h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Will you be doing it in your spare time, or giving up your job?

Give up my job, wot I dearly loves? How would I pay the escalating petrol bills incurred in giving my offspring opportunities for self-development? How would I indulge my vices? I think not. A part-time student is what I shall become. Did you have a good weekend?

Oh yes, I hadn't thought of that.

One of my friends is doing a part time open univercity course, taking 6 years. It's a lot of work.

My weekend was great, spent yesterday in Camden as I mentioned before. We drove up as I didn't trust the trains, and the wind and rain made the drive back very stressful. But I managed, and we all got back safely. I could see the spray from the other side of the road drifting across the road. I'd never seen that before. Apparently the winds were 100 mph last night. J's school was closed due to flooding and broken windows, and I won't know until tomorrow if it is open tomorrow. How was it where you are?

Yesterday morning I drove to work in a blizzard, but there has been very little weather damage in this area. I too find driving in awful weather rather trying.
I collected Alex, on his return from the Isle of Man, from Hartshead Moor services on the M62 on Sunday. He was six and a half hours late following a delayed ferry crossing and a coach breakdown on the M6. He said that during the crossing there was an impressive amount of breaking crockery. I had forgotten just how awful motorway service stations are - a fifteen minute wait and £1.55 for a tiny cafetiere of coffee.
I have to do some work now - I will try to post something interesting later on.

The weather has died down here too, although there is still 126 flood alerts in London, and parts of Essex are still flooded.
I think it is going to start all over again by tomorrow night.

Happy Samhein.

It was.
I thoroughly approve of using the old names for festivals. What was wrong with Beltane, Samhain and Saturnalia? Apart from mixing up celtic and latin of course.
Huddersfield has its customary lead grey sky today but the weather is otherwise clement.
I heard a poem recited on the radio (radio 4) at the weekend. I thought it wonderful but I cannot remember the author's name. The first line was 'I had a haddock' and it was recited by a chap with a beautifully modulated voice to a rap background. I have looked on the web and found.. nothing. Any ideas?

I spelt it wrong again. I can't get out of the habit of using an e instead of an a.

I've never heard of that poem, sorry.

I searched some more, without success, and found this gem. What do you think?
http://members.vavo.com/amarylis/03-comucverse.html

I liked these. I had heard some before, but thanks, as I had been looking for The Guppy to tell a friend and hadn't found it. Now I have it!
Thanks.
I like funny rhyme, Ogden Nash is my favourite with Spike Milligan.

Amarylis was really helpful. I now know that the poem I was searching for is by Patrick Barrington and is available on a cd. I have also found a couple of other poems by Mr.Barrington. The man is a genius!
Check out this. http://members.aol.com/HippoPage/hipppoem.htm#barrington

I'm glad you found what you were looking for.

I had a new tattoo done today, the adapter from the middle of a 45 record. (And not just a circle like everyone thinks.)

Forgive my ignorance, but how can one tell the difference? And I didn't think you were old enough to remember 45s. I won't ask where you had it done because you'll probably give me an address in Camden.
Torrential rain this morning. There are floods down the Holme Valley, an almost unheard of thing. The sooner all this water makes its way to Leeds the better, but not for people in Leeds I suppose.

I meant when I tell everyone they assume I mean it is a circle, but it is one of the intricate ones, sort of tribal looking. I am old enough to remember 45s, all through the 80s I bought hundreds of the things. That's why I had it done, as I'm an 80s girl at heart. I had it done in Southend, as that's easier to get to than Camden.

We have missed out on the bad rain I think. I didn't get up til 3 today, so I might be mistaken. Not very wet outside though.

A tribal tattoo on your southend?
That forum on piercings got rather heated. Have you decided to avoid the issue, or will you continue to take up the cudgels on behalf of the adult population? I find it quite disappointing when people who have the same basic set of values get under each others skin because they either misread what has been posted or cannot agree upon definitions. Wonderful (wet) Tuesday, sandwhiched between boring Monday and grotty Wednesday. Do not post anything too erudite this evening. With any luck I will have terminal fatigue and a broad grin tomorrow.

I did want to post again in that forum, but I was getting annoyed. A friend of mine said he was going to post there, and I was waiting for him to say something before I posted again. I'm not going to start it up again here as I get really wound up.

I guess that you're going to be having an exciting Tuesday evening. I'm stuck indoors wondering why I let my babysitter get away while me friends are RPGing without me. Oh yes, and an ex is coming round to bother me in 20 minutes. I wonder what he wants. Well, I know what he wants, but he's not going to get it!

Why do you let your exes bother you? Are you one of those people who cannot bring themselves to be downright rude until their life depends upon it? Perhaps you should have got him to babysit.
Well, my return to the sunny south approaches. It is no longer Harlow, but the Cheshunt Marriot Hotel, fuel crisis permitting. I do not know if you consider mixing virtual life with RL a good idea, or if you have any free time, but I would be happy to share a beer and\or a bite if you are free on Tuesday evening. Should you want to do this, suggest a venue. Otherwise refuse politely, or rudely if you damn well want to, and I shall resign myself to three consecutive evenings of shop .

I let him come round as I wanted to see what he was up to. Trying to still get his leg over apparently. I politely declined and managed to get rid of him, and I won't be letting him call round again.

I think Cheshunt is in Kent, I'm not sure how far that is from me. I'll look it up. And if you let me know when it is I will try to find a babysitter. But as I said before, I jsut lost my babysitter, so I might not be able to make it unless it's early and I can bring him.

It is nice when one does not have to resort to rudeness to discourage a person, but can you if you have to?
Cheshunt is next to Waltham cross,on the A10, in Hertfordshire. If you cannot find a babysitter we will make it sufficiently early and in such a place that you can bring J. I will be free from 16.30 so that should not be a problem. I am driving down late Sunday evening so arrangements need to be finalised by Sunday afternoon.
It occurs to me that I have never heard your voice. I can imagine various accents and timbres but I expect that they are all completely wrong!

I probably wouldn't be rude. Something to do with keeping my options open in case I ever change my mind.

Oh yes, that is quite near to me, about 30 minutes by car. If you don't mind me bringing my son then I would be happy to meet you, although I will try to get a babysitter for him. Are you talking about next week?

My accent isn't anything spectacular. London/Essex, so a sort of posh cockney I think.

Posh cockney? The mind boggles.
Yes, next week, tuesday 14th, you choose where, tell me the approximate location and I'll find it. You have a better chance than I of identifying a decent pub\buttery\bar, particularly one where we can take your son.
I have just been to a 'general meeting' called at short notice. The last time this happened I ended up redundant, so you can imagine how I felt. On this occasion we were told that another company in the group is to be closed, 160 odd jobs to be lost. I was relieved but I feel terrible for those made redundant, some of whom I know quite well. Why do they always do this just before Christmas?