?]…

Read the rest of “Hands-free is very useful when one lacks an opposable thumb”…

2004 / 08 / 23 – 21:21 Top


I’m not really back, so don’t get too excited—just some behind-the-scenes gubbins going on. An upgrade to a spiffy Motorola V600 meant it was time to overhaul the moblog script which generates these entries, so I delved into ImageMagick’s…

Read the rest of “New phone!”…

2004 / 08 / 23 – 20:53 Top


This appeared in my pond overnight….

Read the rest of “Water lily”…

2004 / 07 / 17 – 11:26 | Comment [1]Top


2004 / 07 / 07 – 07:53 Top


Surely that should say “visible damage”?…

Read the rest of “Heat vision?”…

2004 / 05 / 11 – 16:07 Top


Found wandering the long grass….

Read the rest of “Baby froggie!”…

2004 / 05 / 10 – 16:21 | Comment [3]Top


I got my handset flashed to update the software to the latest version, which should hopefully sort out problems I’ve had sending emails. Which is a rather long-winded way of saying: test entry….

Read the rest of “Lily”…

2004 / 04 / 25 – 15:13 | Comment [5]Top


It’s trickier than I remember to draw on eggs….

Read the rest of “The horror”…

2004 / 04 / 11 – 16:20 Top


2004 / 04 / 09 – 22:18 Top


2004 / 03 / 08 – 23:28 | Comment [1]Top


How am I supposed to get any work done when my delivery of items from the Amazon sale has arrived? From the top left, row by row: Men with Brooms [DVD], About a Boy [DVD], Lara Croft, Tomb Raider:…

Read the rest of “Media Circus”…

2004 / 02 / 18 – 16:38 | Comment [3]Top


The others should be okay to eat though, right? [If you don’t hear from me again soon, you’ll know what’s happened. “Man poisoned by mouldy orange. ‘He knew the risks,’ say unsympathetic Moblog readers.”]…

Read the rest of “Odd orange out”…

2004 / 02 / 17 – 13:24 Top


This tuft of hair has been annoying me all day. Any more nonsense from it tomorrow, and I’m shaving my head….

Read the rest of “Tuft luck”…

2004 / 02 / 11 – 18:12 | Comment [2]Top


Lots of food with minimum effort, thanks to online grocery shopping. Pity they don’t unpack it for you too….

Read the rest of “Delivery”…

2004 / 02 / 02 – 13:26 Top


The fish seem a whole lot happier after their tank is given a good clean. I’m just giving them a little exercise by turning the water filter on full blast—I’d better not forget to turn it down again, otherwise…

Read the rest of “Happy fish”…

2004 / 01 / 27 – 21:16 Top


No, it’s a lamp. And a keyboard….

Read the rest of “Is it art?”…

2004 / 01 / 27 – 03:51 Top


I left my guitar in London when I came back up last week, so I’ve been using my musical urges to get a little better on the piano. Not quite ready for my concert debut though!…

Read the rest of “Piano practice”…

2004 / 01 / 19 – 18:10 | Comment [3]Top


I rebooted my PC as it was running a little slow. Then it wouldn’t started at all — some nonsense about a missing driver required for log on. A quick “F8” during reboot and selecting “Use last good configuration”…

Read the rest of “Borked”…

2004 / 01 / 18 – 22:12 Top


I don’t think my plant appreciated being left unwatered for three weeks. It’s recovered from this sort of state once before though, so perhaps it will thrive again….

Read the rest of “Last legs”…

2004 / 01 / 14 – 09:10 Top


This is where we’ve spent the last few days, cut off from the world — I’ve had to walk up the street to higher ground just to email this entry. Beautiful Dorset countryside and a fine pint of Guinness…

Read the rest of “Christmas cottage”…

2003 / 12 / 26 – 14:10 Top


pretty lights on the hotel russell. on the walk home we also saw over-flowing bins spilling litter over the streets; couples violently arguing; an almost-dead fox twitching by the side of the road….

Read the rest of “hotel russell”…

2003 / 11 / 30 – 03:30 Top


emerging from a club, lights on but nobody around….

Read the rest of “covent garden by night”…

2003 / 11 / 30 – 02:09 Top


world’s scariest corkscrew…

Read the rest of “corkscrew monster”…

2003 / 11 / 29 – 16:27 | Comment [2]Top


we’ve got a visitor for the next two weeks. say hello to mitzi….

Read the rest of “houseguest”…

2003 / 11 / 22 – 11:15 | Comment [5]Top


the surrounding buildings force the wind to create a sort of cyclone effect, gathering up the leaves into a nice neat pile….

Read the rest of “windy”…

2003 / 11 / 14 – 16:05 Top


batteries ran out two minutes into the journey back to leicester. where are the spares? safely packed away in my rucksack, in the luggage compartment below. time to organise a sing-song… everybody: “flintstones, we’re the flintstones…”…

Read the rest of “dead weight”…

2003 / 11 / 09 – 20:33 | Comment [3]Top


sun

the pretty damned cool ‘weather project’ exhibition at the tate modern. like getting into a bath of body-temperature syrup, only with light and colour….

Read the rest of “sun”…

2003 / 11 / 06 – 15:19 Top


so that’s what this strange-looking building is — i had wondered….

Read the rest of “city hall”…

2003 / 11 / 06 – 12:16 Top


okay, so it’s not technically winter yet, but it’s hard to beat an old-fashioned real log [and coal] fire to warm the bones. [yes, that’s smokeless fuel]…

Read the rest of “winter warmer”…

2003 / 11 / 05 – 22:15 | Comment [1]Top


hiding out from the fireworks….

Read the rest of “scaredy-cat”…

2003 / 11 / 05 – 20:10 Top


at the natural history museum. free of charge, and well worth seeing….

Read the rest of “‘earth from the air’ exhibition”…

2003 / 11 / 03 – 17:46 | Comment [1]Top


you can’t see it that well here, but i got quite a few double-takes from people not quite sure if i was dressed up for halloween or not….

Read the rest of “too realistic?”…

2003 / 11 / 02 – 13:33 | Comment [2]Top


what the hell are they putting in it these days?…

Read the rest of “london tap water”…

2003 / 10 / 31 – 21:22 | Comment [1]Top


2003 / 10 / 31 – 09:20 Top


2003 / 10 / 30 – 21:32 | Comment [1]Top


that’s her on stage. no, really….

Read the rest of “thea gilmore”…

2003 / 10 / 26 – 21:53 Top


take with one cup of tea for best results. [testing landscape photo]…

Read the rest of “anti snack-gap”…

2003 / 10 / 25 – 19:12 | Comment [2]Top


birthday present from mrtn, dropped off on a flying visit by my mother this afternoon….

Read the rest of “at last we meet”…

2003 / 10 / 24 – 22:55 Top


2003 / 10 / 19 – 21:08 | Comment [2]Top


stipey with blue eye-stripe singing ‘bad day’….

Read the rest of “r.e.m. on parkinson”…

2003 / 10 / 18 – 22:31 Top


victoria park, empty despite the sun — there’s a chilly wind blowing too. not advisable to walk through here at night either, unless being mugged is something you enjoy….

Read the rest of “in the shadow of the university”…

2003 / 10 / 18 – 13:03 | Comment [1]Top


geddit? *ahem* nowt better than a cuppa after four hours of teaching….

Read the rest of “negative a tea”…

2003 / 10 / 13 – 20:06 | Comment [2]Top


…and newspapers. what sunday afternoons are all about….

Read the rest of “pints…”…

2003 / 10 / 12 – 14:55 Top


eighty football fans. and me….

Read the rest of “england v turkey”…

2003 / 10 / 11 – 17:17 Top


dvd, on reflection….

Read the rest of “mobhead”…

2003 / 10 / 10 – 20:14 Top


anyone want a pc? there’re four brand new ones in this office. you just have to crack the encryption code - tough one!…

Read the rest of “security”…

2003 / 10 / 08 – 14:42 | Comment [1]Top


this is actually a test post. i took the photo upside-down, but hopefully it’s the right way up. there should also be some descriptive text in the “alt” attribute of the photo, and the time should be correct to…

Read the rest of “winks and his biscuits”…

2003 / 10 / 05 – 19:18 Top


scottish trout and lovely organic spuds grown and imported from ireland by my dad….

Read the rest of “fish supper”…

2003 / 10 / 02 – 20:20 Top


the foxes have moved on from ponds and taken a dislike to a gardening glove that was lying around….

Read the rest of “foxglove”…

2003 / 10 / 01 – 19:10 Top


the new cubicle-style office for postgrads, specially designed to kill off creative thought….

Read the rest of “in the office”…

2003 / 10 / 01 – 16:20 Top


two years old, survived a near-death experience and still going strong….

Read the rest of “office plant”…

2003 / 09 / 30 – 12:10 Top


tick tock tick tock….

Read the rest of “metronome”…

2003 / 09 / 27 – 19:15 Top


before the rain starts….

Read the rest of “evening sky”…

2003 / 09 / 27 – 18:45 Top


this is the very first attempt at moblogging. say hello to winks….

Read the rest of “first attempt”…

2003 / 09 / 27 – 18:15 | Comment [1]Top