Journey South

Off down the M5 on Monday for a second (and I am assured last) interview. A 400 mile round trip.

Update

Ok, interview over. Haven't really got a clue whether it was good or bad. I find out in the morning if I've got a second interview. If I do it will be on Monday in the home town of Rosie and the SS Great Britain.

Today's the day

Interview today.

I am much more nervous about this interview than the one earlier in the year. I suppose it is because I feel that this is the last chance with my current employer. If I don't get this job then I will start looking elsewhere.

Blue badge rant

Regular readers will know that my wife has had some major health problems. This means that if we go out shopping she has to use a wheelchairs. As a consequence, she has a blue disabled parking badge. The main problem with this is that all the disabled spaces in the car parks are often full.

The reason we need a disabled space is not to do with closeness to the shops (though I like that when I'm pushing the chair!), it is all about the width of the space, allowing the car door to open fully, and the wheelchair to fit easily between cars.

On Wednesday we had a trip to the Trafford Centre. We found a disabled space, next to the lift, on the end of a row, so cars alongside my wife's door weren't an issue anyway. We went off and did our shopping (credit card is hurting now) and came back about three hours later.

Parked next to our car, not in a proper space but in the roadway at the end of the row, parked so close that I would be concerned getting in myself without banging the door, was another car. A car with a disabled badge. A car with a notice in the passenger door requesting people not to park to close because they used a wheelchair! How can somebody who is a wheelchair user themselves park so as to so badly inconvenience another disabled person? There appears to be a small number of disabled badge holders that give the rest a bad name. They use their parking privileges to "abandon" their cars wherever is most convenient without any thought to other road users or pedestrians, and other people won't say anything for fear of being thought uncaring.

Unfortunately I didn't have a pen on me, or there would have been a very snotty note left on their windscreen. We also reported them to the centre staff, but I suspect nothing would be done.

Why don't they fold?

Continuing my efforts at bank roll building on Mansion, I've got stuck in the $60-$70 region. I'm playing $0.05/$0.10 cash games. The problem I'm having at the moment is the idiots who chase their draws to the river. However, it does sometimes work to my advantage. The following hand is an example. I know the guy will see a flop with any rubbish (having previously been beaten by his 8 3o!

ANTES/BLINDS Hero posts blind ($0.05), .jackrymer68 posts blind ($0.10). PRE-FLOP Mejram folds, IceManQQQ folds, sebequino calls $0.10, xrajka calls $0.10, Hibachi13 folds, joza111 folds, Baggers59 folds, Hero bets $0.35, .jackrymer68 calls $0.30, sebequino calls $0.30, xrajka calls $0.30. FLOP [board cards: QS,7S,9C ] Hero bets $1.50, .jackrymer68 folds, sebequino calls $1.50, xrajka folds. TURN [board cards: QS,7S,9C,7C ] Hero bets $2.95 and is all-in, sebequino calls $2.95. RIVER [board cards: QS,7S,9C,7C,5D ] SHOWDOWN Hero shows [ QC,KC ] sebequino shows [ 8C,TC ] Hero wins $10.

SUMMARY Dealer: Baggers59 Pot: $10.50, (including rake: $0.50) Hero. bets $4.85, collects $10, net $5.15 .jackrymer68, loses $0.40 Mejram, loses $0 IceManQQQ, loses $0 sebequino, loses $4.85 xrajka, loses $0.40 Hibachi13, loses $0 joza111, loses $0 Baggers59, loses $0

Cash at Last

Played in tonights Brit Bloggerment for the first time for a while. And, for the first time ever, I made it to the money, finishing third.

I certainly had my share of luck along the way, but I don't think I made too many donkey calls. I managed to practice some of the restraint I've been learning in the cash games; I only saw 12% of flops.

I left HullJimi and BrainMc fighting it out for victory.

Update: Congratulations to HullJimi, who took the tourney down after 2 hours 44 minutes.

A right to free speech?

I went in to Blackburn town centre today with all the family. My daughter's favourite dress had had an accident involving an iron, so we were off shopping to replace it.

As we walked into the main pedestrianised area, we were confronted by two people addressing the public with amplifiers.

On the right was Jack Straw MP, Minister for Justice, and someone who, despite being a cabinet minister for many years, takes his constituency responsiblities seriously. Once a month he goes into the town centre, stands on a box, and invites his constituents to ask him questions. Whilst we were passing today he was promising to take up an issue with the Chancellor, and was going to respond in writing to the questioner. Whilst I may disagree with many of the things this government has done, and Jack Straw has been a major player since they were first elected, I cannot but admire him for putting himself out there for his constituents to harangue.

On the opposite side was a man with a board proclaiming him to be from a presbyterian church. What he was doing was rather less praise-worthy. In the middle of a very multi-cultural town, and a time once again of heightened tension due to events in Sudan, he was bellowing offensive comments about Muhammad and the Pope. So much for good will to all men at Christmas. I am pleased to say that the only person appearing to listen to him was his colleague trying to hand out leaflets. However, he may have attracted more of an audience if Jack Straw hadn't been there.

Whilst I believe everyone is free to believe what they want, I don't want my children exposed to this poison. At the moment they don't notice skin colour, and show interest in, not contempt for, the various world religions.