|
Since the demise of 1900 (early 1970's) I'd lost contact with Wally Pears - Spares. But met up with him again, in the late 70's early 80's at Computerline and then again when he was in the USA. The next 15 or so years went by...... when:
From: Mike Curley
To: Walford Pears
Date: 19 August, 2001
Spares!! Curley here, if this reaches you - news please? What's been happening? Last I remember I was trying to patch Plantrac for you.
I'm in Hong Kong - but soon to move to Singapore.
MC
______________________________________________________________________
From: Walford Pears COMPUTERLINE@compuserve.com
Date: Mon, 20 Aug 2001 12:33:54 -0400
To: michael curley <mikecurley@altavista.com>
Subject: Curley you old b------d!!
When do you think I can have that program. Give me an update on progress.
Well, well, well...fancy hearing from you. You did interrupt me watching England thrash Australia at Headingly. Its all over now...EASY win.
You asked about Peter. Peter retired back in 1992 and sadly died some years ago...
Still keeping PLANTRAC going for existing users but given up marketing and selling.
How did you find my address? What are you doing in HK and what are you going to do in Singapore?
Fill me in with your news...how about Paul Basson? and don't forget to let me know progress on the program!
Best wishes
Wally
_____________________________________________________________________
From: Mike Curley
To: Walford Pears
Date:
Spares!
What a quick reply!! As you say - you've obviously slowed things down.. and are well able to respond to emails out of the blue.
Wow - some very bad news - Peter etc.. - sorry to hear all of those - and understandable that a new world order came into play.
How did I find you, HK, Singapore etc... - well...........
Since I saw you last - I continued contracting, mostly in the City, Almuth and I separated, but didn't divorce - don't know why, just didn't happen - but she's in Hamburg now - and I never see or hear from her!! Sorry - but the 2 daughters are great - one living in Somerset - the other in Sydney Australia, neither married. Around 1991 I decided to retire, and after about 8 months I realised the money wasn't lasting all that well. So phoning around - trying to bum a dinner out of long lost friends I happened upon Mike Waller - actually got his wife Barbara and she said he was in HK, and she was going to join him in a few weeks - I thought "bugger - no dinner there!!", next day Wal is on the phone ? very good line, I thought he must be back in the UK ? no ? was still in HK ? did I want a job?? So 2 weeks later I was in HK doing a 6 month contract for Wal ? who was working for DHL. I thoroughly enjoyed HK ? the contract went on and on ? and I?ve been here ever since ? great place!! Met Auntie Janet within the first few weeks of arriving here ? good old girl ? she worked for DHL too, and you know ? one thing led to another, and we?ve been living together for about 7+ years. She is a Filippina with a husband and 3 grown kids back in Manila (actually the eldest son ? JL ? lives with us here for the last few months ? as he?s come to HK to work) ? so happily there are no marriage plans/thoughts, just a quiet uncomplicated existence, together. Bad news was that she was told a few weeks ago that DHL are closing their HK Regional office and she (we) have to move to Singapore ? I?ve lived there for 8 months or so ? and we know it well ? very clean, lovely place to bring up a family ? but ? we don?t like it!! Prefer HK!! Anyway we have to be there by 1st October ? so are franticly looking for a place, getting packed etc? actually DHL are very good ? provide hotels and packers and containers etc?..quite easy really.
The DHL contract expired after 2+ years and I got others here, including the last one ? a Y2K project which I thoroughly enjoyed because ? it lasted 2 years ? was very well paid, and I loved the irony of US (you, me ? the boys) ? having for years ? created the 1999/2000 problem whilst getting well paid ? and now I was getting paid even more ? to fix it!! Ha-ha!! I nearly started to believe there is a God!! So April 1st 2000, Curley is on the scrap-heap (other nasty minded individuals said I arrived on it much earlier), so I decide to retire again?.. and so you find me today?. Retired? with lots of little projects, some of which include (you?ll be pleased to hear) ? Visual Basic, Java and Assembler programming. In all honesty I dropped Java ? didn?t like it (too Open), and am only recently getting back into MASM, because of the way Microsoft is going with .Net etc.. they are getting too big, involved ? for my liking (I mean ? to program in .Net ? I?d have to buy a bigger PC ? with XP, maybe have a Server and a Client etc? etc? too big, too complicated!!). So I?m going the other way ? with Assembler ? small, discrete ? under my control. Your thoughts Watson??
News of Bassy etc?.. he?s well ? living in Monte Carlo still ? bastard!! I get 3 or 4 mails a year from him ? do a search for ?Paul Basson? and you?ll get about 90 hits ? and around 75 of them will be Him!! Last time I saw him was here in HK for dinner one evening about 3 years ago.
I?ve had a brilliant series of emails with KPJ lasting almost a year, but he?s gone quiet for the last 12 months or so - useless bugger. He runs a pub in deepest Suffolk. Mike Waller is now in Kuala Lumpur still with DHL, Brian Stoate is in Kent ? I hear from him nearly every day, and he?s working in Canary Wharf, saw him last (with Vonnie his wife) in Singapore about 1 year ago. Other reprobates?.. well?. Have a look at my fledgling Web site there are a few names and contacts there, and that is how I came to find you?.. The Web site is one of my little projects ? I?ve had a few before, but these free sites always have something wrong with them ? anyway I decided on this AngelFire one ? because it said it supported MS FrontPage ? which I think is fairly crap ? but at least I can make it work ? until I find out that certain FrontPage extension features have not been implemented ? so leaving your Comments at the site ? fails currently. I was trying to jack up the 1900 part of the site ? and decided to Google search for ?Pears, Computerline? ? and there you were!!
Now some questions for you?.. I can remember visiting you and Mrs Pears (sorry forgotten her name), out Essex way somewhere??, then I think that fell apart???, and you were Plantrac?ing all over the USA ? met you in Boston for a memorable lunch/afternoon drinking session. Both Almuth and I were completely pissed ? drove the hire car back to the airport ? only just made it to the plane on time ? fell into deep sleep, and awoke to find poor daughters ? also fast asleep ? but on the floor under their seats ? amongst our feet!! Then I?d bought a Compaq luggable and was trying to make Plantrac Pan left/right/up/down, whilst I was in Germany on holiday ? (see below) ? what happened to you thereafter?? When did you return from the US?? What?s happening now?? Watching England play cricket cannot be the most stimulating thing you do?? How?s Plantrac doing? And are there other products?? Do you still program/dabble etc?.??
Have a look at my silly Web site ? and tell me what doesn?t work ? I check everything here using PWS and it all works ? but when it gets onto the Net ? things fail. So feedback is welcomed ? I?m going to add your contact details to the site ? so sorry ? you may be contacted by others?..
As for ?the program??.didn?t you receive last week?s progress report??? In summary ? I think I?ve now got it sorted ? ?I need just 1 more compilation?!!
All the breast,
MC
__________________________________________________________________________
From: Walford Pears <COMPUTERLINE@compuserve.com>
Date: Tue, 21 Aug 2001 16:33:21 -0400
To: michael curley <mikecurley@altavista.com>
Subject: Woking News
Scuuuuse me! My program (PLANTRAC) did not need any changes for Y2K. More fool me. Could not make a penny from that.
Now answers to your questions:
Great Baddow, Essex. Incidentally, since George lived there as well...what happened?
Met in Boston: Yes...I have photos of getting pissed. Will e-mail if you don't mind seeing Helmuth!
What's happening now: Still programming. VB5 mainly..a bit of Java and ASP for web sites. Hate those bastards Microsoft. Each new version drives me mad and costs mega hours finding the differences. Doing some semi voluntary work (admin wise) for local community hospital when I can.
Playing golf...down to 16 handicap. Had lovely 11 months (like you) with a Thai girl (Yao),(married with 2 grown up kids). She stayed here with me but unfortunately Visa wise had to return to Thailand. I may visit there or she may come back here. All in the air.
Silly Web Site: Started to look but got interrupted. Can't keep the women away. Popped down to local for a Guinness with her. I'll look later. My web site is www.plantrac.com instead of the long address you have put in for me. That will still work but this one is better.
I'll file more details later.
Best wishes
Spares
____________________________________________________________________
From: Mike Curley
To: Walford Pears
Date: 23 August, 2001
Spares!!
Thanks for the names, addresses etc.., you?re right ? what happened to George Smith?? ? I have no idea.
Would love to receive pictures of Boston ? even though the old bat is therein.
Poor Susan, we thought there must have been something wrong with her, spending time with you in Boston, in the first place ? but to return to you after about 10 years!! Proof positive ? the poor lady has an illness!!
You?re right about Microsoft, they are bastards, one of the good things about living in HK is being able to get pirated software ? getting more difficult now ? but places like Malaysia and Cambodia ? very easy. I found with Java that I had to know so many providers and understand which Classes/Add-ons were ?IN? and others were ?out? ? and then where to find it all ? very confusing ? so gave up. At least with Microsoft products you only have to go to their (world?s worst web-site) ? and what you want/need should be in there somewhere.
Good to hear that golf handicap is well below anything I achieved ? below 100 was a good round for me, but playing once a week at most I never got much better than that ? very expensive here ? threw my clubs away!
Also the dating of ladies ? glad to hear you?re still active ? there must be a joke in there ? ?playing golf and dating ladies like mad? ? something to do with ?holes??? Shame about the Thai lady having to return to Thailand ? she has to come back to the UK ? if you go to Bangkok?? well the name says it all?. You?ll get so distracted, you?ll never meet up with her!!
How did the USA finish for you?? I remember you buzzing all over the place ? very busy ? did you hand it over to someone there and concentrate on the software back in the UK??
Just received a missive from Johnston ? he seems to be back on the air ? after nearly a year of nothing ? latest with him was a broken ankle, which wasn?t healing all that well ? says that he?s still limping, after a year, which is going to seriously hamper his international squash activities ? I bet I know the only thing he?s been squashing!!
If you have contact details for any of the other reprobates ? I?d be pleased to receive? Johnston said he was going to try and organize a piss-up, but I?m not holding my breath?there again as he?s a pub landlord now ? where better to have a reunion??
Have a great summer, keep in touch, and if you come out this way ? we?ll be based in Singapore as from about 1st October ? do give us plenty of notice ? so we can leave town!!
All the breast,
MC
May - 2003 - Since all of that - Spares and I regularly chat online...he recently wrote an Appointments system for the hospital where he works - they are still talking about whether to use it or not - so he's put it up on the Web to see if there are any others interested - check it out....http://www.booktrac.netfirms.com