Early Risers.

[polybear]

4 hours ago, jamie92208 said:

....the music chosen was initially sides  one and two of Meaty Beaty Big and Bouncy. 

 

Are you sure you're not getting confused with an Adult Movie by any chance?

 

40 minutes ago, Tony_S said:

Has Mickey been repaired yet? I don't remember seeing a post about that. 

 

Sadly not - the Garage are going to fit a new Bumper; I very much suspect it doesn't need it - but if they strip the bumper off to discover broken bits of plastic on the rear they'd be stuffed.  Guess what?  None in the country, so I guess it's on a slow boat to from China.....

Of all the bodywork bits you'd at least think that MG UK would ensure that rear (and front) bumpers are always in stock.  Fortunately Mickey is perfectly driveable, otherwise the 3rd Party Insurers would be getting a very large bill for a Hire Car.

 

In other news....

Mickey has had a very quick hoover out, followed by fitting the spring loaded door stop to the wall in the hallway - sling the front door open too hard and it bounces right back again.  That's a Tick.

 

And finally.....

Apparently a certain Manufacturer of Red Boxes has made a big fat £6M loss.  Ouch.  The choice between a two hundred quid red box or paying the Mortgage isn't one they're likely to win.

 

And finally finally....

VHBAW's to @Barry O & SWMBO on their Anniversary 🍰🍰🍰

 

BG

[DaveF]

If you read my post this morning you would think I will have had a quiet day thinking about phones, a bit of gardening etc.

 

For some reason I decided that today would be a good day to clean all the uPVC on the ground floor, including the porch and garage gutters and fascias and all the window and doors. That took until coffee time and involved using the steps and several buckets of water and various cleaning materials.  Even the electric garage door got cleaned, I got a lot of bits out of the small gaps, it works more smoothly now.

 

After coffee I looked at the satellite dish which is an old perforated metal object (80cm diameter) with a very heavy mounting bracket, used for German TV.  I found a tin of black smooth Hammerite, went up the steps and got most of it done by lunchtime, except for a small bit I couldn't reach and I did not want to stand on the very top bit of the steps as I would have had nothing to hold on to.  So I stopped and had a quick salad and a think.  Sometime the LNB will need replacing as the plastic cover is decaying, as it happens I have a spare.

 

In the end I tied the paint brush onto a 3 foot length of bamboo cane and took the can of paint and brush up to my bedroom.  Leaning a bit out of the window I was able to reach the rest of the bracket and dish.  Fortunately before doing everything I had changed into some very old clothes, the shirt got a lot of paint on it and is now in the bin.

 

Part way through the day it did occur to me that I shall be 74 in about 6 weeks time so perhaps I should think about slowing down a bit and whether it is a good idea to reach up when standing on steps when painting.  I have decided that if the satellite dish ever needs painting again someone else will do it - it usually needs doing about every 6 years - if I am still around I'll be about 80 then!

 

This evening I really will have a rest.

 

David

[The Lurker]

Happy Anniversary to Baz and Mrs Baz

[Tony_S]

Hello. 
Sending this from le Shuttle somewhere Sous le Manche. 
On our way home. Should be back late evening. It wasn’t a difficult drive from Troyes where we stopped overnight. We got to the tunnel terminal rather early but due to some safety incident only got a train 30 minutes earlier than our booked one. No complaint though, plenty of time for snack and drink. We had time to look round the duty free but prices at Waitrose are cheaper. If I had been a bit more mobile we would have probably gone to a supermarket near where we stayed overnight but we just wanted to get going rather than shop.  
 

[grandadbob]

Evenin' each.

'ot.  Too 'ot for me and for Shed visiting so after a slowish walk to the Post Office and Asda after breakfast a lazy day has been had indoors.

Beer o'clock so a bottle of Pride has been opened.  Unusually for me it's a cold one from the fridge,  I make exceptions in this weather.

Just watching Flight Radar to see if NIcki's flight to Spain (with 3 friends)  is leaving yet.  Should've taken off at 16.05 and now estimating 17.55 and it keeps changing but she's just sent a text to say they're boarding now.

I've got to go over the road after dinner tonight to water a friend's garden, I've been doing it all week while they're away.  Another friend has just knocked to invite us to a BBQ lunch on Monday so she can show me what she wants watering for the next couple of weeks when they go away.  Nice to be wanted!

Edited June 23, 2023 by grandadbob
Left an "o" off

[45156]

Afternoon All,

 

Bookwork on credit card for petrol, hotel bills and other ancillaries duly done - went to Hereford first to visit Carpetright to see samples of the vinyl that we might have in the bathroom after the new toilet and baisin as the estimator is coming on Tuesday - the insurance company wants a formal estimate for everything, so we need to have an estimator.

 

Then picked up Lily early and got her into the bath and her bedding into the washing machine - so no horrible doggy smells here now - and as we got her home early, we tried with success to get her jabs brought forward to this PM - so she is fit to go for another year in that regard - and we are now safe to take her to kennels in a couple of weeks, as we have to for personal reasons.

 

Last night we were in bed by just after 9 and neither of is stirred until well after 6 - 30747 made a cup of coffee for me - a wonderful brew called Fazenda Pinhal by Taylors of Harrogate - it is very very tasty, with a very subtle flavour, but not a horrendous strength like some of the dark roasts around, and it beats stuff like Lavazza into the ground.  I buy it in boxes of six online.  Then after that we fell asleep again until the 7.30 alarm. 

 

Regards to All

Stewart

[BoD]

Happy anniversary, Mr & Mrs O.

[Barry O]

Drove back this morning after  afar too large breakfast.  What has happened to white van man?  Tootling along the A19 at 55mph today.. not just one.. a whole fleet of them!

 

Gor home , put together my "present"  a very large bird feeder. Mowed the lawn.. then crashed out to catch up on the eyelid inspection I missed over night.

 

Feeling much better now but still full from breakfast . anniversary meal may be egg on toast.

 

My email to the umpires appointments secretary has bourne fruit.... let's see what happens next.

 

T5FN

 

Baz

[polybear]

19 minutes ago, Barry O said:

.......after a far too large breakfast. 

 

Bear is just trying to comprehend what this sentence means.........

[Ian Abel]

Congratulations/Happy Anniversary to @Barry O and her indoors.

 

POETS, may give that a try, though still plodding through some report changes for the client.

 

Yesterday, as forecast, carp and hot so remained inside after work was done.

 

Weekend;

Tonight, a quiet evening with the Mrs, nothing planned, carp still forecast outside both in air quality and temperature

 

Tomorrow there's an evening birthday party, family and friends, for the Mrs and one of Meagans dogs, Otis, who share the 26th. as their trip around the sun day.

 

Sunday nothing planned - yet - but probably indoors as both days of the weekend are forecast to be 100% rain and thunderstorms. We'll see how THAT plays out as we're in the middle of a drought like a lot of the country.

 

Weather forecast as "nuts" (my non-meteorological term), given otday high is 32c, and Sunday forecast high is 19c with the noted rain/storms events!!!

 

Enjoy the start of the weekend all...

 

[Hroth]

On 22/06/2023 at 11:38, PupCam said:

Morning All

 

 

And I can add; Who buy a house built by the de Havilland Aircraft Company  for its employees on the edge of Hatfield airfield  AND who worked for the successor company on the airfield and helped to pay their mortgage working on the development of the aircraft overflying their house!   No names no pact drill as he's a good mate but I always found that particularly ironic!

 

In Other News

 

I attempted some astronomy last night albeit not the best night of the year for astronomy being the "longest day"*.       I couldn't workout why my Red Spot finder was so far off.   I lined it up with Venus  and then all I could see was a big lump of oak tree through the telescope.     After a close inspection all became clear.   The 3D printed mount had warped in the heat and instead of being straight was doing a fine impression of a propeller.      As the Red Spot mount was therefore out of action I thought I'd explore Polar alignment a bit more thoroughly having managed to find Polaris by a combination of knowing where it should be and good fortune.   It also has the unique benefit of not moving **  unlike all of the other objects in the sky so it stays put once you've found it!    

 

*    Yes I know, it's the number of daylight hours that changes not the length of the day but it's the colloquial description

**  very much at all

 

Whilst sitting in the dark fiddling with telescopes and laptops a strange snuffling noise was heard and got progressively louder.     Look who turned up and just to prove me wrong he shuffled off under the Hedgehog bush!

 

 

 

These polar alignment experiments really just served to illustrate the inadequacies of the mount in azimuth and elevation but after a good coat of looking at this morning after breakfast a simple "Azimuth Improvement Plan" has been concocted.     The fundamental problem is that the mount is held onto the tripod by a vertical bolt that allows the mount to rotate (and wobble) when the retaining nut is loose.   When you tighten the retaining nut having set the position of the telescope you can't stop the mount from rotating a smidge.   A smidge is a very big offset when viewed through the 'scope ....     So, the plan is to make as larger "disc brake" washer / lock nut as I can accommodate at the top of the tripod and then  nip the retaining  nuts up so that the mount is just about free to rotate but not wobble.      Then some form of brake caliper / brake pads will be fashioned to clamp onto the "disc brake" to hold the azimuth position and hence separating the functions of mount restraint and  position locking.    It might work and will be simple to try.

 

I have have hopefully replaced the leaky entry valve on the washing machine successfully this morning.     Unfortunately when I turned the machine's cold water feed tap off a little water leaked from the gland.     It was only a dribble which was cleaned up but I think some monitoring over the next few days would be a wise precaution.

 

Now waiting for my GP telephone appointment scheduled between 8:00am and 1:00pm so that's narrowed it down a bit ........

 

Later on, I have been advised, that we will be going out in an attempt to buy a present for some friends that we are visiting soon.

 

Over and Out.

 

    

 

 

Having read your astronomy adventures in these pages, I saw this device and thought you might find it interesting, though not necessarily useful for your endavours...

 

Superior stargazing with the PiFinder

 

Its amazing what you can do with technology nowadays!

 

[PhilJ W]

Afternoon from Estuary-Land. Went out shopping this afternoon and when I got home I ran my eyes over the site of Wednesdays car crash. The metal fence appears to be undamaged but a tree to the left of the drive has two substantial branches broken. So it appears that when the car hit the drive (which has a slope) it was propelled into the air and landed in the tree.

[BoD]

Evening all

 

Another day of unspecified pottering (thank ChrisF).  
 

I am still suffering discomfort from the fall (and still sleeping in the recliner). It is so frustrating. I can spend a whole day avoiding twisting and turning then I will forget and bend down quickly  or turn sharply or even just sneeze and something seems to go ping and it’s back to square one.  
 

At least there are things on the workbench getting suitably mucky - but the list of other tasks that need doing is growing by the day. Valerie has been very understanding but I don’t know for how much longer I can put off doing necessary ‘stuff’. 

[Ozexpatriate]

9 hours ago, iL Dottore said:

the Coca-Cola job

Coco-Cola extensively uses polar bears in their advertising in the west as well, though mostly at Christmas.

 

Often with the appallingly non-geographically appropriate combination with penguins.

 

There are dozens of such things. Here is a montage.

 

Edited June 23, 2023 by Ozexpatriate
Fixed link

[Ozexpatriate]

10 hours ago, PhilJ W said:

The Titanic sub tragedy makes it obvious that where there's money to be made the cowboys come running.

I wouldn't characterize it quite like that. This was not a money-making company. The tourism (even at $0.25m a pop, which is only $1m per cruise*) wouldn't pay the bills.

 

* How much does it cost to charter a fully crewed, submersible-capable vessel out of Newfoundland for a week or so, not to mention fund your company?

 

The 'cowboy' allegation, I wouldn't challenge. The CEO was proud of saying he was a "rule breaker". He was an innovator in the face of conventionality. I would not argue that he took risks with his passengers' lives. Demonstrably he did.

 

But this was a 'passion project' not a get-rich-quick scheme.

 

There's a scene from Airplane! - a spoof of a television 'shock' op-ed labelled "Counterpoint", meant as comedy (of course) in the movie but it has a tragic ring to it in this circumstance.

 

Edited June 23, 2023 by Ozexpatriate

[PupCam]

Evening All!

 

2 hours ago, Hroth said:

Having read your astronomy adventures in these pages, I saw this device and thought you might find it interesting, though not necessarily useful for your endavours...

 

Superior stargazing with the PiFinder

 

Its amazing what you can do with technology nowadays!

 

That looks good!   I'll have to keep my eyes open.   You may have spotted I like fiddling with technological gadgetry to assist in my hobbies.      Talking of which I thought I'd have a crack at getting a second controller for the things that can't be mentioned.  Yes I know, I haven't finished the first one yet but Hey! it's all in the name of research.     The experiment went something like this;

 

Get a second NodeMCU processor board out of the box.

 

Build a really simple version of the "controller" software by stripping out a load of code that refers to the useful controllery bits and replace with a simple DCC command to sound the horn every 30 seconds

 

Upload the new code into the new board

 

Press Go!

 

(Proper) Controller 1 makes things go backwards and forwards, fast and slow,  Controller 2 interrupts the peace every 30 seconds and not a wire in sight 😀

 

Of course, it's completely useless as a real device but it just proved how easy it is to add additional devices to the system i.e. just build it and turn it on.   Must get on with finishing the proper, more useful job.

 

Before we leave the astronomy bit for now.   I think I mentioned the other day my 3D printed Red Spot finder mount melted in the heat the other day.    I thought the simplest fix would be to make a new main plate out of ali sheet and epoxy the tricky to make lumpy bits top and bottom (a technical phrase) to it.   The lumpy bits were carefully separated and some precision slotting was undertaken.  Would have been nice to have machined the slots in but I didn't have suitable cutters and mandrels so I'm afraid I just had to do it the hard way with saws and files.   Slow but we got there.

 

 

 

Good as, well, actually better than new!

 

 

In Other News

 

Further medical administration and attempted appointment making today via the GP.

 

People may have spotted that unlike many on here I'm not really a doggy type of person.    

However that could be changing.      I'm thinking of getting a really, really big black one .......

 

Enough said.

 

TTFNQ

 

 

 

 

 

Edited June 23, 2023 by PupCam
Duplicated photos removed

[Ozexpatriate]

6 hours ago, New Haven Neil said:

It's not just in Japan - What about Bear's mint franchise?

 

Reminds me of the Klondike bear.

 

Edited June 23, 2023 by Ozexpatriate
Added image

[southern42]

8 hours ago, polybear said:

Bear has a fix:  Scoff Cake until they fit 😁

 

It just so happens, I will be making cake tomorrow as we will have company on Sunday....

[southern42]

8 hours ago, Sidecar Racer said:

 Look out for what could be Kyoto's most famous export . A high school band. World wide following

and took the Rose Parade in California by storm in Jan 2018 .

 

 

 

I hope you do not expect me to perform a run, skip and a jump when I play my flute. Though I could wear my baggy shorts... On second thoughts...Nah! Not exactly a sight for sore eyes...

 

Edited June 23, 2023 by southern42

[polybear]

1 hour ago, Hroth said:

 

Having read your astronomy adventures in these pages, I saw this device and thought you might find it interesting, though not necessarily useful for your endavours...

 

Superior stargazing with the PiFinder

 

Its amazing what you can do with technology nowadays!

 

 

Bear clicked on the link and was most disappointed to discover it's not a gadget for finding Pies.  Over to you, Puppers @PupCam........

[Tony_S]

We are home. There was quite a delay on the M20, I think the delay was due to an accident in the roadworks. We were amused in France. We were driving along the Autoroute des Anglais. However unlike our motorways there were no potholes. 
Although my ankle injury restricted some of what we may have wanted to do, especially the beaver observation tower visit, we had a great time. I was very good and even tried food I claimed not to like. I didn’t have to visit the nearby pizza and burger places through French burgers are rather good compared to some of those available here from large multinational franchises. I had one yesterday in Troyes.

Tony

[Hroth]

2 minutes ago, polybear said:

 

Bear clicked on the link and was most disappointed to discover it's not a gadget for finding Pies.  Over to you, Puppers @PupCam........

 

Sadly, not everything is edible....

 

[southern42]

Happy Anniversary to Baz and Hillary.

With the many well-wishers I have just read, how could I not remember to join the throng?

Hope you have had a wonderful day.

Polly

[Coombe Barton]

... I was encouraged to hear our students speak their (strong) views about the media attention being given to the Titan sub, and the lack of attention to the news about the migrant boat tragedies. They’ve got their heads screwed on the right way. It’s been a pleasure working with them this week. ...

https://johncolby.wordpress.com/2023/06/23/two-days-of-infection-data-today/

[Tony_S]

Happy Anniversary to Baz and Hillary. At least you didn’t fall over the day before unlike me this weekend. On our anniversary we were going to visit a a nature sanctuary at the south end of Lake Annecy and have a lunch out somewhere.  As it turned out I was basically stuck in our room until dinner time.  Aditi went out and found a takeaway for our lunch as the hotel was fully booked as it was Father’s Day. Until we left in addition to our half board evening meal we made a reservation for lunch. At least that way we got to investigate the full choice menu. 

Tony