Mark S. FarrarI was born in Preston, Lancashire, England, on 30 May 1959, to Ken and Valerie Farrar.After leaving Rossall School in 1976, I worked for my father's yeastmerchant's business for three years before changing careers to get involved in what used to be called Data Processing but what is now generally known as Information Technology. However, in 2005, I opted for a complete change of life style, resigning from my job at one of the UK's leading credit card companies, and moving abroad for a quieter, simpler life, earning money through other means.
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American Football |
I have enjoyed watching this game - I'm far too much of a wimp to actually play - ever
since it was first broadcast on Channel 4 in England, and because of our interest in
arctophilia
(see below), I simply have to support the
Chicago Bears!
We even went to watch the American Bowl at Wembley for a couple of years, although there were two main problems with this:
Now that American Football is only shown on Channel 5 and satellite over here in the UK, I no longer watch it - not even the Superbowl, unfortunately - as we don't receive anything other than BBC1, BBC2, Anglia and Channel 4! |
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Arctophilia |
For those of you that don't know, "arctophilia" is another word for a love of teddy bears! In
fact, our Bear In Chief,
Mumbles,
has his own page!
Our hug (that's the word for a collection of teddies) now numbers 591, although that is a relatively small hug by serious collectors' standards. We know a couple who had over 7,000 at one time! In addition, I am a member of Good Bears of the World. If you are interested in a good magazine for Teddy Bear lovers, you could try Teddy Bear Times |
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Computing |
As if you hadn't guessed by now (seeing as how I have an Internet site - otherwise you wouldn't
be reading this!), I enjoy computing. Not only has this been my job since July 1979, but I take
my job home with me and still enjoy it!
I am also a great fan of the PalmPilot, and use it all the time, but if you want to know more about PDAs and handhelds in general, this is a great starting point. I started with a PalmPilot Professional, upgraded it to be equivalent to a Palm III, then replaced that with a Palm M500, followed by a Palm Tungsten T, and have recently replaced that with a Palm Tungsten T5.
I do play some games occasionally, but I prefer the "mental" games to the "shoot-em-up" ones.
If you are looking for a good, free daily email containing lots of useful tips about software, favourite web sites, tips, etc., then I can highly recommend the Lockergnome:
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Crosswords |
I prefer cryptic crosswords (e.g.
The Daily Telegraph)
and general knowledge crosswords, although I will quite happily pass the time doing
any sort of crossword.
In my idle moments, I have often tried to create my own cryptic crossword clues from words that just occur during the day, but my all-time favourite cryptic crossword clue is "HIJKLMNO" (5). Click here for the answer (if you really want to know). However, recently, I have taken to composing my own cryptic crosswords, using Crossword Compiler, so why not have a look - the first 20 are available for purchase as an eBook via eBookoMatic.
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Esperanto | Last year, I completed a ten-part Internet / email based Esperanto course, which may found at http://www.pacujo.nu/esperanto/course/. | ||||||||||
Humour |
I reckon to have a good sense of humour, but, there again, so do most people. I enjoy:
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Jigsaws | I enjoy doing the occasional jigsaw, although I do prefer "unusual" ones, including:
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Juggling |
I enjoy juggling,
occasionally, although I can only manage to juggle three balls (with some simple tricks) or
three clubs (but only for about five seconds)!
I did get as far as borrowing a unicycle from a friend, but it's been in the garage for well over three years now, and it still hasn't seen the light of day!
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Music |
I like listening to a fairly wide range of music - anything from church organ music and a lot of classical music too, to some rock, pop, punk, instrumental, electronic / trance and blues.
Major dislikes include every piece of rap I've ever heard (so far) and some jazz.
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Network Marketing |
Network Marketing, or MLM or Referral Marketing, as it's sometimes known, is not so much of an interest as my Plan B that I am hoping will allow me to stop having to work for somebody else and take control of my life again.
I am therefore involved in a number of businesses, and you can find out more about these at the following websites:
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Puzzles & Games |
I have always enjoyed puzzles, whether they are mathematical, logic, word, etc. and also games of many different sorts. These include many board games, including backgammon, and card games
such as cribbage.
I am trying to work my way through all 32,000 of the Freecell games, and I have currently completed the first 5,360 games, during which time my longest winning streak is 343 games. I have also just come across an online Scrabble game, called Bug Café, was temporarily hooked on Sudoku when I had the time, and I have been known to dabble in online poker once in a while, although I didn't have the courage to play for money. I have also created an on-line game called the Calendar Game, and the corresponding Radnelac Game (that's the Backwards Calendar Game!) where you have a chance (?) to beat the computer. |
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Reading | I enjoy reading about virtually any subject, although I especially enjoy:
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Snooker |
Although I have been playing since I was about five, and had to stand on a box to even reach
the table, I play a pretty average game. My highest break in all that time is only 50!
(I was on my way to a maximum break once, but I failed on the fifth black!)
I still enjoy watching some snooker on television, although I hardly ever get to play these days. |
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Stately Homes | I have always enjoyed visiting stately homes, castles and gardens, but my all-time favourite is Bodnant Gardens in North Wales. | ||||||||||
Television | Whilst I enjoy some television, I am not exactly an avid watcher.
My tastes include adventure / action films, some comedy films, a very few sit-coms, some of the more "intellectual" quiz shows such as "University Challenge" (as well as "Countdown") and some sport such as Snooker, American Football, Motor Racing and Baseball (but definitely not association football, rugby, horse racing and cricket). If you want to look for a programme that is on television, why not try this free service from DigiGuide?
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Travel | We have travelled to many parts of the world, sightseeing, including:
You can read about one of our trips to Paris, from Taschy's (one of our teddies) point of view, in " Taschy Meets Gordon Blue". |
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Website Building |
As you can probably tell from this website, I do enjoy building them! (Somebody pointed out that this very website contains a Googlewhack!)
I have built a number of other websites over the past few years, so why not have a look at my current portfolio?
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Weird Stuff |
I love weird stuff, so here's the start of a collation of things I've found when surfing the Internet:
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Whisky |
Whilst I like most alcoholic drinks, my favourite tipple was single malt whisky (although I no longer drink alcohol).
My all-time favourite was Laphroaig,
which, as their advertising says, is a "love or hate" thing!
For a wider view of whisky, try visiting one of these two sites: |
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Wildlife | I enjoy watching wildlife, both on television, since there is some stunning camera work
these days, and in the wild, having been to Kenya twice and to India as well.
I still cannot make up my mind about zoos and wildlife parks, although I do believe that the Cotswold Wildlife Park Trip is a good example of such a place. At one time, the only way that most people would ever see some of the wild and exotic creatures was to visit a zoo. However, today, it is so much easier these days to go and see these animals in the wild, and the quality of the nature documentaries on television is so much better, that you have to wonder whether zoos are an anachronism. On the other hand, some species wouldn't still exist if they hadn't been nurtured in zoos and wildlife parks, for eventual re-introduction to their natural habitat. With the way that technology is increasing at an ever-accelerating rate, I am sure that the ability to "see" these animals in the wild will become even easier. For example:
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This page is Copyright © 1997, Mark S. Farrar. Created: Sunday 28th December, 1997 Contact Me |
(since 23 May 1999)
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The owner of this website, Mark Farrar, is a participant in the Amazon EU Associates Programme, an affiliate advertising programme designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking MarkFarrar.co.uk to Amazon properties including, but not limited to, Amazon.co.uk, Javari.co.uk, Amazon.de, Javari.de, Amazon.fr, Javari.fr, Amazon.it and/or Amazon.es.