Open letter to those in the know*

Mood: H'okay
Music: none


Hey!

So, I don't really have a great deal to say here because what I want to say is pretty simple. I kept you in the dark because, well, we've all got busy lives and enough on our plates, the last thing you need is something else to concern you.

Seeing as I know the facts now changes it all slightly. I'm telling you because I thought you should know. I'm not concerned too much, I don't feel any different and I intend the future to carry on as normal so there's no need to worry. This is assuming you would in the first place haha. I don't want this to sound big headed or anything.

So yeah that's about it.



*for those not in the know; you don't need to know. :)

What the Future Holds

Mood: Good
Music: none


Other than feeling like shit because I didn't get much sleep it's been a very good day.
Highlights include good news, mince pies and spending the afternoon with Briony. Particularly a trip to Toys R Us, haha! Moreo n all that in another post. The best day I've had in quite a while.

It's 11:38pm and in about 20 minutes the first lot of votes will be coming in from polling stations in the United States. 2008, an epically important presidential election. There's a real sense of history changing. Personally I hope Barrack Obama defeats John McCain comfortably but I worry at the same time. It seems the american population is an unpredictable bunch. Around 2004 no-one liked George W Bush and yet.. 4 years later here we are.

So I'm concerned that even though Obama is leading in the polls people will just vote McCain for the familiarity of not only a white president (why would anyone be scared of Barrack Obama?) but also the fuckups and attitude of the Republicans. I also worry he's going to get assassinated. And even as I type this I'm getting a sense of danger, like I'm going to get in trouble for mentioning it. I hate to rely on stereotypes but I really don't want some redneck fucko screwing things up.

I think America needs Barrack Obama, whether they know it or not. They do. And because the US is the power that it is; I think the world needs Barrack Obama.
According to a pundit? on the BBC coverage Barrack Obama ideally needs Virginia, Indiana and Pennsilvania. Just have to wait and see.

I'll be keeping an eye on the BBC's coverage tonight/this coming morning.

EDIT 01:07am GMT - Pennsilvania [D]
After McCain holding 8 - 3 for nearly an hour these results storm through.

Obama - Democrat
103
McCain - Republican
34

EDIT: 02:03am GMT - New York [D]

Obama - Democrat
175
McCain - Republican
61

EDIT: 02:40am GMT - Ohio [D], Texas [R]

Obama - Democrat
200
McCain - Republican
124

EDIT: 03:58am GMT - Moments before the West Coast polling stations close.

Obama - Democrat
207
McCain - Republican
141

EDIT: 04:02am GMT - California [D], Hawaii [D], Oregon [D], Washington [D], Idaho [R].

Obama - Democrat
297
McCain - Republican
145

Barrack Obama is the 44th American President. This is a very historic day.
=D

Legotrip

Gizmodo goes to Lego. Exclusive: Inside the Lego Factory

Go there, go there now!

Playing with Space & Time

I'm currently in an Astronomy mood and fortunately there's some really good low cost programs out there.

Stellarium [free] - View the stars and planets from whatever time you want.

Which leads me to thinking about the Solar Eclipse on the 22nd of July 2009 in India/China/Japan etc. which you can simulate within Stellarium. You can even check out the "flight path" of the moon's umbra (shadow) with these awesome Solar Eclipse Interactive Maps.

And if that wasn't enough then it's time to mess around with gravity & planets & blacholes. Even better if you've got some 3D glasses. The Universe Sandbox [1 hour free trial] rocks.

This isn't a proper blog from me because I'm experimenting with blogger's Vista sidebar gadget. It's okay but I wish it loaded my preset post layout along with supporting tags.

Friends of the Earth Free Brochure

Mood: Busy
Music: Artist - Song.mp3 ["Album" Year]

I'd love to find a youtube video of the advert that's on the TV right now but it's highly unlikely to happen. Basically is an advert by the Friends of the Earth trust dishing out a phone number for people to ring so they can be sent a booklet containing tips on how to save energy & money around the home.

Does anyone else not see a problem with this? So I decided to send them a little email.

Hello,

So I've seen a Friends of the Earth TV advert promoting energy saving/general world well being and asking people to phone up for a free brochure about how to make energy cuts etc.

This got me thinking, wouldn't that be abit detrimental to the enviroment in general? I mean surely that's a waste of trees, money, ink, transport on the road, and time? Wouldnt it be a better idea to just host it on the website, offer to email it to people AND allow them to download it as a .PDF file?

I've not looked, but even if those options are already available why is there no mention of it on the tv broadcast. All you'd need is a 10 second clip with the FOE logo and the web address to the online brochure.

Maybe I'm blind but I can't see any reference to the brochure on the frontpage at all - and I'm someone who actually knows about the thing, god help anyone who'se gone to your site and know snothing of the energy/environmental saving brochure you're handing out. Whoever is dealing with your website needs to get their arse into gear to be honest.

How about that for an inspiring solution to an environmental problem?

Just a few thoughts.

It's a fair enough idea right?