Early Risers.

[Andrew P]

7 minutes ago, tigerburnie said:

Way too much sugar and E numbers for my constitution sadly

Me too, I've only had a little bit, and Good Lady can have the rest. 

I must be good.

I must be good.

I must be good.

I must be Good.

I must be good.

I must be good.

I must be good.

I must be Good.

I must be good.

I must be good.

I must be good.

I must be Good.

I must be good.

I must be good.

I must be good.

I must be Good.

Etc. 

You get where I'm coming from.

 

[iL Dottore]

23 minutes ago, laurenceb said:

The biggest bunch of dog abusers around are the kennel club and left to me they would all be put against the nearest wall. The damage they have done to innocent dogs over the years is apporling

I cannot agree more. And it is all done in the name of “Breed standards“. Dog breeds that only 50 years ago were robust and healthy with good temperament and character have now been bred (or more accurately inbred) to the point where they suffer from congenital disease and can sometimes have severe behavioural problems (some of which may not exhibit themselves until well after puppyhood).

As much as I emotionally agree with the idea of summary execution of the kennel club judges and those who set the breed standards, I think a more appropriate punishment would be to hit the breeders AND the Kennel Club with a £10,000 fine for each puppy or dog of any breed that has to go to a vet for remedial or corrective surgery or treatment. Certain breeders, like those who breed French bulldogs and British Bulldogs (dogs who have lovely characters but are grotesquely and obscenely deformed), would be bankrupt within hours. A very fitting punishment and good riddance I would say.

[BSW01]

Good morning everyone

 

It's a beautiful sunny day here in England's northwest, but we had some overnight rain! 

 

I was treated to breakfast in bed today, so was up late again this morning, so straight outside to do some work in the garden. This has been interrupted by phone calls from the kids. I'd already got cards from James (last weekend) and Mike (Friday) so they were opened once I was up and dressed. 

 

I'm currently sat on the bench under the workshop window having a well earned muggertea and listening to music on my iPod. 

 

Stay safe, stay sane, enjoy whatever you have planned for the day, back later.

 

Brian 

[45156]

Morning All

 

Sorry that I've not been here for a while, but this house buying and selling is driving us scatty - our rapid buyer pulled out, and it has been a little frought here.

 

So all I can offer is the now usual generic greetings.

 

And for those who hate Wonderwall - think again

 

 

Back sometime next week.

 

Regards to All

Stewart

[laurenceb]

32 minutes ago, iL Dottore said:

I cannot agree more. And it is all done in the name of “Breed standards“. Dog breeds that only 50 years ago were robust and healthy with good temperament and character have now been bred (or more accurately inbred) to the point where they suffer from congenital disease and can sometimes have severe behavioural problems (some of which may not exhibit themselves until well after puppyhood).

As much as I emotionally agree with the idea of summary execution of the kennel club judges and those who set the breed standards, I think a more appropriate punishment would be to hit the breeders AND the Kennel Club with a £10,000 fine for each puppy or dog of any breed that has to go to a vet for remedial or corrective surgery or treatment. Certain breeders, like those who breed French bulldogs and British Bulldogs (dogs who have lovely characters but are grotesquely and obscenely deformed), would be bankrupt within hours. A very fitting punishment and good riddance I would say.

Then put 'em against the wall. They would just be a drain on society

[JohnDMJ]

Morning Afternoon Awl, for it is still thus. (it was morning when I started!)

 

Shopping shopped and 'essentials' now stowed. G word on hold on the basis of no trimmer cord and a certain CBA factor!

 

Elsewhere:

 

On 20/06/2021 at 08:19, iL Dottore said:

Ben the “I’ve got a great Guv” Collie must be thinking that he is much loved and very lucky. Sadly, too many dogs have terrible owners. And that is all I am going to say on that topic as I could get viciously angry very quickly…

 

As an, effectively, orphaned hermit, I would love the companionship of a dog or cat. However, I recognise that I would not be able to give them a suitable and satisfactory lifestyle. Thus, I remain solitary!

 

On 20/06/2021 at 10:42, Gwiwer said:

Good Morning all.

I am bound for the Land of the South Saxons. 
 

“Social distancing may not always be possible” according to the automated announcements. 
 

 

It’s been sixteen months. I wasn’t away that long when we lived in a Land Downunder. 

 

That looks like a very (un)overcrowded 377!

 

On 20/06/2021 at 10:48, chrisf said:

I do not see it that way.  How can I, with three more erasures from the diary in just one day?  Since you ask, they are the Scalefour Society AGM, Scaleforum and ExpoEM North/Autumn.  Any of the events that I mentioned earlier could be next.  I am given neither to optimism nor to giving up.  Example: tickets went on sale last week for the seven concerts at Sidmouth in the first week in August.  They flew out of the box office while I was finding somewhere other than a tent to stay for the week and phoning the credit card company four times to find out why the passcode that they had given me did not work.  I found myself with tickets fo two of the seven concerts.  Fortunately I revisited the webshite after Monday's non-announcement by those who rule us and found that more tickets had been released.  I secured four of the five that I wanted and left it at that.  It is by no means certain that the festival, cut-down as it is, will go ahead given how many others have been cancelled.  If the worst comes to the worst, so be it.  At least I tried.  As for the overseas dimension, the Morocco expedition may not happen in November amd may be redated to one of the alternative dates given on the travel company's website.  Likewise it is possible that the Swiss trip will be kyboshed by quarantine restrictions as it was last year: again, so be it.  Would you rather that I did not even try to visit your wonderful country?

 

Chris

 

Contrary to popular belief, life does not run to a timetable. One has to be flexible and adapt to the ambient conditions. Let us replace Ian Anderson's (Jethro Tull) 'Living in the Past' with Fleetwood Mac's "Don't Stop"!

 

On 20/06/2021 at 11:18, iL Dottore said:

Thank you for that erudite update on my summary. You are quite right, those afflicted by Stercus Cranialis (or - to be accurately pedantic - Stercus pro Cerebro) do tend to club together – a bit like zombie hordes now that you come to mention it (a relevant reference as I’m currently playing on the PS4 a zombie apocalypse game called Day’s Gone)

 

In the interests of academic rigour and scientific enquiry, I must take exception to both Dave and Jamie equating TAPS and Numpties with those afflicted with Stercus pro Cerebro (SpC). Whilst it is true that both TAPS and Numpties are variants of SpC, they are not – per se – innately dangerous, although they can cause dangerous situations. To illustrate the difference, and I know clinically it is quite a subtle one, someone with TAPS will wire up a switch the wrong way round because they think they know how to wire up a switch; whereas someone with SpC will wire up a switch the wrong way round, ignoring the instructions before him/her because “some bloke down the pub said if you wire it the right way around Bill Gates will take over the wiring in your house“.

 

It would appear that it will be necessary to place an erudite discussion of the clinical differentiation between SPC, TAPS and Numpties on the agenda of next Brains Trust meeting.

 

ChrisF, far be it from me wanting to curtail your enthusiasm for returning to the land of Toblerone, I am just urging caution - given the appalling prognostic and predictive abilities of the relevant ministries, coupled with the dismal governance of the current shower in power - in planning anything. Apart from the fact their traffic light system for categorising the safety of countries to visit - a system, as I alluded to, which is more rainbow than Red, Orange, Green - is an utter shambles, I wouldn’t put it past them to change everything/close down everything with less than five minutes notice if anyone in the cabinet suddenly gets spooked by a piece of scientific data they don’t understand.

 

It is certainly a truism that optimists are perennially disappointed whereas pessimists are always pleasantly surprised. As the Swiss often say “prepare for the worst, hope for the best”

 

iD

 

I couldn't agree more!

Edited June 21, 2021 by JohnDMJ

[Markwj]

8 minutes ago, 45156 said:

Morning All

 

Sorry that I've not been here for a while, but this house buying and selling is driving us scatty - our rapid buyer pulled out, and it has been a little frought here.

 

So all I can offer is the now usual generic greetings.

 

And for those who hate Wonderwall - think again

 

 

Back sometime next week.

 

Regards to All

Stewart

Sorry only pop in this thread now and again but yes house buying we are moving soon and the market is bonkers at the moment. We have a date now to move so hopefully ours will go ok. I am told by our buyers it’s now impossible to get a solicitor where they are unless you pay through the nose.

I hope you get sorted and soon but the way houses are ‘flying off the shelves’ at the moment you shouldn’t have to wait long!

[jonny777]

2 hours ago, Compound2632 said:

 

Well, it has to be very good that (a) your father will be able to return home and (b) that the necessary fittings and adjustments will be provided. Don't let the need for the occasional vigorous intervention obscure that!

 

I'm afraid that when my M-i-L was instructed she needed grab rails, I became fed up waiting for the official visit. I bought the items I decided she needed (with her as consultant) and fitted them myself. 

 

I'm sure that is what social services had hoped would happen when I phoned them to tell them to cancel their fitter. Saves them a few shillings. 

 

[chrisf]

5 minutes ago, JohnDMJ said:

Contrary to popular belief, life does not run to a timetable. One has to be flexible and adapt to the ambient conditions. Let us replace Ian Henderson's (Jethro Tull) 'Living in the Past' with Fleetwood Mac's "Don't Stop"!

I would prefer "Sound of Silence"

 

Chris

[jonny777]

2 hours ago, Andrew P said:

Paper shop / Premier Store, had a problem with the till, apparently it only works if this is part of the purchase.

 

I'm not sure how they get that past the trades description people, as it appears to have no lemon in it. 

 

My choice in that situation would be to go home and make my own, probably with some Limoncello in it. 

[Andrew P]

1 minute ago, jonny777 said:

 

I'm not sure how they get that past the trades description people, as it appears to have no lemon in it. 

 

My choice in that situation would be to go home and make my own, probably with some Limoncello in it. 

It did taste extremely lemonie, and especially the middle filling bit, in fact it was moreish, which does NOT bode well for later this afternoon / evening.

I must be good.

I must be good.

Etc.

[Erichill16]

1 hour ago, tigerburnie said:

Way too much sugar and E numbers for my constitution sadly

And gluten!

[jonny777]

8 minutes ago, Andrew P said:

It did taste extremely lemonie, and especially the middle filling bit, in fact it was moreish, which does NOT bode well for later this afternoon / evening.

I must be good.

I must be good.

Etc.

 

Must be one of those E numbers which has the lemon flavour. I'm not an expert on them, because (as you might have guessed) they frighten me. 

 

[Pacific231G]

G'day all. 

Today is the thirtieth anniversary of my first solo!

This will probably be meaningless to most of you but some will understand why it means a great deal to me.

 

The weather was a lot better in Clacton on June 20th 1991 than it is in W.London today where it is cloudy and dull with some very fine rain (though I think that has now stopped so I'll now go out for the daily 4K) 

I hope you achieve all you want to achieve today without feeling the slightest guilt about those tasks that fall into the CBA category. It is after all Sunday!

 

 

 

[chrisf]

56 minutes ago, iL Dottore said:

ChrisF, far be it from me wanting to curtail your enthusiasm for returning to the land of Toblerone, I am just urging caution - given the appalling prognostic and predictive abilities of the relevant ministries, coupled with the dismal governance of the current shower in power - in planning anything. Apart from the fact their traffic light system for categorising the safety of countries to visit - a system, as I alluded to, which is more rainbow than Red, Orange, Green - is an utter shambles, I wouldn’t put it past them to change everything/close down everything with less than five minutes notice if anyone in the cabinet suddenly gets spooked by a piece of scientific data they don’t understand.

 

It is certainly a truism that optimists are perennially disappointed whereas pessimists are always pleasantly surprised. As the Swiss often say “prepare for the worst, hope for the best”

 

iD

I don't disagree.  I do know that the likelihood of the plug being pulled is ever present.  When Ffestiniog Travel cancelled Switzerland last year I sought to find an acceptable substitute for Christmas dinner in Interlaken by booking one in a posh hotel in Bedford.  I had not foreseen that the trainee cretins who rule us would close all the hotels.  Neither, in fairness, had the hotels.  It is not just overseas travel that is vulnerable.  A finescale m*d*l r**lw*y show has just been sabotaged by onerous conditions imposed by the owners of the venue and there is more to the recent "postponement" of Bristol Pride than meets the eye.

 

Chris

[The Stationmaster]

G'day/afternoon all,

 

I thoroughly sympathise with the bear regarding coving - ruddy awkward stuff to get right and even my dad - a master craftsman if ever there was one - had some fun and games doimg it in the bungalow which once stood here.  And filler isn't really the answer if there are major mismatches in the corners although it is ok on straight joints if there are slight gaps.  

 

His ladship is also looking forward to a visit at some stage to HQ in Geneva but I have an increasing suspicion that travel to foreign countries will in coming months have little to do with traffic lights of any colour applied by the UK Govt and a massive amount more to do with the unwillingness of 'the others' to let us in with the level of infection which is rapidly ramping up here and which still kills folk who have had both their injections (although that group 'only' makes up 26% of the deaths to date from the Indian variant).   I think the Govt has done well on many fronts dealing with Covid but after what had gone before their seemingly total indifference and inadequacy, and that of those carrying it, in dealing with the threat of the arrival in Britain of a new variant strikes me as utter stupidity of a very high order.

 

The G word in the form of weeding has been carried out - by herself.  I now have to make her a cuppa so had better get on with it.  Have a good day everybody and stay safe (if the actions of others allow it).

[PupCam]

Clear Prop!

 

1 hour ago, chrisf said:

I do not see it that way.  How can I, with three more erasures from the diary in just one day?  Since you ask, they are the Scalefour Society AGM, Scaleforum and ExpoEM North/Autumn.  Any of the events that I mentioned earlier could be next.  I am given neither to optimism nor to giving up. 

It's a very fine balance Chris isn't it between optimism and pessimism and  I appreciate the actual balance point is unique to every individual and their specific situation.    Throughout this pandemic I have erred towards the extreme side of caution but because of who I am and my character that's actually been very easy.   I never have had a very active social life going here there and everywhere so it came as absolutely no hardship to stay at home although I'm finding my inability to ride my motorcycles due to my current physical condition very frustrating now.     I fully appreciate that those who do (or did!) have a more active social schedule will have found the restrictions far more difficult to cope with and in many cases such restrictions will have had a profound effect on their mental well-being.   

 

I have to say that I still have little sympathy with "unnecessary" international travel at the moment and I firmly believe that if self-paid hotel isolation is deemed necessary then frankly that's just part of the overall cost of the holiday for an individual.  No one quibbles that you have to pay for for the air, sea or rail fare to get to the destination, the cost of the accommodation, the attractions visited, the cost of living in one's chosen destination - they are all just component costs for "the holiday" and are taken in the round when someone decides that they a) want to go and b) can afford to go.    As for the appalling and completely out of balance low cost of some air travel, well I think there should be some serious controls put in place to eliminate such travel - the world IMHO is completely mad when it costs more to park your vehicle in a glorified field for a fortnight than it does for you to fly there and back to some reasonably far off destination in a very complex, expensive, lifed, kerosene burning vehicle supported and controlled by a huge, complex and expensive infra-structure but that's a completely different discussion!

 

1 hour ago, iL Dottore said:

In the interests of academic rigour and scientific enquiry, I must take exception to both Dave and Jamie equating TAPS and Numpties with those afflicted with Stercus pro Cerebro (SpC). Whilst it is true that both TAPS and Numpties are variants of SpC, they are not – per se – innately dangerous, although they can cause dangerous situations. To illustrate the difference, and I know clinically it is quite a subtle one, someone with TAPS will wire up a switch the wrong way round because they think they know how to wire up a switch; whereas someone with SpC will wire up a switch the wrong way round, ignoring the instructions before him/her because “some bloke down the pub said if you wire it the right way around Bill Gates will take over the wiring in your house“.

Hmm, I'd have to disagree with your specific example here ....

 

In my world anyone who ignores the wiring instructions because “some bloke down the pub said if you wire it the right way around Bill Gates will take over the wiring in your house“ is in fact the very definition of TAPS!    I would also add that could just as easily have used the example "I'm not having the Covid vaccine because they've put tracking microchips in the vaccine"

 

 

18 minutes ago, JohnDMJ said:

Contrary to popular belief, life does not run to a timetable.

Absolutely.       "Stuff" happens and then someone turns the fan on.    Unfortunately there's been rather too much "Stuff" and far too many very big fans in the last 18 months!

 

In other news .......

 

As there is and has been quite a lot of discussion on here  recently concerning fathers, both about the trials and tribulations currently being endured by our nearest and dearest and also those that sadly are no longer with us I thought I would take this opportunity, on this most appropriate day, to share an only recently discovered photograph of Father Puppers in his lair back in the early '70s.   Every Saturday and school holiday I could be found in there and it was even better than being let loose in a sweet shop! 

 

I had been longing to see a photograph of his shop for decades and hence was over the moon when this came to light recently.  It's nearly 20 years since I lost him but all my interests and any practical skills I might have are down to him for which I am eternally grateful.     Appreciate your parents while they are here, that won't always be the case.

 

 

 

[Andrew P]

Guildex 4th & 5th September 2021 CANCELLED - more information...

https://www.gaugeoguild.com/

Edited June 20, 2021 by Andrew P

[Andrew P]

10 minutes ago, PupCam said:

 

 

As there is and has been quite a lot of discussion on here  recently concerning fathers, both about the trials and tribulations currently being endured by our nearest and dearest and also those that sadly are no longer with us I thought I would take this opportunity, on this most appropriate day, to share an only recently discovered photograph of Father Puppers in his lair back in the early '70s.   Every Saturday and school holiday I could be found in there and it was even better than being let loose in a sweet shop! 

 

I had been longing to see a photograph of his shop for decades and hence was over the moon when this came to light recently.  It's nearly 20 years since I lost him but all my interests and any practical skills I might have are down to him for which I am eternally grateful.     Appreciate your parents while they are here, that won't always be the case.

 

 

 

Where is that Pup's as I'm sure I know the face?

[PupCam]

13 minutes ago, Andrew P said:

Where is that Pup's as I'm sure I know the face?

It was "Hemel Model Centre" in the Water Gardens in Hemel new town.    It was about 50 yards away from the famous Bridge Street offices of MAP, at that time publishers of Aeromodeller, Model Boats, Model Cars, Scale Models, Model Railway News/Model Railways, Meccano Magazine .......

 

Not to be confused with other model shops in the old town that came later or toy shops with model departments.

 

This was the shop shortly before he took it over.

Edited June 20, 2021 by PupCam
Photo added

[Andrew P]

1 minute ago, PupCam said:

It was "Hemel Model Centre" in the Water Gardens in Hemel new town.    It was about 50 yards away from the famous Bridge Street offices of MAP, at that time publishers of Aeromodeller, Model Boats, Model Cars, Scale Models, Model Railway News/Model Railways, Meccano Magazine .......

 

Not to be confused with other model shops in the old town that came later or toy shops with model departments.

Thanks, No, I've never been to Hemel, so he must have an almost double somewhere, always good to have nice photos and memories.

[PupCam]

  Deleted

 

Edited June 20, 2021 by PupCam
Deleted - Andy beat me to it!

[PhilJ W]

Afternoon all from Estuary-Land. A grey day today but dry so I'm tempted to do some of the G word but at the moment I'm resisting temptation.

3 hours ago, iL Dottore said:

Thank you for that erudite update on my summary. You are quite right, those afflicted by Stercus Cranialis (or - to be accurately pedantic - Stercus pro Cerebro) do tend to club together – a bit like zombie hordes now that you come to mention it (a relevant reference as I’m currently playing on the PS4 a zombie apocalypse game called Day’s Gone)

 

 

Problem is when they get together they seem to breed like rabbits.

3 hours ago, Andrew P said:

Me too, I've only had a little bit, and Good Lady can have the rest. 

I must be good.

I must be good.

I must be good.

I must be Good.

I must be good.

I must be good.

I must be good.

I must be Good.

I must be good.

I must be good.

I must be good.

I must be Good.

I must be good.

I must be good.

I must be good.

I must be Good.

Etc. 

You get where I'm coming from.

 

Have you been good? please tell?

[monkeysarefun]

4 hours ago, iL Dottore said:

Dog breeds that only 50 years ago were robust and healthy with good temperament and character have now been bred (or more accurately inbred) to the point where they suffer from congenital disease and can sometimes have severe behavioural problems (some of which may not exhibit themselves until well after puppyhood).

 

In contrast the Aussie Kelpie is apparently  not  recognised by the kennel mob and is subsequently awesome and worth a heap to those who use them for what they were meant for when they aren't riding around in the back of utes.

 

 

[Andrew P]

1 hour ago, PhilJ W said:

Afternoon all from Estuary-Land. A grey day today but dry so I'm tempted to do some of the G word but at the moment I'm resisting temptation.

Problem is when they get together they seem to breed like rabbits.

Have you been good? please tell?

16.15 and so far YES, I couldn't even give my bits away to one of my Step Daughters, NOT EVEN FOR FREE.