Holiday time

And about bloody time too!! Am off to Provence in the South of France early tomorrow morning. It's a 12-hour drive from Munich so I want to try and get as far down as I can before the heat of the day really kicks in. And dinner is being served at 8pm where I'm staying so that's an incentive to get my arse in gear!

Provence is a region inland from Cannes or St Tropez and is still quite remote. Should be great for relaxing, taking photos, chilling in the sun and not thinking about publishing.

So have a great few days people and I will be thinking of you. Back in 10 days.

Dom has left the building....

Tagged by Darth

When you're having a ahitty day, you surf around a bit and find a friend to cheer you. Thanks Darth...

Total volume of music files on my computer?
on this mac...18.92Gb

The last CD I bought was:
Bill Hicks - Relentless (to complete the collection)

Song playing right now:
Foo Fighters - Best of You (thanks to darth playing it on Saturday)


Five songs I listen to a lot or that mean a lot to me(in no particular order):
These are what I'm listening to at the moment
Breathe - Blue - beautiful song with lots of meaning
Evil Scotsman - Billy Connolly - makes me laugh hugely
Best of you - Foo Fighters - newly discovered and rocks
Just Lose It - Eminem - also makes me laugh
La Onde - Ludovico Einaudi - the best composer in the world and his piece de resistance


Which 5 people are you passing this baton to, and why?
Yossarian - because he has an interesting Ipod collection
Terri - because she likes what I like
C - because I have no idea what you like
Cedia - because it's about time I tagged her
Val - becasue I'd like to hear from her

Online/offline moans

Have had a blend of a week really. Once again my least favourite subject of the month - publishing/work - is rearing it's head and keeping me way too busy. I want to hang out with friends, do a lot of work on my blog, set up a photo blog, catch up with TV, go to the gym. What I'm actually doing is going through piles of invoices, trying to deal with striking paper mill workers in Finland (don't ask!), avoiding a boss who doesn't seem to have enough to do at the moment and is consequently finding lots of things for me to do.

I am also about to go on holiday and, in preparation, am being given double the workload before I leave. Just to make sure I'm nice and worn out before I go! Normally they wait until I come back and then give me lots to do to kake sure my happy feelings from hving been away are erased instantly, and I'm turned back into my regular bitter and twisted self!! Lol.

Also new Star Wars film is out tomorrow and the whole world will see it before me. If anyone does see it can you let me know if it is as good as I'm hoping?!

The garden was looking so sunny and all of the flowers have decided to start blooming. so I thought I'd throw together a quick compilation of the plants.

Enjoying the great weather in May.

Radio Darth and Douglas Adams

It's 0605 on Sunday morning. It's a beautiful sunrise outside, I'm wallowing in smugness at having completed all of my jobs for the week-end yesterday (cut grass, bought new clothes, cleaned all of house properly) and am listening to Radio Darth. There's a link to Darth's site in the buttons on the left. In an effort to shamelessly plug his show I say 'GO and listen'. I don't get the chance to tune in so often, but it's always cool when I do. and this morning was somehow a perfect way to start the day. So thanks dude and I can't wait for the next show I can get to. It won't be for 3 weeks unfortunately due to other commitments, but ....

I'm also hugely excited about going to see the film Hitchikers Guide to the Galaxy, which I may very well get to see this week. And in homage I thought I'd jot down a couple of quotes and facts from the author of the book, Douglas Adams, who appears to be finally getting the recognition we all know he deserves for a fantastic book.

- On the Internet: 'It saves you a great deal of time which you waste by wandering about looking at loads of useless stuff.'
- Despite prolific output, he has cited an epic journey made to Madagascar to find a rare type of nocturnal lemur as 'the thing I am most proud of'.
- He wrote a computer game called Bureaucracy, based on a two year struggle to convince Barclays Bank t recognise his change of address.
- He was cremated along with his favourite towel in 2001.

And the best quote I have read of his:

'I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be...'

Friday 13th

I couldn't figure out why I was having a shit day until someone reminded me that it is Friday 13th! I wasn't superstitious, but maybe I will be now.

Ammusing place names

I'v been in Germany again for the past few days adding to my already overloaded pile of work. 2005 is turning out to be a strange year, with way too much seriousness going about. I made a wish for new Year to have a chilled year. so far I've been well ill and had too much work. So, so much for that wish then!

Then again there are small pockets of dark humour to be found ....

In my travels recently I've come across a few ammusing place names, and it occured to me to maybe list some. I don't know if this post will go anywhere, but here's hoping! some are cute, others require a retty juvenile sense of humour. Has anyone else got any good ones for the list?

1. Nemphnett Thrubwell, England (is as pretty as it sounds)
2. Monkton Nooney, England (small)
3. Wank, Germany (unexpectedly stimulating and pretty)
4. Knudshoved, Germany (didn't dare go in)
5. Condom, France (bit too well known now)

A load of rusting anchors. The colours are extraordinary.

Accurate (ish) recreation of the death of Lord Admiral Horatio Nelson, our greatest sea commander in history. This is the spot on HMS Victory, his flagship, where he fell.

The main mast on HMS Victory. I think the spiders web of rigging makes a very cool picture.

Old and new (and fraying in the middle!). HMS Warrior in the foreground - one of our historic warships, and the Spinnaker Tower in the background which was being built for the Millenium and is just about completed .

A week-end away

Monday morning again, I can't believe it. They seem to sneak up so fast! Spent the week-end in Portsmouth with some new friends, and had a couple of great days. It's a wonderful city and one I'd never visited as far as I can remember. Full of history (mainly naval), but with a lot else to offer as well. If I say I was surprised it sounds harsh. But there was a lot more to the place than I'd imagined. I'll post some great pics later.

Went there to spend a couple of days with an old friend who is going back to live in Sweden shortly. It was great to see her, although there was so much socalising it wasn't always easy to hang out and chat. It was also a chance to hang out with my new best friend Terri, who I've been working on a blog with recently. She's a friend of Ulri's and we sort of got chatting online through her. It's very strange to be talking to someone online for a while and then to meet them in the flesh. 2D and 3D are very different. Neither better than the other, but just different. Good though. I did a post a while ago about can online friendships be the same as real world ones, and this kind of bridges the gap. Terri and I have talked a fair amount in the preceding weeks, but it was cool to hang out and be pretty comfortable with each other as well. A friend for life.

Copied from Jerzee

When you have a heap of work to do, these sort of questionnaires are perfect...

1.First name: Dominic
2. Were you named after anyone? Don't think so
3. Do you wish on stars? Yes, and some come true...
4. When did you last cry? When I shut my finger in a door the other week.
5. Do you like your handwriting? Yes
6. What is your favorite lunch meat? Bit partial to rare lamb
7.What is your birth date? 14/03/1975
8.What is your most embarrassing CD? I have the Whigfield album. And Vengaboys album. And all of the Shampoo albums. I'll stop now....
9.If you where another person would YOU be friends with you? Yes, I'm very likeable (lol)
10. Do you have a journal? Online only at the moment
11. Do you use sarcasm alot? can't you tell.
12. What are your nicknames? Dom, Nic, Helo
13.Would you ever bungee jump? No. Don't do heights or spiders!
14.Do you untie your shoes when you take them off? Of course. Doesn't everyone?
15. Do you think that you are strong? yes
16.What is your favorite ice cream flavor? Dark chocolate
17.Red or Pink? Red
18.What is your least favorite thing about yourself? Ears
19.What do you miss most? Being with the one I love
20.What color pants and shoes are you wearing right now? White pants, white shoes. I'm having a Persil day.
21.What are you listening to right now? Virgin Radio - oys are back in town, Thin LIzzy
22.Last thing you ate? Wensleydale cheese, rocket and chutney sandwich.
23. If you where a crayone what color would you be? Marine blue
24. What is the weather like right now? overcast with breaking sun.
25.Last person you talked to on the phone? A supplier who produces bags for me (to organise a lunch!)
26.The first thing you notice about the opposite sex? Eyes and smile.
27. Do you like the person that sent this to you? Like the person I copied it from.
28.Favorite drink? Gin, Diet Coke, squeeze of Lime, Ice, in a long glass.
29.Favorite sport? Anything that goes fast and makes noise
30. hair color? Apparently I'm blonde
31. Eye color? Blue
32.Do you wear contacts? Yes
33.Favorite food? Home made bangers and mash at the moment.
34.Last movie you watched? Bourne Identity
35.Favorite day of the year? June 24
36.Scary movies or happy endings? Happy endings
37.Summer or winter? Summer
38.Hugs or kisses? Kisses
39.What is your favorite dessert? Ice cream, chocolate, cake, sweets, cookies,....
40.Living arrangements? I live in a cute little house I bought last year.
41.What books are you reading? Birdsong - Sebastian Faulks
42.What on your mouse pad? Don't have one. My mouse says 'Dom - touch and die' though.
43.What did you watch last night on t.v.? Formula One GP
44.Favorite smells? Fresh cut grass, sea breeze, certain perfumes
45.Favorite sounds? Rain falling on tin roof, sea
46.Rolling Stones or Beattles? Beatles
47.Whats the furthest youve been from home? Australia
48.Do you have a special talent? I can wiggle my nose like in Bewitched. Am working on being able to wiggle my ears, but no success yet. If anyone knows how...

British government election

They happened today. Actually got quite excited as I walked down to the polling station to cast my vote. The same councillor got in as the representative of my area which is cool. He seems to have done a good job for the last few years by all account. But otherwise it's same old, same old....

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz!

Impressions of East Germany

I've had a couple of days to mull over my first experience of East Germany and here is the reality compared to the imagination.

1. The countryside is lush and stunning, with only a few places spoilt by big factories and ugly buildings.

2. The atmosphere is a lot more upbeat than I magined. People actually smile at you sometimes which was a shock. There also seemed to be a lot of young trendy Eastern Europeans in the centre at the week-end. So I guess the nouveau riche from The former Communist countries are maybe heading West.

3. Dresden itself is beautiful, if a bit of a building site at the moment. There is a big drive to make it like it was before the war and they probably still have a few years of work to go. It will be very Baroque once it's completed.

4. The food was normal German food. No watery soup or grim vegetables.

All in all it was a great trip and very interesting. It was a pretty full-on few days and I needed to come away and absorb the experience. Next time I'm back there I can concentrate more on visiting some art galleries (apparently they're fantastic) and looking around the suburbs a bit more. The place feels like it has a huge amount of history and lots to discover.

Thanks to Pep/Misguided

Your #1 Match: INFJ

The Protector You live your life with integrity, originality, vision, and creativity. Independent and stubborn, you rarely stray from your vision - no matter what it is. You are an excellent listener, with almost infinite patience. You have complex, deep feelings, and you take great care to express them. You would make a great photographer, alternative medicine guru, or teacher.

Your #2 Match: INTJ

The Scientist You have a head for ideas - and you are good at improving systems. Logical and strategic, you prefer for everything in your life to be organized. You tend to be a bit skeptical. You're both critical of yourself and of others. Independent and stubborn, you tend to only befriend those who are a lot like you. You would make an excellent scientist, engineer, or programmer.

Your #3 Match: ENFJ

The Giver You strive to maintain harmony in relationships, and usually succeed. Articulate and enthusiastic, you are good at making personal connections. Sometimes you idealize relationships too much - and end up being let down. You find the most energy and comfort in social situations ... where you shine. You would make a good writer, human resources director, or psychologist.

Your #4 Match: ENTJ

The Executive You are a natural leader - with confidence and strength that inspires others. Driven to succeed, you are always looking for ways to gain, power, knowledge, and expertise. Sometimes you aren't the most considerate person, especially to those who are a bit slow. You are not easily intimidated - and you have a commanding, awe-inspiring presence. You would make a great CEO, entrepreneur, or consultant.

Your #5 Match: INFP

The Idealist You are creative with a great imagination, living in your own inner world. Open minded and accepting, you strive for harmony in your important relationships. It takes a long time for people to get to know you. You are hesitant to let people get close. But once you care for someone, you do everything you can to help them grow and develop. You would make an excellent writer, psychologist, or artist.

What's Your Personality Type?

Another pic of the mountains in Sachsiger Schweiz...

Me in front of a monument in central Dresden. They're painting a lot of the buildings with gold leaf to make it look like it did before the war.

The Frauenkirche in central Dresden. This is maybe the most famous landmark in the city, and is currently being renovated and cleaned. This shot also gives you an idea of the sort of general buildings in town.

This is in the art museum in central Dresden. A very serene corner.

City centre Dresden. A lot of the town has been rebuilt since Germany was re-unified. the whole place has a very Baroque feel to it.

The valley in the background is the Elbe River, one of Germany's biggest.

Another part of the Sachsiger schweiz mountains. A huge mountain range of unusual rock formations. The forest was amazing colours already - imagine what it's like in Autumn!

The Sachsiger Schweiz mountains, outside Dresden