Geek Award
Today I horrified myself with geekery.

Little background info: I'm slightly addicted to Sporcle, and a while back got briefly obsessed with the Periodic Table quiz, firstly needing to complete it, then complete it in order, then complete is BACKWARDS, etc. etc. etc. I still, in an idle moment, occasionally sketch out a periodic table and try to fill it in, just to see if I still can. Yes, yes, I need to get a life, I know.

So anyway, this morning I went swimming to try to work off some of the Easter chocolate. I go to a little private pool in a hotel as it's just up the road. The pool is only about 15m long so my usual target is about 100 lengths.

So there I was, swimming up and down in my metronomic and rather graceless way, and the only way I can keep count of these very short lengths is to constantly say "...twenty one, twenty one, twenty one, wall, twenty TWO, twenty two..." etc to myself as I swim. Needless to say, after a while, this gets pretty dull.

By the time I got to the ninteties, my mind was starting to wander a bit. I'd recently watched some BBC4 show about the history of chemistry and during length 92, started musing about how 92 was the number of uranium, the heaviest 'natural' element.

And SOMEHOW, I managed to switch myself from "...ninety two, ninety two..." to "...uranium, uranium, uranium...".

What's more, I DIDN'T NOTICE THAT I'D DONE IT, even when I continued on with my swim to "...neptunium, neptunium...", "...pluntonium, plutonium...", "...americium, americium..." and so on.

In fact, it wasn't until I'd got out and my friend had asked me how many lengths I'd managed that I realised, when i could only answer "um... hassium?" [that's 108, if you were wondering]


I now fear for my sanity.
( Seventh is somewhat subdued, Mon 5 Apr 2010, 23:59, 1 reply, 16 years ago)

so
i just got home as relaxed as a strand of spaghetti after an amazing time in a very swanky spa and have actually achieved the impossible by having too. much. chocolate. how was everyone else's easter then? any gossip anyone??
( rachelswipe with a fork, Mon 5 Apr 2010, 20:30, 118 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

Is this some sort of conspiracy?
I don't really know where else to post this question - but I need some B3ta help!

Following the news of Eugene Terreblanche's death in South Africa, I've been trying to show my husband the footage of him falling off his horse (which happened some time in the 90s). I remember the video repeating on the news channels in oz at the time and rofling heartily.

But! it now seems there is no video record of it anywhere on the net. There is minimal mention of the incident itself, but no footage.

Has his shame been removed in post-mortem censorship?! (mind, his shame goes much further than falling off a horse)

Ps. I'm fairly confident I know how to perform a thorough internet search, but if someone can point me to the footage it would be much appreciated for some Monday giggles
( Tiffany Aching 's bowl of oatmeal tried to stare her down and won, Mon 5 Apr 2010, 1:26, 13 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

Alright droogs?
Job interview went like shit on Friday - drove an hour to get there, the interviewer looked at my resume and promptly yelled "why are you interviewing with me? I want somebody with a marketing degree, you don't even have a degree. Resubmit your resume for something more appropriate" and ushered me out of the door. I was fucking furious.

On a lighter note, went to the horse races yesterday which was fun, and the last couple of nights for the first time in 11 years I smoked some weed, which was also fun!

Hope you're all having a lully Easter, and have a great week!

Edit: And we just had a long slow earthquake - 6.9 in Baja California, Mexico - shook for about 20 seconds and my vase of flowers fell over :(
( Batshitmentalist is sane for once, Sun 4 Apr 2010, 21:42, 14 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

Dick Dale was fucking awe-inspiring last night.
The dude is in his 70s but rocked HARD, interpolating all sorts of stuff into his songs including Link Wray's 'Rumble' and even 'Smoke on the Water'. He also plays a mean trumpet and harmonica, but hearing that guitar sound actually coming from the fellow who invented it is something I shall remember all my life.

My father is sick to his stomach with jealousy, but also mightily proud that he's passed on his boundless enthusiasm for Surf Rock onto his son. I can only hope my daughter gets into it too.
( Monty Boyce, My cheese game is strong, Sun 4 Apr 2010, 18:22, 25 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

Today i learned that Polish speed-cameras photo you from the front, not the back like in the UK.
this makes a motorbike into some kind of stealth vehicle as they only have a plate on the back.

(incidentally, it being easter sunday the roads were empty so i was only being a hazard to myself, and not much of a hazard at that)

What have YOU learned today?
( blaireau69 , the Cumbrian Travis Bickle., Sun 4 Apr 2010, 17:20, 14 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

Cornwall bash:
damp but frickin' awesome. Clenders is a hero. Everyone rocks. Kaol has an inferior beard.
( crackhouseceilidhband Fuck off back to Mumsnet, Sun 4 Apr 2010, 17:13, 35 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

Golly Gosh!
Well, the new Doctor was pretty damn fine. Next up for the nights viewing; David Haye.
Are we all having a fun filled Saturday night?
( SpikeyPickle wishes he was mabazaritchie, Sat 3 Apr 2010, 22:09, 5 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

Doctor Who
Any second now. . .
( SpikeyPickle wishes he was mabazaritchie, Sat 3 Apr 2010, 18:22, 16 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

So we're spending Easter in Poland this year, visiting the In-Laws and we've just got back from church...
and i must say i rather enjoyed the high-catholic vibe.
odd that, what with me being an atheist and all. or maybe i'm a pantheist cos i think i believe that there is something in each and every one of us and all that we do if we let there be.
i must say, having been raised low-anglican i think all the bells&smells is pretty cool, but i'm not so struck on bumming the kids.

So my question is this, if you were tempted to adopt a faith on purely non-religious grounds then which one would you pick?
( blaireau69 , the Cumbrian Travis Bickle., Sat 3 Apr 2010, 16:29, 12 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

What have you bought lately that you thought was a bargain but turned out not to be?
I bought catfood in bulk.
( The Light in Chains don't touch the Pope's boner, Sat 3 Apr 2010, 13:11, 7 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

It's Easter Saturday!
Is your house clean for Jesus? Mine is.

Felicitations to all o' y'all attending the bash. If you can't be good, be careful.

I'm having my own bash right here. I've made sure I have plenty of Irn Bru in the fridge. You know what they're like.
( Roota zweeeeeoooooowm, Sat 3 Apr 2010, 8:34, 32 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

oh erm gee
I has an hour and a half of work left, I am sooooooooooooo bored
saddest of sad faces ever
( Lisette von Falcon, Fri 2 Apr 2010, 20:38, 6 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

Woo hoo! When I'm feeling heavy metal...
I'm out of the hospital and have had a nerve block that has numbed my right leg from the butt down. I can still feel my nads, but everything to the right of them is completely numb.

I'll admit it: right now I feel half-assed.

On the other hand I'll always be more metal than any of my kids.

So how the fuck are you lot today?
( Wanderer, Fri 2 Apr 2010, 19:04, 14 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

I am a bag of nerves
I have a job interview today with a $1b plus, international company at their h/q for the position of assistant to the VP of corp communications. I KNOW I can do the job, but have never interviewed with such a huge (2,500 employees) company before!
( Batshitmentalist is sane for once, Fri 2 Apr 2010, 17:51, 8 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

The radio is on
I'm not listening to it, but caught a fragment of the discussion 'The Sanhedrin were the prototype readers of the Guardian equivalant in Jerusalem'

Anyone else heard anything strange today?
( Amberl was stripey and dominated Europe, Fri 2 Apr 2010, 14:00, 24 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

Demob Happy
That's it. I've had much work to do this week but it's all over. I've got a day off tomorrow floucing about doing very little before seeing one of my favourite folk musicians, King Creosote.

After that I'm going to spend the weekend with my gorgeous girlfriend Roota sorry to everyone who's sick and tired of our shenanigans already. What are you up to this weekend?
( djtrialprice, Fri 2 Apr 2010, 3:37, 135 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

Monty's influence is spreading
Today I bought a new shirt. On the tag it says that the range of shirts is 'the ultimate essential shirting range for modern living.'
(dozers, do fuck off ur a nob m8, Fri 2 Apr 2010, 0:54, 3 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

I am stuck at work and very fucking bored. I demand entertainment.
Although I can't see what's remotely divisive about the below statement, when I posted it as my Facebook status a while ago it created an absolute shitstorm. Which would at least keep me awake.

THE SMASHING PUMPKINS WERE FUCKING AWFUL

*braces*
(Darth Foxtrot A one-man army dedicated to making fetch happen, Thu 1 Apr 2010, 18:26, 46 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

This is great news
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8598472.stm

This is what free speech is about. Yay for Simon Singh.

Edit: Who's is the best Hannibal Lector? I favour Brian Cox in Manhunter.
( Bartleby A dead man on vacation, Thu 1 Apr 2010, 16:28, 12 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

I had my follow-up visit to the doctor.
It turns out that I've broken the end of the fibula in my right ankle. To repair it they need to install a metal plate to hold the bone together so that it fuses in exactly the right position so that I can make a full recovery. This involves making a smallish incision along the outside of my ankle and drilling into the bone and all that fun stuff.

The doctor told me that I have two options: general anesthetic or a nerve block. If I do general I'll be unconscious through it all, but then I'll spend a couple of days shaking off the effects and might have to stay overnight for observation. If I do the nerve block I'll be home before noon, but I'll be awake through it. He says that most prefer not to do the nerve block because of the needles and being awake through it all.

I told him that I would rather be able to go home, so I'll just man the fuck up and take the nerve block. And yes, I used those exact words.

He and the nurse were struggling hard not to laugh.

So should I go back in a year and have them remove the plate and screws, or should I go through life as Robodad?
( Wanderer, Thu 1 Apr 2010, 16:14, 26 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

I had a dream last night that I was an awesome cake baker and was on a tv show like Ace of Cakes
so now I'd like to try to make a cake, the real way, not just out of a box

so I'd like to knoooow, what's your favorite dessert to make and/or eat?
( Lisette von Falcon, Thu 1 Apr 2010, 16:00, 34 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

chocolatey woe
i am very lucky because several of my colleagues have bought me lovely easter eggs. one of them even bought me a slab from hotel chocolat. so i am quite well off on the chocolate front, even for easter.

but i just met a friend for coffee, and she gave me a huge chocolate bunny from thorntons. ok, so it had a rather fixed white chocolate myxomatosis grin, but it was very tasty looking and very lovely of her. and how did i repay her for her kindness?

i left the fucker in the bank. so if any of you are wandering around the chancery lane area of london and fancy a free gigantic chocolate bunny, pop into hsbc and tell them rswipe sent you......
( rachelswipe with a fork, Thu 1 Apr 2010, 15:08, 68 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

What would your superhero name be?
Unusually, I am bored at work and my colleague Daniel - he of the 80's lyrical genius - has suggested we form a sythnpop-based superhero force called the Human League. I plan to dress all in white and fire superglue from my fingers under the guise of SpaffMan
(Darth Foxtrot A one-man army dedicated to making fetch happen, Thu 1 Apr 2010, 14:01, 62 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

That thread's too long,
I think 100 ish replies is the best time for a thread to die.

So I have a news link news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/8598134.stm
Who wants to have a whipround and send Derek Achora to Saudi?
(PsychoChomp, Thu 1 Apr 2010, 13:41, 19 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

My tema came second in a pub quiz last night
Thanks in no small part to my team-mates, in my absence because it takes fucking forever to get served at the bar I was in, attributing the credit for writing Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas to Reginald D. Hunter. Not joking.

What unbelievably ridiculous numptyism have you been subjected to lately?
(Darth Foxtrot A one-man army dedicated to making fetch happen, Thu 1 Apr 2010, 12:04, 169 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

It's my last day on the internet today till Tuesday.
Make it a good one for me.
( girlinthehole, Thu 1 Apr 2010, 11:13, 54 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

Let's play 'guess which news stories are April Fools'
My first guess is the one about the AA Rocketman
www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1262603/AA-jetpack.html

There was also this one:
www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1262745/Probe-launched-physical-sexual-abuse-year-old-schoolgirl-classmates.html
but that might be a bit close to the bone for an April Fool.

Also, yay for Fake Friday and 4 day weekends. Why is everyone going to Cornwall?
( Kitty v1.0 desperately naive, Thu 1 Apr 2010, 9:24, 116 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

DING
I've just got out the shower I'm going to put some clothes on and go get my hair cut then I am OFF TO CORNWALL!!!!

What are you overly excited about? You know what? I don't care because I'm off to Cornwall! Try and cope without me for six days
( TGB checking Off Topic is still shit at, Thu 1 Apr 2010, 9:12, 28 replies, latest was 16 years ago)