Early Risers.

[BoD]

Glad to hear that Peter seems no worse for wear but it doesn't sound a very pleasant experience at all.

 

I remember when a couple of us cycled the Yorkshire Dales Cycleway and a bee or wasp flew partly into my mouth and stung my lip. Not a nice experience when you are cycling along. Fortunately I didn't have any adverse reaction although my lip felt numb and swollen for a while.

 

Don't worry though, I bit the little b#####s head off.

[Horsetan]

It is not going to be worthwhile dying. 

 

Believe me, it's very much squeaky-bum time here. HMRC's IHT department is the bottleneck for everyone because until they've rendered you a bill, or corrected your assessment, you can't actually apply for Probate or a Grant of Letters of Administration. So, as we count down to the end of this month, if they don't get round to your submission in time, you could be facing a much bigger Probate fee. I can see loads of complaints already.

[shortliner]

FOR CHRISF - Saw you post about problem with google maps - This will solve the problem - it is an older version, as from v5.4 onwards the program became payware , but it works quite happily with newer versions of Windows Just download and install. Run it and then pick what you want to use, ie Google maps, and when you are ready capture the screen area you want use. The instructions should tell you how to reload the grab to wherever you want. http://www.oldapps.com/fast_stone_capture.php?old_fscapture=17. I think it is the best screen-grabbing software there is.

Edited April 20, 2017 by shortliner

[shortliner]

We recently had a small discussion (which I can't find) about a locked Bosch drill chuck and a tool called a "Boa Constrictor" - FWIW in ALDI this morning I saw a section containing kitchen tools, which amongst others had a small (could have been intended for undoing a Drill chuck) rubber strap tool for undoing jar lids. It is made by Crofton and called a "Jar Opener" - price £1.99 Every tool box needs one at that price!

Edited April 20, 2017 by shortliner

[Ohmisterporter]

Just had a tooth cusp broken off whilst scrolling through the General Election topic. There can't be a connection surely? Anyway, managed to book an urgent appointment at the dentist tomorrow. 

[New Haven Neil]

If enough of us got together could we make a litter and carry Neil up the track to the top station of Groudle Glen.

Anything to help him cheer up a bit.

 

Stick with it Neil, it must be so boring for you. You've probably tried all the things that you can do. I could send you the complete language course 'Larn yersel Geordie' if that would help.

 

 

Can't teach me much Geordie BoD, as a native!

 

If Groudle was vehicle accessible it would be OK, but the Victorians hadn't foreseen that.  Silly sods.

[Ian Abel]

Morning..sort of, and BIN day into the bargain.

 

Up ER to collect Jemma from the airport, early morning inbound arriving at 0745 <yawn>

Cockwobles galore to and from the airport as it was prime Chelsea tractor time AND it was drizzling with low clouds to boot

 

Next taxi service is in 10 minutes, Mrs to the eye doctor for annual check, means dilation and she prefers not to drive after that.

Then, I'm off at 2PM to the dentist for the "consultation" on a dental implant after the removal of the tooth late last year. Someone missed the "check back in three month", probably ME although I SWEAR they said they'd call... anyway, scheduled now, and we'll see how many of the kids I'll have to sell to get the implant done!

 

5 with mist/drizzle and haze (wonderful combination!!), expecting only 9 for the high with more persistent rain starting early afternoon.

 

Hope your BINs get serviced accordingly...

[AndyB]

We recently had a small discussion (which I can't find) about a locked Bosch drill chuck and a tool called a "Boa Constrictor" - FWIW in ALDI this morning I saw a section containing kitchen tools, which amongst others had a small (could have been intended for undoing a Drill chuck) rubber strap tool for undoing jar lids. It is made by Crofton and called a "Jar Opener" - price £1.99 Every tool box needs one at that price!

 

That'd be my Bosch, and as I'm heading to Aldi a bit later...

[Happy Hippo]

Can I ask a question, please, and not get nutted by 'er?

As I've said before, asking questions on the other threads can be a frustrating business, with answers like 'Well, I've got one that cost a million pounds snel to a small sheet to use as a loco footplate in one case, and the basis for a coach on another. I've really struggled, partly due to arthritis (holding down is tricky) and largely because I don't seem to be able to get enough heat into the joint to properly flow the solder. That's using a 40W Weller iron. When it comes to bigger bits I can see real problems coming up.

 

Would I be better getting a mini torch as an alternative to buying yet another iron? I'm lookie Dremel 2000-6. The benefits would seem to be a) heat and b) once pinned or clamped I'd be putting no pressure on the work.

 

Any opinions, please?

I have used a very small gas torch for work like this in the past, but you have to get the heat into the bigger bit of brass first otherwise you can end up buckling the thin sheet.

 

These days I use an RSU.

[45156]

Afternoon All

 

Supportive thoughts are sent to the three ailing ERs.  For all three, I have been there and done that, so can fully sympathise with your various issues.

 

Peter, that was some reaction to a wasp sting.  I too have a bad reaction to wasps, and also experienced a similar cycling experience when I was a lad and a wasp hit my face and stung my lower lip. 

 

Neil, I know what being immobile for twelve weeks is like, as I had the same when I broke my hip, and you wind up climbing the walls, and also for much of the day, you find yourself repeating "there's nothing on TV".  However, you appear to be in good hands with your orthopod, and hopefully will be back in the Steamplex quite soon.

 

Geoff, no doubt your dentist will promptly sort out your broken tooth - do you have NHS treatment?  I broke one a couple of weeks ago, and like you, managed to get seen within 24 hours - which practice do you go to?

 

And Andy, it is great to hear a positive post from you today, and I really hope that you enjoy the concert.  A little boost is always welcome.

 

And also a supportive thought to Rick on the final closure of Penhayle Bay, an iconic layout and one which has graced the pages of this forum, and given a lot of people a lot of pleasure, both in reality, and also in the virtual form on here.  I hope that the final closure is marked with happy memories, though they will be tinged with a little sadness.  I am sure that something will take its place once you are settled in the UK.

 

To everybody else, generic greetings are on offer, as usual.

 

Again, tasks domestic were looming, as I went to the newly tidied garage looking for something, and it was in one of the crates at the bottom of the stacks.  So I decided to rearrange them all so that the stuff that I do use is readily to hand, and doesn't need a major shifting exercise to find things like paint brushes (oh dear, that means another task, no doubt). 

 

Must say that I am now pretty cream crackered and I have a feeling that an eyelid inpection is looming.

 

Back tomorrow

Regards to All

Stewart

[Horsetan]

....To everybody else, generic greetings are on offer....

 

You're damn lucky those shyster pharmaceutical holdings companies haven't got hold of these generics, otherwise the price would have increased by about 4000%.

[45156]

You're damn lucky those shyster pharmaceutical holdings companies haven't got hold of these generics, otherwise the price would have increased by about 4000%.

Don't I know it - every time I get my medications dispensed, at least one has changed to a different brand.  My Insulin is made in Germany, and it's cheaper to import the same drug from Poland or France or Germany and to repackage it here with a British leaflet inserted and with an English language sticker on the pen, rather than supply the British version.

[Killybegs]

BoD posted:

 

I remember when a couple of us cycled the Yorkshire Dales Cycleway and a bee or wasp flew partly into my mouth and stung my lip. Not a nice experience when you are cycling along. Fortunately I didn't have any adverse reaction although my lip felt numb and swollen for a while.

 

 

You are lucky, I can go into anaphylactic shock if I get stung by a wasp. I therefore tend to get a bit paranoid if there is one buzzing around and I am afraid that they get zapped. Bee stings have no effect on me at all.

 

Don't talk to me about drug prices, you get off lightly in the UK.

Edited April 20, 2017 by Killybegs

[Donw]

Cheers DM. One of the other homeowners is doing the legal legwork on this. From what we understand the terrace was once owned by a single entity. The properties were once part of a larger estate which included several nurseries. When they were sold off, some houses included the full length which incorporated their bit of alleyway. Other properties, did not. One of the properties is even more truncated as the garage is still owned by the previous property owner. These various bits seem to have no definition with the land registry. Nobody knows who owns the bits. From what we've been told by the legal expert, after 10 years a property with no identifiable registration can be subject to adverse possession. Even if the owner(s) get identified by the process, it gives us the opportunity to deal directly with them to either obtain the land or get their buy in to improve the alley. Essentially there are 3 15' by 12' alleyway sections with no apparent ownership. There is no way they can develop or use the land for anything other than its existing purpose as we all have a written right of access covenant. The main push for this is the alleyway is deteriorating and needs repaving. There is no point of doing it in sections, leaving the 3 gaps. None of us want to spend the £ on paving someone else's land unless we have a reasonable assurance about ownership. 

 

Adverse possession requires that the land in question has been fenced off so the owner and other persons could not have accessed it for some years ( 20 years I think ). If the owner is aware of what you are doing that can be seen as giving you permission to continue but stops any claim to ownership. In your case it would seem that the ownership has effectively lapsed . We have had the situation a couple of times on the Isle of Wight the builders had created a unmade access from the main road running alongside behind a verge. The Building company had stopped trading and as the land had no commercial value and no one wanted to maintain it. The was no indication of any owner. Most of us cut the bit of verge in front of our properties and some had allowed bushes and trees to grow. I did fill in some holes with some of the material surplus from paving our drive.

The other case was in Minehead . The row of houses had been built on estate land adjoining a very old lane. The lane had become sunken over the centuries so there was a bit of a track at the top of the banks in front of the houses It was treated as a public footpath some bits could be traversed by vehicles but not all of it. Where the bank was not too high people had made driveways across to the road. This had been done at our property. While living there the council issued a letter requiring the owners to make safe the Elm trees along the bank which has become dangerous. No one new who had inherited the estate land so there was no clear owner although it seemed one person along the lane was paying an annual rent for there access to a local solicitor. I had a chat with the neighbour on one side as we both had some large dead trees in front of our property and we agreed that rather than let the council deal with it we would prefer to remove the trees and plant some Holly bushes.  When we came to sell the property we had to swear an affidavit to say that the driveway had been in use for many years and that no objection had been raised. Basically the Affidavit was in case an owner turned up and wanted to stop the access or charge for it the affidavit would be evident of an established right of way.

 

In your case I assume there has never been any block to access to  the alleyway. Is it a dead end or can it be used as a through route?. If you decide to pave it you are unlikely to lose any money as you have right of way over it. The biggest problem would be getting everyone to chip in to cover costs. Commonly in these sort of cases a low cost solution such as a load of gravel is adopted. As I type that it reminds me a third case we had in Bayston Hill nr Shrewsbury. Cross lane was very old  our wall bordering it was about 400 years old much older than the house. In fact the lane led to a field which had been an ancient British camp. The lane was unmade soon after we moved in we were asked to chip in a tenner and did so. A truck load of stone was tipped along the lane to fill in the pot holes.

Regards Don 

[Smiffy2]

Can I claim dibs on the stings?

 

Five in two days, including one on the wossnames*. Got inside my dressing gown...

 

Also one on the finger-end when I absentmindedly (alright, downright stupidly) tried to poke a wasp out of the end of the Hoover brush.

 

We had a nest in the chimney, and I was hoovering them up there were so many...

 

 

*That was the second time in my life I had experienced a testicle-related wasp incident**, the previous one being when I sat on a dozy wasp wearing said dressing gown. I also got stung on the botty when a child, but that was a bee, and when taking a trip to London Zoo I got a wasp inside my glasses and before I could get it out the sod stung me under the eye.

 

I also put on a trainer that had a hornet in it.

 

** This one did have the advantage of getting me out of a lunch with some people for whom I held scant affection, indeed the stingy boybits were the preferable option.

 

Stings? Don't ask me about stings.

 

Not to belittle your experience, Peter, I have two friends who have to carry epi-pens. I think I am either lucky or I've built up a resistance.

 

>edited not to sound quite so unfeeling towards other ERs<

Edited April 20, 2017 by Smiffy2

[Coombe Barton]

Have been to see dragons today at Caerphilly Castle

 

They're breeding, but appear to be slightly different species.

 

Edited April 20, 2017 by Coombe Barton

[AndyID]

Have been to see dragons today at Caerphilly Castle

They're beeeding, but appear to be slightly different species.

IMG_1265.JPG

Looks like they've been carping all over the walls.

[tractionman]

Have been to see dragons today at Caerphilly Castle

They're beeeding, but appear to be slightly different species.

IMG_1265.JPG

Think I prefer my Welsh dragons to look more like this

 

 

 

 

Cheers,

 

Keith

[Purley Oaks]

It also depends where in Edinburgh you might be heading whether it is in walking distance or you need a taxi.

 

 

If visiting Edinburgh May I recommend the hugely subsidised by the local population, tram and bus system. The trams run from the airport past Waverley station and many other places, an all day ticket for the trams AND buses only costs £4.

http://edinburghtrams.com/tickets/ticket-options

Spot-on about the superb bus service we have here. I expect that some of you unwittingly subsidize it :-)) But from the airport the tram is £5 single, or £8 open return. The Airlink bus is £4.50 single, or £7.50 open return. You can catch ordinary LRT buses from the airport but be prepared for a long trip.

 

Morning.  Not much to report.

 

Suspect I'm teetering on the edge of black-dogness.  Really fed up with no mojo, and can't get up and about to do much about it.  My GP writing another month sicknote without so much as blinking possibly to blame. Another 2 weeks until next hospital appointment/progress report and possibly beginning some weight bearing and thus some mobility without a zimmer frame and hopping.  If only I could drive it would help, but it's my left foot and all our 4 wheel vehicles are manual transmission.  Bum.

Difficult, I know, but hope you can manage things for just a bit more, Neil, until the rehab starts. Never easy being tied down.

 

Can I claim dibs on the stings?

 

Five in two days, including one on the wossnames*. Got inside my dressing gown...

 

And comiserations to Peter for his wasp sting and to Dick for his 5, especially the one on his whassisnames. Around 20 years ago Gabe was bitten by a horsefly on her leg at Brownsea Island, Poole Harbour. Seemed OK, but in 5 days her leg had swollen hugely, was very red, she couldn't walk, and it was very sore to the touch. Doc prescribed anti-biotics but it took a week or so to subside.

 

Pleasant day here today, lots of sunshine but still a chilly wind.

 

Have a good evening

 

Mal

[Horsetan]

I get stung every time I pay the fee to renew my Practising Certificate.

[Purley Oaks]

Just 10 days left to the end of the month, at which point the Probate fees go up noticeably. Not having heard anything from HMRC since my IHT submission went in last month, I picked up the telephone and hung on their famous endless loop for about 30 minutes before managing to speak to someone. Turns out that the entire world and his wife have been trying to beat the Probate fees rise, and HMRC are struggling to keep up with the IHT submissions coming in. So, if you thought you had done it in good time by submitting last month (as I did), apparently that's not enough because they're only just getting the forms scanned onto the system now!!

 

One bright spot is that the officer offered to take a copy set by fax and deal with it personally, so there might still be hope.......

 

Remember: Probate fee now: £155 (solicitor applications). Probate fee after 1st May: £4000 (in this Estate). 

In Scotland there is a slightly different process - the executor applies to the Sheriff Court for a Note of Confirmation.

 

Don't want to stir things too much, but why not, eh? Here are the up to date fees here... for the time being

 

Receiving and examining inventory, value of estate not exceeding:

£50,000 - No fee

£50,000.01 to £250,000 - £250

Exceeding £250,000 - £500

 

So quite some difference.

 

Mal

[grandadbob]

I was stung by a bee when I was 4 or 5 years old. I was trying to stab it with a penknife at the time...........

[grandadbob]

...... also got stung near Goole  the goolies when a wasp flew up my swimming shorts whilst playing cricket on a beach in Cornwall.

I've been stung a few times over the years, luckily with no ill effects. However I can assure you that I learnt from my childhood error and no longer attack them with sharp implements. 

 

I've found a rolled up newspaper works better.

[grandadbob]

I was playing cricket at the time, not the wasp.

[Horsetan]

Sting is otherwise a very good artist though

 

 

He's a pretentious, demanding snob in real life - my alcohack partner had to suffer him when his son was enrolled in my old school, and she has never forgotten how Mr. Sumner was forever demanding special treatment or special privileges.