So Wellington
This pain in the neck is, well, self explanatory
Have been struggling with an increasingly sore neck and shoulders for a month, and finding it is taking over my life.
So far I have
* signed up with a Chiropractor to correct structural issues
* had regular massages to loosen the tight muscles
* tested out a $200 orthopaedic pillow (very uncomfortable, went straight back to the shop)
* made ergonomic improvements to my work and home office workstations
None of it seems to be helping, the pain just gets worse each day. It could be work, the train commute, my sleeping position, the new sofa or a combination of all of them.
I suspect the lack of decent sleep is getting me grumpy – though my current and soon to be ex client aren’t helping.
When a part of you is hurting you can’t distract your mind from it, like you tongue returning to a loose tooth, which just amplifies the discomfort.
Need to get on top of this within the next couple of weeks as I will be starting a new contract and need to be on top of my game.
Fujitsu/UK Post Office Scandal
Anyone that works in IT will have worked on projects that failed – I worked on the failed NHS Spine project in the UK and Novopay in NZ to name but two – but this case involves an IT system so bad that innocent people were sent to prison, were falsely convicted or even took their own lives.
Twenty years ago Fujitsu were contracted by the UK Post Office to install a computer system for automating benefits payments, that they called Horizon. The system had serious accounting flaws that resulted in thousands of false fraud accusations being made to sub-postmasters across the country.
A review produced by third party CK Sift as early as 2013 produced clear evidence that at least a couple of dozen of the convictions were unsafe; Post Office Management kept the information secret from MPs and the Justice for Subpostmasters Alliance, leading to hundreds more false prosecutions. This could well be deemed to be perverting the course of justice. Further the Post Office spent millions on prosecutions and sent legal threats to journalists.
This goes way beyond lousy Management, this is arrogant and corrupt behaviour that needs to be thoroughly investigated and people held to account. Unfortunately we know from the Global Financial Crisis – from which not one person was prosecuted – that the Government, the Law and Business all look after each other. The most likely outcome is that a lot of convictions will be overturned and a “don’t do it again” slap on the wrist be issued to Post Office. And of course nobody’s going to hold Fujitsu to account for their useless system …
https://www.bbc.com/news/business-56718036
Get To Falkirk!
One of my colleagues way back used to avoid swearing by exclaiming “Get to Falkirk!” whenever something disagreeable happened. Now I’ve just discovered something that makes me want to go (apologies if this is common knowledge).
I want to see The Falkirk Screw, a very clever piece of engineering that connects two canals at different heights. Cleverly weighted to only need minimal power to rotate (equivalent to 8 boiled kettles), it’s beautiful yet practical.
Hiring a narrow boat is definitely a possibility for a future trip to the Motherland.
Simone
Pudding Heaven!
No hype but I have just had a treacle sponge and custard that was as good as nanna used to make. That’s pretty much the benchmark of pudding perfection.
Way to go Holly, for a first attempt that was superb!
Foreign
Quote of the Day from The Duchess: “I’ve tried looking up that recipe but it’s all coming up in foreign”.
Naana Krisp!
The Duchess of Seacroft has nailed yet another recipe, this time easy home made naan breads.
With a hat tip to Jamie Oliver for the recipe, here’s how the magic happens :-
- Put 375g of self-raising flour into a bowl and add 8 tablespoons of Greek yoghurt
- Add a tablespoon of honey and a pinch of salt
- Mix it all together than knead it until smooth (takes more work than normal dough but persevere)
- Divide into 6 portions, rolling each one into a naan shape, fairly thin as they will rise during cooking
- Get a pan very hot on the stove then place the naans on the pan.
- When the naans get a little charred (roughly 90 seconds) turn over and do the other side
- Take naans out of the pan and rub a little butter over the top to melt in.
They’re crisp on the outside but almost marshallow soft inside, great for mopping up the curry!
Facebook is worried about me
Just returned briefly to Facebook to help provide The Duchess with guidance on restoring her news feed, and it popped up a warning that it had removed a photo that I’d posted previously, along with offers of help if I’m feeling vulnerable. Aw bless, thanks Zuck, I didn’t know you cared!
This is the cartoon they took down.
Now there a couple of things I’d have to point out about this picture :-
- I uploaded it to Facebook over 2 years ago in 2019; not a particularly timely response.
- It’s a cartoon making a joke about nagging, not a cry for help (about suicide or being nagged)
I’m all for social media platforms being more alert to warning signs and helping its users, however it does demonstrate that while they’ve made great advances in machine learning and artificial intelligence, they still fall short of providing a genuine responsive, which would require artificial wisdom to properly assess the nature of the risk, as opposed to detecting a noose in a cartoon. (I wonder how many Tex Avery and Chuck Jones cartoons will get similarly flagged?)
That in itself gives me some comfort that human beings – collectively dumb as we are – still have the edge over the machines. Maybe I don’t want to hang myself after all 🙂 JUST KIDDING!
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