Today's Words of Wisdom

Sam says:

"Don't sniff it, just piss in it"

Explanations via e-mail.

Home Video Television Shows

I refer to television shows that consist purely of clips that people have sent in from their video cameras, almost certainly of someone falling over (Kirsty's Home Videos, etc.).  I have several comments to make about these:

1. This appears to be an extremely cheap way of making television programmes.  It is just one more example of the paucity of ideas in modern television.  There appears to be the same amount of originality in the 500 channels available through Sky that there ever was when we only had 2, 3 or 4 channels.  On that same point, was it slightly ironic that Channel 4's programme on the demise of Saturday night TV was shown on a Saturday night?
2. In most of the situations, there appears to be no good reason why anyone was filming it at all.  Filming of weddings, birthday parties, holidays, etc., is at least logical, but filming someone building a wall??  Suspicious set ups which may well be a lucrative source of income.
3. In some of the cases, especially the workplace ones, I cringe rather laugh.  They often show extremely dangerous practices which should not be anywhere close to the workplace.  Maybe I'm being too much of a jobsworth H&S Officer (see rants above), but in this case I can't help it.
4. The late night version appears to consist of people doing things in the nude.  Even cheaper method of making money - you don't even need to hurt yourself.
5. I really don't find a child blowing out candles on a birthday cake worthy of a TV show.  Just an allegedly cute child, not even blowing out the candles having first gargled with petrol, or blowing the cake over the family dog/pig/hedgehog. 

I'm going for a lie down.

Modern Houses

And why do modern houses have such small, inaccessible loft space, tiny gardens and tiny kitchens. Are we being conditioned to live in smaller and smaller boxes? County and District Council planning departments have target values for population denisities per square mile, which they need to meet otherwise they are sanctioned by central government. Whatever happened to individualism of builders and buildings?
On the same subject, why is a massive proportion of housebuilding now in the hands of 5 or 6 different firms (Wimpey, Croudace, Barrett, etc.)? With the notable exception of housing co-operatives, are there no private builds any more?

Forum

Exactly what should the plural of forum be? Forums (as is normallly used on web sites) or fora (which I am sure is the correct Latin plural)?

Electricity

I live in Didcot. Not the most salubrious or desirable of locations, but it provides me with a roof and somewhere for the mortgage company to extract my money. Didcot is famed for two things. It is a mainline rail station, hence all the commuter-choked dying villages surrounding this area of Oxfordshire. It also has the biggest eyesore in the the Thames Valley (well except Reading) - Didcot Power Station. How come, if Didcot is situated next door to Didcot Power Station (logical I know), we get so many power cuts (I imagine even in houses which are, for good reason, named Pylon View). Britain is alleged to be one of the most technologically developed countries in the Western world, and yet we have the electricity supply of a Developing nation.

Another rant may be about the world reliance on electricty but that is for another day.

Skips

We have just put in a new kitchen and set of windows, and performed some serious surgery on the front garden and hedge. This meant that we needed to hire a skip for the rubbish. It is quite amazing how many people are walking by and making detours into our driveway to look at what is in the skip!! If I'd have known that the things I am throwing out (which after all are some old and rotting windows, some very old and stained carpet - don't ask) were so much in demand, I would have put them on E-bay.

To misquote Jim Morrison, people are definitely strange.

Fireworks

To carry on with the post I made a few weeks ago, I have just cleared out my front garden and found the remains of five fireworks. Does this mean that most of them have only just missed my house...?

Oh, and as I type this two blackbirds are making sweet passion on top of my garage. To be fair, the female does not look too impressed with it all.

Health and Safety

I refer you to my post below on H&S. They wonder why H&S gets an awful name for itself. Where the hell is common sense. Why the increase in the nanny state. What next, banning smoking in outside areas. Oh no, that's already on its way.

I doubt that any readers of this are members of IOSH (Institute of Occupational Safety and Health), but on their fora/forums (see next post) there is an enormous argument going on as to whether Bob the Builder should be seen without a seat belt, or working underneath suspended loads. GET A LIFE....!