Takes all sorts…

 General Ramblings  No Responses »
Dec 032008

That ancient astronomer Sir Alfred Patrick Caldwell-Moore, aka just Patrick Moore is one of that odd breed of eccentrics Britain seems to throw up from time to time.

One of his ‘funnies’ was a 1976 jape when he announced on BBC Radio that at exactly 9:47 a.m. next morning the planet Pluto would pass behind Jupiter producing an increased ‘gravitational pull’ from space. The result would be that if people jumped into the air they would feel a floating sensation as they came back down to earth. He invited people to try it out and call in with their ‘findings’.

Next morning at 9:47 a.m. hundreds of thousands of people could be found merrily jumping up and down ins streets, parks and gardens all around the UK. Many even phoned the Beeb to tell them the ‘experiment’ had worked.

It was several hours before it was noticed that it was April 1st….  April Fools Day!!

No idea what brought that to mind, but it makes you wonder just how gullible people can be! :D

Posted by Welsh Dog at 10:15 am  

You have to laugh…

 General Ramblings  No Responses »
Dec 022008

Yet another letter of the ‘Nigerian Scam’ type but it is *so* ridiculous I just had to share it… I might keep the name change tho!! Pasted in exactly as I received it: :)

Dear Compliment of season

Forgive my indignation if this message comes to you as a surprise and may offend your personality for contacting you without your prior consent and writing through this channel.When i was searching for a foreign reliable partner. After series of prayers/fasting.i was divinely directed to contact you among other names found in the data base tourist search.I believe that God has a way of helping who is in need.

Hello! I have seen your biographical particulars and something has interested me in you.I have from today with good intent confirm you as my only and reliable PARTNER as things will manifest for good as we further correspond IAM request your familiar informations,

I am DR  Zongo Musa   The manager, Bills and Exchange at the Foreign Remittance Department of the A.G.B Bank of BENIN Plc.

I am writing this letter to ask for your support and cooperation to carry out this business opportunity in my department. IAM request your familiar information’s, as we further correspond as you are aware of my official position, i appreciate all my dealings to be officials and not childish, in accordance.
Note you can also respond with this mail  ([email protected])
Thanks
Dr Zongo Musa

Posted by Welsh Dog at 10:32 am  

Happy birthday mouse!

 I.T and similar  No Responses »
Dec 022008

Sometime in the next few days the world will be celebrating the 40th birthday of Doug Englebart’s ubiquitous pointing device, so common to all computer users… the mouse!!

I’ve never been sure whether the plural of this kind of mouse is mice or mouses but it may not matter soon since there are claims that the mouse will soon be soon be losing its pre-eminent position as the pointing device of choice. In fact some claim its days are actually numbered and soon we’ll be doing without them entirely.

I for one haven’t used a ‘real’ mouse in years, preferring to use a trackball, but even these ‘stationary mice’ use the same principles as their mobile cousins, it’s just that I move the ball with my thumb.

The alternatives seem to be the ‘trackpad’ favoured by laptop and notebook users, ‘touch screens’ favoured by PDA’s and the like, and a new desktop model Microsoft is promoting where you wave your hand at the screen to tell it what you want done.

For my own part, I’ll be sticking with the trackball/mouse until some whizzkid produces a cursor placement device that follows my eye-movements and let’s me ‘think’ what I want done! :D

Will the mouse last another 40 years?

Posted by Welsh Dog at 7:02 am  Tagged with: , , , , , , , , ,

Lucky Australia!

 General Ramblings  No Responses »
Dec 012008

Looks like the skies will be smiling at us tonight. The configuration of Venus and Jupiter along with a crescent moon means we’ll get a smiley face in the heavens tonight!! :)

Europe won;t see it because the moon will have moved position by the time it gets around to them, and the US will miss out too – to them it will look like a frown!! Looks like Australia *is* the lucky country… well tonight anyway! Nipping outside 30 mins after sunset might be a good idea!! :)

For more information and a picture of what/where to look, have a squizz at the Astrovisuals site.

Posted by Welsh Dog at 10:53 am  

Customer Service is out!

 Gripes  No Responses »
Dec 012008

I rang Customer Service at one of the local Shopping Malls (Castle Towers). The response was “I’m sorry, Customer Service is out today… please leave a message after the tone”.

This conjured up all sorts of images in my mind… most of them bizarre.

Still, nice to know that customers are so far down the food chain that even around the busiest time of year the entire department gets to have days off!! I wonder when the link was broken between the word ‘customer’ and ‘service’?

If you want to try your luck their number is 02-8858-9718. I wonder if they’ll be ‘in’ when you ring??

Posted by Welsh Dog at 9:22 am  Tagged with: , , , ,

On a theme…

 Crime & Punishment, General Ramblings  No Responses »
Dec 012008

This little offering is entitled “Burying the Truth” and, again, is a YouTube ‘short’ about Schapelle Corby and the way the media have portrayed her. Her major problem was the prima facie case that she was in possession of the drugs therefore the onus was upon her to prove she had nothing to do with it.

Having placed the onus on her to prove her innocence… she was then denied the opportunity to prove it to the extent that the drugs weren’t forensically tested, the bags weren’t fingerprinted and the entire batch of evidence was destroyed! This is a redefinition of justice process that defied belief!

Please watch the film and tell me what you think.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CYCuzE16tQE[/youtube]

Posted by Welsh Dog at 7:14 am  Tagged with: , , ,

Saya Tidak Bersalah!

 General Ramblings  No Responses »
Dec 012008

Saya Tidak Bersalah is the name of a song by Tara Hack about Schapelle Corby and her imprisonment in Bali on charges of drug smuggling. The words are the last Schapelle spoke in court before the judges handed down their totally over the top sentence of twenty years

I cannot admit to a crime I did not commit. And to the judges, my life at the moment is in your hands, but I would prefer if my life was in your hearts….And your Honour, I ask of you to show compassion, to find me innocent, to send me home. Saya tidak bersalah (“I am not guilty”, in Indonesian).

The song which attacks the sentence and the perceived lack of public support has been well received by the US entertainment media and has been uploaded to YouTube. You can see it here.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_EENMoK9tA[/youtube]

Some of the lyrics are:

“She touched down, she didn’t get far/ she got framed in Denpasar/ she planned to stay at a fine hotel, but her stay in Bali turned into hell/ take two weeks on a fine vacation, spend nine hours in interrogation/ a one-way ticket straight to heaven, she won’t get out until she’s 47.”

Regardless of where you stand on the topic of Schapelle’s guilt or innocence, I think the song has been crafted really well and does stands in its own right – regardless of the lyrics. Actually, I was unable to understand many of the words because of my shonky hearing so I think I *can* say I like it because of what it is, rather than what it’s about. :)

Source: New York Songbird’s Lament for Schapelle.

Posted by Welsh Dog at 6:56 am  Tagged with: , , , , ,

Thanks for all the fish…

 General Ramblings  No Responses »
Dec 012008

Here’s a jolly little site for some pre-Xmas fun. It gives you an indication of when it thinks you are likely to shuffle off the mortal coil.

It’s called “Death Clock” and when I entered my details it told me I should have carcked it in 2003… oh good thanks for that don’t call me I’ll call you etc…

… in fact it told me “I’m sorry, your time has expired.”

P’raps I should just say bye-bye now… just in case??

Posted by Welsh Dog at 5:43 am  Tagged with:
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