WHAT ATTRACTED YOUR ATTENTION TODAY?

[PanBiker]

The flywheel arrived before noon, quite remarkable speed. The postie told me that one or two people had the same reaction yesterday, the Post Office must have been running smoothly over the weekend.

Not for me. I ordered the aluminium box section for my antenna project on Sunday and it was posted via Royal Mail on Monday. I have a tracking number for it and an expected delivery date of yesterday or today. Yesterday has gone and half of today so I went online to track it and see where it is. Popped the tracking number in which just returns. "tracking will be update when we try to deliver your item". What use is that? The tracking applet shows despatched, in transit, out for delivery and delivered. Only the despatched is lit up. Chocolate teapot comes to mind.

[Stanley]

Hard luck Ian....

[Tizer]

I'm sure you've all noticed that Britain, and perhaps the world at large, is in meltdown. Lots of products and services don't work. Many people in charge are incompetent. Nobody but us seems to care, they're just pigging out on TV, social media, frothy coffee and cocaine. Fiddling while Rome burns comes to mind. Could this be the end of western democracy and the triumph of a more authoritarian regime? Will Chinatyke's chosen country take on the job of governing the UK?

[PanBiker]

My box section aluminium was delivered this morning. Not bothering to check the so called "tracking"

[chinatyke]

I'm sure you've all noticed that Britain, and perhaps the world at large, is in meltdown. Lots of products and services don't work. Many people in charge are incompetent. Nobody but us seems to care, they're just pigging out on TV, social media, frothy coffee and cocaine. Fiddling while Rome burns comes to mind. Could this be the end of western democracy and the triumph of a more authoritarian regime? Will Chinatyke's chosen country take on the job of governing the UK?

I hope so, for your sakes. In 2006 I was on a visit to the UK with an Australian friend. We were in Leigh town centre precinct about 9:30 one morning and my friend said "There's something wrong with your country." I asked him what he meant. He said "Just look around you, there isn't one person who looks happy." Looking around at the miserable faces I had to agree with him. Having said that, early morning in Leigh centre isn't the best place to make a judgement of the whole country!

[Gloria]

Flying ant day this afternoon over in west lancs.

[Wendyf]

Horrible Gloria! No sign of them here.

[Gloria]

They bubbled out of the lawn, which is strange as they usually come through the flags.

[Stanley]

The fact thunder is threatened during my projected visit to Skipton market.
Peter, I agree with you about melt down and incompetence. There was a discussion on R4 yesterday which started by looking at deteriorating supply chains in industry, many attributed to Brexit and Covid but then Tim Lang spoke of food shortages which are also being attributed to the same causes but he says the problems started before Brexit and Covid and are basically down to the fact that we import 60% of our food. Incidentally he said that he thought it was madness to exit Europe on the grounds of food security alone. He says that we are in serious trouble now on food imports and associated matters and it will only get worse. Time to start addressing this and growing more of our own.
I agree with him, we learned some hard lessons during WW2 and forgot them immediately afterwards. The disruptions in food production due to climate change are going to dwarf what happened in the war and we need to act now. There are no signs of any urgent action by anyone on this. We are planting trees on good productive land to amass Carbon Credits so we can keep burning fossil fuels. Crazy!!

[Stanley]

A heavy thunder shower at Broughton on the way back from Skipton yesterday afternoon. Otherwise almost dry, certainly not the wash-out that was forecast.



What a pleasant companion my daughter is. She's finding it difficult to get motivated to do anything due to her condition and says that it does her good to be nagged by me into setting off. Clitheroe on Friday next week!

[Tizer]

I've got a great idea about how to stop the Taliban fighting and it could be extended to other areas of warfare around the world. Mrs Tiz drew my attention to this article...
`Tabletop gaming: The therapy of fighting with miniature dragons' https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-nottinghamshire-57996237
We should fly our military jet transports over Kabul and other Afghan cities and drop parachutes holding crates containing hundreds of these modelling kits. The Afghan fighters will get so absorbed in making the models and then setting out their war games on tabletops that the country will be at peace for the first time in its history. Job done!

[PanBiker]

Five blokes digging a hole at the bottom of the back of Bessie Street and Pleasant View. Amazingly they have managed to get barriers up and a mini digger in the small square they are working in. I say five blokes, there were five then it was left to three, two operating the industrial angle grinder then the shovels and their mate on the digger. Cant tell whether they are Open Reach guys or from some other utility company.

[Tripps]

I've just seenm an interview by Kay Burley on Sky News in which the interviewee says we should trust the Taliban as they have changed, and judge them by their actions not our preconceptions. He said that under Taliban rule, women would be allowed to take part in education and medicine, in accordance with Sharia law. When challenged about their treatment of women such as rape, 'marriage of 12 year olds to 'fighters' he asked to see the evidence.

Understandable if the man's name had started with Mullah . . . . - however this chap was Chief of the Defence Staff. Sir Nicholas Carter

[Stanley]

I listened to him David and thought he talked sense. He refused to comment on Blair but it was quite obvious what he thought. He's not very impressed by the way the government is functioning either....

[Tizer]

Anyone fancy a walk up Snowdon? Just look at the number of people - and they can't even see anything from the top!
`Snowdon: Call to respect mountain amid spike in visitors' LINK

[Stanley]

I remember going up on the railway many years ago, dense cloud at the top. Deep Joy!

[Tizer]

It's great to see people making things - especially out of waste! Although it keeps plastics in circulation at least it gives us more time to find better ways to deal with the waste on the large scale...
`From earrings to tiles – what you can do with plastic waste' LINK

[Big Kev]

I've just ordered a new Silentnight Eco Comfort Breathe Pocket 2000 Mattress that contains 150 recycled plastic bottles.

[Wendyf]

A Kuwait Air force Hercules just flew over, taken off from Athens.

[Stanley]

Now I know what China was on about in the DIY thread....
Why is Kuwait spying on Lower Burnt Hill? Has Johnson sold them Yorkshire?

[Wendyf]

Prestwick Airport encourages foreign military stopovers!

[Stanley]

The Walnut Tree outside Barlic Bites in the Town Square has been felled. Why? It's a disgrace. Anything to do with the high value of the wood?

[Tripps]

Mentioned by David Whipp in his Facebook page. Causing root damage he says.

David Whipp

[Stanley]

I've asked him about the value of the wood....

[PanBiker]

Soma are suggesting knocking the building down and leaving the tree. No thought for the businesses and occupiers of what remains of Majestic Buildings of course. Anyway David and Tom Whipp, (he never refers to him as just his lad Tom, which I find a bit weird) have done the right thing and taken some cuttings for replanting elsewhere.