Early Risers.

[Erichill16]

Evening All,

A day of ups, downs and then another up. When we got to mils and had taken the kids to school it was obvious she didn’t want to take Sydney out for a walk so we arrived back home by 9:15. Result.

We took Sydney for a walk in the woods that lead to the garden centre where he had a doggie ice cream while SWMBO and I had a drink and a piece of cake. Mine was lemon drizzle for those who may be interested.

We gave him a bath when we got home and afterwards he went charging round the garden before dozing off for an hour. When he woke he had a very pronounced limp. Downer! He’s not a ‘clingy’ dog but does like to follow you around just in case he can be of help out so our movements were restricted so as he didn’t hobble around after us.  After about three hours he seemed to be walking a bit more freely and when the nephews arrived home from school he pinched one of their shoes and hobbled off into the garden with it. He then had a play with a carrot we gave him and finally he had his tea. All along he didn’t seem to be in much pain and never flinched when we tried to examine him. By the time we took him home the limp had disappeared and he was pulling on his lead.

In other news, as bear would say, I had a phone consultation with a  gp regarding my foot and I’ve to go tomorrow for a blood test and then a face to face consultation next Thursday. In the mean time the doctor has made an appointment with a podiatrist for me. I’d  rather see an orthopaedic specialist but let’s see what happens.

I was hoping to get some business work done today but under the circumstances the day turned out ok.

Still outside but will be going in soon as an early appointment tomorrow for the blood test. Hate bl00dy needles and I was at the sharpe end of one last Thursday as well.

Goodnight,

Robert

 

 

 

[Tony_S]

8 minutes ago, Ozexpatriate said:

(c) Charging

I looked on Ford's US website and one of the features seem to be if the electricity grid crashes the truck can power your home for a few days assuming it was fully charged. 

[simontaylor484]

I wonder where all the extra electricity is going to come from to power all these extra electric vehicles and trains.

[J. S. Bach]

7 minutes ago, Tony_S said:

I looked on Ford's US website and one of the features seem to be if the electricity grid crashes the truck can power your home for a few days assuming it was fully charged. 

If you do not run your heat or AC!

[laurenceb]

Night awl

[Erichill16]

17 minutes ago, simontaylor484 said:

I wonder where all the extra electricity is going to come from to power all these extra electric vehicles and trains.

And where is the chancellor going to get the money from when he doesn’t get it from fuel duty?

[Pacific231G]

Good day today. I went flying!  Didn't do much else apart from crawling round the M25.

Tomorrow morning, I'm finally getting a haircut. First  proper one since October when the woman I've been going to for years finally decided to retire. It's about a mile and a half from here so I will get my daily walk  in as well. 

 

G'night all.

 

 

[tigerburnie]

G'night all

[PhilJ W]

Goodnight all.

[Ozexpatriate]

22 hours ago, Erichill16 said:

And where is the chancellor going to get the money from when he doesn’t get it from fuel duty?

I'm quite sure someone will come up with a creative mileage-based solution.

 

I don't know about the UK, but automobile insurers in the US continue to push policies based on monitors that plug into the electronics socket. These 'phone home' with driving behaviour (speed, braking rates, mileage etc) that the insurer uses to determine the premiums for the policy - particularly the mileage-based policies. They advertise a benefit for safe drivers (and fail to mention what happens to less safe drivers). I made a comment to my agent one day about not wanting to voluntarily permit monitoring devices. She responded by making a vague suggestion that I should not assume they are not already able to monitor me with the handheld mobile monitoring device I carry everywhere*.

 

* With which I sometimes make telephone calls.

 

EVs being what they are there will easily be built-in tracking capability. The question is who gets to see the data and what it gets used for.

 

Police in Southern California made an arrest this week in a 'road rage' incident where a six year-old boy was tragically shot and killed. They did not disclose how they were led to their suspects but I would be surprised if mobile telephony did not play a role.

 

Edited June 10, 2021 by Ozexpatriate

[BSW01]

Good evening everyone 

 

Well both the front and back gardens are looking a lot better than they did this morning. They are both almost weed free and the green wheelie bin is now almost half full. The weather for the most part was very sunny and warm, but on occasion it looked liked it would rain at any minute. Thankfully it never did and I remained dry throughout my endeavours. I finished just after 12 o’clock, so had my mid morning muggertea sat on the bench in front of the workshop, just a little later than usual, but it was quite nice to sit out in the sunshine for a change. 

 

After dinner I continued working in the cellar. One of the hinges on the small access door, has been replaced at sometime and the new one wasn’t fitted correctly. This caused the door to angle inwards slightly, so I took the door off and removed the hinge. There were 2 sets of holes beneath it, so I filled this with small slivers of wood, which were hammered into them. I then re-aligned the hinge and made fresh holes, this made the door fit much better. I then brought the door forward so that it is now aligned to the front packing I fitted yesterday. I then repositioned the door latch so the door will remain shut when it’s closed. I then continued working on the main internal door frame and some more packing was fitted yet. Due to the amount of packing required, I’m having to do it from more than one piece of wood and the frame isn’t square, so that’s not helping either. It’s fine vertically, when viewed from the front, but it leans slightly towards the small cellar room. I need to fit some fine strips of wood, about 4mm thick to the top part of the frame. I’ve found that 2 strips of an old Venetian blind will do the job perfectly. So theses have mean marked and drill and I’ll glue them to the top packing piece tomorrow before fitting it. Thankfully, the 2 side pieces of the door frame are relatively straight forward, they just taper towards the bottom, which I can sort out by using a plane first, then a belt sander. 

Edited June 9, 2021 by BSW01

[BSW01]

Goodnight all 

[monkeysarefun]

8 minutes ago, Ozexpatriate said:

. She responded by making a vague suggestion that I should not assume they are not already able to monitor me with the handheld mobile monitoring device I carry everywhere*.

One of the insurers here offers very competitive quotes, the trade off is that you are required to download their app onto your mobile phone.

[The Stationmaster]

3 hours ago, Ozexpatriate said:

It may not be much help in the UK, but here in the US, the Ford F-150 Lightning deliveries in the U.S. are scheduled to begin in spring 2022. Towing capacity is 5,000 lbs / 2,267 kg with the extended-range battery and the Max Tow Package is 10,000 lbs / 4,536 kg.

 

It will be expensive.

 

Not much of an extended range by the look of things - it just goes up from the basic 230 miles to 300 miles..  I can do more than that with what's currently in the tank on my Peugeot and I could easily get to Cornwall and back without refuelling.  This is where electric at current state of development is a complete dead end.  You first have to buy a far more expensive vehicle;  you then have to buy a charger if you want to actually top up the battery without having to leave it drawing current all night - and of course that assumes that you actually live somewhere where you can park off road and that you have somewhere to install the charger.

 

Even in our road many houses have e vehicles parked on the road overnight as they haven't got space to park them off road.  Then let's say everybody wants to top up charge their car every night, or even one night in three - the mains wouldn't take that load.  All a great big dead end going for battery electric vehicles.

[The Stationmaster]

G'night all

[pH]

We got our second Covid (or anti-Covid) shots this morning. The whole arrangement reminder me of flying (remember that?). I’ve said before that a lot of the ‘administration’ around the vaccinations is being done by staff laid off from the tourist and hospitality industries - there were still volunteers wearing their Air Canada id badges, and the tapes separating lanes were marked ‘Air Canada’. We had to present our identity documents and reservations and were then seated in single rows. The vaccinators moved down the rows, pushing carts - just like a drinks trolley. One person took your card (health card) and issued a receipt (immunization record card). You gave your order (“A shot of Pfizer, please” - they had several different vaccines on the cart)  and the other person dispensed it.

 

(The ‘ordering’ is poetic licence; your documentation clearly stated what vaccine you were to receive!)

Edited June 9, 2021 by pH

[Ozexpatriate]

46 minutes ago, The Stationmaster said:

... you then have to buy a charger if you want to actually top up the battery without having to leave it drawing current all night - and of course that assumes that you actually live somewhere where you can park off road and that you have somewhere to install the charger.

 

Even in our road many houses have e vehicles parked on the road overnight as they haven't got space to park them off road.

I don't see widespread (versus mainstream*) use of EVs until autonomy increases to provide rideshare alternatives to individual ownership. At that point the parking and charging problems become moot for the user.

 

* EVs are already mainstream in the US. Both of my neighbours (to the left and right) own Tesla EVs. It is wholly unremarkable to see two-vehicle families with a commuter EV and a hybrid SUV/crossover utility vehicle for family road trips.

 

Take up will be (already is) higher in places like more affluent US suburbs where people have garages (often three-car garages these days). Places where there is no "designated" parking, (common in US apartment complexes or older suburbs nearer downtowns) will take much longer due to inconveniences with charging.

 

There's always hydrogen as an alternative combustible fuel.

[pH]

47 minutes ago, Ozexpatriate said:

There's always hydrogen as an alternative combustible fuel.

But how do you produce the hydrogen? A common method is electrolysis of water!

 

Edit - or from hydrocarbons.

Edited June 10, 2021 by pH

[J. S. Bach]

I will be away from my computer for about a week unless I log on from a friend's confuser. So having said that:

 

Many Night Owls from the Piedmont.

[Ozexpatriate]

17 minutes ago, pH said:

But how do you produce the hydrogen? A common method is electrolysis of water!

Plenty of excess ocean water. Use renewables (solar, wind etc) to power a desalinization/electrolysis plant. Making hydrogen doesn't need to be an "always on" operation since the objective is stored energy - so the "demand" limitations of renewables are not a problem.

 

It's an attractive option compared with all the rare earth metal mining and recycling complications of batteries everywhere.

 

The way this drought is going we're going to need desalinization plants to support the cities of the west coast of North America anyway.

 

Flow on the lower Colorado River will be likely be restricted or even stopped next year. Hydroelectric power from Lake Mead is already down 25% due to low lake levels behind Hoover Dam. Levels are lower than they have ever been since the dam was built.

 

Edited June 10, 2021 by Ozexpatriate

[BR60103]

10 hours ago, J. S. Bach said:

We call this a sign salad:

 

 

 

Is South 121 straight through the white building?

 

[chrisf]

Greetings one and all

 

I have no idea whether it will actually come to pass but I have now booked my seasonal trip to Switzerland, but not without a misunderstanding at the travel company.  The chap dealing with it did not realise that I wanted an extra night in Interlaken instead of an extra night at home.  I think he’s new.  Part of the holiday is a first class Swiss Pass, valid for 15 days on nearly everything that moves.  I am by no means the only regular who aims to maximise its use.  Heck, it costs enough.

 

I popped out last night to water the hanging basket and harvested three more strawberries.  A bumper crop it ain’t but as the fruit is ripening earlier than I have come to expect it makes me feel a bit less despondent at the state of the garden.  Today the garden waste bin will be emptied.  Filling it again will not take ;long. 

 

New Haven Neil, many thanks for your comments on my presentation.  It does seem to be getting around, and to my amazement there have been some expressions of interest in a live performance.  The pic of the GW railcar and its tail really does not belong there but how could I resist it?

 

Best wishes to all, especially all the sick and missing.

 

Chris

[jamie92208]

Good moaning from a sunny Charente.  I certainly won't be going for an EV. The big problem with both electrickery and Hydrogen is energy density. Roger Ford recently did a what if in Modern Railways to estimate the potential range of a Battery Detic and a Hydrogen Deltic. Neither of them could take an express to Edinburgh. IIRC one ran out at York and the other crawled into Newcastle.  I can get nearly 1000 miles out of a tank of diesel and when the ancient Volvo finally needs replacing I plan to try and find a similar vehicle that can last me till I'm in my mid to late 80's. By then I probably won't need to tow a twin axle trailer around with a ton and a half of firewood in it.

 

Anyway, talking of trailers, the Ifor (a good make of trailer) is loaded with general rubbish and much garden waste. Since fires were banned it has become my big wheelie bin.  I will be off to the tip in just over an hour then will reload it at a friends house and take her garden waste to the big green skip. This afternoon  I plan to collect another 2 water cubes (1000litre tanks) for more rain harvesting for the garden.  Then, if plans work out, spend the evening trainspotting at Ruffec with Andy.  All in all not a bad day to look forward to.

 

Regards to all.

 

Jamie

Edited June 10, 2021 by jamie92208

[TheQ]

Mooring Awl, Inner Temple Hare, 542 /339

4 hours then lots of short bits of sleep not enough.. too darn hot... Downstairs with windows open 24.2C as the solid brick walls re radiate the heat back into the house...

 

Sleep was not helped by Ben the Gasiarse Collie, twice he left the room as a smell pervaded all... It was a good job the windows were open.

 

Cars, I had intended we change our car when I retire at the end of next year.. it might be we delay that for a couple more years to delay the period of ownership of the next ICE possibly last car..

 

Yes sales of new ICE cars end in 2030, but the average life of a UK car is just short of 14 years.., and I suspect being retired and not doing many miles our next car will last many more years than that, as there will be about 13,000 miles a year less done travelling to work and back.

Old landrovers of the series 1, 2, 3, 110/90 variety are going up in price, their average age is well in excess of 20 years and many over 40 years, my youngster at 36 years will outlast me and so will provide many more years of towing.. 

 

 A note on that, with ICE cars being banned from new sale, the need for petrol will reduce and become harder to find from say 2045. Diesel trucks and busses are not being banned. (yet) So it may well be our final car is a diesel..

 

I agree there will be a rush for ICE cars in 2029 possibly 2028, which will mean increased prices and disappointment for many, that's part of the reason for delay of the purchase of our next one till many be 2025.. not later. There's always the chance HMG might bring forward the end date even earlier too..

 

Our local radio / TV has gone daft about a blue jumbo jet that landed in the area for a couple of hours.. They also went daft going on about people wanting clarity, they want to know NOW what the next stage of covid will be.. A more pointless piece to TV I don't know .. The advertised date of announcement has been known for months.

 

Time I went and saw whether last nights major system passed it's cross check.

 

 

 

[polybear]

7 hours ago, Ozexpatriate said:

Police in Southern California made an arrest this week in a 'road rage' incident where a six year-old boy was tragically shot and killed. They did not disclose how they were led to their suspects but I would not be surprised if mobile telephony did not play a role.

 

At last, some common sense in not disclosing information.  I often despair at what information is released by such agencies - the following is a prime example; surely it's release will hinder or stop such tricks from being used again?

 

As part of a three-year collaboration between the Australian Federal Police (AFP) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), underworld figures were tricked into communicating via an encrypted app designed by police, authorities say.

The app, known as AN0M, was used by organised crime gangs around the world to plan executions, mass drug importations and money laundering.

Authorities say they were able to read up to 25 million messages in real time.

 

In other news:

Bear's drop-off at the charity shop warehouse takes place today, followed by oodles of cake with any luck.  I've decided that Bear could do with an ear-lowering session in the near future too - tomorrow maybe.  Hopefully I'll get some more kitchen work done too - I'd like to crack on with the cutting and fitting of the plinths - as not only does it start to make the kitchen take on a whole new look, it'll also help get shot of three 9ft lengths of 6" wide plinth material currently cluttering up the Conservatory.  There will still be numerous lengths of pelmet and cornice material to contend with, however, and I can't cut & fit those until the wall units are fitted for the final time - and that's after the worktops are fitted, so still a little way off.