Early Risers.

[Horsetan]

 

Ivan - more chaos. Probate fee rise scrapped

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-39663204

  I think Ivan will be pleased as it may not be re-introduced.

You know how they say that 24 hours is a long time in politics? Well, phew! That was close!!!

[New Haven Neil]

Morning.  Black dog reduced to a golden retriever today.

 

Breezy out, but bright, the Road Locomotive cavalcade has a revised route today due to not making the progress they had planned yesterday.  Local feelings bad towards it as it created a 300 car tailback, as the other (the main) route up the east side of the rock is closed also for pre-TT work.  Planning?  No.......not big on that here.

[Coombe Barton]

I think Ivan will be pleased as it may not be re-introduced.

Don

I can imagine the people st HMRC - "oh,FFS"

[Horsetan]

I can imagine the people at HMRC - "oh,FFS"

HMRC called me just now to confirm they had finished processing my submission and are about to post the bill to me. The officer admitted they were some way behind because of the rush to beat the Probate fees increase, but they hadn't officially been told that the increase had been scrapped.

[PhilJ W]

Morning all from Estuary-Land. AndrewC, My inclination would be to fit the gate to the alley but withold the key from the buy to let landlord until he coughs up his share of the cost. The council cut back the very overgrown shrubbery at the side of my property a few weeks ago meaning that I could inspect the outside of my shed, and not before time. A close look revealed that the pointing was crumbling so another job to do soon, as by about August the shrubbery will be rampant again. Does anyone know any wood turners? I have a chunk of elm four foot by one foot and one inch thick that is free to a good home. In fact it was a 1970's coffee table that lost its legs but I'll have nowhere to keep it when I've finished the shed. Thats it for now, be back later.

[PhilJ W]

HMRC called me just now to confirm they had finished processing my submission and are about to post the bill to me. The officer admitted they were some way behind because of the rush to beat the Probate fees increase, but they hadn't officially been told that the increase had been scrapped.

Having spent 30 years dealing with HMRC (and its predecessors) I am not surprised. Those at the sharp end were always the last to be told about such things.

[The Stationmaster]

Morning all,

 

The Good Doctor is safely ensconced in Oslo for a short visit, laddo is off to Serbia next week for a few days and the memsahib and I are at home due to them being away but will be having a celebratory '40 years on' theatre visit on Sunday although the by then returned GD won't be joining us.  

 

In the meanwhile we've had a visit today from 'Total Pest' (yes, that's really what they're called) to hopefully deal with a newly discovered rat in the back yard and other thrilling events include herself off for a haircut and me off at some time later today to see the chiropractor - another exciting day in the Thames Valley!

 

Have a good day one and all.

[BoD]

I have just ran a couple of locos over all the track and pointwork at the end of the station that I have just finished laying and wiring. It all ran perfectly first time. Not even any frog polarity wires to swap round. I usually get at least one pair of those reversed. Result!!

 

Here endeth the railway bit.

 

While the cat's away............

[BlackRat]

I was once told .......if you want to know who owns a piece of land.......to start digging it up!

[TheQ]

There is a road in a town near me where the owners / rents will come charging out if someone starts digging in the pavement / road..

 

The building  cellars project well forward of the building frontages!!! 

[Horsetan]

There is a road in a town near me where the owners / rents will come charging out if someone starts digging in the pavement / road..

 

The building  cellars project well forward of the building frontages!!! 

 

In that case, the utility contractors, etc. should seek to dig as often as possible......

[Tony_S]

Just overheard Aditi talking to Robbie prior to walkies.

"Come on, we are going through the back door... but we will open it first. "

Obviously an attempt to prevent any silly comments from me.

[Donw]

I can only recall being stung by a wasp once, that was when I was on rescue boat duty at the sailing club. It being a very hot day I had taken a glass (plastic) of orange squash out with me, as I was pootling along following the junior fleet, one hand on the wheel, I picked up the glass and got stung on the inside of my lower lip , very painful and very numb for the rest of the day.

 

 I've three times had to use wasp killer foam spray, once in the ceiling of an old thatched cottage I used to rent, once in an old apple tree in our garden, and once in the ceiling of the mobile home in the same garden. In all occasions it was spray, and then leg it as those wasps not at home at time came to investigate...

 

I've never had much problem with bees, But then My grandfather used to keep bees in hives alongside the railway track he looked after, they didn't sting him and he didn't need the full gear to attend to them...Just the hat and veil

 

You haven't mentioned the most important protective item, the smoker, a whif of smoke the bees feed up on honey in case its a fire and become quite mellow and placid.

 

Don

[Donw]

Morning all from Estuary-Land. AndrewC, My inclination would be to fit the gate to the alley but withold the key from the buy to let landlord until he coughs up his share of the cost. The council cut back the very overgrown shrubbery at the side of my property a few weeks ago meaning that I could inspect the outside of my shed, and not before time. A close look revealed that the pointing was crumbling so another job to do soon, as by about August the shrubbery will be rampant again. Does anyone know any wood turners? I have a chunk of elm four foot by one foot and one inch thick that is free to a good home. In fact it was a 1970's coffee table that lost its legs but I'll have nowhere to keep it when I've finished the shed. Thats it for now, be back later.

 

Not very practical if the tennents in the buy to let have a right to use the alley as part of their tenancy there could be a lot of trouble and a potential for whoever commissioned the lock to be sued for loss of rental income. Even if the tennents dont use the Alley any of the people who have the right of access could issue a demand to exercise their right. Unless their deeds state an obligation to contribute to the upkeep of the alley there is little that can be done. Also unless the gate is self closing I can see a problem with people leaving it open. If the group wishing to fit the gate could aquire ownership of the land it becomes much easier.

 

Don

[Donw]

GDB the best advice I can offer is to join a model railway club were you to come to ours you would be given help and advice encouraged to do simple things to start with and probably someone would help with tasks beyond your abilities.

 

Don

[Horsetan]

.....the tennents in the buy to let ....

 

If there are a lot of them would they be "Tennents Extra"?

[TheQ]

If there are a lot of them would they be "Tennents Extra"?

Are you bringing things back to this?

 

http://www.scotlandnow.dailyrecord.co.uk/lifestyle/pictures-you-remember-tennents-lager-3499111

[bluebottle]

I have just ran a couple of locos over all the track and pointwork at the end of the station that I have just finished laying and wiring. It all ran perfectly first time. Not even any frog polarity wires to swap round. I usually get at least one pair of those reversed. Result!!

 

Here endeth the railway bit.

 

While the cat's away............

 

The first time I made up a pair of DG couplings and tested them, they worked perfectly. Not my usual kind of result. I went to tell Liz about my success, and she said, calmly, "I know, I heard you say "YESS!!"

[The Stationmaster]

I was once told .......if you want to know who owns a piece of land.......to start digging it up!

 

I knew a builder who used to apply that principle to establishing if buried electric cables were live - he's retired now (yes - he reached retirement age)

[grandadbob]

GDB the best advice I can offer is to join a model railway club were you to come to ours you would be given help and advice encouraged to do simple things to start with and probably someone would help with tasks beyond your abilities.

 

Don

 

Thanks Don, you're probably right but I'm not really a club type person. RMweb is the nearest I'll get to it.

[Happy Hippo]

It was up early this morning for a walk with granddaughter Eira, so that the rest of the family could have a bit of a lie in.

 

She is a great fan of Bees, and it is obviously her favourite creature with a Dook (Duck) coming a close second.

 

After that it was back up to Telford from Margam, where we'd had a mini family gathering which consisted of a trip to St Fagans and a meal in the evening.

 

En route, being stuck in a queue of traffic caused by a slow moving LGV I decided to miss out the by pass and drive through Bronllys village, only to have the mother of all cockwombles decide to pull out in from of me in his Octavia estate towing a ginormous caravan.

 

All I will say is that it took nearly 5 minutes to get through Bronllys with it's various traffic calming methods, and then further progress towards Three Cocks on the nsl rated A road was made at an average speed of 30 mph!

 

We finally got passed him and his monstrosity just east of Glasbury.

 

I can only presume he was a very experienced caravanner to be able to inflict so much misery on other road users:  The queue behind us was stretching as far as the eye could see.  I presume even the farmers with their tractor and trailer combos were fuming.

 

This afternoon will now be spent packing for tomorrow's trip to Church Stretton.

Edited April 21, 2017 by Happy Hippo

[BSW01]

Afternoon everyone

 

I managed to get the 4 sites that I'd planned to visit all completed by the morning. I had quite a nice drive around the hills of east Lancashire, driving through a couple of places that I'd not been to before. Then it was back home via the butchers, where I collected our usual weekly meat shop, plus a couple of pasties. Then it was home for lunch at home with Sheila, so POETS day was definitely achieved.

 

I've never been stung by a wasp as far as I can remember, I'm sure I'd remember if I had, but I have come very close on several occasions, luckily I won each time. However, once when I was working on a house, fitting new bathroom lights, I opened the trap-door to gain access to the loft area and noticed a lot of wasps flying about, then I saw the nest! It was about the size of a small dustbin. Needless to say, I quickly shut the trap-door, informed the owner of what I'd seen and said I'll return to complete the work once the nest has been removed. I returned to finish the work a week later.

[Smiffy2]

Just got back with Daisy after the school run, and there's a letter on the mat.

My excellent friend and neighbour in France, Claude Baglin, has been killed in an accident.

 

Tragic. He was 61 and about to retire. I shall miss him greatly.

[TheQ]

Just back from work, the earlier mentioned​ piece of equipment that was drifting has given me more work, I've been given the task of writing some software to monitor it....

 

For some reason the Norwich boundary road was snarled up more than normal.

Once i got to screwfix, there was a DJ on the radio announcing the next record, i was in, ordered, collected and paid for the item before that record had finished. In fact the non moving traffic kindly let me across two lanes and in to turn right before it finished. That didn't help crawling along in the traffic, but got me back quicker than expected.

 

The traffic was nose to tail till within ten miles of home, partly caused by a 4 wheel electric disabled vehicle with number plate, crawling along at 8 mph and also there were a lot of mamils about puffing away.

[BoD]

Sorry to hear about your friend Dick.

It always seems so unfair when someone is taken suddenly, especially when they are looking forward to something like enjoying retirement.

 

My thoughts are with you and his family.