22nd October 2007
Hi all,
I've had rather an odd week. It is probably a week when you don't want to find yourself on the wallpaper on my computer.
Like most people these days, I don't find myself just at one computer. Between work and home I find myself behind plenty of screens, but most of the time I'm at one of three: the one at my desk (work), the one in our spare room (home) and my laptop (wherever).
Taking on board the way a friend of mine worked, I also have multiple accounts, and correspondingly multiple wallpapers. This isn't an issue at work (blank wallpaper - company policy), but did become so at home. My personal account on my home PC features a Prison Break wallpaper of Michael Schofield and Sara Tancredi, who as most of my friends know is my favourite character in a current TV series.
Oops, did I say "is"? I should have said "was". Five minutes into last Monday's show on Sky One we saw the last of Dr Tancredi, her severed head sent in a box to her boyfriend's brother. It was such a shocking development that Lorraine and I had to pause it, rewind it, then pause it again to confirm our suspicions. Nice.
Still somewhat staggered by what I had seen the night before, I perused a few blogs, critics and jumptheshark.com the following evening reading up on why this had happened (actress Sarah Wayne Callies not returning to the show) and what fans thought of it (let's just say it isn't a popular move, in the same way that Diego Maradona isn't Terry Butcher's best mate). What I should have been doing was searching for new wallpaper. Instead I went to ESPN.com.
On my games account on my home PC is a picture of Miami Dolphins wide receiver Chris Chambers. He's in full flight, ball-in-hand, running like the wind. He's been a favourite of mine since he joined the Dolphins, the first Dolphins jersey I ever bought was his. Along with the fact that I liked him it was funny to have a shirt with CHAMBERS across the shoulders, as a few of my friends and I knew someone with this surname (let's just say he wasn't as popular as his NFL namesake).
Oops, did I say "Miami Dolphins wide receiver Chris Chambers"? I should have said, "San Diego Chargers wide receiver Chris Chambers". Yep, the Dolphins traded him. How many mid-season trades take place in the NFL? Hardly any. Let's make that two sets of wallpaper that I need to change, unless you're Anne Diamond and suggest I stay loyal to the player.
Now besides the fact that I haven't actually looked for replacements yet, I'm almost inclined to keep things as they are. Now I know that Chris Chambers was delighted to move to San Diego, and Sarah Wayne Callies chose not to return to the Prison Break set, but do I really want to risk putting someone else in that place? Can you imagine the conversation?
Me: "I think that person is a great athlete/actor/etc. In fact I've made that the new wallpaper on my PC."
Friend (yes, I do have some): "Cool. Who did you have before?"
Me: "Dr Sara Tancredi from Prison Break."
Friend: "So why make the change?"
Me: "She was needlessly decapitated early in the third series."
(Friend gulps as a I jinx their favourite athlete.)
One person who might be a candidate for my next wallpaper is Barry Smith. I say it might be Barry Smith, I don't even know if this person's real name is Barry Smith. All I know is that I got a phone call from a junk caller on Saturday morning asking for Barry Smith. Thanks for giving out my number Barry, and letting that call centre agent waffle on for ages for no reason. Yes, I'm back to just having fun with junk callers again. Much more fun than just cutting them off.
Thanks also to the TV show Doctors, which this week decided to stereotype all IT workers as dorky-looking, geeky perverts. Puh-lease! We're not all perverts. By the way, this is when Sky+ worries you, as you don't know what other junk your wife watches while you're out. And no, I have no idea why she watches Doctors.
Final notes this week come from Saturday night's Carter USM reunion gig at Glasgow's Barrowlands. With a captive audience of thirty-somethings trying to recapture their youth (and avoid flying lager, where possible) lead singer Jim Bob passed on this nugget of information: "Marks and Spencer definitely aren't making their coffee as strong as they used to." Yeah, rock 'n' roll!
Of course I can't pass on every story from Saturday night, especially when I've only just recovered my hearing after it (a more experienced concert goer than myself called it the loudest gig he had ever been at - not a good time to find myself at the front and near a speaker!). I especially can't mention the comment made about a former British Prime Minister, just in case my Mum should read this. "What's that? Erm, sorry, I can't hear you!"
Hello, good evening, welcome... and goodbye!
Tony
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