Early Risers.

[jamie92208]

Good afternoon,  the fire is smouldering  nicely but I still need to put some more stuff on this afternoon.  Beth has see the GP who is now giging AZ to those underv65. She advised Beth that we will get jabbed in April and that she will do it rather than trying to book at a centre.

 

As to school houses, they were Nowell, Carr, Shute, Stile, Paley and Morrison.  All had some connevtion with the school in days of yore. Mrrison gave a lot of money and paid for the school chapel and other things.

 

Jamie

[jonny777]

Oh dear, a late arrival from sunny North Somerset. 

 

The main reason for this is because I had a call from the care home to say my father has tested positive for Covid - again. He is one of three who refused the vaccine and will now have to isolate in his room for 10 days. 

 

I hope this may concentrate his 97 year old mind into actually agreeing to have the jab; but I'm not holding my breath. 

 

Suitably distracted, I spent the next couple of hours in the garden as the day is so nice and spring-like. I was amazed to see my clematis now had new green shoots up to 6 inches long, so the frosty winds seems not to have affected it. I decided on more flag irises for the back of the pond, because the ones I have seem rather reluctant to spread. 12 plants for £9.99 on Ebay seemed like a decent price - and I should have them sometime next week. 

 

Then I was pestered by Currys because the guarantee on my oven is about to end and they wish to try and sell me an expensive extended warranty. Unfortunately for the nice lady, I was not so keen to part with my money, but at least I now know the identity of the strange number that has rung half a dozen times this week, but I couldn't be bothered to answer. 

[Tony_S]

35 minutes ago, TheQ said:

, are those just too ill to take it..

My brothers wife is in her mid 60s and is very unwell. She was offered the vaccine and had it. The feeling was that it probably wouldn’t work but the evidence from other similarly ill people was that it didn’t do any harm. 

[Gwiwer]

3 hours ago, PhilJ W said:

I find that very interesting. I used to follow the geology lectures on the Open University and considered taking it up but I never found the round tuit

I found the round tuit and it hung on my kitchen wall for years. SWMBO moved into my life but didn’t find it amusing. It was one of the items which had to give way to her newly-arrived stuff. 
 

I also still have my BSc (Hons) (Lond) Geology with Geography though I no longer have much material evidence of it. Having only worked in those subjects for 18 months after graduation the files and books merely gathered dust and occupied space. Most books were donated back to the university. The lecture notes were recycled in the Great Reduction of All Things which was required upon departure to Australia in 2000. 
 

My mapping project and associated dissertation, plus a couple of books which I still occasionally use are what I have to show for it.  I’m sure all geologists of a certain epoch still have “Rutley” on their shelves; I do. That, the memories (some good, mostly not, a few which should never resurface) and a few mental and physical scars.  
 

It was once said that I had more letters after my name than my boss had in his. Both his given and family names had five letters. At the time I was still BSc (Hons) (Lond) MRGS MGS but I saw no value in keeping the memberships going. I was hardly likely to be elected a fellow of either society. 
 

 

Edited February 26, 2021 by Gwiwer

[Dave Hunt]

I've been absent for a couple of days as my lower back, which is in a mess anyway, went into spasm two nights ago and started a bout of sciatica to keep it company so I didn't really feel like doing much except the variou exercises the physioterrorist gave me until this morning when it eased off somewhat. The problem is that I was on the anti inflammatory Naproxen but after my TIA last September the consultant told me to stop taking it and just use Cocodamol for pain relief. Unfortunately that regime is nowhere near as effective as the Naproxen was. I'm going to try to get a telephone appointment with a GP next week to discuss the situation. 

 

So far I haven't finished reading the ER pages that have been filled since then and don't know what I've missed.

 

TTFN

 

Dave

[Gwiwer]

Afternoon all,

 

In other news the NHS website has (as of midday today, apparently) lowered the age limit to book Covid jabs from 65 to 64.  I tried again expecting to be flicked off for being too young as I have been consistently before.

 

No.  

 

It allowed me to book     

 

It seems to be the case that they account for the date of your second jab and take that as the age.  I turn 64 before the second jab.  Of note it only offered me dates after my birthday for that one.  Also of note - and for those playing at home I follow the fortunes (or otherwise) of the Brighton & Hove Albion ball-kicking club - I was offered the jab at the home of arch-rivals Crystal Palace FC, Selhurst Park.  I'm not setting foot in there even for a Covid jab and will be going to Tommy's instead as that is readily accessible from the House of Fun.

 

The first jab is Tuesday; on my annual leave but an excuse for a trip into London for the first time on over a year.  As opposed to the daily commute to the House of Fun which is definitelyt suburban rather than central.  

 

Oddly enough a phone call to the local GP surgery not five minutes before I booked online produced the response, as it had before, that as I am not "over 70" I have to wait my turn to be invited ....... fail.  

 

Friday Drinks will now celebrate the imminent inoculations of both of us.  SWMBO gets her first in the morning.  

[Sir TophamHatt]

Put up three bird houses on the trees at the bottom of the garden today.

 

Put one up last year and found it had been used in Winter.  Lovely feeling   But the house had broken, so added some more to my Christmas list.

Got 4!  Hope residents take up the homes

[Ian Abel]

Whoops, very busy with the "client" yesterday so managed to miss ER <sigh>

 

POETS - quite likely to happen as the flurry yesterday should see me clear of anything client dramatic today, the weekend beckons even in these times.

 

Managed a nice walk with Whitney yesterday as the weather continues to improve - all RELATIVE remember

A couple of streets over someone is building one of the most obscenely large homes to date. I think it could house a football team or two!

 

Not anything much planned for the weekend, continue to solve out murder mystery and probably more dog walks - where IS that model railway again???

 

-3 and cloudy first thing, heading for +3. May have snow on Sunday.

 

Tally ho... POE we hope.

[New Haven Neil]

6 hours ago, Happy Hippo said:

It goes like this:

 

Snip<

 

Socially distanced catering at it's finest!

 

No social distancing needed here, Richard!

 

The day went well, 5 old farts motorcycled around Fraggle Rock without falling off, ate breakfast (two opted for the shovel, but iD wouldn't have been impressed with the fare, a bit ordinary and pricey) and it has been simply gorgeous out - 11c but so sunny and clear, one of those glad to be alive days.

 

Rounded off by finally sorting the dreaded chainsaw, a little pressed in cover in the carb wasn't in the service kit I bought, so didn't remove it before.  Being as there was nothing else I could see wrong, out it came as a new service kit had arrived with the required part in it, and there was what looked like a tea leaf, a little speck that obviously was moving and blocking a hole when fuel was required.  Full power test undertaken, and all is well, finally!  Treated it to a new spark plug in celebration.  Firewood chopping weekend beckons.

 

Naproxen is holding my hip at bay quite well, Dave.  I thought it was getting better so tried stopping it, ha, no chance.  

[simontaylor484]

Good Afternoon 

 

I have reached the ripe old age of 44 today

 

We had houses at high school

 

Atkinson

De lacey

King Edward

Lyon

All to do with the school and the town.

 

 

[The Lurker]

Happy Birthday Simon

 

Having started off this round of reminiscing I should add the houses from the other two schools I attended.

 

The school in Singapore (largely for expats of course) had 4 houses, St George's, St Patrick's, St David's, St Andrew's.

 

My secondary school was highly imaginative; Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta. At that school, there was a lot of inter-house rivalry, but when the head retired (which I think was the year I left) the incoming head abolished houses. Once he'd gone, houses re-emerged, named after famous alumni such as Duke (Neville Duke, WW2 ace), Lewin (Terence Lewin first sea lord during the Falklands I think) and others. When I last looked up the Alma Mater, I saw that due to expansion the houses had increased and had been renamed after former heads - including the guy who had abolished them!

[Tony_S]

I don’t recall any houses at the infant schools I attended. The first school had 3 classes in one big hall, only reception was in a separate room. Junior school was just A B C and D. Only A passed the 11+.

Secondary school had houses, Windsor, Harlech, Edinburgh and every other year Kinsale.

University had four colleges, Eliot, Rutherford, Keynes and Darwin. 
Tony

[Andrew P]

44 minutes ago, simontaylor484 said:

Good Afternoon 

 

I have reached the ripe old age of 44 today

 

We had houses at high school

 

Atkinson

De lacey

King Edward

Lyon

All to do with the school and the town.

 

 

Many Happy Whatsits Simon, I wish I was 44 again, cor blimey, would I do things differently.

[tigerburnie]

Happy Birthday Simon, but I wouldn't want to be younger and do much differently, I got up to plenty of mischief the first time round lol.

[Ian Abel]

Happy Birthday Simon...

[Tony_S]

1 hour ago, simontaylor484 said:

have reached the ripe old age of 44 today

Happy Birthday Simon.

[laurenceb]

Birthday greetings Simon

[PhilJ W]

Afternoon all from Estuary-Land. Happy birthday Simon. Even if I was able to turn the clock back to when I was younger I'd probably make the same mistakes all over again. Just as well there wasn't that many of them. Just went to pour my tea and found that the milk that was open in the fridge was off, checked the date and it was the 24th. I have two dash cams that have never been fitted to the car, the reason is that they both came without any instructions. The first one when I took it back to the shop the shop refused to help as I did not have the receipt but what I did have was proof of purchase by means of a click and collect. After a bit of toing and froing I eventually got a refund and I was told to keep the dashcam (it was a model being discontinued). The second one ordered on-line also had no instructions and when I tried to contact the vendor they had ceased trading. I am tempted to fit them to the car as dummies and wait until Halfords have a 'we fit them for you' offer.

[J. S. Bach]

10 hours ago, jamie92208 said:

Good moaning from adry Charente.  I did manage a couple of hours trackside yesterday and did see some trains as well as having a good natter with Andy.  Today is fire day. I have our permit from the Mairie and in just over an  hour intend to try and get our garden rubbish burned.

 

Regards to all.

 

Jamie

I spend as many as twenty-four hours a day trackside. The Norfolk Southern "R" line is about three hundred and fifty feet behind my back door!

[J. S. Bach]

8 hours ago, BSW01 said:

 I model in 00, which is 1/76 and the model is 1/4 scale of that, so I think it works out as 1/304 scale

Bought a scanning electron microscope yet? That is way too small for my eyes.

[Barry O]

Happy Birthday Simon!

 

Been playing "hunt the missing kit parts" today.. eventually found them in a drawer I had emptied once.. flipping elves and pixies have escaped from the shipyard in Barrow and arrived here! 

 

Dr Eldest Herbert had an emergency phone call today.. " we have vaccine left will you come and have a jab?".. having had two collapsed lungs this is welcome news.. so he is off to the Etihad for 7:30pm tonight.

 

Baz

[Gwiwer]

41 minutes ago, Tony_S said:

Happy Birthday Simon.

Glass raised here during Friday Drinks.  
 

Happy Birthday Simon. 

[J. S. Bach]

Yes, Simon.

[PeterBB]

Happy Birthday Simon. 

 

Well, what do you know?  It turns out that Jonathan Van Tam is a railway modeller!

 

Today SWMBO wanted bushes sorted viz cut down to a set level.  I had noticed that one of the buddlea was pushing the fence so said that I would cut it back.  Well, cutting that off seemed to cut of most of the living bush/tree (whatever).  Thankf.ully the sun was shining!  So, investigating gradually found even more that was not producing and ended up cutting most of it down to discover that one part had grown round an internal fence.  6 hours later finally swept up after cutting it and all the bits SWMBO had cut down to fill a dustbin and a second dustbin.  Darkness ensued and then I remembered the thick pieces ... still not cut ... perhaps a trip to the tip is needed rather than get the chopper saw out.

 

Strange as it may seem I have thoroughly enjoyed the day.

[polybear]

3 hours ago, New Haven Neil said:

Rounded off by finally sorting the dreaded chainsaw, a little pressed in cover in the carb wasn't in the service kit I bought, so didn't remove it before.  Being as there was nothing else I could see wrong, out it came as a new service kit had arrived with the required part in it, and there was what looked like a tea leaf, a little speck that obviously was moving and blocking a hole when fuel was required.  Full power test undertaken, and all is well, finally! 
 

 

How good does that feel? 

 

1 hour ago, PhilJ W said:

 I am tempted to fit them to the car as dummies and wait until Halfords have a 'we fit them for you' offer.

 

Bear suspects (but am not sure) that such offers only apply if it was purchased from them....