Early Risers.

[Dave Hunt]

35 minutes ago, jonny777 said:

I used to live by the line to Skegness in the 1960s, and we often had weather like this. We used to watch the poor souls from Leicester/Nottingham/Derby pass by in the mostly empty carriages and pity them and their day at Skegness or Mablethorpe. 

 

Same here but in the mid '80s when we lived on the Sleaford side of Boston and our back garden was next to the line. The Saturday trains were often fairly full and I think that quite a few of the passengers were on their way to a week at Butlins; we used to feel sorry for them when the weather forecast was poor. One thing of interest about the trains was that the usual motive power was pairs of Class 20s, which I am led to believe was the last such use of them and as a result some of the passengers, rather than holidaymakers were enthusiasts out for the day and were thus at least partially unconcerned about the weather.

 

Dave

Edited April 3, 2021 by Dave Hunt

[PhilJ W]

Pairs of class 20's so no heating of the coaches then.

[Mike Bellamy]

1 hour ago, jonny777 said:

I used to live by the line to Skegness in the 1960s, and we often had weather like this. We used to watch the poor souls from Leicester/Nottingham/Derby pass by in the mostly empty carriages and pity them and their day at Skegness or Mablethorpe. 

 

My son lives at Mablethorpe and until the first lockdown travelled daily to Horncastle - always made it to work but some of the trips in the snow were 'interesting'. When we visit, we have encountered all sorts of weather and have usually been pleased to get back inland.

.

[Coombe Barton]

3 hours ago, chrisf said:

Someone who rules us gives out a soundbite about following the rules, sticking to the guidance and all that guff.  The next day the news bulletins are full of footage of people swarming around in dense crowds with face masks conspicuous by their absence.  In a few days or maybe weeks the daily statistics of new virus cases and sad deaths will show an unwelcome upswing, just at the time when an announcement is made raising the hope of overseas travel once more.

It's the game of carrot and stick. They say here's what we're planning but then you can't have it because you haven't obeyed the rules. However in this game there's no carrot in the first place.

[Tony_S]

Morning all. 
7C and rather grey sky here.  I think Southend has opened the seafront car parks again but we won’t be going. In more normal times we didn’t go to Southend on Bank  Holiday weekends anyway.

I had a non robot caller “Harry” telling me about my internet router generating errors. I had a listen and asked questions  as I was curious to know  what lies they currently tell. Sad to think that they prey on gullible people who are scared by such nonsense. 

[Gwiwer]

3 hours ago, Barry O said:

The crickey club

The late Steve Irwin would have been proud of you  

 

3 hours ago, Barry O said:

the new flooglights

Are they available in OO? 

 

[Gwiwer]

4 hours ago, chrisf said:

Could it be that many citizens have tired of the relentless propaganda and no longer pay it heed?  There most be some way out of here.

Chris I share some of your thoughts and concerns. There is definitely a sense of “bored now”  across the community.  There is rising discontent in at least some sections of the community. 
 

The way out is a combination of sticking with advice and accepting the jab.  There is some evidence that some parts of the community are less willing than others to do either.  The last thing we need is a major social division. There seem to be deep socio-cultural attitudes at work here.  
 

These are ignored at the peril of those claiming authority. 
 

There will always be support here. 

[Coombe Barton]

2 hours ago, Hroth said:

no one expects snow...

Are you expecting a Spanish inquisition joke?

[PupCam]

3 hours ago, chrisf said:

As it is a bank holiday weekend here in the UK I am waiting with not much enthusiasm for the sequence of events that now unfolds.  Someone who rules us gives out a soundbite about following the rules, sticking to the guidance and all that guff.  The next day the news bulletins are full of footage of people swarming around in dense crowds with face masks conspicuous by their absence.  In a few days or maybe weeks the daily statistics of new virus cases and sad deaths will show an unwelcome upswing, just at the time when an announcement is made raising the hope of overseas travel once more.  Could it be that many citizens have tired of the relentless propaganda and no longer pay it heed? 

Or could it be that there is a sizeable portion of the general population that are just as thick as s....?    

 

I favour that view and would suggest that every single person is sick of the dreaded virus, the impact and terrible toll it has had on us all - but then us "sensible" ones still don't go and say Sxd it let's all have a monster party!    It's a great shame Darwin doesn't work on common sense - if it did it could usefully be  relied on to "thin out" the undesirables (by virtue of their rank stupidity , nothing else) but unfortunately it doesn't and their behaviour comes with a huge amount of collateral damage just like the inconsiderate road users we discussed a little while ago (they appear to have no common sense either)

 

4 hours ago, chrisf said:

April Fool's Day did provide some light relief. 

 

Puppers admits to indulging in a bit of April Tom Foolery this year

 

There was a post showing a 2 rear axle version of the classic Routemaster bus on FaceAche which had a number of bus "specialists" (strictly planes, trains and old bikes for Puppers) declaring that they'd never heard anything about such a thing before and how could this be.   Anyway, with the aid of Paintshop Pro Puppers was able to bring news of the continued development of the theme with a 3 rear axle variant especially to cope with the increase in obesity of the "customers" (last time I went on a bus I was a passenger!) and the generally deteriorating road surfaces.  I was able to reassure the audience that rumours of a tracked version of the Routemaster were unfounded.   Later that same day with the aid of yet more PaintshopPro activity I was able to correct that last statement

[polybear]

2 hours ago, AndrewC said:

.......who had just left and were a group of ar*s holes who deserved to lose out. The ended up splitting it in the end. Likely an oopsie from a drug sale.

 

And hopefully whoever lost it couldn't pay his supplier (the next one up the pond life chain) and received due desserts as a result....

 

Speaking of pond life, this one got a shock.  Might only be ten weeks but now he has a criminal record, which will affect everyday life - even house and car insurance will get hammered as a result:

 

https://www.change.org/p/will-you-join-me-in-asking-for-an-animal-offenders-register/u/28817225?cs_tk=Ah6sWKBsXme9MoQnbGAAAXicyyvNyQEABF8BvBinP3wFyupsVcHeeFIVGuA%3D&utm_campaign=cc8a5b2e5fdf4548ac3626ecd0d398c1&utm_content=initial_v0_4_0&utm_medium=email&utm_source=petition_update&utm_term=cs

[grandadbob]

Good morning  all,

Bit of a grey day here and only 7°C.

Been for a walk to the shops and then did some Shark driving for The Boss. 

Next up is a visit to the garden to ensure the BBQ is fit for use on Monday......said he  rather hopefully.  At least they now seem to be forecasting some sunny periods rather than the snow or rain they were talking about a couple of days ago.

Some rugby watched last night,  some has been recorded and there's more this afternoon and tomorrow.  At this rate it'll take me all week to catch up.

Have a good one,

Bob.

 

Edited April 3, 2021 by grandadbob

[jamie92208]

Good afternoon  to you all. Very late on parade but I crave forgiveness  due to a combination of circumstances.

Yesterday I bought the chicken feed and Mme Marchet, insisted on giving me a bale of straw and would not take any form of payment.  In the afternoon I went trainspotting with Andy, the last before lockdown.  No freights but a couple of TGV's and a high speed track tester. Not much but good conversation. 

 

I woke late this morning and spent the first hour, eating my breakfast and talking to Emily and her mums on the video.  Then it was off to collect the chickens from Maureen.  She's a widow in the village who lost her husband and then a son in the last 4 years. She's selling up and heading back to the UK to be near grandchildren. We've helped her with various things and she insisted on giving us the chickens.  We got down there with three large boxes in the car and Maureen got three cluckers caught in no time. She then told us that it would have been her golden wedding today and was obviously a bit upset. So we brought her back up with us and helped install the girls in their new palace before having a coffee and a good natter with us. By then it was nearly noon.

 

It's definitely  cool but sunny with a lazy wind today.

 

Regards to all.

 

Jamie

 

 

Edited April 3, 2021 by jamie92208

[Barry O]

What a shambles..  

 

Roll up at 10am.... no handbooks or other items available.."10:30start" was shouted by the committee man..er.no 10 am as per the email...

 

Eventually info received at 10:30..a brief catch up with some colleagues then home yo be greeted with a warm cheese scone and a mug of decaff. Now just need to defrost!

[Hroth]

1 hour ago, Coombe Barton said:

Are you expecting a Spanish inquisition joke?

 

You might think so, but I couldn't possibly comment...

 

[Dave Hunt]

2 hours ago, Mike Bellamy said:

 

My son lives at Mablethorpe and until the first lockdown travelled daily to Horncastle - always made it to work but some of the trips in the snow were 'interesting'. When we visit, we have encountered all sorts of weather and have usually been pleased to get back inland.

.

 

From 1991 to 2001 we lived in a small village on the edge of the Wolds four miles from Horncastle. During that time snow cut off the rest of the world from us twice but fortunately being on top of a slight hill we never got flooded.

 

Dave

[jonny777]

3 hours ago, Dave Hunt said:

 

Same here but in the mid '80s when we lived on the Sleaford side of Boston and our back garden was next to the line. The Saturday trains were often fairly full and I think that quite a few of the passengers were on their way to a week at Butlins; we used to feel sorry for them when the weather forecast was poor. One thing of interest about the trains was that the usual motive power was pairs of Class 20s, which I am led to believe was the last such use of them and as a result some of the passengers, rather than holidaymakers were enthusiasts out for the day and were thus at least partially unconcerned about the weather.

 

Dave

 

In the 1960s there were few pairs of 20s on excursions; in fact I think I only saw one in over 10 years. When my parents first moved there, the mainstay of the holiday trains were B1s and K3s, with the occasional Flying Pig, and all Boston's K2s had been withdrawn. The K3s also vanished in 1963, and a few diesels began to appear - mainly type 2s, but the B1s soldiered on for another couple of years.

 

A weekly SO service from the West Midlands started to bring Met-Camm units in 8-car lash-ups as a change from our normal diet of Derby and Cravens DMUs. I remember the Met-Camms particularly as it was impossible to get more than a couple of numbers as they raced past at 60mph, and it was so depressing to think I had missed all these rare unit numbers for my ABC. We could often try again on their return working, but invariably ended up with the many of the same numbers having been noted again. 

 

Later in the decade, a few EE type 3s began to appear, but they were never very common during that decade. Larger locos were rare, and I never saw a Peak on that line until sometime in the 1970s. Pairs of 25s were the mainstay, but 31s were rarely seen in pairs. 

 

 

[The Stationmaster]

Afternoon all,

 

The chilly wind continues to blow in from the nor'east so the G word has been abandoned and - as far as Im concerned - will be replaced by the V word.  The latter has nothing to do with victory but an awful lot to do with vacuum although nothing to do with brakes in railway trains, alas.  So no other plans for today apart from an attempt to become a domestic god or, more accurately, to at least whizz the thing around frightening the cats and aiming for the approval of the managing domestic goddess.

 

Have a good day folks and - unlike the brainless, lemming-like, hordes - try to stay safe.

[PhilJ W]

Hello again from Estuary-Land. When I moved to Burnham-on-Crouch the first winter 83/84 we were snowed in for a week. Fortunately there were few shortages although towards the end of the week there was no bread or cakes to be had as the flour had run out. Back then there was two or three bakers shops together with greengrocers, butchers etc. all have now gone. I was wondering what would happen if the town was cut off for a week today without any local suppliers.

[45156]

Afternoon All

 

It's pleasant here now - car was iced up at 8 this morning.

 

Not the G word, or even the D word this morning, but the K word - that's Karcher (pressure washer, not steam cleaner, window vac, or wet and dry vac) and meant that I had been bidden to pressure wash the drive, paths, and patios - oh and then take up the main drain cover and just give that a quick clean round with it as well - then a shower, and WOT more eBaying - but if anybody here wants a copy of Colin T Gifford's Steam FInale North, I've a copy on that site at £13.00.

 

Generic greetings to fellow ERs.

 

Regards to All

Steewaty

[TheSignalEngineer]

2 hours ago, Dave Hunt said:

From 1991 to 2001 we lived in a small village on the edge of the Wolds four miles from Horncastle. During that time snow cut off the rest of the world from us twice but fortunately being on top of a slight hill we never got flooded.

Our son worked in York for several years. Whilst there he decided against buying a home for the duration. He rented a first floor flat, the ground floor and car park for which was situated about 30 feet above the normal river level. The highest recorded flood level at the time was 17'6". 

[Erichill16]

Afternoon All,

Not been around much last few days, busy dealing with black dog. Took flowers up to cemetery with mil this morning where it was quite chilly. Feeling a bit off it so after (non)lunch decided to retreat to the bed. SWMBO and mil have gone grocery shopping and are calling at a pet shop on the way around. Don’t know if I mentioned it, but it was mils birthday last week she got a budgie. That hasn’t helped me dealing with black dog, I hate to see caged birds but in retrospect it makes me think of my freedom. Just got up as sun is now shining.Hopefully if black dog keeps away and mojo returns I may try a bit of shed time later but things are fragile at the moment.

Too many jobs to be sorted, both domestic and work related so better get a move on. The garden won’t sort itself out.

All the best,

Robert

[Sir TophamHatt]

Hmm, two dilemmas for the weekend...

 

1: Apply for a promotion (even though I've only been in this role for a year).  Last time I applied (just a couple of months back), I was knocked back as I am too good at this job.  Cop out for whatever it was.

 

2: Sent a piece of equipment off, which was delivered around the 10th of March.  While I said I'm not in any rush, I didn't particularly expect it to take over a month.  Ordered a refurbishment of said piece of equipment and two supplementary pieces - total is around £300.  Sent chase email on the 18th of March and again on the 29th of March - no responses to either .  Not sure what action to take as I personally don't think no response is fine but I don't want to annoy the company either 

[simontaylor484]

@SirTophamHatt i would apply anyway if they say no they say no.

 

Try ringing the company that has your stuff. A decent firm shouldn't get annoyed by a customer enquiry after all £300 is quite a hefty amount of money 

[Ian Abel]

Morning...

Managed a POETS yesterday and Jemma arrived for the weekend. Shopped for "some" comestibles, more to be obtained today!

 

Jemma made some delightful fish cakes for dinner last night and we enjoyed some G&Ts.

 

Today, casual, dog walking more comestible shopping and enjoying the improving weather.

 

4 getting the newspaper, sunny and headed for 20 for the high. Time to relax outside in the sun and ... drink?!?!

 

Enjoy the holiday weekend.

 

[Barry O]

@Sir TophamHatt  in some companies before getting a promotion means at least 18 months in your existing job. This has recently happened to our youngest herbert where he has been told about a job he should "apply" for.

 

Why 18 months? well if you start a job it is only after 18 months anything you may have done which hasn't worked out will surface.  Notice that it doesn't happen with some people but the Army used to send  officers to work in the MoD (PE) on 18 month secondments....some of them were good.. others created havoc(!)

 

Baz