Early Risers.

[Coombe Barton]

... for such a seemingly cavalier attitude both by the engineer and by the Post Office and their lawyers - ethics and morals do not seem to exist for any of them ...

https://johncolby.wordpress.com/2024/06/25/sometimes-you-just-do-not-believe-fall-guy-or-incompetent-final-work-on-admin/

 

Edited Tuesday at 20:28 by Coombe Barton
typo

[Grizz]

5 hours ago, Ozexpatriate said:

The global equine conspiracy. @Grizz has related such tales of malevolence from his Kentish(?) 'field ornaments'. 

Yup.
And, given their occasion careless and potentially naughty behaviour…you’ve nearly spelt ‘Kentish’ right 🤣…..but they are actually Field Ornaments from the Deep South of East Sussex. 

[TheQ]

Evening Awl, 24.5C in here with the windows open, no wind to blow through, the solid brick walls are reraidating  inside.

We're cut off.. almost  they have closed both roads going south, the diversion signs lead into each other's road closed signs. It took SWMBO 3/4 of an hour extra to do the last normal two miles, but the diversions are ridiculous, had she not known some of the roads she'd still be out there.. at the first blockage a bus driver was having a blazing row with the contractors, the official diversion they've set up for big vehicles ( without telling the bus company) actually takes him to his destination 10 miles away before coming back to thirty foot the other side of the hole in the road.

For added fun today they've been filling pot holes in our road, missing doing the big ones of course..

 

With any luck all persons of doubtful heritage, wearing rosettes of various colours will be totally lost out there.

 

Mr Amazon didn't get lost, he delivered some silicon sealant, it was actually cheaper than screwfix own brand, collected in store.

 

Quiet at the MRC tonight something to do with over paid men and some leather..

 

 Muggachoccy gone a sweaty goodnight to you Awl.

 

[Winslow Boy]

3 hours ago, polybear said:

And don’t fellow ER’ers qualify for a discount?

No because the Deltics are being reduced. Just be grateful your getting any at all. If I had my way I'd be keeping it all. And when the old proverbial hits the rotor don't come knocking at my door asking for some.

[Winslow Boy]

1 hour ago, polybear said:

It seems the Big River have sneakily upped their minimum spend to £35 for free delivery (was £25) - though if there’s a tenner’s worth of books (with or without other stuff) it’s still free.

 

’sterds; things must be gettin’ tough for them….

Poor souls down to there last trillion I believe. It's paying for all that blue touch paper. Costs an absolute fortune I believe. Perhaps if they shortened it and ran faster they'd be able to save some cents.

[BSW01]

Good evening everyone 

 

I spent most of the morning in the garden and the plants we purchased yesterday, are now in the ground and have been watered in. That particular border is now looking a bit fuller than is was. There’s still a bit of space left, but I’ll fill that with the plants in the greenhouse, that I’ve grown from seed.

 

I never did get round to cutting the plywood for my layout’s helix, it was too warm, so I spent what was left of the afternoon in the workshop. Not a lot accomplished, but I know what I’m going to do next. 

[Winslow Boy]

1 hour ago, TheQ said:

Evening Awl, 24.5C in here with the windows open, no wind to blow through, the solid brick walls are reraidating  inside.

We're cut off.. almost  they have closed both roads going south, the diversion signs lead into each other's road closed signs. It took SWMBO 3/4 of an hour extra to do the last normal two miles, but the diversions are ridiculous, had she not known some of the roads she'd still be out there.. at the first blockage a bus driver was having a blazing row with the contractors, the official diversion they've set up for big vehicles ( without telling the bus company) actually takes him to his destination 10 miles away before coming back to thirty foot the other side of the hole in the road.

For added fun today they've been filling pot holes in our road, missing doing the big ones of course..

 

With any luck all persons of doubtful heritage, wearing rosettes of various colours will be totally lost out there.

 

Mr Amazon didn't get lost, he delivered some silicon sealant, it was actually cheaper than screwfix own brand, collected in store.

 

Quiet at the MRC tonight something to do with over paid men and some leather..

 

 Muggachoccy gone a sweaty goodnight to you Awl.

 

I think they must have some kind of central repository where they swop ways in which to cock things up.

 

Near me they have been doing something not certain why to the kerb on one side of a stretch of road. Now you and I would dig up a short stretch, make the change and they reinstate it. Thereby minimising the disruption. Not this lot they've dug it all up thereby reducing four lanes down to two because they need a 'safe area' - even when there not working.

 

What's really rubbing salt into it is there's a bus stop so they've done that bit but not the bit by the traffic lights. So when the right filter fills up which does rapidly all the traffic stops. What's more they are going to be doing this for another two months. I'd just like to get one of them to come and look at the mayhem at 8.30 am and tell me why they thought it was going to work.

Edited Tuesday at 22:07 by Winslow Boy

[The Lurker]

6 hours ago, Ozexpatriate said:

The global equine conspiracy. @Grizz has related such tales of malevolence from his Kentish(?) 'field ornaments'. 

Sussex, as I am sure he’ll confirm. “We wunt be druv” is old Sussex dialect (and bloomin’ hard to get through autocorrect). The Wealden version of the Kent dialect was probably similar - it had largely gone apart from the old boys when I was a kid - and was more heavily influenced by the back and forth with cockney - dahn ‘oppin in the harvest - than further south as far as I understand. 

[BSW01]

Goodnight all 

[PhilJ W]

Evening all from Estuary-Land. After dinner I sat down in the armchair and nodded off. Now to catch up on RMweb.

[PhilJ W]

Goodnight all.

[monkeysarefun]

7 hours ago, Ozexpatriate said:

A mere trifle compare with your regular flights. It will be over before you know it and you can soon the throngs of drunken Aussie bachelor's/hen's parties and sports teams, though it's still mid-season for most of the 'football' varieties.

 

 

Its been invaded by  tens of thousands of Russians and Ukrainians  now, many escaping from the call-up and doing it in warmer climes. Indonesian visas are easily obtained by  Russians and Ukrainians, hence its  sudden popularity. 

 

Apparently its causing a lot of unrest  what with the huge numbers, the influx of organised crime, disrespect of the local culture etc. At least Australians just get drunk, get bad tattoos and crash into each other on mopeds..

 

 

 

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-04-16/badly-behaved-foreign-tourists-upset-bali/102205956

 

 

It makes Bondi or the Gold Coast look like an undiscovered wilderness in comparison  these days!

 

 

 

 

Edited Tuesday at 23:19 by monkeysarefun

[monkeysarefun]

11 hours ago, PupCam said:

Standard mobile phones have no ability to connect with communications satellites (they can of course receive signals from GPS satellites but that's a completely different kettle of fish)

 

 

That is constantly confirmed here by tourists who get led up the garden path (or along  the little used stock route) by GPS satellites, but then when they get bogged or run out of fuel they discover they have no signal to call for help.

 

(Heres the latest one)

 

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-02-21/google-maps-tourists-lost-in-remote-area/103492986

 

Thats why an Emergency Beacon (EPIRB) is pretty well mandatory if going anywhere off the main routes. . They can be rented from bushwalking shops etc although in  the Blue Mountains at least the National Parks Authority  will lend you one for free. Its in their interest since the cost of searching and rescuing the 130 bushwalkers who get lost in the park annually is far greater than the cost of buying and replacing  them.

[jjb1970]

Personally if it was down to me there are lots of places in Indonesia I would rather visit than Bali, but Mrs JJB and the offspring wanted to go there, so hey ho off we go. In fairness, if you avoid the beaches it's beautiful, the interior is stunning but the beachfront towns can be awful. Bali is in that common predicament for tourist hotshots, the poor and insensitive behaviour of many visitors annoys the locals but they're very aware that their economy is reliant on tourism and that it pretty much funds the island. 

[jjb1970]

The real tension in Bali is domestic.

 

Although Indonesia is not an Islamic country it has a Muslim majority. The constitution guarantees religious freedom and the legal code is largely secular (though there's been encroachment on that by religious changes).

 

Bali is a majority Hindu province, there has long been tension with religious hot heads from other parts of Indonesia who want to Islamise the island. Regardless of how objectionable the tourists are they're here today gone tomorrow visitors. Even long term visitors can be booted out if they break the law. However the ambitions of other Indonesians would permanently change Bali.

 

It's one of the negative changes I have seen in Indonesia.  They always had fundamentalists with ambitions to turn the country into an Islamic state but it was a fringe and largely confined to certain areas like Aceh. Now it's still a minority and most Indonesian Muslims remain tolerant and pretty open minded you do see more religious hardliners and it's now a significant force in politics. 

[BR60103]

Guelph has dug up (for 12 weeks) the intersection of two main streets in our end of town.  One of the detours is along a road that is currently being dug up for repaving -- reduced to a single lane that wanders.

 

Toronto had a bye-election yesterday. There were 84 candidates. Apparently some group objecting to the way results are calculated.

 

[Ozexpatriate]

6 hours ago, Grizz said:

...but they are actually Field Ornaments from the Deep South of East Sussex. 

Thank you - I was guessing your county location. I estimate (courtesy of Google maps) that I was 0.4% off in terms of distance from here. 😉

[jamie92208]

Good moaning from a sunny Charente.  It got to 32 yesterday so aftershopping and cutti g the two remaining weed patches and lunch, I opened the pool. I then spent a pleasant hour hoovering the pool of it's winter dust collection.  Then in the evening g we watched a lacklustre game of kickball. 

 

Today is set to be quite busy.  In half an hour I'm taking the old Volvo for it's CT.  I have Che ked the time this week.  There will no doubt be other tasks when I get home. 

 

This afternoon we are off to Angouleme for Beth's follow up appointment with her surgeon.  Afterwards we are having a meal at our favourite restaurant which happens to be on our route home. 

 

Jamie

[grandadbob]

Good morning all,

Blue sky and sunshine here, it's very warm and will stay like that all day.  App says it's 17°C outside and forecast says it will rise to 31°C.   

I've been awake since 05.00 after a restless night,  too hot even with a fan running at full blast. The thermometer beside me in the lounge is currently reading 25°C which is enough for me. Any hotter and I really don't like it.  I foresee a day of doing nottalot.

Lunch in their garden with our friends yesterday was excellent and beer and wine flowed in abundance, probably more that it should have done but a splendid time was had.  Garden watering briefing undertaken and it was the same as before except there are a couple of new plants that need particular attention.  I can do that.  We ambled home about 18.30 absolutely shattered.

Tea has already been take up to Herself who has decreed that it is indeed too hot to do anything energetic today...apart from a walk to Asda as we're running low on milk. I think I can do that too.  Just remembered that I have a Zoom meeting after lunch so will catch up with some friends in far and not so faraway places.

Have a good one,

Bob.

 

Edited Wednesday at 06:14 by grandadbob

[Winslow Boy]

3 hours ago, Ozexpatriate said:

Thank you - I was guessing your county location. I estimate (courtesy of Google maps) that I was 0.4% off in terms of distance from here. 😉

But that 0.4% can make all the difference. Bit like reentry into the earth's atmosphere. All you have to be is out by is a fraction of a degree and you'd bounce off. So if you'd been 0.49% off instead of 0.4% you'd have ended up in the Great Smoke aka London.

Edited Wednesday at 06:45 by Winslow Boy

[Tony_S]

5 minutes ago, Winslow Boy said:

But that 0.4% can make all the difference. Bit like reentry into the earth's atmosphere. All you have to be is out by is a fraction of a degree and your bounce off. So if you'd been 0.49% off instead of 0.4% you'd have ended up in the Great Smoke aka London.

So are the horses in London the ones that didn’t bounce off the atmosphere?

[Barry O]

Ey up!

 

It was very muggy yesterday. A game spoilt by some very strange decisions made by a colleague (he gave a batter out stumped at my end.. I didn't as the keeper didn't have the ball when he took the bails out. Who then said.. "well he was bowled" which he wasn't.. not a happy Baz.

 

Cos of the kickball the M62 was quiet.. then at 10 to cones hour .. lanes closed (we apart working at 9pm.. yeh! Right!) Total chaos as the warning signs said "animals in road" very funny but untrue and means people stop taking notice of the motorway signs.. control room staff need a good old fashioned b*ll*cking!

 

Today starts with cleaning,moves on via a trip to collect medications then via a meeting of minds to the club night tonight.

 

Time to finish my tea and get the shark out!

 

Baz

[TheQ]

Yes, but the field ornaments do bounce off busses in London...

 

Mooring Awl,

Took a long time to get to sleep, it was very intermittent after that, 23C at the moment down stairs. Ben is lying below the open window.

 

Ben the not happy Collie just did a splash and dash ( back in).

It's dull grey and extremely misty out there. The sea Harr has swept in. Can't see the sand dunes, and the far end of the garden is just about visible. Not surprisingly the grass is quite wet.

 

According to the road works web site we are down to one road closure this morning, they appear to have moved up to the Happisburgh area..

Plans for today,

Get a unit of unmentionables out of the shed and put it in the trailer ready to swap over tomorrow.

Some re organisation of the shed will occur at the same time...

 

But first, time for a muggacoffee.

 

 

 

[Gwiwer]

9 hours ago, monkeysarefun said:

Australians just get drunk, get bad tattoos and crash into each other on mopeds..

 

It makes Bondi or the Gold Coast look like an undiscovered wilderness

Not an undiscovered wilderness during “schoolies” though. Where Australians do all of the above but often whilst under-age. 
 

I inadvertently happened upon Byron Bay one schoolies. I was only passing through on my way north but thought it would make for a handy overnight stop. 
 

All was lively but well as the sun set but after dark I learned a whole new meaning for “Aussie Barbie-queue”.  At least I was staying a block or two away from the worst of it. Hot nights, alcohol (whether legally obtained or not) and the freedom of being away from home are not always good friends.  

[grandadbob]

Walk to Asda has been cancelled, it has been estimated we will have enough milk until tomorrow's delivery.  Life doesn't get much more exciting than this!  The bad news is that The Shark needs to be deployed as we have visitors for lunch tomorrow.  Not quite sure why doing the bedrooms is absolutely necessary,  I wasn't aware that we are offering lunch in bed!