I can see why Eve was tempted by the Apple

I love my new Mac: the operating system is a doddle. I took me a while to get used to some things, though, like working without right-click; I miss the Solitaire and Free Cell games. Wonder if there's a commercial Mac version. A major disappointment was the loss of my ftp program, Terrapin. There's no Mac version and never going to be. I now use Transmit, and it's OK, but it's not Terrapin.

I have been using a CD-ROM (aimed at kids) called Rivka Teaches Hebrew. According to the liner notes, it works for both PC and Mac. Yeah, right. There are no Mac files on the CD. I surfed to lexingtonwarner.com/support only to be redirected to timeslearning.com. I emailed them and got no response, so I rang up. They couldn't understand why I had no reply, this was most unusual, etc, but told me that Lexington Warner are now in receivership so there was nothing they could do. I suppose I shall have to invest in Virtual PC.

My Runes program doesn't work in Mac either, so I found a Mac version called Rune Hilda. Couldn't get that to work either, so I emailed Ray@Mindmedia.com on 15 November. Guess what? I'm still waiting for a reply. I have since realised that I needed to install the Classic environment, and now it works fine. I'm not going to bother to tell Ray, though. Why should I put myself out for someone who can't be bothered.

C-Pen

It's come! I haven't yet explored its scanning qualities as I'm too busy using it as a mouse to get back on my desktop. It has to be said that it makes a rather clumsy mouse (or perhaps that's the fault of the mouser), but that is, after all, its secondary function.

It's great to be back on the desktop. I thank heaven for my laptop, but it kept freezing because it was 'out of resources' every time I opened Eudora and my browser at the same time

Gotta go - The Bill is just starting.

Disposing of old computers

You can try to sell them of course. You can pass them on to a friend. You can bin them (not good for the environment). Or you can use them to help the Third World. Computer Aid International "has already shipped over 37,000 PCs to more than 90 developing countries. Of those 37,000 shipped over 25,000 have gone to educational institutions and the remaining to community organisations working in fields as diverse as HIV/Aids, environment, human rights, and primary healthcare.".

They do have a limited collection service (they're based in London), but I use Parcel2go.com. Their rates are good, and they have a special low price for Computer Aid donations (at least, they did, last time I sent one.)

Of Mice and Women

I've been hitting the credit cards lately (so no change there) and buying all those accoutrements without which no home office is complete. I have a beautiful minimalist silver mesh letter tray that will set off my iMac to perfection [SIGH].

I am now the proud possessor of a cross-cut shredder. I'm still playing ... I mean familiarising myself with its various features. I have also installed a pull-out keyboard shelf on my desk. The mouse sits on a little pad to the side. It was a nice mouse. It was optical, but not cordless because I found they ate batteries. So the cord droops down under the desk. On the left-hand side, because I'm left-handed. The shredder is under the desk. On the left-hand side. Just under the drooping cord. You can probably guess the rest. It made the most dreadful sound, like someone flatlining. But more plaintive.

Luckily I had just ordered a C-Pen pen scanner, and that doubles as a mouse. Until it arrives, I have my battered old laptop. No point in getting another mouse. My iMac will be here soon [SIGH].

The answer is blowing in the wind

And the question is, "What are they doing out there?". 'Out there' is off the Kent coast, and 'they' are installing a wind farm. Read all about it here. You can see a picture of Resolution, the strange vessel that has been exciting the curiosity of the dog walkers of our English Shangri-Lah [COUGH] here.

Uncharted Waters

Being on unusually good terms with my bank at the moment I decided the time had come to think about a new PC. I have a Dell Dimension 4500S. I chose that particular model because you can stand the CPU on its side to save space. I've noticed of late that the DVD/CD-ROM drive doesn't always work properly in that position, so it's taking up considerable room on my desk.

I checked out Dell's website, and considered the Inspiron 9100: "The ultimate Desktop-Replacement with the flexibility of a notebook". Of course, you always get less for your money with laptops, and as I'm not on the move, it is, in a sense, redundant.

Next I checked out the VGCV2S.CEK from Sony. I was very tempted by this beautiful machine, but then I read a rather dismal review by one of the 'poor bloody infantry' (aka end-users). Although I came across only one disgruntled Sony user, I didn't find any 'gruntled' (LOL) ones. I thought it was best to go with what I know, and I have no complaints about Dell, quite the reverse.

I went back to the Dell site, and had just about configured the system I wanted, but had a couple of queries, so rang them up. Last time I rang, they were all Irish; now they all seem to be Indian. A lot of call-centres are moving to India. Why? Well, whatever reason businesses might give, in my not-so-humble-opinion (and that of many others) it's because they can pay a good deal less than the minimum wages laid down by the EC.

I spoke to a very pleasant woman who answered my questions and then gave me her direct line so that I could order. I said that I would place the order online, as I wanted to think about it a bit more. She then told me that it wasn't safe to order online as my credit card details could be stolen. I understand why she did it: I'm sure she needs every bit of commission she can get, but I couldn't help wondering what Dell would think if it knew its agents were telling potential customers that its secure website wasn't!

I hummed and haahed a bit more, and then I decided to sail into uncharted waters. I am so sick of WinD'OHs. I had problems after downloading Service Pack 2 for XP (who hasn't?!!!!) and have already had to download a patch. So I laid in a course for Apple, and there I fell in love. The object of my desire is the iMac G5. I didn't rush, though (not much!), I read a few reviews, and one person said that it's better to buy the eMac which does much the same for much less dosh.

I rang Apple, and the voice at the other end was Irish. Better still its owner was from Cork. My father came from Cork, and the accent is unmistakeable.

I asked about the eMac versus the iMac, and she said it would be better to go with the iMac. I was so-o-o-o-o glad she said that. She very kindly steered me away from some expensive and unnecessary options (I tend to get carried away) and knocked £70 off my 40Gb iPod. The only downside? I have to wait until the end of October. Oh, will this month never end?

It's not quite uncharted waters: I had the use of a Mac once, but it was so long ago that Apple was no more than blossom on the tree, hehehe.

I have a good feeling about this (uh-oh): all the Mac users I know are besotted with their machines.

On Starving

I fasted for Yom Kippur yesterday. It nearly killed me [G]. The last two hours were the hardest, and I was kept going only by fantasies of what I was going to eat that night.

That's not entirely true. At some point during the day I had some sort of epiphany. I had approached the fast in a very poor frame of mind, but suddenly something clicked into place, and I was so happy that I was fasting. And there was a sense of being linked with Jews all over the world.

I had the stopwatch out (slight exaggeration), and the first thing I had was a long, long drink of water. It is advisable to break the fast with a little plain rice and a cup of tea, or something like that. It is certainly not advisable to have a toasted cheese and onion sandwich and ice cream. I can vouch for that. It was lovely at the time, but I felt ill for the rest of the evening.

I still have nothing to say ...

but the writer of Baghdad Burning has much to say; all of it heartbreaking. Oh what have we done to these people?

Just logging in to say I have nothing to say. Bit pointless having a Blog then, innit?

I couldn't be happier

Athena


?? Which Of The Greek Gods Are You ??
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More on the Jerusalem bus bomb

Haaretz reports that the Al Aqsa Murderers' Brigade has claimed responsibility for the mass murder this morning. And one witness said this:

"It was like a pastoral scene — the sun was shining and it was serene outside — but the bus was a nightmare. Bodies were sitting in their chairs, burnt, motionless," said witness Drora Resnick. "There were burnt children sitting together. People started rushing off the bus, but they were still there, not moving."

Bus Bomb in Jerusalem

On a morning when 400 Palestinian prisoners are being released, the men of violence, the sowers of hatred, murder 10 innocent people and maim at least 30 others.

Doubtless public condemnation will be reserved for Israel if she takes retaliatory action.

Read more on An Unsealed Room.

I discover penicillin

A week or so ago I used my blender to make a banana and strawberry smoothie (Mmmm — smoothie). Washing up the blender seemed a task too great for me at the time, and this morning when I found the courage, mould was growing inside. It has a pleasant disinfectant-y sort of smell.

Laziness? I wish it were that simple. It is the same lethargy that grips me when I can't even move myself into a more comfortable position on my chair.

Frost

Robert, that is, 1874-1963.

This is one of his best-known poems, and appropriate for the weather we're having. Proper Arctic it is, or even Siberian [ahem]

STOPPING BY WOODS ON A SNOWY EVENING

Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village, though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.
My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.

The woods are lovely, dark, and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.

Snow

I am speaking to you from the white hell that was once the south-east of England. It's been at least an hour since the snow began, and I have to reach a painful decision — do I ration our supplies and/or eat the dog?

Here are two pics from my front door, and one of the back garden:

What did I say?

TRAVEL CHAOS AS BRITAIN TURNS ARCTIC, screams the headline on Yahoo News. The article, from Sky News, goes on to say:

Snow, ice and freezing temperatures have brought travel misery to commuters across Britain. Thirteen centimetres of snow fell on Peterborough in Cambridgeshire overnight and temperatures are expected to drop as low as -15 centigrade in parts of the North. Conditions on the roads are particularly treacherous, while many train travellers have had to contend with delays and cancellations. ... Although the south-east escaped the worst of the weather, London Underground chiefs appeared to be caught unprepared, even though the severe conditions were predicted up to a week ago. Consequently, there were no services at all on sections of the Metropolitan, Jubilee, Piccadilly and Central lines. The South Eastern, South Central and Chiltern train companies all reported delays due to "adverse weather conditions".

Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

I suppose that if I were a Blogger worth my salt, I would be firing off reams about the Hutton Report. Well I'm not (going to fire off reams, that is). And that's all I'm going to say on the subject.

My headline says it all: it's cold. Worse than the weather is the siege mentality that grips everyone, egged on by the media. The hint of a snowflake and the supermarkets are crowded with people 'stocking up' as though they expect to spend the next few months completely cut off.

The authorities speak grimly of being prepared this time, of not 'having a repeat of last year' (when Britain ground to a halt), of having spent millions on grit to ensure the roads stay open.

The media waffle on about Arctic or Siberian weather. It's neither. It's perfectly normal weather for these latitudes at this time of year. Why does everyone insist on behaving as though this is somehow unexpected or out of the ordinary?

Desperate situations ...

apparently excuse all and any violence. According to Jenny Tonge, that is. Consider these pearls of wisdom on Palestinian suicide bombers: "I think if I had to live in that situation, and I say this advisedly, I might just consider becoming one myself." Read more at The Guardian website.

Interesting. Where does Dr Tonge stand on the issue of Israeli desperation?

Because if my child/mother/father/sister/brother/husband/wife/friend and so on had been blown into tiny pieces while engaged in the deeply offensive and provocative act of taking a bus to school or work, I'd be pretty desperate. If my family or friends had been shot down in cold blood carrying out such oppressive actions as lighting their Shabbat candles, or reading a bedtime story to their kids, I'd be pretty desperate too. If most of the world said my country (and therefore I) had no right to exist, and the UN, who had voted for my country's creation did little or nothing to stem the tide of hatred, I'd be pretty desperate. Yet Israel's every act of self-defence is decried as oppression by such 'liberals' as Dr Tonge (and I vote for her party. Hooray for CK for showing her the door). Individual Israelis have resorted to violence. And Israel punishes them with the full force of the law. Israel doesn't believe that her citizens' desperation excuses violent or criminal acts.

I noticed that the 'they're-driven-to-it-by-brutal-Israeli-oppression' brigade were remarkably silent when the two British suicide bombers murdered Israelis in Mike's Place. Neither of these men was of Middle Eastern origin. What made them so 'desperate'? Could it ... could it possibly be ... [GASP], that Israel has occupied Hounslow and Derby? Or could it be that this whole desperation excuse is nothing more than smoke and mirrors?

Desperate people do commit suicide. And they may do it publicly and dramatically to draw world attention to their plight and that of their people. When their suicide takes the form of an act intended to kill and maim as many innocent people as possible, they become murderers. Let's not fudge the issue.

Blaming the Israelis for the evil deeds of an individual, or those of the men of violence that indoctrinate them does the Palestinian people no favours at all: it demeans them, belittles them, it prevents them from taking responsibility (not the same thing as claiming responsibility) for their own actions.

Of course the Palestinians live in an atmosphere of political hopelessness, because they're backed by forces that don't want them to enjoy democracy or a decent standard of living — they're far too useful as they are. And suicide bombing is sometimes not so much an individual's despairing response as a course of action forced upon them. Consider this:

Translation by IMRA Sunday, January 18, 2004 How Hamas Turned Adulteress Into Suicide Bomber Alex Fishman, Yediot Ahronot 18 January 2004 Military sources claim that the terrorist Reem Al-Reyashi, who blew up four days ago at the Erez Crossing and killed four Israelis, was forced to carry out the suicide attack — as punishment for cheating on her husband. A few hours after the suicide attack the Hamas published the will of the 22 year old mother who became a terrorist. With a broad smile on her face and a rifle in her hands Al-Reyashi read her shocking desire: "I always wanted to be the first woman who sacrifices her life for Allah. My joy will be complete when parts of my body fly in all directions." But information that reached Israel regarding the situation that led Al-Reyashi to carry out the attack raises a completely different picture. According to this information this is not a cold blooded terrorist, steeped in faith and madness, who chose out of free will to turn her two young children into orphans — but instead a woman who was forced to carry out the act. According to military sources, the terrorist paid a cruel price for being involved in an illicit love affair and was forced to sacrifice herself in order to clear her name and the honor of her family. IDF sources said that already at the beginning of the investigation it turned out that Al-Reyashi's husband, an activist in the Hamas organization, not only knew about his wife's plans in advance — but even encouraged her to carry out the suicide attack. This even though he knew that with his wife's death he would be left to raise their two small children alone. Another thing turned up from the investigation: the person who was chosen to recruit the 22 year old Al-Reyashi to carry out the suicide attack and equipped her with the explosive belt was none other than the lover with whom she cheated on her husband. The British Sunday Times reports in this morning's edition that the husband even drove his wife to the Erez Crossing [read it here hedgie]. In contrast to previous female suicide bombers, Reem Al-Reyashi had no family member who had been hurt in the course of the Intifada. She is the daughter of one of the established families in Gaza. Her father was the owner of a large factory for the production of batteries in Gaza that markets most of its production in Israel. The IDF refuses to believe reports that the family of the suicide bomber was shocked to discover what she had done. This morning the entrance of workers from the Gaza Strip to Israel will be renewed — but the security demands will be stricter. From now on workers will not be allowed to enter Israel with bags or satchels — including bags containing food. Workers who wear shoes with heels will be barred entrance. They will also be barred from bringing back things from Israel when they return. The investigation of the attack over the weekend finds that the suicide bomber tried to enter the Israeli side of the Erez Crossing twice. When she passed the first time the metal detectors sounded an alarm and Al-Reyashi was asked to leave. After a short time she joined a group of female workers and returned, but the metal detector sounded an alarm again. The terrorist was asked to remove her jewelry but even after she did that the electronic detector continued to sound an alarm. The terrorist was only allowed to enter after she burst into tears and begged to be allowed to pass.

Plus ça change ...

I'm sitting here timewasting, because if I go offline I have to face the mountain (probably a molehill to anyone else) of things that need doing and the sheer horror of my existence. In cyberspace I'm safe. Nothing to do but fiddle around with templates. No, that's not strictly true — I have a website in urgent need of updating. Others are affected by my failure to act. That comes into the category of 'things that need doing', though and is therefore off limits. I have to give myself permission to ignore all these things; then I find it easier to do them.

I sit at my desk all day with curtains drawn and use a light box to compensate. Crazy.

Forget the Golden Globes
You have until 31 January to vote for your favourites in [fanfare] The Bloggies. I couldn't be bothered to vote in all the categories, but I voted for the best Middle Eastern blog, and was glad to see that one of my favourites, Alison Kaplan Sommer's An Unsealed Room was in the running. I cast my vote for Alison's "window on life in Israel", but had she not been among the nominees, I would certainly have voted for Baghdad Burning.

Baghdad Burning is life in Iraq from the viewpoint of an intelligent, literate Iraqui woman. Her English is impeccable. What have we done to these people? I can say 'we', because although I was against the war, I didn't do anything: I didn't sign a petition, I didn't go on a march, I didn't write to the PM or the President or my MP. Yes, Saddam was a monster. So was Stalin. Did we topple him? All right, he had muscle. So does the government of China, so presumably we won't be going after them for the - what? hundreds? thousands? of Tibetans who have suffered under their rule. And what of the 'disappeared' in Argentina? Did anyone ever suggest a 'regime change' there?

I tire easily these days, and cannot sustain an argument for long, but, please, read Baghdad Burning to learn what you won't learn from the BBC, ITV, CNN, or Fox et al. The most recent posting concerns the decision to replace Family Law with Shari'a.

The White Dog revisited

I wasn't going to have another dog ever again. And here is the result of that decision:.

And if you think this blog is crap, you should have seen the state of her paws after her run this morning.

The White Dog

This was my black dog's successor . She died (i.e. the vet said it would be the kindest thing ...) last September, aged almost 17. Didn't do a great deal for my depressive state.

The Black Dog

Isn't that what Churchill called depression? My black dog was a great comfort to me.

I think I prefer to think of it (depression, that is) as running through water: a great deal of effort moves you on only a little way and the whole business is so tired and frustrating that in the end you give up. Maybe that's not such a good analogy: at least one is left with the cool water swirling round one's legs. All right then: running through water on a dark night in a thick fog.

Everything that mattered to me once seems pointless now.

Question: If I Blog regularly about my depression, does it in fact mean that I am coming out of it?

Question: Wouldn't this sort of misery be more appropriate to my Live Journal (no link — it's a secret. As if anyone cared)?