Hi!  Thanks for coming here to see what I'm up to... Be sure to click on READ MORE below for the full story...

Update 30th September

Well, there we are then. Fifteen hundred quid. Wow, not bad!  A massive thank you to everyone who's already contributed, but if anyone is still considering it, please do go ahead!  I'm not going to change the target again, but every additional penny will make a huge difference to lots of kids!

Update 23rd September

You know what?  This is getting to be too much fun!  My heartfelt applause and thanks to Dick Dastardly for his application of the "Ship of Fools Biblical Curse Generator", which leaves me no option but to respond with "Thou shalt be mocked by eunuchs, O thou armpit of Satan!".  Oh, and Gaspode?  Rowley says thanks for the wossname. Nice doggie.

The way things are looking, there's a good chance I'm gonna have to move them goalposts again...

Update 16th September

WoHoo!  1p short of the grand!  Simultaneously awesome and very, very funny!  Thanks Fiona for that milestone!!!

Update 14th September

Well, strewth, corblimey etc...  I'm back from a week touring the UK by motorbike (I'll write about that later) to an update from the good folks at Byte Night which puts me at #5 in their charts of funds raised for the Thames Valley event (just under a grand as I type).  A HUGE thank you to all who have donated, and to any still thinking about it.  Eagle eyed folks may notice that I have, indeed, moved the goalposts...  trying for fifteen hundred now, rather than the round thousand.

Update 2 September

Oh boy, we are motoring along now! On top of the already super support from folks I've mithered along the way, Ive dropped a mail to the quite splendid group of folks I work with today... It's already looking like I might well have to move those goalposts!  No Martin, I wont be selling the Big Issue  (gesundheit!) out there...

Update: 11 August:

Well, I'm pretty stunned and humbled by people's generosity - less than a week in, and I am already halfway to my total - amazing!  Either this is striking a chord, or some folks are quite tickled by the idea of such a renowned luxury fan as the Grumbler spending a night under the stars, and prepared to go to any lengths to make sure I do it! I will and, Meg, there will be photos...  Rowley's still keen (check out the photo link to the left) and says I can share his biscuits if I get peckish during the long night...

Update: 6 August:

On October 2nd I'll be joining a bunch of other folk from the IT Industry and 'sleeping rough' outside the office as part of 'Byte Night', in aid of the Action for Children charity.  For the last 140 years, Action for Children has been looking out for some of the UK's most vulnerable children by supporting families with problems, finding homes for kids in care, supporting vulnerable or excluded kids, and providing specialist help for disabled children.

I don't really run marathons, cycle from palace to palace, skydive or any of those energetic and headline grabbing activities, but I can 'rough it' for a night, and maybe in doing so I can get just a glimpse of what homeless kids might have to do night after night.  If you can make a small donation of a couple of pounds (or dollars!) then together we can help some of these children and dramatically improve their chances of leading the kinds of lives that we have, and would wish for our own children.

I'm aiming to collect at least £500, but I'd like to get way past that figure if I can.  I reckon I know a few hundred people, and some of them are bound to be tempted to part with a couple of quid, or five bucks, or whatever they can afford to help Action for Children, and enjoy the thought of giving 'the grumbler' something to grumble about! Oh, and to prove I've actually gone through with it, I intend to take a few pics, and blog about it.  Maybe I might even record a podcast while I'm there - interviewing a few of the other folk and bringing you some great new music - since I intend to have restarted 'music and mumblings' by then.

Oh, and did I mention that Rowley wants to come with me?

Please help me (and Rowley) out by donating whatever you can - you'll have my gratitude and the kids' too!

Oh, and do visit the blogs and this page again, I'll keep both updated with news and progress!

About JustGiving:

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

So please dig deep and donate now.