Matt Pone

New Checklists Added

2008-11-10T04:25:00.000-08:00

I've created some new checklists for all those as useless as I am!

My life consists of many many lists, whether its my gym checklist, my festival check list, my skiing checklist or my mountain biking checklist.

It really helps to reduce the stress of getting somewhere and realising you cant enjoy the activity or trip because you have forgotten something.

But if anyone has any good tips for improving short-term memory - i'll happily give them a go!

2nd Jaw-Dropping Documentary from Zeitgeist

2008-10-23T05:29:00.000-07:00

It's rare to find time to sit back and look at whats really going on in the world.

Are you able to remove your focus from your day-to-day life, your work, your family, your surroundings?

Peter Joseph has managed this amazing feat and this is the result:

Zeitgeist The Addendum

This film will quite literally change how you see the world, in just two hours.

In the first documentary Joseph demistyfied the reasons for religion, war and fear, demonstrating how world leaders have manipulated these issues to control the world population.

Addendum deals (extremely poiniently) with the world finanal crisis and how personal debt has been used by those top few American leaders to enslave, not only the american people, but those in many other developing countries too.

Another frightening eye-opener and one that simply cannot be ignored!

Super Dooper 30th Birthday Shindig!

2008-06-04T09:40:00.000-07:00

Thought I'd mention a cracking little 30th party we attended several weeks ago at The Gregory in Harlaxton. Lovely venue, very rustic yet contemporary with the most fantastic hors douvres - sushi (which I absolutely love at the best of times!) plus Pimm's Jelly shots (a lot like vodka jelly shots with with fresh mint and cucumber!)

Showed some really original thinking! There was large marquee outside with sheltered the many smokers in warmth and comfort, plus a cracking band!

What more could you ask for? Free champagne? .....oh yes, there was!!! lol (Shame I was driving that night!!)

what to do with your new canoe...

2008-04-10T04:59:00.000-07:00

A friend recently bought a canadian canoe/kayak very cheap from a warehouse discount-type shop thingie. One of those random impulse purchases, I'm still not sure if he knows why he bought it? Anyway, he wants to use it on public canals and lakes etc when he goes camping but wasnt sure about the legalities of it?

After a bit of digging around I found that he can use it at quite a few local stretches of water all he needs to do is make sure he has third party boat insurance as a minimum, to cover him again any accidents where damage is done to another vessel or to inanimate objects, like bridges and banks etc

Heathfieldz Chat Room Added

2008-04-04T07:33:00.000-07:00

Finally figured out the basics of PHP and MySQL so that I could install the open source bulletin board PHPBB for the Heathfieldz Festival....

Heathfieldz Chat Room

Took some getting used to - mainly due to the Administrator Interface which I found to be very confusing until I was able to understand the structure and layout.

It is an amazingly detailed piece of software and (when I manage to get some free time) I'll start to learn the finer points of editing the template and making it look part of the main website.

IE8 - Less than "Great"

2008-03-27T02:25:00.000-07:00

Great things certainly weren't expected from the recent release of Internet Explorer 8 BETA and boy we weren't disappointed!

Another pathetic attempt by Microsoft to create a browser to rival Firefox or Opera, and they have failed miserably again!

The best bit is that IE8 actually crashes whenever a Google-based application tries to run in the browser!! Even a simple plug-in like Google Maps on a Contact Us page causes the browser to shut-down, it's such a pathetic and virtually immature way to stop users from using your main competitor.

Everyone in our office is just waiting for Google to release an operating system so that we can be done with ALL Microsoft applications forever! (Hands up anyone who has managed to run Microsoft Windows XP or Vista successfully without it ever crashing??)

To further highlight Microsofts incompetancies, I tried to access Microsoft Ad Center (where you give them money to advertise on their search platforms) and found that I couldn't view certain parts of the system with Internet Explorer (that's Microsofts own browser!) and resorted to using Firefox, which worked perfectly!

Do us all a favour Microsoft and start paying attention!!

Fears of Chopping the Mop

2008-03-06T12:22:00.000-08:00

I hope I'm not alone in my anxiety over getting my haircut - whilst it remains an unarduous task, I can't cease my apprehension once the appointment has been made.

It's the forced conversation, the inability to move, fidget or escape eye-contact that brings the social skills crashing down.

Now I'd quite happily sit there in silence with my eyes shut, comfortable in the knowledge that I have little in common with a hairdresser and that an exchange of pleasantries was sufficient interaction. But hairdresser training school dictates they must put their clients at ease with some light banter and chit-chat.

As I wait, flicking through a well-thumbed copy of Mens Health, I catch the guy looking at the appointment book for my name before he wanders past with a friendly "hiya Matt hows it going?" - all very friendly but having seen through his methodoligies I mentally refuse to view him with any higher regard in my "Hairdresser Mates" High Score Table.

I catch a vague whiff of vomit as I am ushered to the icy chair of death - my mind works overtime as I envisage all the employees suffering from chronic hangovers, all blowing chunks out the back due to excessive consumption of Barcardi Breezers last night in Ritzys.

It's possible non of them can actually see straight this morning, I could be the victim of an involuntary Van Gogh ear remodelling if everything goes pear-shaped!

The initial question catches me slightly under prepared - "So have you got the day off work?", now its bad enough to sacrifice a perfectly good lunch hour for the ordeal, but does the clipper-wielding temptress seriously think I'd use a days holiday for my short-back and sides?

Right on cue, the second cliched question soon rears its ugly head - "You doing anything nice this weekend?" - my mind goes blank, mainly due to the shock of being asked such an absurdly typical hairdresser's question! My initial reaction is to laugh but I retain my composure and begin to think of evil retorts such as "No it's my mums funeral."

I resist the temptation to completely confuse her by preempting her third attempt for a cliche hattrick by asking her "Are you going on holiday this year?" - instead the phone rings and she is required to answer it, prolonging my suffering further.

Finally, the mirror gets flashed behind my head, I nod and fake delight. The financial penalty is paid and I run...

...and they say women have the worst "monthly" ordeal!

The added danger of potholes in UK roads

2008-02-12T04:40:00.000-08:00

I noticed this morning on my usual route to work that my attention, more often than not, is focused on avoiding the huge potholes and sunken drain covers that seem to plague the UK.

Advanced Driving techniques always stress the importance of looking as far ahead as possible to predict any potentially dangerous situations, but I find myself looking 3-4 metres ahead instead to avoid uprooting the suspension on my car and knocking my fillings out!

I'm sure I remember an article in a local paper where a similarly disgruntled citizen managed to make the council cough-up for repairs to their car caused by the lack of highway maintenance....think I may follow suit there!

How to deal with ageing parents

2008-02-06T03:17:00.000-08:00

It's something that we must face up to at some point, our parents will eventually require us to take the decision making process out of their hands and enquire about elderly care homes.

There are various steps to take in the build up to this daunting decision though, initially we can make their lives as comfortable as possible and provide options such as stairlifts and mobility scooters so they can retain an element of freedom.

My grandmother lived in warden assisted flats, which was a great half-way point, with other residents providing a social element, plus the security of having a permanent member of staff on-site 24 hours per day and an emergency cord in each room incase any residents fell or needed urgent assistance.

Ultimately, having no brothers or sisters, I know I will face this potential decision one day on behalf of my parents and I'm dreading it, I must admit!

Latest Musical Discovery, the awesome Cold War Kids

2007-02-15T16:49:00.000-08:00

...just want to offer a big plug to the Cold War Kids - have listened to their album "Robbers and Cowards" only thrice but was enough for me to start adding their vinyl to my collection already.

Sadly they are American but I can forgive them for that, as their music is completely fresh and inspiring. Hints of Jack White's genius are in there somewhere along with distinctive vocals occasionally remenicent of the dearly-departed Jeff Buckley and hint of Arcade Fire thrown-in.

But I dont want to tag them as emulating anyone - they are their own sound, so listen - they have some free tracks to download here Cold War Kids free mp3 download

I recommend Heavy Boots near the bottom of the page - but the best tracks are on their album, tracks such as Hang Me Out To Dry are brilliant, I would happily copy the cd and send to it everyone but thats illegal seemingly and not going to help get this group the recognition they deserve - so you'll ave to buy it!

SES (possibily SOS?!) Conference London 2007

2007-02-15T16:12:00.000-08:00

Search Engine Strategies or a call to Save Our Souls - you decide!

Further ratification that I know more than I thought I did about
search engine marketing after 3 days of conferences at the
ExCel exhibition centre in London.

Bored to death for several hours in the "Advanced" SEM sessions due to being gently nurtured into applying oral pressure on an anally ejected unfertilised gamete on the behalf of my grandmother.

Vastly entertained by Dave Naylor (plus his drinking antics back at
the Crown Plaza) and equally impressed with his blatent confessions
of black-hat SEO tactics, even when sat on a panel with a guy from
Google (flicking 'the bird' to the big boys Dave?)

Hot Tubs and Hotter Hair....

2005-09-20T06:21:00.000-07:00

....with locks all golden, curly and tight,
bottle of champers, plus cigar I might,
bubbles cover essentials, nipples an' all that,
balanced with fine quality such as me 'at,
stand accused of shennanigans and sheer intoxication,
was purely hot tub action, no masterbation!