Early Risers.

[The Lurker]

When my previous employer was taken over by a German group, the tax department in Dusseldorf were astounded to learn that I had not done a degree in accountancy before training to become one, but had done one in history. They were even more surprised when i pointed out that I had qualified more quickly than those in my particular office who had read accountancy in university, despite the exemption from the first level of exams it gave them!

 

 

[PupCam]

1 hour ago, Winslow Boy said:

Well its official. The NhS have decided to retain the triage system introduced at the height of the pandemic. So pupers I don't think your desire of seeing a human being when you are ill is going to be fullfilled. I think our surgery staff will be cheering as now they will have an excuse when they don't answer the telephone- well we've been told to direct you to the website. There is though a slight flaw with this  though in that they only allow a set number of queries and what does the partially sighted ninety two year old do as a)  she cannot see the screen and b) nor operate a computer.

 

Oh hum all to make the staffs job easier and the patients life more difficult. What was it they are supposed to be doing? Oh yes looking after poorly people.

Unfortunately you've summarised the situation perfectly and I am a) frustrated about it and b) disgusted about it.   You all know my views on the assumption that ALL of society can and will "use the online solution we've provided for your benefit".   I'm sure there could or at least should be some anti-discrimination laws that could be wheeled into action to fight for the "Non-standard" bod (eg the little old lady of 92).   What we need is a legal expert .....

 

 

1 hour ago, The Lurker said:

I would tend to agree with iD that there is an undercurrent in British society that disdains "experts" in many fields. We sneer at people who use "Doctor" in their title, unless they are medical, whereas in some places such as Germany in seems almost de rigeur to have one or two Doctors in your title with possibly a professor too. Even the term "Boffin", as beloved by the redtops, is not really a compliment. However I do think that this has been/will change slightly, certainly in favour of the medical sciences experts, because of the success in producing the vaccines. 

Undoubtedly there will be a percentage of the population that disdains REAL "experts" but I think in reality that it is a relatively small percentage and they are clearly just stupid people and they should just be ignored.   During my working life I have worked with numerous very clever people including many Doctors and indeed very closely with someone who was held in the highest regarded as the company Boffin (No names, no pack-drill Poly ....).    At one stage I was flattered (and slightly bemused) by the fact that the Doctrine of doctors with whom I was working assumed that I was, on paper at least, more highly qualified than I am - I chose not to disillusion them.    In fact  the very reason I got the position in the first place was to add, shall we say, a degree of engineering practicality to some "rocket science" proceedings.  I would add (with just a hint of modesty maybe) that in terms of real, practical engineering experience I was head and shoulders  above most if not all of them because, like Poly, I had been there, I had done that and I had numerous T shirts.

 

I can't help thinking that the blanket term of "Expert" is too freely used over too wider a spectrum in the media and on the internet, the equivalent of "From DC to Daylight" in the RF spectrum and that sensible people like us should use it as in the correct, dictionary definition:

 

 "A person with a high level of knowledge or skill relating to a particular subject or activity"

        (interesting that the dictionary makes no mention of qualifications .... )

 

And the term (and perhaps the user) just ignored when it is used derogatively.    I'd like to think that, just like spotting my "friends" Mr B and Mr H from an earlier post, we can all easily determine who is a real expert and worthy of the title.

 

Alan

[PupCam]

7 hours ago, NGT6 1315 said:

Could‘ve been the new oil filter, could‘ve been the oil itself,

 

1 hour ago, polybear said:

Before Bear had read the words "Oil Filter" I'd already suspected this as a favourite cause.

 

Hmmm, if all of the oil has gone "waxy" I might be tempted to think that the previous oil and the new oil were not in fact compatible (for whatever reason) as I assume the system wasn't flushed between the old and the new?      I've only ever flushed an engine out once as part of an oil change and that was to remove many small bits of piston ring in an attempt to "tide me over" until a full engine re-build could be undertaken .......  (still haven't got round to it )    

 

Was the oil that was used for the previous oil change the correct oil I wonder?

[J. S. Bach]

                                                                                                                                                                     

Good morning to all, now it is off to Gene's for my regular Thursday corned beef & cabbage.

[Sir TophamHatt]

Another day at work.

Last one this week.  Then I have four days next week, then one day the week after and only then will I finally reach my first bit of annual leave for this year.

Having a little holiday near Lancaster, which means we'll be visiting Blackpool and Morecambe for the first time.  Should be a nice little break I think.

 

Anyone else planned any holidays this year?

To be fair, covid hasn't really affected us in that respect as with a 1 year old, we would never really think about abroad - more than happy with the UK.

[NGT6 1315]

37 minutes ago, PupCam said:

 

 

Hmmm, if all of the oil has gone "waxy" I might be tempted to think that the previous oil and the new oil were not in fact compatible (for whatever reason) as I assume the system wasn't flushed between the old and the new?      I've only ever flushed an engine out once as part of an oil change and that was to remove many small bits of piston ring in an attempt to "tide me over" until a full engine re-build could be undertaken .......  (still haven't got round to it )    

 

Was the oil that was used for the previous oil change the correct oil I wonder?

Different make from the one I used for the recent oil change, but also in accordance with specs. I dare say I know enough about vehicle technology to be mindful of that kind of thing.

Maybe I’ll never really know but I’ll try keeping this question in mind when we visit the dealer. As a matter of fact, I had a flush done before that previous oil change (which was carried out as part of the annual service), but there hadn’t been any issues at all, including none related to oil, from that point up until now!

 

It‘s not that the entire oil had gone waxy, by the way. The contamination looks like grainy particles which don’t appear very much unlike sugar sprinkles as you might use as a topping for ice cream or atop cake frosting.

 

 

Edited May 13, 2021 by NGT6 1315

[PupCam]

19 minutes ago, NGT6 1315 said:

Different make from the one I used for the recent oil change, but also in accordance with specs.

I don't suppose you have any of the oil removed at the oil change left (i.e. not yet disposed off) and any of the fresh new oil you could do an experiment  with?  You could try mixing them and see what happens (although it would hardly be representative of the conditions inside a running engine!)

[Ian Abel]

7 hours ago, AndrewC said:

 

Work is still a bucket of yak excrement. Dealing with sh*tgibbons, c*ckwombles, asshats, and all around c*ntpuffins on a daily basis is wearing me out.

I have to first sympathize as having had many very similar situations over the years - I know it's not limited to IT situations, but do we, in fact have a monopoly of these "people"?? I also have then laughed through the entire rest of reading the ER posts as your erudite sentences managing to contain so much precision in identifying the boLLocks many of us have to deal with on a daily basis was unparalleled.

I feel that line may become my signature line when times call for such an outburst   

 

BIN Day. Ah yes... but wait, what the hell happened to the BIN trucks today?!?!? Almost an HOUR passed from the time I retrieved the paper until the first truck stirred, and even now there has been far less of a parade than usual! Did I miss the memo stating they were working bankers hours this week!?!?!?

 

Another quiet day yesterday, although the car decided to play some "tricks" on a couple of quick errands and seemed to have decided the heating/air con wasn't going to work correctly. Spent some time deciding which dealership to provide with my business, scheduled a visit for Friday.

THEN, later a couple of errands provided the correct/accurate/appropriate temperatures even when forced to provide a serious range of heat/cooling!

Will runs some errands/tests today to decide if we need to postpone or go through with the appointment

 

One errand/trip was the now becoming familiar/popular late afternoon walk with Whitney in the Japanese/Peace gardens near here. Has become her favorite venue, I think it's the variety of undergrowth she can nose through that is the attraction.

 

Later today more of the same - walkies, car tests...

 

6 at BIN time, sunny and expected to reach 20 later.

 

Stay safe, enjoy the day.

[NGT6 1315]

33 minutes ago, PupCam said:

I don't suppose you have any of the oil removed at the oil change left (i.e. not yet disposed off) and any of the fresh new oil you could do an experiment  with?  You could try mixing them and see what happens (although it would hardly be representative of the conditions inside a running engine!)

No, but I was thinking along similar lines as you seem to have done. I couldn’t rule out the possibility of residues from the older oil, plus possible residue from the flush agent, having interacted in an unforeseeable way either.

 

But, to be honest, after everything‘s said and done, I’m looking forward to The Replacement. Be nice to enjoy some up to date tech in particular, me being certainly savvy for that!

[The Stationmaster]

Afternoon all,

 

A couple of things - in the railway industry unless it has been drastically changed a Form 1 (actually Form DP1 in old money) is nota please explain?' although for sohe reason various folk seem to have got that idea over the years.  a 'please'explain?' is either amemo stating what needs to be explained, ora. multiple tick sheet where you ticked the relavant answer, or at an interview to establish facts.  A Form 1 is a disciplinary charge (hence DP1 = Disciplinary Purposes Form No 1) on which someone is charged with whatever misdemeanour etc they are alleged to have committed.  There is space to return you answer or you can reserve your defence for the Disciplinary Hearing which would usually folow.  If the charge is withdrawn you should be advised accordingly  in writing (that procedure was copied into UK industrial relations law direct from the BR system).

 

As for managing sickness all these fancy systems have long struck me as nothing more than an excuse mechanism for p*ss poor management of your people.  Back in my TLF days some 'admin preson' (sorry NHN) called me from Islington to ask me if I had noticed the amount of time one of my staff had been off sick over the previous few months and wanted to know what I was doing about it.  i explained to her, as politely as I could manage, taht it was blinf dingly obvious to me that he wasn't preseent in the office and because i was nota brain surgeon I had absolutely no intention whatsoever of doing anything about.  In response to her rather stroppy reply about the brain surgeon bit I made it very clear to her that I did not consider myself qualified or equipped o carry out surgery on someone suffering from a brain tumour which was g taking its time to kill him..  if her call had started along different lines she might have got a different response but asking a bl**dy daft question about somebody I had known and worked with for over 20 years and was watching gradually going down hill on the days he managed to struggle in to work made me see red.  fortunately she never again dared to call me about sickness among any of my staff.  She did complain to my boss about my 'rudeness' and he too gave her a piece of  his mind - and we got no more calls about staff sickness.

 

Back to earth and some interesting news.  Today we underwent our diabolic eye exam - very well handled by a lovely lass who we've not met before.  The exam includes an eyesight test as other 'participants will know - and I was able to read two lines further down the chart than I could at last year's test.  I had thought that my long sight was improving and the proof of the pudding was in today's test, fascinating stuff.

 

I see' alas, elsewhere on the forum that another village has despatched its idiot to join RMweb - these things are sent to try us.  Havea  good day one and all and stay safe.

 

Quiche - if it gets made - for dinner tonight and the last of yesterday's pasties were today's lunch.

 

BTW a couple of these appear to have moved back into our garden as one was out and about tyesterday evening.  might well be the breeding season as we do seem to be a popular spot for introducing their new borns to the world - time will tell

 

[AndrewC]

39 minutes ago, Ian Abel said:

I have to first sympathize as having had many very similar situations over the years - I know it's not limited to IT situations, but do we, in fact have a monopoly of these "people"?? I also have then laughed through the entire rest of reading the ER posts as your erudite sentences managing to contain so much precision in identifying the boLLocks many of us have to deal with on a daily basis was unparalleled.

I feel that line may become my signature line when times call for such an outburst   

 

Thanks. I get the feeling that IT has grown over the years to include a great many people who should never be let near any technology more advanced than a manual pencil sharpener. The same is true of the internet really. 20 years ago only people with an understanding of how IP connectivity worked could actually get connected. The idiots in contrast used AOL. The temperament of people on news groups, irc chats, etc were far better than some of the regurgitated bile that infests so much of the 'net. (see also FB, Twatter, etc) 

My favourite class of sh*tgibbon is the one who invites you to a "technical" teams meeting to discuss some deep geeky issue with the implementation or third party integration, then says half way through that he/she isn't technical and could I go over this again at a high level. 

[TheQ]

Back from getting Bill Gates second chip inserted.. 

 

My crew for the guardship and the guardship itself, on the 3 Rivers Race is sorted, emails have started flying about who meets who where..

The race is in 23 days, time so plenty of time for the chips to work.

 

Holidays as such we don't have them, well we don't go anywhere different.

1 week is reserved for the sailing club regatta,

1 week for visiting my parents,

1 week for Christmas, often more relative visiting.

And in the past 1 Week for visiting SWMBOs relatives. That doesn't leave a lot.. like nothing, in fact that's -3 days..

 

That deer looks familiar, we have it's relatives in our garden.

Edited May 13, 2021 by TheQ

[Gwiwer]

15 minutes ago, The Stationmaster said:

a Form 1 (actually Form DP1 in old money) is nota please explain?' although for sohe reason various folk seem to have got that idea over the years. .....   A Form 1 is a disciplinary charge

That has not changed.  The use and understanding of the Form 1 procedure seems to have lowered its status somewhat to that of a "Please Explain" which still requires the explainer to be reminded of their right to representation and that the interview will constitute a formal disciplinary procedure.  Those I have encountered (but not been any part of) in recent years have been very much a slap on the wrist.  "Offences" included failing to wear the uniform tie for example.  I would never have used Form 1 for that unless it was the umpteenth repeat occasion, the person had been reminded informally then formally of the requirement, it had been ascertained that they had been issued with a tie and had no medical reason to not be wearing it.  If there had also been "attitude" along the way then add Insubordination to the allegation.  Failure to wear the provided tie still got one lucky candidate a full hearing.  

[PhilJ W]

Afternoon all from Estuary-Land. Been jabbed for the second time this afternoon. In and out in no time but it took longer to get out of the road where the church being used as a vaccination centre. The problem is that the road is very narrow with a lot of parked cars and the vaccination centre was very busy. Not helped by it being turning out time at a nearby infants/junior school. On the subject of qualifications the one thing that doesn't or didn't have a formal qualification is health and safety. This of course has delighted the little Hitlers who can make up what they like and use health and safety as an excuse. I do have a piece of paper saying that I've completed a course in H&S courtesy of my trade union. The course was very good, so good in fact that some employers actually sent some of their management staff on the course (and were duly charged by the union). Not long after I completed the course an HR person tried to pump me for advice but that soon stopped when I asked how much they were going to pay me. It comes in handy when confronted with "It's health & safety y'know." when you ask them what part of health & safety legislation they are referring too. 

[polybear]

4 hours ago, Gwiwer said:

Probably a positive move and clearly one the landlord was keen on.  They also seem to be amenable to tenant-led initiatives for improvements generally. 

 

Perhaps slightly related, Bear wonders just how much profit the various Building Management companies are making by the introduction of all these so-called "Fire Watch" Wardens in high rise buildings?  The amounts that some tenants are having to pay is scary....

 

2 hours ago, simontaylor484 said:

@Gwiwer your sickness procedure sounds similar to that of the Council where i used to work. Reporting sick did get silly at times i had to go for an operation i had to be at the hospital for 6am i was first on the list so i told them a week before oh that wasnt good enough i had to ring them at 7am on the day bit difficult when your anesthetized

 My wife was with me there is no mobile signal there i had to get my mum to ring in sick for me just like school

 

Option 2:  Keep quiet about the op, then fail to comply with their 7am rule.  Then tell 'em you were rushed into hospital (tell the wife to put her foot down....) and straight into Theatre......

Turn it into a drama for a bit of sympathy.  Oh, hang on - this is HR we're talking about......

The ruse might come a bit unstuck if the sick note says ingrowing toenails though....

 

2 hours ago, PupCam said:

I'm sure there could or at least should be some anti-discrimination laws that could be wheeled into action to fight for the "Non-standard" bod (eg the little old lady of 92).   What we need is a legal expert .....

 

Will an angry Bear do instead?  A bl00dy sight cheaper, if nothing else.

 

2 hours ago, PupCam said:

During my working life I have worked with numerous very clever people including many Doctors and indeed very closely with someone who was held in the highest regarded as the company Boffin (No names, no pack-drill Poly ....).   

 

 

Spoilsport....

 

2 hours ago, PupCam said:

Hmmm, if all of the oil has gone "waxy" I might be tempted to think that the previous oil and the new oil were not in fact compatible (for whatever reason) as I assume the system wasn't flushed between the old and the new?  

 

 

Bear can only think of the horrible results of mixing Castrol R Racing Oil (Vegetable based - and a smell to die for.....) and Mineral Oils, without first doing an engine strip and clean out.  Turns into a rubbery sludge under heat, IIRC

 

In other news:

Bear has beaten the small base unit and finally got the bvgger level with the larger unit   All it took was to secure it to the wall at the top and bottom  of the cabinet using adjustable spacers between the cabinet and the wall.  Then I could pull the bottom of the unit towards the wall and also jack the top of the unit away from the wall - much adjustment of spacers and legs being the order of the day.  Now all I need to do is get the 6ft tall, 300mm wide broom cupboard that stands on the other side of the small base unit straight, level and aligned to match......

 

Still no call back from The Gas Man (I emailed him on Tuesday morning) regarding capping off the gas pipe.  I'll try calling him later...

And no response so far from the Co-op regarding my LDC Snottogram......

 

 

[simontaylor484]

@polybear it wasnt hr or occupational health that were the problem it was the buffoons in our office. 

 

Hr and occy health were very understanding and helpful last year when i had my second breakdown i was able to bang out on full pension at 43.

 

Another example of their buffoonery was my only involvment in the disciplinary proceedings.  An incident had occoured when i was off for a couple of days i knew roughly what had gone off through hearsay i got dragged in to the office because one of my team members was involved.

I was asked what i saw i said nothing i wasnt allowed to say anything else.

2 months later i had to go to County Hall in Wakefield for the inquiry i thought it was for a character witness. First question i was asked was i aware of incident yes. Second question was a beauty where was i when it happened  answer Scarborough sea front. 

Well that went down a treat i was dying to laugh. Unfortunately the relationship between staff and management was poor in our depot due to the way they treat us certainly onnthe cleansing side

[TheSignalEngineer]

 

1 hour ago, simontaylor484 said:

Second question was a beauty where was i when it happened  answer Scarborough sea front. 

That sounds a bit like an incident when my sister was wrongly arrested for alleged use of a stolen credit card in Solihull. The description was a bit vague, short young woman, light hair, child in pushchair. During questioning the detective asked her about a previous use of the same card, to which she said she was in Devon at the time. When asked for details of a witness who could confirm it she replied "The Reverend ..... St Mary Vicarage ..... Phone no. ....

 

Case didn't get any further.

 

 

Edited May 13, 2021 by TheSignalEngineer

[Andrew P]

It appears I may have inadvertently forgotten to post this morning,

 

I do apologise, and so I say to one and all, Have a good what's left of the day, and stay safe for the reminder of it.

[iL Dottore]

I am taking a day off work for two reasons 1) it is a public holiday today in Switzerland and 2) I had my second jab at lunchtime and my left arm is incredibly painful (although no sign of the horrendous headache I had after the first jab).

 

Some very thought-provoking posts this afternoon.

 

When I returned to the UK in 1983, having watched the 70s in the UK from afar in the USA, my first thought was that the reason for the terrible state of industry in the UK was down to “bloody-minded unions“; then, as I entered the UK workforce, I soon realised that incompetent and clueless so-called “management“ was as much to blame as stroppy union leaders or bolshy union agitators.

 

For the life of me, I see no reason why the people running a company cannot treat their workforce as intelligent adults. The Swiss and the German manage to do so (and look at how successful their industries are). I think the secret to good management is to treat your employees as adults, have high expectations of them but similarly provide both clear guidelines as to objectives and desired outcomes as well as appropriate if not generous rewards (and by “reward“ I mean more than just a very good salary). Equally, it should be very clear that venality or criminality of any type will be punished accordingly and definitively.
 

Incompetence does require, I believe, a certain degree of understanding, tact and innovative thinking to deal with. Some people are incompetent because they are way out of their depth and whilst meaning well aren’t up to the job. These people should be moved to other positions in which they could be more effective and re-trained if necessary. Others are incompetent because they just don’t give a flying wotsit and couldn’t care less either; these people should be out of the door so fast that their tiny little toes don’t touch the ground.

 

The way some UK organisations deal with people calling in sick, according to the descriptions above, beggars belief. On one hand it is an absurdity to go through such a process because someone calls in sick, on the other hand I can understand why it is done if an organisation has no effective way of getting rid of those who abuse the system (as seems to have been the case in some parts of UK industry) . I would imagine that the thinking behind this is that if you bury the offending party in paperwork, they may prefer to toe the line deal with all the bumpf.

 

In the large company I used to work for, I did have to provide a note from my doctor if I was off work for more than four days in a row – but this was so that the insurance coverage taken out by the company (to cover statutory sick pay) could be effectively tapped into. I never had to go before any sort of board to “justify” my absence due to sickness.

 

Quite frankly, I think that given the huge complexity of modern industry, collaboration as opposed to an “us versus them“ mentality is the only way forward. With either side across the negotiating table always aiming for a win-win solution. Who knows, it may eventually catch on....

[PhilJ W]

I didn't have any problems when I went in for my second jab this afternoon. In fact it was better than when I had the first jab. On the first jab I felt the pinprick of the needle going in but this time I felt nothing at all. It might be because I was injected in a different spot to the first one. It was higher up almost to the shoulder. The nurse asked me to remove my shirt as my shirtsleeve could not be rolled up far enough, last time I simply rolled the sleeve up.

[PhilJ W]

Just had a look in to the Hitachi thread, things are getting a bit heated as in handbags at five paces.

[Ian Abel]

18 minutes ago, PhilJ W said:

Just had a look in to the Hitachi thread, things are getting a bit heated as in handbags at five paces.

CARP, now I just HAVE to go look  thanks a lot Phil

[Gwiwer]

25 minutes ago, PhilJ W said:

Just had a look in to the Hitachi thread, things are getting a bit heated as in handbags at five paces.

I have walked away from that one having been roundly put down in a manner I found offensive.  In terms of "Only those who know what's going on are entitled to post an opinion".  Goodbye Hitachi thread.  

[pH]

30 minutes ago, PhilJ W said:

Just had a look in to the Hitachi thread, things are getting a bit heated as in handbags at five paces.

Five paces? That is getting serious!

[simontaylor484]

Next thing is it will.be balloons on sticks on there you are well clear Rick. On that thread there are experts and ex-spurts

 

I still think the safe systems of work instructions for lifting the units and bogies will be changed but what do I know .

 

 

Edited May 13, 2021 by simontaylor484
Autocorrect