Early Risers.

[BoD]

1 hour ago, DaveF said:

A few more photos below at Cragside with the rhododendrons and a view from up on Alnwick Moor.

We haven’t been to Cragside since before the plague.  Must go whilst the rhododendron are still in bloom, thank you for the reminder.

 

We like to stop off in Rothbury too and know the shoe shop described quite well.   Wallington is another favourite place of ours to visit and I’m sure that you know it well too.  
 

Three places well worth visiting if anyone ever finds themselves in this ‘neck of the woods’.

[polybear]

4 hours ago, iL Dottore said:

Not only was he being paid big bucks to flog Nikka whiskey to the Japanese (the Japanese love what they call “Kawai” [cute]), but according to my impeccable Japanese sources, he was also paid in kind and was so badly behaved that he was kicked out of the country and now is Ursus Non Grata with the Japanese government. 

 

 

That was merely a very unfortunate misunderstanding involving a Princess, two Geisha Girls, a Bear and a hot tub.....

 

3 hours ago, iL Dottore said:

And what is really amazing is how clean Japan is: streets, railway stations, even railway tracks (yes the tracks ate spotless). And all this, without many rubbish bins around (you might find one or two at the railway station, or next to a Conbini [or convenience store] and that’s about it).

 

 

RoK - including the Capital, Seoul is exactly the same.  I regard all those I was working with in Korea as friends and I would be very embarrassed if they ever visited the UK - and London in particular.

 

Several years ago I applied for an In-Country Rep. position in RoK, though never got short-listed for an interview; someone else in the same Dept. got the job (and rightly so - he was infinitely more qualified) but shortly afterwards the job was pulled and he never got there after all.  He was pretty p1ssed, to say the least.

[pH]

2 hours ago, Pacific231G said:

I am ashamed to admit that I once had a McDonalds in France ☹️

We were in a McDonalds in Honfleur where a business meeting was in progress, with papers spread out on a table and notes being taken. At the time, McDonalds restaurants were some of the few places in France with free public wifi. The group of 5 or 6 people round a table were meeting with a similar group doing the same thing somewhere else in France.

[Coombe Barton]

... New toy today – exchanged at lunchtime. It’s about seven feet shorter than the previous one. I’m telling the neighbours that it shrunk in the wash. ....

https://johncolby.wordpress.com/2023/06/14/still-trending-up-but-regional-differences/

[monkeysarefun]

2 hours ago, grandadbob said:

Still very warm here, 28°C in the conservatory with doors and windows open and a bit of a breeze blowing through.  The sun is in front of the house so the back garden is now almost all in shade thanks to our neighbour's loft extensions.  In about an hour I will haul out the hose and give the flower beds a soaking.   Might also soak my insides with a cool beer shortly.

I currently have the air-conditioner set to 28 degrees, and I still have a jumper (sweater/jersey/whatever) on. 

[New Haven Neil]

Well, the HMRC answered...eventually, 37 minutes, could be a speed record.  Couldn't answer my problem - got told to call a different number by a very miserable sounding lady offering Welsh if I wanted.  26 minutes....another miserable person that sounded totally depressed, got a partial answer, but they couldn't tell me the main part of of query, try this number....no we can't transfer calls. #sigh.  7 minutes - yes! - Geordie accent (Longbenton office then!) full answer, offered additional information that was very helpful indeed, and all delivered like he enjoyed his work, he certainly knew his subject.  Geordie power!

 

All I need now is someone to answer at the on-line query line, it terminates the call after 10 minutes or so ringing.  I can't register my existence with them on-line as I don't have sufficient of the UK documentation they want due to not living there, and my phone isn't compatible with the 'photograph yourself and match to passport photo' app. Back to #sigh.  

 

 

[Ozexpatriate]

4 hours ago, Pacific231G said:

when I first visited North America I was surprised to find that such restaurants were almost unknown there though and burgers were very much fast food.

Plenty of "gourmet" burger places in the US.

 

By nature, hamburgers are a 'short order' item. They usually fit in what is usually defined as "fast casual" (often with table service and a bar) rather than "fast food" but it's a blurry distinction for chains like 'Shake shack' or less ubiquitous, higher cachet/cult following 'fast food' like 'In-N-Out' and 'Five Guys'.

[BoD]

4 hours ago, woodenhead said:

For the money McDonalds (and Burger King) are good value.

Quite possibly, but never again,

They don’t sell baked beans.

[Ozexpatriate]

48 minutes ago, monkeysarefun said:

I currently have the air-conditioner set to 28 degrees, and I still have a jumper (sweater/jersey/whatever) on. 

Perhaps you need to reduce the dosage on your blood thinner medication?

 

Why would you have the air conditioner on in the 'winter'? (EDIT: unless it's a heat exchanger with cooling/heating cycles?)

 

28°C is pleasant but quite warm. My air-conditioning is set to 76°F / 24°C during the day though by closing windows and running fans, I can generally avoid running the air conditioner until the exterior temperature exceeds perhaps 30°C.

 

Temperatures here have relented a bit. It is partly sunny and we may barely hit 20°C today. It might even rain on the weekend. With only a little rain last Friday (being the only rain in a month) we are now about 31mm behind on cumulative precipitation for our 'rain year'. 

 

Edited June 14, 2023 by Ozexpatriate
Heat exchanger?

[polybear]

Bear here.....

The two door frames in the hallway now have architrave 😄 - which has also had the attentions of the splurge gun (which is mighty time consuming in itself).  One of the frames requires a couple of strips of beading to finish it off, but that's pretty minor stuff on the grand scale of things.  Big Tick - and a YAHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO moment cos' that means all the architraving is now completed,  Very Happy Bear.

 

I also cleaned up the inside surfaces of the upvc front door frame and removed the (slightly scruffy) door threshold at the base of the inner door cill so I can renew with new upvc trim, so that's another Tick.

 

In other news......

A rather large book entitled "Lost England" (as mentioned a week or so back on ER'ers) arrived today, courtesy of the 'bay and all for the princely sum of £8.60; described as "used" but in mint condition and still sealed in it's plastic wrapping - a fifty quid book apparently.  Looks rather good.  Tick.

 

BG

[Ozexpatriate]

I seem to have lost a sewing needle. I ripped a shirt I was wearing around the house yesterday. My tailoring skills are rubbish but I attempted a functional, if not presentable, repair this morning. In the midst of this, the needle vanished.

 

Despite a somewhat thorough* search it remains missing. I am dreading later finding it with my feet.

 

* At least more than cursory.

[monkeysarefun]

19 minutes ago, Ozexpatriate said:

Why would you have the air conditioner on in the 'winter'?

 

 

 

i live with someone who grew up in the beachside suburbs where "cold"is less than 12 degrees so here away from the sea where it can get to minus a little bit the heating apparently  needs to be deployed on an industrial scale.

 

Gotta say though, our  server rooms at work are set to 24 degrees and they feel decidedly chilly to spend  any time in so I wouldn't go that low here at home.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited June 14, 2023 by monkeysarefun

[Ozexpatriate]

The number one selling beer in the US is presently ... drumroll ... Mexican.

 

Constellation Brands' Modello Especial (Mexilager genérica) hit 8.4% of retail beer sales for the four weeks ending June 4.

 

CNN Business: Bud Light loses its title as America’s top-selling beer 

[The Johnster]

4 hours ago, woodenhead said:

For the money McDonalds (and Burger King) are good value.

 

Out of those two BK are much the preferred option; flame grilling really is better! 

 

Some years ago, as part of my other life in a community Samba percussion band and on the road, we were on our way home in the minibus late at nigt from a gig in the Midlands somewhere and pulled off the M5 for sustenance at services.  One of our number is an Italian lady who is in fact related to minor Italian nobility, and very much a foodie, and was a) hungry and b) not about to pay m/way services prices for psuedo-decent food in the restaurant.

 

The only alternative open at that time of night was a BK, which she was not at all keen on but realised she had to put up with.  Making the (correct) assumption that I was the sort of lumpen proletarian that knew all about that sort of thing, she asked my advices and I asked how hungry she was.  'Horse and a couple donkeys for afters', she says, so I tell her to order a Double Whopper.  She's sitting at the table looking at it dubiously, induction moulded chees and cheap mayo oozing out of the bathsponge bap, so I says 'no good looking at it, Nikki, open you mouth and stick your face around it, it'll soon be over'.  She nodded and attacked; a serious bite appeared in the burger, and her face went through what was clearly a gamut of emotions but being a well-brought up girl she couldn't open her mouth while it was full.  This was going to go one way or the other, no half measures!

 

After what seemed like a long time she was able to speak, and spoke thusly 'Bloody 'ell, that's gorgeous!!!  I'm 'avin another one...'.

[The Johnster]

10 minutes ago, Ozexpatriate said:

I seem to have lost a sewing needle. I ripped a shirt I was wearing around the house yesterday. My tailoring skills are rubbish but I attempted a functional, if not presentable, repair this morning. In the midst of this, the needle vanished.

 

Despite a somewhat thorough* search it remains missing. I am dreading later finding it with my feet.

 

* At least more than cursory.

 

At least it's not a lego...

[Ozexpatriate]

11 minutes ago, monkeysarefun said:

our  server rooms at work are set to 24 degrees and they feel decidedly chilly to spend any time in

That would be cold. The thermodynamics of a server room with all that heat convecting up and a blast of super-cold air blowing to maintain a steady ambient in the racks in would feel really cold - much colder than a thermometer would read.

 

Not the same at home with the actual chiller part of the system off most of the time, maintaining a set point.

 

I'm sitting next to an oscillating pillar fan which is next to an open window. It has a thermometer reading 69°F / 21°C which I find very pleasant (in short sleeves).

 

Edited June 14, 2023 by Ozexpatriate

[Ozexpatriate]

1 minute ago, The Johnster said:

At least it's not a lego...

There is literally a mound* of LEGO bricks on the rug within eyesight that need to be put away. I'm much more concerned with the needle.

 

* Actually multiple mounds sorted by shape.

 

LEGO bricks are best at striking in the dark on a hard surface.

[TheQ]

Evening Awl,

Macdonalds.. just once... Sweet bread rolls with a burger ? What are they thinking about!!

 

Temperature, 22C in here, quite warm , so I'm lying on ( not in) my bed wearing... Not a lot.

 

23 C in the lab was cold however, because that's a function of where the thermometer sensors were positioned, and I was a lot lower and under the inlet, and the AC was battling the heat put out by the instruments.

 

An occasional needle or pin has  disappeared from SWMBO's current task of the time. Absolutely nothing else happens till it is found again, Ben must be protected.. ( I'm much less important..)

 

Lego I never have had or been involved in ( except for military promotion courses)

I went straight to Airfix, Meccano( actually a cheap rip off) and the unmentionable subject.

 

Just back from one sailing clubs AGM, I'll spare you the gory details but one club was effectively making way to much monetary demands of the AGMs sailing club, until two days ago. But there has been a palace revolution in the demanding club, so their demanded increases  have been dropped... so now it's all up in the air again, and we've had to give the AGM SC officers a free hand to sort it out.

 

Before that I got an irate phone call they were getting automated phone calls every time an email was sent to me saying my email account was being blocked.

 

It took me a heck of a time to get into my email account because they kept blocking me.!!! Eventually I got in and found they were sending it to an old phone number I used to have ( the old phone that floated but could only make phone calls,) ,  that must have been reissued. Even though it had been working to my new inherited phone since...

 

So I've had to change that, change the passwords again, ( three computers still to do but they're switched off). So tomorrow, I'll have to switch one on, change the email passwords quickly before they block the account for having to many false attempts. Then wait at least 20 mins before the next one and repeat..

 

 

 

 

 

 

[polybear]

Bear here....

I heard from Buddy ex. next door earlier - which is the first time in a while;  the saga of the sh1tty builder is still ongoing - and likely to be for some time methinks.  Despite being less than 2 years old they've already had 2 leaks in the roof.....

 

I've got the joy of EDF tomorrow morning to have yet another go and sorting the Smart (ha ha) meters - new ones are to be fitted.  I'm less than hopeful.

 

And finally.....

A pair of Bear's jeans finally went in the Great Recycling Bin in the Sky (OK, so next to the Library); I've only had them since mid 1987 - does nothing last anymore?  The Great Empire paid for them - if you went to Italy for ten days or more in July or Aug they'd hand over 200 tokens (IIRC) for a "hot weather clothing allowance"; Bear found it most useful (IIRC I had a bit of a job spending it) - fortunately they never asked how clothes such as jeans and a Honda padded paddock jacket fell within the scope of "hot weather clothing"........

Such payments disappeared long ago, sadly.

 

BG

[woodenhead]

1 hour ago, BoD said:

Quite possibly, but never again,

They don’t sell baked beans.

You need to go to KFC for beans 😂

 

Or maybe even they don’t don them anymore.

[Gwiwer]

Evening all. 
 

Quite a day here. It began with a trip into Penzance. Dr. SWMBO took her morning dip in the Jubilee Pool while I took the camera out onto Battery Rocks. At dead water and in perfectly calm conditions I grabbed a few views that are unobtainable at most other times 

 

 

 

 

We returned to the farm for lunch and I browsed a few more houses for sale. We found three we thought might be worth a look. After a quick shopping trip into St. Just we were enjoying afternoon tea back at the farm one more when the phone rang. 
 

It was an agent for one of the properties. He could show us around if we could be there in 30 minutes. No problem!  So we jumped back into the Little Red Driving Box and returned the few miles to St. Just.  We met the agent and were shown the most beautifully presented stone cottage. Fully renovated from the roof down within the last five years and ticking every box on our list in spades. Location, size, decor, style, price ….. the lot. 
 

We came back and had a chat and a think. We were both thinking the same. We called the agent with an offer and five minutes later he returned the call confirming the offer had been accepted. 
 

So - subject to contract - it appears we have bought ourselves a good sized granite cottage in a vibrant small town that we know well. 
 

https://www.andrewexelby.co.uk/property-listing?propertyID=629322

 

The Hill of Strawberries may well be on borrowed time in favour of the Distant (Signal) West. 
 

From first browse to viewing to an accepted offer within two hours. Some things are meant to be. Exactly the same happened when we bought the Aussie house - it was almost the blink of an eye but we both came out of the viewing and said “This one”. 
 

And then the sky put on a show for us after dinner. Even a bike chained to a power pole was pressed into service as a piece of the artwork. 
 

 

 

 

 

OK. So it could all fall apart at the paperwork stage. But we are cash buyers and the vendor has already bought elsewhere. 
 

We are therefore very hopeful that this proves to be the day that changes our working lives into a road to retirement where we want to be.
 

Quite a day.    

[Ozexpatriate]

20 minutes ago, TheQ said:

Sweet bread rolls with a burger ? What are they thinking about!!

If you think McD's rolls are sweet wait until you try "King's Hawaiian" rolls.

 

They are actually advertised as "original Hawaiian sweet rolls".  Very popular for things like shredded barbeque pork sliders.

[tigerburnie]

When on a holiday in Turkey nearly 30 years ago we were struggling to find much to eat we liked, my daughter wanted a McDonalds, at least , she said, they taste the same where ever you are in the world, that was their sales line........................................they lied, that was without doubt the weirdest burger I have ever consumed, I don't know what we ate, but it was not beef.

I only venture into such places when we have grandkids in tow, sheesh it is the single most tasteless stuff on the planet, I reckon there's more flavour in the packaging, indeed there's probably more nutrition in the packaging as well.

[TheQ]

16 minutes ago, polybear said:

 

 

And finally.....

A pair of Bear's jeans finally went in the Great Recycling Bin in the Sky (OK, so next to the Library); I've only had them since mid 1987 - does nothing last anymore?  The Great Empire paid for them - if you went to Italy for ten days or more in July or Aug they'd hand over 200 tokens (IIRC) for a "hot weather clothing allowance"; Bear found it most useful (IIRC I had a bit of a job spending it) - fortunately they never asked how clothes such as jeans and a Honda padded paddock jacket fell within the scope of "hot weather clothing"........

Such payments disappeared long ago, sadly.

 

BG

Yes our hot weather allowances went when some idiot put in a claim that included a wet suit.. not too useful on an airfield..

[Ozexpatriate]

23 minutes ago, TheQ said:

Lego I never have had or been involved in ( except for military promotion courses)

I went straight to Airfix, Meccano( actually a cheap rip off) and the unmentionable subject.

LEGO was too expensive for my parents when I was young.

 

I similarly went straight to Airfix and model railways (at least as far as I could afford myself). LEGO introduced their Space and Castle themes (which came with small pocket money sets rather than the old big bucket of house bricks) in the 1970s in time for my youngest brother. While in theory I had 'aged out', in my later teenaged years I probably played with them more than he did.

 

As an adult, the Lord of the Rings theme lured me to LEGO. This was followed by the reintroduced Harry Potter theme.

 

While they're not very good for anything truly to scale the ability to reinterpret / rebuild without the frustration of messed up scale models through poor application of glue and/or paint makes them fun. If things break - they are fixable. If you don't like the way something turned out - they can be rebuilt.