Early Risers.

[simontaylor484]

9 minutes ago, PhilJ W said:

Evening all from Estuary-Land. Just been watching the program on WW2 defences on the Yesterday channel. I'm a bit disappointed as the whole lot could have been condensed into half the time and was a bit shallow. I might watch it next week to see if there's any improvement. Thats it for now, be back later.

That is the style of modern documentary making and editing really. I watched another treasure hunter series on Blaze last night.  Lost gold looted by the Japanese in the Phillipines in the war.

It followed on from the a series on gold missing from the end of the us civil war which followed ob from the curse of oak island. Oh and in between that lot was lost Jesuit gold in Peru

[J. S. Bach]

6 hours ago, Gwiwer said:

I still haven't been back   

I've never been!

[figworthy]

Hmm, McD's.

 

The only time I've been into one was in 1981 (Wembley).  A group of us were passing through, and one of our number lived nearby.  He came up with the idea that we'd go to McD's to get some food, and then go to his place for tea/coffee.  Half the group had never heard of McD's.

 

Adrian

[Erichill16]

Evening All,
A bit p!$$ed off tonight. 
Ive been in communication with a building contractor for over a month regarding the new business premises and thought things were going well. I’ve sent him various documents and had others specialy prepared.  Sent me an email this afternoon say that he hadn’t got the time to quote or do then job. Really knocked me back, seemed like a nice guy but to lead me on for a month.......

Anyway, contacted another building company and they weren’t quoting for any more work until later in the year. Double bu88er.

On a positive note spent a couple of hours at the new wheel tappers and shunters club helping with some ground works. Ended up bringing a ton or so of rockery stone home.

Had my kiwi pie with chips and beans and enjoyed it and will get another when I get chance.

Despite what Flavio says, GF pies aren’t that bad, bought ones or home made ones. 
Bread on the other hand is universally bad, and probably for the same reason flakey sweet pastry doesn’t seem to be available so no croissants, Danish pastries or Eccles cake etc.

Commercially produced buns and cakes are terrible but home made ones usually taste ok.

Biscuits are ok and so is pasta.

That’s my opinion for what is worth.

As for burger joints, The Lounge Group is my favorite as it has the best GF menu, and yes it does have a separate menu for their GF dishes.

Enough moaning for one night,

goodnight.

Robert

 

 

[TheSignalEngineer]

12 hours ago, tigerburnie said:

Blimey there can't be many folks have their own coal mine in the back garden............................do you do deliveries.............................

Back around 1970-73 we were dropping a lot of pole routes on secondary lines and installing buried cable. Around Bloxwich the trenching machine kept running into coal seams just below ballast level. 

The coal on Cannock Chase caused us plenty of trouble not just because of subsidence but underground fires which were common in those days. A driver stopped at Hednesford one day and told the bobby that the distant signal was on fire. A bit difficult as it was a tubular steel post. On investigation the post was hot and was acting as a chimney for an underground fire in a coal seam. Easily cured in the short term by moving it 100 yards further out and fixing the arm at caution.

[leopardml2341]

Goodnight.

 

A lot has happened since I was last here and I'm too tired to read it all, so apologies if I've missed anything significant and the go on to 'put my foot in it' later.

 

Sleep well, stay safe and sane - see you on the morrow.

[BSW01]

Good evening everyone 

 

Some more progress has been achieved in the cellar. The first task I did was to measure and mark out (on the underside of the dining room floor) the position of the new down-lighters. I initially clamped a speed square to one of the joists, but it soon became apparent that they weren’t dead square. So after establishing where the centre of the room was, I set up my laser level and carried on from there. After about 90 minutes, all 14 positions were marked out (a circle on the back of floorboards). I then drilled holes in the joists for the lighting and power cables and had just finished sweeping the floor and almost filling a waste bin with the sawdust, in time for dinner. 

 

After dinner a start was made wiring up the new light fittings, of the 14 that I’m fitting 6 have been (temporarily) installed. Hopefully, I’ll get the rest fitted tomorrow, I may even get them powered up , which then should give me an indication if slight adjustments to the lights positions are needed. 

 

We went to a MacDonald’s in Blackpool once, it was that was the only place we could find that was open. After eating the burger (term used very loosely) we vowed never again and we haven’t, we’ve never been in a Wimpy and aren’t keen on KFC either. To be honest, apart from getting an Indian takeaway, we rarely eat ‘fast food’ due in part to Sheila’s dietary restrictions, but mainly because we don’t like eating sh!te we’re picky bu99ers. 

 

This evening I completed the Sainsbury’s Grand Prix, they had a 25% off when you purchase 6 or more bottles of wine, so I relieved them of 12! It’s seemed rude not to. 

[BSW01]

Goodnight all 

[brianusa]

1 hour ago, simontaylor484 said:

Just been watching the program on WW2 defences on the Yesterday channel.

 

Quite a good TV series came up over here, 'My Grandfathers War' or something like that.   A cut above the usual!

     Brian.

[monkeysarefun]

4 hours ago, Ozexpatriate said:

the "works" option which in Queensland would include (besides the customary beef patty, bacon, cheese, lettuce and tomato) such oddities as a slice of canned pineapple and beetroot and a fried egg.

 

Its just not a hamburger without beetroot and a pineapple ring, it just isn't.  In response to this one of the  blow-in chains  introduced an "Aussie Burger" which contained  beetroot, as though it was a special thing.

Nah mate, its not an "Aussie burger" its just a hamburger. Your flaccid  thing with the stupid orange cheese, pickle that no one eats and weird "Special Sauce" is NOT a hamburger.

4 hours ago, Ozexpatriate said:

The milk bars and fish and chip shops also offered the notorious deep fried Chiko Roll aka "chunder tube" (chundah chube).

 

They're still around probably bought by people like you and me who were children in the '70's reliving our youth with chikko rolls and paying hundreds of thousands for the cars that 18 year old apprentices used to be able to afford back in the day (then invariably  killed themselves in on the first rainy day..).

 

https://www.carsales.com.au/cars/holden/monaro/gts-badge/

 

4 hours ago, Ozexpatriate said:

From my possibly faulty recollection, the first chain to enter Queensland was Kentucky Fried Chicken (never KFC until many years later).

 

I recall TV ads for a chain called "Hartees" around 1971: "Hurry on down to Hartees, where the Burgers are barbequed yee haa!"  I wondered what happened to them and dug up this interesting snippet! (CHum is a cheap dog food brand  btw..)

 

The first Hartee’s store opened in 1970 in Belfield, when Kelloggs did a deal with US franchise Hardee’s to roll out a hundred branded burgers ‘n shakes restaurants across Australia. They didn’t quite reach the target; five years later, garbage men tipped off Channel 7’s eponymous Willesee current affairs program to large quantities of Chum tins in the Bankstown store’s dumpsters. Chum’s slogan, ‘So chumpy you can carve it′, turned out to be on the money (and in the burger patties). The brand was crippled and never recovered.

 

The chain closed down in 1975.

 

Edited April 26, 2021 by monkeysarefun

[PhilJ W]

Goodnight all.

[The Stationmaster]

2 hours ago, Mike Bellamy said:

 

Mike - can you say any more at this stage - for example is this to be another modelling magazine or prototype?

.

Mike It's not a secret as the online and print publication dates have been announced -

 

https://www.world-of-railways.co.uk/store/reader-offers/smoke-and-steam-magazine-issue-1/

[The Stationmaster]

G'night all

[Ozexpatriate]

1 hour ago, monkeysarefun said:

I recall TV ads for a chain called "Hartees" around 1971: "Hurry on down to Hartees, where the Burgers are barbequed yee haa!"  I wondered what happened to them and dug up this interesting snippet! (CHum is a cheap dog food brand  btw..)

 

The first Hartee’s store opened in 1970 in Belfield, when Kelloggs did a deal with US franchise Hardee’s to roll out a hundred branded burgers ‘n shakes restaurants across Australia. They didn’t quite reach the target; five years later, garbage men tipped off Channel 7’s eponymous Willesee current affairs program to large quantities of Chum tins in the Bankstown store’s dumpsters. Chum’s slogan, ‘So chumpy you can carve it′, turned out to be on the money (and in the burger patties). The brand was crippled and never recovered.

 

The chain closed down in 1975.

To the best of my knowledge, "Hartees" never made it to Queensland. Hardees (in the east, also operating as Carl's Jr, in the west) is a major chain in the US. Early in my time in the US, I burned myself out on Carl's "Double western bacon cheeseburger"* by ordering several in a week. I've only rarely eaten at the big fast food burger chains since.

 

* two patties, bacon, cheese, barbeque sauce and onion rings. I was in my twenties, there's no need to judge.

 

Even back in the 1980s, Carl's Jr. did however have an excellent salad bar - which you could substitute for the usual fried sides in 'combo' deals. They still offer onion rings and fried zucchini (courgette) too. Unlike the McDonalds hotplate, burgers at chains like Hardees/Carl's Jr and Burger King are either "charbroiled" or "flame broiled" which I suppose translated to "barbequed" in Australian advertising.

 

At one point the "Jack in the Box" chain got in trouble for using kangaroo meat. Inevitably faux slogans like "Hop on down to Jack in the Box" appeared. They survived the bad publicity and continue to this day.

 

Outside Australia "chum" is what you would throw in the water to attract sharks (as opposed to your four-legged mate). 

 

Edited April 27, 2021 by Ozexpatriate

[Ozexpatriate]

People everywhere are familiar with McDonalds and of course they are ubiquitous here, even though they are just one of many almost identical chains.

 

What does surprise me is the enthusiasm people have for chains they perceive as more boutique. In particular chains like "In-N-Out Burger" and "Five Guys" have very loyal followings. I find them greasy.

 

In the 1980s in southern California, In-N-Out Burger bumper stickers were a badge of affiliation. Testosterone fueled males, usually with pick up trucks would excise the B and the R, on the original (centered) bumper sticker:

In-N-Out

Burger

The company changed their logo and bumper sticker.

 

When "In-N-Out Burger" opens an outlet, they have to file a traffic plan to accommodate the traffic congestion that they cause.

 

People get excited over chains like Smashburger and Shake Shack* too.

 

* Recently spreading from their NYC roots.

 

Edited April 27, 2021 by Ozexpatriate

[pH]

And then there’s this chain:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fatburger

 

They get high marks for honesty in advertising, but not for appeal!

[monkeysarefun]

17 minutes ago, Ozexpatriate said:

When "In-N-Out Burger" opens an outlet, they have to file a traffic plan to accommodate the traffic congestion that they cause.

 

 

They had a pop up shop open in Sydney a couple of years ago, they announced they'd only be there until the burgers ran out. Literally hundreds  of people with nothing better to do arrived at 6am, they sold out by 10am.

 

Heres the queue, and this was  a hot summers day.

 

Personally, I think it looks like someone's been sick on my food, and why queue 4 hours for this?

 

When you can walk into any  milkbar down the road and get this for probably half the price?

 

[J. S. Bach]

4 hours ago, Ozexpatriate said:

 ...snip... People get excited over chains like Smashburger ...snip...

 

I remember one of them in Ellicott City, MD, their stuff was alright and competitively priced. Unfortunately, that location closed. In fact, so did the nearby Double T Diner; the diner is still their but now under another name and with a somewhat different menu.

[J. S. Bach]

Night Owl from the Piedmont.

[chrisf]

Multitudinous greetings!  Anorak question: who used to say that on the radio?

 

Yesterday morning went better than expected.  I caught a bus into town earlier than anticipated.  Perhaps it was the one in front running late.  Be that as it may, it delivered me to the hair salon dead on 9 am.  I found one barber and four empty chairs.  Another assistant set about my bonce with enthusiasm and I was out of there, done and dusted, by 9.30.  I had mixed feelings about hearing Bernard Cribbins singing “Right Said Fred” on the radio, for I was only 14 when it was released!  Thank heavens for culture, say I.  My purposeful stride home after going to the bank and collecting my meds turned out to be more of a hobble.

 

The next stage was to book two nights in a hotel over Bristol Pride weekend.  I managed to find somewhere outside the city centre and handy for the motorway which has decent bus links and serves breakfast on a plate, unlike the Travelodge which still relies on expensive cardboard boxes with something vaguely resembling breakfast in them.  I did have trouble making head or tail of the bus network maps but a phone call to the hotel allowed the duty receptionist to set my mind at rest.  Let us hope that the period between now and then is sufficient for my gammy limb to recover fully.

 

For me the talk of burgers is academic.  I never eat the things and refer to them as cow pats.

 

Best wishes to all

 

Chris

[Ozexpatriate]

6 hours ago, monkeysarefun said:

... paying hundreds of thousands for the cars that 18 year old apprentices used to be able to afford back in the day (then invariably  killed themselves in on the first rainy day..)

When dad bought his Holden Commodore, the family 1974 Holden Kingswood (HQ) wagon was handed down to my youngest brother. He had an accident that seriously injured his lower leg. It wrote off the Kingswood. This was probably close to 30 years ago. He still needs to wear heavy duty compression stockings to this day.

[Gwiwer]

26 minutes ago, chrisf said:

Multitudinous greetings!  Anorak question: who used to say that on the radio?

Noel Edmonds

 

Good Morning all. Despite objections it is Tuesday. 

[Robert]

Morning All,

 

I hope you are all keeping well.  I thought it was about time I put in an appearance.

 

Things are ticking along nicely, with the caveat that there are little signs of things returning to normal (at least at the moment).  However, the weather is improving which is great.  The mornings are still cold but we have been seeing quite a bit of sun.

 

Have a good day everyone...

[jamie92208]

7 hours ago, brianusa said:

 

Quite a good TV series came up over here, 'My Grandfathers War' or something like that.   A cut above the usual!

     Brian.

Is that on PBS by any chance, if so I'll look out for it.

 

Good moaning from down ere. It looks as if it could get warm. 

 

Yesterday various jobs got done. The 3 solar heating panels for the pool are now on stands at 30 degrees to the horizontal and facing south. I even connected up all the pipes though the pool won't be commissioned for another couple of weeks yet. The stands are made from a combination of pallets and left over roofing latts. More recycling.  One or two other minir tasks got done.  The Zoom presentation seems to have been well received and I enjoyed doing it. 

 

Today is shopping day and Beth feels safe enough to come with me.  I suspect that pushing a trolley will be decreed as being well above my salary grade. As to the afternoon, I have no idea but may start getting paperwork together for my French online tax return.  

 

Regatds to all.

 

Jamie

 

[Andrew P]

Well they say the Sun shines on the righteous, and it certainly is today, as I celebrate another rotation of Planet Earth. 71

I was hoping for a Bentley or Aston Martin from my dear wife but more than a little chuffed with this little beauty.

 

Have a good day one and all and stay safe.

 

Edited April 27, 2021 by Andrew P