Renewable solar pains

Why, with all that’s sane are we told that once more we will be gouged, but as it happens to be aimed towards the wonderful rainbow of reducing greenhouse gases by embracing renewable boundless sources; we’re to accept it – or else!

Tax airline fuel.  That might help levelling out the carbon expenditure playing field; adding that little bit extra to the greenhouse-gases-plant-a-tree-reduction pot.

Subsidise self-generation by having long term (and that's greater than four years for politicians and one year for bankers) plans:

• so as many buildings as possible have solar panelling, wind, water wheels installed,
• sensible and meaningful energy conservation measures introduced,
• improve the efficiency of industry, manufacturing and products produced,
• retrofit older buildings to be more energy efficient beyond the silly mantra of “loft installation” and “fill those cavity walls” which have been treading the boards for more than 30 years. 

All those billions made by energy companies could instead be used by politicians to ensure their constituents (all of them) have life's which are contentedly happy, enjoyably fulfilled and fulsomely long.  Although after experiencing ‘hi-jinks’ on the way home from a good cinematic experience - but they’re poor kids so relabelled ‘ferals’, some would probably call for life shortening not extending.

Instead of spending trillions on armaments, governments could spend trillions on radically improving the education, the health, the well-being of their citizens.  Ensuring "everyone" is fed, educated, and housed; there'd be no need to see people on street corners homeless.  But that, no doubt, to the many unadulterated believers out there could be deemed to be the most cardinal of sins - socialism!  Gasp, horror, shock.  Where is that soft spot waiting to catch me should I fall!  Well if that's so, so be it.  Because unfettered capitalism's gotten us precisely where exactly? 

But it's neither socialism nor communism because they too have proven to be busted flushes – those leading the charge strangely having a remarkably materially contented lives whilst the many governed queued for hours for  loafs of mouldy bread, wizened carrots and if it happened to be their lucky day a slightly moist dried prune.  All 'isms' have proved wanting, as all ‘isms’ failed.

Now that little rant’s over, back to solar pains.

We should be well beyond that.  Most major cities - within seven years - should be able to produce as much energy as they consume, if it’s done correctly they could even be net exporters of energy.  30%+ food sufficiency - that'd help with jobs, cut down debt and make people feel more communal without the need to emigrate or immigrate.  Already companies around the world, have developed or close to independently developing thin film solar modules and constantly improving on the 10% conversion factor; which although poor is, considering the short time in production still quite a feat, which can only get better especially with current prices 30% cheaper than ordinary models in the wild.

After briefly hearing, whilst in the dozing position, about companies banding together to build solar power plants in the sahara which would provide all the power europe needed, my first thought was “what's taken you so long?”  My second was, “oh really?”  Then before i realised it, a timeline popped up.

Not long after a couple more thoughts drifted before finally deciding to coalesce.  This then set me wondering how the spatial availability of flat-roofs would look like over London.  So with the aid of google earth, and bits of shady green, a few ideas for further imagery dumped themselves into my cell.

Were to start?  How much space?  I quickly decided on a patch of london roof not to far away, drew a border with yellow lines & red squares and used that as my base roof. 

The measurement for that particular patch (not forgetting this is done using a satellite imagery, dodgy mouse and googles earth measurement tool) came out to 103.9 meters, which - with some bad basic mathematics – gives a potential coverable area of around 860m². 

I’m estimating 18 flats for this particular block.  Namely three floors, each comprising of six flats.  

(map images courtesy of google earth)

So far, not to bad. 

Before zooming out (and i’m sure that some clever person will write an algorithm that works out - in an instant, those areas which are flat or south-facing slanted roofs and not roads, nor parks, nor oceans, and create layers in either google or bing)  we can see how many flat roofs are in the image by giving them a slight green tint, like…

  

(map images courtesy of google earth, fizzy green bits me)

Which brings the flat surface area of the roofs of a small number of properties to a little over 3,472.5m².  If that 3,472m² was covered with panels of only 10% efficiency, it would provide about 138.88 kW/hr.  My average daily usage per month (with washing machine, dishwasher, fridge, computer etc.,) is  4.6321 kW/day.  Which means, that taking a potentially totally sunny blue-skied six hour period that the installation would be chugging away for, could provide 833.28 kW.  Or, using my usage as a benchmark, the installation could sluice through enough power to juice 180 flats, let alone the miserly 72 which are indicated in the picture above.  If, my sums are correct.

Things look even more amazing at a height of 488m,

(map images courtesy of google earth, fizzy green bits me)

at 805m,

 

(map images courtesy of google earth, fizzy green bits me)

at 1.63km,

(map images courtesy of google earth, fizzy green bits me)

and look at all those empty flat roofs, doing empty flat nothings, not even including slanted roofs with south facing exposures.  Just imagine whether its water or electricity how much could be saved.  But no, lets build really out of the way huge windmills at the cost of billions and not really bother about the estate immediately usable on our doorstep – well rooftops.

Then at 3.23km,

(map images courtesy of google earth, fizzy green bits me)

Finally way up and out there at the dizzying distance of 71.360km (or from here to calais), the little red dot is all that remains of those roof tops in the expanse that is greater london. 

Just imagine how much energy could be generated and how much money saved by residents and businesses alike, if a 10th of those roofs had some sort of solar, wind  or - if over westminster - hot air capture!

(map images courtesy of google earth, green bits me)

Chestnuts

On a slightly different note, mid-july has now louched past, and all seven horse-chestnut saplings are still growing and growing strongly.  

With a couple hopefully headed for open prairies over the next few weeks, all that’s now required is to divide and replant the remainder into individual pots; some gift wrapping and the perfect instant environmental present that provides years of conkers or roasted fun is only four short months away, unless the blight finally gets them.

Pak Choi

The pak choi sliced top I saved and stuffed into water then soil, has brightly flowered (or bolted), and will hopefully produce some seeds since i undertook bee duty using a cocktail stick; and increase my self-sufficiency levels to a full 0.01% approx.  Sadly the thyme twig (which can just be seen on the far left) seems to have mimicked the bonsai, turning into a dead dried twig, which will see the bin in a couple of weeks  if its still minus growth shoots.

Mood?

For those who find themselves in particular situations seemingly stuck, unable to put one step forward without retracting ten, it doesn’t last forever; nothing lasts forever!

So when this morning i found myself in an exceptionally foul mood, my thoughts alighted on a greg bear character from songs of earth & power - a damned good read. The one who sloughs off the nastiness bubbling through his being, onto as many of those susceptible all around him. This (with another missive waiting to fling itself from the wings) strangely lifted my sourness, leaving me in a slightly better mood after I whipped off a couple of emails in complaint.

Obviously, after three years living in an an area that has become disagreeable, its time to spread wings and soar to pastures that are new, relaxing, recuperative, relished by the conscience replacing dud batteries recharging the soul.

update 14:04 — perhaps a dose of hrt & laser precision probing might affect a similar rebalancing?

Another age

"Confess."

"Never."

"Confess!"

"You'll have to pull my eyes out first!"

"Eye puller.  Where is that dammed eye-puller!"

"I am here, your great-superfluousness," the eye puller breathes, slithering from the shadows and causing both men in the cell to jump.  "How can I help?"

"Don't pull my eyes out, I confess," the prisoner screams, shying away from the horror sliding into his field of vision, confronting all he held holy.  "I confess!"

EDF energy: witless in the wind

It's wonderful having friends in differing economic strata's, cultures, faiths… walks of life; as there’s a sundry of differing obsessions, afflictions, things strange and quirky that affects them (and so many others) that I can’t help, rofl (rolling on the(it used to be rotfl but the ‘t’ tends to be silent in its abbreviated form and not mentioned, except by tits) floor laughing).

From one who's idea of happiness is to be up at 6am and finish working around 9pm, to another who is unable to jam a giant foot anywhere, without it first passing – and usually at speed, through his mouth.

So it was interesting listening to the travails of one of them, whose current energy supplier - edf (one of so many megalothipsaurs), was transferring them from a pre-payment “isn’t that going down faster than it should” meter, to a normal everyday happily whirring away to itself unit, the next.

Easy!

The dawning age of computerisation promised paperless offices and a life of complex free ease! If they’d truly ever realised how things would have turned out, I wonder if they’d have smashed those initial transistors and chased the scientists out of town.

Every mechanic/engineer or, in todays five second buzz-wind, ‘customer presentable problem solver’; seems to be umbilically attached to a small electronic recorder come note-taker, especially when working for one of the aforementioned megas. This wonderful little device makes everything easy and straightforward. Ensuring every job is efficiently undertaken with laser smooth precision. Calls with queries to the mothership are made before, during and after installation. But in this current reality it firmly falls into the arena of comic cock-ups, and descends through the human half of the cybernetically twisted union into an epic fail.

But back to them.

Wishing to keep on top of things, they’ve gone down the path of automatically doing weekly readings, which are spreadsheet’d on and offline. So when they received a card requesting meter readings, it was with unbridled joy that they filled them in. Called. Only to find out that according to the computer, and rude representative, they apparently owed £500.

They assured the representative there must be some error, and that couldn't be the case. The representative assured them that was the case, as that is what computer said.

Not sure why but, images of little britain

A potential representative in training?

sprang through my mind as the growing stream of harrumphing continued from both ends.

Oh yes it does… Oh no it doesn’t…

But then, apparently, friends’ phone packed up and they had to reconnect. This time to a different representative. Who put them on hold.

Moments later the new representative was back on. Apparently, representative one had eventually gotten through and found out there was no debt.

I took a sip of tea.

“A what gesture,” my friend asked surprised. “Oh right, a goodwill gesture. You’ll credit my account, with one pound!”

Bubbling tea sputtered into my saucer. After which, despite my best efforts not to, I had to burst out laughing.

Well it's always nice to know what a big megalothipsaur thinks of its charges, when they have to admit to a right royal cock-up their end; and hence avoid.

Will friends’ change supplier?

Apparently, ohhhh yesssss!

Transformabambi

Listening to some of the nonsense spouted by some of those who have watched Transformers 2, you'd think they were expecting to see something else. 

For those who don't remember the premise of  the Transformer cartoon series (and please feel free to correct me), if memory serves me correct its about;
a) a bunch of good robots, trying to defend/protect something/one from,
b) a bunch of bad nasty minded robots intent on domination.

Which - regardless how you skitter it, doesn’t really get beyond the series staple whilst faithfully hoisting aloft its spirit;  a staple encompassing (c) bad robots trying to take something over, destroy something and (d) good robots trying to stop them.  This invariably ended up in things been blown up and destroyed, seemingly with gleeful meaningless at regular and frequent intervals.

If they expected to see Transformabambi, or something really deep and meaningful, as I mentioned before, its (a) about a bunch of robots...

Tubby gnats

In a few months time many will and some wont be giving a hearty welcome to the new look tubbytory bench. Yes with as much experience as a newly formed winkytinky grasping after that bar of pure gold, you know they'll have rights and liberties at the forefront of their collective minds.

After they've checked the gold price, stock price and 2nd flipping house price. Laughing all the way with their newly found ex-new-labour-trough friends, and grategull fawning swanking city execs, to collect on their winnings from the accounts of sold-on-the-cheap high street casinos.

Aren't we back to burning bankers yet for plunging a few hundred million (global here) into the disquietude lap of impecunious?

Oh well, whilst we're at it, we might as well welcome in the age of the gnat.

At last

At last, it’s been a while since i was actually there at the right time with a camera in hand; but this time, the camera was a couple of feet away when my eyes caught a sudden movement, an arrest?

Yes a possible arrest, with the guy appearing to be immobilised and one of the officers checking his hands every now and then.  But then another car appeared soon after this photo was taken with four other officers, a total of eight for one guy who hadn’t even twitched in the minutes i was looking.

Obviously all was well as soon after the newly arrived departed, but not before some kids just - out of nappies, gave the departing officers some sort of grief.  Birching’s too good for them.  But, strange how my mood soon started to lift, I just need a nearby lighting strike from the gathering darkening clouds, then i’ll be really happy.

The seven horse-chestnuts are thriving, apart from one which might soon be sucking on ethereal sap over the next couple of weeks.

 

And, although i’m hoping that its just in hibernation – even though it’s summer, the bonsai lost its last leaf and is looking a bit sparse.

And then, blow me down, the weeing of screeching sirens brought me careering back for this final snap…

Wet my drawers and hope for a re-run

After earlier seeing trek and sufficiently wetting myself with enjoyment, the next few flickers of scifans i’m looking forward to encompasses: harry potter, 2012 – clippy below, gi-joe, and that thing – scrubbers - with brucie in – scanners – that I can’t remember surrogates, which looks exceptionally good in an ai meets i-robot with with a twisting nod to a smithless ‘trix. 

So a fun filled cinemascopic 2nd half of 2009 is on order; filled with bumper dvd/blu-ray/next-tantalising-whoppingly-huge-storage-media winter and spring (northern hemisphere) viewing sensation’s.

 

Democracy’s run

“Woofinate. Woofinate. Woofinate,” barks a strange roboticised voice hidden away from the prying eyes of the public.

“What’s happening, what’s going on,” asks the suitably breathless shadowy figure, just arriving and settling down within the lurking boundary.

“Oh it’s nothing,” comes the reply from the light. “Just the supreme one spinning and chasing own tail, whilst barking at the moon again.”

“Woofinate,” continues to drift in from the distance.

“Here democracy,” someone calls.  “Here boy.”

And the two burst out sniggering.

Ed's a changing

Test this, test that, six tries or your out.

Change this test date.

Bring in an inept marking organisation.

Try another testing scheme, ditch that.

Suggest consultations for a different testing scheme, ditch that if governors grow a spine.

Pop over for a quick visit to the leader of the free world, get notes on how well there comprehensive-equivalents are doing.  Mental note of the metal detector company...

“Prudence this, saviour of the free world that..., I couldn't take it any more. Had to kill him, for the benefit of everyone!”

“Don't worry Alistair,” V hisses. “Just sign this, everything will be okay.”

A few strays

A few photos slipped past my naming conventions. 

Still working out whether they’re bits of a lung, egg carton box, or just some old dust.

Quitting smoking II

Today is the beginning of the third month i have refrained from jumping back onto the smoking bandwagon, and a few weeks since I allowed a friend to smoke, in the flat, and didn't jump him in an attempt to pry his cigarette from his dead and mortifying grasping hands.

I feel i have made progress. 

Previous periodic attempts at stopping (not including those induced by the assistance of flu), somewhat failed when the slightest whiff would galvanise me into a frenzy, and scurrying for the nearest shop.  Now, nothing!  Things are so good (or bad)  my local newsagents taken on the roll of my own personal pusher.  Telling me (jokingly before anyone gets upset) how wonderful the cancer sticks are, and are you sure you don't need a pack?

The increasing greyness started to give me slight pause for concern, as it refused to go away.  But now that seems to have crashed into a plateau, and the itch for a full body transplant or at least donating myself for full body skin graft experimentation has passed.

Even more progress.

The other thing, which has not only hit a plateau but started a full retreat, was the need to constantly stuff my face during every waking moment; and the odd dream which, if i've correctly remembered, also included stuffing.

Progress.

Taking a look at my previous little table... oh, have months to go before the next momentous gp visit check.

Time	The theory	The actual
3 – 9 months	Coughing and wheezing declines.	Shall wait and see.	initially no - 6 mths to go
1 year	Risk of heart attack reduces by half compared to that of a smoker.	As above.	tbc
10 years	Risk of lung cancer falls to about half that of a smoker.	As before.	tbc
15 years	Risk of coronary heart disease is the same as a non-smoker.	Aren't I dead or uploaded yet!	tbc

Even aol/carphone warehouse have come up trumps, reduced my monthly subscription (obviously to retain a good customer) and sent a lovely shiny new router from which i promptly removed the wireless aerial and disabled the wireless connection.  Sorry but living on a main road with cars/lorries/coaches driving or parking less that 9ft away for hours on end, current wireless security just doesn't hack it.

And in the interest of keeping data flow going, here's a bit about me...

 

Luckless

This sniffive is nothing concerning elections nor climate, in fact it’s replete purview solely rests with the sole about an iron, that i purchased from argos yesterday in an attempt to shuffle off the disreputable look and look slightly less street or ghetto, or as friends say, the bum look and walk around with a few less cresses peppering my carcass.

In the event i plumped for…

a bog standard iron, to take out of its dusty corner once a month (or less) to do its job.

What i ended up with however was an iron that you poured the water in, tipped the iron up and the water poured out the bottom right hole of the soleplate onto all over the shirt i was de-creasing, turned the ironing board (whatever happened to xtreme ironing?), into paddling pool and what should have taken two minutes ended up taking 24 minutes and soon after the object packed and ready for shipping back.

Maybe it’s me, maybe my luck’s upped and deserted, or maybe something’s telling me stop been a cheapskate and stop shopping in that rubbish store.

The list so far:

1. Glass top - chipped on delivery, and a palaver to get replaced.
2. Gas assisted chair – broken after six months.
3. Irrigating iron.

but on the opposite part of the equation; a kettle and toaster purchased five years ago, are still in fine working order.

Wonder what’s changed? Ah yes, my luck.

Good riddance?

Sadly yes monsieur purnell, i finger that label your way.

In this, the day of super-power like computing capabilities, the fact his old service is still unable to provide a honed and targeted individual package for someone to effectively get back into employment, is an indictment of the failure of his tenure in that post.

It’s surely not restricted to the realms of rocket science or polymaths to work out what needs to be done.  Or maybe it is, and i'm simply barking at a reflection of myself looking at the moon.  

Provide targeted training/courses to the growing ranks of the unemployed and not the mickey-mouse/happy-meal type schemes they're so fond of trotting out just to have a good sound bite come question time.

But that requires, oh, thinking!  Thinking of actually improving the lot of other people and not just trying to ensure their own tarnished pots of lucre are full to overflowing.

Over a quick couple of minutes even i popped up with this scatty list.

1. What do people want to do?
2. What jobs are available on the market?
3. Are business willing to allow people who are on decent courses the time to work, learn & train?
4. Will there be a decent level of payment (for employee/trainer and employer alike) or will it just turn into viewing a revolting new dole face every 6 months?
5. At the end will the claimant gain that bit of essential paper, will they have the possibility of improving their skills, get into work, or simply thrown back on the pile?

New technology, new industries are growing whilst the vast majority of growing unemployed are missing out on the benefits these potential avenues could foster, as the country itself loses out, and all whilst the ferrets continue to fight amongst themselves.

It's time the country stopped relying on esoteric services and outsourcing its soul, to once more have another science/industrial renaissance capable of producing tangible decent goods that people can actually use, that has function, reduces our energy hostage value, cuts down our dependence on energy companies; and heaven forbid helps (however belatedly) our environment and makes people net exporters to the nation. 

So as the start of this rabid uttering of pitiful rubbish says. Good riddance!

Resulting eu

The initial eu results are in, and apart from the dinosaur parties....  initial results indicate that people are more concerned about immigrants than the future of the planet.

Oh well.

Go humanity!

Faith & culture

When faith and culture stomps on human rights (and no not the right of a murderer to be released to murder again - that's just a nonsense argument) then faith & culture are no longer useful.

Drinking binge

Not long after the 24 hour drinking laws came into effect into the UK and long before the ban on drinking on public transport started, i stopped working nights. 

Working nights at the start of a weekend (beginning on a thursday) wasn’t fun, unless you were in a similar state to the drunks just kicked out of the nearest pub and making their way to a club.  Booze, well the smell of booze – whether from a can or regurgitated, packed the bloody-window-wont-open roasting cans as they filled up heaving from stop to stop.

That was the start. 

At the end of my working week, it would be 8am in the morning, and i’d been at it for 10 hours.   On the trip back there was nothing nicer and sweeter than taking out a can and watching those disgusted looks sweeping you up down, or a refined wrinkling of the nose from those still groggy from an early awakening.   Then the cogs would turn.

it’s 8am and he’s drinking!

Must be a wino!  Before our dear amy was even out of nappies. 

Tramp.

Dole scum.  Or just scum.

When it was nothing more harmful than relaxing after a hard nights work and enjoying a nice refreshing drink, so by time I reached home all that was left was a quick shower before slow unwinding and bed.

Sharing the pain

In secretive corners of the film, music, software, television industries around the globe; executives and their leaches - sorry lawyers, have finally come up with the perfect way of getting intellectual copyrights extended to not 150 years, but to infinity. 

The dinosaurs won't be happy until every last file sharer is incarcerated 'til the end of time.  And so with their mouths to whispering silky words into the ears of lawmakers they vilify the crooks, criminals, thieves and miscreants; without whom finances of their hallowed companies would be "immeasurably off the scale"!

Most other industries actually call the vast majority of those people customers, but who's quibbling. 

Yes, they've finally realised that if it's good for religions, con-artists, and politicians, it's also good for them.  Just keep banging out the same nonsensical message and eventually people will start to believe there must be something to it, and come around to their way of thinking.

Sadly, in today's interconnected, news in a nanosecond world, a growing number of people have realised what a crock of overpriced crap they've been peddled, and whilst a few of the artists get to share in the good times the majority don't, as money's dolled & drained way before it's spread too thin.  Leaving the disgusted masses to revolve with their feet or at least siphon with their mice.

Blousey blues

Not sure why, but today's found me in foul humours, the sort where you could readily rip the head from some offending person, tear out their spine, drink their blood and throw away the lifeless skin bag without a care in the world. 

Yes, not a good start to the morning!

Probably brought on by having my sleep half broken by remonstrating people.

After having a black coffee - no cigs, and then hearing a pimped up noise mobile screeching along and past the window, my thoughts turned to wondering whether double civic-loyalty points for lobbing a grenade through their open window, or laser/saser/tasering their brains out just before the car explodes or wondering just how far it would need to plummet before the sudden deceleration forced the stuff the law none seat-belt wearer to explode through the - hopefully, reinforced window screen; would ever be given!

Yes a very bad morning.

Started then stopped listening to the news, as a momentary chink in the event horizon of savagery dared flicker across my seething consciousness.  Oh yes, for a few brief moments i felt at one with major kong.

But as i noticed plants that needed watering, a red haze lifted, and all was once more well with the world.

Never had it so bad

For the rich and the vast majority of wee poor, food - of what ever standard, is available without the onerous need to till the land, or travel to to far,  avoiding starvation able to fill ones belly.

We can travel, we can obtain medicine, even the generic basics to keep everything going - either paying or free at the point of need.

We're generally un-harassed regardless of our viewpoints, unless we point, jab and spit in our opponents eye, and despite the uk been the most surveillanced country in the world.

So pig snufflers have been caught.  Which one of us over the many years have truly believed that particular nest of vipers didn't contain any?  If the media were to begin considering what other public bodies or private companies (especially the heads of), get up to with their bonus', expenses, jaunts and yachts, they'd be printing expense details from now until the end of time.

With so many of the old snuffling guard not standing at the next election, there'll be a heck of a lot of new unknowns, whose agendas, affiliations and secret children won't really get the fully drilled tabloid treatment many of them might deserve; indeed many will slip through into battlefield ranks unskinned.  With a high probability landslide around the corner, I wonder what other freedoms we'll suddenly have to start fighting for all over again.

A perfect country?  No, far from it. But compared to quite a few others around the globe, it really aint to bad.