The Night Mail

[Gwiwer]

1 minute ago, Happy Hippo said:

Try a New Zealand accent

It’s win of the bust 

[Northmoor]

59 minutes ago, iL Dottore said:

Not quite the same as dumping raw sewage to lower costs and increase shareholder benefit - see Private Eye (multiple entries)

While I love the Eye it does tend to grossly oversimplify these issues to profits and losses.

 

My father worked much of his career in the glamorous world of waste water treatment and could explain in detail why sometimes, untreated water ends up in rivers or the sea.  Basically treatment plants are sized for expected volumes of water, with a margin to cope with a perhaps 1in100 year storm.  In that event, the excess flow by-passes the plant into local watercourses and this was always accepted as reasonable; you cannot plan and build for every conceivable storm.

 

However, in addition to growing populations discharging into sewerage systems designed for much smaller volumes, we have entered times when extreme weather events are becoming common so what was a 1in100 storm is now happening every ten years, while 1-in10 events are happening every year and possibly more than once.  The design standards need to (and may well be) updated to meet new expectations but until then, most existing treatment plant was built to cope with less.

 

When water companies were privatised, it was because the government knew how much investment was needed and didn't want that to come out of the public purse, so transferred that liability to the private companies.  They also wanted water bills to fall, demonstrating the benefits of privatisation, but unfortunately those two ambitions aren't really compatible.  Now the regulator (OFWAT) could set new standards, insist that existing plant is upgraded to meet them and enforce the regulations, but that will drive up water bills and god forbid we should actually have to pay the true cost of something as essential as clean water.  It is easy to say the companies could pay for it out of their profits, but while the profits of water companies might seem large, the margins aren't huge; utilities are seen as "secure/safe bets" rather than serious money-making investments by pension funds.   And if they aren't paying profits into pension funds, what happens to pension liabilities?  Does the nation tell pensioners, "Sorry, we're going to have cleaner water and your pension has been reduced by X% to pay for it"?

[DenysW]

9 minutes ago, Northmoor said:

Basically treatment plants are sized for expected volumes of water

I finished my career in the same glamorous world, and it's the pipes as well - and they are 90% of the cost of the system. Especially the private laterals connecting up the houses.

 

Now if we all volunteer to pay (midrange number) about £1200/year instead of £400/year for our water and sewage, in only 20-30 years the problem will be gone.

[Tony_S]

1 hour ago, DenysW said:

 

Now if we all volunteer to pay (midrange number) about £1200/year instead of £400/year for our water and sewage, in only 20-30 years the problem will be gone.

People here pay rather a lot if they insist on not having a water meter. With our metered use we pay about £500 less than our neighbours. They won’t have a meter as they worry about excessive charges!

[Winslow Boy]

1 hour ago, DenysW said:

I finished my career in the same glamorous world, and it's the pipes as well - and they are 90% of the cost of the system. Especially the private laterals connecting up the houses.

 

Now if we all volunteer to pay (midrange number) about £1200/year instead of £400/year for our water and sewage, in only 20-30 years the problem will be gone.

 

Two problems with that a) it will take several years to implement and whilst it is being implemented the demand will continue to grow unless something drastic happens - zombie plague anyone? ; and b) there's only so much money to go around and if it's being spent on water treatment it can't be spent on schools, roads, pensioners etc.

[Oldddudders]

1 hour ago, Northmoor said:

It is easy to say the companies could pay for it out of their profits, but while the profits of water companies might seem large, the margins aren't huge; utilities are seen as "secure/safe bets" rather than serious money-making investments by pension funds.   And if they aren't paying profits into pension funds, what happens to pension liabilities?  Does the nation tell pensioners, "Sorry, we're going to have cleaner water and your pension has been reduced by X% to pay for it"?

Not a vote-winner any time soon!

 

I believe there is a parallel with something else that may affect many of us, directly or indirectly - trauma in an accident subsequently leading to cancer. No proven link exists of course, despite much anecdotal evidence, because that would require research. Research is expensive and requires funding, but were it to be undertaken and the link proved, the insurance industry worldwide would be bankrupted overnight by claims for lost loved-ones. Many of us consider insurance to be a swindle, citing that insurance companies own big buildings and other major assets, but without insurance as we know it, much of life would be far riskier, and all sorts of good things would never happen. It is my suspicion that insurers would 'warn-off' anyone threatening to pay for the research that would capsize their boat. 

[J. S. Bach]

17 hours ago, polybear said:

 ...snip...  May the Fleas of a thousand Camels infect their ar5eholes 🤣

 That reminds me of an old Danny Thomas curse: "May a streetcar grow in your stomach and the conductor keep ringing the bell."

[polybear]

2 hours ago, Tony_S said:

People here pay rather a lot if they insist on not having a water meter. With our metered use we pay about £500 less than our neighbours. They won’t have a meter as they worry about excessive charges!

 

Bear received a note that I'm to be the proud owner (Huh?) of a water meter at some point - though they're taking their own sweet time about it.  Some neighbours have already received theirs as a part of the same programme.  Unfortunately it seems that when a certain Bear boxed in the pipework during the Great Lounge Refurb it makes the addition of a water meter impossible (Oops 😉) - access to it for reading would be a right PITA anyway cos' it'd mean detaching various cables then moving the TV/DVD Recorder/VCR etc.  Bullox to that caper.

There is an option, however - there's another stop tap in the front garden** - but that's under a hatch underground and is hooked up to rather old lead pipe on one side.  They can have fun with that one.

Alternatively, as a sad n' lonely Bear 😢 in a single occupancy Castle I'm entitled to 25% discount off the water rates - but only AFTER they've decided they can't fit a meter.  T0ssers.  Yep, Rant.

 

**And that's the only stop tap that will be declared to the installers when they turn up - I don't want any T0sser saying "We'll have to rip the box out, Mr. Bear....don't worry, we're Professionals....."  

 

Do I want a Meter?  Nottalot.  Would I save money?  Almost certainly - initially.  But Bear is rather cynical and I suspect that when the vast majority/all the houses have meters then the unit price will start shooting up.  I'd rather be able to use the hose, pressure washer etc. without thinking how quickly the little wheel is whizzing round.....

[Tony_S]

10 minutes ago, polybear said:

Alternatively, as a sad n' lonely Bear 😢 in a single occupancy Castle I'm entitled to 25% discount off the water rates

After his second wife (not two at once, the first marriage was divorced) left him my brother applied for the single occupancy council tax reduction the very next day.

[TheQ]

One of the problems they have here, is most of the sewage pipes are below the water table , so water leaks into the sewage pipes. Horning has a particular problem with this and the nearby sewer plant is listed as one of the worst for discharges...

But  headline newspaper reports never say is most of the discharges are river water being returned to the river!!!.

[Happy Hippo]

Sometimes you make a slight error of judgement that has implications.

 

In my particular case, I was feeling a little snuffly and had developed back ache.  The snuffles are probably me having contracted Nyda's head cold, and the backache is, like so many other contributors here, an old war wound.  The error was deciding to self medicate and have a short lie down to let the tablets do their thing.

 

They did there thing alright, and when I woke up it was dark, so I was probably away with the fairies for at least 3 hours.

 

As a result, I now have to sort out all the recycling bins, which includes the garden waste and get them kerbside.

 

But it's cold and dark outside....

 

When I return from this traumatic event I may have to take a Scottish or Irish cordial to calm my sensitive disposition.

[polybear]

9 minutes ago, Happy Hippo said:

Sometimes you make a slight error of judgement that has implications.

 

One of the most serious being that immortal thought.......

 

"It'll just be a F@rt"

 

9 minutes ago, Happy Hippo said:

 

But it's cold and dark outside....

 

 

Is that an acceptable excuse during Army Training one wonders?

 

[Gwiwer]

1 minute ago, polybear said:

 

13 minutes ago, Happy Hippo said:

Sometimes you make a slight error of judgement that has implications.

 

One of the most serious being that immortal thought.......

 

"It'll just be a F@rt"

 

Remember those three essentials of over-fifty life as esposed by Billy Connolly. 
 

Never walk past a urinal

Never waste an erection

Never trust a fart. 

[Oldddudders]

Last week I had a bleat about our phone/Internet connection, which hadn't really functioned in months - mainly while I was away nursing Sherry in the UK. I had booked a fault with Orange, who promised a tech would visit Saturday morning. Nobody came by or near. But Monday, just after lunch, I beheld a ladder being propped against the new pole with man attaching a cable - and lo! within 20 minutes all was restored! 

 

Before we arrived from Blighty a couple of weeks ago, Alison warned us that we had a new resident - a kitten, whose mother and sibling had allegedly perished on the road. Sure enough a small, but not that small, tabby thing was skulking around. A visit to the vet showed him to be male, and the vet agreed with me that he is about 4-5 months old. If he has been out and about with mum all that time, how come he knows how to use a litter tray, and is relatively easy to handle? I suspect we will never be told, but unless he suffers a misadventure, I'm sure he will see me out. Our last remaining old cat, Lola, is now 17, and hugely unimpressed, let it be said. 

[Gwiwer]

4 hours ago, Tony_S said:

People here pay rather a lot if they insist on not having a water meter. With our metered use we pay about £500 less than our neighbours. They won’t have a meter as they worry about excessive charges!

We are told a meter cannot be installed because of the way the block is plumbed. Shared headers, inlets and outlets. 
 

And they also say “we shall be in touch to arrange the fitting of internal meters during 2021”. 
 

Pestilence notwithstanding we have so far heard nothing. 2021 is well past its use-by date. 

[Winslow Boy]

2 hours ago, polybear said:

 

Bear received a note that I'm to be the proud owner (Huh?) of a water meter at some point - though they're taking their own sweet time about it.  Some neighbours have already received theirs as a part of the same programme.  Unfortunately it seems that when a certain Bear boxed in the pipework during the Great Lounge Refurb it makes the addition of a water meter impossible (Oops 😉) - access to it for reading would be a right PITA anyway cos' it'd mean detaching various cables then moving the TV/DVD Recorder/VCR etc.  Bullox to that caper.

There is an option, however - there's another stop tap in the front garden** - but that's under a hatch underground and is hooked up to rather old lead pipe on one side.  They can have fun with that one.

Alternatively, as a sad n' lonely Bear 😢 in a single occupancy Castle I'm entitled to 25% discount off the water rates - but only AFTER they've decided they can't fit a meter.  T0ssers.  Yep, Rant.

 

**And that's the only stop tap that will be declared to the installers when they turn up - I don't want any T0sser saying "We'll have to rip the box out, Mr. Bear....don't worry, we're Professionals....."  

 

Do I want a Meter?  Nottalot.  Would I save money?  Almost certainly - initially.  But Bear is rather cynical and I suspect that when the vast majority/all the houses have meters then the unit price will start shooting up.  I'd rather be able to use the hose, pressure washer etc. without thinking how quickly the little wheel is whizzing round.....

 

Bear you don't have to install a meter unless you want too. I have one simply because I inherited the house from my mother and as she lived alone see felt she would save money if she had one.

 

The meter is at the main stop cock and that's at the corner of the property line. It's an absolute so and so to read as it's in the middle of a border by a tree. However the neighbours is under the pavement and is read via a 'peep hole' set into the paving. This means it can be read without entering the property unlike mine.

 

Hope this is helpful.

 

Edited February 1, 2023 by Winslow Boy
A is for Any, B is for bug....r

[Winslow Boy]

1 hour ago, Happy Hippo said:

Sometimes you make a slight error of judgement that has implications.

 

In my particular case, I was feeling a little snuffly and had developed back ache.  The snuffles are probably me having contracted Nyda's head cold, and the backache is, like so many other contributors here, an old war wound.  The error was deciding to self medicate and have a short lie down to let the tablets do their thing.

 

They did there thing alright, and when I woke up it was dark, so I was probably away with the fairies for at least 3 hours.

 

As a result, I now have to sort out all the recycling bins, which includes the garden waste and get them kerbside.

 

But it's cold and dark outside....

 

When I return from this traumatic event I may have to take a Scottish or Irish cordial to calm my sensitive disposition.

 

Hmm how about reversing process. You could say you were fortifying yourself.

[DenysW]

2 hours ago, Gwiwer said:

We are told a meter cannot be installed because of the way the block is plumbed. Shared headers, inlets and outlets. 

At a cost (to them) that the Water Company wants to pay is the bit that's omitted from this explanation. I must have been infected by @iL Dottore since this afternoon.

[PhilJ W]

A tutorial on British accents.

 

[br2975]

PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENT - AN APOLOGY

.

In my youth, whilst under the influence of the demon drink I once partook of the japanese inspired entertainment known as 'karaoke'

.

My chosen subject was a song made famous by a fellow Welshman, Tom Woodward, better known as 'Tom Jones'

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It now appears, many years forward, that the song I sang,  unknown to me then, glorifies domestic violence and in particular, violence against women.

.

The actions of my youth, apparently now makes me a 'misogynist' in the eyes of the Welsh Rugby Union.

And let's face it, the current scandal surrounding that organisation makes them experts on misgoyny.

.

So, in order to cleanse my soul and conscience, and to placate a section of the community.....

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I humby beg the forgiveness of my fellow Night Mailers, and promise not to sing 'that song' again....................... well, not until  Saturday.

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Thank you all for your understanding.

.

I'll now get back to my karaoke.

[Happy Hippo]

Regardless of the song content, the reality of the ban is  it is a sure fire way to get supporters back up and ensure it is sung louder and with more vigour.

[newbryford]

2 hours ago, br2975 said:

PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENT - AN APOLOGY

.

In my youth, whilst under the influence of the demon drink I once partook of the japanese inspired entertainment known as 'karaoke'

 

 

I was once recommended to buy an LP by Gary Oakey.

I was hoping for more than just instrumental tracks........

[J. S. Bach]

Night Owl from the Piedmont.

[The Johnster]

5 hours ago, br2975 said:

PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENT - AN APOLOGY

.

In my youth, whilst under the influence of the demon drink I once partook of the japanese inspired entertainment known as 'karaoke'

.

My chosen subject was a song made famous by a fellow Welshman, Tom Woodward, better known as 'Tom Jones'

.

It now appears, many years forward, that the song I sang,  unknown to me then, glorifies domestic violence and in particular, violence against women.

.

The actions of my youth, apparently now makes me a 'misogynist' in the eyes of the Welsh Rugby Union.

And let's face it, the current scandal surrounding that organisation makes them experts on misgoyny.

.

So, in order to cleanse my soul and conscience, and to placate a section of the community.....

.

I humby beg the forgiveness of my fellow Night Mailers, and promise not to sing 'that song' again....................... well, not until  Saturday.

.

Thank you all for your understanding.

.

I'll now get back to my karaoke.

I’m not condoning the hero of the song’s actions, which were inappropriately severe, but to be fair she was being at least unnecessarily provocative when she stood there, laughing…

 

My high school biology teacher, Jack Kelland,   was from Tonteg and knew Thomas Woodward.  Reckoned he’d have ended up in prison had he not gone into the singing game; muggings, house burglaries, fighting, and generally being a nasty and violent petty criminal were apparently young Woodward’s stock in trade!

 

That said, I’ve always admired Tom Jones for being lifelong faithful to his missus, no mean feat in that business…

 

And, by all accounts, the WRU are experts in the field of misogyny.  No surprise there, then…

Edited February 2, 2023 by The Johnster

[br2975]

6 hours ago, The Johnster said:

 

That said, I’ve always admired Tom Jones for ...........................................

 

 

.

Not forgetting his roots either.

.

Unlike a certain Diva from Splott - although originally from 'The Docks' ( Older Cardiffian's rarely, if  ever used the term 'Tiger Bay' )

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Stories of TJ are legion, not so about Miss B.

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I recall when the Free Concert was put on in Cardiff's Oval Basin following the vote for a Welsh Assembly Government, both TJ and SB were staying in the St. David's Hotel nearby; and the Diva refused to share a limousine with TJ from the hotel to the venue and back !

.

Friends of ours celebrated their engagement in 'The Riverside Cantonese'  in Cardiff, and TJ and his party sat at the next table.

On hearing of their engagement, TJ bought them a bottle of champagne, toasted their future, and signed a menu with his best wishes.

.

Another TJ story refers to him performing in the then CIA (Cardiff International Arena) and shortly after TJ and his entourage turned up at 'Gassy Jack's' an American style boozer in Cardiff's student land, where punters had paid £1 to listen to the house band.

TJ and his party were told by the manager 'I've called last orders - but, give us a song, and there's a beer in it for you all'

TJ strolls up the stairs, speaks to the house band, and launches into a selection of his greatest hits.

Not bad for a quid, in a bijou atmosphere, when others had just parted with (then) £30 plus for the same songs.

.

TJ is a well known advocate of BrAIns beers, so I hold him in high esteem..

.

.

Edited February 2, 2023 by br2975