Simon Rumble’s blog

Just bottled the cider I made on the cider making weekend last year. It's delicious, though perhaps a little too much tanin. I bottled 20 bottles straight, which will be flat scrumpy-style. The remaining 34 bottles got a little bit of sugar so they should end up fizzy. 7.8% alcohol.

Also bottled a dark lager I made from a Cooper's Old Dark Ale kit, 600g dark malt and 500g glucose. Should be around 4%. I steeped some Cascade hops with it, and that seems to have given it a lovely flowery hop aroma. Yum!

Next, I think, will be a simple mexican style lager. For half this batch I'm going to bottle with chillis and make Chill Beer. The other half will just be a pleasant light spring brew.

Okay so Microsoft aren't exactly a difficult target when it comes to user interface design, but this one is just so bad I have to point it out.

This is Outlook 2003. Now can you tell whether the items on this item are radio buttons or checkboxes? Well the first three items are actually radio buttons, but the last two are checkboxes. Obvious, huh?

I really like Jon Courtenay Grimwood's books. He writes science fiction that tends to be based in North Africa, with all the flavour you would expect from that.

This, his latest, is a bit more sedate than his previous high-tension rollercoasters, but is beautiful and intricate. It's less science fiction than previously, but still delightfully weird. Quite enjoyed it.

Available for a loan if you can get it off me.

Photos here. Thanks for hosting Scott, and particularly thanks for knocking up the brazier that kept us all warm.

The Australia government is attempting to stop illegally imprisoned Australian Mamdouh Habib from selling his story to the press when he is returned from Guantanamo Bay. They're apparently trying to use laws that stop people from profiting from crimes.

Now, of course, I'm not going to argue about said laws (though you have to wonder whether giving criminals a clean revenue stream might perhaps help them stick to the straigh-and-narrow, cf Chopper) but it's outrageous that they're attempting to stick it on these. How can you apply "proceeds of crime" laws to someone who has not even been charged with any crimes, despite the incredibly draconian anti-terror laws in both the US and Australia?

Go for it Habib. At the very least, you might get some recompense for the last few stolen years. You don't stand much chance of getting justice from the US Government, that's for sure.

So the word pants in the UK means underwear yet they still have the term underpants. So what's the difference? Do they wear two layers?

Does it mean we're getting old to say we stayed in Saturday evening to watch opera on the telly?

Of course it wasn't just any opera but Jerry Springer: The Opera. I never thought I'd see an opera with the line "three-nippled cousin fucker" sung.

Of course the wowsers are getting into a froth about it without having seen it as usual. But it was brilliant, a real poke in the eye of staid, dull highbrow art.

I think I want to see the live version now...

Holly wanted a blog, so now she has one.

I couldn't find any decent blogware that was free and didn't require a database, but allowed Holly to post without HTML. So with a bit of Perl magic and HTML::FromText, I've made something she can use that doesn't require any HTML.

Everyone's doing it, or so it seems, so here's the first ten tracks selected randomly from my entire music collection:

• Mr Bungle - None of Them Knew They Were Robots
• Frost - In Memoriam (The Silent Spring Mix)
• Mongo Santamaria - Secret Admirer
• Peace Orchestra - Henry
• The Dandy Warhols - Cool Scene
• Punjabi MC - Mirza Part 2
• Asian Dub Foundation - Journey
• The Beatles - Honey Pie
• Transvision Vamp - Hanging Out With Halo Jones
• Vincent Gallo - Sixteen Seconds Happy

Just got my copy of Regurgitator's new album, Mish Mash. Have to say, it hasn't really grabbed me. The album was recorded over 21 days with the band locked inside a plastic box in Melbourne's Federation Square. I think the strain of recording under corporate and fan eyes kinda shows.

First few tracks are kinda hip-hoppy. Second track, My Friend Robot is poppy stuff reminiscent of Unit. Fave choon at the moment is I Was Sent By God To Get You Off which starts off with the rant of some crazed Xtian loon, presumably recorded during the Band in a Bubble thing.

Nothing near as good as Eduardo and Rodriguez, the previous album. If you have no idea who Regurgitator are, they're one of Australia's most inventive bands. Go and buy Jingles. You won't be disappointed.