Early Risers.

[simontaylor484]

13 hours ago, zarniwhoop said:

Something which will hopefully meet with the approval and amusement of most people here:

https://www.joe.co.uk/news/climate-activists-volkswagen-dealership-364190

 

I dunno, things are so hard for protesters these days 😄

Just a shame they didn't have a couple of hungry guard dogs to keep them company 

[DaveF]

 

Yesterday was very misty for much of the day, especially down at the beach where I went for my walk.  That however was after I had visited the roofing company in person to ask them to put the second bit of guttering next door to the flat back together.  The man was most annoyed that it hadn't been done, I think someone was going to get a good telling off later on.  I've said I'll pay the bill when it is finished.

 

When I got to the beach there was a glimopse of sun shining on one patch of sea, but it soon went away.  Some way out there was an offshore support ship with the Pilot boat alongside, after a short while the Pilot boat returned to the harbour and the ship came closer and did a few circles just off the harbour mouth.  Close up it turned out to be "North Sea Atlantic" which eventually entered the harbour stern first, possibly to save turning to access the south harbour quay which requires a reversal.

 

I was back home in time for coffee after which I got the Swiss Army knife cleaned up, it looks quite good again now.  After a fish finger and chips lunch I decided it would be a good idea to prune a large rose growing on an arch.  It looks like a rambler but flowers several times a year like a climber.  I had to get the steps out to reach it, each year I find it a little more dificult to deal with.  I think next autumn I will simply use the long handled loppers rather than trying to trim small bits off!  By the time I'd finished that and done a few other jobs it was just about teatime.  I just had time before having a cup of tea tea to order a new Shark vacuum from Argos as the Dyson is getting iold and needs a new mains cable.

 

Then I did a bit more modelmaking and started to work on a batch of photos to put on the web.  I felt a bit stiff so had another quick walk before making a salad for my evening meal.

 

Argos delivered the new Shark at 8.30 p.m., it has been unopacked, tested and the 5 year guarantee activated.

 

Then it was the usual TV, reading and music before bedtime.

 

Blyth  North Sea Atlantic  entering harbour stern first

 

David

Edited October 22, 2022 by DaveF

[monkeysarefun]

Along with a handful of others at work I used to sub-contract direct to the Department Of Defence before someone there decided that we should all be rolled up into one contract which went out to tender and BAE won it. We were a bit dubious about them at first so because we knew that due to our specialist system knowledge and security clearances they couldn't work the contract without us we hit them pretty hard with demands.  We told them we'd sign up for  $50 an hour extra on top of our original contract rate (which was pretty good to start with, being Defence!) and because they wanted me to be on-call after hours and weekends  for 2 months before they could get a security clearance for one of their guys,  I again went a bit cheeky and demanded  $100 a day, plus a minimum $100 for every phone call I took  and a minimum 3 hours pay  if I got called out.

 

Gotta say though, they met all our conditions with good grace, and  went above and beyond  last year when lockdown was on and people were asked to work from home if they were able by telling us all to work every second day from  home, despite the network we work on having no outside access so we were unable to do anything, so basically got every second day off and  they still paid us in full despite us being contractors and so  were under no obligation to do so. Additionally any training courses we ask to do they pay for ( and specialist  IT courses are a rip-off and  can cost in the thousands for a 5 day course)  and despite us being contractors they will also honour the standard NSW long service leave agreement so we get 3 months off at full pay after 10 years service just  like regular employees get here so all in all I have pretty warm thoughts towards them. 

 

The Australian arm of the company seems to be pretty independent of the mothership though so maybe they do things different here, overall workers here seem to get a pretty decent deal compared with other places.

Edited October 22, 2022 by monkeysarefun

[TheQ]

5 hours ago, polybear said:

 

 

And IIRC those made redundant went on legal minimum terms as well, which wasn't funny (especially for those with maybe 40+ years service).  In addition, those with shares saw their value go thru' the floor.

 

Bear here.....

Washing to do first☹️, followed by some serious wallpaper stripping.  Deep joy.

Yep just before  the first round of redundancies came, they changed the terms from very good to state minimum.

I saw the first round of redundancies, plus 90ish people being told the week before Christmas your job will move from MK to Edinburgh the week after Christmas  I realised that was it and bailed out to Saudi, when I came back the factory was down to 3 people from 1200.

 

The shares went from £14:20 to 4p.... One of the guys had retired from Saudi to the UK, with his money mostly in those shares. He had to go back to Saudi again..... In numbers terms he took my place, but of course he was bottom of the pile again..

 

Spinny thingy did not get reassembled, glue not hard enough, still a bit rubbery..

 

Decided to fit cover on back of trailer.. could I find the turn buckles... No.. the workshop got a good sort out though... Eventually I fooled the gremlin by coming back and looking up the original order, but not actually reordering.. went back for a final search and there they were on the work bench in front of me...

 

Eyelets fitted on three sides of cover as required, but only the top row of turnbuckles on the trailer,  because I tweeked my back reaching up to do those.. Now lying on sofa with some Welsh amber anaesthetic.

 

A friend at the sailing club has a degenerative nerve desease, his balance has long since gone and he needs help to walk, but he can still drive and is still a very good sailor.. if he sits still and doesn't concentrate his brain some times switches off.. and he goes to sleep. unfortunately it can't be long before his driving license is taken away, and then he won't be able to come  sailing either...

 

Ben the running around better than for a year or two Collie definitely took me for his long walk.

I'm knackered.. time for an eyelid inspection..

 

 

[simontaylor484]

That sounds similar to what my Dad has got with the balance problems except he doesn't have the absence.

His Brother has the same condition but it has affected his speech

[The White Rabbit]

Afternoon all,

 

Following political news makes you more bad-tempered. Discuss... 

 

If only for the sake of Andy's blood pressure, I hasten to add that was a rhetorical question and a parody of the A-Level essay questions we used to be set rather than a serious invitation. But it does feel like the lunatics are trying to take over the asylum. One consequence I have noticed if I spend too long reading the news is I become more acerbic. I do sometimes wonder if I might have become a cartoonist, though that would have been difficult given my complete lack of drawing skills. (As a certain teacher once noted on a report card, "He has all the enthusiasm, interest and commitment necessary to be an outstanding player of [this sport] except for his unfortunate total lack of ability to play well"). I can enjoy captioning other people's work though... 

 

 

 

 

And for anyone who has been offended, please complete the attached form below and submit with a SAE to my circular filing cabinet. 

 

 

 

[The White Rabbit]

Moving away from such grouchy thoughts, I have been going through some more old files/photos. I am too young to have been around when Jamie was photographing the end of steam special at Ribblehead but have pointed a camera at it and trains on it from most directions over the years. The only real exception is from the top of Whernside. I saw one from a fellow landscape photographer who had climbed what looked like halfway to heaven and taken a few frames on a clear day. I looked up a route but whenever I've been up that way since, it's either been too cloudy, wet underfoot or short of time. Maybe one day...  or perhaps I could just buy a drone?

 

Bolton Abbey is one of Yorkshire's tourist honeypots. There has been a religious house in this part of Yorkshire for over 1500 years. There was a Celtic monastery in Embsay, a few miles to the west, but its occupants had their careers abruptly and prematurely terminated in a Viking raid around 867AD. The early 1100s saw a flourishing of religious orders. In 1121, Cecily de Romille and her husband founded a priory at Embsay. The Augustinian members of the priory dedicated it to Saint Cuthbert and received local tithes. In 1154 they exchanged estates with the de Romille family and moved to Bolton Abbey, which was a more fertile location. The priory flourished and grew rich on the profits of sheep farming and wool trading.

 

The Priory prospered until the late 1530s, when King Henry VIII fell out with the Roman Catholic Church over one of his divorces and dissolved all the religious houses in England, including Bolton Abbey. The nave of the Abbey was used for the local parish church, but the rest of the Abbey fell into disrepair and ruin. Some of the stonework was used by local people for their own buildings. During the Napoleonic wars the middle and upper classes began to appreciate the geographical and cultural attractions that Britain had to offer. The ruins of many of the dissolved monasteries and priories were seen as being incurably romantic and Bolton Abbey became known as a place to visit. Whether you park at Embsay for free and take the [steam] train to the east, then walk down to the ruins or pay quite a few modelling/LDC tokens to park in the estate's car-park, the first frame is what many people see. 

 

 

There are quite a few footpaths in the area and if you cross the river (with a choice of using some stepping stones or a footbridge) then some of these give you a nice view of the site from the east bank. Personally I think it's a much better vantage point but only around 10% of the visitors seem to get to it. 

 

 

[Gwiwer]

Good afternoon all and welcome to a damp Autumnal weekend. There has been a good deal of rain and we have a yellow warning of more about to arrive. 
 

We took ourselves out, at Dr. SWMBO’s request, aiming to amble through the trees and around the pond in Barnes before finding a coffee. 
 

As it turned out the world and every cockwomble in it was on the roads. The 10-15 minute trip as far as Richmond took 40 minutes; after another 30 we were stationary in East Sheen when Dr. S. decided we should park there and look around. We had both become bored with stop-start driving in (mostly) first gear trying to avoid the crazy antics of law-disregarding cyclists / motorcyclists and the lane-butting and general pushing-in of other motorists. One van pulled from a side turning so close in front of us that an emergency stop was required. Being unable to complete hus required right turn he then blocked our path for several minutes until he could push in to the opposite lane. 
 

The return trip was as bad. Traffic was, if anything, even slower. One cyclist overtook us and cut sharply in front again requiring an emergency stop before she then undertook the car ahead to be first in line at the lights. At those lights the left lane is marked “left turn only” and has a filter light. The filter went green; cyclist didn’t move. I pipped the horn and she still didn’t move. My light then turned back to red, that for going ahead turned green and off she went - straight ahead from the left-only lane and almost collected by the car correctly using the ahead-only lane. Meanwhile I sat frustrated by another red light phase whilst being tooted from behind for not moving on a green. 
 

As a professional driver and as a cyclist I despair at such things. A total absence of road-craft and consideration for one thing. Lane markings are usually only advisory but when marked “Left turn only” then you may not go straight ahead. Neither may you impede other road users unreasonably. 
 

In our brief stroll around Sheen we did at least find a good coffee and cake shop. No LDC but the local Italian community there seems to vie for biggest and best of what they can offer. Carrot cake for me; iced chai latté cake for her.

 

It’s an area I travel through most days but have only once before actually set foot in. Not too bad, actually, but the traffic is apalling.  
 

 

[TheQ]

Pedantic mode on...

Henry VIII, didn't dissolve all the monasteries.... There was one he didn't, St Benet's Abbey in Horning in  Norfolk, aka St Benedicts at Holm Abbey founded 800AD technically is still open, however it was handed to the Bishop of Norwich in return for a bung in 1536, he was supposed to keep 12 monks in situ, however with in a few years it was abandoned and the fancier bits used to rebuild the accomodation of the Bishop at cathedral.

 

Until the early 1900s there still remained some of the Riverside non religious buildings were still in use as a pub. However all that's left now are foundations and part of the old gatehouse which got incorporated into a windmill.

the cross at the old abbey altar. At which the bishop still holds a service once a year.

Tomorrow I'll be driving a rescue boat past the Abbey for the Tri-Icicle race.

Video of the 3Rivers Race at St Benets

 

Edited October 22, 2022 by TheQ

[BoD]

42 minutes ago, The White Rabbit said:

Bolton Abbey is one of Yorkshire's tourist honeypots. 

 

I agree, it's a beautiful place.  Even though it gets busy it can be peaceful too especially if, as you say, you head to some of the quieter footpaths or the church itself.

 

It is also the final resting place of ...

 

 

White roses - how very appropriate.  

[PupCam]

Afternoon All!

 

9 hours ago, TheQ said:

When Arnie Wienstock retired, in 3 short years George Simpson managed to destroy the British company with disastrous acquisitions , so starting a series of sell offs. The last remains collapsing in 2006 when what was left of Marconi was sold off to Ericsson.

 

It's ironic really.  "We" at BAE spent the '90s thinking Arnie was going to march in, take us over and put the boot in!

 

Then he disappeared in a puff of smoke, Marconi was broken up so that they could concentrate on "Core Business" just as the bottom fell out of their core business!    Hmmm, just wondering if any of the current crop of politicians had any training at Macaroni?  (I do hope that's not too close to the edge ...)

 

6 hours ago, New Haven Neil said:

Morning.  Spent the previous two hours rebuilding the Dyson (again).  The power head kept stopping (overload) so a full stripdown and removal of 12 metric tonnes of debris and 32 kilometres of wife-hair. NHN hair is never more than about 12mm long, so not guilty.  It survives to vacuum another day, this time.  What an awful expensive but cheap bit of tat. Never again.

 

You and me sing from the same hymn sheet on this particular topic.   I'm pleased to say that the repair I did to the power head a couple of years (?) back is still working nicely.   The repair should never have been necessary.   As you say, what an awful expensive but cheap bit of tat.    I would add poorly designed, manufactured from unsuitable materials for the job in-hand and grossly over-hyped.     But what do we know? 😉

 

In Other News

 

Went out for a short ride this morning to fill the bike up  with 0% Ethanol Esso Supreme in anticipation of a trip, weather permitting, to the Danish Camp for breakfast tomorrow.     The lanes were quite tricky this morning;   wet and now with an appreciably amount of slippery dead leaves on and with a very bright, low sun.      On one road with a blind driveway exit on a bend it's good to see the owners have put up a mirror dome on the other side of the road so they can make  sure the road is clear before pulling out.    The silly bint has just got to learn how to use it now .......    Lucky I know the road and always have my eyes peeled for just such situations.   

 

The replacement iPhone battery turned up the other day and Junior Puppers came round with his tools to assist with it's installation.    Talk about fiddly!    But we got there in the end although because the "magic glue" that holds the battery in-place had lost a bit of its magic we had to go fishing underneath the battery.   During this time the battery inevitably suffered some physical abuse.   As it's a Lithium battery this is not good so it now resides in a plastic container sitting in a fire basket with a cover over the top in the middle of the lawn.    If it decides to turn itself into an incendiary device it can do so in the wide open air.      Perhaps a trip to the local battery disposal facility is in the offing.

The new battery went in OK with the exception that the new Magic Glue would not unstick from the backing plastic sheet without destroying itself.    Had to drop back to Plan B; ordinary double sided tape.

 

 

Oh yes, it took a lot longer than 3 minutes, but we got there in the end!

 

Anyway, half the price of the Clowns at the Apple Shop "Genius Bar" so they can stick their services right up their pretentious, over-hyped rears.   Now I come to think of it, there are marked similarities with a previously mentioned company.

 

On my return from the re-fuelling trip this morning I thought I would offer up the replacement BSA engine whilst the AJ was out on the drive.    I'm pleased to say it looks like it's going to be OK.  The MagDyno gear looks like it's got a chance of meshing half reasonably with the new idler and, just for the fun of it to provide a bit of inspiration, it even looks a bit like an engine.    Looks can be deceptive, there is of course still a very long way to go and numerous Gotchas! lurking around every corner.

 

 

 

TTFNQ

 

 

Edited October 22, 2022 by PupCam
Where's the video gone? Ah, it's back now

[simontaylor484]

We have had a busy day doing electrical work in the garage. We have put on an unswitched socket for the power to the new door. Trunking has been fitted too. We have a socket to replace that is on order for delivery tomorrow. We would have got everything done today but we had to keep the power on for the Boss to use the washing machine 

[simontaylor484]

I also have to look at getting a new set of stepladders the one I have is getting rickety o am looking at getting a set of fibreglass ones instead

[andyram]

Afternoon to you all from an Autumnal Matlock Bath. The trees are all kinds of colours and there is a definite chill in the air despite the crisp sunshine. The streets outside are starting to get busy with visitors wending their way down to the Derwent Gardens ahead of the illuminated boat parade which begins at 7pm. Tonight's festivities are sold out so I will be here in the shop a little beyond the usual 5pm closure time. The closure time for this weekend is definitely in the "play it by ear" category.

 

 A week ago was the Wirksworth show which I had to miss due to being in bed with Covid. Although I have long since been found to be negative, the tiredness and lingering cough refuse to leave me. The damp air certainly does not help the latter. I had hoped to make it out to the pub with my mate tonight, but I am not sure that will be wise. I will see how I feel when I finally make it home.

 

 Although I am technically still on holiday from the college job until Monday, I have spent today making inroads into a job that needs to be completed by the end of the month. A large number of completed assignments need to have their marking quality assured. Today's efforts have cleared over 40 of the 97 on one of the platforms. With good luck and a following wind I may get that one cleared by the end of tomorrow. If I can, I may yet manage to sneak off for a day out next week to make up for the loss of last week's holiday. With the shop closed on Monday and Wednesday, there may be a chance if I get on top of these outstanding jobs.

 

Best wishes 

 

Andy

 

 

[J. S. Bach]

6 hours ago, Rugd1022 said:

I know we only usually skirt round the edges of politics in here, but ladies and gentlemen I have the answer to all out problems.... Ringo for PM...!

 

 

Sorted!

 

 

With that cigar in his mouth, he kind of reminds me of another movie star; Lassie, taking .................................................

[PhilJ W]

Afternoon all from Estuary-Land. Very little fuss from Arthur Itis this afternoon but the wet stuff is predicted for tonight and tomorrow so that might activate him. I did a bit of cleaning up in the garden this afternoon, just dumping  the ivy I removed from the fence a few days ago in the green bin. Now to nip down to Tess Coes for a few bits.

Edited October 22, 2022 by PhilJ W

[J. S. Bach]

Hey Bear, what the .... were you doing at the York (PA) train show yesterday; here is an eyewitness report 🙀 :

 

https://ogrforum.ogaugerr.com/topic/bear-lead-was-in-the-house?reply=165292038946161513#165292038946161513

[Barry O]

Very busy day today at our show. Now for a bit of R & R.

 

 

Everyone may think BAe took over GEC.. from my experience at Barrrrooow.. it may have been the other way round as the bean counters are heavily in charge now... which is a very GEC thing...

 

Baz

[Coombe Barton]

... deep ford over the River Sence, the site where satnavs have led unwary people to take their cars for a paddle ...

https://johncolby.wordpress.com/2022/10/22/covid-decreasing-political-nonsense-increasing/

[grandadbob]

Evenin' each.

Busy morning assisting with domestic stuff but many Brownie points have been collected.  Rugby watched this afternoon and almost enjoyed but my second favourite team lost by two points in the last minute.  Drat.

A bottle of Pride preceded a light meal this evening,  just pizza with a bit of salad and of course a glass of Shiraz.  

Not mentioned the grandchildren for some time as they're now all young adults and doing their own thing.  Really miss those after school visits that we used to get.

Daughter Nicki's  house is now on the market and there were 5 viewings today but the estate agent was dealing with all that so Abbie drove Nicki down to Brighton today to take Gemma out for lunch and to do some shopping.   She's having a great time at Uni but has said she's missing us.  Abbie is really enjoying life and work especially as she's now spending more time in the office instead of working at home.

We also had a message from Joe a couple of hours ago to check up if we were OK.  He's really enjoying his time at UBC and really loves Canada.   

I think I might just have another sip or two several of Shiraz.

 

Edited October 22, 2022 by grandadbob

[simontaylor484]

9Just ordered a Chinese. The rather fetching young lady behind the counter wearing sprayed on shorts made me forget what to order

[Ozexpatriate]

It finally rained - not a lot, but enough to constitute a rainy day - perhaps 12 - 15mm. It's the first time we've had this amount of rain since June.

 

Showers were forecast for today, but so far it has been dry and the sun was shining a few minutes ago, though it is cloudy now.

 

The forecast is seasonal with rain forecast many days through the week. The change to seasonal weather is a bit of a shock temperature-wise. The average daily temperature (high/low) for the last week was 16°C. Yesterday it was 8°C and will stay in that range.

 

The house had been closed up all week due to bad air and was consistently around 23°C. Since yesterday it's gradually cooling. I might be considering the fireplace before too long.

[Tony_S]

1 hour ago, Coombe Barton said:

... deep ford over the River Sence, the site where satnavs have led unwary people to take their cars for a paddle ...
 

I can’t see a depth gauge. How deep is it?

[Coombe Barton]

40 minutes ago, Tony_S said:

I can’t see a depth gauge. How deep is it?

At the moment, after last night's rain, several feet. Normally 2 feet or so. Drivable with a tractor then, but certainly not a Corsa which was driven by the last young lady to try it.

 

Under the bridge a hundred yards away it was registering six feet above normal this morning.


 

Edited October 22, 2022 by Coombe Barton
Extra information

[Gwiwer]

1 hour ago, simontaylor484 said:

9Just ordered a Chinese. The rather fetching young lady behind the counter wearing sprayed on shorts made me forget what to order

It wasn’t a portion of #69, was it? 🤣