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

Why would you put such a negative comment at the top of your page, Frizz? I thought you were a generally happy, yet michievous person. Especially after a bit of plonk.

mischievous (dammit).

Oops, only just noticed this comment.

Unfortunately, nicky my lad, life is indeed sucking at the mo. Too much work piling up to the top of my frizzy little head


soon be over though

Well, I hope all that nasty work goes away soon. I seem to have been elevated at work to a position at which I no longer get to do any programming. I still have piles of work to do, though. It just doesn't involve any actual programming. Which kind of sucks.

However, I'll stick it out for a while to see if I do get to do some kind of programming in the future. I guess it's sort of like playing the stock market.

Oh, blimey, I still have all my Xmas shopping to do. I'd better prep my visa card for the inevitable onslaught.

Ah, the problem of 'management', one of the key risks of being promoted - a real shame if you really enjoyed the programming - do you not get to do any? Which bits of the new job DO you enjoy?
And why is like playing the stock market?

I'm hoping to have a quiet Christmas this year, with minimal present buying (I am so skint - I am working over most of the hoidays and only getting presents for people who believe in Father Christmas). I'm actually looking forward to spending the holidays at home and not trekking around the country - and saving up some leave for a proper leaving-the-country type holiday.

Quick update - I have finally finished my dissertation so now I have a hideous amount of free time to fritter away at h2g2

Yay!

In regards to the stock market analogy, I was referring to the "wait and see" approach to my current company position. You know, you buy a stock and then you wait and see how long it will take until the stock becomes worthless.

Ugh, I'm watching "The Operation" on TLC at the moment. They're reconstructing somebody's heart valve or something. Not quite as sickening as the time they tore some poor guy's knee apart and rebuilt it. Ick...

Yuck - I could never watch anything medical - even Animal Hospital (with ever-charming Rolf Harris) makes me feel a bit queasy.

Although there was this very interesting programme on t'other day about a forensic anthropologist and they visited this place in the States called the Body Farm, where they study the decomposition of dead people by, well, studying loads of dead people left lying around outside under various conditions (clothed, naked, buried etc). It was pretty vile but terribly interesting. The programme makers weren't coy about showing lots of dead people. Grim.

Hey, I saw that same show, or perhaps a different show covering the same place.

Still that sort of thing doesn't hold a candle against "The Operation" (rather ominous name in itself). It's a whole operation, from beginning to end. Such as the one where there was this girl who had an extremely severe underbite. They had to move her lower jaw back. That wasn't the upsetting part (though it had its moments). The upsetting part was when then moved her upper jaw forward, which involved literally sawing and chiselling her frigging skull apart. That one was a bit worse to watch than the "rebuilding the knee" episode. ?

Dear god - how gory

Terribly compelling, though. That's probably why it's on TLC. It's as over the top as they can get (in my opinion) while still falling sort of under the education umbrella.

WRT to the Body farm thing, I mean who thinks of these things "I know I'm going to spend the rest of my life watching bodies decay"

Can you imagine him at parties - "Oh what do you do?" - "well...", what a way to pull chicks or what "Hey babe, is this guy boring you, why don't you talk to me I watch bodies decay"

And do those peolpe who donate their bodies to science realise the science will be being flung into someones back gardern and watched as they decay.

Also, what an ideal way to "lose" a body, kill someone, fling it over the fence and would anyone notice?

BTW don't think for a minute i have forgiven you two

CH

If I recall correctly, it was a woman that headed up the body farm, which I guess is kind of worse, given your argument.

Also, I suppose that, if you've murdered someone, you couldn't go wrong trying to hide the body in he body farm.

What do you mean, "forgiven you two"? I had nothing to do with it. How come I'm getting dragged into this?

Actually, I read the Marzipan Gin article again and, despite laughing at it (again), I can kind of see that it's written sort of in the same way that most researchers would write about actual fact. That is, writing about fact in a humourous fashion. I mean, the drink recipes *are* pretty damn convincing. I don't know how she came up with that stuff.

I think she came up with after intensive research into other drink related issues.

Oh and your wrong, the woman was the pathologist visiting the body place run by a man, or was in the show I saw this week anyway.

CH

Oh. You're probably correct. I saw the show quite some time ago. Perhaps they fell in love.

"..and how did you two meet?"

"Well......"

Again a great conversation killer.

I wonder if they take their work home with them, you open the fridge to get a beer and....

At least the pet food bills would reduce.

CH

Yeah, CH was right - the body farm was run by this dedicated chap who'd been doing it for 30 years -and as far as the programme went, there was no suggestion of romance. And CH, you have a sick mind.

Well, I guess I should at some point apologise for the factual style of the MarGin piece - Sorry CH - never thought anyone would a. read it, b. take it seriously. Yeah, I did do a little research to make it seem as close to believeable as possible, but see a. and b. above. I have to write factual text at work, so I guess its just a style into which I accidentally fell.

No probs, after all the H2G2 towers believed it as well.

I ain't sick - just see the world for what it is.

How are you feeling this morning? Good night was it?

CH

Yeah, good night was had by all. Not feeling too hungover (considering the levels of drink involved) but still, I certainly know I had a drink last night (oops)

Ah, the joys of booze.

"A drink" that's not very good is it, I had several and didn't leave my home

CH