Entertainment is becoming harder to achieve without my trusty computer. Certainly I'm going to be a better guitar player from this interlude of electronic fulfillment (my neighbours might disagree) and I'll have time to get to grips with keyboards again. It also means that the desire for news has led me to start listening to the radio, which I usually ignore for more visual information.

Last night it so happened that Ricky Gervais was being interviewed. He's released a film called The Invention of Lying which I admit, I haven't seen. I'm not really a fan of Ricky Gervais (Sorry, Rick, but you wouldn't want me to lie, would you?) but he really is an engaging conversationalist. It turns out he too has a mother who wanted him to be christian. In his case however, the matter has been settled.

He did make an interesting observation about fame. He stated that becoming a celebrity is worthless unless you've actually done something. Thanks, Rick, I can now continue as a minor Rock God safe and secure in the knowledge I fell flat on my face. All my own work, too. The way things are going I might well try falling over again. Hey, Norman Wisdom made a career of it.

Cure By Fire

The US Army has acted on the issue of servicemen returning from active duty in Iraq suffering from Post Traumatic Syndrome. In Britain this was once known as 'Shell Shock', very mmuch an issue with men in the trenches of World War One exposed to continual bombardment. I remember the sorry tale of one artilleryman who simply got up and walked into No-Mans Land purely to have his suffering end. The British have traditionally taken a 'stiff upper lip' attitude toward this. Stop snivelling man, and pull yourself together.

Perhaps we've become more enlightened. Modern training methods are much more focused than they were in the heady days of the war to end all wars, so perhaps it's right that care is taken to rehabilitate those who have risked their lives in the service of their country. What I found extraordinary though is the latest technique from America. They simulate the battlefield with sights, sounds, and smells common to a war zone. How ironic that to ease the suffering of former soldiers, they're put back in a simulated enviroment that causes them grief.

Job Opportunity of the Week

Royal Mail are going to hire on 30,000 temps this winter - twice the usual number - in order to compensate for the expected industrial dispute that is looming in the busiest postal season of all. That's great. There's a depot in my area. So now I can apply to work there if I manage to get through the picket lines. Nothing like a challenge, eh?