Last Tuesday I was splitting wood for kindling for our wood Heater when the axe bounced of the log and came down on the tip of my thumb, almost severing it.  Thing is, there was little to no pain and I was able to stem the bleeding fairly quickly, so me being me just bandaged it and figured it'd be alright.  It wasn't until Friday morning when Shaunna was ready to put a fresh dressing on it and we could see the severity of the injury.  The thumb nail was completely severed about halfway up and the bleeding recommenced.

There was no argument [when there usually is] when Shaunna said that we were going to the hospital.  It took a while to get through all the hospital proceedures prior to seeing a plastic surgeon, but it was well worth the wait because he sheduled me for surgery right there and then.  I wasn't expecting that because non-life-threatening cases are usually placed on a waiting list before being allocated a surgery spot.

Anyway, the surgery went well and now I have a pin in there to stabilise a piece of bone which had become detatched.  Apart from a bit of throbbing the night after the surgery, I felt no real pain.  I took an oxycodone tablet to help with that and I managed to get some sleep.

All in all I'm happy with the result and am really grateful to all the hospital staff members who looked after me, they were brilliant.

I had ideas that I'd boost the graphics capability on my Threadripper rig, but when I saw that any kind of an upgrade on what I already have would cost $AU$1200 +, that was the end of that.  To get what I really wanted would have been  AU$1500 +, so I'm going have to make do with my RTX260.

Anyone else think prices are too steep?

Without all the drama and etc, my PC got hacked on Saturday [29.01.2022] and all my personal information was stolen.  I wondered why the internet service was running so slowly.... it was because the hackers were emptying my documents folder.  When I went to the folder to check on something it was completely empty.

They also hacked into my email account, meaning I had to go to Microsoft to close it down and eventually delete it, along with the associated Windows account.  They somehow got control of Windows, so I wiped the drive and did a full reinstall, keeping absolutely nothing just in case it was compromised.  I'm now using totally different credentials, user name and password so as not to be linked with previous accounts or identities.

Worse still, they have access to our internet service and changed the Wi-Fi password so we can't stop them using it, and the ISP is taking its time in resolving the issue.  With all the precautions and changes I've made, now there is nothing here they can get access to, and with a VPN in full-time use, now it will be much more difficult to gain unauthorised access to our machines.  Sadly, before I got hacked, I did stop my VPN to access a site that didn't like it, and I believe that's what may have opened the door to the hackers.

I've contacted my bank and other important entities to notify them of the breach and to change all my passwords and login details.  As far as I can tell, I've taken the necessary steps to prevent further incursion and I now hope that the ISP prevents further use of our service.

As for tomorrow, I have to appear in court after the woman we tried to help falsely had me charged with assault.  Due to a number of issues I do not have legal representation so I'm hoping the magistrate will allow me to adjourn it.

Assault?   Be fucked, I couldn't knock the skin off a rice pudding these days.

As the title says, I'm feeling rather sad because my mate, housemate and carer passed away on Sunday morning at 2.30am.  I was awoken around 1.00am by a call for help.  When I got to Steve's room he was delirious, incoherent and unresponsive, very agitated and unable to breathe properly.  I tried to calm him down and relax but he was not responsive to anything I said or did to ease his panic, etc.  In the meantime Shaunna had called for an ambulance

I'm not a doctor but I believe he was having an asthma attack when I got there and I tried to apply his inhaler but he was too delirious by then to take it.  It seemed like he was having a massive stroke because whatever he was trying to say was slurred and garbled, and movement down his left side had ceased.

When the paramedics arrived they asked if I would perform CPR while they set up their equipment and one of them could take over.  By this time Steve lost consciousness and had gone into cardiac arrest.  That was the scariest thing.  I'd never performed CPR on a person before, just a practice dummy, and here I was doing it on my mate, a bloke I'd become rather close with and didn't want to lose. 

There were 5 paramedics and they worked on him for an hour or more, giving him 3 shots of adrenaline while continuing the CPR. Sadly, they were unable to revive him and called time of death as 2.30am. 

That's when the reality of it all hit me... my mate had gone despite all the efforts to revive him.  In fact I'm still trying to process it.  I know it is true but it still feels so unreal.  About the only comfort is that the lead paramedic told Shaunna, Karrolleanne [our new housemate] and I is that if they could have brought Steve back, he would have been significantly impaired due to the stroke and lack of oxygen to his brain for almost 2 hours.

That makes it a little easier to bear but I'm still going to miss him like crazy... our chats about cricket, rugby league, music and movies over a couple of beers on our back patio.

Anyhow, I'll take a few days away from WC to process it all, and I'll be back, probably after the funeral next Thursday afternoon at 2.00pm

I was reading the news on nine.com and was saddened to see that iconic drummer and long-time Rolling Stones member had passed away aged 80.

Thanks for your great service to rock n' roll over the last 50 or so years, Charlie, may you rest in peace.

If any WB skinners would be interested in creating some Steampunk themes... either free or pay-for?  I already have some by Don5318, and I'd imagine that Neon6 and Vampothica would feel right at home with the theme, but I'd like to collect a few more so that I can cycle my desktop themes on a more regular basis.  I'd be more than happy to pay the going rate for master skins, but if anyone feels like contributing free ones to the community then I'd be happy and appreciative as well.  Steampunk IconPackager themes would also be fantastic to complete the overall look of the desktop... again, free or masterskin if fine

I also am into dragons since Game of thrones, and I have a collection of ornamental dragons decorating my man-cave, but some dragon skins would be great to compliment the setting when I desire a change to my desktop. Again, I'm willing to pay for such themed skins.

Okay, I'll leave it with the skinners fo0r now and hope that somebody is interested. [e digicons]:)[/e]  

I've not been around for a month or so due to having to move house and then settle into the new place.  The new place is bigger, much nicer and has a fourth bedroom for visitors and when the grand-kids come over to stay a few days.  Moreover, we don't have maintenance issues or the leaky roof that we had to endure at the last place because the owner there refused to carry out necessary work.  Once our lease was up we were out of there, but what a major task that turned out to be.

We got a removalist to take the bigger furniture and big items to save us most of the backbreaking work, but still it was a major effort nevertheless.  I did 90% of the packing in the previous two weeks to shifting, then I was loading and unloading a trailer and 4x4 on the day.  By the time we got mostly settled in I was completely knackered.  I say mostly because there's still a number of boxes and containers to unpack, but those aren't so urgent and can be done at our leisure over the next few weeks.

Anyhow, after becoming completely knackered, I decided to take time out and go to the pub for a few beers.  There were no problems getting there - my mobility scooter was fully charged and I had a smooth run along the way - but coming home was a different matter.

This dirty, rotten stinkin' copper pulled me over and booked me for speeding.... reckoned I was doing 80kmph in a 50km zone.  I argued the point but he became even more interested in writing me up for other things.  And the more I argued the more things he found to book me on... like faulty indicators and bald tyres.  Hehe, I kept moving my scooter backwards and forwards so that he couldn't get an accurate tread measurement, so he booked me for obstructing a police occifer in the course of his duties.  He then asked if I'd been drinking, and that's where it got hairier for me.

He pulled out a breathaliser and I told him that 'I was not blowing into that.... that I should pee in a bottle and he should have to drink it to ascertain how much beer I'd had'.  That didn't go down at all well and he again asked if I'd been drinking.  "No" I replied: "If that gadget of yours records a blood/alcohol reading it's wrong."  Instead of beer, I've taken a new form of Viagra because I get it only once a year... and tonight's the night.  Well that did it.  He then booked me for lying to police and arrested me for being a public nuisance into the bargain.

[spoiler]Anyhow, cos I missed out on posting an April Fools gag here, this was it. [e digicons];P[/e]  [e digicons]:-"[/e]  [e digicons]:grin:[/e]  [/spoiler]

Yup, I've ordered myself a mobility scooter due to increasing difficulty getting out and about.... home again since I no longer drive and have issues riding a bike, and I can't afford to keep getting taxis every time I need to go out/get home again.

A few days ago I had to go to Bunnings to get a few things, and that's when I decided enough was enough.  It's a walk I had done several times, and I got there okay, but on the way home I could barely put one foot in front of the other. It's about a 15 minute walk each way for a fit and healthy person - usually it took me around 25 to 35 minutes each way - but on the way home that day it took me close to an hour, thus prompting the decision to get a mobility scooter.

It hasn't been easy to get out for the last ten years or so due to arthritic hips and knees, lower back issues.  However, I was determined to maintain my own independence: on my own two legs... or should I say I was too darned stubborn to avail myself of helpful mobility aids. 

Anyway, two scooters will be brought here on Thursday to allow me a couple of practice runs before deciding which one best suits my needs.  After that I won't know myself... or should I say restrictions as to where and how far I can go.

Heh, I'll be able to chase - and catch - wild women: "Ere me lovely, do 'e wanna a lift somewhere?" and I'd 'ave ter sit 'er up in tha shoppin' basket cos me knee 'd be too weak n' sore.

[e digicons];P[/e] [e digicons]:grin:[/e]  

As the title suggests, Big Beastie underwent a complete makeover.  Turns out my Cooler Master 1200w PSU was the culprit with my Threadripper build and causing the mobo and CPU to short out.  It was throwing out 18v - 20v on the 12v rail, thus shorting out all that was connected to it. 

I'm not expecting CoolerMaster to compensate me for the damage [about 1400 bucks] so I've moved on and Big Beastie now has an Intel 10th Gen Core i7 10700F LGA 1200 CPU mounted on an ASUS ROG Strix Z490-F LGA1200 ATX motherboard.  The CPU is locked but that's okay, I wasn't planning to overclock anyhow.

Yeah, I know, I wasn't ever going to get another ASUS board, but it was at a good price and it suited my budget more than other LGA 1200 boards I looked at.  This time, however, I did not build it myself.  I've found a great techie here in Launceston and he did the main build.  I just installed the HDDs when I got it home... would have been way too heavy get home otherwise.

Another thing I got a while ago is an ASUS HYPER M.2 x16 V2 RAID Card.  It holds 4x NVME M.2 SSDs in RAID formation, which will be used to house the OS, theoretically boosting its speed and performance.  The NVMEs I chose are WD 250gb... didn't see the point of going bigger than a total of 1000gb for an OS and programs, and the price for the 4 suited my budget [228.00]

As for the 2 Threadripper motherboards, I can get them repaired, albeit at my own cost, but I'm not too sure about the CPU.  I am still waiting on a reply from AMD to ascertain what I do there.

Anyhow, grub's up, gotta go.

Hi folks, it's time to talk about beer and the thousands upon thousands of different brands and styles on offer.  Steve and I have been experimenting with various imported beers and we're quite delighted with our findings.  In no particular order, here's a list of our favourites from those we tried:

Molson Canadian lager..... a very, very nice drop that's brimming with the flavour of hops and prairie barley.

Asahi.... a very nice Japanese lager... a smooth and refreshing beer that's easy on the palette.

Heinekin lager.... I mean, what more can I say, it is probably the best beer from Holland.  It too is crisp, clean and refreshing.

Corona lager.... another refreshing beer with just a hint of sweetness and full bodied flavour.

Peroni lager.... a crisp and refreshing beer from Italy with a hint of lemon and a bitterness that satisfies the palette.

Oettinger pilsner.... a really great German beer that's flavoursome and brewed to please.

Stella Artois. pilsner.... a nice brew from Belgium that too is crisp, refreshing and wholesome.

Kilkenny ale..... other than Guinness, it is probably the most popular beer from Ireland, with a full-bodied, rich flavour that's bound to please those who love a rich tasting beer.

Hollandia lager..... another great Dutch beer that's similar to Heiniken but still has an identity and flavour of its own.

Carlsberg green lager.... with its clean, crisp taste and a satisfying depth of flavour, Carlsberg is full-bodied with a rich golden colour.

Sol lager.... another Mexican beer with great taste and compliments spicy foods.

Sapporo premium beer.... is brewed under license here in Australia from a Japanese recipe and has a nice malt flavour.

Grolsch lager.... again from Holland and another crisp, clean beer with a nice malt, hoppy taste.  It also comes in an ornamental flip-top bottle that would go great in a man cave to decorate it in style.

Adnams Ghost Ship pale ale..... a full bodied beer with a hint of sweetness that would likely appeal to those who like a little sweetness in their day.

Becks lager.... a German beer that's a favourite all around the world for its crisp, clean taste.

Coors lager..... a truly refreshing beer that's brewed in the Rockies from a Belgian recipe.... highly recommended.

Kronenbourg 1664 lager..... brewed in Australia under license but is available around the world.  Again, a very refreshing beer with a hint of lemon.

Estrella lager.... brewed in Spain with a full hops flavour that's nice and easy to drink.

Lowenbrau lager.... meaning 'lion's brew', is fully balanced with a dry but crisp, bitter undertone.

Steinlager..... brewed in New Zealand and quite the drop for those who appreciate a fine beer with great body.

Tun draught (red) bitter (green).... brewed in Belgium and bother are full-flavoured and inexpensive.

Tetleys smooth ale.... a British beer that just goes down a treat, especially in the Summer months and after a hard day's work.

Tennents lager.... also brewed in the UK from German hops, Scottish malted barley and the pristine waters of the Scottish Highlands.

Erdinger wheat beer.... a really smooth beer brewed in Germany from the finest ingredients and waqters from Bavaria.

Tuborg Danish lager..... a refreshing bottom fermented beer with a medium rich to bitter taste.

Old Fart ale..... brewed in the UK to celebrate cantankerous old boozers like myself who love a truly full-flavoured rich ale.

Mont-Blanc Blond ale..... brewed in the French alps from all natural ingredients to provide a sweet but bitter taste.

Martens pilsner....a classic European style Pilsener. Its crisp, full bodied taste has a distinctive hop character yet remaining refreshingly drinkable.

Ahornberger ale..... a well balanced brew with a rich full-bodied flavour yet is so refreshing to drink.

Boddingtons Pub Ale.... a draught beer with a thick head and a beaut flavour that's just so drinkable.

There are others I may mention later, but now I'm interested in which beers are favourites with WC members and other Stardockians.  Please add a few more great beers to savour.

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