NGT6 1315

Cheers all. LTNS but I still exist! I'm currently in Gotha on the final day of another qualification week. After one more exam, I'll be off to the station and awa hame, as I gather they say up in Scotland! Reading about India and food items in the same context is making me hungry. Dunno what we'll have for dinner tonight, though. Later. 🫡

Cheers all. A bit windy since the middle of the night but all the same, I do feel like there’s the first traces of spring out there. Crocuses are blooming all over the neighbourhood in any case. I seem to be past the worst of the lurgy but there are still some persistent remnants. I‘ll give work a try tomorrow, though. Stay safe and sound, everyone…

Cheers everyone. Bit of a proper lifesign at last… This sinusitis that has developed in recent days certainly is something aggro. Let’s just say the past few nights have been non-events and I certainly feel accordingly. Haven’t dozed off in daytime like I’m currently doing for a long time for sure. Stay safe…

Cheers all. Achy and tired this meridiem, so I suppose another visit to the GP is up tomorrow... I‘m reading a pair of robbers had blasted open an ATM in a Hessian town but were stopped by a witness who rammed and immobilised their getaway car. They are now in custody and in addition to the bank pledging to compensate the witness for the write-off of their car, an online fundraiser resulted in a further €8,000 for the witness. The police commended the witness for their quick intervention but at the same time cautioned that civilians intervening in such ways may expose themselves to incalculable risks such as retribution from accomplices. I think either statement has a fair point.

And a version with vocals: The proper kind of music for a naval band for sure, eh?

Have I got something for the maritimely minded! 👍

Cheers everyone. I expect I’ll stay on extended mattress listening duty today. Oh well… I certainly would if I were them!

This is pretty cool, I think:

Cheers all. Still meh because of the flu. Everything aches! But on a lighter note: Public transport staff can relate…

Cheers all... Well, I now have the flu as well. Had to happen, of course. I'll get myself to bed in a few, but before I do, could anyone enlighten me re the following? I feel I won't get any sleep before I know... Nite awl.

That's something not unheard of in our line of work here either! While it may not immediately be a risk factor, one example that comes to my mind immediately would be team leaders for driving staff who are not themselves certified drivers. This doesn't exactly inspire credibility when said team leaders need to assess incidents or complaints without having first-hand experience of their own. I suppose issues like this one becoming slowly more common among public transport operators may be another result of the skilled labour shortage which is making itself increasingly felt. It does make me wonder whether all other sensible options, such as recruiting team leaders primarily among qualified drivers, are really being exhausted or whether employers are merely copping out.

Cheers awl. Getting light outside. Working from home today as Livia seems to have caught a flu and needs to stay in for the rest of the week. At least she's cheerful regardless! Annika seems to have been lucky so far, however. Stay safe, and ta...

The town looked like this when I went out to grab dinner... I'll let you know if I should be snowed in by morning!

Fresh from the Bay of Pigs, I presume? 🤣

Moaning awl. Good to hear everything's in the green, @New Haven Neil. Freezing rain and severe flash icing conditions affecting large parts of the country have been forecast beginning this afternoon. Gotha, however, has 6 to 12 inches of snow coming up, apparently. That might turn out to be interesting indeed! Stay safe, everyone...

Baldwin Sharknoses on a layout called the Elasmo Branch? 🤓

Cheers everyone... I'm in Gotha once again this week. It's chilly outside and feels quite a bit colder than it really is. Not a lot to report this morning, so may I just offer some imagery to lighten the mood. Certainly seems like the world needs such in these interesting times...

Evening all. Happy new year to everyone. Hope you made it through alright, and please do stay safe, sane and sound in these interesting times. Today was mostly spent tidying up some. We had a few ideas for redecorating several rooms during our time oop narf, too. One of the first projects will be improving the lighting in the dining room, as the far end of it is far too dark. Dinner will likely be cheese spätzle with sauerkraut.

The question of how to share the cost of repairs and sea defence improvements is relevant here too. I gather everyone is in agreement about the fact that it can only be subject to an accord between the affected districts and the state of Schleswig-Holstein, but that will obviously only be the starting point for discussions on whose budgets can contribute how much. There‘s also the issue of large tracts of S-H being below sea level, including areas well inshore. These naturally need to be continually drained into the sea and waterways, and several of the pumping stations have sustained damage at precisely the wrong time as well. As these pumps generally are custom builds, replacements require at least several weeks to be produced. For the time being, disaster relief agencies (both the German THW as well as their Dutch colleagues) have stepped in to provide stop-gap equipment, but this can just about keep even with the natural inflow of water. Everyone involved is now crossing their fingers that no further storm surges and heavy precipitation events occur until the failed drainage pumps have been replaced. Which I suppose all goes to demonstrate how climate change will likely continue to affect coastal regions for decades to come and to demand adequate responses.

Cheers everyone from oop narf. Again, happy holidays and I hope you're all safe and sound. The recent storm surges did cause significant damage in many locations, as Dad told me. The Baltic coast in particular was a lot more affected than anyone seems to have expected, given that the Baltic Sea ordinarily has much less in the way of tides than the North Sea. As a result, dykes along the Baltic Sea tended to be more lightly built in the past than has long been common practice on the North Sea, which resulted in numerous breaches and extensive damage in various coastal towns. Given that the winter is far from over, local authorities are currently wringing their hands over how to carry out repairs and to improve coastal management and flood prevention. I wonder whether we'll see any of that damage when we go out on day trips. Dinner's up in a few, so, enjoy whatever you're up to...

Cheers all. Happy holidays to everyone! Has been wet and windy here recently but it‘s only the latter tonight. Tomorrow will see us heading north for a few days at my mum and dad‘s. Christmas dinner will be raclette this year! Stay safe and enjoy whatever you got planned. 😊 Oh, and lest I forget… I imagine Christmas in the rural parts of western Ireland in particular to be very peaceful indeed…

Cheers all. Lurgy getting better, thankfully! Stormy today, as the below map indicates. The front is called Zoltan here. I gather ferry services to the North Sea islands will be largely suspended. Mountainous areas such as the Harz and the Alps also have persistent rain warnings in effect. Stay safe and keep those hatches battened down…

Moaning awl. Well, Elise and FiL have now caught COVID too. Me, well, I'm not feeling worse but not markedly better either, so I guess I'll better stay at home a couple more days. Stay safe, folks...

Do people who come up with such arguments even believe what they're saying? 🤨

Cashews for a Chrimbo prezzie? Holy farmer! 🤣