Early Risers.

[Smiffy2]

Just been to Lidl to pick up (hah!) a Livarno model display cabinet for eldest son. 33kg worth. With my hands I had to rely on a strong bloke to get it in the trolley and gravity to get it out... It's staying in the bed of the Volv until son comes to collect.

 

We now have Daisy & Rose whilst d-i-l goes shopping. I'm knackered!

 

Pot of tea called for.

[bbishop]

Mike,

 

Morning all.  I have totally given up on F1, which appears to be a procession of cars occasionally enlivened by happenings in the pits.   I am  grateful that the BBC has stopped paying my licence into the Bernie Ecclestone retirement fund.  I don't think that the BBC should actually waste any money on over paid and under performing sports people, and I now listen to Round Britain Quiz in preference to Match of the Day.

 

On the medical front, I have a few grazes from hitting the tarmac and a black and blue bruise from the car door.  Just off (on the bike) to deliver my last few Christmas cards.  Then back home to prepare for tonight's SEGOG meeting: it is the annual competition; I'll submit a rake of scruffy weathered wagons and come plum last, no chance against a pristine carriage, especially in two part livery.

 

On the medical front, I feel a self inflicted fraud in comparison to those with serious conditions.   Bod, hope all went well today.

 

Bill

[Judge Dread]

I think the term you are looking for is 'Oh sh1t'

I attended such an event as a "run through" many years ago. The driver at fault told us the funniest thing about the whole event was the sight of the signalman jumping up and down on the point  rodding trying to straighten it so no one would realise his error.    

[southern42]

Good morning one and all, for the last time before the festering season.  I shall be leaving you in peace and goodwill for a couple of weeks.  Before I go it is only right that I should proffer thanks for all the 'likes' and marvel at how easily pleased you all are!  The warmth of your collective welcome has touched me.  By the way, did I mention 'Father Christmas Do Not Touch Me' by the Goodies as one of my favourite Christmas records?

 

Polly, oh Polly: if I did nor buy my own carpet slippers I would make do with stockinged feet or possibly trainers.  I have no close family, partner or progeny so it's all down to me.  A lady of my late father's acquaintance who has become a friend in her own right kindly keeps me supplies with pullovers and I brave the local Body Shop, where I do not feel in the least at ease, once a year for White Musk toiletries.  To exchange these gifts we meet near her home and have lunch somewhere suitable.  This year, as last, it was at a gastro pub near the East Coast main line which has a family connection with an RMwebber.  Don't bother trying to guess who!

 

BoD, good luck with the eyes.  Mine are a bit fragile but, touch wood, have been much better since the vet prescribed artificial tears.  They stop me rubbing my eyes when they are dry, which act aggravates any irritation that may have arisen.

 

Anyone else with frailties, ailments, diseases, conditions, injuries and ague, including me:  may you be blessed with better health and enjoy the season as you should.

 

Finally [pause for cheers] I promised to share with you the words of my favourite C-----mas song.  It dates from 1963 and is barely remembered today, having not taken the charts by storm as nature surely intended.  Like some of Tom Lehrer's finest, it has become more topical by the year.

 

MERRY CHRISTMAS YOU SUCKERS by Paddy Roberts

 

Merry Christmas, you suckers, you miserable men

That old festive season is with us again

You’ll be spending your money on cartloads of junk

And from here to New Year you’ll be drunk as a skunk

 

Merry Christmas, you suckers, it’s perfectly clear

That you fall for it all a bit sooner each year

If it goes on like this you will find pretty soon

You’ll be singing White Christmas as early as June

 

That Christmas card racket will cost you a packet

Each season it seems to expand

The cards are so clever, though nothing whatever

To do with the subject in hand

 

You’ll be taking the kids round the multiple stores

To be frightened to death by some old Santa Claus

Then it’s parties with spirits and vino and beer

Merry Christmas, you suckers, and a Happy New Year

 

Merry Christmas, you suckers, you bleary-eyed lot

You’ll never get rid of that headache you’ve got

But I hope you feel splendid, you certainly should

With your stomachs distended with turkey and pud

 

Merry Christmas, you suckers, jump into your cars

Roar off to your neighbours to sink a few jars

Though your vision is double just keep smiling through

There are others in trouble a lot worse than you

 

Beyond any question acute indigestion 

Will plague you and make you unwell

You won’t take the warning, you’ll wake up each morning

Undoubtedly feeling like hell

 

So stick to it, suckers, go swallow a pill

For this is the season of peace and goodwill

While we patiently wait for that nuclear blast

Merry Christmas, you suckers, it may be your last

 

Copyright © 1963 Romney Music Ltd.  Recording issued on Decca F11552

 

Ho ho ho

 

Chris

 

  All alone.

OK, you need cheering up.

 

A little something extra your songwriter couldn't have anticipated, back in 1963, perhaps...

 

You’ll be taking the kids on the Santa Express

Run by Thomas’s friends in their red fancy dress

Buying your tickets well in advance,

With timetable settled, you daren’t miss this chance.

 

Anyway, The Joys of Life Railway Christmas Run went well yesterday.

And... I do hope everyone does enjoy / has enjoyed their Santa Specials this Christmas.

 

Best wishes

Polly

[BoD]

Back home

 

Edit:

Strange goings on.

When I posted the next post the majority of this post disappeared. Hope I haven't broken RMweb again.

 

The gist of it was that, when I saw the consultant she found that the tear has become a detached retina. So, a more complex operation than was originally planned is now tomorrow. As I live relatively close to the hospital I don't need to stay overnight but to be there at 7:30 in the morning.

The other thing to report was that I was chuffed to be measured for the white stockings. I've never had bespoke tailoring before now.

Edited December 21, 2015 by BoD

[BoD]

Though maybe Channel 4 will do it properly...?

Clare Balding then.

It will be interesting to see how the cars manage all those hurdles and the water jump.

[45156]

Afternoon All

 

Firstly, good luck for tomorrow, Warren, I hope all goes well for you - the TED socks are a real thrill and I hope that you enjoy wearing them.

 

Chris - Bon voyage.  Hope you enjoy Flavio's hospitality.  I for one would like to sample his cooking.

 

Mick - bats in your belfry are not as serious as you might expect.  In our previous home we had a roost of over 150 pipistrelle bats in a loft area which we couldn't easily access.  We checked with the bat conservation people who said that they were pretty harmless, though we might have a fair amount of bat poo on the floor.  It turned out to be a maternity roost, and every night at dusk the bats started to emerge from under the eaves, and we spent quite a few nights watching them as it was better than what was on TV most of the time.  At the end of the breeding season, they disappeared one night never to return.

 

Generic greetings to everybody else.

 

As for me - yet another trip to town, and a visit to the diabetic retinopathy screening clinic, and my eyes have already recovered as for once they listened when I told them that I needed only a minimal amount of the drops, and she managed a single small drop in each eye - took longer than usual to dilate, but the upside was that it also took only a couple of hours to come round as well.  Tomorrow we have a survey for the leaking back doors to be replaced and only once that's done can we arrange for the carpet to be replaced.  However, to prevent any ongoing problems with the carpet, I plan to cut out the damaged bits to allow the boards to breathe a bit as well.

 

To anybody thinking of visiting Lancaster, my two words of advice are DON'T BOTHER as the traffic was diabolical again and I was 40 minutes late home due to late running buses.

 

Regards to All

Stewart

Edited December 21, 2015 by 45156

[DDolfelin]

The gist of it was that, when I saw the consultant she found that the tear has become a detached retina. So, a more complex operation than was originally planned is now tomorrow. As I live relatively close to the hospital I don't need to stay overnight but to be there at 7:30 in the morning.

 

 

Best of luck with that, BoD.

Very good that it is going to be sorted so quickly.

I know you must be concerned but they are pretty good at this sort of stuff.

[AndyB]

Back home

 

Edit:

Strange goings on.

When I posted the next post the majority of this post disappeared. 

 

 

Well, all of us could see it fine. 

Did you get a receipt? 

[The Lurker]

Best of luck with that, BoD.

Very good that it is going to be sorted so quickly.

I know you must be concerned but they are pretty good at this sort of stuff.

Agreed, they sorted my old man pretty quickly - he was particularly concerned as he only has one eye, and his vision was restored quickly and painlessly.

[BoD]

My old man has only one eye too.

But I can't see out of it.

 

Seriously though folks, thanks for all the positive thoughts and good wishes. As others have already found, this is a great place for friendship and support and your thoughts do make a difference.

[grandadbob]

Well the dentist visit went off without mishap and tooth has been refilled. I then popped in to the Doctor's surgery. I've only been going there for about 32 years but because I wanted to register with them for online prescriptions I had to prove my identity. When asked "Why - don't you know who you've been treating all these years?" the receptionist did manage a small smile but told me it was all the fault of the PCT or CCJ? or the Government or and more particularly Lord Lucan & Shergar. However it was nothing to do with her!     I have been ordering my prescriptions online from the local pharmacy (30 yds from the surgery) for the last 3 years but apparently the pharmacist has been naughty so we can't do that anymore. 

On a happier note  this afternoon it pleased The Boss for us to visit her youngest sister. As I've always had a bit of a soft spot for this voluptuous lady I did not find the task too onerous.

Getting near Pride o'clock.....in fact it's close enough so I'm going to get a pint.

Cheers 

Edited December 21, 2015 by grandadbob

[Ian Abel]

BoD - late wishing you good luck for today, but that goes double for tomorrow...

 

Monday arrives as we rush headlong towards Christmas, still three days work for me, albeit punctuated with some time off as I have to burn up a few hours of vacation that can't be carried over. Scenes of holiday shopping at the last minute, always a challenge!

 

Am awaiting a few parcels, BUT, think some may have been hijacked by the Mrs as she had suggested that might be the best way for her to get Christmas presents for me!

Went to pick Jemma up from the airport this morning, and there was "nothing" from the postman for me, given I'm awaiting somewhere between 4-5 various deliveries, I'm thinking the Mrs "got to them"...

 

The Saturday non-newspaper delivery debacle was never really resolved, BUT, when I called in the second time inquiring about the re-delivery, was informed that I was one of 97 folks on the route that had reported a problem. They'd NOT heard anything from the distribution center about problems, but I suggested to them that on a wild-arse guess none of us would be getting the paper - the lady agreed with my assessment

 

We baked some mince pies over the weekend and made deliveries to a few friends of treat packages and cards, other than that and installing a ceiling light fixture at the rental house, pretty quiet. Trevor announced "via Facebook" that he's in a relationship, but we've yet to meet the young lady! Jemma says that's how these things go/are discovered now, and that he'll let us know/bring her over when he's ready - I'm OK with that, but Mrs is now chomping at the bit wanting to evaluate/see if she's good enough etc., etc... mothers eh!!!

 

Hope the start of Christmas week finds you all prepared/resigned or however you need to compose yourself for the season, right now many in Minneapolis area are bemoaning the fact we won't have a white Christmas, I'd love one, but that feeling does vary amongst the population at large.

 

-2 headed to the airport to get Jemma, overcast and destined to stay that way according to the seaweed twirlers.

Edited December 21, 2015 by Ian Abel

[roundhouse]

We are on a Thameslink service this evening and although a few minutes late is not too bad. Southern on the other hand have quite a few delays and cancellations due to a shortage of drivers today on our route.

 

Little or no modelling tonight as must go see Mum, swap cars over etc.

 

Looks like that I will have to wait to order Okehmapton till after Xmas.

 

Edited for autocorrect.

How on earth did the iPad replace 'modelling' with 'money selling'

Edited December 21, 2015 by roundhouse

[lightengine]

Christmas song?

Smith & Burrows ...... When The Thames Froze,

[PhilJ W]

Evening all from Estuary-Land. The Sentinel diesel shunter arrived just on lunchtime, now I'll have to get on with that micro layout to run it on. I'm lucky in that I already have a 'built' baseboard that will just fit in the car, its 3' 6" long and made from offcuts of wood 'rescued' from various places.

[Shedman5]

Evening, a day of two halves with rain (again) in the morning then sunshine in the afternoon.

 

Spent a nice morning running in an Xmas present to myself which arrived on Saturday.

 

BoD by this time tommorrow it will all be sorted,  on discharge with your eye patch you can play Captain Jack Sparrow for a while.

 

Eldest who is Stockholm bound comes home for Xmas tommorrow followed by the youngest on Christmas Eve hence the house is still being refreshed shall we say by my other half.

 

Thank goodness for the shed.

 

Take care

 

Alan

[Happy Hippo]

Saw the consultant about my recurring eye problem today.

 

Yet another angiogram scheduled for the new year, then once they have found the hole though which fluid id leaking in between the back of then eye and the retina, the pressure of which is causing the distortion to and small loss of vision, they will close it off. By laser in a very similar procedure to the retinal repair I had some time back.

 

I don't mind the operation, but the lack of mobility due to not being able to drive until the eye is back to normal will be a bit of a bind.

 

Having said that, last time I remember being told about lack of vibration and dust being considered a good thing...........so no using the vacuum cleaner!

[brianthesnail96]

Evening all.

 

Busy couple of days, have made time to stick my head around the virtual door but not to post.

 

Too much going on to keep tabs on everything, so generic best wishes will have to do I'm afraid. Great to see that Is has been out and about and is getting back into some form of a routine. Also pleased to hear that neither Bill nor his bike seem to have suffered any lasting injury from his argument with the car door. Best of luck to BoD for his op tomorrow- doesn't sound particularly pleasant but at least it's all in hand and without playing the waiting game for too long.

 

Have had the usual selection of seasonal parties and gatherings, particularly an enjoyable retirement "do" on Thursday. Went to the pub Friday evening (and we did get POETS day, factory shut down now until the 4th so we were allowed to escape slightly ahead of time) and it was perfectly pleasant to be sat in the beer garden, which was rather surreal for mid December. Star Wars with friends yesterday, today has mostly been spent ballasting the driveway to try and reclaim somewhere to park the car from the marshlands. More gravel coming tomorrow so redistributing that will be the morning's job, hopefully that'll do the trick. Need to do the final card delivery run after that and then I'm officially On Holiday and shutting myself in the railway room.

 

Enjoy your evening folks

[Happy Hippo]

Back home

 

 

The gist of it was that, when I saw the consultant she found that the tear has become a detached retina. So, a more complex operation than was originally planned is now tomorrow. As I live relatively close to the hospital I don't need to stay overnight but to be there at 7:30 in the morning.

The other thing to report was that I was chuffed to be measured for the white stockings. I've never had bespoke tailoring before now.

We shall have to compare notes over out respective treatments.

 

However, Hippos do not do white stockings as the suspender belts dig into our softer parts!

 

The difference between a Hippo and a Zippo?

 

The hippo is heavy, whilst the Zippo is a little lighter!

[skipepsi]

Shouldn't Land Rovers be parked in Hippo wallows to stop people stealing bits? Gravel drive my a...

[Tony_S]

Aditi has at last revealed what she would really really like although she doesn't really need a present etc. So I have sourced a nutmeg grater as requested. This will be a small enough present to hang on rather than under the tree.

I finally found a use for my Hornby club gift card and that could turn out to be a nice present for me.

Aditi's sister was clearing out under the stairs at her house and gave me a bag of bottles that she thought constituted a fire hazard. Her son's helped by removing the vodka but I don't think we will need to be stingy with flaming the pudding on Christmas day. I gave a bottle of the whisky to the neighbour who pops in to let Robbie out when we go to Enfield. He was very happy!

 

MiL's central heating leak has been fixed. Chaps with Kango hammers took up her concrete floor and revealed a small lake! They replaced the piping so she can use the heating but the floor hasn't been restored. I think someone else does that. The water when revealed dripped away so Aditi's sister went downstairs and mopped up the downstairs neighbours kitchen. They are away for a while and left keys with MiL. They know about the problem and are totally relaxed about it and were more concerned about MiL being cold if the problem developed.

Tony

Edited December 21, 2015 by Tony_S

[Barry O]

Evening all.

 

been busy travelling and ballasting a layout today and have only just caught up. 

 

Surprised no one mentioned a song played by Simon Mayo tonight  " https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7oOzszFIBcE " aka I want a Hippopotamus fro Christmas.. nuff said!

 

Youngest Herbert has now been asked to apply for another job and his boss has said he should be fine (well really!) but before seeing them he has 3 interviews (2 on line and 1 face to face) so hopefully he can get sorted OK.

 

Have a nice night all!

 

baz

[New Haven Neil]

Evening.  Shattered, really busy day at work as a big delivery of steamy things arrived, and needed to be re-distributed for customers wanting their Christmas treat. G1 Tornado anyone?

 

My usual supportive wishes to those in need, be it morale or health related.

 

I am yet another person who has been treated at Sunderland Eye Hospital, with the greatest of success.  Twice, in fact.

 

Also managed to get one over on a rather arrogant junior doctor in a different A&E once - went in with something in an eye neither I nor Mrs NHN could get out - the quite objectionable young man did a very brief and poor history, then asked if I knew what the foreign body was - I replied yes, it's coal.  His response was 'you cannot possibly know that' and I got a sanctimonious lecture about how he knew best and it was important he knew what it might be for correct treatment and I shouldn't make guesses.  When the said lump was finally fished out, it was....after some coaxing from me to get him to spill the beans.....coal. With a smirk, I advised him the reason I knew that, was that I was driving a steam engine at the time it went in!  I also then advised him if he was staff in the outpatients department I managed at that time he would be getting some strong advice about bedside manner.....which left him wondering!  He looked to be ideal material for hospital management.....

[brianthesnail96]

Shouldn't Land Rovers be parked in Hippo wallows to stop people stealing bits? Gravel drive my a...

Yeah, but it makes it deeply unpleasant trying to work on it when it inevitably breaks...

 

Also slightly worried about losing Laura's MX5 into the mire. Wouldn't have been my first choice of driveway material, the previous owner put it in- it was just a lawn before, the first owners (a family who lived there for over 80 years) didn't drive. Turns out that while most of it is laid on hardcore, the top of the slope is partially just on clay. Which is now mostly marsh. Ho hum.