Early Risers.

[emt_911]

Night all

[BSW01]

Good evening everyone

 

Most of the day has been spent inspecting my eye lids. Although as its Friday the grandkids came round which really cheered me up, they were very well behaved too.

 

I've been dosing myself up on LEMSIPS all day, so now I'm off to bed.

 

Goodnight all

[newbryford]

Cheshire to Peterborough via Lancashire today.

Layout set up and ready to to roll.

Fed, watered and entertained courtesy of the Fenchurch SP gang.

Come and say hello at stand 50.

 

Cheers

Mick

[southern42]

 ' Night all and nos da.

[PhilJ W]

I hope to be at Peterborough tomorrow so I'd better get to bed, goodnight all.

[Horsetan]

..... My neighbour has original and current Fiat 500s. The new one looks quite large compared to original.

All the newer generations are more corpulent than the originals. Obesity doesn't affect only humans. Oddly enough, the last time I can remember a new generation came out physically smaller than its predecessor, it was the 1998 Merc S-class which was considerably less bulky than the one it replaced.

 

Today's Mini is more of a Maxi, and probably just as ugly. I once drove a New Beetle (same floorpan as Golf Mk.4 and Audi A3) and found it unnerving - the base of the windscreen was so far away that I couldn't see the front corners of the car.

[Kelly]

All the newer generations are more corpulent than the originals. Obesity doesn't affect only humans. Oddly enough, the last time I can remember a new generation came out physically smaller than its predecessor, it was the 1998 Merc S-class which was considerably less bulky than the one it replaced.

 

Today's Mini is more of a Maxi, and probably just as ugly. I once drove a New Beetle (same floorpan as Golf Mk.4 and Audi A3) and found it unnerving - the base of the windscreen was so far away that I couldn't see the front corners of the car.

 

Back in the 70s a Escort was about the size a Fiesta (and the Fiesta of the time closer to the current generation of Ka) is approaching, and considered a family car, which would be the Focus these days probably.

 

The biggest difference really has been down to different thinking on safety, rather than a big solid box, we now have cars that crumple and lob the engine underneath the car out of the way and extra room around each occupant for airbags and other things as well as the extra leg room as a result in most (but not all) cases.

 

All of the 'new' old classics are really just a custom body on top of a standard car (like the Beetle using the common chassis for a Golf, of the Mini using a common chassis with probably the BMW 1xx series).

[Tony_S]

Morning all.

Dark outside. No idea of current climatic conditions.

Today I shall be mainly collecting trousers I have ordered online from a nearby M&S. That should be all the shopping I need for our next holiday. I am sure I have everything else required already.

Tony

[chrisf]

Good morning one and all

 

I had a brief encounter with Mrs Electric Chair yesterday, introducing her to the new car which is sometimes parked across her drive entrance from sheer necessity.  She is very good about it and far more concerned that the students who live a few doors along each have a car, making the parking problem even worse.  The other day, it seems, she fell into her garden pond.  Fortunately she was not riding the electric chair at the time.  Mrs EC is nearly 90 and really does not look it.  I told her about another friend, Andrew, who has his right arm in a sling.  He fell off a space hopper and dislocated his shoulder.  Surgery will be needed.  Andrew is a morris dancer and old enough to know better.  Ah, that came out wrong.  Andrew should have known better than to climb aboard the space hopper, for what could possibly be wrong with being a morris dancer?  Think carefully before you reply.

 

When my mate Mike retired earlier this year his workmates bought him a day of brewing experience.  He spent a happy day in the new brewpub in Bedford High Street slaving over a hot mash tun and came away with a keg to consume before November.  Yesterday he invited me to sample it.  Getting it out of the keg into glasses was perhaps a bit more difficult than the makers intended, turning plastic taps and valves that were resistant to being turned, but the result was worth it.  We supped and sipped and reminisced over some gems from his record collection until it was time for me to go and him to make dinner.

 

I got a bit het up earlier in the day over a printing error.  In a report of a recent meeting I wrote "Teesside", which is correct.  In print it has become "Teeside", which is wrong.  How do things like this happen in the age of copy and paste?  Oh well, there are more important things to concern us.  Elsewhere on this forum someone thinks I am boring.  I beg to differ!

 

Enough, you cry.  Tomorrow I visit the Peterborough show so good luck to all inmates on duty there.  Now, best wishes to all travellers [but not necessarily the bevy of cyclists who infest the A1 early on Sunday mornings] and to the ailing, recovering, supporting, grieving, missing and depressed.

 

Chris

 

Stop press - The announcerene on Radio 4 has just said that Clare Balding wrote a poem on the train.  I do hope the guard did not make her wash it off again. 

[JohnDMJ]

Good morning all!

 

Per comment above, it is still dark outside, so have no idea what the current precipitation rate is.

 

Good morning one and all

 

Enough, you cry.  Tomorrow I visit the Peterborough show so good luck to all inmates on duty there.

 

Chris

 

Stop press - The announcerene on Radio 4 has just said that Clare Balding wrote a poem on the train.  I do hope the guard did not make her wash it off again. 

 

Enjoy Peterborough!

 

It always amuses me that in this country, we seem to adopt the Indian practice of riding ON the train; the French, however, are insistent that they ride IN the train! (Yes, I realise that our phrase is a lazy corruption of 'on board'!)

[grandadbob]

Good morning all,

The day should start bright with sunny spells followed by cloud and possibly heavy rain. As I will be inside most of the day that doesn't worry me.

It's "Action stations" here as we have a host of visitors today with my children, grandchildren, sister & hubby, niece & nephew and their offspring and partners all expected. Could be 16 -20 if they all turn up. (Nephew just out of hospital so he and partner may not get here and great niece may have to work late - she's trying to get out of it) 

The Boss is already in the kitchen and I have just been summoned to go and get the last minute bits from the supermarket.

I may return later, I may not.

Have a good one,

Bob. 

[PhilJ W]

Morning all from Estuary-Land. A quick look in as I'm also off to Peterborough today. The sparrows have farted and its looking like its going to be a fine day and the weather forecast concurs. Bye for now, be back later.

[Barry O]

Slightly damp here this morning in the North West Leeds Highlands.

 

I am off to drill some holes in baseboards to allow me to fit signal posts to our Club layout this morning.

 

Dr Eldest Herbert and her indoors are to sort his belongings prior to his return to Hull full time. This is best avoided for as long as possible.

 

Enjoy your day. Has anyone attended Rick's running session today?

 

Baz

[jamie92208]

Morning all from a Premier Inn in Queensferry. Had a goo drive up yesterday and even stopped at the old Kingmoor shed site. It looked a bit different from 50 years ago. Good meal in a pub nearly under the Forth Bridge approach viaduct and even a nice beer called Jack (something) . Off to Scotgog shortly. wifi carp so I'll post properly with some pictures tomorrow.

 

Regards to all.

 

Jamie

[roundhouse]

Train only 25 minutes late.. but Leeds Station chaos due to huge numbers of Joe Baxies with no idea of where to go...do they really all have valid licences?

 

Any roads up.. Roundhouse - it would appear I am at the Kings Arms in Borough Market on Thursday for the Annual Challenger 2 Vicker/MoD team drinking  talking  get together. The change from the WHite Hart (which was opposite the MoD in St Christopher House) is due to the landlady moving. It says it serves Harveys.. I hope its OK.

 

Currently, after a crazy day I am having a bottle of Titanic Plum Porter. Very nice and very calming.

 

Sleep well!

 

Rick, have a great Saturday!

 

Baz

Kings Arms isn't in Borough Market. The only one I know in the area is in Newcommon St off Borough High St. It's very close to our office and I often walk past it on my way to Borough Market or Sainsburys. Proper traditional pub and range of ales isn't bad but we tend to spend our time in The Rake.

[Happy Hippo]

Generally the Mondeo tends to be sold to fleet usage etc, so in more rural areas less likelihood of them turning up i'd imagine.

 

Richard's '10 plate Focus is not that much smaller than my '05 plate Mondeo, both estates, but there is a definite difference in the length/height in favour of the Mondeo. The equiv. '10 plate Mondeo is noticiably bigger than the Focus of the same year, the cars seeming to get bigger every new year launch due to extra crumple space etc and other factors.

Cars have got bigger. Compare the PH's 07 plated Golf with his ex boss's original Golf GTI Mk 1.

 

However, you'll note that although vehicles increase in length and breadth, parking spaces in car parks and garages in new build houses conform to a  long ago  decided footprint that doesn't take these changes into account.  Many people cannot park their cars into their garage because the cars simple do not fit. My mother's Citroen C3 has less than an inch each side when the door mirrors in the normal position. She literally had kittens when I reversed it into the garage, without retracting the mirrors.  It was like sliding your foot into a well oiled sea boot.  Not much space but certainly not impossible.

 

Today see the Obergrumpenfuhrer already departed for her day training guide leaders to be mentors. She has another training day tomorrow for which my manufacturing services were required in the construction of some training aids.

 

I shall shortly be departing for Margam until Monday.  I intend it to be a fairly slow trip down as there as some disused railway 'hotspots' I wish to visit en route.  I also have a planning meeting for next years shooting arranged.  I'm hoping it will be a short one, as there is little to discuss until the show timetable is issued by the organisers.

 

My mother thinks I'm visiting her, but the primary aim objective is to attend the Cardiff show tomorrow.

 

Elsa remains on guard, eyes open but snoring, whilst the PH remains, curled up in his bed not unlike a rather large maggot.

Edited October 15, 2016 by Happy Hippo

[Killybegs]

Our seven year old motorhome is Ford Transit based. While we were in Scotland an engine warning light came on. We took it to the local Ford dealer (Arnold Clark) who took the chassis number, found that there had been a 'recall' in December last year, updated the onboard software accordingly, then washed the motorhome and cleaned the carpets in the cab. How much did it cost us. Nothing! That's what I call after sales service. 

 

Photo alert. Between biking and climbing hills, we did take time to have a trip on the Jacobite. You can't beat Scotland in the sunshine.

 

[Simon G]

Morning all, I have been absent from here for a couple of weeks or so. The first week was spent on holiday in Switzerland, where we had the pleasure of extensive travelling on their travel network. Everything just simply runs well. The trains are quiet, clean and on time, the staff are polite. We bought a travel pass which proved to be a good idea, as we could use it on buses and Lake Geneva steamers as well, so we more than got our money's worth. Weather was warmer than we had been expecting, and the views were just simply fabulous.

 

Since we returned we have had a succession of visitors, so have been extremely busy for the last week. As the weather has been good, I have also been taking advantage to try to clear all the weeds from my vegetable and fruit patches. The downside of good weather in the autumn is that the weeds love it as well, and it seems that a week after I weed one part, it is full of the weeds again.

 

I haven't had the time to go back over the last 2 weeks postings, but did notice the car size debate above. I am on my third Focus after having a Mondeo many years ago. The Focus is definitely wider than the old Mondeo, as I can barely get it into my garage without having to power fold the wing mirrors, which I didn't do with the Mondeo. The estate version of the Focus is also significantly longer than the hatchback version. The new Mondeos do still look huge by comparison though.

 

After this brief posting it is back to work! AGM notices for the Railway Society need to be posted, and then it is back in the garden again.

[DDolfelin]

The Focus is definitely wider than the old Mondeo, as I can barely get it into my garage without having to power fold the wing mirrors, which I didn't do with the Mondeo. 

 

Welcome back, Simon.

How do you get out of the car in the garage?

[DDolfelin]

She literally had kittens when I reversed it into the garage, without retracting the mirrors. 

 

How do you get out of the car in the garage?

[grandadbob]

Sun roof perhaps?

[grandadbob]

Whoopee. I have been released from duty - well actually I've been told to stop getting "in the way and under my feet" so after a cup of coffee I  will shortly be heading to a layout upstairs.

[Tony_S]

Welcome back, Simon.

How do you get out of the car in the garage?

I also wondered about that and also Richard in his mother's car.

Many many years ago I had a lot of computer equipment in my car ready for an early morning start. The place of employment's insurance covered me if the vehicle was in a brick garage. However my 1980 Cortina did fit but there wasn't enough space to open the doors to exit. In those days it was just possible for me to squeeze out of the open window. Now I am less flexible and would probably get stuck.

Edited October 15, 2016 by Tony_S

[emt_911]

All this talk of cars getting bigger but nothing else changing is very familiar. I have to find the slightly oversized bays in car parks, not because I have problems parking but plenty of others seem to abandon theirs either on or over the line for the bay.

 

Several many years ago the any normal car would fit in the garage but now (although there is far too much stuff in it now) I couldn't find one that would even fit through the door.

 

Simon - Great to see you back

 

Have a good day everyone

[Tony_S]

My Freelander would easily fit in the garage of our present house except that it would have to displace my model railway.