Early Risers.

[roundhouse]

Sitting in Mellow Mushroom in Greensboro NC. No its not a wacky baccy place but great pizza with craft beers on tap.

 

One brewpub visited with another directly opposite to do on way back to hotel added to that is the location right next to the railroad.

 

However before that we have a pour yourself beer bar to visit where you pay per one of beer rather than per glass so you don't have to drink a lot of a very strong brew.

Could be a long night

[newbryford]

Just found out my triathlon start time in less than two weeks is 0808, with a briefing at 0745. 

I may be a little behind on my training.......

 

Didn't finish work on time to collect my forms from the GP - I will try first thing tomorrow. 

 

Thurs-Sat days off, things are planned with Mrs NB to make up for the cancelled lunch last week - one of which is watching an open air performance of The Three Musketeers in Williamson Park, Lancaster.

 

Have a good hump day folks.

 

Cheers,

Mick

[AndyID]

Sitting in Mellow Mushroom in Greensboro NC.

 

Just as long as it's not "Mellow Yellow".

[PhilJ W]

A rather belated goodnight all.

[Robert]

Morning All,

 

We have a somewhat cloudy morning today.  In fact, it is almost autumnal!  Fear not, however, normal service (ie 30°C) is due to resume again tomorrow.

 

Have a good day everyone...

[chrisf]

Good morning one and all

 

The process of catching up after a week at Sidmouth continues.   Yesterday I did some more laundry but plenty still remains to be done.  Some relief will come today when I journey to Harpenden this evening for Area Group.  I’m up to date with my favourite TV programmes but not my reading as yet.

 

Something I brought home with me from Sidmouth was utter shame at my fitness and stamina levels.  The dance marquee is at the top of a hill which seems steeper every year and my laboured breathing on the ascent would have been envied by a Super D.  When False Lights were playing my attempts to pogo were epic fails and as for simple ceilidh dancing my confidence deserted me completely.  Clearly the remedy is in my own hands.  Not so easy to fix is the new pair of boots which fit OK in the shop but do not like the bunion on my left foot and caused it a great deal of pain.  In less than two weeks from now I want to march in them.  That could be interesting.

 

Bob’s point about prescriptions etc is a good one.  My surgery does indeed offer a facility for remote control of prescriptions and on-line booking of appointments, if there are any that is.  A couple of years ago I turned up at the surgery to collect a prescription, only to find that it had been sent to the pharmacy without my prior knowledge or consent.  Another telepathy failure, perhaps?  As it happens, the surgery is on the walking route from my home to the pharmacy.  Sister Diabetes is always on at me about exercise and handling my own prescriptions and meds are a good reason for striding purposefully into town.  If I become aged and infirm I might think again, but not until then.

 

Mike Stationmaster, you have opened a can of worms.  The system I use for storing and retrieving CDs is Chris’s Handy Access Or Storage [CHAOS].  If I were methodical and starting from scratch I would log each CD on an Excel spreadsheet with essential details such as title, artist, track listing and cross-referencing.  As we are where we are I rely on my forgettery, which despite the strain to which it is subjected from time to time really isn’t bad.

 

Warm thoughts as always to all in distress or missing

 

Chris

[TheQ]

MooringAwlohB****Yh*ll

[TheQ]

Yes the Desk computer is still the same, IT are not inclined to do anything since resetting it clears the problem for the day,...

 

I have sympathy with ChrisF, I went to Alexandra Palace a couple of years ago for the National Dinghy Exhibition, and really struggled to go up the hill from the car park. Something that had not been a problem before, admittedly it was frosty and the air was burning my lungs, but it was a shock to find age was catching up..

 

So anyway, a reasonable nights sleep, but hurried in the morning, Because I looked up and the clock gave me half an hours more resting time. So I fell asleep again and woke an hour later... Panic...

 

Going home last night, the full quota of Effin clowns were out, Mothers dragging children acroos the roads between moving cars, those even more decrepit than me, setting off to cross the road and still being only half way across when the lights change.... Lights? yes thats the lights for the pedestrian crossing an hundred feet way, few of them bother to use...

Being Summer there was a long queue in the Bank, where I had to park in the taxi rank as 3 cars managed to park so that the parking bay for 5 cars was used. Mind you I'm not blocking any taxis, I the 25 years I've lived in the area  over a 40+ year period I've never seen a taxi use those bays.

 

Our surgery (5 miles from home) reception and chemists are on the same counter. We used to be able to telephone in routine renewals. Now you have to go in and drop the form into a slot in the counter. A three day clear working days is required, I.E. if you drop it in at any time on the Monday, you cannot collect  before Friday. Not too bad While I'm working, but once I retire that will require special trips into town and there are no buses..

I find it rediculous you have to keep putting in forms for something you are stuck with for life, and will only change after a doctors review..

 

The car now has matching set of front tyres, and feels a lot safer on the road, that set should see us through to the next Car replacement about 45,000 Miles per set which isn't too bad..

 

Ah

the Next Shunt is warmed Up.

 

Time to do some work...

Edited August 15, 2018 by TheQ

[jamie92208]

Bonjour to you all.   It's a Public Holiday again in France, I've no idea what the significance of the date is but as usual it appears tat it's an excuse for another drinkaton at the town hall.  This time accompanined by "Moules et Frites".   

 

Yesterday I got off to a good start and by 10.00 had assembled the final piece of furniture (A Billy Bookcase) and finished the repairs to the wardrobe that I'd rebuilt the day before. That left me free to help a friend by tryig to mend his wife's bike.    It turned out theat the broken piece was part of the bike so off we went to the Danglies of St John, where the very helpful bike shop gave us a very similar bracket for free. The new gear cable cost 4 Euros.   It turns out that Ian, though an superb woodworker, is well out of his comfort zone with bikes so I've now got the repair to do.     After lnch and en eyelid inspection I did some more wire strangling and then not a lot.

 

A bit more wire strangling and hopefully some test running this morning before the festivities start at noon.   

 

Chrisf, I wish you well on your journey of discovery and with the new fitness regime.

 

Ian(RH) it's probably just as well it wasn't the Magic Mushroom.

 

To all others I wish you well.

 

Jamie

[Simon G]

Morning all. Today is my first day back on the Ratty as a solo guard this year following the chemo treatment. Typically the weather forecast is pretty carp! I shall be taking full waterproof gear. I have three turns, the first at 12.10, finishing with the last round train of the day, so it will be a long day. Weather forecast or not, I am really looking forward to it!

[Black Marlin]

Greetings all, and hello to Jason Isaacs.

After cracking on with things yesterday, today has arrived with very, very little to do - a situation that usually forces me to take what I refer to as 'in-office leave'. It's compounded by there being major roadworks obliterating part of my normal commuting route, and I still haven't quite figured out the timings of the alternatives, so I've been arriving in work even earlier than usual. Under such circumstances there's very little for it but to catch up on ERs and determine my BBC iPlayer radio choices for the day... (I've been very fond of 'Natalie Haynes Stands Up For The Classics' recently: if you have any interest in a humorous look at the great figures of Greek and Roman antiquity, it will appeal to you no end).

And now, back to editing the novel...

Kind regards bursting out of the ground to chirrup ceaselessly at you as their seventeen-year cycle revivifies them;

Tinkety-tonk, etc.
Gavin

[grandadbob]

Good morning all,

Overcast here but the forecast claims it will be a dry, warm day with sunny spells. Good-oh!

The shopping word has been mentioned so my services as chauffeur, porter and general dogsbody are required. 

Have a good one,

Bob.

Edited August 15, 2018 by grandadbob

[Barry O]

Morning all!

Off to Casvegas for day 2 of the match. A bit chilly but hopefully it will be dry.

 

Have a great day!

Baz

[BSW01]

Good morning everyone

 

Well it’s another dull start to the day, this seems to be the norm at the moment. Once I’ve finished my muggertea, I’m off to the big orange DIY shed to get a few things before they cease the 10% throughout the store. This afternoon we have Ava, Evie and Max coming round for tea, so not a lot will be done outside today.

 

Back later

[BSW01]

P.S.

 

I’ve just looked outside and it’s p!ss!ng down!

[lightengine]

Nothing chirruping and coming out of the ground here Gavin but maybe they need Jamie as perhaps their 17 year cycle has lost its chain.

 

In other news our green bin for the garden waste was just delivered ready for the start of collections on Sept 11. Only 30 squid per year and considering how much garden waste I have already it will be packed solid up until Christmas. Luckily my assisted collection means someone else gets the lengthy uphill exercise.

 

Grey and overcast in sunny Teignmouth today.

[newbryford]

NHS forms collected.

They could not be previously located as they were apparently filed under T, which is 8 letters away from any of my initials.. (No suggestions as to the meaning of T please...…….)

 

 

Catch up later.

Cheers,

Mick

[Tony_S]

Sunny here, with a gentle breeze.

Have a good day.

Tony

[PhilJ W]

Morning all from Estuary-Land. Happy birthday to AndyRam, and many more of them. Went to the track night at SEERS (South East Essex Railway Society) and test ran my latest acquisition which I'm happy to report ran perfectly. Model railway club tonight and possibly a visit to Mangapps tomorrow night but that depends upon a few outside factors (weather and my friend finding someone to supervise his daughter.

 

NHS forms collected.

They could not be previously located as they were apparently filed under T, which is 8 letters away from any of my initials.. (No suggestions as to the meaning of T please...…….)

 

 

Catch up later.

Cheers,

Mick

That reminds me of when a friend was managing a charity book shop. The staff were sent on 'work experience' by the local employment office and were not exactly the brightest jewels in the box. One such person was asked to arrange all the fiction books alphabetically under the authors name. After a couple of hours he checked on how the assistant was doing, she had arranged the books alphabetically OK, but under the first names of the authors, John, Susan etc. Muggatee awaits, be back later.

[Tony_S]

...

 

 

That reminds me of when a friend was managing a charity book shop. The staff were sent on 'work experience' by the local employment office and were not exactly the brightest jewels in the box. One such person was asked to arrange all the fiction books alphabetically under the authors name. After a couple of hours he checked on how the assistant was doing, she had arranged the books alphabetically OK, but under the first names of the authors, John, Susan etc. Muggatee awaits, be back later.

That is how iTunes lists by Artist Name too, eg Bob Dylan is the B section. It strips “The” out of group names to prevent T being over populated I suppose.

[The Stationmaster]

Morning all,

 

Thank goodness Chris - clearly CHAOS is little different from the 'system' (ahem) which I use but it does mean exercise when I go upstairs for a book which turns out to be downstairs and vice versa as does searching shelves in three different rooms.  I have long used time related systems for storing most things - i.e. the newest or most recent item will be nearer the top of the pile than the oldest but this doesn't work quite so well for books.

 

Weather started a bit grey but is now brighter and less grey, we are now forecast even more extensive precipitation for tomorrow and in the meanwhile the tomatoes and carrots continue to prosper.  Provided we can recover sufficient usable apples from the windfalls we might have the makings of some chutney, I hope, as past stocks have diminished.

 

I might venture out to the Surrey based GCR later as fellow past employees of my last big railway employer are foregathering there today according to my spies.

 

Have a good day one and all

[shortliner]

Morning all,

 

Thank goodness Chris - clearly CHAOS is little different from the 'system' (ahem) which I use but it does mean exercise when I go upstairs for a book which turns out to be downstairs and vice versa as does searching shelves in three different rooms.  I have long used time related systems for storing most things - i.e. the newest or most recent item will be nearer the top of the pile than the oldest but this doesn't work quite so well for books.

 

A.K.A. "The Flat Surface Filing System" - fine until SWMBO decides to move them in order to dust - no amount of complaining about such activities has any effect!

[Horsetan]

Good morning one and all

 

The process of catching up after a week at Sidmouth continues. ...

 

Did you manage to go and see the old railway station?

[AndrewC]

That is how iTunes lists by Artist Name too, eg Bob Dylan is the B section. It strips “The” out of group names to prevent T being over populated I suppose.

I've got all my music in iTunes as a catalogue as well as for the phone & Sonos. There are metadata tags that allow you to change the album and artist sort order. I've put all mine under last, first as far as sorting goes. However, bloody Sonos ignores this and sorts by the artist and not the sort order tag. Unless you are looking directly at the "on this phone" list, then it uses the sort order as imposed by the Apple app it is reading from. 

 

Argh!!!!!

 

 

In other news the builder failed again to show up. Not even a courtesy "pathetic excuse #36" text. Letter sent to him, email, and to his company's registered office. Complaint registered with BidVine. The doors of the last chance saloon have swung closed. Sadly it now means having to look at either eating a reasonable chunk of cash that was paid in advance for materials, or small claims. In the case of the latter, he was paid directly and not via the company so my quickie free solicitor guidance was to file against him personally and not the company as the money went to him. That makes it harder for him to weasel out as he can't just fold the business and restart. It also presents an easier target if bailiff collection is needed. Stay tuned. the only real bit of work I'm not comfortable completing on my own is the refitting of the radiator. It will need some under floor plumbing as the new one is a lot smaller than the old one was. 

[chrisf]

Did you manage to go and see the old railway station?

 

Went past it twice a day on the campsite bus.

 

Chris