22 nd. February.

22/02/2007
Got up an hour ago, switched TV, computer, fire and kettle on, with the intention of doing a swift hour’s revision prior to the test.
Before the kettle had boiled I realised I wasn’t in the mood for revision and decided to postpone the exam till next week.
That’s the thing about learning on line,
you never feel you are really ready for the tests,
I felt I needed to do some more work despite having gone through all the module tests in less than one hour and scoring well enough.
I took my rubbish out to the dustbin, credited my gas meter with a further £40 and told neighbour I had some baccy in store.
Made myself a second cuppa and thought what to do today,
I felt a strange feeling;
I was in the mood to write, felt quite strongly, had no ideas just in mood to write, so here I am an hour or so later having filled in the gaps in my diary.
One thing I forgot to do yesterday was to call into stop smoking clinic after visiting opticians.
I will have to go next week.
Next week is slowly filling up,
I have the test to sit, shopping to do, clinic to attend, washing to do and flat to tidy up again.
Such an interesting life, you must agree.

Today is a grey uninspiring day, cold and depressive.
I have the fire on but am chilled internally.
When I went to bed last night my throat and chest were very noisy and uncomfortable, but I must have dropped off eventually and I feel the better for the period of sleep.
Sat up till the early hours of the morning does ensure I’m tired but an early night once in a while is still the best medicine available.
I have now run out of steam and ideas, perhaps I should have stuck to original plan and gone and sat test, at least it would have been over and done with.
O.k. the tests are nothing and no one except myself is bothered about the outcome, yet I get myself into a state before each one.
I want to do my best and therefore doubt my readiness every time a test begins to loom upon the horizon.
I begin to sneeze and hope to hell I haven’t caught cold.
I look at the pile of computer magazines still unopened and unread after three or four months,; will be a good test for the new specs when they arrive,
who knows I may get back into reading.
I used to read a helluva lot, but over the last decade or so have read less and less.
I think of the struggle I’ve had to put some money away and decide I’ll have to continue saving to allow for expense of laser treatment, it will take a big chunk out of savings.
I lay back in chair, almost lifeless and consider what I could do,
go for a drive, do my shopping perhaps, have a walk into village and cash money,
Go to club, do housework! Or return to bed.
I begin to think of the bank transfer which I’m going through and decided to give the pension people a call to check if my new bank has indeed been in touch with them about paying my pension into my new account.
I decide to wait till after the dinner hour, may have more success in getting through.
Another cuppa, trip to loo and start again.

I have a kettle which is supposed to automatically switch off when boiled, but for some reason every once in a while it decides not to switch off and continues to boil energetically.
Always seems to pick the most inappropriate times to exhibit this behaviour, usually when I’m sat on the porcelain squeezing out a log, most annoying.

Another cold spell is expected later this week and then February is almost finished.
Hopefully the mild weather will begin to come in and I will convince myself to take some exercise.
I had thought of making plans for this year, maybe take fishing back up and seriously devote a lot of time to it, (like I used to).
I then recall that my only goals were to stop smoking and lose the extra couple of stone I’ve put on during the past year.
I need to concentrate upon those two plans above all else.
Firstly I will have to get some exercise under my belt and get my legs used to it.
I have to manage the balance between exercise and pain very carefully.
The longer I take things easy the longer I will remain out of a wheelchair; that’s what the specialist told me years ago.
I now am fat, unfit and ready for the scrap yard.
I have slipped into a black hole of inactivity and lethargy.
My recent attempts to stop smoking have fallen beside the wayside , I’ve returned to the pouches to save money and by doing so have ample supplies 24/7.

Try listening to the sound of your voice 'inside your head' as you read. This will help you spot if any words have been left out. Make sure not only that the words are spelled correctly but that the meaning of the sentence as a whole is clear.
P.S. Don’t tell your psychiatrist you hear the voice!
Make sure that facts (such as phone numbers, dates of birth or email addresses) are clearly written and correct. Double check these if necessary.
Focus on words which you know gives you problems. These will vary from person to person, but they could be words with a particular ending (such as -ing) or a soft 'c' as in 'cinema' or 'centre'.
Pay special attention to homophones – (words that sound the same but are spelt differently and have different meanings). For instance: there and their two and too
Have a good visual memory, you can usually spot when a word looks wrong.
Know the most common spelling rules in English.
Look at the meaning of a piece of text to make sure it makes sense as well as checking the spellings of individual words.
Be aware of possible and probable letter combinations. For example every word in English must contain a vowel sound.
Don't rely on the computer spell checker to find every mistake.
The ability to read is as important today as it ever was. Some people believe that the need for good basic skills has lessened as technology has improved, that television, with all its power and indeed its role in providing information, has reduced the need for reading. Certainly there are many people who don't buy books for pleasure and enjoyment, and some who rarely read a newspaper or visit a library. I’m a prime example.
In some ways this may not really matter. Being able to read fluently is very different from wanting to read at all. In so many aspects of our life we still need to read, a need technology cannot replace. Indeed in some ways it makes it more essential. As more everyday activities become automated, so reading becomes more important.
"Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested: that is, some books are to be read only in parts; others to be read, but not curiously; and some few to be read wholly and with diligence and attention."Francis Bacon, 1561-1626

Copyeditors are those persons who receive the "copy," or text, of a "story." Usually, but not always, the first version of the story has been edited for content, plagiarism, accuracy, and for sources of quotations and photographs. When the copyeditor receives this version of the text, s/he is responsible for correcting grammar, spelling, sentence structure, paragraph division, and pagination. In addition, in some cases the copyeditor is responsible for creating captions for photos, designing the layout of a page, and creating headlines and sub-heads (the "titles" of individual paragraphs).

So allow me to begin with the most important piece of advice anyone will ever offer:
Be good. Damn good.
Memorize the AP stylebook and a good list of most commonly misspelled words and you'll out-test 90-something percent of the competition, no matter how much experience they have. If you can test well and interview well, you're in.
You should expect to spend between 15 minutes to half an hour per 1000 words, reviewing the article, making corrections, and checking sources, HTML, and links.

Arrogance, insistence, impatience, frustration have no place in the copyeditor's psyche. Set them aside each time you begin to copyedit! You may never get thanks for finding a typo, but then again, you might. You will gain cooperation and gratitude if you approach a writer with humour, diplomacy and gentle persuasion.

The goal of the job is to be so unobtrusive as to be "invisible" while ensuring that quality standards are upheld.
Had an interesting afternoon researching copy editing etc.

A friend called round at tea time and we tested three different types of skunk.
The first bag was opened and I smelt it,
“Home grown”, I said,
“Yes, there’s more leaf than bud”, he agreed as we skinned up.
Was good to have a familiar smell in the room, sure enough the batch was a bit raw and did attack the back of the throat with some gusto!
After a few draws the mouth dried up and the throat seemed to constrict in an effort to display disgust at such an attack.
We looked at each other, tongues sticking to roof of mouth;
I downed a vodka and orange and it made no difference whatsoever to the dryness of my mouth.
“ does the job”, he said,
“getting there “, I added.
He borrowed my scales and checked upon the quantities; this process is a pain in the arse!
I’M half blind so have to keep shipping spectacles on and off my nose, the halogen lamp provides too harsh a light and the silver measurement dial becomes too dazzling to read.
Quantities checked and mind put at ease, we finished the third home grown and moved our attention to the second packet.
I untied the knot, opened the mouth of the bag and stuck my nose right in and breathed in deeply.
I sat back and breathed out slowly,
“Fucking Orange Bud, excellent!”, were my exact words.

I explain, there has been a significant gap since I last smoked Orange Bud, it was way back when it first came available, I brought some from Holland,
( it was too good to leave behind!).
Apparently it was mixed with one of the widows but my companion couldn’t remember which. Having lived on White widow for a few years, I was cautious.
I held it up to the lamp and stared at the inviting coloured buds inside.
We quickly skinned and the first cool draw told us it was indeed quality.
Unfortunately the expected cut of the crop is only a couple of ounces so it will be in only once during the next few weeks.
The Orange taste replaces the almost mould like taste of the home grown.
We sit back and relax, I try to catch up with the program on TV,
I’ve been watching it for weeks, (this particular prog), and it was loose enough to start with without having to guess what’s gone on.
I gave up.
I watched out of the corner of my eye as he prepared three small piles for me.
“That should keep you going”, he said,
For tonight, I thought in reply.
I followed him down the stairs, waited till he replaced his shoes , bade him farewell and locked the door, feeling satisfaction and gratitude at being able to feel secure behind this door complete with auto lock features which will deter all but the most aggressive burglar.
I returned upstairs and began to skin one up, a mix of all three piles.
I noticed he had left some printouts and his newly acquired purse come wallet.
I lit up, cursed him and got out of my chair.
I wouldn’t be able to relax knowing he may come back and shatter my peace by braying on the door and asking for his belongings.
I went over to his flat and posted the goods through the letterbox and returned home to the recliner.
As luck would have it I found a few comedy shows on the box and an enjoyable night was spent watching all the comedy, drama and films available, smoking throughout.
I recall watching quite an interesting prog on the KKK, murder conviction.
I eventually switched all off at 5 in the morning and went to bed.