The Night Mail

[SM42]

Bonus cheesecake.

 

Yay 

 

Andy

[jamie92208]

24 minutes ago, SM42 said:

Bonus cheesecake.

 

Yay 

 

Andy

I've got the terrible job of eating a rather large carrot cake that a friend gave me for doing a little job..  I need some now as I've just finished a railway themed jigsaw and it featured green kettles with copper caps. 

 

Jamie

[AndyID]

18 minutes ago, jamie92208 said:

I've got the terrible job of eating a rather large carrot cake that a friend gave me for doing a little job..  I need some now as I've just finished a railway themed jigsaw and it featured green kettles with copper caps. 

 

Jamie

 

To steady the nerves I suggest you accompany that with something much stronger.

[Happy Hippo]

Oh Dear, the Jockenese lost this afternoon's 6 Nations Rugby match......

 

To the Italians!

 

Wales had better pull their socks up if they don't want to remain at the bottom of the results table.

[SM42]

Undercoat primer now drying. 

 

Some more little bits of filling to do, but now it's relax time. 

 

Back to it on Monday

 

Andy

[SM42]

Phew!

 

Andy

[TheQ]

4 hours ago, Tony_S said:

We have signed up for a trip  when we call at Kirkwall on our voyage north this summer. It isn’t one of the “ try local  cuisine “ tours, more of a “look at stone huts” day out. 

Hmm I know where I'd head in Kirkwall....

About a twenty minute walk from the main harbour...

https://www.highlandparkwhisky.com/en?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=gbp_primary_site_link

 

[Flying Fox 34F]

21 hours ago, Steamport Southport said:

It's not so much the extra finger(s), more worried about the webbed feet and gills....

 

 

 

You’ve in the Fenland country, then?

 

The Squadron Leader may know of this as well!

 

Paul

[Tony_S]

I have a friend with webbed feet. I only know because his wife mentioned it. He does come from Norwich. 

[Oldddudders]

My second and third toes are webbed up to the first joint. Both feet. So were my mother's, but not my brothers'. 

 

No connection with Norfolk. 

[Winslow Boy]

1 hour ago, Oldddudders said:

My second and third toes are webbed up to the first joint. Both feet. So were my mother's, but not my brothers'. 

 

No connection with Norfolk. 

Isn't genetics wonderful.

[J. S. Bach]

Night Owl from the Piedmont.

[Happy Hippo]

2 hours ago, Oldddudders said:

My second and third toes are webbed up to the first joint. Both feet. So were my mother's, but not my brothers'. 

 

No connection with Norfolk. 

So it's no wonder you spend so much time in the land of the frogs.

[polybear]

14 hours ago, Happy Hippo said:

1.  I only wished to deflect criticism away from the retired Gendarme as he has the facilities and skill set to do much better. (If he tried hard enough.)

Big Tick to Jamie in this Bear’s Book cos’ he fixed the lamp with the minimum possible aggro, kept SWMBO happy and didn’t go wasting shed time unnecessarily.   What’s not to like?

[Northmoor]

We seem to be spending a lot lately with everything needing repair or replacement at once.

 

Last year one toilet started leaking which could only be repaired by taking it out, so we took the opportunity to replace it.  In the last couple of months the other started doing the same and it rapidly got worse, so this week we got the siphon replaced (but not replacing pan and cistern this time) and the plumber did note that the waste hadn't actually been installed correctly over 20 years ago.  So that's my wallet quite a bit lighter, but I don't resent paying skilled tradesmen for doing something I don't trust not to balls up myself.

 

Last month we bought a car (Yaris) to replace Mrs Northmoor's Focus before something else small, cheaply-made but expensive to replace, breaks.  The Focus is still to be sold to offset it a little.  Then last week I renewed my season ticket, expect that I've bitten the bullet and got a Gold Card instead of another monthly flexi season.  That cost almost as much as the car but at least I can claim a substantial proportion back.

 

This week I defrosted the freezer which has been particularly noisy; that seemed to largely eliminate the noise but today I noticed the fridge compartment wasn't cold and adjusting the temp setting did nothing.  It's just over six years old; I've known fridges that have outlived their owners. So tomorrow we get another fridge-freezer delivered which has cost a few more Deltics.

 

We are incredibly fortunate to have the funds available at short notice but wow!  The last time I spent as much money in a short period of time was when we put down the deposit on this house.

[Steamport Southport]

4 hours ago, Flying Fox 34F said:

You’ve in the Fenland country, then?

 

The Squadron Leader may know of this as well!

 

Paul

 

Only visiting!

 

Some of us remember this. Before he woke up in the shower and everything had been a dream...

 

 

[AndyID]

1 hour ago, polybear said:

Big Tick to Jamie in this Bear’s Book cos’ he fixed the lamp with the minimum possible aggro, kept SWMBO happy and didn’t go wasting shed time unnecessarily.   What’s not to like?

 

Sometimes it can be a tad spendy keeping SWMBOs happy. For example, MrsID has never quite forgiven me for yanking her out of Orange County, California and back to frosty Idaho, so today we made an offer on a little place there. Fortunately it's in a 55+ community so the price isn't totally astronomical. Also, I was able to pick up a bit of change on some of this 'ere crypto stuff.

[SM42]

Mrs SM42 has got an idea that it is time to replace her ride. 

 

The reason being it not starting twice in the last 3 months, requiring a bit of a battery boost. 

 

The first time it had been idle for 3 weeks while we were in the motherland.  

 

Yesterday it had only been idle for 8 hours. 

 

The battery claims it is fine and indeed it lasted 3 months between failures. 

 

There may be something else going on. 

 

The other reason is the boot lid catch keeps sticking. An issue that has developed since it was repaired after its little argument with a Fiat Tipo.

 

Many Deltics are therefore at risk at SM42 Towers. 

 

The big problem is that she wants a simple car, without all the tech, not something that is very common nowadays.

 

Andy

[AndyID]

10 minutes ago, SM42 said:

Mrs SM42 has got an idea that it is time to replace her ride. 

 

The reason being it not starting twice in the last 3 months, requiring a bit of a battery boost. 

 

The first time it had been idle for 3 weeks while we were in the motherland.  

 

Yesterday it had only been idle for 8 hours. 

 

The battery claims it is fine and indeed it lasted 3 months between failures. 

 

There may be something else going on. 

 

The other reason is the boot lid catch keeps sticking. An issue that has developed since it was repaired after its little argument with a Fiat Tipo.

 

Many Deltics are therefore at risk at SM42 Towers. 

 

The big problem is that she wants a simple car, without all the tech, not something that is very common nowadays.

 

Andy

 

If you do not already have one, get a multimeter, preferably one that can measure DC current up to 10 amps but a 1 amp max would probably be enough for this. When the car is supposed to be "off", disconnect one terminal on the battery and put the meter in series with the connection to measure the current.

It shouldn't be more than 100 milliamps. If it is, something is draining the battery. To find  out what, remove and replace the fuses one at a time while you watch the meter.

[BR60103]

Tomorrow starteth Daylight Saving Time.  Although it is now 4 hours to go before the 0200 starter's whistle, I have adjusted all the clocks I can find on the main floor. (Except the telephone. I can't find a setting! and I've done it before.)  There remain a collection downstairs in the railway and storage rooms.

 

I have just managed to do the phone.

 

[AndyID]

57 minutes ago, BR60103 said:

Tomorrow starteth Daylight Saving Time.  Although it is now 4 hours to go before the 0200 starter's whistle, I have adjusted all the clocks I can find on the main floor. (Except the telephone. I can't find a setting! and I've done it before.)  There remain a collection downstairs in the railway and storage rooms.

 

I have just managed to do the phone.

 

 

We saveth the daylight in US and Canada from tomorrow. UK switches 31 March.

[pH]

British Columbia (well, most of it) changes to daylight saving time tonight.

 

In October 2019, B.C. passed legislation to make daylight time permanent. However, the change will only be enacted once Washington state, Oregon and California also make the move, to ensure B.C.'s economy is aligned with its U.S. neighbours. And there appears to be some confusion in those states about what they want and/or what the states can do without federal approval.
 

 

Edited March 10 by pH
Missing word

[AndyID]

1 hour ago, pH said:

British Columbia (well, most of it) changes to daylight saving time tonight.

 

In October 2019, B.C. passed legislation to make daylight time permanent. However, the change will only be enacted once Washington state, Oregon and California also make the move, to ensure B.C.'s economy is aligned with its U.S. neighbours. And there appears to be some confusion in those states about what they want and/or what the states can do without federal approval.
 

 

 

Interesting, because Arizona "dis'nae gee its ginger" and most of it is stuck on MST all year.

[Oldddudders]

8 hours ago, Winslow Boy said:

Isn't genetics wonderful.

As it happens, my surviving brother is a genetic engineer by background.....

[iL Dottore]

Quite frankly I’m disappointed in our tame Gendarme. With his professed prowess in 7mm finescale modelling, I expected better. Jamie’s approach is definitely out of the School of Duct Tape Engineering. Nothing really wrong with that per se, but it does show a distressing tendency towards bodging - something I thought was total anathema to a finescale modeller.

 

ION

I had to leave my Hermit Abode™ yesterday and go into town to a Verein meeting. On the way back I stopped at Paul Ullrich - one of Switzerland’s finest wine and spirits merchants - to see if they had anything that caught my eye. I ended up buying a bottle of Glendronach Port Wood finish single malt and a bottle of Jameson Caskmates Stout Edition Irish Whiskey. I was also tempted by a bottle of Dalmore Cigar Malt Reserve Highland Single Malt - but I thought that those extra £120 on top of what I had already purchased would have incurred The Wroth of SMBO. So in this case discretion was the better part of valour.
 

What I found interesting about the Jamison Irish whiskey is that they make no reference to which brand of stout cask was used. I would’ve thought they would have been Guinness stout casks, but then I would imagine there would be all kinds of fees to be paid to Guinness by Jameson in order to use the Guinness name.

 

A visit to Ullrich is always bad for my wallet, although I have yet to succumb to the temptations of the Dalmore Constellation Collection Cask No 594 33 Years 1979 Highland Single Malt (£10,544) or even the Talisker Xpedition Oak 43 Years Single Malt  (£3,700). As I charge by the hour for consultancy work, I set the limit of my discretionary (self indulgent) spending at “1.5 Boring Teleconferences” 🤣😳. But even without going for the big ticket rarities, it would still be too easy to drop 5 grand at Ullrich in one go (and the whisky shops in London and Edinburgh are even more dangerous to my financial wellbeing!). Fortunately I am made of sterner stuff!

 

I think that the next time I’m in The Big City I’ll swing by Ullrich and get a bottle of the Dalmore Cigar Malt Reserve Highland Single Malt; then head to Davidoff for one or two Alec Bradley Black Market Filthy Hooligan Barber Pole cigars - then back home to grab a good book, a wee dram of the Dalmore and a Filthy Hooligan and then decamp to the patio for a good read, a good drink and a good smoke!

 

Living well is the best revenge…

 

Edited March 10 by iL Dottore
Forgot word