Hello, folks. Some gremlins appear to have got into the system, but I'm trying to maintain uptime by applying redirects to a version of the site hosted on a NAS box under our coffee table. While waiting for normal service to be resumed, enjoy the beautiful work of Peter Callesen, and peruse and bookmark the young-but-promising free stock textures site.

A house near where we live has been in the process of being restored for ages, and the other day as I passed there was what looked a little like a lighting rig for a film crew set up outside, casting this otherworldly light onto its façade. Very pretty – wonder if it's being done up for filming, or whether the light was simply to illuminate some further work going on?

On the subjects of New Cross and films, don't forget about The New Cross Weekend Philm Club!

Stop press! Or stop FTP transfer, maybe, in this day and age. Whatever; the young lady and I are proud to announce the inception of The New Cross Weekend Philm Club. Basically, the two of us will just be watching some DVDs in the spare room while drinking beer and eating nachos, but if that sounds like your bag too, you're welcome to come along and join us. More info on the FAQ page.

And while we're on the subject, I stumbled across this, the pilot for Family Guy. Consistently one of my favourite shows, and certainly the most grown up toon around, you do wonder how this pitch ever earned them a commission.

You know that way when you're very, very busy, but still manage to find time to play practical jokes on your colleagues? I arrived at my desk this morning armed with a healthy* and nutritious† breakfast of Coke and Monster Munch. Had a meeting first thing, so barely opened my crisps, and returned from said meeting to find a solitary Munch remaining. The rest, as it turned out, had been hidden away in my drawers‡ in this ingenious capsule constructed by taping together two plastic cups. MacUser: always creative, always innovative.


The paintballing of last week was fun, though if I never do it again I won't count my life wasted. The Morning After, I thought I'd come out fairly well, but found, on walking down the very short flight of stairs in our flat that leads to the bathroom, that my thighs genuinely couldn't support my weight. Up stairs, fine; down stairs; actually impossible. Boy, I'm in peak physical condition. Now my legs have returned to normal, though I still have a few blooms of multi-coloured bruising all over my body.

Lastly: do you ever get that thing when you try to explain a concept you've heard explained clearly and concisely, and find that your explanation lacks punch or indeed any intelligible content? Thankfully for me, I came across by chance someone pointing me to an article on the Underpants Gnomes which highlights the eponymous gnomes' business strategy for which I'd been grasping for so long. Basically, it goes like this:

• Collect underpants

• ↓

• ?

• ↓

• Profit!

Many a true word hath been spoken in jest; this so succinctly illustrates the problem with so many business strategies, particularly in this era of YouTube-esque Web 2.0 ventures.


* For a given value of healthy; sue me
† For a given value of nutritious; sue me
‡ As in slidey-out-of-unit things, not British slang for underwear

Next week: paintballing and hair loss.