Living the dream

The French

2009-11-26T21:51:00.003Z

Well the French did it, they won and are on the way to the World Cup.

It was horrible, it wasn't particularly fair but I suppose that's why we love sports. It helps you forget about your real troubles for a few brief moments.

If Ireland get a penalty...

2009-11-18T19:26:00.000Z

I think they should try this..

Would John Gormley do this?

2009-11-03T20:19:00.001Z

In your time of trouble, would John Gormley do this?

I bet he would have recylced the iron bar!

Free stuff for €2.99

2009-11-02T21:09:00.003Z

The Irish Independent, innovators that they are, have come up with an iPhone app to read the newspaper. I saw it online and thought that's a good idea.

I went to download the app and was horrified that it cost €2.99.

€2.99 to read the paper online, that you can read for free online! Are they serious?

I'm going to continue to read the Independent online, for free, I won't be wasting money on the iPhone app.

A new start I swear...

2009-11-01T20:47:00.002Z

The last post was about being a lazy poster and then over a month later I'm pretty much going to say the same thing.

Marathon is finished, well for this year, a slow 4.46.20 but I really enjoyed this one.

Now expect a post every couple of days from now on.

Lazy Blogger

2009-09-22T19:03:00.000Z

I have many excuses and some of which are pretty good, but the main reason I've not been blogging is I'm a bit lazy.

I've been training for a marathon and working and living my life so I've not been twiddling my thumbs.

I will try harder though!

Some Ideas for recovery.

2009-09-01T10:28:00.005Z

German unemployment has risen to 8.3%. This doesn't sound too good but if you read on you will see that only 9000 more people have lost their jobs last month. That is a tiny fraction of the amount losing their jobs in Ireland.

Is it because the Irish economy is in a worse state than Germany's? Well yes, but the Germans have implemented a plan that subsidises jobs, and encourages shorter worker weeks, so that people will take a cut in wages but will not need to go on full unemployment benefit which is a lot of money. It also has the benefit of keeping manufacturing going and thus bringing in VAT and keeping exporters at work.

With a little bit more imagination and we could recover a lot sooner and there would be a lot less people heading towards skid row.

Sometimes simple solutions solve complex problems but trying to solve them invariably solves them quikcer than doing nothing.

Breaking news - a dog dies!

2009-09-01T08:05:00.002Z

An old dog died today. Not just any old dog, the oldest dog in the world, ahem.

I have to go out now and get a black armband and fly the flag at half mast.

A no brainer.

2009-08-25T08:17:00.003Z

If you have no brain, everything is a no brainer! Mary Harney yesterday said that it was a no brainer to ban sunbeds because they cause cancer.

But of course cigarettes are fine. They don't cause any health problems, nor does alcohol, fast foods, junk food... and so on and so forth.

I wonder was she just trying to impress Lance.

SQL Injection - Come on!!!

2009-08-19T09:46:00.002Z

I read about the hacker who gleaned 120 Million people's credit card details. I thought he must have been some hacker, a savant to get access to that much information.

Then I heard it was a SQL Injection attack. This really is shabby that big companies with credit card and customer information are being exposed by such rudimentary attacks.

Obviously Fake video exposed as fake.

2009-08-18T13:39:00.002Z

I read this on Sky News today and lost what little respect I had for the "news" channel.

Stupid Goverment plan to waste more money

2009-07-21T10:54:00.004Z

When I read this morning, that the government want to convert a carpark back into a lawn that it was previously. I thought that isn't a bad idea.

When I head they were then going to hire car parking places instead and spend two hundred and thirty thousand on the conversion, I thought they ought to seek medical help because they are obviously having delusions.

John Gormley, so called Green Leader, says it has to be done because the planning permission for the car park was for 10 years. Give me a thousand euro and I will put a nice lawn in for you, and have a few hundred euro to spare!

I wonder how much a pint of milk will cost if John Gormley is buying?

A good start

2009-07-09T08:09:00.002Z

An Australian town has acted with some common sense. It's banning bottled water! Whata great idea.

The impact on the bottled water industry is huge, the amount of effort transporting the water, not to mention the bottles themselves!

Good work!

No Comment

2009-07-03T08:27:00.002Z

I don't think I need to add any further comment on this. Tribunals.... Hmmm

Judges and the pension levy?

2009-06-23T08:10:00.003Z

Should the Irish Judiciary take a paycut or a pension levy like the rest of the public service? I think they should just to show the people they preside over that they are fair people who believe in justice.

What I really don't like is that it is politicians clamouring for the judges to take the cuts / levy. These are the same politicians who don't sit for nearly half the year. The same politicians who receive long term service payments, who get pensions while they are still sitting as TDs and senators, politicians who are on a leave of absence from their teaching jobs, these very same TDs.

It's just another attempt from the political classes to obfuscate and to distract from the mess they have partially gotten us into.

Wow I can sign in

2009-06-23T08:09:00.001Z

I haven't been able to sign in to this blog in a few weeks and I'm not sure what the problem was. It's cleared up now so I have no excuses!!!

Local and European Elections

2009-06-05T20:44:00.000Z

It was hard to muster the gumption to vote for any of them!!

The Star Bar challenge

2009-05-28T22:25:00.001Z

I saw an ad for the volvic challenge recently. A challenge to drink water for 14 days. Easy. Too Easy, so I am embarking on a star bar challenge, I intend to eat a star bar every day for 14 days.

It's like a rubbish supersize me or a better idea than drinking water for 14 days. You decide!

Google Streetview

2009-05-14T20:51:00.002Z

The controversial Google Streetview is happening on a street near you. I actually say one today on the quays in Dublin, beside Temple Bar. Imagine, you could see me on the internet. I hope I'm not picking my nose!!

Bob Dylan

2009-05-09T09:19:00.001Z

We went to see Bob Dylan in the O2 in Dublin last week. I think it was my fifth time seeing him in concert and all in the same venue come to think of it.

I think it was the best I've seen him play and it was a really good set list. His website is pretty funky too.

The Gum Thief - Douglas Coupland

2009-05-09T09:10:00.003Z

I just finished reading The Gum Thief by Douglas Coupland. I've read all the fiction this guy has published and this was an absolute pleasure to read it was a real return to form in my eyes.

So if you have read any of his other novels, like Life After God, JPod, Microserfs definitely check this out.

I've been busy

2009-05-09T09:06:00.002Z

I'm getting less and less time to update my blog, or maybe I should say I am getting less inclined to update it. I'm so sick of computers lately that when I get home from work I haven't been switching it on.

I had to today to do a few updates to Neptune Adventure Centre's Website. I've added a new video to the homepage. Now I have to add some new documents to the Greendoor Accommodation Website.

Then there are 2 other sites I am working on and I really should get at least one of them done over the weekend, if I can bare turning the computer on, and if I get the time.

Lying ISP

2009-04-24T20:40:00.003Z

I've been having broadband problems over the last few weeks. This week I had 2 days without broadband and when I mailed the ISP they replied with a nice long answer suggesting it could be anything but their system.

Suspiciously the broadband has been working perfectly since.

Suspicious! I'd much prefer if they told me the truth.

Budget Predictions

2009-04-16T22:11:00.001Z

My budget predictions weren't bad. I got it wrong about VAT, but you live and learn. It is funny though that a week or 2 later they are back dating the levy just to stop people front loading bonuses etc.

Do they not think any of their ideas through?

budget predictions

2009-04-06T22:54:00.003Z

so it's the night before the budget and not a creature is stirring...

Ok, so here is what i'm expecting. The income levy will be trebled and maybe quadrupled. Vat will be dropped and social welfare will be dropped an equal amount. The will add duty to cigarettes and alcohol but not too much and i expect DIRT to increase.

I also expect section 23 to be ended and a crackdown on rental properties and landlords and perhaps some property tax....

that's my guess