Why ? #1

Why do some people answer the front door and say ...

"Sorry, I didn't hear the door bell"

So why do they answer the door then?

 #1 in a series of unanswerable questions, unless you know the answer of course.

Load of old non-census

I finally got round to filling in my census form last night. It's been sat on the coffee table for about 3 weeks waiting to be filled in but that's about par for the course for me.

Unusually for me I chose the old fashioned paper and pen method as opposed to filling it online. I don't know why, it just seemed more important doing it that way.

It was pretty simple to complete. Straightforward questions asking a few personal details. Nothing controversial, the only one I thought waseven remotely snooping was asking the name and address of where you work. Nothing they (or at least the Inland Revenue anyway) wouldn't already know  about any honest citizen and I'm sure anybody with anything to hide wasn't going to give their secrets away by filling the details in on there.

The one thing that really struck me was reports that the helpline received over half a million calls requesting help. As I've already said, pretty simple questions, I just can not fathom how that many people could have a problem, or what it was they were confused over. I appreciate that a certain percentage of the adult population can not read, but then would also guess that they would be unable to read that the helpline was available so I'm discounting them. In true conspiracy theory style I am thinking that the census was indeed gathering more information about us that was let on, but not the information people are thinking. My theory is that the questions themselves are largely irrelevant, but a huge database has been collated on those thick enough to request help. When aliens land and require a certain percentage of our population for experiments then this is the list our government will turn to as those we can easiest afford to do without.

Anything happens in Grand Prix racing, and it usually does

The above is a quote from the voice of Formula One, Murray Walker.  A man with infinitely more enthusiasm for the sport (a term use loosely) than I have, his quote to me seeming to be a total contradiction in how I viewed F1. For me the whole lack of appeal centred around the fact that nothing ever did happen. The driver in the fastest car would qualify in pole position and unless his car broke down he would then lead the rest of the field around the circuit for a couple of meaningless hours till the chequered flag would put me out of my misery.

Recent rule changes have made races slightly more competitive but still not enough to ignite a spark of interest in me. But now a rabbit has succeeded where Bernie Ecclestone and co. failed and got me, whilst maybe not planning my sleep schedule around races from the other side of the world, interested enough to now at least know the name of more than 3 current drivers .

The rabbit concerned is none other than the Grand Prix Bunny . I originally thought this was a training school for future lures at the greyhound track, it is in fact a website  designed and run  by a mate of mine which has put a degree of fun into F1. It is written with a humorous style and features pod-cast discussions with fans - not experts - talking in everyday language that non aficionados like myself can understand. In a sport dominated by billionaires, this website written by, and for, "normal" fans of the sport has got me interested enough to enter into  it's F1 Fantasy game. Hopefully this will give me a sustained interest throughout the summer. In the same way that a fantasy football team has got me interested in the welfare of Wigan's first team squad and the form of foreign imports I'd never previously heard of, words such as monocoque, KERS and shakedown are now entering my vocabulary. 

With the first race due to commence in less than 24 hours, by this time tomorrow I'll either find myself in a competitive season long attempt to try and beat the experts at their own game, or writing it off as a pointless exercise and looking for another summer sporting interest.  Now if only I could remember what my fantasy team selection was.

The Comeback Tour

The previous incarnation of this blog -  Wurzel's World - like a car running on empty, stuttered, and hiccuped  a few times before finally succumbing (not before time, many would say) to a full and final stop.

Now, due to popular demand (when I say popular, someone made the mistake of asking what had happened to my blog), like an ageing rock star reliving past glories, it's being brought out of retirement, scrubbed up, and made ready for it's legion of fans* old and new. And just like those ageing rock stars it is, of course, nothing to do with the money.

Watch this space, there's more to come. No idea what yet but that's all part of the fun.

 *The use of the plural of the word fan was  due to an unrealistically optimistic mood whilst posting, probably brought on by too much coffee and a hint of blue sky and sunshine