a photo blog

2005-04-29T13:19:00.000+01:00

I know Lee doesn't read this blog. In fact, he doesn't read. So it is safe to let you know that Lee, this weekend being his stag do, will be dressing up as an attractive lady. He doesn't know this of course. We are, or Marc is, going to steal his luggage and the rest of us are going to present him with the clothes we've lovingly bought him. There's been no coordination between any of us except for determining who is acquiring particular clothes items. I, I have got this lovely little red number. It feels very nice against the skin. I'm sure he'll appreciate it. Hahahahahahaha. As Royksopp sing, 'Poor Leee, no!'

2005-04-29T13:10:00.000+01:00

Poor old John. He couldn't cope being on his own after the death of his friend the same morning. By early evening John past away and Simon laid him to rest in our front garden, under a rock. I shall miss him dearly.

Faithless

2005-04-29T12:59:00.000+01:00

Faithless.

What can I say except for you should have been there.

NEWSFLASH: Sleeping with the worms

2005-04-21T18:10:00.000+01:00

Unfortunately, one of Simon's goldfish has died, and the remaining fish is now lonely and soon gonna die itself by the looks of it. Out of respect and by the wish of Harriet, Simon buried the fish in the front garden under a stone, rather the flushing it down the loo.

I'll get a snap of the remaining goldfish (sorry, I've forgotten their names) before it snuffs it.

Panoramas.dk QTVR from the best VR photographers

2005-04-19T12:48:00.000+01:00

These pictures are cool. I've been to one of the panorama pics - the Blue Mountains. They instantly take me away from my prison cell in Durham. Not long until I'm free!

Panoramas.dk - Montecarlo, Royal Palace in Monte Carlo, Monaco - QTVR from the best VR photographers

Who should you vote for?

2005-04-16T13:13:00.000+01:00

Who should I vote for?

Your expected outcome:

Labour

Your actual outcome:

Labour -2
Conservative -23
	Liberal Democrat 27
UK Independence Party -4
	Green 33

You should vote: Green

The Green Party, which is of course strong on environmental issues, takes a strong position on welfare issues, but was firmly against the war in Iraq. Other key concerns are cannabis, where the party takes a liberal line, and foxhunting, which unsurprisingly the Greens are firmly against.

Take the test at Who Should You Vote For

Petals Around the Rose

2005-04-14T19:52:00.000+01:00

Have a go at this puzzle if you fancy wasting some time. It took me a while to get it but remember, it's all in the name.

Petals Around the Rose

Curves

2005-04-11T00:01:00.000+01:00

Don't get me wrong, I like curves just as much as the next man. But the curved corners spread throughout this page are ugly. I will slowly change the corners, colours and contours of this page. Please bear in mind that I am hindered by colour blindness and I make no apologies if, at some point, I offend your vision.

The old site. Not much different yet I know.

Creep animation

2005-04-10T23:35:00.000+01:00

Here's a cool animation to the song Creep by Radiohead. Check it out courtesy of Monkeehub.com

I'm a winner on the grand national!

2005-04-10T12:23:00.000+01:00

Yesterday, the Grand National took place. I never usually participate in betting except for the odd occasion when I find myself at the Epsom Derby or greyhound racing in Wimbledon. Anyway, thought I'd liven Saturday afternoon up after the Royal Wedding by placing a couple of bets on the big race at 16:10. I placed bets on two horses, one chosen by random and the other, Royal Auclair, chosen only because I just watched the royal wedding. The odds for Royal Auclair were 11-1.

I was gutted when Royal Auclair came 2nd as I thought I'd placed a bet for a win only. My online account said I had won and had a credit of £30 much to my surprise! Thinking my luck is still in I've just placed a bet for a footie game this afternoon. Come on Everton! Though folks, please do not worry about me developing a gambling addiction. I have withdrawn my initial £10 stake and once my winnings have been frittered away my betting days will be over. Just a bit of fun, though please cross your fingers.

Author Bill Bryson becomes Durham University Chancellor

2005-04-04T19:18:00.000+01:00

University News

Simon, a bit drunk

2005-04-04T00:51:00.000+01:00

Elvet Bridge

2005-04-04T00:16:00.000+01:00

On our way to Harriet and Simon's dinner party I snapped this:

If it wasn't for the taxi firm, Mac's Taxis, then we wouldn't have walked. Thanks Mac. I wasn't aware that it wasn't in their job description to notify you, i.e. ring the doorbell, once they are ready and waiting outside. When I phoned up the taxi firm to ask much longer they'd be, the operator told me it had been outside for ten minutes, it had drove off and was not going to return. So there! I was a little annoyed and suggested that it would be courteous to at least let their customer know that they were waiting by, perhaps, knocking on the door. No. It's not part of the service. So the Mac's taxi driver prefers to waste 10 minutes of his as well as my time instead of spending at most 10 seconds moving his or hers fat arse to my doorstep and back. Well, Mac can stuff his taxi's. I deleted his number from my phone instantly. I suggest you do the same.

On our way back I snapped the same scene, around 1am Sunday:

BBC NEWS | Entertainment | Music | Fans snap up Glastonbury tickets

2005-04-03T13:15:00.000+01:00

Hooray! I've got tickets for Glastonbury. Well, I've got the confirmation email and that's good enough for me. I didn't manage to get through to the ticket ordering page but my mate Al, who has a measly 56k modem, did and ordered himself 2 and me 2. 112,000 tickets sold out in less than 3 hours. I'm sure it would have been quicker if the web servers could have coped with the traffic.

BBC NEWS | Entertainment | Music | Fans snap up Glastonbury tickets

KT Tunstall

2005-03-31T09:42:00.000+01:00

I saw KT perform on the Jools Holland TV show a couple of months ago and immediately wanted to hear more. Now, having listened to her album a few times, I have become a fan of her almost addictive raspy voice. Watch a few session tracks courtesy of the BBC collective.

A Confederacy of Dunces

2005-03-31T09:15:00.000+01:00

I've just started reading a new book courtesy of Steinunn. Ta very much. Having read the first chapter I already have a dislike for Ignatius J. Reilly, the central character. If I were to meet him I think I would probably have to put on a balaclava and punch him on the nose.

Camden Market

2005-03-26T16:40:00.000Z

There was plenty of junk to be had in markets of Camden, late on Saturday afternoon. Here's Steinunn making a tough decision about which elephant throw to purchase.

Brighton beach

2005-03-25T22:05:00.000Z

On Good Friday, Marc, Linda, Lucy, Steinunn and I went down to see my sister and Zack. Mike and his daughter Pixie were there too. This is a photo of the the three kids taking a break from throwing pebbles into the sea with much relief from all those a stone's throw away. Let's just say the pebbles didn't always land in the direction of the large target ahead of them.

London Eye

2005-03-24T14:22:00.000Z

The London Eye, millennium wheel, whatever... here Steinunn is posing with the Houses of Parliament and Westminster Bridge in the background.

Here are our hosts for the Easter weekend, Marc and Linda.

Impromptu Pizza Party

2005-03-23T19:26:00.000Z

Well done to those who volunteered their services to the Iranian Conference hosted by IMEIS (BTW, I think the website is a little out of date). The poor little overworked souls deserved a few beers and five pizzas, which, according to Reza the treasurer, were devoured faster than a hungry pack of wolves.

WikiPedia

2005-03-23T14:24:00.000Z

To the left, I've added a link to WikiPedia. Just click on the link and you will be whisked away to a random page, informing you of something you didn't know. I usually read the page of info then forget it by the next day. Do I have some form of amnesia? My memory sucks!

North along the River Wear

2005-03-22T18:56:00.000Z

On a walk that had no particular destination, just the rule to follow the river whatever, we stumbled across this railway bridge with "very nice architecture" and lots more beside.

No matter what, nothing would get in the way of our walk beside the river, so when greeted with a sign saying 'No' that we guessed meant the end of the public footpath, 'No Entry', we hopped over the fence, across a stream, and into no man's land. Anticipating a confrontation with a farmer and his shotgun, we stuck to the low lying almost sandy beach-like shore line of the river that hid us from view from most vantage points in the undulating pastures. Anyway, I'm going on a bit, read stpie for the rest of the walk culminating in a wait at a prison bus stop with a drainage unblocking van blocking our view of a deep orange setting sun.

Liv Anna visits Durham

2005-03-22T17:54:00.000Z

The latest exciting event in Durham was Liv Anna's visit.Originally hailing from Iceland, now studying and living in Glasgow, Liv Anna does not rate Durham's pitiful excuses for hip'n'happening night-time venues. Up until this weekend, I was quite happy existing in a state of disbelief but now the stark truth burns through and it hurts, a lot. J.A.'s sucks. It's official.

Where shall we go now?

------------

Update - It's been 3 weeks since Liv Anna's visit and J.A. has not had our custom. I couldn't say we haven't been in the place as it is frequently used to get from street to river level. Here is a blog entry when I cared for J.A.'s.

holiday begins on wednesday

2005-03-15T18:09:00.000Z

I've had a work-free week so far. Wednesday is the last day of lectures before the Easter break, I get 21 days, which makes me very happy! I'm gonna start work on my final project during the holiday, to give myself a headstart, as I know studying during the summer will prove to be a difficult task, to remain indoors when the sun is shining ...

Iranian blogger jailed for 14 years

2005-02-24T10:08:00.000Z

Iranian blogger jailed for 14 years | The Register

Friday night in Lenzie

2005-02-23T12:39:00.000Z

Lenzie, the town where Alan grew up and now lives with Alex, is about 15 minutes drive from Glasgow city centre, just far enough away from the hustle and bustle. Alex had had her hair curled at the hairdressers and was looking fit and healthy as normal without the golden suntan she wore at New Year. Our plan was to go out on the town but post-food fatigue fell upon us after eating far too many enchiladas and fajitas with all the trimmings. Alex, replicating her mother to a tee, attempted to fill us with more food, a cake of some kind, passion fruit and grapes, and after refusing to eat more a hundred times or so, Alex took the food back and herself and Al up to bed. Oh, I forgot, Alex is one of those people who is always busy somehow, so this time, before hitting the pillow, she made some flapjack and left it in my hands to turn the oven off after half an hour. I did, may be somewhat late, and the edges just a little black, gave the impression that the flapjack was baked inside too. Having thought I had burnt it, I proceeded to lift the flapjack from the oven tray to a plate so that it could cool down. Alex, sensing in her sleep that something was wrong, tiptoed, no that's a lie, Alex is incapable of tiptoeing or doing anything quiet for that matter, like Alan pointed out on various occassions throughout the weekend. But yeah, Alex came downstairs to find me messing with her flapjack. She made me feel better by saying that she got her quantities all wrong. So we picked at it, it still tasted good, but was not sturdy enough to sell at her church the next day. So she binned it! All of it. Better that she did really otherwise I would have picked at it and eventually eaten it all up.

Durham to Glasgow

2005-02-22T13:18:00.000Z

Why is it that however much you plan, not that I did plan this time, there is always a last minute dash to catch any mode of transport? On this occasion Steinunn and I began a 20 minute mad dash to catch the 15:31 Durham to Newcastle train. We were 4 minutes early, 4 minutes that could have been spent walking at a more leisurely pace over the entire walk from house to station, or, perhaps for a more noticeable slowdown, the four minutes should have been dedicated to the last stretch, cardiac hill. The train pulled up and as the doors opened Henry pulled up alongside us too. He didn't want to sit down, he was planning his dash to the connecting train from Newcastle to Edinburgh, the same train that Steinunn and I were catching. We sat down knowing from experience that careful preparation is a waste of time and soon Henry joined us, realising that the carriage was less than half empty and no ensuing panic would occur.

So we switched trains without a fuss, or, were we on the same train? The platform was the same, the train emptied but I cannot remember if the train moved to be replaced by another. Anyway, we passed through Alnmouth (Steinunn wanted one of the houses below, or was it the one on the end that you cannot see?) then onto Berwick upon Tweed, which is, purely by the law of averages it seems, part of England at the moment, as it has changed between Scottish and English hands no less than 14 times and that's not counting the last 600 years.

If we changed at Haymarket we would have arrived in Glasgow 4 minutes earlier, an opportunity to add to our previous 4 minutes, but didn't seem worth it at the time. However, it turned out that McAlan, whose original destination was Queen Street station, had to do a circuit of Glasgow city in order to pick us up from Central station, which meant waiting around in the cold for 8 minutes before McAl arrived. So all in all, time was gained then lost yet all was in balance somehow or other.

BBC NEWS | Technology | Global blogger action day called

2005-02-22T01:00:00.000Z

BBC NEWS | Technology | Global blogger action day called

Does my blog look big in this?

2005-02-18T12:33:00.000Z

Ok, so I've just crammed in another sidebar to the left. With my screen resolution (1280 x 960) it all fits in fine, but not too sure about others, for instance, those of you on laptops. Let me know if the changes require you to scroll left to right.

More pics

2005-02-17T14:23:00.000Z

After seeing that Steve has updated the look of his blog, I thought I would too. I wouldn't say it looks much different except for the sidebar to the right. I'm experimenting with adding pics there at the mo. I've removed the the live webcam feed of Durham Cathedral and the daily quote feed. Instead friends, housies, (ex)palatinites, I've trawled through the photos I have of you, cropped til I dropped and put them over here ------------->
The pics currently at the top were taken whilst at Goldie Lookin' Chain gig on Monday night at Northumberland Uni. None of the band I'm afraid, they're all too ugly, and Welsh ( I'm 1/4 welsh so can say that), to feature.

Last Saturday, Steinunn and I went to the theatre luvvie. The Australian Dance Company, who were 1/5th Japanese too, put on a performance at Newcastle Theatre Royal called BirdBrain. Some dances were more of a contortion act, some martial arts mixed with ballet or breakdance, set to electronica that at one point, with a doppler bass sound and pounding bass drum, sent me into a trance and I nodded off. Must have been a combination of wine and the previous traipse around the Eldon shopping centre, because the dancing was anything but dull.

The Land of Nod

2005-02-08T01:48:00.000Z

i'm off... to The Land of Nod

From Breakfast on through all the day
At home among my friends I stay,
But every night I go abroad
Afar into the land of Nod.

All by myself I have to go,
With none to tell me what to do--
All alone beside the streams
And up the mountain-sides of dreams.

The strangest things are there for me,
Both things to eat and things to see,
And many frightening sights abroad
Till morning in the land of Nod.

Try as I like to find the way,
I never can get back by day,
Nor can remember plain and clear
The curious music that I hear.

by Robert Louis Stevenson

eBayers go mental for Burberry-clad Chavmobile

2005-02-04T18:04:00.000Z

eBayers go mental for Burberry-clad Chavmobile | The Register

Casino brands eBay cleavage woman

2005-02-04T11:49:00.000Z

Casino brands eBay cleavage woman | The Register

What a beautiful day!

2005-02-02T16:02:00.000Z

How I wish I had time to walk with my pals beside the waters' edge following the path that leads to home. Here's a pic I took on my way home whilst the sun was low on our local church with Durham Cathedral in the background.

Man urinates his way out of avalanche

2005-01-31T14:27:00.000Z

Man urinates his way out of avalanche | The Register

Watch out, Ollie's about!

2005-01-31T14:13:00.000Z

Just spotted Ollie at the start of a driving lesson, zooming away from Palatine.

In honour of Mr. Burns

2005-01-25T15:47:00.000Z

... here is McAnnette

Big bap!

2005-01-24T23:32:00.000Z

Ok, so Simon, my housemate, is currently going through some emotional turmoil and one way in which he his coping is by stuffing his face.

He failed to finish the super-mega-sized bap though this could be blamed on watching Tribe, a BBC2 documentary, when the presenter began to vomit profusely after taking a hallucinogen that sends him into a three day trip.

Lydia's Birthday

2005-01-23T23:36:00.000Z

This week a crowd of us helped Lydia celebrate her 22nd birthday by visiting the usual bars with a rather early departure from the southside to the ghetto, straight into Walkabout. No live band, but a DJ who is guaranteed to play the identical cheesy tracks that the band would have passionately yet nauseatingly played anyway. Here's Lydia styling one her many bags that doubles up as a handy photo prop.

So what else? Started a new module, did the nodding of the head routine whereby your head slowly drops, eye-lids close and suddenly five seconds later you re-awake with a violent jerk, and you feel as if everybody, including the lecturer, is looking in your direction. I left halfway through for sleep as it would have only became more embarrassing and besides, my brain was not receiving input, it wanted to close down, hit the rhythms of Circadia.

Last night a few friends and I went to a Ceilidh, a Scottish dancing evening held by Ustinov college (the postgraduate college here in Durham). I managed one dance, if you can call it that, which consisted of turn-based repeated sequence of dance moves that went on for what seemed a bloomin' long time.

Oh and I've just tried writing my CV on the off-chance that I apply for employment somewhere sometime soon. It's naff so this week I'm attending a session provided by the Durham careers service on how to write the perfect CV. I am torn between getting a real job or having a go at business venture with some friends. I definitely do not want a real job, they scare me, but I know it is the more sensible option. But what happens if I have a go at running a business for a year and it goes nowhere? No one will want to employ me after that, I haven't had a job in years, I need some real experience. Or does having a go at business constitute worthwhile experience? If anybody knows then please give me guidance.

hooray, finished... finally

2005-01-18T01:39:00.000Z

I've been a slacker, a waster, a non-blogging bum over the past couple of months. Shame on me. Well, perhaps I was never much of blogger before anyway, just a wannabe blogger, see, writing has never been my strength, similary to my verbal skills I guess. By the way, what is the world record for the longest blog entry? Steinunn's blog, well the bit that was in English, the final epic, must be a contender. That count of words is beyond my capability or attention span, my memory does not serve me well enough to write about the events in my life in such a detailed manner. Anyway, is this a long enough pre-amble or should I carry on before getting to the main point? Enough I say.

So congratulations to me! And to group 8, my team. I say my team because I was managing director of our company in the module we've just finished today. I celebrated with Aziz and Steinunn by wolfing down roast beef sandwiches smothered in delicious day old gravy with a dollop of mayonaisse adding perfection to what was already the perfect sandwich. I cannot tell you what our business was about as Simon, my house mate, thinks it's a great idea and he is slowly convincing me that we should do it for real. Hmmm, he's willing to invest money and spend a year finding out if it's a winner. Me, I need a break from the idea, it's been plaguing me for the past 6 weeks in the guise of coursework. May be in a few months I will get excited about it but more likely I will totally miss the boat, with some other person taking the idea on.

Tomorrow, no today, is the first day in a long time where coursework will not be in the back of my mind. A totally free day, I don't know what to do. May be I shall compose a symphony with Kushan or perhaps I shall go to Newcastle and purchase the amplifier I have been waiting to get since my arrival in Durham. Whatever I do, I have to remember to pay my fees. Drat! And order those Faithless tickets. And get Zoe a birthday card.

It's been nice talking to you again blog.

Sunday roast

2005-01-18T00:35:00.000Z

See that joint of beef, weighing in at 1.8kg, it took more than 3 hours to roast and still was rare in the middle. Thanks Aziz for the ingredients and thank you Steinunn for eating loads'a gravy filled yorkshire's and for choosing a funny film, I loved that mad Hawaiian guy and the song at the end. I've lost the touch when it comes to roast but next time I will pay more attention to oxo's instruction 'and then relax for an hour'.

Note for next time, parsnips need much longer in oven, stop regularly opening oven door for 3 to 4 minutes at a time, buy peas, and don't eat so much cheese before dinner.

Toilet brush secures stupid warning label crown | The Register

2005-01-17T00:16:00.000Z

Toilet brush secures stupid warning label crown | The Register

Aftershock

2005-01-11T22:04:00.000Z

hehe

Cheshire cats

2005-01-07T21:05:00.000Z

Just let one go

2004-12-29T19:21:00.000Z

Durham at night

2004-12-27T17:29:00.000Z

After owning my camera for over a year and a half I've only just realised that it is possible to control the shutter speed. So here's a pic I took when I was on my way home from the station between Christmas and New Year.

Click here to see larger size

Auntie Anne carving the turkey

2004-12-25T14:17:00.000Z

The Riverside

2004-12-18T15:50:00.000Z

Marc and I went to see Middlesbrough vs Aston Villa at the Riverside stadium.

Tamp O Claus by Rob Manuel for B3ta.com

2004-12-08T01:48:00.000Z

Tamp O Claus by Rob Manuel for B3ta.com

Balloons, Belbin and Bullshit

2004-12-06T23:40:00.000Z

Today I started a new module about business enterprise. It contains the same old management material and we had to do essential group activities like seeing who could build the tallest structures from balloons and cellotape.

Also we received our results from the Belbin questionairre we completed a couple of weeks ago. My character profile says:

Possesses all-round leadership characteristics. Has the features of a high profile manager. Should be in a job where he can use his acquired knowledge. Keen to follow a professional career path. Like to be at the forefront in a leading management role. Likes to be in a job where he has some authority. Has a capacity for self motivation.

I would agree with the self motivation bit but the other stuff is not me really. The team role profile says I am a Shaper and a Specialist and I says "You are probably so respected for what you know that your expertise is seldom challenged". Umm, not sure about that one either.

tiRed eye

2004-12-04T02:40:00.000Z

What i feel like after the last week of work.

:

Mr. Incredible

2004-11-28T17:11:00.000Z

It was my nephews' birthday a few days ago. Here's a pic of him wearing the superhero disguise I got him.

Just

2004-11-25T12:59:00.000Z

Last night we went to 'I can't believe it's not cheese' in the union. After dancing like lunatics to the first half of Just by Radiohead half the people lied down on the dirty dancefloor paying respect to the video. It was a golden moment.

North Yorkshire Moors

2004-11-20T19:04:00.000Z

On Saturday I joined the hill walking club for the second time. The coach took us south to the North Yorkshire moors, dropping us off near to Rosebury Topping. After climbing the odd shaped topping hill we walked to Captain Cook's monument. On our way we met lots of frozen puddles that we could skate on and smash, and were lucky enough to have clear blue skies all day long. In total we walked 20km, the coach was the most welcome sight for my aching limbs.

2004-11-18T13:29:00.000Z

In morrison's today. what the heck is going on? i can't cope without my lard

Remembrance Day

2004-11-11T11:11:00.000Z

All the people of all the nations which had fought in the First World War were silent during the eleventh minute of the eleventh hour of Armistice Day, which was the eleventh day of the eleventh month. It was during that minute in nineteen hundred and eighteen, that millions upon millions of human beings stopped butchering one another. I have talked to old men who were on battlefields during that minute. They have told me in one way or another that the sudden silence was the Voice of God. So we still have among us some men who can remember when God spoke clearly to mankind.

Kurt Vonnegut

Reza's Cowboy Boots

2004-11-09T17:59:00.000Z

Mobile pics

2004-11-09T17:22:00.000Z

Got a bluetooth dongle so thought I'd transfer all my mobile phone pics over.

Jumana's Birthday

2004-10-28T23:19:00.000+01:00

Well after a hard day's work I met up with Andy at the IBM business consulting presentation. Both tonights presentation and the previous software engineering presentation impressed me, but now I'm confused about which dept of IBM to apply. Andy and I each won a cash prize for asking a worthy questions which doesn't seem all that until you know that 80 people wrote several questions on paper and the IBM panel chose the best 3 questions. Again there was a free buffet dinner and lots of free alcohol and pens which served us warmed us up for Jumana's birthday.

Jumana is now 21, so we celebrated by having a few drinks in Varsity then Chase.

Newcastle vs Norwich

2004-10-27T23:44:00.000+01:00

Ant came up from Peterborough to see his beloved Norwich play Newcastle in the League Cup and to catch up of course. I don't know how you get the dedication Ant to see every single game, may be if you miss one game they might win! (sorry) It was my first time at a decent football stadium with a good crowd chanting all the way through the game.

It was Reza's first time at a match too, we both really enjoyed it although it was quite a chilly wind high up in the stands. Unfortunately Norwich lost although I guess it makes Ant's life a bit easier not having to go to so many games.

Paul and Paula's Wedding

2004-10-25T23:59:00.000+01:00

Their big day finally arrived and everything went to plan. The church service was filled with joy and lots and lots of singing, even the best man sung 'You've got a friend in me' from Toy Story instead of the traditional wedding march organ song. Here they are walking down the ailse:

and Paul getting confettied:

Congratulations to both of them! They're off for a two week honeymoon in the Gambia.

In the castle

2004-10-22T23:44:00.000+01:00

Today was Jenny's birthday, a mate from my course. A few of us went out to celebrate. It was the first time I had been in the Castle grounds and I was mightily impressed, especially by the cheap bar! Afterwards we went to Jimmy Allens, a bar named after the ghostly piper:

Jimmy Allen (1733 -1810) had a chequered history. He was a very talented player of the Northumbrian Pipes, he was even official piper to the Duchess of Northumberland for two years. But he liked to drink, and gamble, and he also liked pretty women, conning them out of money to support his drinking habit. As well as this he was a horse rustler, consequently he was almost continually on the run from various authorities. He travelled as far afield as India, the Dutch East Indies and the Baltic, making money from playing his pipes with his extraordinary skill.

The authorities caught up with him eventually, however, and he was caught in Jedburgh, Scotland, for stealing a horse in Gateshead, Co Durham. He was sentenced to death in 1803 and spent the last seven years of his life in a cell beneath Elvet Bridge, his sentence having been reduced to life inprisonment. He died a few days before a pardon came through from the Prince Regent. It is said that if you listen carefully, you may still hear his ghost playing the Northumbrian Pipes from the cell beneath the bridge.

The above was taken from here. Here's a few pictures:

Comedy and the cathedral

2004-10-15T23:00:00.000+01:00

Zoe has come to see me for a couple of days up here in sunny Durham. I had to leave her to her own devices for most of the day as I had lectures and presentations to do. In the evening we queued to go see some comedy in the city but was turned away just as we got to the box office :-( Instead we went to the pub with the others and walked back via the cathedral.

Later we met Aziz and GYÐJA at Planet of Sound at the DSU where Steinunn was grooving the night away!

The Killa and the krew

2004-10-12T23:40:00.000+01:00

I spent most of the day making a start on my first assignment. I got carried away with work and have almost done half even though I have another 3 and a bit weeks to go before the due date. Tonight Steinnun, who's from the lovely land of Iceland, and Aziz came over to join Reza and myself for some wine and to listen to some tunes on my fab new speakers.

Here's the beautiful bunch:

Helvellyn, the Lake District

2004-10-09T23:53:00.000+01:00

I nearly convinced myself that my legs wouldn't be able to carry me on the walk today due to them having a serious work out on Thursday at my first Shotokai Karate lesson. Somehow I managed to force myself out from bed at the ungodly hour of 7am on a Saturday for my first walk with the Hill Walking society.

Helvellyn, in the Lake District, was the setting. I opted to the 2nd easiest walk which took us over a distance of 15km and a height of 900m. I didn't realise how unprepared I was, or should I say unfit? The first 3 hours involved a slow ascent to Striding Edge:

We were rewarded with panoramic views, to our east was the valleys from where we had climbed, to our west you could just make out the sea, I guess the Irish sea.

We scrambled up the narrow ridge of Striding Edge to the peak of Helvellyn which was shrouded in cloud. The mist and high winds remained with us until we began our descent an hour and a half later after our 2nd mini-lunch stop.

My legs were about to fall off when I saw the heavenly site of a pub. Ordered a beer and Beckham scored the 2nd goal for England against Wales.

Raisin Racing

2004-10-06T23:38:00.000+01:00

Over at Palatine House Susy introduced me to a new sport - Raisin Racing - the first of many armchair sports yet to come. The line-up:

Each player gripped a one end of a thread in their teeth with a raisin dangling 50cm below of the other end. The winner is the first to recoil the raisin into their mouth without swinging it into their mouth. Susy was the outright winner employing some cunning tongue technique. Tim was the clear loser as after five minutes of trying failed to eat the raisin.

Societies

2004-10-05T23:04:00.000+01:00

Finally I've registered but still have 1 week before lectures start. I went to the fresher's fair today where all the university societies pitch for your custom. There mush have been over a 100 societies to choose from, some a bit weird but all of them seem like fun. This time I'm gonna join a few societies and turn up to whatever's going on. I'm probably gonna join the walking society so I can explore this part of the country more often. I'm also thinking about Shotokai karate as it like a bit of fun and something new but I'll decide after I've attended the free practice sessions.

Anyway it was a nice day, I met a few people of my course and here's another pic of the cathedral.

Bustling Bars

2004-09-30T23:27:00.000+01:00

Durham is starting to come alive now that students are
returning. We went to a Chase and then to Walkabout
where Aziz was getting funky:

and Suzy was participating is some weird Italian
back-to-back dancing:

Nothing to report

2004-09-29T22:48:00.000+01:00

Today I have not even left the house. I had delusions about going to the gym but it's a 5 minute cycle away!

I watched half of Farenheit 9/11 which doesn't paint a pretty picture of George Bush but I don't think anyone needs a film to tell them Bush is not fit to run the US.

I've done nothing much today just as in this picture a long time ago.

My birthday

2004-09-28T23:53:00.000+01:00

According to Yahoo's Birthday greeting, William the Conqueror invaded England to claim the English throne on this day, year 1066. Here's some other births, deaths and events that happened on September 28th.

Thanks to everyone who sent me a birthday card by the way.

Went to the City for a pub meal (thanks Aziz) and then later we met up with Lydia and Susy for some drinks in Jimmy Allens. Thanks for not letting me be a loner on my birthday guys!

Jack

2004-09-27T21:31:00.000+01:00

By the wonders of picture messaging here's a pic from my brother of my nephew.

The Old Barn

2004-09-26T22:33:00.000+01:00

Cycling through the back lanes of Durham again I found one wall remaining of what I expect was the old barn shown on the map.

Can you tell I have not been up to much today?

Music: The Cure (Eponymous)

The past is my present to your future

2004-09-25T21:44:00.000+01:00

Aziz thought it'd be a good day to show me round Newcastle so off we went at about 2pm. Soon we wished we hadn't bothered as we hit traffic presumably caused by the Newcastle vs West Brom game. Then add to this the Great North Mile race where Kelly Holmes was the star of the moment yet again.

Anyway we made it. Then headed straight to Ali Barbar's, a persian restaurant in the city centre for my first meal of the day. To drink, we each had a Doogh, a popular soft-drink in Iran. I can't remember the name of my main course but it was a lamb stew with lentils, split-peas, fried potatoes and onions on a bed of saffron rice. Then to finish off we had some Iranian tea - you can find a pic of Aziz and his tea here.

Scattered around the pavements of Newcastle are words carved into stone. Here's one that's worth a pic.

The past is my present to your future.

Durham City

2004-09-25T00:12:00.000+01:00

I thought it appropriate for the first photo to be of Durham City. I'm already making exceptions to the rule that each blog would feature a photo capturing the spirit of that day. Today is nearly over, in fact it's now tomorrow (you work it out) and I didn't take any photos today (umm, yesterday) so here's one from Monday just gone.

On Monday I went to collect my new phone from Royal Mail's depot. On my return journey I got my A-Z street atlas and found a countryfied route back home. Much better. No traffic, no people, wind in my hair (too bloody windy!), a great view, and a long downward sloping hill that was made for cycling.<