Last time we were at Coventry Tesco we noticed that MoGo Insect Repellent Fabric Conditioner was on offer.
Has anybody out there tried the stuff, and if so was it any good?
Another "find" was this huge krab:
I'd no intention of buying it, I was just intrigued by the ambiguous packaging blurb -
"Parent Organiser... Keeps your bags organised!"
Seems a tad disrespectful, IMO.
"Parent's Organiser" or "Parents' Organiser" might have been better.
Having brought the observatory back to full operational status after replacing the roof that was trashed by the hailstorm, I thought I'd better get out there and actually use it. I managed a couple of sessions of observing during a run of four clear nights, and used them for some experimentation and equipment tests. I'd fitted a better focuser to the 6" R-C, the new one's a monorail or linear-bearing focuser, it has much better stability than the original Crayford which means less flexing of the optical train under the weight of the coolbox-clad camera. This in turn means better auto-guiding and hence a much-reduced tendency for stars to appear elongated.
Anyway, less of the techy stuff. Visual targets were the Moon and Jupiter, both were putting on a fine display in the clear skies. Imaging-wise I managed to bag a couple more Messier Objects - M47 and M76. Both presented problems - M47 was so low that for some of the time I was imaging through the topmost branches of a tree that belongs to a neighbour three gardens away; and M67 is such a dim and small thing that I didn't take enough pics to capture all of the detail, so I'll have to gather some additional subs sometime soon. Pics and details as follows:
M47 (aka NGC2422), an open cluster in the constellation Puppis.
Subs: 18 light @ 300s, darks and bias frames, ISO800.
1000D on the 6" R-C, guided with PHD.
M76 (aka NGC650/651, The Little Dumbbell Nebula), a planetary nebula in the constellation Perseus.
Subs: 18 light @ 300s, darks and bias frames, ISO800.
1000D on the 6" R-C, guided with PHD.
As above, cropped and enhanced.
Looks like a great idea, I wonder if it could work this side of the pond?
I'm thinking of giving this stuff a try:
I bet it'll taste awful. Bitter, I'd imagine.
Shouldn't "Nit Picking" be hyphenated?
You may recall a recent exchange of comments on here in which I said that "the RM around here are not exactly held in high regard".
Well...
One of their staff has been collared for stealing the stuff he should have been delivering.
I know this to be true because the Royal Mail's regional Investigations Manager has sent me an opened and empty package, addressed to me, that was recovered from a member of the Royal Mail staff. The original contents of this package have not been recovered, as far as I'm aware.
This package should have been delivered to me way back in September. At that time I contacted the sender who kindly sent a second item to replace the first one that didn't get delivered.
The criminal investigation now in progress should see the sender compensated for that first item, which is a good thing. It should also see the offender fined, jailed and/or being made to do community service (which, hopefully, won't be helping out the Royal Mail during the Christmas Rush).
What it probably won't do is compensate for any items stolen for which there is no proven link to the sender or to the intended recipient. I was lucky - they found the empty package and it had my name and address on it. I wonder how many other such empty packages have been destroyed or otherwise disposed of, thus breaking the thread of traceability.
I do have a fair old list of other stuff that's been declared "lost in the post" during the last couple of years. I'll be sending that list, and the evidence that backs it up, to the Investigations Manager sometime soon. Hopefully he'll be able to find some of the stuff, or evidence of it having been stolen instead of delivered.
I'll keep you... erm... posted
An employment agency found a job that they thought would suit me. Local Company, precision engineering, quality department, all stuff that I've done before with both hands tied behind my back. Acceptable salary range, three months probation as an agency-contractor then the Company would have the option to offer me a permanent job at the going rate. I told the agent to put me forward for consideration.
Now, I've been a Domestic Engineer for some time now and the agent thought it best if I was to be put in at £2k less than the low end of the salary range (pro-rata) for the duration of the probation period, this to demonstrate my willingness to get my foot firmly back on the employment ladder. A show of commitment, if you like. I agreed to this concession, sometimes you have to give now to receive later. I'd bagged an interview.
The interview went well, I liked the Company and, according to the agent, the Company liked me. I told the agent that after actually seeing the place and the work I considered the job to be worth a minimum of the low end of the salary range so I asked him to ditch his £2k concession idea. He got back to the Company and I was informed that they understood that I didn't want to sell myself short. I was in the mix.
Today is the Company's decision day. They have a short-list and I'm on it.
The agent called me again and asked if there was anything I could do to demonstrate that I wouldn't jump ship if a better opportunity came along. It seems that the depth and range of my previous experience is a sticking-point - I consider it a useful bonus for the Company, as in times of need I'd be able to cover for others in roles above mine, but allegedly the Company thinks it makes me more likely to leave for greener pastures. I'd have thought that it would be up to the Company to try to retain me, it's called "market forces", nobody knows what opportunities and calamities the future will bring and only a fool would agree to rebuff a better offer from elsewhere. The ensuing conversation went a bit like this:
"After the probation period, would you contract to stay with the Company for n years, no matter what?"
"Well, would they contract to keep me on for n years, no matter what?"
"No."
"Well my answer's "no" too. Commitment is a double-edged sword, it cuts both ways."
"How about one year then?"
"Contracted both ways?"
"No."
"Well, tell them that my CV clearly demonstrates my commitment and loyalty to previous employers. I'm trying for a job in engineering, not taking the Queen's Shilling!"
I considered my options and suggested a different concession on my part - I told the agent that I would agree to having a no-leaving clause in my contract with the Agency during the probation period but not in any subsequent permy contract with the Company. That seemed fair.
That wasn't good enough.
I suggested a third concession - ditch the agency-contracted period, the Company could set me on as a permy at the low-end salary for a full year, then review the salary after that year. That would demonstrate commitments from both me and the Company.
No, that wasn't good enough either.
I've no more concessions in my bag but I'm happy to let them have the stick that I've used to draw my line in the sand. I'm not willing to buy myself a job and then sell my soul to keep it even when I no longer want it.
Time will tell if I'm back in the rat-race.
