19-01-20 Sunday I - Dry January

I’ve been wondering what to write about for some time. There are a couple of things that have crossed my mind that I thought might be worthwhile covering, but then I've thought again and decided to hold my whisht. Brexit is obviously quite exciting at the moment, so that is always worth writing about. Then there is family life, there are one or two moments worth recording. But today Dry January warrants a mention, as it only comes around once a year... 

I had been thinking about participating in Dry January for a while before Christmas, and with all the socialising leading up to Christmas it was nice to be able to take a break in January. To be frank, it’s been quite easy so far. I did buy some cans of non-alcoholic Heineken lager in the second week of January but they didn’t do much for me. I drank two on the first night, and then four the next night. But I guess that is what I would do with beer - i.e., drink ‘em if I had ‘em. A couple of nights I had some orange juice and lemonade, which was nice, but more often than not I've just had a cup of tea. Standard, with milk and a couple of sweeteners.  

I’ve not definitely been taking part in Dry January. If people have asked whether I am doing Dry January, I’ve always responded “so far...”. But then, as time has gone on, I guess I have been observing Dry January, to the extent that when I didn’t, on Friday night, I was angry with myself on Friday night as I was drinking and on Saturday, as I was waking up. 

I’m back on it now, I'm not going to beat myself up about it. I'm quite pleased at the sight of so many cups of tea in one period. I’ve actually got a cup of tea on the go as I write, so there won’t be any booze tonight.

When I decided I was going to drink, I sank a bottle of wine and a couple of whiskies, for no reason whatsoever. TW had been unwell, and I guess I wanted to feel like me for an evening, but I didn’t really take any pleasure from it. I would have done better to read a few comics, or catch up on a bit of TV off the planner. Never mind. Eleven days to go until the end of the month, but we do have a wedding to attend on the evening of the 26th, I haven’t decided whether to have a drink or stay dry that evening. I’m sure I’ll decide closer to the time.  

Anyway, time to go and finish my tea.  

TTFN. 

19-01-12 Saturday I - Chromebook Repair

I had to give my C302 back, unfortunately. Not on a permanent basis, but it needed to be fixed. I was getting fed up of having to reset it on a daily basis, hoping that the wi-fi would come back.

So what happened was, the chromebook would be connected to the internet perfectly well, but then at some point if I refreshed the page or tried to open a new tab, I would get the dinosaur page, telling me that I was “unable to connect to the internet”. If I checked the wi-fi settings everything would look okay, but if I restarted the chromebook then the wi-fi would be switched off, and it would be impossible to switch it back on. I could toggle the wi-fi on, but then it would immediately toggle back to “off”.

In order to reset the wi-fi, and ensure it connected, I would have to switch off the chromebook, and then hold down the “refresh” and the “power” button simultaneously until the screen flickered. Then I could restart the chromebook and check whether the wi-fi had been restored. It wouldn’t work every time, and it was getting frustrating.

The C302 is a great chromebook, I love the HD display and the backlit keypad, as well as the capable processor. I took it back to Argos, and they did say that they would swap it for a brand new one, since the 30-day warranty had only just expired. The problem was, though, that they didn’t have any units to swap my chromebook for – it was pretty much sold out everywhere. I wasn’t even able to order a new one for delivery. They did even suggest I swap it for a different laptop if I could identify a suitable one. The trouble was that I didn’t want to swap it for a different model, the C302 is the chromebook I wanted, and there wasn’t any alternative.

My remaining option was to request an RMA from Asus directly, which I ended up doing. It was actually a fairly painless process, and Asus’s agent in the UK has kept me informed along the way of any new developments. They thought they had fixed it, but during the testing phase they identified another issue, which required another part. So currently they are waiting for that to be delivered and I guess they’ll take it from there. Hopefully it will be returned soon and I can get back to using it regularly. I’ll let you know how it turns out.

TTFN.

19-01-02 Wednesday I - Brexit Outlook

It’s not good, is it?  

The one thing to remember is that we are leaving the EU on the 29th March. If nothing happens, if there is no intervention, we leave by automatic application of law. All that needs to happen is – inaction, indecision, inertia.  

May’s Withdrawal Agreement shouldn’t get passed, going on the present numbers. Unless a hell of a lot changes, the House of Commons won’t vote for the deal as it exists. And the EU won’t renegotiate it, since the negotiation phase is complete. May might get some warm words, but that won’t change the legal text of the Withdrawal Agreement (WA). And the “backstop” part of the WA is unacceptable to most MPs. The customs union and single market aspects of the backstop mean that we will be “tied forever to the EU”, at least until the future trading arrangements are set. The trouble is that trading arrangements can take years to agree, and there are specific dates at which we enter the backstop. We could be in the backstop indefinitely.  

If May’s deal is voted down, there is no real alternative. Labour will probably call for a vote of No Confidence in the government, and hope to bring about a general election, but since they are still apparently pro-Brexit, I don’t see them being particularly successful. Probably smaller parties – i.e., the Lib Dems and the Greens – will pick up more votes than normal, but if Labour don’t change then they could be locked in a death spiral with the Tories, and end up with another hung parliament.  

The House of Commons can keep voting down each proposal brought forward by the government, but what is really needed is for the govt. to bring forward legislation which Parliament can approve. But it is unlikely that the govt. will propose a second referendum, or a revocation of Article 50. May’s approach to government is not collegiate or inclusive, and she is not persuading the majority of MPs that her way is the right way.  There has already been a party vote of No Confidence triggered by the members of the ERG, but they won’t vote with Corbyn if & when he triggers a vote of No Confidence in Parliament. Party above all else, after all.  

Before Christmas I was quite optimistic that something could be done to mitigate the worst of Brexit. Now, however, I am fully expecting the worst. And I don’t think we’re going to like it.  

TTFN.