bignoseduglyguy

The Guardian profile: Tim Berners-Lee, the godfather of the web, named last year as the greatest living Briton.

Whereas previous posts to this blog have invariably been created with Blogjet on a variety of PCs, this one was crafted with ecto on my new 12″ iBook G4. Whilst the leaning curve is moderate to steep in some places and I keep looking for keys and combos that aren’t there, I’m having a ball and thoroughly enjoying the out-of-the-box wifi/bluetooth capability.

The long-awaited iBook has just arrived from the Far East via Copenhagen, the Netherlands and the obligatory smart-arsed & butter-fingered courier (note crumpled packing top-left of big box).

As it is sprog No.2’s birthday today and she’s just unwrapped an mini iPod this morning, I’m trying so hard to ignore the siren call of the boxes so as not steal her thunder and spoil her day.

‘Since the London bombings, lots more people cycle around the place, which I suppose is a good thing. Though I don’t know which is more annoying: those who race down the pavement, swerving past just before you realise that they are bearing down on you at 20mph, or those who bossily ring the bell to signal “get out of my way, pedestrians!” […] At this point I get lots of letters saying that this represents a small minority of cyclists. All I can say is that recent experience suggests it is not such a small minority.’

Simon Hoggart, talking out of his backside in Saturday’s Guardian.  I only wish I could match his sweeping generalisations with some of my own.  How about lazy journalists who have trouble generating enough fresh, witty column inches by their sub-editor’s deadline or who feel the need to add a codicil or rider to their argument to shore it up.  I know diary pieces are meant to be personal and opinionated but I was under the impression that such opinions should be new and original, not hackneyed and anecdotal.

Meanwhile, on the Letters page on the day the world remembered the bombing of Hiroshima, Kiwi reader Craig Young points out the irony in New Zealand non-nuclear stance, given that Ernest Rutherford was a New Zealander.  The main thrust of his letter is something that I have been mentioning when folks ask if we’re emigrating because of the recent terrorist attacks in London: that the only terrorist act visited upon New Zealand – the sinking of the Rainbow Warrior in Auckland harbour – was carried out by French secret service agents acting on their Government’s orders.

My other blog, Looking for No.8 Wire, has been quiet of late for a variety of reasons.  However, I have just written about my current thoughts and feelings regarding our impending emigration to New Zealand.

A couple of stills from my upcoming ‘fifteen minutes’ on BBC4. The documentary will be called ‘We Are Not Afraid’ and centres on the website that emerged following the July 7th bomb attacks in London. Called, We’re Not Afraid, the site carries messages and images urging defiance against terrorism.

What with my brief wafflings on local radio and my looming BBC4 appearance, I have been giving no small amount of consideration to a career in the media, perhaps by becoming an A-list celebrity or, at the very least, a highly paid talking head. However, a quick flick through the latest edition of London Cyclist magazine, where I get a photo credit for this shot of Tower Hamlets Wheelers in Epping Forest would seem to point towards a new life as a paparazzo. Decisions, decisions…

If you have a little slack time around 18.30hrs British Summer Time today (Monday 1st August), you could have the chance to hear me get tongue-tied on live radio! Jack Thurston (left) called with an invite to be a guest on his Bike show which is “a weekly show delving into the art, science, politics and transcendental pleasure of cycling, in London and beyond.” Tonight’s show will be dealing with cycling in London in the wake of the recent terrorist bombs – you can listen to the live stream or check out the show as an archive here or here (archive are in migration – hence two links).

How refreshing to find a spammer who not only chooses a wholly apposite online indentity but, in doing so, also provides a suggested final destination for his wearisome output. Such honesty and civic-mindedness is to be applauded.

Lazy weekend with a bit of shopping and then down the local with the Sunday papers for a roast and a few pints? Slow Monday morning wading through emails and a Tuesday spent attending dreary meetings?

As previously mentioned, I and a few others did what we thought (at 120 miles in one night) was a long bike ride but this pales into insignificance compared to what my friend and fellow Tower Hamlets Wheeler Colin (above) did in the last four days. He cycled from London to Edinburgh and back. To get some sense of what that looks like, the green line on the map below is 100 miles (to scale) and he basically rode up the red line and then back down it with very few stops and not much sleep.

In an email to friends this morning, Colin provided an insight into what it had been like. “A very international field with a great spirit and amazing feeling of fraternity…fantastic considering they were also not sleeping more than a couple of hours at a stretch. My legs feel surprisingly good today, though they are a wee bit sore…recuperating at home with coffee, the largest amount of junk food you will ever see and Mister H. Potter. Nice!”

The hard numbers of Colin’s ride are as follows:

• Distance: 1417km (885 miles)
• Time: 102 hrs 18 mins (give or take a minute)
• Sleep: To Edinburgh 5hrs; In Edinburgh 2hrs; To London 9hrs
• Punctures: 0
• Mechanical Failures: 0
• Puddings with custard eaten: 19

Col, your humble friends salute you. Well done!