This Ordinary Life

I don’t know about you, but I have learned to hate calling customer service numbers. The advent of voice recognition has introduced about 5 minutes of computer-voiced menus at the beginning of every call. I even once heard that American Express made their computer controlled menu system so complicated and lengthy to encourage people to use their website.

But really gets me hot under the collar is the fact that they are earning fat profits off these calls. In the old days, you had free 0800 numbers or a real number to call which if you were lucky was local or you paid long-distance rates. Now everyone uses “National Rate” 0870 and similar numbers. Funny, that 0870 numbers are excluded from every calling plan available in the UK, landline, VOIP and mobile meaning you have to pay for every call. Couple this with the amount of wasted time at the beginning navigating menus only to have the “real” person you end up speaking to oblivious to the menu selections you made (e.g. put in account number, interested in why you overcharged me on my overseas transactions, like the colour blue) asking you everything again and the company you called has a real money-maker on their hands.

Well, you can put an end to this in most cases using a nifty website called www.SayNoTo0870.com. They have the real landline number alternatives for 0800, 0808, 0844, 0845, 0870 and 0871 numbers. I have used it a number of times and saved a packet. If you every come across any landline number alternatives, you can even submit it to the site to be added to their database.

To all you companies looking to make a fast buck off 0870 customer services lines, take as long as you want cus’ we ain’t paying for 0870 any mo'.

Posted by this ordinary life at 10:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Yesterday, as Part 2 of my review of the Focus Variado and to kick-start my Battle with the Pre-Middle Aged Bulge, I took the Variado out for a 100km ride to Boxhill and back.

This ride took me through Central London, Brixton Clapham and straight down the A24 towards Dorking and to Boxhill. The first and last hours were painfully slow as traffic lights and congestion hindered my path, but the middle hour took me through some very nice countryside.

There were plenty of hills to keep me busy with a total altitude climbed on the ride a respectable 630m. Boxhill itself was a delight to climb on the Variado, so either people make it out to be much worse than it is, I am fitter than I thought or the Variado was born to climb. The view from the top of Boxhill is spectaular and well worth a visit even if not cycling. If you do choose to visit it as part of a weekend outing, don't forget to also visit the nearby Polsden Lacey manor house. Both are National Trust sites.

Regarding my previous comments on handling, in my opinion it will take a couple of rides until you get used to the very responsive nature of the Variado. I think I have reached this point (after 200km) as on this ride, even when reaching a top speed of 55kph and darting through traffic, I very much felt in control.

Some tired legs, a nice tan, 4 hours and 2700 Calories later, I arrived back home. I am very impressed with the Variado, to such an extent that I will be making a 4 hour Sunday ride part of my endurance training.

Next Sunday its out to Windsor and back (80km)...

T-minus 4798km in the next 337 days to go to the Cayo.

Posted by this ordinary life at 10:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Now everyone gives the Germans a hard time for what has globally become know as the ultimate fashion faux pas, socks and sandals. Now I do admit that I have worn socks and sandals from time to time, but I will caveat this with the fact that it was usually the result of not wanting to freeze toes off when insisting on wearing my beloved Birkenstocks on even the most blistery of winter days. A note on that beloved pair of Birkenstocks, although there is do real evidence, I think my mate’s dog ate one. I still haven't been able to accept it is gone and bought a replacement pair.

Back to fashion faux pas... I would like to defend the Germans in coming up with this very liberal approach to displaying underwear (socks are underwear). Do people not like this look because socks are too hideous to be shown (think of how women feel about exposing their “granny” pants) or the fact the letting feet breathe more freely may lead to the wider proliferation of foot odour? I don't know the answer, but I do know this, if the Germans hadn't pioneered the socks and sandals look, we would today be without many popular looks including the very short skirts or shorts, tights and sandals/strappy shoes look seen everywhere this last winter.

Why do I think socks and sandals lead to these looks? Because Germans aren't prudes and their lack of inhibition in showing their underwear (socks are underwear) has enabled the more prudish cultures like the Brits to push decency boundaries themselves.

So the next time you criticise someone for socks and sandals, unless you want to start chastising every stocks n' sandals wearer as well, think twice.

Posted by this ordinary life at 11:19 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

It has become very trendy to trade on you or your company's "sustainability mojo". Companies across the board are trumpeting how they recycle the odd plastic cup and are undertaking programes to encourage staff to print double sided when actually these are token efforts used to divert attention from the fact that they are dodging initiatives which would make a real difference but require some up front investment.

Personally, I think this is an alarming trend with more an more companies exploiting sustanability without actually contributing to it and still getting brand benefit. When I was at one of the Big 4, it was a real challenge to get environmentally-friendly operational efficiencies introduced. For example, default double-sided printing was vehemently resisted as it was decided that this might infringe on people’s inalienable right to print single-sided and removing people's bins to encourage recycling was seen as being too nazi’esk (this particularly stung as I am German). Whatever happened to the day that people simply did what their companies told them to do or get fired? Is all that we have to show for years of labour reform, a lazy and uncooperative workforce that can’t be fired?

My opinion is that society (let's start with the UK) shouldn’t have the right to choose to be environmentally friendly in the workplace, but be forced to. This is not because I favour dictatorial workplaces, but rather that, in line with previous comments on the inherent laziness of the human race, and the fact that being environmentally friendly is considered by many to be inconvenient, people won’t choose an environmentally course of action by their own free will. Unless, of course, they are already drowning and choking in pollution and trash, at which point it is too late anyway.

It baffles me that anyone, particularly those with children, would consciously behave in a way that has been proven to not only jeopardises their own future, but certainly the future of their children.

So the message is... Get a life, recycle, save energy and don't waste stuff. It doesn't only protect the environment, but will save you and your company (which will hopefully manifest itself in your bonus) a packet.

Posted by this ordinary life at 11:41 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Well, I haven't been doing this blogging this for long at all, but I am already thinking about way to make it easier and how to be part of the the next big thing.

In my opinion I can do both through audio podcasting, but I'll only start doing this if I can raise enough cash through this blog. Yes, cheap German b@stard... or you could say a very cunning market researcher!

I reckon that I need approximately £200 to get me started (mic, software, etc). At my current rate of ad revenue, this would take approximately 10 years to raise.

To help me raise this a bit quicker, I need you to:

1. Recommend this blog to your friends (or enemies)
2. Visit often

In return for this, I will share with you:

1. More interesting "ponderings" and quirks from my life
2. Rants and complaints about the UK and other injustices to society
3. Tips on how to do more with less - the principle of "Frugality"

I also promise to proofread my entries before positing them as I do have a higher than fifth grade edupacation, edjumacation, erm... brains...

Your support of this blog is greatly appreciated and doesn't cost you a dime!

Posted by this ordinary life at 2:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Stepped on the scales these morning and received a surprise, 92.2kgs... To say the least, I was slightly miffed. Seems like yesterday I was celebrating my success in beating to pre-middle aged spread, but in a similar fashion to the Viet Kong, it has managed to creep back up on me.

Don't get me wrong, the signs were all there. Shortness of breath climbing long flights of stairs, breaking into a heavy sweat on a 10k run and having problems assuming the position on my bike due to belly squishage should couldn’t have been more obvious. Drinking plenty of alcohol, carbs after 8pm and at least one chocolate bar a day certainly didn't help either.

But I must admit, the nail in the coffin was a mate of mine comparing my man-boobs to my wife's breast and commenting that, although smaller at present, it was only a matter of time until my rack was bigger than hers.

On the back of his and certainly others friends’ comments (we have a refreshingly honest group of friends) and the fact I am crapping myself about the Jungfrau Marathon I've signed up to do in September, the ceasefire is over and the war on the pre-middle aged bulge is back on.

I'll keep you informed of my progress against the enemy and share some of my tactics. This enemy is wily and well entrenched, but I think that success will be mine. Just have to resist those Hoegaardens with a slice of lime on hot summer days, rye bread sandwiches with liverwurst and gherkins, Peanut Butter Chunky Kit Kats... Man, this is going to be tough!

Posted by this ordinary life at 10:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Anthony Bourdin wrote a great book a few years ago called "Kitchen Confidential". This book tells the "behind the scenes" stories of what happens in the kitchen of New Yorks top restaurants. Readers are captivated by stories of how the restaurant industry would collapse if it wasn't for legal and illegal immigrants from Central America, how cooks scrap by to follow their sadistic dreams of becoming a head chef and also how unsanitary some of them are.

Well, I think it would be interesting to write a similar book about the underbelly of toilets in Britain. Be they in train stations, airports or other public venue, more like likely than not they are going to be manky and the country should be ashamed of themselves for permitting them to exist. Many people include the state of toilets when they rate hotels and restaurants. If the UK were rated on the state of its toilets, the rating starting point would be sh!thole and that's before rating its political system, public transport and public demeanor (don't fret, I can be critical as I want because I love the place).

My book would have some great chapters on how janitors just push around grimy water to see if anyone notices, the use of urine scented toilet bricks, gunk stained urinals, the practice of not using toilet brushes, leaving behind little surprises for the next visitor and my personal favourite seeing how many blocked toilets it takes to get people to make formal complaints. There would be a special section on Music Festival toilets, where I now know why people wear wellies (rubber boots), it's not in case it rains, but to avoid catching chollera and disintary when wading through the seas of human excrement that overflow from the portal loos and pools from those that don't bother to use them. I am amazed that a mate of mine is still alive after having to wade through several such lakes in flip flops last year at the Isle of Wight Fesitival.

There would then have to further chapters or perhaps sequels about English hotels with shag carpet in the bathroom and the state of employee toilets at the top companies (there are some particularly fine example of nasty toilets on the ground floor of PWC's 1 Embankment Place and in KPMG's Dorset Rise offices in London). This list goes on: toilets on trains, in British Airways' airplanes, at doctor's surgeries, at the cinema and, and, and... I don't know what it is but Britain love unsanitary toilets. What drives this passion? I let you decide for yourself.

Let me know what you think of this book idea, perhaps it could be coffee table photo book. Believe me, and those whose know me will support this, if enough people think this is a good idea, I'll write it. I think we have a best seller in the making.

Posted by this ordinary life at 7:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Well, this entry is coming to you from Dusseldorf Airpot at the ridiculously early time of 5:30. Now that may seem early, but please not that I got up at 3:45. No mean feat for someone that for many years has not been an early riser.

Why am I up at this time? Simple, family... I have just spent the weekend with my parents who have retired to Germany. I get to see them and my grandmother (Omi in German) once every couple of months and am forever trying to find ways to get there cheaper and stay longer.

This includes trying different airlines (BA, Lufthansa and Air Berlin - Ryan Air is a no,no as it only flies to an airport miles away from anything in the boonies, I think it's actually located in Holland) and different flight times. Generally, I fly out from Heathrow around 7:30 on a Friday night and return on the 18:30 flight back on Sunday night.

However, this trip I decided to really mix it up. I got a very good deal with Air Berlin (£78, anything under £100 is good) leaving from London Stanstead (a big shed in the country that has become a 'flight factory'), whch is easily accessible from Liverpool Street Station just around the corner from my office. This flight went out early at 17:30 and returned to London Monday morning at 6:40 promising a full extra two nights with my parents.

Although I did get two extra nights with the folks, it did come at a cost...

1. Getting to Stanstead is an expensive pain in the arse (much like a poorly chosen "life partner"). I had no luck buying discount tickets from the web as all the codes I used to use have been cancelled and the Air Berlin "slight" discount portal mysteriously couldn't process my card (it wouldn't surprise me if I ended up booking 10 round trips!). So in the end I had to buy my tickets from the machine at full price (£25 return), surprise, surprise. Then came the pain of a the world's slowest "express" in existance train that is actually dirtier than some of the trains I took in South America.

2. Deutche Bahn employees are anal. I arrived in Dusseldorf in great time as I had been able to avoid Heatrow's congested airspace. Air Berlin is a great airline (see separate review to follow shortly) and the flight was very pleasant. Add to this the fact that my luggage was ready to collect within 10 min of getting off the plane and I was already starting to forget the sting of the Stanstead Express. That was until I got to the airport train station.

Now I used to always get €50 or €100 out from the ATM when arriving in Germany (these denominations are always only €50 notes for some reason, not very convenient for the recently arrived traveller). I did this for two reasons, one because of my bank, Nationwide, which is such a good bank for travelling that it will get its own blog entry, gives me a much better exchange rate than the currency exchange and two that it used to mean that I travelled on the train for free (Note that this was, in my opinion, the fault of Deutsche Bahn because none of their machines accept €50 notes nor any credit cards and the ticket counter was already closed by the time when I landed. I always intended to buy a ticket and had sufficient funds, but as all the shops at the airport are closed when I arrived and I therefore could never break the €50 and I can't help it that they are too backward to accept credit cards. Conductors on the train used to be sympathetic, but I guess the Bahn's privatisation has put an end to their humanity). Anyway, conscious that times have changed and not wanting any hassles (shops were open so the excuses I historically relied on weren't available), I took out €50 (given to me as a €50 note) with the intention of buying a ticket from the counter at the train station.

Although I had a tight connection, I was the first out of the the shuttle from the main terminal to the train station and b-lined it to the ticket counter. When I joined the queue, I noticed that there were two counters, one for "tickets and information" and the other for "information only". Both were attended although only the ticket selling one had a queue. Although there was only one passenger ahead of me, but I could already sense trouble. You can tell when people in the service industry really aren't bothered about people being in a hurry when they purposely shift into slow motion. Every question asked by the customer has to be answered with a question, long querrying of the computer and a follow on question to any colleague nearby. As the other "information only" counter was free and there was a second "tickets and information" counter unattended, I thought surely he would step up and start assisting as the queue continued to grow with obvious delays to those waiting to by a ticket. When I asked him if he could help, he responded with a broad smile and curt response of "I give information only." Boy, didn't he put me in my place, the little stinker...

Now being a "thinker" I realised that perhaps the nearby cashpoint could give me the €20s which the ticket machines would accepted. So I abandoned my place in the queue which had been leading me nowhere in favour of using a ticket machine.

Having had success at the cash machine and with a €20 note in hand, I sprinted to the machines designed to deliver convenience and efficiency. Would you be surprised that on this day all 4 available machines decided that €20 notes were also too rich for them and they would only accept €10 or smaller?

At the point of almost blowing a gasket and with only two minutes to spare until my train, I rushed back to the ticket counter queue. In good German style (actually this style has since been exported worldwide) I proceeded to mutter and compain about the decline of the German state and all that goes with it. Luckily there was a nice old guy ahead of me, who hadn't been put through the pain I had been, who took one look at me and asked "So what's the problem?". Within 30 second he'd changed my €20 into 2 x €10 and sent me on my way.

Of course, after buying my ticket and making the train (with 10 seconds to spare) no conductor checked my ticket. Aren't some things ironic?

3. After a great couple of day with my parents, it was time to catch my flight back. When I booked my flight, I decided not to worry about how to get back to the airport untilurn the night before, like all good travellers. I wish I would have done my homework as it ended up being another minor nightmare. A flight from Dusseldorf at 6:40 means getting up at 5:00. Not bad, I thought, well as part of the general trend of this trip, I thought wrong. The town my parents live in has a great direct train link to Dusseldorf that travels once an hour at 29 min past. As this takes 37 min to get me to the airport the 5:29 train wouldn't get me there until 6:10 and in this ages of anal strictness by check-in, there was now way I was going to risk being at the airport for a European flight less than 30 min before departure. So, I set my alarm for 3:45 to enable me to get a cab to the train station in time for the 4:29 to the airport.

Steps one (getting up) and two (catch cab to the train station went like clock work). I got to the station with plenty of time to even buy and stamp my ticket. Then came the snag, as when I checked the train timetable there didn't seem to be a 4:29 to Dusseldorf! I had trusted too much in German efficiency and was now stuck at the train station with a valid ticket and no train to catch. The next train was the 5:29...

To cut a long story short, I resolved the situation by throwing money at it. Dusseldorf is actually only a 30 min cab ride from Gelsenkirchen, so a half hour later and €50 lighter I was at the airport.

Moral of the whole big long-winded story is simple, always research travel connections well ahead of time to avoid overlooking important information, it sucks to get up at 3:45 and make a lot of money in life because rich people travel better...

Next time, I'll try the flights from Gatwick. See if that works any better...

Posted by this ordinary life at 5:39 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Buying your first proper road bike is like asking a woman to marry you. Get it wrong and you could be stuck with something that is a "pain in the arse" and bleeds you dry. Therefore, me deciding to make this online was like deciding on a mail order bride. Does anyone know someone who is in a successful mail order marriage?

However, having thoroughly researched sub-£1000 road bikes, the Focus Variado's German craftsmanship, Shimano 105 set-up and Wiggle.co.uk's great price won my heart. Despite the fact that the Variado is the middle-class of the Focus range, I didn't feel like a cheapskate when it arrived (I had originally toyed with the thought of buying the full carbon Cayo).

At the moment you can buy the Variado from Wiggle for £699 including £70 of free kit. I used this allowance to pick up a pair of Shimano Ultegra SPD-SL pedals and some other equipment, which was a lot of bike/kit for the money. This may sound too good to be true, but don't forget that in the UK Focus can only be purchased online from Wiggle and I think the price is designed to overcome their lack of reputation and aftersales service.

The Buying Process

Buying any bicycle from Wiggle is quite and experience. A huge double thick box gets delivered to your house at an inconvenient hour meaning you have to take some time from work, but it's made up for by the fact that the bike is ready to ride out of the box. A word of warning, Wiggle have a funny returns and warranty claim policies. If you want to send something back, you have to return it in the original packaging all the way down to the reusable zip-ties. However, in all honesty, I think that a well worded email straight to Focus would get a favourable response to any warranty claim you might have...

Sizing

Sorry for digressing about buying from Wiggle, I'll get back to my review of the Variado. I sized the bicycle based on the sizing guide given on Wiggle's website. As I am 5'10" with a 33in leg, I ordered the Medium. I have to hand it to the guide, the bike fits me like a glove. Of course, I have common measurements so if you have stumpy or legs that don't quit (hey, women ride road bike too!), you might have to be a bit careful.

Handling

Regarding handling, I have to agree with other reviews that the Variado is very nimble and at times a bit unstable. However, on London's often thirdworld standard of roads this helps you wave around the worst of the potholes. I have ridden approximately 100km on it so far. The longest ride was 50km (2hrs) from North London around Richmond Park and back. I was neither saddlesore nor did I have backpain. I even managed a lap of Richmond Park (10km) in 20 min reaching a top speed of 52kph, which is miles faster than on my old Barracuda Azzuri (may she continue to bring her new owner years of commuting joy).

Climbing

Climbing is a dream with the compact 50-34 chainset performing very well on every hill that Central London and Richmond Park could throw at me. By the end of the ride I was actually looking forward to hills and will be esting it out on Box Hill in a few weeks time. That will be the Variado's opportunity to truely show what it's made of, that is if I don't die of exhaustion first.

Styling

The bike does look good. The azure blue is very appealing and the contrast with the white bar tape does give it a bit of white glove poshness. The only downside to the Variado is that Focus did get a little carried away with the decals, but I think this might actually be part of a brilliant marketing ploy making sure people know what make of bicycle it was that just raced past them.

Summary

Focus is a great newcomber to the UK bicyle market. The German passion of producing quality products at great prices means that we are likely to see many more of their models on the roads and trails in the coming years. It would also better if they toned down the Focus decals and if you could get "local bike shop" after sales service to go with them. But as a frugle German, I was happy to make do without. If you are willing to take a risk on the sizing and give up some of the after sales service, this is the ideal first road bike for anyone looking to take their cycling to the next level.

There is a risk of buying the Variado as I have already set myself the challenge that if I can cycle 5000km in the first 12 months, I will sell it and buy the full carbon, mostly Ultegra Cayo. Let's see how things go as the Cayo is my Ivana, that hot Russian Mail order bride...

Posted by this ordinary life at 8:37 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Part of the purpase of this blog is also to serve as a font of knowledge regarding life in London. As part of this, I will periodically post tips on how to "beat the system" and review of restaurant/bars.

Today I'll be including a review of a sushi bar I went to last night call
"Sushi Bar Gen" in West Hampstead. If you come out of the West Hampstead Jubilee Line Tube station, you need to cross the road and turn right (going North) and you come across it on that same side after abut 5 minutes.

It's a tiny place done up in a shabby canteen style, but there is immediately some pleasantness to the place. With only seats for at most 20, more likely than not you'll have to wait at the "bar" until one frees up. This waiting time gives you plenty of time to survey the open kitchen which is grease splattered and not the picture of cleanliness you would normally hope for.

However, despite the obvious physical indications that the place is a bit of a dump, the food is excellent and very well priced. We had gyozas and misos to start (the gyozas didnkt arrive until after the mains) and a sushi platter to share between 2 people with the third in our party having vegetable tempura. The platter was a very nice selection of nigiris and rolls and the tempura shredded sweet potato and eggplant slices were a crispy delight. Presentation wasnät too bad either, but what is with sushi bar and the fake grass!?!

For £15 a head we had more food than we could eat. Best thing was that they have a delivery service, so next time I can enjoy the great food without seeing the kitchen.

I recommend that if you are habkering for some sushi and live within 2 miles or so of West Hampstead, you give them a call on 020 74314031. They definitely have my vote for best value delivery sushi in London.

Posted by this ordinary life at 8:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Yesterday's remark regarding the inherent laziness of the human species put me onto a good idea. I am going to start a new movement... The name is up for debate, but the gist of it is simply to take the path of more resistance as a matter if course.

What does this entail? Take the stair rather than lifts/escalators, cook rather than eat out/use ready meals, walk to the store rather than drive, ask a question rather than be silent, open the curtain rather than turn on the light, read a book rather than watch TV, shower cold rather than hot (this one's loaded as I always shower cold), grow flowers rather than simply buying cut flowers, make art rather than simple buying it, cycle instead of public transport, spend more time of foreplay rather than going straight to the 3 key erogenous zones, the list goes on and on...

What is the benefit of taking this approach? There are many. Saving money, keeping your brain fit, learning new thing, keeping your sanity (using public transport in London is full of trials and tribulations), having a more fulfilled sex life and keeping healthy, just to name a few.

Sure everything might take a bit longer and require more effort, but in the end I believe you will feel more fulfilled. Fulfillment is something that I think may people have heard of, but never really experience (e.g. dead end jobs, loveless marriages, non-alcoholic beer, low fat anything, self-gratification). I think it's time that we started fighting back? Don't give me easy, I want hard!

Therefore, I am appointing myself the leader of this new movement and will keep you updated on my progress. Please tell your friends about this new movement as I am looking to convert the masses. Fat, lazy and convenience seeking people not apply! Who knows this movement may be the answer to the looming obesity crisis, global terrorism and poverty... or maybe not... The choice is yours.... blah, blah, blah....

Hard is the new easy...

Posted by this ordinary life at 9:34 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Here is what I wrote on my fundraising website last November and will repeat again to keep in tune with my "humans are inherently lazy" comment from my previous entry...

Apologies for the delay in this update, but life has been pretty crazy post-Marathon. The whole experience has left me a "changed man" and I recommend it to anyone. Don't get me wrong the experience was long, painful and I made all the classic novice marathoner mistakes, but the atmosphere, 8kgs I lost, sense of achievement and the £2,331.20 everyone helped me raise made it all worth it.

I need to send out some special thanks to Stefan for housing and entertaining me during my stay; Benjamin (my Brother), Louise and Gered for being great spectators; and Claire, my family and friends for being so supportive during the last months of preparation.Finally, both myself and the London Sports Forum are humbled by the amount donated by everyone and it will be put to good use helping the disabled in the Greater London area.

Anyone interested in joining me for the marathon in New York next year?

Posted by this ordinary life at 3:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

People say its dangerous to discuss politics in general, but I think that people who say that probably live boring lives worried only about how to conform to the massess. These also end up blindly following dictators. I am not one of these individuals and have healthy opinion; therefore, this entry will briefly touch upon my views of the recent massacre at Virginia Tech.

"Freedom is not free" originates from the US and is linked to the loss of lives in wartimes upholding the ideology of freedom. I think that this is very noble and it is important to remember that not everyone upholds equal values and people are needed who stand up for others.

However, "Freedom is not free" can also be viewed in a different light. Trey Stone and Matt Parker portrayed one view in Team America: World Police.

In this entry, I will portray freedom is a somewhat similar light. One where, to truely have freedom, one must accept that that same freedom can corrupt and give individual/nations access to that which they should never possess. Add to that the fact that these individuals/nations are suceptable to rage or impulse, the result is almost always disaster. Therefore I believe that sacrificing some freedom (e.g. the right to posses really big guns that are only really used for killing people or the right to possess nuclear weapons which once again are only really used for killing people, well, also diverting asteroids) is in many cases in everyone's benefit. Why does America think that way in terms of foreign policy, but not when it comes to their domestic policy?

Therefore, I am siding on the side of sensible regulation of guns. Don't get me wrong, I like guns and have shot many in my life, but if I had to give up that pleasure (I don't need to hunt to survive, although I accept that getting my meat from the supermarket has its own issues such as factory farming and cow farts contributing to climate change) in return for less gun crime and mass shootings, I would be happy to do so. Wouldn't you?

Correct me if I am wrong, but humans are inherently a lazy species. Everything we do somehow is justified by "making our lives easier". This tendancy has lead to deforestation, mass obesity, sweatshops and increasingly mass shootings. Isn't it time that we made things a bit more difficult to force people to think of better ways of doing things? For example, if Cho Seung-Hui had not had access to the Glock, what would he have done? Mass body painting, Speakers Corner-esk ranting or continuing to do what he had been doing by expressing himself through writing? Beats me, but I doubt he would have found another way of killing the 32 people he did.

I guess you can't change the past, but what about the future. Europe has sensible gun control laws, isn't it time that the US took a page out of Europe's book?

Posted by this ordinary life at 1:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Well, this is a tale to two soles...

The first is thin and flimsy and is delivered with a pair of shoes when you buy them. The second is thick and luxurious, costs you a shedload of money and promises a "smooth ride". I bought a pair to address my concerns about being a "heavy runner" training for a marathon. For me, these insoles fit into the "good in principle, not so good in practice".

You may have read my previous entry, which heavily criticised the build quality of a pair of Brooks Adrenaline GTS 6 shoes. In hindsight and following the fact that my latest pair of shoes, a pair of Saucony Omni 5s, have met a similar fate, I think it may not be wholly be the shoes fault, but also that of the Sorbothane insoles that I bought afterwards. I am not backing down from my previous statements that shoes are being designed to fall apart more quickly. I think this is a general trend of our consumption driven society (e.g. why do electronics always generally break down a couple of weeks after the warranty runs out?)

Sorbothane insoles are marketed as a great way to improve the cushioning of a pair of shoes. Now here is where things go a bit astray. Unless shoe manufacturers design shoes with these retrofittable insoles in mind, one could run into problems. I did.

Now the reason this happened is simple. Feet are meant to be cushioned by padding below the base of the "foot compartment". Hence this is why I believe that insoles are quite thin. However, the thin insolve also ensures that foot movement within the foot compartment is kept to a minimum. This reduces wear and tear of the material used inside the shoe.

Now when you introduce padding above the base of the foot compartment, this does give the shoe more cushioning overall. However, this introduces foot movement within the foot comparment. In my case, the resulted in the heel area of two pairs of shoes wearing out after 200km rather than the customary 400-500.

I wouldn't have thought this possible, but the motivation of losing £170 of shoes and having to walk 20 minutes in agony walking as a result of the shoes digging into my heals enabled me to develop and test this hypothesis.

Word of advice... get shoes that work out of the box. I am going to email Sorbathane with my story and see what they say. I'll let you know their response.

Posted by this ordinary life at 12:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

If you rent cars, then here is a word of warning. When comparing car rental companies, make sure that you confirm all charges of so called "pre-paid" rentals at the beginning of the rental. As I found out, they often levy additional charges which make what looks like a great deal initially a great rip-off.

I recently travelled to South Africa (this will get its own entry very soon) and had pre-booked a car with Hertz. Their rates were at least 10% cheaper than Avis, Sixt and EuropeCar. I regularly book with Hertz and didn't expect any surprises.

Hertz have a system that appears to be quite honourable. They quote you a
weekly rate and then estimate any additional charges. The total amount including the estimate for additional charges are booked from your card. What you are left with are supposed to be minor adjustments to account for currency fluctuations.

However, when I arrived in Cape Town to pick up my car I was told that I would be incurring an additional 40 pounds, which on top of the 130 that I had already paid was outrageous. However, needing the car at the time and confirming with the local staff that these charges could be discussed upon returning the car, I drove off oblivious to the charges that had already been authorised to my card but would be booked from it until a few days after I arrived home along with an email receipt that justified the overcharging.

I, of course, queried the counter attendant upon returning the car, who confirmed that I was not to be levied any additional charges. Sadly, I didn't take her name and sworn statement at the time, but can you really blame me? I did however call Hertz in the UK upon my return to the UK and they again confirmed that I wouldn't be levied any additional charges. Would you believe that the customer services name and taped statement were again forgotten?

Finally a few days after returning to the UK the additional charges and supporting invoice arrived to my surprise. Having given up verbally chasing up this discrepancy and "mis-selling", I sent an email to Hertz customer service. They were kind enough to look into my complaint and replied "We are right, you are wrong. Tough luck and there is nothing you can do about it!".

Okay, I admit that their response was much more politically correct, but the effect was the same. I am still negotiating with them using the same tactics they used involving breaking things down into simple bt sized chunks. Let's see if they understand.

In the meantime, I am boycotting Hertz and encouraging all of my friend to do so as well. There is a great company called Auto Europe who book cars on your behalf using all the leading car hire companies. They even offer great things like "excess fee waivers", which is something that is quite rare these days. Their rates are very competitive as well. www.auto-europe.co.uk. I might end up with Hertz again, but Auto Europe operate a 100% prepaid system and any other charges are left for them to argue.

Let's see where I end up with Hertz...

Posted by this ordinary life at 11:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

It's funny how blogs evolve. Some evolve out of exhibition (public diaries), some out of necessity (let people back home know what you're up to) and others out of delusions of grandure (this one might fit into that category). Add to this the various stylistc and content limitations and most blogs seem to be a waste of cyberspace. People set them up with good intentions, but as soon as the actually realise that they were fooling themselves they lay fallow.

Isn't it funny how people just don't bother to update their blog rather than deleting it? Well, luckily despite the fallowness of this blog, I didn't delete it as now with renewed vigour (the proof is in the pudding) I plan to share some of my new content with the world.

What brought up the suddenzest for creative writing? Well, actually it was the blog spam that I have been receiving. A good friend of mine said that blog spam was a sign that someone actually could be bother to us your blog to spam the world. Meaning at least some computer algorthym outhere was reading what you wrote.

So over the coming months I plan on revamping the site a bit to bring it into the latest digital age and sharing with you some reviews and stories from London and further afield.

Posted by this ordinary life at 3:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)