AndyBlog

The best woman for the job was a man*

I had become aware, over the last few months, that my flat had succombed to untidiness.**

In a defiant and unbending effort to get it cleaned up, and in acknowledgement that under no circumstances whatsoever was I ever going to get up close and personal with the stuff on the floor (It's just too far away, darnit), I decided my only alternative was to ask for help.

Knowing my financial options were desperately limited, I knew I was going to have to ask someone who may start the job for money, but was destined to finish the other 98% out of some sort of pity for the state the place was in and maybe my own general lack of ability in the mobility department.

I made the call. So, after some further muted discussions today was decided upon as the day of destiny for my filthy abode. The door duly opened at the assigned time of three-past-ten in the morning and, after a few final expletives - breathed out in an awed voice as the full extent of the job made itself known to their eyes and nose, the work began in something approaching silence.

I lay, experiencing a feeling of complete rubbishness, as the silent minister went about his*** work. I dozed, once more awoke in a kind of stupor, and discerned the scream opf a vacuum cleaner at work. More dozing. A female voice. Bathroom fan...light....dark, Fan off. Silence.

More silence.

The flat felt empty.

I risked a chink of door open. No-one around. I risked everything**** and strode out into the hallway. Clean. Handles, clean. Stain on wall, clean. Switches, clean. Kitchen floor CLEAN! Washing up - DONE!!! Kitchen tidied, but not too much. Here was someone who knew how to respect an important mess pile. Lounge, vacuumed, dusted - CLEAN! Important man-piles respected. 

In short, the stuff that needed cleaning and tidying was done, but the important technical stuff had been left alone. I have never seen cleaning done so sensitively to the needs of a man such as me. The place is now a delight to be in, and my heart is full of gratitude. Really full.

I am hopeful that maybe, just maybe, I can tempt this same outfit back to repeat their work before it gets to be so bad again, thus enabling the work to be much more less un-easy.

Now I can look forward to welcoming people to the house group at my flat tonight. Now there's an event I love. :-)

Big thank to person.*****

_{*As far as I can work out, I didn't actually see anyone.}

_{** This, subject to a definition of "untidiness" which includes large piles of assorted stuff strewn pretty much everywhere, filthy carpets, a hay-strewn guinea-pig and a kitchen which would have caused the entire locality to be cleared by the military had they been aware of the molecular and radiation risk involved.}

_{*** Again, as far as I can ascertain. Infact, I will always call them "he", even though I cannot be absolutely sure. Essentially, it's easier this way and if it wasn't a he then my title becomes completely redundant. Wrong, even.}

_{**** Yes, I mean EVERYTHING. :-)}

_{***** You know who you are. (both?)}

If it wasn't broken before...

Jason's tiny knobs - see how pretty they look!

All I needed to do was check out the power supply of Jason's slightly dead mixer, but thanks to its old fashioned design, the only way to get into it was to remove every single knob, fader, washer, nut and screw in the unit.

Until the last one was removed - no dice. Well done Soundcraft, maybe this is a contributory factor in this mixer not being manufactured any more. Even with the main circuit board removed, the final four screws in the chassis must be removed before the diminutive power supply board can be reached.

One there, it becomes clear that it has burnt out. This tiny board is available to order from Soundcraft for around 60 quid. Not bad going for a component that costs around five pounds or less to manufacture. Oh, how manufacturers love a captive audience.

It has gone to meet the choir invisibule

I can't believe you even read this entry. Moreover, I can't believe I wrote it. It is, however, very late/early. I think.

The Internet

As the year turns, it's often a time for looking back. I thought I would excel myself by looking further back than just last year. I found an excellent timeline showing, in a light-hearted way, the history of the internet. Click HERE to have a look.

I also happened upon a news report from the early eighties, showing a Canadian take on the early signs of the internet phenomenon which we now accept so readily.

It's fascinating to see how it was viewed then, given what it is now. Back then, I bet many of us never thought that computers would be as near the centre of our lives as they are now.

Go on, be honest.

Shuttle off this mortal coil...

We're quite used now to seeing the space shuttle take off from the space center and gradually disappear into the distance, whilst losing a fuel tank or two.

What I had never before taken on board was that somewhere up there is the International Space Station - and that for those on board it is like watching a friend come up to play.

So - Awwww....

Rage against the machine

Once a rebel, always a rebel.

Some things never change. All my life I have taken risks, some of them pretty foolhardy and ultimately against my own best interests. Today, in an effort to show that I am not growing gracefully into middle-age, I decided to throw caution to the wind, once more, as only I can.

Here's to point “B”.

Keep it real, guys.

Shack Mark 3?

In the beginning there was Shack Mark 1. It was the master bedroom of 22 Alexandra Street, Pelton Lane Ends, Chester-le-Street, County Durham. I covered the walls with a delightful and pleasing quantity of analogue recording gear.

It pleased me. Not too sure about the neighbours.

Then there was the mighty Shack Mark 2 at Griffin House, Stanley. Dreams were wrought there, albums made and chairs smashed. Many chairs. It was truly a shack of dreams for any right-thinking shack enthusiast.

Recently, pictures have emerged onto the internet implying that Shack Mark 3 may have come into existence. Nothing has been confirmed or denied by our exclusive sources. One lady, calling herself “Tiélle”, spoke only to confirm that a man bearing the name of Andy had recently made curry at her address.

Nevertheless, here are the pictures. You decide. Editorially, we'd have to say that just two monitors is a break with past form, and there is no sign of any music gear...

A new kind of battery

I have long believed that the next great emerging technology would be in the field of capacitors or batteries. We rely so much on laptop computers and smart mobile phones now, and yet many of them seem to require constant charging.

What we need, in the first place, is a battery which will power a laptop for a complete day on a single charge. Only then will laptops be truly mobile devices. At present, whenever my laptop is completely un-plugged and wireless, I feel like the guillotine is about to fall. I hurry through what I have to do and only breathe again when the power can be re-applied.

Are you any different?  Anyway, a new technology is emerging which is set to be the next big leap in mobile technology. Not only will it extend charge times, but also enable higher current to be available. No more dimmer screens and scaled-back processors.

Away from computers, maybe this technology can be used in vehicles, boats, aircraft and the endless list of thing which benefit from battery power.

Read on...

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Taken from those excellent people:

Nanotech promises the first viable alternative to batteries in 200 years

February 14, 2006 Almost everything we use requires electrical storage via a battery - computers, cell phones, cars, personal entertainment devices and much more – and as compelling functionality has increased in the digital age, so too has our reliance on the traditional battery which has changed little since it was developed by Alessandro Volta in 1800. Now, work at MIT's Laboratory for Electromagnetic and Electronic Systems (LEES) holds the promise of the first technologically significant and economically viable alternative to conventional batteries in more than 200 years.

Read the rest of the article HERE.