Pligget
Little to say for myself


Saturday, February 28, 2004

Toulouse

 
A couple of early morning shots taken from my hotel room window.

Click to enlarge:



Update:
Actually, that was a lie. The less impressive and more long-winded truth is that they were in fact taken from the roof of the multi-storey car park behind the hotel. That was lazy of me. Must stop fibbing for effect.

posted by Plig | 18:08 | (0) comments


More Strand Tube photos

 
Given that pretty much all I can do at the moment is sit on my backside, I've got time to post more photos as promised.

click to enlarge:







Update:
My partner has tactfully reminded me that one of the above photos (the abstract fairy lights) was taken by her. Muchas apologias. Come to think of it, I think at least one of the static photos of the uplighter in my earlier post was also down to her, although the jiggly one was definitely mine. So there.

posted by Plig | 17:21 | (0) comments


Bouncing Back

 
Here's a fine to-do.

I was up in the loft yesterday morning, preparing to move a whole load of clutter up there to make way for a party tonight. Muggins here (you wouldn't think I was a rocket scientist) had propped a ladder up against the loft hatch in my bedroom ceiling. As I started down the ladder for the third time, it slipped. Yes - I, a man with a brain the size of an asteroid, had just leant an unsecured ladder against the side of the loft hatch and relied on the bottom not slipping on the, er, polished oak floor....

Imagine my bemusement as I suddenly felt the ladder go, the edges of the hatch clobber me on the elbows and chest, and then a pause. Just as I was beginning to register the sensation of air rushing past me, it stopped. With an impressive thumping sound I landed full on my back - on the fallen ladder. Then it went something like this:

"Hmm. That hurt.... Think I'll lie here for a bit.

"Let's take stock:

"Lots of pain in my back,

"tingling in my fingers. That must be funny-bone stuff from the sore elbows....

"Apart from that I'm OK. No drowsiness. No dancing lights. No shadowy figure with a rusty scythe.

"This is survivable.

"Ah! - can't inhale very far. Breathing very shallow.

Let's try the voice:

"Hmm. Sounds very croaky. I'm lying on the ladder, so there may be the odd rib poking where it shouldn't.

"How's the spine? Did that discectomy I had three years ago hold up?

"That's encouraging. Legs and arms all OK. Fingers a bit tingly, but all moving well.

"Try moving head. Gently.

"Whaddaya know. That's OK too."

"So... in summary... everything seems OK apart from great pain across back, especially when I breathe....

"An ambulance would be good at this point. Ah... problem. I'm the only one here.

"Call partner - she has a key, so can let herself and the paramedics in.

"Feel in right pocket for cellphone..... Oh you beauty! Don't let anyone tell you they're not useful bits of kit.

"Damn. Her phone's switched off. Who does that? Bugger.

"OK. What now?

"Well, there's no way my life's worth the cost of repairing a burst doorframe - better try to get up.

"Just roll sideways a bit to get the ladder out from under..... oooh! That's..... aaahh..... there. Phew.

"What's this? The laundry basket.... Coming apart... Must have broken my fall a bit.

"Ok, on my side now. Ribs HURT.

"Remember the drill for getting up after your back operation... Take the weight on your arms. Get up onto all fours..... This is more pain than I can remember....

"There, now pull yourself up on the bathroom door handle.... Kneeling now. Everything seems OK. No extra pain anywhere...

"One final heave..... On my feet.

"No dizziness. Oooh. Ribs hurt when I walk, but that's about it. Looks like I've got away with it."

"Breathing still very shallow... better call an ambulance anyway.

(This was when drama mode kicked in. I thought I'd almost certainly punctured a lung, so I'd be in hospital for days, if not weeks.)

"Better grab a few essentials. Put things in my back-pack. Ipod, of course. Look for a book - no, read that one - oh, can't be arsed.

Then the paramedics arrived. Took a look at me, noted that there were a few scratches on my back and a scuff on the left elbow. In the end I had a rather painful trip in the ambulance to the hospital, and X-rays showed no rib or lung damage. Blood gas was fine - so no shortage of oxygen in the blood due to breathing difficulty. Blood pressure and pulse were normal.

End of drama.

My partner had taken the rest of the day off, bless her, and carried my redundant (and very heavy) backpack out to the taxi home. I was very sore and bruised, but I was going to be fine.

I spent yesterday afternoon phoning and emailing everyone to postpone the party. I had a brainwave in the taxi home, and a part of the email went like this:
for all of you who are now suddenly at a loose end tomorrow night, I have a request to make:

I want you to think about what you would do if you suddenly had a free Saturday night, and could do anything you wanted. It might be a night of dancing, a romantic meal out, a trip to the theatre or cinema, a cosy night in with a good movie, a country B&B, an evening with friends (you should know a few other people who are suddenly free tomorrow night too...), or just an opportunity to sort something out that needed sorting but you were putting off. How about a phone call to that person you haven't spoken to for ages?

My request is that you do whatever it is. Don't let the evening be wasted. I then want you to let me know what you chose to do, and what you got out of it. That way, I'll know that I created a memorable evening for everyone anyway.

Sorry about the last minute change. Hope to see you all on the new date, and to hear from you all about your fantastic Saturday evening.

Lots of love,
I feel quite proud of that. A few people have already responded with ideas for what they're going to do.

What would you do, if you suddenly had a new lease of life and a free evening in which to follow your heart?

posted by Plig | 16:58 | (0) comments




Wednesday, February 25, 2004

Strand Tube Station

 
As promised, a few snaps taken at a friend's birthday party in the (derelict) Strand Tube Station:

Here's Alex celebrating his 50th birthday manning the decks in the old ticket office (click to enlarge):



This phone booth had seen better days:



I was fascinated by the range and depth of colour in the lampshade of a trendy uplighter thingy:



Especially when I did the old "wiggly camera" shot:



There were loads of other pics, but I'm too jiggered to post any of them. Off to bed instead.

posted by Plig | 01:51 | (0) comments




Monday, February 23, 2004

Ah! La Cuisine Française

 
Trade was pretty slow at this Toulouse restaurant spotted a couple of weeks ago.



Can't think why.

posted by Plig | 22:11 | (0) comments




Wednesday, February 18, 2004

And another month slips by......

 
I've been in Toulouse for the last month (apart from the odd 24-hour visit home), testing a satellite, so apologies to those people out there (both of you) who might have happened upon this page and thought me dead.

Got a few photos to show you - like the inside of the old (now derelict) Strand tube station, where I went to a friend's art exhibition and birthday party last month; and one or two snaps from Toulouse.

Am rushed off my feet at the mo, but will get round to it soon.

Nice to be back.

posted by Plig | 15:26 | (0) comments


Forget the sentimental notion that foreign policy is a struggle between virtue and vice, with virtue bound to win.
Forget the utopian notion that a brave new world without power politics will follow the unconditional surrender of wicked nations.
Forget the crusading notion that any nation, however virtuous and powerful, can have the mission to make the world in its own image.
Remember that diplomacy without power is feeble, and power without diplomacy is destructive and blind.
Remember that no nation's power is without limits, and hence that its policies must respect the power and interests of others.
Hans Morgenthau

The whole problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves, but wiser people so full of doubts
Bertrand Russell

The release of atomic energy has not created a new problem. It has merely made more urgent the necessity of solving an existing one
Albert Einstein

When you are right you cannot be too radical; when you are wrong, you cannot be too conservative
Martin Luther King Jr.

Our great democracies still tend to think that a stupid man is more likely to be honest than a clever man
Bertrand Russell

I think it would be a good idea
Mahatma Gandhi, when asked what he thought of Western civilization

There are painters who transform the sun to a yellow spot, but there are others who with the help of their art and their intelligence, transform a yellow spot into the sun
Pablo Picasso

Those are my principles, and if you don't like them... well, I have others
Groucho Marx

Whatever you do will be insignificant, but it is very important that you do it
Mahatma Gandhi

Always make new mistakes
Esther Dyson
archives
blogs I like
The look of this blog owes much to Mena Trott, but everything posted to it is my copyright, unless I say otherwise. If you want to use or quote any of it, please do the decent thing and let me know.