Archive for March, 2012
A review of “Win Win”
March 20th, 2012 by Roger Darlington
If you like independent films with fine acting and a different script, try “Win Win” which I have reviewed here.
Posted in Cultural issues | Comments (0)
Remembering the Musahar – the poorest of the poor
March 19th, 2012 by Roger Darlington
One of our closest friends is Cindy Berman who is Senior Social Development Advisor in the British Government’s Department For International Development (DFID) . She has responsibility for DFID projects in a group of south-east Asian countries ranging from Afghanistan to Vietnam. Last week, she was in India and returned just in time to attend […]
Posted in My life & thoughts, World current affairs | Comments (0)
Our 30th wedding anniversary celebration
March 18th, 2012 by Roger Darlington
Tomorrow Vee and I will have been married 30 years and today we celebrated the event with lots of family and friends. The stylish venue was the Music Room at the Grim’s Dyke Hotel – the former country residence of Sir William Gilbert – in Harrow Weald near to where we live in north-west London. There were a […]
Posted in My life & thoughts | Comments (8)
My new appointment in the water sector (1)
March 17th, 2012 by Roger Darlington
Since I took early retirement from the Communications Workers Union 10 years ago, I have been a portfolio worker with a mix of appointments, mostly representing consumers and mostly in the communications sector. It is in the nature of portfolio working that the mix of responsibilities changes over time. I have just completed my four-year […]
Posted in Environment, My life & thoughts | Comments (8)
My second visit to the Online Centres Foundation
March 16th, 2012 by Roger Darlington
Earlier this week, I made a second visit to the Online Centres Foundation in Sheffield, the organisation of which I have just become a non-executive Board member. I went there in my capacity as the Chair of the Board’s Remuneration Committee to attend a staff meeting where we discussed the future remuneration package for the […]
Posted in Internet, My life & thoughts | Comments (0)
Another step to the Internet of things
March 14th, 2012 by Roger Darlington
Over three years ago, I wrote a column about the ‘Internet of things’ and it now looks as if it is starting to become a reality. This week, there was the news that British company Arm Holdings has produced a tiny, battery-operated semi-conductor code-named Flycatcher that will enable a multitude of devices to connect to the […]
Posted in Internet | Comments (0)
Should Israel bomb Iran?
March 14th, 2012 by Roger Darlington
I’ve blogged several times before about the possibility that Iran is seeking to develop nuclear weapons and the risk that Israel might seek to pre-empt what it sees as an existential threat by bombing Iran’s nuclear facilities. I’m sure that President Barack Obama and Prime Minister David Cameron are discussing this issue during the latter’s […]
Posted in World current affairs | Comments (1)
A review of “Under The Hawthorne Tree”
March 12th, 2012 by Roger Darlington
You’ve probably never hard of this Chinese novel, but you might do because it is achieving amazing sales and has been made into a film. I’ve reviewed it here.
Posted in Cultural issues | Comments (0)
Would you risk your life for a book?
March 12th, 2012 by Roger Darlington
I have only just got round to watching my recording of a programme broadcast by BBC4 a few weeks ago about how a group of people in Sarajevo managed to save a priceless library collection during the siege of 1992-1996. The Gazi Husrav Beg Library was founded in 1537 and held over 10,000 historic works detailing […]
Posted in Cultural issues, History | Comments (0)
Has Spring sprung?
March 11th, 2012 by Roger Darlington
Here in London, the sun is out and the weather is warm, so Vee and I were able to have lunch on the terrace for the first time this year. How was it for you?
Posted in My life & thoughts | Comments (2)