Slartibartfast Country

By /

Slartibartfast would love The Sounds:

"Did you ever go to a place…I think it was called Norway?” “No,” said Arthur, “no, I didn’t.” “Pity,” said Slartibartfast, “that was one of mine. Won an award, you know. Lovely crinkly edges. I was most upset to hear of its destruction."

The Marlborough Sounds, New Zealand


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular articles

The Difference Between One Million And One Billion

Image
It feels like a billion is just a bit bigger than a million. Obviously it's bigger but it fits on the same scale as a million, surely. It doesn't. A billion is so so so much bigger than a million. I've trawled the internet finding graphics and videos that show the VAST difference between one million and one billion. Oh, and just to finish with a different misconception about space starting with the classic opening line from the great Douglas Adams and The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy : “Space is big. You just won't believe how vastly, hugely, mind-bogglingly big it is. I mean, you may think it's a long way down the road to the chemist's, but that's just peanuts to space.”

Gift A Safe Night

Image
Last month I collected a bunch of "Which Are You Today?" images for online meetings and during that I stumbled across a friend sharing  Gift A Safe Night with Women's Refuge, what a simple and helpful thing to do. A $20 Safe Night helps a woman and her children escape family violence. I've joined the Safe Night's Club by popping $20 to them every fortnight for someone to use in their moments of absolute scary needs. One night of safety at Women's Refuge for a woman and child costs just $20 and includes: A safe, clean bed Secure transport Hot meals Supportive staff 24/7 crisis line Helpful advice We all do what we can to help when we can - if you can afford $20 every fortnight / monthly, then I would strongly urge you to sign up and help Women's Refuge support women and children when the shit really hits the fan and they need support and safety.

"Right Wing" Comedians

Image
Too many people comfortably plump themselves into an army of one type or another . Surrounded by those that sound like you, listen to you intently whilst nodding, and echo your thoughts on why the fight is a good fight and that the other side are such bad terrible people. I used to be more like that than I am nowadays ... hmmmm, aren't we humans meant to become more conservative and reactionary as we age, strange Mike. These thoughts have me thinking of two UK comedians that have been tagged as "right wing", which is putting them into an army for the benefit of someone but, I suspect, not them. First up,  Simon Evans who makes me laugh when he's talking about his family, kids, and life in Brighton. He then hit my ears big time with: Simon Evans Goes to Market , has had six seasons, delighting audiences with his witty and insightful take on the comedically unpromising territory of economics, all of which prove among the most popular downloads on the Sounds App. On the...

W. C. Fields quotes

Image
The office has all been moved around - new desks (with starter handles to raise and lower them), new high(er) speed network and ... the same old work. At least I have a differing view of the world, my team (well, the team I'm a part of not "my" team) is a lot closer - finally - and it's like an office from the 80's ... or even a classroom. But I still have time to move the crap off the PC : ------ Any man who hates dogs and loves whiskey can't be all bad. Anyone who hates Dogs and Kids Can't be All Bad. Hey! Who took the cork off my lunch??! Who stole the cork from my breakfast? Now don't say you can't swear off drinking, it's easy. I've done it a thousand times. Horse sense is the thing a horse has which keeps it from betting on people. If at first you don't succeed, try, try, again. Then quit, no use being a damn fool about things. Madam, there's no such thing as a tough child - if you parboil them first for seven hours, they alwa...

Regulatory Standards Bill: Submission Guidance & Assistance [Updated]

Image
*phew*, this is hard work. Unlike the Treaty Principles Bill which has a tonne of templates and publicly available submissions for you to copy/amend/submit, the Regulatory Standards Bill has very little out there. Update 14-Jan-2024: Did I Miss The Submission? (spoiler, no ) -------- Submission form:  https://consultation.regulation.govt.nz/rsb/have-your-say-on-regulatory-standards-bill/consultation/intro/ Email your submission to:  RSBconsultation@regulation.govt.nz More: Explanation & Submission [Updated] What Is A "Person" [Update 8-Jan-2024] Emily Writes (Jan 06, 2025) being awesome, OK fine, what submissions do I have to make FFS?! , "Don't worry - I got you. Here's everything you need in one place!" : Bill: The Regulatory Standards Bill Do it by: 13 January 2024. Why should I care? This bill is the twin to the Treaty Principles Bill. So much so that you can use your submission for that bill as the template to this one. It has been described as: Th...

Break The Chains And Be Your Own Person With RSS

Image
We like to think that information ("content") on the Web comes at us from every angle and at speeds that our poor brains just can't take, stooooppp, it's all too much. Nope, most people get small amounts of Web information in very limited ways, Facebook, YouTube, maybe Twitter (ick) or something more wholesome but similar like Bluesky or Mastodon. You'll likely also get messages (through something) with a link to something wonderful and glorious, but I'd say that's mostly it for the vast unwashed. You, are much better than those ignoramus though, and also visit the BBC, RNZ, Stuff, or some other old skool media website (or app, different but same). I applaud you, but what about all those other websites that you like the look of but forgot. You should be using an RSS reader ... yup! This conduit is anti-lock-in, it works for nearly the whole internet. It is surveillance-resistant, far more accessible than the web or any mobile app interface. It is my secre...

Curtains Of Water

Image
The wind was perfect to cause the Carter Fountain - did you know that was it's name - to create these fantastic 'curtains' of water.

What Is The Speed Of Light, No-One Knows

Image
C, the letter "c", is used to represent the speed of light in equations. You know it, E=mc² , that's, energy is mass times the result of the speed of light times the speed of light .  In a vacuum (not through air, or water, or anything else) the speed of light is 299,792,458 meters per second. Bloody fast eh! Whilst an atom is very very very small if you times it by the speed of light² that gives a lot, a fucking lot, of energy. Hence the atomic bomb going big boom! But, is that really the speed? 299,792,458 meters per second is the speed as measured with a round trip, the speed of light that went from a source, to something, and back again. But what if it's twice that speed on the outward journey and instant on the way back, we'd get the same answer.  Huh? Watch this ... Oh, and WHY is, probably / almost certainly, the speed of light 299,792,458 meters per second - no-one knows, it just is .

Where Are The Boyles In The UK?

Image
Further to my Who Are The Boyles? post, this website is great to find out where your surname is in the UK. https://named.publicprofiler.org/