Dude, where's my life?

I’m Still Here

2018-11-21T02:22:00.001+00:00

Ha, well, it seems M$ dropped support for WLW last year, so that was a wasted few hours. There;s even a tutorial on installing it on Windows 10 from MS Essentials 2012 – from Stefan Strangers’ Weblog. but as it’s rather old the link to wlsetup-all.exe is dead, but packrat that I am I had it on my 4Tb external hard drive – well, it was inside the Essentials MSI package, but they’re simple to extract. Rather than link my exe, here’s one from the Internet Archive with that you can follow the instructions in Stefan’s blog or …
Do the sensible thing and use Open Live Writer it’s free, in the Microsoft Store and looks and feels just like WLW without the ability to overload it with a zillion plug-ins (yet – they left that option in the settings, so ??)

Here’s a screenshot of me writing this bollocks a second ago., I like it, and considering my absence, it feels familiar. Just noticed my last post about the Millennium Trilogy – a lot has changed there, eh? Sony felt OK to make the Emoji movie but were unwilling to give in to Daniel Craig’s demands? What did he want? Blood of their first-born? I got me some reading to catch-up on before I watch Spider’s Web anyway. Well, listening mostly – I’m giving my eyes a break with an Audible subscription. Coupled with Kindle Unlimited, I got me lots of books in my Audible Queue.
Right, enough for this decade, see you when I get bored of life again

Six Fucking Years? Hahahahahaha......

2018-11-20T21:05:00.000+00:00

Holy shit! I'm so good at this blog-thing, aren't I? I make promises then fuck off to ... well, look at the title of my blog. I'm asking you, cos I don't know.

TV sucks, I re-watch old stuff because after 6 months I can't remember if I've seen it or not. MS is good for one thing, at least :) Just binge watched 12 seasons of Criminal Minds with Sarah, my partner in crime for the last 25 years.

I think she loves my deteriorating memory and constantly plays tricks on me, or it really is BAD! If it is I'm in trouble on Thursday. I return to work after 5 months sick leave.

Bored now, going bed, but this was fun. I might find that MS app I used to use to post with, Live Writer or summat? Win10 doesn't appear to have it or Movie Maker.

I asked Cortana. Bitch always got my back. Installing Windows Live Writer on Windows 10

Millennium

2012-03-15T11:43:00.001+00:00

3am this morning the credits rolled on Hornets Nest, marking the end of my book, film, film, book, film, book, film marathon of previous weeks.

I feel kind of empty inside now, no longer having my friends Lisbeth, Mikael, et al. I’ll soon find new friends, once I become engrossed in another book, but this series was an emotional roller coaster. No doubt I’ll also be revisiting the films too: far too good to stay away from, plus they’re a great source for learning Swedish. Fitta!

One thing I have to say is about the actors in the Swedish and American versions. Overall, both are well written and the acting is fantastic. However, I prefer Michael/Noomi to Daniel/Rooney., but if Blomkvist got as much action on screen as he did in the books, James Bond would be a tad more believable, though Mr Nyqvist does have a certain rugged charm, and fits the general description of Blomkvist in the books, IMO. I just feel Daniel Craig’s looks would get the ladies into bed just as fast as they jump in the books. But both Sweden and America decided not to complicate things by including his other partners, and concentrated on Lisbeth, which is an essential occurrence in light of their future relationship (Kalle-fucking-Blomkvist) and how they ultimately ended up at her door, even though the film and book differ on that; hello? where were the bagels?

OK. My hand is hurting now – I’m one finger typing MS sucks.

TTFN

Windows 7 themes: festivity, silliness… and serenity

2012-02-22T13:24:00.000+00:00

Bit late with this one, but here's Jennifer Shepherd's latest themes update on The Windows Blog. I'm giving Ghost Town a try as soon as I hit publish

Windows 7 themes: festivity, silliness… and serenity:

Here comes Fat Tuesday! It’s time to set a party mood with the new Masquerade theme, which features elegant and mysterious masks for celebrating Mardi Gras and Carnival.

In other current events, the wacky new Xbox Live game for Windows Phone, Chickens Can’t Fly, was just released. This new Windows 7 theme features colorful artwork from the game, along with fun chicken-clucking sound-effects.

Switching gears to a more serene and serious frame of mind, the rest of our new themes celebrate the beauty of widely varied landscapes.

Late last summer, my colleague Christian Kirchesch in Munich organized a German photography contest, which received 2249 submissions. A local jury of photography experts selected the best pictures, and in mid-October ten winners were announced. The winners received prizes ranging from a Sony Vaio SB Notebook to a TV tuner card and speakers. Christian invited the top 100 photographers, including winners and runners up, to participate in a Windows 7 theme project. More than twenty photographers agreed to take part, and you can see the beautiful results in four themes we published this month.

The first one, German Landscapes, features the works of many photographers, including contest winners Marco Stolle, Jens Zschekel, Andreas Bobanac, Heiko Gerlicher, and Karl Herrling, and runners-up Axel Hahn, Deryk Baumgärtner, Ive Völker, Jörg Franzen, Lutz Jänichen, Marco Müller, Markus Janse and Uschi Wolters.

The other three themes each focus on individual photographers who participated in the German photography contest.

Germany: Mountains to Sea is a journey from a rustic lakeside cabin in Berchtesgadener to the shoreline of Nordfriesland, as captured in the lens of Mathias Rehberg.

Impressions from Schleswig-Holstein showcases the varied beauty of Germany’s northernmost state – and the talents of photographer Mathias Kentrup.

Magic Landscapes features the stunning photographs of Michael Breitung, many captured during the “magic hour” at dawn or sunset when the color of the light is uniquely rich.

We also have two new themes from an American photographer, Tracy Hymas. The gorgeous sepia tone and black and white photographs in Ghost Town bring the weather-beaten textures and austere lighting of this lonely place into sharp focus.

In Tracy’s other new theme, Dark Skies, you can almost feel the distant rumble of thunder and taste the damp heaviness in the air under turbulent storm clouds.

That wraps up all the new themes we’ve published in the last two weeks. As always, more desktop-personalization goodness is on the way, so keep visiting the Windows Personalization Gallery for new Windows 7 themes and wallpapers.

VÅRA SKITUNGAR!: Vad i hela friden är det här?

2012-01-19T06:20:00.000+00:00

Use Google Translate - you won't regret it!

VÅRA SKITUNGAR!: Vad i hela friden är det här?: Det här är en blogg som är menad att ge en glimt av hur det är att leva och arbeta i Uganda med tretton före detta gatubarn – våra skitunga...

Thanks to Scandinavian Kitchen for pointing me to this blog, and thanks to Emma & Therese for the work they do with these “brats” in Uganda – you are stars!

Alcatraz

2012-01-18T18:46:00.001+00:00

I finally took a break from playing The Pioneer Trail on Facebook and ~~thinking up reasons why I can’t go back to work~~ getting excited at the prospect of a possible return to gainful employment, and watched some telly that wasn’t random documentaries like the 74 Stone Accused (fascinating as it was, it left me rather nauseous). First up was the first two episodes in a new series on Fox called Alcatraz.

I hadn’t read anything about this show, but the first 15 minutes were enough to tell me that JJ Abrams was involved somewhere,and it wasn’t the presence of Jorge Garcia , it was the overall look and feel of the show that gave it away. I saw the show’s title in the listings for this week – don’t know how I missed it last week, probably drugged up, as per usual (don’t go calling the old bill, it’s my prescription stuff ). and my interest was immediately piqued, as I do have a “thing” for that place. From the mystery surrounding the escape of Frank Lee Morris and Clarence & John Anglin, did they survive or not, etc. to the alleged paranormal activity on The Rock, I have watched numerous shows regarding the place – this is the first time I’ve seen a TV series set there – I was curious to see what it was all about.

Surprise number one was the initial voiceover – Sam “Jurassic Park” Neill doing his bestest American accent telling us that the prison was closed due to spiralling costs and the place becoming decrepit, all prisoners to be transferred to other prisons…. except that’s not what happened! They all disappeared! OK, I was kinda hooked there and then. Throw in the necessary mix of cast to go with great story: Hot chick, played by Sarah Jones, (best screenshot I could take, honest!)

Old fella, Sam “Jurassic Park” Neill, Nerdy guy, who happens to be a doctor, who wrote books about Alcatraz and owns a comic book store, Jorge Garcia. Another Hot chick, but with a history, Parminder Nagra. Recipe complete. Add a bad guy to hunt each week, meanwhile keep trying to find out why and how they disappeared, why they’re back, who’s behind it, etc.. I’m pretty sure Sam “Jurassic Park” Neill’s character, Hauser, knows more than he’s letting on. For instance, at the end of the second episode we find out something about Parminder Nagra’s character, Lucy, and I’m fairly certain Hauser already knew that little titbit of goss.

Overall, it’s a very enjoyable 40 minutes of telly and I’m definitely looking forward to next Monday for the next episode.

OK, off to watch Two Broke Girls now. One day I’ll give up smoking and I’ll win the heart of Kat Dennings. Yes, I’ve seen the pictures.

TTFN

Now Playing: Romeo's Daughter - Delectable - Have Mercy

Windows 7 themes: In with the new

2012-01-14T08:28:00.000+00:00

I do look forward to these posts by Jennifer Shepherd; more clutter for my HDD, of course, but think of the beauty on my desktop. And the RSS themes are a brilliant idea; my laptop has one I found about 2 years ago which caches the Bing! daily images and displays them on your desktop, plus if you've got the Win7 RSS gadget installed it's easy to find a description of what you're looking at, for the more obscure imagery. Bing might be a shit search engine, which Google has proved steals it's search results, but you can't deny it's prettier.

Anyhoo, as Jennifer’s title say’s it’s time for a new theme. So I’m off to fill my tiny SSD with themes, you go read this :

Windows 7 themes: In with the new:

I'll be brief

2012-01-12T00:39:00.001+00:00

I'm on my iPod so the title alone took twenty minutes to type. Just wanted to share a link to blog I subscribe to. She's usually quite bonkers but tonight she made a lot of sense, so I decided to share despite her claiming all men were bastards and not including an apology to me.

http://youcouldntmakethisshitup.tumblr.com/post/15689567845/boundaries

I'm used to windows live writer, can't do ctrl+k to paste a hyperlink - hope that works.

TTFN

PC. Had to tidy up on the PC - iPod app sucks if you put apostrophes in your title or want to have URLs. My feet were cold anyway, and I was far too comfy in bed.

Catching Up

2012-01-07T06:42:00.001+00:00

Friday was spent catching up on some documentaries and other factual shows I had recorded over the past millennium but never got around to watching.. Started with a few National Geographic shows; in particular Diving the Labyrinth about exploring the blue holes in the Bahamas, and Manta Mystery about manta rays. The one about the blue holes was fascinating, as I’d heard of them but didn’t know much about them. At one point they were diving past the skeleton of a 1970’s diver who was not very lucky on his dive – just in case you hadn’t heard all the comments on how dangerous and extreme blue hole diving was! I’d like to add, the narrator needs to learn how to pronounce Bahamas. He repeatedly referred to them as the BO-hamas – incredibly vexing.

After the NatGeo session I had a couple of Panoama’s to watch. Panorama is a BBC current affairs show, which has been running for over 50 years. It is very often interesting, thought provoking, upsetting and very informative. The subjects do tend to vary wildly, but are related to recent news stories. I watched ones on PFIs, an alleged Russian spy, supermarket price wars and an adoption crisis. The PFI show was very annoying – to hear of so much money being taken away from the NHS by big business investors leaves one fuming, and then they claim the figures used to convince Liverpool to opt for a new PFI hospital had been fiddled to make them more appealing – I was appalled. The alleged Russian spy farce was so well ridiculed in the press and on TV by the time I watched the show it was nothing new to be honest, though I must admit I hadn’t quite realised how young she was was, and how old the Liberal MP was. Lucky bugger. Supermarket price wars may be in the news, but it’s hardly a new thing, and the main thing to come out of watching that show is that the big four national supermarkets are constantly breaking the Advertising Standards Authority consumer laws and getting away with it. Don’t go shopping if you’re just throwing things into your trolley – check the prices on the shelf and at the till – or the status quo in my case – I don’t trust them. The most heart-breaking show was the one regarding an impending adoption crisis in the UK. Since the Baby P case there has been a 40% increase in children being removed from their parents, with no subsequent increase in social services staff. I’ve seen a few shows regarding adoption recently, in particular plans to drastically reduce the amount of time it takes for prospective parents to become successful. Whilst this is a good move, and will help many children find a permanent loving family, it does little to help those removed with their siblings, whose only hope of adoption is to be split up. Finding a stable, loving and permanent home must be the ultimate goal, and splitting up siblings seems to be a last resort, but it does seem to me to be a rather harsh solution after all these kids have been through, but what else can be done? The liberal in me says give the back to their parents and support the parents more, rather than just taking them away, but I’ve no idea of the specifics of any of the cases and I’m no way qualified to get involved.

I’ll also be updating Wednesday's post with the concluding instalment of Public Enemies.

OK. Enough for now. Nice to see telly recovering from the Christmas break. CSI:NY and Supernatural were on last night, the second season of Portlandia started (more on that soon, I only just discovered it, and I love it!) and Law and Order UK started it’s sixth series, not bad for a show that premiered three years ago. More on those once I’ve watched ‘em. TTFN.

Lilyhammer

2012-01-06T13:05:00.001+00:00

I really hope this isn’t an elaborate hoax or something similar – it looks fantastic.

Lilyhammer Trailer

As you can see from the trailer, not only is it very funny, it also features possibly the most typecast actor in the business: Steven Van Zandt, the guy off Sopranos who’s not Tony or Pussy (snicker) and does a really good (NOT) Godfather impression as his party piece. He’s in a band too, and done a bunch of other shit, but he’s still the other dude off of Sopranos

If it’s not a hoax it’ll be streaming on Netflix on February 6th 2012. If you are in USA, Canada or Latin America you can get it on Netflix, if not, use your Google skills – there’ll be other sources, believe me.

Post-Catstration Revenge

2012-01-05T23:44:00.001+00:00

Do you like what I did there – post CATstration? Geddit? Never mind.

I’m either suffering from intense paranoia, or I’m reading far too much into the actions of an otherwise loveable, and loving tabby cat. Possibly both. I had every intention of sitting on the sofa and watching the second instalment of Public Enemies tonight. Bob had different ideas. The sofa is his, you see. It was an exercise in futility. He bounced between wanting to play fetch (he can be rather vocal when he thinks he’s being ignored) and wanting to investigate the television – closely. After 20 minutes of watching a cat’s arsehole and listening to a cat object to his ball not being thrown, I gave up. It hadn’t even started yet. Now I’m sat at my PC Bob has taken up his regular position on my desk (there’s a cushion there for him, I’m a softy) and he’s fast asleep next to a speaker that has Nightwish blasting out of it. He’s just waiting for me to try watching something, then he’ll be rested enough for the next round.

I’m uploading the second instalment of Public Enemies – I’ll update yesterday’s post with the link when it’s done.

I was intending to post about Mrs Brown’s Boys at some point. I heard about this show only recently, even though it’s been around about 10 years or so in Ireland. Last year BBC Scotland with RTÉ put out a 6 episode first series, and a second series started this Christmas. It is rather rude and sweary – possibly why I fecking love it. The whole thing is created by Brendan O’Carroll who also plays as Mrs Brown. I could go on and describe it all but either watch it, or read the Wikipedia page which does a better job than I could. Interestingly, according to RTÉ the Mrs Brown’s Boys Christmas Special was the most watched TV in Ireland over Christmas with a 48.6% share (the Irish have better taste than us – they get Eastenders, too but it didn’t get a look in)! Not bad considering some of the criticism levied against the show by the Irish press.. Whilst looking at the viewing figures, the critics reviews make one think they’re out of sync with the rest of their country, especially the “vaguely embarrassed to be Irish.” in the Irish Independent, LOL. Apparently it’s a 50/50 split. 6.6 Million in the UK watched the Christmas special – nowhere near the Eastenders Christmas episode, but it was best in it’s 10pm spot. If you don’t mind a bit of sweary fun, look out for Mrs Brown’s Boys, Monday 9:30 BBCOne or iPlayer or those naughty places, but not torrents cos they’re shite and Virgin cuts me off for seeding stuff.

I’ll update the link on yesterdays post and go watch it now – ttfn..

Now Playing: Nightwish - End Of An Era - Creek Mary's Blood

Private Enemy

2012-01-05T02:33:00.001+00:00

Right now my private enemy appears to be insomnia. I actually fell asleep around 9.30pm then woke 2 hours later with Bob snoring in my ear (he likes my orthopaedic pillow) and the wind making strange noises outside (the roof’s already leaking, I’m sure it’s gonna fall off, and I’ve been woken by that once before!).

So I decided to check out my latest recordings. There’s a pretty decent 3-part drama just started on BBC1 called Public Enemies. The series centres around Paula (Anna Friel) a probation officer just returning from suspension after an offender she gave a second chance to committed another murder, and Eddie, a murderer released on licence after serving 10 years.

I’ll be honest. If I wasn’t awake and in need of something to keep me occupied, and the eye candy that is Anna Friel was not on offer, I might have passed this by and watched a DVD. I’m glad I didn’t. Whilst it’s hard to feel sympathy for a murderer, the actor Daniel Mays does a splendid job in the portrayal of his vulnerabilities as an offender on probation, and you do start to feel that prickle of empathy.

All in all, I’m definitely looking forward to the remaining two instalments of this show. It’s currently available on the old iPlayer but if you can’t get it try below, I’ll edit the post as the concluding parts become available (tonight and tomorrow night, no long waits, thankfully).

Part 1 – 550mb

Part 2 – 550mb

Part 3 – 550mb

Blogger Labels: Public Enemies,TV

Classic: Not a Playa

2012-01-04T00:53:00.000+00:00

Why my son NEVER leaves his FB logged in around me (and why I lock my PC when unattended around him).

Classic: Not a Playa:

New Year, New Program

2012-01-03T21:45:00.001+00:00

Happy 2012 dear reader.

MS has finally started to bugger up my right arm, leaving me unable to play Warcraft for the past few months. I’ve filled the gap with some of those dire Facebook timewasters, but they tend to annoy me after a while, so I’m just going to moan about stuff and watch television programs.

First thing to be watched this new year is Endeavour. This program is a prequel to Inspector Morse, set in 1965 Oxford. As a huge fan of both Inspector Morse and Lewis, I was intrigued by the idea of this show. After just 10 minutes I was glued to the screen. The music of Barrington Pheloung is featured in Endeavour, as it was in both Inspector Morse and it’s sequel, Lewis, so a common and familiar mood is set from the get go. There is a cameo appearance by one of John Thaw’s daughters, Abigail, who plays a newspaper editor. She asks the young Morse “Have we met?” after Morse replies “I don’t think so.” she smiles and says “Another life, then.”

So far it’s a one-off show (a-boo), but with 6.8 million viewers (28% share) ITV bigwigs should have no problems deciding whether or not to commission a series.

I’ve also watched the second new episode of AbFab from New Years Day. I think the Christmas Day episode was comedy gold. This one was OK, but had a lot to live up to. There’s one more to come, as I read there are to be three episodes celebrating AbFab’s 20th birthday. No idea when the next will be broadcast, but it will apparently have something to do with the 2012 London Olympics. I hope there’s more than a week between the last show and the next, but less than, say, ten years, as that seems a tad too long to wait. I didn’t dislike the New Years Day show, it just wasn’t as funny, nor anticipated, as the Christmas Day one. Plus, there was no Sarah Lund on New Years Day .

In case you can’t get iPlayer, or they have already removed it you can grab AbFab here until they remove it.

Christmas Day 231mb

New Years Day Day 232mb

OK, that’s enough for now. Off to find more exciting things to do and watch, or maybe just go to bed. TTFN dear reader.

Merry Christmas

2011-12-25T01:22:00.001+00:00

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Happy Hanukkah or have a nice weekend; whatever flavour you fancy, dear reader. You may have noticed a distinct lack of posting of late, I've got a lot of recordings that need watching! I'll tell you in the new year. Have a safe one.

xx

Where was I?

2011-11-13T21:18:00.001+00:00

I was going on about mid-season stuff that’d already ended during my absence. I’ll continue with 2 SyFy favourites – Eureka and Warehouse 13.

Eureka ended it’s fourth season in September under a very dark cloud, with most fans Knowing that the next season, starting with a December, Christmassy, episode, and concluding in the new year, will be it’s last. The general reaction is of utter dismay, though as the network that failed to pickup Firefly, no-one’s terribly surprised, just saddened. It’s had it’s scheduling mucked about with so much even TiVo’s don’t know when it’s on. I’ve found reactions to Eureka are a little like Marmite – you either love it or hate it. Some folks just don’t dig a town full of geniuses, inventing stuff and getting up to all sorts of mischief. Others, including myself, love it. The upcoming season 5 premiere on Dec 6th sees the entire town transformed into animated versions of themselves. Watch this preview. .

Warehouse 13 ended it’s third season in October, and returns for it’s “holiday special” on December 6th.

Sidebar: Christmas is A holiday, not THE holiday – so it’s a Christmas special, not a holiday special. OK, I’ just had to get that off my chest. The Christmas special sees the return of an old enemy, watch the preview.

Looks like a great episode to whet your appetite for season four, all I know so far is that 13 episodes have been ordered for 2012.

It’s a shame they’ve decided to shit-can Eureka – I really enjoyed the crossovers between these 2 shows. Well done SyFy

There are bound to be loads of show’s I’ve neglected to mention – a combination of pain meds and MS causes me to forget things very easily, so don’t be surprised if I bring the subject up again. I’m planning another entry soon – either tonight or tomorrow detailing some of the new stuff I’ve been watching. About time, eh?

TTFN.

Now Playing: R.E.M. - Part Lies Part Heart Part Truth Part Garbage 1982-2011 - (Don't Go Back To) Rockville

Face-Off?

2011-11-13T19:15:00.001+00:00

Instead of going to bed at a reasonable hour, last night/this morning I wrestled with Blogger and my new template, trying to change the default fonts. There’s still one – the date – which is using Arial/Helvetica – but it took so long getting the rest done, by the time I’d learned enough CSS to realise what I was doing wrong, I was too tired to fix it .

So I now know the name of the offending class – just need to change it’s properties, but adding custom CSS doesn’t work, looks like I have to actually edit the template directly.

OK, enough about the facelift – gonna write a lot of rubbish about telly stuff in an hour or so – just watching Life’s Too Short from Thursday night on BBC – very funny stuff.

TTFN

My Cat’s a Dog

2011-11-13T03:19:00.001+00:00

I was planning a post on my usual televisual nonsense this weekend; there’s always Sunday. Meanwhile I thought I’d properly introduce Bob.

My old cat died in August. Lily was 14 and was sorely missed by all. So much so we decided, as one, that a new cat was to be sourced as soon as possible – days later Bob entered our lives.

It’s become clear over the few months we’ve had him that he’s completely bonkers. His main aim in life is to eat the hamster, Boris (Natasha had to be renamed for, er… obvious reasons :P)

The above pic was taken on the first day Bob spent with us :)

One of his favourite games is to play fetch. Seriously. I’d video it but if I’m in the room I’m the one he brings the toy back to, regardless of who throws it. Pisses Sarah off no end but then again, I feed him, change his shit-box, etc.

Bob has to be kept out of the bathroom for several reasons. Firstly, he can unravel a toilet roll faster than the Andrex puppy. Secondly, he chews toothbrushes. Thirdly, he steals cotton buds, 20-30 at a time, strips them of cotton – one assumes he eats it as I’ve never found any. Finally, and this is the most recent development, he drinks from the toilet. He follows me everywhere. Wakes me up by licking my eyes and ears, watches me avidly when I’m doing bathroom things. The other morning after I’d flushed, I’d left the seat up (yeah, yeah) and was brushing my teeth when I turned and saw Bob straddling the toilet bowl. My first thought was that he was going to use the toilet. I was calculating how much I’d save on kitty litter already. Alas, no. I then saw him delicately bow his head down into the bowl to reach the water in the bottom. I quickly grabbed him before he could fall in – he’s to small to reach the water – it was a disaster waiting to happen. I checked his bowls; he had no food but plenty of water. Later that day he managed to get in the bathroom and succeeded in reaching the water by putting his paws inside the bowl. Really need to work on putting the seat down AND closing the door.

So, my kitten plays fetch and drinks from the toilet – hence the title. He’s also an indoor cat. I like the fact we now have tits and sparrows in the garden, something we never had when Lily was around – even though she was about 7 years past her hunting prime. I’m not keen on having a shit-box in the hall, but at least my kitty is safe, the birdies are safe, and he’s not off making mini-Bobs since he still got his nads; they’re coming off next month, poor bugger :)

That’ll do for now. Bob’s been battering the shit out of my arm whilst typing this – luckily it’s my left so I can’t feel it :P

TTFN

Now Playing: Sara Bareilles - iTunes Live from SoHo - Breathe Again (Live)

Let Me Entertain You?

2011-10-27T14:32:00.000+01:00

I spent hours installing dozens of free apps and games on my iPod in order to earn free chips to buy new armour in Buddy Rush – so much so that I ran down the battery and didn’t get a chance to play with my new armour, so I’ll bore my reader with more telly musings whilst it charges.
I previously touched on a couple of the shows that aired during my absence. I’ll continue, I think, with Combat Hospital. 13 episode first season broadcast on Global which I think is Canadia (little maple leaf on the parental rating box in the top left gives it away). It was also broadcast by ABC but they skipped episode 11. So far no word on whether there will be a season 2 – it is, as they say, on the bubble, which is a shame as I enjoyed the show. The show is about a Role 3 military hospital in Kandahar and is set in 2006. The hospital is staffed by ranks from many of the allied forces fighting in Afghanistan, but primarily USA, Canada, UK and Australia (main cast). In the first episode we join newcomers Bobby Trang (Terry Chen) and Rebecca Gordon (Michelle Borth) as they join the team and find their way around. It’s most definitely not a 21st century M*A*S*H, but I don’t think it’s trying to be. The show has faced a lot of criticism from the US media, but from what I’ve seen on TV guide sites such as TVRage.com and TV.com viewers generally like the show, rating it 7.2/10 and 8/10 respectively. However, viewer appeal alone is not enough to save a show – Jericho was adored by the interwebs – but it wasn’t enough to save it.
Just a quick mention for Breaking Bad which has just finished it’s 4th and final season. I’ve only discovered the show this year and am partway through the second season – so no spoiling me on that plx!
In March this year Southland finished it’s third season, and it will be returning to TNT in January 2012 for a fourth. I find Southland to be very gritty and raw; I’m not familiar with the inner workings of LA cops, so I can’t vouch for their authenticity, but it is definitely good telly!

OK – gonna end this for now – need to eat, and my iPod is charged – time to play Buddy Rush
Now Playing: Regina Spektor - Far (Special Edition CD & DVD) - Wallet

Christmas Episode - Haven-This December

2011-10-26T16:30:00.000+01:00

Christmas Episode - Haven-This December: Haven is wrapping up for the season, but an all-new Christmas episode will be unwrapped this December.

Just saw this - wonder where this fits in with the showdown on the Cape Rouge and whether Nathan is the tattooed man that brings about Duke's Downfall? If they're in Chronological order, then obviously not. This also ruins 6 months of semi-suspense. Mind you, it is Haven - it could be someone's dream/trouble. Also it is SyFy - maybe they'll rope in WH13 and Eureka for a mega mindf**k crossover episode? :P

Back, for good?

2011-10-26T15:38:00.000+01:00

I’m bored. Can’t play World of Warcraft due to an argument with a flight of stairs (I lost) on top of which I have a cold the week after my GP performed a miracle and managed to enable me to experience sensation in my left arm; unfortunately the sensation was intense agony, the method was a flu jab.
I usually babble about current telly stuff and other nonsense, and I will, but I’ve missed babbling about a good many shows I enjoy as they have been and gone for this year – in particular Haven. Oh how I love thee, Haven. Or is it just Emily? No, It’s the show as well. The season one cliff-hanger was a doozy, two Audrey Parkers? ZOMG? How!!!111 Season two’s cliff-hanger is less so – Duke & Nathan fighting on boat, camera cuts to boat exterior, gun goes off! Oh noes!! Who is dedded!! Well, neither IMO – they’re both main cast & important to the story – killing either would be a mistake. Besides a wild shot inside a metal hulled ship would be lethal for both, but they never let physics stand in the way of a good story on th’telly.
Another SyFy show that’s been and gone whilst I was away was newcomer Alphas. Whilst I thoroughly enjoyed the show, I had my doubts as to whether it would be picked up for another season, especially after an eleven episode first season, but it would appear that SyFy have more confidence than I and have picked it up for a second season. Pictured to the right is Afghan-born Azita Ghanizada who plays Rachel Pirzad, one of the two major reasons for watching Alphas; the other being Laura Mennell, who plays Nina Theroux. There’s some blokes in it too supporting them, of course. If you’ve not seen Alphas, think Heroes, but more believable, and also done on the cheap. That’s not fair. It doesn’t look cheap, it’s nowhere near as far fetched as Heroes was – and usually each of the Alphas has to pay a price for using their gift. For example, Rachel can enhance one of her senses by an incredible amount, at the expense of her other senses, which leaves her vulnerable – something you’d think they’d take into consideration before utilizing her, but then that wouldn’t be good telly would it?
Another show I really enjoy came back in July, Rizzoli & Isles. It took an early break in September but returns to complete it’s second season run in late November – so far 15 episodes are on order so there are another 5 to watch. I was introduced to the show via a friend just after the first season started. I’ve since read quite a few Tess Gerritsen novels on my Kindle – very enjoyable books, but there’s something about the on-screen chemistry between Angie Harmon & Sasha Alexander that goes beyond any dark or dry humour in the novels. As well as being a fan of the show, an avid read of the books, and an admirer of beautiful women, I have to declare an additional bias here: I am still mourning the sudden death of Caitlin Todd, so frequent doses of Sasha Alexander in any show helps to soothe the loss.
Since I’ve been droning on for well over 500 words, to avoid TL:DR I’ll finish this post. I’ve got lots more boring telly stuff to bore you with in future posts – but even I’m getting fed up of my own voice (in my mind!).
TTFN

Now Playing: Regina Spektor - Begin to Hope – Lady

Watch this space

2011-10-21T15:12:00.001+01:00

Possible updates coming soon, but not from an iPod as this is cool but taking ages!!!

Meanwhile you may stare at the beauty that is Bob :-)

Another gap :)

2010-12-02T00:22:00.001+00:00

Hello again internetz

Been busy watching stuff on the tellybox and I’ve also been sucked back in to World of Warcraft so this poor blog has suffered. I apologise to my readers, both of you.

Also had to bugger about with my PC – not easy with one hand! Firstly, the unbranded RAM that came with my motherboard/CPU bundle failed – had to buy more (8gb ftw!) then my HDD started with the SMART errors – I did the sensible thing – disabled SMART monitoring. Finally got it all backed up on a eSATA device and installed a SSD.

Let me say this – SSD is the way forward. Windows 7 in 30 seconds from cold, about 15 or so is the BIOS detecting stuff. The only drawback is price – being a poor disabled cripple on benefits, there’s no way I could afford a decent sized one – I had to opt for a tiny one – big enough to hold Windows, Office, Kaspersky and my browser, Chrome – anything that gives the option to customise install goes on my D drive. I’d love to run WoW off a SSD, man that would fly!

All this results in my PC now having a Windows Experience Index of 7.4 – quite a jump from 5.9 prior to the SSD. I also added up my total storage – internal and external – 6TB. Blimey! That’s a hell of a lot of ~~porn~~ TV episodes and music

Speaking of TV, I seem to be enjoying the old favourites more than the new stuff. Bones, CSI (all), Criminal Minds, Fringe, House & Supernatural.

Fox’s Lone Star was binned after TWO episodes, so another of my favourites, Lie To Me, was bumped to fill it’s gaping hole. This makes me happy, as Lie To Me has been used as mid-season and hiatus filler for the last 2 seasons, hopefully the increased exposure will increase it’s popularity and hence it’s longevity.

On the UK scene, Sky broke with tradition and made something worth watching – Thorne, based on Mark Billingham’s books. So far his first 2 books have been adapted – 3 episodes each. as of August this year, there’s another 7 books to cover – I do hope Sky continues with them and does as good a job. The first 3 – Sleepyhead, also starred Natascha McElhone, of Californication fame. The director was Stephen Hopkins, who directed Californication (as well as 24 and other stuff) – coinkydink?

Also on the UK scene, the 9th series of BBC’s Spooks recently finished – I recorded them all and had a Spooks day – yes, I really am that sad. One refreshing trait of Spooks is their bloodthirsty treatment of leading characters – only 2 remain from the first series – the majority being killed off in one way or another – though a few have left the service.

One of the best things I’ve seen on TV has got to be Fry & Laurie Reunited on GOLD the other night. Granted I am a fan of them, and have fond memories of watching the series “A Bit of Fry & Laurie” in the 90’s, but it was well made, and the only fault was too many clips not enough banter. Also they didn’t include 2 of my my favourite sketches – Hugh singing Hey Jude in a high pitched helium like voice, and the shoe shop/brothels sketch. Apparently Hugh’s role in House has made him a household name in the US – Stephen less so – though he did/does have a recurring role on Bones, and starred in the fantastic film Wilde. I think, though, that Stephen’s fame is firmly rooted in Britain – I don’t think the kind of Americans that mass media is aimed at are intelligent enough to “get” his humour. I’m not saying all Americans are thick – not at all, but the main demographics are watching Idol and other reality shite every week – they are the thick ones

OK – enough rambling – my migraine is getting worse – ttfn.

Outsourced

2010-09-24T09:23:00.001+01:00

Just a quickie for now – I’m off to be poked and prodded by some kid in a white coat who claims to be a doctor.

Just watched a new comedy called Outsourced – it was fantastic – just how I imagine the Virgin Media helpdesk

Having worked in a call centre, it appears they are the same the world over. Anyhoo, if you can, watch it. I found a link http://hotfile.com/dl/71345235/6755fec/outsourced.101.hdtv-lol.avi.html not where I get my viewing fodder from, but it’s the same release.

Let me know what you think. The only problem I foresee is they may run out of jokes – there’s only so many times you can joke about hot food burning your ring etc. before it gets tired, but we’ll see.

Michael’s Telly Blog

2010-09-22T05:18:00.001+01:00

Gonna rename “Dude …?” to “Michael’s Telly Blog” or maybe “Bored Shitless” – I bet you can do votes with this thing …. bugger it – cba.

So, new seasons and new series are upon us, and about time too! Luckily we’ve had SyFy keeping us sane with such staples as Eureka (off till December now, poo) and Warehouse 13 (Eddie and Joanne get a load of stick, but Scags saves it for me, get my geek on, etc.) and not forgetting newcomer, Haven. Gotta say, I really love Haven, which usually means it’ll get canned, so I hate it, hate it, hate it!

This week kicked off with a new season of House. Was an odd episode, but given the last episode, it was either going to be Bobby stepping out of the shower, or a whole season examining a relationship. Guess the writers are too young to remember what a great get out of jail card Dallas offered I’ll leave Two and a Half Men alone – I only download it for my son… honest!

Just caught a few new series’ though – Hawaii Five-O was kinda fun, kinda silly, but at least they managed to avoid Dog the Bounty Hunter whilst shooting it so, they did OK. The Event, looks good, kinda weird, but we like weird so, we’ll wait and see. Chase was great – nice to see Kelli Giddish again – hope making Past Life didn’t totally screw her career up – I liked it, but no-one else AT ALL did, so ….? Lone Star looks good too – be nice to see how it develops. Also caught the pilot of a show called Terriers – started earlier this month, so I’ll need to check for any other episodes – was quite funny, not too over the top – lots of clichés though, ex-cop & ex-alcoholic, immature men, ex-wife. Open verdict till I see more. Not big on US comedy shows, as the phrase itself seems to be an oxymoron, but there have been notable exceptions. Mike and Molly may well be one of them – though King of Queens was thought to have consumed every fat joke possible, some have been resurrected, possibly recycled, possibly via a pooper-scooper. Not that bad really, better than most – so I’ll run with it, see how it pans out.

I’ve not looked at the schedules for any more upcoming new series, it’s on my to-do list, but two shows returned tonight and I’m about to watch them – NCIS and NCIS:Los Angeles – so I’ll sign off now, and report later – maybe I’ll have read the upcoming schedule by then too…. or not.