cha0tic stuff

...a cover for my new Netbook.
That it all.
K Thanx bai.

I paraphrase and insert the subtext of course, this is not the conversation verbatim.

    "Alright. I've got a job on Sunday night and I'm getting some chaps from your company. Could you be one of them? I need someone with your specialist skills on the job. I know you're meant to be doing another job Sunday night, but can you get covered on that one and do my job?
    It'll mean an hours travel at each end of the work period, rather than 20 minutes. It'll probably go on later than the job you're already on.
    The job you're already doing is a job where you'll get paid more for being available with your skills, knowledge and experience.
    The job I want you to do with your skills, knowledge and experience, I'm only paying for 'local crew', so you'll get less money for your time and trouble."

My reply
"No...
...and whilst you're on the phone. Next time you ring me at two in the morning* to sort out a problem because your muppets don't know how to operate equipment properly a greeting or salutation along with an apology for the time of the call and a thanks for helping out would be nice."


*To be fair he'd seen me leave after finishing a load out, so it was a good bet I'd still be awake and not in my bed yet, but still.

We've been busy at work recently with some big shows, lots of equipment and late load outs, because it's the first day of the tour and they've not got the truck pack sorted. Wednesday was a blessing then. A show in for two days. We could load in, then go home and not have to be back to work until the following night.

Rather than going home I opted to go for a drink or two. I bloody deserved a good blow out. So I stop up town and watch a band called '3 daft monkeys' in the pub gig. I can't be arsed to sit around and watch 'The Boosh' mostly because I can't be dealing with the audience. I'll wait for the DVD.

A gallon of cider later I'm wobbling home and then I'm waking up in the chair the next morning not feeling too clever obviously. I look for my bag with my work stuff, including my New netbook*

It's not in the house. I assume I've left it in the pub as I remember putting it behind the bar when I went downstairs to tell them that the Guiness had gone. I ring them up. It's not there, or rather the lass I call can't see it. I'm still hopeful that it's there though and I'll have another look tonight.

Around eight in the evening there is a knock on the door. I don't normally answer the door unless I know someone is coming round, as experience has taught me it's a salesperson, religious nutter or someone for the people in the flat upstairs. Tonight though I answer the door.

There is a couple on the pavement. I instantly assume they are religious nutters come to bother me.
"Excuse me are you cha0tic? we found your bag in the street this morning. I'm sorry we had to look through it to see who it belongs to and it's all a bit damp"

I can't thank them enough. I must be the luckiest man alive, or maybe past good deeds have cancelled out my bad deeds for a small moment and what goes around is coming back round to me.

Thank you kindly strangers.

*More on that later

Great sensations of our time.

• Taking your boots off after 39 hours
• Cleaning your teeth after 40 hours
• Stuffing your face with Naan Mix Kebab
• Looking forward to the pay after 24 hours work.
• Getting back to the internet & finding your pals have been having a nice time.
• Standing side of stage and catching the vibe of the band and the audience.

Not So Great sensations of our time.

• The strange hallucinatory state that being awake for over 24 hours gives you.
• The groggy feeling on waking, after only 4 hours sleep on a dressing room setee.
• Not being sure what day it is.
• The burned mouth taste sensation because you've smoked too much as you've been awake too long.

Good things

• Free cans of Heineken
• Fee hot chicken wings in the kebab shop.
• Free Chivas Regal
• Coffee
• Tea

Not So Good things

• Drizzly rain that starts just as you head out of the building for your tea.
• Missing texts and phone calls from friends and relations, until it's too late to do anything about it.
• Whinging management.

Notes to self

• Take Spare socks when doing a long shift again.
• Take Toothbrush and Tooth paste when doing a long shift again.
• Remember to eat more regularly.

There's probably more, but I'm off to my bed now.

...they left a couple of Duck Eggs. Should I just treat them like normal eggs? You know, turning them into fried egg butties, maybe an Omlette. Or is there something special I could do with them?

...I popped in as they were packing down last night and they gave me the last of the Strawberry cheese cake, rather than throwing it away. So today I had Strawberry Cheesecake for breakfast.
Strawberry Cheese cake for dinner.
I'll be having Strawberry Cheesecake for tea.
YUM!

Strawberries are fruit aren't they? It obviously counts towards my five a day doesn't it?

...like pieces of paper joy falling through my letter box. Today I received two letters from a friend who is holidaying in the U. S. of A. Posted on separate days, but arriving on the same day. It sounds like she's having a hoot in the West Coast city of San Francisco, but I'm sure she'll blog her adventures on her return.
    I also cashed in a voucher from one of my online surveys, so in around 10 days time a £2 Book token will be dropping on my door mat. Ok not enough to buy a whole book, but it'll knock the price down a bit and it'll be 'Happy Mail' to look forward to.
    Send someone a letter today. You'll be sending joy through the post.

I do online market research Questionnaires. It passes the time, I build up points I can swap for things (I got a free 2 Gig SD card the other week) and there is a part of me that thinks it might be more useful than voting as I get a say in how crap new products are. Or how shitty and irritating an advertising campaign is.
One arrived in my inbox this morning and one of the questions for classification purposes was:

Which of the following life stage describes you the best?:

1. I classify myself as being pre-family in life stage. I am single, co-habiting or married, yet to embark on starting a family and don't have children permanently living in my household.
2. I would classify myself as family life stage. I have dependant children permanently living in my household.
3. I would classify myself as post-family in life stage. I am single, co-habiting or married. I have no dependant children living with me.

Now I'd like to think of myself as number 1 on the list, as in "Single... ...and yet to embark on starting a family", but it being a glass half empty kind of day I feel I'm number 3 on the list. Without having passed through Number 2 on the list.

Ah well, we "keep passing the open windows" and see what tomorrow may bring.

I had an E-mail the other day from eBay congratulating me for being with them for 5 years. In that time I've neither bought or sold anything with them. Selling stuff seems like too much of a faff and buying stuff, well I've not seen any bargains. I have bid on things, but once the price goes beyond what I'm willing to pay for something. I stop bidding. I hate those messages telling me I've lost. I've not lost anything. I hate it when my mates say they've won something. I correct them. "No, you bought something."

I wonder if I'll make it to my 10 year anniversary without buying or selling on eBay?

...visiting a bit of Somerset, a bit of Devon, but mostly Kernow. My friend 'R' is driving us down in her van. She'll be driving, I'll be cooking. This is called division of labour. I don't drive and she doesn't cook. Well I can drive, onsite, but I'm not very good at it and she can cook, but she's not very good at it. Seems fair to me.

We'll mostly be camping, with a stay at an old College friends place who we've not seen for a couple of years. Let's hope the weather isn't too bad. We're both used to the outdoors though, so we'll cope and have fun whatever. There's no real plan besides a night at Glastonbury* on the way down. Another night (or maybe two) at Lydford Gorge and maybe a bit of Dartmoor. Then on to St Austell, not the most picturesque town in Kernow, but our friend lives there so surroundings aren't that important. Depending on various imponderables we will get to some other places. Or not, as the case maybe. It doesn't really matter. I'm not in Wolves, I'm not at work and I'll be hanging out with friends. There is only one fly in the ointment. I have to do the Club Night tonight. Ah well.

You won't miss me as I've not been updating that often, but in theory I can post here and will try to.

If I don't get it together for proper mobile bloggery maybe check out:
Jaiku,Twitter and 12seconds.tv (If the last one works)

There should also be post cards.

*Go on say it. "Bloody Hippies"