Early Risers.

[BoD]

1 hour ago, Happy Hippo said:

One supposes that a bonus point for losing a rugby match means that there was not a damned good thrashing but just a beating.

 

 

Even a couple of bottles of Tim Taylor's Landlord whilst watching couldn't numb the pain.  Perhaps I should open another to try and erase the memory. 

[Kingzance]

1 hour ago, The Stationmaster said:

However the excursion fitted well with the remarshalling of the cars as we needed to changeover from yesterday's CPM formation to the MCP formation required for first thing tomorrow.  Tomorrow evening will see the formation alter to - assuming his ladship is on the ball when he arrives home tomorrow evening - CMP in readiness for first thing on Tuesday morning when the Oxford bound Corsa will be first out of the gate followed a bit later by the Camberley bound Mini leaving the Peugeot standing open for local trip working.  I think it's back to MCP for Wednesday morning - but it might not be depends on the Good Doctor's roster. 

No chance of a helix with ludicrously tight radii to create access to a stack? Of course I realise that it is probably only railway modellers and station car park designers who would go in for such crazy ideas.

[Judge Dread]

1 hour ago, leopardml2341 said:

Is that good or bad?

Snow should only be seen on Christmas cards says I.  Bah Humbug!

[Oldddudders]

10 hours ago, Kingzance said:

As we two-legged animals are making such a cock-up of the planet, it is not surprising that the chickens have decided to take over the world

But aren't chickens two-legged?

 

Both Sherry and I used to be dropped off near that Dorking roundabout en route skool. No cock there then, of course, although the town emblem has always been a Dorking cockerel. Sherry's best friend Liz, and my best friend Peter (d 1974, mesothelioma) were brother and sister living at 26 Deepdene Avenue, just down from the roundabout. We would each collect our friend and walk the half mile to skool in Ashcombe Road.  

[Dave Hunt]

Stafford show duly attended and several RMWs including the Muddy Hollow Gang as well as the Swad Mob and Manchester Mafia met. Quite a good show and interesting to see the significant 3mm presence with some excellent modelling. I was particularly taken with Harlyn Pier in 7mm and Heybridge Wharf in 3mm. Jill and a friend of hers came with Dad and me and although the wimmin decamped for a while in mid-show, both said that they enjoyed looking at the layouts - even though Jill still doesn't understand the difference between the scales and at one stage asked me whether one of the 3mm exhibits was the same as mine at home (I work in S7).

 

While we were away I recorded a certain rugby match and studiously avoided finding out the result. I now wish I hadn't bothered.

 

Have a quiet and peaceful night/evening/morning (delete as appropriate).

 

Dave  

[Andrew P]

2 minutes ago, Oldddudders said:

But aren't chickens two-legged?

 

Both Sherry and I used to be dropped off near that Dorking roundabout en route skool. No cock there then, of course, although the town emblem has always been a Dorking cockerel. Sherry's best friend Liz, and my best friend Peter (d 1974, mesothelioma) were brother and sister living at 26 Deepdene Avenue, just down from the roundabout. We would each collect our friend and walk the half mile to skool in Ashcombe Road.  

Hence the User Name?

[Andrew P]

1 minute ago, Dave Hunt said:

Stafford show duly attended and several RMWs including the Muddy Hollow Gang as well as the Swad Mob and Manchester Mafia met. Quite a good show and interesting to see the significant 3mm presence with some excellent modelling. I was particularly taken with Harlyn Pier in 7mm and Heybridge Wharf in 3mm. Jill and a friend of hers came with Dad and me and although the wimmin decamped for a while in mid-show, both said that they enjoyed looking at the layouts - even though Jill still doesn't understand the difference between the scales and at one stage asked me whether one of the 3mm exhibits was the same as mine at home (I work in S7).

 

While we were away I recorded a certain rugby match and studiously avoided finding out the result. I now wish I hadn't bothered.

 

Have a quiet and peaceful night/evening/morning (delete as appropriate).

 

Dave  

Good to see you today Dave, and also the Happy Hippy Hoppo,.

 

I too met many Webbers, and also many friends old and new, old and Young, and those in between.

[Happy Hippo]

9 hours ago, Kingzance said:

A benefit of downsizing and a minute roof space (ours is a one-and-a-half storey place now) is that we HAD to get rid of piles of carp. Of course there are things that we ditched that we could have saved but overall, except for SWMBO thinking everything in the garage is junk, we have now made life easier for our survivors when we fall off the perch.

When I move house it will be an upsize!

 

As for holding onto 'jonk', the usual has happened.

 

Three weeks ago I asked the Obergrumpenfuhrer is she wants any of my polystyrene packing blocks (ex fridge/freezer/etc)?

 

It was not required, so it was dispatched to pastures new.

 

Yesterday I was asked whether I had any polystyrene blocks left for an activity she was planning with the Brownies and Guides!

[Tony_S]

We had a trip out to Basildon town  centre today. Not even free parking on Sunday drew any crowds. If not for the young people skateboarding one might have thought it had been abandoned like Chernobyl. Anyway the reason for our visit was to go to Hobbycraft in search of press stud popper fasteners to repair a duvet. We had an ancient tool and fasteners but it was so brittle it broke. Hobbycraft seems to be the place to go for anyone who likes glitter based hobbies. Lots on display. The new duvet fittings worked. 
I have had a successful IT based afternoon sorting out an Android tablet for Aditi. It is one I used to use until I got my present iPad. It hasn’t been used for some time and demanded a restart password. I don’t remember it having one so I did a factory reset and then had the fun of getting Aditi to remember her Google and email passwords. She did seem impressed that everything syncs between her phone and “new” tablet. She only wants it for borrowing online stuff from Essex library service. It doesn’t work on Kindles, one of which she uses for purchased books.  
Tony

[woodenhead]

Three double gins this evening after tea, done for now.

 

My wife is a bad influence

[brianusa]

12 hours ago, Kingzance said:

Morning,

 

My wife claims to be Welsh, born of a Welsh father and an English mother. She left Wales in 1967 but still claims to be “going home” if she crosses the border from here, and that is despite none of her remaining family living in the principality. Regarding citizenship, there are certainly issues wherever you chose to reside and those who have made their homes elsewhere years ago but now find the welcome is vanishing have some sympathy from me. The grass is rarely greener on the other side - unless like my sister and her husband, you move from a dry country Greece) to a very wet one (west Ireland) . Their experience was so damp that they reversed the decision after less than two years. I wonder why some (certainly not all) choose to relocated but then remain unwilling to integrate fully into the place they have now chosen to be their home, preferring instead to create a bastion of the civilisation / culture they decided wasn’t what they wanted hence leaving in the first place? This seems to apply from local to international levels, a good example being the views expressed by Scottish friends from Glasgow who lived in our last village for decades yet endlessly championed any and every anti-English cause they could find.

 

 

A delayed response to this topic due to late rising again.

  

<<<<<<<< I wonder why some (certainly not all) choose to relocated but then remain unwilling to integrate fully into the place they have now chosen to be their home, preferring instead to create a bastion of the civilisation / culture they decided wasn’t what they wanted hence leaving in the first place? This seems to apply from local to international levels>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

 

Like Mike, we have been here for quite a while now and while we've integrated quite well over the years like driving on the correct side of the road, etc, there are a few things that we can live without.  Not being sporty inclined, I could cheerfully do without any US ball games, dislike current TV standards, it was great for a while and suddenly became Fox like and comedy deteriorated.  So we inevitably watch PBS and the BBC news.  We tend to included British food in our menu with whats available over here.

    Would we go back home?  At our ages, unlikely, although we were regular visitors until recently.  When I first flew over in a 707, it was great.  Service and food was good, seats were comfortable and passengers dressed in their best.  Nowadays, if you get up early enough to beat the traffic to get to the airport on time, you will wait three hours before your flight is called although because of the discomfort found in Economy , we flew business Business and got decent seats and food, etc.

    So sadly another trip home is a doubtful proposition and although I miss the old place I can keep in touch through the internet with my interests in railways and other hobbies.  Fortunately, we live in a nice place and have settled in over the years.  Like others, we still retain our British passport although if there is a best part of the US to live, we feel we have found it!

     Brian.

 

 

 

   

 

 

 

[Ozexpatriate]

Victory! The DVR captured the whole of the Australian Open men's final with 14 minutes to spare after match point was concluded. Just as well there were a couple of quick sets. Congrats to the champion, though I would have liked to see his competitor triumph.  The replay schedules were inconvenient given the big sporting event in the US* this Candlemas, also preempting all the customary Groundhog day blather**. 

 

* Not the Waste Management Phoenix Open golf - already the 5th PGA tour event in 2020. Next week is Pebble Beach. Time flies!

 

** Apparently Punxsutawny Phil predicts an early Spring.

 

Now it's on to a friend's in an hour or so for the Superbowl.

 

Edited February 2, 2020 by Ozexpatriate

[woodenhead]

Follow on from the gin, don't try Farm Simulator 19 - it's just ploughing fields, harvesting and planting in real time.

 

I've just ploughed a field, I think watching paint dry might be more interesting, perhaps another gin is required.

[Ozexpatriate]

3 hours ago, pH said:

And it's snowing ...

After teasing us with threats of a wintry mix or low altitude snow, (which were never going to happen on the valley floor) we have intermittent bright sunshine here.

 

At <7°C it is cooler than our record highs on Friday (~16°C) but nowhere near frozen precipitation and it hasn't rained since I surfaced this morning.

[newbryford]

Stafford exhibition - exhibited.

Deadmans Lane (and the team) performed really well - the larger storage yard was well worth the effort and expense.

 

A few ERs were spotted at various times through the weekend.

 

One appeared reasonably early on the Sunday and commented favourably that the crowd was two deep.

 

My return quip of "it's now two wide with you here" may result in future retaliatory action...............

 

 

Kn&ckered.

 

Catch up tomorrow.

 

Cheers,

Mick

 

 

[Coombe Barton]

Moving forward, I hope

 

https://johncolby.wordpress.com/2020/02/02/service-cooker-and-more-robins/

[jamie92208]

The discussion about emigrating is very interesting to me as a recent emigre. One thing I did before we left was to spend several days revisiting my youthful haunts, including looking wistfully at a certain barn near to Casterton school. I looked up and spent a day with my best friend from childhood and even revited my old school. I don't know whether I did the right thing but I can honestly  say that I've not felt homesick.  We have been welcomed warmly by our neighbours, both expat and French and feel very much part of a warm and caring community.

We've been over here about 10 days and have another 8 till we get home. I am definitely mising what is now our home. For the time being we can't even start the process of naturalisation but have done everything  we can to integrate. The dreaded B word is causing some pproblems but we don't feel threatened. In 3 years and 5 months time when we've been there 5 years we will certainly think about taking French Citizenship but at the moment have no strong feelings  either way. We will just have to see what pans out.

 

As to where do I call home it's difficult. Born in Carlisle, then 5 years in Chesterfield, 13 in the beautiful Yorkshire Dales, a gap year in London, 2 years of various colleges then 45 years in West Yorks.  My soul still gets a lift when I see the Dales or the Lake District fells.  However I feel more 'At home' in France than I ever did just south of Leeds

 

Jamie

 

Edited February 3, 2020 by jamie92208

[tetsudofan]

Although I'm some way from Stafford and don't normally venture north of the Thames did manage to visit Deadmans Lane earlier this evening......on YouTube.

 

One of the videos had quite a long look at Deadmans Lane, very impressive especially all that yellow stuff. Reminds me that I've got to pre-order some of new yellow stuff announced by the red box people.

 

Must admit that most of the shows I visit are on YouTube but there is a chance that I might venture across the river and climb up the mountainside to Ally Pally in a few weeks time.

 

Keith

[JohnDMJ]

16 minutes ago, tetsudofan said:

Although I'm some way from Stafford and don't normally venture north of the Thames did manage to visit Deadmans Lane earlier this evening......on YouTube.

 

One of the videos had quite a long look at Deadmans Lane, very impressive especially all that yellow stuff. Reminds me that I've got to pre-order some of new yellow stuff announced by the red box people.

 

Must admit that most of the shows I visit are on YouTube but there is a chance that I might venture across the river and climb up the mountainside to Ally Pally in a few weeks time.

 

Keith

Maybe join us for the meet on the Saturday?

[The Lurker]

I feel very insular compared to some on here, as in my adult life I have done a circle and ended up 25 miles or so from where I grew up  - and then found out my Grandad had lived in the same town before the war ( my Mum found his apprenticeship papers which gave Sidcup address).

 

we did spend time in Singapore when I was a child but even then my parents still live in the house they bought at the start of their married life!

 

we do quite fancy the environs of Vancouver having been there a couple of years ago, but it is way to find obstacles- my job is fairly niche, Younger Lurker’s condition, my general laziness...!

 

today was very quiet. Sport generally has not gone well this weekend and the joy of the working week hangs like a cloud.

 

anyway onwards and upwards!

[laurenceb]

Night awl

[tigerburnie]

G'night all

[BSW01]

Goodnight all 

[PhilJ W]

Evening all from Estuary-Land. I must have just missed Tony in Basildon as I went in to town to get some things from Wilko's, only to find they were out of stock. The two weights are now being put to good use straightening out a piece of MDF that was getting a bit curly. The lurgi is still a bit reluctant to go so the Lem-sip and Caledonian falling down water will be deployed soon.

[PhilJ W]

Goodnight all.