Early Risers.

[Ozexpatriate]

Some distressing natural disaster news today from Colorado. Towns in Boulder County were evacuated and I saw some reports of 600 homes destroyed by wildfires. 

 

This is not forest land. It is high-plains grassland near the foothills of the "front range" of the Rockies. I have visited this area many times and know people who live in the towns that were evacuated. These aren't small towns - they are large suburbs of the greater Denver metro area.

 

The area has been experiencing drought conditions. It is supposed to snow there tomorrow. The winds that spread the fire are ahead of the front bringing the snow.

 

Edited December 31, 2021 by Ozexpatriate

[pH]

A couple of pretty feeble attempts to show the setting sun lighting up the snowy mountains this afternoon:

 

They don’t really do it justice.

Edited May 2, 2022 by pH

[BoD]

Morning all.

 

03.50 a.m. hundred hours here and I’m wide awake.  I haven’t really slept for 3 nights now.  The cold which started before Christmas has  moved onto my  throat and chest and so I have developed a nasty, frequent cough.  Every time I start to nod off I have another coughing fit.  I’ve given up trying so I’m sitting with a coffee reading the morning paper (downloaded).   Well I’m not actually reading it at the moment, I’m typing here, but you know what I mean.

 

Since last Tuesday I have done four lateral flow tests, the latest yesterday, and they have all proved negative. I wonder just how accurate they are as this is dragging on and on. There are noPCR tests to be booked so it seems. 
 

I may just go and so some …. ahem ….  modelling.

[Ozexpatriate]

32 minutes ago, pH said:

They don’t really do it justice.

Mountains look lovely. It's hard to capture the magic of the light as seen by the eye.

 

The roads look like crap - nasty and slippery. (All clear here - well over 4°C today. Rain next week.)

 

Edited December 31, 2021 by Ozexpatriate

[BoD]

2 hours ago, Ozexpatriate said:

Some distressing natural disaster news today from Colorado. Towns in Boulder County were evacuated and I saw some reports of 600 homes destroyed by wildfires. 

It is being reported over here by the BBC too.

 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-59834897

[Ozexpatriate]

28 minutes ago, BoD said:

It is being reported over here by the BBC too.

It was a late-breaking story in the US today. National news rooms (heavily east-coast centric) are short-staffed during the holiday week. I expect to see extensive coverage tomorrow. This might see property destruction almost as bad as the western Kentucky tornadoes earlier this month though presumably (hopefully) with less loss of life.

 

It's a weird feeling to see a place you know devastated by a natural disaster like wildfires. I experienced something similar watching the Santa Rosa, California fires in 2017*, and closer to home in the Santiam Canyon fires in Oregon in 2020. (I've since driven through the burn area several times.)

 

* Where a hotel I stayed in many times was completely destroyed. I watched it burn in the news footage. The Fountaingrove round barn was more than a century old when it was destroyed by the Tubbs fire.

 

Others may not see it the same way, but I am convinced that climate change is here.

 

Edited December 31, 2021 by Ozexpatriate

[pH]

57 minutes ago, Ozexpatriate said:

The roads look like crap - nasty and slippery.

Actually not bad. They’ve been plowed and gritted. They’re very much side streets with few cars on them (except on school days).

[iL Dottore]

On 29/12/2021 at 22:39, Gwiwer said:

…Having packed up and shipped our worldly goods around the planet not once but twice I have no intention of doing so again.  Not just because of the effort involved but because I simply don't want to….

On 29/12/2021 at 22:55, New Haven Neil said:

Moving not many miles but across a sea to what is effectively a different country was bad enough - our alternative was Kiwi…

Mrs iD and I are of differing opinions on this. Although as not as ambulatory as some of our MoD types,  I’ve made five major moves between 4 countries and 3 languages during my life and I would happily move again to a nice, rural, retirement friendly property. Mrs iD is not convinced.  But today, with the Internet and with most everything now available to be delivered as a parcel,  living in a rural area I don’t see as a significant drawback

On 30/12/2021 at 00:55, TheSignalEngineer said:

My Dad was on the ground trying to link up with the Airborne troops. …Sadly I never got the real story of Market Garden from him as he rarely gave any details of what the fighting was like…

I’ve found out that the people who really were involved in the fighting tend not to talk much about it. Neither my grandfather (who was in the Royal Navy and in SBS) or my father (who was in the Wehrmacht at the end of the Second World War [drafted as a 16 year old])  spoke much about their experiences. 

On 30/12/2021 at 04:13, Natalie said:

 

…..I will admit that people as a whole baffle me and I just can't get my head around it all. I generally find life very difficult to deal with and tend to just avoid people as a rule and keep myself shut away in my room. My black dog tends to be an all year round presence.... What does help though is the unwavering and unconditional love from our two magnificent hounds, Bracken and Minnie (our real black dog). They really are a big help and comfort at all times and have saved my life on several occasions.…

I see no need for you to explain that people as a whole baffle you, whilst I have managed to navigate the shoals and rocks of life fairly unscathed and I am happy enough to interact with other people (if I have to), this need to be around other people just puzzles me.   The cynic in me tends to believe that there is a lot of good money to be made by encouraging people to mingle and “do things“ together. Whereas, those who are content to be alone and happy with their own company are probably not a very profitable market.

And although I do not suffer from “the black dog“ (you have my sympathies), I do realise how powerful an influence our canine friends are on our lives. Like Bracken and Minnie, Lucy and Schotty are more than “just dogs” they are trusted companions - which is more than I can say for humans (I would trust Lucy and Schotty with my life, but not necessarily with my sausages….)

22 hours ago, chrisf said:

……Tomorrow the New Year's Honours List is due to be published.  I know that many will not give a donald duck who is listed therein.  Others will wonder why on earth some have been included….

My innate cynicism is always engaged by the honours list; it seems that for at least the past 25 years significant honours are awarded to those who a)  donate a huge wodge of cash to one political party or another, b)  have warmed a desk for 20 years or more at a suitably high level in the civil service, c)  have successfully flogged stuff around the world (such as music, books and “art“) and d) [last and certainly least]  have actually done good deeds for and in the community the awardees reside in (has anyone else noted that the “cheerful and helpful lollipop ladies”  and the like who get awards never get anything like being made a Dame or being elevated to the House of Lords)

22 hours ago, TheQ said:

I chose Norfolk, a combination of cheap housing, good for my hobby of sailing, SWMBO'S hobbies are everywhere. Plenty of land / walks for the dogs.. it's been a successful choice.. We ain't going anywhere again..…

I always wondered how the expression “normal for Norfolk“ originated.

Now I know 

11 hours ago, Gwiwer said:

I have always kept a little notebook where ever I go.  … I am now at Volume 52 and know where all of 1 - 51 are kept.  

Captain Cynical sees significant income stream possibilities in this news. Minions will be dispatched to (ahem) “acquire” said notebooks.

9 hours ago, Ozexpatriate said:

…..I will stipulate that there is nothing like fine Champagne, but there are plenty of enjoyable alternatives. It seems a little over the top to suggest that New Year's would be "ruined" by drinking an alternative. …

Obviously, my Dear Oz,  you are not frequenting the right social circles.

There are those whose amusing little New Year’s Eve soirées  would be utterly ruined by the absence of a Roederer Crystal  or a Pol Roger on the buffet table

9 hours ago, Erichill16 said:

….Watch  out Poly, he’ll be buying up LDC next. Better get your furry  ar$e down to the Coop pronto!

You are not thinking big enough, my dear fellow. Any rich enough megalomaniac can buy up all the available LDC and thus deny bears and hippos (and others) their snacks, real villainy is when you buy up the LDC factories and convert the production lines to producing only coffee cream cakes (with nuts). And to rub salt in the wound, occasionally produce a high end “special limited edition” LDC at a multiple of a multiple of the old standard LDC price.

 

And on that dastardly note, I wish you a happy POETTNY day (P*** Off Early Tomorrow’s The New Year)

[jamie92208]

Good moaning from the Charente.  It's New Years Eve but the hens will still need to be let out and some logs still need to be brought down to the house.  No snow here and certainly no drought.  Those fires in Colorado are terrifying.  I cycled through that area in 2005.

 

I had a good afternoon  out trainspotting  yesterday with Andy. His shoulder appears to be healing well. I dripped him off at the physio's and he hopes to get the sling off in another week.

 

Nothing major to report here, no 1 son and partner finish their isolation today and appear to have survived OK. 

 

Bon Nouvelle  Anné to you all.

 

Jamie

[Natalie]

I am not an Early Riser this morning as such as I've not yet been down (as it were)  and I don't know whether I'll actually bother. I have been awake all night- no big deal for me and I don't normally have problems sleeping. It is staying awake that tends to be the hardest thing.. I had Bracken the Dog sit with me earlier (0300) for 90 minutes which was nice before she retired to her own quarters. The last few days has seen me up all night and then dozing all day. I can even sleep all night and then all day as well much to Mother's irritation. I blame the podcasts I listen to - mainly football/ Spurs, music history and socialism. Who needs sleeping pills when there are podcasts that do the job more efficiently and safely? Its not that they are boring I just seem to find the voices soothing and relaxing.

 

I think I shall stay up and continue to poke through my stuff on my device aided with tea drinking. Nothing much else to report really. I need to check with Mother regarding the food situation as there are a few things I can she that she needs. I no longer have access to a vehicle so have to utilise the local omnibus and Mother's trolley which makes things so much easier. Normally Mother has a lift with her friend on a Monday to shop but didn't go as she felt a bit off. Trouble is that Mother is most reluctant to let me go instead as it involves having to go outside amongst yuman beans which I find considerably anxiety inducing. As the authorities are not prepared to clear the town and supermarket of others then I have to endure it and take steps myself to ease my anxiety. Sometimes you can't avoid such situations and have to cope with them as best you can but Mother would rather struggle on the bus herself than let me go instead. She says it is her job to go not mine and generally has a hard time in letting me help. I can understand it to one extent but I am choosing/ offering to help not being forced. I have a hard time in trying to get Mother to rest properly and not overdo things. The last thing I want her to do is to fall and sustain a #NOF. We'll see what transpires..

 

All is quiet at present, in a couple of hours Bracken will be up for her breakfast and bd insulin. Minnie the black Patterdale, who absolutely loves her bed (and who can blame her?) may or may not saunter down for her biscuits soon after.

 

Hope that everyone else has a good day. I did notice the absence of some familiar names whilst catching up and hope that they too are well and might return.

 

Listening to these podcasts means I have no idea as to the day or date but am led to believe that today is December 31st which means only one thing- two terrified dogs at the stroke of midnight and for an hour or so because of those blasted fireworks that now seem to have become a 'thing' since we apparently celebrated the official heralding of the new millennium in 2000 at the the then Millennium Dome now Oxygen Arena. Seemed a lot of fuss over nothing at the time as in fact I believe that the new Millennium actually started in 2001 which passed by without anything.

 

To those who do celebrate or mark such an occasion as new year then I hope that it goes well for you and you have a suitably enjoyable event.

 

 Best wishes and love to all. 

 

Now to make some more tea...

[chrisf]

Greetings on this, the final day of 2021

 

Stewart, thank you for liking the new avatar!  I would love to know what happened to the old one.  The lettering on the red T shirt is in Welsh.  Its English translation is "some people are gay, get over it".  I bought it from the Stonewall stand at Pride Cymru in Cardiff in 2018 and wore it to the event in 2019.  With any luck there will be Prides in 2022 at which it can be sported but that subject has gone rather quiet of late.

 

Strangely there was no mention of the New Year Honours on the 6 am news and I could not find the list on line just now.  That may give some indication of how important it is considered in the world at large.  Perhaps it will be unleashed on the world tomorrow.  Whatever we may think of the system, the honours themselves have an importance to those who receive them and can reflect well on the organisations that the recipients represent.  I have in mind the MBE awarded in the summer to the organiser of Bristol Pride, Daryn Carter, who truly deserved a medal for all his hard work over many years.

 

If you will excuse me, ladies and gentlemen, I have a long hot bath in which to wallow.

 

Chris

[TheQ]

Mooring Awl, Inner Temple Hare,

Tried to sleep, couldn't, read anther chapter of the current book, then I slept for 3 hours short break then almost 4 hours, pretty good total for me.

 

Snow like that would cause chaos in the UK, a snowflake falls and there's major panic..

 

Ben the alarm clock collie arrived at 05:00 exactly, I stroked his head said a few words, then he went back to bed and is snoring. Hope he remembers to do that Tuesday...

 

Plans for today more sanding, I'll probably start with the half sheet sander, it's now 26years old, a Makita, with the main plate holder being cast aluminium, so it's a bit of a beast. I doubt my Arms are up to holding that overhead, but I can do more of the boat standing up, as you don't have to be so careful as with the angle grinder. The detail work and the definite over head work will be done with a plastic palm sander..

 

Time to.  Do nothing for a bit till Ben wakes up again..

[Barry O]

Ey up!

 

Woke up at 04:30.. now drinking a mugatea. @Natalie I may try thr soothing sounds to get back to sleep.. I must buy some new ear phones first.

 

At one minute past midnight tonight I will celebrate my late Mother's 100th  birthday anniversary. Anyone rejoicing in the name of Asenath (known as Zen) has to be thick skinned.. she was!

 

Tempus fugits apparently so let's look ahead. Hopefully all of our missing ERs are keeping well. I hope we hear from them soon. 

 

Stay safe! Have as good a day as you can!

 

Baz

[BoD]

1 hour ago, chrisf said:

Stewart, thank you for liking the new avatar!  I would love to know what happened to the old one.

Andy Y was doing some housekeeping and came across a folder with a small number of  unrecognised files in it.  He deleted it.  Turned out the folder contained a handful of avatars, yours included I would guess.

 

 

[grandadbob]

Good morning all,

Wet and windy here at the moment and a very mild 13°C.  The forecast(s) claim it will become drier and brighter later.

No plans made for today but there are several tasks that need my attention including my usual year end clear out and shredding of paperwork .  Still can't bring myself to go completely paperless although my son keeps urging me to do so.  My argument is that about 3 years ago if I had gone paperless I wouldn't have been able to prove a couple of very successful PPI claims.  Also on the agenda is the repair of a dining room chair that fell apart on Christmas day.  Hopefully the glue I want will arrive today.  I won't mention the building at the bottom of the garden...ooops. 

First things first though and that is breakfast.

Have a good one,

Bob.

Edited December 31, 2021 by grandadbob

[TheSignalEngineer]

3 hours ago, iL Dottore said:

I’ve found out that the people who really were involved in the fighting tend not to talk much about it. Neither my grandfather (who was in the Royal Navy and in SBS) or my father (who was in the Wehrmacht at the end of the Second World War [drafted as a 16 year old])  spoke much about their experiences. 

Very much "what happened in France stayed in France". My grandfather told very little about it having joined up at 16 and being wounded and back in England before he was 17. By the time he reached 19 he was fully recovered, was sent back to the regiment and ended the war near Armentieres. His eldest brother Ernie was killed at Delville Wood. I never knew much about that but research when the youngest of the brothers died revealed that one of Ernie's friends was posthumously awarded the VC for his actions on the same day.

As far as Dad was concerned, although he had spent nine months active service in Europe the worst experiences were probably his period in India when he was a sergeant in the Military Police attached to the Indian Army in Calcutta during the Direct Action Day riots in 1946 which left over 4000 dead. 

[Joseph_Pestell]

Not even New Year yet and my local CoOp has got boxes of Hot Cross Buns on sale.

 

The buns are not hot. Should I complain?

 

The label on the box says Happy Easter. The CoOp has clearly lost its Methodist origins. Hot Cross Buns are for Good Friday, hence the cross.

 

I wonder what the "best before" date is.

[BoD]

41 minutes ago, Joseph_Pestell said:

Not even New Year yet and my local CoOp has got boxes of Hot Cross Buns on sale.

Many supermarkets seem to have them all year round these days.

[TheSignalEngineer]

On 26th December 2021 I had an email from Hornby reminding me to pre-order my Christmas 2022 Santa Express train set.

[PhilJ W]

Morning all from Estuary-Land. Overslept again this morning, its beginning to get a habit but not going to bed until gone two this morning is something to do with it. Be back shortly as the washing machine needs emptying.

[PeterBB]

8 hours ago, BoD said:

Morning all.

Since last Tuesday I have done four lateral flow tests, the latest yesterday, and they have all proved negative. I wonder just how accurate they are as this is dragging on and on. There are noPCR tests to be booked so it seems. 
 

I may just go and so some …. ahem ….  modelling.

Research on the LFT test has shown that they are far more accurate than initially thought although not as sensitive as the PCR.  The latter is not something that can be processed at home as it requires 95 degree heating to split and then multiply (hence the 'polymer' part) that enables the virus to be detected.  PCR generally has become a vital part in terms of pathology.

 

This has led to a sad tale.  As a go ahead laboratory we looked into developing PCR assays within our sphere and had a young lady who had been with us in 'placement' and shown a great aptitude in mind for the job.  We had an idea of her home area and a bit of detective work by a colleague who lived in the area brought her to us.  The sad part, she got married, and had a child but not long afterwards an aggressive brain tumour and died when only 23.  Many years on writing this has brought tears to my eyes.  

Edited December 31, 2021 by PeterBB

[PhilJ W]

11 hours ago, PeterBB said:

Had to get rid of the wall mounted lights are a pain and, yes to get rid is difficult because of the wiring and unable to get at the source because of the way this years move (probably our last but hope we have a good few years yet) was wired.  TV aerial wise have still not fathomed and SWMBO wants one in the bedroom - but not keen on knocking holes for wiring and sockets.  The 'chalet' room has a complete laminated floor so floorboards are inaccessible - hence the need for more invasive methods.

My TV box runs off of my hub. As I understand it I can get a device that plugs into an electric socket and will transmit the signal from the hub via the wiring so that computers can be used in any room in the house so why not a TV? There are a few ER's who can tell you if it is possible.

6 hours ago, iL Dottore said:

I’ve found out that the people who really were involved in the fighting tend not to talk much about it. Neither my grandfather (who was in the Royal Navy and in SBS) or my father (who was in the Wehrmacht at the end of the Second World War [drafted as a 16 year old])  spoke much about their experiences. 

A chap I worked with held the Military Medal. He never spoke about it until he retired when someone 'in the know' asked him. He was a sergeant in the REME and at the time of Arnhem his unit was tasked with replacing the bridges blown by the Germans in the advance towards Arnhem. He received his MM for erecting a Bailey Bridge across a Dutch canal under heavy fire. I would have liked to look the award up for more details but I wouldn't know where to look.

5 hours ago, Barry O said:

Ey up!

At one minute past midnight tonight I will celebrate my late Mother's 100th  birthday anniversary. Anyone rejoicing in the name of Asenath (known as Zen) has to be thick skinned.. she was!

Baz

My mum would be 102 if she was alive today but still telling us not to make a fuss.

4 hours ago, BoD said:

Andy Y was doing some housekeeping and came across a folder with a small number of  unrecognised files in it.  He deleted it.  Turned out the folder contained a handful of avatars, yours included I would guess.

 

 

A few Avatars have disappeared. One or two have caused a problem as those with longer names the name is printed in full and can cover the star to view unread posts.

[PhilJ W]

5 hours ago, Natalie said:

Hope that everyone else has a good day. I did notice the absence of some familiar names whilst catching up and hope that they too are well and might return.

You might find some on a new thread called 'The Night Mail'.

[Coombe Barton]

3 minutes ago, PhilJ W said:

A chap I worked with held the Military Medal. He never spoke about it until he retired when someone 'in the know' asked him. He was a sergeant in the REME and at the time of Arnhem his unit was tasked with replacing the bridges blown by the Germans in the advance towards Arnhem. He received his MM for erecting a Bailey Bridge across a Dutch canal under heavy fire. I would have liked to look the award up for more details but I wouldn't know where to look.

I usually start here

https://www.forces-war-records.co.uk/search-military-records-for-free?SE=go&adID=560252212459&KW=military records&SC=C&NO=9050&gclid=CjwKCAiA8bqOBhANEiwA-sIlNySYZJEWg04jqT7I9LYOWYRyy14a58c_jHOIYx08Z9sQxIwlY5kZdRoCAd0QAvD_BwE

[Gwiwer]

Good afternoon all and a Happy New Year to our antipodean members.  The eastern states have arrived in 2022; the centre and west will  take a little longer to divest themselves of this <insert adjective of choice> year.  

 

I received a "Good News" email from the National Lottery overnight.  Not by any means the first time I have had my hopes raised.   And as usual it was to alert me to the winning of just £5.  I shall try to not spend it all at once   In other good news a bottle of 2012 Bruachladdich has arrived ℅ Dragon-in-Law.  I will admit to having had a wee sample over lunch   

 

Attendance at the House of Fun is concluded for the year.  We probably saw more passengers through the station during Lockdown the First than we did today.  For a couple of hours there were more trains than passengers and the Twickenham Parakeets who roost in a tree beside platform 1 were undisturbed.  I wonder if they overslept    Only a single train conveyed a load worthy of comment; the 10.27 to Exeter was nearly a quarter full   One unceremonious last whistle and a wave of the dispatch bat and it was see you next year, folks.  

 

Positive comments from @chrisf including a long hot wallow; something I may emulate once Ocado deliver in the next hour or so.  We hope the festive season continues to treat you with kind respect.  

 

@Natalie's comments resonate here.  It sounds very similar to Dr. SWMBO and her ups and downs.  The long periods when the only question is "what's the point of getting out of bed?" and the day-dozing-night-waking pattern with a voice burbling away on the device in an attempt to help sleep.  Voices keep me awake; I use music for that purpose.  Dr. SWMBO is the exact opposite.  I don't have answers; if I did I wouldn't have had to dig as deep and for as long as I have to keep Dr. SWMBO somewhere close to the straight-and-narrow.  Keeping her going at all has been a significant effort at times.  I am always happy to talk - by what ever means or platform - with anyone in need of friendship, support, tea and non-judgemental comment (though TOIP - tea over internet protocol - isn't yet supported in this area )  No-one should feel alone no matter how large and rampant the dog of colour might be.  Sometimes knowing that another person is happy to just sit and listen is enough.  Sometimes that means listening to the silence - just being there - knowing that the silence is as important as words or other sounds and should not be an awkward moment nor is conversation necessary for its own sake.  

 

I'll have a nap later.  Being a true ER and awake from 4am every day means I need that pause to enjoy events around midnight.  But awake I shall be then and probably outside to see and hear what ever pyrotechnics the neighbourhood has mustered.  

 

How ever you mark the turning of the year we both hope that the year ahead will prove to be a better one for you all than the past two have been.  Mince pies and malt whisky at midnight and we'll take it from there!