Nick Jordan

On Sunday afternoon I ordered a MiniCard holder from Moo.com. I was very happy indeed when it arrived yesterday and even happier still when I unwrapped it and had a good look at it. It’s exactly what I’ve been waiting for – a made-to-measure container to keep my MiniCards safe and to hand when they’re wanted. I can’t praise this company’s products or service highly enough. And no, I don’t have any connection with them and I’m absolutely not being paid to say this.

Yesterday we jumped on the bus and, amidst the snow showers, went to Ikea. It being a bank holiday weekend, I expected it to be unpleasantly busy but it turned out not to be too bad at all. We’d gone with the intention of picking up some picture frames but they didn’t have any the right size. Still, we did manage to come away with plenty of other stuff: a coat stand, a pair of new lap trays, some wine glasses and various other odds and ends. A fine lunch of the obligatory meatballs to kick it all off, too.

The rest of the day was spent in general idleness, which seems to be the way that today is shaping up as well. Quelle surprise.

I’ve just had my attention drawn to Match It For Pratchett, a website that has been set up in order to raise at least £500,000 for research into Alzheimer’s, the disease that Terry Pratchett was recently diagnosed with a form of. Mr. Pratchett himself has recently given half a million quid for this and, whether you’re a fan or not, I think it’s a very worthwhile cause and I urge you to make a donation of whatever amount you can afford.

I’ve taken to wearing earplugs on the bike again. It’s amazing how much more comfortable they make a long journey but they also produce an odd disconnected sensation that means that my speed has a tendency to creep up beyond the level I feel is safe. It’s also rather weird sitting at traffic lights and watching all the vehicles moving in almost total silence – rather like watching an old silent movie. I shall continue to use them, though, since I have no wish to go deaf.

Council bids to run post offices. This strikes me as a good solution to a problem which, while it clearly shouldn’t exist at all, does need to be dealt with. In essence, if you can’t be bothered to read the article, Essex County Council is proposing that it takes over the running of post offices that are due to be closed. It would be great to see such important services able to continue and the possibility of combining them with local authority services is very interesting and potentially useful.

Of course, I’m not generally in favour of closing post offices at all but I rather think that it’s going to happen no matter what I or others want, so anything that comes along that helps has to be worth considering.

Pink Floyd star’s plan to aid homeless hits brick wall. Is it just me or does it seem crazy that a scheme for helping London’s many homeless should fail in such a dismal and stupid manner? Especially when it has worked so well in New York? Ridiculous. I’m appalled.