Just your routine journal

Israel

Fri, 11 Dec 2009 12:46:20 GMT

So, I'm back in Israel (till Sunday) after a wonderful month in Patagonia.

I've seen and done some amazing things - a Puma in the wild, Glaciers (and glacier columns falling), and I climbed a Volcano. I also went to a Tango show and saw a Boca Juniors match in Buenos Aires.

I've also had a run of severe bad luck...

Everything will be on the website soon enough (still sifting over the thousands of pics I took to choose the best one's and I'm also finalising the notes I wrote).

Sunday I'll fly back to UK, but then I'll be back in Israel again for the end of December to till Jan 10th due to previous/other commitments.

and now for something completly different

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 22:58:34 GMT

Hello All,

My website is now "formally" live - http://www.guygrobler.com

You are most welcome to go and look, leave reviews and join as members. Dont worry - I won't spam.

Please note - while any browser can open the website, its better if you have Adobe flash installed on your PC (and most PC's do)

Enjoy

Guy

Black gives way to Blue & Cow's can fly

Sat, 17 Oct 2009 15:35:28 GMT

the new AIC album is fantastic! I know I'm not one to be considered objective in the matter but damn - they are good! they are very good! I'll even go to the extent of saying that they are the best in the industry at the moment.

"When the sun rose again" is tremendous, "lesson's learned" is dark but its rythm and its chorus are so so heart lifting and then there's the song written in memory of Layne Staley, which is really a touching song, quite and morose - "Black gives way to blue"

Here's the link: New Album

Cow's can fly - Read this.
Cows can fly (thank you Elton John)

Attorneys in the American Courts - Gotta read em'

Mon, 28 Sep 2009 21:08:34 GMT

From a book called 'Disorder in the American Courts' and are things people actually said in court, word for word, taken down and now published by court reporters that had the torment of staying calm while these exchanges were actually taking place.

ATTORNEY: This myasthenia gravis, does it affect your memory at all?
WITNESS: Yes.
ATTORNEY: And in what ways does it affect your memory?
WITNESS: I forget.
ATTORNEY: You forget? Can you give us an example of something you forgot?

ATTORNEY: Now doctor, isn't it true that when a person dies in his sleep, he doesn't know about it until the next morning?
WITNESS: Did you actually pass the bar exam?

ATTORNEY: The youngest son, the twenty-year-old, how old is he?
WITNESS: He's twenty, much like your IQ.

ATTORNEY: Were you present when your picture was taken?
WITNESS: Are you shitting me?

ATTORNEY: So the date of conception (of the baby) was August 8th?
WITNESS: Yes.
ATTORNEY: And what were you doing at that time?
WITNESS: getting laid

ATTORNEY: She had three children, right?
WITNESS: Yes..
ATTORNEY: How many were boys?
WITNESS: None.
ATTORNEY: Were there any girls?
WITNESS : Your Honor, I think I need a different attorney. Can I get a new attorney?

ATTORNEY: How was your first marriage terminated?
WITNESS: By death.
ATTORNEY: And by whose death was it terminated?
WITNESS: Take a guess.

ATTORNEY: Can you describe the individual?
WITNESS: He was about medium height and had a beard.
ATTORNEY: Was this a male or a female?
WITNESS: Unless the Circus was in town I'm going with male.

ATTORNEY: Is your appearance here this morning pursuant to a deposition notice which I sent to your attorney?
WITNESS: No, this is how I dress when I go to work.

ATTORNEY: Doctor, how many of your autopsies have you performed on dead people?
WITNESS: All of them.. The live ones put up too much of a fight.

ATTORNEY: ALL your responses MUST be oral, OK? What school did you go to?
WITNESS: Oral.

ATTORNEY: Do you recall the time that you examined the body?
WITNESS: The autopsy started around 8:30 p.m.
ATTORNEY: And Mr. Denton was dead at the time?
WITNESS: If not, he was by the time I finished.

ATTORNEY: Are you qualified to give a urine sample?
WITNESS: Are you qualified to ask that question?

And the best for last:
ATTORNEY: Doctor, before you performed the autopsy, did you check for a pulse?
WITNESS: No.
ATTORNEY: Did you check for blood pressure?
WITNESS: No.
ATTORNEY: Did you check for breathing?
WITNESS: No.
ATTORNEY: So, then it is possible that the patient was alive when you began the autopsy?
WITNESS: No.
ATTORNEY: How can you be so sure, Doctor?
WITNESS: Because his brain was sitting on my desk in a jar.
ATTORNEY: I see, but could the patient have still been alive, nevertheless?
WITNESS: Yes, it is possible that he could have been alive and practicing law.

wow

Sun, 27 Sep 2009 00:12:58 GMT

Something I just learnt on QI (witty series with Stephen Fry)

- Dogs can smell/detect certain types of cancer!

WOW!!!

Im so glad their back

Fri, 25 Sep 2009 22:32:47 GMT

It doesnt get any better then this. Throw away your artificial music, your fake music, your pointless words.

Sit and listen to the words and to the guitar - unbelievable. AIC are back - music made with an effort is always better then music made by a machine.

Snowdonia

Wed, 16 Sep 2009 01:51:43 GMT

Pics from Snowdonia - We shall return!

Israeli hit squad does Alice in Chains

Sun, 09 Aug 2009 01:10:04 GMT

View all

Get your own

Planet Earth

Sat, 01 Aug 2009 10:28:29 GMT

I just completed watching the complete series of Planet Earth (BBC, Narrated by David Attenborough)

Its an Amazing series showing the best of Earth's tremendous natural world, it also highlights how humanity is threatening the natural world and what different solutions are being tried.

I highly recommend watching the series, even if your not into the "natural world" topic.

I would also be supportive of making this series mandatory in schools - let the kids glimpse a world disappearing, maybe they will try and save it.

The Lake District

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 01:18:01 GMT

3 wonderful days of hiking in the Lake District

free single from Alice in Chains

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 23:18:14 GMT

Alice in Chains are giving away a free single ("A looking in view") from their new album (Black Gives way to Blue) which comes out on 29th September

Its loud and pulsating, its the Alice in Chains of old

Go to: Alice in Chains website

Peace in the middle east?

Sun, 28 Jun 2009 11:44:38 GMT

This will help!
Dead sea canal project

I would also like to see a Joint Israeli-Jordanian airport north of Eilat/Aqaba - this would be good news for the residents of Eilat as it would open up a property oyster in the heart of Eilat... (though I would favour replacing the airport with a Train station and Israeli politicians finally getting behind their promises and connecting Eilat by Rail to Tel Aviv)

Medals of Dishonour

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 09:33:07 GMT

This exhibition in the British Museum looks fascinating.

I want to see -
http://www.britishmuseum.org/whats_on/future_exhibitions/medals_of_dishonour.aspx

Some football photos (inc FA Cup final 2009)

Sun, 14 Jun 2009 11:23:33 GMT

Football!

for the effort - everton!

Sat, 30 May 2009 13:40:06 GMT

I'm in my wembley (gotta love blackberry) , time for a little reflection.

If there is any justice in football then everton will win today the fa cup.

We have no budget like Chelsea, but we got spirit instead... And loads of it

We worked hard to reach the final (took out liverpool, villa and united), they had an easy ride until they had to face arsenal.

And finally - because we deserve it for all the hard times we've had to put with!

For the effort, for justice and for spirit - EVERTON!

Go on you toffees and bring us the FA cup!!!

FA Cup final

Fri, 29 May 2009 00:37:45 GMT

Im going to the FA CUP Final!!! (together with my dad and brother)

Wembley stadium - 30th May - 3PM kick off - Chelsea VS Everton

After much toil and running about I got tickets to the FA Cup final.

If Everton win the cup then I also want to go up to Liverpool for the winning celebration parade

some notes

Sat, 16 May 2009 15:42:12 GMT

* about good journalism
- the UK's politicians are all in hiding, for the past week The daily telegraph, a newspaper of relative good quality has been exposing each and every MP for their expenses and how they have abused expenses. Heads have already begun to roll from both main party's.
- these expenses were due to be made public in july, the newspaper got the lead via a leak though (has to be guessed) and so has caught the political scene in suprise, has caused immense outrage in the british public who are now out to get politicans in all shapes and sizes.
- Some parties are benefiting from it, those that normaly dont get a chance...
- the government and opposition are now going to sit together to reform the expenses law (which was something that had to be done long ago as this issue has been on the boil for a long while)
- you do have to wonder how this will effect the elections to the European Parliment

... and all because one newspaper got the lead and brought it out to public - what excellent work. what further proof of how a fully functioning and unshackeled media can strengthen the functioning of democracy

* Events
- Still despratly looking for FA Cup final tickets
- Still looking for someone to go with me to Sonisphere festival - (www.Sonispherefestival.com) or i willl have to go on my own.

* Bad movies
- I knew it was going to be bad, I warned and said it was going to be bad, and so it was no surprise that there was a moment of "I told you so!"... I stopped watching in the middle, agooshah watched to the end. So here's a tip - "Rumour has it..."(Jennifer Aniston, Kevin Kostner, Shirely Mclain) is a RUBBISH movie. DO NOT WATCH. Spare yourself the yawning. Its not a romantic comedy and theres nothing to laugh from, nor is it a drama, nor a thriller, nor anything... its just a movie about... I DONT KNOW!! its just shit. anyway - enough.
- Ive not seen actually seen a good movie for a while.

* Readings
After finishing with the 2nd economic type book by Tim Harford (The Logic of life - really good and offers yet more insight into how all humans think and behave rationaly even though it might seem to us irrational - there is an economic reasoning to all things), ive now started reading yet another economics book type (The economic naturalist/Robert H. Frank)... after that Ill take a break from economics and I think ill either dive into some history (The Vikings/Jonathan Clements OR Mankind - 150,000 years of human history/Cyril Aydon), or just try and read a fiction book (havent done that in a long while) - a funny one so i hear (Yiddish Policemens union/Michael Chabon)

Alice in Chains

Sat, 25 Apr 2009 02:14:53 GMT

Alice in Chains are coming to the UK - http://uk.sonispherefestival.net/

GO I MUST!!!

A lot of pics... including the Aurora borealis

Sat, 11 Apr 2009 01:16:24 GMT

Its taken me a good couple of hours but finally Ive uploaded the pics from my recent travels:
Web Album

New Albums:
1. Newcastle, UK
2. Hadrians Wall (in Northumberland park) - The roman empire most northern frontier
3. Stockholm, Sweden
4. Abisko National park & The Aurora Borealis (Northern lights), Sweden ***
5. Narvik, Norway
6. Harstad (& Trondenes), Norway
7. Oslo, Norway

*** Regarding the Aurora Borealis/Northern lights, Please note:
- the lights were better on the first night then on the second night
- sadly, the tripod I was using on the first night was simply not stable enough and sadly still - I only discovered it the next day, as when its pitch dark, with the aurora dancing above you in the sky and it being all freezing... I wasnt really able to do on the spot quality auditing... the next day/night I did some adjustment and got better quality... but still a shame as it was really a tremendous display on the first night.

CSI Shock

Tue, 17 Mar 2009 22:06:36 GMT

CSI (Las Vegas) is a wonderful series, though i dont usually watch it - if its on and ill "stumble" on it - it will be very hard for me to move to a different channel. Its just so encompassing.

In any case... Ive grown so used (and fond) of the lead charcter that now that he's left - i just cant imagine it without him. The making of a real good actor i guess... but then after 9 years on the job, I guess it was time for him to move on.

My favourite TV series of late is actually - Family Guy, a series which is hillerious and takes the piss out of everything

Iranian TV Presents: Harry Potter and the Ziono-Hollywoodist Conspiracy

Wed, 04 Mar 2009 00:40:58 GMT

Surely Iranian TV has better things to do....

apparently not.

Carnage in the office

Fri, 27 Feb 2009 01:08:02 GMT

It was well expected for a while now, but the extent was unknown. It was kept in the dark while the executive level chewed numbers.

They called each department in the morning for the anouncements and to explain "how its going to work" and started explaining...

But I have to say, that while i was not surprised by the move - I was still rather shocked by its extent.

450 people have lost their jobs (well made redundant). Whole teams of people that I know and/or worked with are going to be leaving... it was a sad day at work.

I got to keep my job in the morning (they took each team and briefed them), and while i didnt expect my position to come into risk [it was in risk last year], you just never know i guess.

However, in the evening, I was called in for another meeting and there a "bombshell" was dropped - my position was still safe, but... I was offered a new position. Im not sure if to call it a promotion, instead a new challange and a new view point on the company. still the same team and department but a different set of products to deal with. A new ball game then.

Louis Theroux

Fri, 13 Feb 2009 00:37:12 GMT

Louis Theroux's documentry "Louis and the Brothel" has to be the best of his documenteries so far

see also: Louis Theroux

Mead & Green

Sun, 01 Feb 2009 15:47:01 GMT

I drank yesterday some Mead. Its the first time ever I drank this type of drink which so far i only knew from AD&D, fantasy books and fantasy movies.

Its rather strong (16% alcohol) and sweet (made from honey) but quite good!

with Elections in Israel in 9 days, I have made my decision on whom I would vote for (though I wont be voting this time, first time ever I miss an election - then again its only fair as Ive not been living in Israel for 5.5 years now), but anyway:

VOTE GREEN!
- The green party that is.

- If Shinui were to make a comeback and had a chance of getting in, I would vote for them, but as its not the case then Green it is!
- If the Green's do get in and then if they do take part of any new coalition government then I would like to see them push towards:
* Protecting our beaches from the hands of the rich and hungry/greedy property developers
* Pouring money into Solar energy
* Improving our existing recylcling infrastructure and position Israel as the "recycling kings" of the middle east
* Improving our fisheries (and we could learn from Iceland on that one)
* Applying a congestion charge in the clogged part of Tel Aviv and anyother over driven and over vehicle polluted area while investing the money in public transport and cycling routes.

PS
No, the above isnt because the Mead has gone to my head :P

George Bush is leaving office...

Sat, 17 Jan 2009 13:13:20 GMT

... and comedians are sure to miss him.

George W. Bush quotes