Staples. Not so easy.

I seem to have a problem with Staples. Not the shop; they're generally quite good; but the actual machine you use to attach pieces of paper together. How difficult can it be, you think. Just one press and you're done. Oh sure, if you've got a shiny new stapler, it's no problem. But if you're just looking for a quick fix to do one simple job; oh I'll just borrow that stapler cos it's sitting there and it'll be nice and quick; it never happens. First you find out that the last person to use it has either used the last staple on the planet; or has somehow managed to cause a 10 staple pile-up and run away. You then have to travel the globe to obtain new staples; or open the thing up and watch them explode everywhere. Either way, you pick the staples up and they just crumble in your hand. You then have to load the dam thing and it either slides out the loader or it just mis-fires. You then dam the thing to hell and walk away; vowing to be very careful where you file the paperwork instead. Unless I'm the only one to use the entire planet's supply of staples.

It's so quiet....

...it's oh so still. Baby until -actually till it was bed time. Quite often when I have these work spurts I have the TV on in the background, usually to entertain me or have some background noise while I work. And quite often, when it gets to a really exciting part in whatever's on, I amble my eyes over to watch...haven't seen this in a while... curl up and just watch... wasn't I supposed to be doing something? However, tonight I just typed. And researched. And typed. And clicked. And typed some more. I know I haven't got everything done, but I have got the feeling that I'm becoming very up to date. However, I can't credit myself too much as I watched quite a bit of TV in the morning...

Another Friday night in...

It's Friday night. Usually, I'm out with the lads, sinking a few bevies, staggering home after visiting a variety of establishments and feeling rather fuzzy in the morning. However, unlike the lucky people that get to stay nice and cosy at home being nursed back to the world with a bacon sandwich; I actually have to get up rather fuzzily and prepare myself the joys of the Saturday job. Lately though, Friday night's become a bit of a desert. For starters, I occasionally have to work late on a Saturday, so often it's hard to make time to come home, eat, shower and be away somewhere. If I really get organised and have energy; I occasionally manage to arrive a pint behind everyone else. But recently, I've not been doing that at all. And tonight's also a strange one, because while the world is screaming 'the week-end has started; have a bevy or switch off and watch a film'; I'm been sat at my computer. Not playing games for a change, but actually getting something done. Which is quite strange, as this weekend I'm working both Saturday and Sunday. Maybe it's a hidden conscience as I didn't go to the gym this morning; and I'm trying to free time so that when nice weather prevails, I won't be forced to sit at a computer and wade through e-mails. Or at least trying to; when the bloomin' broadband decides to work. Anyway, I'm off to Bedfordshire. Night night.

Buck up!

That's the message I'm putting out there today. I've been over to Swindon earlier as part of a work forum. It's an adventure in itself if you have to drive down, owing to the Magic Roundabout. But anyway, the aim of the day was to talk through regular problems in the workplace. And now I've just stopped typing and picked up my phone, and noticed my back is killing me. Wonder if it's all to do with the driving. Right. Focus! I need a subject matter here. So we all discussed our problems; which is all worrying as it can be a bit of a moanfest. Sometimes problems do need to be made known. Sometimes it's the lack of communication; that the task hasn't been set up right at all. But other times you need to be told to shut up and stop whinging. You've made your point; this is what we can do; now go and do something about it or forget it completely. Because if you're not prepared to take any action or get involved in the solution, then why bother in the first place?

Is this show really worth it?

I'm getting quite bored of watching reality TV. Well, when I say watching; it's mainly the trailers. No-one seems to want to make bold and adventurous shows any more; not unless the networks want to spend money on anything. So instead we get dumb-downed reality shows about how dirty someone's house is; or a crew following someone around on their regular day job. As long as there's a scandal somewhere in the line on their behaviour; the networks simply won't care and will try and glam it up to get the figures. But to go somewhere really bold and film something fun that people will talk about for ages; that's really a risk-takers for the networks. Which is quite worrying for the newcomers. 

If you're at the top you should be the last to surrender

Now I'm not a religious person but I found it quite strange that the Pope announced that he was standing down. I never liked the look of this pope, I always thought he had evil eyebrows; John Paul looked much friendlier and didn't seem to scream: 'I'm ripping you off behind your back!' As ex-pope has now announced that he would like to devote the rest of his life to prayer. In a palace. As if a monastery wouldn't do. The strange thing is; in six hundred years it's the first time this has been done. For six hundred years no other pope has given up the throne; they've gotten old and gone upstairs; or they've been pushed downstairs for various reasons. But to give up the crown to go and live in the Summer Palace is surely like living on expenses? Watch this space... 

How are we getting the real thing?

So we've outsourced, and outsourced and outsourced. What used to made here in this country is now made in a faraway land as it is cheaper to produce and we don't have to. Trouble is, we've lost track of who we outsource to. Time was that we didn't care. But now we've lost sight of the original product.

Take a well known Australian beer for example. It's actually made in Scotland for the benefit of the people of this fair isle. But the ozzies actually hate it and it's not really drunk there any more. So it's made with unauthentic ingredients and those who do buy it don't really care as it is cheap to produce and widely available. It also means that the cost saving in production can be used to advertise the product to charge a higher price.

It gets worse. The good old horse meat that's hitting our shores all seem to be coming from foreign companies. Companies that our companies have invested in; trusted and now they've lost track of what they're actually selling to their customers as the company providing the company has outsourced too. So we complain to the shop; the shop can only blame the outsource company and in the meantime we're none the wiser to what the shop is actually providing. Sure, you can get most of your items in one place; but can we actually trust the multi-nationals? It's time to put the Great back into Britain. Support the little guy. Throw out companies who outsource at cost price and go for the real thing.

Left Left Left Right Left

I've just been dropped off by a taxi. I always hate being the last one dropped off in a taxi as I never know what to say to the driver for small talk. Usually it's about the weather; you can't talk about anything else as they're Muslim and you don't want to offend them for fear of mis-hearing you or pass through Timbuktu on your way home. But as my driver assured me tonight that he knew the right way home; i.e left left left; it occurred to me that I'm heading into a spiral. The reason why my head may spin in the morning is because I'm not turning right right right to counteract it. Or that I end up in a nice comfy spiral that I don't really want to escape from. Halfway up; halfway down; in the middle of everywhere.

All play and no work makes me a stuck boy...

I seem to be faced with the same problem. I can't get stuff done. Yada yada yada. And now I've discovered why. All my life I go straight to the fun stuff and not the barriers that get in my way. I get games dangled in front of me like candy. Any slight barrier I fancy and it's a turn to the games. Well no more. It's time to buckle down and work up. I've finally reached world number one on an on-line game (well for today anyway); and I'm not going to do any more gaming unless I really am stuck. Yes, it may be boring, but hopefully an adventure will come out of it in the long run. Here's for hoping.