A Series of Unintelligible Ramblings

WARNING: rant ahead
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The libel laws in this country are a joke. They so heavily favour the claimants in cases that they are threatening freedom of expression of writers, journalists, comedians, scientists and more.

In science especially ( I specifically mention science here as that is the area I am most familiar with), freedom to criticise and question ideas is of the utmost importance -anyone can make mistakes and the freedom to query claims made is what stimulates debate and keeps the system fair.  With the way the libel laws stand at the moment however, it is all to easy for a scientist with legitimate questions to ask to be intimidated into not doing so for the fear of a long and costly libel case in which it is all too likely that the British courts will rule against them.

The British Chiropractic Association, BCA, sued Simon Singh for libel concerning an article he wrote for the Guardian in April 2008 basing the case on a meaning of phrase that was not intended.  This is the case that has since sparked the Libel Reform Campaign in the UK.  The campaign aims to get the libel laws in this country amended to enable freedom of expression and healthy debate, meaning that writers and scientists no longer have to self-censor, ensuring that we, the public, are able to read about the issues rather than them being hidden from us for fear of career-damaging lawsuits.

Please take a look at the website and sign the petition for libel reform in the UK.  Here, you can read the views of others supporting the campaign and see examples of cases which show the necessity for change.

I believe this is a worthy topic, deserving of public support, if you feel the same please spread the news to others.

•  Buy digital camera.... possibly Canon 500D - at least that way I can interchange lenses with my SLR.  I want multiple exposure capability but isn't available on most models and is *way* out of my price range.

• Figure out what to do with my life.  Masters course is out - at least for now... which means I need some idea as to what kind of career I want.  I has no clue.

• Visit resurgamlaura in her shiny new home and spend much time squeeing over pretties and randoms.  I don't her often enough, wonderful person that she is, and the WKD calendar on my wall reminds me of her every time I look at it,

... till half term.

This half term may only be 5 weeks long - but it really does seem so much longer.  I think this is partly due to last term ending pretty abruptly due to snow (as this country does, of course, come to a screaming halt at the slightest hint of snow).  So things that should have been done then ended up being left till after Christmas.  We also started back a day late after Christmas (once again, due to snow) so term started in chaos and we've been playing catch-up ever since.

Oh and Ofsted are in tomorrow and Friday doing a subject specific inspection of Citizenship.


But.... 2 more get-ups till half term!

which means:

• 2 more get-ups 'til going to see Maire Ni Chathasaigh and Chris Newman with the boy which should be interesting.
• 3 more get-ups 'til my friend's engagement party in Didsbury on Saturday.
• 4 more get-ups 'til going to Hoar Cross Hall for a 1 night 2 day spa stay.  Mmmmm, can't wait.

All in all, it appears I actually have a life this half term as I will also be attempting to attend a French Film evening (which I may not make it to, time-wise) and will be spending a few days in Ormskirk with the boy.
...I'm sure I'm supposed to be using this time to rest.

...and I will be this week.

We are having the bathroom re-tiled this week so as of this morning said room has been completely stripped out.

We are also getting a new bath and a new shower - this was not on the original plans but as the dial has come off our old one and it is stuck at a temperature of "barely lukewarm" replacement has become a necessity.

Anyway, all of this leaves me without a shower for a week. So evenings are going to involve going to the leisure centre or round to a friend's house in order to avoid the whole pointing thing and being labelled unclean. So, tomorrow evening I'm heading to a friend's for food and will cheekily make use of his shower while I am there.... this will inevitably involve comments such as

"of course you can have a shower.... but only if I can join you"

and the like. Honestly, the things a girl has to put up with to keep herself presentable.

Whilst I already knew that I have not posted on here in quite some time (understatement of the year!), I have just realised quite how long it has been when I read through my last piece and saw that I kept referring to a "friend". Said friend is now my boyfriend and we've been together since about a week after I posted that last message on here.

I'm not quite sure what I have to report - it's been so long it's not worth trying to catch up on everything. Sooooo.....

Highlights from the past 8 months:

• Venice with resurgamlaura .... much much squee

Gondola Traffic Jam Burano... Alas, Beppe was not to be found

Everyone at work has been just a wee bit stressed for the last few days... the reason for this being we have the dreaded Ofsted coming in tomorrow and Wednesday to carry out their inspection of the school.

This does, of course, include me. and I now has Brain Melty Death.

Partly because I have been going to bed rather late since last Wednesday - including not getting to bed till 0430 Saturday night / Sunday morning thanks to a certain friend of mine.  Though, while the late nights do not help, I'm pretty sure that the main cause of my mental blue screen of death is the energy and tension of everyone at work kind of rubbing off on me and the fact that I have spent the past few hours making and putting up a display ready for tomorrow.

< NOTE: I am quite possibly a little *too* proud of this display - but considering how long it took me to put together and how many staples were involved it is not coming down again for a very long time. >

Spending nearly 12 hours in work has slightly warped my tiny, little, already rather warped brain and now I'm pretty sure I've forgotten to do something ready for tomorrow.

Plus, thanks to said friend, I *cannot* get Snow Patrol's Crack The Shutters out of my head!  I actually woke up singing it yesterday.  Actually, come to think of it,  hanging around with him so much over the past few days has probably contributed quite considerably to my current mental status.

Sorry - coherent thought is not particularly possible at this moment in time so I think I'll leave this post here as I'm not sure how much sense I'm making.

OK, so today was my Nanna's funeral and while it may seem insensitive to write something here, I'm feeling the need.  At least if I'm putting something down here I'm not upsetting family members.
All in all the day went quite well I think - no family falling outs at least - and as far as I'm aware no major problems.  The only thing I feel the need to vent about slightly is the church service.  First thing's first - I am not a Christian, I'm an Atheist.

I'm pretty certain in my belief that there is no God - I am a scientist and this is what makes logical sense to me.  I do not believe in an afterlife or the resurrection.  I do not do church services, these services generally involve me having to sit there and listen to a bunch of drabble in which I do not believe.

Now, a few family members got up and said some lovely things about my Nanna which was nice and my dad did a reading.  The reading, however, was about resurrection - which I suppose is to be expected at a Christian funeral service - and then the vicar kept saying that "as we believed in Christ and the resurrection that death is not the end for us".

Listening to things like this does not bring me comfort - if anything it has the opposite effect.  It frustrates and sometimes angers me.  That and thanking God for her life - I'm sorry but an imaginary being had nothing to do with it.  Oh and "she's looking down on us now" no, she's not - she's dead.  OK, so we'll all remember her and "carry memories of her with us" and in that way she'll "live on" (I don't like the use of that phrase) but don't try to tell me that she's up there looking down on us.

I basically sat through the service not saying a word - no Amens, no singing.  I feel that to take part in the Christian ritual of it all would be hypocritical of me - and that isn't me.  I tried to block out the ramblings of the vicar - ok so he was only saying whatever it is that vicars say at such times, things he probably believed gave people comfort - again this does not work for me and instead frustrates me thoroughly.

I can't say any of this to my family as they talk about Nanna still being with them - and if believing that gives them some measure of comfort then who am I to take that from them.  Instead I have to nod and say agreeable things - this is not something I like doing really.  But I cannot believe something so completely illogical myself.

The most upsetting part of today, though, was seeing my dad upset - I'm really not used to that and I would have to say that that was the hardest part of today.

Sorry to rant but I just felt the need to vent - I can't say this stuff to anyone around me for fear of upsetting them.

Happy Pi Day!
... Granted there's only 10 minutes of it left but oh well.

This may be rather a random mixed up post... but oh well.

• I should be able to get my bike in the next couple of weeks as the town council are running their "on your bike" scheme again which means (as, technically, I work for the council)  I'll be able to get quite a bit of money off.  This is a good thing as I will need to start training for the July bike ride and am desperately in need of exercise generally.

• I once again have What Katie Did pretties - Yay!   ...Now if only I had bought a certain other item in the sale when I had the chance.   And of course now I want to go out with resurgamlaura next Saturday - as not only would that give me an excuse to wear the pretties but also the joy of her company which, being 200 miles away, I am severely lacking.

• I will however have a whole week of res's company in May on our Venice jaunt.  Much Squee! ... hmmm jaunt is a good word.

• I am being bullied into learning how to drive - both at home and at work.  Bullying in the work place I tell you!  I realise I really should learn to drive and that it would be useful for me....  I do, however, resent having to fork out £50 (yes, that's 50 of your British pounds!) for the privilege of being allowed to learn.  That's just for the provisional license - I don't know how much the lessons are gonna cost me.  If I'd learned when I first had the chance my provisional would have cost £30.  I still don't actually want to drive which is probably why I still seem to be putting off posting the application for my provisional license.

• The above is yet another argument for me moving back to Ol' London Town.  The main argument up to now is that I miss the people... I do not cope too well with change.

• Windows Media Player actually seems to be running at a reasonable speed again.  This means I can finally add stuff to my music library.

• I still have no idea what I want to do with my life.  I'm trying to figure out if there is a job out there that I would a. be suited to and b. actually like.  This, at the moment, is the main cause for making me feel generally stressed out and down.

In search of a character for World Book Day (see previous post) I have rediscovered one of my favourite quotes from Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman:

"Many phenomena.. wars, plagues, sudden audits.. have been advanced as evidence for the hidden hand of Satan in the affairs of Man, but whenever students of demonology get together the M25 London orbital motorway is generally agreed to be among the top contenders for Exhibit A.

Where they go wrong, of course, is in assuming that the wretched road is evil simply because of the incredible carnage and frustration it engenders every day.

In fact, very few people on the face of the planet know that the very shape of the M25 forms the sign odegra in the language of the Black Priesthood of Ancient Mu, and means "Hail the Great Beast, Devourer of Worlds." The thousands of motorists who daily fume their way around its serpentine lengths have the same effect as water on a prayer wheel, grinding out an endless fog of low grade evil to pollute the metaphysical atmosphere for scores of miles around.

It was one of Crowley's better achievements. It had taken years to achieve, and had involved three computer hacks, two break.. ins, one minor bribery and, on one wet night when all else had failed, two hours in a squelchy field shifting the marker pegs a few but occultly incredibly significant meters. When Crowley had watched the first thirty.. mile.. long tailback he'd experienced the lovely warm feeling of a bad job well done.

It had earned him a commendation."