Moving Home

Well Blog home that it is ;-)

I have been toying with the idea of hosting my blog on my web space for some time. I have finally taken the plunge. Hopefully it will be easy for everyone to use and I hope you like the new design it is called Amazing Grace. I am still playing around with one or two features, so you may see a few subtle differences over time.

My New home can be found here, I hope you will visit. A welcome message and a new blog post can be found there.

PS: Let me know if you experience any problems with the site.

Slumdog & MoD Pay

Earlier this evening I watched the film Slumdog Millionaire which I found to be excellent, although I found the emphasis to be quite different from the book on which it is based. I am not going to give you a review on the film but you can find a a good one here.

I read the book when it first came out in paperback. I really enjoyed it and loved the premise, which certainly did come across in the film. The ending though is quite different from the book, which incidentally was originally called Q&A and written by Vikas Swarup. I might do a review of the book for you when I can find my copy...

I came back to some good news in my mail box - the MoD pay ballot results. PCS members have voted against accepting the divisive pay offer. The offer means that some of the lowest paid members would receive a cut in their earning potential whilst other members would receive as much as a 17% pay rise.

Preparing for Conference

The voting papers and agendas for the PCS main and group conferences all landed up in my mail this week. I am happy to say I have completed my voting papers and they are ready for posting tomorrow. Obviously I knew what agenda items were tabled for the group conference (I am on the standing orders committee after all ;-) ). But today for the first time I saw the National Conference agenda. The agenda is always very busy but reading between the lines I noticed some very interesting motions up for debate...

One of my tasks whilst at the conferences is to report on the key motions and debates, sharing information with PCS members who were unable to attend.

I am toying with the idea of doing 'Conference Live Tweeting' - live updates via twitter which will automatically update on my blog and also the local PCS site...

Cherie's Place - Thought for the Week

The friendship that can cease has never been real.

Saint Jerome

PhotoHunt - Protect(ion)

I did wonder if I was going to be able to post my PhotoHunt on time this week. Last night my computer decided to throw another wobbly and rebooted itself twice and then turned itself off, refusing to be switched back on again... I tried again this morning and still nothing. So I tried different sockets and checked inside to see if the light blue light on the motherboard was still glowing, which was much to my relief.

I was beginning to think that yet another PSU had blown up. On the off chance I changed the power cable over and it started working again... I think it was having little joke at my expense.

But anyway onto the PhotoHunt pictures. I spotted this lovely scene on my recent trip to Little Moreton Hall.

For more of this weeks PhotoHunt pictures check out tnchick.

Firmin by Sam Savage

...Adventures of a Metropolitan Lowlife

The book is set in 1960's Boston in an urban area that is scheduled for regeneration. The novel is narrated by Fermin, a rat who lives in the basement of a run down bookstore. Fermin was the runt of the litter and always last in line to get food. In order to stay alive he start nibbling on the books in the shop. After a while he gains the ability to read. He thinks and sounds more like a human than a rat. At the begining of the novel if I hadn't already know in advance that I wouldn't have realised he was a rat.

Firmin is a gallant soul who is gifted and wise. He is shunned by his fellow rats and makes plans to befriend the bookseller. In addition to reading books Firmin has a fondness of the local picture house where he views what he calls his lovelies on the big screen.

The book is very philosophical and has well drawn characters, and Fermin is quite charming. The book is interspersed with pictures of characters and events that Fermin encounters along the way, I found these quite charming. Before each chapter there were also pictures of book covers these didn't really add a lot for me.

I really enjoyed the book and found it quite a page turner.

Public Services and the Budget

With my TU hat on I thought it would be a good idea to check the budget out and see what the future held for public services.

The BBC website very helpfully has a collection of links to the budget report. So I clicked on the link for the complete budget report entitled 'Budget 2009: Building Britain's Future'. I didn't get the budget but a custom error message, the link had been blocked by my place of work. It gave two possible reasons...

It might link to a site that allows unauthenticated access too email such as Yahoo or Hotmail. Well I know that wasn't the problem it was a PDF document. The other possible reason was that the site may contain offensive content such as hate, sex or violence. I knew the budget wasn't going to be pleasant, but that is taking it a bit too far!!!

It made me laugh anyway ;-)

At least I could access the link 'Chapter 6: Improving Public Services'.

It says quite a lot about what they have spent on Public Services but not how they have wasted the money. Far too much to summarise so I will leave you with a couple of quotes that relate to previous posts of mine.

The Government remains strongly supportive of the value that private finance can bring to infrastructure procurement. In March 2009, the Government announced a public sector infrastructure debt-financing unit to provide temporary support for Private Finance Initiative (PFI) projects until market conditions improve, ensuring that vital projects in areas such as schools, waste and housing can proceed as planned. Projects in procurement with a total capital value of around £13 billion will be the immediate beneficiaries. The unit has recently reached financial close on its first project lending £120 million alongside the European Investment Bank and commercial lenders to the Greater Manchester Waste Development Authority's PFI project, ensuring that the £635 million construction programme can still go ahead.

Public Sector workers are at the heart of delivering world-class public services and supporting long term economic growth, prosperity and fairness. Public sector pay policy needs to be set in context of wider developments across the economy, where it is clear that the weaker private sector labour market has increased the reletive attractiveness of the public sector as an employer. In setting public sector pay the Government will continue to balance a number of objectives: recruiting and retaining a high quality workforce; affordability and value for money for tax payers; and consistency with acheiving the Bank of England's inflation target. In this context, continued public sector pay restraint will be important to support front-line service delivery.

Personally I think they are going to fail and waste even more money.

In Need of a Laugh

I am still having problems with technology and gaining access to my Webspace, which is holding me up on all sorts of projects. At least I have figured out that they are not ignoring me now and their email messages to me are disappearing into some sort of void!!! That is a relief even though it means that I have to keep checking online for a response access the details on line! Oh well, time for some fun :-)

I am sure this will be controversial but it made me laugh ;-)

You might not have known this, but a lot of inanimate objects are actually either male or female.

Here are some examples:-

FREEZER BAGS:
They are male, because they hold everything in, but you can see right through them.

PHOTOCOPIERS:
These are female, because once turned off, it takes a while to warm them up again. They are an effective reproductive device if the right buttons are pushed, but can also wreak havoc if you push the wrong buttons.

TYRES:
Tyres are male, because they go bald easily and are often over inflated.

HOT AIR BALLOONS:
Also a male object, because to get them to go anywhere, you have to light a fire under their arse.

SPONGES:
These are female, because they are soft, squeezable and retain water.

WEB PAGES:
Female, because they're constantly being looked at and frequently getting hit on.

TRAINS:
Definitely male, because they always use the same old lines for picking up people.

EGG TIMERS:
Egg timers are female because, over time, all the weight shifts to the bottom.

HAMMERS:
Male, because in the last 5000 years, they've hardly changed at all, and are occasionally handy to have around.

THE REMOTE CONTROL:
Female. Ha! You probably thought it would be male, but consider this: It easily gives a man pleasure, he'd be lost without it, and while he doesn't always know which buttons to push, he just keeps trying.

H/T to Pupazz for the mischievousness ;-)

Cherie's Place - Thought for the Week

Passion makes the world go round. Love just makes it a safer place.

Ice T

PhotoHunt - Purple

For more of this weeks PhotoHunt pictures check out tnchick.

Wow!!!

a direct path, originally uploaded by eyesplash Mikul.Such a fantasic photo from my friend Mikul, what else can I say?

The Easter Cross

James pointed out to us today that it is Orthodox Easter Friday, which reminded me that I had forgotten to post my other versions of the Easter Cross from my local parish church.

I still like the original version that I posted although the Gothic versions runs a very close second. Which one do you like?

Time for a Break

I haven't had a proper holiday since 2007 so I thought it might be nice to plan a weekend away. Unfortunately my first thought, Stanton Manor is fully booked on the date I picked. They did however helpfully suggest two alternatives that they thought might be suitable.

The first suggestion didn't really float my boat but their second suggestion looks just my cup of tea. It offers gardens, what more could I ask for?

It is also reputed to be the oldest purpose built hotel in England dating back to 1220.

The Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson

Synopsis:

The nameless and beautiful narrator of "The Gargoyle" is driving along a dark road when he is distracted by what seems to be a flight of arrows. He crashes into a ravine and wakes up in a burns ward, undergoing the tortures of the damned. His life is over - he is now a monster. But in fact it is only just beginning. One day, Marianne Engel, a wild and compelling sculptress of gargoyles, enters his life and tells him that they were once lovers in medieval Germany. In her telling, he was a badly burned mercenary and she was a nun and a scribe who nursed him back to health in the famed monastery of Engelthal. As she spins her tale, Scheherazade fashion, and relates equally mesmerising stories of deathless love in Japan, Greenland, Italy and England, he finds himself drawn back to life - and, finally, to love.

Review:

The version of the book that I read had a red cover adorned with golden arrows and a flaming heart. The outer edges to the pages were coloured with black signifying burning, which fits with the theme of the book.

The book graphically describes the effect of the burns and their treatment, but despite this I found the book very compelling. The story slips between the present day and the 14th century as Marianne tells the tale of their previous life together. The telling of the tale makes you believe the unbelievable, making you reassess what is fact and what is fiction.

Many subjects are covered in the book; such as burns, mental illness, Christianity, history and medieval Europe.

In some ways the book describes a tragedy as a beauty is transformed into a beast. But that is only the physical aspect, mentally I think the journey is reversed.

I really loved the book and think it is an impressive first for the author. However I do think it is one of those books you will love or hate.

So That Was Easter

The weather was so beautiful yesterday it called for a day out which meant arriving at Little Morton Hall just in time for coffee cake ;-) The hall is quite quaint and is so higgledy piggledy it surprises me that it is still standing in tact. There is a little chapel attached to it and every time I visit I can feel a presence in there.

Next port of call was Jodrell Bank, home of the Lovell Telescope.

Since the summer of 1957 it has been quietly probing the depths of space, a symbol of our wish to understand the universe in which we live. Even now, it remains one of the biggest and most powerful radio telescopes in the world, spending most of its time investigating cosmic phenomena which were undreamed of when it was conceived.

It was a fun day out which is more than can be said for today, but enough said about that. At least I was able to get some photographs of the cross from yesterday's Easter celebrations at the local Parish Church. A wooden cross was erected and adorned with flowers, the way the petals have fallen beneath the cross is quite effective...

Cherie's Place - Thought for the Week

Castles in the air - they are so easy to take refuge in. And so easy to build, too.

Henrik Ibsen

For You

PhotoHunt - Triangle

More from the museum...

For more of this weeks PhotoHunt pictures check out tnchick.

The Berlin Wall

Some photographs from the Cold War Exhibition that I visited Yesterday. I don't really need to add any commentary because the photos speak for themselves. You will probably need to click on the photos to be able to read them.

An Afternoon at the Exhibition

This afternoon was supposed to involve a walk round a local park to get the first photos of spring, but the weather had other ideas. Not one to be deterred by the weather I hastily made a plan B, which as it turned out was even better than my original plan. This building housed my main reason for visiting the museum, but only because I have already visited the rest of the museum.

One of the exhibits in the RAF museum at Cosford is the Cold War Exhibition. It houses lots of artifacts from this period in history and explains the ideologies from both sides. It covers the social history and the technological achievements that came about due to the competition between the East and West. If you get the chance it is well worth a visit.

More pictures to follow soon...

Message to the Government

The PCS Union is running out of patience with the Government over unacceptable delays in receiving national guidance for Civil Servants' 2009/10 pay offer. The delays are against the agreement made during talks last November.

"Our general secretary has written to ministers, and lead negotiators in our civil and public service bargaining areas have been asked to raise the issue with permanent secretaries and chief executive officers, to make the point that the delay in issuing the remit has led to unacceptable delays in the bargaining process."

The current economic crisis brings fears that there will be a fresh clampdown on public sector pay, which could be announced as part of the budget. PCS also needs to address the propaganda that is peddled by the press against public sector workers.

"One of the key tasks for us is to counter increasing propaganda in the press that is clearly designed to pit the private sector against the public sector. We will be working hard to rebut the inaccurate way in which public sector pay is reported."

"We need to confront these attacks both in the media and by campaigning politically to give the lie to the artificial divide that some are trying to create between public and private.In a recession, communities need adequately resourced public services more than ever.

Our campaigning will be supported by detailed research into civil and public service pay to challenge the myth that average public sector pay is increasing, while private sector pay is falling."

Meanwhile PCS is urging members in one Department to vote against the pay offer that is on the table. This offer, which is separate from the national agreement, is seen as divisive and suggests amongst other things a pay cut for some of the lowest paid staff. The shortening of pay scales will also mean that many members will lose out by being pushed back to the bottom of their pay band. Even though the offer has not yet been accepted, the Department has elected to impose the offer with effect from 1st May 2009 thereby forcing PCS to ballot its members and recommend that they reject the pay offer. Full details can be found here.

Assyria: Lion hunts

Another little gem from the British Museum.

This photograph is just a snapshot from wall panels depicting a lion hunt. These stone panels are from the North Palace of Ashurbanipal, Nineveh, northern Iraq, Neo-Assyrian and are dated around 645 BC. Although the subject is a bit gruesome, the condition of the panels is quite amazing for their age.

These wall panels probably originally decorated one of the private apartments of King Ashurbanipal (reigned 669-630 BC). The panels are divided into registers which read from right to left. In the top register a lion is released from its cage, advances, and is hit with arrows shot by the king in his full regalia. In the central register a horseman, guarded by spearmen in a chariot, distracts a lion. The king comes up from the left and grabs the lion's tail. The accompanying caption explains that the king is about to strike the lion with a mace.

In the lower register musicians play in front of a tall stand for burning incense and a table of food. Ashurbanipal pours a libation, which the caption tells us is wine. Behind him stand his bodyguard and attendants, who hold fans and towels.

Getting to Know Your Friends

D sent this to me via email and rather than replying privately I thought it would be fun to share my answers with everyone. Feel free to take up the challenge.

1. What time did you get up this morning?

7:40 AM


2. Diamonds or pearls?

I like both ;-)


3. Last film seen at cinema

It has been such a long time ago I can't remember, but it may have been the last Harry Potter film.


4. What is your favorite TV show?

I must sound like a bad record, but I don't watch TV...


5. What do you usually have for breakfast?

Crunchy Nut Cornflakes or Crunchy Nut Nutty (that explains it doesn't it ;-) )


6. What is your middle name?

It begins with A.


7. What food do you dislike?

Anything that contains gribbly bits.


8. What is your favorite CD at the moment?

It is an audio book. I am listening to Phillip Pullman's Dark Materials Trilogy and I am loving it.


9. What kind of car do you drive?

Skoda Fabia, I am loving that too :-)


10. Favourite sandwich?

Cold salmon which has been cooked with a mild chilly and honey coating, with brown bread. They are absolutely delicious.


11. What characteristic do you despise?

There are quite a few but for now I will say bullying behaviour.


12. Favourite item of clothing?

Do handbags count?


13. If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go?

It would have to be Prague, Paphos or Lake Bled! I would have to put slips of paper in a hat and pull one out to make the final choice.


14. Favourite brand of clothing?

Per Una.


15. Where would you retire to?

Here :-)


16. What was your most recent memorable birthday?

The one I spent in Cyprus.


17. Favourite sport to watch?

Don't do sport.


18. Farthermost place you are sending this?

It will reach all round the world according to ClusrMaps.


19. Person you expect to send it back first?

I will enjoy the surprise.


20. When is your birthday ?

Don't tell me you have forgotten it...


21. Are you a morning person or a night person?

Night Owl.


22. What is your shoe size?

3.5 to 4


23. Pets?

A very very long time ago I had a stick insect. It gave me the creeps!


24. Any new and exciting news you'd like to share with us?

Watch this space...


25. What did you want to be when you were little?

Older.


26. How are you today?

I want to be younger (or at least not get older) ;-)


27. What is your favourite candy?

Green & Blacks Maya Gold chocolate.


28. What is your favourite flower?

I love most flowers.


29. What day on the calendar are you looking forward to?

Maundy Thursday, it means a few days off work.


30. What is your full name?

Classified Info!!!


31. What are you listening to right now?

My computer whirring away.


32. What was the last thing you ate?
    

Minced Beef, Beans, tomatoes and pasta with a dash of Worcestershire Sauce. Absolutely delicious.


33. Do you wish on stars?

Sometimes.


34. If you were a crayon, what colour would you be?

Red or Pink.


35. How is the weather right now?

Raining.


36. The first person you spoke to on the phone today?

I answered someone else's phone so it was unimportant.


37. Favourite soft drink?

Cranberry Presse.


38. Favourite restaurant?

Raphaels - I haven't been for a while.


39. Real hair colour?

You can see that for youself on my blog.


40. What was your favourite toy as a child?

I enjoyed most of them and I have always been into board games.


41. Summer or winter?

Winters as they used to be. But Autumn is my favourite month of the year.


42. Hugs or kisses?

I like both but am a lot more fussy with sharing my kisses.


43. Chocolate or Vanilla?

If you mean icecream it has to be real Vanilla.


44. Coffee or tea?

Both, it depends on the time of day.


45. Do you want your friends to email you back?

If I send the emails with questions yes. For this quiz, no - we can enjoy it together here or on their own blog.


46. When was the last time you cried?

I think I have been far too tired to cry lately.


47. What is under your bed?

Under the bed storers.


48. What did you do last night?

Was on my own with my PC... To much time on my hands, so I was seeing how my blog would look on WordPress.


49. What are you afraid of ?

The thing that springs to mind immediatly is spiders, and yes I know that is a stupid thing to be afraid of.


50. Salty or sweet?

Both!


51. How many keys on your key ring?

I have different keys on different rings. The one with the most, only has 2.


52. How many years at your current job?

Current job about 5 years, current employment 30 years.


53. Favourite day of the week?

Friday because I am looking forward to the weekend.


54. How many towns have you lived in?


About 7.


55. Do you make friends easily?

I am selective about who I choose as friends, but yes I make them easily.


56. How many people will you send this to?

Anyone who has chosen to read it here.


57. How many will respond?

Two tops!

Cherie's Place - Thought for the Week

Life's greatest happiness is to be convinced we are loved.

Victor Hugo

One Last Clue

You might recognise it now you can see the whole of the bridge.

PhotoHunt - Stripes

But where are these stripes? I will give you the answer tomorrow.

For more of this weeks PhotoHunt pictures check out tnchick.

The Parthenon Sculptures

One of the exhibitions I visited in the British Museum was the room that contained the Elgin Marbles, so named because Lord Elgin who was passionate about ancient Greek transported the marbles to Britain. After a parliamentary select committee inquiry which investigated the legality of Lord Elgin's actions, the marbles were acquired by the British Museum and have been on permanent display ever since.

The Parthenon in Athens is a building with a long and complex history. Built nearly 2,500 years ago as a temple dedicated to the Greek goddess Athena, it was for a thousand years the church of the Virgin Mary of the Athenians, then a mosque, and finally an archaeological ruin. The building was altered and the sculptures much damaged over the course of the centuries. The first major loss occurred around AD 500 when the Parthenon was converted into a church. When the city was under siege by the Venetians in 1687, the Parthenon itself was used as a gunpowder store. A huge explosion blew the roof off and destroyed a large portion of the remaining sculptures. The building has been a ruin ever since. Archaeologists worldwide are agreed that the surviving sculptures could never be re-attached to the structure.

By 1800 only about half of the original sculptural decoration remained. Between 1801 and 1805 Lord Elgin, the British ambassador to the Ottoman Empire of which Athens had been a part for some 350 years, acting with the full knowledge and permission of the Ottoman authorities, removed about half of the remaining sculptures from the fallen ruins and from the building itself. Lord Elgin was passionate about ancient Greek culture and transported the sculptures back to Britain. The arrival of the sculptures in London had a profound effect on the European public, regenerating interest in ancient Greek culture and influencing contemporary artistic trends.

These sculptures were acquired from Lord Elgin by the British Museum in 1816 following a Parliamentary Select Committee enquiry which fully investigated and approved the legality of Lord Elgin’s actions. Since then the sculptures have all been on display to the public in the British Museum, free of entry charge.

The Parthenon Sculptures are scattered around 8 different countries, the majority of which are located in the cities of Athens and London. Other locations where the sculptures can be found are:

Musée du Louvre, Paris
Vatican Museums
National Museum, Copenhagen
Kunsthistorisches Museum,Vienna
University Museum, Würzburg
Glyptothek, Munich

Since th 1980s the Greek Government have disputed the legality of the British Museum's ownership of these sculptures. More information on their claim can be found here.

Message to the G20

From CongressTV.tv

On Saturday 28th March 2009, several hundred PCS members joined the 35,000 people from all over the country who marched through London in order to challenge the G20 ahead of the summit that is due to take place on 2nd April. The march started off from Embankment and wound its way to Hyde Park where the event culminated in a Rally addressed by several speakers. At the summit world leaders will be discussing their response to the current global financial crisis.

The event was organised by ‘Put the People First’ which is a coalition of trade unions, development charities, faith groups, environmentalists and other organisations. This coalition was formed in response to call on the G20 members to seek a sustainable route out of the recession.

Even before the banking collapse, the world suffered poverty, inequality and the threat of climate chaos. The world has followed a financial model that has created an economy fueled by ever-increasing debt, both financial and environmental.

Our future depends on creating an economy based on fair distribution of wealth, decent jobs for all and a low carbon future.

There can be no going back to business as usual.

• 'Put the People First' recommendations for the UK Government
• 'Put the People First full policy document'
• The BBC report on the rally
• Photo Gallery of PCS members taking part
  

The Other Hand by Chris Cleave

Synopsis (from the book cover):

We don't want to tell you what happens in this book. It is a truly special story and we don't want to spoil it. Nevertheless, you need to know enough to buy it so we will just say this: This is the story of two women. Their lives collide one fateful day, and one of them has to make a terrible choice. Two years later, they meet again -- the story starts there! Once you have read it, you'll want to tell your friends about it. When you do, please don't tell them what happens either. The magic is in how it unfolds.

'Totally believable.' -- Daily Express '

It would be hard not to romp through it.' -- Financial Times

'Impresses as a feat of literary engineering...the plot exerts a fearsome grip.' -- Telegraph

Review:

The story is narrated by two female characters from completely different backgrounds, both of these characters are wonderfully depicted and fleshed out. Tragic events draw the two of them together and the book which starts off by describing a detention centre in Exeter slowly reveals how their lives became entwined.

I found it a compelling read and finished the book within a few days. The story was heartwarming, funny, sad, beautiful and shocking in equal measures. I found it very powerful and thought provoking.

A Weekend Away...

...with family and friends.

I spent the weekend in Kent with family (and friends). On Saturday those of us who weren't visiting the War Games show at ExCeL decided to visit the 'British Museum'. I think it is probably my favourite museum in London and I could happily spend hours there.

We were dropped off at the exhibition centre and after trying to explain to several foreign visitors what type of tickets they needed, we headed for the Dockland Light Railway. On the platform it was extremely windy and chilly and at that particular point in time my coat zip decided to break. Luckily when I got to the museum I was able to fix it, which proved useful later on.

Although as I said earlier I could spend a long time in the museum, my companions got fed after a couple of hours... So we left and visited the Board Game shop in museum street, which was also cut short due to boredom. But not before I managed to pick up a couple of new games ;-) Then the word "shopping" was mentioned and I am not really one for shopping, but never the less we ended up trogging towards Oxford Street in the rain. Luckily a call into M&S ended up being a long stay in the coffee shop until we could meet up with the others for an evening meal.

Meanwhile elsewhere in London my friends and colleauges were taking place in a peaceful demonstration in advance of the G20 summit. The demonstrators were hoping to remind world leaders of the priorities in the current economic crisis. More on that later in the week when hopefully I will have some photographs of the event.