Extended schools

Just had a meeting up at the local secondary school about extended schools, they are trying to get together a team of 15 people to run with the project in our area and I have been asked about being one of those 15, quite an exciting opportunity in many respects but do I have the time? This is the big question and the biggest obstacle to me saying yes. It would be great for building up greater relationships with the school but I am already too busy and inevitably something would have to give, while I would happily give up some of the admin it is kind of needed so I don’t know, well a couple of weeks to think about it!

I had a dream

I had a strange dream last night, I don’t normally remember my dreams but I do this one, I was in the local secondary school getting ready to do an assembly when I realised I was still wearing my dressing gown I then spent a while asking people if I had really turned up at the school to do an assembly in my dressing gown or was this a dream. Weird!

A sad day for the film industry

In my previous incarnation (or employment if you prefer) I was a photographer/photographic technician and so it was with much sadness that I read this morning of the passing of one of the greatest film emulsions ever to have been made, Fujichrome Velvia 50 has fantastic colour reproduction and a grain so fine it’s unbelievable, it must be almost 15 years since this film was first introduced to the market and I brought a role as soon as it was available and fell in love with it. Although I don’t do much photography now to have a chance to use this film still fills me with excitement because I know that if I do my job properly I will end up with some beautiful pictures. Stocks are still available at the moment, I don’t know if I shall get to buy any but if you still use a film camera and want to try something different especially if you want great landscape photos get yourself some of this, for best prices try here.

If your more of a print film user then I would recommend trying this one, I was fortunate to try one of the first rolls in the country of this film and again it is fantastic I have used loads of this stuff and it is well worth a try, the one thing I would say though if you do, get it processed properly!

Argos

As promised here it is the piece I’ve been threatening to write for a few weeks now, and today the final move in the ongoing saga was played so I can give you a completed story:-
A few weeks ago (due to the need to turn the study into a third bedroom with imminent arrival of third child) we ordered a cupboard to house the computer so that it could move into the living room (this is also helpful as our oldest is now getting to the age that he wants to use the computer). We ordered it on the Saturday for delivery on the Tuesday (some time between 8am and 6pm), needless to say Tuesday came and went but the cupboard didn’t. A phone call confirmed that it would be with us on Wednesday first thing, 4:30pm a driver arrived and tried to deliver half the cupboard, we refused it on the grounds that we wanted the whole thing not just half, another phone call and we are told that we should never been told first thing, and that the whole thing would be delivered the following day again the same time span. Thursday came and went and again no cupboard, this time excuse was because we had refused it the day before so whole things had been sent back to the warehouse and we would have to reorder, we reordered over the phone and we were told it would be delivered on Monday. Having gone out on Saturday we got home mid afternoon to find a card telling us they had tried to deliver it. Monday arrived and around midday we delivery driver arrives once again and tries to deliver one and a half cupboards, we just accepted the one. (I must add all these calls are to an 0845 number so I have to pay for the privilege as well). Upon putting the cupboard together we found that the 17” CRT monitor that it would take will only fit if you remove the base plate and balance it carefully on the shelf. A tower case of the size specified in the catalogue does fit but not if you want to plug anything into it so we had to take the back of the bottom of the cupboard. Lastly we had to move the catches for the doors as they would not close properly. The really frustrating thing is Argos are the only people who sell anything like this that will do the job we wanted it for!
Anyway today we had a letter in response to our written complaint with an apology (quite rare in this day and age) and £25 worth of vouchers plus we were refunded the delivery charge, so well done Argos for you after care customer support, you have taken a great step towards restoring our faith, only request, if we could have picked the cupboard up in the first place I’m sure it would have made life easier for all of us!

Links

Some great links today to get you thinking about all things youth workie! Firstly this great cartoon from the talented Mr Dave, how true this can be. And a couple of links found firstly Via Marko of YS fame, the second link coming from the first, although a bit American (well they would be) these perhaps help to highlight some of the things we can learn about ministry from Jack Bauer of 24 (although I personally only watched the first series they are now up to number 5 in America) again I think there is some stuff we can all relate to here.
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Baptism in the Spirit?

Ricky Carvel, a man I don’t really know but have kind of stumbled across in blogdom through a mutual interest in that great band (see last post! (as in my last post not the piece of military music!)) Anyway he writes occasional blogs entries at three different locations and I figure any man who puts down

I get paid to set fire to things. Which is nice...

as his description on his blogger profile has to be worth following! Anyway one of his blogs has an interesting debate going on at the moment about Tongues and Baptism in the Spirit some of it almost getting quite heated, thought I should flag it up and see if anyone else has comment to make.

Fat and Frantic 3

I am beginning to think it’s time to post on this subject again, I have had 2 more comments in the last 2 days on my original post back in February, maybe this is because that original post comes up on the first on the first page of a google for Fat and Frantic. Anyway I am beginning to think with this much interest wouldn’t it be great if we could make Fat and Frantic’s music more easily available. Should we start a campaign to get Fat and Frantic’s music on iTunes. I don’t know how we would start such a campaign, I’m not sure how easy it would be for iTunes to get hold of the music but it think it would be good to try and perhaps if we could get them to put one of their tracks as the free track of the week to help more people discover this British treasure. Then the only other thing I would like to do is set up a tribute band ‘Thin and Lethargic’ (when I say the only thing I mean the main other thing I would like to do in remembrance of this great band.) what are your thoughts? Which track do you think should be made available for free to get people into the Fat and Frantic vibe?

Starting

Well it’s been/still is a very busy week with loads to do, and just to help after having spent yesterday morning at a meeting, (which I probably didn’t have time for but it was one of those that I’m really glad for which I made the time!) running the bus at the local school at lunch time it then failed to start, needless to say the bus is still at the school and I am awaiting a call to tell me when someone can come out and help get it started/moved. It seems that it is the starter motor gone now. Oh what joy.
Although not having had much time to blog the last few weeks (not sure it’s going to be any better next week) but I am making a list of things to blog about so when I get some time hopefully it should pick up for a while.

WWJD 2

Well we made a decision, and brought the car, it’s a great motor but even greater to know we don’t have to look anymore, just got to sort out all the money and insurance now, oh and of course the washing machine has just broken down, this after the dishwasher back in January, and of course the reason for the new car new baby coming! Appointment at hospital yesterday all good, just got to wait for the big day now.