Extrasensory perception

If you weren't absolutely certain of the fact that the world's top 100m sprinters are finely-tuned speed machines, minutely calibrated to the nth degree to wring every last drop of speed out of their musclebound, Gatorade-chugging frames, then Jamaica's second-fastest speed merchant has dispelled the last lingering speck of doubt.

"The ankle is in shape to go 9.7 [seconds] but I'm not sure it's in shape to go below that," he revealled to BBC Sport on the eve of his appearance at the Crystal Palace Grand Prix.

Awesome stuff. Plus, he also thinks the reason British sprinters don't pick up more medals is because they're lazy. Is there nothing this man doesn't sense?

Woah, look out!

A dangerous thing happened today. In its infinite wisdom, the DVLA consented to let me drive, unaccompanied, on the roads of this great nation. At about 12 noon, I passed my driving test at the second time of asking. As you can see, "a dog with two dinkles" just about sums it up. After learning for about a year, I have finally got this particular monkey off my back.

The end of a couple of eras

Sad times, all, for this week two big parts of my recent existence came to an end. On Thursday I took a big step into the world of hackdom and completed my last NCTJ exam. But potentially even more earth-shattering, the previous night I watched the final episode of the West Wing. From today, I must move on to pastures new.

Virtually every evening since Christmas has seen almost my every move gear up towards the hour when I can retire to my bed, remote in hand, and delve for 40 minutes into the brilliantly-rendered world of Washington politics.

As such, I'm open to suggestions as to the next US TV boxset with which I can fixate myself. I'm not interested in anything with an abundance of initials in the titles, so that rules out NCIS, CSI or any of its geographically-located cousins. I hear good things about The Wire and I know people who positively swear by The Sopranos. Clearly this is something that requires some serious time and thought - probably far too much than should be spent decided on what to watch on telly.

What is far more scary is that the world of unemployment is now upon me. Having been able to chalk up my depressing lack of cashflow down to something as convenient as "being a student" for the last 20 weeks, I now have no excuse than to get my sorry rear end into employment.

And it's not even as if I have some leeway with having to immediately get a job. After finishing a three year degree you'd be amazed at how easily I'd convinced myself that, given the length of my period of economic inactivity, I could afford myself some time off before getting up before 10am every morning with any consistency.

Now consider that I've just finished a course which lasted just 5 months - so by my reckoning I need to find some work within about the next week or else I'm just mugging myself off.

Sad times indeed.