WHAT ATTRACTED YOUR ATTENTION TODAY?

[Stanley]

The first thing that struck me yesterday was the improvement in my quality of life achieved by replacing the washer on a dripping kitchen tap!

What a wonderful job Johnny Pickles did when he built his 1927 copy of the Birch lathe. Lovely tool to work with.



I was reminded of this when I eventually got round to doing some more work on the eccentrics for my engines. However, before I got there I was reminded of how easy it is to get distracted and engage in displacement activity. The first distraction was deciding there are no pockets in a shroud and so why shouldn't an old man treat himself to an automatic lens for his Nikon wonder camera? Half an hour on the web and I chucked £110 at a good second-hand lens. That out of the way I went in the shed to attack the eccentrics. When I switched the lights on one of the fluorescent tubes went AWOL. So, into electrician mode, new tube and starter and problem solved, back to the eccentrics. By the time I had stripped the engine, determined exactly what needed doing, chosen to do the job on the 1927 lathe in the front room and got set up including touching the tools up I will need it was time for our mid-day walk. Just as I got my coat on Doc popped in and so an hour later after a cup of tea and a good natter including a video tour of a splendid world trip class yacht, Doc and I went out to empty Jack and then have a cup of tea with Carol and Amy. Needless to say that was the end of the shed for the day! Never mind, I'm retired and my own boss, all day today to get in there again. (Memo to self, don't get distracted!)

[Tripps]

"a splendid world trip class yacht"

Is this connected with the fact that Doc's house came off the market recently? Is the great adventure now about to happen? Perhaps best to start the pirate ransome fund now.

[Stanley]

I think Doc will tell us when he's ready. I did raise the point about piracy and he says he will go nowhere near them!
Did a full stint in the shed yesterday and by dinnertime I was knackered! Only tiredness though, the knees held out, so I think it's doing me good! Such a pleasure working on Johnny's 1927 lathe.... The man was a genius.

[Tardis]

Matthew Parris:

We have been living beyond our means. We have been paying ourselves more than our efforts were earning. We sought political leaders who would assure us that the good times would never end and that the centuries of boom and bust were over; and we voted for those who offered that assurance. We sought credit for which we had no security and we gave our business to the banks that advertised it. We wanted higher exam grades for our children and were rewarded with politicians prepared to supply them by lowering exam standards. We wanted free and better health care and demanded chancellors who paid for it without putting up our taxes. We wanted salacious stories in our newspapers and bought the papers that broke the rules to provide them. And now we whimper and snarl at MPs, bankers and journalists. Fair enough, my friends, but, you know, we really are all in this together

[Stanley]

Talked to a friend of mine who is a retired historian of the colonies. He's off on a little trip... He flies out to Cape Town and takes the RMS St Helena out to St Helena, works in the archive there and then takes the boat again to Ascension Island to do the same thing. The RAF fly him back from Ascension. He's paying for most of it himself apart from a small grant. There is life after retirement!
How tired my legs have been after the last couple of days in the shed. I have been sitting a lot for the last six months after coughing put my back out. The knees are still slowly improving and I think they have been helped by the exercise but I have to get back into full shed condition! Onwards and upwards!
Sharapova out of Wimbledon. Good, one source of annoyance fades away.....

[Thomo]

RAF Brize Norton will soon be receiving another sad delivery, three more of Britain's finest as a result of another "Green on Blue" attack, this brings the total cost in lives to 422, thats 422 too many, and for what? We feed that country money and good people, they send us bodies and by a more diverse route, drugs!!!

[Tizer]

Matthew Parris:

We have been living beyond our means. We have been paying ourselves more than our efforts were earning. We sought political leaders who would assure us that the good times would never end and that the centuries of boom and bust were over; and we voted for those who offered that assurance. We sought credit for which we had no security and we gave our business to the banks that advertised it. We wanted higher exam grades for our children and were rewarded with politicians prepared to supply them by lowering exam standards. We wanted free and better health care and demanded chancellors who paid for it without putting up our taxes. We wanted salacious stories in our newspapers and bought the papers that broke the rules to provide them. And now we whimper and snarl at MPs, bankers and journalists. Fair enough, my friends, but, you know, we really are all in this together

Tardis, thanks for posting this paragraph from Matthew Parris' article in the Saturday issue of The Times. I usually enjoy Matthew's articles and agree with much of what he says in them, though not everything. However in this case I was very annoyed and disappointed by his use of the word "We" in this paragraph. If he had said "Some of us" I would have let it pass, but instead I have to disagree with every sentence because I know from my experience, and from that of many other people, that `we' is inappropriate. There are many like me who will say, in response to every one of those sentences: "Not me!" Blame were blame is due, Matthew. And as to his last words, "we really are all in this together", that's also untrue - those who were most to blame, who should have shown greater responsibility in their positions as bank executives, politicians and the like - have suffered much less from their own failings than have the rest of us.

On a different note, it's good to see a pic of Johnny Pickles' lathe again. Only last week I was relating the story (of how Stanley recovered the lathe) when I visited a shop selling mineral specimens in Pendeen, Cornwall. A lady runs the shop and her husband, R. Hobbs, made jewellery for sale in his workshop. Now he has given up on that and started making steam engines. Coincidentally they know a man, Ron Farthing, who lived until recently in our village and restores motor cycles. Mr Hobbs was also interested in classic bikes and used to visit Ron to buy parts.

[Thomo]

Quite right Tizer, there are many cases of misuse of the word "we" most of which I would prefer to be excluded from, and there are the assumptions that all of us can be labeled with a single word, ie, "we all love football" I hate it, and I am not alone in that!!

[Tripps]

I agree Tizer. I tried my best to avert the crisis but failed.
When Northern Rock offered 125% mortgages, I closed my account with a flourish, and made sure all in the branch knew why. - "Not with my money, you're not " I cried. Poor grammar, but from the heart. Similarly when Bradford and Bingley gave 'Buy to Let' mortgages at a level of seven times annual income I did the same. The rest is history.

[EileenDavid]

The heavy rain. Rain before 7.00 fine by 11.00 as my old mum used to say lets hope so. Eileen

[Stanley]

Tiz, I agree. We are not 'all in it together' and you're right, the likes of Fred the Shred and Diamond Bob will not be worrying about where the next meal fro the kids comes from. Remember the recent item about teachers feeding kids? Old socialists like me who believe we should be governed for the greatest good of the greatest number are vilified these days by the majority of 'political experts' but in our defence I would point out that under socialist principles we got some of the greatest advances in society we have seen in the last 100 years. There was a time when the Liberals were the radical party and the best line of defence for the poor people but they lost their way at the end of the 19th century triggering the rise of the Labour Party. The shame is that they too have followed the Liberals and lost their way.
Didn't get as tired in the shed yesterday....

[Thomo]

I watched the programme "Bomber Boys" last night, its appalling the way they were treated post war and the memorial is long overdue, one of the aircrew who was in the prog, was Jewish and quite rightly made his opinions felt, shot down near Dresden his comments were, "while we were doing that unpopular thing, not far away my people were being gassed". The people of this country have a reputation for being fair, "Playing the game" and not generally given to doing unpopular things, sometimes this can be a burden. Had Hitler not been stopped by the "few" it is certain that he would have had no compassion for us at all. Thanks to the efforts of some very brave unselfish men he did not get the nuclear weapon he wished for, if he had, he would have used it. The bomber attack on Peenemunde didn't stop his missiles but put the project back far enough to stop the total demolition of London. The attack on Dresden was not carried out just for the hell of it, it was a legitimate target. I knew two of these "Bomber Boys" one, a local Doctor flew in Lancasters, the other was my friend and mentor at a local engineering works, he was a Flight Engineer on Halifax's and took part in many major raids, both were the best men you could wish to meet. Sadly of course yesterday there was an air accident over the Moray Firth and it now looks likely that two more "Bomber Boys" have been lost.

[Tizer]

The Italian car designer Sergio Pininfarina died yesterday and the news was filled with acclaim for his designs for Ferrari, Lancia, Alfa etc. What they didn't mention was that he designed the Austin A40 Farina, and it was the car that became famous for this....



Designed by Sergio Pininfarina, thrashed by John Cleese!

EDIT: Big Kev said in a later post (below) that the car in the Cleese Fawlty Towers episode was an Austin 1100 - and he's right! I've added a couple of pics (from the Web) below for comparison. The two cars have different shaped sidelights rectangular on the 1100 and circular on the A40, and the radiator grilles are differently shaped. Thanks Kev!


Austin 1100 Mk1


Austin A40

[Big Kev]

The Italian car designer Sergio Pininfarina died yesterday and the news was filled with acclaim for his designs for Ferrari, Lancia, Alfa etc. What they didn't mention was that he designed the Austin A40 Farina, and it was the car that became famous for this....



Designed by Sergio Pininfarina, thrashed by John Cleese!

I beg to differ. I believe the car, that is receiving a good thrashing, is the Austin 1100 Mk1.

[Stanley]

A 'little known fact' in Ferguson's book 'Civilization'. He says that Hugo Boss designed the Nazi SS uniforms......
How busy the site was....

[Stanley]

I'm getting an error message from the server which shuts the site down. I seem to be able to get back on by restarting and trying again. I'll let Doc know....

[Nolic]

Comrade, I had the same problem and solution. Nolic

[Stanley]

I've come back on to see if it is still happening. Doc said he would start on the changes to the site last night so it may be something to do with that. Complicated stuff!

[Tardis]

Doc has partially erased the "google" issue

What took my attention: a lady who wishes to do some very strong community events at the end of July/through August

[Whyperion]

Whats a Strong Community Event ? (Brain working overtime on this ). Dont forget the Duck race , etc on 8th July in Victory Park. Annoyingly I am booked for an event in Keighley

[Tardis]

As soon as I have a few more details I will let you know

[Big Kev]

The new layout of the front page, excellent job Doc. Everyhing is easy to find. Thank you.

[Stanley]

Had to go back to have a look Kev. You're right, he has been busy.
No sign of new lens yet. Tension mounts.

[Bodger]

I know this should maybe on another forum, ie angling or treacle, but for what it's worth a tip for anglers, from the Nottingham Post
At Toft Newton, 91 rods caught 378 fish (4.2). A cracking rainbow fell this week to Nottingham angler Harry Stanley at 12Ib 5oz, taken on a Treacle Parkin.

[Tizer]

Kev, thanks for correcting me on the identity of the Fawlty Towers car. I had copied the image from a web site that referred to it as an A40 but you are right, it's an Austin 1100. As a penance I've added a couple of pics in the original post to show the difference.