Finally spring is here, the sun is out and my winter coat has been hung up in the cupboard. In fact its so hot that my spring coat may also get consigned to the wardrobe too.

Life is lovely and bouncey and I’m nailing work on a consistant basis…so goal!!!!!

Plus only three days until the game geeky fun that is Battlemasters

YAR!!!

What a long time it has been. Well I have been a busy boy 🙂

Quick update

Easter-came and went and was unbelievably lazy. A convient recharge point methinks.

Last Week was mind blowing training in Leeds, learning ASP.net with C# (for the geeks amoungst you Microsoft’s webprogramming framework with a very hard language). Very good stuff which will allow me to fast forward my career at work. Also had a nice syncrontistic event. Been thinking for sometime about doing some freelance webdevelopment work. Well on the course I meet a chap called Chris who is already doing this. He filled me in on how it works and contact details were swapped. Watch this space 🙂 Came down with the stinky cold on friday and took the day off to clear it up.

Weekend- More lazing around the house. Reinstalled Unreal Tournament 2004 and planing to seriously get to grips with the Editor after Battlemasters but doing the online learning courses over at 3D Buzz Also had a quick look at the stuff I’m running at Battlemasters (RQ, HeroQuest and Unknown Armies) and breathed a big sigh of relief that I’m 99% done. Went round Ginger Matt’s on Saturday evening and drank way too much beer (which wrote off Sunday). Caught up and found out that his life is actually more hectic than mine. In fact it was him that did the majority of the talking !!!!! Sunday came back home. Snuggled with Mrs Newport. Watched Dr Who, which Rach is loving as well from reading other people’s LJ there’s a trend of people who disliked the original who like the new series.

Today I’ve finally returned to work with a new computer with Duel screens (!!!) and blindingly fast performance. Guess I’m finally seeing the benefits of working in IT 🙂

My work colleague Laura has an Uncle who has a working Dalek, which is currently on Radio Derby’s webcam

Apparently he bought it and added electronics so that the lights flash and it makes sound effects, and now goes around scaring young children in it. Laura says that she wants to use it at an usher at her wedding !

I know Mother’s day is well past, but here’s one of my mother’s favourite poems. Don’t ask me why but it entered my mind earlier this evening.

When I am old I shall wear purple

Well I’m finally working in earnest on something that I may have mentioned to you in the past, my own role-playing company

Woke up nice and early to beat the commuter rush to Manchester and found the cold that had been threatening to take hold was well and truly here. In a sort of achy limbs, snotty nosed grumpy way. Had a nice hot bath, did exercise and even had a nice breakfast. None of this would break the green funk that had descended upon my head.

So I decided to troll into work and have an easy day of it. Which I managed to do. Felt accomplished for it, since it would have been pointless staying at home to mope. However the green was still with me. Talked to Rach who showed 0 sympathy, because she is currently doing nights. Resigned myself to felling crap for the rest of the week. Even the curry I made myself was green…..

Then after tea and a cup of coffee it suddenly vanished. I spent the rest of the evening catching up with people, playing on-line games and laughing uncontrollably to myself.

CLUTCH rule your feeble existance.

The lords of the megaverse now return you to your regular reality.

I’m currently finishing this wonderful book about the Ptolemies , the Greek Pharoahs of Egypt, by Duncan Sprott. The first part of a quartet of books, it deals with the founder Ptolemy I, who is one of the sucessor generals who inherit the empire of Alexander the Great, and his immeadiate heirs. Narratated by Thoth the Egyptian god of Magic and Knowledge, the writing style is simliar to Robert Graves’I Claudius and at first a bit difficult to take in, but I gradually warmed to it. I’m in the last couple of chapters and its striking me that the book is less about the historical story of Ptolmey and his children, but the differences between the Greek invaders ( who are brash arrogant, very much the Yuppies of the Ancient world) and the Egyptians ( who are calm, very socialist, mystical and a have a society based upon ‘Maat’ a principal of right action governed by the heart/feelings).

I picked this book up a couple of weeks ago at a charity shop and I will be geniunely sad to finish it. I feel the comparisons to Robert Graves I Cladius (another one of my all time favs) is well deserved. If you like well written historical fiction pick up this book

The trailer for Frank Miller’s Sin City.

Warning: Features Large Explosions, Black n white comic book style cinematography and BRUCE WILLIS

Looks good anyone else fancy going to see it?