Early Risers.

[Ozexpatriate]

1 hour ago, monkeysarefun said:

Similar response here:

 

(From)

[Winslow Boy]

13 minutes ago, Ozexpatriate said:

I remember it well.

 

Here in Oregon beginning in the late 1980s there was a long series of protests against forest harvesting (particularly the process of 'clear cutting') in 'old growth' habitat for the Spotted Owl in national forests managed by the Federal Government.

 

Protesters chained themselves to logs, and camped in trees and on the walls of buildings. It opened a big divide between urban conservationists and rural small mill towns.

 

Ultimately the Spotted Owl was designated an endangered species. Much was changed. Some forest land was preserved. Clear cutting was stopped - when forests are harvested, some trees (minimum ridgelines and buffers* around streams) have to be left and any cleared area must be replanted. The forestry industry now advertises themselves as being responsible stewards of the land.

 

* Clear cutting slits up streams which interrupts the salmon spawning cycle. The headwaters of streams here are very clear.

 

This is a nice summary.

 

 

I recall there was a bit of hohar about twenty years ago where the then government were giving tax breaks to foresters to plant conifers in the Highlands. A lot of moors were planted up as you were able to 'earn' quite a bit of mullah.

[Ozexpatriate]

1 hour ago, monkeysarefun said:

Now it is the Franklin Gordon Wild Rivers National Park.

There continues to be interest in restoring the Hetch Hetchy Valley, dammed in 1923 provide water for San Francisco. Many claim the Hetch Hetchy Valley was as beautiful as Yosemite, but didn't have the same "PR".

[monkeysarefun]

18 hours ago, jjb1970 said:

 

Hyundai and KIA make some of the best EVs and have been leaders in the field. 

 

 

 

 

They hit you with the parts cost but!   At this stage I wouldn't be rating their resale value.

 

 

 

 

[jjb1970]

Most of the reports I get about Hyundai and KIA are very positive. Their UK warranty policy is very good and people I know who have found themselves using it have been happy with how they were treated.

The biggest complaint I had whenever I  drove the Kona EV was that a combination of skinny eco tyres and biblical motor power/torque from a standing start meant it was very easy to spin the wheels. Not just when doing boy racer stuff, I found it necessary to be very light footed. On fat tyres I  suspect it would have destroyed cars like the Golf GTi from standing start.

[monkeysarefun]

16 minutes ago, jjb1970 said:

Most of the reports I get about Hyundai and KIA are very positive. Their UK warranty policy is very good and people I know who have found themselves using it have been happy with how they were treated.

The biggest complaint I had whenever I  drove the Kona EV was that a combination of skinny eco tyres and biblical motor power/torque from a standing start meant it was very easy to spin the wheels. Not just when doing boy racer stuff, I found it necessary to be very light footed. On fat tyres I  suspect it would have destroyed cars like the Golf GTi from standing start.

 

 

But if the story is correct -  and all parties were quoted in the clip -   a hit to the battery cover voids the warranty and the owner is responsible for the replacement battery  cost. Which in the story was $56,649.98 Canadian.  In the case in the story  the owner passed it over to the insurance company who wrote off the 12 month old car. Save the planet, yay.

 

Hyundai Canada said that the dealership  should have approached them before stating the battery needed to be replaced, but that doesn't get around the cost - that is a Hyundai list price as the invoice shows.

 

 

If you are just after that boy racer feeling, at  around a 10th of the money you can install a Ford Australia inline 6 Barra motor, they are good for 1000HP+ with tuning and mods -  and destroy as many GTI whatever-they-ares as your needs require. Spend the rest on the petrol!

Edited December 18, 2023 by monkeysarefun

[jjb1970]

Higher cost of repairs to EVs is reflected in higher insurance premiums, Tesla had a reputation for crazy repair costs.

That said, it's not unusual for ICE cars to be written off by insurance companies with repairable damage because it's more trouble than it's worth. Similarly, ICE cars can have major problems, the issue isn't whether such things happen but the liklihood. I  would guess around 50% of my friends and colleagues are now driving EVs (particularly the Tesla 3) and though it's a small sample none of them have experienced any horror stories, been barbecued in a battery fire or have found batteries dying. Battery life does degrade, but it does so gracefully and EV battery chemistry is selected to maximize energy density and life.

I don't dispute there are issues with EVs and don't claim they are the solution for everyone.  And I find the smug self-satisfaction displayed by some EV drivers who have just spent double the average salary on a car as distasteful as many others. However a lot of the criticism takes a sort of ground zero approach in which ICE cars are perfect.

For example on resource extraction it's true that mining battery minerals has a few skeletons in the cupboard which should be aired. That's true of oil, and on a much bigger scale. During my time in oil and gas I spent time in Nigeria and Brazil, and it wasn't pretty. We like to imagine the North Sea is a tip top example of how to do it but I wouldn't necessarily agree. Not to mention outright disasters such as the Deep-water Horizon unpleasantness, various tanker disasters, the wars and hideous governments we've supported to maintain secure control of oil and gas etc. Similarly there are fire safety issues with batteries,  there are also fire safety issues with petrol and diesel.

And on the environmental impact argument,  I agree with much of the criticism that they're not as clean as some pretend. However they eliminate combustion emissions on the road, and move thermal emissions out of populous areas which is where they do most harm in terms of public health. On GHGs, in a country like France or Norway their GHG footprint between build and recycling is extremely low. In a country like the UK a significant part of the grid mix is nuclear and renewable,  and thermal power is now largely gas fired CCGT plant which is an awful lot more efficient and cleaner than an ICE.

So while not perfect, and without detracting from the obvious point that if people want to be green then change lifestyle to travel less and live without a car and consider what they eat (I say that as a virtue signalling hypocrite who probably flies as many miles as a small town) I think it's clear that EVs are less damaging than ICE cars.

[Ozexpatriate]

24 minutes ago, jjb1970 said:

That said, it's not unusual for ICE cars to be written off by insurance companies with repairable damage because it's more trouble than it's worth.

Yes. I've had that happen to me. Very frustrating. When that happened there were also regulations about not repairing cars that are "written off" because of some unintended consequence of anti-chop shop legislation. I couldn't fix it if I wanted to pay for it myself, even if I didn't make an insurance claim.

 

My 20-year-old, V6 petrol-powered vehicle is approaching 100,000 miles. I bought it new in December of 2003. It's been a good car and I like it. I am only carrying liability insurance. If I had "replacement value" insurance, the last time I checked, the car is "worth" $4,500 and that is what insurance would cover.  Any damage over that amount would write it off. To me it is worth $45,000. That's what it would cost me to buy a brand-new equivalent vehicle.

 

Edited December 18, 2023 by Ozexpatriate

[BR60103]

Deck us all with Boston Charlie,

Walla Walla, Wash., an' Kalamazoo!

Nora's freezin' on the trolley,

swaller dollar cauliflower alleygaroo!

Don't we know archaic barrel,

Lulaby Lilla Boy, Louisville Lou

Trolley Molly don't love Harold,

boola  boola Pensacoola hullabaloo.

 

From the Pogo comic strip; words by Walt Kelly.

 

When he needed a song to make a mess of, he found that this one had no Christian symbolism in it.

Someone suggested that the places named all had penitentiaries in them.  I can't confirm.

 

I liked it, 70 years ago, because it had 2 references to trolleys in it.

 

[Ozexpatriate]

22 minutes ago, jjb1970 said:

I  would guess around 50% of my friends and colleagues are now driving EVs (particularly the Tesla 3) and though it's a small sample none of them have experienced any horror stories, been barbecued in a battery fire or have found batteries dying.

Both my next-door neighbours have a Tesla 3. On the right they also have a second EV. On the left there are three additional vehicles (two for adult children at university). All those three are ICE-powered.

 

EVs are in widespread use here - not a majority but commonplace. I see a lot of Kia/Hyundai, VW, Ford* and others in addition to Tesla. It's not limited to sedans and the compact/crossover utility vehicle form-factor either. It's not remarkable to see the Rivian pickup and I'm starting to see the Ford F-150 Lightning, full-size pickup.

 

* The Mustang Mach-E. I saw a new one in a driveway a couple of blocks away this morning.

 

Edited December 18, 2023 by Ozexpatriate

[jjb1970]

I have a friend who claims he bought a Porsche EV to annoy people. He was the permanent representative to the IMO of a middle Eastern country and he got so annoyed at being lectured by green NGOs and people from Europe and the US he bought this Taycan thing and then constantly referred to it and the evils of driving diesel and petrol cars, it was hilarious at times. I  might think nobody would be that daft but this is a guy who volunteered to be an ambassador for an IMO program to get more women into shipping because he knew it would drive many nuts (knowing IMO couldn't refuse his generous offer). He's a class act, life and soul of a party type who can effect not to give a toss about anything but also a very rational and as sharp as a tack when it comes to his job. He has shared a few stories over the last couple of years which are shocking in what they reveal about diplomacy as practiced by some countries.

Edited December 18, 2023 by jjb1970

[jamie92208]

8 hours ago, Winslow Boy said:

That reminds me of the valleys that were flooded in the Pennines and lake district to provide Manutopea with water. The only difference was that there wasn't as much protesting about it. One of the valleys had a village in it that reappears when the water level drops. It had a church and pub and they all had to be demolished.

Have a family photo of my father with his mother and a couple of au t's sitting outside the pub in Mardale, which is the village concerned that is under Hawes water.  We walked round the village in 1984.  

It was an eerie place to walk around.   Mostly muddy but the road and wall networks were clear with tree stumps around. This view looking north across the valley, the church was on the right the other side of the bridge.  The pub and most of the hamlet were in the foreground.

 

From near the church looking west to the head of the valley.

Then looking back across the valley the village was just across the bridge.

Jamie

 

 

Edited December 18, 2023 by jamie92208

[jamie92208]

Good moaning from the Charente.   A tad chilly here.  A day of packing and making final preparations for our travels.  Not as far as @jjb1970 1970 is going but lists have been prepared and are getting longer.

 

Jamie

[Erichill16]

9 hours ago, polybear said:

Bear here.....

 

Nottagreatday - decidedly Black Dog, in fact.  I hate this time of year.

 

BG

Why not treat yourself to a day or short break away?

What about the National Motorcycle Museum in Solihull (can’t be that far away from Bear Towers) or even the NRM in York? I’m sure there’s other things out there that might be of interest. (Come on ERs let’s get some more ideas out there for Bear)

Give the templot activity a break, a solution may drop in to the Beary bonce when least expected.

 

 

[Barry O]

Ey up!

 

Off for my ECG shortly. Later I amattending the 3ars lowering shop. Wow busy life isn't it.

 

@polybear you could get avtrain the London..  lots of museums.. or go to Duxford.. or go for a stroll through Cambridge.. lots of things to get away from temple plotting.. or you could ask by PM to other peoples layouts for a bit of inspiration?? Just a thought

 

@Ozexpatriate  I generally watch the NFL Redzone on a Sunday evening. But.. my favourite team.. the San Fransisco 49ers always play late.. Good win for them last night though! Purdah is a good quarterbacks may, eventually, rival "Smoking" Joe Montana.. the greatest living quarterback.

 

@PupCam.. never managed to get any patents of my own.. always seen as being part of a team...

 

 

Time to extract a digit and get off to Otley!

 

Have a great day!

 

Baz

 

 

[iL Dottore]

9 hours ago, PupCam said:

ION

 

Do you know?    I really can't be bothered ......

 

I'm going outside, I could be sometime.      If I'm not back beforehand, Season's Greetings and Best Wishes to you all.

 

Alan

I do hope that a brisk bimble in the crisp winter air, followed by a Full English (sans Baked Beans, of course 🤣) and a bit of <Retail Therapy> will see you put to rights (given that [to use a PB term] unlimited scoffing - satisfying as it may be - is off the menu [sorry, couldn’t resist] for me, I find there’s nothing so satisfying as spending money, especially if it’s other people’s money!).

 

As to the first part of your post, you have highlighted something that I find is becoming more and more prevalent in public discourse: an unwillingness to concede that your “opponent” has a valid point* and a zealous, almost religious, moralistic self-righteousness about one’s own position taken. And, to complicate (if not compound) the problem there is frequent use of broad brush generalisations and terminology (“woke”, “trumpian”, etc.).

 

How we can address the above is a difficult one, but I think a good start is to read, read, read - everything and anything and to have the honesty to admit to oneself that even if all the objective data support your point, it doesn’t make you more “virtuous” than someone who reaches a different conclusion.

 

* no matter how bizarre a point-of-view, buried within it - somewhere - is a valid concern that needs to be honestly addressed.

 

Edited December 18, 2023 by iL Dottore
Spelling

[TheQ]

Mooring Awl, 6 hours solid sleep helped by little pink pills.

 

Ben enjoyed his patrol, he got up when I did, Ben will be the very unhappy Collie shortly, as we are off to hopefully, his last vets appointment for his fall downstairs.

 

Dull gre and windy outside.

 

Later I'll do some muddling. 

 

Time to move.

[iL Dottore]

ION

 

Is it me, or have British Sausages become smaller?  Being of the firm opinion that it’s almost impossible to get a bad British Banger (even mass-produced supermarket soss are pretty decent [although some more than others]) whenever I’m in the UK I stock up on soss for the freezer.

 

Lately I’ve noted that once the packaging has been removed, the sausages - though still plump - seem tinier than the ones I remember eating in the 80s (or even in childhood). Once a mere two soss was sufficent for a fix, now it takes at least three or four. In comparison, the Swiss St Galler Bratwurst or the Klöpfer seem unchanged in size from when I first encountered them.

 

Is BritIan suffering from Shrinking Sausage Syndrome?

 

One of the great culinary aspects of Christmas (if you can avoid the turkey) are the sausage based treats: sausage rolls, pigs-in-blankets, chipolatas roasted next to the turkey as well as sausage meat, sage and onion stuffing.

 

I reckon with selective and targeted excursions to the buffet/dining room table/fridge one can eat VERY well at Christmas without once partaking of turkey, Brussel sprouts or mince pies…

[New Haven Neil]

10 hours ago, Gwiwer said:

Often up at 4am to prepare herself and any outstanding lessons and never home before 7pm and often later.

 

I recognise that from my NHS management days - and then some *&^%$£ will tell you to 'work smarter not harder', just before you vapourise them with your handy super-zapper raygun.  Sorry, been looking at Calvin and Hobbes cartoons.

 

re Mardale - Haweswater was emptied around the late 1990's, we visited regularly to see the remains of the village appear, at one point the grass on the old bowling green that was still clearly defined, began sprouting again.  We were amazed at that.  Photos are ...... somewhere.....hmm.

 

Morning world, big day for Mrs NHN today, CT scan at 1, then when the results are known we may get some answers - not entirely sure we want to know what they are though. 

[BSW01]

Good morning everyone 

 

I initially got up early, as I ‘HAD’ an 8:50 appointment at the surgery for a blood test. I’d only been up about 15 minutes when the phone rang, it was the surgery, I thought to myself, this isn’t good, I wasn’t wrong! Apparently they’ve had a water leak and all appointments are cancelled, but it’s been rescheduled for tomorrow morning 9:30. If they’d rung a few minutes earlier, I could have stayed in bed a bit longer, but as I was up and dressed and in the middle of making my breakfast, I decided I might as well to carry on. Sheila is still in bed and I'm now sat in the dining room, where it's very quiet. Later on we’ll do some more shopping, a visit to Waitrose has been mooted, other than that it’s just another quiet day here. 
 

Back later. 
 

Brian

[The Lurker]

11 hours ago, Ozexpatriate said:

This is timely for anyone having a "Bah Humbug!" moment.

 

CNN: The Christmas songs you love to hate the most

 

There's a couple on my list that are worse than some of those. Like "Six White Boomers" (by the bearded, bespectacled pædophile and portrait painter to her late majesty) which is not likely on a US list.

 

Anyone up for a round of Whamageddon?

 

I've lost already. 🙁

 

My Mum had a Rolf Harris Christmas Album that we listened to lots when I was little. I quite liked Six White Boomers and the one about "Forget you ever saw me dust".  There was one about a Christmas Pig and one about a Banksia.

[Tony_S]

30 minutes ago, iL Dottore said:

Is BritIan suffering from Shrinking Sausage Syndrome?

I hadn’t noticed but will be monitoring our sausage purchases from now on. After a week of “full Yorkshire breakfasts” Aditi decided as a change from grilled pork products she would try the “Yorkshire vegetarian breakfast” as she was intrigued by the offer of a vegetarian sausage. It was sausage shaped but was more like a spring roll. 
 

[Gwiwer]

1 hour ago, iL Dottore said:

Is it me, or have British Sausages become smaller?

Or have our memories grown bigger in expectation?  

 

"Shrinkflation" is everywhere.  The noble confection known as Toblerone is not immune.  Neither, I suspect, is the Great British Banger.  

[PhilJ W]

Morning all from Estuary-Land. Six hours sleep last night interrupted by Arthur Itis a couple of times. I've now got to de-clutter part of the utility room as I have a delivery coming on Wednesday. The delivery is of three large storage boxes which hopefully will hold the clutter.

[Gwiwer]

1 hour ago, iL Dottore said:

One of the great culinary aspects of Christmas (if you can avoid the turkey) are the sausage based treats: sausage rolls, pigs-in-blankets, chipolatas roasted next to the turkey as well as sausage meat, sage and onion stuffing.

Local pasty-baker of renown, Philp of Hayle, has introduced the "Festive Pig" pasty this year.  We have enjoyed turkey pasties from them for a few years now and these too are available this year.  

 

We ordered some for the freezer.  These are delivered chilled and part-baked making them very suitable for home finishing and enjoyment or for Dr. SWMBO to take on her train trips up to London.  We always have a stock of their standard mince pasties but have boosted that with six of each seasonal offering.  

 

The "festive pig' is based upon pork sausage meat and herbs.  It wasn't quite as good as we had hoped for.  Possibly too much stuffing and herb and not quite enough actual pig.  

 

https://buy.philpspasties.co.uk/products/festive-pig-pasty-x3