The Bells Have Made Me Deaf

Thanks to Cakebelly for sending me these. Unfortunately, no source was given in the email so I don’t know who to credit.

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Three to go…

I just hope I don’t forget it’s longer, wider and higher than the dinky toy I’m used to.

I’ve had this bottle for almost as long as I can remember. It was given to me as a piggy bank way back in the 70’s and although it holds no real beauty or value, it somehow never seems to reach the bin. I had a bad experience with vodka and cider combined at the tender age of 15 so I cant even claim to be a fan of the drink. Along with a fishing rod my grandfather gave me when I was ten, it sits at the side of the mantle-piece where it refused to be photographed. Even on top of the stove, it was a bit camera shy. Some of my other ornaments are stones I’ve picked up on the beach. Royal Doulton just doesn’t do it for me… lol

One of the pluses with this Livebox broadband set up is the second telephone number provided for a VoIP connection through the box. I get all the standard calls free and free calls to 100 international countries too. I thought that there had to be a catch, like poor quality reception or unreliability in keeping the connection alive, expecting to be cut off mid sentence. I am pleasantly surprised to have my scepticism proved unfounded thus far and hope that it may long continue. Another bonus is the 0845 local call rate number provided for incoming calls, I always fancied one of those for a business line and now I have it. Not bad for an all inclusive fiver a month.

Good things come to those who wait.

I wish I could say the same thing about the explanation and estimate I received for water charges this morning.

living in County Antrim

This weeks deliveries to my door included a selection of new bras, a wireless router and several pairs of shoes.

The shoes were all too small. Since European sizing came into vogue, my feet seemed to have miraculously grown even bigger or maybe those Brussels standards are not to be trusted. I’m not a shoe person at all so I don’t tend to buy them unless the last pair are falling apart which usually means I get a replacement pair every 3 years or so. April to October/November I wear walking sandals, provided there’s no frost and it isn’t one of those “proper shoes” occasions. Anyhow, the ones that arrived were all good sensible walking shoes and a smart but casual pair of toe-less hoojahs for good measure. I ordered a few for choice, not intending to keep them all but I was surprised that not one pair actually fitted well enough to make buying an option.

A parcelforce man arrived with a parcel and one of those awful machine thingies that you have to sign for whatever it is you get. I hate them. It’s hard enough to write anything any more with using a keyboard so much but how anyone could prove that signature was mine is beyond me. You can’t even see what you’re writing for goodness sake! In the parcel was my new Livebox from Orange.

Wireless is a pain in the arse to set up, or so I thought. After almost losing patience and launching the whole bing jing out the nearest window, I found that XP was not to be cursed but rather the incomplete step by step guide from Orange and a totally useless installation disk which they know is a problem (if you have installed the updates for Adobe) but continue to send out to new customers regardless…. duh. I pity anyone with no geekish inclinations who’s trying to get the thing to work. Then again, they include in the parcel a phone number for some wireless experts who will come and install the lot for just £70. Hmm… how convenient.

Half the bras (co-incidentally, also wireless) fitted just fine and the rest will be hurtling back to the warehouse marked as “too tight”. Who needs that sort of torture. It’s bad enough being harnessed all day without the circulation to your brain being cut off as well.