Monday, February 20, 2006
And Now For Something Completely Different
Hopefully tonight's other post should mark, if not the actual conclusion, at least the dying embers of one of the problems that've been plaguing me the last year. So happy (relatively) stuff only for this post.
My first proper post of 2006, and the anniversary of my return from my round-the-world trip last year. So how's 2006 gone so far, 1/7th of the way through as we are?
Tried to buy a laptop the day after the last time I posted - 29/12. Still haven't got it! There's been much comedy with my credit card company (having to ring them 4 times to get them to action the payment I'd asked them to make), and with the laptop company (who, as far as I can work out, cancelled my order on my behalf as they'd taken the rather generous special offer I'd bought the thing under away, and replaced it with a new, much less good offer they thought I might be more interested in). Still, fingers crossed for it this week - it's currently at production stage 9, which as far as I can tell means they've run out of stamps and have gone down to the Post Office to get some more.
Survived (most of) my first year-end with only a few cuts and bruises. It doesn't help that everyone keeps saying "It went so well, it was a really good one." I'm doing my usual of focussing on the negatives. And I've already said I'm not doing that in this post.
Been to the cinema twice in 2 weeks, having not been, I think, for about the previous 6 months. Aeon Flux good, Final Destination 3 bad.
Regained contact with 4 friends I thought I'd lost. Technically, I haven't quite finished off the making contact with 2 of them, but I will send you all e-mails or phone this week before I go on holiday.
Received the second most positive appraisal I've ever had - we'll see how that translates into bonus in the next few weeks, but I'm hoping the laptop will be paid for (which is pretty much what I told the credit card company back in January...)
Got to the 1/3 point in CNPS - that was tonight. 2006 has been pretty poor for CNPS - I've averaged one every 5 days (despite what I told you earlier, Jimbobjo - my math was a bit off!), or around 1/3 of the rate I was getting last year. Current estimate for finishing is somewhere around June 2009.
Tried out my ski boots last week. I'm sure a lot of this is psychological, but they feel at least as good as the ones I had in Cortina (my previous best), if not better. Looking forward to finally going down a mogul field without limiting myself to right turns!
Going skiing on Saturday! 'Nuff said.
Won quite a few quizzes recently. Tonight's at the OWS was at least my third of the year, and a new prize record - £11 each! And we thought we'd come about 4th! Also came joint first at the Swan last week, but due to our usual rubbishness at the tiebreak round, we only won the £25 drinks voucher rather than the 50 quid cash.
Marathon training has gone surprisingly well. I've got 2 months to go on Thursday, and I can comfortably do 10 miles at a 4-hour-for-the-marathon pace - would probably be able to keep that up for several more miles, too. Considering that for my first run of the year, on 08/01, I just managed 5 miles before collapsing in a heap on my bed and I couldn't walk properly for the next 2 days, I'm quite happy with how things are going - just one problem so far, with my knee getting locked about 7 miles along on one run. I will be going for a half-marathon on Thursday evening - I'll let you know my time.
I've applied internally for a new job. I reckon that I'm about a year behind Lint, so getting a promotion is one of my 2006 challenges, where he had it for 2005. Hoping for the interview to be after I get back from skiing - the other 2 people I know who've applied have already got their interview dates though...
Really enjoying Battlestar Galactica. It's an excellent update of the rather camp 70s/80s series, with much better acting, believable sympathetic characters, good plots and amazing effects. If it manages to keep this up for another few series and hold together a coherent plot over that time, it could rival B5, and I never thought I'd say that about any series.
My first proper post of 2006, and the anniversary of my return from my round-the-world trip last year. So how's 2006 gone so far, 1/7th of the way through as we are?
posted by Chip : 23:36
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An Englishman's Home
My own castle has felt decidedly under siege the last year or so. Someone called me tetchy last week - this is the culmination of just one of the reasons why. Here is an e-mail I received from one of my neighbours on Sunday - the names have been changed to protect ... well, no-one in particular.
"Dear All,
This is just to let you know that I bumped into Chris from number XXX in the car park last evening. I asked him if he was still withholding his service charge payments and, because we had heard nothing from him for some time and he has not replied to any correspondence, whether or not he still considered himself a part of the Residents' Association.
In summary, he is up to date with paying his service charge, thinks the Residents' Association is " a waste of time" and is "not getting us anywhere". He also said he "hasn't got time" to attend any of "these meetings" (I think we've had one in the last 6 or 9 months), and wasn't interested in receiving any further correspondence in connection with the Residents' Association.
He was unaware that has admitted some culpability for the condition of the windows and that the company has also admitted their service has been inadequate - and he didn't know {management company} has offered a contribution to the sinking fund. Presumably this is because he hasn't bothered to read any of the correspondence he's been copied in on.
Of course, any member of the Association is perfectly entitled to do as they please over paying the Service Charge (or not) - but in view of the circumstances ,I do think it might have been courteous for Chris to let us know that he had decided to opt out of the "protest" and was no longer interested in the Residents' Association. Presumably he'll also be happy to "opt out" of his share of any financial settlement agreed with {management company}!!!???
We're all very busy people and none of us are doing this for fun, or the good of our health - this is taking up far too much of my time, but I'm simply not prepared to be ripped off by {management company} any longer. And I think recent developments have shown that our persistence is finally paying dividends, and we must keep up the pressure on {management company} to further increase their contribution to the replacement windows scheme/pay compensation for neglect of our property. Four of the six leaseholders in our block are firmly behind the protest, and there is every intention to enlist the support of the new owner of number XXX once that sale is completed.
Regards"
A few of the points in here are valid, I'll admit - I haven't bothered to read any of the e-mails since the author of the above wrote one to complain to the rest of us about the "undesirable characters" hanging round next door, and that someone should tell the mother of the girl about it - but most of them are open to argument. E.g. the correspondence I've been "copied in on" makes no mention of anything about the windows compensation, I've checked, and I've received no e-mails from them between 28th November and last Friday - and they're keyed to get through the spam filter too, so it's not that.
Since, at this point, I'm clearly off the writer's Christmas card list, I wouldn't normally feel particularly inclined to hold back on a reply, but as I said to the author on Saturday, I have other things that come higher up my priority list than this to worry about - plus, getting no reply from me is probably the most annoying thing for her, she'll be aching for a fight!
"Dear All,
This is just to let you know that I bumped into Chris from number XXX in the car park last evening. I asked him if he was still withholding his service charge payments and, because we had heard nothing from him for some time and he has not replied to any correspondence, whether or not he still considered himself a part of the Residents' Association.
In summary, he is up to date with paying his service charge, thinks the Residents' Association is " a waste of time" and is "not getting us anywhere". He also said he "hasn't got time" to attend any of "these meetings" (I think we've had one in the last 6 or 9 months), and wasn't interested in receiving any further correspondence in connection with the Residents' Association.
He was unaware that
Of course, any member of the Association is perfectly entitled to do as they please over paying the Service Charge (or not) - but in view of the circumstances ,I do think it might have been courteous for Chris to let us know that he had decided to opt out of the "protest" and was no longer interested in the Residents' Association. Presumably he'll also be happy to "opt out" of his share of any financial settlement agreed with {management company}!!!???
We're all very busy people and none of us are doing this for fun, or the good of our health - this is taking up far too much of my time, but I'm simply not prepared to be ripped off by {management company} any longer. And I think recent developments have shown that our persistence is finally paying dividends, and we must keep up the pressure on {management company} to further increase their contribution to the replacement windows scheme/pay compensation for neglect of our property. Four of the six leaseholders in our block are firmly behind the protest, and there is every intention to enlist the support of the new owner of number XXX once that sale is completed.
Regards"
A few of the points in here are valid, I'll admit - I haven't bothered to read any of the e-mails since the author of the above wrote one to complain to the rest of us about the "undesirable characters" hanging round next door, and that someone should tell the mother of the girl about it - but most of them are open to argument. E.g. the correspondence I've been "copied in on" makes no mention of anything about the windows compensation, I've checked, and I've received no e-mails from them between 28th November and last Friday - and they're keyed to get through the spam filter too, so it's not that.
Since, at this point, I'm clearly off the writer's Christmas card list, I wouldn't normally feel particularly inclined to hold back on a reply, but as I said to the author on Saturday, I have other things that come higher up my priority list than this to worry about - plus, getting no reply from me is probably the most annoying thing for her, she'll be aching for a fight!
posted by Chip : 23:19
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