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Northumberland today, on the ECML at Longhirst and Ulgham Lane once again. Longhirst 37007 Alcan Fort Willimam to North Blyth alumina empties 12th Dec 87 C9291.jpg Longhirst 43095 down 22nd May 93 C18546.jpg Ulgham Lane 43041 up 28th Nov 87 C9281.jpg Ulgham Lane 56121 up coal from Butterwell 12th Oct 91 C16590.jpg Ulgham Lane crossing 37051 down dolofines 28th Nov 87 C9287.jpg David

And the train passing through is not stopping.

A long day again at the office..not hekped by 5 minutes of..chuckinitdarn..pah! Game played in excellent spirit. Everyone behaved well and the winner was cricket. Youngest Herbert could be a very good umpire if he sets his mind to it But I am going to take a brake. League President is not helpful about what happened yesterday at all. The behaviour of others affected how I umpired so..time for a break! Nice to see a long term ER posting today Baz

Greetings one and all How true it is that there is always someone in trouble even worse than you are. At least my cancelled holiday involved nothing more elaborate than a drive of 200+ miles each way and no thoughts of quarantine. It is perhaps only fitting that the hapless Secretary of State for Transport is caught up in the latest fine mess. In just over two months I must find the balance of what my trip to Switzerland over Christmas and New Year will cost me. Only when I have paid it will circumstances arise leading to its cancellation. Any action earlier than that would be unduly precipitate. Those gentle readers who considered yesterday's post gloomy ain't seen nothing yet. Today I shall venture out to make a donation to charity, ie buy my lottery tickets. I shall take the opportunity to renew a magazine subscription. Investing in the future is positive - isn't it? Later I shall make the coq au vin that never was. It has been downgraded to chicken casserole. The packet containing the sauce mix says that it serves four but we'll see. The dessert has already been made and comprises a can of fruit salad set in strawberry jelly. Will I anoint each portion with evaporated milk or serve it on a bed of custard? I shall say no more for now of primitive but effective cooking to spare Flavio from apoplexy - for the time being, anyway. Best wishes and bon appetit to all Chris

Evening from the far south east corner. Last day of freedom for a couple of weeks as tomorrow starting self-isolation for two weeks followed by an overnight stay at the Kent and Canterbury Hospital in Canterbury before which a Covid-19 swab has to be squeezed in somewhere sometime. Must also remember to contact Patient Transport on Tuesday. As I'm self-isolating on my own I can't get a friend to drive me to the hospital so Patient Transport has to be provided. Have to be at the hospital at 7:30am so wonder what time they will want to collect me...... Time to hit the sack. Pleasant dreams, Keith

A slightly late afternoon tea accompaniment. Its just some more fish, the second load from New Clee. I've left this one in widescreen, as it is quite nicely tied in on each side.

Good moaning from semi redundant nurse Ratchett. Beth is up and almostvabout and us recovering very well, she did manage a walk round the garden using two sticks. She always does recover well and won't sit around unless forced to. Eric, I do hope that your mum goes on OK. Obviously in current circumstances I can empathise. Here the moules et frites were a joint enterprise with me being domted to sub sous chef but they went down very well. The G word has been mentioned for today so I will be getting the tractor out. I think I have disuaded Beth from strimming but she wants to have a go with the petrol mower near the house. Apart from that it's a nice sunny dsy and I might even get some more scanning done if it gets warm this afternoon, and also hope to listen to the test match. Regards to all. Jamie

A little late to the recent postings of DMUs, but here is one I have been working on for some time, a 3 car Class 120, OO gauge. Made using a Craftsman conversion kit, on Comet underframes, with the centre car powered by a Replica Railways chassis. Getting near to being finished, but the roof needs a spray to even out the colour, connecting wires need painting, and it all needs weathering. The centre car needs a bit more work, and I need to run it on the layout (currently in parts) to test the wiring to finish that (DCC with roof lights and LEDs in the outer front marker lights, on two different circuits). The bodies also need sitting on the frames better, I think the front holes for the bolts need opening out a little as one of the frames is bowing a little. A few photos of the end units which are very nearly done. The first was a couple of weeks ago, the other after more painting. I did repaint the passenger in the ‘dog poo brown’ coat and the bright red lady at the back after seeing the photos. Lovely to see the other photos of DMUs on here, and of course thanks for the advice from the thread. Jamie

Until comparatively recently, there was no compulsion to have any private pension, there was a feeling among many of those in the "Lower working" class, that you got your money and spent it. The post war promises of a Utopia with National health, state pension and subsidized council housing would keep you in fags and beer till the end. Well that sort of worked in the 50's and 60's possible until in the 70's the bill's started coming in with an increasing longevity of people. When the first old age pension came in the average person died just a couple of years later, Now it's 20 years + later. It's only in the last few years that people were forced to take a company pension or make other arrangements, but even on that there are get outs. That will of course take 30 years + to start making a difference to the average persons retired life.. For myself when I first reached technical training in the RAF (mid 1970s), they had a pensions and mortgage expert, come in and give a lecture. This explained how it worked and projections for the future, the man was very good, I followed his advice. Although for most of my life I've only been earning much less than the national average pay, once retired and travelling expenses to work are removed, our income will not be too dissimilar to now.

Having perused the weather forecast, and looked out of the window, I have decided against golf today, but not yet what activity will replace it. Inactivity sounds quite promising, actually. Of course there will be photos and a poll though, so I'll get on with those. On the Down side, we have the B1 occupying the main, and a K1 with parcels from East has run into Platform 6. That means Thane of Fife with a KX- Dringhouses Class C is relegated to the slow, but will get a clear run through.

It's not just the sensible use of funding, but employing people who think before they act. There are hospitals and schools where changing a light bulb can cost hundreds of pounds! But let's not automatically blame the 'idiot who spent so much on the lightbulb' let's look at the actual cost. Obviously there is the cost of the bulb, then you have to pay someone to fit it, and that is where the true cost is: Why? Because the building was designed by an architect who was more interested in light airy rooms, and wanted a Design council award. The design of the building means high ceilings, so a light bulb change requires a scaffolding tower to be hired in, so that the bulb can be replaced. We had a local primary school that was completely rebuilt: Award winning, incorporating parts of the old building and and new design. Loved by all, apart from the teachers who had to work there. Who puts full height glass windows into classrooms that face south? Who removes short corridors which allow quick access and creates a long one that runs around the perimeter of the building so that going from one side of the school to the other takes five times as long? The answer is people who don't have to work in the place

Thank you for the kind comments. I can confirm, after some good discussion with a few friends, Ffarquhar hasn't been scrapped. I'm going to be buying some wood on Friday to make extensions to the main boards. I'm very thankful to have decent supports and some very good friends. Otherwise my modelling would have ended long ago.

So when can we see you on Mastermind? Chris

The broads are home to several escaped things.. Egyptian geese, Moscovy duck. Black Australian swans. The odd prisoner.. And corona 19 virus.. Of which the paper revealed today the distribution of deaths due to the virus, of the 21 deaths, in my area since March, 4 have been due to the virus.. And we are one of the lowest areas in the country....

I have visited both WrOxham and WrExham. And I know which I prefer. One is on the way to Cromer, the other on the way to Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwrndrobllllantisilogogogoch. I prefer the one that's easier to say

Even I have been there.

I am back from my bicycle test at Southend. The person conducting the test said I was the first patient apart from those undergoing cancer surgery to have this test since the Covid infections started. I did have to cycle until I felt I couldn’t go on much more. Though I suspect they do eventually tell you to stop. I don’t think people who dislike masks would enjoy the form fitting face mask used in the test. Now I just have to wait for an appointment to go to Basildon for the stent procedures. Tony

That reminds me of some dodgy signage that passed through my scanner the other day : -

Mooring Awl Inner Temple Hare, 860 /538. 4.5 hours plus 1 hour plus 2 hours sleep, not a bad total for me, John Kettley fingers inform me it's going to rain, as evidenced by light drizzle in the form of big very occasional spots, Ben the I'm Not sure about this Collie, was reluctant to go on patrol, I think he knows what's coming, as the forecast says Thor intends to do some work. Body aches after the weekend's efforts but nowhere near as bad as last week. Welcome to Norfolk Day, always held on 27th of July, which can be awkward during the week. Many events and celebrations of all things Norfolk would be held in a normal Year . I would suggest they have Beaten Coombe Barton to it and presented him with a Christmas Wreath.. £155 spare cash, that's near £700 a month if only, for most of my life there was rarely spare cash in any quantity and the first couple of years after getting a mortgage our, accounts were of the getting deeper into the red. Only after going to Saudi for 6 years and paying off the Mortgage, did we reach the level of having real spare cash.. That £700 is probably about right for us now.. Two years or so to go and the economics change again as pension time beckons.. Humm, having just booted up the computer, it now says I have two hours before it reboots, I wonder what they are going to change this time.. This weeks work 1 major system and a few minor units, can't have too much on because if it runs over I'm not here next week.. Time to Head for the lab.. (and leave this computer rebooting again..)

Good evening everyone We’ve had some rather good weather here today, although there were a few dark clouds around dinner time, thankfully the rain held off, but are forecast some during the night. As I mentioned earlier this morning, work continued on the turntable control panel. I managed to get the holes drilled for 15 point operating switches and 30 indicator LEDs this morning. After dinner I fitted all the switches and LEDs to make sure it all fitted and good ok. Once happy, all the switches, buttons, LEDs, sockets and hinges etc was removed from the panel and it was given a good rub down with fine sand paper and it is now in the cellar ready for painting. The photo below shows everything in place. Goodnight all

Evening. Horrid weather this morning, proper old fashioned rain. The river in Peel flows through the marina, (no clowns) there is a half-tide gate. The water has been a trickle for weeks, only just coming through the fish ladder slowly. Today was a little different!

Happy Monday - who knows!! Nothing "reacted to" as I am once again getting a "there's a problem reacting to this message" every time I try, it's not for want of trying that I've not reacted to anyone/anything Quiet weekend once again, the bursitis VERY slowly getting better I think, so incrementally small steps I'm very bored, oh well! Working today and otherwise will be another slow day. Jemma will be home/over to pick up Whitney later, she had a morning flight to Atlanta, then flying home from there as her schedule ends today. 20 first thing, sunny and very pleasant. High of 28 expected. Carry on.

Morning all, Awful weather here today with wind and rain - yet again! We have more than paid for the good spell we had in April and May. July has been a windy washout to all intents and purposes. I have ventured out in the rain today, all the way to see Sister Drac for a blood test. It seemed to me that all the procedures which had been carefully outlined to me on the phone Just weren’t followed. Nothing was likely to spread the virus, but why have systems if you aren’t going to follow them? It doesn’t help when the public are sometimes terminally stupid. While I was sat in the waiting room, which had 4 chairs out of every 5 covered with a DO NOT SIT HERE label, the staff met a guy at the door and told him to sit in a uncovered seat, so where did the bozo actually sit? On a labelled seat of course. He was socially distanced at least. It would have been nice to have a wander round while I was out, but it was so wet, I didn’t bother!

Not forgetting the risk assessment, doing the job on the night shift so as not to create too much disturbance, training the staff to work at heights (yes, I had to go on a course to train me how to use a stepladder.....), bean counters putting the job out to tender, bean counters assessing the tenders, "free" lunches for the bean counters so the contractors can justify their bids...... Where I worked they put a small rubber speed hump across the road on site; the speed hump was from kerb to kerb, so when it rained the water on one side of the 'ump wouldn't get to the drain. When it rained...you've guessed it.... So a new tender to get someone in to cut 6" off each end of the 'ump. Cost? Well, there were three zeros on the end, all to the left of the decimal point. My mate & I had the tools and know-how to do the job in an hour.

Such big words are way beyond a Little Bear. I did start to investigate the meanings of such fine contraptions, however it soon became apparent that I didn't understand the explanations of the meanings either So I've headed off into a calm, secure place in order to attempt some semblance of recovery. Quiet meditation, aided by a very large portion of Jaffa Cakes should help.

Stage 8 The wife files for divorce and you have to sell up the house and go and live in a tiny apartment with no room for even a couple of yards of track. Not to worry as you've had to sell off all your models and stock to pay the (ex) wife.

Mr Bear's early warning Radar detects a strong presence of cynicism, with a dash of p1ss being taken thrown in for good measure....

After doing a bit of research I realised that my new V24 ventilated goods van was wrong, or could be depending on year, in that there was a Board of Trade ruling saying all single sided braked wagons should be changed to both side braked. Single set of brakes shoes was still OK but there must now be brake levers on both sides by 1939. So, back into the workshop she went for the addition of a brake lever on the non shoe side. Here she is returned to the fleet sporting new lever and connecting rod between hangers... And before anyone comments that is the roof vents on the signal box behind and not some new fangled GWR goods cooling system.....

Morning all, S*ddimng editor had to be cleared yet again, why can't he/she take a day off occasionally? It's been raining, again - I'm told the garden needs it. Ian (RH) I found a very simple and highly effective answer to foxes digging holes - put some broken pieces of flint into the hole. Foxy returns and either sticks nose into hole or gets the paws in to start digging and an instant ouch! is guaranteed. Foxes learn quickly and one ouch! is quite enough it would seem. I do have the advantage of a good stock of broken pieces of flint acquired free of charge from digging of the garden over many years. The £155 of spare cash struck me as a remarkable bounty and something we very rarely saw for most years of our married life as what we had was always consumed by something needed for the house, the car, or the offspring (and occasionally for ourselves) . For many of us I think sums like that only start to appear once we have said goodbye to a mortgage and/or reached pensionable age with the benefit of more than the state pension coming in to support us. Equally of course a good salary in pre-marriage days could also result in generation of spare cash depending on one's domestic and living circumstances. Similarly employment when you are already drawing a pension can generate considerable surplus cash even after the tax man has grabbed his share - depending very much on the type of employment and what it pays. The question of 'what it costs' is an interesting area and very often, even with lots of extras, what a job actually costs is much less than the assessed cost of that job because things like overheads have not been added. This is probably something coming to the fore now in the post Covid world as employers get a much clearer idea of what can be saved if employees work from home and overheads will be massively reduced once you factor in office space costs and things like season ticket loans or car parking provision of company vehicle mileage - and that is before you assess productivity improves in staff who are not suffering the stress & tiredness of travelling to/from home. It is already having an upward impact on the prices of certain types of property in this area as people have found they can do their job from home so therefore have a greater choice of where they can live provided they get somewhere with suitable home office space and access to decent broadband speeds but no need to spend money on travel to/from work. For example the lad is saving £40 plus per week through not having to drive to/from work and can just as easily talk to people around Europe and the USA as he could from his office base (all he's using to do it is my bandwidth and our dining room table although the latter does interfere with various other household matters). And I was of course for some years cheerfully working from home on consultancy jobs although they invariably also required site visits as we don't have things such as a standard gauge railway network, signal box, or 1 million ton stockpile of power station coal, in the back garden - thankfully). Have a good day one and all and stay safe.

Morning all from Estuary-Land. I have no idea of how much 'extra' I have every month to spend except that it is enough for me not to worry about. Every financial year (April-March) I check my bank balance compared to the previous year and every year the balance has increased by a small amount, (low hundreds), Micawber principle rules. This year the balance is noticeably rising due to the lockdown, I'm not spending money going to shows and swap meets and therefor it stays in the bank. I am fortunate that I was with the same employer for almost 38 years and paid into the pension scheme all that time but the present employees will not enjoy the benefits that I had such as final pay settlement. Being in the public sector my pension was as safe as houses but IMHO the pensions in the private sector should be tightened up. Sir Philip Greedn should have paid for his second yacht out of his own pocket instead of dipping into his employees pension pot. I thought that something was done about this after the Robert Maxwell/Mirror newspapers scandal but apparently not. Most pension schemes in the private sector however are well run, I know many pensioners of the Ford Motor Company and their pension scheme is very well run and not that dissimilar to my own local government scheme. Designed by a Star Wars set designer perhaps? I run a local history group and an early Edwardian photograph was shown of a junior school near to me (Vange). The building dates from the mid 1890's and is still in use for its original purpose. Apart from the usual updates the building is much as it was when it was built. The only noticeable difference is that the toilets have been roofed over and a covered way placed between them and the main building. When I was at junior school the toilets were open to the sky and in winter toilet pans frozen over was quite common.

The irony, slowing down the one thing you want to disperse quickly!

This seems to be a commonplace consequence of having a fall. Especially true for anyone living on their own and, quite properly, wondering how long they might be lying there unaided. I very much recommend the wearing of a safety alarm necklace. Puts he mind at rest about falls, both for the wearer and for their carers.

Tee shirts

Not all modern designs are bad. I think this bridge over the River Severn at Jackfield is a little known gem of modern design: Probably designed by a target makerCivil Engineer.

Ey up! Chuckinitdarn here..pah! Mugatea has been made and drunk. I have some wood to buy, some foam gap filler to buy, some wasp nest foam to buy some spray paint to buy.. i guess today could involve time in some hardware stores and shops. Make the most of your day everyone! Baz

I have been putting whole bricks in the holes that the foxes keep digging under the fir trees but they still dig them out again. Recently they have started digging small holes in the lawn to get at worms when it rains. I have bought some fox deterrant pellets but they have to be applied every few days and werent cheap.

Thanks, My sister is a GP and lives only a few miles away so she went around soon after it happened. Mum thought she was in the middle of her bed and rolled over to check her phone. Unfortunately the was already on the edge of the bed so fell onto the bedside drawers and banged her face on the metal drawer handle. Her sister, my aunt had a similar fall last year and was advised plastic surgery to correct the damage but at nearly ninety she said not at my age. I’m not bothered about my looks. On a serious note though it knocked her confidence and she hasn’t been out of the house since. Robert

Moan-day has entertained me for long enough. Here’s to a brighter version tomorrow. G’night all.

Maserati Probably not the one iD wanted!

I missed page 8888. But it looks as though I might have got reply 222222. Not sure quite how you check that but counting backwards from the current total of 222227 ......... And inebriate Mancunians on my most recent visit! Black swans aren't ten-a-penny in the UK yet but there is quite a number in widely dispersed pairs. Two made a home on Marazion Marshes in Cornwall some years ago which barely rippled the interest of the large number of twitchers up the road at Hayle Estuary who were far more interested in the Spoonbill, Bar-tailed Godwit and Greenshank there. We have green parakeets locally here which are thought to be of Indian rather than Australian origin and have now bred successfully to around 5000 pairs. Known as Twickenham Parakeets they are a daily sight.

I have been to Wr0xham and even spent a night on the Broad there where I remember seeing a Mandarin Duck. Jamie

Good afternoon all, What a miserable day. Just what one might expect for the summer holidays in England, I suppose A sciurine incursion into the flower beds yet again must be dealt with. The bacon at lunch didn't taste of bacon - in fact it tasted of nothing at all very much, and the weather is awful. But let's not moan about the weather eh? We'll leave that to all the others

They put a full width road hump across the road from the tank park to the range at Lulworth. A quick across it in a Challenger 1 meant it was a hump missing areas where the tracks had chewed the hump!! Good morning. ..Wood found , spray paint procured, various other items bought so now. .time to sit in my work area and do some muddling! Baz

Some from last night, conducted the sleeper between rugby and stafford via the west mids and bescot caught a Pendolino to euston 92 on the blocks having bought the sleeper train in and the loco for the night, 92043 never been on a 92 before, they look complicated in the cab, lots of lights and buttons! and into crewe and off it went Iport today

I am sorry to hear that. It’s easy to forget how frail the very old (>85yo) can be, their bones are not as robust as ours (and, for various reasons including changes in hormones, women are particularly vulnerable) as Joseph Pestell noted (below) there are various alarm systems that can be worn and activated in the event of a fall (or other medical incident). Knowing that help is just a button push away should help restore confidence Probably not any time soon, given that contestants have to be UK based. But if I did, then I’d do extremely well, given the correct answer will always be “Baghdad”* * reference requires some knowledge of classic British comedy... I suspect you are right. I would imagine there is very little “cutting edge, innovative and daring” work that can be done on a bridge and still have it stand up I would also like to add that there are also wristwatch like alarms available. I understand that there are advantages and disadvantages to both types. I am shocked, Mr Bear, shocked. How dare you snatch the very food from the mouths of the wives and babes of these honest jobbing contractors... Whatever next? Insisting that these poor, honest, men-of-toil’s labours come in on time and on budget.... The next thing you’ll be suggesting is that those morally upright and totally impartial individuals awarding contracts should never help their friends out to the tune of a useful little contract here and there... Disgusted in Tunbridge Wells

Good morning everyone It’s chuckinitdarn, so any thought of gardening activities has been put on hold for the foreseeable! So a bit of tidying up and moving stuff around in the cellar is on the cards I think. Oh, and I might give the control panel it’s first coat of primer. Stay safe, stay sane, enjoy whatever you have planned for the day, back later.

So true. Primary schools have much the same requirements wherever they are in the country. So it ought to be possible to design a standard primary school, in modular form, which could be built pretty much anywhere. Makes for a duller world but what huge potential savings could be achieved. Lessons to be learned here from the major housebuilding companies who manage to make homes with a variety of "looks" despite using a lot of standard components. The lighting issue that you raise is an obvious one. Why have lights suspended from the ceiling when that makes bulbs hard to change? Large windows on the south face of a building is a good thing - so long as there are adjustable shades to use in hot sunny weather.

Too late. I had to take a benzodiazepine and go and lie down in a dark and quiet room.... Seriously, I would avoid packet sauces etc. if at all possible. I have just finished reading a book about the adulteration of food, from the Georgian period all the way up to the present day. And whilst producers are no longer making their green vegetables green by adding copper salts or arsenic (and so on) the list of what is permitted to be added to food Is both lengthy and frightening. Often, if you read the packet instructions carefully, you end up saving no time over preparing from fresh ingredients. And, furthermore, you know exactly what went in to your meal if you make from scratch. A good example is home made bread. Some years ago I bought myself a Panasonic bread machine and ever since have been making my own bread, usually it’s a pretty straightforward white loaf (flour, water, salt, yeast and a fat-either butter or olive oil), but sometimes I get adventurous and make things like onion bread and herb breads. The difference between commercially made bread and home-made bread was driven home one week when I had forgotten that I had a little bit of leftover bread in the bread basket: one piece was home-made bread, the other piece was commercially made bread. The home-made bread was hard as a rock, but otherwise edible (either as croutons or in a bread pudding), whereas the commercially made bread - whilst still soft - was covered in mould. Need I say more? That is appalling, especially when you consider – as you pointed out – that for some (many?) it is the sole income. In Switzerland, we have the three pillar approach: the first pillar is the state pension, the second pillar is the company pension and the third pillar is one’s own private pension fund. Taking these three together, it does mean that for most people the daily needs are more than adequately covered. I suspect a significant difference between the UK and Switzerland is that in the UK for a lot of people there is the belief that “the state will provide“ and nothing else is required, whereas in Switzerland there is a lot more emphasis on self reliance with the state stepping in only when necessary. I think there are other things to consider when evaluating your financial needs in old age: Firstly is whether or not you own your own property; if you have paid off your mortgage then this is one less expense to worry about. Secondly, us “old folk“ don’t need to buy as many new things as we used to (toys and self indulgences excepted). Additionally, if in the past one bought things designed to last, not only do they not need to be replaced but they are likely to outlive the owners (A good example would be my Tizio reading lamps from Artemide, the Italian lighting manufacturer. They are a classic design, and apart from having to replace the occasional low voltage halogen bulb, have been performing flawlessly for the last 20+ years). Finally, I think the last consideration is what sort of retirement does one want. For some, staying at home and building an O Gauge replica of St Pancras station from matchsticks, would be a desirable retirement. Others will want to see the world, others to indulge in their grandchildren (as for me, I plan to continue to consult as long as I feel up to the job. Apart from keeping me mentally stimulated, it will also allow me to put some caviar on my blinis! ) Enjoy the start of your week!