Lisa Emms

Getting my House in Order

2012-02-28T11:33:00.000Z

It is one of those mornings, when I felt really motivated, to clean the flat. With the laundry on its second load, and the place smelling of ajax and comfort, it lifts my sprits and makes me feel happy.

With the kettle on to make a cuppa,it's times like this that I truly miss being in Greece. Washing on speed dry on the line and a coffee in the court yard, before getting on with other things during the heat of the day would be just what I need now.

Dull skys in Margate and washing drying on radiators doesn't quite feel the same.

Photo taken from my friend Jordan, Im sure he won't mind me using it. see more at Symiart.com

Gamesmakers in the making

2012-02-22T19:24:00.000Z

Horses could fly to Manston

2012-01-22T11:59:00.001Z

The new Equine Border Inspection Post is likely to attract flights of horses required for certain Olympic events into Manston Airport.

Kent County Show Ground at Detling Hill, has been designated as the training and holding area for horses competing in the Equestrian events during the Olympic Games.

Klout

2012-01-05T20:15:00.001Z

Checking out Klout, just call me a nerd!

Bloated Belly, and Skinny Savings

2011-12-28T09:04:00.001Z

Bloated Belly, and trudging back to work with bank account stretched from shopping, and exhausted from family fun, totally over 2011 with just a few days to prepare for 2012.

Time for reflection and evaluation!

Last year I gave up Pringles, and saved 10% of my salary each month, not from the cost of the Pringles, but better budgeting! I'm proud to inform you, I haven't indulged in a single box of Pringles, and each month I managed, by taking on extra work, putting the extra dosh, as well as 10% of my salary aside each month, I managed a cool 80% more than my target savings.

Christmas this year, did not put me into the red, well that's what savings are for ;-) and I start the 2012 with a budget much healthier than last.

What will your New Year resolutions be?

Kirsty

2011-12-27T15:39:00.001Z

Kirsty, a photo by LisaEmms on Flickr.

Lip gloss, lip gloss and more lip gloss, naughty Auntie Lisa giving the Emms girls make up for Christmas...

New Years Resolution

2011-12-20T09:51:00.001Z

Following a couple of fourteen and half hour days, todays twelve hour shift feels like a holiday! Last night a phone call at home ten- thirty five at night, being let down by staff over Christmas, which isn't even my responsibility. Pleezze

New Years Resolution, 2012

Improve Time Management, and enjoy some time off.
I will control my phone, with voicemail not the phone control me.

What are your resolutions for 2012?

Volunteer, not just at Christmas

2011-12-16T09:37:00.002Z

Giving a small donation and pledging a couple of hours of my time each week, I have decided to support Debra, the charity which works, for those who's skin doesn't, during 2012,

www.debra.org.uk

Please think of others this Christmas

Ways you can help

Follow @LisaEmms

What the New York Times, comes up with about me!

2011-11-27T12:38:00.001Z

I took the New York Times, personality test : They tell me I'm business savvy :-)

With your strong eye for detail and love of all things intricate, you see the beauty in good craftsmanship and value anything in life that has taken dedication and perseverance. Your holistic way of thinking and ability to see the bigger picture lends itself well to the world of business and it's here that you tend to excel. When all is said and done, you are a bit of an intellect with a tendency to do a spot of soul searching from time to time.

You're not one to let a challenge pass you by and your thirst to close the next big deal is what makes you tick. You're straightforward, self-disciplined, thoughtful and hard working. Once established in a post, you are very difficult to unseat. You're not just an idea-oriented individual, but also an achiever. Rarely do you get ahead through advantage or nepotism, as you are more likely to come out of nowhere with unusual talents and take the field by storm. When called upon in a time of crisis, you often come up with highly creative and practical solutions, winning the appreciation of your superiors. Above all, you're very realistic about the positions you hold and shrewd enough to guarantee survival in the job market.

Social Media Rookie, Common #Fails

2011-11-26T18:00:00.009Z

So you have your website has all this great content, but can people easily share it? Place easy-to-see and -use share and follow buttons on all your content in order to increase its reach.

Email marketing and social media are great friends, not enemies. They work together well, help each other out to promote content, and share one another’s information on a regular and consistent basis.

When people visit your pages on social sites, they probably want to learn more about you or your brand and its offerings, help them by serving up Targeted Landing Pages, from your E-mail, Tweets or Facebook messages. If you got here, then you just followed one!

Some people will not follow eggs: that is someone without a profile picture. Others will not follow branded or logo tweets, preferring to know the person behind the brand. The solution is to help each other out, the personal and the branded, each re-tweeting the others information, each should be done by different personality whom are simply working as a team, individual personality will show through in the messages. Team work is the way to achieve the best from social media, as every connection you have, may well pass your messages to every connection they have, and every connection they have, may pass your message further still. The community increases and your reach of your message spreads, this is the whole ethos of the internet: sharing of information.

Your community should be a platform where your users feel comfortable sharing, connecting, and receiving help or offering it.

I am always H2H: happy2help where I can, and hope you get more from your social media after reading this.

SeaFrance: Scuppered our plans

2011-11-16T08:21:00.006Z

It's the Third week in November: That can only mean one thing Beaujolais Nouveau!

A trip over to France and, some good food to accompany a glass or three, a dear travelling friend of mine is coming down for the weekend and we have made exciting plans, meeting up in Margate before heading to Dover and crossing the channel.

SeaFrance, industrial action may have scuppered our plans by cancelling their sailings, so I’m busy looking for alternative ideas, anyone with a sailing boat?

Caricature

2011-11-12T08:33:00.002Z

Whether it’s a photo of you on a night out or of you cuddling your newborn baby, the image you choose to represent you on social-networking sites says a lot about you

WHAT DO YOU think of you?

Although privacy as a concept is constantly being eroded, the message about what’s appropriate to post online and what is not is getting through to most nondigital natives. But what about the image you choose to represent yourself?

I choose the Caricature

“It’s kinder to play with one’s own image than someone else’s,” Using a caricature is a way of saying that your image isn’t rigid and that you don’t take yourself too seriously. Choosing a caricature can also be perceived as a form of distancing: you’re uploading a representation of yourself instead of an actual picture of yourself.

I love the blue glasses

Apples

2011-10-28T19:06:00.002+01:00

I'm sure some of my regular followers know, I'm a fan of Apple, (the technology) Today I was working out at Chislet, where the trees were full of of them - tempting me to I dig out this Greek recipe for apple. Now the kitchen smells yum.

The Thanet's Cooling Towers.

2011-10-18T18:01:00.006+01:00

Should they stay, or should they go.

In my humble opinion, the Richborough Towers are part of the landscape and we should keep them, even though we get our energy from the wind-turbines and solar panels.

Today as I went along the new road for the first time, caught a gimps of the first large-scale solar park in in the South East, this £13m project, is capable of supplying 1,300 homes. In Thanet we are doing a good job of green energy- let us not forget our offshore wind farm is the largest in the world.

Thanet's Energy History | Thanet's Solar Park | Thanet's Off Shore Wind

Erotica in Margate

2011-10-14T13:15:00.004+01:00

A short walk through Margate High Street, where promo girls are trying to get the passers buy to sigh up for Ann Summers parties.

Along the parade & Kiss Me Quick shop, &

The climax at the Turner Contemporary , Paulo and Francesca are snogging!!

Auguste Rodin's "The Kiss

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-15173953

Dog's are Just LikeTheir Owners

2011-10-13T22:00:00.005+01:00

They say dogs are like their owners, or is it the other-way round?

Either way, love the curls.

Zeno a great little dog, his owner good fun too :-)

Avenues, Good Work: Proof, what we do works

2011-10-04T08:34:00.003+01:00

Access for All

2011-10-04T08:09:00.003+01:00

Apologies to those of you who use a text reader to access this, I have sometimes forgotten the basics of good web design, and I appreciate that we all have a duty to provide accessible content for all. So here are some reminders to self: & anyone else who may be thinking about website content accessibility.

Hypertext links. Use text that makes sense when read out of context. For example, avoid "click here." which is an instruction rather than description.
Images & animations: Use the alt attributes to describe the function of each visual; I would go further and say avoid annoying animations all together Frames. Use the noframes element and meaningful titles.
Tables. Make line-by-line reading sensible. Summarise
Multimedia. Provide captioning and transcripts of audio, and descriptions of video.
Page organisation. Use headings, lists, and consistent structure. Use CSS for layout and style where possible.
Graphs & charts. Summarise
Scripts, applets, & plug-in’s. Provide an alternative in case these are unsupported.

Basic Errors of the QR

2011-10-01T14:58:00.007+01:00

QR-codes by themselves are fundamentally neither good nor bad, they’re just a means to an end: an offline-to-online delivery. It’s what’s beyond the code that usually determines whether the experience will delight or disappoint.

Serving up a non-mobile optimised web site, at the end of the code, is a very basic fail, and will only cause disappointment, for everyone, this is especially true, for those who use technology to overcome disabilities.

You should decide if you are using your QR code as a marketing tool, or an accessibility tool. Do it right and it can be both!

Of course there are simple errors to learn from, stick with QR codes, and you will behead of the game, for they will become a very big thing. Like the other technological trends, CD's DVD's even mobile phones, which all took a while to catch on in the UK.

The status: "only in Japan" will not be true for long.

Bring Your Own

2011-09-30T08:32:00.006+01:00

You provide the connectivity, and we will bring our own: Result a happy work party.

76 per cent of employees used their laptops at work, 75 per cent used their smart phones and 62 per cent used their tablets.

UK businesses are clearly aware that BYO is happening in their organisation and are very much switched on to the benefits it can deliver.

Being cautious about security is understandable, but this does not need to be an inhibitor to embracing and supporting BYO when technologies like desktop virtualisation provide a secure way of delivering a desktop to any employee, on any device, wherever they are.

Starved

2011-09-19T10:47:00.006+01:00

Crappy,& intermittent phone signal, mobile data black hole

You can expect me to be quiet for a while :-0

Oh and nothing but de-cafe ;-) Have coffee ready when I get home pls

Great Little Clip about Search Engine Optimisation

2011-09-13T08:03:00.007+01:00

I found this You Tube clip explaining the basics of Search Engine Optimisation (SEO), It explains SEO basics at a level that even a non-technical person can understand.

Its under three minutes and well worth watching.

EMMS|

Christmas Pudding, Have you made yours yet?

2011-09-10T12:02:00.010+01:00

The big boys are more than marketing their stuff, it's already on the shelf's at the local supermarket! I only popped in to get some sugar for the plum jam that is boiling on the stove. If you are very special you may get a jar in your Christmas stocking ;-) 106 shopping days till Christmas.

It's a great pity that I am doing the day job on Wednesday the 21 September, because I would have very much liked to attend the Greenlight Academy Event - Search and Social media Strategies for Christmas.

I expect some of you may be asking how is it relevant to the Charity Social Care Industry?

People need care 365 days of the year. We think about their loved ones especially at Christmas. Result: Looking into care needs and sourcing new providers.

Can we supply the demand?

How to read the QR-code

2011-09-07T09:01:00.004+01:00

What is this?

Just in case you have never seen a QR-Code before, the image here is an example. It works just like a barcode. If you scan it via your mobile phone, you will end up at our website. QR-Codes (Quick Response Codes) can be used to get people to anywhere online. If it has a url, it can be embedded into a QR-Code. Simple as that, though that’s not the only thing you can do with them, but let’s start with the basics.

So how do I read a QR-code?

READY? From your mobile phone browser application any of the following websites:

I-nigma - www.i-nigma.com

Kaywa - www.reader.kaywa.com

QuickMark - www.quickmark.com.tw/En/basic/downloadMain.asp

SET? When detecting your phone, the application will ask permission to download the reader. Accept, download and install.

GO!. You are now ready to read QR-Codes or bar codes from your phone.

The answer is that you point and click your phone and you are there. There is no cumbersome typing. So it’s a very easy way of getting people from something in print to a website.

About the Author

Day out at the BBQ

2011-09-03T18:17:00.007+01:00

It has been a while since I spent some time in a Catholic Church, today I did something more holy than prayer, helping others to get out and have fun, we went to The Friars, Aylesford Priory - is an ancient religious house of the Order of Carmelites dating back to the 13th Century, a wonderful place that I would like to go back and visit again.

We tucked in to the Aveune's BBQ, after all it is the feast of St. Phoebe. - Αγία Φοίβη, I found time to take few moments in the chapel, a calm and peaceful end to a truly wonderful day.

This little piggy

2011-09-02T09:23:00.003+01:00

This little piggy stayed at home and grew big and fat!

I didn't think my job would entail the care of pigs! Always up for a new challenge, I've got a lot to learn.

A female pig is called a gilt from birth through when she has a litter of piglets, then she is called a sow. So you could have a gilt that is one day old or a gilt that is two years old.

Here's something to remember that might put some of these pig terms into a 'pigspective' for you.

Out there in the swine world, A boar hog who escaped the castration scene and failed to become a barrow, went on to breed a young gilt who turned into a sow when she farrowed some happy little pigs who eventually grew up and went off to market to become pork belly commodities on the Mercantile Exchange, and bacon on your plate. What a ham! That's sure a lot of name changes from its 3 letter origin!

Via Flickr:Photo by LisaEmms

8 Reasons to use Twitter- Business

2011-08-29T06:58:00.008+01:00

1. Connecting with customers and staff

You will be able to connect with your customers because they themselves are using twitter. Twitter has become a daily routine where people log onto it every single day, some log onto twitter the first thing they wake up.

2. Branding

You don’t have to be a big brand like Dell, Nike, Starbucks to brand yourself on twitter. You can be an average joe and brand yourself on twitter. For me if your company is not recognize then you need to get a PERSONAL account. Why? Firstly nobody want to talk to a LOGO unless its a famous brand. Everyone wants to connect with a person and not a bot.

3. Customers feedback

Once you have connected with your customers you will for sure be getting feedback on how you can improve your product, your services and maybe even improve your customers service. Listening to them will help you in the future.

4. Marketing

One of the reasons to use twitter is you get to market your product or services to more people and the best part about that is its FREE. You don’t have to pay (Unless if you plan to hire someone to run your twitter account- I'm open to offers!).

5. News

You can also give latest updates on twitter about your company by tweeting.

6. Twitter is Viral

If you’ve have succeeded gaining some popularity with your twitter account you will know how viral twitter can be. This will be part of your marketing strategies that you can use in the future.

7. Horizon Scanning

Did you know you can spy on competition too? Best part about this and spying on customers is that its FREE using twitter search. You can not only read what customers are talking about you but you can also read what customers are talking about your competition. If your competition is not doing anything with their customers complaints. Then what happens if you (the saviour) suddenly tweet them “hey I heard you have a problem with…..” Just an example.

8. Increase Sales

Twitter can help you increase sales and make PROFIT.

Colour Swatches

2011-08-26T10:21:00.002+01:00

As I've been toying with colours I thought it prudent to record and document for future use.

More detail

Colour Re-branding

2011-08-23T09:44:00.006+01:00

I ordered some business cards from vista print: They have print to technology convergence with a smart QR code!

Regular visitors may notice a new colour livery on the website, well it is easier to redo the web site, than reorder business cards, and anyway the pink was a bit girlie, so another fresh new look for me.

Comments on colour welcome

Eating Well

2011-08-22T14:21:00.011+01:00

It's been an expensive month, I had to renew the road tax. That seems expensive, and worse it follows last months insurance bills.

Austerity measures are not only for the UK Gov, I can save money and stick to a tight budget, but it's been a while since the student cook books came out, I like my food, and food has to be good even if it is cooking on the cheap.

Mushroom Risotto delicious and you don't need to be a skint student to enjoy it. Who needs Ossobuco, I can dream of being in Milan.

Cost next to nothing, as everything came from the store cupboard. Recipe calls for a glass of white wine: and there is a bottle of Lidol's finest Italian Chardonnay, a good plonk lurking at the back of the cupboard, but what to do with the rest of the bottle?

It's my day off, and if I sleep through day time TV, it could only be an improvement, I must need to catch up on the sleep ;-) nothing to do with the glass sitting on the table.

14 Reasons to use twitter: a personal prospective

2011-08-14T10:03:00.003+01:00

1. Opinions – to glean opinions from trusted friends/sources on particular matters?

2. References – to get references and referrals from trusted sources?

3. Quick Information – to get quick information (eg. what is Joe's girlfriend's name … have to meet with them in 10 minutes?).

4. Advice – to gather input about what others think about a product/service you are considering purchasing. Merely use Twitter Search to scope out what others think about the product.

5. News – to keep atop the latest breaking news in topics related to your interests.

6. Entertainment – to be entertained. Just make sure you follow entertaining people. Here's a quick tip for finding people you like; enter: site: twitter.com "full stage name of person you find entertaining"

7. Communication – to communicate with numerous others at once without having to make individual phone calls (eg. going to Java Joes for coffee tonite @ 7 … meet me there if interested!).

8. Employment – to find a job, merely follow the Twitter accounts of companies you wish to work for, or those of specific headhunters/agencies.

9. Friendship – to make new friends. Follow those with similar interests, and engage them in conversation.

10. Connect – to connect with old friends. Sometimes it's difficult to break the ice after a number of years apart. With Twitter, it's much easier to do.

11. Warnings – to broadcast to as many people as possible when you've been RIPPED OFF by a company, and to warn others to avoid them!

12. Customer Service - to get quicker responses from customer service departments. Typically companies will respond very quickly to negative information about them or their products out on the web.

13. Personal Branding – To monitor your own personal brand online to see how you are perceived. Perform a Twitter Search for your Twitter user name, and your full name in quotations (eg. "LisaEmms").

14. Reminder Service – as a reminder service, applications exist to send you reminders at specific times and dates (eg. Jennifer's birthday is tomorrow)

Funding slashed to voluntary groups and charities

2011-08-10T11:29:00.000+01:00

Funding slashed to voluntary groups and charities

Good thing about the London Riots

2011-08-10T08:36:00.003+01:00

Just look at the figures. As a nation we have problems, yet there are still good things going on London Wombles

Riot, Revolt and Robbery - have your cake and eat it

2011-08-09T14:34:00.003+01:00

Parliament to be recalled for one day on Thursday to discuss the riots, I would like to have my say.

No excuse for riot revolt and robbery, but when people do not earn enough to live on, what do you expect them to do, Stay calm and have a cupcake.

Keep Calm

2011-08-03T22:07:00.002+01:00

Keep Calm, a set on Flickr.

Keep Calm and Carry On was a poster produced by the British Government 1939 during the beginning of world war 2 intended to raise the morale of the British public in the event of invasion. Seeing only limited distribution, it was little known. The poster was rediscovered in 2000 and has been re-issued by a number of private sector companies, and used as the decorative theme for a range of other products. There are only two known surviving examples of the poster outside government archives

The High fashion design can currently be seen everywhere, and seems to represent the thoughts of the populous at time of government austerity measures. It is ubiquitous, across the social spectrum, being found everywhere from the National trust, or the Tate Gallery, to the High Street at stores, such as Primark. Not only are we seeing Union Jack Towels, often in distorted colours, but a fashion union jack pillows, and bunting.

We can be proud: Britain pulls together in true community spirit at a time of government cuts.

Celebrity Endorsement and SEO

2011-08-03T09:22:00.009+01:00

Search Engine Optimisation, or optimization, is the most important issue of any website. It's best done through endorsement and recommendation. I found some of these examples when horizon scanning.

Mind: Steven Fry, joins Mind, the announcement got over a million likes, on Facebook, and when it was announce, it was big news on twitter. http://www.mind.org.uk/news/5260_stephen_fry_announced_as_new_president_of_mind

Brandon Trust: Here is another good example of good celebrity endorsement. http://www.brandontrust.org/our-stories/the-jo-brand-story.aspx

While I note the use of celebrity endorsement and the effects it has on charity publicity, it is the Facebook Endorsement, twitter and other social media are proving engagement from the website viewers, it’s that which produces the SEO and gets the name out there.

Google +1, should not be forgotten as this is going to be a new big thing, so please plus one this page

Getting a Quick Response

2011-08-01T10:05:00.008+01:00

Just in case you have never seen a QR-Code before, the image here is an example. It works just like a barcode. If you scan it via your mobile phone, you will end up at our website. QR-Codes (Quick Response Codes) can be used to get people to anywhere online. If it has a url, it can be embedded into a QR-Code.Simple as that, though that’s not the only thing you can do with them.

You can use QR-Codes to sent email, to dial a voice phone or to send an SMS message and when you begin to think about that, the uses for them are legion. Many people wonder what the advantage is, over normal urls. The answer is that you point and click your phone and you are there. There is no cumbersome typing. So it’s a very easy way of getting people from something in print to a website.

QR Codes and symbols are proving to be a very interesting approach for persons with disabilities.

Emms girls Camping

2011-07-30T08:53:00.003+01:00

Emms girls Camping,

You should now be able to view these on a smart phone?

Why you need smart phone optimisation:

2011-07-20T09:42:00.009+01:00

Smartphone shipments eclipsed those of desktops and laptops this year for the first time. (Source:Mashable) Yet only 17% of UK businesses have mobile optimised websites. (Source:Google)

As our hardware continues to get smaller, and more powerful more and more of us opt for the smart phone. People aren't just using these smart phones to make the odd phone call or text message - they're using them to browse the Internet, go shopping, or even do the banking. It's a fast growing market, and smart businesses are sitting up and taking notice.

That means web designers can afford to use nice big images and large Javascript libraries to enhance web sites, (As I did not not so long ago). With broadband, downloading these big files isn't a problem - but when you're on a mobile phone with limited speed and a restrictive monthly data allowance it is.

Mobile visitors have limited screen? Zooming in and out and scrolling in all directions is annoying, and if you're making browsing your web site too much like hard work for your mobile visitors, then you can hardly expect them to engage with your company.

I looked at this issue for my blog some weeks ago, so if you are reading the desk top version – take a look at the mobile issue and you will see the difference.

Organising a Get Together on Thursday

2011-07-17T15:09:00.001+01:00

Event Registration Online powered by Eventbrite

Currently Reading

2011-07-13T11:02:00.004+01:00

Scapegoat: Why We Are Failing Disabled People.

Katharine Quarmby ... Portobello Books Ltd

ISBN: 9781846273216

Following recent news about Castlebeck, the company that also ran Winterbourne View where abuse against vulnerable adults was exposed by BBC Panorama.

This book about Disability Hate Crime, is a must read..

Reviews

Speeding up my laptop

2011-07-11T08:40:00.004+01:00

My laptop is less than two years old, and according to 'Moore's law' a new one would be half the price with twice the capacity should I by a new one. I don't need a new one, but it is time for some E-housekeeping.

Remove unwanted programs
Switch off unwanted Windows components such as Gadgets and Indexing
Limit the number of programs that start when Windows does
Clean up your hard disk, and defrag
Tidy up Windows
Get an easy memory boost
Update and switch to faster programs and versions

Programs can slow down your PC by clogging up its hard disk and by running tasks in the background. I found three trial antivirus programs as well as ‘Kapersky’, my antivirus of choice, and a whole load of other stuff, do I need safari, firefox, internet explorer, when I use Google Crome? There is a heap of stuff, I no longer use, so here goes.

1 Remove Programs

In Windows 7 and Vista, click Start >; Control Panel >;Uninstall a program. In Windows XP, click Start>; Control Panel >; Add or Remove Programs.

In all cases, you will see a list of applications that are installed. Click on a program you want to remove, then click the Uninstall or Remove button.

2 Turn off the desktop Gadgets:

Gadgets running in the background, on your desktop at all times, sap power, so it's worth turning them all off if you need an urgent speed boost.

How to do it:

Windows 7 and Vista allow you to have small always-on applets known as

In Windows 7, hover your mouse pointer over the top right corner of each Gadget and click the white X to close it.

In Windows Vista, right-click in the Sidebar area and select Properties. Take the tick out of the box next to where it says 'Start Sidebar when Windows starts', then click OK.

Now right-click on the Sidebar again and select Close Sidebar.

3 Limit the number of programs that start when Windows does

Many applications you install will configure themselves to run whenever you start Windows. In the case of your antivirus or security software, this is a good thing. On my laptop, MSN Microsoft messenger turns on at start up, more often than not I turn it off so as not to be disturbed. Let’s see what else I can turn off.

How to do it:

One way to do this is to check your Notification Area (bottom right of the Taskbar). There will be a series of little icons here (and clicking on the arrow will display more).

Hover over any you don't recognise to find out what they are. If you don't need them to launch at startup, then right-click and choose the options or preferences setting, if offered.

There should be an option to disable auto start, run on startup or similar

4 Clean up the hard drive

Start > (My) Computer and then right-click on your system drive (usually the C: drive) and select Properties.

Under the General tab, click on the Disk Cleanup button.

If prompted, select the 'all users' option. Windows will calculate how much space can be freed up and will eventually present you with a list.

It's safe to tick all of the items here, though you can uncheck any you'd prefer not to delete. Click OK, then Delete Files (or Yes in XP)

Defrag:

Start > AllPrograms > Accessories > System tools.

Windows 7 and Vista should run the tool on an automatic schedule, but you can also run a manual defragmentation yourself.

In Windows 7 and XP, highlight the drive you want to defragment from the list (usually the C: drive), then click theDefragment disk/Defragment now button.

In Windows Vista, click, select your drive from the list (usually C:) and click OK.

5 Tidy up desktop

Most of us dump loads of files and shortcuts on our desktop until it becomes cluttered with dozens of icons.

File the documents, and archive anything more than six months old. Either delete shortcuts you don’t use, or stick them into a file called my icons, your computer only needs to open them when you use the file.

6 Easy Memory boost

The graphical effects that make Windows look pretty can also drain resources and slow down your machine. Disabling them might make your desktop look a little drab, but can give you a big speed boost.

7 Keep your software uptodate

The speed with which you are able to browse web pages is largely down to how fast your broadband connection is. But it's possible to make a significant speed increase by switching to a faster web browser.

If you're still using an older version of Internet Explorer to view web pages, for example, then you will almost certainly notice a big difference by upgrading to the latest version, Internet Explorer 9 (http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/internet-explorer/products/ie/home) And by switching to Firefox (www.mozilla.com/firefox) or Google Chrome (www.google.com/chrome) instead, you might get even more of a speed boost when browsing.

They're all free, so why not try them out to see which one is best – and fastest – for you?

Every website needs SEO or it won’t get seen

2011-07-09T14:21:00.004+01:00

It has been a challenge to create a ubiquitous presence on the internet, the real secret is to create interesting and relevant content, that people want to read. I’m confident that you can find me, Lisa Emms extremely easily on-line. Just type my name into Google, and there I am top of the page listing.

So followers do me a favour hit the +1 button below, As Google+1, is about to rock the Internet World.

It's not always about code

2011-07-05T12:46:00.001+01:00

Enjoying the wonders of 'wysiwyg' programming.

Take a look at this new fancy page

Staycation in Margate, Kent, UK

2011-07-01T08:53:00.008+01:00

Many of you will know my second home is on the small island of Symi in Greece,I’m a frequent traveller to those parts. With an expensive euro, the thought of national strikes out there, wonderful weather in the south of England, I'm happy to avoid the travelling and stay away from the hassle of airports, humping luggage about and rude staff at Rhodes airport.

I can think of no better place to enjoy a staycation than Margate. We have nine miles of beautiful sandy beach, many excellent beach bars and cafes, which to be frank are cheaper than the Greek counterparts, I don’t always have the time to enjoy those places, but with a week’s annual leave, I intend to top up the tan, get in some walking indulge in some photography, and enjoy myself. (expect some uploads soon)

I'm in luck as at the moment the weather is fantastic.

iPhone ringtone - Personalisation.

2011-06-25T11:24:00.006+01:00

No need for extra software.

Find the track you want as ringtone in itunes, music library, right click it and create AAC, you see it will appear below the original version, I then just drag this to desktop just to make it easy to find.

Convert your file from m4a to m4r
From the start button go to >Control panel > appearance >folder options> view> untick the box, "hide extensions for known file types" and hit the apply button.

Now go to the desk top and rename your ringtone, by right clicking on it from 'YourTune.m4a' to 'YourTune.m4r' (Your tune being the name of the song you have chosen)

Go back to

Control panel > appearance >folder options> view> re-tick the box, "hide extensions for known file types" and hit the apply button.

Drag the file to iTunes to ringtones or directly onto your phone.

It worked for me (time taken 2 minutes..)

BILD - Responses to Winterbourne View

2011-06-23T10:11:00.000+01:00

BILD - Responses to Winterbourne View

Press my Buttons

2011-06-23T09:54:00.002+01:00

You may or may not have noticed the new 'large add this buttons' on the right of this text - please feel free to press them and share with friends

Early Bird watching wildlife in Margate

2011-06-22T06:43:00.003+01:00

This morning at 4.43am I was rudely awoken by what sounded like a group of drunks, kicking a can about. It went on for a while, yet missing was the swearing and obscenities that is common with the local late night revellers as they stagger up the road from the sea front bars.

Due to both good policing and the licencing restrictions on the sea front bars, the local problem of anti-social behaviour, has of late been much improved and I haven't been woken like this for quite a while.

Looking out of the flat window to see what the commotion was about. I see seagulls, attacking a bag of recycling that has been left out for collection; I would not have thought it possible that they could make such a noise, or would be interested in fighting over tin cans, and cardboard. What a mess is left in the middle of the road. As the morning traffic starts, cars drive over plastic bottles, creating explosive type noise, one or two stop to see what they have hit, please can we serve this gang of seagulls an ASBO

Competitive Intelligence

2011-06-17T19:55:00.010+01:00

I've done a bit of horizon scanning in my time!

Was I looking for, the local fisherman?

Horizon scanning is without a doubt best done at sea, here is one to look out for

Currently Reading

2011-06-16T17:39:00.004+01:00

Women Travel: First-hand accounts from more than 60 countries~A Rough Guide Special

Some that makes me want to dust of the back pack and walking boots, some hilariously funny, some scary and that makes me happy to be in the comfort and security of home.

Learning to love my chador, by Kay Hill: Excellent

Almost 200 twitter followers

2011-06-12T13:32:00.005+01:00

It's always nice to see that someone is reads my twitter account, thanks go to Paul Taroni, who has retweeted on of my tweets on Sunday. With almost 200 twitter followers, I see many regulars who, return or comment on my writings.

There is a big delema that untill now I have avoided: Should I comment about issues relating to my work, or not?

Hell I have never been one to follow rules esspecially when it is political correctness gone bonkers, somethimes though it is better not to publish those things, what do you think?

So folks here comes long over due postings, for now I will leave my personal thoughts out of this and suggest you read the independent task forces reports on the list of things you can do.

Download it it makes good reading.

Mobile Blog Site

2011-06-12T10:22:00.004+01:00

Not only am I now updating my blog, but I've kept up-to-date with new programing and design.

This blog now has a mobile edition so you can view it easily on your smart phone.

Pull out your smart phone and take a look on www.lisaemms.org

How cool is that.

You can follow me on twitter too

Tom Thumb Theatre

2011-06-12T08:28:00.008+01:00

Complete with red velvet seats, dressing room and bar, this tiny theatre, thought to be the smallest in the world.

Oozed with charm and character, and offered affordable fun entertainment that was worthy of the west end.

These are not the "Mar-gits" but young people in Margate, who have been attending comedy club workshops. Treading the boards with stand up, some for the very first time, they exhibit their boom-boom trade and make a name for themselves. Last night, was an evening of truly wonderful stuff: young people making jokes about sex and crime and drugs, rather than actually engaging in the illegal activities that we so often hear about in Thanet.

Beth Lucas gave her premier performance, this girl was funny, our laughter so loud we set off the neighbourhood alarms: she is certainly one to watch out for.

Credit should also go to Steve Bradshaw, who has inspired so many with his community workshops, after last night’s performance he should be proud.

Let the publish button get dusty

2011-06-10T09:14:00.003+01:00

Considering the whole idea behind blogging is making posts, the best way to blog badly is to not do that. You can only get readers if they have something to read, so I’d have to say that letting the publish button get dusty, is the best way to avoid getting them.

My life seems to have been dull and depressing the last couple of months, my visions have been negative, writing to express those thoughts is one thing, publishing them is quite another, for I do not wish to offend anyone.

I had a great holiday earlier in the May, and had time to reflect, evaluate and decide a course of action: Overall moving from Symi, in Greece to Margate, UK, although I do miss the sunshine and the washing-line ;-)

Yes, it was a good thing!

Anyone who blogs will know content is king, so you can expect more to read about: watch this space.

Will There be Nine?

2011-01-27T15:55:00.004Z

Both of my contracts of employment state

The Employee’s annual paid holiday entitlement is as stated including further days equivalent to Bank and Public Holidays (8 per Calendar year)

Thanks to the Royal Wedding this year there are nine! Read the Telegraph Article

Waiting to see - what my employers do?

Update to the Blog Settings

2011-01-23T14:59:00.006Z

I just realised that message notifications from my blog, are going to an old email address, so girl that’s a #fail. Sorry to those of you who’s messages, have been ignored.

Well folk that’s now fixed, and message now go to my current address which gets pushed onto my phone, the wonder of technology!

Just off check that messages are forwarded, at a sensible hour of the day :-D

Carrot Cake, so last year!

2011-01-16T13:55:00.004Z

The advantage of working unsociable shifts is that every now and then I have a day to myself, there is nothing I enjoy more than getting creative in the kitchen with the company of the radio.

Cleaned out the fridge, and did the shopping online, while I cooked up a selection of home-made meals for the freezer.

Amazing what you can do with parsnips, slice of cake anyone.

Contemporary, and Coffee

2011-01-04T12:37:00.003Z

Still keen on the New Year’s resolutions took an early morning walk, since buying the car in October I haven’t really walked anywhere much. I headed out along the coastal path and update myself with all that is going on at the Turner Contemporary.

No longer a construction site, and looks almost finished. The cliff pathway along by the edge of Droit House, to the old lifeboat station now closed, work is down there is seriously reaching completion. I had a letter to deliver and so took a walk around, looking for a post box, which I never did find. High on the hill overlooking the building from the higher point I looked on at the tankers anchored offshore, listened to the sounds of the waves and looked at the sea, not a sign of a Norwegian sharks fin!

It’s a cold and bitter day, my fingers red from the cold, considered going home for coffee but as I was busting for the loo, stopped in the old town at Milo@ 15 the Parade, Margate. Great Place, don’t know why I haven’t tried it before give it a try.

A New Year and Another chance for us to get it right.

2011-01-01T10:04:00.006Z

I will do something to better the lives of others; Improve my personal fitness, go without a Car for six months, and walk; Continue with my personal development, focusing on face to face communication skills rather than the electronic.

I have made some very seriously changes to my commuting across Europe lifestyle, I moved back to Britain on a permanent basis. Based in Thanet, East Kent, some fifteen minutes away from my Mum, who’s calls for help were perhaps not so serious as they might have been, and certainly less frequent now that I don’t have a two hour sea journey and two connecting flights and the lovely train from Gatwick to get there.

Possibly she feels more secure now that her family is not so distant :- and certainly is calling less. A Bi product of this is I have saved a fortune without the monthly airfares.

January 2010, I accepted a job in the charity sector, caring and doing for others. There is still a lot more I can do, I need to work on my frustrations when I see disablement and confinement, and need find ways to make change.

With a hefty pay drop, my personal spending habits are different, with no idea of my lifestyle change. I certainly had quite a smile when a colleague asked “Did you win the lottery” after the purchase of a new ‘very little’ car. After selling everything including my transport rather than ship it back to Blighty, resolved to work on improvement of my personal fitness and assigned myself to at least six months of walking, just to see if I could do without a vehicle.

The purchase was something that had been well planned; I should buy a new car, before the winter set in. Ordered for the September number plate issue and I was impressed with myself that I didn’t crack and get one sooner and give myself a pat on the back for achieving well above than the ‘six months of walking’ target.

After downloading Eastender’s on the BBC i-player, in April I finally abandoned the ideal of life without T.V. and got myself a Television Licence and a flat screen. I doubt there are many homes in Thanet without a television and judging by the number of red letters from the licencing folk that get dumped by the flats multiple mail boxes, I wonder how many of its citizens actually have a licence?

Oh no, how could you watch Eastender’s I hear you say. Well my friends, having moved here from a close knit island community of 2600, not knowing many people, not having much spare cash for social events, it’s a poor replacement for the community life, which I miss so much!

As for the personal development, I continue with Thanet Speakers Club, have successful competed the Association of Public Speaking Clubs B5 assignment, and strive to improve and aim to have completed B10 assignment by the end of 2011 or sooner. I enjoy the preparation and research in my speeches; and I’m certainly entertained by the work of the others, and have made some new friends. The vocational Qualifications that were offered as part of my employment package have after a year yet to materialise!

That was last year,

2011, I will

Show more gratitude.
Back up my computer files more regularly.
Write more hand written letter to friends.

See my resolutions are different, What are your resolutions for 2011.

Getting the Car Insured

2010-07-30T11:32:00.003+01:00

How can the price of car insurance for the same cover, full comp, business use on a new car, having not had a policy of my own, in the UK, I lack no claims bonus. I’ve been driving over 20 years, everything from old bangers, to new Merc’s, and never had an accident worse than losing a wing mirror, I didn’t even claim for!

How can the policy prices differ by so much?

Direct Line quoted me £986 special offer as I have being a named driver on Mums policy with them and they say they give me a no claims bonus for that?

The worse was £1721.53, Thanks but no thanks ;-(

Admiral were the cheapest of the big name brands £452.75 without any no claims

Take a look at the price comparison web sites; I have saved a few hundred pounds!

www.moneysavingexpert.com/insurance/

Finding a name for the New Baby

2010-07-19T10:39:00.008+01:00

Been reading about vehicle registration in the UK. I knew the number plates had a date identifier, just call me thick, I didn’t realise they came out bi-annually!

Nor did I realise that the first of these two letters is a mnemonic standing for the name of the broad area where the registration office is located. This is intended to make the registration more memorable than an arbitrary code. For example, A is used as the first character in all registrations issued by the three offices located in the vicinity of East Anglia.

So I figure out that my new car when I collect it, will have plates that start with a start with G, the Kent and Sussex issuing office based in Maidstone, otherwise known as the Garden of England. The age will be 60, and the rest is random. There is a good chance my new plate will start with ‘GO6O’

Not “GOGO”
I like that. It's quite a fun name, for a little car that woun’t go very fast, and difficult to forget even for a dyslexic like me!

My old Honda bike, had the numbers and ΠΚΚ, which would translate into PKK and is a common abbreviation for The Kurdistan Workers' Party (Kurdish: Partiya Karkerên Kurdistan or پارتی کار که‌رانی کوردستان Parti Karkerani Kurdistan), not that anyone ever commented, surprising when you think about where I was living. But easy for me to recall, everytime I brought her a ferry ticket!

Greek Law Enforcement.

2010-07-07T13:56:00.007+01:00

The Greeks have cycle lanes,but where is the law enforcement? When someone gets knocked off a bike they could be killed.

In Greece there is little to no law enforcement, it is the same with

Crash helmet laws,
Smoking in public buildings,
Parked motor bikes and cars on the pavements is quite normal too.

ect ect, the list could go on and on.

They just all do what they want, yet they call it a democracy!

Just had to post this

2010-06-24T18:20:00.001+01:00

I couldn't find "Miss Gobby" my mates will know what I'm on about..

Calendars

2010-06-23T07:33:00.003+01:00

Working with Calendars

Trying to get my windows beta 10 Calendar to sync with my iphone and other calendars -

just needs a bit of toying with.

Smile with the Specials

2010-06-14T19:11:00.002+01:00

Well Done to the Specials on winning the webby awards (they had my vote, and I'm delighted that such a nice bunch of special people won)

www.the-specials.com

Fight the Parking Ticket

2010-06-11T11:09:00.006+01:00

Yep we managed to get a parking ticket, or as it officially called, a penalty parking notice. Soon as we saw the yellow bag stuck on the windscreen there was a big sigh, and a few words spoken. We went straight from the car park to the council offices to challenge the ticket. Did you know:-

“Some 2,749 appeals were not even contested by local councils. Sometimes councils will not contest appeals purely on the grounds that they want to clear a backlog”
Read more

The car clearly is adapted for a wheelchair, can the parking attendant’s in Canterbury not use some common sense? We have a Blue Badge.
What the BBC say today on Disability Blue Badge Scheme

What's in your Wellies

2010-06-10T00:27:00.001+01:00

Emms family grow veg in theirs

Rubbish

2010-06-09T08:31:00.004+01:00

Looks like Thanet Council are saving money and economising on bins? I know it is our taxes, but three households, one bin.

Are Thanet Council making up for animal cruelty by providing free food for the rodents?

Cheap Holiday, expensive phone bills

2010-06-08T12:56:00.002+01:00

I'm sure my contract with Vodafone is due to run out soon, so just maybe I should take some advice and learn.

Actually my phone bill during my holiday wasn't that bad. I only accept text and no calls while Im away..

Toil for A Living

2010-06-07T09:27:00.018+01:00

It's a few days since I returned from Turkey and already I've had moments when I’m thinking about my next holiday. Guess now that I'm back in Britain and doing a ‘normal’ job, this is working life: Working to pay the bills, and daydreaming about what to do with my time off.

During my holiday, my feet hardly hit the ground, it isn't possible to catch up with twenty years of old friends in just five or six days, so every hour was filled, now that I’m back at work I’m twiddling my thumbs a bit.

After so many years of very intense contract work, I’m finding the British work ethic hard to handle, and it seems strange to have so much leisure time during the normal working week. Don't get me wrong, I’m enjoying it and making the most of it, and that was one of the reasons I came 'home', certainly I haven't forgotten how to play hard, and I don’t ever want to forget, how to work hard! ;-)

It niggles me when people I work with, talk about toil, when they actually mean "T.O.I.L.". For those of you like me, who didn’t know what that acronym means, it’s Time off in Lieu. Embarrassedly I admit it, it took me a few moments to figure out that one. Have I been out of the UK for so long, that the English language no longer comes naturally? No it is that, they do not use the language in the correct context. Of course I know what ‘toil’ is and that is what I expect to do when I’m at work.

Surly it is natural, that if I should be needed, I will go into work a bit early or leave a bit late, sometimes cover for others, isn't that the basics of being part of a team.

Work hard, Play hard, that has been my motto since the days when I was skiing, surly it’s normal to put in a bit of effort. My job is worthy of my time, thought and energy, it is rewarding and satisfying to do a good job. Why oh why, is it necessary to fill out a piece of paper for fifteen minutes here, or ten minutes there? Surly it is a game of give and take, all I can surmise is that some have abused trust, so now there is none.

Shame, oh Shame.

By the way my other pet hate, is ticking sodding boxes. Just because the box is ticked doesn’t mean that the bloody floor has been cleaned properly! My question is 'How build can we build on trust and respect, create some loyalty to the job?" So that we can get rid of these bits of paper, there should be no need for them.

Minnis Bay Today

2010-06-04T12:08:00.004+01:00

The company magazine wants a mugshot, should I send a serious one or something fun like todays snap shot? Shame I have to go to work this afternoon the weather is just too good not to be out enjoying it.

Just been for coffee with Mum Minnis Bay Thanet (@theminnis) You can’t beat Thanet when the sun shines.

England can be beautiful sometimes!

Christina and Terry Tie the Knot

2010-05-31T13:29:00.005+01:00

Tartan comes to Turkey and Captain Kirk becomes Mrs. Okeeffe.

Who needs Bouzouki and Bream when you have Margate and MacDonald's

2010-05-21T10:55:00.004+01:00

The New Year’s resolution may have slipped a bit in March. Having woken early, and plonked on the sofa in front of breakfast television, watching beach body boot camp, and thinking to myself I shouldn’t be watching this rubbish, get your act together girl, get on with it.

So the bathers were unpacked from the holiday bag (I’m off on Monday) so not much time to do a boot camp and with a heavy weekend work schedule ahead It's my last chance to pack. Who needs luggage, passport tickets and credit card are in my bag so I'm ready to go.

So, that’s just what I did and got my act together, after a brisk walk across Heartsdown Park, and a cool forty minutes in the pool, I took the coast route home, stopped I rested my already aching arms by stretching out on the sands of Margate Main Beach for half an hour in the sun.

It is truly wonderful. I’m look forward to Bream and Bouzouki but for now I’m happy with Margate and coffee from MacDonald’s! To be honest the golden sand here is unbeatable, and my nose is not sunburnt as its not that hot!

Work life Balance

2010-05-17T08:40:00.009+01:00

At last I’m beginning to get the work life balance right. Work rota meant I had a few days off work, and it was good to meet up with friends in China Town.

This was a chance to catching up and enjoying some good tucker, Wong Kei’s on Wardour Street a personal favourite. Normally, I’m happy with the scoff and run, fast service at Formica tables, by the open kitchen, this place is an excellent refuel stop. We were lucky to get a VIP table on the first floor, which means we missed out at the chance to laugh at the truly rude service and had the luxury of a table cloth.

I shall never forget the chuckles on the occasion when, a loud American backpacker got thrown out for the audacity of asking for milk to go in his tea, it was one of those true belly laughing times I will never forget.

Walked off our dinner in the Garden to see a few of the Elephants, and that was before getting down to the true gossip at The Harp

Aegean Alliance

2010-05-11T11:54:00.013+01:00

The salt water of Aegean must be in my veins, everywhere I go, I meet people who would have been more at home in my previous life. The majority of my working day, yesterday at the hospital, where the Surgeon was one Mr. Bollas (‘Ο κ. Βολλας’), rather amusing as it is also the name of the most important man on the Island of Symi, where I once lived.

Surly it is wrong to translate a propper name? So please forgive me.

Yannis Bollas very much the local plumber, working for the council; he was the man you needed more often than not when you suffered the inevitable water problems. When you live in a place where fresh water is rationed, you wait for tankers to deliver the supply, sometimes you do not have water at all, and that is just a fact. I could talk all day about Symi islands water issues, but will stop there. My point being it's was sort of important to be “friend” of the plumber!

Of course I was also friend of his mother, and that is the best way to get anything done in Greece!

The Mr Bollas whom I met yesterday, was also a plumber, of sorts! I’m glad it wasn’t me who had to have the colonoscopy, even so I would have felt in safe hands. So much of English comes from the Greek language. ‘κολονοσκόπηση’ is just a typical example, but they, the Greeks are always suprised to hear it from one who is a fair haired Brit.

A new neighbour moved into the in the apartment block, a friendly Turkish guy, now lives upstairs. He came to introduce himself and seems a nice enough chap. I haven’t let on the extent of my limited Turkish, or just how well I know that part of the world ;-) His home town being just north up the coast Izmir.

After work I went to Star (local pub) where the land lord also happens to be Greek.

It's a Small World, and the Aegean Alliance is Strong

View Larger Map

Strikes in Greece – Now that’s a surprise (Not)

2010-05-05T15:49:00.008+01:00

A couple of years ago I made my Mother laugh when I said “England is quite nice in the summer”.

I hadn’t actually spent a summer in the UK for quite a few years before that, work commitments, for years meant I hadn't taken time off during the season, except for 24 hour flying visit for a family wedding.

Yes it’s true. England is quite nice in the summer. I’d forgotten all the good bits. Summer fetes, family beach trips, farm shows, Morris dancers and so much more. I'm enjoying it.

At the end of the month I’m going to the Aegean for a friend’s wedding.
So many people have questioned,

Tempted to stay? Not really!

This morning I booked my outbound ticket with Fiji Air, into Dalaman Turkey! It is no secret I’ve had it with bad service from Olympic Airways, Olympic Airlines, or Olympic Air whatever name they are trading under the service is still diabolical.

I'm happy to avoid Greek airports at all costs, and don't miss that part of my past life one little bit.

The reason for a one way ticket, because the charter flights go down full at this time of year, they come back empty. It’s easy enough to pick up a seat. Online booking makes things much simpler than they were years ago. Even then, I'm the sort of traveller that more often than not just turns up at the airport and sort something out when I get there. Who knows if I will return from Bodrum, Izmir even Istanbul, it just depends where I end up.... I’ve checked the schedules there are several flights a day, just now I don’t know which airport I wish to return from yet.

Between Strike’s in Greece and the risk of Volcanic Ash I'm looking forward to seeing my friends. :-)

Dodging the showers and the Morris Men in Whitstable

2010-05-03T15:36:00.014+01:00

I'm enjoying the May bank holiday in a different way from previous years, where we would hike up the mountains to collect wild flowers.

Slowly I'm getting to grips with life here, and the COLD WIND from the sea front!

Warmed up with lunch at the pub. Something very British, about that, and the Morris Dancers were an added suprise. I love it, it's good to be in Britian.

'Squeeze Gut' is that what you get when you eat to many Oysters In Whitstable?

Me and my faceache

2010-05-01T09:16:00.005+01:00

First a dental Abcess, and then a bad cold, I have been left with a sinus infection and after a month still feel under the weather.

GP put me on some more anitbiotics so hopefully this course will shift it.

For now there is nothing more to do than put on a brave face, and carry on.

2010-04-25T11:29:00.000+01:00

The best thing about working Sunday late shift is I can have brunch and not feel guilty about it.

Aggregation and Curation

2010-04-21T15:13:00.000+01:00

Aggregation and Curation, seems to be the phrase of the moment, well today I have been doing just that,

Aggregation:
Pulling together examples of my work

Curation:
Selecting the best of it

Now to work on the pod casts! It can’t be that difficult can it?

Currently Reading

2010-04-21T09:03:00.003+01:00

The Acknowledgements made me chuckle with laughter, " I suppose Christopher and I should thank (through gritted teeth) the many and varied builders in Greece who've been driving us mad, one way or another , for the past four years"

This simple sentence told me that I was going to have much empathy with the authors humour! and knew that it was going to be an excellent read right from the start.

ISBN 978-0-340-97882-5
I'm sure many of my friends who live in Greece would enjoy this one.

Alternatives to Air Travel

2010-04-20T14:51:00.012+01:00

Wondering how my friends are getting on with the ash shut down. One is in Spain and one in Algeria so not sure when they will get back. Loads of mates stuck in Greece, best of luck to you all.

Hopefully soon the volcano will stop erupting, and the whole thing will go into the history books after the dust has settled. Even with my prefered alternative to air travel, you still depend on the wind! The sails wouldn't look crap covered in sulphur ash ;-)

Todays task of booking flights, is suprise suprise on hold!

There are coach seats from Madrid but the prices are silly.

But some people do some really nice things for those who are stranded

Coffee and Logic

2010-04-17T10:19:00.009+01:00

A conflict between Microsoft Outlook Calendar Appointments and Events, and the sync files received on the phone – has been giving me a headache. Everything in the phone an hour out! After a trying a whole load of fancy technical stuff. The Girl needs coffee and time to apply some logical thinking.

OK penny dropped. Technology does not need to be difficult –

The mobile phone and the Microsoft Outlook Calendar are now on the same time zones! and both with the day light saving, settings matching! It took just seconds to correct the seventy or so appointments in one go!

Now with half a pot of strong coffee left over, I whip up something for friends to share tomorrow.

Who needs an excuse!

What am I doing and when?

2010-04-16T08:15:00.005+01:00

Due to the late rota publication we often don’t know our work obligations until three weeks before the event.

Whilst I fully understand that pleasing everyone when organising staffing rotas is near on impossible, I feel am flexible, being prepared to

Work almost every weekend
Do double shifts a couple of times a week
Sometimes work a double shift followed by a sleep in (in an uncomfortable bed, and a grotty room where the curtains don’t even meet)
Happy to take on extra hours when needed.

My request not to work on a Thursday late shift has been totally ignored, and I just find out that for May I’m scheduled to work two twenty four hour shifts on this day.

Annual leave for the dates 26th May through to the 31 May, has been ignored even though I have asked my senior for confirmation of this twice before booking flights, which by the way cost 25% of my monthly gross salary, it is important for me to go my friend’s wedding.
It normal to have a life outside of work?

All I ask is for two hours on a Thursday evening to attend a personal development club, and a bit more notice as to when I am working, so that I can make arrangements to see family and friends and do other things.

Am I asking too much?

Today there is less of me.

2010-04-08T07:51:00.007+01:00

10pm on Easter Sunday I was at the QEQM (our local hospital, The Queen Elisabeth the Queen Mother) waiting to see the emergency dentist, who told me, I had a massive abscess and sent me away with antibiotics to see my own dentist in time. After no sleep and swallowing pain killers, every six hours I had a restless night, before starting a double shift at work

Since then I have phoned my NHS dentist and got no reply, dropped into the surgery in person to try and bring my existing appointment forward. I need to see the Dentist urgently and have the referral letter from the hospital. The available first appointment for a ten minute review was over two weeks away, and the first actual appointment to get anything done is more two months away which actually was my existing appointment, made weeks ago.

Election time, perhaps hour politicians would like to explain what’s going on with the NHS!Today is my day off, I’ll be sitting in the dental waiting room until I am seen!

10:50 am Im home again, with one less tooth following an extraction. I saw the tooth and the size of the growth on it. Yuck Yuck

Currently Reading

2010-03-28T17:56:00.005+01:00

Asylum
By Patrick McGrath

Thanks to Paul Wood for the recommendation I'm enjoying this it’s so far a great book.

My bookshelves’ are looking even darker!

Lead the Way

2010-03-20T09:26:00.003Z

It is always nice to receive a bit of the Follow Friday love on Twitter. Thanks to those of you who did that.

Last night I followed one of my work mates to the pub after a late shift.

Actually I think it was me that lead the way! First time I’ve been into the Mechanical Elephant on Margate sea front, not really my sort of place, but the bottles of Effes were a real treat on a Friday night after a late shift.

The Importance of Updating

2010-03-18T07:43:00.009Z

Yesterday’s I was on an excellent manual handling course, information was bang on and up-to-date.

Gone are the days of the Bear Hugs, and Australian lift’s, things have changed and to protect my spine, I need too as well.

In my current position, I don't lift people, of course in life we have all the normal daily chores of carrying heavy bags & boxes, loading the washing, etc, when we forget about our backs. I hate shopping, and use avoidance, getting the majority of it delivered once a month, thanks to Tesco online.

Having the shopping brought right into my flat, placed in the kitchen is worth every penny, I live on the ground floor! The delivery fee can be as little as £3, around the same as a return bus ticket, or about half an hour of time at the minimum wage. No pushing of trolleys with wonky wheels, no humping through checkouts with heavy boxes of washing powder, please note, I didn’t mention bottles of wine! ;-) Loading into a car, or standing at the bus stop etc.

I have a new justification, I’m protecting the health of my back

Updating is always good ;-)

Often website owners and companies design richly detailed websites, only to be left wondering why they do not have better traffic. They can't figure out why more people aren't paying attention to their websites. Indeed this can be a bit of a perplexing puzzle, but the answer is really rather straightforward.Websites that are not updated with great regularity - simply don't seem as important to search engines or readers.

The other major reason that it is important to update your website frequently is that a frequently updated website brings people back to visit again. They know your site is a place where they can receive information on a topic that interests them; they start to recognise your brand.

I ask myself, why is the company news, not also available on the website?

It takes no longer to upload a webpage than it does to send an email. What takes the time, is production of good content. Already you have done the hard bit!

Do you wish to be perceived at up-to-date and interesting, or out of date and boring?

Weekend off please

2010-03-16T11:18:00.012Z

I'd like to take the last weekend in May off as I wish to go to a Friend’s wedding. My senior at work, seemed surprised when I said I had plans to go to Turkey for the weekend.

Until June 2009 I was commuting across Europe on a monthly basis, sometimes even more. It is not impossible!

Believe me soon the novelty of regular air travel passes, it becomes nothing more than a chore, but a friend’s wedding, is a friend’s wedding, and I am looking forward to catching up with my friends.

I'm no stranger to much more difficult routes, and have done the same thing in reverse direction to attend my brothers wedding and quite a few other events, from harder to get from places. A direct flight into Dalaman, and a taxi or dolmus connection sorted for the other end, honestly it's a simple journey.

2010-03-15T11:32:00.005Z

Emms girls come to Auntie Lisa's for Tea

Who was squealing, the kids or the dolphins?

2010-03-13T11:07:00.006Z

It is stuff like this that makes me think what am I doing here in England!
(fast forward first 20 seconds)

Sorry don't understand!

2010-03-11T11:03:00.017Z

How many languages can you say, "Sorry, I don't understand?"

Following a bit of research I now realise that one of my clients is using a combination of British Sign Language and Makaton. I need to be multilingual to communicate with her!
One to love a challenge, I'm looking into both.

Do you know what the following logos mean?

e- Inclusion

Positive about disabled people

British Disabled Angling Association

Signing available
Support for visually impaired
Wheelchair access
Hearing loop

Iatrogenic Ostemyelitis

2010-03-04T10:40:00.004Z

My Greek language skills, prove to be useful

Ostemyelitis
Oysten: Greek for bone,
Myelo: Greek for marrow (OK, admit I had to look that one up)

Therefore the simple translation of the medical term Ostemyelitis is infection of the bone Marrow, although I understand the Greek grammer of Myelitis, and Myelo, I'm not going to bore you with all that.

Iatrogenic
Iatros: Greek Doctor
Genic: meaning root or cause

So the simple translation of Iatrogenic Ostemyelitis is:
Infection of the bone marrow following or internal fixation, such as joint replacements of fixation of fractures.

In my twenty’s, I was seriously 'loved up' with a Greek cardiologist. Dr Nikitas, was unaware how much Iatrogenic heartache he caused.

Well that was a long time ago :-)

From the Early Train

2010-03-01T06:51:00.001Z

Walking to the Margate train station

It is the first time since moving to Margate that I have been out of the house so early! I wasn’t looking forward to the walk to the station and had last night considered ordering a taxi, as there was no rain had time on my side I decided to walk. At 5:45a, it was crisp under a full moon, and as I walked along the sea front to the train station. The Christmas lights (at least I think that’s what they are) are still on the lamp posts along the sea front, and they are switched on. Rather pretty, but what a waste of power, and energy resources, come on Thanet Council it is now March.

The ticket office was not open, and the girl on the 06:06 from Margate, Southeastern High Speed, didn't know how to accept my compensation vouchers, and suggested I pay at the other end.

Good start to the day, but I now need Coffee the banana in my bag will do for breakfast note, for next time, there is neither cafe at the station, machine, nor onboard coffee service on the train. But the vodafone data signal is mostly good ;-)

I’m looking forward to the training course today.

In the money!

2010-02-28T14:03:00.010Z

Opened my snail mail box this morning, to find yesterdays post. Unusually all of which was pleasant :-)

A painting, and thank you letter from my niece Kirsty.
Two envelopes which contained cheques or vouchers that can be used instead of money.
A bank statement that didn’t look as bad as feared, and comfortably in credit!

I was giving up on the railways in respect of my complaint from the 22 of December 2009, after emails and form filling madness, finally a snail mail letter sent on the 20 January including the original travel tickets in request for compensation. Shocked the railway complaints procedure that has take over two months to complete, but also relived as I was beginning to think, rather unfairly, that it was beginning to go the way of my Drivers Licence and the DVLA, never received at the other end? Blame on the sender! Nothing more we can do, except charge you for a replacement. I was about to give up on this one.

Southeaster sent me £28 worth of travel vouchers in way of an apology. I can now delete, or perhaps archive the complaint file which was growing, by the week. As to the other disaster trips earlier in 2009, I put that down to learning experience, and now keep all receipts and old tickets esspecially if I have to go to Cambridge!

Thank you Southeastern railways your apology is accepted, twenty eight pounds is really nothing after spending nine hours on a train that mostly wasn’t moving. I shall be using the vouchers to cover some of the cost of my journey on your trains tomorrow. Shame I had to cancel my jolly in town today, but I really didn’t fancy the bus due to this weekend’s engineering works. Fingers crossed they it be finished ontime as I've a 6am start in the morning, and am will be on a tight and important schedule.

My first pay check in a while, a payslip and cheque, I go onto the automated pay system next month. I wonder how much longer old fashioned cheques will be around? I’m not quite sure how they get to the final figure, and need to look into that. But hey it is good to have some credits. :- ) for a change.

Fresh Octopus £4.39 a killo

2010-02-26T13:18:00.004Z

Windy day so comfort food in order, I have just been to Morrison’s for some inspiration, and was thinking along the lines of spice beef.

Shopping in England is just great. We are spoilt for choice. Morrison’s fish counter never fails to impress me. Fresh Octopus £4.39 a killo, I was paying €14 in Greece! Best of all it's already been cleaned, so I don’t have to fiddle around and get in a mess with the black ink. Now Im on my laptop finding where I saved the recipe for Χταπόδι κρασάτο.

OK my flat kitchen, here in Margate doesn’t have the same ambiance as the Greek Fish Taverna, or even a pot bubbling on a fishing boat, but the food is going to be just as good.

Time to open that jar of olive paste that I have been saving, just as an appetizer.

When I shedule events I sound like a dizzy bonde.

2010-02-26T09:07:00.006Z

It is difficult to arrange even a simple thing like a dental appointment outside of work hours, when I could be working, yet, don’t know for sure!

Covering the hours of 7.30am till 10pm, 7 days a week. Working shifts, on a rota system, which I receive goodness knows when. I am yet to be informed, of work rota for April, only five weeks away.

This could be a reason for high staff sickness rates. Nobody should have to phone in sick to go to a Dentist, or take phone calls from staff, who do not know if they are working today! (Pleezzzzze)

Still it is better to phone than not turn up.

I’m more used to having diary engagements eight or nine months in advance. So I'm doing my best, not to let others down. I haven't been in the job a month, and already I have had to send five or six, non committal postponements and apologies, for April in other areas of my life, and I’m talking 2010 ;-(

Rolling rota appears to be the obvious answer, so I ask myself:

Why hasn’t it been done?
Should I say something, or just sit it out, till after the probatory period?
What positive action can I take?

So here is my action plan:

I will research on employment rotas systems, so that I have more idea what I’m talking about be prepared and ready for “When” I bring this subject up.
It is not in my nature to just sit quiet, yet don’t wish to be the pain in arse new person, so for now, I will give benefit of the doubt, that it is because I am new, and they have to fit me in. (So I take the blame!)
I will consider using this topic for a presentation at the Speakers Club, that way I get it off my chest, and at the same time rehearse what I have to say. Speaking from personal experience and knowledgeable on my chosen subject is always good. After my presentation I may well, receive advice, and information from the audience.

Any pointers, recommended reading, gratefully appreciated!

Resolution to self

2010-02-21T08:48:00.002Z

Retain my personal networks, and not mess others about.
Keep my grey cells working – with personal development, clubs and activities.

Friends please note: Work rotas keep changing, and that it has a knock on effect to my reliability in other areas, apologies are sent whole heartedly and I would like to thank you all for your understanding and support. I have to put work first.

I’m a tosser and Proud of it!

2010-02-16T19:15:00.004Z

We had great fun today tossing pancakes, sugar and lemon, yummy but that’s it for now as Lent begins tomorrow, and I’m cutting out sugar, so wish me luck.