Early Risers.

[Barry O]

Goodnight all!

 

Baz

[brianusa]

32 minutes ago, J. S. Bach said:

I did something last Friday that I have never done before in my life, I made a donation to a local political candidate's election fund! I checked the box for a yard sign (about 18" x 24") as I wanted one anyway. I figured that I would have to call the office to get it; no, it was already in the yard when I got back from church today! Amazing.

I hope it was for the correct candidate

       Brian.

[pH]

34 minutes ago, J. S. Bach said:

I figured that I would have to call the office to get it; no, it was already in the yard when I got back from church today! Amazing.

The real trick is to get them to come and pick it up after the election!

[PhilJ W]

What with ER's being missing from the list of posts for the last few days its now appearing twice.

 

[PhilJ W]

Now its disappeared again! (I got back here via notifications.)

[PeterBB]

Hi Guys,

 

Third attempt to try to cram all since Friday - may worthy of likes etc. but to no avail.  Noticed all these 'where do I come from' items  and can see why the new ''tick' box is present.

 

I will make one comment on the idea of 'going back'  Members of SWMBOs family have lived in the same house for over 400 years and also built a pub next door to the farmhouse to serve the 'navvies'  employed to build things that we care about.  The pub, apart from the current Covid situation, is still very well frequented. First SWMBO definitely a Scot with a strong family name present in Canada, late Mil Irish, mother's family - millers - records lost in fire in Baldock, Gd Somerset, while dad's - relates to Cornwall and a move to a Lambeth blue plaque if family history is true - never checked it out.

[simontaylor484]

My room in halls at Sheffield Hallam University was exactly like Baz has said so in my eyes Prisoners would be better treat at least they would be better treat. The halls i was in were catered and had a canteen although there were small cooking facilities on each corridor which amounted to a sink a bit of worktop and a baby belling which I have previously mentioned lost out in a battle with an unopened tin of beans. 

The situation SOME of these students are in is not of their making and is tantamount to abuse of their human rights.  If somebody can see the funny side and put up a sign saying help send beer cake play to them. They should claim they have eyetests in Bernard Castle.

 

JS Bach will you have to booby trap your yard sign like I have seen some on you tube 

Edited September 27, 2020 by simontaylor484
Spelling

[tigerburnie]

G'night all

[Erichill16]

Evening,

Didnt report in last night, severe case of can’t be bothered. Don’t really know why football team didn’t lose (but didn’t win either). Called off at a friends  who’s house I haven’t  visited for a couple years to see his new layout. It’s not my cup of tea but at least he’s got something to be proud of whereas I’ve done bu88er all. Perhaps that’s the cause of despondency. Thoughts of how an outbreak of Covid virus will affect by pharmacy is not helping either. Part time pharmacist cheered  me up by saying it’s not a case of ‘if’ but ‘when’. Thanks.

As for today, manager phoned to confirm he’d be back at work tomorrow. Housework am then a bit of tidying up outside followed by a trip to SWMBOs cousins with some stuff that’s we been storing in ‘my’ room for her. Watched GP and then added a few details onto something that we shouldn’t talk about here. 
Going to visit pharmacy tomorrow to see manager and offer help if he needs it then all being well a visit to mum’s in Newark with a couple of bits of furniture that she wants taking down. Nieces from Newark got me a gift voucher for my birthday for a certain shop in Newark that’s sells items of a miniature nature if you get my drift. Hopefully tomorrow will be  a better day.

Thanks for reading and Goodnight,

Robert

[brianusa]

If pictures in the papers can be assumed to be faithful depictions of thats going on, possibly if students or anybody else for that matter didn't over socialise, drink too much or enjoy other forms of debauchery, then perhaps they wouldn't have to suffer such confinement or other indignities.   Some just have to overdo things while others have to suffer the consequences of their bad judgement as well.

         Brian.

 

[Compound2632]

22 minutes ago, brianusa said:

If pictures in the papers can be assumed to be faithful depictions of thats going on,

 

Are such photos showing typical behaviour? Or are they exceptions chosen by newspaper editors for their newsworthiness?

 

It's the Ivo Peters effect: lots of photos of 2Ps piloting Bulleid pacifics over the Mendips on heavy summer Saturday extra trains, next to none of the ordinary weekday stopping trains, giving a quite false impression of the true character of the Somerset & Dorset in the 50s.

[PhilJ W]

Goodnight all.

[BSW01]

Good evening everyone 

 

The weather remained sunny all day, the warmer temperature meant that I WAS in fact able to leave the workshop door open all day. I’ve made a bit more progress on the turntable bridge and all I have left to do now is make and fit the handrails. In all the photos I’ve seen the vacuum motor platform has a roof, but I’m not sure if that was a later modification or an original feature. I’ve only seen 1 early photo, but this was taken sometime during the BR period, so it could have been a BR modification done after 1948! So I’ve made an executive decision and decided to leave the roof off, this way the actuator mechanism will be visible. 

 

I also had a slight re-organisation of my bench, a small tool chest sat at the end, but I was always putting ‘STUFF’ in front of it, which then had to be moved so I could open the drawers. So I’ve taken a few items off the shelf above the bench, put the chest on the shelf and then the small items on top of the chest. The result is a little bit more space to the work area of the bench and easier access to the drawers, I don’t know hey I didn’t do that right from the start, but there you go. 

 

Goodnight all 

[laurenceb]

Night awl

[The Stationmaster]

G'night all.

[brianusa]

Quite a 

28 minutes ago, Compound2632 said:

Are such photos showing typical behaviour? Or are they exceptions chosen by newspaper editors for their newsworthiness?

 

It's the Ivo Peters effect: lots of photos of 2Ps piloting Bulleid pacifics over the Mendips on heavy summer Saturday extra trains, next to none of the ordinary weekday stopping trains, giving a quite false impression of the true character of the Somerset & Dorset in the 50s.

 

Quite a comparison!  There are too many pictures from both sides of the pond which are similar in nature of Brits behaving badly as well as there US counterparts, so all editors must agree.  Showing empty beaches or gatherings with few people would certainly not make headlines and by the same token a dirty 4-4-0 hauling a bunch of trucks wouldn't have the same impact as a double header and the Pines Express.  Of course there are exceptions!

        Brian.

[J. S. Bach]

2 hours ago, brianusa said:

I hope it was for the correct candidate

       Brian.

I can not say any more as it might be considered a political post; I was just describing a different personal event from any other that I have had..

[J. S. Bach]

2 hours ago, pH said:

The real trick is to get them to come and pick it up after the election!

Actually, I will remove it at the close of election day as I really do want the sign for my minor collection.

[J. S. Bach]

2 hours ago, simontaylor484 said:

 ...snip... JS Bach will you have to booby trap your yard sign like I have seen some on you tube 

???? Nobody here has messed with any of the signs that I have seen posted around the county.

[J. S. Bach]

38 minutes ago, brianusa said:

Quite a comparison!  There are too many pictures from both sides of the pond which are similar in nature of Brits behaving badly as well as there US counterparts, so all editors must agree.  Showing empty beaches or gatherings with few people would certainly not make headlines and by the same token a dirty 4-4-0 hauling a bunch of trucks wouldn't have the same impact as a double header and the Pines Express.  Of course there are exceptions!

        Brian.

"If it bleeds, it leads." There may not be any blood (yet), but the principle is the same.

Edited September 28, 2020 by J. S. Bach
I forgot to complete the post before I hit the save button!!

[J. S. Bach]

After that grand slam I had better say Night Owl from the Piedmont!

[iL Dottore]

Morning All,

 

All this talk about boilers and central heating leads me to puzzle about how many British approach using their central heating. From what I understand, and I may be totally wrong, it is very common to turn the central heating off before leaving for work and turn it back on again upon returning home, all in the name of “economy“. But isn’t that counter-productive? I would argue that the greatest amount of energy is used In getting the house up to an acceptable temperature, then - if the system is left running - the only energy required is that required to maintain the temperature - which should be minimal. Whereas, if you turn the central heating off and let the house cool down, you need to chuck lots of energy into the system again to heat it back up. Much like it takes the most amount of fuel to get a plane up to cruising speed at altitude and minimal amounts of fuel to keep it there. Perhaps those amongst us more knowledgeable than I about such matters could comment?

 

As a semi relevant digression, I must mention that I am writing this on my iPad in a Chesterfield wing back chair. These were designed so that the wings would trap and retain the heat from the fireplace in an otherwise unheated room.

 

I’ve often wondered why central heating took so long to be adopted in Britain, certainly it was a lot more widespread in Europe and in the US before it got more than a toehold in the UK (That and double glazing) Perhaps the slow uptake was due to the fact that Britain used coal not only for industrial purposes but also for domestic use. I would also imagine that it was cheaper to build houses with fireplaces and flues then install a central heating system. Furthermore, again I am speculating here, presumably a coal fired central heating system would not be practical outside a large house with staff to regularly feed the central heating furnace.
 

We had coal fires at my grandparent’s house when I lived in the UK in the 60s and I certainly remember the smell (and the mess and the hard work to set the fire and clean up afterwards). I think my grandparents were quite happy to move to a place that had gas heating (which was a small gas fire in an otherwise defunct fireplace in each of the downstairs’ rooms. The bedrooms were unheated).

 

Have a splendid Monday

 

iD

[chrisf]

Greetings one and all

 

I spent much of yesterday writing a report of Virtual Scaleforum.  It is with the organiser for comments.  I was quite pleasantly surprised at how well I was able to concentrate on the task.  Maybe I can try some m*d*ll*ng ...

 

It will be interesting to see how much opinion polarises on the issue of the locked-down students.  Recently I took a look at some YouTube footage of student halls.  Some of it is of a much higher standard than it was in my day, 1966-69 (!), but I bet they have to pay pretty much top whack for it.  My final year room on University Plain in Norwich was compact without being poky and had shared facilities - none of that there en-suite!  Someone wrote a parody which was published in the students' union newspaper.  It included this telling couplet:  "Cooking for fourteen on two metal rings, these are a few of my favourite things".  Collectively we are in danger of tarring all students with the same brush.  While some seek to play hard, many just want to work hard.  Indeed, some will manage to do both!  This does not make for attractive news footage.  It is difficult to see how a happy ending can emerge from this latest fine mess.

 

Today I will go for a repeat blood test because the vet is worried about my kidney functions.  It is all very well for him to say "Nothing to worry about" on the phone because it is sure to have the opposite effect.  Then what?  I did not get to hear the swan song of Keith Skues on the radio last night but BBC Sounds could be my friend.

 

Best wishes to all

 

Chris

[TheQ]

Having Stayed at the UEA a couple of times, the majority of the the accommodation today is long corridors of single rooms each with a single 5 Amp round pin Socket. Shower and toilet rooms every so often along the corridors. Centralised eating halls. The same applies to Warwick, Keel and one in Manchester (UMIST?) although the others corridors were nowhere near as long..

 

Mooring Awl, Inner Temple hare..

4.5 hours sleep with a long gap followed by another hour and a half.

 

The telephone man eventually came at around 20:00, far from making it safe I tripped over a temporary cable they've laid on the ground. They didn't tell us about that one... I just held my balance while out on Ben the happy Collies patrol.. He was quite interested in the strange smells from various strangers Foot prints round the garden and he didn't want to go back in...

 

The car didn't want to start a weekend of rain being hammered under the bonnet by the wind without the heat of a running engine made it very damp., When it did start it cut out again shortly after, I had to keep it at high revs until out on the road..

The first part of the journey was taken very cautiously, Narrow country lanes are not high on the list of being cleared..

Wroxham has water from the river across  the car park to over the road . and the boats are floating at car park level..

 A Little further on and a electricity van was just off the road lights flashing in someone's garden.

there are many signs of cleared trees on the way in and there are a few bent and blown over permanent road signs.

 

I see we have another storm issued for next weekend Oh joy.. So I hope the orange shed has fixed it's wood cutting machine, I will be making shelves and re organising the garage for future boat and other work.. (including parking some of the model railway trollies..)

 

Meantime it's after 07:00

 

Time I wandered down to the lab and the recalcitrant major system due this week.

 

 

[Barry O]

Ey up!

Me and my big mouth! Hive system has fallen over..thermostat not working so house got very warm..switched system off..gasman cometh Tuesday.

 

@iL Dottore my neighbours at home had central heating in 1970. He worked for the National Coal Board and had a fee supply of coke. They had a coke burner with a back boiler for to keep the house warm..we had a few electrical heaters and warm bedding..

 

Until everyone starts to understand that the consequences of not being safe will potentially restrict their own and others ability to have a more normal life things won't improve.

 

Today is preparing and posting a parcel or two..

 

Try and have a great day everyone.

 

Baz