Early Risers.

[lightengine]

Just watching the BBC news all about Sweden and Denmark reintroducing border checks. Can't help thinking that the concerns over Schengen are too late. The damage is already too late with sleepers already in place.

Horse. Bolt.

[runs as required]

My sympathies are with Jock after having had too many of those hernia (wire netting ?) jobbies over the years.

Particularly painful is going down stairs for about two weeks (especially if you had momentarily forgotten about the bruising).

 

We are recuperating this morning after intensive socialising over the Christmas/New Year break. First was touring around family down south (ie south of the A1M Durham City turn off )  Second - even more stressful - was having old friends call on us late yesterday afternoon for an overnight stop-over en route back to Banbury.

 

Mentally we'd cast them in role as Viz Comic's dreaded  'Bottom Inspectors'  - arriving to check out whether we were still judged to be capable of looking after ourselves.

Glad to see them off safely after a good night's chin wag, a fair few classy bottles (they'd brought with them) in the recycling and no mention of "Don't you think you ought to downsize" into Assisted Living accommodation!

Phew!

 

dh

[shortliner]

ID (Flavio) - just caught up with your post - there was a very interesting program on Radio4 yesterday lunchtime about food for those who run and carbs and protiens - apparently current thinking suggests that man was designed to run, even women and children were long distance runners and could out-run/run down antelope over long distances - and the diet of Kenyan atheletes who get up and run 40km(in two hours!) and then eat , virtually, a bowl of rice EVERY day - and do another 40km run before going to bed. It was part of the Food Program series with Dan Saladino - not sure if you can get it through IPlayer

Edited January 4, 2016 by shortliner

[Judge Dread]

I'm one of them, Mal....

 

My Estate car throws up so much spray in heavy rain that you cannot see my rear lights and therefore I am invisible to the cars behind.  I don't do it all the time, but certainly on a motorway in heavy rain.

I'm another. My pet thought on the subject of lights and the lack of them is based on the fact I cannot see vehicles approaching from behind me in rain, heavy or not, when they do not have any lights on. If I cannot see the idiots with no lights on, then they will not be able to see anyone else with out lights on! I suspect they simply do not look in their rear view mirrors! On that particular observation, my late father, a driving instructor, always advised me to move my head when looking the mirror so as the person behind would know I was looking at them!

[DDolfelin]

Hospital just rang.

A bit more worrying.

'lumps' have been found.

Scan will be later so not going today.

 

Bllox.

[Oldddudders]

Really sorry to hear that, Peter. Not a great start to the New Year. Fingers crossed things are operable.

[BoD]

There isn't really a button for that one either, Peter.

Thinking of you, but especially Mrs DD and her mum.

[AndyB]

I have been close enough to Albania to get a 3G signal on my phone and have been to one of the other top 10 more than once. I had to have a smallpox jab to go there once though!

 

Smallpox jab? You've put me right off Wales now! 

[Tony_S]

Smallpox jab? You've put me right off Wales now! 

It was for Wales. It was some time ago though.

Tony.

[Jock67B]

Jock

Bacon over here in the US of A just isnt bacon but just mostly fat in my view yet many love it.

Give me Cnadaian bacon or English proper bacon without the fatty bits.

There's been huge flooding here In in the Mississippi basin, probably more than in the Uk so probably why it's not been mentioned much here.

Hi Ian,

When we used to visit my late brother in Boston some years ago, we always smuggled in proper bacon and HP sauce - wouldn't risk it now! Couldn't get on with the 'super streaky' stuff they sold there!

Hope the rest of your trip goes well,

Kind regards,

Jock.

[DDolfelin]

In a startling development elsewhere, I have been especially selected by eBay to receive an astounding offer.

 

A light sabre.

[martin1]

hello all,thanks firstly for all the kind wishes,daisy is home and doing very well,i think me and the missis are starting to come off adrenalin or what ever has been keeping us going !! managed to get a bit of man time with jack too,ahh back to work.......and all the smiling faces....not !! have a good day all,whats left of it !!

[Ian Abel]

Morning all.

Congratulations and commiserations where needed. Sorry I can't go back through all the pages but spent a lot of the weekend on various chores as I am on the road again starting yesterday, with two 4-day weeks in a row on Long Island - getting rather tired of the trip.

 

Notables;

i) Received the replacement S15 accessory pack from Hornby and was able to install the steps and cylinder drains at last, looks great - result

ii) Posting a note on the Hornby Facebook page, after they managed two updates on the same day (Dec 30th) whilst NO-ONE was answering the Customer Care phone all week, seems to have had something of a result. Note back from them today that they have alerted Customer Care to contact me and address the issue!

iii) Apparently the place I'm consulting at are not "going live" today after all! The project manager  cockwomble didn't bother to call or email and tell me though. Decision made Christmas Eve! What a total PRAT!

 

Back again on Long Island - local morning news announcing it's "really cold" out for the morning commute. Hello??? It's +1, that's REALLY COLD?!?!?!?! Oh well, you have to laugh

 

+1 and partly cloudy driving in, expected to be the same most of the day with a high of maybe +2.

[AndyB]

 

ii) Posting a note on the Hornby Facebook page, after they managed two updates on the same day (Dec 30th) whilst NO-ONE was answering the Customer Care phone all week, seems to have had something of a result. Note back from them today that they have alerted Customer Care to contact me and address the issue!

iii) Apparently the place I'm consulting at are not "going live" today after all! The project manager  cockwomble didn't bother to call or email and tell me though. Decision made Christmas Eve! What a total PRAT!

 

 

Ian, I guess they pre-scheduled pre-written content. 

 

Hornby Facebook page, after they managed two updates on the same day (Dec 30th) whilst NO-ONE was answering the Customer Care phone all week

[bbishop]

Dom,

 

Post #111275; rubbish?

 

Bill

[Danemouth]

It was for Wales. It was some time ago though.

Tony.

 IIRC it was 1962 - had to have the injection and was off school for a few days with a reaction to it.

 

 

Dave

 

Edit to add

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-18365385

Edited January 4, 2016 by Danemouth

[Jock67B]

Update.

Consultant has seen MiL.

No longer in pain.

Scan this afternoon and every probability she will be discharged subject to nothing being found.

No point in any dashing umpteen miles to see her today.

SWMBO has spoken to her on the 'phone.

Whew for the time being

 

Thanks for all the good wishes.

Great news for now Peter,

If anyone deserves our support at a time like this it's you with your caring attitude. It really must frustrate you and your good lady that you can't keep a close watch on that 'aerosol' from such a distance. Now all you need is a result with the weather!

Kind regards,

Jock.

[NGT6 1315]

Really sorry to hear that, Peter. Not a great start to the New Year. Fingers crossed things are operable.

 

 

There isn't really a button for that one either, Peter.

Thinking of you, but especially Mrs DD and her mum.

 

What you both said, Ian and Warren… 

[NGT6 1315]

Dom,

 

Post #111275; rubbish?

 

Bill

 

No, something to do with the car proper!

[Danemouth]

Just had an interesting phone call. Caller Id showed a number starting 39 so it's international. I accept the call and immediately kill it. Phone goes again within a minute from the same number.

 

I answer the call quite brusquely asking who is calling. An oriental voice says his name is Perkins and he is a senior investigator with the Metropolitan Police. My reaction was "Oh Yes?" before I put the phone down.

 

Be aware of this one folks!

 

From a soggy capital city of the Principality,

 

 

Dave

[BoD]

When I get any calls like that, no matter where from, I tell them I'm hard of hearing and wear hearing aids. I tell them that they will have to speak slowly and clearly and then ask them to spell out their name.

Throws about 95% of them.

[gordon s]

Thanks Dave.  A reminder to let my elderly mother and MiL to be careful.

 

Just a follow up on the printer lark pre Christmas.  Went to fit my new cartridge this morning and it didn't work.  Spent 10 minutes on the phone to Dell and then the penny dropped.  I'd got my numbers crossed over and ordered one for a 2330D instead of a 2230D.  Dope....

 

So onto Viking to return it for credit.  Only problem was that the correct one was £105, not £70.....so just requested a refund.

 

Put the phone down and checked the Which reports etc and find a Samsung highly rated for £124, but with replacement cartridges for 3,500 pages at just £35 instead of £105.  No brainer, so ordered one.

 

I now have a perfectly good Dell laser printer going to land fill, because of their pricing structure on toner cartridges.  No wonder we have a waste problem....

[roundhouse]

Thanks Jock

 

Its raining here in San Diego. First time we have seen rain here. So its just getting us back into UK weather mode as we depart LAX this evening for the UK.

 

This morning we take the train to Fullerton for a bit of train watching before heading to LAX. Its been a while since we we have been on the platform at Fullerton. Great place to watch freight trains pass by.

 

Just had an email from Gaugemaster so the Dapol 73 'Royal Alex' may be awaiting collection tomorrow when we get home along with a Hornby ' Okehampton'.

[iL Dottore]

Afternoon all

.....I now have a perfectly good Dell laser printer going to land fill, because of their pricing structure on toner cartridges.  No wonder we have a waste problem....

Have you considered getting non-name toner cartridges? I know that the printer manufacturers are keen to keep people ordering proprietary cartridges as it is with them that they make huge amounts of money. How could it be otherwise when a brand new Canon multifunction Pixma can be had for CHF60 and a replacement pack of cartridges [colour and black] is CHF34. The no-name replacements are much less, but still a significant fraction of the original purchase price. IIRC, there is also a possibility to refill inkjet cartridges yourself but no details come to mind (but a quick Google search turns up some interesting stuff, including how to refill laser toner cartridges).

 

Crazy isn't it? On one hand most people want to minimize waste (and help the environment into the bargain), yet at the same time much of everything you buy is designed to have a short lifespan with few - if any - replaceable or repairable parts (and what's worse is having perfectly serviceable, functional and usable hardware which can no longer be used because the manufacturer no longer writes [or allows for] software updates [my first generation iPad very neatly encapsulates this insane approach: perfectly functional but no longer supported with software updates, thus loosing functionality with every new OS introduced as it can no longer run Apps as updates are no longer compatible with the original iPad OS]).

 

Anyway, I must dash. I only quickly checked on ER on my way to get a recipe for Venison rissoles. So gotta print that out and head for the kitchen

 

Have a good one

 

iD

Edited January 4, 2016 by iL Dottore

[NGT6 1315]

Pop quiz time again!

 

Let's assume you are driving on Line 16 and due to an accident of some kind on the Central Station approach are advised to divert…

 

 

…through what we call the Public Bath Curve off Eutritzscher Straße, continuing via Nordplatz, Pfaffendorfer Straße, the zoo and Goerdelerring to rejoin your original path at Central Station.

 

However, it doesn't rain but it pours…

 

 

 

…and while rounding the curve you find the black van among the row of parked cars to the right is stood such that it blocks your path. You notify Control who allow you to back off onto Eutritzscher Straße.

 

Now: Could you actually reverse safely? If not, what do you think why you can't?

 

 

Do hazard a guess! This was one situation we explored in situ during our training and which was quite memorable.