Saturday 31 January 2015

We Had A Quiet Day,

but then in the evening,


 we were off to the night market on Thepprasit Road,

 the sky looking towards Jomtien slightly yellow for some reason,

 the ice cream seller at the middle of the market complex,

 plenty of room to move around as we were a bit early,

 blue skies looking inland,

 as we were early hardly a customer in sight,

 the people sitting here are selling lottery tickets, so if you think you are lucky this is the place to be,

 the stalls opposite the bar this evening are banking on no rain as they do not have awnings,

 the first,

 and second food aisle with just a few shoppers,

 the same for the pet section,

 a new souvenir stall this week,

 sunset over the market,

 I am not sure what they are but I know the price 3 for 100 baht,

 just the parking attendants at the bar,

 one of the mobile stalls come past,

 as does the ice cream seller, Brian joined us at the bar,

 after our evening meal we settled down to some films, firstly The Client,

followed by Plunkett and Macleane, both enjoyable films that we had seen before,

then a real treat, Whiplash, if you ever thought that playing a set of drums was easy, watch this film as pupil and mentor lock horns, we were not sure if we would like the film but with a great performance by Miles Teller and stellar performance by Jonathan Kimble Simmons the film was magic, I may even watch it again! this is a must watch film, well I think so, we followed that with another one from Prime Suspect then we were off to bed.


Diana's Family In The Philippines Sent Us This Picture,

of her younger brother and sister, Sandio and Dioshane, 



so to elucidate Sandio is playing the part of Euclid, who in his life wrote many books but the one called 'The Elements' (c300 BCE), is unequalled in the history of science and could safely lay claim to being the most influential non-religious book of all time, Euclid's great work consisted of thirteen books covering a vast body of mathematical knowledge, spanning arithmetic, geometry and number theory, the books are organised by subjects, covering every area of mathematics developed by the Greeks:

·         Books I - IV, and Book VI: Plane Geometry
·         Books XI - XIII: Solid Geometry
·         Books V and X: Magnitudes and Ratios
·         Books VII - IX: Whole Numbers



the basic structure of the elements begins with Euclid establishing axioms, the starting point from which he developed 465 propositions, progressing from his first established principles to the unknown in a series of steps, a process that he called the 'Synthetic Approach.' He looked at mathematics as a whole, but was concentrated on geometry and that particular discipline formed the basis of his work, 
Euclid's Axioms
Euclid based his approach upon 10 axioms, statements that could be accepted as truths. He called these axioms his 'postulates' and divided them into two groups of five, the first set common to all mathematics, the second specific to geometry, some of these postulates seem to be self-explanatory to us, but Euclid operated upon the principle that no axiom could be accepted without proof.
Euclid's First Group of Postulates - the Common Notions:
1.    Things which are equal to the same thing are also equal to each other
2.    If equals are added to equals, the results are equal
3.    If equals are subtracted from equals, the remainders are equal
4.    Things that coincide with each other are equal to each other
5.    The whole is greater than the part
The remaining five postulates were related specifically to geometry:
1.    A straight line can be drawn between any two points.
2.    Any finite straight line can be extended indefinitely in a straight line.
3.    For any line segment, it is possible to draw a circle using the segment as the radius and one end point as the centre.
4.    All right angles are congruent (the same).
5.    If a straight line falling across two other straight lines results in the sum of the angles on the same side less than two right angles, then the two straight lines, if extended indefinitely, meet on the same side as the side where the angle sums are less than two right angles.
(I should point out that in 1795, John Playfair (1748-1819) offered an alternative version of the Fifth Postulate, this alternative version gives rise to the identical geometry as Euclid's, it is Playfair's version of the Fifth Postulate that often appears in discussions of Euclidean Geometrys so, 
5.  might be read as, Through a given point P not on a line L, there is one and only one line in the plane of P and L which does not meet L),
Euclid felt that anybody who could read and understand words could understand his notions and postulates but, to make sure, he included 23 definitions of common words, such as 'point' and 'line', to ensure that there could be no semantic errors, from this basis, he built his entire theory of plane geometry, which has shaped mathematics, science and philosophy for centuries, he proved that it is an impossibility to find the 'largest prime number,' because taking the largest known prime number and adding one to the product of all previous primes and the largest prime will give you another, larger prime number, all of that from a single picture, way to go Sandio!

Whilst Looking For Nothing In Particular,

I found a couple of other uses for Crayola crayons,


firstly in a power cut, each one will burn and give light for about 30 minuets, the reason is they are mostly made from paraffin wax and the paper around them acts like a wick,

and secondly using them as a base you can make your own lipstick, ladies read, on guys grab a coffee, apparently this recipe is pretty safe, crayons are made mostly of paraffin (found in most lipsticks or chapsticks) and non-toxic, food-grade pigments for a reason, if a kid decides to eat a crayon, it shouldn’t do much damage beyond a stomachache, so if you want to create your own personal coloured lipstick buy a pack of 64 Crayola crayons then mix your own colours.


These May Look Like Videos

but they were created by using just one picture,


weather photographer Mike Hollingshead, who takes impressive storm photography, has taken his editing a bit further by importing his supercell thunderstorm photos into Photoshop and setting them in motion, 

Hollingshead says these animations aren’t created like more traditional cinemagraphs, where moving elements from a video are isolated and the rest of the image is masked out, instead, he uses only a static image and creates the animation from thin air, most of the photos you see here were shot in Nebraska between 2004-2013, you can see many more examples on his website, all I can say is still or moving these and the many more on his web site are truly stunning.


Friday 30 January 2015

Off To Friendship,

for a few bits and pieces,


 we always seem to run out of something,


this time milk and bread, still we had nothing else planned for today so it was a pleasant drive out,

 the building next door nearing completion, in fact I am surprised that no one has moved in yet,

 one thing I did want to do today was plant a 'pup' I think you might call them from this cactus, one I had potted a few weeks ago did not make it, the remains were consigned to the great cactus farm in the sky,

 the good news was that this one already had a root as I removed it from the mother plant,

happy one hopes it it's new home, in the evening we watched an episode of Hungry Sailors and one episode of Celebrity Chase, I have to say I did not know, recognise or have heard of any of thcelebrities, although there was one there who thought he was a comedian, next a couple of films, 

firstly The Signal, a Sci-Fi but not the usual flash, bang, wallop, it was much more dare I say it? down to earth, OK there were aliens and special effects, but it was much more than that, it was strange, next we watched,

Taken 3, it was quite good, but there comes a time when people in their 60s should hang up their 'action' rolls, it was painful to watch a near pensioner pretend to be in his mid 20s no matter how many times the camera cut the action to make it look better, well that's my view, 


next and lastly a revisit to Prime Suspect, the good news was that we watched the series so long ago we had mostly forgotten the out come, bring on the popcorn for the rest of the series! with that we were off to bed.


I Read This,

finished my coffee,



made a second one, half finished that and all the time I was thinking, 'what can the joke be and where on earth can you get a Zeppelin?'


Welcome To The New Restaurant,

 that is taking Cardiff in Wales by storm,


called The Clink it almost has people queueing up to get in, so many people have rated it the restaurant has recently been named the number one restaurant in Cardiff, Wales, by TripAdvisor, after getting more votes than all the other 945 restaurants in the Welsh capital, the restaurant comes up with seasonal dishes made from locally sourced fresh ingredients, some of the typical menu options include ‘venison and wild boar ragout with game sausage, char-grilled polenta and seasonal vegetables’ and ‘a celebration of rhubarb’, 


The Clink, which opened in September 2012, is a 96-seat restaurant that serves breakfast and lunch, but it is not open for evening meals, it has received rave reviews from most of the users on the hugely popular travel website TripAdvisor, mostly for their ‘friendly and informative staff, the standard set by everyone at this venue would be hard to match in any other restaurant we have been to in recent times,' a happy diner wrote, 'the waiters were great with perfect service, better than we have had in some star restaurants and also attentive to your needs,' another said, 


'the whole team is delighted to have made it to the top spot on TripAdvisor, and to be ranked so highly against almost 1,000 restaurants in the city is a huge achievement for us,' said general manager Jason Lawrence, 'the recognition we have received from so many of the diners for the atmosphere we’ve created, the effort we put into sourcing our ingredients, the high standard of front of house service offered by the waiters is incredible, a big thank you to everyone who has left such kind comments on our page, we’ll continue to impress our customers and hope we can stay at pole position for the foreseeable future,' he added, so if you want to book the restaurant is in HM Prison Cardiff, yes you read that correctly, to be served the allegedly best food in Cardiff according to TripAdvisor you have to go to jail! but there is a serious side to the prisons restaurant, it gives the opportunity to invite potential employers and create job opportunities for inmates, but also change public perception of prisoners, said Chef Alberto Crisci, the brain behind The Clink, 


one is happy to note that Graham Frederick Young, is no longer eligible to be housed there as he died in 1990, but here is the very good news, over time, the restaurant has managed to help reduce the re-offending rate of prisoners who worked there to 12.5 percent, compared to the national average of 47 percent, so the idea of giving prisoners responsibility, jobs and interacting with the public certainly seems to be working if these results are anything to go by, who knows if other governors take on the idea perhaps there can be a Best Prison Food Cook Off!


Keeping To A Food Theme,

most regular readers will know we have a bar-b-q most Saturday evenings,


our bar-b-q is a small four legged sort of thing, but what if you want a bigger one for when friends call round? well here is the answer, it is a 40-ton, 75-foot monstrosity ventilated by seven chimneys is the world’s largest barbecue pit, it’s so huge that it needs to be carried around in a large truck and Local authorities have to issue special permits and escorts just to move the cooker down the road!  'it has 24 doors – 12 on this side, 12 on the other,' said owner Terry Folsom, proudly describing his prized possession, now wait for this, the pit can cook four tons of meat at a time! and also has a walk-in cooler with space for kegs attached to beer taps on the outside, but back to the cooking, you may have thought that this behemoth uses wood at an alarming rate, but in fact the heat that powers the beauty comes from a small fire that burns only a couple of cords of wood, a tube carries the heat along the length of the entire pit, 


but here is a bit of good news, the king-sized mobile barby is up for sale, on eBay for a whopping $350,000, but the price doesn’t cover the low-mileage 18-speed Peterbilt that houses the pit, the vehicle will set you back by an additional $50,000, so for $400,000, lots of friends and a herd of cattle you are good to go!


Looking Like The Tracks,

of a tank like vehicle,

 it quickly dis-assembles, 
in to it's component parts, but what is it? 

it is the Leatherman Tread, it is the first of its kind, a multi-tool that can be worn on the wrist, with this little gadget there will be no more Swiss Army knifes wearing a hole in your pocket as you wear this mulit tool on your wrist, each corrosion resistant, stainless steel link on the Leatherman Tread will feature two to three tools, making 25 features available to you, the features include box wrenches, screwdrivers, hex drives, a bottle opener, cutting hook, carbide glass breaker and a #2 square drive, just to name a few, the bracelet is crafted to allow users to rearrange links, add new ones or adjust for wrist size, a neat idea and who knows more tools might be made to interchange if the product proves popular, amongst the outdoor types it might become the new fashion statement, plus the never ending taunts amongst campers, 'I've got more tools on my wrist than you', 'no you have not', 'yes I have', 'no you have not', etc.


Thursday 29 January 2015

We Popped Out To The Local Market,

for some fruit and vegetables,



opposite the entrance to the bike park is a shop selling religious items for home and temple,

 we parked at the back of the market and made our way inside,

 we have often seen fried crabs here but this is the first time I have seen dressed crabs here that have been deep fried,

 whole and half coconuts along with coconut jelly,

 the amount,

 and variety,

 of fresh vegetables,

 is amazing, 

 on to fruit, freshly squeezed oranges,

 and for us tonight to nibble on, some fresh pineapple,

 for Diana some papaya pok-pok,

 some thing on a stick,

 and a bean drink, not quiet sure what it is though,

for myself a piece of chicken, that one, that I will have tomorrow,

after our evening meal, we watched the Hungry Sailors, followed by The Chase then The Departed, with a full star cast it was full of twists and turns we both really enjoyed the film, then sadly the last Rumpole, we will miss him in the next few days, after that we were off to bed.