Early Risers.

[polybear]

6 minutes ago, AndrewC said:

Ahh, the strong silent type. 😃

 

Screwed up again.  TC's

 

2 hours ago, AndrewC said:

Would those of you receiving rain be so kind as to ship some our way. We've had less than 1mm in the past 3 weeks. Our water butts are bone dry and I fear for the next water bill. 

 

Somewhat strangely it does appear that the Great Lounge Refurbishment (involving much boxing in of pipework - including the rising main into Bear Towers) does mean that the threatened installation of a Water Meter (they're slowly - very slowly in fact - going round the street doing so) will not now be possible.  Oh dear, how sad, never mind (does that sound convincing?).  

"But you'll save money!!" I hear fellow ER'ers cry (you did, didn't you?).  Well as a solo Bear it has been brought to Bear's attention by a neighbour that I'll be entitled to a 25% discount anyway as a result (but I can only claim the discount once they're happy a water meter isn't practical); whilst a meter would probably save Bear some money, I'll be a lot happier knowing that I can use the hose, pressure washer etc. without thinking "jeez, how much is this costing me?"

[PupCam]

Pre-munch morning all!

 

8 hours ago, Ozexpatriate said:

I'm assuming you use a 32 bit processor in that Arduino, and that you don't have a floating point co-processor. There is lots of potential for inaccuracies with trigonometry unless you are using some kind of floating point package in the software.

 

Alas not although a hardware upgrade or even a move to alternative technology (Puppers deserting Arduinos, surely not I hear you cry!) is a possibility should it be necessary.    I'm working on the basis that what I can achieve with what I've got is an order of magnitude better than the "facilities" (setting circles) provided with the telescope.   On proper 'scopes the setting circles are precision scales, on cheap beginners telescopes they are generally regarded (and a s much use) as ornaments.

 

While we are speaking of Arduinos.    I'm still waiting to see that homework @polybear ....

 

4 minutes ago, polybear said:

Somewhat strangely it does appear that the Great Lounge Refurbishment (involving much boxing in of pipework - including the rising main into Bear Towers) does mean that the threatened installation of a Water Meter (they're slowly - very slowly in fact - going round the street doing so) will not now be possible. 

 

Not quite certain I understand why water meter fitting wouldn't be possible in Bear's neighbourhood due to a lounge refurb.   All the water meters  in Puppershire are in the street ....... 🤔

 

In Other News

 

Puppers thought he would enquire as to the possible timescale for his cardio MRI at a London hospital this morning (after an almost 12 month wait for the local hospital to actually make the referral).   After a bit of tail chasing at said London hospital I got the answer.   The answer was:

 

        "Puppers who?"

 

I did try chasing down medical secretaries etc etc but the system ground me down so I'll have to have another go when I've built up sufficient will to live .....

 

TTFNQ

 

Alan

 

[Coombe Barton]

41 minutes ago, DaveF said:

Among the debris were several seabirds, presumably the victims of bird flu - a sad sight.  Most were black headed gulls but there were also a couple of waders and a gannet, not something I often see here - it looked as though it had been dead some time so it had probably drifted in on the current.

Not too far from you, on The Farne Islands

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/jul/25/bird-flu-outbreak-on-farne-islands-risks-unprecedented-wildlife-tragedy

[PupCam]

This looks fun!

 

 

[polybear]

47 minutes ago, PupCam said:

While we are speaking of Arduinos.    I'm still waiting to see that homework @polybear ....

 

Er, well it was like this....

Bear's Homework book happened to be on the Table.....and a big hungry dog came along....and......Kof......

 

47 minutes ago, PupCam said:

Not quite certain I understand why water meter fitting wouldn't be possible in Bear's neighbourhood due to a lounge refurb.   All the water meters  in Puppershire are in the street ....... 🤔

 

There is a stop tap in the street....but it controls five houses simultaneously....

 

47 minutes ago, PupCam said:

In Other News

 

Puppers thought he would enquire as to the possible timescale for his cardio MRI at a London hospital this morning (after an almost 12 month wait for the local hospital to actually make the referral).   After a bit of tail chasing at said London hospital I got the answer.   The answer was:

 

        "Puppers who?"

 

I did try chasing down medical secretaries etc etc but the system ground me down so I'll have to have another go when I've built up sufficient will to live .....

 

TTFNQ

 

Alan

 

 

Bear predicts a very fast cure to this issue.....

"Ok, how about private?"

"This Friday Ok, Mr Puppers, Sir?  And would you like tea or coffee with your bread pudding?"

However, Bear predicts that the bill for a private cardio MRI is likely to cause a cardio.... 

[PhilJ W]

Hello again from Estuary-Land. Just as I thought that I'd dealt with Arthur Itis his mate Si Attica joined the affray. Will have to wait an hour or so before I take any more Nurofen and then stretch out horizontally for a couple of hours.

[The White Rabbit]

5 minutes ago, polybear said:

However, Bear predicts that the bill for a private cardio MRI is likely to cause a cardio.... 

 

I looked at various private costs a few months ago and a scan was listed at £2,000. I'm sure it varies, possibly a lot, but a ballpark figure? 

[Winslow Boy]

3 hours ago, John Wass said:

Drain ram rods ?

 

Pipe cleaners?

[monkeysarefun]

50 minutes ago, The White Rabbit said:

 

I looked at various private costs a few months ago and a scan was listed at £2,000. I'm sure it varies, possibly a lot, but a ballpark figure? 

Scheduled fee for a cardio MRI is $427, about 250 pounds. Average airfare London to Sydney and back looks to be around 900 pounds from a quick Google query. No wait times and you'd probably get English or Irish medical staff cos they all seem to be that here  these days so it'd be just like getting it done at home except for the drop bears and you'd pocket a few hundred.

[iL Dottore]

2 hours ago, PupCam said:

In Other News

 

Puppers thought he would enquire as to the possible timescale for his cardio MRI at a London hospital this morning (after an almost 12 month wait for the local hospital to actually make the referral).   After a bit of tail chasing at said London hospital I got the answer.   The answer was:

 

        "Puppers who?"

 

I did try chasing down medical secretaries etc etc but the system ground me down so I'll have to have another go when I've built up sufficient will to live .....

 

TTFNQ

 

Alan

 

Good God, that's appalling. When my GP sent me off for my prostate MRI I had to wait a whole 3 weeks - for a mutually convenient time slot. Ditto for when I had my cardiac stress test. In both instances I just gave the receptionist my insurance card (I belong to a Krankenkasse - a mutuelle) and that was it. I have no idea what the fees were (although I do get an itemised bill from the Krankenkasse every so often - detailing what I have cost them!). Rarely do I need to pay anything to the Krankenkasse beyond my usual monthly fee.

 

Interestingly, when I add up the taxes I have to pay the Gemeinde (council), the Kanton and the Bund (the Swiss state) then add on top of that my (mandatory) health insurance premiums, I'm paying (in terms of percent of income) pretty much the same same amount as I would pay in the UK in total taxes.

 

There's a lot to be said in favour of the so-called "Bismark model": access, outcomes, etc. (not to mention the incredibly stringent legislation and oversight of the Krankenkasse and Mutuelles - which means that no one can be denied treatment, even for existing conditions [and the truly indigent get local assistance from either the Kanton or the Gemeinde for their health insurance costs]). Of course, the total population of Switzerland is just over 8 million (i.e. has the same population of London) which does have a significant impact on the provision of health services (and public transport and public services as well).

 

Another big difference to the UK is the amount of social discipline shown by the populace - which is pretty much homogenous (75+% Swiss).  Something which also seen in Japan (>97% Japanese). Neither Switzerland nor Japan would work so well (I would argue) without the social discipline shown by the inhabitants.

Edited July 25, 2022 by iL Dottore

[AndrewC]

2 hours ago, polybear said:

"But you'll save money!!" I hear fellow ER'ers cry (you did, didn't you?).  Well as a solo Bear it has been brought to Bear's attention by a neighbour that I'll be entitled to a 25% discount anyway as a result (but I can only claim the discount once they're happy a water meter isn't practical); whilst a meter would probably save Bear some money, I'll be a lot happier knowing that I can use the hose, pressure washer etc. without thinking "jeez, how much is this costing me?"

When we had ours foisted on us we were worried as there were 3 of us in the house. Daily showers. Loads of laundry and tons of plants that needed watering. After the first reading we were about £80 in credit from the previous paid in advance standard rate. Our actual usage is well below their guestimated one. Then again, if you aren't metered you are paying for the average area consumption that includes all the leaks. 

[Sidecar Racer]

1 hour ago, polybear said:

 

Bear predicts a very fast cure to this issue.....

"Ok, how about private?"

"This Friday Ok, Mr Puppers, Sir?  And would you like tea or coffee with your bread pudding?"

However, Bear predicts that the bill for a private cardio MRI is likely to cause a cardio.... 

 

 

A quick google gives ,

 

The national average for a standard MRI scan cost is £363, according to Private Healthcare UK. We offer standard MRI scans from as little as £250, depending on the date and time you book

[jamie92208]

49 minutes ago, AndrewC said:

When we had ours foisted on us we were worried as there were 3 of us in the house. Daily showers. Loads of laundry and tons of plants that needed watering. After the first reading we were about £80 in credit from the previous paid in advance standard rate. Our actual usage is well below their guestimated one. Then again, if you aren't metered you are paying for the average area consumption that includes all the leaks. 

WE got a water meter after the kids left home and saved a lot......till darling daughter returned like like the proverbial bouncing cheque, for a few months .

 

Jamie

[PupCam]

32 minutes ago, Sidecar Racer said:

The national average for a standard MRI scan cost is £363, according to Private Healthcare UK. We offer standard MRI scans from as little as £250, depending on the date and time you book

 

Unfortunately it's not a standard MRI otherwise it would have been done in the local hospital.      

 

My "electronics" have to be put into a special mode, other precautionary monitoring procedures put in place and a cardiologist looks on whilst it is done (presummably with an emergency stop button at the ready) 😢

 

That's why @polybear installed an induction hub during the kitchen refurb - so he doesn't have to invite me round and cook*  me dinner 🤣

 

* We use the term in its broadest sense of course.

 

 

 

Edited July 25, 2022 by PupCam

[simontaylor484]

A trip to a certain Swedish emporium has been undertaken. The youngests desk has started to collapse for £20 I got a set of 4 desk legs. I also got a couple of shop soiled wooden spoons at 75p each for use as paint stirrers oh and a pack of tealights. 

We did have a total of 2 hot chocolate 2 coffees and a cup of tea for nowt on the family card.

We called at Redbrick Mill on the way home 

[simontaylor484]

The Bismarck model, does that mean it gets chased round the North Atlantic attacked by Swordfish aircraft and then finally sunk by the Royal Navy 

[Ian Abel]

Morning..

 

The weekend away for the Mrs family reunion went well, and surprisingly there were a few folks there I knew enough to have a decent chat with!

 

Drive up Friday was warm, 33C all the way up there, in spite of forecasts predicting otherwise. Brief amounts of rain en route and the VRBO was acceptable, clean and functional.

Jemma arrived 20 minutes after we did, and we went to a local bar/tavern for dinner, surprisingly good food, though it IS a resort area so needs to be decent.

 

Saturday, the extra 45 minute drive north to the reunion location, cousin of the Mrs home. Very nice place and ample food and drinks provided by everyone as we all had our designated items to provide. Rubber duckie races - the property has a sweeping lawn down to a lake, so a slide/water shute effort was created - sadly none of our ducks won.

The weather also cooperated managing to be significantly cooler that the previous few days. There was even one brief but heavy rain shower.

 

After around 8 hours of "excitement" it was time to repair to the accommodation 45 minutes away, and we all slept well.

Sunday left the area around 11AM, NOT before filling up with gas as the local gas station was selling the stuff for 60cents/gallon LESS than anywhere from home to there. No-one knows why, as even the location where the reunion was had it at Twin Cities prices, so everyone flocks to this town to fill their cars/boats/ATVs etc.

 

Managed to get home mid-afternoon, after a longer than expected journey, having to negotiate three separate and extensive single-lane c0ck-ups due to road works - they were on the southern side of the roads, hence no trouble on the northbound journey Friday 🤯

 

Late afternoon we attended the celebration of our next door neighbors fathers' life at a local watering hole. Good to be able to get there even though we couldn't get to the service earlier in the day.

 

That covers the weekend, both of us tired but at least I managed to get up for work this morning.

 

Weather HERE also an improvement, 13 first thing, high overcast, 26 the expected high, and as low as 23 the next few days. No rain forecast, and we now could really use it.

 

Onward...

 

 

[polybear]

1 hour ago, monkeysarefun said:

Scheduled fee for a cardio MRI is $427, about 250 pounds. Average airfare London to Sydney and back looks to be around 900 pounds from a quick Google query. No wait times and you'd probably get English or Irish medical staff cos they all seem to be that here  these days so it'd be just like getting it done at home except for the drop bears and you'd pocket a few hundred.

 

Add onto that the extortionate medical insurance cos' you're flying to the other side of the world whilst nursing an iffy ticker.  Not to mention the killer snakes n' spiddery thingies....

 

1 hour ago, AndrewC said:

When we had ours foisted on us we were worried as there were 3 of us in the house. Daily showers. Loads of laundry and tons of plants that needed watering. After the first reading we were about £80 in credit from the previous paid in advance standard rate. Our actual usage is well below their guestimated one. Then again, if you aren't metered you are paying for the average area consumption that includes all the leaks. 

 

Bear does have an option 2 - there's a second stop tap before the one that's boxed-in (but accessible with a paw via a hatch) just outside & below the lounge window.  You have to be "in the know" for that one though, because it's also in a box under 2 inches of soil so invisible.

 

1 hour ago, Sidecar Racer said:

 

A quick google gives ,

 

The national average for a standard MRI scan cost is £363, according to Private Healthcare UK. We offer standard MRI scans from as little as £250, depending on the date and time you book

 

Hmmm......scoff a lot of cake and get yer money's worth and it could be a winner....

 

49 minutes ago, PupCam said:

That's why @polybear installed an induction hub during the kitchen refurb - so he doesn't have to invite me round and cook*  me dinner 🤣

 

* We use the term in its broadest sense of course.

 

Baked Bean & Oven Chip sarnie?  🤣

 

In other news....

Bear has been searching Bear Towers for obvious stuff to go to the Charity Shop Warehouse (there's one near a JL Store not too far from Bear Towers - and as I'm now into carpet perusing mode.....).  It then suddenly occurred to Bear that when the Gas Fire is serviced it would be rather useful to have the knob that controls it (yeah yeah, go ahead with that one...); since the fire front was removed to prevent damage I also removed the knob and put it in a "very safe place"....

And could I find it?  Could I f.aslike....

Right at the point of screaming I suddenly found it.  Where?  On the gas fire - only not on the gas valve but resting safely on a metal bracket.  Sorted.

I also decided that it would be about time the lounge window net curtains were washed - all managed without incident (I bunged 'em in the machine on a delicate setting - how's that for technibubble?) and re-hung to dry out.  And when I peered at the window I suddenly discovered there's a 40ft London Plane Tree outside.....

Incidentally, when checking the best wash to wash the nets I discovered this little nugget of advice on the 'web:

It’s easier to wash your net curtains if you take them down from the rail – cleaning them while they’re still hanging up is just going to be hard work

🤣🤣

 

 

 

[polybear]

Bear's Thought For The Day:

 

Picture the scene:  you're in the queue to the Dover Crossing - and have been for many, many hours.  You can't go forwards, backwards, left or right, you're in the middle of no-where - but plenty of other people everywhere.

And then SWMBO utters those immortal words......

"I need a Poo"

 

😮

 

 

[Sidecar Racer]

16 minutes ago, polybear said:

 

It’s easier to wash your net curtains if you take them down from the rail – cleaning them while they’re still hanging up is just going to be hard work

🤣🤣

 

 

 I also found it useful to add something with a bit of weight , on one occasion I watched as the

drum revolved and the nets stayed still , the water had not soaked then enough to drag then

down to the bottom of the drum .

[Ozexpatriate]

1 hour ago, Ian Abel said:

The weather also cooperated managing to be significantly cooler that the previous few days. There was even one brief but heavy rain shower.

There was a six hour weather delay in the PGA Tour event closer to your home on Saturday. Based on what I saw on television it rained a lot in Blaine, MN. Happily you missed that.

[PhilJ W]

Afternoon all from Estuary-Land. A bit late on parade this afternoon. I'd switched on to watch the BBC news, mainly to check on the weather.  Half way through the local (London) news it suddenly switched to the news channel! I was able to continue watching on i-player but that meant my computer was 'occupied' when I would normally be on RMweb. There was an apology at the end of the program for 'technical difficulties' but more likely someones fat finger syndrome. 

[simontaylor484]

@PupCam The lego Submarine looks very ingenious. The syringe for the ballast tank reminds me of a set of Lego Technic we had at school that used a syringe and plastic small bore tubing for pneumatic 

[Coombe Barton]

... Today, marking first thing, took time, won’t comment on the specifics but Gandalf said something similar to the Balrog. ...

 

https://johncolby.wordpress.com/2022/07/25/postcards-from-the-periphery-2022-04/

[monkeysarefun]

 

 

3 hours ago, polybear said:

Add onto that the extortionate medical insurance cos' you're flying to the other side of the world whilst nursing an iffy ticker.  Not to mention the killer snakes n' spiddery thingies....

Thank you Eeyore, I can work with that. 

 

Went to travel insurance website pretending to be pupcam, had a few stabs at some of the questions but got a quote for 167 pounds .

 

So plan B.

 

Arrive in Sydney get off plane, exclaim "oh my giddy aunt!" like you lot say on the telly and slump to the ground ( but not in long grass cos SNAKES!)

 

Get free trip to hospital in ambulance (probably driven by English or Irish paramedic cos why not?)

 

Get MRI on the  insurance and save even more (check inside shoes before putting them back on after the MRI cos SPIDERS!).

 

Edited July 25, 2022 by monkeysarefun