Daniel's birthday at Kempton Park race course.

Kempton Park

An unpolished gem of a scooter

As the office is moving from Sunbury to Hammersmith within the next two months and I refuse to part £150 a month for appaling train service, I have decided to commute to work by scooter.

Almost certain that I wanted a big 250 - 400 ccm scooter with big protective screen and great visibility in the traffic.

A friend managed to convince me the Suzuki Burgman 400 was old structure and I should avoid it as a lot has happened in the last couple of years.

After then researching the market, I identified the Piaggio X7 250 I.E. which is a brand new bike in 2008.

As it was not in stock over the weekend I landed up test riding the Honda SH300i from the neighbouring dealership. The bike was fun and easy to ride but to be honest it looks like a pizza delivery bike...

I was therefore convinced that the Piaggio X7 would remain favourite and i would buy off the shelve when I finally got to test ride it.

The test ride compared to the Honda SH300i was disappointing to say it the least: The bike looks stunning with big screen and integrated lamps and mirrors etc.

The bike initially appeared extremely fast as it got from 0 - 60 in VERY short time. The disappointment was tremmendous when I realised that Piaggio does ot convert the dashboard for England and this it was 0 - 60 Kilometres (not Miles)...

Upon entering a roundabout I nearly landed on the bonnet on some twat that forgot to indicate that he was going AROUND the roundabout. I am certain that with the Honda's leveraged ABS brakes that scenario would have been more in control.

The final straw happened on the return when the little dashboard popped open and wouldn't close as the little "clip" had broken off.

For a 6" tall bloke the Honda also appeared to have more legroom as the knees weren't knocking against the screen.

So there we go the cost of bias and the benefit of research have landed me a ugly but fast and comfortable machine.

I will refer to it as an unpolished gem-stone.

Kevin Ash from the Daily Telegraph had the following review of the bike: "Design a machine to be the best of two worlds and, more often than not, it ends up a compromise instead. Honda said, before I rode its new SH300i scooter, that the aim was to endow it with the in-town agility of a 125 as well as the performance and stability to make it a viable proposition on motorways, ring roads and faster, more intimidating routes in general. This could easily have translated into breathlessness and nervous handling at speed with ponderous handling in traffic. Instead, the SH300i really does seem to have pulled it off.

Pushing the limits: Kevin puts the Honda SH300i through its paces Honda says the engine is the most powerful in the class and it certainly feels that way; it's up there with some of the 400s, in fact, with its 90mph top speed and positive overtaking. It's muscular from a standstill too, which is important in aggressive traffic, and, as well as being fast, it's comfortable being fast. Stability is excellent even flat-out on bumpy roads and you don't get the feeling, which you have on many scooters, that you're exploring the edge of the chassis' ability when the twistgrip is against the stop. The SH's sophistication plays a role in that.

The engine is exceptionally smooth, so doesn't feel overworked, while the ride quality is the best I can recall on a middleweight scooter. A lot of work went into isolating both road and engine vibration using rubber bushes in the powertrain mountings and the effort was definitely worth it from the rider's perspective. The end result is a silky, responsive feel from motor and chassis that lifts the SH well above most of its rivals. What makes the handling more impressive is the scooter's flat footboard, which is good for comfort but usually a major problem for chassis stiffness.

A scooter with any pretence to performance will usually have a central tunnel for chassis rigidity, but the SH shows it's possible to manage without. Having said that, my big bloke's feet only just found enough room on the footboard, and space elsewhere is something of an issue. Under the seat there's enough for only one of those vestigial open-face helmets that Italians like to use but the rest of us are scared of, while the small glovebox in the fairing is claimed only to be water resistant. So it leaks, which makes the phone charger inside a bit of a risk in the rain.

The storage compromise (even the SH can't avoid falling between some stools) comes from the large diameter 16-inch wheels, which means there's less room under your backside for clobber - the lowest seat in the class is another factor here. But as the big wheels are partly responsible for the excellent ride quality and stability, this will be worth the sacrifice for many, and Honda lists a capacious topbox as an option anyway.

As most scooters are much the same in meeting their typical riders' demands, the SH stands out even more starkly as a particularly well executed example of style, quality and good design."

Autumn in Aberdeenshire

Autumn in Aberdeenshire

Pittodrie House Hotel is based at Inverudie in Aberdeenshire. I spent 4 days there attending a project management course.

Camilla turned 18.

Copenhagen (Camilla 18)

Google is dead...

Yep who would be thinking of this......

Google quickly became the most favourite web search engine because of its simple white design - without any reviews, news, weather forecasts, financial news and what else the competitors are still busy loading when you have already got your results from Google.

Simplicity comes at a price though and tests have shown that a white screen consumes more power than a black one. As Google's screen is obviously white, a considerable amount of energy globally is spent on this display.

Subsequently a media company has gone ahead and created a simple version of Google but with a black screen:

Allow me to mention Blackle.

I have asked them to confirm if they are recording search results but are still awaiting feedback.

Playing with pigeons in Venice

Playing with pigeons

Rovinj and Venice 2007

Rovigno & Venezia

It is a small world - the model

Now when I am in the writing mood it is obviously important to emphasize an old point, that I (Michael) has got the honour of knowing Miss US Virgin Islands 2006 a runner up for the Miss Universe 2006 competition.

Whilst I researching I found out via Wikipedia that Je T'aime is also a contestant for the Miss Earth 2007 competition to be held on the Phillipines in November.

Anyways how on Earth (sorry about the punt line) does it happen that I know Miss Virgin Islands.

Well Je T'aime has been close to her grandmother, Eleanor, whom is a close friend of my Far via the Danish - Virgin Island society, that my Far has been heavily involved in for the last 15 years or so.

Back in the mid 90-ties Eleanor and her two grand-children Je T'aime and P.J. visited Denmark and we took them to Tivoli gardens. I will never forget when we sat in a restaurant in the garden and the 10-ish year old P.J. disappeared for a while. He went to buy a long-stemmed rose for all the Girls: Eleanor, Je T'aime and my Mor - vauw

It is a small world - the pop singer story

I am sitting here at work reading my Danish newspaper. All of the sudden there is in typical Danish manner an article about a pop-star that has been declined a tax rebate on clothing and make-up, essential to her work...

Although that is obviously a story in itself, plenty of news papers are covering that and hence I rather want to focus on her, the singer...

Last year you were bombarded on the radio with the track "From Paris to Berlin" and although I knew it was Danish I never got as far as to know it was by a band called Infernal.

So when I all of the sudden see the singer of Infernal is named Line Rafn the penny has dropped. Line is the daughter of my favourite teacher from primary school, Lone.

Besides from being my teacher through out many years, Lone was also one of the key people behind the AIDS information and event group (Ung Sikker Sex), which I was heavily involved in back in the early nineties. Lone ALWAYS had her guitar with her, hence the family must have a musical gene

I remember that Line back in those days where quite involved as a DJ at Niverød Lokal Radio or Kanal 100 as I recall it was also called at some stage.

Anyways no time for writing, I must get down to HMV before they close to buy the album...

Work visit to Stavanger and family visit at Copenhagen

Stavanger 2007

How to get rid of telemarketing in two minutes.

Press play to hear the best and funniest way to get rid of that annoying tele marketing caller

Michelle's baby shower

Michelle's baby shower

Nicole in New York

New York (Kinetic Partners)

Gold diggers in Sunbury ?

Late Sunday evening, some thieves stole 4 material bags from a small factory in Walton on Thames, just next to Sunbury on Thames.
The 4 bags contains cyanide and is used in some chemical reaction to modify metal. Maybe the thieves thought they could break the ancient secrets around alchemism and start producing gold ?
No I think not. It is just another day in Sunbury.

Struck by disappointment the thieves must have escaped by train from Upper Halliford station, which has been closed today.

Upper Halliford train station is the concrete slap just next to Acergy's office building. So when I say closed, I mean two police cars were parked on the pavement of the walkway leading from the bridge and beneath.

Click here to read article from BBC News

The neighbours grass is always greener

Only minutes after Nicole has landed from her business trip to the ever vibrant New York do we dig out a travel guide from the New York Times, describing how the quality life is lived in the green and peacefull Whiskey Belt, stretching from North Copenhagen and 40 kilometres up along the coast line to Helsinore.

This is the area where I have grown up and I recognise his desciptions very well.

The thing is, having tried that, there are other things here in this world to explore so maybe there is an adventurous New Yorker that want's to swap green card ?!

Click here to read the article from New York Times.

The photo is of Arne Jacobsen's Bella Vista at Klampenborg. Arne Jacobsen is taken a large credit for the beauty of the design along the coast line.

Photos from our stay in Rye (and a few extras)

Rye & more

www.copetown.net

Finally there was sparetime to look back at the old domain name http://www.copetown.net.

After we've got this blog I have deemed it double work to maintain both the old website and the new blog.

There are significant advantages of the blog as it is easy to update and enables for posting stuff from e.g. work or BlackMail.

The copetown domain name is however Nicole and my personal brand and it would be a pitty not to utilise it. (we still use the personal email accounts and so on).

Now when you enter the http://www.copetown.net domain name, you will automatically be re-directed to this site.

Nicole however liked the rotating pictures very much and hence they have been embedded on this site. Best of both worlds.

Snow in Plettenberg bay

550 km east of Cape Town lies the quaint but in the sumer time rediculously busy town of Plettenberg bay.

The observant holiday makers will remember this is were Bernadette let me in on her holiday enterprise by enabling it for online shopping.

Something tell me, I should have kept the domain and sold it for a mint, as the new owner of it seems to make good bucks out of it : "The luxury Bed & Breakfast with exciting views"

Anyways this story is about how we were there only at the end of April, when the weather was absolutely fantastic.

Now check how the snow is covering the town at seaside level... (Right picture is a reference as to what is SHOULD have looked like, if you ask me).

Airport security on its highest

The trip to attend the Hyperion conference in Lyon, turned out to test
my patience to the largest extent...

Arriving at the airport and walking through the standard security, I
was pulled aside to participate in their ongoing experiment, the "pose
nude machine". Partially intimidated by being in the securityarea, I
told the officual, I was NOT happy about this. To this he answered
that is fine, just sign on a refusal form. I wonder how many similar
to me does not realise this is a test and let their fatrolls blossom
in the middle of the airport...

Anyways this was only the start. Wait for the rest. It is priceless

What can the Danes teach us about happiness

The following is a transcript of an article in BBC News:


Danes are the happiest people in Europe, a survey suggests. But what is the secret of their contentedness?

Something is markedly unrotten in the state of Denmark.

Asked to rate both their happiness and long-term life satisfaction, Danish people trounce their European cousins.


Many in Denmark put this regularly-surveyed contentedness down to a dynamic economy and a pleasant work-life balance, with people leaving the office on time, jumping on effective public transport and heading off to pick up their delightful children from a shiny, well-run kindergarten.

But there are others out to savage the myth of the happy Dane, arguing that low expectations of life account for their unusually happy disposition.

Kevin McGwin, from Maine in the US, works on the Copenhagen Post newspaper, and is well-used to surveys suggesting the Danish love of life. It could all be down to a pleasant quality of life, he suggests.

"Denmark is very consumer-oriented and very family-oriented. People are sure to leave work at 4.30pm. They work their eight hours and go home. Pressure to work overtime doesn't exist."


Denmark has a 37-hour week. Parents get 52 weeks of maternity/paternity leave to be shared between them - 24 weeks is usually at full pay, with the rest often at as much as 90% pay. Much of it can be spread over the first nine years of the child's life. Childcare is subsidised with no parent being asked to pay more than 25% of the cost.

Danish ambassador to London Birger Riis-Jorgensen says he doesn't find it surprising Danes rate themselves as happy.

"In other parts of Europe globalisation is perceived as a threat. For Danes, 78% think globalisation is an opportunity.

"We have high taxes but we have generous unemployment benefits, a lot of life-long learning. We feel secure and we feel that we have opportunities.

"We have a lot of faith in government as an institution. The authorities are normally competent, uncorrupt and approachable."












Public transport is ominously clean

Danes fundamentally believe their state is well run, Mr Riis-Jorgensen says, but citizens are still capable of complaining when there are problems with public services.

"If 5% of trains are running late it is a political problem."

And the safe streets of Copenhagen can be a surprise to foreign visitors.

"When foreigners are finding out they can safely let their children bike to school in the suburbs of Copenhagen they get pretty amazed."

But a study by the University of Southern Denmark earlier this year found success in happiness surveys might be down to low expectations.

Fears not realised

Researcher Kaare Christensen looked back over three decades of surveys that had created the legend of the "happy Dane".

"In countries such as Italy and Spain, people have much higher expectations for what the coming year will bring, but they're not especially happy or satisfied with their existence."

But Danes take a more realistic view of life, he suggested at the time.

"Year after year we're just happy that things didn't go as badly as we'd feared."

And even McGwin, who is married to a Dane, is sceptical that Danes' happiness is all its cracked up to be.

"The weather here is pretty lousy and half the year it's dark. They are as depressed as Hamlet some days."