David's blog

I'm not much of a TV fan, but I watched a program last night about the Piper Alpha disaster, which happened on July 6, 1988. I vividly remember it because a friend of mine was working on the rig, and I was shocked by the news. I recall my friend Adrian and his mate Kevin going up to Aberdeen in search of work. The oil industry offered the promise of big money and a fresh start. Kevin didn’t land a job on the rigs and had to return home, but Adrian got hired. I’m not sure what his role was—there were terms like "roustabout" mentioned, which I think might mean a type of laborer. Adrian had recently married and was expecting a child with his girlfriend, whom I also knew. They were childhood sweethearts, and I imagine Adrian felt pressure or had the drive to secure a better future for his family. He wasn’t foolish; he did well in school. I first met him there—he was a few years older and had the nickname "Fido" for some reason. I remember him getting into a fight in...

I went for a walk yesterday afternoon, taking one of my usual routes, and came across a gate. There was someone working on the path nearby, so I kicked the gate open like I usually do if it's stuck. The guy on the tractor mentioned it was a bit stiff, and I replied that I didn’t see the point of having the gate there since it served no purpose. He said he liked the gate or something, but I argued that it didn’t do any good. He started talking about children or something, but I think he was just being difficult. There’s a historic easement on the path, as people have walked it for years. He pointed out the old gateposts, and I said they might have been there before the easement existed. It use to be a n old country house and maube there was no easement then and it was all private property I am not goingto dig up the place's historey But since people have been using the path for decades, it now has an easement on it.  I walked on and did not close the other gate he shouted someth...

I've been getting used to my new smart glasses, which I've had for a few days now. I took them out today, and they seem to have what they call "hallucinations." The first one sent me on a wild goose chase about a mobile phone—it claimed there was a phone on the ground near my fence, but there wasn’t. These glasses, as I mentioned, have been embraced by the visually impaired community. I heard about a man in Texas who has retired his expensive, probably cumbersome and hassle-ridden CCTV system, and now just uses the Meta Ray-Ban glasses to read his letters. It seems liberating and opens the door to other possibilities these glasses might offer in the future. It's amazing to hear these have changed some people's lives for the better under purely by accident Hopefully they will improve again as time goes by and make it possible for visually impaired people to participate in things in society which they may be closed out of now by ignorance or whatever I have been...

I recently went to see a young man perform at a local club. He has some vision issues, and while his performance was decent, there’s definitely room for improvement. His visual impairment didn’t seem to hinder him much, though the only noticeable thing was that his family had to bring him since he can’t drive. The club wasn’t very crowded, and it looks like they’re struggling to attract people. I think they might have a hard time surviving unless they start offering food. It’s a tough time for the hospitality industry. This week, I’ve been to the Eisteddfod twice, which is being held in Wrexham. Today is the last day, and it’s sad to see it end. I enjoyed going there on the coach, though the coach left a bit too early yesterday. At least I made it. It’s not easy living around here if you don’t drive and have uncooperative family members. My brother went on Wednesday and didn’t think to offer me a lift, and my sister is just being herself. It’s about two hours on a coach mostly full of ...

Ordering the Meta smart glasses was such a hassle. I first went to a shop to inquire about them, but one morning I decided to order them myself. A few weeks later, they arrived, but they were too big, and the lenses weren’t great, so I had to send them back, which was a pain. After that, I decided to return to a shop to sort it out. I asked them, and they said they’d handle it. While in another town, I visited a branch of the same shop to try on the frames since the ones I ordered didn’t fit.  The frames fit perfectly, so I went back to the original shop, and they arranged to order them from another branch. I went there today to pay for the glasses, and going through the shop saved me a hundred quid! Now I’m set to receive them this week or next, but what a palaver!  Next time, if there is a next time, I’ll go to the shop straight away. It’s not a good idea to order over the internet if you don’t know what you’re doing.  My collection of glasses is slowly growing. I might...