The Night Mail

[Dave Hunt]

Just watched Ireland stuff France in the opening 6 nations game. Happy bunny here 😊.

 

Dave

[Dave Hunt]

5 minutes ago, Winslow Boy said:

I think he's trying to get the sympathy vote by tugging at heartstrings so that he can have another dram. Any excuse.

 

He may even pour himself a finger or two ...

 

Dave

[jamie92208]

5 minutes ago, Dave Hunt said:

Just watched Ireland stuff France in the opening 6 nations game. Happy bunny here 😊.

 

Dave

No doubt the die hard Rugby fans from the village i'lhave something to say at the hunt dinner tomorrow night. Many of them are season ticket holders at Stade Rochellais. 

 

Jamiel

[Dave Hunt]

Best you gen up on the French for, "We wuz robbed," Jamie.

 

Dave

[Tony_S]

51 minutes ago, Dave Hunt said:

 

He may even pour himself a finger or two ...

 

Dave

Do you still have some pliers? Last year my brother had to have some fragments of big toenail root removed. The nurse told him to look away. He assumed she was going to anaesthetise the toe but she just quickly pulled out the toenail fragment while he wasn’t looking! 

[Northmoor]

11 hours ago, Dave Hunt said:

 

Possibly just a coincidence but a white X1 did something similar in a line of traffic I was in going the other way on the same road just before Shawbury a while back - last summer IIRC. I was a couple of cars behind but could see what was coming and braked as I realised the cars in front of me would have to do so. It wasn't nearly as bad as you describe but was still stupid. If it was the same driver he has obviously not learned any lessons and I would imagine he is not long for this earth. Sadly he will possibly take some innocent person with him.

 

Quite a few years back we were making our Christmas trip to the in-laws in Hartlepool; it was a tail-wind all the way (and back, the Mondeo's mpg on that trip was incredible) with snow falling once we were into North Yorkshire.  On the A19 the snow was lying, obscuring the outside lane but two clear wheel tracks in the inside lane and everyone was happy to keep it down to about 40 and a safe distance apart.

 

Except for one person.....

 

I can't remember what the car was but they decided that on lying snow, 55mph+ was preferable, so they overtook everyone and seemed to have managed fine until about 20 miles later when we came into Stockton and joined a queue with blue lights visible ahead.  Eventually we crept forward and I noticed how the single pair of tracks in the outside lane - no-one else had joined or left it - suddenly wiggled and veered left across the left hand lane, into the grass verge and disappeared down the bank, where we could just see the top of a vehicle.

 

Did they learn a lesson?  We'll never know but I have a feeling this sort of person never learns, it's never their fault, it's always someone else's mistake and why-oh-why is car insurance so expensive, it's so unfair, blah blah blah............

[Happy Hippo]

1 hour ago, Winslow Boy said:

I think he's trying to get the sympathy vote by tugging at heartstrings so that he can have another dram. Any excuse.

Not tonight, although I did consider a bottle of Breton cidre to commiserate with the Frenchies after they were put to the sword by Ireland in the opening match of the 6 Nations Rugby 2024.

 

It will be different when Wales play Scotland tomorrow.  I might have to go out and get some Guinness and cheese and onion crisps because sadly, one cannot get Brains Dark (or is it Black now) or any Rev James.

[SteveyDee68]

Many years ago, was driven over to Holmfirth (of Last of the Summer Wine fame) by a mate for a (late) Xmas Concert (in January!) at his church, taking “the scenic route” out via Greenfield. It was snowing, lightly, and his Volvo wasn’t exactly the fastest machine on the road, so we were passed at some speed by a red car* just literally outside of Greenfield as the road started upwards.
 

A few minutes later and the “light snowfall” had become “way thicker snowfall” and as we climbed higher rapidly became “should we be taking this route in this kind of snowfall?” 
 

But Mike had arranged the concert, it had been postponed twice, and myself and three other friends from University had agreed to play for the concert and so he was determined to get us there.

 

Just towards the top where there was a sharp turn to the left to negotiate, the snow had got ridiculously heavy and Mike was peering through the windscreen wipers as we continued forwards at about 10mph, when I spotted a red car lying upside down in the ditch at the side of the road. 
 

Moments later, it was lost in the flurries of snow, but I saw it long enough to see (imagine?) one of the wheels still turning.

 

I remember saying to Mike that I thought I’d just seen a car on its roof but he was intent on (a) negotiating the road in almost zero visibility and (b) not have his car demand “a rest” - all of his vehicles were notorious for this “feature” and neither he nor I really fancied it doing so on the top of the moor with thick snow falling!

 

Never found out if the red car that had flown past us ended up in that ditch.

 

Got to the concert to find exactly three people present - the vicar, the church warden (who had opened up) and his wife. One of our members was stuck in snow somewhere in West Yorkshire and the concert never happened!

 

Spent the night at my mate’s house near our old college before setting off at sparrow fart again with Mike as I needed to be back at 8am on Sunday morning to play in a brass band contest (of all things!) West Yorkshire was a winter wonderland so he decided it would be a bad idea to go over the hills again (phew) and instead headed north up the M1 joining near Barnsley and then the M62 to head back to Manchester.

 

Conditions were ideal for skiers, probably less so for cars. We made our way in the slow lane of a deserted M1 and then an equally deserted M62. The snow started again and then the inevitable … Mike’s car needed a rest! We pulled onto the hard shoulder (how could we know?!) and sat for around 15 minutes whilst snow gradually piled up on the car, and I prayed nothing rear ended us! Setting off again in the snow, I couldn’t work out how Mike could tell where he was driving until he said he could just make out the white line at the edge of the motorway.

 

Honestly, as I write this I can hear how ludicrous it sounds, but it’s all true!

 

With snow falling really heavily again, I was trusting Mike’s driving abilities (I’d yet to learn to drive) but nevertheless sensed that we were veering left and downwards (even though I couldn’t see anything in the snow), before suddenly starting to rise up again, still veering left. Totally disorientated, I was about to say something when we suddenly pulled under the entrance canopy of a hotel!

 

”Oh” said Mike.

 

Mike notoriously could fall asleep mid sentence. We’d worried about him in the first year, but as he didn’t seem too worried we just put it down to one of his idiosyncrasies! His reaction to this situation was typically laid back.

 

Pulling out his AA roadmap, he worked out that he must have taken a slip road off the M62, then the first exit of a(n unseen) roundabout to end up at the hotel. He pulled the car into the car park, let it have another rest, the snow thinned a little and we resumed our journey over the Pennines.

 

He dropped me home (just off the M66) just before 8am, declined breakfast and said he needed to get on his way as he was playing organ for a church service in Wolverhampton at 11am! He drove off, and I went in the opposite direction back to Rochdale to the band contest.

 

In retrospect and from a distance of 33 years I think I can acknowledge (a) the foolhardiness of us both in undertaking either journey across the Pennines and (b) a lack of general citizenship in not checking that (what I thought was) a red car in a ditch did not contain injured persons.

 

Of course, back then there was no internet, so finding out if there had been an accident would have meant scouring the local newspapers or hearing it on the local news (radio or TV) - neither of those things happened, and so to this day I have to ask myself “Did I really see a red car upside down in a ditch** with a wheel slowly turning through the falling snow, or did I imagine it?”

 

Steve S

 

* Couldn’t tell the make, it passed by so fast.

** If it was the red car that overtook us at stupid miles an hour … well, it served the driver right for being a silly @rse! 
 

 

[J. S. Bach]

5 hours ago, Dave Hunt said:

 ...snip...

I'm told that there may well be cake on Tuesday.

 

Dave 

Hmmm, that reminds me that I had some lemon cake for desert tonight! 😉

[J. S. Bach]

3 hours ago, Happy Hippo said:

Not tonight, although I did consider a bottle of Breton cidre to commiserate with the Frenchies after they were put to the sword by Ireland in the opening match of the 6 Nations Rugby 2024.

 

It will be different when Wales play Scotland tomorrow.  I might have to go out and get some Guinness and cheese and onion crisps because sadly, one cannot get Brains Dark (or is it Black now) or any Rev James.

I tried some Guinness ........................ once! ☹️

[J. S. Bach]

Tomorrow (03feb24) is the eightieth anniversary of the start of the "Big Three" conference at Yalta. Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin duking it out; verbally, of course.

 

 

Edited February 3 by J. S. Bach
To add some information.

[J. S. Bach]

Night Owl from the Piedmont.

[AndyID]

3 hours ago, J. S. Bach said:

I tried some Guinness ........................ once! ☹️

 

It's an acquired taste that I failed to acquire, although they used to make some very entertaining clocks, at least I thought so at the time.

[jamie92208]

1 hour ago, AndyID said:

 

It's an acquired taste that I failed to acquire, although they used to make some very entertaining clocks, at least I thought so at the time.

 

And they had some brilliant adverts.  The 24 hour Guinness comes to mind. 

 

Jamie

[Hroth]

8 hours ago, Happy Hippo said:

I might have to go out and get some Guinness and cheese and onion crisps because sadly, one cannot get Brains Dark (or is it Black now) or any Rev James.

 

5 hours ago, J. S. Bach said:

I tried some Guinness ........................ once! ☹️

 

You have to, if only to be able to say "I tried it and didn't like it".

 

2 hours ago, AndyID said:

 

It's an acquired taste that I failed to acquire, although they used to make some very entertaining clocks, at least I thought so at the time.

 

Some Guinness merchandise is entertaining.  I've got a Toucan moneybox.

 

 

Odd factoid.  Dorothy L Sayers invented the Guinness "Toucan" adverts before she became a successful author.

 

 

[Tony_S]

I rather like Guinness. When being “designated driver” on our very few pub restaurant outings I have started to order Guinness Zero instead of Diet Coke. It isn’t quite the same as normal Guinness but I prefer it to the Cola. 

Edited February 3 by Tony_S

[Happy Hippo]

12 hours ago, Dave Hunt said:

I also spent a fair bit of time arranging things so that the layout can be seen instead of being buried under a mass of random bits and pieces.

I feel that referring to your locomotives in that tone is rather belittling.

 

It is after all, a rather fine fleet.

[PhilJ W]

2 hours ago, Tony_S said:

I rather like Guinness. When being “designated driver” on our very few pub restaurant outings I have started to order Guinness Zero instead of Diet Coke. It isn’t quite the same as normal Guinness but I prefer it to the Cola. 

Anything is preferable to a Diet Coke.

[SM42]

I've been banished to the garden for some tidying up jobs that need doing.  

They've actually needed doing for at least 4 years, but hey ho. 

 

This is supposed to be rest day. 

 

On the bright side, dark clouds are gathering so I may be forced indoors soon. 

 

This evening has been designated by Mrs SM42 as a beer, crisps and movie night ( we know how  to really live it up )

 

I've also been given permission for tomorrow to be designated a modeling day.  

 

How much of it will turn into useful modelling time is to be seen. 

 

Andy

 

[J. S. Bach]

1 hour ago, PhilJ W said:

Anything is preferable to a Diet Coke.

You might just change your mind after trying a Diet Rite! It is still made; it was around before the onslaught of most diet sodas being introduced in 1955.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diet_Rite

[Tony_S]

24 minutes ago, J. S. Bach said:

You might just change your mind after trying a Diet Rite! It is still made; it was around before the onslaught of most diet sodas being introduced in 1955.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diet_Rite

The Wiki,page makes it sound like diluted “whatever sweetener isn’t banned”. 

[J. S. Bach]

43 minutes ago, Tony_S said:

The Wiki,page makes it sound like diluted “whatever sweetener isn’t banned”. 

I was referring to the original Diet Rite; I have not had any for a very long time.

[Hroth]

1 hour ago, J. S. Bach said:

You might just change your mind after trying a Diet Rite! It is still made; it was around before the onslaught of most diet sodas being introduced in 1955.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diet_Rite

 

I read the first sentence of the "History" paragraph as "initially released as a diuretic product", which struck me as being particularly apt...

 

[newbryford]

Exploding hippo anyone?

 

https://fb.watch/p_7sQdK0kv/

[Happy Hippo]

That was Uncle Casper:

 

He always hated Hyenas.