I started a new job a few weeks ago. This was the result of a promotion gained through a generic sift of applicants from both inside and outside the organisation. There are no real promotions at my place; in the interests of fairness positions have to be open for both internal and external candidates. So you could have put in 30 years of work, but because it’s the civil service you’re likely to find yourself unpromoted and working to someone who’s only just joined and doesn’t have a clue what they’re doing. And I see the results of this around me every day. People who have pretty much given over their lives to ensuring that the office and organisation runs smoothly, but because they’re no good at competency-based interviews and don’t have the skill set required for generic campaigns (having focused so narrowly on their department for so long), they simply don’t stand a chance. This leads to a completely unmotivated workforce, stress and an infectious ennui that’s difficult to escape from.
I guess I’ve been lucky in that respect. After starting at the bottom three and a half years ago, I’ve been promoted twice and now find myself in a position of greater responsibilty and, having gained the experience of three separate departments, I’m in a much better place than many to be able to capitalise on that for next time.
It’s a brand new position, consolidating the roles of several other people and hopefully allowing me to develop it into something interesting for whoever takes over the next time I get promoted. I also hope to take on further work from other members of my team, as time allows. In fact, I’m hoping that as we begin to reduce the amount of consultants in the higher roles, I can build myself up into becoming the only sensible choice when it comes to filling those posts.
As I finish writing this, I realise I’m still sitting in a coffee shop when I should be on my way to the office. Thankfully I work flexitime, so I think ill grab another ten minutes before moving.
I’ve bought a couple of Blu-ray movies in the past few weeks and I’ve been pleased to notice the inclusion of a downloadable version of each for playing on portable devices. What a great idea. Not only do I get to watch the film in high definition on my TV, but I also get to carry it around with me on my iPhone and watch it whenever I please.
Or not.
Yes Man on Blu-ray
The first of these two films I bought was Yes Man, starring Jim Carrey. Whilst I’m in no way his biggest fan, I had some credit left on an HMV card and fancied a light-hearted comedy. To my delight, a sticker on the front informed me that I could download the movie for use on my computer and portable device. Disappointment set in when I noticed the phrases ‘not Mac compatible’ and ‘does not work with iTunes’.
According to stats from September of this year, iPods hold 73.8% of the mp3 player market, thus making Warner Bros’ refusal to allow a compatible version an issue for a huge number of people. Perhaps in reality it was a monetary decision; by denying such a huge number of users they’re saving themselves money in distribution costs whilst simultaneously giving themselves a positive, 21st century image by having the label on the front of the box. Being on a Mac, the website even refused to let me see the download page. I’ve bought this movie, just like a Windows user – is my money not good enough?
Star Trek on Blu-ray
On the other hand we have Star Trek. Paramount have done us all proud by not only producing a great movie which can be enjoyed by geeks like me and everyone else alike, they’ve also done the right thing and given us all the chance to view this movie on whatever device we may own. A third disc in the blu-ray box (a DVD for complete compatibility) not only gives us a Windows Media version of the film, but also a link and code to download it for free from iTunes, whether we’re on a Mac or a PC. So your money gets you a high definition version of the film for your big fancy telly; an electronic one for use with Windows and compatible portable devices; and an electronic one for use with Mac, iPod, iPhone and Apple TV.
So hats off to Paramount; Warner Bros could learn a lesson or two from you guys.
For the most-part, Bedford isn’t an attractive town. It’s buildings were all constructed at the wrong time (one of its premier hotels looks like a council block) and it has the run-down feel of Montmartre, only without the charm. It does have one exception though. The Embankment area is very nice, with a lovely river walk and plenty of open space to let your dog run free. There’s always someone canoeing down it at any time of the day and it’s the only place in town where you’ll generally get a smile back off passers-by.
So I took my camera down there this morning to take a few shots. It turns out I still need to a bit more practice to get used to my new toy, but I think some of them turned out rather well. You can take a look at them if you wish on Flickr or in the Photo Gallery.
The Nikon D90 body
I recently bought myself a Nikon D90, though I’ve not had much chance to use it yet. Work, darker evenings and Rocky Horror have meant I’ve not really had the time to get out and about with my new toy. Hopefully I can change that this weekend, though with the weather as it is, I’m not sure that’s going to happen.
Anyway, whilst I’ve not been able to get out with it just yet, I have been messing around with it in the house. And I must say it’s very impressive. Not having a more expensive camera to compare it to means it’s difficult to tell you what’s missing. However, that’s not stopping me from telling you what it has got and how it compares to my old Sony A200. The A200 is truly a budget machine. Whilst it does fit rather snuggly in the hand; has a myriad of options to choose from; and still remains easy to use, its plastic feel, complicated menu system and poor quality kit lenses do leave something to be desired. The lack of LCD screen is also an issue and it’s rather time consuming to find the options you really need.
Not that I wish to knock the A200 too much. As a true beginner’s camera it works rather well and is a good cross-over from the world of compact point-and-shoot cameras. If you’re looking to enter the world of D-SLR cameras and you’re on a budget, the A200 and kit lens is a good starting point. However, I felt that it was time to move on. I wanted to get a new camera before I go away in the new year and needed to get some practice in with it beforehand. So I left Sony behind and got myself a Nikon. Reasons for a Nikon? I felt there was a wider-range of lenses available – both Nikor and third-party – and that they were an established camera manufacturer, rather than a company with its fingers in every pie. Plus, @jeruss has a Nikon and I liked the look of it.
The top of the Nikon D90 with LCD display
So here I am with my new D90. First impressions? Well-built, sturdy and with lots of buttons. And dials. And switches. You’ve got to love buttons on a camera. The more buttons you get, the less complicated the thing is. The less you have to faff around in the menu system looking for options. The touch of a button, the twist of a dial and you’re there; ready to shoot. It’s also very customisable, with a whole host of options allowing you to set up the camera for how you want to use it. For example, if you don’t want the annoying light to come on at the front of the camera when it’s trying to autofocus in low-light conditions, you can turn this off, as well as a whole host of stuff that I’m not going to go into here. The presence of the LCD screen is also extremely useful.
There’s also a little party-piece of the D90 which I’m not sure I’m ever really going to use. Whilst in LiveView mode, the camera allows you to record video with sound. The benefits of using this above your standard camcorder become obvious when you start to zoom and change focus with the myriad of lenses available. You’re stuck with the one you get on your camcorder; with the D90 you’re able to chop and change whenever you like. There is a length limit on videos though, so it’s not going to entirely replace your other equipment, but for short clips and for those moments when you’re out with just your D-SLR, it could come in handy. But as I said, I’m not sure I’ll get much use out of this feature.
The Nikon 18-200mm zoom lens
I coupled the camera with a Nikon 18-200mm zoom lens, which is such an improvement on my old lenses it’s hard to compare the two. The zoom range is pretty much perfect for any situation and with a maximum aperture size of 3.5f at 18mm (dropping to 5.6f by 135mm), it’s great whatever type of photography you’re doing. It’s obviously never going to be as good as a bunch of prime lenses (and I’m still contemplating a macro lens for getting in closer to the action), but you could do much worse than this.
So that’s my new camera. Now I just have to figure out when I can actually go and use it!
I’m writing this on an apparently overcrowded train (or so the announcer would have us believe). I think she should have a walk down the train and take a look for herself. It was packed until we got to Leicester, but now everything’s ok. We keep getting messages apologising for the overcrowding, which are getting slightly irritating!
Anyway, that’s not what I’m writing about. I’m actually taking the opportunity whilst out train is diverted due to works to write about my weekend.
@Y2Neildotcom invited me a while ago to join him in seeing Rocky Horror Picture Show in Birmingham. So my weekend began as many have done before with a trip back up to Derby to visit my parents, but this time as a convenient stopping point on my way to Brum. The trains (up until the one I happen to be in at at the minute) were all fine, though it does appear that a large number of people simply don’t understand the concept of a reserved seat. But that’s by-the-by.
After a general wander around Birmingham to look for something that I could dress myself up in, we retired unsuccessfully to our hotel room at the Ibis. Wow, what a hole that place is! The reception looks alright, and I can contest to the comfortableness of the seats in the bar. However, the room was abysmal. The towels were the size of flannels, the beds were as hard as rocks and the pillows had the consistency of a sponge cake; they looked comfortable, but try resting your head on them! I also almost had to break the door off the shower to get in, due to the plastic sealer around the edges having practically glued itself to the frame. Not at all happy with the facilities.
I look worryingly good in my outfit!
Whilst there, I was persuaded that I just had to wear something or risk feeling completely out of place. So I jazzed my jeans and t-shirt up with a feather bower, pearls and fishnet sleeves. Didn’t really compare to @Y2Neildotcom’s costume though. He decided on a black shirt with white tie, fishnet stockings, white skirt and a pair of size 13 high heels that he’d found online. That was set off with pigtails, flowers in his hair and a full beard! He was extremely apprehensive about leaving the hotel in his outfit, although as soon as we got outside his outgoing side shone through.
The show was on at the Hippodrome, which was conveniently 20 seconds walk from the hotel. As soon as we approached the doors we knew it was going to be a good night. 98% of the crowd were dressed up, and whilst some costumes were more convincing than others, the effort everyone went to was commendable. There wasn’t enough time to queue for drinks by the time we got anywhere near the bar, so we headed over to our seats and got ready for the show. We were in the stalls, dead centre to the stage and with a superb view of proceedings.
And what a show it turned out to be! Ainsley Harriot was guest-starring as the Narrator and the regular script was mix in with a few Ready Steady Cook references, though most of these were in response to shouts from the crowd. Some were absolutely stunning and in many cases not only stole the show from the actors on stage, but also knocked the wind completely out of them. Both Frank ‘N’ Furter and the Narrator had to stop on a couple of occasions to congratulate a heckler or two.
After the show we headed over to a pub with a large number of other guests for a little drink and some Rocky-related fun. Then it was off to a club to drink and dance the night away (minus the dancing in my case though!). I made the sensible choice of removing what little costume I had on, whilst @Y2Neildotcom didn’t; under the belief that it was the destination of all the other Rocky-folk. It wasn’t. But that didn’t stop the fun and I stayed on until the 3:30 closing. So after only three and a half hours sleep, I’m currently extremely tired. Hopefully I’ll remain awake long enough once I get in to actually post this online, but I can’t make any promises!
So all-in-all it was a great night and I’m definitely going to sign myself up for the next Rocky event. I think I may make more of an effort with my costume the next time around, though I’m as yet undecided who to go as. Inspiration will come, I’m sure.
For those of you out there who don’t think that sort of evening is for you, I recommend you just give it a go; you may surprise yourself. I certainly did.
P.S. I didn’t manage to get this published yesterday because it was straight to bed when I got in!
