Daynos no more no less

So my car insurance is up for renewal in June and as it is nearly May I get to look around for a quote. (Now for a bit of a background) I was speaking to one of the guys at work and he said that there is a website called www.quidco.com which lets you get the money most people would get for referring you to specific websites such as Amazon or Play etc… One of the deals was get £100 from Churchill Car Insurance if you buy it there. So I did a quote for me in June and it comes up with £430 for the year and with my £100 cash back that is £330, which rocks. Then Chez says “Check www.Confused.com anyway just in case. The least you can do is look and you get entered into a £1million draw. So I check. And now I can get it for £296. My current insurer is looking to charge me about £800 so guess what. J

In other news Martyn at work has set-up a “Bonus Ball Draw” which is like everyone entering the lottery but you all pick 1 number (2 if your greedy) and pay £2 a week which is put into a “pot”. If your number is drawn as the Bonus ball on the Saturday Lottery you get all the money in the “pot”. So I have 2 numbers J 33 (my fave number) and 7 (Cheryl’s fave). So fingers crossed eh? If no one wins the money in the “pot” is added to next weeks in the classic lottery “Roll Over” way until someone wins. Which means it’s always someone you know winning. Plus you have a 1 in 49 chance of winning (or 2 in 49 if your greedy like me).

My car is in for it’s service at the moment and looking to cost about £400. Plus I have looked about and there are no vouchers or discounts going so this months going to be tight. On the upside I did save about £450 to pay for it so that’s good. I was given a Ford Fiesta as a “Courtesy Car”. Well lets just say it is not the nicest of cars I have driven but it’s a new one (57 plate) and has a few gadgets but it slides all over the road very dangerously even at low speeds, it’s VERY cramped (especially as I am 6ft 3in) and it’s slow. Gearbox feels a bit weak too… But hay I got it for £10 so that’s not bad.

So that is pretty much what I did today. Oh and tidy up (read shred) some paper work and clean up my room. No work today in case you didn’t guess. Or tomorrow. Or Monday. YAY!

Edit: Wait a second... Just been to the insurance website and it says that it can't do the quote yet because it's out of the "45 day range" so I think it was quoting me as a 23 year old... Which means when I go to buy it (next month) the price could go down AGAIN... BY ZEUS! My current insurance company is killing me! Come next Saturday I will find out just how much I will be paying. MUWAHAHAHA!

Hay a month later and my second post of 2008. At this rate I will post 12 times this year! ;)

Good day today. Sax went well and I got to see Chez. May go to the Cinema later. (I love having unlimited cards). There was a "incident" with an extreamly rude woman at Coasta Coffee but we got to people watch which is always good fun.

Space has moved to his new home which is over twice the size of his previous one but I think he is still a little anxious at the size of it. I think he will calm down when he gets company. Hopefully.

Watching a lot of DVD's at the moment. I don't know what I will do when I run out. I seem to be watching so many of them at the moment.

Well that's about it for this one. Not much of an update but meh maybe the next one will be better?...

And so I make this post at just after midnight on 16th January 2008. First post of 2008!

The reason I am making this post? I have been laying wide awake in bed for the past hour and a damn half!

I cannot sleep. I thought my level of sleep recently was going just a bit too good. I have had Dream Tea and that hasn't worked and I have tried my Aikido relaxation methods and that didn't work. Looks like I need to be awake for longer.

WoW on my PC is broken. :( I got Gears of War for Christmas and that rocked. But it's finished now and I don't feel the need to replay.

I find that I have nothing much else to say. Maybe I will go and read for awhile...

Night everyone (hopefully)

And so I make this post at just after midnight on 16th January 2008. First post of 2008!

The reason I am making this post? I have been laying wide awake in bed for the past hour and a damn half!

I cannot sleep. I thought my level of sleep recently was going just a bit too good. I have had Dream Tea and that hasn't worked and I have tried my Aikido relaxation methods and that didn't work. Looks like I need to be awake for longer.

WoW on my PC is broken. :( I got Gears of War for Christmas and that rocked. But it's finished now and I don't feel the need to replay.

I find that I have nothing much else to say. Maybe I will go and read for awhile...

Night everyone (hopefully)

This Christmas is the best EVER. For me. So far.

I have some amazing friends and an amazing girlfriend. To think this time last year I had given up entirely on woman. It really does go to show how much life can change.

Suzie got me an Amazon voucher which will be put to good use and she got Chez and I a box of Twilight chocolates to share.

Lizzie and Dave have got me a box of Thorntons "Truffle Trees" which I am finding it hard not to eat. And an amazingly well made (sewn) Calendar. I didn't realise just how good Lizzie sews!

Cheryl has given me the best Christmas Card I have ever recieved. I thought I loved her before but it has made me fall in love with her all over again.

Work gave me a bottle of whisky which was actually very touching in comparison to what we normally get (£4 bottle of wine).

And it still isn't Christmas. I can't wait until Christmas but not because (as most years have been) to see what I get but I want to see my loved one's reactions to the presents I have bought them.

I also feel I must mention the moving on of Matt F at work. Besides all the jokes we made he was a hard worker and we are all sorry to see him go. But he is moving on to a better job and I for one wish him well.

So been mostly working. The worst sound in the world is 4 phones all ringing at the same time and no else is prepared to answer them.

Seen a few films recently listed below.
Schindler's List: Great film definately a 5 star. It starts slowly but that is just to set the scene. It's very thought provoking.
Notes on a scandal: Amazing acting by Judi Dench. I really believed her to be a school teacher.
Stardust: It's a "Chick flick" but I thought it was done extreamley well.
Eastern Promises: It's an 18 and I don't believe they needed to have some bits in it that had made it an 18 but it was very well done indeed.

Finished reading "Only in death" by Dan Abnett (Took me a week). And that is easily his best book so far. I am interested to see what happens next espically as the fate of some of the main characters is still unknown at the end. I am glad he put Soric back in. It was good to find out what happened to him. Also Bragg was definately a nice addition.

I am playing the demo of Hellgate: London at the moment and I think it's amazing. It's as if they took Diablo 2 and World of Warcraft mixed them together and set it 20-30 years in the future and gave us strange new technology to add flavour. I am looking forward to the full game and think its going to be a hit.

I have recently heard some rumours about the new Apple Mac OS (Leopard) and that people are running into problems with it. I am still intent on getting one of the new Mac's to replace my PC and have it running Boot Camp however I believe I will leave it a little bit longer until I can afford it and leave Apple some time to iron out the bugs.

Saw Cheryl, Lizzie and Suzie last night. All are good. It's nice to see them all together. Possible plan for Christmas 2008 has been put in place. Hopefully this will work out better than previous plans I have made for group holidays but time will tell.

Hay still here everybody!

Nothing much to report. Got back from Holiday with Chez. We were both sick :(. Better now! :)

I have been playing a game called "Ogame" recently which is a long time consuming game but it's free and quiet addictive. (www.ogame.org for anyone who wants to try it out I am on system 27). Also tried a demo of "Hellgate: London". This is a great game. Kind of like WoW but not based online. Great graphics but makes my PC look a bit low tech in its requirements...

Chez got a new car. An MGTF no less! When I met her she wanted a VW Golf after I talked to her about it she settled for a TF... Aren't I great?...

Work is work.

Cheryl ROCKS! Heroes ROCKS! DH Rocks! MGTF ROCKS! Cheryl ROCKS! BeeGees ROCK!

Sax going well too. Not great but still very good.

Anyway I must try to remember to blog more. See ya next time.

Whipsnade Zoo rocked! Chez and I saw:
Chimps
Elephants
Reptiles
Insects
All sorts of birds (including a Toucan and Parrots)
Tiger (asleep and on its own :( )
Lions (asleep again)
A Cheater (Went to sleep (seeing a pattern here?))
Penguins
Farmyard animals such as goats, pigs, sheep, cows and donkeys
Rhino's (LOADS OF RHINOS)
Peacocks
Rodents
Red Panda's (Aw!)
Lamas
Camels
Fish
Bears
Sea Lions
Monkeys (Different from Chimps)
Lemur's
Otters and many more

Some of the not so dangerous animals (such as the Peacocks) were roaming free. Also there seemed to be a lot of annoying small animals that seem to be constantly running around the place making lots of noise. Cheryl was calling them "Children" but I believe they may of been escaped Lion food.

Anyway tied now so off to bed (21:30 no less!)

So I thought I would blog again. Haven't done so in awhile...

Well it's September so the kids should be going back to school soon. Which is always a good thing as it means they aren't hanging around on the roads / pathways getting in the way. I didn't realise how easy school life is in comparison to working life. The upshot of working is you get paid. The downside's are longer hours, repetitive work, shorter holidays, and stress all year round as opposed to exam times. Plus at work your expected to do homework for qualifications which you spent all your school time doing anyway.

I have kept up playing the Sax. Getting better slowly. Still have a long way to go before I will be happy with my playing but at least when people say to me now "Can you play this" and I reply "Nope" now I am starting to be able to reply "Get me the music and I can give it a go!" Which is a lot better than before!

I am at the moment working on my Games Day 2007 entry. As always I will be entering the Duel section. I don't think I am going to win but I think with the idea I have the judges are going to at least have a good look at my model instead of just a quick glance.

I have a new phone. The Motorolla V8 Razr2. It rocks. It does everything ever wanted a phone to do. Including: Bluetooth, Camera, Decent length of videoing time (2 hours), Voice control (e.g. Call "Home"), it's a 'flick' phone so I don't mash up the buttons and you can control lots of the phone with it shut. Battery life isn't too great it needs charging every 3 days or so but that should settle down soon. The games aren't very good but I never play the games on my phone anyway. The only downside I can find is that it doesn't have an expansion slot for a memory card. HOWEVER it does have about 450mb of on board memory which is definitely enough for normal phone users like myself. If you want a PDA go get yourself one! Texting is a bit strange but I am sure I will get used to it.

I have one of those Unlimited Cards for the Cinema now too. This means I pay £11 a month and I can go to the Cinema as much as I want! That rocks. Plus it makes for a cheap evening out. Just have to pay for food.

Cheryl and I are going well. I have talked her into getting a MG TF as her next car. She was going for a Golf but I asked her why doesn't she get something fun. We looked up the insurance and she decided I had a point. Now she's saving!

My Birthday went well too. Apart from having to go to a funeral on the same day (Paul Kelly RIP). Cheryl bought me a Zatoichi Sword. Which rocked!

Also my Nan (Dad's Mum) passed away in early August. That was tough. But I got through it. As ever I didn't tell anyone at work but they did notice something was wrong and left me alone.

I am off to the Zoo with Chez on Monday so that should be good (Whipsnade).

Maybe I will update more often after this update.

Maybe not.

It's long, boring and badly put.

Not really anything to say but I wanted to blog anyway. Jury service is going well. Everyone says I seem a lot happier being away from work. :)

Suzie's stuff has gone missing on her flight back to the UK :( Poor Suze! Going to see PotC tonight with Cheryl and Suzie which should be good.

Sax is going OK. I got stopped in the street by a mobile phone salesman on the way back and he said "What's in the case" I was tempted to say a high powered rifle but I told him it was my Saxophone because you never know how people will react now-a-days. He asked me if I was any good and I said "Nope I am actually just coming back from my lesson." and that was it.

Yay for Randomness!

So I haven't been around for awhile on LJ a few reasons for that but I will post about them another time.

I have damaged my shoulder in Aikido and it's not getting much better I need to go to the doctors which I should do tomorrow. Jury service was OK my advice to anyone going would be to take a book with you as you can be sitting around doing nothing for a long time! Still got a week of it left. I did sit in on 1 case but I don't think it's something I should talk about.

Went to see PotC Worlds End and I really enjoyed it. Going to see it again this weekend so that should be good.

Suzie is on her way back as I type. I hope the flights and everything go well for her (unlike last time she flew). Looks like her plans have fallen through but at least she has new ones now.

Space is doing well. I need to get a bigger Viv for him but he seems very happy and I think he is starting to figure stuff out now (lizards are very clever).

Dave has a job starting 18th June so good luck to him! And he got a car so double bonus!

Conrad @ Work passed his drivers test today so fantastic news for him.

I've been playing C&C TW a lot recently and the game is solid and generally rocks. I can't wait for the expansion which I just know will happen (always does with C&C games). GDI have got some good solid troops. Nod have the numbers and the Scrin are amazing!

WoW: I haven't been playing much as of late but Bigboot is now 70 and Maze is 36 so that's good.

Well that is a general round up. I will try and update more often again :).

R
x

So not much has really happened (hence no update). I have been WoWing. Up to lvl69 with BB now. Soon be 70 and can then work on leveling another character. Not sure if I should do the Druid, Mage or Rogue next. The druid rocks because at lvl68 he gets a flight form and I like his healing powers. The Mage gets his on water and is lvl31 at the moment. But the Rogue is required to open lock boxes and would definately benefit everyone else with his lock picking skill... Decisions decisions.

Suzie is getting married in December. Nice one Suzie! I can't wait to be there!

I got a Jury Summons so I will have to go and do that. Obviously this will be one of the only updates about it as I am not allowed to talk about Jury Service.

Space had a make over the other day so his tank now is clean again and he has more stuff to play on. He still needs a bigger tank but that looks less and less likely as I realise how little money I have. (I can't afford a £90 tank and a £30 table for my room to put it on and the stuff to go in it!)

Uploaded some pics to FB and realised how little I have of me and Friends so I need to do more things with photos! (Back to Suzie's wedding. Loadsa photos!). I can't wait till Suzie is back in the UK we can have 1 last meet up before she gets her MRS. ;)

Sax is going well. I am now learning a piece that if I can play it will impress people greatly. *Nods sagely*

The weather over here is getting really good too. Especially for April! We have Sun and 20+ temps. It is real T-Shirt weather again. Shame it's going to start getting even hotter because this is a comfortable temp for us Brits. Not too hot and not too cold.

Mum's birthday in about 2 weeks. So I am trying to get her presents, sneak them past her and hide them away.

I also need to book my Car Service and MOT this month (it's due in May) so I can save some money for insurance next month and pay for it in June. More pay out! ARGH!!

Anyway that was my (not so) little update. Hmm more than I expected to write!

Been busy the past few days. Work has been tough and we seem to be getting short staffed again.
Been playing C&C3 a lot. It reminds me of the first C&C which I spent most of my childhood playing so give me awhile on it eh? ;)

Went bowling with the guys from work on Saturday and had some pretty solid losses.

Car now has got some new Tyres too so that's good.

The little of WoW that I have played I have been lvling my Rouge and it seems to level so much faster than every other character I have had (aside from my Dranei Mage who is taking a break). I think I prefer the DPS class. I like to see the things I hit die quick.

Now to work so I can come home and have fun!

Went to see 300 last night and it absoulutely rocks! Everyone go and see it! It has some strange sound tracks to it however. Like a big rock bit whilst a storm is going on which I don't really think fits too well. Ate at Buddies which apparantly is not as good as the one in the middle of NH so I will have to go there.

Work is a pain at the moment. We just need 1 morning with no phones to get caught up on everything but of coarse that will never happen.

Mum and Dad are back from Egypt. They bought me a T-Shirt and 2 Pyramids one which I believe the pyramids used to look like and the other which has got writing on it. Which I kinda prefer (looks cheaper tho). They had a good time by the looks of it but they are both knackered.

I am going to Worlds End today to see family so I may have a bit more of an update tomorrow.

So I have had a strange few days. People I thought I knew turned out to be nothing like what I first imagined. And I have found out that people I have known for a long time can really surprise me.

I have had a very good past few days but honestly I don't seem to of done anything. I haven't played any games of Warhammer, 40k, Necromunda etc... I have been playing WoW but not much. I have watched the TV but again not very much, just the odd episodes of Top Gear, Scrubs and Desperate Housewives. And I have chatted with friends.

Work is going to be hard this week. I have got a lot to catch up on. I have been invited bowling on 31st March with the rest of the guys from Support so I should be going to that. Anyway thats about it. I guess I should be getting to work now.

Oh and 1 other thing happened.

[Title explanation] I have just posted a personal update and was wondering if it worked...

[Regular service]
So my car has finally come back! I almost (ALMOST) wish I was back at work this past week as not having it has been very limiting. Strange that I never used to feel this limited without a car before.

Saw Daffy & Tim (aka Fat Boy) a lot this week. We played Necromunda and Daffy and I played a bit of Battlefleet Gothic. No Warhammer which was strange as that is one of our constant games.

Sax is going better this week. No interuptions from MaD coupled with as much practice as I want has pulled a lot of loose strings together in my practicing. I will see how I do at my lesson in just under an hours time.

WoW is going well. I am solid 67 now. About half way to 68 in an area that levels 67 to 70 so I should do well. Gold is going to be an issue tho. I will need just over 5000 gold and I have just UNDER 500... Can I make over 4,500 gold in roughly 3 levels? Only time will tell. But I am getting paid on average 5 gold per part of a quest I do so you never know. I am at 338 tailoring so nearly at the 340 mark where I can start making some more interesting stuff. The issue I have at the moment is I have no cloth and I refuse to buy it as it is expensive and I can't afford to go spending that much money.

Saw Chez last night and its strange how much we have in common.

Mum and Dad are back on Wednesday so I need to get the Mothers day stuff for Mum today (a trip to MK I feel). I have heard from them and they are having a good time and the weather is hot. (What else can you ask!?)

Well I guess that's it. Happy Trails.

Now that I have started...

I guess maybe with Sunday. I was moving some big wooden kitchen surface off cuts around for Dad and hurt my back. I think I pulled a muscle in my back it hasn't stopped hurting since but it is getting better.

Daffy is still on the road to recovery. I saw him today. We played Necromunda and I played badly. I don't think I won a single game but that doesn't matter it was still fun.

My car was finally picked up on Monday to be fixed so I am now waiting for it to be returned. I am off to Northampton with Daffy tomorrow morning for Mothers day stuff on Sunday (well my Mum won't be here but I still will need to pick up something for her). Mum and Dad are off on holiday tomorrow so I will have a few days without them. If I get the car back by Friday I will go and visit Suzie at Worlds End.

WoW: Cheryl is now playing WoW. I think this is the most I have ever spoken with Cheryl and it's good. And what’s more she doesn't take my filthy mind to heart, which is good because I don't have to treat her like a small child, which I hated having to do with some other people. I am now 67 and can finally do quests that give me rep so I can get a cheaper flying mount at 70. I think I will spend the next 3 levels there doing those quests but I am sure I will have nowhere near the required amount of cash. I have only got about 500g at the moment and I doubt that I will get another 4500g in 3 levels!

Sax is going well. I have started to try and play a few things by ear but it is very hard to do. I am stuck at the moment on "Happy Birthday". I can play the first verse but I am sure the second verse is different and the 3rd I haven't even started yet.

According to Suzie tomorrow is "Steak and BJ day" a kind of Valentines Day for blokes. I don't see the point of it really as V-day should be for guys as well as girls shouldn't it? (Well that and the throwing of rocks at Cupid!).

Suzie asked me what I would tell my 12-year-old self. I honestly can't think of anything that my 12-year-old self would listen to. Things like "Life is shit." "People WILL screw you over." "Some particular people like you and others not so much." So my question to you is what would you tell your 12 year old self? Or what would you ask your 10-year future self? (BESIDES LOTTERY NUMBERS!)

Speaking of Suzie. She’s in the US now. *Waves* Hi Suzie! *Waves* Hi P. Treat Suzie good ya hear! Or I will have to brave the scary men at US customs to come and find ya! ;) (And I have a beard that must mean I am instantly going to be pulled over by the Americans!).

So... How should I finish?

Hay am I missing a post? Well Suzie, Cheryl, Lizzie, Flinty and I went bowling last Saturday. Chez turned out to be the bowling shark out of us all. It was nice to see everyone again.

Daffy is still recovering. So I haven't seen him much. I did drop by during the week to see how he was and give him some movies to watch and a game to play, as he seems rather bored. It was only a quick visit as I had to get back to work but I should seem him more in the coming week.

This week at work has been very busy (one of the reasons I haven't really blogged I guess). I am off next week so I needed to make sure everyone was OK with covering for me. [Sarcasm mode on] Damn I love being a specialist! [Sarcasm mode off]. Levelling has been slow but steady in WoW I am now 66 with Bigboot so only 4 levels to go before I start levelling Nolo or maybe Sonday (as I have need of a Rouge).

I have had a productive day too. I have cleaned my room out and thrown away 2 bags of crap I don't need and shredded old receipts. I now some space again and I may replace my chest of draws at the foot of my bed with a table so I can have a bigger Viv for Space in my room and maybe get his some company. That would be ace.

I am not at work this week coming (WOOHOO!) so I plan on taking it easy. Catching up on sleep. That sort of thing. I won't have a car as it is in for repair on Monday and they said I "Should have it back on Thursday" but meh you never know right? I want to visit Suzie at Worlds End some time. (Either Friday or Saturday) but if Dave is up to it I would like to go to Warhammer World on Friday also. So I guess it depends on how he feels. And when I get the car back.

By the way anyone who knows what I am saying is ace. HEROES ROCKS! I have seen up to episode 18 and it is going fantastically! I can't wait to see what happens next they always end on a cliffhanger and this one is no exception. I need to know GOD DAMIT!!!

So that is my life. Please feel free to rip it apart...
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NOW!

So first of all Grats to Suzie for her LvL40 ding and new mount ability in WoW!!!
Secondly I am still 64 in WoW because I have been lazy in levelling. It will take me a few months before getting to 70 but that’s OK. I am nearly 65 and when I get there I am going to spend my time in the area you buy the flying mounts so I can make sure I have a good rep with them and get my 10% discount.

In other news it turns out that Games Workshop has announced a new Warhammer 40k MMORPG. Which sounds pretty fantastic. I will have to get that when it comes out but if its a subscription fee one I will only play the freebie bit as I can't afford to pay for WoW and WH40kMMO.

I have been watching a new American TV series called "Heroes" which is really good I got into it straight away and I urge everyone to watch it. Lost is slowing down a bit at the moment but that’s OK because I know that they need the slow episodes to set the scene for the good ones.

We have a few more newbies at Aikido. They are typical kids doing the whole star wars light sabre thing but that soon goes away. And I am glad to be training with new people.

I think I have hit my skill level in the Sax now and I really have to work to get it better. I am trying the "Rock that Sax!" tune at the moment and I can play it smoothly but when I should be tonguing notes instead of playing them smoothly the sounds goes horrible. Still will have to work at that.

Work has been very stressful we are 1 guy down at the moment and the phones don't stop ringing. Some people don't seem to realise how much is coming in that we on the phones stop. Generally a bad time of the year I believe. I can't wait till my week off after next week it will be kick back and relax time, as I won't have my car for most of it.

I got the Scrubs soundtrack for the song "Overkill" and I found out that I like nearly every song! Espically "Dracula from Houston" so there is an upside!

Daffy is recovering from his op last week so I wish him well on that. And Suzie is coming home soon so we will have to do something. Anyway that's about it. Time to get back to work. ARGH!!!

This week I have mostly been. Sick. In pain. Nagged. And Sleepy.

Why?

Because I had a cold. The new people in Aikido (yes we have new people!) keep trying to use brute force and it is becoming dangerous. Some people deiceded it would be a better use of their time to throw paper balls around and moan about telephones than actually doing work so I got even more work than normal (the earliest I managed to leave this week was 6pm). I seem to be sleeping bad again as well.

On the upside the lady that scratched my car has admitted full liability and now it won't hurt me to get the damn thing fixed. Although I have no idea when I will be able to take time off work to get it done!

WoW is going well I am up to lvl62 with Bigboot at the moment but I need 150g to get my epic mount. And do Dire Maul West... GRRRRRRR!!! After that I am saving up for the 5000g flying epic mount and forgetting the regular one. And once I have done that (yeah that small task!) I am going to go back and level Nolo to 70 so that I can get the shapeshift that turns me into a bird.

I need to get my car serviced and MOTed soon as well so I can see the money that I have saved up going quickly again. On the upside at least Service & MOT, Car Tax and Insurance don't all come in one hit like they did before.

I went to my Sax lesson yesterday and my teacher says I can practice "When the saints" this week so that should be good at least. I didn't think I was advanced enough for something like that but actually it looks really simple so Woohoo! Still not Jazzman or Your Latest Trick tho...

Thats it. Signed R - Hoping for a good week!