noSPicedhAM Single http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com bumbling ... posterous.com Fri, 14 Dec 2012 12:47:00 -0800 You knock back the Xmas plonk. I'll just plank ... http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/you-knock-back-the-xmas-plonk-ill-just-plank http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/you-knock-back-the-xmas-plonk-ill-just-plank

Today marks the end of my first month since my hospital discharge. Though a fair number of naysaying medical professionals (plus their legal lap & attack dogs) have emphatically & consistently stated the contrary, I remain medically (and perhaps at some point in the future, visually also) fit. So ...  *blows raspberry* !

It wasn't until September that I fell into the safer hands of a particular association of nurses & doctors; and not until October that I fully escaped the clammy grasp of persecution, and nestled in the bosom of longstandingly accredited consultants whose experience of similar cases lent a tangible veracity to my cause. 

Being back on my own two feet isn't to claim that what hasn't killed me has made me stronger, but my stance is more wobbly than precarious. 

So Merry Xmas y'all and,  if you see a bag of bones & gristle falling flat to the floor during htis festive period, don't automatically assume I've dropped dead. It's far more likely that I'm planking, in protest against a medical diagnosis that one would think had been made by people as thick as two short planks; and should Santa grant my Xmas wish, they'll be walking a very short plank - or at least the straight & narrow.
 

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Sat, 23 Jul 2011 13:14:49 -0700 I've been Google- ed, after 6 years ... http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/ive-been-google-ed-after-6-years http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/ive-been-google-ed-after-6-years
Screenshot

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Fri, 22 Apr 2011 10:12:00 -0700 "In His Image": Good Friday '10 Papal Q&A, Rai Tv - transcript ... http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/in-his-image-good-friday-2010-papal-qa-rai-tv http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/in-his-image-good-friday-2010-papal-qa-rai-tv

Q. Holy Father, I want to thank you for your presence here, which fills us with joy and helps us remember that today is the day in which Jesus showed His love in the most radical way, that is, by dying on the cross as an innocent. It is precisely on this theme of innocent sorrow that is the first question that comes from a seven-year-old Japanese child who says: "My name is Elena. I am Japanese and I am seven years old. I am very frightened because the house where I felt safe really shook a lot and many children my age have died. I cannot go to play at the park. I want to know: why do I have to be so afraid? Why do children have to be so sad? I'm asking the Pope, who speaks with God, to explain it to me".

A. Dear Elena, I send you my heartfelt greetings. I also have the same questions: why is it this way? Why do you have to suffer so much while others live in ease? And we do not have the answers but we know that Jesus suffered as you do, an innocent, and that the true God who is revealed in Jesus is by your side. This seems very important to me, even if we do not have answers, even if we are still sad; God is by your side and you can be certain that this will help you. One day we will even understand why it was so. At this moment it seems important to me that you know "God loves me" even if it seems like He doesn't know me. No, He loves me, He is by my side, and you can be sure that in the world, in the universe, there are many who are with you, thinking of you, doing what they can for you, to help you. And be aware that, one day, I will understand that this suffering was not empty, it wasn't in vain, but behind it was a good plan, a plan of love. It is not chance. Be assured, we are with you, with all the Japanese children who are suffering. We want to help you with our prayers, with our actions, and you can be sure that God will help you. In this sense we pray together so that light may come to you as soon as possible.

Q. The second question presents us with a Calvary because we have a mother under her son's cross. This mother is an Italian named Maria Teresa and she asks you: "Your Holiness, has the soul of my son Francesco, who has been in a vegetative coma since Easter Sunday 2009, left his body, seeing that he is no longer conscious, or is it still near him?"

A. Certainly his soul is still present in his body. The situation, perhaps, is like that of a guitar whose strings have been broken and therefore can no longer play. The instrument of the body is fragile like that, it is vulnerable, and the soul cannot play, so to speak, but remains present. I am also sure that this hidden soul feels your love deep down, even if unable to understand the details, your words, etc. He feels the presence of love. Your presence, therefore, dear parents, dear mother, next to him for hours and hours every day, is the true act of a love of great value because this presence enters into the depth of that hidden soul. Your act is thus also a witness of faith in God, of faith in man, of faith, let us say, of commitment, to life, of respect for human life, even in the saddest of situations. I encourage you, therefore to carry on, to know that you are giving a great service to humanity with this sign of faith, with this sign of respect for life, with this love for a wounded body and a suffering soul.

Q. The third question takes us to Iraq, to the youth of Baghdad, persecuted Christians who send you this question; "Greetings from Iraq, Holy Father", they say. "We Christians in Baghdad are persecuted like Jesus. Holy Father, in your opinion, in what way can we help our Christian community to reconsider their desire to emigrate to other countries, convincing them that leaving is not the only solution?"

A. First of all I want to cordially greet all the Christians of Iraq, our brothers and sisters, and I have to say that I pray every day for the Christians in Iraq. They are our suffering brothers and sisters, as those who are suffering in other lands are too, and therefore they are particularly dear to our hearts and we must do whatever we can so that they might be able to stay, so that they might be able to resist the temptation to emigrate, which is very understandable in the conditions they are living in. I would say that it is important that we are near to you, dear brothers and sisters in Iraq and we also want to help you, when you come, to truly receive you as brothers and sisters. Naturally, all the institutions that truly have the possibility to do something in Iraq for you should do it. The Holy See is in permanent contact with the diverse communities, not only the Catholic community and the other Christian communities, but also with our Muslim brothers and sister, Shi?ites and Sunni. We want to create reconciliation and understanding, with the government as well, to help in this difficult journey of rebuilding a torn society. Because this is the problem, that the society is profoundly divided, torn, there is no longer the awareness that "In our diversity we are one people with a common history, where each has its place". This awareness needs to be rebuilt: that in diversity, they have a common history, a common determination. In dialogue, precisely with the various groups, we want to assist the process of reconstruction and encourage you, dear brothers and sisters in Iraq, to have faith, to be patient and have faith in God, to collaborate in this difficult process. Be assured of our prayers.

Q. The next question comes to you from a Muslim woman from the Ivory Coast, a country that has been at war for years. This lady's name is Bintu and she greets you in Arabic, saying "May God be in all the words that we say to one another and may God be with You". It is an expression that they use when beginning an address. She then continues in French: "Dear Holy Father, here in the Ivory Coast we have always lived in harmony between Christians and Muslims. Families are often formed by members of both religions. There also exists a diversity of ethnicities but we have never had problems. Now everything has changed: the crisis we are living under, caused by politics, has sown division. How many innocents have lost their lives! How many persons have been displaced, how many mothers and how many children traumatized! The messengers have exhorted peace, the prophets have exhorted peace. As an ambassador of Jesus, what do you advise for our country?

A. I would like to respond to your greeting: May God also be with you and help you forever. I have to say that I have received heartbreaking letters from the Ivory Coast in which I see the sorrow, the depth of suffering, and I am saddened that I can do so little. We can do one thing always: remain in prayer with you and, as much as possible, we can offer works of charity. Above all we want to help, as much as is in our power, the political and human contacts. I have entrusted Cardinal Turkson, who is the president of our Council for Justice and Peace, to go to the Ivory Coast to try to mediate, to speak with the various groups and various persons to encourage a new beginning. Above all we want to make the voice of Jesus, whom you also believe in as a prophet, heard. He was always a man of peace. It could be expected that, when God came to earth, He would be a man of great power, destroying the opposing forces. That He would be a man of powerful violence as an instrument of peace. Not at all. He came in weakness. He came with only the strength of love, totally without violence, even to going to the cross. This is what shows us the true face of God, that violence never comes from God, never helps bring anything good, but is a destructive means and not the path to escape difficulties. He is thus a strong voice against every type of violence. He strongly invites all sides to renounce violence, even if they feel they are right. The only path is to renounce violence, to begin anew with dialogue, with the attempt to find peace together, with a new concern for one another, a new willingness to be open to one another. This, dear lady, is Jesus' true message: seek peace with the means of peace and leave violence aside. We pray for you, that all sections of your society might hear Jesus' voice and thus that peace and communion will return.

Q. Holy Father, the next question is on the theme of Jesus' death and resurrection and comes from Italy. I will read it to you: "Your Holiness, what is Jesus doing in the time between His death and resurrection? Seeing that in reciting the Creed it says that Jesus, after His death, descended into Hell, should we think that that will also happen to us, after death, before going to heaven?"

A. First of all, this descent of Jesus' soul should not be imagined as a geographical or a spatial trip, from one continent to another. It is the soul's journey. We have to remember that Jesus' soul always touches the Father, it is always in contact with the Father but, at the same time, this human soul extends to the very borders of the human being. In this sense it goes into the depths, into the lost places, to where all who do not arrive at their life's goal go, thus transcending the continents of the past. This word about the Lord's descent into Hell mainly means that Jesus reaches even the past, that the effectiveness of the Redemption does not begin in the year 0 or 30, but also goes to the past, embraces the past, all men and women of all time. The Church Fathers say, with a very beautiful image, that Jesus takes Adam and Eve, that is, humanity, by the hand and guides them forward, guides them on high. He thus creates access to God because humanity, on its own cannot arrive at God's level. He himself, being man, can take humanity by the hand and open the access. To what? To the reality we call Heaven. So this descent into Hell, that is, into the depth of the human being, into humanity's past, is an essential part of Jesus' mission, of His mission as Redeemer, and does not apply to us. Our lives are different. We are already redeemed by the Lord and we arrive before the Judge, after our death, under Jesus' gaze. On one had, this gaze will be purifying: I think that all of us, in greater or lesser measure, are in need of purification. Jesus' gaze purifies us, thus making us capable of living with God, of living with the Saints, and above all of living in communion with those dear to us who have preceded us.

Q. The next question is also on the theme of Resurrection and comes from Italy. "Your Holiness, when the women reach the tomb on the Sunday after Jesus' death, they do not recognize their Master but confuse him with another. It also happens to the apostles: Jesus shows them his wounds, breaks bread, in order to be recognized, precisely by his actions. He has a true body, made of flesh, but it is also glorified. What does it mean that His risen body didn't have the same characteristics as before? What, exactly, does a glorified body mean? Will the Resurrection also be like that for us?"

A. Naturally, we cannot define the glorified body because it is beyond our experience. We can only note the signs that Jesus has given us to understand, at least a little, in which direction we should seek this reality. The first sign: the tomb is empty. That is, Jesus dead not leave his body behind to corruption. This shows us that even matter is destined for eternity, that it is truly resurrected, that it does not remain something lost. But he then assumed this matter in a new condition of life. This is the second point: Jesus no longer dies, that is, He is beyond the laws of biology and physics because He endured this one death. Therefore there is a new condition, a different one, that we do not know but which is shown in the fact of Jesus and which is a great promise for all of us: that there is a new world, a new life, toward which we are on a journey. Being in this condition, Jesus had the possibility of letting himself be felt, of offering his hand to his followers, of eating with them, but still of being beyond the conditions of biological life as we live it. We know that, on the one hand, He is a real man, not a ghost, that he lives a real life, but a new life that is no longer submitted to the death that is our great promise. It is important to understand this, at least as much as we can, for the Eucharist. In the Eucharist, the Lord gives us His glorified body, not flesh to eat in a biological sense. He gives us Himself, this newness that He is in our humanity, in our being as person, and it touches us within with His being so that we might let ourselves be penetrated by His presence, transformed in His presence. It is an important point because we are thus already in contact with this new life, this new type of life, since He has entered into me and I have gone out of myself and am extended toward a new dimension of life. I think that this aspect of the promise, of the reality that He gives Himself to me and pulls me out of myself, toward on high, is the most important point. It is not about noting things that we cannot understand but of being on a journey to the newness that always begins again anew in the Eucharist.

Q. Holy Father, the last question is about Mary. At the cross we witness a poignant dialogue between Jesus and his mother in which Jesus says to Mary: "Behold your son", and to John, "Behold your mother". In your latest book, Jesus of Nazareth, you define it as "Jesus' final provision". How are we to understand these words? What meaning did they have at that moment and what do they mean today? And, on the subject of entrusting, do you intend to renew a consecration to the Virgin at the beginning of this new millennium?

A. These words of Jesus are, above all, a very human act. We see Jesus as a true man who makes a human act, an act of love for His mother, entrusting the mother to the young John so that she might be safe. A woman living alone in the East at that time was an impossible situation. He entrusts his mother to this young man and to this young man he gives his mother, therefore Jesus actually acts as a human with a deeply human sentiment. This seems very beautiful to me, very important, that before any theology we see in this act the true humanity of Jesus, his true humanism. Naturally, however, this has several dimensions, not just about this moment but regarding all of history. In John, Jesus entrusts all of us, the whole Church, all future disciples, to His mother and His mother to us. In this the course of history is fulfilled. More and more, humanity and Christians have understood that the mother of Jesus is their mother and more and more they have entrusted themselves to the Mother. Think of the great sanctuaries, think of this devotion for Mary in which more and more people feel "This is your mother". And even some who have difficulty reaching Jesus in his greatness, the Son of God, entrust themselves without difficulty to the Mother. Someone said, "But this doesn't have any Biblical foundation!" To this I reply, with St. Gregory the Great: "In reading", he says, "grow the words of Scripture." That is, they develop in lived reality. They grow and more and more in history this Word develops. We see how we can all be grateful because there is truly a Mother; we have all been given a mother. We can also go to this Mother with great confidence because she is also the Mother of every Christian. However, it is also true that this Mother expresses the Church. We cannot be Christians alone, following a Christianity based on our own ideas. The Mother is the image of the Church, the Mother Church, and entrusting ourselves to Mary means we must also entrust ourselves to the Church, live the Church, be the Church with Mary. And so we arrive at the meaning of entrusting ourselves: the Popes-whether it was Pius XII, or Paul VI, or John Paul II-have made a great act of entrusting the world to the Madonna and it seems to me, as a gesture before humankind, before Mary herself, that it was a very important gesture. I believe that now it is important to internalize this act, to let ourselves be penetrated, and to bear it out in ourselves. In this sense I have gone to some of the great Marian sanctuaries of the world: Lourdes, Fatima, Czestochowa, Altötting., always with this sense of making real, of interiorizing this act of entrustment, so that it might truly become our act. I think that the great, public act has been made. Perhaps one day it will be necessary to repeat it again, but at the moment it seems more important to me to live it, to make it real, to enter into this entrusting so that it might truly be our own. For example, at Fatima I saw how the thousands of persons present truly entered into this entrustment. In themselves, for themselves they entrusted themselves to her; they made this made this trust real within them. It thus becomes a reality in the living Church and thus also the Church grows. The common entrustment to Mary, letting ourselves be penetrated by this presence, creating and entering into communion with Mary makes the Church, make us together with Mary, truly the Bride of Christ. Thus, at the moment, I do not intend to make a new act of public entrustment, but I would rather invite you to enter into this entrustment that has already been made, so that we might truly live it every day, and thus that a truly Marian Church might grow, a Church that is Mother, Bride, and Daughter of Jesus.

[rcvd via email, source unknown]

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Thu, 14 Apr 2011 12:55:00 -0700 On the MS rag ... http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/on-the-ms-rag http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/on-the-ms-rag

It's that time of the month again - when you wish you'd gone to bed with a hot water bottle, and just pulled the sheets over your head.

Two & a half hours in, nine reboots of twenty-six patches in five batches, and the bloody purge has finally dried to a trickle. Many would dismiss Windows XP as menopausal but, as I am acutely aware at the moment, it remains a fertile breeding ground of malformed horrors; which is why -  so far - only the oldest, most wizened, desktop has been permitted to expose its most intimate regions to the risk of a Microsoft *ahem* c%ck-up.

Below are some of the objects that will be thrust into your innards. My advice ? Lie back ,open up, and hum the national anthem whilst bracing yourself; and hopefully ,hopefully, you won't require stitches afterwards.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Update for Root Certificates [March 2011] (KB931125)

Update for Windows XP (KB2524375)
Security Update for Windows XP (KB2485663) Security Update for Windows XP (KB2508429) Security Update for Windows XP (KB2506212) Security Update for Windows XP (KB2506223) Security Update for Windows XP (KB2511455) Security Update for Windows XP (KB2503658) Cumulative Security Update for ActiveX Killbits for Windows XP (KB2508272) Cumulative Security Update for Internet Explorer 8 for Windows XP (KB2497640) Security Update for Windows XP (KB2507618) Security Update for Windows XP (KB2510531) Security Update for Windows XP (KB2412687) Security Update for Windows XP (KB2509553) Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool - April 2011 (KB890830)
 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Security Update for Microsoft Office 2007 System (KB2464635) Security Update for the 2007 Microsoft Office System (KB2466156) Security Update for Microsoft Office 2007 System (KB2509488)

Security Update for Microsoft Office 2003 (KB2509503) Update for Microsoft Office Outlook 2003 Junk Email Filter (KB2522981) Security Update for Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2003 (KB2464588) Security Update for Microsoft Office Excel 2003 (KB2502786)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Security Update for Microsoft Visual C++ 2005 Service Pack 1 Redistributable Package (KB2467175)

Security Update for Microsoft Visual C++ 2008 Service Pack 1 Redistributable Package (KB2467174)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Security Update for .NET Framework 2.0 SP2 and 3.5 SP1 on Windows Server 2003 and Windows XP x86 (KB2446704)
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Security Update for Microsoft .NET Framework 4 on Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows Server 2008 x86 (KB2446708).

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Fri, 01 Apr 2011 12:14:00 -0700 I have faith in integration, & @PhilTurpin ... http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/i-have-faith-in-integration-philturpin http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/i-have-faith-in-integration-philturpin

to the extent of cautious use of these Google products:


Alerts
Android
App Engine
Blogger
Bookmark
Buzz
Calendar
Checkout
Chrome Sync
Cloud Print
Contacts
Docs
Gmail
Google +1
Google Sync [MS Outlook & OE/WinMob/Nokia/SE]
Groups
Hotpot
iGoogle
Latitude
Maps
Mobile
News
Notebook
Picasa Web Albums
Places
Product Search
Profile
Reader
SideWiki
Sites
Social Circle & Content
Subscribed Links
Talk [text/video/audio]
Tasks
Voice [Gmail & US]
Wave
Web History
Youtube
[just about the only item I purposefully exclude is Desktop Search, as I find Copernic more stringent in its results].


Clearly there are privacy & Security considerations in surrendering this range of data to a commercial organisation in exchange for its services. I've taken the view that: given the sheer intensity of scrutiny of my personal information by public & private organisations, and how easily this is leaked [often simply resulting from lowest-priced tendering, leading to ramshackle under-staffed & under-policed service], my best defence is not in privacy or anonymity - it's in mundanity. My information has so little variance, it's so average, that it's of minor use beyond its role as an aggregate in mass consumer information.

Sure - my phone calls could be listened to, my location & practices tracked, and my credit card hacked; but I don't say anything particularly interesting, I don't go anywhere that unusual or in a flamboyant fashion, and I keep my credit card limit low.

Essentially, in my goldfish bowl I swim amongst a shoal of minnows; gambling that's it's the colourful, animated big fish that will capture the attention of predators.

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Tue, 22 Mar 2011 03:04:00 -0700 Play.com - Important: Email (IN)Security Message ... http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/-playcom-important-email-insecurity-message http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/-playcom-important-email-insecurity-message

 
"From: "Play.com"
Sent: 22/03/11 01:10
Subject: Important: Email Security Message

Dear Customer,

Email Security Message

We are emailing all our customers to let you know that a company that
handles part of our marketing communications has had a security
breach. Unfortunately this has meant that some customer names and
email addresses may have been compromised.

We take privacy and security very seriously and ensure all sensitive
customer data is protected. Please be assured this issue has occurred
outside of Play.com and no other personal customer information has
been involved.

Please be assured we have taken every step to ensure this doesn?t
happen again and accept our apologies for any inconvenience this may
have caused some of you.

Customer Advice

Please do be vigilant with your email and personal information when
using the internet. At Play.com we will never ask you for information
such as passwords, bank account details or credit card numbers. If you
receive anything suspicious in your email, please do not click on any
links and forward the email on to privacy@play.com for us to
investigate.

Thank you for continuing to shop at Play.com and we look forward to
serving you in the future.

Play.com Customer Service Team

************************************************************************
Confidentiality: This e-mail and any files transmitted with it are
confidential and intended solely for the use of the individual or entity
to whom they are addressed. If you have received this e-mail in error
please notify the sender immediately and delete this message from your
computer without further action. Any dissemination, distribution or
copying of this message or any files transmitted with it by an
unauthorised recipient is strictly prohibited.
Viruses: This message has been swept for viruses but we cannot guarantee
that this e-mail or its attachments are virus free nor accept
responsibility for any virus inadvertently transmitted herewith.
************************************************************************ "

 

and later in the day ...

 

"from    Play.com <info@play.com>
reply-to    info@play.com
date    Tue, Mar 22, 2011 at 9:46 PM
subject    Important: Email Security Update
mailed-by    bounce.newsletters.play.com

Dear Customer,

As a follow up to the email we sent you last night, I would like to give you some further details. On Sunday the 20th of March some customers reported receiving a spam email to email addresses they only use for Play.com. We reacted immediately by informing all our customers of this potential security breach in order for them to take the necessary precautionary steps.

We believe this issue may be related to some irregular activity that was identified in December 2010 at our email service provider, Silverpop. Investigations at the time showed no evidence that any of our customer email addresses had been downloaded. We would like to assure all our customers that the only information communicated to our email service provider was email addresses.  Play.com have taken all the necessary steps with Silverpop to ensure a security breach of this nature does not happen again.

We would also like to reassure our customers that all other personal information (i.e. credit cards, addresses, passwords, etc.) are kept in the very secure Play.com environment. Play.com has one of the most stringent internal standards of e-commerce security in the industry. This is audited and tested several times a year by leading internet security companies to ensure this high level of security is maintained. On behalf of Play.com, I would like to once again apologise to our customers for any inconvenience due to a potential increase in spam that may be caused by this issue .

Best regards,

John

John Perkins
CEO
Play.com

************************************************************************
Confidentiality: This e-mail and any files transmitted with it are
confidential and intended solely for the use of the individual or entity
to whom they are addressed. If you have received this e-mail in error
please notify the sender immediately and delete this message from your
computer without further action. Any dissemination, distribution or
copying of this message or any files transmitted with it by an
unauthorised recipient is strictly prohibited.
Viruses: This message has been swept for viruses but we cannot guarantee
that this e-mail or its attachments are virus free nor accept
responsibility for any virus inadvertently transmitted herewith.
************************************************************************ ".

 

Note that Play do not draw attention to the fact customers sign in to their accounts with the aforementioned leaked email address as username. Nor do they mention they retain customer credit card information, rather than requiring it to be re-input on occasions of purchasing.

It's not the spammers one needs worry about, it's the burglar gang who have both your address, telephone number, & a shopping list of the Play items you have.

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Thu, 17 Feb 2011 06:56:00 -0800 6 days & 23hrs later, @BTCare releases me back into the community ... http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/6-days-23hrs-later-btcare-releases-me-back-in http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/6-days-23hrs-later-btcare-releases-me-back-in

By which I refer to resumption of my voice telephonic service and consequent stable synch of the broadband connection.

The Friday line diagnostic first test seemed to indicate an issue at the exchange. The Tuesday second test indicated a likely fault within my premises, requiring an engineer's inspection scheduling. Eventually on-site this afternoon, that Openreach engineer instead tracked the fault to a "loosened connection at the local junction"; and he proved polite & efficient. As an unrelated aside, I note that another Openreach engineer was attending the local junction last Friday "working on a neighbour's line" at the time my fault initiated.

As a point of general information, I found the only effective form of interaction with BT in this matter to have been via their Line Fault webpage at https://www.bt.com/consumerFaultTracking/public/faults/tracking.do?pageId=2 ; as verbal reporting of the problem to the Indian/Pakistani Customer Service Representatives, via the Nos 800800150 & 03301234150, left me uninformed as to the progress of the case. Supposed sms updates were never received, except for two [both 2hrs after the respective events]: we acknowledge your fault/we've fixed your fault. Rather important ones, such as we need you to schedule an engineer's visit to your property were never received.

If not for the backup "handset as modem" broadband connection [yes, that previously-described congested one dependent on the intermittently-functional local T-Mobile Uk mast], I'd still be waiting - a week on - to learn that BT was waiting rather on me to book an Openreach appointment to investigate my case, instead of actually having had it resolved. *fingers crossed*

So, if the fix proves temporary ? Well, I'll be taking up the offer of intercession from the @BTCare twitter staff; and be establishing whether BT's 21st century social medium can assist its 19th century one.

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Thu, 20 Jan 2011 19:47:00 -0800 T-Mobile UK's Capped Data Rate actually is ... http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/t-mobile-uks-capped-data-rate-actually-is http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/t-mobile-uks-capped-data-rate-actually-is

Since WebNWalk [& later its offspring] was first launched some 5yrs odd years ago, Capped Data Rate has referred to the speed at which your data connection is throttled - not any volume usage limit [the latter having varied extensively from 10GB/3GB/2GB/1GB/750MB/500MB/50MB/ to 40MB dependant on tariff].

The standard handset connection has always been limited to 3G speeds, irrespective of whether there's hsdpa coverage].

The WebNWalkPro/Plus/MobileBroadbroadPlus tariffs were enabled with full available hspda [speeds of 3.6-4.5MBps d/ld & 1-2MB/s up/ld; irrespective of whether tethering handsets as modems, or just the [currently more usual] usb modems.

With the introduction of Android, the d/ld CPR for WebNWalkPlus variant handset tariffs was reduced to 1.8MB/s max, and at some point last year [I would hazard a guess to align with the introduction of iPhone to the network, though it may have been earlier] the up/ld data rate was throttled to 3G speeds of approx 384KB/s max.

I hope this provides some clarity.

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Mon, 01 Feb 2010 07:36:00 -0800 Intermission http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/intermission-72 http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/intermission-72

... for possibly up to a year, as - frankly - I've run out of things to say!

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Thu, 21 Jan 2010 14:58:18 -0800 Baffled by Bafta ... http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/baffled-by-bafta http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/baffled-by-bafta

Bafta must have neglected their morning coffee this morning, with Avatar nominated as their Best Drama - best cgi certainly, but drama?

James Cameron doesn't do that, any more than his wife does insight. I can only assume The Hurt Locker is riding some "let's support our brave troops" sentiment; whilst Nowhere Boy drifts in the syrup of beatified Beatle sentiment. In contrast, Sex & Drugs & Rock N Roll sears; and Me & Orson Welles imposes.

In fact, other than Christopher Waltz's faceted Nazi, it's immersed biopic portrayals that impressed me; with actors Serkis/McKay/Streep/Scott-Thomas transforming themselves. Best Picture [not prettiest, or sweatiest], surely District 9; for sneaking in such extensive social commentary, under the guise of entertainment (in reverse contrast to Precious). The remaining primary Bafta category of Best Director, I would suggest being awarded to Duncan Jones; for achieving such depth of emotion, and coherence of story/acting/soundtrack/sfx to engage & involve his audience - without emptily spending hundreds of millions of dollars over the course of an entire decade.

If Bafta do succumb to the pull of commerciality/sentimentality/jingoism, as we have come to expect from other award bodies, then they should be fully prostitutive - by nominating All About Steve in every category [you know a film is bad when it's pulled from distribution a week after its general release. Not even the stagnant pondlife that is Did You Hear About The Morgans? had that happen!].

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Wed, 20 Jan 2010 23:08:00 -0800 The gag reflex ... http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/the-gag-reflex http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/the-gag-reflex

An acquaintance [ @Ltjgrice ] had an unfortunate inadvertant tooth swallowing tonight.

It's said that Jackie Kennedy's wealthy second husband [Aristotle Onassis] would humiliate her in company; by slurring her perceived idyllically-mannered history, in regaling his guests with the indiscretion "You see this woman here? She swallows anything I put before her.". This coarseness apparently being swallowed by his wife also.

*first ladies need money-ing too*

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Mon, 18 Jan 2010 15:14:00 -0800 Lowest of the low ... http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/lowest-of-the-low-0 http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/lowest-of-the-low-0

In Haiti, the aid agencies that have been howled at 24hrs/day by news media commentators - for insisting that a secure distribution infrastructure be in place before aid commences, to minimise chaotic criminality - have been proven correct as looters prey on their
fellow afflicted.

This is just one example of why reporters are held in such low esteem. For not only do they chatter at the point of tragedy, when any feeling individual would participate in attempting to ameliorate the situation, but any analysis expressed seems to shift with the sand - yet maintaining an illusionary pontification of being set in stone.

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Wed, 13 Jan 2010 12:43:00 -0800 Playing shake, rattle & roll .. http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/playing-shake-rattle-and-roll http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/playing-shake-rattle-and-roll

Doubtlessly a comment as unsavoury as it is untimely, but the Haitians must still be quaking in their boots over yesterday's tremors.I wonder though of the general relevance of international disaster & accident presentation at a local audience level.

 Is information weighted as "news" simply because video footage is available to fill television airtime? The medium shapes the media message, in effect.

So you & I see dead people.

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Mon, 11 Jan 2010 12:55:00 -0800 Popping something unpleasant in my mouth ... http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/on-popping-something-unpleasant-in-my-mouth http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/on-popping-something-unpleasant-in-my-mouth

Bought a packet of Rowntree's Fruit Jellies, expecting something like pastilles; and because "taking time out of an active life to enjoy a sweet treat".

Instead of fruit, I discovered pepper/nettle/spinach/carrot, but the only taste is this kids' sweet other ingredient of PIG FAT. How can pork gelatine be legitimate confectionery?

It's said that Britain has no heavy industry any longer. Yet it's churning out overweight children by the metric tonne. No wonder chavs have no taste, if the nearest they come to fruit is this Rowntree product. Mind you, it may be how they are weaned onto flavoured condoms by Social Services; after popping out a first couple of baby hoodies to get that Council flat.

*innit*

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Sat, 09 Jan 2010 13:05:00 -0800 Being scathing: insult to injury ... http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/being-scathing-insult-to-injury http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/being-scathing-insult-to-injury

BUPA, you shoestring medical services provider!

What's the point of having a specialist Physiotherapy centre, yet being too tight-fisted to shell out some of your fees on clearing paths & carparks of ice & snow. You may as well be tipping people out of their wheelchairs, nicking their crutches, and kicking legs out from under them directly. Caring profession, my (snow-ground) rear.

Not that Bupa are the sole indication of unintelligent life on Earth. My parents' Council; being discontent with allowing the "electorate" to skate around on the pavements for the past three weeks, paid for an actual icerink to be erected in front of their town hall - literally adding insult to injury.

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Sat, 12 Dec 2009 15:08:00 -0800 @DanHardaker : on Ebeneezing the Xmas shopping http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/danhardaker-on-ebeneezing-the-xmas-shopping http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/danhardaker-on-ebeneezing-the-xmas-shopping

You ask if the gift hunt ended up at The Pound Shop [where "everything is a pound!" ] in jest, but with me:

a Paddington Bear book for Mother, the Jonathan Ross biography for the sibling, and Shilpa Shetty's S2 perfume for the +1 = total spend of four quid; which left enough for a new ball for the dog, a Pepsi for me, and a few pennies to charity.

Christmas for a fiver - result!

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Fri, 11 Dec 2009 22:53:00 -0800 @LucasBlack : [a few] Gremlins ... http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/lucasblack-a-few-gremlins http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/lucasblack-a-few-gremlins

Hey, don't knock Gremlins too much - I found myself with a date as a result of this movie. My arm being relentlessy grabbed at every "scary" moment, until even I realised it couldn't be that frightening, and that some subterfuge was occurring.

Lessons learnt: women are sneaky, and the best things happen on the back row of the cinema.

Actually said incident was a formative personal insight: too inobservant to be come hithered by the batting of eyelashes and the fluttering of fans, too refined to be drawn by the display of a push-up bra.

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Thu, 10 Dec 2009 06:20:00 -0800 No more @giffgaff guff ... http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/no-more-giffgaff-guff http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/no-more-giffgaff-guff

My initial enthusiasm has been all but extinguished for the new "social community" MVNO giffgaff .

I continue to appreciate their conceptual appropriation of Lebara Mobile & 3-UK's free intra-network calling, Asda-UK's service pricing, and a similar free data offer to that with which O2-UK introduced GPRS [well, actually O2's was twice as long].

However the reality is that a half a month on, not only has original sim not been delivered but nor has its replacement. It's not as if the address is a fishing boat in the North Sea - giffgaff's parent [O2] has been sending phones/sims/bills there for two decades!

Perhaps this new mobile network is not ready to serve urban - as opposed to metropolitan areas - yet. Certainly if their infrastructure cannot support simple physical service delivery, then one cannot have confidence that more complex intangible facilities - such as billing - will be correctly implemented.

Regrettably, I have seen no option but to issue their Support Agency with the following directive:

"Sirs,

Please cancel my purchase order, and reimburse my credit card with the amount you withdrew on 26/11/09.

You have failed to supply both the original sim and its replacement [to an address O2 have been delivering bills/sims/mobiles to for 2 decades].

I have no further time to devote to this issue, nor evidence to recommend your service in its current state.

Regards".

Hopefully others' experience will be better, but I relate mine in warning.

 

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Wed, 09 Dec 2009 15:12:00 -0800 Tiger, Tiger, burning bright ... http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/tiger-tiger-burning-bright-2 http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/tiger-tiger-burning-bright-2

I realise I'm late to Tiger's immolation, but he's not the first golfer to take his wood & spank a couple of balls into the rough; and Mrs Woods should have known the marriage was astray, when Tiger endorsed his razor - not her - as "the best a man could get".

Hopefully for all concerned, this will be his last close shave - especially as Gillette have pulled their sponsorship.

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Mon, 07 Dec 2009 19:03:00 -0800 Whipped into a frenzy ... http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/whipped-into-a-frenzy http://nospicedham-single.posterous.com/whipped-into-a-frenzy

Grrr & doh - swapping over an O2 simcard to a different handset, looked away for a moment, and the sim had vanished!

Spent almost an hour searching: under chairs/bags/ in books etc. On giving up, rang for a replacement; then headed for shower. On whipping down longjohns, out fell my ... sim.

How on Earth it got there, I have no idea. Hoping scratching of unsavoury areas weren't involved.

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