So, Ireland has to go to the polls for yet another tedious European Union treaty ratification. Every other EU country just let their governments worry about this stuff, but no, we have to have a bloody referendum. We always vote ‘yes’ (except when we don’t, then we just keep having the same referendum until the government gets the answer it wants).

So, hats off to Young Fine Gael for presenting us with a big slice of mancake with a crotch full of Euro-goodness for every one who votes Yes.

Works for me!

(If you prefer ladies’ boobs, Young Fine Gael will satiate you too)

Apologies to all my millions of readers outside the EU, particularly in the USA. But then again, as we have to endure the McObamton malarkey, why not send some tedium your way?

Ok, if either Apple or The Bird & The Bee don’t immediately approach the guy who made this with a large cheque, I’ll eat my housemate’s second copy of Céline Dion’s ‘Taking Chances’.

It’s just been announced that writer/broadcaster/producer Nuala O’Faolain has did, just three weeks since she gave that extraordinary interview (stream mp3) on the Marian Finucane show. She had been freshly diagnosed with cancer and had refused treatment, saying “I don’t want more time. As soon as I heard I was going to die, the goodness went from life”.

The interview sparked a huge reaction in Ireland and it was ever thus had a good post about it at the time.

You know how it is, you occasionally click on a few of your blogroll peoples’ blogrolls. And a post catches your little eye. Why don’t people comment?, asks deafulgora (via the delightful Alan). 

I had to respond:

1. They have nothing to say.
2. They have something to say but they reckon you’re not worthy of their response (they only came here accidently after all. Now maybe if it was The Huffington Post.…or Gawker…)
3. They accessed your blog on their mobile phone and they’ll be damned if they are going to type a comment on a goddamn numerical keypad with THAT tariff…
4. Typing a comment is physically difficult. Zillions (OK, thousands) of people have disabilities and find it a lot of effort to type.
5. They found your site when Googling for ‘Daddy I’m nude’ and, as my mother says, got a bit of a land.
6. They’re shy.
7. They are intimidated by your dazzling brilliance.
8. They couldn’t be arsed. American Idol is on in five minutes.
9. The fire alarm went off. It can’t always be the evil twin playing with your mind, right?
10. They just enjoy reading your thoughts. You put it out there of your own volition; no one owes you nuthin’. 

Well, that’s what the BBC is telling us anyways.

[Sits back and watches hit count skyrocket...]

Beautiful new track from Justice. And with a sensitive, emotional video to accompany. 

Glass of wine, good book and press play.

(Sorry…)

Thank you Simon for sending me this. You know me so well.

This isn’t new, but I stumbled upon it again recently and thought it worth sharing. Enrique performed in London’s G.A.Y. and sang Hero. Usually when he does this, he serenades a woman from the audience, but given the audience at G.A.Y….

Whatever you think about his music, this shows that he is one cool mofo.

It’s Friday evening, and apart from going to have my rather ancient car have its 2-year test (it will fail) tonight, I’m unexpectedly free.

Well, freer than I thought I would be. I was to have given a talk tomorrow at the University Day, but the whole thing has been called off because we have an outbreak of mumps (or as we like to call it: the mumps)! 

10,000 potential students had to be contacted today to tell them it’s all off and apparently isn’t going to be rescheduled. 

So, I can have a sleep in! Yay! This is a bit sad because we had written to almost 350 people with disabilities who might be coming next September and we were looking forward to having a chat with them.

Odd. I wrote that last sentence and realised that I really like my job. 

Still, sleep in is good too.

Get well soon mumpy-kids (and stay away from my office when you’re going to the Medical Centre! Cheers!)

Mumps outbreak stops university open day from rte.ie.

This picture (which I was alerted to in one of my Open University forums) has sparked a really nasty discussion on the tired old Mac vs Windows debate that people with far too much time on their hands seem to love to keep burning.

Despite working in a vaguely tech field and being a Mac fan, I tire of these debates very easily. 

Guys (for it’s usually guys), just go out and have sex or go dancing or devote your energies to something more meaningful than drumming up cheap publicity for one of two rather large multinational corporations. 

You big nerds.