teaky

No, I had no idea where the photo came from. Thanks for posting the videos. It is an interesting angle on how military recruitment is approached in Sweden. I have to say that it leaves me unmoved though as I find that particular kind of heavy metal music comical and false. Nordic and Germanic metal seems like the Euro pop version of rock music to me. I think the current UK adverts are a bit smarter (as well as shorter).

Sweden has completed the final small administrative step for joining NATO. The report was accompanied by this photo. I love the juxtaposition of modern uniforms and equipment with a Viking-style axe complete with safety covers. Plus they're probably all about 2m tall. Glad they're on our side. 👍

That's probably a sticky subject.

So you only need to buy another 25,999,999,998 and we're back in the black with our trade deals! 🥳

On the topic of the Cheese Woman. Courtesy of Private Eye's "Number Crunching": £26bn Annual UK trade with Canada, with whom talks (after expiry of a deal on EU terms) collapsed last week, leaving tariffs of 245% on UK cheese exports. 0 Times Brexit cheerleader Liz Truss has said ‘This is a disgrace’ since announcement.

https://www.toolstation.com/minotaur-automatic-wire-stripper/p30586 I previously used strippers like the ones Neil posted but bought a pair of these a few years ago, albeit from a different source (eBay). Difficult to imagine stripping wire more easily. (Same as DCCConcepts but cheaper.)

This one you mean? Courtesy of Private Eye.

I believe Brasil has already moved troops to the border as a precaution.

A DJH U1. In need of a little fettling and requires a little additional detailing.

No. I'm with the lizard. Boy George deserves everything he gets for inflicting that one on the world.

Good news but I can't help wondering why Mr Bentley's insurance company aren't doing all that? Which raises further questions. Will the repairs come complete with a certificate proving they have been completed to the correct standard? Does Mr Bentley have insurance? If he does then it is usually one of the conditions that they are informed of a collision even if a claim isn't made. Did Tom receive details of the other driver's insurer? Has Tom informed his own insurer?

That cistern must provide a powerful flush.

Clive James once described it as "a restaurant frequented by theatre goers".

I must be missing something here. Is there a reason why you would use a hole saw when you only need a hole a few millimetres in diameter? I would use a standard brad wood drill bit for drilling from below, i.e. the kind with a tiny central point that allows for precise positioning before starting to drill.

It would be possible to drill a very small hole from above using the hole in the tie bar as a guide but this would need to be done very carefully in order to keep the drill vertical and not snap it. You could then use the hole to centre a larger drill from below, taking care not to drill too far up, i.e. just break through the surface. It would be best to temporarily hold the tie bar in the centre of the track when drilling from abaove or allow for it being off centre when drilling from below. A variation on the above would be two holes, one either side of the tie bar, then mark the centre point below before drilling. Have you considered operating the points from the side with the point motors mounted above or below the baseboard? There are surface mounted point motors and adapters available from a number of manufacturers.

They ought to have gone with "every two years". Going with "biennial" would only require a footnote to exlain to Americans what an "ennial" is. 🤭

I knew you'd like it. 😃 I understand that there will be 6 pools of 4. Top 2 from each pool go through plus 4 best 3rd place teams. Then a round of 16 - pools again, I think. Then quarter finals etc. They are sticking with the minimum 6 days between matches. There has already been a lot of talk about selection being moved to, say, a year before the competition, so I can't see why they wouldn't do that as it is a sensible compromise.

Perhaps they're hoping to recruit Jersey Reds fans? 😀 I can see the Wasps fixtures being popular with the other teams and fans in the league. 🤭

Announcement from World Rugby: https://www.world.rugby/news/885619/historic-rugby-calendar-reform-to-supercharge-reach-and-competitiveness A number of positives in there, particularly things that will provide the pacific nations with more game time thereby making them (even) more competitive plus a second world tier which ought to result in similar improvements for teams like Portugal, Georgia, Uruguay and Chile who played well recently. Over all, clear structure ought to benefit everyone. It will be interesting to see what the home nations' unions do in response to this. Out of curiosity I checked the current rankings and 24th place is held by Hong Kong China (China are 84th). Russia are 25th, so just miss out - what a shame!

There may be hope for the future: "New YouGov polling puts support for the Conservatives among 18-24-year-olds at just one per cent." All that is needed now is get this age group to actually b***** vote! Mind you, as a counterbalance to this the popularity amongst the same age group of shallow reality TV, celebrity gossip instead of news and (American) fast food is concerning.

Captain: Itoje? He already runs the lineouts and, if not first on the teamsheet, can't be far off. Ludlum is Northampton Saints captain and with Laws retirement is more likely to be picked (when uninjured) rather than losing out to Curry at 7.

I saw that earlier. Great player. I often marvelled at the way opponents thought they'd escaped his clutches only to discover they were still well in range. In the short term I expect England will be playing with two opensides. Unless they put Chessum at 6 to compensate for Earl's lack of height in the lineout (not that Vunipola could jump).

England need to find a whole new front row(s) and get them to work a.s.a.p. to be ready for the next World Cup. Even if some of the current ones are not planning to retire yet, they are unlikely to be operating at the required level in four years time. Genge might be around then and he's good in open play but he struggles to impose himself against top class opposition. Sinckler never seems to click these days. Experience has always mattered more in the front row so some young guns need as much international level exposure as they can be afforded. Vunipola is a waste of space these days. It would be great if a hefty replacement could be found (i.e. a more classic no.8) but, failing that, working with a mobile set of three back rowers appears to work. Laws is going to need replacing soon too. We don't seem too short of talent in the back row. I was impressed (again) by Martin. For me, he has moved ahead of Chessum now. (Which I felt was the case before the World Cup anyway.) Steward put in a good stint. I reckon that he needs time in the gym to build some thigh muscles and time with a sprint coach. If he can add some attacking threat to his (attack and defence) aerial skills he will be difficult to dislodge from the 15 shirt, especially when Smith returns to 10 to replace Farrell. Mind you, Watson will return and he operates equally well in any of the back three positions. Centre may well be OK for a while and perhaps just needs one or two young guns to be pressuring. However, Marchant's move to France will be a loss. There are some wingers ready to step up already. May looks to have got his act together again but is past his best and I always preferred Daly when he played at 13. Borthwick and his coaching team now have a challenge to mould a team in time for the Six Nations and then to put together a larger squad for Australia in four years. I'm eager to see what happens.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-67104820 80's pop. Never a good idea.

I trust the meeting was well mannered.