Early Risers.

[The White Rabbit]

Afternoon awl,

 

A damp and soggy one in these 'ere parts. The weather's a definite incitement to stay in and reduce the firewood pile. Best wishes to Neil. And fervent wishes to everyone that if you do feel like watching TV, you can find something better than Grand Designs. 

 

At the moment it's a case of hurry up and wait. Some things could be done - but could well tempt Fate and she's not well disposed to me right now. A few more old emails worked through. And some minor bits round the house. 

 

The forum seemed to be having some moody moments earlier, it didn't like me being on the last page at all, multiple jumps up and down and quite a few refusals to rate it. Not doing it now though. We have had some power cuts over the last few days, though I don't see how that might affect that side of the IT some hours later. The lightbulb exploding (sort of - more of a jump out of the socket) was more obvious, very artistic, with a shower of sparks. Not good for the nerves though, heart rate went up a bit. 

 

Time to treat myself and think about something less dramatic and more entertaining. Though on another channel, as I would prefer neither end of the awl to be applied to any of my various apertures... 

[Gwiwer]

26 minutes ago, polybear said:

 

I think that makes getting planning approval a lot easier.

 

 

2 minutes ago, Coombe Barton said:

Is it because if they retain som of the old they don't pay VAT or something?

A and B. 
 

It makes getting planning permission easier in theory especially in conservation areas or with a listed building. And it can affect how much tax is payable. 

Dr SWMBO has been an avid follower of “The Kevin Show” for years. We sit as lounge-room judge and jury on the finished projects - or unfinished as some are.
 

We actually rather like a few of them and some of the “Revisited” shows have been of interest. We both think that the show has passed its best and might be better rested for now.  

[New Haven Neil]

After last night's show, yup!

[PhilJ W]

Afternoon all from Estuary-Land. I used to like "The Kevin Show" but not so much now. At one time it was 50/50 new builds and restoration/repurposing old buildings but now it seems to be a showcase for trendy architects. I much prefer programs such as "Help I bought a village." (on Channel Four 5 pm Mon-Fri) of which I will be watching the latest episode later this afternoon. 

[jjb1970]

2 hours ago, iL Dottore said:

Any time the presenter, Kevin McCloud, starts talking about “daring”, “innovative” and “ground breaking” you know, without looking, that it will be a glass, concrete and steel box with (usually) a flat roof and open plan everything . 

 

 

That sounds a bit like my reaction to a Chinese person waxing lyrical about 'mysterious' flavours, whenever I hear that word in relation to food in China my response is to run as it's probably something like cow bile. And I say that as a sinophile and lover of Chinese food and culture.

[jamie92208]

We headed out to Ruffec, Beth now needs another scan so we still don't have a plan. 

 

However on the way home we called at a cafe planning on having a Panini and a piece of cake. We were greeted,, by the owner with"I've got two portions of stew and dumplings lect". Sold on the spot I said.  So we had a tasty, warm and filling g meal plus some cake. That's more ticks. 

 

Jamie

[Grizz]

Mrs Grizz and I used to watch G.D. with Kev, from time to time. Quite liked it at the start, although it did become a bit formulaic after a while. 

 

Totally agree that the more money people seemed to have the more outlandishly hideous the building turned out. 

 

Anyone  remember this one. It is a couple of miles up the road from us. We used to have to go past it ion a fairly regular basis but fortunately we don't anymore. It is horrible. 

 

 

To me this is appalling. Putting it into perspective, this is in rural Sussex. The nearest village is Plumpton a mile or so away and the nearest towns either Lewes, Hayward Heath or Burgess Hill. 

But this is in the sticks. The surrounding properties are either tile hung with locally made hand made clay peg tiles etc, ship lap boarded or designed sympathetic to the history of the architecture of the area. 

 

This looks like a 1960 / 70s car park or some sort of ex military installation. 

 

There are a few examples of this type of 'sycophancy to pretentious architect's egos' even in Lewes (the county town of East Sussex), the heart of which is a medieval town and most of which is a conservation area. 

 

 

 Oooooooo I just notice that, that was a bit of a rant...😂

[TheQ]

Afternoon Awl,

It's basically rained all day, the " little red driving machine "© Gwiwer has a pond in the driver's foot well.

 

We got to the COVID and flu injections at the surgery early.. in jabbed and out 20 minutes before our due time. Very good was the nurse. Didn't feel at thing..

 

Spent the rest of the day on the club accounts, nearly had a heart failure when this quarters results plus the results of our last show went missing.. Eventually found them in another folder I'm still taming this version of office, which keeps wanting to use the cloud.

 

As it is I've now entered the figures, but now need to produce the results.

I also want to alter the way it processes the results, so backups will be made first.

 

I've got one problem with the modelling and computing room.

It's in a cold well... My feet are freezing  That is you go upstairs, along the hall , then step down into the room. Also the room is on the eastern side of the house, with the southern wall screened by a fig tree.

 

 So shortly I'll be looking for a small heater I can plonk under the desk, now do I look for a infra red or a fan heater?

[Winslow Boy]

5 hours ago, Coombe Barton said:

Hayle?

No just the usual rain.

[Winslow Boy]

3 hours ago, New Haven Neil said:

Mor....oh.  Again.  It's a bit like hibernating, interspersed with coughing fits.  And gunge.

 

Like Gwiwer, we will be better off when we are both officially retired, an initial interim stage kicks in in the new year and the next a year come March.  That'll leave us with me retired officially with three pensions and Mrs NHN then part time with one - then another 5 years to wait for her to catch up with real retirement, when we will be relatively comfortable, but by then I'll be 72 and likely not keen on flitting about the place so much.  At this rate, at all!

 

A very dull showery 12c here today, now we have managed to look outside.  That'll be it for the day's excitement.

I'm certain the rest of your Old Gits/F&RTS - delete as appropriate riding club will be happy to strap you to your mechanised steed and lead you around the IoM- you know like Charlton Heston in El Cid at the end of the film Neil.

[Tony_S]

1 hour ago, TheQ said:

now do I look for a infra red or a fan heater?

Furry boots?

[Tony_S]

1 hour ago, Grizz said:

This looks like a 1960 / 70s car park or some sort of ex military installation. 

Whereas the “Secret Nuclear Bunker” not far from here looks like a 1950s chalet bungalow.

[New Haven Neil]

27 minutes ago, Winslow Boy said:

I'm certain the rest of your Old Gits/F&RTS - delete as appropriate riding club will be happy to strap you to your mechanised steed and lead you around the IoM- you know like Charlton Heston in El Cid at the end of the film Neil.

 

The problem is I am always voted as leader, knowing my way around the rock a lot better than all but one other of the group. (He was a racer and goes too fast for them so they won't let him lead!).  They would mill around like brainless zombies.  Oh hang on.....🤣

[DaveF]

The dry morning didn't last, as I came out of church after the service and coffee it started to rain which hasn't stopped and has gradually got heavier.  I had a quick walk along the promenade and saw a large school party doing fieldwork, as I walked back to the car they were making their way into the fish and chipshop cum cafe presumably to dry out and get a hot drink. 

 

Back at home I went into the garage and finished moving big things around, now it is "only" a case of tidying all the bits and pieces up and making sure I know where everything is.  The very good thing is that I can now reach the light switch and the door controls much more easily.  I think I shall be satisified with a another week or so of sorting, then there will be a trip to the tip.   It is also now possible to move things out of the loft and into the garage which I need to be able to get at, the changes mean there is more space for the boxes.

 

Then it was time for lunch, a simple chicken breast with cheese and bacon, carrots, sprouts and potatoes, afterwards I had room for a sponge pudding.  Then I realised I was quite full and had a doze, since then I've sorted out more photos to put on RMWeb and flickr and had a cup of tea.

 

In response to the request for information about the book I can say that I've decided to give it a second chance and continue reading it.  The book is "Paving the New Road" by Sulari Gentill, an Australian writer.  She is obviously popular but I have noticed that people reviewing her books either really like them or they dislike them, there are few "average" reviews.  The book is largely set in Germany in the 1930s, the plot is complicated but I'll just say that they main characters are Australians visiting Germany to gain information while pretending to be doing something else.  One of the things putting me off is mentioned below, the other is the sentence construction and use of some words, presumably where Australians use words slightly differently.

 

I think that if I can stick with it I may find it interesting.  I have to admit that my view of the 1930s, especially in Europe, is coloured by relatives and family friends' experiences.  One of my Great Aunts was engaged to a German who died in the war, she spent time living in Berlin and Moscow, I thnk before and after the war.  Now and then things slipped out when she spoke about her life but any request for more detail was always met with - "I'm not allowed to tell you that even if I wanted to, I'd have to ask the Admiral".  I do know she handled classified material.

 

A family friend, now long dead was Dutch but knew Germany well in the 30s.  Later she was in the Dutch resistance and spent a long time in hiding, her comments about what hapened before the war were interesting to say the least.

 

David

Edited October 26, 2023 by DaveF

[polybear]

2 hours ago, Grizz said:

Anyone  remember this one. It is a couple of miles up the road from us. We used to have to go past it ion a fairly regular basis but fortunately we don't anymore. It is horrible. 

 

 

To me this is appalling. Putting it into perspective, this is in rural Sussex. The nearest village is Plumpton a mile or so away and the nearest towns either Lewes, Hayward Heath or Burgess Hill. 

But this is in the sticks. The surrounding properties are either tile hung with locally made hand made clay peg tiles etc, ship lap boarded or designed sympathetic to the history of the architecture of the area. 

 

This looks like a 1960 / 70s car park or some sort of ex military installation. 

 

 

WTF IS THAT??

There's a very important thing the owners of such cr@p overlook when building these things - just how hard will it be to find a buyer if they want to (or have to) move.

[Coombe Barton]

... Will be a bit of an ouch on the wallet as the car’s had two new tyres and a glow plug. Has a couple a week or two ago and that was an ouch as well. Apparently this one was hard to get at. This bill is awaited. ...

https://johncolby.wordpress.com/2023/10/26/covid-and-other-respiratory-diseases-enquiry-in-scotland-and-data-anomalies-for-teaching-solved/

[Barry O]

Meetings attended. Christmas pudding purchased.. alas no amaretto bitter this year so Bransy butter bought. Normally we buy Christmas tree decorations at Harrods.. not this year.. too expensive and carp designs.

 

I used to watch daft designs but no more.. project management skills are awful and the designs are less than inspiring.  I know of one which is now a children's nursery.. and leaks like a sieve. 

 

Train full (lots of Peterbrough commuters use it.. that must cost a lot  of muddling tokens

 

Baz

[TheQ]

1 hour ago, Tony_S said:

Whereas the “Secret Nuclear Bunker” not far from here looks like a 1950s chalet bungalow.

There were planned to be 60 radar stations under the  "Rotor " scheme of the 1950s, most of them would have had "That Bungalow". Occasionally some old dear would complain it must be overcrowded in there, not realising there are several stories of bunker down below.

The bunkers have 10ft thick concrete walls and up to 3 floors below ground. There is normally one or more emergency exits that are less obvious. They are immune to all but a direct nuclear strike.

 

 

This one at RAF Neatishead ( as shown now abandoned) has been heavily modified, in the early 1970s and the late 1980s, the actual bunker is off to the left of shot under a mound of earth.

You can just see the Marconi Type 84 radar to the left of the bungalow, ith its Cossor SSR750 on top.

I've spent many hours in both the T84 and the Neatishead bungalow.   For some years the Neatishead bungalow housed microwave transmission equipment which I used to calibrate ( actually just by that end window) that fed Midland Radar at RAF Watton ..

Edited October 26, 2023 by TheQ

[PhilJ W]

Just a quick hello, SEERS night tonight with a talk on things that run on parallel strips of steel on the I-o-M.

[polybear]

31 minutes ago, Coombe Barton said:

... Will be a bit of an ouch on the wallet as the car’s had two new tyres and a glow plug. Has a couple a week or two ago and that was an ouch as well. Apparently this one was hard to get at. This bill is awaited. ...

 

Scarper.  Works for this Bear.

[Grizz]

1 hour ago, polybear said:

 

WTF IS THAT??

There's a very important thing the owners of such cr@p overlook when building these things - just how hard will it be to find a buyer if they want to (or have to) move.

Yeah and also how much that Cluster F*ck of a building has just devalued the neighbouring properties! 
 

But then don’t spose the ‘making a statement types’ give a flying fudge what the neighbourhood thinks anyway! 

[Tony_S]

After a couple of ER recommendations guess where we ended up shopping tonight. Yes, we visited the as recommended Lakeside Shopping Centre. We were returning from Enfield and the sat nav was very keen not to send us via the A127 even though yesterdays sinkhole had been filled. So as I am heading towards the A13 to head home , Aditi mentions that she would like to go to the Clarks shoe shop to try on some shoes. So we did, and she got exactly what she wanted. And then we came home. 

Edited October 26, 2023 by Tony_S
Wrong Road number!

[Grizz]

Weird I can see my last post has posted twice. But I didn’t do that. We had a microsecond sort of power glitch here a few minutes ago. 
 

Either that or my iPad has got computer senility and is beginning to repeat itself! 

[Sidecar Racer]

21 hours ago, Sidecar Racer said:

 

 Last heard of Monday stuck at Malaga airport according to his post in The Night Mail .

 

 Look like he flew it home , but shows a lack of practice .

 

 

Edited October 26, 2023 by Sidecar Racer

[Grizz]

18 minutes ago, Sidecar Racer said:

 

 Look like he flew it home , but shows a lack of practice .

 

 

As the saying goes….

 

"A good landing's any landing you can walk away from; a great landing is one where they can reuse the plane."