2011 — 23 December: Friday
Just to prove I can,1 this little diary jotting is being composed and edited from the diarist's bed. I trust you won't see anything different about it by the time I publish it.
G'night!
Well, apart from a couple of superfluous words that somehow attached themselves to the last SSI.
Decisions, decisions: do I nip out for any last-minute stuff, or do I batten down the hatches? Breakfast first, certainly.
Shoot me now... dept.
Isaac Asimov would have been interested in this:
The large-scale study will evaluate five different types of robots: Friend, Guide, Paro, iRobiQ and Cafero robots.
The robots can perform tasks such as recording the residents' heart rate or blood pressure, providing entertainment in the form of music videos, and reminding residents to take their
medication and alert nurses if someone falls. The residents can Skype from some of the robots, find out what daily activities are on at the village and play games to help their mental fitness.
The robots are being placed around Selwyn Village's Pt Chevalier premises including in its cafe, medical centre, hospital and in residents' rooms and in the communal spaces.
It's my job...
... to keep my friend Gill up-to-date with anything (as she puts it) "guardianny" related to Tim Minchin's current little spat with the Dark Forces that rule ITV. Tim's song ("Woody Allen Jesus") gently comparing Jesus to Woody Allen has been expunged from tonight's Jonathan Woss show (which I don't watch) so Mr M posted a link to the recording of it on YouTube, from his website.
Didn't a chap once say something along the lines of "I disagree with every word you say but will defend to the death your right to say it"?
Well, I enjoyed the song. It put me nicely into the Xmas spirit after grappling with the heaving hordes infesting my Waitrose.
Sadly...
... my usual Friday afternoon haunt — the Roger & Eileen tea and broken biscuit facility — is temporarily closed as they both contend with rhinoviruses, but there's always the Kermode and Mayo film review show to fall back on. Neatly timed, in fact, to coincide with the end of my lunch, and factoring in the time my kettle needs for my next cuppa...
Yuk. It's become cooler, somewhat windy, the barometer is dropping, and it's piddling with rain out there. I'm glad I nipped out to the shops earlier. [Pause] Now, at 21:38, the stars are shining and the temperature is dropping. Brrr.