@NormanDunbar@mastodon.scot
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NormanDunbar

@NormanDunbar@mastodon.scot

He/Him. Retired Oracle DBA, Toad MVP, developer, husband, geek, not a dad, open source contributor. McLaren & Mercedes F1 fan.

I own a Huawei P20 phone with the Leica camera. I try to take at least 1 half decent photo every day if I can.

In 2020, Apress published my first book, 'Arduino Software Internals'. My second, 'Arduino Interrupts' was published in Dec 2023. I'm writing another as well as a 2nd edition of 'Internals' to document recent changes.

No longer on Twitter as https://mastodon.scot/@NormanDunbar.

This profile is from a federated server and may be incomplete. Browse more on the original instance.

RickiTarr, to random
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Tell me a silly/funny childhood story!

I'll start:

One time in Sunday School, the teacher was talking about the difference between humans and animals, and mentioned that Animals had Tails and humans didn't. I let her know this was not true, because my Dad had a tail, just in the front, instead of the back. The teacher was silent for several seconds, and tried to correct me in a church appropriate way, but I doubled down, and insisted that my little brothers also had front tails too. This got so heated that the teacher had to go get my parents to take me out of Sunday School.

NormanDunbar, (edited )
@NormanDunbar@mastodon.scot avatar

@RickiTarr I had 3d (3 old pennies) for the collection at Sunday School and 6d for sweets afterwards. I put the 6d in the collection by mistake. After the collection bag went back to the front, I got up and shoved my hand in and took out some money, and got my 3d change.

The minister asked what I was doing, I said "getting my change". "You don't get chang" he said. I sat down, with my change after telling him that "I was getting my change"!

I was seven!

RickiTarr, to random
@RickiTarr@beige.party avatar

I'm gonna be honest y'all, it's felt dark lately, and for good reason, LGBTQ+ rights in the balance, an election coming up, women struggling to get basic Healthcare, mass shootings, SCOTUS, the environment. The list goes on and on, and the media twists everything to sound even worse, or just straight up ignores actual news. But here's the thing, I know a lot of you, and the fact that you exist in the world gives me hope. You care about the future and you want good things, and so do I, and as long as that spark is there, we have hope. So, let's focus on some good today! Share a good headline, some positive news either on a larger scale or just something personal, a nice picture you took, a funny meme or video, whatever made you feel good or at least, gave you a smile. Let's share some joy!

NormanDunbar,
@NormanDunbar@mastodon.scot avatar

@RickiTarr Every morning I share a toot with a random photo from the many taken on my phones over the years. Some are rubbish. Some are pretty good (although self praise is no praise). I wish everyone a perfect day too. Not for any good reason, just to be nice and maybe cheer someone up.

Does this count as good news?

RickiTarr, to random
@RickiTarr@beige.party avatar

Silly Story Time:

My husband has always been scared of spiders. If a spider needed removed I would be the one to deal with it, as I've always admired their work. For whatever reason, spiders love our Bathroom, and there always seems to be one or two in there no matter what hubs has tried to keep them out. So, I started naming them, I called one Henry, and I told hubs that he was really social, because every time you'd sit down on the toliet, he would pop out of his hole and just sit by your feet until you were done, then he'd crawl back. Another one would crawl out by the wall when you'd shower, and I told him that was Henry's wife Helena, and she was kind of a pervert, because she liked seeing people naked, but Henry didn't mind, because he liked them freaky. Whenever we would come out of the bathroom, we started giving updates about what Henry and Helena were up to. One day they disappeared, and we were both kind of sad, but last night hubs comes out of the bathroom, and says, Come look! He points to the wall by the toliet, and there is a little spider, and he says, Henry, he had a son! We are very excited about this development!

NormanDunbar,
@NormanDunbar@mastodon.scot avatar

@RickiTarr Spider fact.

In the UK, for many years, the president of the Tarantula Keepers Club (or Tarantula Society) was a Mrs Webb.

RickiTarr, to random
@RickiTarr@beige.party avatar

What kind of high-school experience did you have? Were you in a clique? Were you popular, unpopular, the coolest kid in your Homeschool? Did you have a sweet jean jacket with patches, or maybe a leather vest? Were you an evil villain or a Mary Sue?

NormanDunbar,
@NormanDunbar@mastodon.scot avatar

@RickiTarr I was a wimp! Too poor to be "cool" or to follow fashion. Had to "Work hard and get qualifications or I wouldn't get a job".

Worked though. Left at 17 and aced an interview for a job that didn't exist until I asked, then they created the job for me. 🙂 (I wish there was a smug face emoji!!)

Worked hard all my working life, ended up running my own IT company with MrsD for years. Now retired and "quite" financially comfortable, thankfully. Until the UK government screws us over!

Jorsh, to random
@Jorsh@beige.party avatar

Are you my shin?

Cuz I wanna bang you on that coffee table.

NormanDunbar,
@NormanDunbar@mastodon.scot avatar

@Jorsh I've lost my phone number. Can I have yours?

JugglingWithEggs, to random
@JugglingWithEggs@mstdn.social avatar

“Now people are joining the civil service who are essentially activists,” Truss said. “They might be trans activists, they might be environmental extremists but they are now having a voice within the civil service in a way I don’t think was true 30 or 40 years ago. So we just have a wholly new problem and, frankly, a hundred political appointees doesn’t even touch the sides in terms of dealing with them.”

Liz at

Nope, it was the who swiftly despatched this deluded woman.

NormanDunbar,
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@JugglingWithEggs A right wing Tory talking about democracy? After trying to ban young people from voting? Surely some mistake?

RickiTarr, to random
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I talk to people from the UK pretty regularly, I watch a lot of BBC programming, I read a lot of books by authors from the UK, but sometimes they will suddenly use a word I've never heard in my life, and I'm beginning to think they are pranking us, and every other person from the UK is in on the joke, and just validates whatever the other person says!

NormanDunbar,
@NormanDunbar@mastodon.scot avatar

@RickiTarr @olena My mum married an Italian chef. She went to night school to learn Italian. When they went to Enrico's home town, San Remo, nobody understood her as they didn't speak "Italian", but "dialect,". She did learn that soon enough though.

Mrfunkedude, (edited ) to random
@Mrfunkedude@mastodon.social avatar

Complete the following sentence...

"I have...

NormanDunbar,
@NormanDunbar@mastodon.scot avatar

@Mrfunkedude I see what you did there!

NormanDunbar, to random
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The remote control for the TV where we are staying tonight worked long enough to turn the TV on, and no longer

There are no channel changing or volume control buttons on this JVC. Not even a power button!

What to do?

Found "TV remote" app on my phone, programmed it for this JVC and all is well again.

Will buy a couple of AAA batteries tomorrow.

NormanDunbar,
@NormanDunbar@mastodon.scot avatar

@Wen @JackTheCat I used to have an app called TV Begone. It would send out the codes for all makes of TV or I could select the particular make. Most wonderful app!

I always wanted to use it in a pub when England were about to score in a football game, but being a state registered coward prevented me. That and a probable early death! 😐

EDIT: The autocorrupt is strong today!

NormanDunbar, (edited ) to random
@NormanDunbar@mastodon.scot avatar

Dear Fediverse

If I decide to follow you on here, it's because I find you, or what you say, or do, interesting or funny.

Please don't feel obliged to follow me back. You don't have to. I'm not, perhaps, up your street, plus I can be a bit ranty at times!

I never check to see how many followers I have. It's not important to me.

👍

NormanDunbar, to random
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When Dickens wrote "A Tale of Two Cities" he agreed that it could be serialised in only two publications.

It was the Bicester Times, it was the Worcester Times. 😁

(Apologies to non UK readers wondering what the hell the above is about!)

NormanDunbar, (edited ) to random
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Boiled eggs. How do you eat yours?

NormanDunbar, to random
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When our local snake charmer married the undertaker, they received monogrammed towels as a wedding gift. They were marked Hiss and Hearse.

NormanDunbar, to random
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Good afternoon fellow Mastos and hello to Sunday afternoon. Did anyone miss me this morning? No? I thought not! 😉

Hope you're all having a great Sunday. Mines been a bit energetic wandering the shores of East Yorkshire with MrsD. It's lovely and sunny but there's a bitingly cold wind out there.

Today's random photo is from yesterday and is titled "I saw this and thought of @Steampunk_Prof ".

NormanDunbar, to random
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Good morning fellow Mastos and hello to the weekend! It is Saturday isn't it? Just having a coffee then heading out with Wesley for a wee. Not that I need one, but Wesley might! 🙂 I hope you all have a great weekend, starting today. Have fun. Have laughs. Stay safe

Today's random photo is from earlier this month. It's a Grey Heron on the Leeds Canal with a nice reflection.

NormanDunbar, (edited ) to random
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A friend will help you move. A good friend will help you move a body.

[Steven Wright, US comedian]

NormanDunbar, to random
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Good morning fellow Mastos and hello to a somewhat moist "good" Friday. I'm not sure what makes the Friday before Easter Sunday any better than other Fridays, but what do I know? 😉

Enjoy your day folks, have fun, and don't forget, it's a bank holiday in the Untied Kingdom so everything will be shut and the roads clogged! You can tell I'm in a cheerful mood this morning, can't you? 😁

Today's random photo is from 31st December 2023 at Bingley Five Rise Locks. So called as there are 5 rises!

NormanDunbar,
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Nobody commented on the "Untied Kingdom" autocorrupt!

Did nobody notice? Or does everyone just agree, the kingdom is indeed, untied!

NormanDunbar, to random
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RIP Steve Harley.

BBC News: Steve Harley: Cockney Rebel singer dies at 73

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-68590846

NormanDunbar, to random
@NormanDunbar@mastodon.scot avatar

Good morning fellow Mastos and hello to another week, yes, I'm afraid that it's Monday again. However, it's just a label so don't let it bother you. Have a great day and lots of fun. Take care.

Today's random photo is from 1st June 2019 and is a kingfisher catching a fish! ALT text has details.

DrALJONES, (edited ) to random
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deleted_by_author

    •
    NormanDunbar,
    @NormanDunbar@mastodon.scot avatar

    @DrALJONES International law doesn't seem to bother this government at all.

    compost, to random
    @compost@regenerate.social avatar

    Working with compost piles will show evidence of how toxic our society has become.

    Capitalism in the name of profit uses so many chemicals and harmful compounds that are harmful to our health and the planet that we can't control easily the toxic inputs we use in our compost.

    This is why harvesting your organic matter and working on creating wild areas for this is a smart idea. You will limit the risks of contamination of your piles.

    NormanDunbar,
    @NormanDunbar@mastodon.scot avatar

    @carapace @benben @compost My garden has 4 fairly large, untouched, area left for the wildlife. Behind hedges, bushes and the odd tree. And three decent sized ponds.

    We have squirrels, foxes, hedgehogs, frogs, toad, one newt that we know of, an occasional mink 😐, all sorts of birds too.

    I'm in full agreement on this matter, plus, it cuts down on gardening. Win-win!

    melissabeartrix, to random
    @melissabeartrix@aus.social avatar

    I updated a windows 10 machine that is too crap according to Microsoft to have windows 11 but they put their ai shit on my computer !

    Hugz & xXx

    NormanDunbar,
    @NormanDunbar@mastodon.scot avatar

    @gpnaturephotos @melissabeartrix MrsD did likewise when Window took over 24 hours to "applying updates, do not switch off" when she turned it on to send an urgent email.

    Installed Linux Mint. Never had a problem since.

    melissabeartrix, to random
    @melissabeartrix@aus.social avatar

    Bloody daylight savings ... What doesn't it ruin ... My curtains have faded ... The animals have no idea ... Giggles

    Hugz & xXx

    https://bigrigs.com.au/2024/04/04/safe-t-cam-warning-ahead-of-end-to-daylight-saving/

    NormanDunbar,
    @NormanDunbar@mastodon.scot avatar

    @melissabeartrix And yet, zero hours of daylight actually saved!

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