TheBrownDog wrote: ↑Sun May 16, 2021 1:17 pm

RIP wrote: ↑Sun May 16, 2021 11:51 am Can't remember who won last year's Sunflower Club Competition. One of mine ended up 14' high with 16 flowers on it!
Anyway this year's are now up and running....

Pretty sure you took the title mate. I'm not "doing"sunflowers this year. I don't have to. Ive given a chunk of garden space over to wild flowers and bugs and hedgehogs. And feeding pigeons. Having thrown a couple of handfuls of seeds into it, there are now many dozens of seedling sprouting entirely of their own volition. I am ignoring them and interested to see what happens.

Sounds good. Probably ought to get any Kiwi mates to post you some of their hedgehogs, apparently they're a real pest over there now? Meanwhile we need a bunch more of them.

Cheery Tuesday.

After Boris the clown back in March last year said we should shield the vulnerable for 12 weeks......

The Mother In Law moved in with us.

12 weeks ran and ran until late August when she went home while we went on our 2 weeks jollies, only for lockdown 2 to come in and she moved back in with us.

Cheery Tuesday because this evening we took her home..

But for how long is another matter

Not been the most fun of weeks. Spent way too much time working, doing DIY, or planning it (which is even worse), and working myself into a lather about all of the above. Cancelled last night's planned ride because of the miserable weather.

But now it's cheery Friday and I've finally managed to acquire some scaffold boards to make a deck/floor for my new shed/cabin thing, which is a project I'm actually enjoying - messing around outside with bits of wood and concrete and big screws. Seems everyone is doing the same and they've been in short supply but found some from a proper local character and managed to get them at a decent price, and got them home without snapping my roof bars. The rain has become drizzle, so time to get them laid out.

Been potting on various seedlings and flowers - stuff in small pots moved into bigger pots then stuff in seed trays moved into the small pots. A two day job (well a job that's taken two days ) had to go and buy a load of plant pots yesterday - forty of them! I'd used them up in an hour for some flowers, obviously I'd left it a bit late as today they are already 50% bigger, they must like their new found freedom.

So now one greenhouse is full and the other 50% full, hopefully things will warm and dry up a bit and I can get things moved on out into the garden proper.

An email tells me that, I'm apparently just about to go off and "awaken my inner Viking shaman". Well, that's a welcome surprise and a cheery end to any week I'm sure.

I am sat watching my wife burning candles from my son’s ear. I have no idea why? But it’s cheered up my Friday

Quite cheery.

Jab #2 earlier. Still alive. No effects either. Yet.

Three baby goldfinches turned up on our feeders this afternoon - baby goldfinches constructed out of our sunflower seeds via mum & dad goldfinch! Cleverly timed just after the three baby starlings have had their feed.

Managed to swap a Baldwin valve this morning - seals gone. Luckily had warning, or would have failed in a very very embarrassing situation, so that was cheery.

All packed for Chilterns Spring Bling Fling Ring Ding Thing this weekend - cheery anticipation.

TBD's nicely chosen tea for Reg tomorrow evening, spread a little cheery lurve ......

Dave Barter wrote: ↑Fri May 21, 2021 6:03 pm I am sat watching my wife burning candles from my son’s ear. I have no idea why? But it’s cheered up my Friday

Are there two in each ear?

"The warm “suction” is believed to remove earwax, improve hearing, and treat conditions like sinus infections and colds. Ear candling isn't safe and can cause serious injuries" . Hope you've got a fire extinguisher handy!

do you actually put candles in the ears or just wicks? Obviously if there’s wax already there it would be quite a saving, those Yankee candles are not cheap!

No it's bloody not Cheery Friday.

It's currently 3C outside and very, very wet. Dropping lower overnight with temperatures in the wind feeling like -8C. Yep. That's a minus sign.

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BigdummySteve wrote: ↑Fri May 21, 2021 7:38 pm do you actually put candles in the ears or just wicks? Obviously if there’s wax already there it would be quite a saving, those Yankee candles are not cheap!

Good point that HOTT. Would be a very tiny wick though. Another angle to this might be to farm earwax and make candles out of it?

2 firsts today, we had our first paying guest for over a year arrive, a Swede who is "working from home" which entails doing zoom meetings until 3pm then off mountain biking. Second, we are out for a meal at our fave pizzaria at the seaside, again first time since early last year. Mrs PB is tucking into grilled cuttlefish.
It's the Ironcat triathlon tomorrow where we're manning a feed station, should be nice conditions, 25° and calm. 4 years since she finished 2nd overall female.
God I hope this is the new normal.

Nice one Duncan, I’m going to ride around the chilterns in the mud and sleep in a ditch tomorrow . My appreciation of the little things we took for granted, makes this extra special, after the last year it’s like Christmas Eve.

RIP wrote: ↑Fri May 21, 2021 6:12 pm

Dave Barter wrote: ↑Fri May 21, 2021 6:03 pm I am sat watching my wife burning candles from my son’s ear. I have no idea why? But it’s cheered up my Friday

Are there two in each ear?

"The warm “suction” is believed to remove earwax, improve hearing, and treat conditions like sinus infections and colds. Ear candling isn't safe and can cause serious injuries" . Hope you've got a fire extinguisher handy!

yes, see https://www.tinnitus.org.uk/tinnitus-and-ear-candles

Can't believe there aren't loads of cheery Boners - WRT for goodness sake! Highlight Of The Year! Utterly pointless going to any other events. Pale shadows. Honestly. So I don't.

BUT. B.U.T.

Reg, not sat in the Star with a pint talking tripe = not cheery. Not cheery at all.

Reg, sat on a verandah in a little known bit of the Peak District with an Aldwark Ales 'Hare Of The Hill' = cheery.

So they cancel out, almost. Almost.

Before home departure, fixed an embarrassing leakage = cheery. So I'm up on the deal: 2 - 1 = 1.

Hmm? Well, serious loss of regulating air which would have stopped the job on Monday.

Managed to trace to the Air Operated Potentiometer (AOP). Which, obviously, obviously, is hidden behind an obscure panel which took an hour to get off. Washing up liquid spray - uh-oh, 'tophat' diaphragm failed. No spare. Difficult to get hold of. Could just call Pirtek. No fun in that.

As it happens the AOP is now unused. It used to send a 0-44V signal to the Static Control Unit (SCU). However we bypassed the SCU last year (with its complex feeds from AOP, CLP, WSR1, FDR, SSC1-4, DCI, VLI etc etc) and now the KV10 load regulator is controlled by the governor switches VLS/VRS/ADS directly instead. Much simpler. All clear so far I guess?

So I reckon we can just cut the AOP air feed off completely now. Surely that would 'fix' the leak. Er, I think. Maybe. Trouble is you'd need to be 100% sure or a mistake, or not being able to back up, renders the whole situation terminal. I'm 99% sure. OK 95% then. Good enough surely. I mean it's not a Chernobyl situation. What's the worst that could happen.

Luckily have a selection of pipe end stops etc. Let's try them. Oh. Not quite a big enough selection then. Oo-er. OK, getting a bit desperate now after 3 hours to be honest. Got no diaphragm, can't blank it. Arse. Time's running out. This is getting a bit brown-trousery. WTF do I know about pipework anyway? I do electrics. Distinct lack of offers of help as usual though so just got to get on with it then.

Ah! I remember that at the very last moment I put an old inner tube in the tool kit. Dig it out. Scissor a small circle out of it. Undo captive nut on inlet pipe after a touch of heat and swearing (Dave Barter TM). Insert rubber into nut. Tighten. Failed! Undo. Cut bigger circle. Insert. Success!! A bike tube can handle well over 60psi so should be fine here surely.

Job saved at the eleventh hour. Getting too old for this. Operations Dept will have a fit. "Don't Tell Them". OK but I'm not sure we're within the VMI mate... Nah, it'll be fine. Probably.


Anybody else rescued the situation today? Compliments to you.

Sorry to inflict that on you. But it's entirely on topic.

A: 2 - 1 = 1. So 'Friday Cheeriness Quotient' = 1.

B: The repair involved a bike inner tube.

Admittedly in a situation that has absolutely nothing to do with bikes. Well this is the CF thread.

I genuinely hope you're having a fantastic time over there, people. Tussocks. Banter. Abuse. Self abuse. Bogs. Weigh ins. Lost kit. Forgotten kit. Batteries flat.

I really do.

BASTS!!!!

Lemon drizzle!!!!!!!! Super basts! I hope you all trip over a particularly nasty tussock. Hah.

I'm cheery because we're off to Wales. We're going to stay in a fort with my aged parents. Blooming marvellous.

RIP wrote: ↑Fri May 28, 2021 7:03 pm Can't believe there aren't loads of cheery Boners - WRT for goodness sake! Highlight Of The Year! Utterly pointless going to any other events. Honestly. So I don't.

Lots of cheeriness over here. All packed up. My 16 year old grandson is joining me this time, as minder. But his mum has said I’ve got to look after him, so that makes me a minder-minder.

There's a lot of undercurrents in that post Landy mate, which I'm not quite attuned to . Have 'fun' .

Anyway, here you go:

frogatthefarriers wrote: ↑Fri May 28, 2021 7:30 pm

RIP wrote: ↑Fri May 28, 2021 7:03 pm Can't believe there aren't loads of cheery Boners - WRT for goodness sake! Highlight Of The Year! Utterly pointless going to any other events. Honestly. So I don't.

Lots of cheeriness over here. All packed up. My 16 year old grandson is joining me this time, as minder. But his mum has said I’ve got to look after him, so that makes me a minder-minder.

. That is the most confusing post I've read all week. We'll call you Terry-Terry from now on. (not Terry-Thomas, that would be an accolade too far. I Say!). Have a fab weekend Lu.

Landslide wrote: ↑Fri May 28, 2021 7:14 pm fort

Dale? West Blockhouse? A Landmark for Landslide, how appropriate .

Quite unbelievable that nobody's asked what type of inner tube by now.

Conti 26. 1.75 - 2.5 as it happens. Presta. 200g.

What do you mean "what's an inner tube?".