I started this blog to record my effort at selling my house, so I guess an update is due. Its still on the market, the price has dropped to reflect the slowdown in the number of viewings, and I am resigned to being its proud owner now into 2008. Whether I do any more work on it is something my work profile will influence, and early signs are that I will be fairly busy between now and Christmas so likely not.
I keep dropping hints at work about being offered a separation package, but the management team just grin inanely, say nice try, and farm me out somewhere else to ply my trade. The share price went up to $119 recently and is now back to about $112, but while the firm is doing OK I can't see any brown envelopes being distributed.
That will, therefore, put my professional sports watcher role on hold as well. Just imagine being in Moscow, Paris and Sao Paulo last week, well perhaps not eh!
F1 is not something I would stay in to watch usually but I was gripped by the drama yesterday, and as Maclaren blew it, so went \Lewis Hamiltons chances of winner the BBC Sports Personality of the Year. I suspect he will get the young sportsman award, and if Ricky Hatton wins in Las Vegas, the major award will be his. Padriag Harrington is from Southern Ireland so I am not sure he qualifies for the top prize, he may have to settle for the International award.
Team of the year is the hardest one to call, have we still got a synchronised swimming team? Talking of which, if one synchronised swimmer drowns, do they all have to?
Showing posts with label ricky hatton. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ricky hatton. Show all posts
Monday, 22 October 2007
Friday, 3 August 2007
Wannabe
Vote rigging of one sort or another has been in the news recently, so an article about the Spice Girls caught my eye yesterday. The girls are all geared up for a world tour, and have very generously left one date free for fans to vote on a venue near them. The winning arena, church hall or farmers field will host the girls on that spare date.
So guess where is winning so far......Baghdad!!
Now there are two schools of thought here about how the voting has been targeting such a place. The sympathetic theory is that the locals need a bit of cheering up and, together with the GIs in the city, they have voted for a bit of glamour. Now whether Scary Spice is really that in light of all else that is going on remains to be seen, but if the locals want them, thats fine.
The conspiracy theory on the other hand is that the rest of the world think Baghdad is the best place to send the thirtysomething has beens, and true music lovers would not take issue with that, would they?
My person experience of vote rigging was centred on the work local in Croydon, which some of my older IBM colleagues may be able to relate to. The local brewery wanted to rename the pub outside East Croydon station and asked for names to be put forward against which the locals could register a vote. One such IBM employee suggested 'The Sweaty Sock' and upon hearing this was a nomination there was a mass vote by the IBM staff. It won hands down, but the brewery refused to accept the name for the pub instead choosing 'The Porter and Sorter', the name under which it still trades.
The BBC Sports Personality of the Year vote has suffered from tactical voting in previous years, with fishermen, non-league football players and sumo wrestlers all featuring in the voting process, although none of them have ever made the final five. Last year was a particularly disappointing array of talent to choose from though.
This year could be a bumper year for nominations although people are indicating that the racing driver Lewis Hamilton, will drive away with it. There is, however, a world athletics championship and the small matter of the Rugby World Cup to potentially throw up a name or two, and lets not forget Ricky Hatton should he floor Flloyd Mayweather II in Las Vegas in December.
That fight provides more bad news for the Spice Girls who are scheduled in Las Vegas the same night. Word has it they have been dumped from the MGM Grand into a smaller venue to allow the boxing to take precedence. 'Say you'll be there' could well be their tour slogan.
So guess where is winning so far......Baghdad!!
Now there are two schools of thought here about how the voting has been targeting such a place. The sympathetic theory is that the locals need a bit of cheering up and, together with the GIs in the city, they have voted for a bit of glamour. Now whether Scary Spice is really that in light of all else that is going on remains to be seen, but if the locals want them, thats fine.
The conspiracy theory on the other hand is that the rest of the world think Baghdad is the best place to send the thirtysomething has beens, and true music lovers would not take issue with that, would they?
My person experience of vote rigging was centred on the work local in Croydon, which some of my older IBM colleagues may be able to relate to. The local brewery wanted to rename the pub outside East Croydon station and asked for names to be put forward against which the locals could register a vote. One such IBM employee suggested 'The Sweaty Sock' and upon hearing this was a nomination there was a mass vote by the IBM staff. It won hands down, but the brewery refused to accept the name for the pub instead choosing 'The Porter and Sorter', the name under which it still trades.
The BBC Sports Personality of the Year vote has suffered from tactical voting in previous years, with fishermen, non-league football players and sumo wrestlers all featuring in the voting process, although none of them have ever made the final five. Last year was a particularly disappointing array of talent to choose from though.
This year could be a bumper year for nominations although people are indicating that the racing driver Lewis Hamilton, will drive away with it. There is, however, a world athletics championship and the small matter of the Rugby World Cup to potentially throw up a name or two, and lets not forget Ricky Hatton should he floor Flloyd Mayweather II in Las Vegas in December.
That fight provides more bad news for the Spice Girls who are scheduled in Las Vegas the same night. Word has it they have been dumped from the MGM Grand into a smaller venue to allow the boxing to take precedence. 'Say you'll be there' could well be their tour slogan.
Tuesday, 26 June 2007
A staff half
It is ironic that I was in The Ring public house in Southwark, last night, given that Ricky Hatton has just impressed in his latest defence of his Light Welterweight boxing title.
As its name suggests, The Ring has boxing history, although some of that history is debated. Whether John Graham Chambers actually wrote the Queensbury Rules in the bar of the pub is unclear, and the pub never had a boxing ring itself, although there was one just across The Cut from which it takes its name.
The bar is decorated with old pictures of boxers from the past and has other memorabilia to boot. Its main attraction though is that it still gives 'staff halves', a practice which is dying out in drinking establishments now as weights and measures regulation, and tight, margin grabbing landlords try to outlaw it.
Interesting that they are happy to serve a pint with a half inch head on it though......
As its name suggests, The Ring has boxing history, although some of that history is debated. Whether John Graham Chambers actually wrote the Queensbury Rules in the bar of the pub is unclear, and the pub never had a boxing ring itself, although there was one just across The Cut from which it takes its name.
The bar is decorated with old pictures of boxers from the past and has other memorabilia to boot. Its main attraction though is that it still gives 'staff halves', a practice which is dying out in drinking establishments now as weights and measures regulation, and tight, margin grabbing landlords try to outlaw it.
Interesting that they are happy to serve a pint with a half inch head on it though......
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