Inveterate dabbler in business, travel, gadgets & life

Cambridge Travel times mapped

Here is an excellent map showing the one hour isochrones if travelling by rail from Cambridge. Its taken from the MySociety website. Other maps show the bus and rail times in Edinburgh, London and within Cambridge itself. There is also a very useful map for the likes of me that shows which parts of the country are better reached with a rented car than by train.

A very interesting site more so because the OS didnt get their pound of flesh from them because “This work was funded by the Department for Transport, who also made it possible for us to use Ordnance Survey maps and data through their licence”

Many thanks to Cory at Boing Boing for the link.

Trial of Origin beat 600 bands

My nephew Sam, lead guitar in the band Trial of Origin, messaged me earlier today with the fantastic news that they had beat more than 600 school bands to reach joint first place in the BBC Midlands Today School of Rock competiton. This means they will get time in a professional recording studio. You can watch an excerpt of them playing here afterwards they may even get some needle time on Radio1.

The BBC site still shows second place but according to Sam “its cos of this BBC thing. have u heard one of the bands got a computer or something (maybe skype) to block vote for them. so they got loads and loads votes, so they won. HOWEVER the BBC knew they hadnt really won, and wen they took away the false votes, it was us who actually won. so even though we were classed as the runners up, theyr still giving us the winners prize

Robert Scoble featured them on his blog last year (Scoble ahead of the pack as always) afterwards Ewan Spence picked up on them and featured the band in his rock podcast #14. Maybe I can get Fred to feature them over at his A VC blog.

Really excellent news and they get to play a gig at the Birmingham NEC

When It’s Time Leave the (Home) Office

Great article on when to give up working from home:-

My favourite is#3: “No, the baby doesn’t go in the playpen…Important papers go in there so the baby can’t get at them.”
If you find yourself picking Cheerios out of your laptop, chasing the kids around the kitchen while conference-calling Japan and wiping peanut butter off your client’s proposal, you are a good candidate to escape your home office.

Thanks to Dane at the Business Opportunities blog for the link.

Whats in a name?

Also from Paul is this analysis of my names:-

There are 28 letters in your name.
Those 28 letters total to 136
There are 11 vowels and 17 consonants in your name.

Your number is: 1

The characteristics of #1 are: Initiating action, pioneering, leading, independent, attaining, individual.

The expression or destiny for #1:
A number 1 Expression denotes the skilled executive with keen administrative capabilities. You must develop the capacity to be a fine leader, sales executive, or promoter. You have the tools to become an original person with a creative approach to problem solving, and a penchant for initiating action. Someone may have to follow behind you to handle the details, but you know how to get things going and make things happen. You have a good mind and the ability to use it for your advancement. Because of these factors, you have much potential for achievement and financial rewards. Frequently, this expression belongs to one running a business or striving to achieve a level of accomplishment on ones talents and efforts. You have little need for much supervision, preferring to act on your own with little restraint. You are both ambitious and determined. Self-confident and self-reliant must be yours, as you develop a strong unyielding will and the courage of your convictions.

Although you fear loneliness, you want to be left alone. You fear routine and being in a rut. You often jump the gun because you are afraid of being left behind.

The negative attributes of the 1 Expression are egotism and a self-centered approach to life. This is an aggressive number and if it is over-emphasized it is very hard to live with. You do not have to be overly aggressive to fulfill your destiny. The 1 has a natural instinct to dominate and to be the boss; adhering to the concept of being number One. Again, you do not have to dominate and destroy in order to lead and manage.

Your Soul Urge number is: 3

A Soul Urge number of 3 means:
With the Soul Urge number 3 your desire in life is personal expression, and generally enjoying life to its fullest. You want to participate in an active social life and enjoy a large circle of friends. You want to be in the limelight, expressing your artistic or intellectual talents. Word skills may be your thing; speaking, writing, acting, singing. In a positive sense, the 3 energy is friendly, outgoing and always very social.

You have a decidedly upbeat attitude that is rarely discouraged; a good mental and emotional balance.

The 3 Soul Urge gives intuitive insight, thus, very high creative and inspirational tendencies. The truly outstanding trait shown by the 3 Soul Urge is that of self-expression, regardless of the field of endeavor.

On the negative side, you may at times become too easygoing and too optimistic, tending to scatter forces and accomplish very little. Often, the excessive 3 energy produces non-stop talkers. Everyone has faults, but the 3 soul urge doesn’t appreciate having these pointed out.

Your Inner Dream number is: 7

An Inner Dream number of 7 means:
You dream of having the opportunity to read, study, and shut yourself off from worldly distractions. You can see yourself as a teacher, mystic, or ecclesiastic, spending your life in the pursuit of knowledge and learning.