Early Risers.

[BSW01]

Good evening everyone 

 

Well, I didn’t get as much done in the garden as I’d hoped I would, due the appearance of rain and some very strong gusts of wind just before midday. I did however sort out enough pots to be able to sow the seeds I bought on Thursday. Once I’d packed up the gardening tools, I decamped to the workshop and continued working on the 3 way point I’m building. I finished the 2 remaining crossing vees and soldered all 3 in place. I then made a start on the check rails and closure rails. 

 

This afternoon Max came round and we spent a couple of hours in the workshop, where he continued working on the model car kit he’s building. Today he was adding some more detail parts to the chassis and painting the last few remaining items. He also added some interior parts, such as gear stick and handbrake etc. he’s not that far off finishing it now. 

[PhilJ W]

Goodnight all.

[BSW01]

Goodnight all 

[Erichill16]

17 minutes ago, iL Dottore said:

 

But it’s not only the luxury goods market that is affected by counterfeits; for example aviation parts, and PHARMACEUTICALS are also frequently counterfeited and in both these cases, counterfeits can kill you.
.

About 10 years ago we were preparing for a system to detect  counterfeit pharmaceuticals which was a real PIA and would addd significantly to the time it took to dispense an item. The system fell by the wayside and think Brexit had something to do with it. I did read an article somewhere that in the history of the NHS no counterfeit pharmaceuticals had entered the supply chain. 
On a similar note it still surprises me that according to the US  tv shows/films I watch prescribed medicines are still supplied loose in tablet bottles rather than patient packs. One of the advantages of the pre pack is that a patient information leaflet is automatically supplied to the patient. I would have thought in such a litigious society patient information leaflets would be mandatory.

As a country we were late to the original patent pack supply ethos but it’s been with us for probably 20years now.

Anyway Goodnight (again)

[Winslow Boy]

33 minutes ago, Erichill16 said:

About 10 years ago we were preparing for a system to detect  counterfeit pharmaceuticals which was a real PIA and would addd significantly to the time it took to dispense an item. The system fell by the wayside and think Brexit had something to do with it. I did read an article somewhere that in the history of the NHS no counterfeit pharmaceuticals had entered the supply chain. 
On a similar note it still surprises me that according to the US  tv shows/films I watch prescribed medicines are still supplied loose in tablet bottles rather than patient packs. One of the advantages of the pre pack is that a patient information leaflet is automatically supplied to the patient. I would have thought in such a litigious society patient information leaflets would be mandatory.

As a country we were late to the original patent pack supply ethos but it’s been with us for probably 20years now.

Anyway Goodnight (again)

There has been a massive crack down on counterfeit items here in Manutopea. GMP have really stepped up the number of raids- operation Vulcan I think it's called. There's a part of Chetham Hill where virtually every shop/garage/warren was selling them. The police teamed up with Manchester council etc and seized millions of pounds worth of goods. Everything from tobacco, vapes, clothing etc through to pharmaceuticals, car parts etc was found. It's been long overdue and it's supposed to have put a real dent in the 'naughty boys' revenue generation.

The fact that the council is eyeing up the value of the land once the adjacent HMP Manchester aka Strangeways eventually closes has nothing at all to do with it or so they say.

Edited April 7 by Winslow Boy

[jjb1970]

7 hours ago, iL Dottore said:

 

I came across Uncle Roger sometime ago on YouTube and I found him both knowledgeable about Asian food (very knowledgeable actually) and incredibly funny as well. (although the usual killjoys have accused him of perpetuating “yellow face” stereotypes)..

 

He regularly skewers various YouTube cooks, from amateurs to the professionals, when he thinks that they are taking unacceptable liberties with Asian food. The posted video is not the first time Uncle Roger has set his sights on Jamie Oliver.
 

Jamie Oliver may have trained as a professional chef and his heart is certainly in the right place (for trying to get school children to eat healthy and nutritious lunches), but as someone trying to cook non-British food, he is a total disaster.

 

When I downsize my large (250+)  cookbook collection,  ALL my Jamie Oliver cookbooks are going off to be recycled. His “Italian” cookbook is about as Italian as I am Manchurian. In fact, the recipes are so bad that in comparison @polybear’s three cheese pizza (when PB cares to use high quality, minimally processed ingredients) is the very definition of a decent pizza. 
 

However, one mustn’t be too harsh on Jamie Oliver, I think amongst his target audience are those people for whom a typical everyday meal could be turkey twizzlers and frozen chips (perhaps with some sort of a green vegetable), but want to cook something “posh”*

 

But he can’t cook Italian or Chinese food worth a damn.

 

Uncle Roger’s videos are well worth watching!

 

* Jamie Oliver “posh cooking”? I should cocoa… I split my sides writing that…

 

On Jamie Oliver, I have a soft spot for him because I  think his efforts to improve school food and encourage people to cook were/are genuine and heartfelt. Similarly with the hairy bikers I thought their interest in encouraging people to cook and support for artisans food producers was genuine (and I  found them entertaining and fun to watch). Interestingly, Mrs JJB shares Uncle Roger's opinion of Jamie Oliver doing SE Asian and Chinese food but gave a thumbs up to the hairy bikers rendang.

 

On Uncle Roger, we were introduced to him in Singapore, he seems to have something of a cult following among Singaporean Chinese. As you say, he does know his food and cooking, take away the shtick and his videos could be very solid food videos in their own right. Mrs JJB is a superb cook and she assures me that he is spot on with the food stuff.

 

On his act, that's a judgement call. I see his act as a very well observed parody of the Chinese 'uncle'. The terms uncle and auntie are a sign of respect for older people in some Asian cultures. However they have a second use, there's a sort of uncle/auntie which is notorious for being cantankerous, small minded and with several chips on their shoulders, so uncle is also used as shorthand for an older person who is a rude you know what. It's another stereotype and so may raise problems of its own but the fact that uncle/auntie have this dual meaning indicates there's enough in it to resonate and calling his act uncle Roger was deliberate (even if he is a young chap). I see his act as being much more in the comedic tradition of observational humour than cheap yellow face jokes. He gets a lot of criticism for promoting the idea of a sort of demented rude Chinese person who is oblivious to anything outside of his own experience and a Chinese cultural nationalist, missing that his act is a well done parody of a type many (probably most) in China and SE Asia would recognise.  I am a sinophile and make no secret of having a deep affection for China and SE Asia,  the region, culture and people but I have to say I see a lot of Uncle Roger types. In fact I think Uncle Roger and Mrs JJB would get on swimmingly,  oh dear........

[polybear]

6 hours ago, Erichill16 said:

.......your fairy buns taste a bit odd.

 

 

Not a phrase to say to SWMBO as it could very easily be taken the wrong way....

 

6 hours ago, iL Dottore said:

......with the increasingly Draconian approach in many countries to controlling the illegal drug trade......

 

iD would be unsurprised to learn that Bear is all for that (I've read reports that Death Squads are used in the Philippines ( such as gun-toting mothers pushing a pram down the street taking out the local drug dealer); sooooooo much crime is linked to drugs that it's about time we REALLY got serious about it.  As for making some of the "lesser" drugs legal after all.....FFS, that's just taking the easy way out.

Maybe random drug testing in many more (all?) occupations might work - and if you get the sack then there's no entitlement to any benefits.

 

6 hours ago, BSW01 said:

Once I’d packed up the gardening tools, I decamped to the workshop and continued working on the 3 way point I’m building. I finished the 2 remaining crossing vees and soldered all 3 in place. I then made a start on the check rails and closure rails. 

 

 

Any chance of some piccies at some point pretty please?

 

5 hours ago, Erichill16 said:

About 10 years ago we were preparing for a system to detect  counterfeit pharmaceuticals which was a real PIA and would addd significantly to the time it took to dispense an item. The system fell by the wayside and think Brexit had something to do with it. 

 

Fake stamps (allegedly) are in the news in the last week - even though the senders are claiming they bought the stamps at the local P.O.

Mind you, Bear's buddy (a retired Jeweller) brought down a couple of P.O's merely by watching their actions whilst standing in the Q; because of his trade he "knew a bit" about sending signed-for & special delivery post....and he also knew the Big Boss in charge of security at the Post Office quite well.  After he reported what he saw within a couple of days both branches were shut down (hopefully just until they found new staff).

 

5 hours ago, Erichill16 said:

On a similar note it still surprises me that according to the US  tv shows/films I watch prescribed medicines are still supplied loose in tablet bottles rather than patient packs. One of the advantages of the pre pack is that a patient information leaflet is automatically supplied to the patient. I would have thought in such a litigious society patient information leaflets would be mandatory.

As a country we were late to the original patent pack supply ethos but it’s been with us for probably 20years now.

Anyway Goodnight (again)

 

Whilst Bear understands the reasons and advantages of pill packaging in the UK, I do rather prefer the "bung 'em in a bottle" approach.  It absolutely horrifies me to think just how much waste plastic & foil pill packaging must go into landfill every year.

[Ozexpatriate]

6 hours ago, Erichill16 said:

On a similar note it still surprises me that according to the US  tv shows/films I watch prescribed medicines are still supplied loose in tablet bottles rather than patient packs. One of the advantages of the pre pack is that a patient information leaflet is automatically supplied to the patient. I would have thought in such a litigious society patient information leaflets would be mandatory.

It depends.

 

Most prescribed medication in the US (in my experience with several pharmacies) is counted into an orange plastic pill bottle - an adhesive label is affixed and it is supplied with vast amounts of documentation in a small print. Sometimes the manufacturer's sealed container (again with loose pills) is provided directly - again with the adhesive label. The latter will include the manufacturer's leaflet in extremely fine print, often with molecular structure diagrams for the active ingredient.

 

Many over-the-counter medications are packaged in foil-backed blister packs - particularly those intended for daily use. Some services - like the Amazon mail-order pharmacy will package it in 'calendar packs' - pre-dosed on a daily basis.

[Grizz]

Uho……

 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-68758088

[iL Dottore]

Good morning,

Good morning,

Good morning!!!

 

A busy and profitable day awaits 😁

Returning to various topics:

 

Whilst I can sympathise with PB’s “hang ‘em and flog ‘em” approach to the drug trade, it doesn’t actually work. The financial rewards (due to the huge demand) makes some people take unacceptable risks - the lure of trousering, say, £100,000 for a shipment of drugs outweighs the fear of being caught and banged up (or executed).
 

IF a draconian approach were to work then everyone involved - from traffickers to consumers - should be penalised. Random stops by armed police of citizens for drug testing and summary execution of anyone testing positive (plus “shoot to kill” drug raids) would definitely discourage drug trafficking and use. But even then, there’d still be people who’d try their luck. I don’t think that even the most rabid supporter of draconian drug laws would care to walk to the shops past piles of fresh bodies all labelled “I was an illegal drug user”.  

 

The way to effectively address the drug problem is to firstly remove the profitability from the drug trade (by making illegal drugs so cheap through legalisation and sale through government shops) that the criminal elements would abandon the trade, addicts would no longer have to turn to crime to feed their habit and then go on to address why people take drugs. Vice (drugs, prostitution, gambling) will never go away - the best society can hope for is to minimise the effects on society at large. Prohibition in the US should be carefully studied: before prohibition organised crime was a small problem in the US, after prohibition organised crime was a big problem.

 

Regarding Jamie Oliver: his Wiki page is quite an eye opener. It seems that despite being a terrible businessman he has made himself a packet, often at the expense of others (such the 1000 or so people who lost their jobs when Jamie’s Italian went into receivership). He is certainly good at self promotion and has leveraged his “cheeky chappy” image into a considerable fortune. His early forays into cook books (the Naked Chef books) were important in introducing people to the concept of locally sourced, freshly made food. And his campaign for healthy food for kids, admirable. But JO and “authentic” still seem to be strangers to each other.

 

Putting meds in blister packs vs loose packed and then put into a bottle? Hmmm. I’d say “it depends”, as some medications do not take kindly to hanging around in a steamy bathroom in a (often) open bottle. A lot depends on the stability of the drug, its formulation, whether or not it’s hydrophilic, etc., etc. Additionally, it’s a lot harder to accidentally overdose with blister packed meds than with meds loose in a bottle. For one thing, with a blister pack you can’t absentmindedly shake a couple of pills into your hand and take them without noticing.

 

I had read up about the Chinese and SE Asian “uncles” and “aunties” when I first came across Nigel Ng’s Uncle Roger character. They are certainly a character type seen a variety of versions with various names across most cultures. I’ve watched some of Nigel Ng’s stand up on YouTube and he can be incredibly funny.

 

Edited April 8 by iL Dottore

[Barry O]

Ey up!

 

Very busy weekend. I travelled up to Northumberland yesterday for a day taking part in the methods you can use to defuse situations in sport.. excellent work. Did you know that every year 7000+ football referees pack in refereeing? The FA manage to train enough new referees to fill the gap but until recently no one knew why they had the turnover. Everyone assumed it was down to disclose... nope its people giving up for the fact "they don't enjoy it anymore".. ECB have no ideas on turnover of cricket umpires or why people jack in but very much assumebits down to lack of discipline.. could be a major foobar there.

 

Very windy on the A1 and A19.. worn to a frazzle on my return. Enjoyed my snake, pygmy and dumplings tea..

 

A bit more tidying up to do today a report to concoct then.. whatever I want to do is open to me to do in the rest of the day.

 

Stay safe!

 

Baz

[TheQ]

That disintegrating engine cover on the Boeing is on TV news at the moment.. I suspect someone will be in trouble for not locking down the catches... And shouldn't the pilot have picked that up on a pre flight walk round? Do they do that any more?

 

Mooring Awl.

1 hours sleep, 1/2 hours sleep, 4 hours sleep, 2 hours sleep, half hours dozing..

 

Ben the I'd like out Collie was getting impatient, so we went on patrol, daffs definitely going over, several more trees flowering. Reasonably warm out there.

 

The problem of all crimes is it's not often the penalty that discourages the crime but the chances of being caught, which for many crimes is not very often.

 

Hmm, the weather womble on TV is now forecasting gusting 50 mph tomorrow, that's after the 45 we got yesterday..

 

Yesterday's sailing racing was abandoned, but some of the kids went out in their dinghies  for some fun.. oh to be that indestructible again...

 

Plans for today,

More loom construction.

Edited April 8 by TheQ

[jamie92208]

13 hours ago, polybear said:

Bear here.... 

 

Pruning the Bush?  Still on the to-do list.....

 

BG

Do you want to rephrase that or do you have something to tell us..... 

 

Jamie

[jamie92208]

Good moaning from a sunny Charente.  The pool got uncovered and the filter commissioned.  I even managed to correctly connect the pipes to the filter and pump.  Then we went to some friends for a sort of buffet with other friends.  A good time was had. 

 

French class this morning then so e pottering in the shed. 

 

Jamie

Edited April 8 by jamie92208

[jjb1970]

Storm clouds coming over, I suspect I'll get wet going home, looks like it'll be full on thunder & lightning. 

 

[Winslow Boy]

1 hour ago, Grizz said:

Uho……

 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-68758088

Not enough double sided tape. Cheapskates.

[jjb1970]

Uncle Roger seems to share something with Al Murray's pub landlord and other such characters in his Asian audience at least - half laugh at the behaviours he is parodying, and half laugh at his wisdom and see him as a quite exemplary purveyor of common sense.

[Winslow Boy]

14 minutes ago, jjb1970 said:

Storm clouds coming over, I suspect I'll get wet going home, looks like it'll be full on thunder & lightning. 

 

Shouldn't you be commenting on the fact that you have a pink 'moon' and that there's a formation of 'UFO's - think this acronym has been 'updated', flying around as well.

[DaveF]

A quick look in the morning.  It's is cloudy, showers are forecast.

 

Today is cleaning day, my share of it is done, shortly the first load of washing will go on.  Then I'm not quite sure what I'll do, it depends on the showers.

 

David

Edited April 8 by DaveF

[PhilJ W]

14 hours ago, polybear said:

Bear here....

 

Well I got the washing done, the Bear Pit overhauled and some more work on Mickey done; I also reserved flights to Malta for 72 hours (for a fiver, refundable if I confirm and pay up) - it gives me some more ponderin' time**

I've lined up some in-terminal accommodation at LGW for the night prior to the (early) departure - which avoids the need for a very-silly-o'clock indeed departure from Bear Towers with all the risks and added stress that entails; it'll add a large part of a Deltic to the cost 😒 but in the overall scheme is worth it in Bear's Book.  I've yet to front up the dosh for this as yet (but will need to do so pdq) as the option for free cancellation doesn't exist with this one.  Turdycurses.

 

**Bears are well known for ponderin' - a practice which isn't always recommended as the ponderin' can often be destructive instead of constructive.....

 

Pruning the Bush?  Still on the to-do list.....

 

BG

 

1 hour ago, jamie92208 said:

Do you want to rephrase that or do you have something to tell us..... 

 

Jamie

This might help.

I didn't post the illustrations as this is a family forum.

[iL Dottore]

Would it be unkind of me to observe that with some airliners today it's like building an Airfix Kit - but in reverse?

[iL Dottore]

Re @PhilJ W's informative post: the first three I fully get, the fourth I kinda get, But the last???

 

Which sort of female (and these services are aimed at females) has feet so hairy that they need depilation?

 

On second thought, don't answer that. ER may not yet be ready for the answer.....

 

 

[Winslow Boy]

2 minutes ago, iL Dottore said:

Re @PhilJ W's informative post: the first three I fully get, the fourth I kinda get, But the last???

 

Which sort of female (and these services are aimed at females) has feet so hairy that they need depilation?

 

On second thought, don't answer that. ER may not yet be ready for the answer.....

 

 

Is that your medical opinion or your ER one.

[PhilJ W]

I usually watch the BBC Breakfast show largely for the weather reports both national and local. This morning when I switched on they were discussing the Post Office scandal with a not inconsiderable number of the postmasters concerned. I thought it was the normal sort of discussion that concerns such matters. But no, the entire program, all three and a half hours was given over to that discussion with everything else eliminated including the news and weather reports. A snottogram will shortly be winging its way to Newswatch.

[PhilJ W]

5 minutes ago, iL Dottore said:

Re @PhilJ W's informative post: the first three I fully get, the fourth I kinda get, But the last???

 

Which sort of female (and these services are aimed at females) has feet so hairy that they need depilation?

 

On second thought, don't answer that. ER may not yet be ready for the answer.....

 

 

I understand what most of the procedures are but what's a Hollywood?