22 Oct 2010

And Then I Was Back Here….

After several days over there, balancing on my back paws, talking, fielding questions and attempting to sort disputes, I’m home. And tired.

Being tired makes me glad I got these little do-dads before I went far, faraway.

Getting these suckers was partly – nay, mostly down to my ‘little nest of vipers’. Her being from a far, far, faraway, place wot, relatively speaking, in the grand scheme of stuff, for the common folk, is kind o’ new to electrickery, it’s been an uphill battle to convince her that you don’t have to pull all the plugs out of all the sockets before leaving the house.

I got that sorted over time but I soon figured the switching off of all sockets, before going out or going to bed, was never going to change. That one I can live with as it shuts down all the stuff that keeps sneakily using that electrickery in standby mode. Save the planet? Get out o’ here. Save a penny or two? Possibly, but unlikely to be noticeable.

Hooever, what was starting to be a pest, with advancing years and a dodgy back, wuzz the trip round the house bobbing up and down like one of those drinking bird looking things to turn all the sockets off. Or on of course.

Just to clear that up, if they’re off, you need to turn them on to be able to use stuff and vicky verky, if they’re on, you need to turn them off when you stop using stuff. Unless you want stuff on standby. If the latter is the case these thingies possibly aren’t for you.

The head full of those twinkly lights after the first bend down and rapid stand up straight could be quite pleasant, but that plus the buzzing after the second, then plus the fuzzy eyesight after the third and having crawling round the rest was starting to get annoying.

You’re probably familiar with, or even using these, if not – they be good.

Rem
And absolute magic for those hard to get at sockets stuffed behind sofas or televisions an’ things. It works through walls also, as well, so it do, so I can on an’ off, or off an’ on modems an’ stuff wot is in other rooms. No pointing required.

I mean, is that lazy or wot? Really, really lazy? Sure is and I love it.


Quote; Tom Weller.

“The sun is the source of all the earth’s energy. This is important to remember because one day we’re going to get the bill.”

2 comments:

Caratacus said...

Fascinating stuff Mac (partic. ref. the memsahib wanting all the electrickery switched off ALL the bloody time...), but you have veered toward a theme which I have been nurturing of late: that of reaching a point in one's allotted span where one says, "Enough technology and no further. Thank you very much".

I am nearly into my seventh decade, I am relatively computer literate, can burn CDs and DVDs, we have a Freeview+ recorder which I can programme with ease. I still, however, automatically check the calculator when doing sums, I use a fountain pen for best, and use old-fashioned proper measurements instead of this new-fangled Napoleanic bollocks... but I drift.

The point is - as useful as this appliance looks, I wonder whether it may be a step too far. Ye Gods, I am turning into my step-father! (No bad thing, I assure you).

Welcome back by the way! I trust the natives were friendly...?

Unknown said...

ER, lemme see if I understand you correctly; in an attempt to save your back, and save a copper or two, while getting all warm an fuzzy (foggy even?) about saving the planet, you have installed remote control switches on your power sockets...?

So now you can remotely switch off the power to (say) a TV or modem and stop the vampire standby loading when the appliance is not in use. Then, at the press of a remote, you can fire up the unit at any time.. because the remote control sensor unit is on standby 24/7 waiting for your command...?