We had a plumber in today, to fix a leaking pipe in the bathroom and to do some work on the toilet before it parted company with the waste pipe and caused a very unpleasant disaster. We are both incredibly grateful to the guy for coming out and doing the work (he's a friend of a friend and did it in his own time, charging us just for the materials), but it proved trickier than we all thought it would be, and so rather than being without a toilet for 2 or 3 hours, it was more like 8 hours.

I was dying for a cup of coffee, but didn't dare indulge while we didn't have a functioning loo (or even a connected up loo!). But even complete abstinence was almost not enough after 8 hours.

I always considered two toilets a bit of a luxury until now, but I'm rapidly revising that opinion after today!

A nice article by JackP providing what seems to me to be good, common sense advice on creating a local authority website that is useful and interesting, and that people will actually use and come back to. Worth reading if you've got anything to do with managing, designing, developing or writing for a local authority website. Come to that, worth reading if you've got anything to do with managing, designing, developing or writing for any website!

http://www.thepickards.co.uk/Articles/Guidance_for_Local_Authority_websites.cfm

Much startled yesterday lunchtime to see, in the sky over central London, a huge square banner advertising a Qantas sale, being towed by a helicopter which looked tiny in comparison to the size of the banner. Unfortunately I was using my mobile phone at the time, so wasn't able to take a picture of the thing, but if it reappears I'll try to get a photo to post on here.

Well, just a couple of days before my friend, Henny, sets off on her Arctic adventure, aiming to travel 250km by dog sled in 5 days - she leaves the UK on 29 January, coming back on 5 February (assuming she can persuade the huskies to pull the sled at all!). We all reckon she's mad, as she hates the cold, but she's also a loyal and caring friend, and she's doing this to raise money to help buy the specialised equipment that will make life just a little easier for the severely injured young son of one of our colleagues, and make it possible for him to go home for longer than a couple of days at a time.

Initially aiming to raise £3,000, she was completely taken aback by the response to her sponsorship page on the Just Giving website, and the total raise is now over £5,500, which is wonderful. The Bristol Royal Children's Hospital has already been able to start ordering some of that much needed but very expensive equipment as a result of her efforts.

She has started her own blog at http://iheni.wordpress.com where you can read more about the trip, and she is hoping to be able to send in live updates on her progress with the huskies, the sled, the reindeer soup, the cold, etc, etc. She'll also be taking photographs during the trip, and if she isn't able to post them to her blog as she goes, will certainly be posting them when she comes back, so do keep an eye on her blog over the next couple of weeks!

Sponsor Henny online | Read Henny's blog

Technorati: Fundraising | Sponsorship

Last night, Chris and I went to the early evening showing at the cinema so that we could have a nice relaxed meal afterwards. We walked west along Uxbridge Road to the Greek restaurant Retsina & Mousaka.

We decided to have meat mezedes for two (£14.95 per person). The range of dishes was excellent, and the food was delicious. There was also far more than we could eat! But since the restaurant also provides a take away service, they very kindly put the remaining sausages, etc, in a carry out box so we could take them home.

It was extremely quiet when we were there, and so we got talking to the owner - turns out he usually closes down for a week around this time of year (because it's generally very quiet for restaurants, etc, so soon after Christmas and New Year) and heads off to Cyprus (I assume to visit his family). I think he was wishing he'd done the same this year, given how empty the restaurant was, but we were rather selfishly glad he hadn't, as we'd have missed a very enjoyable meal. He very generously offered us a drink on the house to round off the meal with our coffee, which offer we gratefully accepted! :)

All in all a very enjoyable evening, and Retsina & Mousaka is a restaurant we'll definitely be revisiting.

Technorati: Restaurants | Ealing | Reviews

Chris and I went to see this film this evening, in Ealing. A beautiful film, beautifully shot. I felt it could have shown more of the customs and habits of the geisha world and of pre-WW2 Japanese society and culture, to put things more in context, but apart from that, I'd highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys visually beautiful films with an emphasis on the characters rather than action.

Technorati: Films | Cinema

Also available in white (view larger image in Flickr).

Inscribed by some local wit in the grime on the back door of an otherwise white van.

To the young black man who, a few minutes ago, I saw take his empty drink bottle with him as he got off the bus, and toss it in the litter bin by the bus stop - thank you. I really appreciate you doing that rather than leaving it on the floor of the bus or dropping it on the ground, for someone to trip on.

To the young white man I saw just a couple of minutes later at the next stop throw a similar empty bottle on the ground despite being just a few yards from a litter bin - shame on you. You show no respect for me? I have none for you.

In 1980, when I came home from the WRNS, I brought three Persian kittens with me - Lady, Zoey and Streak. When I was visiting my mother last week, we went through lots of old photographs, and found a set of photographs of these cats, which I scanned. I've now put these photographs online on The Penguin's Egg, for others who like photographs of cats.

Technorati: Cats

Here are two photographs - one of my sister, Beth, at 16, and the other of my mother at the age of 3 or 4:

They could be photographs of the same person at different ages. I never realised until now just how much Beth takes after our mother!

Going past the cinema in Southall, I spotted a hand written sign on the door:

"All Tamil show cancel cos of cracker busting incident."

What have they been up to?!

My friend and colleague at RNIB, Henny, originally set herself the target of raising £3,000 to help the paediatric intensive care unit at Bristol Royal Children's Hospital, where the severely injured young son of another RNIB colleague has been incredibly well cared for since he was involved in a car accident 6 months ago. But thanks to the amazing generosity of friends, relatives, colleagues, friends of friends, and those who simply read about her challenge on a blog somewhere, that target was reached just 11 days after she started to publicise what she was attempting to do. So just before Christmas, she raised the target to £4,500. But again, that target has now been passed, so she's increased it again, this time to £6,000.

From 29 January to 6 February, she will attempt to travel 250km in the Arctic by dog sled, handling and caring for the dog team herself. She's paying for the trip herself so that every penny raised through sponsorship can go to the hospital.

If you feel able to contribute, any amount large or small will be so welcome and will help the hospital to buy equipment and resources they might not otherwise be able to, which will ultimately benefit the young children who need the hospital's specialised services. Or if you have a blog or a website where you can mention her challenge, so others can contribute, that would be great too!

You can read more about this challenge, and donate directly online, at Henny's fundraising page on JustGiving.com.

Technorati: Sponsorship | Fundraising

I haven't fixed the problem exactly, but I suddenly remembered that, in addition to "speed-dial" access to voicemail on my mobile phone, it's also possible to access it by dialling 123, and when I tried it, that worked. So at least I'll be able to access voicemail that way until I get the underlying problem fixed. I rather fear that I need to hand my phone in to an Orange Shop or send it off to Orange to have the operating system re-installed - there are a growing number of things that don't quite work the way they should.

But not tonight.

Southall (view larger image in Flickr).

And here we are back in bustling Southall.

On the bus (view larger image in Flickr).

Well, I'm on a bus but I'm really tempted to get off again and wait for the next one. There's a piece of human excrement sitting behind me apparently saying the foulest things to a girl on his phone and I really don't want to have to listen to that all the way home.

Oh thank goodness he just got off. Good riddance. I hope she tells him to get lost - whatever kind of girl she is, no-one deserves to be spoken to like that.

Ealing Common station (view larger image in Flickr).

Made it. Now just a bus and a short walk.

Just trundled slowly through Stamford Brook and now we've stopped for a few minutes. Some sort of delay up ahead. Hope it's not too severe. We're moving again, but slowly.

Euston station - now to head home (view larger image in Flickr).

Accessorize at Euston Station (view larger image in Flickr).

Bought a pair of lovely purple suede gloves that mummy said she'd like (must try to get them in the post promptly!), and while I was in Accessorize I discovered they've just started selling phone charms, so treated myself to a couple to go with the Korean good luck charm I got just over a year ago. And now down onto the Tube to get the Piccadilly Line to Ealing Common and then a bus for the final bit home!

Euston! (view larger image in Flickr).

16.22 : a few mins early!

Milton Keynes Central (view larger image in Flickr).

15.50 : just over half an hour to Euston - nearly there. And would you believe - even in Milton Keynes station, no 3G signal.

15.25 : just 1 hour to go. Oh, and as my phone seems to have lost all knowledge of how to access voicemail, best not leave any messages for me there until I get it fixed, as I simply won't be able to pick them up.

Well, it's been unbroken gray skies and low cloud all the way down so far.

On a brighter note though, I've discovered that power sockets are located next to seats at tables, so I've moved and the mobile is having a much needed recharge. All those abortive attempts to send emails had almost completely drained it of power.

Longboats (view larger image in Flickr).

Interesting - just passed a stretch of canal with lots of longboats moored up.

14.31 I'm definitely travelling east coast route if possible in the future - I didn't have anything like the same problem getting a decent signal when I travelled up last week - this is getting ridiculous! I'm giving up for now on the other two posts waiting to send, and leapfrogging them to send this one and catch up with myself.

Preston (view larger image in Flickr).

13.48 : these updates are piling up! Signal is just so patchy!

Lancaster (view larger image in Flickr).

13.30 : Another stop and short stay.

Oxenholme (view larger image in Flickr).

13.16 impossible to send these emails - signal never there for long enough. Would be horrendous trying to speak to someone with a signal as intermittent as this.

Gray skies (view larger image in Flickr).

13.00 Low cloud is obscuring most of the scenery here as we head into the Lake District. Shame, as I particularly enjoy the views passing through this bit of the UK.

Penrith (view larger image in Flickr).

12.50 : A short hop to Penrith, and a stop of only a minute.

Very patchy signal round here - might be a while before I manage to send this.

Carlisle (view larger image in Flickr).

Arrived a few minutes early, but I didn't quite feel brave enough to get off onto the platform to have a quick cigarette while the train waited for the scheduled departure time!

Train left Motherwell on time (view larger image in Flickr).

Nice swish shiny Virgin train. But where are the power sockets for mobiles and laptops?! I thought all Virgin trains had them throughout. I was wrong it seems. And someone else is sitting in the seat reserved for me, but when I asked her why, turned out she's got a reservation for the same seat. I didn't manage to check the other details when she showed me her ticket though - I wonder if she's on the wrong train?

Off we go again (view larger image in Flickr).

Murky gray morning, and here I am back at Motherwell Station. Allowed too much time for delays that didn't happen with the taxi, with the result that I got here at 10.45 for the train due at 11.26. Ho hum.

When I arrived here last night, I discovered that three of the posts I sent yesterday from my mobile had apparently vanished into the ether - the email software on my mobile showed them as having been sent, and in fact the automatic copies back to me had come through no problem, but there was no sign of them on here. So I sat down at my mother's PC and re-typed them, setting the date and time of each one to the time the email had originally been sent.

Then a short while ago, my sister Beth came through to say that she'd been trying Google Blog Search, and some of my blog posts were showing up twice. I found the same thing, but couldn't figure out why. But then when I went onto my blog to check a couple of things, I found that the three missing emails had finally arrived early this afternoon, with the result that these three posts had been duplicated in the blog.

Nice to see that they eventually turned up, but it's very puzzling as to why it took those particular three emails so very long to come through!

Let your wine breath (view larger image in Flickr).

I expect you're familiar with the advice to open a bottle of red wine and let the wine "breath" for a while before starting to drink it. You may, like some, have considered it silly "wine snob" stuff. Well, last night, I experienced the very real good sense in this advice (always assuming, of course, that you do actually want to enjoy your wine at its best!).

Last night, my mother and I opened a bottle of Caño Cosecha, a red wine from the Toro region in Spain. As we started drinking it, I commented on how it was rather a light, thin red wine. I paused half way through that first glass to go and get something to eat. When I returned to the wine around 20 minutes later, it was hard to believe I was drinking the same stuff! The wine now had real depth and character, with a spicy edge to it. Simply sitting there for 20 minutes had completely transformed it.

So do open your red wine about 30 minutes before actually starting to drink it - you will be amazed at the difference that can make to how it tastes.

Journey's end (view larger image in Flickr).

My mother, a hot cup of coffee, a cigarette, and an armchair. If Chris was here too it would be perfect, but other than that, I'm happy. :)

Motherwell at last! (view larger image in Flickr).

The last half hour of any journey longer than 2 hours always feels as long as the rest of the journey. In fact, longer!

Edinburgh Waverley (view larger image in Flickr).

Just a short hop to Haymarket next, then another 30 mins to Motherwell.

Berwick-upon-Tweed (view larger image in Flickr).

Crossing the river into Berwick.

Train emptied out quite a bit there, and I discovered that it has power pockets for laptops and mobiles. So I've now got the mobile on charge. Yayyy! I can browse, play games and blog as much as I want for the rest of the journey, and still arrive with a full battery! :)

Newcastle (view larger image in Flickr).

Making good time.

11012006(006).jpg (view larger image in Flickr).

The weather up here is absolutely gorgeous at the moment!

And now Darlington, as the miles spin by.

Here we are in York. Hi Bim!

And we're off again. Bye Bim! :)

Passing the time on a long journey 2006 style (view larger image in Flickr).

It would once have been a book to read, or a puzzle magazine to keep one occupied. These days it's watching a film on the laptop.

When I was a child, I'd devour the science fiction books my parents bought, and dream of living in a world where the technologies portrayed in these stories really existed. And then one day I realised that much of it had sneaked up on me bit by bit and I almost didn't notice.

As someone else said, I really love living in the future!

The train's just pulling out of Kings Cross station, bang on time. Must try not to spend the whole journey browsing the Web and emailing - I don't think the battery in my mobile will last that long!

Arrived Kings Cross in very good time, and it looks like the train is due to depart on time. Excellent!

Or a bit of it at any rate. My mother lives with one of my sisters and her husband in central Scotland, and I'm heading up there today for a few days. Although we have a good long blether on the phone most weekends, and chat via IM, it's almost a year since I last managed to get up there, which is far too long.

Managed to catch the 9.45 train from Southall, which should mean I'll get to King's Cross in good time for the 11.00 to Glasgow. I heard something on BBC Breakfast about disruption to GNER services but haven't been able to find out anything more so far. Hope it's not too serious.

Had originally planned to stop in at the office, but left a little late for that. Probably just as well - I'd just get caught up in work stuff.

Well here we are at Paddington - time to head down onto the Tube to Kings Cross.

Look at what Google have done with their title graphic today! They've turned it into a representation of "Google" in braille, to celebrate the anniversary of the birth of Louis Braille. Looks rather good too!

Braille | Louis Braille | Anniversaries