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Latest News and Blog Posts from Wayne “Pendragon” Owens.
Real Life Heroes
We here at the Ninja Temple would like to take a minute to give our respect and thanks to the real life heroes who stepped up when they were needed yesterday at the Boston Marathon.
The Videos of the first explosion show the first-responders running towards the explosions before the smoke even clears, No concern for their own safety or that more could go off, they ran towards danger because people needed help.
There were medical people taking part in the marathon, and even after running for 26 miles they went right to helping the injured, or helped at the medical tents.
Other runners who had just ran the 26 Miles continued running to the nearest Hospital so they could donate much needed blood.
Then there were the people who lived local who brought out drinks and blankets for the runners who were stranded waiting for the area to be declared safe.
And the Coffee shops opening up their wifi to let people contact each other, recharge their phones, and have drinks even if they did not have money on them.
Basically you only really see the inerrant good in the human race when they step up under such evil situations and show the true meaning of “human spirit”
To all the people affected by the incident we send out thought, wishes, and prayers.
And to those who showed the good in mankind we Salute you, and send our thanks.
The Three Ninjas Staff
Police Target the Wrong Groups
So once again the Men and Women of the North Wales Police force are pushing a campaign to make the roads safer. With a ‘Fatal 5’ series of checks.
In case you are unaware The Fatal 5 are :-
- Drink/Drug Drive
- Speeding
- Not Wearing a Seatbelt
- Dangerous Driving
- Using a Mobile Phone
Now We here at The Three Ninjas Temple fully support their attempts to cut down on people breaking those Five dangerous laws. But we feel there Should be a sixth one added to the list (Suicidal Six)
6. Pushbikes
I know that they are allowed on the roads, but Consider it for a minute. To be allowed onto the DANGEROUS and fast roads on either a Motorbike or a Car you have to pass tests, both written and practical. You have to prove you know the Laws, Rules and can travel the highways of this country safely and without causing danger to others.
BUT! If you wish to travel the same roads on a push-bike, you just buy one and start off. You are sharing the road with vehicles that can travel a lot faster than you, and will do a lot of damage to you if you are not careful, yet you need no test or training.
How often have you been driving and seen a cyclist just pull out at a junction without waiting for a gap, Or just going right out on roundabout (I’ve even seen them go the wrong way around them) Because they do not have to learn the rules of the road, or abide by the laws, and worse. They know if they get hit it will be the driver of the cars fault!
Additionally consider the road rage they inspire, by travelling at a crawl on country roads where its impossible to overtake with them right in the middle of the lane, so the drivers of the cars stuck behind them are almost stalling from travelling so slow.
This morning there was one at a crossroads, He wanted to go straight across, but it was a busy road and he was waiting for the traffic to stop so he could cross. But he was waiting in the middle of the road, preventing cars passing on the inside if they were turning left and did not need to wait for a gap. The tail back was for miles, and several cars got annoyed after waiting for ten minutes and were forced into dangerous driving.
I really believe a lot of lives would be saved, if the police included Push Bikes in their campaign. And pulled them over to check they not drunk, on drugs, stupid, and at least know the laws of the road.
INTERNATIONAL TABLETOP DAY
Hi Guys.
March 30th is now booked to be “International TableTop Day“.
What is “International TableTop Day“. I hear you ask? Well Basically it is an Internationally picked day for Gamers New, Old, or newly Interested to met up and play games. Yes, a day of games. Go to your local Game shop, Coffee Shop, Pub, Community centre. Arrange to meet friends at your house, Just play games and enjoy yourself. Just play games!!!
Oh, there are no local events near you? and your gamer friends live far away? Not a problem, Play online with them. There are even groups arranging Skype or Google Hangout game sessions. So there is nothing stopping you.
But do not take my word for it, Lets hear from The King & Queen of #TableTopDay
Geek & Sundry, the award-winning original YouTube channel, is proud to announce the first International TableTop Day on March 30, 2013. International TableTop Day encourages people from around the globe to participate in the joys of board gaming by empowering the community to host thousands of gaming events internationally. Participants can sign up at www.tabletopday.com for free events at their favorite local game stores or submit their own event at their home, community center or business. Participants are encouraged to use the hashtag #TableTopDay on social media to share and connect their own events on a global scale.
Inspired by tremendous fan response to the the critically acclaimed show TableTop co-created and hosted by Wil Wheaton (Star Trek, Big Bang Theory, Leverage), Felicia Day and her team hope that the day will grow the gaming community by encouraging fans to come together and play more games. “Gaming is a huge passion of mine, and I’m thrilled to help launch this event that will allow gamers all over the world to celebrate their passions together in real life.” Felicia Day, Creator and Founder of Geek & Sundry said. “The response we’ve received around our show, TableTop, has shown us that tabletop gaming brings people together in a unique and powerful way. We want to celebrate this on a larger scale and give back to our wonderful community.”
Industry-leading sponsors such as Asmodee Editions, Days of Wonder, Mayfair Games, Steve Jackson Games, Wizards of the Coast, and many other major publishers are offering free promotional items and games as part of International TableTop Day to over 1,000 game stores around the world. “In the 20 years I’ve been in the game industry, nothing has moved the needle the way TableTop has,” said John Zinser president of Alderac Entertainment Group. “We’re proud to be a partner for International TableTop Day and take Geek & Sundry’s success to the next level.”
In conjunction with this announcement, Geek & Sundry has revealed their website www.tabletopday.com, the central hub for the community to bring together tabletop fans, publishers, and retailers from around the world. The tabletopday.com website provides fans with resources such as the interactive event map which tracks all #TableTopDay events worldwide, inspirational videos from their favorite YouTube stars, blog posts by popular columnists on how to plan for their event, and fun downloadable content to keep fans excited leading up to March 30th, 2013. Organizations, businesses, community centers, retail stores, and fans worldwide are – See more at: http://www.tabletopday.com/index.php/about#sthash.MdhAer56.dpuf
Dear Roadwork Gods, Whatever I did I am sorry!
I am sure I have done something to offend the God of Roadworks, there is no other explanation for what has been going on for the last few weeks. Let me explain.
My commute to work has been extended for a while now due to multiple roadworks and a diversion. I’ve just managed to time my trips to get me to the office in time when they decide to close a major duel carriageway that I use one my trip.
No problems. I’ll bypass that with a country road I know.
Well that worked for two days then they decided to divert all the traffic from the very busy duel carriageway down the small country road i use. making it basically a car park for hours on end.
Ok. some problems but I can drive over the mountains on a single lane country road that no one uses.
Well that one worked for one day. The following day and there are now three sets of road works on that country road. What have a done? What?
Was it that time I moved all the cones in Whitby? I was just trying to save their lives, they were standing in the middle of the road, they could have been run over? What was it? please, I cant go on…
Conversations with Support
This morning as I was in the Support Office attempting to dismantle a multimeter using a Swiss Army Key (Long story and totally Irrelevant here) the following conversation happened between OfficeBitch1 and myself. I should point out OfficeBitch1 (A name given him by TheGovernor) used to be the main Support Guy of the Asylum many years ago, and has recently come back one day a week to get himself back into IT.
OB1: “I cant log in!! Has my password been changed?”
OB1: “Stupid keyboard is broke! the m key doesn’t work, no wonder I cant log into my account”
WO: “The m key is broke? do the other keys work ok?”
OB1: “Yes, everything is fine bar shift-m”
WO: “Hang on, lower case m works? just shift-m doesn’t?”
OB1: “yes. m works by itself, it doesn’t with shift”
WO: “Why don’t you use caps lock then?”
OB1: *Typing* “arrgh That doesn’t work either!!!”
WO: “Did you turn caps lock off after you typed the M?”
OB1: *mutters* *types*
In his defence, the issue was that he was using the wrong email address as his username, and he had his laptop set to numlock so the m was in fact a 0. Even still I feel for anyone phoning the Asylum today for support.
Update:
I was right in worrying. I just had a simple “add this text to dns record” support ticket escalated to 3rd line Server support on the one day of the week when we have double the normal amount of support guys in. Apparently Cut & Paste is too advanced for 1st & 2nd Line Support.
Saved by the Snowmen
After months and months of constant rain the country is about as water logged as it can be, for a while now it has only taken a couple of hours light rain to cause flooding all over the place. So with the ground already to capacity, there has been a kind of Nationwide concern over what would happen when the several feet of snow finally melted.
In fact, the Nationwide worry was so “worrying” that the Government environmental agency issued advice on how to prepare and even help prevent flooding. That amazing, scientific, flood defence advice was………….
…………..Wait for it……………
To build Snowmen!
Yes, the cunning plan was that if everyone went out and built a snowman then flooding would be prevented. The logic being, Snowmen take longer to melt than normal snow, so by converting a lot of normal snow into Snowmen, the melting is staggered and flooding prevented.
Now my first thought on hearing this advice, was the same one you are probably having right now. That somehow “The Great Intelligence Institute” had infiltrated the environmental agency, and was planning on taking over the Earth with its army of Snowmen. (I’d seen something similar on a Documentary screened Christmas time)
I did try to investigate this further by checking with the person who answers to the name “The Doctor”, which was not as easy as it sounds. Knowing that with an army of Snowmen were being built, he would be around somewhere I kept an eye out for an old blue police box. I did not find the Police Box because he had the chameleon circuit working an the Box was now in the guise of a old Red Telephone Box. Unfortunately the Doctors recent regeneration seems to have caused problems with the language centre of his brain. The conversation went something like this :-
WO: “Doc, Can I call you Doc?“
Doc: “What? Can I help you?“
WO: “I think the Great Intelligence is trying to take over the earth again with an army of Snowmen“
Doc: “What? what are you going on about? Who are you?“
WO: “The government’s plan to build an army of snowmen“
Doc: *picks up the phone* “Police. I need help“
I decided then that my work was done, The Doctor was obviously contacting the Police/UNIT in an attempt to help. And help he did.
We had a weekend of rain, all the snow melted but there was no flooding this morning, and suspiciously no Snowmen. I can only assume the Doctor did what he did and fixed it all as we slept… So I’d like to say.
Thanks Doc..
Never bet against a Geek
I have been sorting out the To-Sort folders on my machines, it’s a job you can tell is long overdue by the recursive To-Sort folders that have moved from long dead machines to the To-Sort folders of newer machines. In one of these long distant folders I found a photograph, which reminded me of a story. A story I am going to share with you dear Constant Reader because it teaches an important message. “Never bet against Geeks” because they are resourceful and think outside the box.
It was December 2002, University’s had broken up for the Christmas break and there was a group of us out celebrating seeing each other again after the long semester.
An Important fact to remember is that in 2002 mobile phones were not as common as they are now. Very few people had them, and even less carried them about due to their large size. Oh, and a phone with a camera, that was pure science fiction.
So there we were, several pubs along our way through a pub crawl when someone mentioned that it would be great if we had a photo to remember the night. But who takes a camera out with them on a pub crawl?
We had no chance right?
Well that’s what the majority of the group decided, and I say majority because there was two of us who decided there must be a way, nothing is impossible right?
So, we were out in the middle of the local town, slightly drunk, with no camera and the need to get a photograph. We had no chance, right? The rest of our group were so positive they even made a small wager. A wager of several drinks was involved. This was their big mistake.
You do not give a geek a puzzle. If you do, you do not tell the geeks its impossible. And if you really do that, you really do not add a wager of beer!!
We had no chance right?
Correct, we did not have “No Chance” we had “Every Chance” for we were geeks. I recalled there was a webcam setup in the window of the local council offices, so if we stood in the area it pointed at we would be in a picture. We just needed someone to go to the webpage and grab a screen shot of the image. This is where my fellow Geek, popped into a phone box, phoned his Uni digs, where he knew one of his room mates would be about to do the necessary.
So we organised a signal, and went to go stand in front of the webcam, While 100 miles away someone sat at their computer and waited for the signal, then did a screen capture, and emailed us the image.
Challenge completed, a photo of the evening was procured. and many free drinks were had.
So, dear Constant Reader never bet against a geek, for as the bible says “The Geek will inherent the earth”
The Apple does not fall far from the Tree
My father got my mother a Kindle Paperwhite for Christmas since she loves to read at night. I was there when she opened it, I watched as she excitedly opened the box, took out her new kindle and powered it on for the first time, touched the screen, looked confused and handed the device to me (within four minutes of opening the box) asking “Why is it all weird?” My mother had managed to set the kindles language to Chinese. And expected me to quickly fix her new toy so she could continue to play with it.
Now I do not know if you are aware, but when powering on a kindle paperwhite for the first time it goes through a sequence of steps. Such as Set up Language, Set up WiFi, Set up and log into your amazon account, etc. And you must complete all these steps before you get to such useful things as Menus & Options. So I had to do all that for her before I could re-set the language, and I had to do it all in Chinese Kanji. before I could try and read through the menus (In Chinese) to change the language.
As you can imagine, My mother took some stick for doing this.
FAST FORWARD TWO WEEKS.
My mothers old eBook reader she gave to my sister since she no longer needed it. So I blanked and reset it for her, added a load of free public domain books to start her off and it was sent to my sisters house.
FIVE minutes after it was dropped off at my sisters house I got a phone call from her, asking how to reset the device as she was looking at it and hit the wrong button changing the language to Chinese or some such thing. Yes, she managed to do the exact same thing she made fun of my mother for doing. And once again it was left to me to fix, this time over the phone, without being able to see the device.
As they say, the Apple does not fall far from the tree…
and as I say “My family can be annoying!!!“
The Year That Was – 2012
Its that time of year again.
Where I look back over the previous year and answer the same 40 questions.
1. What did you do in 2012 that you’d never done before?
OK, New things :-
- Became a Rosicrucian (S.R.I.A.), Attended Rosicrucian Meetings, Installation, Saw a Ceremony, Acted as an officer in a Ceremony Etc.
- Stayed in the Chair for a Second Year. I’m adding this here because not only was this a first for me, but I am the first person in the history of my Lodge to do two years in a row in the chair of KS.
- Had an Active role in Chapter, Which also Includes performing an Exhalation as P.Soj (Those that Know will understand)
- Had a Book published on Amazon.
- Wrote and Published a WordPress Plugin.
Wow. 2012 was a busy year for New Things!!
2. Did you keep your new years’ resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
Last year instead of picking some arbitrary resolutions which I would then forget or not stick to, I decided to set myself a 12 in 12 Challenge. and I did not do too bad. I failed 2 of the 12. I should point out in total the 12 in 12 ended up having 127 individual tasks, and I only managed to complete 125 of them. I am claiming this as a WIN!.
So to start planning next years challenge.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
I do not think so. I do not recall anyone going on about babies, or any really big women suddenly becoming slim again. SO I will have to answer NO to this one.
4. Did anyone close to you die?
Yes.
- My step-aunt (? My mothers step sister, So not sure on what the technical name is. Second Aunt?) Died of a Heart attack at the end of November, which was made worse with her younger brother also having a heart attack on the same day and being rushed into hospital for an operation. And they were both not that much older than me.
- A Cantankerous Old Coot from NJ, Who I may never have met in person, but still spoke to on-line. Mr Thorn, you were a decent bloke (A rare thing in these days) even if you were a bit misguided about the Welsh 😉
5. What countries did you visit?
None, NaDa, Niltch, I really need to pick somewhere to go on Holiday.
6. What would you like to have in 2013 that you lacked in 2012?
Love, A version of COD with no Cheaters, Joy of Work, A plan, Enthusiasm. Oh and an Intern/PA, and A version of COD with no Cheaters (I felt that needed going in twice).
7. What dates from 2012 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
- 14th May – When I joined the S.R.I.A.
- 27th November – When I became a Published Author.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Becoming a Published Author in my own name (As apposed to bits in other peoples works). And the fact that more than one hundred copies were downloaded from Amazon in the first 24 hours. With it reaching #33 In the Horror eBook chart, and #700 In the Full eBook chart with over ONE THOUSAND copies downloaded in under a week, and seeing an Author I respect tweeting he had bought a copy.
9. What was your biggest failure?
Not completing the full 12 in 12 challenge (Although 2 failures is not too bad). And not finding my lost Enthusiasm.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Nope, other than the normal bumps and bruises you pick up in the course of a Year. Such as jumping up off the sofa to answer the phone without realising your legs have gone to sleep because you are sat in a weird position, and then face planting yourself into the desk.
11. What was the best thing you bought?
Kindle Paperwite. Its the best device I have every tried for reading books. And maybe my new 6TB NAS.
12. Whose behaviour merited celebration?
My Niece for the way she tried to comfort my mother when she received the news of my Aunts death, and the fact she texted everyone on the morning of the funeral to make sure everyone kept an eye on my mother). Not to mention the workload she is currently under with School, Collage, and two choirs, and Young Leader in the guides. (Hell and her two favorite shows are Big Bang Theory, and How I Met Your Mother, she gets points for that)
13. Whose behaviour made you appalled and depressed?
Whoever missed out The eldest Brother & three Sisters from the list of Brothers and Sisters named (Several times) During my Aunts funeral. That was wrong, Petty, and hurt them!
14. Where did most of your money go?
Diesel for commuting, and new Toys (Laptop, NAS, Computer Games, Books, New Kindle paperwhite, New Car).
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
Flirting with Jeri “7of9” Ryan On Twitter, Chatting to Bonnie Burton, Felicia Day & Veronica Belmont on Twitter (And possibly sourcing a epub version of a VF Book for them) Its been a Good year for Twitter. Seeing my own Book on Amazon, and reading the reviews I got. Not to mention seeing a well known Author tweet he had just bought a copy. Oh and finally Joining S.R.I.A.
16. What song will always remind you of 2012?
“I’m the One That’s Cool” By The Guild/Knights of Good.
Its almost a geek anthem for the Year. For it’s now the “Age of the Geek”, our time is now, as it was foretold in the bible “The Geek shall inherit the earth!”
17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
- a) happier or sadder? Happier.
- b) thinner or fatter? Thinner.
- c) richer or poorer? Richer.
18. What do you wish you’d done more of?
Falling in Love, Writing, Following my Dreams, Conquering the World, Finding a cure for the common cold and blackmailing people for the cure, You know, the simple pleasures in life.*1
19. What do you wish you’d done less of? .
Putting things off, Being the only person in the office, and suffering from lack of enthusiasm.
20. How will you be spending Christmas?
It is traditional in my Family for us all to gather at my parents house for a meal on Christmas day. So I will get up, go see my family, then to my Parents to err Help with the meal *2 then it will be an afternoon of being to stuffed to do anything bar drink and play games.
21. What was your favourite month of 2012?
November Because it was when I became an Author and started what I hope to be a second career. Watch for more books to be released in 2013 *3
22. Did you fall in love in 2012?
Alas No. I am high functioning Sociopath. *4
23. How many one-night stands?
One night stands? None (I’m a gentleman! And a gentleman never sleeps & tells). *5
24. What was your favourite TV programme?
I’m going to pick from new shows I only started watching in 2012, because there are too many old shows I like to list them all. How I met your Mother (Thanks PlanetPete), Arrow, & 30 Rock.
25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?
You know what? NO! I do not believe I hate anyone this year that I did not hate previously. Maybe I am growing as a person, becoming more enlightened?
Or is everyone already on THE LIST *6.
26. What was the best book you read?
Confessor by Terry Goodkind. Not only was it a great book, But it explained and setup so much stuff from the “Sword of Truth” Series, it was great to see the how and why of so much stuff, and it gave you a different understanding of some of the lore.
27. What was your greatest musical discovery?
MC Frontalot.
28. What did you want and get?
A Published Book, A new car.
29. What did you want and not get?
To become IPM, Love, Slaves A PA/Intern, A new House.
30. What was your favourite film of this year?
This is a tricky one, since it has been a good year for films. and the competition has been fierce. I think I will have to go with “The Avengers” since it had the right levels of Action, Effects, & Comedy. It was the first action film that I actually laughed out loud while watching, I had seen in a long time. So that wins my vote.
P.S. I have not yet seen the Hobbit, so I reserve the right to change my answer.
31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
My birthday this year fell on Installation day, So I should have spent it stepping down from power and installing my successor. But since I did not have one, I spent my Birthday staying in power, then having a BIG meal and loads of drinks with friends. It was a good day.
32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
Not being the only Full time member of staff in the office, A long lasting Relationship, More enthusiasm, Warmth, The Sun.
33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2012?
It has been the coldest year on Record (My Own Records) So mostly Cargo Pants (I like the extra pockets) Jumpers, and in work Coats.
Oh and suits, because suits are awesome…… True story. *8
34. What kept you sane?
Sane? Sane? “You Keep Using That Word, I Do Not Think It Means What You Think It Means”.
35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Veronica Belmont, Host of Sword & Laser, Tekzilla, Vaginal Fantasy Book Club, etc. She has all the right Qualifications, Looks, Personality, Intelligence, And Geeky Leanings/Hobbies & Interests.
And I’d like to add Alyson Hannigan to this as a last minute add, Due to the amount of “How I met your mother” I have been watching, and I recently re-watched the American Pie series of films.
Veronica Belmont.
Alyson Hannigan.
36. What political issue stirred you the most?
The fact the UK is giving so much money in aid to countries that have asked us to stop, but we are still sending it even though we need that cash ourselves.
37. Who did you miss?
No one. “ high functioning Sociopath” Remember? Remember? from Question 22?.
38. Who was the best new person you met?
I’ve met a few interesting people from S.R.I.A. and some great new friends on Twitter. But No one person stands out as the “best new person”.
39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2012?.
Dreams can come true, if you just work at them.
40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
I’m the One That’s Cool by The Guild.
Role reversal must be a total drag
But there’s no point, no point for me to humblebrag
I appreciate you for being cruel
I’m burning bright thanks to your rejection fuel
Got my in-jokes you won’t get
Like Honey Badger, Troll Face and Nyan Cat
So now your ballin’ parties seem so dumb
You can Evite me, and I’ll say yes, but I won’t really come
*1 Yes I know this is the exact answer that I gave last year. This is because A)My Feelings & Situation have not changed since I answered last year, and B) Its a cool answer.
*2 Well, This year they are having their children, Grand children and great grandchild around for the meal, and as such I can imagine there will be lots of work to be done cooking, preparing, organising, etc. I am volunteering my services to play computer games with my nephews to keep them amused and out the way.
*3 Thats if the World does not in fact end this year.
*4 see *1 Yes I am that lazy!
*5 See *4. OK, I need help.
*6 Just Kidding there is no list. *7
*7 Oh, There is a List.
*8 see *1 Yes I am that lazy!
Is there anyone out there?
Well December 21st 2012 has past and we are all still here. We survived, the world did not end in a blaze of fire, long forgotten unhallowed graves did not spew forth their masses of undead zombies (I am a slightly upset about that one)
So Congratulations to us. WE RULE. so lets put all these doomsday worries behind us, and move on with our lives…….
UNLESSS
This post is set to auto publish. SO technically we could all be dead. the world could be totally destroyed and this post is going out to no one. In which case I would just like to say.
Fornit some Fornus, and Good bye and thanks for all the fish.