Early Risers.

[Ian Abel]

BINs today...

Extremely quiet first thing, not a BIN recovery vehicle in sight, I'm beginning to wonder if they have decided to work bankers hours ONLY, or worse, government hours (i.e. never working!! )

 

Yesterday quiet overall but a late afternoon walkies with Whitney was delightful, sunny and cooler temperatures.

 

Today the Mrs working again at the request of her employer, and I'm doing a taxi service as I need to car to run errands at lunch time, including being charged with "coming up with a dinner plan!". 

 

For those feeling angst at their weather situation, consider Minnesota, International Falls way north of us to be precise, it was 28 Tuesday and 2 with snow flurries Wednesday. 

It was 31 here on Tuesday and today at BIN depositing time the temperature was 5 with an expected high of 10 and rain all day. 

 

Stay safe and warm/cool whatever is appropriate

Edited May 27, 2021 by Ian Abel

[simontaylor484]

49 minutes ago, PupCam said:

But they still got your money, so Steve won.   He doesn't care what you pick off of the shelf just so long as it's his shelf.  

 

To make the protest stick you've got to pick it off of someone else's  shelf unfortunately.    Knowing that Bear formerly had a contract for industrial quantities of LDC a loss of such a contract could severely impact the Co Op's  annual profits.

 

Sounds like the Hornby tier s thread

[The Lurker]

Greetings all from Sidcup where after a night out I am in the doghouse for deigning to snore all night. I get teased for not arranging loads of nights out and then when I arrange one I get told off!

 

Still it was good to have a couple of pints in the Clachan (Kingly St) followed by a meal at Dehesa (Carnabu St) which apparently serves modern Spanish-Italian tapas (according to its own blurb). We didn't detect much in the way of Italian except the wine but the food was excellent. The menu is not extensive but we managed most of it between the three of us!

 

Back to the reality of wfh. I successfully sourced the LDC for Younger Lurker but they did not have this week's Autosport so he will have to wait for another day for that! We only have a small waitrose express around the corner from us but they do two different versions of LDC so Bear would be spoiled for choice.

 

When walking back through Foots Cray meadows today after dropping the car off, I spotted a small snake. I was too slow with the phone camera to grab a shot but I think it was a grass snake. I doubt it was much more than a foot long. I shall have to have a look at a website to make sure of my identification. I have not seen one there before; in fact I am not sure I have ever seen a snake in the wild in the UK.*

 

It's good to read that both Mike and Phil seem to have more or less recovered from their respective lurgies, and let's hope for good news from other folk who are suffering.

 

EDIT

* having consulted the wildlife trust I still have not seen a snake in the wild in the UK. What I saw was a slow worm, which is in fact a lizard

Edited May 27, 2021 by The Lurker

[PhilJ W]

Afternoon all from Estuary-Land. The final pile of washing (sheets and towels) is in the machine and churning away. I couldn't find the tool to undo the fluff trap on the machine so the trap remained uncleared. Needless to say as soon as the machine was on the go I opened a drawer and there was the tool in front of me . Not to worry, it won't stop the machine working, if it blocks it just bypasses. Tea has brewed, be back later.

[simontaylor484]

I think if I were in your shoes Lurker I would have run a mile i hate the sight of snakes (Or lizard in this case) they make me feel sick. I saw a Mojave green snake shot on tv the other night it was justified due to imminent danger to human life. It's jaws kept opening to strike in its death throes. Uuurgh

[Sir TophamHatt]

Another day and just two days left before holiday!

 

Heading out to Lancaster area for a week over the half term.  Visiting Morcambe and Blackpool as I've never been to either place but it's about getting away rather than the same old place.

I do hope others are able to steal some days away - the UK has some really beautiful places.

[tigerburnie]

Seems the Rattlesnake was in a lot more imminent danger, senseless killing of animals for no proper reason shows the human race in a poor light, they can be be removed without resorting to shooting, there are teams in countries like India and I believe also in Australia, where the snakes are far more of a problem than in the USA.

[Barry O]

Pah! Match cancelled due to waterlogged pitch..PAH!!!

I have had no slowind down issues with RMWeb, for some reason I have only had to clear the editor once in yonks..

 

Baz

[J. S. Bach]

58 minutes ago, simontaylor484 said:

I think if I were in your shoes Lurker I would have run a mile i hate the sight of snakes (Or lizard in this case) they make me feel sick. I saw a Mojave green snake shot on tv the other night it was justified due to imminent danger to human life. It's jaws kept opening to strike in its death throes. Uuurgh

Snakes do not bother me too much; in fact, I walked by this guy twice before I saw him:

He is an Eastern Garter snake, a really good snake to have around.

 

 

[simontaylor484]

This snake shooting was in the Superstition mountains in Arizona miles from anywhere and it very nearly bit a guy hence it was shot

[simontaylor484]

38 minutes ago, Sir TophamHatt said:

Another day and just two days left before holiday!

 

Heading out to Lancaster area for a week over the half term.  Visiting Morcambe and Blackpool as I've never been to either place but it's about getting away rather than the same old place.

I do hope others are able to steal some days away - the UK has some really beautiful places.

Going to Morcambe is that wise ?

 

I haven't been for years the last time we went there was a punk convention in town there were some extreme hairstyles on show it was great to me and my brother as young lads.

 On a serious note the UK has some stunning places to visit be it cities coastal or countryside. The only trouble is i always feel that because of the seasonal nature of the business you get ripped off to a certain extent having to pay for the closed season. Or you try somewhere like center parcs pay through the nose to get in then have to pay for activities. 

Then there is our wonderful unpredictable weather

[jonny777]

2 hours ago, Tony_S said:

I think as the woman ages throughout the advert we are supposed believe that Aviva support clients throughout life. However when I first saw it (without paying much attention) I thought it was an ad for car breakdown services. One advert at the moment I find irritating is the use of Albert Einstein’s image to promote Smartmeters. 

 

 

Oh ok. I thought the old woman must be her mother. 

 

The ad makes even less sense to me now. 

 

 

[jonny777]

14 minutes ago, simontaylor484 said:

This snake shooting was in the Superstition mountains in Arizona miles from anywhere and it very nearly bit a guy hence it was shot

 

Yes, of course. How dare a wild creature defend its home area against beings 100+ times its size? 

 

[jamie92208]

1 hour ago, Sir TophamHatt said:

Another day and just two days left before holiday!

 

Heading out to Lancaster area for a week over the half term.  Visiting Morcambe and Blackpool as I've never been to either place but it's about getting away rather than the same old place.

I do hope others are able to steal some days away - the UK has some really beautiful places.

If you get chance walk along thevold railway line from Morecambe into Lancaster and try and spot the old concrete mast bases from the 1907 electrification.  It's a nice walk and ends up alongside the estuary.  

 

As to Snakes we have vipers, which are venomous and whip snakes which can get up to 4 or 5 feet long but are harmless. They and the owls keep the mice down. We've found two discarded skins over the padt couplevof years. Both in the same place. We have seen both types. I did once see an adder in the sidevof a cutting at Longmoor in 1968.

 

Jamie

 

 

[Ozexpatriate]

2 hours ago, simontaylor484 said:

I saw a Mojave green snake shot on tv the other night it was justified due to imminent danger to human life. It's jaws kept opening to strike in its death throes. Uuurgh

1 hour ago, tigerburnie said:

Seems the Rattlesnake was in a lot more imminent danger, senseless killing of animals for no proper reason shows the human race in a poor light, they can be be removed without resorting to shooting, there are teams in countries like India and I believe also in Australia, where the snakes are far more of a problem than in the USA.

58 minutes ago, simontaylor484 said:

This snake shooting was in the Superstition mountains in Arizona miles from anywhere and it very nearly bit a guy hence it was shot.

Most people who go (prepared) into snake country wear 'snake-proof' boots. A friend of long ago would ride motorcycles in the Mojave desert. He had a story of a juvenile rattlesnake (with all their venom) striking the side of his boot over and over again.

 

Another friend who is a regular hunter (including remote parts of Arizona) is of the very prepared type. In addition to proper boots he carries a sidearm (which may or may not be strictly legal) for the purpose of not getting bitten. Ideally of course the best way to not get bitten is to pay attention to where you step and avoid snakes but natural camouflage is a very effective thing.

 

Snakes in the suburbs are a different thing. My dad was alarmed* to discover a large snake coiled on top of his beer fridge in the garage under the house. It was not a venomous snake but he didn't stick around to identify it. It was safely removed by a professional.

 

* Euphemism alert

 

Edited May 27, 2021 by Ozexpatriate

[polybear]

2 hours ago, The Lurker said:

We only have a small waitrose express around the corner from us but they do two different versions of LDC so Bear would be spoiled for choice.

 

 

 

Having consulted the Waitrose website Bear's choice would be this one, based on appearance - being the wrong side of five quid means it'd stay on the shelf though (the Co-op LDC was three quid, occasionally 2-25 when on offer).

https://www.waitrose.com/ecom/products/no1-lemon-lime-drizzle-cake/528559-497798-497799

 

Now this one has real possibilities as a birthday cake:

https://www.sainsburys.co.uk/gol-ui/product/birthday-and-party-cakes/sainsburys-loaded-lemon-drizzle-cake-863g

 

In other news:

Bear was watching today's episode of "The Chase"; one of the contestants is an Analyst in the drugs industry - she was asked what the most expensive drug is.  Apparently it's Gene Therapy - at a million quid a dose....

[leopardml2341]

41 minutes ago, simontaylor484 said:

Going to Morcambe is that wise ?

 

I haven't been for years the last time we went there was a punk convention in town there were some extreme hairstyles on show it was great to me and my brother as young lads.

 On a serious note the UK has some stunning places to visit be it cities coastal or countryside. The only trouble is i always feel that because of the seasonal nature of the business you get ripped off to a certain extent having to pay for the closed season. Or you try somewhere like center parcs pay through the nose to get in then have to pay for activities. 

Then there is our wonderful unpredictable weather

I've only been to Morecambe once whilst driving a bus on the erstwhile X4 Colne to Grange over Sands service. It should've been twice, but the bus broke down somewhere near Arnside on the way back. After alternative transport was arranged for passengers I waited with the bus until the repair man turned up, repairs weren't possible so bus was abandoned and I had a ride back home with him. That turned out to be a very long day indeed.

[Mike Bellamy]

13 hours ago, Erichill16 said:

True early riser.

Intruder alarm  going off at 3:30 am so a visit to work to investigate. No issue found, false alarm.

 

Many years ago when I was aboard the Black Horse at Grantham (between 1972/1976) I was a keyholder and the alarm went off four times overnight and in those days the alarm went straight to the Police rather than an alarm response company. First time I told them it would take me some time to get there on foot so they sent a car to collect me, we checked the building together, reset the alarm and they took me home again - just as we arrived home after the third alarm call, the radio burst into life asking if I was still in the car as it had gone off again - at least they didn't wake the whole house with the phone ringing!! Although I went in for my usual full days work they did at least give me a day off for being up most of the night. Alarm company claimed there was nothing wrong with the system and it never happened again, so we have no idea what caused it.

 

Another time I was a keyholder for the main strongroom in the days when we opened for a late night on a Thursday - closed at 3.30pm to balance the tills and reopened again at 4.30pm to 6.00pm. For some unknown reason the main door would not lock - I was just the office junior and the assistant manager was the other keyholder. We tried several times but it was no good - something in the locking mechanism was jammed. Of course this was for a room full of valuables as well as cash and then panic mode set in. All of our duplicate keys were deposited at another bank in town and they weren't open late.

 

Asst Mgr contacted Head Office who had overnight emergency staff on duty and they arranged for the Police to be informed who then visited the branch to check we were OK. Alarm company came out to set up a temporary alarm as we couldn't set the system with the main door being open. My dad brought me a sleeping bag, and the Asst Mgr's wife brought us a fish and chip supper. We had to phone the Police and Head Office every two hours to confirm we were still alive and hadn't run off with the cash ! Again the locksmith claimed there was nothing wrong with the lock.

 

 

1 hour ago, Sir TophamHatt said:

Heading out to Lancaster area for a week over the half term.  Visiting Morcambe and Blackpool as I've never been to either place but it's about getting away rather than the same old place.

 

We went to Blackpool about fifteen years ago for the Illuminations and parked at the southern end of town at the tram terminus so we could take the tram all the way through the illuminations. Crowds of people about and we made slow progress but it was really enjoyable. However when we got away from the lights it was really dark and most passengers had left. We had return tickets to go all the way to Fleetwood and back so we stayed on the tram - by the time we got there (9.30pm) we were the only passengers and we had to get off and wait at the stop over the road as we weren't allowed to stay on whilst they looped round to come back. We had hoped to get a fish and chip supper there but the whole of Fleetwood was in darkness - we didn't even see a pub open. Of course by the time we got back to the car it was time to go back to the B&B or risk being locked out for the night !

.

[simontaylor484]

Last time we went to Blackpool we stayed in a Travelodge opposite the football ground. We bought passes for the trams from a newsagent we went up to Fleetwood i had never been before. The following day we spent in Blackpool and had chip  supper in lytham st annes 

[southern42]

Click n collect groceries tucked away safely - in as much as I know where everything is. Now, for the past 5 weeks, our 2 sliced loaves of fresh multigrain bread had come in the “sliced bread” wrapper all nicely labelled, only it had not been sliced! Today, we did get sliced bread but it was not fresh bread but Tesco wrapped bread & seeded at that!

Grains is grains. 

Seeds is seeds! 

 

Good news on the M front. I finally plucked up the courage (there is hope for all of us!) to start removing late ‘60s motifs off the VW bus full of The Prisoner fans. Nothing more than gently rubbing with a fine sanding bar. It is going to take awhile but  the process does seem rather therapeutic.

[simontaylor484]

When i worked for a bank we had one of those screens that shot up if triggered in a robbery. One day someone (Not me luckily) set it off just after closing when we were balancing the tills. They were on relief from another branch they pulled all the notes out and swoosh  up goes the screen frantic calls made to alarm company. I nearly had a heart attack as I was attacked by a swarm of angry pin badges that were on sale for charity 

[The Stationmaster]

Last time I went to Blackpool the ex L&Y tanks were still on stationary boiler duty at Blackpool Central - they've gone of course (and so has Blackpool Central).   Morecambe is a bit tamer than Blackpool and used to give the appa earance oioif trying hard to keep with its neighbour to the south but not making it.  But it does have that marvellous hotel to look at.

 

As for tv ads the daftest one in my book is one for, I thnk, Alexa where some bloke in modern garb is standing in a town with a volcano erupting nearby and a passing local tells him that it is AD 79.  How did somebody living in that year know it would later be titled AD 79 over 200 years before the Roman empire adopted Christianity?

 

Oh and apologies to our ursine member but there is no LDC on the menu - it ain't that sort of joint (but they do have builders' tea creme brulee).

 

No problems lo getting ont RMweb but some forums do havea habit of occasionally opening rather slowly but a few minutes later they are back to full speed.

[laurenceb]

After 6 weeks with no internet I'm back (Thank you EE, noow G F & M). With no hope of catchinng up on 150 pages if I have missed anything of importance will someone let me know svp

[monkeysarefun]

3 hours ago, tigerburnie said:

Seems the Rattlesnake was in a lot more imminent danger, senseless killing of animals for no proper reason shows the human race in a poor light, they can be be removed without resorting to shooting, there are teams in countries like India and I believe also in Australia, where the snakes are far more of a problem than in the USA.

Snakes being native wildlife are protected here, the bad old days of hitting them with a shovel are long gone, now you call a snake removal person who comes and takes it away in a bag and rehomes it in the bush somewhere.

 

The most common snake in the suburbs here is the Eastern Brown, which makes number 2 on most worlds most venomous snakes lists. I've had 3 or 4 in my backyard over the years, they have anger management issues and will go you if you try to poke it with a stick or something, I just leave them alone and they usually move on somewhere else pretty quick but if it got into my house I'd probably call someone.

 

In contrast, the Red Belly Black, the other usual snake around here is less venomous and also pretty placid in comparison. I had one living in my aviary for a few weeks. I was happy with that since it kept the mice down, I'd just check where it was before walking around in there.

Edited May 27, 2021 by monkeysarefun

[Erichill16]

Evening All,

We have a small wood next door, it’s only about 75m by 75m but it’s recently been opened up to the public with a path that leads into its centre. There is a sign at the entrance saying beware of the poisonous snakes! 
Ive never seen a snake of any description in Barnsley but I spoke to a bloke a know and he said he was bitten by adder is the village a couple of years ago. Perhaps I aught to be a bit more careful when out in the garden! 
An early night due to the incident this morning so I’ll bid you all goodnight,

Robert