Tarragon's Blog

The Brits Are Obsessed With the Weather: Fact!

2005-11-24T21:38:00.000Z

The UK Met Office has been predicting a harsh winter for the British Isles for several weeks now. Considering their first doom laden prophesies were made whilst most of the country was basking in a very late summer most people I know greeted these claims with the usual derision reserved only for weathermen.

However, the first snows of the year fell in Scotland this afternoon and some councils are already running out of salt to grit the roads with.

The BBC's weather map for tomorrow looks like this:

Most of the country looks like it's in for a pretty bad day but I note, with some sense of disbelief that big sunny symbol right above London.

The reason that the British appear to be so obsessed with the weather is because, in these parts at least, it changes by the minute. If you get up in the morning and its warm and sunny, better pack an umbrella and a waterproof jacket just in case.

Tonight, I have laundered every sweater, warm pair of trousers and thick socks I own because despite that big sunny symbol I have my doubts that we're on for a pleasant weekend and, knowing what London public transport is like when the weather is bad, I will be going to work in my army boots tomorrow. It only takes an inch or two of snow to bring chaos to the whole system and make thousands of commuters across the capital wish they had put on a good pair of walking boots that morning.

Four New Blogskins For Potter Nuts

2005-11-23T20:41:00.000Z

I've been busy, busy, busy tonight designing a series of blogskins for Harry Potter fans. There are four skins in the series, each one representing a different house at Hogwarts. I expect Gryffindor and Slytherin will get used the most but I didnt want to leave out Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff.

Here are the screencaps with text links for you to pick them up yourselves:

Going Blog Mad?

2005-11-22T16:17:00.000Z

I have finally given in to the pressure and signed up for BlogMad. The service hasnt launched yet but if you sign up now you get 25 free credits to assign to your blog traffic. (Users of Blog Explosion and Blogazoo will be familiar with how it works). So click on the banner below to sign up. Like just about everything else in the blog-o-sphere it's free!

English 'should reclaim identity'

2005-11-22T13:00:00.000Z

In a BBC news article today Archbishop elect of York, Dr John Sentamu says that the recent emphasis on multiculturalism and the negative results of British Imperialism has led many British people to feel embaressed about their true cultural identity.

Dr Sentamu is quoted as saying

"Multiculturalism has seemed to imply, wrongly for me, 'Let other cultures be allowed to express themselves but do not let the majority culture at all tell us its glories, its struggles, its joys, its pains.'"

Defining what it is to be English, or British for that matter has always been notoriously difficult. The Welsh chronicles record that the first settlers to these islands were survivors of the Trojan Wars, in what is now modern day Turkey. We have been invaded by Romans, Danes and Normans. The throne of England has been held by the Royal houses of France and Germany. Our country's patron saint hailed from Malta. The first Chinese community was established in London over 500 years ago and there have been British Jews living in these islands for over a millenium

I personally, despite having been born and raised here and being a mix of both Celtic and Anglo Saxon stock, have no idea what it means to be British. Beyond the fact that my skin is white I have no other 'markers' to suggest my nationality and I'm sure if you asked other white British people they would also struggle to say what it is that defines them as British, beyond having been born here.

We have also been taught, by the media and our own education system, to be ashamed of the fact that we once had an Empire. Despite the fact that Dr Sentamu, who was born in Uganda, believes that the British Empire had many positive effects on the developing world I would struggle to name any myself. We also learned to be ashamed of our own national flag when the Cross of St George became forever linked with the violence and racism of the far right in the 1970's. The flag waving patriotism of the Americans makes most British people wince in embaressment.

But we do have a lot to be proud of. On a recent visit to see me an American friend expressed surprise that I should live in a neighbourhood where black, asian and white people lived together and walked down the street passed each other without noticing. There is less of the ghetto mentality here which has been partially to blame for the current tensions in France where immigrants and people of foreign decent have become marginalised in run down housing estates with little hope of employment or decent schooling.

While I find my country's history sometimes does make me feel ashamed, in particular our dealings with the Middle East and India, I can say for sure that I am proud to be a 21st Century Britain. In terms of acceptance and tolerance, freedom of religion, thought and speech we are far ahead of many other countries in the world even though we lack a written constitution upholding these rights.

Now if we can only dispose of that monumental embaressment Prime Minister Blair, who has done more to damage our international reputation and our own sense of fair play than any other Prime Minister since Neville Chamberlain signed a peace treaty with Hitler, I will be a contented Brit!

No Brass Monkeys Left in London

2005-11-21T20:36:00.000Z

I know it must be really cold when my mum switches her heating on. My parents are a hardy pair who would rather spend their evenings wearing several sweaters and two pairs of socks each than light the fire in the lounge. Yesterday my mum had the central heating on and the fire lit so it must have been freezing up north.

It's 2 degrees celsius in London right now according to the BBC's weather website, although I personally would argue that it's a lot colder than that, particularly if the temperature in my flat is anything to go by. One of the downsides of living in a big old Georgian building with high ceilings and full length windows is that it takes hours to get the place warm.

One possible bonus to this cold spell though is that it has forced me to purchase an electric blanket. A work colleague has already given me several tips on where to place it and how long to have it on for to get that maximum "toasty toes" sensation. I'm quite tempted to retire early to bed with a good book tonight. :)

New Blogskin with Artwork by Jessica Galbreth

2005-11-20T12:45:00.000Z

It's bitterly cold outside but I braved it for my morning walk early on and now I'm home and in the warm I have the time to do some more skins.

Here's the latest one with artwork by one of my favourite artists Jessica Galbreth

Jessica is very generous with her artwork and allows images to be used for personal and non-commercial websites. I expect I shall do a few more featuring her goddesses and faeries.

If you'd like to use this one you can download it here.

New Addition: Self Portraits

2005-11-19T12:52:00.000Z

Back in the dim and distant days of my youth, when I still had a 26 inch waist, I used to do life modelling. My college buddies were all studying art, including my boyfriend and I spent many a Saturday afternoon holding the same pose for several hours in drafty rooms for the sake of a future generation of British artists.

As I got older, and several bits of me started to head south, taking my kit off for a photographer or artist became a more daunting idea, however in the last year or so I have met several wonderful people, both models and photographers who've encouraged me to get back into it. I have taken a lot of photographs myself and had them taken by other people. The feedback I received from them was a wonderful boost to the confidence now that I definitely cant pass myself off as 25 anymore.

I've uploaded a selection of my favourites to Flickr and added a Flash button to the menu on the left. Because Flickr has definite rules on nudity and because I didnt want to risk offending or corrupting any youngsters who might surf into my site unawares, I have cut all hint of nipple and bum from the shots so no perving I'm afraid.

Any religious crackpots who are mortified by the sight of a naked ankle need not send me hatemail. It wont get read so I wouldnt want you to waste your time.

The Rise of the New Dandy

2005-11-18T13:08:00.000Z

I read an article in our free morning paper yesterday on the return of Dandy fashions and lifestyles amongst young men in London. It was particularly timely as I had been stood next to a young man on the train platform only a few minutes previously, who was impeccably dressed in a tailored black pinstripe suit topped off with a beautiful purple trilby complete with a feather in its band.

Anything that gives people a reason to cultivate their own sense of individuality is good in my book. I'm fed up of seeing men dressed in the same dull grey suits every day and women in the same silly high heels and three quarter length trousers. There is nothing remotely attractive about conformity. It just shows a distinct lack of imagination and a doormat like attitude to social opinion.

We had a dress down day at work today when you can come into the office wearing whatever takes your fancy. Four of the seven girls, entirely independantly of one another turned up in the same combination of black sweater and tight blue jeans tucked into black boots. What's the point of celebrating diversity and encouraging individuality if all we want to do is look just like each other?

New Blogskin: A Variation on a Theme

2005-11-17T20:47:00.000Z

I was feeling a bit lazy tonight but I still wanted to do a new blogskin as I have lots of great photos that I still havent used so I have made a variation on my own blog template.

This one has a different name and is in shades of purple and pink. Even though the dark and gothic ones seem to be more popular I still like doing the light and feminine ones.

Here's a screencap

If you would like to use it yourself you can download it here.

New comments system

2005-11-17T18:46:00.000Z

I have switched my comment system from Blogger to Haloscan today. Haloscan gives me more control over the look of the comments pop up window and allows me to manage the comments I get.

Apologies to all the people who have left me comments in the past. I had hoped some nifty tool would transfer them over for me but no such luck.

I'm glad to say the code to install the new comments system was the easiest thing in the world to install so to the person who left me a message asking how to get their Blogger comments to work try getting a Haloscan account instead.

A New Blogskin...For Me. Yay!

2005-11-16T21:05:00.000Z

Feeling inspired by this cold winter weather we're having in the UK right now I have designed a brand new skin for my own blog.

I've also changed the title of my page to "Under the Hazel Tree". The Hazel tree has often been called the "Poet's Tree" for it associations with inspiration, intuition and individuality, qualities that every blog writer could make use of.

New Blogskin: One for the boys

2005-11-15T21:08:00.000Z

Having wrestled with a temperamental computer over the weekend I have finally fixed (most of) the bugs.

To celebrate my victory over the forces of electronic darkness I have designed a new blogskin. This one is dark and moody and probably one for the boys.

Here's a screencap

If you want to pick it up for yourself you can do so here.

The 3 Year Wobble

2005-11-13T15:33:00.000Z

I've had my laptop for three years now and it suffered its first wobble over the weekend.

Unfortunately the wobble has affected my copy of Paint Shop which means no new blog skins from me this week.

Luckily it only starting acting up after I'd finished my design for a friends website. Hopefully she'll be able to publish it soon and I can post a screen cap.

At least with my PC playing up I have no excuse not to go out and have a social life. :-)

On another positive note my blog is finally worth something:

My blog is worth $1,129.08.
How much is your blog worth?

I took this test a couple of weeks ago and my blog was worth a big fat zero. I was too embaressed to publish the result. :-D

Evangelist Says Voters Reject God

2005-11-11T08:58:00.000Z

Once again Pat Robertson opens his mouth and a load of nonsense falls out.

Not content with calling upon the government of America to arbitrarily assassinate national leaders he doesnt like, the loony God Squad's favourite mouth piece is now telling the people of a Pennsylvania town not to pray to God for help if their town is hit by a natural disaster.

And what did these poor folk do to incur his wrath? They refused to endorse the teaching of Intelligent Design as part of their schools curriculum.

Considering the fact that both God and Government failed to come to the assistance of the the victims of Hurricane Katrina I hardly think the citizens of Dover will be particularly worried about what the Arch God Botherer thinks of them.

I'd like to remind Pat Roberston of two quotes from George Washington:

We have abundant reason to rejoice that in this Land the light of truth and reason has triumphed over the power of bigotry and superstition ... In this enlightened Age and in this Land of equal liberty it is our boast, that a man's religious tenets will not forfeit the protection of the Laws, nor deprive him of the right of attaining and holding the highest Offices that are known in the United States.

Letter to the members of the New Church in Baltimore, January 27, 1793.

If they are good workmen, they may be of Asia, Africa, or Europe. They may be Mohometans, Jews or Christians of any Sect, or they may be Atheists.

Letter to Tench Tilghman asking him to secure a carpenter and a bricklayer for his Mount Vernon estate, March 24, 1784.

I think Mr Robertson could do with a refresher course in his country's own history and the philosophy of it's greatest thinkers.

I know many Christians of different shades, Catholics, Anglicans, Evangelicals and all of them are comfortable with Darwinism, have accepted its scientific merits and do not see any conflict between it and the teachings of Jesus.

I would hate to see America become a right wing religious backwater where the freedom to have non-Christian philosophies or opinions is curtailed by the likes of Pat Robertson. But as long as he and his fellow Bible Thumpers shout louder and longer than the liberal majority that is what we are in danger of ending up with.

Send a Cow

2005-11-08T12:43:00.000Z

There is a saying, "Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime".

Send A Cow is a charity that embodies the sentiment in that saying and it's one of my favourite types of project, in fact, I studied similar schemes and their effectiveness for my university thesis.

The charity enables poor farmers in Africa to become self-reliant by providing them with livestock, training and advice in rearing their animals. They also provide a low cost veterinary service to the families they help.

By providing very poor families with livestock they not only allow them to become self-sufficient but also to sell their surplus produce like eggs and milk at market providing money for clothing, healthcare and education.

If you want to learn more about Send A Cow or make a donation you can visit their website here.

Sites of the week

2005-11-06T16:44:00.000Z

It's time for my finds of the week although I havent done much in the way of surfing this week.

Beautiful Sin
I found this site searching for PSP brushes and its probably the one and only time I will include someone else's blog as a site of the week. Faith's brushes were just what I was looking for. She's obviously a talented web designer too. Pay her a visit and drool over her fantastic layout.

Imagenetion
This is actually an old favourite but I revisited this week, again in search of some graphics to use for blog templates. The site is a huge database of fantasy and pin-up artwork. All the reproductions are top quality and all the artists are credited. One of the best artwork sites on the net.

Deviant Art
If you've never heard of Deviant Art you must have been living on Jupiter for the last 5 years. Another great artwork site, focusing mainly on digital creations. I just wish it loaded faster.

A New Blog Skin for Mums to Be

2005-11-06T12:53:00.000Z

This one definitely has a niche market. I've spent the morning designing a new blog skin for mums to be. It wasn't what I had in mind at all when I sat down at the PC but I was browsing for images, saw this one and fell in love with it.

Here's a screencap

If you'd like to download it you can do so here.

London's Burning

2005-11-05T22:48:00.000Z

Well, it's that time of year again. Guy Fawkes Night, when millions of mad Brits stand outside in the freezing cold trying desperately to bake potatoes on their garden bonfire whilst ooh-ing and aah-ing at all the pretty fireworks.

It has been pointed out by the media that, in the light of the London tube bombings, it seems to be in bad taste to spend the evening celebrating an act of terrorism by a group of religious fanatics. They seemed to have missed the point of Guy Fawkes Night in my opinion. It's not a celebration of an act of terrorism that suceeded, but one that failed. Guy Fawkes and his conspirators were given up to the authorities by men who considered loyalty to their country to be a greater cause, men who were wise enough to realise that terrorism never achieves anything.

Families across the country will be burning their Guy's tonight to celebrate his failure, not his success.

So bring on the fireworks and the uncooked potatoes! I just wish we had the common sense, like our American cousins, to throw our biggest party of the year in a warmer month.

Purple Mark II

2005-11-04T19:33:00.000Z

I have just uploaded a new skin to Blogskins.

Here's a screencap

Feel free to download it for yourselves here.

'Gas muzzlers' challenge Bush

2005-11-03T21:19:00.000Z

I was heartened today to read this article from the BBC highlighting the efforts of some American states to implement carbon emission targets for local industries despite continuing apathy from the White House.

Any environmental campaigner who tells you that man is totally to blame for climate change needs to re-check their facts. Dramatic climate change has been going on throughout the history of our planet and certainly long before man cut down his first tree or burned his first lump of coal. However, it is niave to deny that our actions are not contributing to the present situation.

The BBC also ran a TV news article on the same topic this evening and interviewed a number of Americans to guage their reactions to this proposed legislation. All of them voiced concerns about how their climate is changing, many citing Hurricane Katrina as the event that made them sit up and think.

One can only hope that this growing awareness and concern amongst the American population as a whole finally makes an impact on the federal law makers. As Prince Charles pointed out in his speech at a lunch today in his honour,

"So many people...look to the United States for a lead on the most crucial issues that face our planet, and indeed the lives of our grandchildren."

It seems a shame that a nation of people who are, in my experience, caring and educated are being let down on the international stage by an administration which cares more for the business concerns of the individuals in power than it does for the welfare of its nation and its neighbours.

For anyone interested in the history of global climate change I highly recommend "The Long Summer: How Climate Changed Civilization" by Brian Fagan. The science is pegged at layman level and its application of climate change to the development of human society makes it a fascinating and very relevant read.

Bitten by the bug.

2005-11-02T20:39:00.000Z

I've always enjoyed designing web pages. It keeps me out of trouble on cold Sunday afternoons.

So having picked up the original skin for this blog from Blog Skins I decided to start contributing my own designs to their database.

I have just uploaded my first one. Here's a little screenshot

It has been set up for Blogger users but anyone with HTML knowledge could edit it for use elsewhere.

If you'd like to use it yourselves you can download it here.

Dont forget to leave me a comment. A kind comment. It's my first freeware skin. :)

Pretty in errrr....purple?

2005-11-01T20:29:00.000Z

Yep, I have thrown out the original skin already.

This one has been designed entirely by me using Paint Shop Pro 7 and Dreamweaver.

I have to admit, I'm totally in love with it. Clean, cool, simple and decidedly un-pink.

I have a couple more tweaks to make and hopefully it'll all be done.

Second Best??

2005-10-31T16:48:00.000Z

American President George W Bush has nominated federal appeals court judge Samuel Alito to the US Supreme Court.

President Bush has variously described Alito as

"one of the most accomplished and respected judges in America"

and as having

"extraordinary breadth of experience"

According to the BBC article on the topic, Bush also praised Alito's record as being the best of any candidate nominated in the last 70 years.

So, if all this is true, why did Bush not nominate Alito to begin with? If such an obviously excellent candidate was available for selection why did Bush try and get judicial novice Harriet Miers selected for the post?

The mind boggles as to this mans sense of logic. Or maybe he's just trying to put a brave face and maximum spin on the whole silly affair.

Sites of the week

2005-10-30T11:53:00.000Z

I've done a fair bit of surfing this week despite my invalid status. Here are my favourite finds:

The Law of the Playground
Pant wettingly funny stories from the school playground / classroom. Submitted by readers. Many of these stories will be familiar to us all. Here's one of my particular favourites:

At the age of eight, we managed to convince pikey Sophie James that having an orgasm was a terrible thing, by admonishing "Don't have an orgasm, Sophie" every time she showed the slightest hint of excitement. After about the millionth time, the phrase would set her off into a monumental tantrum: she'd screech, stamp her feet, bellow "I HAVEN'T HAD AN ORGASM!", and run off to cry in the toilets.
Fifteen years later, I can't help wondering if she still does this when her boyfriend asks her "Did you come, dear?"

XXBoys
A photography project by Kael, publishing the portraits and thoughts of guys who used to be girls and those who are ungergoing the transition from one to the other. The site naturally contains some nudity but it is a unique and very honest community that offers an insight into a world that most people are probably unaware of.

del.icio.us
A directory of user added websites, sorted by subject, that allows you to store your favourites or interesting finds online for retrieval from any PC anywhere. It has a toolbar function that allows you store new sites with a click of a button. Very handy for those lunch break surfing sessions in the office.

The Perils of Living Alone

2005-10-30T09:19:00.000Z

This is the entry that makes all the guys shake their heads in despair.

The fuse blew in my washing machine this morning. Having dragged it out, full of water and clothes, from its hidey hole beneath the kitchen counter, I discovered to my horror that it takes a 13 amp fuse. I only had 3 and 5 amp fuses to spare.

So I've shoved a 5 amp in it. It seems to be managing OK but I may have to switch it off before it gets to the spin cycle. I dont think the fuse will last.

Had I had a man about the house we would no doubt have had spare 13 amp fuses lurking somewhere or at least I would have had someone I could sweet talk into walking down to the shop to buy one.

/end sarcasm

On the blog front I have done some more tinkering to the design. The original skin was picked up at http://www.blogskins.com but I have made some changes, namely to the scroll bar and mouse over colours. I've also matched the title font to the menu font and made the table and image borders the same throughout.

I'm still not sure I'm comfortable with it and it will no doubt change at some point in the future but I do like the girly pinkness of it.

Popping the Blog Cherry

2005-10-29T18:32:00.000Z

The bad thing about food poisoning, apart from the obvious, is that I end up with too much time on my hands.

Well, this seemed like a good idea at the time...