Early Risers.

[polybear]

13 minutes ago, PhilJ W said:

Afternoon all from Estuary-Land. A bit late as I took the car in to have the tailgate struts replaced this afternoon. I took the car in on the way back from Tess Coes about three this afternoon and they said give us an hour to get the parts and they'll fit them. I took the car back and they fitted them there and then in ten minutes. It cost 155 modelling tokens and they didn't even charge for labour. On the matter of the clubhouse, they got into the building by smashing the window by throwing a metal bin through it. That got them into the kitchen and then into the lounge through the serving hatch. They then tried to get into the rest of the building that was when they set off the alarm. The purpose seems to have been vandalism but until the SOCO's have done their stuff no one can get in to check. Some bookcases and one layout that was in the lounge have been turned over. Some scrotes were seen hanging about on Saturday evening about an hour before the alarms went off and one of the local electric hire scooters was found nearby. 

 

Bear is signed up to OWL Neighbourhood Watch via the 'net (there's loads of groups - just pick the area you're in) - I get regular emails reporting scrote activity, help wanted in finding missing people, security advice etc.  What is apparent is the scrotes will burgle at all times of the day and night - and several have been whilst people are in the house.

When Bear fitted a decent security system (that I regularly test, update etc.) it was one of the better things I've done for peace of mind and (hopefully) anti-scroteness.

 

Insofar as the MRC is concerned, can you get a visit (if you haven't already) from the local crime prevention officer to get some advice on making the place like Fort Knox?  It sounds like decent - and very strong - doors (or flap) on the serving hatch would be a good start

[polybear]

Update:

Bear has just heard from friend in Hospital - for Tea tonight one of the things they gave her was - wait for it......Chicken Mayo....

Oh yes, and the biggest Choccy Muffin that she's seen.  She's T2 Diabetic.....

FFS.

[Tony_S]

41 minutes ago, PhilJ W said:

. I took the car in on the way back from Tess Coes about three this afternoon and they said give us an hour to get the parts and they'll fit them.

Where did you take it?

[polybear]

23 hours ago, Gwiwer said:

Dr. SWMBO packed a few items for Australia tonight and asked me to mail the box tomorrow.  I took the precaution of pricing it first.  £87.  It's only 2.4kgs and not very big but that's what Parcel Farce want.  DHL?  £179.  DPD?  Don't go to Australia.  I found an app called Parcel King offering a £43 rate which turned out to be Evri (nee Yodel) at this end.  Still too much.  She's re-thinking Christmas Downunder.  

 

 

I've just received this weeks email from Martin Lewis (Money Saving Expert Website) - it includes this:

 

"Sending overseas? The principles are the same

You will also find it's usually cheaper to get a UK retailer to send an item overseas, even to places as far away as Australia, e.g, MSE Jenny found she could send 3kg of make-up to Australia for £6 via the retailer compared with £28 for the cheapest courier and £65 via Royal Mail. However, it's also important to compare, and you face the same Post Office vs courier question if you want to send something yourself.

For full tips and tricks, see MSE Jenny's blog on slashing the cost of sending parcels abroad."

 

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/team-blog/2020/11/how-to-slash-the-cost-of-sending-presents-to-family-and-friends-/

 

Some of the info may well be too late for this year but may well be useful in the future.

HTH.

[PhilJ W]

17 minutes ago, Tony_S said:

Where did you take it?

Longmans, at the Timberlog Lane end of Long Riding, Basildon.

[Winslow Boy]

1 hour ago, New Haven Neil said:

 

Ten quid if you live in the town, 20 if outside, free for kids and students.  Small place, rates are low by UK standards but locals begrudge every penny. EVERY. So they don't get much to spend on things like the library.  Oddly, some of our rates from our village goes to Ramsey for the swimming pool, but not anything else.  Given the Manx ability to moan about the smallest detail, its a wonder we have one TBH. 

 

My mate is the Deputy Commissioners Chair (Deputy Mayor) he changed the rubbish bins for new seagull proof ones after complaints they were causing a mess, which actually have a wheelie bin inside to make emptying easier, saved £18k a year due to being easier to empty.  Result? Local whinging they hurt their hands on the anti-seagull flaps.  Which would only happen if you put your hand inside to get something out of the bin......he just smiles and just carries on.  Having organised Santa stuff last weekend, only three of the 16 Commissioners actually turned up to help, him and 2 others.  They all agreed to help of course.  I wonder how he maintains a cool head sometimes, but he is used to divas - he's a Director/Producer, as in TV.

 

He's the snowman.....

 

 

 

I'm afraid that's the problem you always encounter Neil. People always say yes when asked to do things but then don't turn up confident in the knowledge that someone else will and that they won't get shown up.

[polybear]

Hey, what a surprise:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-63882140

[New Haven Neil]

18 minutes ago, Winslow Boy said:

 

I'm afraid that's the problem you always encounter Neil. People always say yes when asked to do things but then don't turn up confident in the knowledge that someone else will and that they won't get shown up.

 

Aye, was ever the case, but only 3 was a record!  it was cold....humph.  Previously there was a complaint from a shop owner not knowing when the late shopping nights were.  He is on the committee of the Chamber of Commerce....but hadn't bothered going to the meetings of said body where it was decided! 

 

At least at Groudle when folk agreed to do something, they did.

[Sidecar Racer]

6 hours ago, Barry O said:

I am very concerned that we have not heard from @Chris F  since he said he was on chemo.

 

 

 Baz , you have put the wrong @name , our Chris go's by  chrisf  all lower case .

 

 His last post was 30th Nov , last visit says Thursday , so Dec 1st . No postings in any other

threads .

Edited December 6, 2022 by Sidecar Racer

[Winslow Boy]

44 minutes ago, New Haven Neil said:

 

Aye, was ever the case, but only 3 was a record!  it was cold....humph.  Previously there was a complaint from a shop owner not knowing when the late shopping nights were.  He is on the committee of the Chamber of Commerce....but hadn't bothered going to the meetings of said body where it was decided! 

 

At least at Groudle when folk agreed to do something, they did.

Well of çourse they do otherwise a sharp pointy thing might introduce itself to them. Nothing like an 'incentive' to 'motivate' volunteers.

 

What really rattles my cage though is the lack of encouragement and motivation. They expect volunteers to contact organisers rather than the other way round. It's like they want the kudos but don't want to do anything for it. Sorry in a bit of a mood as made the second cock up of the week. 

 

Anyway off to bed hoping tomorrow will be better.

[AndyID]

17 minutes ago, Winslow Boy said:

 

Sorry in a bit of a mood

 

No kiddin' 😄

[Barry O]

Cricket..umpired..

 

Next Tuesday is finals night.. no more umpiring till 2023...

 

Sleep well!

Baz

[PhilJ W]

Evening all from Estuary-Land. Arthur Itis has been quiet today but started doing his clog dance this evening so I bought out the heavy artillery, the co-codamol and that is working.

[BSW01]

Good evening everyone 

 

Since opening my box of goodies this morning, I've done bu99er all. Well, unless you call reading the BRM nothing that is. 

 

Goodnight all 

[PhilJ W]

Goodnight all.

[monkeysarefun]

"Bali Hi!" everybody.  Well ok, its not Bali but it is the South Pacific, or at least the bit of it south of Sydney....

 

 

This morning I was sent  on a secret work mission in the opposite direction from usual so I went the coast way. 

 

Have driven this road so many times every summer once we'd got our drivers licenses, but never stopped at the lookouts because that was a waste of surf time. Now I'm  of "sightseeing" age, I stopped to check out the view.  The string of  beaches here  were our second home in the late 70's early 80's summer weekends. Stanwell Park, Coledale,  Austinmeer, Sandon Point, Bulli, Thirroul,  depending on the swell and the wind it was one or the other. 

 

North is the favoured direction for most Sydneysiders to head, south has a reputation for cold (by Australian standards) weather, but I prefer it, especially the bit here where the tailend of the Blue Mountains meets the sea. The escarpment is cloaked in sub-tropical rainforest, with ferns and palms, when I was young I imagined dinosaurs might still be in there.  With a temperature that seldom gets above 30 or below 12, Its a lovely part of the world.

 

 

In  the distance is the bridge built to get around  the problem of constant clifffalls blocking the highway. A competition was held on completion to pick a name for the bridge over the sea going past a cliff. The winner was from a 10 year old girl was Seacliff Bridge.  Not very inspiring but probably the only entry that wasnt "Bridgey Mcbridgeface".

 

 

Lost in the haze in the far distance is the mighty city of Wollongong, home town of of global heavyweights like  Neighbours star and 90's singing budgie Natalie Bassingthwaighte and  crusher of English batsmen,  Brett Lee.

 

Had a quick stop at Stanwell Park to check the surf, not visible are all  the sharks and venomous seaspiders etc.

 

 

With 30 degrees forecast for today it was hard to leave the dog-walkers and beachcombers, climb back into the car and head off back to work.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Ozexpatriate]

6 minutes ago, monkeysarefun said:

"Bali Hi!" everybody.  Well ok, its not Bali but it is the South Pacific

Bali and the Bali Sea aren't really the "south" Pacific. They're marginally either the Indian or Pacific. I've seen the Java Sea (west of Bali defined as part of the Pacific). Iffy either way in my opinion. 

 

From Wikipedia re: Bali Ha'i

Quote

"Bali Ha'i", also spelled "Bali Hai", is a show tune from the 1949 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical South Pacific. The name refers to a mystical island, visible on the horizon but not reachable, and was originally inspired by the sight of Ambae island from neighboring Espiritu Santo in Vanuatu, where author James Michener was stationed in World War II.

 

[Ozexpatriate]

16 minutes ago, monkeysarefun said:

Lost in the haze in the far distance is the mighty city of Wollongong

My sister lived in Kiama for her first job out of university. She hated it, not because of the scenery, but I don't think she was ready to be quite that far away from home and displaced from her network, friends, family, etc and her job wasn't much fun.

 

I know I visited the area when I was five but don't remember it. We got as far as Bateman's Bay on a big road trip when the Toyota Corona was new. Never made it back.

 

[monkeysarefun]

8 minutes ago, Ozexpatriate said:

My sister lived in Kiama for her first job out of university. She hated it, not because of the scenery, but I don't think she was ready to be quite that far away from home and displaced from her network, friends, family, etc and her job wasn't much fun.

 

I know I visited the area when I was five but don't remember it. We got as far as Bateman's Bay on a big road trip when the Toyota Corona was new. Never made it back.

 

Kiama is a top spot, famous for its blowhole and its dry stone walls, rare here but built last century by one wall builder. There's around 400 of them in the district. 

 

 

 

[J. S. Bach]

Night Owl from the Piedmont.

[iL Dottore]

5 hours ago, monkeysarefun said:

"Bali Hi!" everybody.  Well ok, its not Bali but it is the South Pacific, or at least the bit of it south of Sydney....

You can seriously go off people….. 😆

 

I was perusing the ‘papers when I came across this restaurant (sort of) review and immediately thought of @chrisf (a Wetherspoons devotee) and @polybear https://www.theguardian.com/food/2022/dec/06/which-bit-of-the-turkey-is-this-supposed-to-be-i-ate-12-christmas-dinners-in-12-days-here-are-the-best-and-worst. I’m not sure what to make of the review - a warning perhaps?
 

Quite frankly, the turkey is one of my least favourite birds to cook and eat. Such are the deformed monstrosities that are sold as turkeys nowadays, that they are almost impossible to cook perfectly: if you cook “on the bone” when the breast meat is perfectly done, the leg meat remains underdone; if tge leg is cooked perfectly - then the breast meat is overdone and dry (I do have a successful solution to this conundrum  - but it involves layering stuffing between the skin and the breast meat before roasting, 400g of streaky bacon as protection and lubricant and about 250g of butter for basting the breast once the bacon is removed towards the end of the cooking). Furthermore, even when successfully cooked, turkey is bland. Give me goose or duck any day.

If I must cook turkey (sometimes Mrs iD insists), I cook breast, off the bone, sous-vide with herbs. It always turns out perfectly cooked (it’s hard to mess up with sous-vide cooking) and - thanks to the herbs - fairly edible.

 

 

[Barry O]

Ey up! 

 

Yep today really is blood letting day with the Draclettes. I also need to order a load of prescription stuff as I am going walkabout for a bit. Tested the blood sugars this morning .. about 39. Which is good as last night I came home from cricket and opened a bottle of warming up juice (a nice glass of The Societies PinotNoir). This helped to get my body (but more particularly my nose) back to normal temperature.  

 

Before allthat I need to buy growlers and then get ready or the Lords Taverners lunch.the guest speaker is Jonny Bairstow..hopefullywe will get chance to talk to his mum who we have known for a while.

Hopefully it willnot involve eating Turkey.. but probably will. I hate the stuff.. but Imay be able to eat my annual allocations (max 4 in total)..  Brussels sprouts.. I have avoided these so far.

 

Later it willbe ferrying some friends back home after the lunch. Busy, busy, busy.

 

Stay safe.. Carpe Diem!

 

Baz

[jjb1970]

NHM's posts made me smile, though maybe for the wrong reasons. As much as I love Britain and our people, many of us are terrible for whinging and seeing everything in the context of a glass nine tenths empty. And so many people have a sense of entitlement, and expect someone else to do something about everything they don't like. Take litter, if people object to litter then don't litter, and do your bit to help clean it. When I go for a walk on Sunday morning I see a lot of families with bags and litter grabs (and there isn't much litter in Singapore). In Britain people rant about why isn't the council keeping the streets clean while whinging about council tax and viewing the suggestion that they might help to clean it up as a diabolical outrage. At a certain point we get the society and town we make and deserve for ourselves. The media makes it worse, this trip has reminded me why I switched the BBC off years ago and stopped reading papers, just an of gleeful miserableism and outrage fodder feeding an idea it's all terrible (actually Britain is a terrific place) and it's all the government's fault. As much as I detest the government, it reflects voters, and nobody forces anyone to drop litter, get drunk and act like an ass, steal, act violently, drive like an idiot etc.

[jamie92208]

Good moaning from a coolish Charente.  It was 1 degree yesterday and felt it.  As to turkey, we will not be having one for the two of us.  Duck has been ordered. Aurellie  says they are still running around and quacking.  It will no doubt be very tasty.  

 

As a former resident  of the Yorkshire Dales I do like those dry stone walls @monkeysarefun. Theyblook very nice.  A real art is wall building. There are even competitions  at villagevshows in The Dales.  

 

Not a lot to report here apart from the fact that Beth's tyres have still not arrived.  We will not be patronising that establishment  again.  It used to be run very well be a couple who have retired.  Thevnew owners do not inspre confidence.  

 

Jamie

 

 

[TheQ]

Mooring Awl,

3 +1.5+1.5+1 hours sleep very broken up, forepaws complaining bitterly about the rain cold etc.. no pills have been taken but they are very stiff this morning..

 

Ben the get a move on Collie gave me a very disparaging look as I stood at the back door putting on Gloves , hat and coat.. we had only 50% cloud cover and a full moon so he went on a full patrol...

 

It was puddles to over maximum as I set off water running down the roads, further chuckinitdarn occurred on the way in..

 

There is a white longwheel base hightop van I see every morning, it is I believe  local egg farm that delivers directly to restaurants, pubs, etc Normally its being driven very carefully at a max of fifty and obeying lower limits, yesterday and today it's being driven by a lunatic over taking me at the speed limit and hammering off down the roads. I suspect the normal driver is on holiday, and the replacement is covering two rounds...

 

yesterdays overnight run went reasonably well except for DCV i suspect the noise was causing problems, it's being re run.. Doing some high ohms at the moment as the noise is low at present.

 

at peak yesterday the meter went onto overload that's over 100mV it should be around 35uV.

 

Time to get on with it..