December 2009 Archives

1. Washing Machine (leaking)
2. Kia (not MOT or Tax, OK not "broken" but unusable)
3. Hard disk on my desktop
4. Lights on my trailer.
5. Engine in my car (running, but needs work doing to it)
6. Dish washer (has been for months)
7. Both sets of toilet seats.
8. My new work laptop
9. Name box for my disco.
10. Me (Man Flu)
11. Sharon (more seriously; cluster migraines)
12. My will.
    

A quote from BBC New's article on the deteriating health of Lockerbie Bombmer, Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi, touched me this morning. (I'm ill and feeling emotionally fragile so it doesn't take much).

Buried toward the end of the article is a comment from a father bereaved by the 1988 bombing.

Dr Jim Swire, who lost his daughter Flora in the bombing, which happened 21 years ago on Monday, said: "I've been talking to people who know about his medical condition and the message I get is he's likely to only have a few weeks left.

"I think it's another occasion where we should be grateful for Kenny MacAskill's bold decision to allow him to go home."

Quite aside from any doubts about whether the right man was convicted, I think Dr Swire's compassion and suppor for the decision to allow Megrahi to go home to die speaks volumes. It shows the world that we, as a country, have a justice system that is about exactly that; justice, not revenge.

Everyone knows about the Facebook campaign to buy Rage Against the Machine's Killing In The Name this week to keep X-Factor finalist, Joe McElderry's version of The Climb from becoming Christmas number 1 by now right?

Not that you care (nor should you) but I was initially very sceptical about the campaign. Lets face it, I'm sure we had similar campaigns in each of the last 3 years and none of them amounted to anything. I was sure that the number of people likely to be motivated by such a campaign was likely to be dwarfed by the X Factor fanbase.

When it became apparent that the same record company was going to be making all the profit from the sale of the RATM track, I was also very cynical about the motives.

However, I think I was wrong. Sales figures to date show that, even if it eventually loses, the RATM track is giving Joe McElderry a run for his money. There appears to be half a chance that it might make the number 1 slot.

Why is this year different to previous years? It think this is two-fold. As X-Factor ages and continues to dominate the Christmas music charts, more people will become fed up with it and the number prepared to take part in a campaign like this will increase. Secondly, I believe the exponential rise in the use of Online "Social Media" over the last 12 months has had a big influence. Facebook and Twitter has been responsible for some mighty grass-roots campaigns this year. Think Trafigura. Think Jan Moir.

And is this a genuine protest vote? Or is it a cynical marketing campaign by the record company to make more money from the anti-X-Factor camp? It only dawned on me today that it doesn't really matter? The two are not mutually exclusive. It would appear that the campaign was not started by a record company plant. But, whoever planted the seed, it has grown through genuine interest. It's quite encouraging to see an idea from a single person propagate so quickly and effectively.

So, despite my original scepticism and cynisism, I genuinely hope that RATM - Killing In The Name makes it to the Number 1 spot on Sunday. If you haven't bought it already you only have about 24 hrs left.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Rage Against The Machine retain lead over X Factor's Joe McElderry (telegraph.co.uk)
• Machine rage (newstatesman.com)
• Anti-X Factor Campaign Puts RATM In Lead To XMas #1 (stereogum.com)

Customer Services
Cupid Life Partners UK Ltd
Cloud 9
Up There Somewhere

10 December 2009

Dear Sirs

My purchase of Wife, Model "Sharon"

Many years ago I purchased from you an early model Girlfriend. Unfortunately the available model was not suitable for my needs at that time and was returned to you for modification. In early 2000 I took delivery of the improved version.

I was extremely happy with the "new and improved" Sharon and quickly took advantage of the opportunity to upgrade her to the "Fiancée" specification.

Again, I was very pleased with my purchase and, despite the significant expense involved, upgraded to the "Wife" specification just over 9 years ago and signed the "Lifetime Exclusivity Deal" available. In the main I have been very happy with the performance of the goods supplied.

It has recently come to my attention, however, that there were significant failings in the manufacture of the basic hardware onto which the Girlfriend, Fiancée and Wife upgrades were installed.

To by blunt, my Sharon is falling apart.

Minor hardware failures have necessitated no fewer than 12 visits to the factory repair shop, including 2 invasive repair procedures. Your technical team are currently investigating technical problems with the processing unit that lead to severe problems with data entry and processing. We are still uncertain as to whether these require physical repair to the circuitry or simply adjustments to the BIOS

I have grown quite attached to my Sharon model Wife, although I am aware that her hardware is "old technology", and have no desire to exchange her for a new model. However, given that these appear to be inherent design or manufacturing problems, I would appreciate some contribution from your firm to the ongoing costs of repair and maintenance. I would also help greatly if you could have a word with your maintenance team and speed up the resolution of our current difficulties.

I look forward to your response.

Yours faithfully,

Paul Taylor
Owner, Wife model Sharon

p.s. You couldn't throw in a free boob renovation and upgrade whilst you're at it could you?

(Copied and updated from my 2004 blog entry)

I meant to write this yesterday, on World AIDS Day, but ran out of time. It's not much of a story, but prompted by @propablydrunk's excellent words I thought I'd throw my two penn'orth in.

Somewhere around about the turn of the Millenium a very good friend of mine made the huge decision to come out. He chose me to be one of the first people he told and it was partly my reaction that lead him to come out to everyone else.

As a now out gay man he wanted to do what he'd been unable to do whilst in the closet; he wanted to openly go out on the "Gay Scene". He had yet to build up a circle of gay friends so I agreed to clubbing with him. They were some of the best nights out I've had. Gay clubs are sooo much better than your average "hit man & her" cheesy nightclubs.

In the summer I went on holiday to Gran Canaria with him, staying in the gay quarter. Whilst there I was chatted up by a bloke in his 40s most days as we chilled by the pool. I don't usually have a problem with this. Clubbing on the gay scene I'd been chatted up a few times and found it very flattering. However, on our fourth day there he announced that he was HIV positive and immediately after that he wanted to sleep with me.

I was shocked and it took a bit of composure to give a sensible polite reply. It took me a short while to think it through properly. I was 28, intelligent and knew enough about AIDS to know that there was no risk to me simply through chatting to him. And beyond that, as a gay man in his early 40s he still had plenty of life left to live. There was no reason why, with knowing consent and appropriate precaution, he shouldn't continue to lead a full sex life.

Later that day I apologised to him for my reaction, an act I found as embarrassing as my initial reaction for fear of appearing condescending.

I guess I'm lucky in that this has been, so far, my only encounter with AIDS. I spent some time over the next few days discussing the illness with him and the friends he'd lost to it. He was (and, I hope, still is) an example of how a person can live their live with AIDS almost exactly as they would without it.