tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-62767902011-07-08T03:51:25.759+03:00buskerA Gallimaufry of Bleats, Back-stabs, and Bons Mots.Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.comBlogger13981100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-23244257436017576522011-05-02T10:39:00.002+03:002011-05-02T11:17:00.083+03:00And what may i ask are 'grown-up' requirements? Sounds like something in a tobacconist."Grown-up requirements? call WORdsworth 2579 and ask for RitaCorfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-3635098615714271992008-04-20T12:52:00.004+03:002008-04-26T12:06:03.842+03:00The 'Miranda Quotient'I have a new rule for communicating with people I like or may end up feeling strongly about: Every 4th text or email, I pick up the phone and deal with the message en personne.I'm not making the mistake again of starving a relationship of oxygen by letting it bog down into death-by-alphabet. I love writing and I love hiding behind words and I far prefer to send words than Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-65333108053095812082008-04-15T14:10:00.003+03:002008-04-15T14:43:49.495+03:00Customer ServiceAre you being served?Oh lawd - this would have set my Little Miss Commentating Whistleblower in a tizzy of excitement ... probably exactly what she wrote in for in the first place.We're a bit out of touch here in the Greek isles but a media savvy pal drew my attention to a copy of the Daily Telegraph where they cover customer service and actually ask for examples from true life."Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-60428585056437701092008-03-20T19:47:00.002+02:002008-03-20T19:50:06.958+02:00Bolger Report UpdateBulger, Bolger ... folks seem to be getting a mite confused over the years.Anyway, I like to keep the subject warm and the murderers glancing over their e-shoulder.Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-16357167348713286802008-03-03T09:43:00.015+02:002008-04-20T00:03:50.581+03:00TRUCE It seems I must call off the hounds. The Barclays debaclé is over. By mail yesterday my mother (and I) received written confirmation of everything she had asked for back in the mists of time, aka Feb 2006.Furthermore, there seems to be a charm offensive on. Devilish cunning, and it works. In the same post, I received my online banking card and passcode etc which I straightway phoned the Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-88258626678407172902007-02-08T12:00:00.008+02:002008-04-07T10:17:44.332+03:00key datesmar 12 2006 left USAapril 20 - cb dayApril ? = SS Dayapril 11 2006 AEU 303 to CFU, 0945-1630-1930june 14 1981 - dad RIPjuly 24 1955 - sl dayaug 4 2006 - girls departed cfujan 16 2003: operationjv - oct 5feb 7 2007 - MI bustsaturday april 7 2007, my daughters' memorabilia of their father transferred for safekeeping to Italy. Sunday april 8, 2007: handover of memorabilia.april 11 2007 - Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1157665639370180492006-09-08T00:30:00.000+03:002007-02-02T14:17:39.425+02:00Se-GouviaExcuse the punny title but since I live in Gouvia and affect familiarity with the fretboard, I thought I'd treat m'self.Have at last got round to clearing out the voluminous attic and storeroom dungeon and of course came across every vinyl LP the family has ever bought from - oh lord - since my most youthsome youthness.Some absolute gems, including disgracefully sexist cover art. In factCorfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1157568543654235602006-09-06T21:43:00.000+03:002008-01-26T00:37:50.402+02:00MilieuI whinge and gringe and unhinge about quadr-accursed yardwork, but outside how many folks' bedroom and work study is it given that luxuriant vines tangle? Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1157316744739906822006-09-03T23:49:00.000+03:002008-01-26T00:48:10.164+02:00Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1157184289034408462006-09-02T11:04:00.000+03:002008-01-26T00:48:27.252+02:00Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1156886908544258032006-08-30T00:13:00.000+03:002008-01-26T00:40:55.074+02:00Maison Nuits BlanchesTo C and G for luncheon and swim.Their coastal hideaway is a "national heritage", being a perfect example of Venetian architecture untouched since whenever.Joke is, it started as a freeze-hole punishment post for some luckless watchpoint, alert to invaders. Over the years it was developed and perfected until it came into G's family's hands.  Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1156818395379350092006-08-29T05:21:00.000+03:002008-01-26T00:41:24.403+02:00SAX POT Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1156490843275002792006-08-25T10:25:00.000+03:002008-01-26T00:42:22.344+02:00Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1156490711518176222006-08-25T10:08:00.000+03:002008-01-26T00:42:38.692+02:00Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1155602497415712322006-08-15T03:39:00.000+03:002008-01-26T00:42:56.942+02:00Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1155387546578369532006-07-28T01:00:00.000+03:002008-01-26T00:43:23.308+02:00Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1146916850685088612006-05-06T14:40:00.000+03:002008-01-26T00:43:48.617+02:00Maternal ReturnalConfirmation from Athens that me mum is coming back today, so frantic dusting of nooks and crannies and disappearing of absinthe and bongs.Out, too, the strays and hangers-on ("Anyone seen that Fifi? No, the red-head's Petronella.").Haven't been out into the wotsit since mater left, so Sam and I did a quick recce to check it was still full of all those purpley and red Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1146085371754909272006-04-27T00:00:00.000+03:002007-05-12T18:11:41.996+03:00CHANGE OF NAME & ADDRESSSkipped the country. The name changes will clearly never end. Holed out in Greece, I've been thru various name choices: Gouvian Botanophobe Anything to hint at a violent apathy towards yardwork and the treadmill futility, the flauracatory positions and peony servitude involved in this whole business. Alas, nothing came to mind of sufficient violence and loathing. (Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1145136402892235652006-04-16T00:06:00.002+03:002009-03-30T12:23:12.502+03:00GRAVITASI was bunching the post all in one but decided to give Dad his own.Mum and George tidying the grave, mum arranging the flowers we'd picked.George lighting the candle and reassuring us the grave stone was cleaned with soap and water and *no* abrasives.
When we got back, the garden and view and general temperature were just perfect.Felt a twinge that Dad - who'd worked so hard for that Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1145113906048288182006-04-15T17:47:00.001+03:002009-03-30T12:41:24.294+03:00In MemoriamWe are not so tucked away that news hasn't reached me of author Muriel Spark's death at 88, last Thursday in a Florence hospital.I first read her at 17 to annoy my English master and show off to fellow aesthetes. Didn't understand a word and it was not 'til 4 years later at a country house-party that I was stuck with nothing but the Go-Away Bird, tried again and saw was she was all Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1145054123089509732006-04-15T01:21:00.000+03:002006-04-16T23:27:29.380+03:00POOLI always love these before and after shots.I snapped the family pool a few years back in full July glory, just waiting for bronzed babes to dive in and cleave the chlorine with glistening lotion-ised bodies.Now I'm resident here and in charge of mundane affairs such as the emptying and cleaning and upgrade of filters (see below)Roll on summer proper when everything'll be done and ready to Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1144971393699741592006-04-14T02:29:00.000+03:002006-06-29T23:05:12.320+03:00Rogering RogersWhere on earth were the likes of Mamzsel Pamela when *I* was a measly 13?Of course, we're not shown the seducee, so we don't know what the full fuss is about.But honestly! It's not the state of today's yoof we should be grizzling about so much as the carnivore calibre of their tutors.First the fragrant Mary K Le Tourneau with her lumpy polynesian; now the distinctly more pouting Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1144790814040049242006-04-12T00:26:00.000+03:002006-04-21T08:14:55.190+03:00"The Party for White People"What *is* this country coming to? Hoot of the month *has* to be the British National Party's selection of the colourful sounding Sharif Abdel Gawad to fight a seat in next month's local elections."Totally assimilated Greek-Armenian", indeed ... no wonder there's a backlash among BNP hardliners who describe Mr Gawad as an "ethnic". Is that some kind of new insult?Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1144780448772221902006-04-11T21:30:00.000+03:002006-04-15T10:32:11.130+03:00BodiesI got it wrong: this isn't the von Hagens show but a different one using Chinese prisoners of dubious deaths.It's already collecting fierce reviews - hence ace publicity - such as Norman Lebrecht's attack in the Evening Standard.Even The good old Times gets in on the debate.Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1144664440255385282006-04-10T12:56:00.000+03:002006-04-11T21:19:25.240+03:00London JauntWaiting to change dollars and pounds into Euros, I stepped out of the corner bourse and was struck by the beauty of the Burberry building, so typical of this part of London.Pink CabThe route to the Waitrose supermarket is a civilised stroll across Cadogan Gardens, for which residents on all 4 sides have access keys.This diagonal view looks back and across Cadogan Place to Sloane Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1144598407354563442006-04-09T18:58:00.000+03:002006-04-09T19:00:59.086+03:00Blooker PrizeUgh - 'blooker'. What an unwieldy word.You can be sure it was never coined by a bona fide blogger.All the same, a good piece by The Times's Ben Macintryre on "the first competition for books that started life as weblogs, or blogs."Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1144593761404919682006-04-09T17:39:00.000+03:002006-04-11T20:23:00.166+03:00Brain TrainI knew my daily sudoku sessions were doing some good.All the papers over here carry various levels, and commuter buses and trains are silent as we bend to our tasks.Thanks to Anon for the cool link.Dis-donc! 24 hrs later, Elise writes in. What nice readers I have, and don't deserve, being such a sulky jerk m'self. Mwah mwah, Elise - super pointer to the Wash Post, and a damn'd Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1144518219126725082006-04-08T20:39:00.000+03:002006-04-10T17:59:53.530+03:00Edit>LoveClever little Atoms flick I hadn't seen before, starring a Magic Wand.From comments, the Wand isn't a unique idea, but I've not seen it before and both actors are perfectly cast and the Tech Support voice is spot on.Added bonus: Witty sponsors Gamekillers have good adverts, in particular British Accent GuyArticle 17: If you've time, also check out Consent. It goes on a bit but has a few Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1144500689870988582006-04-08T15:29:00.001+03:002006-04-08T20:19:01.223+03:00the officeThe execrable American version finally exposed to British derision, 10th April.Half-page advert in today's Times's cultural supplement, TheKnowledge, announcing"The US version of the UK classic on DVD"It's brilliant" - Ricky GervaisThen, on the next line, as if Gervais did NOT go on to say it, but we're meant to think he did:"Different ... but brilliant. Fact."Across the page, slightly Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1144498376602464702006-04-08T15:04:00.000+03:002006-04-08T15:14:34.463+03:00Jenny HolzerLondon landmarks illuminated all this week as part of the Beckett Festival.Ra-a-ther breathtaking ...Click on Images for examples of Ms Holzer's talent.Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1144434317890722352006-04-07T21:15:00.000+03:002006-04-08T15:15:53.743+03:00BURGERIAThe English just don't *do* burgers all that well.They don't get the decor rightIncluding their own part in the sceneryThey look so unhappy about it.The nosh itself isn't exactly appealing, albeit terribly British in its way ... Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1144428374445342722006-04-07T19:32:00.000+03:002006-04-11T23:18:41.753+03:00Ma'zhur Mu'ckmoodTabloid ferretBainbridge readers won't have a clue about whom I write but, now I'm back in the UK, I can indulge in a little vermin goading. I have no brief for the flashy George Galloway and his ludicrous "Respect" movement, but I despise even more the gutter ghetto school of reptile reporting, of which News of the Screws' 'Sheikh' Mah'moud is poster child.A duty *and* a Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1144278259202799992006-04-06T02:02:00.000+03:002006-04-06T02:04:19.223+03:00BodiesSqueamish (like me) do not click.*That* grisly exhibition has reached London.UghCorfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1144214764436264932006-04-05T10:23:00.000+03:002006-04-07T21:02:22.686+03:00SignageNo use trying to enjoy late movie TV here because - pain in the derriere - they have whacking great "signers" gesticulating in that deff and dub stuff and getting in the way of the picture.Used to find them slightly funny but after having a few decent flicks ruined, they are intensely irritating.I'm deaf in my left ear and have wondered what it'd be like to have the world translated by oneCorfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1144213543393180872006-04-05T09:54:00.000+03:002006-04-05T15:37:05.643+03:00Hong Kong HemlockWho cares if half my readership (Sid and Doris Bonkers) have no idea about Honkers?I enjoy Master Hemlock's take and it's fodder for my chats with spooks and senior government types from my days as spoiled colonial son.Hem' blogs as *I*'d've liked to, had i the wit, talent, contacts, etc.To boot, his list of other bloggeria is first-rate.Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1144184656414555942006-04-04T23:56:00.000+03:002006-04-05T15:35:04.916+03:00Pig PenAs I always say, i can transform a natty pad into a hitchhiker's layby in a triceMy enormous Ovation guitar had to go somewhere: atop the classicsDarn, my mum has an eye for the natty; hangs her easel right there, neatly outta the way Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1144184104172167912006-04-04T23:54:00.000+03:002006-04-04T23:55:04.193+03:00Ramblings2020hrs, supper in t'oven ~ Jason Whitton's "Thriftstore Cowboy" album *yet* again on the stereo ~ nibbles: biscuits and mascarpone cheese and (shame!) macadamia nuts.Parents: As i organise to fly to mum's side, selfish thoughts busy themselves with my idle mind. I brush them aside but not without shame that they even intruded.Mums 'n' Dads! Specially Mum. Wot's it all abaht, Alfie?As ICorfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1144087570305822182006-04-03T21:03:00.000+03:002006-04-04T20:16:54.310+03:00Baby Can I drive your Car?Shuffled down to Palazza Waitroza (see foto) for refill of gruel and slightly-used Thames water.Gaze caught by low-slung Ferraghini 'Testosteronza'-type penis-on-wheels carriages that make DeLoreans look like a wind-buffeting model Ts.Pause to admire:Stubby gear, 100mph to Mach 2, 15 secspine fascia with walnut workings and rosewood inlayDials + LED, make a F1 look like Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1144077812735857102006-04-03T18:18:00.000+03:002006-04-03T21:31:27.196+03:00Mug's Game Now I unpack, i see all the cool stuff the Spitfire packed that i *d* need but told her not to bother with.Dumped all my kitchen stuff but, no, La S tucked away the mug she gave and sure enuff it's a God-send, along with all the other stuff:Bomber jackettrack suitspare guitar strings n capoPJsEtcPiece in paper about how teapot sales down and we Brits just dump a bag in a mug for 20 Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1144071131693615972006-04-03T16:24:00.000+03:002006-04-08T12:42:56.326+03:00CORFU-BOUNDMaman Busker not feeling too bright so it's the Greek isle for moi, to cosset and cheer and generally be useful.Essential I find decent employment before I find myself hitting absoLUTE rock bottom and ending up with some implement in my hand turning the loam.Must also get back down to some physical regime before any jardin work is labeled 'good exercise', or whatever the current weaselCorfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1144069510682884782006-04-03T15:58:00.000+03:002006-04-04T02:06:17.970+03:00Me Me MeRather astute cartoon in recent issue of satirical Brit mag, "Private EyeCorfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1144027431342712342006-04-03T04:16:00.000+03:002006-04-03T16:33:19.353+03:00belkin54gI finally get netted up in the london apartment next friday, so i ought to send belkin54g-user an invite to come round for nosh and champagne by way of thanks for all the free rides i've enjoyed off his/her unsecured wireless.in fact, i'll be wired even sooner since i've just heard my poor mum has gone into hospital for some heart murmur thing, which means i'll need to advance plans andCorfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1143940402047465972006-04-02T04:11:00.000+03:002006-04-02T04:13:22.050+03:00Planet EarthComing to a planet near you.Stunning. Watch out for it.Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1143940154463498562006-04-02T04:08:00.000+03:002006-04-02T04:09:14.466+03:00Olympics TaxHave signed up to fight this idiot tariff.Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1143939547780841262006-04-02T03:57:00.000+03:002006-04-02T04:06:10.953+03:00Morri-bund-sey1:56am and TV has a chart topper prog.Paunchy van morrison-wannabe - Morrissy or sumpn - waddling around the stage ...Grotty sight. Need slug of Lagavulin.Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1143937011256478392006-04-02T03:08:00.000+03:002006-04-03T06:44:31.383+03:00Customised BentleyRather a fine specimen of a custom-built Bentley station wagon owned by some disgracefully young and handsome - and well-spoken - chappie in the block.Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1143927002219557122006-04-02T00:28:00.000+03:002006-04-04T02:17:17.906+03:00Cosy back streetsThe narrow road/lane behind my mom's place is sexier than the front bit of busy Sloane St.Totally private and cosy.Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1143926631304449652006-04-02T00:18:00.000+03:002006-04-03T13:22:12.516+03:00Cale Street LaunderetteAsked the porter where the nearest launderette was n he told it was in down-market Cale Street. When i found it, it was the charmingest square i'd seen n is now my fave secret london hideaway.Launderette run by 2 totally hot dutch girls.Self service (which i go for): 4 quid for wash, 2 quid for dry ($1.80 to the pound) or 8 quid if you ask them to do it (which most folks Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1143925854244999792006-04-02T00:08:00.000+03:002006-04-03T15:07:59.560+03:00Strutton Market My London *bagels* guitar club is via a splendid market that i love walking thru; just the london faces make me feel i'm home.The only place in London where, when i raised my camera to get my touristy shots, burly coves would turn away or look v hard at me to check i'm not some undercover filth snapping suspects.Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1143925655945265172006-04-02T00:06:00.000+03:002008-01-26T00:46:32.416+02:00Il pleut dans mon coeurDemn'd sunshine - totally blowing my pretense at slaving away under London rain Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1143904774914638942006-04-01T18:17:00.000+03:002008-01-26T00:47:51.788+02:00 Working or blogging late - and being amazingly nosy - i get to spy on some distinctly dubious goings-on. Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1143904295450994792006-04-01T18:09:00.000+03:002008-01-26T00:49:02.581+02:00 An extroadinary house i walk past as i go to the Launderette on Cale St. Not sure if it's actually inhabited, but what a fairy-tale achievement. Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1143294941280345232006-03-25T15:50:00.000+02:002006-03-28T13:59:28.060+03:00Kember CacophonyHilarious: Duffer peacenik Norman Kember gets back to furious row over whether he said ta to the brave soldiers who rescued him. His peacey pals all over the media trying triage PR but the old gaffer's blown it and his and his org's name is mud.Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1143250126170319062006-03-25T03:27:00.000+02:002006-03-25T03:28:46.173+02:00SMOKING BANThe nanny state advances ... the Beeb has it covered.Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1143235284815114762006-03-24T23:14:00.000+02:002006-03-24T23:29:22.546+02:00EarlJust spotted "My Name is Earl" among the Brit TV showings. Genius sale on someone's part.Of all the programmes least likely to be understood by my couch 'tater Brit counterparts, Yankee baseball caps and posturised Starbucks glugging nothwithstanding, this is it. Look forward to laughable reviews and general off-beam pronouncements ... I shall post the sillier twitterings as i come across Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1143226691246134492006-03-24T20:58:00.000+02:002006-03-24T21:02:33.293+02:00Spitfire gaze keeps Dad in lineCorfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1143226307210631642006-03-24T20:51:00.000+02:002006-03-25T03:33:36.066+02:00WalkingLook right, walk left: Obvious, really, in a country that drives on the left: before stepping off the curb to cross, check right for those silent Jags and Mini Coopers that whip left and assume you're not *bent* on stepping under their wheels.Walk right: again, for a country that drives left, i've now twigged that we also *walk* left, same as in the US where two pedestrians approaching Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1143133907644946432006-03-23T19:09:00.000+02:002006-03-23T19:11:47.646+02:00MisfitI remember giggling aghast at this show.Now I *am* the Fraser character.Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1143132713922347172006-03-23T18:39:00.000+02:002006-03-23T19:04:32.796+02:00SeditionHe's out there ... never got to say my farewells to that Lion of the Night Crew but anyone with such a scary site will stay in my heart forever.Could take 19 years and the wedding of his daughter (bra-a-ve groom), but I've not been so incompetent in life not to have collected that sort of pal one can count on a ring finger.I could meet A and J again and take up right there from the Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1143130879877137412006-03-23T18:15:00.000+02:002006-03-23T18:22:51.386+02:00Never good?Cousinly birthday Saturday, clever doctor for whom careful prezzie buying.Got him that "Does Anything eat Wasps?" collection from the New Scientist's 'Last Word' column.For card spotted that clever New Yorker cartoon of businessman on phone:"No, Thursday's out. How about never - is never good for you?"Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1143130410845737392006-03-23T18:12:00.000+02:002006-03-23T18:13:30.880+02:00Humiliato LinguaThat's as close as I'll scoot to vulgarity and risk Julie deleting me from her private reading. This TEFL english for foreigners course is tough.Quick - how many tenses in English language? 10, 16, 21, more?12Simple present Simple pastSimple future Present continuous/progressivePast continuous/progressiveFuture continuous/progressivePresent perfectPast perfectFuture perfectPresentCorfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1143126176713407142006-03-23T17:02:00.000+02:002006-03-23T19:43:40.046+02:00BreezeLike a becalmed sailboat catching a sudden breeze, an hour or so back, the screen rippled and i was online again. natch, i had my priorities wrong and uploaded tons of fotos and didn't think of editing my earlier posts.you'd think that, depending on the kindness of strangers, i'd be keeping my tapping down to the succinct and pertinent but no ... long winded to the end. God, i bore myself.Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1143118662554445352006-03-23T14:57:00.000+02:002006-03-23T15:00:53.866+02:00Knightsbridge LooMy mother's magnficent and famous bathroom, painted by herself and transforming ordinary closet into tropical paradise.Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1143118609528803962006-03-23T14:56:00.002+02:002006-03-23T14:56:49.540+02:00bathroom_3Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1143118590672172852006-03-23T14:56:00.001+02:002006-03-23T14:56:30.683+02:00bathroom_2Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1143118574049886722006-03-23T14:56:00.000+02:002006-03-23T14:56:14.060+02:00bathroom_1Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1143128054443582132006-03-23T14:47:00.000+02:002006-03-23T19:42:40.820+02:00CampI was about to express dismay over the shamelessly incorrect mockery by the Brit media of the fey and limp-wristed.When I left these shores, one hardly heard a whisper against the ginger ensemble; on my return, I need only turn on a random TV or radio show to hear viciously accurate parodies of their braying and silly vocab. But lo! As i type, the splendid Brian Sewell is pronouncing on some Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1143135071685331952006-03-23T14:29:00.000+02:002006-03-23T19:32:45.543+02:00da VinciSlate's Brian Curtis good on the Dan Brown hows-yer-father.Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1143116965780829182006-03-23T14:28:00.000+02:002006-03-25T03:40:17.163+02:00March MusingsI owe UWN belkin54g a very large drink at a pub of his choice for all the free rides i've had off his link.Traffic fines: much hullabaloo in the press about the ridiculous state of parking fines:Folks possessing valid passes but the wretched meter maids simply not bothering to look.The confusing signage being such that one has no idea *what*'s allowed and what not. I shall snap one Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1142878066538927702006-03-20T20:01:00.000+02:002006-03-20T20:13:38.650+02:00eddie williamsand i *do* wish i sang like the gravelly voxed eddie williams ... so there.day before my dparture, wandered into BI library and there was eddie, foot in plaster but cheerful as ever.we chatted and it was neat that the last guy i see is that good guy. check out my bagels and beans posts and see how he looks and hear how i say he plays.buy his album.one of the really good guys, him Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1142877349684025612006-03-20T19:55:00.000+02:002006-03-20T19:55:49.690+02:00march 20: 1730hrsno use chatting up birds here: they all talk some slavic lingo and just giggle.taxis: v alert to one's hailing and v good at getting u places fast. of course one has to tip but what the heck.yo - have placed new pics in flickr. check em outnow my stuff is here am dressing proper - scruffy jeans, BI ferry timetable t-shirt and Mariners cap. was in elevator (lift, to me) this morn Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1142877283050129932006-03-20T19:54:00.000+02:002008-01-26T00:50:04.536+02:00Corfu'di type this in london, see ref eurovia.Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1142874297581750872006-03-20T18:34:00.002+02:002008-03-12T13:38:13.487+02:00Under the GunSuddenly the unsecured connection opens for me. Talk about under the gun:Up at dawn to cruise the city. dumb me, my freepass only works 9am-4pm so i'm ordered off with accusatory looks. Excuse to have large coffee and read paper at local cafetière. is dawning on me, no use chatting up birds round here coz they only speak some slavic lingo. Barclays Des Baclés: One has to ask oneself Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1142871171677866602006-03-20T18:12:00.000+02:002006-03-20T18:12:51.710+02:00March 19 ~ Swing of thingsGetting into the routine: switch on laptop and see which "Unsecured Wireless Network"(UWN)comes up - usually 2 or 3 but of pitiful strength, except that i now think someone is playing silly buggers with me. Got back this evening, logged on and saw for the first time that i had a UWN of "very good" connection. No sooner do i try to hitch a ride than it plummets to zero. Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1142678566389440832006-03-18T12:21:00.004+02:002008-03-29T18:42:49.373+02:00WiFi-less in ChelseaFie! Why?After a week of intermittent poaching of unsecured wireless links, I suddenly cannot see anything in my laptop's scanning of the area, not even the list of 4 or 5 protected links. I must have hit a wrong button or raised some sort of firewall that now blocks me from receiving the signals. Damn'd nuisiance because i'm left with trogging dahn the Kings Road to this sortCorfuciusnoreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1142377696823077532006-03-15T01:07:00.000+02:002006-03-17T20:38:08.933+02:00knightsbridge march 14back a week and just beginning to feel acclimatised.london wonderful and i keep ogling my well dressed countrymen: the gents all look like thrusting execs or eminences grises CEOs of venerable institutions by royal appointment.none of my stuff has arrived, incl my HTML bks so i'm prevented fancying my posts up with silly typefaces and my usual bells and whistles. good Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1142063895049429362006-03-11T09:56:00.000+02:002006-03-11T09:58:52.893+02:00Trapped at 130mphthe big story today ... bloke whose BMW accelerator jammed.Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1142017983339127522006-03-10T21:00:00.000+02:002006-03-12T08:30:25.653+02:00insecure wi fi - onlinewho needs b'band with wi fi around?in london 58 hrs, amazing. must post fotos and add captions later.seattle-chicago-LHR flight interrupted by ailing fart going ill over the atlantic n needing turning back to newfoundland to unload. hitherto silent blond hottie neighbor turned chattie etc.*3* separate parties on touch down. groan.next day walked round old haunts n got quiteCorfuciusnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1141677655171914172006-03-06T22:34:00.000+02:002006-03-06T22:41:35.410+02:00Sexagenarians, drugs and rock'n'roll I'd've run this just for the Guardian's fab title, but it's a pretty good article in itself."Once they hoped to die before they got old, but no longer - sixtysomethings are back at the top of the charts.Tim de Lisle explains why the wrinklies just keep on rocking ..."What bliss to be returning to a country where age and low-down cunning is recognised as now Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1141090000109849752006-02-28T03:23:00.000+02:002006-03-01T10:15:29.903+02:00For Klingon, press oneI forget now how I ended up as a maverick customer service supremo but it started in Hong Kong back in 1996, writing English language scripts for already gracious and willing local staff, and continued in Seattle as an entrenched email/phone rep, rising to quality checker and trainer and general all-round pontificator. Now that I'm finally heeding Doctor Phil and getting Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1141084993159965952006-02-28T02:01:00.000+02:002006-02-28T03:46:37.126+02:00Outlook not workingFYI, pals - I seem to receive but not reply from my seanet address.My gmail address seems to be working.Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1141084432941534642006-02-28T01:53:00.000+02:002006-02-28T03:37:50.433+02:00Bagels, Beans ... and Victoria's SecretWhat a relief not be jetting gentlemanly into that good night but departing troublesome and immature as ever. One never knows how one'll react 'til the crunch comes.I thought perhaps that packing and saying goodbye to so many genuinely decent and mature pals might have a sobering melancholy effect and a calm descend: come clean, beg forgiveness. Find Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1141075476627968412006-02-27T23:24:00.000+02:002008-01-26T00:50:38.823+02:00vic sec for julieCorfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1140925195416453142006-02-26T05:39:00.000+02:002006-02-28T01:54:35.013+02:00End-PhaseAs I move from divan to chair to stool to floor, my goods and chattels borne aloft by local sale vultures, I see the finishing post loom and am reminded of Paul and his words of widom about the home stretch.He was a retired secret service type whose tired memoirs I promoted - a spook whose cover had been plamed and wouldn't settle for a desk and the sugary tea and grotty buns they serve Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1140922242911101542006-02-26T04:48:00.000+02:002006-02-26T04:50:54.646+02:00Forget-Me-Not FairyI'm wishing I'd recruited the cherubic Forget-Me-Not babe sooner in my own travails.As I enter "End Phase", to quote a spook author (more anon in next post), I sense wheels coming loose and that ol' familiar panic closing in. All perfectly standard Busker emotions which mean nothing more than that I'm on course and within schedule.I think this is why God left us in open-codeCorfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1140913890902360352006-02-26T02:31:00.000+02:002008-01-26T00:51:09.049+02:00roomCorfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1140827296389549882006-02-25T02:28:00.000+02:002006-02-25T08:53:50.806+02:00Peter PrincipleWell, there I go goofing again.I'd thought that Laurence J. Peter's Principle was the one about tasks expanding to fit the time allotted . It is of course the one about successful members of a hierarchical organization being eventually promoted to their highest level of competence.I'm talking about Task Time meeting Procrastination.Awake this morning at my usual apneic 5am, utter Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1140822357763722902006-02-25T00:54:00.000+02:002006-02-25T01:07:44.876+02:00Belles Fleures by Belles FillesA breathless runner with forked stick hammers at my door:Stop Press: Favorite former co-workers Suzanne and Sarah have bought Matthiesen’s Flowers, "a little flower shop in Columbia City", where e'er that be.Next year sees its 100th birthday so they're keeping the name.The gals start official work on March 1st – so look or log in but certainly place huge orders.BurnCorfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1140674423807414412006-02-23T08:00:00.000+02:002006-02-25T20:51:24.893+02:00Groucho SoiréeFeb 22, and down to The Playhouse (Box office 842 8569) for Bainbridge Performing Arts' presentation of the talented Frank Ferrante's uncanny portrayal of Groucho. I needed to relax and guffaw and the rubbery Ferrante was my man, aided by Mr James Furmston's subtle tickling of the ivories.I arrived early to watch people arrive: Bainbridge theatre-goers don't enter as others do, Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1140651134839705002006-02-23T01:32:00.000+02:002006-02-25T20:52:21.743+02:00DQ Cop-outLoaded the jalopy with books and bombed down to Port Townsend to sell for needed cash.Spotted Mike Murray in the queue, choice purchase in his hand.Nice drive, that Bainbridge-Townsend run, but you've got to have your CDs lined up:Eddie WilliamsBert Jansch's 'Nicola' albumDylan's 'Hurricane' and 'Mississipi'I'd say Dylan en tout but driving needs attentionPaco de LuciaMiles' Porgy and Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1140649325398934642006-02-23T01:01:00.000+02:002006-02-23T01:04:33.183+02:00WaterI've blogged earlier on the curious behavior of Minol, the company that monitors my water consumption and sends me such quaint billings.When I first took 3-weeks leave to visit my folks abroad, I returned to a heftier bill than if I'd actually been in situ.Three years later when I profited from a whole 7 weeks away, I had to wonder if it'd've cost me less if I'd left the shower running and Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1140646724614317042006-02-23T00:18:00.000+02:002006-02-25T21:00:16.796+02:00Bill CowingsExcellent piece by the Review's Tristan Baurick on the retirement after 15 years of WSF's personable Bill Cowings. Arriving direct from Hong Kong on that May day in 1995, I was taken aback to be mooching off the early ferry to be greeted by the energetic Bill greeting each of us with rapid-fire customized "Good morning good morning good morning"s.Bill's a big guy, looming over us, so Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1140595789338985122006-02-22T09:40:00.000+02:002006-02-23T00:23:45.176+02:00Lincoln Square TumbleAs far as I can make out, help was on the way and the five trapped shoppers had been informed of this. All they needed do was sit tight.What on earth prompted those blithering idiots to try their own makeshift exit?I suppose there'll be all sorts of recriminations and trumped up charges as if Jeremy Johnson's tumble was the fault of the elevator malfunction.Terrible that it Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1140484388019153382006-02-21T03:12:00.000+02:002006-02-22T23:45:37.013+02:00Saturday's ChildMy original title had been Wild Colonial Boy, to provide a bumptious contrast to that pic of my dad in sober serious mood - and because, born in Oz, I too have a touch of colonial wildness about me.But the tutting side of the family strikes me down for such frivolous disrespect.Pity, because I wanted to imagine dad pausing from his duties as celestial District Commissioner of The Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1140404187960027682006-02-20T04:56:00.000+02:002006-02-21T04:23:12.880+02:00Wingèd ChariotDept of Tempora MoresNothing like a good spring clean to root out one's roots:Over there, top right, Busker's first album snap (Summer 1964) Left: Balliol freshers, 1965.(Third row back; ninth from left; 'Y' shaped bib, just over the dusky Kwabe M'boto's left shoulder)Below, circa 1996, La Famille Buskère, Bainbridge Isle. L-r, Busker with Spitfire; maman matriarch; brother et wife;Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1140392630067889512006-02-20T01:43:00.000+02:002006-02-21T06:38:49.466+02:00PackingI know. One can Hire a Teen (BYS office, 842-9675) for the donkey work, but far more effective (if gruelling) is to recruit a daughter.They bring admirable qualities to the task:They positively *bustle* - speedier than the camera's lens can capture.They know one's dithering ways, and bully. They recognize what you're packing and what you're ditching: "Dad! You're not dumping this?" "I'm Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1140389067851979892006-02-20T00:44:00.000+02:002006-03-06T22:25:27.616+02:00Kultur & CuisineThwarted a few weeks back by that windy power cut, The Spitfire and I decided to seize the sunny Saturday and treat our jaded palates to a film 'n' food fest.First to the Poulsbo Régale for the intellectual treat of Final Destination 3, pronounced the laughably worst movie we'd seen for many a moon.No matter: this is *our* movie, and we are the dad/daughter Ebert & Roeper experts Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1140279956693746562006-02-18T18:25:00.000+02:002006-02-21T03:43:41.340+02:00Baglin' 'n' Finaglin'Down to the Bagel & Broonzy for a swan-song croon before packing the Ovation away. Tight quartet of in-crowd intimes. Perfect evening.Usually, I fiddle with sizes of pics and strain for witty captions but I can't be bothered right now. That's how we looked last night, that's how we played, and if you were there you'll know we sounded O-KAYY.More important to get the pics upCorfuciusnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1140279866256494252006-02-18T18:24:00.000+02:002006-02-21T03:46:51.376+02:00The London Starbucks will be horrid and the staff will be surly, and I'll miss John and Lisa like hell. Here is the disturbingly fanciable Lisa taking her old man to the cleaners over a hand of Texas Hold 'Em. I wasn't quick enough on the shutter to capture her dealing the ace up her sleeve.Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6276790.post-1140279823095154462006-02-18T18:23:00.001+02:002006-02-21T03:48:51.470+02:00I love that Larry Dewey.He plays ace guitar and is so nice with it.Corfuciusnoreply@blogger.com0