Back to Bright and a few (necessary?) diversions
March 15, 2007
We were fortunate enough to head back to back to Bright over the recent long-weekend. Bright is such a great little spot to visit–very quaint and laid back–even when it is bustling with long-weekend crowds. It’s always an enjoyable place to stay. It was also nice to see people returning to the area after the recent bushfires. Warning, slight diversion (rant) ahead.
<rant>It’s a real shame that the character of the town appears to be under threat from a proposed Coles mall, which will be as big as 40% of Bright’s current retail floor-space. Not that I have any real vested interest, but I think that the charm of the town lies in keeping its local feel and not selling out to ‘commercial’ interests. In my opinion, the community has more to lose than gain by allowing the development to proceed. I’m not sure what can be done, but the campaign struck a chord with me. Perhaps this post will raise some awareness? Opponents of the development have a website: savebright.com if you’re interested.</rant>
And whilst I’m off the path, another slight diversion …
Simplicity. I’ve always loved camping, and never really understood my affinity for the great outdoors, particularly as I was bought up as a city kid. I suppose to some extent that a love of nature is innate, but I think I can now sum it up in one word–simplicity. I just love the simplicity of it: making a cup of tea with a Billy; cooking the evening meal on a hotplate; sleeping under a starry sky; not being in a hurry to go anywhere or do anything. Simple. Uncomplicated. Straightforward.
My writing style for this post seems to reflect my week—lots of ups and downs and ins and outs–a bit of a roller coaster ride really! Thanks for coming on the ride, hopefully you’re not too nauseas.
Geeks Anonymous
June 22, 2006My name is Daryl and I am a geek! :-
- I know what an RSS feed is.
I played dungeons and dragons in high school.
I know the difference between a ‘Flash’ website and ‘Flash Gordon’.
I read slashdot.
I have more than one email account.
I have my own domain name.
I know that the web is not just something a spider weaves.
I can fix 99.5% of all PC end-user probems by asking 2 questions:
- Is it plugged in?
- Have you tried turning it off and on again
- I’m not trying to make light of people with serious problems here — this meme has been festering since someone actually referred to me as a geek a couple of weeks back –and again yesterday!.I’ve never really thought of myself as a geek, but truth be told, I’ve probably been in denial! There, I’ve just come out of the closet, now I can just get on with being geeky.
No, I will not fix your computer!
April 20, 2006I was only just banging on about being everyone’s tech support last night and then Marty suggested that I might want to get one of these!
The Art of Common Courtesy
February 13, 2006I’ve finally come to the conclusion that common courtesy is like common sense — it’s not all that common!
A couple of instances (incidentally all on the same day) played out last week, where people did not show up for pre-arranged meetings, were terribly late or just plain forgot. In a business context, my view is that this is just not acceptable.
As someone with a high ‘J’ on the Myers-Briggs type indicator (J-types tend to prefer a step-by-step (left brain: parts to whole) approach to life, relying on external rules and procedures, and preferring quick closure), the type of behavoir experienced last week is a ‘trigger’ for me … it’s frustrating, infuriating and severely affects my temperament.
Unfortunately, I suppose I’ll just have to recognise that others just don’t have the same standards of professionalism and courtesy that I do and learn to live with it (or at least deal with it!). Enough said.
Proprietary Standards and Mobile Phones
February 7, 2006Rhetorical question: Why do mobile manufacturers insist on having proprietary standards for accessory ports? Why can’t I plug my iPod headphones into my mobile phone so that I can listed to the radio, just as I can interchangeably plug them into any other type of defice with a standard 1.5mm headphone socket? Why should I have to get a different car charger or handsfree kit for my partner because she has a different handset? And, if you think this is an issue relating to locking out competitors products, you’re only half right — Nokia have also changed their own ’standard’ with their latest phones. Obviously it’s pure and simply designed to sell more accessories. Annoying!
