Early Risers.

[laurenceb]

Birthday greetings to Ian (OD)

Night awl

[BSW01]

Good evening everyone

 

The weather has been quite sunny, with an occasional light shower (a few minutes only), but we had some heavy rain about an hour ago.

 

The roads were very quite on the way to Colne this morning. As I expected, we ended up buying a lot more than we’d planned, but we both got what we went for, although Sheila ended also buying 3 pairs of boots too, whereas I bought myself a couple of new kitchen knives.

 

Goodnight all

[The Stationmaster]

G'night all

[AndyID]

Glad to see someone I umpired twice this year be awarded player of the match.

 

 

EA?

[chrisf]

Good morning one and all, with belated birthday greetings to Oldddudders

 

I wrote the latest bit of the 116 saga yesterday.  We are now up to 1977 and there is so much more to do but I’m determined to finish it.  I’ve no idea what happened to the morning but I must have been busy with something.  This morning I’m off to Stevenage and the shed where the layout lives to visit Poorly Pal and, I hope, do something useful to said layout in said shed.  In the evening we will visit the Hitchin chapter of the Royal Corps of Train Spotters for a talk on the LSWR in 1914. One day I may discover just what it is about pre-grouping railways that so many enthusiasts find so fascinating.  If I stir my stumps this morning I can fit in a fodder run before I hit the A1.

 

Something that should arrive tomorrow is the weekly e-newsletter from the Ram folk club at Claygate.  This is where Trio Dhoore are supposed to be playing on Friday night.  Who they?  Three brothers from Ghent who have captivated nearly everyone who has seen them play.  When they played Sidmouth a few years ago I had never heard of them but I was won over instantly.  Their distinctive sound comes from guitar, melodeon and hurdy-gurdy.  The latter instrument can sound gritty but not the way they play it.  If they do play I will be there, despite having to negotiate the M25 on a Friday afternoon! 

 

Warm thoughts to all in distress and those who are missing. 

 

Chris

[Robert]

Morning All,

 

It is a rather damp morning today.  It started raining yesterday evening, and is still raining this morning.  Not that I am complaining, we really need the rain.

 

Time for a coffee!

 

Have a good day everyone...

[TheQ]

Mooring Awl, Inner Temple Here,

5 hours sleep in bed and another couple dozing of the sofa, not too bad I suppose.

 

There was a lot about bell ringing on the local BBC news last night , because St Peter Mancroft Church Norwich, has a large peal of bells (14) and is a Bell ringing training centre. It's also the place that rang the first ever full peal of bells back in 1715. http://www.mancroftbells.co.uk/wp/

St Peter Mancroft https://www.stpetermancroft.org.uk/page/25/history is sited right in the middle of the city on the main shopping street by the market.

 

A bit chilly this morning, and fairly dark even though it was a cloudless sky..Ben the Border Collie thought it light enough to go on Patrol, even though I could hear Deer calling fairly close by.

 

The Cremated Swan pub steps to another pace forward towards reopening, as this morning all the external lights were on. I guess the security guard doesn't need his torch now.

 

Talking of lights I noticed men working on the next door factory yesterday and this morning we have a chain of lights illuminating our driveway / visitors car park. Quite why next door would want to illuminate our drive way I'm not sure.

 

Time to go measure some more Current s hunts, 10 done yesterday and there are another 14 in this set to do...

[grandadbob]

Good morning all,

A dry mild day with sunny spells is forecast. Good-oh.

Today will see me on my knees again laying flooring. They (my knees) are already protesting at the thought as are several other parts of my body. There was a time when I could graft all day without even thinking about it but not any more.  Once again we'll probably only work for about 3-4 hours as Steve has to go to work (I'm rather pleased about that) so not sure we'll finish but there's no rush, I'm told.

Have a good one,

Bob.

Edited November 13, 2018 by grandadbob

[Simon G]

Morning all, today seems dry and bright so far, unlike the often torrential rain we had yesterday. Shopping to be done, then we might get a bit of exercise and fresh air.

[Barry O]

Ey up!

Sunny outside but it must have chuckditdarn overnight as everywhere outside is wet.

Plan for today is to set up some cos using my SPROG and laptop...add in a bit of tidying up then indoor cricket umpiring tonight.

 

I am mentoring a graduate engineer at the moment. He is getting some good opportunities to develop his management skills by organising a company stand at an exhibition. I suggested he copied a photo of the stand into his Chartered Engineer portfolio, it can be hard for young engineers to gain the managerial knowledge to achieve Chartership. He has done well to get a project at his age to fulfill some of the management criteria. Good lad!

 

Have a great day everyone!

Baz

[45156]

Morning All

 

Didn't manage to get here to post yesterday - belated happy birthday Ian (if you read this), and generic greetings to everybody ailing or celebrating.

 

Not a lot to report here today.  Yesterday I went to the LASAR shop to do some PAT testing, but was asked to do some refreshing of the books and the DVDs first, so only four appliances got tested.  Hod to take 30747 to work this morning, as her lift was not forthcoming.  And she's been asked to work every day this week, which is not going to be a bundle of laughs, as she's got a very nasty cold.

 

Back tomorrow.

Regards to All

Stewart

[AndrewC]

Good morning all,

A dry mild day with sunny spells is forecast. Good-oh.

Today will see me on my knees again laying flooring. They (my knees) are already protesting at the thought as are several other parts of my body. There was a time when I could graft all day without even thinking about it but not any more.  Once again we'll probably only work for about 3-4 hours as Steve has to go to work (I'm rather pleased about that) so not sure we'll finish but there's no rush, I'm told.

Have a good one,

Bob.

Get yourself a pair of gel filled knee pads. They'll make a big difference. Been there, done that, no t-shirt, but 20m² of engineered flooring laid & I could still walk the next day. I use them when setting up or dismantling my Freemo modules as well. Without them I can't even get onto my left knee. 

 

Greetings and sanitations from the most boring of boroughs. 

 

Little of note. Bad weekend. Exhausted and an unwanted visit from a large black dog. Managed to accomplish the sum total of burger all. Yesterday I had a job interview. Went well but not sure about the position. Where I am may be a pile of fetid yak excrement but at least it has variety. This position would be doing one narrow channel of work instead. I think I'd get pretty bored within a couple of months. Oh well. Maybe the next one. Today I shall mostly be revising for a product certification exam. Waste of time as far as I'm concerned but it allows the employer to charge more for my services while not paying me any extra. Bunch of shite-weasels. If I could afford it, I'l take a 6 month leave of absence. 

 

That's about it. Coffee time. Enjoy the day. 

[grandadbob]

Thanks Andrew, I do use knee pads, wouldn't last half an hour without them. However I will investigate the gel filled variety.

Edited November 13, 2018 by grandadbob

[jamie92208]

Morning all , slightly late, from a cloudy but dy little corner of the world.   It rained a lot yesterday so I spent all the afternoon in the shed and actually spent quite a bit of time maing mainly metal objects move along parallel strips of another metal with the aid of electrickery.   Our 4 legged hous guest set off home with his owner, then in the afternoon a friend from the village came for a chat while I laboured in the shed.   Maureen lost her husband 2 years ago and one of her son's died in a car crash a year ago. However she has picked herself up and got on with life. She and Beth spent an hour or two natterring, drinking coffee and wrapping up boxes in C*******s paper. These will be hung on hedges and trees around the village. 

 

This morning my first task is to try and sort out  a parcel containing a railway related item from the USA.   It was ordered in March for delivery to our old address. and they were then asked to send it to France,   However someone didn't update the invoice details and it has been sent to our old address.   It neds a customs charge paying and for some reason seems to have escaped our redirection arrangement. I have now got to speak to the sorting office in Morley.  

 

After that it will be time to fire up the chain saw and saw up some barrel wood offcuts into the right lengths for the log burner.    Hopefully this afternoon I may be able to return to the shed for more moving of metal objects.

 

Andrew, I hope that you have some success in containing the canine.

 

Regards to all.

 

Jamie

[BSW01]

Good morning everyone

 

The sun is out, but there are a few grey clouds looming. I’ve just put a fruit tea loaf in the oven and I’m shortly off to complete the Sainsbury’s Grand Prix. If I’ve got my timing right, by the time I’ve done the shopping, put it all away and made myself a second muggertea, it should be ready to be taken out of the oven. I’ll then make a start on a cheesecake for tomorrow nights tea.

 

GDB. I can highly recommend the gel knee pads.

 

Back later

[The Stationmaster]

Morning all.  

 

Bright sunshine here and Exeter's seaweed claims it is going to last all of today's daylight hours - we shall see. I have never got on with knee pads, probably because the main cause of knee pain is the little bits of bone moving around inside one knee so I have to do a sort of weird semi-kneel or crouch to avoid putting weight onto said knee and I'm no doubt comical to watch when accessing layouts which require crawling under to gain access - just another symptom of ageing so no need to moan about it all the time.

 

We have a Tesco visit today and I shall also try to devote some time to delving out pre-war freight train movements on the B&H line for someone who has expressed an interest in connection with a layout plan - and he is the sort of chap who asks both intelligent questions and says thank t you so I'm happy to help.

 

Have a good day one and all.

[PhilJ W]

Morning all from Estuary-Land. The lurgi has almost disappeared and I'm feeling a lot better today. Those gel fiiled knee pads sound like a good idea thanks Andrew though I think in my circumstances a kneeling stool would be preferable, getting down on my knees is not a problem its getting back up again is. Thats about it for now, be back later.

[The Lurker]

Greetings all.

 

I see GDB has beaten me to a sarcy comment re Vigo. I'd found the reference on street map and everything. it's very near Trossley country park. Note the spelling of the country park is very different from that of the village that it takes its name from; Trottiscliffe. It's also near two other places which are difficult to pronounce for the uninitiated; Wrotham and Meopham.

 

Belated happy birthday to Olddudders.

 

Best wishes to those for whim the black dog is being troublesome.

 

In other news, our next door neighbours put their Christmas Tree up yesterday. Ridiculous!

[Tony_S]

Afternoon all.

We are having a lazy day. We have had a couple of meals, done our packing and I am just using up my final “free” WiFi. Aditi has just set off with her credit card and a brochure to “look” at some 2020 cruise offers involving trains and boats. I can’t be enthusiastic about something so far ahead but I am not prepared to say no!

Tony

[grandadbob]

Kneesy does it and they're still intact.  Flooring now all laid, we've just got to do the trim around the skirting and refit the door in the morning.

Joe & Gemma will be here after school so decibel levels will rise soon but only in a good way.

Cup of tea and a mince pie (or two) imminent.  

[81C]

Oh well it will soon be CHRISTMAS      I bought myself a present in the way of a Hornby Castle today  missed out when they were first sold this particular model 

it's S/H mint unused condition I'm looking forward to dumping out the old one it's replacing, HER has just gone out the door to Horrorsons to do the once weekly shop so some peace for

a while, SiL Leo is due sometime today he is teaching HER Spanish as she wants to be a smart alec when we meet Leo's parents in Cuba next year no doubt SHE will make a total @r$£

of herself again like when we first met them last year saying all the wrong words, it's bloody expensive just to pop round and say Hi but they are lovely people.

 

Happy Birthday Dudds I hope you got plenty, presents that is.   

 

Kneesy does it and they're still intact.  Flooring now all laid, we've just got to do the trim around the skirting and refit the door in the morning.

Joe & Gemma will be here after school so decibel levels will rise soon but only in a good way.

Cup of tea and a mince pie (or two) imminent.  

Well done Bob it beats sitting on the butt drinking coffee.  

[Gwiwer]

A little something I came up with in between bat-waving duties .....

 

When the service to DACHET is rat-$hit

And that towards STAINES give you pains;

When you’re reading the READING

Has left EARLEY early

And you’re bored with disruption to trains;

You refuse to be beaten

By WINDSOR & ETON

But the STRAWBERRY HILL makes you ill

When it’s cancelled again in cold wind and rain

And for living you just lose the will;

If disruption in WOOL sounds like knitting

And you’re aiming for POOLE, time permitting;

Or you HAVANT a seat

On your way down to FLEET

And aren’t GRATELEY impressed at not sitting;

When from WINNERSH TRIANGLE you just cannot wrangle

Your way up towards ISLEWORTH

But have sat on a bramble on the platform at HAMBLE

You'll know what commuting is worth;

When you’re trying to reach MARTIN'S HERON

But you know you just will not get there on

The slow train to LISS

Then you realise this

Is beyond all and everyone’s carin’;

When the CLAYGATE is closed

Or you have simply dozed

And slept all the way to THAMES DITTON

If distracted at all

With a LONGCROSS phone call

When you wanted to go to SURBITON

If you see blazing smoke

Rising from BASINGSTOKE

Or get stuck in a narrow SYON LANE

And the thought of HEDGE END

Drives you right round the bend

Or from WOKING you're told to refrain;

WORCESTER PARK in the dark

Is not such a lark;

If you know FULWELL that you can’t see

HINCHLEY WOOD for the trees on

The line there’s good reason

To abandon all hope at BOTLEY

With a tree on the line near BROOKWOOD

Your prospects are not looking good

For getting to FARNHAM

EWELL be cursing “darn ‘em - 

The wretched thing should still be stood”;

When the service to WAREHAM diverts via FAREHAM 

And you need to slip off to the bar

You can’t go uncorking a bottle at DORKING

Because you just can't get that far. 

If ASH to ASH VALE just leads to travail;

If you’re left in the dark at RAYNES PARK

When you need a tow HOOK broken down at CRANBROOK

And you’re thinking “Stuff this for a lark”

If you know CLAPHAM JUNCTION can rhyme with malfunction, 

The system’s met its WATERLOO

But still travel each day for work and for pay

Then guess what - you’re one of us too!

[Barry O]

Longcross.. once the station for FVRDE then RARDE Chertsey. Visited regularly while taking over some MoD tank related work.

 

Baz

[PhilJ W]

Afternoon all from Estuary-Land. Feeling a lot better but my appetite seems to have gone, I'm not searching that diligently for it yet as I could do with a bit of weight loss, though I am eating a little but not as much as usual. C&C's to those that require them and I hope those black dogs stay kennelled.

[Happy Hippo]

Today I went over to the monthly Borders MRC O gauge fest.

 

Ate cake and drank tea (lots of both) and then succumbed to more books for my late December tree stocking.

 

Got involved in discussion about Maine 2 footers.  My knowledge must have impressed the gentleman involved because the next thing I knew I was operating his On2 (1:48 on 0.5" gauge) display.  This was the first time I'd ever used Kadee couplers and immediately saw why many find them attractive to use.

 

I thought I'd stamped on the desires of a US based shunting plank, but.........

 

Shortliner (Jack) will be rolling in the aisles.