Cheerier

[lnr]

Glad I went out, even though I wasn't feeling much like it. Talked mostly to Simon and to Mike, but with various chats to other people too which was nice. Played lots on the quiz machine but didn't win anything (at least not while I was watching, apparently they won a pound while I was buying a round and talking to Tony). Managed to stick to only one drink - a single of Balvenie 12 year old at last orders. So smooth it's barely there, lovely. Shared with various other people too so less than a unit. Seem to have made lots of social plans, of varying vagueness.

• Lunch tomorrow, USSC, Ucam IT SGO cabal
  
• Pizza/vids tomorrow evening
  
• Date with Simon Saturday afternoon for haircut, in lieu of B5
  
• Sean's party Saturday night
  
• Some sort of celebration of six years since Dan's party on Sunday
  
• Have mailed Duncan to see if he wants lunch Monday
  
• Lunch with Mike Tuesday
  
• rjk off work next weds/thur/fri
  
• B-Movie next Friday
  
• B5 next Saturday afternoon

Also have plans for around house.

• Paint bedroom
  
• Finish diary faffing
  
• Finish remaining washing up
  
• Hoover
  
• Catalogue books
  
• Phone NTL and find out what cable TV will cost
  
• Sort out paperwork of various kinds

Comments

[duncanneko.livejournal.com]

Monday is unfortunately out as I have evil work out in Haverhill, which pretty much rules out doing *anything* during the week except evenings.

Was going to suggest Sunday, but if you're busy don't worry

[lnr]

Hmm, half wondered about cycling out there, but having looked at multimap it's 20 miles. And while I've cycled that far before (40 mile round trip to Royston) I was in practice and fit at the time and I'm not now.

[duncanneko.livejournal.com]

It's Evilly far away.. bus takes, er, 45 minutes or so from Addenbrooks if you're _really_ bored, but I only have half an hour lunch break anyway - and as we're out on the industrial estate, the nearest pub is about half an hour's walk. Perhaps when I'm driving again it might be managable.

[tamsinj.livejournal.com]

if you want to cycle to haverhill.. don't use the roads. the A1307 is fast, and drivers fail to understand what overtaking means. there're also derisory cycle 'lanes' which put you on the pavement for 30m through a bus-stop because the road designers couldn't widen the road when they put in a pedestrian refuge.

cycling to linton is easily done from addenbrookes - go down worts causeway, and straight on. there's a roman road which runs straight to linton. offroad though, and the first hill is.. interesting.

linton to haverhill i don't know a good way yet. the only route on a map is down the 1307 dual-carriageway bit.

[lnr]

I've had no trouble with the road as far as the A505 before, and can probably cope with beyond there, but as I say not fit at the moment. Maybe another time.

[damerell.livejournal.com]

Minamicon 10 next Friday, so try not to break the Water Rats while I'm gone.

Cable TV: I know it's frigging Murdoch but our impression is that Sky is cheaper - and they could hardly be less competent than NTL.

[simonb.livejournal.com]

IME Sky is much better than NTL; switched from NTL digital a couple of years ago to Sky. If nothing else Sky has more of the Discovery channels AFAIR.

The fact that we've got Sky+ probably has something to do with this as well; Sky+ is a ++shiny toy IME. I've been using it this evening to record stuff and then play it back later and fast forward through the adverts.

[lnr]

Even when you've already got NTL for phone and broadband?

[lnr]

Hey, where'd my comment to this go. Did you get mail? That's the second vanishing comment in a couple of days.

Is it still cheaper even if you're already with NTL for phone and broadband?

[lnr]

Oh look, it's appeared now.

[damerell.livejournal.com]

I received mail messages for both in the order that they were posted, in reasonably close succession.

[new-brunette.livejournal.com]

Which channels do you want? I got a freeview box from Richer Sounds for £40 the other day and a wideband aerial for £15 from B&Q. No reception problems at all from central Cambridge.

[lnr]

Not too bothered about extra channels, mostly want to reliably get C5, which we're not on analogue terrestrial. Not sure about fitting aerials either.

[new-brunette.livejournal.com]

Well I'd definitely go freeview if that's the case as both sky and ntl are going to cost you an arm and a leg. C5 reception is spot on + BBC3 and BBC4 + News 24 - that's all I tend to watch.

Aerial fitting involved:

1 open loft hatch
2 stand on chair in bedroom holding aerial through loft hatch
3 point in the same direction as the rest of the aerials in the street
4 confirm that the freeview box works
5 lay the aerial on the joists in the loft - i.e. not screwed to anything
6 shut the loft hatch over the aerial coaxial cable
7 shove the cable behind the wardrobe

er... that's it. Even if you paid for someone to install the aerial, it'll be cheaper than a few months' rental of sky/ntl

[damerell.livejournal.com]

I think so, yes. Cable TV cancels phone line rental which is what, about a tenner a month? At worst it's about even, and NTL are such monumentally useless bastards...

But you'd have to check this; we ditched their phone service when we got ADSL in order to avoid the fact that they are, er, monumentally useless bastards.

[j4.livejournal.com]

Lunch tomorrow, USSC, Ucam IT SGO cabal

I got mail from Tony saying something about lunch at the Castle on Regent Street today. Am I confused? I can't make it anyway because we're going to All Bar One (yeah, I know) for Nicola's birthday...

[lnr]

Oh drat, I was assuming USSC and have no mail from Tony at home. I don't really want to check my work mailbox just on the offchance. Maybe I'll give it a miss today.