| Mission accomplished! |
[20 Dec 2003|02:14pm] |
| [ |
mood |
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 pleased |
] |
Well, that went much smoother than I'd expected. I've found suitable prezzies for each of my family members in just a few hours wandering up and down the local High Street, despite the rain. :)
I've had the idea of drawing little pictures to label the presents rather than just write their names, so I'm going to try out my tablet (yay!) to see if I can come up with some suitable characters.
And Have I Got News For You (the uncut version) will be showing this evening, which will round off a happy day.
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| Xmas shopping |
[20 Dec 2003|11:20am] |
| [ |
mood |
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 energetic |
] |
Often tricky, this -- trying to find gifts which family members will enjoy and appreciate.
I've got my Mum's. I know what I'm going to get my younger bother. Brother. I've conspired with my sister to get something nice for my grandfather. But the others are still a mystery.
So, off adventuring to the shops I go in search of treasure. :)
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[15 Dec 2003|06:56pm] |
| [ |
mood |
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 aggravated |
] |
My bike's missing.
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[13 Dec 2003|12:08am] |
| [ |
mood |
| |
 jubilant |
] |
I've been trying to get the Hauppauge Nova-T digital TV tuner card to work under Linux. Previously I was unsucessful, despite the fact I tried each of the different drivers and got messages printed out indicating success..
I've just found out why. As it turns out, you need an extra driver which *is* available -- but needs an extra firmware file which doesn't come with the kernel. A quick download later, and I've got the frontend driver.
Copy a channels.conf file with all the local frequencies in it to Xine's configuration folder (~/.xine), load up Xine itself and press the "DVB" button - et voila, instant TV.
Now I just need to fix my graphics driver so that it doesn't get rendered in monochrome. ;-)
Seriously, this is good news. Now, in principle, I can move the card over to a spare linux box and set it up as a TV server. Quick little webpage to act as the channel changer, and a multicast streaming server (such as <a href="http://www.videolan.org/>VLS</a>, perhaps) and I'm laughing.
And possibly slightly richer -- then others in my flat will be encouraged to contribute to the cost of the license fee I paid for the place. :-)
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[12 Dec 2003|09:46am] |
| [ |
mood |
| |
bouncy |
] |
Yay, 24-hour cold. Seems to have gone away completely now. So I can once more do battle with this software toolkit (henceforth referred to as "Globus") I've been trying to make behave.
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| Colours, conclusions and courses of action. |
[10 Dec 2003|03:11pm] |
| [ |
mood |
| |
 thirsty |
] |
Discovered there's a new next-gen S2 style system for LJ. So I upgraded to it.
So don't panic if I couldn't remember the colours quite right and my page looks somewhat odd.
I might play with it a bit more when I'm not working.
Which might be soon; I've concluded I'm running a temperature. That means I go home.
Come visit me! I'm probably not that contagious.. and I'll get lonely all on my lonesome.
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| *diagnostic complete* |
[10 Dec 2003|02:49pm] |
| [ |
mood |
| |
 cranky |
] |
I think I've been hit by a bug. Aches, coughing, what feels like a temperature...
And it would explain my gradual fatigue that's been increasing over the last couple of days.
Rats.
Work is currently sucking. The benchmark run of this toolkit I've been fighting with failed overnight, meaning I don't have any performance numbers for my boss today. Which he wanted for a meeting he's got about now. Which he told me about a couple days ago.
And the benchmark failed because the toolkit itself fell over. And I've been trying to right it all morning without success. *grrr*
>sigh<
Can I have some real engineering work to do? Please?
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| *running self-diagnostics* |
[10 Dec 2003|11:21am] |
| [ |
mood |
| |
 sleepy |
] |
Currently not rested. Pulling myself out of bed to go to work, working, doing various things after, crashing back to sleep again. Lather, Rinse, Repeat.
End result: utterly /tired/, moderately continuously. I'm trying to work out why.
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| On holiday! |
[26 Nov 2003|07:55pm] |
| [ |
mood |
| |
tired |
] |
Wheee. I've got the next 7 days off. Which is a good thing, as I'm exhausted (as those who've seen me recently up will know.)
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[25 Nov 2003|05:30pm] |
| [ |
mood |
| |
exhausted |
] |
I am no longer in any doubt. I am burning out again.
The solution is known, in my case at least: I need to take a holiday -- for at least two weeks.
I tried to work today -- I tried very hard. But I still failed to accomplish very much of anything today; at least, not what I was tasked with doing.
Now I just need to break the news to my boss.
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| Have I screwed up? |
[19 Nov 2003|05:19pm] |
| [ |
mood |
| |
 sore |
] |
I've decided to turn down this job offer I've been asked about, for the time being at least. My reasoning was that (apart from a *massive* payrise) there were a number of other cons in accepting the job. Now, naturally, I'm wondering if I've just been a complete and utter idiot. Money's not everything, but it is nice -- even if I might not enjoy the work I'd have to do to earn it.
Time might tell.
Went to Jitsu yesterday, which was a great deal of fun. Except during Vs, where I managed to do something quite nasty to my right wrist causing it to swell up unpleasantly and turn purple. Hurt a bit, too.
So I missed the rest of the session with the swollen bit under the cold tap with advice to get it x-rayed if it isn't better by today.
Today, the swelling's gone down a great deal and doesn't hurt quite so much -- although is still a little tender. So I'm working on the hypothesis that nothing's broken and it'll fix itself. If it persists, however, then it's A&E time for me. Which would probably involve a cast if it's broken. Which means one-handed typing. Which sucks. I know, because I've been trying to rest that hand
today..
So, no Halo, no typing, no jitsu, no gymming. Although Babylon 5 Series 3 DVDs have just arrived into Mac's clutches, so I could probably spend a fair amount of time watching those. *g*
PS's box is still crashing apparently, even if it boots reliably now. Trying to puzzle that one out.
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[30 Oct 2003|12:03pm] |
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Graduation was yesterday. Met lots of friends, sat in long ceremony, listened to the head of the college explain his views on university funding. Disagreed with him, but lacked any useful opportunity to stick up my hand and object. I suspect this was part of the plan.
Have a fairly rough sore throat from all the f***ing people smoking yesterday when I was trying to have a nice pleasant drink with friends in the bar. And my clothes from yesterday *reek* of the stuff.
Currently planning to rant in the student newspaper at the next opportunity, calling for a smoking ban in all public union spaces.
Been feeling unusually aggravated by things. Not sure why -- might simply be stress. So if I stupidly rant and generally act blunt and irate at or near you, please don't hold it against me too much.
New thing: I'm going to try to go without *any* caffinated beverage for a week, starting this morning.
And guzzling chocolate bars as a substitute is considered cheating.
I go through far to much of the stuff and it's probably not good for me. And I need to prove to myself that I can, particularly as I've wussed out on it a couple times before when I had degree work to do.
Still starting the day feeling very sleepy -- have been for the last few days. Not getting vast quantities of work done, so I feel guilty that I'm not working hard enough. Wondering if I'm burning out and need a holiday again.
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[28 Oct 2003|11:34am] |
| [ |
mood |
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sleepy |
] |
Wery sleepy again today. Not quite sure why. Don't think it was the party yesterday; I got back at a fairly reasonable time -- despite the fact plv tried to get me tipsy on her desert!
Yeah, the party was great. The food was really good! I had apple crumble! Hmm, apple crumble. And I got see lots of my old friends. And they got to see me. And we all had a really nice time.
And I'll get to see them again at graduation tomorrow. Which is nice.
Hopefully I'll be more awake.
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[24 Oct 2003|04:25pm] |
| [ |
mood |
| |
calm |
] |
Damn, damn, damn. The online gown hire thingy for the graduation ceremony tomorrow has closed, saying "turn up on the day and we'll try to sort something out." Hopefully they'll have something, or I'm going to look damn foolish. And I already feel foolish enough.
Smeg. Pooh. Bah!
And all because I didn't know my chest size.
Ho hum.
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[23 Oct 2003|10:04am] |
| [ |
mood |
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bouncy |
] |
Sooo much better today!
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[22 Oct 2003|11:39am] |
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Feeling much more ill. Not a hope of doing anything other than lying in bed waiting to get better.
*waaa*
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[18 Oct 2003|03:00pm] |
| [ |
mood |
| |
lonely |
] |
I now feel less-poorly. Woot.
But now I don't have anyone to talk to -- everyone's disappeared off.. Wail.
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[17 Oct 2003|12:36pm] |
| [ |
mood |
| |
 uncomfortable |
] |
I feel poorly. Waaah.
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[15 Oct 2003|09:44am] |
| [ |
mood |
| |
sleepy |
] |
Is morning. Sunny day. Sleepy.
Halo arrived Monday. Been playing. Pretty lights...
Woken by Radio 4. Funny voices, talking.
Gymmed on Monday. Ache more. Didn't attend jitsu.
Miss friends. Meet up with coffee?
ADSL installed Monday. Broken Tuesday. Pooo.
Sleepy. Caffine or bed should fix.
Should work now. Bye.
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| Schmee! |
[11 Oct 2003|12:58pm] |
| [ |
mood |
| |
hungry |
] |
A quick update on random things:
Just survived the last week of term. I think I managed to largely dodge Fresher's flu this year by pottering home and sleeping when I started feeling the worse for wear about a week ago.
Work has been going slowly of late -- been trying to fix a nasty bug. Finally nailed it a couple days ago. There was much rejoicing. :-)
Went to the first Jitsu session of the year on Thursday. Met lots of new people, and some old friends too -- Karl, Tig, Minh, and others. Managed to surprise Tig with the name of our latest flat-person. :-) Apparently would like to visit sometime soon. Sensei appears to be suffering from the dreaded lurgey, though you couldn't tell during the session.
Helped out with a first-year lab session and took over a colleage's tutorial support slot. Went pretty well; hopefully I'll be able to do more lab support.
Went to the gym last Monday and hefted some weights around. Didn't go Wednesday; saw Finding Nemo with chums instead. Was very good. Tried to go to the gym on Friday, but it'd flooded and they'd shut. Bah.
Allegedly there's another gym of the free-weights variety in the Southside basement, so I might go hunting for that at some point.
My shoulders and neck ache (in good way) all over, probably from some of my recent exercise-related exertions. Not sure if it was the gym or jitsu which did it. Probably both. *g*
Homeworld2 and a Generals:Zero Hour arrived recently. Finished Homeworld2 after a pitched series of battles yesterday. Storyline was quite fun. Halo got dispatched this morning, so we'll see when the nice Royal Mail personage manages to deliver it. Should also get ADSL hooked up on Monday, which is nice. Still have to network the flat properly, though.
Helped out PS with SKYNET's reliability problems. Looks like the RAM was quite noticeably duff; helped him pick out some replacement DIMMs which should work better and go faster. :) Crucial.com is your friend.
Had a nice Pizza Hut lunch with Ali and Mac yesterday. Ate much, and enjoyed the company.
Still haven't got a washing machine hooked up. Landlord being mostly useless. (Turns out that Tig was supposed to be going in another of his flats -- which flooded the day before they moved in.) Must pester him again on Monday. He doesn't work weekends (!). Rapidly running out of clean clothing, so will have to go hunting for a laundrette this afternoon. Which, in this locale, is likely to be moderately expensive.
Right, time for lunch.
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