I appear to have started the Christmas holiday period earlier than I intended. This is fine by me as I plan to start my F**kART paintings for 2010 tomorrow and enjoy two weeks of solitude. It snowed in Battersea today while I was sitting outside at Mazar, my caff of choice in Battersea Square. The owner of Mazar, Marlon, a very amusing Lebanese man , has provided an outside sitting area now protected from the elements with an awning and transparent ‘nylon’ (as he calls it) sheets. These are ‘smoking legal’ because of the cunning construction of gaps to come within the ‘No Smoking’ laws. I always sit outside, even in appalling weather. There are wall heaters. It took approximately 15 minutes for Battersea Square to be converted into a winter wonderland this morning. More snow is on the way – but I have a spade and I shall do my duty and make the 65 yard journey from my ‘riverview’ apartment to the caff each day for an excellent breakfast and Marlboros and excellent conversation with regulars. If you find yourself in Battersea Square – Mazar really is a very good cafe / restaurant. The Lebanese red is most acceptable…. not that I drink wine at breakfast that often.
The Christmas tree – provided by the businesses and others of Battersea Square – is far more impressive than my mobile phone pic reveals. It has white lights and is quite dramatic at night.
After seeing an extraordinary exchange between the blogger formerly known as Iain Dale ( @Iaindale – who has given up blogging ) and David Allen Green ( @davidallengreen ), who veers between several alternative egos on Twitter aka Jack of Kent, today on the issue of RT (Re-Tweeting other people’s tweets’) I came up with a ‘plan’.
Re-Tweeting other people’s tweets on twitter is quite common. Unfortunately it carries a few dangers. It could be seen to be a ‘mark of approval’. If another tweeter, OUTRAGED by someone else doing an RT, assumed same to be an approval, it is possible that a twitter bitchfight could ensue. It did between Dale and David Allen Green today. I believe the two gentlemen have virtually hugged and made up and I assume that tweets made on both sides have now been deleted. (They may still be there…if you are quick) I did, as it happens, take screen grabs from both, and I shall be sending these to Wikileaks later today! Freedom of information is all…. natch! (I won’t do that).
I often RT other people’s tweets. This does not mean that I approve. It may be because I find them interesting, because I do approve, because I wish others to look at a different point of view, or because I find the tweet amusing or in wonderfully bad taste.
So… I came up with a plan for RTs by suggesting a symbol format and tweeted same: RT+ (approval) | RT- (disapproval) | RT0 (Neutral)….then I had a drink and I now have a fourth category RT**** (Wonderful Bollocks)
Have a good weekend..and try not to get into too many bitchfights on twitter… it is Christmas…after all.
You have made a basic error by announcing the RT plan without first legally protecting it – because it IS brilliant! 🙂
Ha… I may be a lawyer… but I am not a greedy one! …..On the other hand……. 🙂
Brilliant blog. Brilliant post. Or BP+++
Technically the symbol after RT is a unitary postfix operator.
Steve – Wot’s vat, Guv ? Can I get a ‘unitary postfix operator’ for Crimbo? …. on Ebay? 🙂
I think they are far too common to have resale value so I see none on a Google shopping search. However, there are a lot of sad people out there who will instantly recognise the meaning.
Steve…. as in C++ – I googled it… I am better informed now!
The name of C++ is what passes for a Computer Science pun as the ++ operator increments. Consequently, it’s an increment on the previous language, C (actually, quite a bige increment as it happens). Strangely, C was named such as it followed on from a language called B.
Computer Scientists have a habit of making unfunny jokes in naming the products of their rather strange minds. The Web server Apache was so named, not because it has any native American connection, but because it had lots of fixes called “patches”. So a patchy web server became, phonetically, Apache. There is a compiler of compilers called YACC for Yet Another Compiler Compiler, Computer scientists rather like a self-referential form called recursion which calls itself (on which concept the above is a play). The archetypal computer joke is the dictionary entry for “recursion” which says, “see recursion”.
I don’t think any Computer Scientist has made a successful transition to a career as a stand-up comedian.
Steve – Wonderful… I did not know that about Apache…
Comments like these are one of the many reasons I enjoy twitter and blogging…..
Bravo 🙂
The Sportscasters – thanks! Also for tip off on twitter about the @BBC_Outriders Wikileaks and Openleaks broadcast.. recommending my podcast with Mark Stephens on Assange case.
(I checked the twitter / blog correlation )
🙂
if twitter has done nothing else for the world it has done me a favour by removing one of my least favourite bloggers. sadly his slack-jawed frothing readership may now be inflicted on sites frequented by human beings… come back iaiaiaiaian; i miss you and your superfluous vowels.
Jungle drums suggest Nick Clegg (who hasn’t promised to decline a Conservative safe seat .. ;_;) is considering an EU finance (quango?) role with some megabucks remuneration to help him along.
1/ A future UK political career for Nick Clegg under a different banner would certainly test the nations view of credibility
2/ would suit his pro-EU Spanish wife