End of the year!

Just wanted to point out that I've managed more than one post each day (as an average). I hope 2009 was kind and that 2010 delivers what you want rather than what you deserve :-)

Happy New Year to everyone!

NYE

Hot cross buns on NYE???

Yummy!

Tonight Cal and I will be mostly eating Chinese food. Homemade of course!

He's been!!!!

So here it is.....

My tree

My eco-friendly Christmas tree.

Do they know it's Christmas time at all?

Nearly there!

Always nice when a visitor stays over - Cal in the spare room after an evening of Dr Who, pizza and Waterloo Road.
Tomorrow we'll hang some decorations and visit Waitrose for final bits and because we always go on Christmas Eve.
--

It's Chriiiiiiiiiiiiistmas!

More cuts

The government is to cut university funding by £533m - from £7.81bn this year to £7.29bn for 2010-11, Business Secretary Lord Mandelson has said.

In a letter to the Higher Education Funding Council For England (HEFCE), he also asks universities to protect quality and access to higher education.

How special is this? A government which has sunk billions of pounds into projects to increase participation in higher education is now cutting HE funding and threatening fines for providers who over-recruit. Mandelson wants to take out more money - this is on top of the ELQ cuts remember - but also wants quality and access protected. Universities are generally very good at doing things which other institutions cannot but this one is up there with plaiting fog and nailing jelly to the ceiling.

Christmas in Maidstone

Yummy!

Bottle of plonk, dvd and liquorice. Bliss!

The lane

Today in 1903

The Wright Brothers at Kittyhawk.

(Image from NASA http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/imagegallery/image_feature_976_prt.htm)

Pressies

The guys brought this back for me from the Christmas lunch. I'm finishing on Friday so stayed here to get some work done.

Frozen beef

Across the road this AM

Emergency Tea

Click on image to launch the Emergency Tea Response Unit.

Frosty morning

What doesn't show in this shot is the beautiful pink colour of the sky. The sun rises from behind the taller trees to the left of centre and before the sky gets light it's wonderful watching the sun creep up.

The Sun

Decided to post this because I miss the Sun at this time of year (yes - it's a pun!)

Sunday night music - "The bones of you"

Welsh bananas

Continuing the Welsh theme......

This story is two years old so I'd imagine that a coastal strip 20 miles wide and stretching from Cardiff to St David's Head is now given over to banana plantations. Seems to make sense to shift to fruit production and it would be nice to walk along the front at Manorbier eating figs picked from local trees. Resting in the shadow of Tenby castle eating a Welsh banana. Yummy!

Worth watching

Some stark stuff in here

Balls!

Schools 'get off lightly' in pre-budget report, but universities prepare for cuts (Guardian Education 09/12/09)

Education hit again by this stupid, stupid government. They continue to fund "gimmick" projects supposedly aimed at increasing participation in education (at all levels) and then cut the provision of that education by strangling the funding. Remember that it's this bunch which cut funding of any non-accredited adult education and cut funding of NVQ L2 and L3 FE courses. This lot made Charles Clarke secretary for education where he famously said

"I don't mind there being some medievalists around for ornamental purposes, but there is no reason for the state to pay for them"

They've pursued the idea that learning should only be vocational; it should have a utilitarian value rather then the simple joy of knowledge. They look askance at the growth of the "Chav" but they've created a culture where wishing to learn something aesthetic generates accusations of being a "boff". The bullying which happens in school playgrounds is simply an echo of the government's rhetoric. They've created meaningless qualifications in order to claim that education is working while cutting funding on flagship projects like "Train to gain".

They've bankrupt the country and, along the way, are bankrupting education.

We are the people we've been waiting for

Found on a great blog post by John Connell; A Race Between Education and Catastrophe.

Pure genius

Slanket - it's a wonderful idea! A blanket with sleeves. Thanks to Phil G for spotting this. Perfect for snoozles!

Spire

Beautiful blue sky over Union Crescent, Margate

Margate

Margate library is very swish indeedy!

Margate harbour

Today I'm going............

Local Advice Session for the OU in Margate library

Scrummy

Sitting in bed watching TV while snuggled in the duvet and blogging. It's a tough old world at times. If I wasn't working tomorrow I might crack a bottle of wine but local advice session in Margate.

Sign

Parked in a hydropool?
(Just to clarify - take a look at the photo full-sized by clicking on it. Read the sign.....)

Blue packets

I don't buy crisps and the only time I eat them are when I levy Crisp Tax. Before anyone gets concerned I am aware that we no longer have little blue packets of salt in crisps but I still miss them.

And from there, of course, it's only a short hop and a skip to all the other bits of the picnic that we don't have any more. Double Diamond and Long Life - the beers we grew up with, decent pork pies, long summer days.............

Just musing I suppose

Noggin the Nog

I decided it was time to remind everyone about the tales of the Northlands. Where, in days of old, the men of the North sat by their great log fires and they tell tales. And those tales they tell are the stories of a kind and wise king and his people; they are the Sagas of Noggin the Nog

If you want it, come and get it

Crying

Watching BBC4 and they are showing "The Best of the Johnny Cash show 1969 - 1971" and they've just shown the Big O doing this. Wonderful song.

Winter trees

On the way to EG

But if you lose.....

Surprise

Feeding an unexpected child this evening

A Spanish proverb

This world is a fandango, and he who does not dance it is a fool.

I just think that this is lovely and I wonder whether I'll be dancing round Sainsburys later.

Forest Row

Jammed up!

Big ones

Wild Toblerones available in Moggies

Beer!

Joey Holt's Humdinger - Manchester beer, yummy!

A bit of music for a Monday

Happy birthday to us

Birthday cake at conference yesterday.

Flooded Buddha

DSCF5122, originally uploaded by nogbad the bad.

Shot from the backdoor step; we've had a bit of rain today! I'm pleased with the framing of this shot - that's straight out of the camera. Only change is to adjust the levels slightly.

Maidstone East

Because....

Dawn

Baragami

As many folk know I'm a fan of Wales and constantly looking for ways to immerse myself in all things Welsh. Imagine my delight then when someone pointed me to this wonderful site about the ancient Welsh art of Baragami.

The Imp

Glimpsed one of these in The Sweeney and I started thinking about Imps.

The basic Imp was discontinued in 1973. It had been conceived as a small car capable of carrying two adults and two children. At the time other small cars on the market included the Mini and the Fiat 500. the Imp had some important design features including an aluminium alloy engine and overhead camshaft.

Of course one rarely sees an Imp now - for all sorts of reasons. Perhaps with the rebirth of the small car it will make a return.

Birthday cake

DSCF5099, originally uploaded by nogbad the bad.

Make-up bag birthday cake

She doesn't give you time for questions (1976)

I think it's this kind of day today. Enjoy!

Beautiful dawn

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

Wahay!

Most of the required food groups and at £1.50 for two!

Being an OU student

First tutorial for T175 09J. Canterbury Christ Church University, Nf01

Lunch

A healthy diet includes foods of different colours

Work

Social workers and nurses!

New Year!

It's the start of the new academic year. I'm posting this to welcome everyone to whatever they are studying and with whichever provider and at whatever level.

It's also to see whether any of the students in my T175 group find this blog and this posting and say "hello" in the comments (and anyone else who wishes to say "hello" - feel free! :-))

So wide you can't get around it, so low you can't get under it

Feet don't fail me now!

Here's a chance to dance our way out of our constrictions.

Wonderful!

The Spaghetti Western Orchestra - awesome!

Rain!

Rain!, originally uploaded by nogbad the bad.

Glad I have no plans for this weekend - look at this rain! Biblical proportions and it's been happening all afternoon. Not complaining though - we need some after a dry summer.

CCUC Coffee shop

CCUC Coffee shop, originally uploaded by nogbad the bad.

Should have sent this sooner. It's the new coffee shop at CCUC and it's fabulous. It's where the library used to be and, through the windows, has a smashing view of the central courtyardy bit with the pond. Out the other side, where I used to park, are tables for sitting outside in the sunshine. It's tres nice and I'm there next Saturday for a tutorial so I shall be enjoying it again.

Love this song

Boy

A mass of blue and stripes - he's getting to a size where he'll have to stay outside in his kennel.

Starlings

Some poetry for a Saturday night. Especially for anyone who has a splinter.

Cal

Cal listening to Buena Vista Social Club.

Healthy food!

Baked butter beans with a tomato and garlic sauce, cold chicken and fresh bread. Go healthy!!

We Wagamama'd

Actually this was waiting outside, name shows in the reflection.

Today's date

Ro and I are in Canterbury

Where I've been working today

The little interview area in the library at the regional office in EG

Gill

Gill is a regular reader here.

Wahay!

Writing this on the new phone without sim card. Wifi connection to LAN in the office. Lovin it!

Sam Alexander building

Sam Alexander building, originally uploaded by nogbad the bad.

This is the Samuel Alexander Building at the University of Manchester. It's where history is studied.

Beer

I think I deserve this one today