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That was the week that was
Mar 24, 2005
Wow, what a week, time to chill out.
Bought a powered wheelchair a short while ago on eBay, brilliant deal, great chair, until I rode it across the Lounge floor. The carpet I had laid so carefully a year or two back when I could walk wasn't up to the job and rode up in front like a bow wave (foam underlay).
Sought advice from out friendly local carpet merchant about laminate flooring, said no-way, it's expensive and will be wrecked in no time by powered wheels. he suggested a 'double stickdown', ie, good carpet glued to a rubber membrane which in turn was stuck to the floor, expensive but still cheaper and more durable than decent laminate @£35.00sq metre.
Went down to the showroom, Boss already had an idea what colour she wanted and after a while shouted 'that's it, that's the one', man smiles and says she has just chosen the most hardwearing contract carpet on the premises and the adds that it is also the most expensive, Quack looks 
, Boss looks 
, followed by 
..Boss gets best...
.
Company owner walks in, known him for years but don't see him much lately, now has loads of Wharehouses and meggabrass, exchange greetings, seems surprised to see me in a wheelchair, say "hey, what about this then Bill", knocks me 90 quid off - result ..
Spent most of Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday clearing house, carpet is going in front Hall, Lounge, Dining room and mid passage.
Fitted today, brilliant, carpet was so heavy fitters said it didn't need a double stick, and secured it straight to floor, good job, it's so thick that with underlay membrane we would have had to have all the doors planed.
Needed new Garage doors, side hinged, wooden, oversize, don't want up and over, I can't manage then in a wheelchair. Had to be Joiner made and should have been fitted last week but the joiner had problems with another job and came mid morning on Monday and completed on Tuesday.
Came in over budget (of course). .again but they will see me out and look like they were craftsman made.
Daughter and her Husband will either get a Divorce or kill each other before the end of next week, not sure which would be the best option the way they are performing
Son has decided they want a Dog, just like the one Mam and Dad had (Border Collie), he's in for some trouble, they are brilliant and very intelligent, but you can't turn them on and off like a telly, he had better be ready to give it some time. They will never find another like our old Ben (R.I.P.)
I contributed to a Local Radio website for years with a sub-page all of my own, I've known for a while that the main page operator and the BEEB had been at loggerheads and now the BEEB have pulled the plug on him so bang goes my page as well
Wrote a limerick as a bit of fun for a company making chocolate biscuits and sent them it by e-mail for a laugh. To my astonishment they sent me a Tay Tumbler (Edinburgh Crystal) whisky glass with a thank you note for my interest
Good Friday tomorrow, supposed to be warm and bright, time for planting container grown new potatoes,
and early salad stuff under cloches.
Might even find time for a skirmish or two with that laid back lot of Damsels and Knights, time they got stirred up a bit 
Flashers beware!!
Mar 14, 2005
So there was I, quite happily 'burning' stuff onto D.V.D. like video stuff, Weddings, Grandkids, Photo's, music, when I heard about a Firmware upgrade for my NEC 1300A burner, I was using version 1.00 with Nero 6, no problem.
WOW!! version 1.09, that should make a difference, so I download the upgrade and do the 'flash', result won't do anything, won't even read it's own work won't recognise DVD+/- RW or CD RW will play CD and DVD and that's about it.
Search the Web, common problem it seems, even newer version of firmware available, version 1.0B no less, problem solved??, no way .
More food for the bin.
Luckily, a Company I deal with have a batch of 'bog standard' Multi burners (DVD+/-R & RW back compatible to CD for £25 quid incl. Vat, so one is coming tomorrow.
They say you should always use the most up to date firmware, I say, if it ain't bust don't fix it.
Tony Curtis
Mar 5, 2005
I'm not Tony Curtis, I like Tony Curtis he made some brilliant films and did a lot of good things for ethnic minorities.
I'm fed up having to visit personal spaces to find out who people really are.
How long is it going to go on.
I've never heard of a Badger called Tony Curtis, I don't suppose Tony Curtis has either.
My Cousins Mothers Great Uncles Poodle didn't know Tony Curtis.
Isn't it getting a bit Childish.
Just posted a top score
Jan 23, 2005
Wah-hey.
Just posted top score of the day on Bookworm (Global). And second place longest word of the day on same scoreboard.
Quack
Space age arrives at Quack Towers
Jan 21, 2005
Anyone who has had the staying power to read my PS and journal entries will know that my biggest nightmare on a day out isn't a twisted ankle, it's a puncture.
One of the problems with spinal injury is that the legs can go into violent kicks, especially in the early days before it can be controlled by medication, usually at night in bed.
This happened to me and resulted in deep gouges where my big toe nails carved bits of flesh out, result - leg ulcers.
We just about have them beaten after nearly two and a half years and the help of Manuka Honey but some nights I have terrific pain and sit up for hours, pain killers have little effect, something to do with 'surface nerves' whatever they are.
The upshot of all this is that even the best mattresses (Sealy, Silentnight) tend to break down where I sit for hours, we have got through two during this period and needed a new one. I searched the web having heard of mattresses made of this new space age 'visco-elastic' foam, designed to help Astronaughts survive the 'G' force of take off. I found a dealer supplying them and placed on on order. Waiting period - no way, overnight delivery at zero charge and it arrived this afternoon, how's that for service?.
When it came it was in a less than impressive box just over 4'6" long (the width of the double bed) and about 18" square, Vacuum packed, Hmm, thought I.
Placed on the bed base and the sealed package sliced, it unfolded with great purpose, I haven't seen anything so determined since I was 18yrs old (I wonder if they do implants ).
Within seconds a full size, full depth mattress which felt as hard as a brick until you sit on it and begin to realise that it is shaping to your Bum and you can't feel any pressure.
Looks promising, I'll let you know. Anyway it has a 12 year written guarantee. 
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