PhilJ W

I rented a Matiz when I holidayed in Malta 15 years ago. I was surprised that such a small car had power steering. I didn't notice it until I got back home when I drove my own much larger car (Nissan Prairie 1.8) without power steering.

Morning all from Estuary-Land. Sorry to hear of your break-in Chard, keep your fingers crossed that the scrotes will be caught. I can understand why geneology has such an attraction, the thrill of the hunt. It is a bit disappointing though when you come up against a brick wall. One I came across was all the records before 1666 were lost in the great fire of London. Family stories passed down through the generations are intriguing but can easily become distorted or no records can be found. An example of the latter is that family members, name of Turner went to America on the Mayflower. They went as indentured servants, a father, son and daughter. Only the daughter is known to have returned to England, as her marriage is recorded but no further records can be found of her brother and father. My dads family didn't go very far for generations, they all lived in Gravesend, they were watermen on the lower Thames and the Estuary, son following father into the same trade until the trade went into decline in the late Victorian era.

Goodnight all.

Facebook is back now.

Facebook has just crashed?

Ian, when it comes to disposing of your fallen tree avoid these idiots. >>

The party over the road has stopped, about an hour ago. Nice and quiet, not that they were too noisy anyway, and the street is clear of the parked cars. Strangely the marquee is still lit up like a Christmas tree.

The Typhus outbreak 1816-1819 is right on the spot.

200 years ago my 4 X great grandfather was living in the village of Podimore in Devon yet he married a girl from the same village but in London. Both were of full age so it didn't appear to be an elopement. As it turned out he was a widower, his wife and two little daughters had all died within a few weeks of each other. Many relatives of his new bride had also died suddenly about the same time, in fact I can find no trace of any of her relatives after that time. I assume that it may have been an outbreak of disease such as typhus or cholera that resulted in so many deaths.

Evening all from Estuary-Land. The party over the road has started early, about 3 pm, hopefully it will finish early. Not too loud fortunately but the streets around are chocker with parked cars. I know of one neighbour who will be less than pleased. Most of those attending the party are West Indian and the music therefore is mostly reggae and ska. This particular neighbour will give his racist views to anyone, even if you don't want to hear them, he must be hopping up and down.

Morning all from Estuary-Land. Still dry here atm but how long thats going to last is anyone's guess. I noticed yesterday that the house opposite me has a marquee in the back garden and last night it was illuminated within and this morning someone was decorating the front of the house with pink balloons. So far it has been quiet but I'm bracing myself for a bit of noise later on. This is the privately rented house that seems to have a new tenant every month.

Goodnight all.

My bank presented me with a contactless debit card last year. I placed it in my wallet and a few weeks later I went to use my bus pass and it confused the machine as it read both cards, I now keep my bus pass in a separate wallet.

Car wash anyone >> http://www.facebook.com/sketchhistory/?pnref=story page down to 'Knight wash.

FYI A Hong Kong company called Tiny has introduced a series of diecast models many of which are 00 scale. One such model is of a Saxon armoured car. It can be found on e-bay item # 191862679040.

Morning all from Estuary-Land. Bright and sunny this morning and predicted to last all day but the forecast for tomorrow is dire. Why would I want to wake up?

Goodnight all.

It seems I slipped up a bit with the bread pud recipe, it needs 45 rather than 30 minutes. When my mum baked she never weighed anything or used a timer, rule of thumb ruled. The bread pud was tested by poking a knife into it and when the knife came out 'clean' it was done.

Didn't Railway Magazine run an April fools stunt a few years ago that the A1's named after companies that formed the LNER would be painted in the appropriate livery. GER blue with white cab roof and red connecting rods would look good on an A1.

And again it could be that he was at one time the tenant and sub let the property.

Balancing V engines is an art. A V8 or a V4 is better balanced at 90 degrees whereas a V6 is better balanced at 60 degrees. This is why the Ford V6's were so much better than the V4's which were basically the V6 less 2 cylinders.

See recipe above.

Morning all from Estuary-Land. My post last night was upbeat, talking about the joys of bread pudding. Yet it received a load of friendly/supportive marks? Or do you all hate bread pudding? Bright enough this morning but not predicted to last but also predicted to stay dry. Have a good day all and hope that everyone has a POETS day. PS Here is my (mums) recipe for bread pudding. Required. A large mixing bowl, wooden spoon, oven dish. Ingredients 1 large loaf preferably sliced (most breads including wholemeal are suitable) slightly stale bread is best, 'reduced to clear' from the supermarket would be ideal. 1lb of mixed dried fruit. 4oz. of golden syrup. My mum often used mollasses (black syrup) and I have heard of maple syrup or honey being used. 1oz. of allspice, the quantity and type of spice can be changed according to taste. Crumble the bread including crusts into the mixing bowl then fill with water just enough to cover the bread, cover with a teacloth and leave until all the water has been absorbed, best to leave for about 12 hours. Knead the soaked bread until it is of an even constituency, add the syrup and spice and fold in with the spoon adding the dried fruit as you do so. Grease the oven dish and evenly distribute the contents into the dish using a knife to smooth the top. Bake in a pre-heated oven at 180.C, gas mark 5 for 30 minutes or until the top is golden brown. EDIT the baking time should be 45 minutes. Best way to make sure its baked is to put a knife into it and if it comes out clean its done.

My Facebook seems to be back to normal now so fingers crossed. Talking of which, one of the local history groups of which I am a member someone has started a thread on bread pudding which in less than 12 hours has attracted more than 100 replies. My mouth is watering at the though of my mums bread pudding, still warm from the oven and soft and moist. And with that I say goodnight to you all.

Actually most 4 stroke twins are like that. When you think about it it evens out the stress of combustion and gives a better balance to the engine. With a flat twin like the 2CV it is not so critical in fact the design of the engine makes it easier to balance with alternative cylinders firing as in a vertical twin but the penalty is a more complicated crankshaft arrangement. It was designed as a 2 stroke using crankcase compression hence the piston arrangement. With a 4 stroke engine better balance is achieved by having alternative cylinders firing, this is why radial aircraft engines have an odd number of cylinders.