Suffering at the hands of bankers

Well I have to say I do sympathise with the Greeks right now and all the austerity measures that they're having to go through all because of the dodgy dealings of the politicians and the rich who made plenty of money from the change to join the Euro all those years ago.
meanwhile we have our own austerity measures here I the UK also due to banking and have we seen one banker hauled over the coals for screwing up the economy here or in the US which triggered it across the world. No, not a one. What happens to them, golden parachutes. And then off to the next trough to feed on.

And when I read articles in The Economist justifying that they earn it and that they are a limited number of talented people. Sorry, in general it's a pile of crap. The people below are the talented ones. All they do is define strateg! Strategies which can either screw up companies, and I've seen some so called bosses bring companies to their knees. Or, it can drive them to innovate (Apple being one example but not the only one by any means) if they have the right ideas and good decision making processes. And when it comes to bringing countries and world economies to their knees, if that's called talent then maybe they're right.

if not, tax the hell out of them and if they want to leave then go, you c an @/,? right off and we won't miss you.

Astronomising

Will it's been years since I last bothered to write anything at all. Now I was an earlyish convert to Facebook but I've now lost interest with so much crap floating about on it and lots of inane comments. So maybe I'll give is a try, pat my own comments (inane or otherwise) on my own blog.

Well, now I hear you say, we've been waiting for years but for what........

Well here goes.

Times have changed and then some.

In the years I have become a dad and we're now expecting number two in April, all being well. No big deal, right! Well, now I kow all the tunes for all of the kids shows but not ashamed to admit it. I am rather nervous of the moments when they become old enough to spout out all the things you do or say and forget they are within earshot or are watching you.

And somehow I have managed to start producing music, with about more than 30 tracks under y belt and having discovered SoundCloud finding there are so many cool undiscovered artists out there but not enough time on my hands to listen to all of it. Check some of my tracks out here

I have also finally have a telescope (about 20 years later than I initially wanted one). However, the weather here isn't the best and I've also found out that you have to endure the cold and have an inordinate amount of patience. There are benefits of sitting outside waiting for certain body parts to fall off (and it certainly was brass monkeys at the weekend) as it certainly gives you time to think.

Maybe in a months time I won't have enough time to do any of this for quite some time but I'll also have another bundle of joy in my hands.

Hello, hello, this is delboy speaking from where I am, which is.....Llanbradach of course

Well good morning to all of you out there (or good afternoon, evening to those of us in different time zones). It's been literally years since I last attempted a post. I'm sure you've heard all of my excuses by now. Never mind. Onwards and upwards.

Been quite a few years with several changes for those of you who haven't had an email from me. I've now moved out to the Valleys with my lovely wife surrounded by lots of greenery, trees and wildlife but not too much else. We're about 30 mins from Cardiff by car so not so far but then a big change from 10 mins to walk down to Cardiff Bay for a few beers. After having (almost) completed the work inside the house (in the process discovering that you can now easily get water soluble paints.), it's now time to do the outside.

Now, it's amazing how much enjoyment you can get from buying a strimmer, pressure washer and doing manly things with them. I'm sure it's not fun for all but I don't mind it (didn't get this from my dad as such things are anathema to him - however, he does have a stunning knowledge of horse racing). As I have another day of sunshine it'll be another day of getting stuck in to clean out all the crap remaining in the back garden. At least I can now see that the paving has some colours after blasting the layers of grime off last Sunday (not what most people would think of doing).

I've also managed to catch up with many friends as well, most recently in Glasgow to meet up Neil, Andrea and Stuart all of whom were good friends during my time in Singapore (now nearly 5 years ago! how time flies). The most bizarre coincidence led to Stuart being in my wife's home town during New Year a couple of years ago when we were there but as we didn't know we didn't meet. He now works in the oil industry and has met several Venezuelans in the process of working abroad. Neil and Andrea are still working on their (shared) house but doing well. And Stu, many thanks for lunch. Remember you're welcome down here in Llanbradach any time (you'll need to practice how to pronounce it!).

I've also caught up with Alexandre (Brazilian) and his wife Virginia (Spanish) who I hadn't seen for more than 5 years when I was last in Belgium for a visit. Both have now moved to close to Bristol about 40mins from us. It really is a small world. How they can survive the dark winters here I'll never know.

And congratulations to Rikki and Lisa who are planning to meet the 5 a side football team quota. Who knows, maybe they'll go for the full team 11!

My fingers and hands are now sore from all this typing. Signing off, hasta pronto!

(Climate) change is not good!

Well, well, after all this time it looks like the naysayers are finally being proven wrong with even the Economist having a front page on climate change. Over the past few weeks I've read many reports (example) looking at different aspects of climate change all pointing to the same solid conclusion that temperatures have increased far more rapidly than natural.

About time then we in the UK do more about recycling, prevention and minimisation of waste. We have been absolutely atrocious in comparison to other European countries in making any attempts to recycle waste. We do have to make it cost for households that do not recycle. I have seen this work in Europe whereby general waste bags cost far more than those for recycling plastics, cans etc.

Albeit, I though it was maybe going to far to have to insert chip ID's into our bins to tag waste. If they go into the bags, wouldn't that just add to the waste? Time for our government to take a tough stance and force a change on an apathetic public.

A suprising change that is beginning to make us as bad as the USA which we previously criticised is the explosion of gas guzzling SUVs and people carriers in the UK. Since when is a saloon not spacious enough for the average family. We don't exactly have a great need for 4x4s in this country. What we do need are the lanes for cars with more than one passenger for journeys during peak hours. Although, to make this happen we need to have reasonably fixed hours to allow us to share journeys.

Even better woulde be the chance to work from home for a day or two a week. Again, it looks like this would need legislation due to some backward management styles still present in the economy.

To borrow a phrase from Soccer AM, many people in the UK do think that 'Change is not good'! I say, 'resistance to change is futile!', except when it comes to the planet's climate!

Return from LA

Hi all, I know I've been really seriously stupendously terribly horribly absolutely......crap! I haven't bothered to write any updates for so long. But, I have been busy, but so are we all. Anyway, here goes for a new installment. Hopefully, this will be enough to keep you up to date with what's happening in my life.

Well, as the title suggests I just got back from LA yesterday. We also had a weekend ski-ing in the Snowbird resort in the Rockyb mountains just 30-40 mins away from Salt Lake City for 2 days before our LA trip. I'd never have thought of going to Salt Lake City, but if you want to do some seriously good skiing or snowboarding it's definitely a superb place. Plenty of fresh powder when we were there. In fact so much that they had to perform avalanche control the second day we were there & we had to leave early to avoid missing our flight.

Next was the real reason of going there, travelling to LA. Sounds glamorous, right? However, where we were was 10 mins from the airport in a slightly run down area. Hotel was great though and we didn't have to drive too far to find plenty of nice restaurants etc. Ate plenty of good food & we all enjoyed the good service. None of the attitude that you sometimes get in the UK but sometimes a little OTT for my liking. However, all in all a very good trip. Learned loads about all the new products we will run in Newport (not quite the same ring as LA, eh!) and met loads of people that I've communicated by email or telephone.

It really is strange how you have an idea of what someone looks like before you meet them and then they turn out to be completely different to what you expect! Strange, but I'm sure that happens to everyone. Maybe that's why video conferences are better.

The three of us got back yesterday afternoon in Heathrow with another 2 hour drive to Newport. We got there in good time only to find out my battery was completely flat. After trying to push start the car & asking anyone if they had jump leads we finally found some in the back of their car. Luckily, that did the trick and I was back home in the early evening. Managed to stay awake to pick Indira up from work. We talked for an hour or so before my body finally gave up at 11:30 or so.

Trips are good but it's always great to come back home where you're comfortable!!!!

Christmas Happiness & New Year Blues

Well, we're back to normal after all the festivities of eating, drinking & making merry (oo-err missus). Isn't January just the woirst month after the financial & physical splurges we all tend to do.

Christmas was definitely a great time, the best one I can remember back in Scotland with all of the family together for all day. Great food (cheers big Sis- as usual you never let us down), good beers (Hoegarden's, Leffe's & whatever else other people were having) & superb presents. As usual, I'm now kitted out for the coming 6 months at least. We went up with a 3/4 filled suitcase & came back with another suitcase and 2 kilos overweight. Not only that we had to leave presents behind!! It was a busy time before with my sis and mum out of action due to accidents & just general aches & pains. Which meant lots of driving back & forth to get everything needed. However, it was well worth it! We also came back with a new set of dishes for New Year which weren't presents. So, a bit of a crazy spending spree.

After 5 days it was back down to Cardiff to work for a few days before New Year. It's the first time I've ever done this as I've always been abroad and travelled home for Christmas or had people over to visit. It actually turned out better that way as at least there is a break from consumption in between!

New Year was spent with a good friend of Indira's & her boyfriend, Adela (Venezuelan) and Paul (English) , both living in Leed's. We also had a work colleague of Indira's & her husband, both from Turkey and friend of mine from work from up north (England, that is) as they say down here. It was relatively quiet as New Year's go (compared to being up to 8am in Venezuela or loads of drunken bums in Scotland) but everyone had a nice time. I spent several hours in the kitchen preparing the food which I hope people enjoyed.

And then back to work and getting up at 6am to take Indira to work. Ah well, life goes on! Got to pay the bills. Now to plan for the summer hols!!!!

Also, want to say thank you to all who sent Christmas cards & well wishes. Cheers & all the best for the coming year!

Return of the Delboy

Hi all, yes it has been a while since I last bothered to get my finger out and type some sentences onto the laptop to publish for all to see.

There are many possible reasons

a) Have been doing things that can't be published (e.g. top secret spy work)

b) Have been abducted by aliens returning with an anal probe

c) Too lazy to do it (same as couldn't be arsed!)

I'll let you all think of which one suits the bill best.

Meanwhile, after several months of hassle with Rover going bust, trying to get insurance with an Irish number plate & the beaurocracy of government agencies, I have finally got a UK license plate stuck to my car. Oh yes, after several hundred pounds & lots of phone calls, emails & trips to obscure vehicle testing agencies! It was that easy!!! All that to import a car made in the UK, exported to Ireland to be re-imported. If I'd known it was going to be such hassle I wouldn't have bothered. A warning to anyone coming from Europe to the UK. Ask how much it will cost & how long it will tak to go through the process. And remember, double both figures and you're getting to somehwere realistic.

Meanwhile, on a more serious note, it was very sad to see once again the poor and deprived people suffering. This time it was the people of New Orleans & Luoisiana who suffered, this time because of a natural disaster. The sad point of it is not whose fault it was but really (and I'm repeating what has been said by many others) that the response to help their own people was so incredibly slow. I'm sure that even with the large numbers of troops in Iraq there should still be plenty of opportunities to deliver food, water and clothing to those who need it. It's sad to see the large differences only coming to light in these situations exposing the American Ideal for what it really is - Grab as much cash as you can and f*^%&k anyone else. Margaret Thatcher tried to push that in the 80s and it didn't make us much happier people, just greedier!

On a lighter note, my Venezuelan wife Indira took great delight in the BBC announcing that the Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez Frias had offered assistance to the US. I told her I thought it was just more political point scoring. She agreed but still stated that at least they can't be said to be above the imperialistic comments of the Americans.

We've done many other things, seen many movies, travelled around a bit in the UK & Wales (photos still to come) so life is certainly more adventurous & exciting than before. With trips planned to Barcelona this week & the folks coming down end of Sep it's really a fun packed life down here in Cardiff. On the movie side, check out Crash, once of the best movies I've seen for a long time

Oh, I do have to apologise to any Welsh folks, not being a native speaker, welcome should be croeso not creoso!!

TTFN.

Creoso to Cardiff

Hi all, we're now happily settled in Cardiff after a few months of change and moving around. It's been a month since we first arrived n Cardiff and things are going well jobwise & socially. Both of us are much happier than in Ireland.

I promis to get my finger out & keep the blog more up to date but you also have to do me a favour by actually reading it and posting comments! otherwise, there's no point.

Neil, I will put some music on soon. Now have my laptop hooked up to a mixer & then to a stereo soI can now skip the CD burn part to check out how it sounds ona proper system.

Work calls but thank crunchie it's Friday!

La Boda en Margarita

Finally, I've got some wedding photos from Margarita online. Click on this link to take you to the rest of the photos of myself & Indira's civil wedding in Isla Margarita 2 Apr 2005.


Derek conquering Indira's heart