Open letter....

Dear Mr Benitez

I felt compelled to write to you following on from the performance I have just watched against Wigan.

I was first suspicious of the game when I saw Lucas and Benayoun on the teamsheet to start the game but for a while, following on from Benayoun scoring, I thought I had it wrong.

1-0 is never a great lead so I am astonished that you removed Torres to put on a winger, Riera.

Then, my prophecy came true as Lucas gave away a soft penalty and ultimately lost us 3 points and your response was to take of Gerrard and replace him with Keane.

So now you have a level score, thrown away the lead and removed the 2 players most likely to score from the pitch.

In my humble opinion, you have lost the plot. We wont win the title now and this lies on your shoulders.

Do the decent thing and resign.

Kind regards

Mike Jackson

Before & After....

Here are 2 photographs. One shows our overgrown conifers at the back of the house before they were butchered and the other shows the aftermath!!!

£140.00 well spent and the price of seeing sandunes should be priceless really!!!

A good day at the office.

Days like today give me a certain amount of satisfaction and also claw back a little of my partly lost self esteem.

I spend a lot of time chunnering about about aches and pains and symptoms and it all seems a bit gloomy for the reader so today, I have a heartening tale of hands on man work!!!

Today, I had a day as near to being an engineer as I get and it does me good to have to think about and solve problems. I went to 3 separate sites today and did the following -

1 - Went to a care home in Handforth to discover why a few doors with our Smartair locks seem to be open all the time. Without boring you, prior to programming they can be set in a held open mode and if this mode is not cancelled before the lock is initialised, then the lock remains held open until a valid card is used for the first time and then it reverts to secure mode. The problem here was that there were a few held open, initialised doors where no card had been used so it looked like the doors where insecure. A quick explanation later, and the problem was solved.

2 - Onto a college in east Manchester to replace a magnetic lock as it appeared faulty and was dragging power down in the system and leaving the door unlocked. I replaced the lock and the problem was the same. So I put the old lock back as there was obviously nothing wrong with it and worked back through the system to find the problem. The problem was the power supply and I don't know what has happened here but it has several powered outputs so that each output has its own fuse. We had 2 outputs in use on 2 doors. Once I made the "positive" leg of the power common from one output and the "negative" leg on its fused output, it worked fine!!! Don't ask me to explain that but the upshot is that it works!!!

3 - Finally onto a school in Northwich to finish off a job we started a few weeks back. I had to connect the electric lock, wire the locks relay correctly, install a new set of levers on the door, configure and commission the card reader and show them how to use their new CCTV system.

So as you can see, busy day and I feel good about it. I am tired now but that's just par for the course with me but the sense of achievement from today is quite pleasurable!!!

Look for the positives.....

The above is what Rafa says about the shambles that was Liverpool V Everton last night.

The game aside, I am sat sitting here (as Wogan would say) and I am putting Rafa to the test.

He states that if any Liverpool fan had asked in August about what our position would be right now then "level on points with the mancs at the top of the table" would be perfect.

I was going to be quite harsh, but there are positives, for instance.....

After 22 games last year, Liverpool had 40 points, we currently have 47. So we are 7 points up on the deal.

After 22 games last year. Scum had 51 points, they now have 47. Scum are 4 points down.

Scum went on to win the league so from a progress point of view, we are better placed than previous. Furthermore, we are in our current position without relying on the firepower of Torres.

So all the people who say everyone else is poor and Liverpool have not progressed should consider the above stat.

What is unexplainable though is Rafa's team selection, petition your local MP about this man....

In all my years as a Red, I have never witnessed such a shambles of a player as Lucas Leiva. This man is a suicidal selection for any team. He was the reason why we did not turn Stoke over and his instant foul last night when he came on was the seed that led to Everton getting something from the game.

I can only surmise that Rafa needs to keep playing this tosser to renew his work permit and get a decent price for him.

Anyway.....

Its a mad, mad, but ultimately safer, world!!!

Today, myself and 4 other Lock-tec colleagues attended a Health & Safety training course at the picturesque hamlet of Crewe Alexandra Football Club!!!

Its a mad world....

Yes, it was informative and we learnt a lot about our legal obligations as an employer to employees and yes it was a day well spent.

However, the upshot is that Health & Safety can consume one. In particular, Risk Assessment. With Risk Assessment, we are meant to lay out guidelines of what work we will do, where it will be done and identify potential hazards and risk as part of the process.

Where does risk assessment stop? Basically, it doesn't, I could produce one now for working at this computer identifying the potential dangers of operating a keyboard in a poorly lit, warm environment with little natural ventilation and identify the hazards of extended use causing carpal tunnel syndrome and the dangers of falling asleep at the job and getting a nasty keyboard shaped dent on my forehead.

I could even score it on a scale of between 1-25 using the tried and tested method of Risk=Probability*Consequence. (Just in case you are interested, the score is 1 which means Low Risk....note, not No Risk, just Low Risk!!).

So a huge legislative industry is born on the back of this, an industry that does not exist anywhere else in Europe where it is fine to take a set of ladders onto a building site without a witch hunt occurring.

The only thing more barking mad than the subject matter was the enthusiasm with which the man delivering the session did his job. He knew his subject well and it is an area not to be mocked at.

Here is a real example from today -

Trainer - So Mike, have you had any previous Health & Safety training?
Me - Well no, however, I do own a hard hat, hi visibility vest and a pair of boots.
Trainer - And are you aware of why you need to use them?
Me - Hang on, I didn't say anything about using them....

Everyone laughs, except him!!! Although he does reply....

Trainer - Well Mike, by the end of today, you will know what that hard hat is for and why you need it.

That was the last time a hard hat was mentioned for the day. Anyway, I passed and will shortly have a certificate to prove it!!!

New Years Resolution

OK, hands up!! Everyone makes them and no one keeps them but in the time honoured tradition of a new year, I have a secret resolution!!!

I will reveal all on 31st January....or if it doesn't go well then the 12th of Never!!!

I haven't told Kerris and she is frustrated about that, she can guess all she likes but she wont be told until then!!!

Just for reference, here are 5 things that it isn't!!!

1. Lose weight
2. Give up alcohol
3. Be nice to Luca (that was on of Kerris's guesses!!!)
4. Broker a peace deal in Gaza
5. Say something nice about Robbie Keane

So that's what it isn't, so what could it be? All correct guesses go into a hat for no reason other than to fill the hat.

Happy New Year....

What can I tell you apart from the fact it is 2.37 AM in the morning and officially 1st January 2009......Happy New Year to one and all!!!

You might think, "Oh he has just rolled in from a party and is downing a cheese butty while he checks his email before heading off to bed", but you could not be more wrong!!!

Yes, we rolled in from a party but that was around 12.45AM and now while Kerris, Luca and Jay are all sound asleep, I am sat here after tossing and turning in bed feeling the effects of (possibly) too much caffeine and sugar!!!

You see, we have been to a party at a friend of Kerris's called Vicky. She has a lovely house, well farm actually, out in Halsall and there was a get together to usher the new year in. And a nice time was had by all, even me!!!

I chose to drive as it was all a bit remote for a taxi and so I drank soft drinks all night which is not a bad thing. However, all drinks were "full fat/full sugar" and there was no sign of a "sugar free, max or zero" anywhere!!!

So here I am, wide awake, bright eyed and bushy tailed waiting for some form of lethargy to kick in!!!

Luca and Jay did well, we have never had them up so late and they both passed out in record time once home. As for Jay, I have had to roll his clock back 4 hours as if he wakes and sees 7.00AM or above on his clock he will rise regardless!!! So 7.00AM is arriving 4 hours later for Jay in the morning!!!

And on a final point. Seen as though not one drop of alcohol passed my lips, the least a copper could do was stop me on the way home and breathalyse me!! Just to hear him apologise would have been nice!! Instead, I drove home and there were no coppers anywhere, so as it stood, I may as well have downed 10 pints of real ale and driven home without fear!!!

Note to kids, dont drink and drive, I would never do that, I am just hypothesising!!!