Early Risers.

[chrisf]

How do, folks!  I need to finish packing for my imminent holiday in Mallorca so I'll bash on with that and maybe pop in a bit later.  It's good that we are all here again.  My thanks to Baz for noticing that RMweb is back and letting me know.

 

Chris

[grandadbob]

Good morning all,

Dry  with some blue sky and a hint of of sunshine.  My shed roof has caught Tony's frost.  Weather app says 0°C with a real feel of -9°C but I doubt the latter figure is correct.  A sunny day is forecast with the chance of the odd shower later.

Much aching in the joints at the moment but I'm assured a walk which will include a visit to Asda will improve things.  There 's "much to do" today and tomorrow as we will be celebrating Nicki's 50th birthday at a local cricket club with the largest gathering of family and friends (60+) we've had for over two years.  Abbie has done all the organising and The Boss is I/C catering.  I will be doing whatever is decreed from on High which will revolve mainly around cleaning tasks and transport.  Joe is staying with us at the weekend as a couple of Abbie's friends are staying at theirs so The Boss is happy about that,  having somebody other than me in the house to cater for. 😁

Have a good one,
Bob.

 

 

 

Edited April 1, 2022 by grandadbob

[polybear]

8 hours ago, Tony_S said:

Are you sure he isn’t hiding in our guest bedroom cupboard

 

 

Hiding Wedging Bears in a Cupboard?  Shame on you.  That's dangerously close to the Ultimate Sin - sending them to The Loft, which is only one step away from the Dreaded

D-U-M-P........

😭😭

 

Right, Bear here......

Tower to @PupCam......come in Puppers.......the Airstrip's fixed and it's safe to land.  There's Cake for Tea.....

 

Right, Angry Mode on.....

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/money/other/boss-of-motorbike-firm-who-illegally-used-11m-from-pensions-spared-jail/ar-AAVIp46?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=1dc81d4d732a4893973ada7dbc27364b

Angry Mode off.....

 

Bear proposes an ER Team Meeting....here......

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/cars/news/elmo-celebrates-the-grand-opening-of-sesame-place-san-diego/vi-AAVJqQj?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=1dc81d4d732a4893973ada7dbc27364b

 

Today sees Bear wet-wiping all the lounge walls down to get rid of the last of the dust (mainly from the sanding of coving joints) before the walls can be primed & sealed (hopefully tomorrow's job).  Oh joy.

 

As for the saga of the missing door hinges - well the seller refunded me after I ranted to Ebay;  after about a week Postie delivered one of those "We've got some post for you but you ain't 'avin it cos' there's money to pay cos' the Bozo didn't put enough stamps on it cards"; she didn't know what the post was nor who it was from.  I gambled the thirty bob ransom and paid up; a couple of days later the missing hinges appeared......

So does the seller get them back?  Well he (a) lied about the tracking number and sent a fake one (he used ordinary post), (b) didn't use enough post to cover the cost, (c) didn't send the promised loose pin hinges I ordered, and (d) p1ssed Bear about/off.  So I'll let you go figure...

As for replacement hinges, well The Big River came to the rescue - eventually....

The seller sent 3" hinges with rounded corners (I ordered 4" with square hinges), so a Beary snottogram was called for.  In fairness they were very quick off the mark and sent the 4" hinges PDQ, so Bear has removed them from The Hit List.

As for now, well Bear has numerous spare hinges with nothing to, well hinge.......

Such problems never seem to happen with cake, strangely.....🤕

 

[BoD]

Morning all.

 

Someone has scattered a load of sugar about outside as an April Fool’s joke.  It’s white out there.  
 

Today will be spent mostly searching for various documents and answering questions asked by the solicitor for the buyer of mum’s house.   That includes going to Corgi to see if the can provide a duplicate certificate for a boiler installed in 2007.

 

Enjoy your holiday @chrisf

[iL Dottore]

49 minutes ago, TheQ said:

…Ben the currently snoring Collie, is what I would call medium cuddly. He only comes for a cuddle if he wants something or needs reassurance.…

That’s definitely Lucy. 
 

I had mentioned her coming to beg for treats from me when I’m working, she realises that she has to offer me the opportunity to give her a little cuddle before she gets a treat. This has definitely proved to be a winning strategy for her (Schotty just comes and stares at me with mournful, but hopeful eyes - he gets a treat as well). Schotty’s way of showing affection is, when I’m sitting down, to push his head hard between my legs so that I can ruffle his ears and neck; when I stop ruffling he pushes harder with his head until I start again.

One of my great pleasures of having the dogs is when I am out walking with Lucy and I sit down for a break (dodgy knees and all that): she will come up to me and stand pressing her body against my leg whilst gazing at (and sniffing) the surrounding countryside. It’s positively Zen like, the two of us staying incredibly still and contemplating the universe (until we are [usually] interrupted by Schotty bouncing up and demanding me to throw his ball for the umpteenth time).

As much as there is a lot of responsibility in being a dog owner, I can think of very few things which are more satisfying or rewarding; dogs love you for what you are (and not what you’re worth) and whilst dogs do have their individual faults, at least you know they are not going to run off with a tattooed biker from Neasden or go into the City and become a Merchant Banker “buy-to-let“ landlord (or worse model the LMS 🤡)

[jamie92208]

16 minutes ago, chrisf said:

How do, folks!  I need to finish packing for my imminent holiday in Mallorca so I'll bash on with that and maybe pop in a bit later.  It's good that we are all here again.  My thanks to Baz for noticing that RMweb is back and letting me know.

 

Chris

Good luck Chris.   I've just reloaded a few of my Mallorca photos.

 

Jamie

[Grizz]

Morning All.

 

and it is a bleeding cold one in ‘former sub tropical Sussex’. It bloody snowed here for 30 minutes yesterday morning and we are 6 miles from the channel. You’d think with all that pollution coming out of Brighton it might have melted before it got here. 

 

Woke to find that the garden tent gerzibo thingy, that we often sit under, has been ripped by the north wind during the night. There’s a word for that……..buyanotherone!

 

Off out into the cold later this morning to escort a group of people to look at rolling stock. These are not railway people so the safety briefing will be long and very exacting. Up to and including “please don’t climb up the signal gantries as it tends to distract the train drivers” and “when acknowledging trains please only raise one arm up above your head……no two arms doesn’t mean ‘they will see more of you’….it means stop!”…..

 

and finally “ beware of uneven walking surfaces, look where you are going and watch where you place your feet….because if you trip over when you are out on track you will most likely face plant Steel, Concrete or Granite!…and having done this loads of times during my career you can see that it has not improved my looks! “  

 

I’ve only got them for an hour or so, so hopefully it’ll be ‘home in time for tea and medals’ by midday. 
 

Just a final quick message….massive massive thanks to Andy…for everything you’ve done getting this all up and running again. Legend! Mate I wouldn’t want your job for anything but thank you so much.

 

Have a good one all.

 

ATB Grizz

 

 

Edited April 1, 2022 by Grizz

[New Haven Neil]

MOrning, from a chilly 1c feels like -4 rock, where a sprinkling of hail is evident....in the sunshine.  Odd weather.

 

I'm not sure Tony is being cruel to that bear, our Camping Bear totally refuses to come out of his cupboard unless we're actually going camping - of course once away he, Noel and Donk go mad together.

 

 

Poly's lack of avatar is making the placeholder thing obscure the star to go to unread posts thing, I keep ending up on his profile.  It's OK, I'm not stalking you.....

[BSW01]

Good morning everyone 

 

It seems a long time since I’ve written that! No snow or frost here, but it’s definitely colder than last week, which was spent in mostly the garden in short sleeves! It’s currently -1C which surprised me, as I would have expects see some frost! I shall shortly head off to the butchers for the weekly meat rations and a pork pie for dinner. Then I shall head off to the Trafford Centre for a few more bits and pieces. This afternoon, if the weather is fine, the plan is to go for a short walk. 

 

Back later. 

 

Brian. 

[BoD]

35 minutes ago, New Haven Neil said:

MOrning, from a chilly 1c feels like -4 rock, where a sprinkling of hail is evident....in the sunshine.  Odd weather.

The weather here has developed bipolar disorder.

[BlackRat]

A prediction for Gwiver…… now the tests have to be bought, watch the numbers plummet.

 

Have a friend who tests daily, wears a mask in their own house, hardly goes out etc etc etc.

 

He has hoarded tests and thinks he is ok to test daily for several more months……then “We will be in the middle of the worst yet!”

 

I‘Ve offered to buy his bike, which hasn’t been fired up in 2 years!

[PhilJ W]

Morning all from Estuary-Land. A bit nippy here this morning but no frost due to it being very windy. Looking at the weather map there's a massive low pressure system over northern France/southwest Germany and the cold area signified stretches right down to the Med, no wonder even @jamie92208 is feeling cold. It might even be a good idea for @chrisf to pack some winter woolies. Still sorting out the racking as during the interregnum I have been doing some railway modelling but any more of that will have to wait until the racking is sorted.

[Tony_S]

1 hour ago, New Haven Neil said:

I'm not sure Tony is being cruel to that bear, our Camping Bear totally refuses to come out of his cupboard unless we're actually going camping - of course once away he, Noel and Donk go mad together.

Mr Bear is not stuffed in the cupboard, he is avoiding this lot. 
 

[Tony_S]

39 minutes ago, BlackRat said:

A prediction for Gwiver…… now the tests have to be bought, watch the numbers plummet.

And hospital admissions rise. 

[PhilJ W]

The LED bulb in the Anglepoise over my computer desk has failed. Its the only one in the house with a screw fitting, luckily I have some spares. When I unscrewed the old bulb it was hot around the base, resistor failure?

[PhilJ W]

Now its snowing, no it isn't the suns shining, no it isn't its hailing.

[Grizz]

ooooo the sun has come out….still flipping freezing in the wind though.

 

We are now looking at track…..well apparently you’ve got to have something to put your ‘new rolling stock on’…..apparently! 😆

“No you can’t have that bit….why? Because they are using it!”…..amazing.

 

[PeterBB]

12 hours ago, polybear said:

 

Bear has a smart meter - only it's not very smart (a.k.a. bvggered....).  I've finally convinced Eon that (a) it is bvggered, (b) I'm not making it up/paranoid/dunno what I'm talking about and (c) do need a new one.  Which is currently planned for June......

 

 

EoN - what a shambles.  Formally messed up by mixing addresses that took ages to sort.  Moving readings taken but ignored for ages and, as with it seems all the main suppliers, email or actual proper contact impossible viz if its x,y,z OK but if not then absolutely impossible.

 

Currently (pun not intended) apparently sending bills to an empty 'home' in spite of being informed that we do not live there and informing them many times of a change of the address that any bill should be sent.  Hence at the time although they were the cheapest for our tarif we went elsewhere for power as they were as efficient as the previous RMweb service in responding to anything.

 

Thanks to Andy Y for the effort put in to sorting it all out.

[polybear]

3 hours ago, iL Dottore said:

As much as there is a lot of responsibility in being a dog owner, I can think of very few things which are more satisfying or rewarding; dogs love you for what you are (and not what you’re worth)

 

They do have an annoying habit of loving you for your cake though.....😠

 

3 hours ago, iL Dottore said:

......and whilst dogs do have their individual faults, at least you know they are not going to run off with a tattooed biker from Neasden ......

 

They'll run off with your cake though......

 

30 minutes ago, PeterBB said:

Currently (pun not intended) apparently sending bills to an empty 'home' in spite of being informed that we do not live there and informing them many times of a change of the address that any bill should be sent.  

 

Stop paying your bills - they'll send the Bailiffs round to an empty house 😆

 

Bear has wiped the lounge walls down.  Tick.  I may even get really keen and prime the walls after din dins.  Or maybe not....

 

In other news.....

How to make yourself popular with the neighbours......

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/money/other/woman-devastated-as-council-tax-band-challenge-leaves-21-neighbours-paying-higher-bills/ar-AAVw68N?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=e5b7c15cb86c4a948ff7c6b4d6c9337d

Edited April 1, 2022 by polybear

[grandadbob]

Asda visited and a walk has been walked although barely a mile as there is still "much to do."    Still quite fresh out and although the sun has been shining rain is forecast in 22minutes.  I'm currently having a muggatea in a break from bathroom cleaning duties.  Later this afternoon I may watch some recorded rugby provided that Management doesn't need help with anything else.   Anyone see a flying pig? ✈️+🐷

[Tony_S]

29 minutes ago, PeterBB said:

EoN - what a shambles

We were with Eon (never had a problem) but they transferred us to Eon Next. 
I did need to contact them and didn’t get a reply to emails and the phone rang forever. So I found their Twitter page and asked if anyone answered their emails or phone calls. Later that day, I responded to their request for a DM (direct message). I had a rapid reply and the meter issue was dealt with immediately and I was also advised how to get in contact with another part of the company about a separate query (selling them electricity from our solar  panels)

[PhilJ W]

37 minutes ago, PeterBB said:

EoN - what a shambles.  Formally messed up by mixing addresses that took ages to sort.  Moving readings taken but ignored for ages and, as with it seems all the main suppliers, email or actual proper contact impossible viz if its x,y,z OK but if not then absolutely impossible.

Can't be as bad as British Gas. I wasn't even a customer but I started getting letters from them at my address with someone elses name on them. I done no more than to send them back marked 'Not known at this address'. There were about three or four such letters and then I had a request from my supplier for meter readings for my final bill as I was transferring to British Gas! I got onto my supplier who informed me that BG had told them that they had a request to transfer my account to them. I then contacted BG and they were completely unhelpful to the extent of refusing to correct their c*ck up. I wasn't all that satisfied with my existing supplier anyway so I went to a third supplier.

[simontaylor484]

Afternoon all

 

Snow again overnight that froze over the Volvo it took some shifting with the heated screens.

 

I have spent the day looking for a door keep to no avail. It's a special one as we have self closing fire doors to protect the stairs as Means of escape due to being a 3 storey townhouse.

I have been to a couple of builders merchants who looked mystified when I showed them the photo. The strip running up the door frame is an intumescent door seal that swells to cut off oxygen to a fire.

I can find the concealed chain closers all over the net but not the keep that the latch sits in. It would be handy even if I knew what they were called

 

[NGT6 1315]

3 hours ago, PhilJ W said:

Morning all from Estuary-Land. A bit nippy here this morning but no frost due to it being very windy. Looking at the weather map there's a massive low pressure system over northern France/southwest Germany and the cold area signified stretches right down to the Med, no wonder even @jamie92208 is feeling cold. It might even be a good idea for @chrisf to pack some winter woolies. Still sorting out the racking as during the interregnum I have been doing some railway modelling but any more of that will have to wait until the racking is sorted.

 

It's turned quite chilly here indeed. There's even the faintest bit of snow in the air right now!

 

 

[simontaylor484]

I have e mailed Ironmongery Direct with a photo of the door part whatever it is called (I keep finding different names on the 'net)

I will see what they come up with