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

Hi Bluebottle,

The Isle of Wight is a kind of second home to me, as my parents lived there for over 30 years (both died recently) and I'm going backwards and forwards to sort out their home.

Looking at your home page, I see you've done a whole bunch of smileys and that one of the is for the IoW. I'm not sure if it's available through the general smileys - I don't think it is, as I've done a quick skim. Would you be kind enough to share the code with me?

I'm sorry to hear about your loss - whereabouts on the Island did they live? I'm from Sandown originally although I've also lived up north in both Cowes and East Cowes.

I did indeed do some smileys including an Isle of Wight one – but you're right that it isn't a general smiley and doesn't work in conversations, only in entries and it isn't considered to be official GuideML, so if you did write something for, say, PeerReview it wouldn't be kept. But you can use it for unofficial entries and stuff in . The code is:



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Thank you, Bluebottle.

My parents lived in Carisbrooke - the unfashionable end. I took my son there last week and he took part in the "Clash of Knights" event at Carisbrooke Castle, which I visited on the worst day - Wednesday - it poured down and everyone got drenched. Hey ho. I took him there each morning and he walked home - about a mile. Are you still in Cowes? I gather it was Cowes Week the previous week.

Alas I'm no longer in Cowes. My wife and I couldn't get a job on the Island and both ended up working in Southampton. After a couple of years or so of commuting over each day, in the end we Crossed Over to the Other Side. My family's still on the Island so I'm over often.

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That is so sad. Difficult though when employment prospects aren't that good.

I'll share a memory - mum used to tell me that folk where she lived said, if they saw rain on the mainland, "It's raining in England!". Made me smile.

A few of my friends still say things like 'we'll come over to England to visit you', or the annual trip to England for Christmas shopping, although that's not quite so important since the internet's been invented.

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