Castle Aching

[Hroth]

3 hours ago, sem34090 said:

Though some would no doubt be appalled by such an action (Animal Rights, Racism, etc) I think we need to get all of these black dogs lined up against a wall, shoot the lot of them and bury them in an abandoned pit...

 

I'd suggest rehoming or retraining them.  Perhaps they could do something useful, for example as explosive sniffer dogs?

[Hroth]

By the way, 17th December is the start of the Saturnalia season (running through to the 23rd).

 

Io Saturnalia!

 

We wish you a Merry Saturnalia,

We wish you a Merry Saturnalia,

We wish you a Merry Saturnalia,

And a happy Novus Annus!

 

Something like that anyway.... 

 

And on that basis, I've  just made a big mug of tea, to be accompanied by a  couple of mince pies!

 

Edited December 17, 2019 by Hroth
Seasonal stuffing...

[Donw]

1 hour ago, Hroth said:

 

I'd suggest rehoming or retraining them.  Perhaps they could do something useful, for example as explosive sniffer dogs?

 

you wouldn't want your sniffer dog going bang  

[Hroth]

1 hour ago, Donw said:

 

you wouldn't want your sniffer dog going bang  

Ick!

 

Messy....

[Northroader]

2 hours ago, Hroth said:

By the way, 17th December is the start of the Saturnalia season (running through to the 23rd).

 

Io Saturnalia!

 

We wish you a Merry Saturnalia,

We wish you a Merry Saturnalia,

We wish you a Merry Saturnalia,

And a happy Novus Annus!

 

Something like that anyway.... 

 

And on that basis, I've  just made a big mug of tea, to be accompanied by a  couple of mince pies!

 

[Compound2632]

4 minutes ago, Northroader said:

 

Remember to wear seasonally appropriate clothing, ladies and gentlemen. The West Norfolk Railway Co. will not accept liability for hypothermia due to false advertising of the delights of the district.

 

[Donw]

7 minutes ago, Northroader said:

 

I hope you are not organising such an event, late December doesn't really have the weather for that sort of behaviour in Northern Climates. Or is it just my age.

 

Don  

 

I see Compund had a similar response.

Edited December 17, 2019 by Donw

[Edwardian]

Well, people are kind and that always helps. I've had a very helpful PM this afternoon.  I've also had a visit from the postman.

 

Sorry to go back on my word that I would be off, weeping into my gin and generally not getting out of bed in the morning because, let's face it, what's the f---ing point? 

 

But, an unexpected packet arrived - a real little box of delight - from Tom Turbosnail.

 

 

With a view to matching the Hornby Peckett B2 chassis, Tom has very kindly re-designed the body for WNR No.2, the ex-MGN Fox Walker. 

 

It looks great.  It will be a challenge cramming the Hornby chassis under it, but I was happy to take the chance and Tom has kindly obliged. So, misery aside, I do have something quite exciting to occupy me.  If the children leave me any time, I'll try to make a start over the weekend. 

 

 

 

[Annie]

James as you know I sometimes have black dogs sniffing around and it's no fun at all so you very much have my sympathy.  I know it's like a trip to the Slough of Despond in a 4th class carriage in the pouring rain at the moment, but with time this will pass.  The most important thing is to be kind to yourself and try not beat yourself up too much over what happened in the now lost country of the past.

 

The arrival of the Fox Walker from Tom Turbosnail seems very timely and is just the perfect distraction you need at the moment.

 

 

[Hroth]

51 minutes ago, Northroader said:

 

Reminiscent of a centerfold from an early "Health and Efficiency"* **, though they seem to have neglected to bring the beachballs...

 

* The magazine, which amazingly is still published, first came out in 1900 so I imagine there may be one or two issues floating about in Castle Aching.  Distributed in severely plain brown covers, no doubt!

 

** A quick piece of google research "reveals" that you may obtain H&E Christmas cards  depicting persons in natural attire cavorting in very chilly scenery...

 

[Nearholmer]

Bravo!

 

That yellow engine looks as if it struggling forth from the sloughs.

 

The picture of it crashing off of the bridge reminds me of an end-paper in a big old book that I had as a boy, a detailed engraving of a Victorian train wreck, which IIRC claimed to show the crash in which Dickens was a passenger - later knowledge suggests that it was romanticised, and I don’t remember his mistress stumbling dazed across the brook.

[Hroth]

9 minutes ago, Nearholmer said:

I don’t remember his mistress stumbling dazed across the brook.

 

Dickens rather glossed over that part of the proceedings, only mentioning that he returned to retrieve his manuscript from the carriage.  His extra-curricular lady was rather written out of things...

[TT-Pete]

1 hour ago, Hroth said:

Ick!

 

Messy....

 

Like a dog on a railway line; chuffed to bits.

 

 

[brianusa]

8 hours ago, Nearholmer said:

Frankly, I think it requires a Triumph of the Will of stupendous proportions, or vast quantities of intoxicants, for any sane person not to be at least a bit glum currently - the combination of darkness, perpetual rain, seasonal colds, and politics is decidedly unhelpful.

 

 

"the combination of darkness, perpetual rain, seasonal colds, and politics is decidedly unhelpful."  This sounds like where we live and wasn't Triumph of the Will, something to do with Hitler or nowadays Trumpf of the will.

     Brian.

[St Enodoc]

2 hours ago, Northroader said:

...which reminds me that we have our project Christmas drinks tonight, our Melbourne office dinner tomorrow and our Sydney office dinner on Friday. I suspect that none of the three will end up quite like that though.

[TurboSnail]

1 hour ago, Edwardian said:

But, an unexpected packet arrived - a real little box of delight - from Tom Turbosnail.

 

With a view to matching the Hornby Peckett B2 chassis, Tom has very kindly re-designed the body for WNR No.2, the ex-MGN Fox Walker. 

 

It looks great.  It will be a challenge cramming the Hornby chassis under it, but I was happy to take the chance and Tom has kindly obliged. So, misery aside, I do have something quite exciting to occupy me.  If the children leave me any time, I'll try to make a start over the weekend. 

 

 

Glad to be of service. 

 

In being prepared to modify a B2, you're certainly a braver man than I!

[Nearholmer]

Triumph of the Will was a propaganda film made by Leni Riefenstahl, so yes, it was to do with that man ......... I always think of it as referring to doing something utterly against human nature, subjugating the natural spirit, which is what I think you have to do to keep going in a wet December, when every instinct is to hibernate.

[runs as required]

What a wonderful way to see a Black Dog off, with its tail between its legs, scuttling up over Stainmore Summit into next year ...

scare it with a yella injin hanging over a bridge!

dh

[Tom Burnham]

3 hours ago, Nearholmer said:

Bravo!

 

That yellow engine looks as if it struggling forth from the sloughs.

 

The picture of it crashing off of the bridge reminds me of an end-paper in a big old book that I had as a boy, a detailed engraving of a Victorian train wreck, which IIRC claimed to show the crash in which Dickens was a passenger - later knowledge suggests that it was romanticised, and I don’t remember his mistress stumbling dazed across the brook.

I guess the first one was pretty much from life after the local residents had turned out to see the wreckage.  The Penny Illustrated Paper one is clearly based on imagination...  We marked the 150th anniversary in Staplehurst by dropping a wreath into the River Beult, among other things.
Samuel Smiles (of Self Help fame) who was then company secretary of the South Eastern Railway wrote 'Not long after the accident a young lady called upon Mr Eborall [the General Manager] and claimed some damage for the injury done to her dress.  It was necessary to ask for references - for it was a practice of certain persons to make trade of claiming compensation in railway accidents - he desired to know if any person was with her at the time the accident occurred.  "Yes!" she said, "My mother and Mr Charles Dickens."  This was the first time we had heard that Charles Dickens was in the train.'

Edited December 17, 2019 by Tom Burnham
Correcting typos.

[Nearholmer]

Fascinating. I’ve never heard that story from Smiles before.

 

The picture I had was very exaggerated, showing the bridge as a high stone arch, and I think it was when I first read ‘Red for Danger’ that I twigged, because IIRC Rolt describes the scene fairly accurately, or at least talks about the derailment being caused by men renewing bridge timbers.

 

The book it was in was a very old ‘every boys book of railways’ sort of thing, probably Edwardian, which I vandalised at c8yo by extracting all the full-page colour litho prints to pin to my bedroom wall ...... my plea in mitigation is that the book was dropping to pieces anyway.

 

Wish I had the prints now - they would look nice properly framed, and without drawing-pin holes!

[CKPR]

10 hours ago, Regularity said:

 "table beer"

 

If you find yourself in Ludlow, pop into 'The Blood Bay', where you can now procure a very quaffable draft table beer made to an authentic late Victorian recipe, albeit not at late Victorian prices.Which is a real pity as I've just unearthed two caches of pre-decimal coinage.

[Compound2632]

4 hours ago, Annie said:

 I know it's like a trip to the Slough of Despond in a 4th class carriage in the pouring rain at the moment, but with time this will pass. 

 

Huh. You should try that by motor up the M4 from J10 to J6 one morning in the pouring rain as I have done a few times recently if you really want to experience the despondent passage of time.

[Regularity]

21 minutes ago, CKPR said:

 

If you find yourself in Ludlow, pop into 'The Blood Bay', where you can now procure a very quaffable draft table beer made to an authentic late Victorian recipe, albeit not at late Victorian prices.Which is a real pity as I've just unearthed two caches of pre-decimal coinage.

Well, the florin was introduced to be 1/10 of a pound, intentionally as a Victorian era first step towards decimalisation (and possibly, the metric system if only those pesky Germans weren’t also using it), so maybe you could pay using a number of two-Bob bits?

[Donw]

 

I have been busy trying to restore order in the train room (somewhat difficult due to more stuff than there is storage space).  I came across a CD which I often play while modelling. I am listening to it now while having a cup of coffee. Sweeet Child O'Mine, Wonderwall and the like are great for lifting spirits. I am delighted to see you have something very positive to focus on James it looks an interesting project. 

 

35 minutes ago, Compound2632 said:

 

Huh. You should try that by motor up the M4 from J10 to J6 one morning in the pouring rain as I have done a few times recently if you really want to experience the despondent passage of time.

 

I enjoyed many journeys like that during my time as a project manager until I decided to go by train instead. It did mean compromises like facing the desolate waste of Severn Tunnel Junction at an ungodly hour to make meetings in Portsmouth but the journey by train was worth it. And you could build slaters wagons on the train as well.

 

Don

[sem34090]

J10?

J6?

Why are they on the M4?