swift showed up!

So they finally showed up, They called to say they were at the gate, but when I checked with Security they weren't around, just in case I asked the security guard to check next door, looks like they were going to 11a instead of 11b... I don't know why but it seems the people next door are up to no good. When asked, "Is mr x here?" they say, "He's not around, come back later." Even if they have no idea who the person is. What's that about?

Anyway they think we need a 120' mast and a cisco router. expensive and/or ugly stuff. The satellite stuff is looking more tempting.

Sunday was pretty dry here, nothing to get excited about, I didn't here from the guy who placed the highest bid on my auction, so I'm counting the days now until ebay will accept a report of a non payer.

Swift showed up today finally but I wasn't around! I've also recieved a pricelist from directonpc.com and I think that's going to be the best route. Paying up front for 500Mb at a time should give us enough flexibility. Also when we are away for christmas and such it doesn't cost us anything. I'm thinking of writing to the Nigerian guy to ask him what's going on.

Some good articles today:
Sound of music:
First Look at Playstation 3 chip

Weighed this morning at 87.0Kg, I'm chuffed...

419 Beware!

I just sold a mobile phone on ebay, less than I was expecting, Dan's going to ship it for me, but it's likely the guy is a fraud. I'll have to wait and see if the money turns up. The guy who wants it is in Nigeria... funnily enough that's where I bought it! I do wonder now how the phone got to Nigeria in the first place.

Not a bad Saturday overall, Our Landlady came around with some agents and surveyors after 10am because it was also Environment day which as far as I know just means you have to stay off the roads until 10am. Looking out I can't see anything going on in the street.

Go Charvis!

Wales 98 - 0 Japan

Another No Show

Swift didn't show again, they phoned this morning to explain that they couldn't find us. It's not hard is it? find the right street, find the right gate with the large numbers on it and the logo of the company, which is on the business card I dropped with them. Still this is nigeria, nothing is easy.

Went to our project office around 3, this time via Ikoyi to confirm that the Ikoyi hotel is being rebuilt and you can't stay there, for someone coming down from Abuja who wanted to stay there.

Just saw an article about our client in Nigerian Guardian Newspaper online. There's information that a law was passed that breaks up the company into 6 subsidiaries each dealing with separate issues. Also, probably more interestingly they have restructured the Fine system for illegal connections and such, that our data is likely to expose.

No Show

Swift Networks Never Showed up, despite me waiting 3 hours after the rain stopped. Eventualy though I had to head out to our project office with Mike just so I could make a backup of todays data. It was very smoggy today, which could be a sign of Hamatan that I was hoping for this morning. The weather was cool but thick. You couldn't see the top of Stallion Plaza, the tallest building in Lagos, and it's only 32 floors or so.

The office is actually a conference room we lease from a Utility Company for the duration of the project, and as a conference room it was never designed with enough power sockets or other important office features that we need so we've had to improvise as best we can. Unfortunately that means cables taped to the carpet and long runs of power extension cables. But It's pretty organised and efficient as Nigerian Offices go.



I will now attempt contact with Swift tomorrow to see if they want to complete their survey, but Also I'm waiting for price information from Direct on PC for a ku band VSAT connection billable by Gb Usage. works out at 16p per MB daytime and 8p per Mb at Night. Downloads are done at night then I guess.

Where's Hamatan?

Got up early this morning to be ready on time when some people from Swift Networks Nigeria were coming round to give us a site survey to see where and how they would install our wireless networking gear should we choose to use wireless again.

But there's a thunderstorm so they can't come to start waving around masts and recievers until its over.

Nigeria has two seasons. Rainy season and Dry season. The Hamatan wind, a northerly wind that marks the beginning of dry season carries dust particles from the Sahara, making the sky turn brown and turning almost everything a rusty muddy colour. Something like the dust you see on your car in the UK when it rains the day after you last washed it, only far worse. Sometimes it's a light Hamatan, sometimes it's very bad. It's naturally worse in the northern part of Nigeria than here in the south. It's a little early to be expecting Hamatan now, it's usually seen in December through January, and Dry season could last up till March afterward. I haven't really spent much of dry season in Nigeria since 2001.

Anyway, Expecting Swift later, then hopefully I can get out to find a quote for ku band VSAT connection. this type of VSAT is susceptible to weather problems, same as digital satelite tv which uses the same ku band.

Purging is not fun.

So this is my first Real post. N... has managed to get off my laptop so that I could access the pictures I wanted to post. Below is the photo she took while I was waiting, with a mouth full of peanuts too...



I'm sat in our newly refurbished Head office, We just got those grey shelves behind me, yesterday, reasonably well painted solid mahogany, making it extremely heavy.

During the day I work at our other office in the HQ building of a Utility Company . The picture below was taken from inside the car (obviously) on our way through the main gate.




The Building is easy to reach from our office in Victoria Island taking usually about 10 minutes if traffic is free. On my way to the office today we had some fun, I was trying to take pictures, but the hawkers in the 'go-slow' didn't like it much. Some of them got angry and threatened to 'break my glass' (smash my window) but Charles on the right of the picture soon told him where to go.




Bello appologises for his head and arm being in the way for this one.


You can see the hand of someone who didn't want their picture taken on the left here

I suppose he wasn't to know I wasn't interested in his picture

Sorry Guys and Girls of the Apongbon Go-Slow. I just wanted some pictures and I think I've protected your identities, but goodness knows why you are scared to show your faces making an honest living.

If You're wondering about the title. I've just found out I got the runs...

Aaron's Blog

Well, I finally gave in.

Here's to the start of my blog, moving on from http://slashdot.org/~aaron.rowe/journal which never really got started

Got some stuff to put up when N... gets off my laptop!!!

Aaron