Early Risers.

[Gwiwer]

2 hours ago, New Haven Neil said:

So MAN 1234 is fine, it is fairly common to have 4 digits after MAN, these were issued long after the UK went to the ABC 123 A format, which was eventually used here as MAN 123 A format - and the reverse version.  When these ran out we went to XMN 123  then XMN 123 A and so on.  They are not age linked, just issued in order until a letter runs out.  Currently it is PMN 123 L. 

A friend, at the time a fellow student, was the owner of MAN 700M known as MAN-ZOOM which was on a car rather than a high-powered two-wheeled device as might have been more appropriate.  She was questioned by the Police around London more than once and had to explain why the plate wasn't age-related every MoT.  

 

I also once came across a chap whose registration was W1LLIEL (Will 'ee ' ell ) which was apparently legal in the UK for a vehicle imported from New Zealand with index.  In Kiwi0land it seems anything goes much as it does in Australia subject only to common decency and a few limitations such as total number of characters and the use of a very few reserved series for designated vehicles.  In the Australian State of Victoria many buses carry AO-plate as in 1234 AO standing for Authorised Operator while coaches are AC - Authorised Coach (not Air-Conditioned as one might hope out there!).  I encountered any number of "trade" plates such as "PLUMMA", "PLUMER", "SPARKY", "DRAINS" and such but couldn't obtain any permutation of GWIWER because they were all apparently in use.  Not that I ever saw one.  Obscenities and coarse language were not allowed so I wonder how "VANCAR" slipped through the net   

[New Haven Neil]

2 hours ago, laurenceb said:

Thanks for that Neil. There was a local car that displayed a  Manx style plate (ie dashes between groups) with a Staffordshire number. Suspect the it was intended to fool ANPR.

 

Ah, I decided not make matters even more complex talking about the dashes - they aren't compulsory, but are 'supposed' to be used if the plates have the slightly smaller and narrower 'Manx' font. It's a bit 'Gill sans' in appearance.  The link between UK PNC/DVLA and ours is....unreliable.  Sometimes ANPR does throw up our correct details, sometimes 'unregistered' which brings down the wrath of the roads policing unit if they don't know about the IoM.  50/50 in our experience!  Once got stopped twice in a day when the plates on a vehicle didn't have the GBM thing on the side - like the EU blue patches but red.  Again not compulsory with older plates, supposed to have a GBM sticker instead if we go 'across' - they didn't read that. #sigh#

[tigerburnie]

Of course there's another famous number plate P155 OLE that Victor Meldrew bought, I did like that sort of humour for a change, though I wasn't a regular watcher.

[JohnDMJ]

Good Afternoon Awl, for being the first in a series of 16 at home, it has the potential so to be.

 

However, the world seems to be at odds with itself:

 

6 hours ago, TheQ said:

Cockwomble of yesterday, stopped to allow pedestrians cross the road.. at a pedestrian light controlled crossing.. while the lights were at green for cars.. by the time the pedestrians had crossed.. the lights were at red for the cars...

 

So Sail now gives way to Steam or powered?

 

Was the ""offending"" vehicle of UK registration? All non-UK drivers are taught to respect pedestrians!

 

It would be interesting to have a take on this from any Police Response drivers!

 

1 hour ago, iL Dottore said:

It’s good to see that ChrisF is still at the cutting edge of white hot technology! 

 

It certainly would be!!

 

1 hour ago, iL Dottore said:

I take my phone everywhere, I have a number of incredibly useful apps on my device, photos of things that I need to replace or get bits for (useful, as I don’t have to cart around said objects  but can just carefully match up parts to detailed photographs), various notes for various things, password protected access codes for a number of different places that I need to access, a number of linguistic apps (so I can translate some of the more obscure words I may need to use into German) and a real-time currency converter.  I also use it for two-factor or three-factor authentication in order to access various work related databases and so on.

 

Me too! Checking my bank accounts and transferring funds are the key requisite.

 

Texting comes next as it is very much less intrusive than calling the recipient!

 

IMHO, the telephone is the rudest invention ever - it interrupts your flow and demands attention. Unless I am expecting a planned call, tough, it will go to voicemail! I may respond to any message left. (Case in point - whilst behind a shop counter, I was talking with a customer face2face and the 'phone started ringing. He asked me if I was going to answer the call, to which I said that I was engaged with his business!)

 

@chrisf, I abhor your attitude to leaving your 'phone switched off until you want to use it and respectfully suggest that you yourself are able to filter the incoming calls and accept or ignore as necessary.

Edited August 28, 2021 by JohnDMJ

[NGT6 1315]

Cheers all. Weather has become decidedly cool and wet in recent days, though right now, there's this strange bright sphere visible which people keep talking about. Could it be a UFO? 

 

And to brighten the mood for everyone who might need moral support…

 

 

 

For anyone familiar with both shows, that's a real howler…

[chrisf]

18 minutes ago, JohnDMJ said:

 

@chrisf, I abhor your attitude to leaving your 'phone switched off until you want to use it and respectfully suggest that you yourself are able to filter the incoming calls and accept or ignore as necessary.

I'll bear that in mind.

 

Chris

[45156]

18 hours ago, simontaylor484 said:

In Isaiah chapter 53 there are some verses regarding a chariot shining in the sky which some theologians relate to an early account of a UFO sighting even before tin foil hats were available.

Ditto for the wheels within wheels etc described in Ezekiel - these were propounded by some to be grounded UFOs - Erich Von Daniken was one of the great supporters of this sort of theory (God was an astronaut).

 

[Gwiwer]

51 minutes ago, JohnDMJ said:

 

Was the ""offending"" vehicle of UK registration? All non-UK drivers are taught to respect pedestrians!

Might also depend on the driver’s background.   You won’t find many antipodean tourists in the UK right now but you can still find plenty of antipodeans. 
 

British traffic lights have a “pedestrian phase” with all road traffic offered reds whilst the “green man” allows safe crossing. Aussie traffic lights are different. You get the green after the red (no red-and-amber) but must give way to pedestrians crossing any street you turn into; they will have the “green man” and have right of way. 
 

The first couple of times I made those turns I was taken by surprise and came close to a reportable incident. As luck had it Plod wasn’t watching in either case. I found it frustrating to finally get the green but ve unable to go because the cars in front had stopped to give way …..  

 

Dr. SWMBO still sometimes stops automatically when turning if she sees people waiting to cross here. She has been lucky not to have received a rear-end impact even if that would still render the other driver liable. 

[Andrew P]

6 hours ago, Andrew P said:

 

 

Well I'm off to The Mid Hants Railway 50's Weekend for a couple of hours. Not been to the Steam Gala there for about 20 years, since moving up to Midlands in 2005, so really looking forward to it, just need to decide what attire to wear now.

I'll probably put the opposite to what I wear in the Car, just in case.

 

Have a good day one and all, stay safe and keep well.

 

Well, that's half a day of my life I'll never get back.

 

I was home by 11-30.

 

Just 2 Locos in Steam, the 7F and a Std 4, yet sitting in the Yard was a Schools and an Ivatt 2MT. There was a Class 20 running, but I don't really count that as 50's in Green with full yellow ends.

Edited August 28, 2021 by Andrew P

[Andrew P]

We used to see Paul Daniels down in Port Solent a lot, where he kept his boat, his Black Bentley was MAG1C.

[TheQ]

I have seen a Porsche on the A1 with the plate PEN 15.....

Many years ago an ex motorcycle racer owned the plate, it was fitted to one of those old blue disabled trikes..   needless to say the asthmatic 175cc engine had been replaced by a near full race 750..…

 

Shelving assembled, template for the next section of tapering shelves made. Many up and down the stairs required, knees, hips, back complaining, hence I'm now lying on the bed along side a glass of Highland park recovering.

With the aid of some little pink pills Ben did take me for his long walk, but even he decided to turn round and come back part of the way round, he stopped for a rest on the way back, he's now asleep on the floor beside me.

 

A little mowing tried. Still no success on why it cuts out after 15 minutes or so.. it didn't help we had some heavy rain earlier,  so the grass was sticking in the mower bed..

 

Tomorrow use that template to cut half a dozen shelves. Try something else on the mower,.

 

Excuse me,  eyelids need inspection..

 

[Andrew P]

I've got a personal Plate with my initials, a special year and a special letter, I'll say no more

[iL Dottore]

1 hour ago, JohnDMJ said:

…leaving your 'phone switched off until you want to use it…

That sort of defeats the whole purpose of having a mobile phone. Of course just because it rings, doesn’t mean you have to answer it. But turning it on only to use it and then turning it off - well you might as well save yourself the expense of the phone and roaming charges and use a telephone box (and I’m not sure whether or not it’s very good for the lifespan of the phone’s battery to be repeatedly turned on and off).
 

Now onto card registration and number plates: in Switzerland the numberplate is assigned to the owner of the vehicle and not the car, which means if you are 60, and you got your first car at 18, then you could be still using your 42 year old number plate on your 2021 motor-vehicle.

 

Another thing is, although you can’t inherit your father’s or mother’s number plate, (it belongs to the Canton) you can - for a small fee and agreement from the estate - transfer the numberplate to yourself. As this scheme has been going on for awhile, cars with very low number plate numbers (e.g. BL151) are likely to be owned by “old money“ - as number plates with very low numbers tend to have been issued pre-WWII - when only the very well off could afford a motor vehicle.

As for “personalised“ number plates they don’t exist in Switzerland, however you can request, when registering your car, to see a list of the available numbers and choose a number that you find appealing.

[45156]

Afternoon All

 

All posts read - no honestly they are.

 

Not a lot to report, and not a lot of mojo at the moment.   So it's the usual greetings (generic).

 

One slight bright spot.  While away, we visited the big antique centre in Leominster, the one which is also always on the TV antique shows, and just happens to be managed by Bargain Hunt expert, Ben Cooper.  They have a book room there which is quite small, and with a little section of railway books - normally quite pricey.  However, there was a copy of "Class 50s In Operation" by David Clough, and out of print for a while.  Priced at £10.95, I thought it a bit steep when I bought it but, hey was I wrong when I checked Amazon

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Class-50s-Operation-David-Clough/dp/0711029717/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=class+50s+in+operation&qid=1630164734&sr=8-2

 

Regards to All

Stewart

Edited August 28, 2021 by 45156

[JohnDMJ]

Good afternoon Awl, for it has that potential!

 

2 hours ago, chrisf said:

I'll bear that in mind.

 

Chris

 

In current times, with the existence of, as you so frequently describe it as ""that ruddy virus"", the NHS has been trying hard to indicate its spread by using mobile phone technology. If your 'phone is not switched on then you are selfishly unable to benefit from these generous efforts!

 

1 hour ago, Gwiwer said:

Might also depend on the driver’s background.   You won’t find many antipodean tourists in the UK right now but you can still find plenty of antipodeans. 
 

British traffic lights have a “pedestrian phase” with all road traffic offered reds whilst the “green man” allows safe crossing. Aussie traffic lights are different. You get the green after the red (no red-and-amber) but must give way to pedestrians crossing any street you turn into; they will have the “green man” and have right of way.

 

But not all.

 

IMHO, the whole philosophy of driving in the UK is down to inconsistent practices. We have The Highway Code, which many people do not realise applies to them as it "only applies to road users"! It applies to everybody who walks, cycles, etc. on a public highway. IMHO, it should be taught in Junior School.

 

In sailing terms, power gives way to sail. In road terms, pedestrians cyclists, horse riders, and so on, take precedence over the car.

 

THE CAR IS NOT KING!

[pH]

A neighbour bought one of the very first Minis. She was randomly allocated (next one available) the registration VS9999. It was scrapped with the car, not many years later. I don’t think anyone knew about things like vanity plates then.

[Ian Abel]

POETS after a few days AWOL...

 

In my defense, driving UP to Grand Forks to drive a large truck BACK with the contents of Jemma and Brendans apartment took some time

 

Key points - mostly uninteresting;

1) Monday we got a call, right before we left, that informed us U-HAUL didn't have the reserved truck in Grand Forks (due to be picked up Tuesday AM) but there was one in Fargo. Fortunately for us, Fargo is on the way so we stopped there mid-afternoon and picked it up, meaning I got to drive it another 80 miles "for fun"!

2) With the truck earlier than planned, we got to wait around until early afternoon Tuesday for the team that were hired to pack the truck arrived and did their thing.

26ft. Ford F-650 Super Duty beast!

Tuesday evening a nice dinner in downtown Grand Forks at one of Jemma and Brendans preferred places.

3) Wednesday around 5+ hours driving from Grand Forks, managed to run afoul of not ONE but TWO separate accidents enroute even after following the prescribed alternates.

Clocked 430+ miles all told.

4) Thursday truck unloaded and the returned - that'll do for a while

Ready to be returned, they decided they needed a photo-op for their Christmas card - parked outside their new rental house after being unloaded.

 

So, today, rather quiet work-wise given they knew I'd be gone for 4 days anyway, probably they all forgot about me - ha ha!

 

We had a huge storm yesterday afternoon and another overnight, around 3 inches of rain after almost NONE for weeks now. More heavy storms expected late this afternoon/evening and over the weekend.

16 this morning and only expecting a high of 24, overcast and waiting for the rain.

 

Enjoy the start of the weekend.

 

EDIT: Seems this didn't get posted yesterday, no idea why, was just still sitting here in the "EDITOR mode  !!

 

Today nothing planned, expecting some more rain and temp high 25-30...

[TheQ]

4 minutes ago, Ian Abel said:

POETS after a few days AWOL...

 

In my defense, driving UP to Grand Forks to drive a large truck BACK with the contents of Jemma and Brendans apartment took some time

 

Key points - mostly uninteresting;

1) Monday we got a call, right before we left, that informed us U-HAUL didn't have the reserved truck in Grand Forks (due to be picked up Tuesday AM) but there was one in Fargo. Fortunately for us, Fargo is on the way so we stopped there mid-afternoon and picked it up, meaning I got to drive it another 80 miles "for fun"!

2) With the truck earlier than planned, we got to wait around until early afternoon Tuesday for the team that were hired to pack the truck arrived and did their thing.

26ft. Ford F-650 Super Duty beast!

Tuesday evening a nice dinner in downtown Grand Forks at one of Jemma and Brendans preferred places.

3) Wednesday around 5+ hours driving from Grand Forks, managed to run afoul of not ONE but TWO separate accidents enroute even after following the prescribed alternates.

Clocked 430+ miles all told.

4) Thursday truck unloaded and the returned - that'll do for a while

Ready to be returned, they decided they needed a photo-op for their Christmas card - parked outside their new rental house after being unloaded.

 

So, today, rather quiet work-wise given they knew I'd be gone for 4 days anyway, probably they all forgot about me - ha ha!

 

We had a huge storm yesterday afternoon and another overnight, around 3 inches of rain after almost NONE for weeks now. More heavy storms expected late this afternoon/evening and over the weekend.

16 this morning and only expecting a high of 24, overcast and waiting for the rain.

 

Enjoy the start of the weekend.

 

EDIT: Seems this didn't get posted yesterday, no idea why, was just still sitting here in the "EDITOR mode  !!

 

Today nothing planned, expecting some more rain and temp high 25-30...

What did he win for wearing those shorts?

[simontaylor484]

2 hours ago, Andrew P said:

We used to see Paul Daniels down in Port Solent a lot, where he kept his boat, his Black Bentley was MAG1C.

We saw him years ago on the M1he had a red Ferrari i think it was. But it was same registration 

[chrisf]

49 minutes ago, JohnDMJ said:

 

In current times, with the existence of, as you so frequently describe it as ""that ruddy virus"", the NHS has been trying hard to indicate its spread by using mobile phone technology. If your 'phone is not switched on then you are selfishly unable to benefit from these generous efforts!

 

I'll bear that in mind too.  Now go and annoy someone else.

 

Chris

[TheQ]

Amazon parcel arrived. Knives inside but the packs of blades were missing.. Had to download the Amazon app to be able to use Amazon chat to the company. It wouldn't work just via their internet page.

They were very good though, once connected they sorted replacement pack of blades to be on their way no problems.

 

PS my phone is rarely on as well.. but the NHS couldn't use it for track and trace anyway.. it only makes phone calls..

Edited August 28, 2021 by TheQ

[Gwiwer]

1 hour ago, JohnDMJ said:

We have The Highway Code, ....... IMHO, it should be taught in Junior School.

In my case it was.  You were not allowed to ride your bike to school until you had passed your cycling proficiency badge.  A pre-requisite for that was to pass a test on Highway Code knowledge after having been through the classes.  

 

In other news the tartan skirt et al is out for tonight.  Dr. SWMBO feels well enough to proceed with dinner-out-at-home.  The terrace has been cleaned to within an inch of its life, the candles checked and replaced where necessary, the best tablecloth has been pressed   at her request and the goodies, a Fortnum & Mason offering, are chilling nicely along with a bottle of slightly-coloured frobscottle.  

[tigerburnie]

I have a personalised number plate,ST15................stig.............oooops Clarkson told me not to tell anyone who I am........................

[JohnDMJ]

Good Evening, as it is becoming such.

 

1 hour ago, chrisf said:

I'll bear that in mind too.  Now go and annoy someone else.

 

Chris

 

I will refrain from upsetting @chrisf any further! (For now, at least!!)

 

53 minutes ago, Gwiwer said:

In my case it was.  You were not allowed to ride your bike to school until you had passed your cycling proficiency badge.  A pre-requisite for that was to pass a test on Highway Code knowledge after having been through the classes. 

 

However, the Highway Code also applies to pedestrians and horse riders, as few realise!

Edited August 28, 2021 by JohnDMJ

[southern42]

' evening all from red dragon land.

 

Sunny but northerly wind not as chilly as yesterday's. Ideal for the G word this afternoon - slowly digging up more roots and clearing around a small cut-down ash tree and an old fuchsia stump so that they can be dug up tomorrow or Monday. Accompanied by ivy and brambles into the bargain.

 

I have been looking in, occasionally, at the Dyfi Osprey Project. Over my lunch, today, I watched the male chick, Dysynni, eat through a whole fish brought into the nest by his dad, Idris.  Mum, Telyn, and female chick, Ystwyth, have already migrated.  I saw Dysynni fly off after his lunch but currently neither he nor Idris are in the nest or on the adjacent camera poles. * I am waiting to see if they, too, have now migrated.  I also spotted a train running past when the video zoomed out to show the surrounding countryside - before that I only heard some trains passing.   The video is still up and there is a list of earlier events with some excellent accompanying videos. My favourite is when the second chick hatched.

 

* I ran back through video. The chick returned a few hours later and was also spotted out in the fields.

 

 

 

Time do dinner.

 

Take care all and play safe.

 

Fitt  and  Elfie taking advantage of the outdoor life.

_________

Best wishes

Polly

 

 

 

Edited August 28, 2021 by southern42
add info