Early Risers.

[BSW01]

Good morning everyone 

 

Very late on parade again today, but I do have an excuse. This morning, like last Tuesday, I awoke to find another radiator was leaking, this time it was the one in the bathroom. So, once again I got dressed early and headed to the shed to get some new seals and grabbed my tools from the cellar and headed back to the bathroom. 40 minutes later I was back in bed! Of course this meant I got up later than planned, which meant so were my visits to the butchers and the Trafford Centre. I’ve just sat down with a muggertea and plan to spend the rest of the day doing bu99erall. 
 

Back later 

 

Brian 

[PupCam]

28 minutes ago, Coombe Barton said:

This one features eleven planets and their moons, it says that it includes three dwarf planets; Ceres, Pluto and Eris

Challenge you

https://www.buildthesolarsystem.com/index.html
 

 

Hmmm.   I wish you hadn't posted that!

[TheQ]

32 minutes ago, Coombe Barton said:

This one features eleven planets and their moons, it says that it includes three dwarf planets; Ceres, Pluto and Eris

Challenge you

https://www.buildthesolarsystem.com/index.html
 

A good demonstration of how not to build a web page, top half advert for orrery  bottom half advert for £399.. tiny window slot in the middle where you can just see a slice of the object.

Edited February 17, 2023 by TheQ

[polybear]

2 hours ago, Dave Hunt said:

I too have stayed at the Glendower in Lytham several times when visiting BAe Wharton - obviously their go to place when booking in visitors. Like Q I’m very fond of a good bacon brekkie when away from home and I seem to recall that the Glendower provide a good ‘un. One of our favourite eating places at night when there was Tiggis Italian restaurant - great pizzas hand made in the open kitchen with much theatrical swirling of the dough. 

 

Dave

 

Bear has stayed at the Glendower numerous times; also the St. Ives, Dalmaney, Queen's Hotel (which is actually a pub) and the Fernleigh - there may well be others but it was 25+ years ago now.

Tiggis?  Oh yes - but very noisy.  The favourite by far was the Casa d'Italia (by the crossroads in the centre - but now sadly long gone; it was actually a downstairs/basement place.  There was also Geraldines** (now gone it seems) and a bit nearer Warton there was Portofino's in Lytham - but it seems that closed in 2018.

 

**The owners' son was born in the middle east - when still very young he lived close to a building site and a Minaret attached to a Mosque; his first words were "Digger Digger Digger", "Chugga Chugga Chugga" and "Allahaaaaaaa"

 

11 minutes ago, BSW01 said:

Good morning everyone 

 

Very late on parade again today, but I do have an excuse. This morning, like last Tuesday, I awoke to find another radiator was leaking, this time it was the one in the bathroom. So, once again I got dressed early and headed to the shed to get some new seals and grabbed my tools from the cellar and headed back to the bathroom. .

 

Bear is intrigued - what sort of valves (and seals) doo you have that appear to be problematic?

 

In other news......

Sizing the walls "ongoing"......

[monkeysarefun]

6 hours ago, Barry O said:

And @monkeysarefun have you been on the post boat trip?  We went in 2020 and it was a great day out!

Is that the one up the Hawkesbury? Thanks, I'll add it to my list!.

https://riverboatpostman.com.au/riverboatpostman

 

[iL Dottore]

1 hour ago, Coombe Barton said:

This one features eleven planets and their moons, it says that it includes three dwarf planets; Ceres, Pluto and Eris

Challenge you

https://www.buildthesolarsystem.com/index.html
 

I’d love to give it a go…

 

BUT although it’s affordable they don’t ship outside the UK or US 🥲😡

[Winslow Boy]

4 hours ago, jjb1970 said:

Something that impresses me about the USA is the ideals upon which the country was founded. The idea of a free people consenting to be governed. It's easy to deride the imperfect implementation of those ideals but those ideals remain right and have a genuine power to inspire people. The difference between the European (inc. UK) concept of people being granted freedoms by government, and the American conception that government derives it's authority to govern from the people, are profound and go to the heart of the position of human beings in society.

 

Anyway, I have a day of leisure in DC today and fly to Tokyo tonight and then on to Singapore. Long flight but ANA are excellent. The flight attendant on the outbound flight recommended a sake which was stunningly good and I want to see if they sell it at Haneda when I transfer. 

 

 

It is my understanding that the civic buildings were designed in that way ie to impress any visiting dignitary.  A bit of one up man ship you might say.

 

Unlike London where the buildings arose organically often have to fit into medieval street patterns.

[polybear]

6 hours ago, iL Dottore said:

I’d love to give it a go…

 

BUT although it’s affordable they don’t ship outside the UK or US 🥲😡

 

But it looks like Amazon UK do (for fifteen quid).  Failing that, a certain Bear is at your disposal, Sir - either by forwarding on or delivering to the next Brains Trust.....

 

edit: See my later post about a discount code....

Edited February 17, 2023 by polybear

[polybear]

Bear here......

All walls in the H/S/L now "sized".  Big Tick.

Whilst this morning's session was ok, the afternoon session can best be described as "interesting" as it was a combination of the left paw givin' me sh1t whilst at the same time indulging in "Ladder Antics, Various" in conjunction with experiencing Chapter 2 of @iL Dottore's "Fun with Benzo's" Handbook.  I reckon I'm at sufficient altitude to be able to retract the undercarriage,,,,,

All good fun.

Edited February 17, 2023 by polybear

[Gwiwer]

Welcome back. An overnight trip to Broadstairs replaced the sceduled three-day trip to Ashburton which was canned when our friends went down with The Pestilence. 
 

Dr. SWMBO has been trying to visit the Thanet area for some time despite my gentle persuasions that it wasn’t entirely a great place to be. 
 

One night in Broadstairs was enough to have “been there done that” though it included one of the best Italian meals we have had in many years. She pestered me to take her to “see Margate” this morning and regretted it; the town basically locked down when Boris said so and boarded itself up. It is still closed and boarded up. 
 

Broadstairs is not altogether unattractive and the local air-rats posed nicely for me 

 

 

The B&B seemed to offer cats. We both thought the same.  Either that or they chose their font poorly. 
 

 

Meanwhile in Margate the clock stick is bent. 
 

[BoD]

3 minutes ago, Gwiwer said:

The B&B seemed to offer cats. We both thought the same.  Either that or they chose their font poorly. 

 

Breakfast seems to be a stitch up too.

[Winslow Boy]

2 minutes ago, polybear said:

 

But it looks like Amazon UK do (for fifteen quid).  Failing that, a certain Bear is at your disposal, Sir - either by forwarding on or delivering to the next Brains Trust.....

 

Bear here......

All walls in the H/S/L now "sized".  Big Tick.

Whilst this morning's session was ok, the afternoon session can best be described as "interesting" as it was a combination of the left paw givin' me sh1t whilst at the same time indulging in "Ladder Antics, Various" in conjunction with experiencing Chapter 2 of @iL Dottore's "Fun with Benzo's" Handbook.  I reckon I'm at sufficient altitude to be able to retract the undercarriage,,,,,

All good fun.

 

It is my understanding my dear Bear, that as with most things, it's not the getting 'aloft' part but the coming down when the problems start to manifest themselves that is often the issue.

 

As I'm certain our resident doctor and chemist will be only to happy to verify.

[New Haven Neil]

A'noon. Indeedy we did ride, the rain stopped and the wind dried the roads sufficiently to entice 5 OF's out.  45 mile trundle after brunch for a coffee in Laxey, by which time it was glorious and just breezy after last night's howling winds.

 

The NHN's did once visit Margate, having also endured the disappointment of the Hornby factory experience, we won't be going back to either in a hurry.  There are far nicer places in the UK to visit - indeed, almost everywhere is nicer.....

[Tony_S]

4 hours ago, jjb1970 said:

is the ideals upon which the country was founded. The idea of a free people consenting to be governed.

They were fairly narrow about who they considered to be free people. Adult white men mainly. Other countries were not much better. Until the end of the First World War many men did not have the vote in the UK. It was 10 years later that women got the vote .My grandmother was in her thirties then. 
Now, I personally would rather be a citizen than a subject but it isn’t the popular position in Britain. So being a good democrat I have to accept it. 

[Tony_S]

55 minutes ago, polybear said:

Fun with Benzo's" Handbook

They used to form part of the cocktail of stuff used in conscious sedation. I think every gastroenterologist had their preferred  combination. The diazepam used in me did the job very nicely but they did state don’t do any driving or using tools for 24 hours . The problem is you think you are fine. But you aren’t. Before I knew better, I once broke a window on my head as I closed it without moving my head out of the way. Last time I had conscious sedation I don’t think diazepam was in the list, fentanyl was though. 

Edited February 17, 2023 by Tony_S

[Ian Abel]

POETS.

 

Yesterday rather quiet, works for me.

 

Today we eagerly!! await the arrival of the storage unit we're using as temporary storage for the carp in the rental property attic, due in around 30 minutes.

Still unclear, from the dimensions of the unit AND the description/dimensions needed for the delivery mechanism to place said unit, as to whether there'll be enough room to get past the thing and get the car into the garage. Failing that, we'll probably have to leave the car out, at the end of the unit, until we're done - estimate by the Mrs one month or less.

I truly hope we can manage to get the car in the garage, I HATE having to get snow, ice, etc. off the thing as we're still in the midst of our inevitable/eternal snow season.

Oh well. 

 

Tonight we Zoom happy-hour with our Arizona snow-bird friends.

Tomorrow the service that will extract said CARP from the rental attic and place in above mentioned storage unit will arrive around 10. Expecting to have it all done in one day. We'll see.

 

Sunday peaceful until the evening when we'll be off to the Black History month concert, choir singing/backing, so Mrs has a friend taking my seat in the audience as we are "now" supposed to be on the risers for the entire concert...

 

Weather a sunny and VERY cold -16c first thing, only expected to reach -2c for the high.

 

EDIT: As I was typing this the storage unit arrived...

Tally ho...

Edited February 17, 2023 by Ian Abel

[Tony_S]

58 minutes ago, New Haven Neil said:

The NHN's did once visit Margate, having also endured the disappointment of the Hornby factory experience, we won't be going back to either in a hurry.  There are far nicer places in the UK to visit - indeed, almost everywhere is nicer..

I used to go to Margate quite a lot, Herne Bay too when I was a student in Canterbury. Some friends had a flat in Herne Bay so it got visited most weekends. When we all lived in halls in the final year, Margate was often visited.  Or just for a change , Ramsgate, to watch the hovercraft arrive and depart. 
Tony

[PhilJ W]

Afternoon all from Estuary-Land. Back in the seventies our annual works outing was to Margate. We always went to the same seafront pub where a buffet was laid on and on the way home we stopped at another pub where another buffet was awaiting. It was organised by three rather formidable elderly ladies from the typing pool. It ceased when the extra spring bank holiday came into force and the three old ladies retired.

[Coombe Barton]

... weekend beckons, but with not as much work done this week as I thought I would get done I know what I’m going to be doing ...

https://johncolby.wordpress.com/2023/02/17/peaked-ons-figures-say-up-for-last-week/

[TheQ]

Afternoon Awl,

Happiness is a well greased shaft.

 

The centre console is sitting by the fire to get the paint set properly.

 

The picture frame is tied up and weighted. It's also glued to repair it and a piece of window blind bamboo) is glued on the back to retain the contents. More Bamboo required tomorrow.

The contents ? A presentation from the 467th Bomber group which was given to the officers mess at Neatishead.. why ? Because the wooden huts at Neatishead were  second hand from Rackheath in 1947 when Rackheath closed. I remember the huts and they were still in use till the 2000s.

 

Sewing has been commenced in one corner of the jib on the reinforcement, lot more to do on that though.

 

Ben took me for his medium route, which he completed, 3 deer were in a field, they didn't move till they spotted Ben when he climbed up on the grass bank, then they legged it.

 

I observed a big tractor ploughing field 2 of the former sugar beet.

Just now I've been out for coal, I could see a smaller tractor loading the detritus left over from the beet into a muck spreader. I guess that will be thrown on the field that surrounds us, before that field 3 of the former sugar beet is ploughed.

 

The well greased shaft? The rudder has been fitted to the boat, the tiller arrangement fitted to the top. The shaft got a light greasing before the bearings were fitted, the area between the bearing were given an 8th inch layer of grease. When it gets a bit warmer in the summer the grease should sink down to the bottom bearing which is the one that gets wet.

 

Tomorrow the rudder will get a coat of antifouling, then the leading edge of the keel will get a second coat.

 

Bears selection of premises in Lytham, all have been visited except the Queen's head. We both keep coming up with similar places round the country, we must have crossed paths somewhere in the dim and distant past.

 

Off to the MRC shortly, after a muggacoffee.

[Gwiwer]

19 minutes ago, Tony_S said:

I used to go to Margate quite a lot, Herne Bay too when I was a student in Canterbury. Some friends had a flat in Herne Bay so it got visited most weekends. When we all lived in halls in the final year, Margate was often visited.  Or just for a change , Ramsgate, to watch the hovercraft arrive and depart. 
Tony

Hovercraft haven't departed Ramsgate since the last flight departed quite some years ago now.  I am told the Pegwell Bay terminal looks just the same but without the people.  In other words - derelict and an eyesore.  

 

Herne Bay wasn't too bad the last time I was there but - much to my surprise - that was 50 years ago when the buses still had conductors on and dinosaurs still roamed the shingle banks of Seasalter.  

 

I have been in Margate a little more recently.  A friend calls it home (and always has done) and it was on a visit there some 14 years back that I enjoyed an "indoor BBQ" in torrential rain with her, her flatmates and some friends.  It was supposed to be an outdoor one but those tin-foil trays of charcoal don't stay alight and sausages don't cook too well in those conditions.  

 

Not at all the "Down to Margate" of Chaz and Dave nor the bustling, bursting destination of many a "hopping" family.  The excursion station is still there though.  It too is derelict and has been for longer than Pegwell Bay's brief flirtation with international travel.  The unyielding remains of iron columns and the surprising survival of some wooden valence indicate the origin whilst deep in undergrowth the platforms which once welcomed thousands with buckets, spades and knotted hankies remain forgotten.

[Coombe Barton]

Margate

Great Train Robber Ronnie Biggs is said to have said that  "it was his desire to "walk into a Margate pub as an Englishman and buy a pint of bitter" "

[zarniwhoop]

Why, oh why, oh why ?

 

The local Sainted buriess has installed exit gates. The idea is that you scan the barcode from your receipt, and the gate opens. Why am I one of the few people for whom it never works ? On monday or tuesday, one of the gates was buqqered and half open but kept showing red on the sensor. Today the security guy sorted out someone on the right gate, then went over to help someone on the left gate. So I tried the right gate and it refused me too. Went to the small queue on the left gate, by this time the security guy was not in evidence. Two people went through, it refused me. One of those people came back to help me, but he couldn't get my receipt to work either. Eventually the guard reappeared and used a card. Meanwhile a large number of people had used the other gate without problems.

 

And I hadn't even ranted about their lack of Perrier this year. Remember when using cans was the big idea, to reduce usage of plastic ? No badoit for a long time, but cans of perrier were convenient and easily recyclable. Looks like that is so last year, and the idea of wine in cans seems to have also all but stopped.

 

Meanwhile, I'm getting severely p155ed off by the interstitial glucose sensors - lots of "try again in 10 minutes" over the past few weeks, readings when in the main part of the target zone (above 5 up to 10 mmol/L) generally agree with blood glucose, but at the bottom of the target range (3.9 to 4.9 mmol/L) and below they often read way below the blood glucose, and above the target range they often read way above. Seems to be a quality control issue now that v2 is on general prescription. I'm expecting a replacement for the sensor which ended early last Saturday morning (instead of at 10pm this Monday), but I seem to be spending too much time checking the sensor, and contacting the helpline. Double plus unimpressed.

[Barry O]

5 hours ago, monkeysarefun said:

Is that the one up the Hawkesbury? Thanks, I'll add it to my list!.

https://riverboatpostman.com.au/riverboatpostman

 

Yep.. thats the one..

 

Baz

Edited February 17, 2023 by Barry O
Spellung

[Tony_S]

6 minutes ago, zarniwhoop said:

local Sainted buriess has installed exit gates.

Were they pearly gates?