iL Dottore

I can understand the desire to stop youngsters from taking up smoking, but as with most attempts to prohibit human “vice” the concomitant and peripheral consequences of prohibition are likely to be as bad as, if not worse than, the vice being prohibited. A 16-year-old kid who thinks it is “cool“ to smoke is not going to be deterred by the simple fact that it is no longer legal for he or she to purchase tobacco products; in fact, such prohibition is likely to increase the perceived “cool“ factor by adding the frisson of illegality to the act. And, as a consequence of this, this underage market (and there will be a market for such things) will be served by people who have absolutely no problem in committing illegal acts; i.e. criminals. The best any society can do is to place restrictions, not prohibitions, on “vice“ to protect the majority and to minimise harm to those who indulge in such “vices“. Such restrictions can include limitations on where that behaviour can be indulged in and, a sometimes successful approach, to make restrict use by making that vice incredibly expensive. Ultimately, the only thing that will permanently change how a society practices (or not) a human vice is through the peer pressure of societal acceptance/non-acceptance. And that, I think, it’s best achieved by education, propaganda campaigns and the barest minimum of legislative nudges. But it won’t (and perhaps can’t) be a quick fix

Maybe there was one of these near Bear Towers? But @Hroth is right. They often don't stop - not even for police https://www.bournemouthecho.co.uk/news/23915831.appeal-subaru-failed-stop-police-wimborne/?utm_source=ground.news&utm_medium=referral

Sorry Bear, Quorn mince disqualifies you (https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2018/feb/12/quorn-revolution-rise-ultra-processed-fake-meat) Better go without meat completely than eat fake meat. If you like olives, capers and garlic, Spaghetti alla puttanesca (prostitute's or s1ut's spaghetti) might do the trick (an authentic recipe is here: https://www.giallozafferano.com/recipes/Spaghetti-alla-puttanesca.html). As always, the secret is in the quality of the ingredients. The origin of the dish is lost, but many claim that the story is that ladies of the evening in Naples created it because they needed something cheap, easy to make, that used readily available ingredients and was quick to fix between customers.

I thought potatoes supplanted (no pun intended) the parsnip - as you can do with the parsnip anything you can do with a potato (boil, steam, mash, purée, fry, chip). Having said that, I haven't seen parsnips baked in their skins (they really don't have any skin) or used cold in a salad (like spuds)

They sometimes aren't the most beautiful of trains, but with the Shinkansen form follows function and every part of the design addresses some issue or another (engineering, passenger comfort, safety etc.) As the gentlemen travelers of TNM can attest, performing manly ablutions on trains at speed often entails "having the bomb-sight wander from the target" (so to speak). The Japanese has solved that by having dedicated urinals with high sides and the space is designed so as to force you to stand in the optimal position for no-mess operations...

Presumably there's a typo there, Bear, whilst some flowers are edible I doubt that even dried and ground they'd make for a decent pizza base (and you're right E575 flour treatment agent and dextrose are not not on the approved list). I checked the ingredients for the Goodfellows Garlic Bread Pizza which are: Wheat Flour, Garlic Flavoured Oil (24%) (Vegetable oil: rapeseed, palm; garlic puree, salt, parsley), Water, Vegetable Oil: Rapeseed; Yeast, Salt. Apart from the palm oil - which is Not Good (not least for the fact that they are destroying orangutan habitats to plant palm oil trees), they are using rapeseed oil. This oil is OK (I sometimes use it), but you loose the unique extra flavour that a good quality olive oil provides. The other thing of concern is the amount of salt used; factory produced foods tend to have more salt than homemade. When you make your own Pizza dough (yeast, water, oil [olive], flour, salt, sugar [a wee bit to keep the yeast happy and productive]) you can not only regulate the amount of salt used, but you can play around with the recipe to get a dough that suits your oven and gets the finished consistency you need (a traditional wood-fired oven can cook at temperatures between 400°C and 500°C, the average domestic oven tops out at about 230°C). As for the other ingredients? It depends upon the quality and sourcing (e.g. free-range egg vs battery chicken egg). You're getting there, Bear.

I'm still awaiting the Damascene Conversion.....

Now you're just being silly. Who has ever heard of a thumb-food or a toe-food buffet? It has to be finger food. As for some the other left overs, you can always make Toed-in-the-hole!

Pizza, or more accurately flat-breads with toppings, have a long history and probably came along soon after man started making bread ("Hey ogg" "what ugg?" "you gotta try a slab of bear on this new-fangled 'bread' stuff, it's delish" "yeah, will do..."). Fruit in savoury dishes also has a long culinary tradition (and is still seen in dishes across the Levant). What I dislike about pizza, is not pizza per se (with the exception, perhaps of "Hawaiian Pizza"*), but rather the fact that most pizza consumed in the UK is frankly rubbish, frequently frozen and often made with the cheapest processed ingredients. If The Bear were to make his own pizza base (which is quite easy and you can do other things whilst it's proving**) and cover it with quality ingredients the he'd have easily merited the coveted "Spoon of iD" (an award given to those who can take simple, unprocessed, ingredients and turn them into sumptuous dishes - both simple and complex). * anyone who puts tinned pineapple on a pizza (or on anything, for that matter) is beyond salvation, redemption and forgiveness. ** once a batch is made you can freeze the surplus - either as balls of dough to roll out or as ready rolled out pizza bases. Just remember to take them out far enough in advance for them to thoroughly defrost.

I need an <envious> emoji button! I haven't got my first 3D printer yet and Chimpey is up to 8! Lucky whatsit!!! Once we've moved to a new place, I'll do my best to convince Mrs iD that I need TWO (not just one) 3D printers: one resin, one extruded filament. And if I can add a laser cutter/engraver I'll never need to buy RTR or kits again (except for the odd motor or two and the occasional set of wheels)

With some adept carving there should be enough for several main meals with with enough left over for a finger food buffet

Rumour has it that JR West will be creating a unique British Railway themed Shinkansen (a bit like the "Hello Kitty" Shinkansen): The Shakespeare Monarch To recreate the modern British Railway ambience The Shakespeare Monarch will feature: Seats that don't align with the windows. Legal minimum thickness seat padding. Out of order on-board toilets. Artfully placed piles of empty sandwich boxes, crisp packets and empty beer tins. Strict adherence to a WTWBL running schedule (Whatever The Time Table It Will Be Late) Overpriced tickets. Random last minute cancellations with "lucky draw" bus replacement service (i.e. you might get lucky and get a replacement bus service seat). Unfortunately, given the Japanese culture and service ethos, The Shakespeare Monarch will not be able to feature strike action, work-to-rule or surly and rude employees. p.s. although computer generated, I think a Union Flag painted Shinkansen actually looks pretty good!

One of the delights of visiting Japan are their "Joyful Trains” (楽しい列車). These are special trains, variously themed, aimed at both the domestic and foreign market. If you include the luxury hotel trains and luxury limited expresses (such as Train Suite Shiki-shima [JR East], Twilight Express Mizukaze [JR West], Cruise Train Seven Stars in Kyushu [JR Kyushu], Saphir Odoriko [JR East], 36+3 [JR Kyushu] Gran Class [various] https://japanrailtimes.japanrailcafe.com.sg/web/article/rail-travel/luxury-trains), then there is something for all budgets. I've traveled on both Gran Class on the Shinkansen and on the Saphir Odoriko and I hope, later this year, to travel on one of the hotel trains - although the tickets are pricey (up to £10,00 for the longest trip on the Seven Stars In Kyushu). However, getting a berth isn't simply a matter of forking over the cash: you have to make an application, which may or may not be accepted (first come, first served). Still, there are plenty of fun trains to ride in Japan (https://www.jreast.co.jp/multi/en/joyful/, https://www.jrailpass.com/blog/joyful-character-trains, https://www.klook.com/en-GB/blog/joyful-trains-japan-guide/) Japan is definitely a destination for those who want to have a unique traim-themed holiday.

I see nothing anomalous about the above, except coloured shipping containers came in much later than the loco’s lifespan. The correct container finish is, of course, polished teak….

Indeed. Opioids are so, so much better. Keeps ‘em nice and quiet. The Victorians knew a trick or two with their patent medicines for soothing troublesome tiny tots….

Returning to liveries, for much of history items dyed (or coloured) purple were considered as the province of Emperors, Kings and the über-wealthy (the original Tyrian purple was made from snail mucus - see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tyrian_purple#:~:text=Tyrian purple is a pigment,with the fall of Constantinople.) Of course, not every purple is made equal. Wiki lists 26 different types (not including web colours). Of all of them, Tyrian purple and Royal Purple would, I think, make for the best locomotive/EMU/DEMU colour. I can see the Japanese coming up with a Joyful Train” (楽しい列車) [tourist or luxury train]) in Tyrian Purple with plush Sapphire Blue upholstery, set off by wood fittings crafted from local woods by master craftsmen.

Apart from the fact that I consider that the last "proper" Bentley was built in 1962 (when they stopped making the S2 - although I 'spose you could be a little forgiving of the S3 model and since the T-Series Bentley have just been building fast lorries), the standard steel series (S1 to S3, built 1955 - 1965) were designed to be - to coin a phrase - owner operated, no chauffeur required (you couldn't get the staff y'know). As to Ferrari, Lamborghini, etc., my father was firmly of the opinion that they weren't sports cars but street legal racing cars and, like racing cars, need to be overhauled and serviced after every use. I think he had a point.

Whoah! DEEP!

You may not come back from Rome, especially if the Colosseum is on the sight-seeing agenda. A very popular entertainment was to pit wild animals - such as Bears - against gladiators or against criminals and Christians* If you’re lucky you’ll get the scrotes to render asunder, if not then it’s bear steaks for tea… * given how the early Christians behaved, the two terms were synonymous…

Returning to the matter of locomotive colours…. Remembering the steam locomotive of my childhood (late 50s/60s) it is clear that the ONLY colour schemes for steam locomotives were: Dirt Rust Dirt AND Rust All this nonsense about GWR green, Midland red* etc., is clearly the product of the fevered imaginations of those who indulge - perhaps a bit too often - in things like waccy-baccy, strong likker and builder’s tea… * they claim to have “photographic evidence” of said colours, but as we know how unreliable colour dyes were in primitive colour film, it would be easy to confuse rust for red, etc….

Now, now. Provocative statements like that could see you back in hospital, Dave - probably to get a scale 57XX removed from an orifice… I have it on good authority that the Swindon types can get really nasty if provoked….

Perhaps it’s just as well we haven’t discussed faecal transplants…..

Yeah I know them. Buy one at Christmas and it turns green by St Patrick’s Day. Well that doesn’t happen here in Switzerland… Apart from the fact that you can get yourself into pretty serious trouble by entering Switzerland with a fake….well, anything. Rolex may be one of the best known Swiss chronometers (they are chronometers not watches) but they’re hardly amongst the most expensive ones. The Patek Philippe Grandmaster Chime Ref. 6300A went for $31 Million at auction in 2019 Rolex are superb watches and you pay for the quality, but they’re rarely in the price league of Patek Phillipe or Audemars Piguet. Anyway, as to fooling the scrotes, fakes are pretty easy to spot (once you own a real one), the fake ones never “sit right” on the wrist.

Naah! I'm not that slim or that handsome....

Only cos he didn't ban frozen pizza at the same time... A "shockingly neglectful oversight" said CPS maestro KS.....