Early Risers.

[jjb1970]

I couldn't resist a couple of Don Don Donki wagyu kushi skewers on the way home today. Don Don Donki is a Japanese discount store which is very popular across Asia, but it's a weird sort of discount shop as its main popularity (at least in Singapore) is premium Japanese  goods (particularly fruit and meat) sold at attainable prices. Meaning it's not really a budget shop but it's very competitive for what it sells if that makes any sense. For example Japanese kyoho grapes at $25 a pack aren't exactly cheap or budget, but compared to alternative Japanese kyoho grapes they're a bit of a bargain. Their wagyu kushi skewers are terrific, the beef is of excellent quality and they grill them in front of you so the hunger and anticipation build. As Japanese grilled skewers go in Singapore go they're not cheap ($4.90 a pop) but they're well worth it, nicely seared on the outside but rare on the inside with nicely marbled beef. Well worth trying if you see their shops anywhere. They also do tip top Japanese baked sweet potatoes which are lovely, they have a citrus tang and are very different to most sweet potatoes, too nice to wait until getting home to eat.

[polybear]

59 minutes ago, TheQ said:

Strange.... male presenter of breakfast TV is wearing all black, suit and tie, Carol (weather) is wearing all black, Naga, is wearing something fairly dark. Last time that happened was in the hours before the Queen Died.

 

They've heard the news about the 1/4 (+ crumbs) of a LDC that Bear will never see......😢

 

22 minutes ago, jamie92208 said:

Oh dear.  I wondered how long it would take for ER;s to get back to the subject of felching.   

 

Bear, being unfamiliar with that term, asked Alexa......

"I'd rather not answer that" came the reply.

After Googling it I'm really not surprised.......🤮

[New Haven Neil]

9 minutes ago, jjb1970 said:

Don Don Donki

 

His cousin Don....its been a long time since Donk went to Japan.  He won't get to go again until Mrs NHN retires in 5 years or so.

 

 

 

[franciswilliamwebb]

10 minutes ago, polybear said:

Bear, being unfamiliar with that term, asked Alexa......

"I'd rather not answer that" came the reply.

After Googling it I'm really not surprised.......🤮

 

Quite.  It's certainly the last straw...

[jjb1970]

2 minutes ago, New Haven Neil said:

 

His cousin Don....its been a long time since Donk went to Japan.  He won't get to go again until Mrs NHN retires in 5 years or so.

 

 

 

 

Don's Japanese chum has been reprieved!!

 

https://www.bbc.com/news/business-64048769

 

Seems Japan also has smart suits who think they know more than the customers who pay the bills, oh dear......

 

[Winslow Boy]

29 minutes ago, jamie92208 said:

Good moaning from a grey and overcast Charente.  

 

A good afternoon watching trains and putting the world to rights was had yesterday.  Today it's down to earth with a bang as it's ironing day.  Beth has gone out for the morning and lunch so I will at least be able to have my music on loud.  I might also have curried eggs for lunch as well.  There's always a silver lining.

 

I posted a picture on JOHN DMJ's obit thread.  It's a crop from another larger one but I think has come out rather well.

As to the post above from ian (Roundhouse)  I was reflecting last night on who I've lost from my circle of friends.  In the past 3 months I've lost two former work colleagues, a former landlord and friend as well as two ER's.  As luck would have it i have had photos of all of them that I have been able to send to the various people involved. 3 of the photos were from the mid 70's.  Ones that I scanned in the early days of lockdown.  I wonder how many others I will need to send in due course.  They have all been well received.  Anyway it's nw time to get on with the ironing.

 

Regards to all and of course Sundry.

 

Jamie

 

That's getting me a bit worried there Officer. I'm racking my noggin as whether you have a photo of me because it seems that everyone you have a photo of suffers 'life changing incidents' - i believe that's the correct term although others are available.

 

Off to check the photo album to see if there's any missing spaces.

 

Worried of the Northwest.

[The Lurker]

2 hours ago, Ozexpatriate said:

Low temperatures across the country are quite staggering right now. I am quite glad I am not going near any airports this week.

I still have some of the places we visited over the summer on my weather app; currently we have:

 

Vancouver -13

Whistler -21

Jasper  -34

Banff -35

Golden -31

Kelowna -24

 

All Celsius.

 

granted it is the middle of the night but they are all further south than Sidcup which is basking in + 7 degrees of grey skies at the moment.

 

all those places were in the high 20s to high 30s in late July/ early August (mind you, so was Sidcup) so there is an example of the Continental Effect, integral to O level Geography!

[Claude_Dreyfus]

11 minutes ago, jjb1970 said:

 

Don's Japanese chum has been reprieved!!

 

https://www.bbc.com/news/business-64048769

 

Seems Japan also has smart suits who think they know more than the customers who pay the bills, oh dear......

 

I paid a visit to the Don Quijote store when I was last out there, the Asakusa branch. Truly an astonishing place, full of sound and colour, as well as packed to the ceiling with goods.

 

It is a dangerous venture interfering with a company's mascot... particularly if it is kawai!

[jjb1970]

11 minutes ago, The Lurker said:

I still have some of the places we visited over the summer on my weather app; currently we have:

 

Vancouver -13

Whistler -21

Jasper  -34

Banff -35

Golden -31

Kelowna -24

 

All Celsius.

 

granted it is the middle of the night but they are all further south than Sidcup which is basking in + 7 degrees of grey skies at the moment.

 

all those places were in the high 20s to high 30s in late July/ early August (mind you, so was Sidcup) so there is an example of the Continental Effect, integral to O level Geography!

 

It won't stop South Shields girls from going out on the toon half naked, I'm surprised global Antarctic programs don't recruit in Shields as the people there are more resilient to extreme low temperatures then people from anywhere else in the world. Splendid place 👍

[Erichill16]

40 minutes ago, polybear said:

 

 

Bear, being unfamiliar with that term, asked Alexa......

"I'd rather not answer that" came the reply.

After Googling it I'm really not surprised.......🤮

I’ve heard  there’s a place called Fletching, seems a bit hard to swallow to me.

[jjb1970]

16 minutes ago, Claude_Dreyfus said:

I paid a visit to the Don Quijote store when I was last out there, the Asakusa branch. Truly an astonishing place, full of sound and colour, as well as packed to the ceiling with goods.

 

It is a dangerous venture interfering with a company's mascot... particularly if it is kawai!

 

I honestly think the minds of Japanese and Asian people must be wired differently as when I go there it appears to be just a randomised collection of stuff, but it all makes perfect sense to locals. Like the 'simplified' (🤣) local rail and subway maps in Tokyo which are frightening to most non-Japanese people but appear to be indeed be most simple and easy to use to Japanese people.

[Barry O]

3 hours ago, jjb1970 said:

 

It won't stop South Shields girls from going out on the toon half naked, I'm surprised global Antarctic programs don't recruit in Shields as the people there are more resilient to extreme low temperatures then people from anywhere else in the world. Splendid place 👍

Sand Dancers are a breed apart.. just ask our Fraggle Rock correspondent @New Haven Neil..

 

Baz

Edited December 22, 2022 by Barry O

[Claude_Dreyfus]

20 minutes ago, jjb1970 said:

 

I honestly think the minds of Japanese and Asian people must be wired differently as when I go there it appears to be just a randomised collection of stuff, but it all makes perfect sense to locals. 

For the benefit of those who don't know what we re talking about!

 

Yes, I admit it. I photograph the insides of shops and supermarkets when I am on holiday!

Edited December 22, 2022 by Claude_Dreyfus

[polybear]

49 minutes ago, Claude_Dreyfus said:

Yes, I admit it. I photograph the insides of shops and supermarkets when I am on holiday!

 

Bear has also been known to - but only very occasionally if they are "a bit special":

 

 

This is the interior of the Teatro Italia in Venice, Sept. 2017

 

Insofar as Chrimbo decorations are concerned, Bear Towers has been adorned with:

 

 

Ten minutes to set up, ten minutes to take down and pack away.  Result.

 

In other news....

Washing done - Tick.  Co-op done.  Tick.  Yet another "five items for six quid" deal in the freezer section - Two (different) Pizzas, a bag of posh (= McCains 🤣) French Fries, Chicken Nuggets (for buddy over the road) and a box of ice cream nuggety thingies.  £16-50's worth, apparently.  Seems like a result, but......

Getting it all in the freezer involved serious engineering, with clearances tighter that a P4 chuff chuff; one Pizza ended up in the fridge until lunchtime, so it looks like it's Pizza for din dins (naughty - already had one this week).

Right, time to hang the washing out - hate that bit.

Bear gone.

 

 

 

 

Edited December 22, 2022 by polybear

[Coombe Barton]

The norther nAmerican weather has reached the news over here. Quote for those not able to access the link site 
 

A major winter storm sweeping the US this week may bring the coldest Christmas in four decades to parts of the country, say forecasters. 

The "once-in-a-generation" cold snap - which began in the Pacific Northwest on Tuesday, before churning east - will become a "bomb cyclone" by Friday. 

More than 90 million people are under winter weather alerts across 37 states. 

About 80% of the nation is set to experience sub-zero temperatures, including places as far south as Texas.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-64061588

Hope you'll all be OK

 

[TheQ]

Bank,

Got on to machine, filled in details I had on tablet scanned down the invoice attachment, couldn't get to it just off screen, bank machine starts beeping at me, threatening to switch off, much fiddling with tablet eventually it lets me access invoice, meanwhile regularly having to hit button on bank machine to keep it alive, type in that info.

Find I've missed a bit go back fill that and enter...

No record of that account, go back to top find bank machine has wiped all the recipients details, start again... Eventually I get it to accept everything ☺️

 

Orange shed,

 Dire warnings at road entrance it's being re traffic lighted from 3rd Jan.. I'll give that a miss for a fortnight from then, then.

Eventually after winding my way through miles of white emulsion find gloss colours, not many of, no big tins unless white. Select two tins , £21 for 750ml.. that's heading for boat paint prices..

I have white undercoat at home so that'll reduce the use of the expensive stuff..

 

Now sat in hotel bar supping pint of expensive bottled cider, no draft here anymore. 15 minutes before due time now.. Others arriving from work, what's that? Imminently.

 

 

 

[Kelly]

5 hours ago, Barry O said:

 

 

We havenheard from @Robert , @Kelly or @Natalie for a while .. hopefully they are all well.

 

 

 

 

 

Hi Barry, 

 

I am mostly okay. Have had a horrible bug since last week, but mostly over it apart from a horrible cough that keeps me awake. Otherwise all is well. 

 

I think all is well as it can be with Nat, but been out of contact whilst ill. But I'm sure she'll pop up with a lengthy post at some point. She's usually always reading if not posting. I'm afraid I forget that rmweb or ER exists sometimes, especially when ill,  not out of any dislike or similar of course, just limited mental capacity these days of keeping track of things. 

 

The ankle is fine now at least. Well as fine as it is likely to get. It aches and swells if I do much walking around, but otherwise it is fairly stable and I am mostly getting around almost as I was pre buggeration, though with a rather noticeable limp these days. But considering that had I been waiting for the ambulance much longer that the doctor thought an amputation could have been a real possibility, what I have regained is great by comparison. 

 

Kelly 

[iL Dottore]

Interesting photos of Japanese shops. They look like places where you could really enjoy the benefit of some “retail therapy“. The last time I was in Japan I only visited a department store, nothing especially upmarket for Japan but even so - so well appointed as to make Harrods* look like a budget, budget Poundland in comparison. So I will certainly be adding both a Donki and a Combini to my shopping itinerary for my upcoming trip to Japan.

 

My trip will begin and end in Tokyo, which means that I will be able to do some serious shopping before my return home. I plan on taking my expanding suitcase (which, conveniently, is just the right size to fit into a Shinkansen overhead luggage rack and thus not incur additional baggage charges). I might also need to buy a second suitcase for all the souvenirs and gifts that will be returning to Switzerland with me.

I had been fretting about the amount of money I am pouring into this project, but as I was forcibly reminded yesterday by the loss of the third of the three Brains Trust members who died in the past quarter year, when else would I get to enjoy the money that I have saved for my retirement? In this I have Mrs iD’s encouragement. After all, we don’t have any offspring or relatives to leave our goods and chattels to and far better we enjoy them while we can.

 

iD
 

 

* by catering for oligarchs, oil sheiks and the nouveau riche, Harrods has - in the opinion of many - definitely gone down market. It has, according to some old school types that I know, managed the almost Zen like attainment of being incredibly expensive and incredibly cheap at the same time

[PhilJ W]

Overslept this morning, gone eight when I awoke. Today is bin day but I didn't hear anything. When I looked out of the window I could see why, a really thick fog. Baz @Natalie rated one of my posts only yesterday so she's still around.  

[jjb1970]

If you are worried about money avoid the Tenshodo shop in Ginza like the plague......I have never been to a model train shop quite like it, the evergreen department is remarkable. KTM, another purveyor of high end brass, have some lovely shops too.

[PhilJ W]

Just got an E-mail, my auction acquisitions are being delivered late this afternoon, between five and seven. I was not expecting it until after Christmas.

[PhilJ W]

9 hours ago, zarniwhoop said:

I suspect  @iL Dottore actually knew that, and knowing what medical people come across was why he asked if it was suitable to mention on a family forum. e.g. medics come across things such as https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2022/12/21/hospital-evacuated-80-year-old-man-has-first-world-war-removed/ 🤣

Perhaps he was confused as to what an arsenal is.🤣

 

[iL Dottore]

52 minutes ago, polybear said:

…a bag of posh (= McCains 🤣) French Fries…

I wouldn’t call a bag of McCain oven chips “posh“, “adequately edible“ is perhaps a better description. Furthermore, according to Good Housekeeping, they aren’t even the best oven chips you can buy in the UK: https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/uk/food/food-reviews/g35911228/best-oven-chips/

 

I really wonder how many of those who live off takeaways, frozen food and microwave meals would have fared in the 1960s? Tinned and frozen food food were, certainly at the beginning of the decade, for the well heeled. As my father was, at the start of that decade, at the very beginning of his career in the UK and there was not much money around: so my mother always cooked from scratch using fresh ingredients, which she shopped for two or three times a week. Most tinned, preprepared and frozen foods were just that bit too expensive for anything but the occasional treat (such as tinned fruit and Carnation condensed milk).

 

But I was lucky, inasmuch my mother learned to cook from her girlfriends in Rome (where she met my father), so whilst my peers were eating well done meat and overcooked vegetables, I was enjoying things like spaghetti alla carbonara long before it became fashionable in the UK (and, no, my mother didn’t use cream in the sauce).

[iL Dottore]

Just now, PhilJ W said:

Perhaps he was confused as to what an arsenal is.🤣

 

Where’s the groan button when you need it???

[PhilJ W]

4 hours ago, polybear said:

A Mango??  Now that is most definitely on the very strange side of weird.  They had a similar case at Stevenage Hospital maybe 4 or 5 years ago (a buddy's Daughter was a nurse there and the story went round amongst the staff) - it seems some Guy and his Missus had been "experimenting"; I forget what the item was now, but it took Surgeons to get it out.

😭

That reminds me of the couple who were in to body piercings in a big way. They had them everywhere including the genitals. Inevitably they got locked together when making love when the metal work became entangled. They had to be taken to hospital to be separated. This was told to me by a retired fireman who was called out to the job first before they (the fire brigade) called the ambulance. He told me the guy almost fainted when they got the bolt cutters out.