Early Risers.

[chrisf]

Good morning one and all

 

What was heading to be a decent night's sleep was interrupted circa 2 am by a coughing fit and that was it.  Oh well, I shall have to take a rest later in the day.  By coincidence Nick Robinson is talking on the radio about interrupted sleep right now and I give thanks that I do not present Today.  So, I imagine, do its listeners.

 

There was precious little of the morning left by the time the gasman came yesterday.  For once I used the time productively and finished the article that has consumed quite a lot of brain power over the last week and a half.  With some misgivings I e-mailed it to the editor, who to my surprise was pleased with it.  Cue sigh of relief at this end.  Latter I watched the first episode of Yes Minister, made more than half a lifetime ago, only to learn later in the day that one of its creators has passed away.  RIP Sir Antony Jay.

 

Today I need to do some juggling at the bank before my next visit to the VW dealership who will be wanting some dosh from me.  In between I need to load the car for tomorrow's expedition to Stevenage to visit Poorly Pal.  Note to self: take the flame red chilli out of the pack of vegetables because there will be sufficient of that commodity in the sauce.  There is also more ironing.  There always is.

 

Best wishes to the ailing, recovering, supporting, grieving, missing and depressed.  Today we also think once more of the dripping because it is humid, already.  Too early even for an ER.

 

Chris

[emt_911]

Morning all. Another bright sunny day which is forecast to be too hot.

 

Local work only today which suits me and hopefully an early finish.

 

Have a good day everyone

[NGT6 1315]

Mawnin' awl. Bright and sunny, and a few errands to run before my shift. By the way:

 

https://www.facebook.com/DopravniPodnikMestaBrna/videos/1347312185296694/?pnref=story

 

I could have sworn this video had been filmed right here rather than in Brno, because, yes, that is very much the way too many motorists here behave…

[roundhouse]

Mawnin' awl. Bright and sunny, and a few errands to run before my shift. By the way:

 

https://www.facebook.com/DopravniPodnikMestaBrna/videos/1347312185296694/?pnref=story

 

I could have sworn this video had been filmed right here rather than in Brno, because, yes, that is very much the way too many motorists here behave…

I love the four track section outside Brno station. Must go back in the near future.

 

Train a little slow this morning. Plenty of seats spare as we approach Purley but we have a very loud woman walking around the door area who really doesn't need a phone to talk to her friend.apparently she was most upset not being able to get a Foster a Gold in Lidl last night!!

[Donw]

Morning all. The building inspector visited yesterday. Fortunately she was quite happy with how things were being done and will accept a lower level of insulation than the regs specified as it would cause too much extra work and disruption otherwise. 

 

Don

[AndyID]

Two Rs in 'berr', Andy. I always knew it as 'The' Feegie Park, but I will defer to a Buddy. 

 

IIRC the definite article was implied and unspoken as in, "Dinna mess wi' him. He's frae Feegie."

 

Lorna was a Health Visitor and attended infants in Feegie (for those who have no idea what we are on about, Ferguslie Park was a notorious area in Paisley). Nobody ever messed with her, or her car.

[grandadbob]

Good morning all,

I was doing quite well with the summerhouse/shed tidying. I was adding some wooden battens to one of those cheap plastic storage benches and managed to pierce my finger with quite a sharp self tapping screw. No pain, lots of blood. Why do sticking plaster manufacturers make them so difficult to open? Everything that should be back is now back, I have left the sunlougers out as they need to be power washed. It isn't going to rain unfortunately.
Tony

 

Welcome to my world Tony. 

 

The sun is shining and it is already very warm. No gardening was done yesterday because of the heat (I negotiated well there) and a repeat prescription has been ordered for today.

This means that I may well venture back to the railway room to do a bit more.

Have a good one,

Bob.

[Barry O]

Another day of eating, drinking and lazing around beckons but her indoors wants to go on the cable car up the mountain. As an engineer me and cable cars don't mix.

 

Italian buffet very nice last night. A post meal work got us back in time to sea the Porto Santo ferry returning. I will try and get a photo of it as it passes and NE night but it seems to be going at a fair old lick.

 

Enjoy your day/ evening all.

 

Rick, I noticed that in NZ they are actively reducing possum numbers to protect local birds etc.

 

Baz

[Tony_S]

Morning all.

It is supposed to be warm here today. My task is to wash plastic garden chairs which doesn't sound too onerous. We will be going to Southend this evening. Originally Matthew wanted to go to Chinatown to have a birthday celebration meal but thought travelling round London in 30C temperatures wouldn't be fun so we will go to a restaurant he chose near Southend station. Southern USA food allegedly.

Tony

[AndrewC]

Morning all from the boring borough. The extent of the wildlife here are the neighbourhood cats, a few rather mangy looking foxes, and a badger or 2 down by the railway. The birds are no more exciting with mostly pigeons, starlings, and the ever present Bexley parakeets.

 

Like PH, we used to live on the edge of the city with nothing but wilderness just a few hundred metres away. Black bears, grizzlies, moose, elk, deer, lynx, cougars, and a few billion gophers were our neighbours. Deer were the worst as they kept getting into the garden and ripping up anything they suspected as being edible. Nothing quite like waking up and seeing a full sized moose in your front garden either.

 

Have a great day all. another hot one.

[28XX]

This sounds a bit worrying to me it could be the meter has been incorrectly read in the past and this is causing the problem. I would advise getting someone to check a) what the true readings are now and b) the meter is running the correct way when a load is applied (put a kettle on) If it was me I would put a set load such as an electric fire or an immersion heater and then see how much is used over a set time (other devices all off) e.g 3KW load for 2mins =0.1KWhrs i.e one of the red units. My reasons for doing that is the Electricity company may take the meter away as suspected faulty and you would not know if the had been an incorrect reading previously.

Don

Thanks Don. I've read the meter myself and it looks like the most significant digit has failed to step on so it went from 59999 to 50000 rather than 60000. Photo taken and emailed to SSE. I will keep ERs informed.

[2ManySpams]

Morning all

 

Trying not to get too excited today. I was bought a flight experience for my birthday in 2014, long story short, we're now on attempt 6 in two years to make it so. Weather is good, wind is light, no fog, runway not waterlogged. So the only issues left are the absence of a pilot and mechanical.

 

So, if all goes to plan, around midday I should be flying over the Ashbourne area in one of these:

 

 

Fingers crossed.

[DDolfelin]

 

Like PH, we used to live on the edge of the city with nothing but wilderness just a few hundred metres away. Black bears, grizzlies, moose, elk, deer, lynx, cougars, and a few billion gophers were our neighbours. Deer were the worst as they kept getting into the garden and ripping up anything they suspected as being edible. Nothing quite like waking up and seeing a full sized moose in your front garden either.

 

More going on in Bexley than I thought.

[roundhouse]

It was meet the managers at LBG this morning.

 

I felt like doing a few hand signals to them but decided just not worth bothering with them at all as I would just loose my cool with them (on a very hot morning) with all the still on going cancellations etc.

 

At least this morning our train was OK but the following Vic train form Redhill was down form 12 to 4 coaches due to lack of serviceable stock and this is in the reduced timetable aswell.

 

Just ordered a desk fan and a load of ice creams form Amazon Prime Now so should be here by lunchtime.

 

Not quite sure whats happened with my order from Hattons mid last week. Still no sign of it being dispatched despite confirmation of the order.

[Smiffy2]

Morning everybody.

Breakfast in the garden, interrupted by birds in the bird-cherry. Pigeons, parrakeets and a magpie. Song birds have disappeared, so the new bird feeders were a waste, except they really do deter squirrels and pigeons. They also deter bluetits, finches and sparrows.

 

Not much planned for today. #3 son is borrowing my car for 10 days to take the family to France, so need to check levels and pressures, and Julie insists I fill the tank.

 

Then some more Monty.

 

Tony, I agree 100% about plasters!

 

Have a nice day, all. Best wishes from the Rive Gauche.

[AndrewC]

More going on in Bexley than I thought.

 

Naa, that was back in Calgary. Nothing as exciting here. Although there are a few albino moose to be seen coming out of the Nag's Head around 11pm of an evening.

 

It was meet the managers at LBG this morning.

 

I felt like doing a few hand signals to them but decided just not worth bothering with them at all as I would just loose my cool with them (on a very hot morning) with all the still on going cancellations etc.

 

At least this morning our train was OK but the following Vic train form Redhill was down form 12 to 4 coaches due to lack of serviceable stock and this is in the reduced timetable aswell.

 

Just ordered a desk fan and a load of ice creams form Amazon Prime Now so should be here by lunchtime.

 

Not quite sure whats happened with my order from Hattons mid last week. Still no sign of it being dispatched despite confirmation of the order.

I'm surprised there aren't full on airport style security operations happening there to protect the hoofw*nking bunglec*nts from armed attack. I'd be wanting to greet them with a small thermo nuclear device.

[jamie92208]

Morning all from a nice sunny village. Fortunately there's not a lot of 4 legged wildlife round here apart from squirrels (grey) and foxes. However as the former village bobby I can testify that there are various forms of 2 legged wildlife, much of which ought to be classified as vermin.

 

Not a lot else to report here apt from the fact that the cats and I have got the house to ourselves as the boss set off early for a weightwatchers class in Leeds that she helps at. I'm off to the chapel to do some more work on the layout shortly.

 

Regards to all and thoughts with Dom on his first shift back, and Rick as they ponder a potential new life over here.

 

Jamie

[roundhouse]

Naa, that was back in Calgary. Nothing as exciting here. Although there are a few albino moose to be seen coming out of the Nag's Head around 11pm of an evening.

 

I'm surprised there aren't full on airport style security operations happening there to protect the hoofw*nking bunglec*nts from armed attack. I'd be wanting to greet them with a small thermo nuclear device.

There were quite a few police about after a passenger got irate with the Southern managers at Vic last month.

 

Apparently Southern are losing 36 4 car units in September despite a rolling stock shortage and the new Thameslink units being late delivery so problems likely to get worse for a while.

 

More of Dafts undoing than GTR in this instance

Edited August 24, 2016 by roundhouse

[PhilJ W]

Nice trivia question:

 

-"Name all European capital cities that don't have a railway station"-

 

Answers (don't peek!)

1. San Marino
2. Andorra
3. Vaduz

Liechtenstein does have railways, but no station in their capital! Monaco does have a station.

(select text to reveal)

 

Ian has already given us Vadez, the other two are Valletta and Nicosia. Vadez is the only one that has never been rail served. (And I didn't peek.)

[Oldddudders]

Ian has already given us Vadez, the other two are Valletta and Nicosia. Vadez is the only one that has never been rail served. (And I didn't peek.)

I think he meant mainland Europe.

[The Stationmaster]

Morning all,

 

More of that yellow thing up in the sky.  Terrible earthquake in Italy and judging by the map on USGS I think we are yet to hear very much from the worst hit towns and villages especially as the second large (magnitude 5.5 'quake) was near a town from which little is yet being reported - alas one of the hazards of living in a mountainous earthquake prone area.

 

Laddo has swiped a pasty for his lunch which in theory leaves two - so one each for the Good Doctor and myself.

 

Have a good day one & all

[lightengine]

We have a hedgehog, a cat and several types of birds in our garden. I think I once saw a bearded tit. But it may have been the neighbour.

 

Sunnyish day here in sunny Teignmouth today.

[grandadbob]

 I think I once saw a bearded tit. But it may have been the neighbour.

 

 

It seems his brother has migrated to a house a few doors away from me.

[Tony_S]

I think he meant mainland Europe.

I just asked Matthew and he mentioned Valletta. There are some of us who live on islands who still think we are part of Europe. Edited August 24, 2016 by Tony_S

[PhilJ W]

Morning all from Estuary-Land. Looks as if its going to be a scorcher today, 34C. predicted so I wont be doing very much. Be back later.