AS: Cool Britannia (sort of): the British thread 2019

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  • BoogieBoogie Shipmate
    edited September 2019
    I had an MRI when I fell on my head and knocked myself out a few weeks ago.

    It was all beeepy beeep beeep and took far longer than I expected.

    Today I will be mostly washing clothes.

    I counted my steps in New York with an app on my phone - well over 20,000 a day! So I’m now determined to do 10,000 a day now that I’m home. Walking Tatze round the res took 4,000 so another 6,000 to go. I’ll do the washing the hard way by walking backwards and forwards from the rack with one piece at a time. Our heated rack is on the landing so I’ll do the same with that. :blush:
  • My nearest-and-dearest had a felicitous moment yesterday. When she went to bed the previous night, she realised she'd lost an earring, not valuable but one she liked. A search around her Usual Chair the next day revealed nothing.

    Later on she watered the houseplants, including one on the windowsill in the downstairs toilet. As she looked down, she happened to notice the earring floating in the water! It must have come off when she pulling her clothes up after using said facility the previous day. Fortunately neither of us had used it since! She was so pleased.
  • BroJamesBroJames Purgatory Host, 8th Day Host
    …for an MRI, babies are swaddled in bandages for the duration to stop them moving about. Captain P looked just like Christmas-card baby Jesus, and it is to my everlasting regret that I didn’t take his picture. Anyway, to get back to my original point about the noise, he somehow managed to fall asleep before the end. He had ear defenders, but even so…
    IME babies do like to be properly wrapped. We have a shawl which my Gran knitted for me before I was born which is excellent for that purpose. We used it for our four. And noise is only an issue if it startles. Merely loud and meaningless is not a problem.
  • PigletPiglet All Saints Host, Circus Host
    There were a few small babies at my niece's wedding, and at the reception, when things started getting a bit noisy, some of them had little headsets to keep the sound down. It seemed to work - they all appeared quite contented (and in Archie's case, obviously, spectacularly cute :heart: ).
  • Interesting, seeing that headsets go over the ears while sound is produced by the mouth.
  • :lol:

    I've had quite a few MRI scans in recent years, so really don't have a problem with them. Yesterday's didn't seem quite as loud, now I come to think of it, so maybe they've got one of the new, quieter, ones.

    Some of the sounds seem to me to be a cross between Heavy Metal, and the music of Arvo Part...

    For all the sh*te heaped upon the NHS, by 'government', and by Joe Public, I reckon they do a Jolly Good Job, under very trying circumstances.
  • PigletPiglet All Saints Host, Circus Host
    Interesting, seeing that headsets go over the ears while sound is produced by the mouth.
    You old cynic, you! :mrgreen:
  • I'm only 65 - less of the "old" please!
  • O quite - 65 is the new 40!
    :wink:
  • Not that it always seems it, first thing in the morning ...

    On the other hand, when I took a local school assembly just after 9 this morning, asked children what they thought they were good at, and received the answer "swimming" from one of them, I could truthfully say that I had been swimming before coming to school.
  • Our Place's Father NewPriest, who is pushing 71, goes swimming once a week, and looks well on it.

    The only time I go swimming now is if I happen to fall overboard when the tide's in.
    :grimace:
  • PigletPiglet All Saints Host, Circus Host
    My dad used to swim 30 lengths of the local pool once a week; he started shortly after it was built (in the 1970s)* and didn't give it up until well after Mum went into hospital, by which time he'd have been over 80.

    * There was a special session for Council staff, and he and a couple of his colleagues went every Friday after work. Any benefits it may have had on their health were probably cancelled out by the drinks they had in the Orkney Club afterwards ... :neutral:
  • Wesley JWesley J Shipmate
    edited September 2019
    [...] On the other hand, when I took a local school assembly just after 9 this morning [...]
    I hope you put it back where it belonged!

  • Yes indeed. And with reference to BF: if he should fall overboard when the tide is out, he presumably does a little bit of mudlarking.
  • O yes - I've measured my length in the mud on more than one occasion!
    :grimace:
  • Piglet wrote: »
    My dad used to swim 30 lengths of the local pool once a week; he started shortly after it was built (in the 1970s)* and didn't give it up until well after Mum went into hospital, by which time he'd have been over 80.

    * There was a special session for Council staff, and he and a couple of his colleagues went every Friday after work. Any benefits it may have had on their health were probably cancelled out by the drinks they had in the Orkney Club afterwards ... :neutral:

    I expect they would have gone there after work on a Friday anyway, so the pool undoubtedly helped.
  • PigletPiglet All Saints Host, Circus Host
    I reckon that was their thinking!

    It's a beautiful day here - 17° and not a cloud in the sky - once I've digested my lunch (a takeaway Chinese from Buffet to Go), I think an Amble would be in order.
  • We're off to Bristol shortly, a place I've never been to, for a wedding. Looks like it's going to be a nice day weather wise and the schedule for the day looks good too. Having tried on various things from my wardrobe last week and decided on an outfit I have changed my mind and gone for something completely different, deciding that comfort was more important than dressing-upness.
  • Sarasa wrote: »
    We're off to Bristol shortly, a place I've never been to, for a wedding. Looks like it's going to be a nice day weather wise and the schedule for the day looks good too. Having tried on various things from my wardrobe last week and decided on an outfit I have changed my mind and gone for something completely different, deciding that comfort was more important than dressing-upness.

    I couldn’t agree more - have a great day!

    We know and like Bristol as our son lives there. 🙂

  • Have a lovely day in Bristol! Everyone seems to live there, or to want to live there - but it's altogether too big-city for my taste! I can get myself to Cribbs, or to TIG's pre-school, but apart from that I would be completely lost...

    Mrs S, country girl
  • I used to live there.
    Loved it then, when I was 20, but I expect it has changed a lot in 50+ years. My tastes certainly have, I'm not keen on cities these days.
  • Born and brought up in Bristol and loved it. Moved a little south to a village 50 years ago, so even driving through now seems different and weird! Wells is a big enough city for me to visit now 😉😂. Have a great time @Sarasa, it is a beautiful day here!
  • Having a lovely time. Open house weekend so enjoying a bit of culture as well as food from the Ssint Nichokas market, beer by the river and of course the wedding. Relaxing at hotel before going off to the reception.
  • We had a lovely time at the Usk Show. A real agricultural show (175th anniversary) in a beautiful place on a perfect golden autumn day. And we brought home some tasty treats!
  • We honeymooned in Bristol. We were poor and they were different times. Ate out in several Berni Inns.
  • PigletPiglet All Saints Host, Circus Host
    D. went to university in Bristol and loved it. I've been there a few times, and it would easily make it into my top ten of potential places to live - I'm most definitely a townie!
    We're just back from a 90th birthday party; I think there must be something in the water here, as we know several people who are either well up in their 80s or into their 90s and still going strong. The gentleman whose birthday it is sits behind me in the choir, and still sings beautifully, without a single wobble.

    When did I stop getting invitations to 21st birthdays and start getting invitations to 90ths?

    elderly piglet
  • Let's not forget (almost) everyone's favourite clay and plasticine stop-motion animationists, based in aforementioned settlement! :)
  • Just come back from a weekday break in Grange-over-Sands, which is on the northern edge of Morecombe bay and the southern edge of the Lake District, for those who don't know it. A lovely place, old-fashioned in the best sense, nearly all shops independently owned, old Edwardian houses, beautiful ornamental gardens, but you do need a car really. I don't drive any more, and rely on taxis at home, but Grange taxis seem non-existent, and even when you order one, you tend to get forgotten! However, I had a good time, weather was only really dreadful on one day, the rest were bright and sunny.

    And yes, I could have used trains or buses, but I'd booked a hotel a bit way out, up a very steep hill, and therefore couldn't get down to said public transport, as I can only walk short distances, using two sticks!!

    Another time I'm going away with my daughter!
  • The grandmother of the first Mrs BF lived in Bolton-le-Sands, on the other side of Morecambe Bay, and we spent a few pleasant holidays with her.

    Yes, I remember Grange as @Thomasina describes it - a very pleasant little town, with absolutely superb countryside/seascapes/cloudscapes all around.
  • PigletPiglet All Saints Host, Circus Host
    Another nice sunny day here, and warm - currently 21°, which is quite warm enough for the middle of September! I think it might be a bit of a blip though - "false fall" as they call it here - when you've begun to think Autumn is on its way, and you're back into long trousers but haven't quite yet resorted to socks. The trees are just beginning to turn; one or two are already decked out in their autumn clothes, but judging by the forecast for the next week (temperatures in the high teens/low 20s), we're not quite out of summer yet.
  • I like Grange-over-Sands, one of the last places where I spotted orange transparent coverings in shop windows to stop the display getting faded.
    We're back from our Bristol jaunt. A city I really enjoyed, I must go back when I have more time. The evening reception was fun. The bride has a large family and many are professional musicians so we had a bit of a musical treat as well as a fun quiz about how well we knew the bride and groom.
  • Our Father NewPriest hails from Bristol, and is forever extolling the virtues of Bristol Rovers, which AIUI is some sort of Foot Bawl team...
    :wink:
  • Just put him in his place by reminding him of how much better Bristol City are doing ...
  • O - I didn't know that...I'll keep it in mind!
    Hehe...
    :wink:
  • PigletPiglet All Saints Host, Circus Host
    <singing, to the tune Cwm Rhondda>
    Bristol Rovers, Bristol Rovers
    We'll support you evermore (ev-er-MORE!)
    We'll suppo-ort you evermore!


    I'll see myself out.
  • I don’t know Bristol at all and now fancy a weekend jaunt.
    I’ve decided to get back in the routine of work again this week after the summer hols - 3 days of university work which alternate with 2 days of post-grad study. I’m technically not employed (or paid!) til October due to the vagaries of my contract but I need to get a routine going again and obviously I have prep work to do for the new academic year. So this morning I’m trawling my old module forums for threads I can re-use this year. Tedious but necessary.
    What’s everyone else doing today?
  • SarasaSarasa Shipmate
    edited September 2019
    I'm having to stay in for a parcel. It's for my husband and I hope it arrives pronto as there are other things I'd prefer to be doing. I guess it means there is no excuse over doing some housework though. This evening I have my second Tai Chi lesson. I really enjoyed it last week.
    Hope you enjoy getting back into academic mode @Heavenlyannie. I always used to enjoy the start of the new academic year (I worked as a school librarian) with all it's promise of wonderful new things.
  • The builders have arrived to do next door’s drive so I’ll see how much I can get done in the noise! I find the new year exciting too but slightly more daunting this year as I have a full week for the first time in over a decade, having increased my work hours to 3 days last year and now adding on 2 more for my doctorate study to make a full week.
    I am also waiting in for parcels, some clothes and household stuff for my eldest who leaves home for his own university study in 2 weeks, boo boo!
  • FirenzeFirenze Shipmate, Host Emeritus
    edited September 2019
    Sarasa wrote: »
    This evening I have my second Tai Chi lesson. I really enjoyed it last week.

    Hang in there. I am (almost) at the point of remembering all 108 moves of the Taoist set. My class is tomorrow.

    Today I have the options of Things I Ought To Do (vacuuming, dusting, laundry) Things It Would Do Me Good To Do (watercolour painting) and Things I'll Probably End Up Doing Instead (knitting, futtering about on the iPad).
  • Baptist TrainfanBaptist Trainfan Shipmate
    edited September 2019
    Piglet wrote: »
    <singing, to the tune Cwm Rhondda>
    Bristol Rovers, Bristol Rovers
    We'll support you evermore (ev-er-MORE!)
    We'll suppo-ort you evermore!


    I'll see myself out.
    I'm not sure we'd have let you in, in the first place.

    {I don't think it works so well for "Colchester United". And of course Your Native Land has its own peculiar [in the old-fashioned sense of the word] football game.}

  • I’m getting ready for a very welcome few days visit by one of my sons and his partner 😀. We haven’t seen them since Christmas, so it will be lovely!
    My dad was a big Rovers fan, so, of course, I was too 😉. Our diocesan children’s and youth worker regularly takes assemblies at the primary school where I’m a governor and she is a big Rovers fan too, whereas most of the children are (if anything at all) City supporters. She’s brilliant and makes it an ongoing joke with the children - they love it and her!
  • Bishops FingerBishops Finger Shipmate
    edited September 2019
    Piglet wrote: »
    <singing, to the tune Cwm Rhondda>
    Bristol Rovers, Bristol Rovers
    We'll support you evermore (ev-er-MORE!)
    We'll suppo-ort you evermore!


    I'll see myself out.

    :lol:

    Thanks, @Piglet - I'll bear that in mind for future reference.... :naughty:

    An overcast, rather muggy day, here. Various errands duly run, and completed, including a trip to the big Asda superstore to stock up on underpants, printer ink, and paper...

    Serendipity occurred - I parked in the disabled bay closest to the front door, the security chap found me a mandraulic* wheelchair to use (the store is far too big for me to manage to walk around in), and a very pleasant, helpful, staff member worked the 'self-service' checkout for me.

    In and out in 15 minutes, with no queuing! :flushed:

    *The sort with extra wossnames on the wheels, so that you can wheel yourself about. I'm becoming quite proficient at manoeuvring, and can turn a chair completely round in its own length... :grin:

    Well, almost. :grimace:

  • ... to stock up on underpants, printer ink, and paper ...
    The mind boggles: ink and paper, yes, but underpants? I don't quite see the connection.

  • ... to stock up on underpants, printer ink, and paper ...
    The mind boggles: ink and paper, yes, but underpants? I don't quite see the connection.

    Does BF know something about potential shortages that the rest of us don't?
  • Of course, if you want to upset Father NewPriest then mention that you support Gloucester (or Bath) for rugby...
  • PigletPiglet All Saints Host, Circus Host
    Working on the principle that you should always have a clean pair, just in case?

    Quiet day chez Piglet today: D. has a medical procedure tomorrow which requires lots of fluids but no solids today, so my function is providing said fluids and offering moral support.

    He's had very little appetite for the last wee while, but he chose today to tell me that he really thought he fancied lamb chops ...

    I'll take them out of the freezer, and I'll cook them tomorrow or Wednesday, in the hope that he's feeling like eating them by then.
    ION, the sale of my dad's old house should be finalised by the end of the month: the disposition should be e-mailed to me for signing tomorrow.

    I'm not sure how I'll feel signing it: I got a bit lumpy round the throat when we locked the house as we were leaving last month, realising it'd probably be the last time I'd be in it. Having said that, it'll be good to get it all finalised (and add to the porcine piggy-bank), and the buyers are so nice, we're just delighted it's going to someone who's going to love it as much as we did. They even want quite a few bits of the furniture*, which is just fine by us, as it's less for the house-clearers to clear.

    * I can't think why - it's all 1950s and 60s stuff, which they charmingly refer to as "retro", but I'd describe as "dated". Oh well, each to his own ... :confused:
  • Nenya wrote: »
    ... to stock up on underpants, printer ink, and paper ...
    The mind boggles: ink and paper, yes, but underpants? I don't quite see the connection.

    Does BF know something about potential shortages that the rest of us don't?

    Well, since you ask, no, nothing to do with potential shortages, but it just so happens that all three commodities have become somewhat depleted in the Episcopal Ark...

    ...and Asda sell all three.
    :wink:

  • I made macaroni cheese and flapjacks in preparation for visitors. Cb came for lunch after trying unsuccessfully to give blood for the first time. They advised her to try again in two years!
    My Mum, her husband and his Australian son in law are visiting tomorrow. As I don’t get on with new husband I’m slightly anxious.
  • Nenya wrote: »
    ... to stock up on underpants, printer ink, and paper ...
    The mind boggles: ink and paper, yes, but underpants? I don't quite see the connection.

    Does BF know something about potential shortages that the rest of us don't?

    Well, since you ask, no, nothing to do with potential shortages, but it just so happens that all three commodities have become somewhat depleted in the Episcopal Ark...

    ...and Asda sell all three.
    :wink:

    I thought maybe it was in preparation for Brexit, just as some Americans are stocking up on things that will be affected by trade wars and tariffs with whatever country Trump is currently getting miffed at.
  • :lol:

    No - it's my medication I'm more concerned about, should Brexit occur...but that's for another thread!
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