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"A state of affairs that seems deliberately contrary to what one expects and is often amusing as a result."

That's how the New Oxford Dictionary of English defines irony, and it pretty much sums up the Firefish office for the last couple of days. Here we are with a very bright, shiny new website with rollovers and animation galore, but have been struck by the 21st century paralysis that is an internet connection that's Failed Under Continual Testing. So, having arrived nice and early on Monday morning to get stuck into a four day week, I felt like Usain Bolt bursting out of the blocks with a pair of diving boots on, when I found that access to email and internet was an impossibility for the foreseeable future. One hour of talking to IT suppliers and broadband providers does nothing for a positive outlook, or, in fact, for a functioning Outlook...

However, after existing in some strange throwback to the good old 1990's for all of Monday and some of Tuesday, a Very Nice Man from BT came along with a pencil behind his ear and had the whole thing fixed in a jiffy. Transpired that some clown had "taken the wrong cable out" at a junction box down the road. This is the kind of prognosis that somehow disappoints and disturbs - the entire global business and financial system on the one hand is a fusion of connected possibilities but on the other hand is founded on wires and plugs and sockets. Have you ever looked into one of those junction boxes? I always imagine whoever's working on it getting to a point where they just say, "Well, I've worked my eight hours, I've no idea where these last fourteen cables go and there's an Ice Truckers omnibus starting in half an hour... I'm out of here." However, in the spirit of a glass being half full, and to celebrate rejoining the connected world, we must say a big thanks to Mr BT for sorting it out like a flash when he got here...

And, here's the thing I never knew, despite my degree in Materials Science and Metallurgy... Irony also means "Of or like iron." How very logical and wonderful! I can't wait for the opportunity to use it. "Hello, is that Customer Service? I bought your Ripe and Ready to Eat Avocados in good faith, but quite frankly they are irony."