tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35933194279605666262011-11-27T15:25:39.556-08:00My blog, with musings about life, technology, politics and the antics of my fellow humans. With additional notes about wildlife and the weather around where I live.Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.comBlogger3711100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-30944421001402318122010-04-21T19:27:00.000-07:002010-04-21T19:38:16.842-07:00

Perusing the science pages as I am wont to do, I came across this little snippet about a Reversed Field Pinch experiment that produced an interesting result. A discovery made in the RFX-mod Reversed Field Pinch (RFP) fusion device demonstrated that if one keeps on increasing the current, above 1.5 million amperes, the helix becomes very smooth, the trapping of the plasma in the magnetic fields

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-29933339584067832612010-04-15T19:05:00.000-07:002010-04-15T19:14:30.408-07:00

Just passing the old blog and felt I had to make mention; lots of Volcanic and Earthquake activity over the past year. Chaiten, all the volcanic rumblings and eruption around the Aleutian Island chain. Haiti and Peru with big Earthquakes which seem to be easing their way up the American side of the Pacific rim, and now Iceland with an event some are already comparing with the 1783 Laki

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-88589430821720576032009-06-19T13:47:00.001-07:002009-06-19T13:54:18.231-07:00

Looks like the Heartland Institute is trying to do some media awareness. Good adverts, but will the politicians and mainstream pay any attention? Probably not. Too many vested interests with an eye on the 'carbon' dollar out there for that.Hat tip to A Dog named Kyoto.

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-36547888951871005142009-06-04T16:56:00.000-07:002009-06-04T19:41:40.874-07:00

Just idle musing you understand; but I wonder what would happen if you built eight, (or six, or four) Tokamak type devices and arranged them standing on their sides in a circle, with one side of each donut shaped device cut so that the plasma torus developed within each devices circular magnetic field intersected in a central magnetic 'pinch' chamber. Like in the two diagrams below.Given that if

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-89475276214230419252009-06-03T09:02:00.000-07:002009-06-03T09:27:20.258-07:00

I don't know about anyone else, but I find a lot of synergy with this clip;I think Henrik Svensmark's theory has legs because it does show a link between cloud formation and cosmic rays which has been public since Wilson's work on cloud formation in the early 1900's. I find myself agreeing with most of the content for the following reasons;The 'greenhouse effect' of water vapour makes the

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-74788337355194177562009-06-02T14:17:00.000-07:002009-06-02T22:27:25.537-07:00

As an occasional big game fisherman who has handled live sharks of eighty pounds and upwards during a tag and release programme; could I make the suggestion that any one (Or at least their executors) who reads and acts on the following headline; "Sharks can be cuddled like dolphins, say scientists" should sue the media outlet responsible in the case of injury or death whilst trying to mishandle a

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-2450337519378867962009-05-20T15:18:00.000-07:002009-05-20T15:36:17.293-07:00

I'm currently reading "Sun in a bottle" By Charles Seife which is the story of the various failures of nuclear fusion development since the mid 20th century. Having read the comments I think that many of the detracting reviewers missed the books whole premise. It isn't about the successes, it's about the failures, which is how we learn what not to do things.My own thoughts are that the book is

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-6928653049185780972009-04-30T11:09:00.000-07:002009-04-30T12:22:11.471-07:00

Living where I do and fishing as a hobby, I think I've cultivated a reasonable understanding of the locale. Tides, wildlife etc.There is a company from Alberta which wants to develop the Cable Bay area, which covers a piece of currently unmanaged woodland from the Cable Bay Trail in the West, to the Eastern shore of Dodd Narrows across from Mudge Island. No problem so far. New developments

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-55042851040520210562009-04-14T18:59:00.000-07:002009-04-14T19:19:35.872-07:00

Now we're finally seeing some vaguely springlike weather, the Birch buds have broken and there's grainy pollen all over everything. Cars, windows the lot. We had a small Herring run, but a month later and much smaller than last year, although it was big enough to bring both Steller's and California Sea Lions into Dodd Narrows. A few days ago there was one California Sea Lion (Steller's don't

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-56653805126256689162009-04-10T19:12:00.000-07:002009-04-10T19:19:43.775-07:00

A letter of rejection has arrived on my doorstep all the way from a literary agency in London, England. I was half expecting it, but the Agency concerned spoke well of the quality of writing, but used the old chestnut that the subject matter was not in a genre they dealt in. I knew I was taking a long shot, but the result is not wholly displeasing.Maybe I ought to try an Agency in the same time

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-33669030459208492392009-04-02T15:16:00.001-07:002009-04-02T15:20:24.568-07:00

Just had a look out of my kitchen window while making a cup of well-earned tea and noted a lot of bird activity over on the shore of Mudge Island. I'll go and have a look with Dog in a while and see if there is an early April Herring Run going on. It's a month late but what the hell.If this proves to be the case, tomorrow I will purchase that new fishing rod I've been promising myself and renew

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-40297382979421091092009-04-02T08:38:00.000-07:002009-04-02T09:00:37.685-07:00

Have been following the news from G20 in London with a wry twist of my mouth.Two main observations;First upon the protests; Is it my imagination or was there a bigger press pack then there are protestors? There seemed to be a small (50 or so, no more) bunch or rioters and another 4000 'others' which I believe ran the political gamut from left to right with another 1000 or so hangers on and the

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-60470572867474407792009-03-24T20:20:00.000-07:002009-03-24T20:21:56.376-07:00

As very lucidly explained by Eric Idle.

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-24366957182269869962009-03-15T13:09:00.000-07:002009-03-15T13:40:44.375-07:00

More 'global warming' in the shape of snow and sleet today. Having seen the stupid people who insist that man has any appreciable effect on the worlds' climate, despite clear cut evidence to the contrary, (Polar Bears fine, No predicted cataclysmic climate effects evident, rather chilly don'cha think) are so blinded by their own scientifically illiterate dogma that they think anyone with an

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-78519964297755945742009-03-13T09:56:00.000-07:002009-03-13T10:29:03.585-07:00

The less evidence the advocates of Catastrophic Anthropogenic Climate Change have for their case, the more their fellow travellers seem to want opposition to their views sidelined or muzzled. A sensationalist media and a distant political elite throughout the western world seem to be obsessed with the meme that the fact that the climate is in a near constant state of minor fluctuation is

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-14285043926577645622009-03-12T13:59:00.000-07:002009-03-12T14:02:14.438-07:00

As reported in the mainstream media. Draw your own parallels.

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-10113013689706112722009-03-09T10:49:00.000-07:002009-03-09T10:56:36.552-07:00

Wife managed to get into work this morning despite several inches of snow. I'm working from home today, but it might be worthwhile dragging our little 4x4 up and down the road a few times to help keep things clear for her on the way home this afternoon. Neighbour prophesised blandly that 'this crap' will be gone by tomorrow. I hope so. My diary is full of meetings and schedules this week, and

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-75191816277737277792009-03-08T20:01:00.000-07:002009-03-08T20:08:07.586-07:00

News that the UK Daily Telegraph website has been hacked, allowing those who broke the security to see 700 people's e-mails and passwords does not bother me overmuch, as the moderators there have been blocking my comments for the past four weeks. Not really for four weeks, as I noticed that even quite innocuous comments weren't getting past the moderators. Perhaps it was my propensity for

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-37368752875849213772009-03-07T15:27:00.000-08:002009-03-07T15:43:56.084-08:00

This morning when I took Dog for his tri-yearly shearing, I was wearing sunglasses and the sky was a brilliant blue with nary a cloud in sight. When I drove to pick him up from the dog groomers at lunchtime, the sky was a solid light grey. Two hours later, it was raining, then the sky closed down and it snowed. It is now 3:30pm PST and the sun has just come out again.Dog has been defurred, the

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-77516071077331531702009-02-28T18:08:00.000-08:002009-02-28T18:22:39.666-08:00

Still winters day down in the Narrows this afternoon after a good mornings work. Dog and I went to stretch our legs down by the cold clear waters. Me to watch the Grebes. Buffleheads and occasional Blue Heron, and Dog to find any old bone he fancied crunching.I often think that a Beach is the charnel house of the sea. It's where all the odds and ends cast into the deep tend to wind up. We get

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-33988184411176211432009-02-26T09:20:00.001-08:002009-02-26T09:30:36.004-08:00

Worked up until ten last night, and find this morning that I've done everything I should. No meetings to attend today, and I'm told that town (Nanaimo) is a bit chaotic right now with last nights snowfall. Wife is road testing new all weather tyres on the van and just phoned home to let me know that she got to work safely. Dog and I have been for a walk in the three or so inches of snow lying

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-15693089410001843652009-02-25T19:35:00.000-08:002009-02-25T19:41:33.324-08:00

The sound of snow falling on Cedars makes is a crackling, pattering sound like rain on high voltage lines, but less harsh and with a pattering as the flakes dust down onto the fragile leaf litter from last fall. That is what I learned today. It has a calming effect.Busy day. Finally got my correspondence and notes organised. Which as Wife might be heard to remark; "Blood and sand Jones?! You

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-7216404118464152622009-02-25T10:33:00.000-08:002009-02-25T10:47:13.955-08:00

Walking Dog this morning, I cast my eyes down to the waterfront at the choppy tidal vortex that forms every high tide half way down Dodd Narrows opposite Mudge Island. Flecks of white scum, like petals, floated in five or six metre long stringy slicks up the channel. The shallows were a particular shade of turquoise. Could all be a trick of the light of course, but conditions do seem to mimic

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-76545237514063254782009-02-17T21:32:00.000-08:002009-02-17T21:44:42.683-08:00

A bit of musical nostalgia from the days I used to do 150 mile commutes in the deep damp deadness of an English Winter. Headlights framed by pitch darkness and lots of late lonely nights driving to and from jobs all over the country (and sometimes out of it). "Out of the Blue" blasting out of the cheap cassette recorder in the dash of whatever pile of junk I was driving, that leaden feeling in

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-62945975330356841672009-02-16T12:26:00.001-08:002009-02-16T12:36:30.116-08:00

The UK Daily Telegraph goes downhill even further with this piece of pseudoscientific bullshit.As global warming worsens, the idea of vast projects to alter the Earth's environment is moving from fantasy to necessity. When are the media going to concede that the Earth isn't really warming, and all the calls from the alarmist faction are just that; alarmist. Oh well, what the hell, they wouldn't

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-5774264174596192322009-02-15T08:42:00.000-08:002009-02-15T09:08:24.481-08:00

I see the zealots are at it again on the BBC with more dogma driven drivel. We're all going to die the heat death of the universe blah-de blah ad nauseum. With a solar minima shaping up, and Earth's global temperature dropping (Although not by that much, but it is unseasonably chilly outside) you'd think the 'climate change' guilt-trip mob would give it up. Little or no correlation with rising

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-60684126143631371482009-02-14T17:38:00.000-08:002009-02-14T19:17:42.311-08:00

I'm not normally a combative sort, and generally speaking would walk ten miles rather than pick a fight, but there are some people who just sit up and beg to be taken down a notch. Today's stressor were a bunch of noisy people who marched into the Bay store at the Woodgrove Mall, North Nanaimo shouting "Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey! How many animals died today!" loudly and repeatedly as they paraded

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-8116844919026283862009-02-12T10:56:00.000-08:002009-02-12T11:01:01.173-08:00

Steve Winwood always was a genius with that old electric piano. Two of my all-time favourite songs, 'Valerie' and 'While you still see a chance' . Utter, unadulterated brilliance.

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-46953806446366511492009-02-05T13:41:00.000-08:002009-02-05T14:10:28.395-08:00

This afternoon, after progress chasing a couple of things, I visited a blog I used to write for when Ilived and worked in the UK. Although there have been no new entries for the last year, it still receives over sixty specific visits minimum, per day. Go figure, as they say.Mind you, I did used to spend over three hours a day on it in addition to the day job which inspired the blog. This blog,

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-59616396686537626812009-02-02T10:25:00.000-08:002009-02-02T10:39:04.787-08:00

Have begun work on a new MSS while the interminable wait for Agents and Publishers to actually read what I've sent them goes on. Frankly I've gotten past the point where I'm worried about how good any of the MSS samples and screenplay I despatched are; that's all old news as they say. I'm busy on the next one in the series.In 'Falling through the stars' I'm busy outlining a post apocalypse

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-43697141255354328922009-01-26T14:25:00.000-08:002009-01-26T15:28:32.711-08:00

Having a look at the current status of volcanoes around the world, and found this handy page.Chaiten in Chile is erupting away at Red or level 5 statusRedoubt in Alaska, not so far from the currently quiescent Mt Kasatochi to the West that blew it's top in 2008, is at watch alert Orange (Eruption due soon)Other, less newsworthy eruptions are as follows.Galeras 01.22N 077.37W

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-2996947602078886222009-01-24T22:25:00.000-08:002009-01-25T13:46:01.996-08:00

Snow in Saudi.Hail and snow in Dubai last night.Did someone say it was getting warmer?Reality bites.Update: Oh yes, and it snowed this morning outside our house. All melted by midday.

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-81855624716358799552009-01-23T07:41:00.000-08:002009-01-23T08:03:56.834-08:00

"Science should be an open debate, with all valid research getting equal display. Consensus can't be claimed when many questions continue unanswered. Silencing those who question popular culture does not benefit the truth sought by science." Baltimore Examiner."With statistics you can make numbers go to almost any conclusion you want. It saddens me to see members of the scientific community

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-73044707576359312152009-01-22T10:27:00.000-08:002009-01-22T10:42:11.009-08:00

Not having watched TV for a good while, I've been out of touch with things back in the UK. Even before travelling over the pond to find a new life, I was aware that the BBC regularly misrepresented factual information to support some form of political agenda. Now it appears that they have been caught red handed fiddling with historical documents, to wit; President Barack Obama's 2009

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-56019751577940605472009-01-20T20:49:00.000-08:002009-01-20T20:50:35.400-08:00

What can you say? Scientifically accurate and funny.

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-79376765119737470312009-01-20T18:56:00.001-08:002009-01-20T19:09:35.333-08:00

While some people were bunking off to watch a US politician make a speech, I was doing voluntary work. As were a lot of people. Having no TV I went through the whole of today not hearing a word (Despite doing a lot of walking and talking to people) about today's events in Washington DC. Well, this is Canada.Came back home and checked out the news, and found much of it deluged in what can only

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-25181533294533419732009-01-19T11:21:00.000-08:002009-01-19T11:51:02.759-08:00

Todays little sojourn down to the waters edge saw me entering the set for a Hammer Horror movie. Thick layer of mist up to two metres above the water flowing down and dispersing from the neck of the narrows, then a thin haze up to about sixty metres or so. Dog splashed happily in the shallows like a two year old with his first pair of galoshes, and I inadvertantly upset a couple of the local

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-83151180677463011142009-01-18T07:47:00.000-08:002009-01-18T08:06:20.862-08:00

Woke up this morning and did a bit of a double take. Down in the Narrows, a dense ribbon of sea fog obscured our view of Mudge Island, the water, and everything up to sixty metres high over the water. It was flowing North to South down the channel at about 15 knots (My estimate)like a slow river of indistinct grey slurry. Above this line the sky was totally clear. Very strange, but we've had

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-78009512888564735552009-01-14T08:30:00.000-08:002009-01-14T08:36:37.489-08:00

Woke up this morning a bit fuzzy headed. Had no idea what I was going to do now that work on the submitted MSS has been discontinued for the sake of the whole households sanity. Picked up and read the introduction of 'Ringworlds Children' by Larry Niven and the opening line of the sequel to the 'Sky full of stars' MSS came to me;"The question is." Said Weissman, tapping tombstone teeth

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-72508385582999348362009-01-13T19:36:00.000-08:002009-01-13T20:05:45.663-08:00

Much as I am enamoured of Inkjet printers for their versatility and economy, the one I have has an unerring sense of bad timing. Yesterdays farce saw me running out of ink twenty pages into a fifty page document. Result; I have to spend valuable time away from day job getting refills done. This entails a fifty kilometre round trip and over a valuable hour out of my working day. It also meant

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-72818285380977693322009-01-11T08:53:00.000-08:002009-01-11T09:06:57.429-08:00

This weekend has been dedicated to preparing MSS samples for submission to a UK literary Agency. I'm not holding out much hope, as by the look of their listings, most of their current list of authors are middlebrow literati who write novels about the human condition, and little else.My stuff does pay slightly more than lip service to the vagaries of love, hate, betrayal etc, but I do try and

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-41092885220468074802009-01-09T19:05:00.000-08:002009-01-09T20:22:36.555-08:00

Forgive my scepticism, but that's becoming more and more of a conditioned reflex. If it's not one thing it's another. Was pootling around my reading list and had a look at Anthony Watts blog, which carried the following headline:“The good news is, if this sucker blows, global warming is not going to be a problem.“ About news items regarding the recent swarms of earthquakes in the Yellowstone

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-22078549000544278362009-01-08T19:30:00.000-08:002009-01-08T19:38:08.021-08:00

Have been trying a new tack with the "Sky full of stars" Sci-Fi MSS. In order for the backstory to work more smoothly with the rest of the narrative I've changed the beginning, adding a four thousand word section that makes for a more dramatic opening. At the other end, I've found myself writing another section to wrap up all the loose story threads yet leave scope for a follow up.Haven't

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-7275269057315685262009-01-07T08:43:00.000-08:002009-01-07T08:44:47.181-08:00

A classy action.

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-55098269204312596442009-01-06T20:10:00.001-08:002009-01-07T08:36:39.165-08:00

Arthur C Clarke, Science Fiction Writer and man credited with the idea of Orbiting communications satellites once laid down three laws of prediction;1. When a distinguished but elderly scientist states that something is possible, he is almost certainly right. When he states that something is impossible, he is very probably wrong.2. The only way of discovering the limits of the possible is to

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-54154469017787983222009-01-04T19:03:00.000-08:002009-01-04T20:10:48.212-08:00

"There do be a change in the wind me hearties. A change do be a comin'" (In my best Geoffrey Rush impersonation). Well not so much in the weather, as that always manages to catch you off guard on the Island. Sudden thick snow shower this afternoon had a number of people (Including us) forced to make a quick dash into the big Canadian Tire store, several making sharp wisecracks about "this

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-66757575116154169232009-01-03T08:54:00.000-08:002009-01-03T11:39:04.631-08:00

Quiet start to the New Year, with much to do come Monday morning.Am getting increasingly peeved with the "Global Warming Denier" tag, although there is an element of perverse pride in being identified as one not taken in by the whole alarmist nonsense. Notwithstanding, I'm not one of the "coming ice age" faction either, although the Weather phenomena would suggest that we are in one of those

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-17272933753560704242008-12-31T13:08:00.000-08:002008-12-31T13:12:09.708-08:00

What with all the predictions flying around for 2009, I thought I'd recycle this vid about the end of the world as predicted by the doomsayers........and what might come afterwards......Happy new year.

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-91067365905973013052008-12-30T18:25:00.000-08:002008-12-30T18:36:46.913-08:00

Well flabber my ghast and pass the Wellington boots! The media worm appears to be turning; at least where it comes to the UK Daily Telegraph. For over the past 12 months a writer called Christopher Booker has been giving mainstream coverage to those who have serious misgivings about the doom mongering dogma of CO2 driven man made climate change. Now other columns in the same newspaper have

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-82485602133273852722008-12-30T10:49:00.000-08:002008-12-30T11:11:48.109-08:00

The recent snow has wrought much inconvenience and a number of casualties including eight Snowmobilers who got caught in two consecutive avalanches. Seven of the party are still unaccounted for at the time of writing.Fortunately our only local casualty was a young female Deer which had taken shelter under a bush and died of cold. Took a walk with Dog this morning to see the still deep frozen

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-7260298640581693792008-12-28T18:35:00.000-08:002008-12-28T19:25:16.749-08:00

Spectacular view this morning. Fog and low cloud on the other side of Mudge Island positively glowed like a Turner seascape in the morning light. Our roads are now a lot safer to drive. The snowplough, (Or in our case a Road Grader) a curious looking contraption with a hydraulically controlled ram blade slung under the cab, came through last night and cleared off most of the compacted slush

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-12454968627728778892008-12-27T12:52:00.000-08:002008-12-27T13:06:27.350-08:00

We are undergoing a very welcome thaw at present. Unfortunately, thaws pose their own hazards. Packed snow and slush turns to ridges of hard packed ice that renders useless all your petty attempts at steering in a straight line. The first kilometre out from home at present is a real queen bitch to drive. After that the middle of the road is mostly clear and makes for easy driving. When the

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-16034685092759992112008-12-26T09:33:00.000-08:002008-12-26T09:56:02.364-08:00

More snow. A fine dust this time, but thickening with every keystroke. Getting home last night was fun if you like that sort of thing; especially the last kilometre. Having abjured alcohol for over twenty four hours my reactions got us safely along stretches of road where far more well equipped vehicles had come to grief in the ditch. These were vehicles with 4 wheel drive, snow tires, snow

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-76156394121967616142008-12-24T12:41:00.000-08:002008-12-24T12:50:11.260-08:00

Rain glorious rain. The snow has stopped and as of 12pm it started raining. Of course it'll take a day or two to clear all the snow, but I've never been so glad to see good old British Columbian Sunshine. I don't care if it rains all January.Back to Nanaimo's usual temperate climate.We've been having trouble with our 4x4 of late with some damp in the fuel line which has caused cut outs and a

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-10974997360011885882008-12-24T07:33:00.000-08:002008-12-24T07:43:09.698-08:00

Just a little wintry amusement to lighten a so far very dark day. Oh well, it will only get lighter from here on in. The darkest day of the year is over thank goodness.More snow shovelling today as we attempt a snow break out for a Christmas with some of our (over) extended family. Promises to get complicated as always. Wife is slightly emotional missing girls who are going to Englands Lake

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-7562872333048666972008-12-22T18:14:00.000-08:002008-12-22T18:36:26.106-08:00

Been talking to the neighbours of late, and what they've said about the local climate and weather rather fits in with my own, albeit anecdotal, observations. Cold snaps like the one we're currently experiencing seem to happen in approximate 10 and 20 year cycles. Mostly they're not as intense, but it still forms a pattern. Working backwards from 2007 / 2008 the colder weather was noted in 1996

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-38236160507817088062008-12-22T13:34:00.000-08:002008-12-22T13:51:20.850-08:00

The next media idiot to reiterate the claim in my vicinity that all this bloody snow is to do with their farcical 'global warming' theory is going to get some nice icy 'global warming' stuffed forcibly down the back of their fashionable Gore-Tex jacket. I've got to the point where, when I heard some Environmental advocate had died of Cancer today, all I could think was "Good. That's one less of

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-27810858400618248402008-12-22T08:49:00.000-08:002008-12-22T08:53:31.645-08:00

Well, there's another ten inches or so of white fluffy global warming on my doorstep. Time to get shovelling. We may be due a minor thaw today, but I'm a little dubious about that assertion.

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-77138917886705174552008-12-21T16:11:00.000-08:002008-12-21T16:38:26.759-08:00

Have been revising the 'Sky full of stars' MSS today because I'm sure as shooting not going anywhere. The snow started to fall first thing and it's still falling. Old family friends have rung up to say "It doesn't normally do this".I've made good use of the time making hearty stews that will keep even when the power goes off. Four good helpings of home made Chicken Madras, Two fish stew, four

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-17216192530832007162008-12-20T11:01:00.000-08:002008-12-20T12:01:31.143-08:00

Have just returned with Dog from a short foray into the local woodland. Judging from the tracks, the only other creatures to visit our area were a couple of the local Deer population and one of the local canines. No human has walked these paths since the first snow. Even the Raccoons and Jackrabbits are hunkered down.Once you get amongst the trees what hits you first is the silence. Barely a

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-1711793780635256362008-12-19T21:09:00.000-08:002008-12-19T21:32:38.588-08:00

My favourite Eagles track from the 'Hell freezes over' tour. Which funnily enough it feels like it might be doing tonight with a very un-Nanaimo like minus thirteen Celsius prophesised. Last I checked our thermometer outside the kitchen window it was minus five and sinking. Brr.Great line in the song "I'd like to find your inner child and kick it's little ass." Oh yes.Managed a trip into town

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-75165651114961180102008-12-18T22:06:00.000-08:002008-12-19T07:11:31.492-08:00

I've discovered how so many Canadians keep fit. It's a system of exercise unique to Canada called Canaerobics. It's jolly hard work but comprises of three basic steps;1) Buy a snow shovel2) Wait for it to snow3) Get shovellingFor the advanced practitioner:4) Wait for it to snow again (It will)5) Get shovelling (Again)6) Repeat as necessary (It will be)I've been doing it all day long. Great for

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-53300878959440903532008-12-18T07:30:00.000-08:002008-12-18T07:38:01.066-08:00

Have just taken Dog out for a brief morning walk. The 4x4 is buried, and it's still snowing. Even the ubiquitous Deer tracks that normally cross our yard are absent. Told Wife not to bother getting out of bed. Looks like we're going nowhere today. Time for coffee.

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-74827733711645272932008-12-17T16:42:00.001-08:002008-12-17T19:38:48.194-08:00

At the moment we're having a bit of a snowy interlude around Nanaimo, with an extra 10-12cm (4-5 inches) of snow at the time of blog entry to add to the foot or so outside the door. Van looks like a rather large snowdrift outside the back door. Had to drag Wife away from work as there was a significant risk that if we had waited until usual finishing time we wouldn't have been able to get home.

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-48035502986236678362008-12-15T10:35:00.000-08:002008-12-15T11:20:23.995-08:00

Perusing my reading list of blogs as usual and came across this little gem from the UK's Top Gear TV programme. The item was about the Honda FCX clarity, a Hydrogen fuel cell car currently only available in California for 2009 under certain conditions.*Subject to limited availability, in designated, limited California market regions, to approved lessees by American Honda Finance Corp. Closed end

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-11725836665847010332008-12-14T08:08:00.000-08:002008-12-14T10:19:37.720-08:00

Well, if this is the Global Warming the politicians and activists keep wittering on about, it's very pretty to look at, being deep, crisp and even etcetera, but it's also bloody cold. Currently minus 2 Celsius by our thermometer outside the kitchen window and SNOWING. Current depth around ten inches (25cm) and deepening. Now This latest batch of the white stuff looks like it's here for the

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-60062960827214798702008-12-13T10:30:00.001-08:002008-12-13T10:39:55.407-08:00

Looked out of our window this morning, and all yesterday's snow has gone. There might be some left up on Mount Benson, but we'll see that when Wife and I pootle in to town for a civic 'do' this afternoon.Next report is for another, more substantial fall to hit in the early hours of Sunday. Must make sure everything is in standby mode in case the power goes, although BC Hydro, our local Energy

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-14059229296703984232008-12-12T19:41:00.001-08:002008-12-12T19:56:28.861-08:00

Some quite heavy snowfall in town that is currently turning to rain. Got a call from Wife around 11am when the white stuff started coming down and so fired up the 4x4 and dashed off to the rescue. The Island Highway was quite greasy despite the volume of traffic, and the steering wheel gave a couple of minor twitches as we passed over some compacted slush at a couple of points. Local gossip

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-39089998126776605422008-12-12T09:15:00.001-08:002008-12-12T09:44:27.272-08:00

I'm not a fan of 'Xena - Warrior Princess' apart from thinking 'great number', and red blooded carnal thoughts about Lucy Lawless bringing a lump to the old trousers. Never saw the movie 'Electric Dreams' from which this song came so this one is missing from my ELO archive. A cracking little tune by Jeff and the boys. I think an MP3 download is in order.

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-92063275050607666692008-12-11T11:29:00.000-08:002008-12-11T11:47:32.606-08:00

While we're waiting for the snow to arrive, I've taken the liberty of adding a little seasonal snow to the blog. Not that anyone will notice, my reader stats logging something between zero and 'whoops, what's this load of old tosh'. It pleases me.Local forecast is for a six inch snowfall sometime in the next three days. Whether it gets to us down at the waterfront I don't know. We'll see.

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-16827517721220707252008-12-10T08:48:00.000-08:002008-12-10T09:13:00.942-08:00

Although I don't agree with the "It's all CO2" argument, and that the climate changes with or without human influence, I like this video and what Bjorn Lomberg has to say. Especially his approach to the arithmetic of the situation. Loved his explanation that 'saving' one Polar Bear (Maybe, maybe not) a year in fifty years time with Carbon tax was pointless because 3-500 Ursus maritimus are shot

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-42839096159790752952008-12-04T20:14:00.000-08:002008-12-04T20:18:07.294-08:00

From the ultimate Demigods of comedy. Utter brilliance and terrific news.

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-91171795606752770192008-12-04T15:42:00.001-08:002008-12-04T16:25:48.656-08:00

Took time out from the day job to take Dog for a good walk along the sea front and came across this piece of waterfront theatre macabre, a decidedly deceased Sea Lion. Possibly a Steller because of the lighter coat colour and wider, flatter snout. It's also over the maximum size (2.5m) for a California Sea Lion. The one in the pictures I took is 2.74m long as close as I could measure.The scale

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-1734673965650528322008-12-01T08:54:00.000-08:002008-12-01T09:57:42.183-08:00

For the past three days it's been foggy, and today visibility seems to have closed in to well under a hundred metres. You keep on waiting for the greyness to burn off, but I suppose this is the downside of living close to the sea, although I can't recall this happening last year. The temperature hits the dewpoint and bye bye view of Mudge Island. Yet right now the fog appears to be lifting,

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-61881614928586002012008-11-30T18:49:00.000-08:002008-11-30T19:33:19.477-08:00

I would like to introduce a law that should help make life more readily comprehensible. Feel that the world is against you? Feel oppressed? Maligned? Unfairly treated? Want to know why?Postulation:Here are the answers. Jones's three laws of human existence, which are:1) No person or procedure is infallible.2) No matter how highly intelligent / educated, no human has their brain switched

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-89107022992991798912008-11-29T10:59:00.000-08:002008-11-29T12:22:08.551-08:00

Well, the Sea Lions are barking up in the Neck of Dodd Narrows this morning. The noise is half way between a hound baying and a foghorn. Dog grows ever more insouciant about all the strange noises, although last night he ran out of the house straight into one of the local Black Tail Deer, and both parties beat a hurried retreat. Dog almost bowled me off my feet as he ran back inside. Another

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-57723488360041480892008-11-27T21:08:00.000-08:002008-11-27T21:29:10.336-08:00

Have just run across this wonder of modern technology, as approved (I am assured) by no less august a body than the IPCC using modern climate physics as developed using this model.Have been introduced to the writings of James P Hogan, and Wife is wondering why I'm smiling so much. Specifically Kicking the sacred cow.From Vermont Tiger via James P Hogan.

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-24447864492807462412008-11-27T08:21:00.000-08:002008-11-27T08:35:28.721-08:00

Thank you to those who were kind enough to take note of my febrile mental meanderings about Nuclear Fusion. Here is the passage from my MSS 'a sky full of stars' giving a brief laymans description how I concieve a Nuclear Fusion reactor might be made to work.Inside the fusion reactor behind their compartment, multiple toroids of plasma formed, began to spin, merge, then intersected and with a

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-72812899421961791192008-11-26T11:29:00.000-08:002008-11-26T12:30:05.082-08:00

I've been watching the progress of the polywell type reactor with a great deal of interest. The first results appear encouraging, and although Nuclear Fusion was not obtained, they have been able to generate plasma. Now I’m no nuclear Engineer, but I’ve been fascinated by the results obtained by Dr Richard Nebel and his team with the WB-7 fusion device. Whilst only having a rough understanding

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-6014587845528337072008-11-20T19:02:00.000-08:002008-11-20T19:14:23.539-08:00

Have been looking at one of my old MSS in an attempt to make it more saleable. The story is fine, no problem there. Epic scale, love, hate, revenge and all the old hokum. It's just the central character. He doesn't work too well. Any old how. I've had a bit of an epiphany today and will be changing him a bit. Making him younger and altering the circumstance of his genesis. Not Harry

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-44617533264730578232008-11-20T05:12:00.000-08:002008-11-20T06:30:48.983-08:00

Well until I read that not believing in ‘global warming’ could make you a conspiracy theorist, I would have thought it quite reasonable to assume that someone was promoting the ‘cause’ against hard evidence. Never even considered that I was a conspiracy nut. Now, according to the UK Daily Telegraph, believing that there must be some kind of agenda for promoting the idea of Anthropogenic climate

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-63349951223372826632008-11-18T20:05:00.000-08:002008-11-18T20:20:05.442-08:00

What doesn't it cause? From Numberwatch via Climate-Skeptic, Tom Nelson and Marc Morano.Right, this is the phenomenon that's got the current President elect of the USA all steamed up. He promises 'action' on climate change. Seems like it won't be only Bush that people will be calling stupid in the future. Glad the Harper administration north of the 49th parallel doesn't seem so keen on

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-64945500486801431662008-11-18T11:36:00.000-08:002008-11-18T14:02:29.252-08:00

Once I believed in the theory of global warming. I thought, quite sincerely, that mankind was going to destroy life on Earth with an excess of CO2.Being of an enquiring mind, I began to look at the figures and theories to gain a greater understanding of the subject to see if there was more I could do. What actually happened was that all my researches gave me quite a large reality check. The

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-90572140681015560542008-11-17T09:29:00.000-08:002008-11-17T09:45:35.356-08:00

Roger Helmer MEP, speaking in debate in the EU Parliament. A fuller version of his quite reasonable view that climate change alarmism is simply that; alarmism. Don't agree with everthing he says, but most is backed up by sound logic and calm appreciation of the facts, not the hype. Find it here. At 29 minutes and 18 seconds it's a bit of a long furrow to plough, but it had me nodding along in

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-10561659612547075172008-11-16T15:09:00.000-08:002008-11-16T15:37:56.491-08:00

Ah, good old ELO. I once lived around a mile up the road from their drummer, Bev Bevan. Nice bloke, and still breathing. He had a big place, think it was called 'Cornerways' or something like that, near the Warwickshire village of Rowington. Big old mock tudor house with a lawn the would give a New Brunswicker palpitations of jelousy (They like acre sized yards in New Brunswick. That and big

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-60771113058787503392008-11-11T10:09:00.000-08:002008-11-11T10:25:04.991-08:00

Today is Remembrance or Armistice day, a national holiday in Canada, so I thought I'd dust off my Dad's old medals and post them. They're nothing special. No conspicuous bravery, no mentions in despatches, just four bits of metal that say 'He was there'.Left to right:France & Germany StarThe Italy Star1939-1945 StarWar Medal

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-35662359811446322832008-11-10T17:54:00.000-08:002008-11-10T17:56:56.265-08:00

Proof of global warming? Or is it just that shrinking (Not) Arctic ice cap that's to blame?H/T Theo Spark

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-25472441701477763942008-11-09T14:48:00.000-08:002008-11-09T14:58:18.824-08:00

Juno Beach, June 1944. Canadian Troops disembarking. In one of the LST's (Landing Ship Tank) pictured in the background is a (then) 19 year old Royal Naval Signals Rating who grew up to be my Dad.Lest we forget.

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-9612242524403215442008-11-08T13:26:00.000-08:002008-11-08T14:49:17.488-08:00

Wife wants to lose more weight. To do this she has enacted a new edict; that there shall be no more potatoes, pasta, rice or flour served at mealtimes. Nor shall there be any 'healthy' options ready meals. Yet the demand is that the high protein element of the meal (Chicken / Beef / Pork / Fish etc.) shall not be served just with green vegetables. Being the chief cook and bottlewasher in the

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-30589194001117972342008-11-07T10:31:00.000-08:002008-11-07T10:50:42.597-08:00

Another blast from my past. Foreigner's track 'Urgent' from 1981 with a Sax solo that just blows you away. The kind of songs that just grip you by your hair and drag you along.....and of course 'Bad Company' by Bad Company.Plus this track, 'Rock and Roll fantasy'.Whenever I listen to these tracks I'm always taken by the sheer musicianship of these guys. No cheap three chord thrash. You can

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-87448707091492903552008-11-06T18:50:00.000-08:002008-11-07T10:51:37.547-08:00

I think we have a Cougar in the area. A big ugly moggy. One of these. Went out to hand our landlady the monthly rent cheque this evening when we heard a noise like nothing I'd ever heard before. A kind of double scream repeated. One long cry followed by a shorter one, twice. A bit like the scream of an Eagle, but without that raspy quality big birds have in their cries, yet definitely not

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-90017307890722030402008-11-06T09:25:00.000-08:002008-11-06T09:28:46.541-08:00

The physical, in the shape of the infamous Morcambe & Wise mimed 'Breakfast sketch'.And arguably one of the best verbal comedy sketches of all time from Ronnie Corbett and Ronnie Barker.

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-19277603757373778882008-11-05T19:13:00.000-08:002008-11-05T19:25:16.486-08:00

Fire on High. Track one, side one from 'Face the Music'.'Big wheels', from the 'Out of the Blue' double album. Can't remember the track off the top of my head. Think it was on the same disc as 'Mr Blue Sky' and 'Summer and Lightning'. Web searches bring it up as track 11, side one, disc one. Lost my copy in the move from England. Heavy sigh.I like these videos.

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-52900043642260650412008-11-05T11:47:00.000-08:002008-11-05T11:55:34.370-08:00

Michael Crichton, author, died of cancer at the age of 66 today. The creator of such works as 'The Andromeda Strain', 'Jurassic park' and 'Timeline' will be sadly missed. Liked his output, and I recall devouring the Andromeda Strain on the day of purchase, sitting in coffee bars, on trains and later at home, reading continuously.I can only wish my own work could be so well received. God speed

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-89621902124852627832008-11-05T10:43:00.000-08:002008-11-05T11:08:54.048-08:00

Price of gas locally has just edged below a dollar a litre which should make travelling a bit cheaper. Nice day, but quite brisk outside and I've started to wonder when the first low level snows will arrive. Friends who have lived on the island for some time are remarking that it feels distinctly colder this year.Was watching some UK Webcams last night and found out that apparently it's illegal

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-11775295524526295822008-11-04T20:10:00.000-08:002008-11-04T20:33:19.619-08:00

Just found this old Moody Blues track on Youtube. There are a lot of good memories associated with it, and I will be passing the time while waiting for a few people I know to take a little walk in fancy dress in London. Cannot be there, so I'm going to stay up late and watch the fun, or lack of it, via webcam. If of course the webcams aren't shut down for some reason.

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-14615151213851777002008-11-03T16:18:00.000-08:002008-11-03T16:42:50.906-08:00

Tidying up the MSS for marketing (3rd re-write so far) and took a break to give Dog a walk. I never realised the woods could be so noisy. A neighbours dog, barking over half a mile away was almost deafening. Falling Maple leaves that have plated the paths and trails with gold make a surprisingly loud papery rattle as they bounce from twig to twig in their leisurely plummet towards the ground.

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-10923149803726645382008-11-02T07:38:00.000-08:002008-11-02T08:37:25.108-08:00

Back in high school, one of the things that always stuck with me in Science lessons was how the Earth was in a constant state of change. Mountains erode, and rain washes the erosion into the sea where it turns into sediment, and after an Eon or two, plate tectonics turns it into dry land again, and maybe into a mountain if it gets folded enough. Animals live, they grow, predate on other things,

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-55127532442521546472008-10-31T06:50:00.000-07:002008-10-31T07:19:03.970-07:00

Picked up on a report that 'global warming' is 'very likely' caused by humans. Firstly there seems to be a lot of mainstream fuss about this, saying that 'It's proven' or repeating the mantra 'the science is settled'. Yet when you actually read the original studies from which the reports quoted are derived, you find a lot of 'mights' and 'could be's' which prove absolutely damn all. Add that

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3593319427960566626.post-7808350227385668252008-10-29T10:42:00.000-07:002008-10-29T10:50:34.225-07:00

Had to smother a sceptical guffaw at the continued failure of the Weather to follow the computer models. Here on the island it's been pretty cool despite sunshine, and today is grey and damp. Over in the UK they are experiencing a dollop of the white stuff, which is unseasonably early, but not without precedent.I know the 'warmista's' out there will hang onto their theory of anthropogenic

Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01744564168017412434noreply@blogger.com0