I Want One
When I first saw a giant Anglepoise lamp, I knew that I wanted one.
However, I want one in a brass colour to go with my decor.
I think the best bet is to buy one second-hand and get it plated.
But it won’t be cheap.
Infuriating IKEA
I sorted my bedroom out and ordered some new inserts for the wardrobe from IKEA. They were supposed to be delivered on the 22nd.
But now, I find that IKEA can’t deliver until some time in October, which isn’t much use to me.
So I’ve cancelled the order and will reorder it again after my trip.
Despite having my landline, they always ring on my mobile number. The calling number is always Private so I don’t know who’s phoned. So I’ve now removed the mobile number from their database.
I’ve Hardly Ever Slept Like I Did Last Night
I fell asleep on the living room floor at about 17:00. I got up about 20:00 and then went to bed, where I slept some more.
I did get up at about two in the morning for an hour or so, but other than that I slept through until five, when I got up to watch the rugby.
It could be the hay fever drugs. Either they’re sending me to sleep or they’re winning.
The Crush at Westfield Stratford City
It was a waste of time taking the train to the new shopping centre.
I walked out of the Overground station up the stairs and after walking past the masses of smokers, lined up outside the centre, I entered the centre, avoiding one of the doors, which was constantly being opened by a four or five-year-old constantly pressing the disabled door-opening button. He was having great fun smashing the door into people standing outside.
I did at least know where I was going and attempted to walk through to Waitrose at the other end. I don’t think, I’ve been in a crush like that for some years and that was probably at Wembley for the play-off final against Barnsley in 2000. But the football crowd was better behaved and I should say better controlled and it didn’t contain lots of children, buggies and especially aggressive youths, who were determined to get through at any cost.
Eventually, I did get to Waitrose, but decided that I didn’t really want to go through that crush again with my shopping, so I decided to just have a look round John Lewis.
I was astounded to see, two children on scooters in the shop. Some people must be mad.
I then gave up and decided that the best bet would be to get to Stratford International and take the DLR from there. It was a very wet walk around the outside of the centre. as there was no shelter.
At the station, I met a policeman and told him how dangerous it had been in there. He whole-heartedly agreed.
I must admit I did get a train to the main station at Stratford from where I took the Central Line back to Liverpool Street. After a walk, I did get a bus, but then this was delayed due to an accident on the New North Road.
This must be regarded as the least successful shopping trip, I’ve ever done.
Consumers Are Lazy When It Comes To Saving Energy
I diidn’t say this, Chris Huhne did and it’s the lead story on the front page of The Times.
But it’s true!
- The first thing I did with this house was to get rid of most of the high consumption bulbs. For a start I had 17 of those awful halogen downlights, that make better short life room heaters, than lights. The LEDs I used were a straight replacement.
- I searched for electricity and gas companies that gave me a good deal.
- But my biggest saving was selling my car and using public transport. That is not for everyone, but surely many families could make do with one less vehicle.
It’s not difficult, but people always find an excuse not to save money. And then moan about it.
Donations At Galleries and Museums
London’s museums don’t charge entry except for special exhibitions. Talks like last night’s one by Tom Hunter are often free and long may they stay that way.
They do have donation boxes and I can’t say I do it every time, but I generally drop a note in every so often, when I visit the British Museum or the National Gallery, which I do fairly regularly on a walk-through basis. Both are great totally dry short-cuts in the rain, with a lot more to see.
In the next few months, London’s transport system will start to accept credit cards, in addition to Oyster cards. You’ll just touch in, in the same way.
It would be interesting to note, if the ability to touch a credit card on a reader to say donate £3, would increase donations in museums and galleries, as often finding suitable change is not as easy, as getting out a card. You might even be able to use Oyster, as this might encourage visitors to buy one.
Tom Hunter and Piero di Cosimo
Tom Hunter is a well-known artist based in Hackney. A friend had invited me to a talk at the National Gallery by Tom to discuss a painting by Piero di Cosimo called A Satyr Mourning a Nymph. Tom had used it as an inspiration for one of a series of large format photographs based on a series of headlines in the Hackney Gazette. There is more about the talk here.
It was all very enlightening and enjoyable. It made me think that why don’t museums and galleries do this sort of talk and discussion more.
The National Gallery had just set up several ranks of folding chairs in front of the Piero di Cosimo painting and admission to the talk was free.
In this case the discussion was quite deep and some new insights into the painting seemed to have come forward. My friend even felt that the nymph was pregnant, which was a view supported by others and according to one of the curators of the gallery had not been proposed before.
In some ways it was slightly surreal for me, as I’d just featured in a headline in the Hackney Gazette. I can’t find it on-line, but it was about my 92 Clubs trip.
The Much-Improved Trafalgar Square
When I was young Trafalgar Square was rather a tacky place, where you went for New Year’s Eve, if you cvould brave it. Traffic rushed everywhere and the central part was completely cut off from everywhere else. But look at it now.
It just shows how things can be improved by removing the traffic.
Is there a more impressive important square in a European capital?
The only problem, is that some Ipswich Town fans might protest that the admiral on the column is from Norfolk.
I do have some happy memories of the place from when I stood on the Fourth Plinth.
BT Vision
I have just installed BT Vision.
It seems to work well and I’m just watching the cricket on Sky Sports 1.
Technically, I like the concept of watching most things free through Freeview and getting other things from broadband or by unlocking channels on Freeview. I think it is a concept that will grow like Topsy.
I know too, that I’m paying a lot less than I did for a poor service from Virgin.
A few points of comparison.
- I have Freeview television in my bedroom, so now I have the same channel numbers in my living room and my bedroom. I didn’t with Sky or with Virgin.
- Picture quality is good, but I have just fitted a new aerial.
- All the features like stop the picture and then contunue are there. Virgin may have had them, but I never found out how to use them. The designer of the Virgin box, was probably a games-optimised person, who didn’t understand logical system design for those who don’t and never will play games.
I’ll add to this list as time goes on. But I’m not regretting moving away from Virgin.
Back To The Future?
Fedex were delivering a parcel nearby and parked their driver parked his van outside.
Fedex Modec Electric Delivery Vehicle
It is totally electric and called a Modec. It would appear that the manufacturer no longer exists.
The reason I used the title was that I can remember the electric Harrods vans that used to trundle all over Central London until about the late 1960s. They had been built in the 1930s in the basement of the store. I think I once read that the rolling friction was designed to be so low, that it was possible for one man to push them on his own. I also think there were about sixty of them.
We need a lot more of this type of delivery van in big cities. London is probably an ideal place, as it is fairly flat, but perhaps San Francisco would be less so.
The Anonymous Widower 