Well, we're off for Christmas now, and it's a great feeling! I'm glad that this year is nearly over with its incredible highs, and terrible lows. It'll be our first Christmas with Nathan, and we intend to enjoy it as much as we can.

The only downside today is the fact that I'm absolutely knackered, as Nathan did not sleep at all well last night. I was up from 1:30 to 5:30 with him and I'm feeling pretty drawn as a result. He just couldn't settle, and it looks like he's threatening another cold

But, looking on the bright side of things, I've even managed to wrap some presents!

I use Pipex as my ISP (indeed, this site is hosted by them) and generally have found them pretty good, except that they seem to have a somewhat surreal idea of customer service. We've been without an internet connection for two days because of their latest farce.

Apparently, they ran maintenance on their servers which resulted in the PPPoE connection being changed to a PPPoA connection (or at least the settings significantly changing from what there was before). Of course, they didn't communicate this before it happened and it took two days for me to find out what the issue was (I'd pretty quickly diagnosed it to either BT or Pipex, with Pipex looking more likely). Anyway, phoned up and got told how to log back in, and it works, but I think that the load over Christmas as the kids are home is a bit of an issue. My line speed is now down around 2Mbs rather than 4Mbs, and larger downloads are dropping out (which is a pain when you're trying to install system updates).

I just wish they'd sent an email out before they killed my access so I could know what to do. It's identical to the lack of communication over the changes to the FTP servers 18 months ago, which I described here. Basic, poor customer service.

Hrumph!

We've been quiet here the last three weeks because we've all been poorly sick. Thought we were over it, but then we've all developed tonsillitis. It looks like Nathan is going to miss another week at nursery. He's trying to be happy, but his horrible cough is getting to him. We're all pretty frazzled from lack of sleep.



However, it's not quite this bad... (Man Flu)



However, I do recommend the following solution if you are an adult. Worked for me when I was at home and still does!

My Mum's Kill or Cure Recipe
Ribena
Hot Water
Honey
2 crushed paracetamol (follow dosage instructions), alternatively use a blackcurrant Lemsip.
Shot of Scotch (optional)

1. Put Ribena in mug.
2. Spoonful of honey into the mug.
3. Add Scotch (if needed).
4. Add hot water.
5. Stir well.
6. Mix in paracetamol.

Enjoy. Great for sore throats and fevers!

Currently feeling: Shattered.
Currently listening to: The Silence.
Currently reading: Trail of Cthulhu (RPG) and The Mission Song (John Le Carré.