tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-95743102012-01-30T00:37:03.490+08:00To inform entertain and excite my kids, Jamie, Patrick, Aaron & Sarah Middleburgh, our family and friends.David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comBlogger1741100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-51420109453034720072012-01-02T10:48:00.001+08:002012-01-02T11:12:06.687+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH MUSEUMS My mum regularly took me, when I was a sprog, to museums. It was part of my education like visiting the library or watching "the changing of the guards".( FYI I once got my head stuck in the railings at Buck House!!). My son's, the Jannitor and the Hobo, unfortunately didn't get the same opportunity to savour soggy tinned salmon and cucumber sandwiches which, as I remember,.

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-42788910659748498082011-12-25T15:14:00.000+08:002011-12-25T15:14:21.893+08:00

SECURING MIDDLEBURGHSo far it's been a strange old Xmass. Worked up to the wire and subsequently realised had been a distinct absence of red hats, clip on antlers and festive spirit in either the office or indeed out and about. Colleagues on my floor did put up some decorations but HR/Facilities Management (the buggers) apparently told them to take down the ornamental balls hanging from the

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-84205949981995370862011-12-25T08:16:00.000+08:002011-12-25T08:16:20.745+08:00

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-84069030797878831602011-12-04T09:50:00.002+08:002011-12-04T14:02:36.116+08:00

HE'S KILLING ME !!! Larger Map Apparently a healthy infant should be able to walk his "age" in miles ie if he is 2 he should be able to walk 2 miles without needing to be carried (or buggied). In Hong Kong most people including us use public transport and although we bought a lightweight collapsible buggy for him , as soon as he had mastered the art of walking, we passed it on to

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-56269187036587283912011-11-29T21:53:00.001+08:002011-11-29T21:54:11.262+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH LOLA'D For a while the working title for this post was "Lola and the Car Salesman" and there was a serious risk it would develope into a tale of how we went in search of Lola but found instead a Car Salesman. Fortunately it got no futher than the title before being rejected like an X facor contestant . We simply failed to visit the Hong Kong Bugatti dealership so what was there to

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-13516550224821385342011-11-24T21:44:00.002+08:002011-11-25T10:24:34.873+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH LIBRARY Last Saturday, instead of a pleasant stroll locally or even a forced march across Hong Kong Island (to be covered in a future post), I was coerced (there is no other way of describing it) into visiting the Central Library downtown. As I recently indicated, I like libraries, even though I am rather envious of a colleague with a Kindle , am considering getting a tablet for

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-88383842670920090802011-11-21T20:44:00.008+08:002011-11-21T20:49:08.634+08:00

S.Blatter'd Frankly very little that can be said in a positive sense about the man other than he will be stepping down in 2015 (if not sooner). It was interesting that in order to mitigate the damage done by his outrageous comments and show him in a favourable light he was shown with Tokyo-Sexwale This was very selective choice of photograph indeed ..... There were so many other's which could

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-65999316020336941862011-11-20T18:08:00.006+08:002011-11-20T18:23:43.156+08:00

Bona Mubabe Pictures As evidenced by the number of hits since 14 November against a post I made in January 2009 and the search arguments by which people found their way there, it would appear that a lot of people are looking for up to date pictures of Bona Mugabe. Just to put things into context I actually made 2 and a bit posts about Bobby, Grace and Bona, specifically Call to Action The

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-45036738808897670552011-11-13T19:32:00.001+08:002011-11-13T19:33:38.447+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH AT SEA Last year we moved into a flat with big ships sailing past the window.; I searched for a website which might show a map of the sea lanes with details of the passing boats based on their AIS (automated Identification system). At the time the best free website was MarineTraffic.Com. Unfortunately they didn't cover Hong Kong so I went and bought a pair of binoculars. The problem

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-31795797576865641672011-11-12T19:37:00.000+08:002011-11-12T19:37:17.018+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH WISH LIST I am shameless and it's nearly my birthday (KIDS a card will do !!) and I have a craving that noodles won't satisfy ...... for a new gizmo to play with like a phone or a tablet .... however I must be getting old because in my heart of hearts I really can't justify a new one although I am a tad jealous of a colleague who recently came back from the States with a Kindle.

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-66064431562910917582011-11-09T12:24:00.006+08:002011-11-12T18:55:04.520+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH INVITES For those of you that visited this post before .. tough luck .. I changed it !! My blog ... my rules !! for first time visitors .. welcome So the story is this : I have invited both my son and daughter to visit me. In a recent facebook chat with my daughter indicated, that she, if push came to shove could cope with sleeping in a car. Although said in jest this is apparently

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-84831509660144320622011-11-09T06:45:00.008+08:002011-11-12T19:45:59.007+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH HAS NOODLES ATTACK Did you ever get a craving for something to eat .... You know.... like the Steak and Kidney Pudding you remember from school lunches when you were a kid (when school lunches would make even Jamie Oliver swoon with delight) ... or the beef noodles that that you had one lunchtime back in August down a side street in Xi'an that was so good that you whipped out your

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-68751452548567694182011-07-10T19:37:00.001+08:002011-07-10T19:39:28.287+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH DOES A BUDDHA I think we can all agree that the previous post but 1 was mega boring. So boring that it's down there with "My Tent" a collection of short stories (Out of Print) by Muamar Gadfly ,foreplay by his associate Comrade Bobi Mugabe. What you really wanted to read were the amazing adventures and excursions of Jamie Middleburgh , Shadow Walker .. So be it ... . Early Saturday

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-87190997335473412912011-07-06T21:52:00.001+08:002011-07-06T21:57:23.067+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH REVEALS TRUTH What's the link between Robert Mugabe, Sepp Blatter and Muamar Gaddafi (apart from they are all miserable toe rags!!) Sepp Visited Mugabe this week ostensibly to support Zimbabwean Football to the tune of $1.5M US. Apparently Zimbabwean football is mired in match fixing scandals. There is no truth in the rumour that he was the bagman delivering a payoff to someone ??

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-19136726578865053992011-07-04T19:10:00.000+08:002011-07-04T19:10:55.621+08:00

Middleburgh:Curse of the Botnets A month ago a colleague came into work and asked my advice about a virus on her husband's new PC. He went surfing over the weekend before applying his sunblock and anti stinger cream( firewall and antivirus) and consequently ended up with a trojan giving a very persistant false alert that his hard disc was corrupt, the world was ending and he needed to buy some

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-75971047447415601652011-06-28T14:55:00.004+08:002011-06-28T14:58:11.472+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH:WHODUNIT A dark whistle blowing story of revenge, antisocial behavior, misrepresentation and social engineering for 3 year olds and their parents.... aka "Vom kleinen Maulwurf, der wissen wolte, we ihm auf den Are we sitting kopf gemacht hat" Are we sitting comfortably then I shall begin... Once upon a time there were two germans, Werner and Wolf, who wrote and illustrated a

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-20916743759536881922011-05-24T22:12:00.003+08:002011-05-24T22:13:32.328+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH DIDN"T DO STANLEY Recently I borrowed, from the library, "The Leisurely Hikers Guide to Hong Kong". This details amongst others, three walks around Stanley which during WWII was the site of an infamous Japanese Internment Camp.It so happens,I once worked with a girl (Heather Eden) whose father was a POW in that camp and although Stanley is just up the road I have visited neither the

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-37697324592388157242011-05-07T12:59:00.000+08:002011-05-07T12:59:25.837+08:00

Middleburgh:London One Week On Safely back, jet lag over - time to reflect on this years London trip ... Primary Objective(s)In addition to checking up on Mum, this year we reintroduced her youngest grandson. The last time she met him was 2 years ago when he was less than 1 year old. Then as now, the concern was whether it would be the last opportunity for her to see him. Fortunately not and I

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-30546339229976602532011-05-01T07:33:00.000+08:002011-05-01T07:33:21.637+08:00

JAMIE MIDDLEBURGH VISITS LONDON ZOO We were on a mission... a safari if you will.... I was there for the rabbits. It was Easter after all and a Year of the Rabbit: dad wanted to introduce me to the lions. (we haven't got lions in Hong Kong Park - but we have bunnies stapled to our front door!!). The weather, according to dad, was ideal Zoo Weather ... cold and overcast, threatening to rain. Mum

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-59064817723181879632011-04-23T22:04:00.003+08:002011-04-23T22:06:46.288+08:00

JAMIE MIDDLEBURGH STARVES IN LONDON Day 3 - what a momentous day !! Up and out at 7am - saw my first squirrel in the car park. Saw the second one behind the war memorial along the High Street, hopping and skipping through the grass like a demented rabbit in heat. Either suffering from an identity crisis or had been at the magic mushrooms. Wouldn't stay still for the Photo Opportunity !! Chased

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-3132895730601800612011-04-22T22:22:00.004+08:002011-04-22T22:30:17.688+08:00

Jamie Middleburgh Goes To London I am writing this on behalf of dad since nan has banned him from using the computer - but she said nuffing 'bout me (in London one day and already talkin' like a native!) We were up at 6am, mum and me - cool, but dad uptight - he's not into flying. Took a taxi to Central - me and d'cabby discussed the Market in cantonese (dad is clueless). Took the Airport Express

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-88209570876027074762011-04-18T09:00:00.005+08:002011-04-18T09:10:31.005+08:00

Middleburgh:Fukashima'd Japan's nuclear catastrophe unexpectedly gets personal... Before I continue, let us be clear: Those who have lost loved ones, those who are displaced and those who are at continued risk get and will continue to get my unreserved sympathy, respect and support. That being said, last week I have noticed that supplies of Nescafe Gold disappeared from my local HK supermarket

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-61948368384536342322011-04-10T15:50:00.002+08:002011-04-18T09:14:20.385+08:00

Middleburgh: Mobile Phones The other day whilstin Xian my phone took a day off to go sight seeing on its own ..returning in the evening like the boomerang or bad penny it clearly aspires to be. (actually I left it on the table at breakfast.) . When you travel do you take your phone with you?? If so presumably you either expect like me to recieve incoming calls or make outgoing ones. I suspect

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-60764350323542322632011-04-10T14:02:00.001+08:002011-04-10T14:04:37.129+08:00

Middleburgh:2011 Beach Season It was Grand National Day in the UK but here in Hong Kong the Parents Association at #3's School held its annual Spring Barbeque out at South Bay Beach. Effectively the summer beach season has started.(officially beaches were open on Aril 1st) Last year we spent at least one morning each weekend at nearby local beaches (and we have a few to choose from). This year

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-72026686881054971702011-04-07T22:37:00.002+08:002011-04-07T22:37:49.442+08:00

Middleburgh - The Offal Truth Went to Xian on a business trip last week... nothing exceptional about that you might think.... after all its not the first time..... how wrong could you be !! Day 0 Normally I travel alone, and in the evening either work up meeting notes from that day or prepareg for the following. I get room service or slip out for a cheap meal somewhere near the hotel and

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-62550908723717237002011-04-05T14:30:00.000+08:002011-04-05T14:30:12.145+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH BURNS Today is a public holiday in Hong Kong - It's Grave Sweeping day aka the Qingming Festival (Ching Ming) when locals visit graves to pay their respects to the dead and do some spring cleaning. Apart from tidying up graves, visitors pray, make offerings such as food, tea, wine etc and light incence sticks and burn joss paper accessories, (Hell Money etc - not to be confused with

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-29962066606238135642011-03-05T16:31:00.001+08:002011-03-05T16:34:02.600+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH'S BIRTHDAY March 6 is my son's birthday (Patrick), and by coincident his grandfather's (my father), Michelangelo's, Shaquille O'Neal's and Valentina Tereshkova's. The question arises (as it does every year) "what if anything to give him to celebrate the fact he has survived another year." A self recharging telephone, usable anywhere on/over/in the planet, preconfigured and paid to

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-85993938907946346282011-03-01T08:35:00.000+08:002011-03-01T08:35:10.110+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH THEATRE Time for the annual culture infusion .. who said HK was a cultural desert !! The 39th Hong Kong Arts Festival is here!! Every November when the program is published we (well me) subject it to a rigerous challenge process: ie If I could choose only one performance from this years events what would it be ? similarly if I could choose only 2 or 3 performances . Having

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-45086111339623009312011-03-01T07:19:00.002+08:002011-03-01T07:19:12.926+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH FLY BY Just suppose for a moment, that you were flying from Europe to Cairns to frighten the crocodiles, or indeed you are simply returning home from Australia after seeing "The Reef"...... Because it's a long trip you might decide to break your journey in Hong Kong...... What to see .. what to do...? Well if anyone asked me (which under the circumstances is unlikely I know) I would

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-84631698351566179052011-02-16T17:11:00.003+08:002011-02-16T17:13:17.955+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH TEMPLE What a lot wasn't written up last year..... I just rediscovered some photos that I posted to flicker which I intended to put with a piece about my local Hung Shing Temple. (when I say "my".. as in mine.. I am using the term loosely) By definition temples, Indian or otherwise/churches/mosques and synagogues "belong" to their respective deities or more specifically to the

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-74214885187794891752011-02-13T17:20:00.005+08:002011-02-13T17:29:10.095+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH GOES TO A POLICEMENS' WEDDING It was a year ago more or less.... Kowloon wasn't his turf and he was unfamiliar with the layout of the station. He tried to make himself inconspicuous by a pillar which commanded a good view of the exits and the bank in the ticket hall . He was early. Commuters deposited off of the escalator flowed past. There was the usual early evening mix of wives

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A MIDDLEBURGH VISITS FRANCE She is so excited about going to France... I hope she doesn't mention how France stole, "YES.. STOLE", Ireland's place in the 2010 World Cup, or how just retribution was delivered at the hands of Mexico ....... I pray that she won't be provoked by anyone if the French beat Ireland on Sunday in the 6 Nations Rugby nor by nasty persons saying something desparaging

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-77803907093860922302011-02-07T12:01:00.002+08:002011-02-07T12:04:50.098+08:00

Middleburgh: Lamma Field Trip The sun cresting the hill wasn't dispersing the mist in the Channel but the day held promise... There was a hint of anxiety as we worked fast to assemble and check our stuff .We had an appointment with a boat and didn't want to miss it, as we had so frequently done before. After all New Year only ocurs .. once a year... Although sailing times were confirmed, there

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-90436197447732375532011-02-05T17:41:00.008+08:002011-02-05T18:05:52.691+08:00

Middleburgh in the Round Ever wonder why, if digital cameras make it so easy to take photos, you simply take more bad snaps as opposed to better ones? And have you noticed that whilst digital cameras support increasingly higher resolutions, pictures shared over the web are if anything smaller (wide screen monitors and digital TV's not withstanding)?. In practice they are either constrained by

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-50138467816582422202011-02-02T19:19:00.003+08:002011-02-02T19:40:11.739+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH GOES TO SCHOOL At the begining of this year I toyed with the idea of writing a humerous little piece about my (son's) experience of Hong Kong Preschools. But on reflection I find myself drawn to their dark side.... The Hong Kong educational system is propably as competitive as you can get.(It's a Chinese Thing - see the Tiger Mother Clip below). My older kids went through school in

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MIDDLEBURGH - DEATH BY FAN In the Matter of X61 Serial #:L3-EX237-07/07 (Deceased): Mr Perry, on behalf of the IT Department My l'ud , members of the jury. I shall be presenting evidence to you in this case that the accused, Mr Middleburgh, was responsible for the most horrific death of the said PC which coincidently out of warrentee, in that he did not properly excersise his duty of care

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-45045844109796974652011-01-29T19:20:00.003+08:002011-01-29T19:22:04.263+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH DOES BEDS A tale of 2 brothers, family secrets and questionable branding. How would YOU tell your children that they have a new brother (but different mother) especially when one son has premptively declared that, in such an eventuality, he would not want to know and the other son with whom you have a fragile relationship is likely to throw his teddy at the wall and you have only

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-46237398027908733702011-01-16T15:19:00.011+08:002011-01-29T19:53:37.734+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH BREAKFASTS OUT I subscribe to the principle of beginning the day with a "proper"breakfast as opposed to just having cereal and coffee. During the week I either grab some Dim Sum on the way into work or get a egg + something sandwich from the canteen. When I first came to HK I discovered Dai pai dong's and the joy of Chow Mein (breakfast noodles) with chili sauce, meat/fish balls or

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-57898912912980631442011-01-13T22:51:00.006+08:002011-01-29T20:00:17.374+08:00

Middleburgh Mapped Out Daddy, what did you do last weekend ?? Well, I went to Central for my quarterly medical checkup. Apparently, I am good for another couple of months, so I went shopping. (When in passing, I mentioned this to some workmates, they hooted in derision. Evidently they see me as Sham Shui Po/Mong Kok shopper aka cheap). To put this in context there are 3 downtown shopping areas

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-7587903431206397692011-01-10T20:32:00.004+08:002011-01-10T20:42:04.019+08:00

Dam Dam Soup Noodles (Shanghai Style) Serves 2, Not Kosher Ingredients Fresh Minced Pork - 2.5 oz Diced Black Mushroom - 1 piece Mashed Garlic - 0.5 teaspoon Crushed Peanuts - 1 teaspoon Chopped Spring Onion - 1 teaspoon Shangai Noodles - 1 packet Seasoning Crushed Yellow Bean Paste - 0.5 teaspoon Seaseme Paste - 1 teaspoon Peanut Butter - 0.5 teaspoon Soy Chili Paste - 0.25 teaspoon

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-24617900204460908482011-01-06T10:38:00.010+08:002011-01-10T20:44:49.012+08:00

Flat with a View On New Years Day, I realised that I haven't posted here since the Rugby 7's. Well, it was a busy year... although, in retospect, only a few things stand out. Jamie starting at the International Montessori in January The Policemen's Wedding in February Eyjafjallajökull in April/May Weekend mornings spent on various HK beaches during the summer Sarah starting college in

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-20340807056665167922011-01-04T14:46:00.004+08:002011-01-04T19:41:52.963+08:00

Starship Troopers Revisited What captures true "Britishness" better than a good (or indeed bad) Limerick( consider the contradiction in terms!!).As Haiku is to the Japanese then so is a Limerick to us "Brits". Yet in the distant past it was not a Limerick that people gathered arround their evening fires to listen to. It was to tales of derring do , of heroes challenged by overwhelming odds who

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-25554215667666189812010-03-28T12:51:00.011+08:002010-05-25T19:35:15.076+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH SEVENS It's that time of the year once again. Yesterday afternoon I watched day 2 of the Hong Kong Rugby Sevens and am likely to watch again today!!. I mentioned it to two of my kids in Ireland yesterday evening (my time) and realised that they had no understanding of the cultural significance of the HK sevens. I am such a lame excuse for a father !!! Number 1 son was in bed, he told

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-34367983733200187512009-12-28T12:25:00.003+08:002009-12-28T12:30:30.652+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH XMASS SALESI looked out my window this morning, and bugger me, didn't a US Navy Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser just glide past. This is notewothy because my window is technically in The People's Republic of China and only the other week another(?) naval vessel similarly slid past. Since I hadn't seen any news about the fleet making seasonal courtesy visits I had assumed that

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-77992306815722631152009-12-24T16:28:00.002+08:002009-12-25T10:27:02.811+08:00

Middleburgh Xmass Rituals As a non-christian, indeed pagan family, our christmass rituals merely give the nod to Xmass rites.ie at my wife's Winter Solstice Office Party (a chinese thing which coincides seasonally) whilst everyone else attempted to eat their own weight in raw fish and noodles, I partook of a full turkey meal with chestnut stuffing and sprouts. The sprouts are done to perfection -

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-57346247249811340352009-12-22T19:33:00.007+08:002009-12-22T19:47:14.198+08:00

Middleburgh - Seasonal Cinema The DVD player just choked to death, the freebie film channels on my cable subcription just expired...and worst of all ..someone else has just snapped up all of Hong Kong's Xmass crackers. Clearly time, to consult the HK Box office to see what's hot this week and, the reviews at Cityline Tickets urbtix Love HK Films As I write it appears that Storm Warriors is

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-18011735359666168632009-12-16T17:05:00.000+08:002009-12-16T17:08:31.764+08:00

Middleburgh - Hong Kong Zoological and Botanic Gardens I have taken recently to visiting Hong Kong Park early on Sunday mornings when it's cool before the masses turn up (figuatively and actually). I was rather lukewarm about it before but I have now changed my mind. I was in particulatr less than enthusiastic about the zoological exhibits comparing them unfavouarbly to those in London Zoo and

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-37537430957331023702009-11-30T16:14:00.000+08:002009-11-30T16:16:04.833+08:00

Middleburgh - Endgame Revisited Recently a colleague shared his perspective on "grudges". The trick, he said, was to cause pain by repeated hurting your "target" without making them realise that it was deliberate: instead of mowing them down with your car, just ease past giving a glancing blow and then reverse over their toes whilst you apologise - all well and good if you have a robust car, but

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-89158818240499110352009-10-04T13:54:00.007+08:002009-10-11T14:35:02.798+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH - ENDGAME 2 The plot so far: Zara, heiress to the Von Mietleberg Estates, discovers that her inheritance was wiped out in the Great Recession of 2008. Faced with years more servitude in Baron Cogan's Irish Chop Shop or self-sacrifice to her biological clock, she plots her escape to warmer clim's... Whilst the US beckons with all the allure and seductiveness of Blackpool on Bingo

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-55329858898944888272009-09-13T12:16:00.005+08:002009-10-11T14:32:46.040+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH - ENDGAME PART 1 It's the beginning of the end . It's been fun !! Running Are you a London Marathon runner ? Ever considered visiting HK and running here?. This February 50,000 from 25 counties including Britain and Ireland took part in our marathon not withstanding alleged air quality issues. In 2006, 22 people were taken to hospital, 2 in critical condition, during a period with

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-18542046575138655252009-09-06T14:44:00.004+08:002009-10-11T14:33:59.102+08:00

Middleburgh Iceman I was going to save the best for last .... but I got so excited researching all these astounding HK "sporting" opportunities that I just wet myself !!! Ice Sports It makes the news when we get frost in HK. HK snow is unheard of (except for snorting) and Ice in HK is something found in Pimms. Unlike Jamaica, HK has never had an Olympic BOBSLED Team although we have been

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-1343040469148896192009-08-30T14:53:00.001+08:002009-10-11T14:31:30.462+08:00

Middleburgh Wet Work Sitting comfortably with a beer ?? OK I am done with balls, whacking, and rides (sort of) - OH LOOK!! - HK is surrounded by water .... Sailing You like playing in boats, you are a member of either the Monkstown Bay Sailing Club or Royal Cork Yacht club or Cove Sailing Club and you wish to get a sail in HK but unfortunately you forgot to pack your yacht and you left your

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-5291564627372360102009-08-23T15:51:00.010+08:002009-10-11T14:30:02.087+08:00

Middleburgh - Martian Tarts Recent posts have been predicated on the proposition that someone visiting Hong Kong may wish to watch, learn or participate in some sporting activity whilst here - certainly none of my immediate family who are self declared sports phobics.(in fact they would only read these posts ,if at all, to catch the embedded subtle family in jokes, or marvel at the awesome deep

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-84420797860716519052009-08-22T15:18:00.002+08:002009-10-11T14:27:59.456+08:00

Middleburgh - Born to Ride No review of Sports Tourism to Hong Kong would be complete without mention of Horse and Motor Sports. Horses & ThingsNot only was HK the base for the 2008 Olympic Equestrian Events but it is the home of the HK Jockey club. a venerable HK institution. In 1841 the Brits drained a malarial swamp in Happy Valley to create a race track and in 1884 the Club was established

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-73177330401913514872009-08-17T14:18:00.003+08:002009-10-11T14:36:20.777+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH WHACKS BALLS(Part 2) A follow up post to Whacking (part 1) covering opportunities for visitors to HK who want to play (or watch) one or more of the following Tennis HK was knocked out of the 2009 Davis Cup (Asian and Oceanian Zone: Group II) by the Philipines 4-1 although we did beat Oman 5-1. So the only thing we have to look forward to until the 2010 Davis Cup is the annual HK

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-91118040945361159782009-08-15T13:03:00.002+08:002009-08-16T10:38:54.501+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH HANDLES BALL Little did I realise that writing posts extolling the virtues of Sports Tourism to HK, targeted at potential visitors from Cork would result in helpful content suggestions and questions from elsewhere....Where can I play "Ozzie Rules" in HK ....what about "Basketball"..... Does the NHS treat "American Football" injuries .... (For what its worth my American and

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-11913292925761002292009-08-13T18:13:00.002+08:002009-10-11T14:23:20.640+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH BALL WACKING (Part 1) You are from Cork and your secret desire is to visit Hong Kong to wack balls using tools and implements other than a golf club .. Your opportunities are legion .... Your assumed preferences in order are Hurling followed by Field Hockey, Baseball (and variants), then Cricket although the latter may be superseded by any sport using a Racket or equivalent (Tennis ,

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-52025513952630806672009-08-12T19:38:00.005+08:002009-10-11T14:21:26.950+08:00

Middleburgh Has Balls The recent flying visit of Spurs into HK albeit as a preseason promo, made me wonder what other sports might draw spending hordes here. For example would you come to play or watch Golf here ? Probably not if you lived in Ireland ... but then again.....Portugal is popular with Irish Golfers... so why not... I mean professionalplayers are coming for the UBS Hong Kong Open 12

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-4171343575641137402009-08-09T15:40:00.008+08:002009-10-11T14:18:58.346+08:00

Middleburgh Spurred OnIt's Soccer Time once again After beating Hull 3 - 0 last Friday night in Beijing to take the Barclays Asia Trophy, Tottenham Hostspur flew into HK for a friendly against South China FC in the "National Stadium". (I didn't even know we had a National stadium!!) Spurs lost in HK 2 - 0 But then again Chinese Football teams don't really buy into the concept of friendlies as

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-7687997180859773882009-08-01T16:53:00.000+08:002009-08-01T16:55:37.488+08:00

Middleburgh - The Dogs Ears DOGS - you either love them or hate them In Hanzhong a city in central China, the authorities hate them - This May they organised dog beating teams similar to Canadian Seal Clubbers to cull 37000 dogs in response to 13 rabies deaths. Meanwhile in Guangzhou the authorities went a different way and applied a variant of the one family one child policy ... by

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-71677068465332293232009-07-30T13:31:00.001+08:002009-07-30T13:33:40.142+08:00

Middleburgh - Jump Starts #2 son feels (in a disparaging way) that HK is a "SCARY PLACE"... what a wuz!! ... I mean the film "Alien" was scary ... but we enjoyed it didn't we ... Well I first saw it in Wimbledon with #1 wife who left serious bruises on my right arm where she clamped me vice like at the climatic moments. Now that WAS truely scary !! Frankly the only thing which is scary in HK is

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-8632202380575728102009-07-27T20:14:00.001+08:002009-07-27T20:16:52.972+08:00

Middleburgh - does YouTube A feeble excuse but I have been so overwhelmed by work since the beginning of the year that I simply have not finished most of the posts which I started - but there you go - there's always another day ... And in those infrequent moments between work, bed, food, sex etc I have become a voyeur of the 2 min youtube video clip- Well why not ! It all started with "

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-67051146994875037392009-05-31T19:43:00.001+08:002009-05-31T19:46:33.390+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH RETURNS I claim lack of motivation for not writing a “serious post” since the end of March, or alternatively a case of writers’ block, hereby purged. On the other hand I HAVE been otherwise engaged and frightfully busy doing this and that and unbelievably developing gout (unreal!) London 2009 Highlights Before the "flu" started, I had had visions of visiting London Zoo and some art

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-6441593947733679562009-03-29T16:25:00.004+08:002009-04-25T03:40:35.430+08:00

Middleburgh on Immunity Last week the Hong Kong Department of Justice announced that Grace Mugabe would not be prosecuted for her alleged assault in January 2009 against Richard Jones. It was reported that whilst police had concluded that there was sufficient evidence for prosecution, the Department of Justice with regret believed Mrs Mugabe had diplomatic immunity. Lawyer Michael Vidler

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-30091710344513607732009-03-01T21:23:00.002+08:002009-03-01T21:24:44.850+08:00

Middleburgh on Mugabe Consolidated from internet sources last week with commentary: Grace Mugabe's visit in January to Hong Kong, funded by the Zimbabwean Central Bank, involved more than just a bit of shopping , a visit to her daughter and a knuckling for some journalists. Apparently Grace through her mate "Jack" aka Hsieh Ping-Sung was looking to make a multi-million-pound diamond

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-48656494102883496252009-03-01T09:55:00.004+08:002009-03-01T22:21:31.753+08:00

Middleburgh Does Opera Last year we didn't get tickets to the opera at the Arts Festival. This year they were the only tickets we got so this afternoon we are off to get a culture top up. This year there were 3 chinese and 2 western (5) operas to choice from, the latter performed by the Latvian National Opera including one written by Dimiti Shostakovich in 1934 (when he was 28) that apparently

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-85111170279522607932009-02-03T20:29:00.002+08:002009-02-03T20:35:34.964+08:00

Middleburgh Rides Tic-Tac Wave A Checklist for a Specific Digital Camera Owner Read the user manual (I confess I still haven't got past page 50). In particular the bit about "burst" where one click automatically takes half a dozen pictures - Great for action shots and avatar creation (see later) Buy an extra battery. The assumption is that your storage media will be big enough for 1000 high

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-84271941560587598562009-01-28T16:43:00.004+08:002011-11-20T18:15:40.761+08:00

Middleburgh - A Call to Action In the matter of the "First Shopper of Zimbabwe"aka Grace Mugabe, and her daughter Bona: The following, in italics, is a composite of various articles from the web: A freelance photographer, Richard Jones 42, was allegedly assaulted on 15 January 2009 in Hong Kong outside a shopping centre in Tsim Sha Tsui (a prime tourist district) by President Mugabe's wife Grace

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-87054271816460943412008-12-31T21:42:00.003+08:002009-01-18T22:33:41.961+08:00

Middleburgh Linux'd Out I have now installed and run different flavours of LINUX, on an internal hard drive an external USB hard drive assorted USB flash drives and even an SD card Lest Old Friends Be Forgot A year ago I installed Damned Small Linux onto a USB flash drive. Unfortunately I didn't think it lived up to its’ reputation, no doubt due to the fact that I had difficulty connecting to

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-25955080497605542102008-12-03T21:43:00.000+08:002008-12-03T21:45:51.322+08:00

Middleburgh Reads .. Widely On those rare moments when I am not working, surfing or mastering the finer points of being a couch potato, I read thrillers, spy books, who dun'its and the like. I used to get my fix from the public library but then I realized that the "late" fines were racking up and it would be cheaper to buy second hand books... So now I loiter, with intent, in seedy charity shops

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-82574303813206878302008-11-16T11:32:00.000+08:002008-11-16T11:34:27.000+08:00

Middleburgh visits the Mormons When I returned from London in May, I had set about following up a "lead" concerning my maternal grandfather who according to my mother went to Canada for a while after WW1. In London at the National Archives, I had found a reference to a "John Hawley" in the Board of Trade outbound passenger lists of 1920. In fact this was the only reference that came up for the

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-13718381455064659072008-10-26T16:12:00.001+08:002008-10-26T16:28:10.050+08:00

Middleburgh - Rugrats Part 3 in the Births, Deaths and Marriage Trilogy Birth of a new child is accompanied by local rituals and customs. However because we are a cosmopolitan bunch here in Hong Kong, the local customs are frequently blended with imports depending on where the parents originate from. MAINLANDERSA significant number of pregnant women come to Hong Kong from the mainland to have

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-59456322401356621412008-10-19T19:33:00.000+08:002008-10-19T19:35:16.847+08:00

Middleburgh - Dead in Hong Kong Part 2 in Births, Deaths & Marriages Trilogy There has only been one occasion during my time here in Hong Kong where I have found myself out of my depth and overwhelmed by the “Chineseness” of it all. This was when I went with my partner to her brother-in-law's "funeral service" in Hom Hung. I was unprepared and although (I would like to think) worldly wise it was

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-47940553954384351972008-10-12T18:41:00.003+08:002008-10-13T20:35:11.040+08:00

Middleburgh - The WeddingPart 1: The Births, Deaths and Marriages Trilogy Living, as I do, on the other side of the world to my children and being 'estranged' from their mothers, I have little expectation of going to any of their weddings (although an invitation would be appreciated). Instead (when asked) I go to other peoples weddings. I have been privileged to attend weddings reflecting many

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-14311768011861679912008-09-15T16:49:00.006+08:002008-10-25T10:26:08.719+08:00

Middleburgh-Butterflies This week I had an unrecoverable hardware failure on an external hard drive and I lost ALL my photographs. I was gutted Normally I have a back up on a second drive but on this occasion it had just been reformatted and I only discovered the problem when I went to create a new back up from the failed drive. Amongst those lost were 5 year old holiday snaps taken

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-14103343744045557802008-09-15T13:48:00.002+08:002008-09-15T13:54:28.881+08:00

Middleburgh - Legco Election Results one country , two systems ...... Hong Kong Island Results (specifically) Last Sunday my partner reminded me to vote (believe or not I got the date wrong!!). We went to cast our votes, negotiating the melee of candidates supporters gathered just outside the exclusion zone. Police/election officials had taped off 2 zones around the polling station in the

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-84108785664950330042008-08-29T07:04:00.002+08:002008-09-15T17:39:03.299+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH MUSIC VIDEO (and things) With good intentions I recently started to housekeep my Chinese bookmarks on Furl. Inevitably like a kid in a candy store I got side tracked almost immediately and started to explore "new" pictures, video clips and music. I just love surfing the Chinese Internet - It's like visiting a restaurant where you can't read the menu. Instead of chosing something

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-27514498849242972642008-08-20T21:02:00.000+08:002008-08-20T21:06:42.833+08:00

Middleburgh Votes Again The Olympics has overshadowed campaigning for the upcoming Legco elections in Hong Kong on September 7. I am still researching the candidates (and more importantly the issues) in order to cast an informed vote (being a conscientious voter like what I am!) since I was granted permanent residence status there have been four notable elections in Hong kong: Local District

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-56625585015258404512008-08-19T23:42:00.000+08:002008-08-19T23:43:26.377+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH SHIPPING NEWS Ever since I set up a webcam to take pictures of boats sailing up and down the East Lamma Channel I have been profoundly embarrassed by the fact that every time I check it, there has been a conspicuous absence of "traffic". In fact I may as well be showing a static image. The irony is, that last Saturday I decided to take pictures of passing boats using my new "real

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-8082243987715023772008-08-06T19:17:00.000+08:002008-08-06T19:19:15.201+08:00

Middleburgh & Fish Mum kept a kosher kitchen. This meant by definition that we never had shellfish and she didn't cook saturday lunch ie we had salad with salt beef or cold fish,(ie fried and/or boiled gefilte fish, or salmon fish cakes and sometimes even cold fied fish cutlets.) To this day I detest cold fried fish whereas on the other hand I have been known to make special tips into town to

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-26575225706987013612008-08-06T15:10:00.001+08:002008-08-06T15:12:36.628+08:00

Middleburgh Ghosts Traditional Chinese families visit their ancestoral graves and give offerings to the dead on Qingming (Grave Sweeping) Festival in April and to lesser extent on the Cheung Yeung Festival in September. Additionally in August there is the Ghost Festival where the "spirits' visit the living as opposed to the other way around. So every August when I pass the sport's ground just up

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-31704158502958163392008-08-06T13:44:00.001+08:002008-08-06T13:44:48.203+08:00

Master Of The Bios Life is a series of challenges to be overcome before moving on. Lessons are learned when we take a moment to reflect on how we addressed a challenge and the insights help us (or someone else) do better next time.(well that's the theory, grasshopper !!) Ok you have a version of Linux which you wish to run on your PC and you have either - scared yourself shitless reading about

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-24792930746031542862008-08-03T13:28:00.000+08:002008-08-03T13:31:53.186+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH LAMENTS Mention "Piers" to a local in China and they will think you are either referring to the 2009 Progress In Electromagnetics Research Symposium in Beijing or to the Piers Trade Intelligence Database. The last thing they would think of is a structure sticking out into the sea, so image how difficult it was to explain the cultural significance, last Monday, when the Grand Pier at

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-73612589232123364112008-07-02T02:42:00.005+08:002008-08-06T19:29:53.236+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH TOYS IP CameraI was asked to evaluate a really cool IP_ Cam before XMass (not as sophisticated as the one shown). I got quite excited anticipating accessing it remotely over the web to watch ships sailing past Ap Lei Chau. It was great - I plugged it directly into my router, found the device ip address opened my browser and panned and zoomed ... The only problem was whilst the

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-46933387551692955222008-06-28T12:48:00.001+08:002008-06-28T12:51:26.799+08:00

Middleburgh WIFITrips to the UK test of road warrior skills. In 2007 I discovered that I could connect my Dopod by WIFI to the Internet in my lodge and surf/email whilst in bed watching the TV - pretty damn cool. It cost 10GBP for a 7 day pass. Unfortunately this year The Cloud has apparently changed it's tariffs and dropped 7 day passes in favour of extortionate hourly and daily rates. In

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-66026633285392179932008-06-25T17:52:00.000+08:002008-06-25T17:53:59.962+08:00

Middleburgh & the National Archives 2 If you have read my previous post you will have realised that I was on a mission when I visted the National Archives at Kew My maternal grandfather enlisted into the 14th Hussars in 1905 , served in India , was on the Western Front during WWI and according to my mother went to Cananda for a couple of years after leaving the army. The objective was to see if I

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-77245239870098807892008-06-25T11:21:00.001+08:002008-06-25T18:21:30.362+08:00

Middleburgh & the National Archives 1 Every year, when I visit the UK, I try to spend some time further researching my family history. Last year I unsuccessfully visited the National Archives at Kew (twice). The first time it was closed to the public due to PCS industial action.I was less than impressed since I had travelled right across London, was due to leave country within a few day, and the

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-32469183909984850092008-06-22T19:42:00.002+08:002008-06-22T19:46:05.453+08:00

Middleburgh Makeover Nearly 3 months has passed since I last had a moment to make a post here (not that this counts) ... What can I say ...I have been busy ... I visited London end of April (more will follow) ... I got a filipina house-elf end of May (more will follow) .... I got new techno toys for me - (more will follow).. and I am doing new projects at work ... I have however decided to try

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-25850848958719274822008-03-24T21:23:00.011+08:002008-08-28T16:57:40.190+08:00

Middleburgh Extreme Bookmarking Centuries before Ptolomy had signed off on the budget for the Great Library of Alexandria, indeed even before the events recorded in the Epic of Gilgamesh had actually occured, Hur the Hittite impregnated a tablet of clay with his reed stylus (well - his wife had a headache!!). And from this, ultimately we get literature as we know it (Harry Potter and the Call

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-54471219189820753422008-03-16T13:28:00.002+08:002009-03-01T09:54:43.196+08:00

Middleburgh Arts Festival Am I cultured or wot!!! Well I'd like to think so but it is in question....As a callow youth in London I used to go to classical concerts and the like at the South Bank (student discounts!!). I was a member of the British Film Institute and went to the annual film festivals and various art house cinemas (other than those in soho - well maybe once or twice). I went to the

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-74495015255209796952008-02-11T21:15:00.005+08:002008-02-14T21:42:41.850+08:00

Chinese New year Its been "cold enough to freeze the balls of a brass monkey" and if this year where that of the Monkey (instead of the Rat), it would have a falsetto voice .. Forgive me for being a wingeing pom ... I know its worse in Hunan (and in the New Territories) but its so cold that there has actually been a run on space heaters and and damart thermal underwear in HK - not your normal

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-40080724627366527382008-02-09T16:55:00.000+08:002008-02-09T16:58:39.745+08:00

Middleburgh Smartcard Once upon a time, in the dim and distant past, I acquired my first wallet. I would like to think that I either bought it, or was given it as a gift, but I suspect I simply borrowed my father's old cast off, (just like his pack of playing cards with semi clothed “ladies”). In those days when life was simple and we lived the Hovis advert, wallets were for keeping your money

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-58580644402568059002008-02-07T20:39:00.000+08:002008-02-07T22:07:19.131+08:00

Middleburgh Votes II Government Health Warning: that this is VERY VERY BORING -- even more tedious than the US Presidential Primaries !! While Hilliary, Barrack and Johnny have been slugging it out , China has been electing deputies to the (next) 11th National People’s Congress (China's parliament). On the one hand we have a traditional western style adversarial system i.e. Democrat v

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-85215790658439213282008-02-05T22:11:00.000+08:002008-02-06T15:51:13.032+08:00

Middleburgh Votes(if the image on the left doesn't display refresh) This has nothing to do with Super Tuesday or the upcoming 2008 US Presidential elections…Just a few words about me exercising my rights (and obligations)as a Hong Kong Permie. I was impressed by the Australian compulsory voting system when I lived in Melbourne and it was inevitable that I would choose as

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-22875187050662661072008-01-20T15:26:00.000+08:002008-01-20T15:37:28.217+08:00

Middleburgh HotpotChristmass is traditionally a time for family, food, parties and for some, a break in New York or indeed, Tunisia. I enjoyed Tunisia, especially the French style festive meal. I have equally enjoyed traditional Turkey in London, Seasonal Goose in Dublin, Barbies in Melbourne and Hotpot in China, as well as winter solstice meals with my partner's family. This years solstice meal

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-27102054279001097002007-12-31T18:08:00.000+08:002007-12-31T20:48:52.920+08:00

Middleburgh Bears All ok, at least once a week for 18 months I lugged an old X31 IBM notebook with power adaptor etc (approx 6LB) back and forth across the border between shenzhen and HK. It took it's toll - a hernia, stained back etc. I explored alternative options including different bags, (prefered is a Hedgren backpack) different PCs (an IBM X61s - 3LB), use of USB drives of different

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-85239943186725669322007-11-25T09:37:00.000+08:002007-11-25T09:50:36.497+08:00

Middleburgh Cork'd This special post is for my many recent visitors from southern Ireland. Thank you for all the attention... although I must say it took you long enough.... I thought long and hard (for at least a minute) about whether I could reach out , show you I cared, and add something of special interest to you. In end the end I decided ... what the hell!!! forget the Cork webcam with

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-28279911644781566252007-08-10T20:44:00.000+08:002007-08-10T22:34:38.559+08:00

MIDDLEBURGH - OBITUARY PREMATUREToday I had a visitor referred from the BlogShares Dead Blog Finder (v1.0) site Neat idea... but MIDDLEBURGH is NOT dead.... merely entertaining Paddy's, working my nuts off, waiting out the Typhoon season (Pabuk returned!!) and biding time till the HONG KONG District Elections later this year ...... Democracy is not simply about "one man/one vote", or the Queens

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-91121939627944861482007-01-23T07:06:00.000+08:002007-02-04T14:20:43.228+08:00

Middleburgh-The Other Side At Christmass/New year I typically launch deep internet searches to uncover what has happened over the last year to distant friends and family... This year was different in that I researched the other side of my family history. My mother who was 87 just before Christmass has observed that I have referred to my father's family in this blog but not hers. This corrects

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9574310.post-61823112510272846412007-01-14T21:11:00.000+08:002007-02-04T14:03:37.446+08:00

Middleburgh TV I have been severely chastised, and taken to task, over my last three posts. Apparently they are considered self indulgent and boring, with only the snow monkey livecam and the african music redeeming them. The Snow Monkeys were in fact a subtle joke open to two interpretations and the African Music is well ... African. If you are desperate for an explanation of the joke You can

David Middleburghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11271036840716653286noreply@blogger.com