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Presently sitting in 'pre- op assessment' at Wrightington Hospital..again..waiting to see an Anaesthetist..

I was always impressed by the effectiveness of the screen wash pump on one of many Simca 1100s I had in the 70s. I kept one on a shelf and last year, it finally came in useful for pumping out excess oil from my daughter's car. I keep forgetting to flush it clean with some solvent or other, then just detergent, so it can go back on the shelf for another 40+ years...

In a similar vein.. Whilst attempting to clear my garage.. I came across a small cheap electric screwdriver, in a fabric case. Mrs Col bought it in Lidl when my previous one began to suffer from a fading battery. I gave the old one to my daughter and her partner, (who are STILL using it several years on) ..and the new one took its place. I liked the new one. It was some obscure never heard of brand from the far east, but it worked, was controllable etc. Then one day it started to go very wrong..the gearbox inside sounded like the proverbial 'bag of spanners' and it wouldnt turn

I've been trying to figure out what it is about Kuenssberg.. I mean, apart from the known (and pretty obvious) Tory sympathies..what it is about her journalism that I find disturbing? I think it comes down to this... Her 'journalism' is as much about her, as it is about the facts. She revels in the whole 'soap opera' aspect of Politics and loves to be seen to be 'in the know' and on first name terms with so many of these characters. As such, she can give the impression of weight and substance to her 'journalism', but what it lacks is true analysis or scrutiny, much le

Yes, so was I a bit. Yet what I massively missed was Kuenssberg's total lack of surprise. More on her later. Yes. At the risk of being accused of misogyny, she comes across as little more than a classic 'bimbo'. She clearly adored Johnson, though God alone knows why.. I suspect both will receive more coverage in Episode 2. Indeed, though I think on reflection, I've been rather too generous to her. That was certainly pointed out to me elsewhere and I can't disagree.

Well.. did anyone watch? I found the reminder of the bizarre blend of anarchy and near dictatorship that we suffered pretty sobering. She wheeled out lots of 'players', mostly Tories from both camps, plus Civil Servants. The usual lines from the likes of Rees-Mogg and the terminally thick Dorries. Uk Government and Parliament have operated on the basis of 'convention' for centuries, and that relies on fundamental respect for those conventions. I think Kuenssberg covered the collapse of those 'conventions' driven by the extreme end of the Brexiteer vote and how they would stop

It's complicated Margie.. Lot's of stuff is just tools which need putting back into their proper places.. All my fault, although I'm beginning to wonder whether I still need a load of 50 year+ old and worn spanners etc., which I used to use on cars and motorbikes. I don't do such work these days. Lots is stuff which comes under the heading of 'TARDIS FILLER'. in other words stuff which Mrs Col has declared .. "That can go in the garage", when I've responded.. "It needs to go, and the Garage isn't a TARDIS!!! " only to decide it's just easier to comply.... The rest is stuff belo

Today I will embark on a Mighty and Noble Quest! This is a quest which has grown in stature over many years, and has thus also been years in the planning.... But today.. I'm going to start clearing my garage!! Wish me luck..

Just a 'heads up' for anyone interested in UK Politics. Starting tonight on BBC2. 'A State of Chaos' with Laura Kuenssberg. It seems she has investigated the background to Govt. behaviour over the last few years, including the handling of Brexit and Covid. I'll be watching with interest, but also with a close eye on Kuenssberg's impartiality She seems to have been rather more careful recently, but as well as her known Tory leanings, she has a proven track record of false reporting. It will be interesting to see how we respond to this programme.

In other news.. My youngest Daughter came over with her little dog, and our youngest grandchild 'Soleil', yesterday, to spend the afternoon in our garden. Her partner was working.. It's hardly the Hanging Gardens of Babylon..but at least it gets the Sun. It was lovely to see them. Also a couple of days ago, Mrs Col's cousin posted a video on Facebook, of her Son (i.e. Mrs. Col's nephew) executing a perfect landing after piloting his first Jet 2 flight from Palma into Manchester. A very proud moment. He's a lad who started out his working life as a joiner, but fell off some sca

He left the 'Use, Installation and Servicing Instructions', Manufacturers Warranty Registration Card etc., but none of the details such as installation date, Gas Safe Reg No. etc., are completed in the Instructions, though to be scrupulously fair, maybe he intended to do that on his return. Re: the 'cover plate'. At present, without any 'disassembly', I'm pretty sure I can see where it goes. It's maybe not critical, but if it's meant to be there, it's meant to be there. I reckon it's designed to stop bits of the 'fuel bed' falling in around the valve and a small electrical switch.

Well.. the last few days have been interesting.. A few weeks ago we ordered a new gas fire, of the modern fab trendy 'letter box', 'in wall' style. This to replace a very ancient cast iron back boiler and wall hung gas fire of 70's vintage which has been in place since this house was built. Both boiler and fire have been redundant for donkey's years but we've only just got around to 'getting shut'. The idea is to have a relatively economical heat source, totally independent of electricity, for those many times a year around here when the electricity goes off and thus the 'Combi Boi

I've been a bit busy for the last few days so maybe my brain is a bit tired, but whatever I do, I can't think of a single policy area in which the present Govt. have done anything of benefit to the country, its economy and its wider population. In every policy area, they have either made things worse by their actions, or made things worse by their inactions. That much is beyond reasonable doubt. It's backed up by simple facts and statistics. There can be no argument. So.. what are we to make of this? Are the present Govt. just plain incompetent? Or is there something m

And on the topic of 'made up words', from kids. Our oldest. when, at the age of five, first saw her baby sister and described her as having a 'scrouty face'. Also, when same daughter 'broke wind' loudly.. she laughed hysterically and said. " I pruted"..

There was an episode of 'Pointless Celebrities' on TV last night and some of them were.. But one of the 'Questions' concerned the 'Top Ten Most Annoying Mispronunciations' Top of the list was Nuclear.. I cheered! Also in there from memory was 'Specific', but no mention of Anemone.....

I reckon the vast majority are content to be able to pay the bills, feed and clothe themselves and their families etc. Those who can't, for whatever reason, do indeed suffer in many ways.. and those in that position seem to be increasing in number as the 'wealth gap' widens. Above the 'poverty line', there seem to be very diverse views and ambitions. Again.. I think most of us are content to try to improve our lot in life steadily, and honestly, and yet even there.. I have a couple of friends who frequently express a feeling that somehow they've been 'cheated', and despite ha

Of course I wouldn't disagree with that. So long as you are living your chosen life and it's making you happy, there's no 'right', or 'wrong' style. Oddly, even up until getting married, I never really thought deeply about 'the future'.. or what I wanted from it. I lived very much 'in the moment'. These days, apart from odd reminiscences, I look to the future much more than I ever did in the past.. even though logically, there's a lot less of it.. if that makes sense.

I appreciate that we aren't interested in money..or the happiness it most definitely cannot bring.... so purely from curiosity.. I was wondering what level of investment in Premium Bonds leads to the pretty confident expectation of some sort of win every month? ...Just curious.... Whenever Premium Bonds are discussed, I recall my dear old Mum, way back in the late 50s. She had a single Bond, whose number started 1AB57 or thereabouts...acquired as a gift associated with a purchase. or summat. Back then the winning numbers were published in the papers and she'd be heard

Was up early this morning..waiting for the forecast 'Indian Summer' heat to kick in so I can catch some rays. So I sat in silent reflection, over a coffee, in the living room.. Mrs Col still being at our Daughter's.. As I gazed absentmindedly across the road I got to thinking how well the chap opposite has done for himself. He started a business decades ago which has employed him, his wife, several family members, very gainfully indeed. And yet for reasons I won't go into they've also had a lot of unhappiness... I started strolling mentally around the street, or at leas

Well if we're into 'dialectical abberations' (I made that up.. a bit like H.G. Wells' 'Mr Polly', describing his father's funeral and 'Funererial Baked Meats'...but I digress.. Dialectical abberations such as on the dreaded Facebook 'Rate My Plate' group, where people insist on 'Cornbeef', instead of 'Corned Beef'... Peasants!!!

Your cynicism is showing.. but it's very fashionable at the moment, amongst both politicians and observers.

Well yes. Practically all nations have some sort of links with each other and as you say, some more tenuous than others. I'd suggest that many of those links are commercial and at least some of those are yet another manifestation of the current ascendancy of Neo Lib political and economic 'thinking'. As I said in another post, international business and finance doesn't let mere national borders or govts stand in the way of profit. However, I believe that much of the stuff at issue within British politics could be dealt with simply by the application of a bit of political will.

'Er Indoors has spent most of the time since Sunday over at my older daughter's house in Worsley 'Cat Sitting' while they are on hols. The grumpy old sod.. (the cat) is ailing and possibly not long for this world. Since both daughters live a couple of doors apart, she's also helping with no. 2 Grand daughter while youngest works from home. Meanwhile I spent a lot of time prepping for the arrival of a new gas fire and fitter on Tues. He texted to re-arrange for next week, so in the absence of the Boss, I'm listening to as much loud music as I can, and also using a 'Sound Base'

Again.. partly, especially if the Political Persuasion points to the intended use of, and therefore beneficiaries of, the borrowed money. But the timing of the borrowing also counts. Such that however crazy you might think Corbyn's plans were.. the cost of borrowing at that time was at an all time low.. it being before the Conservative Brexit/Profligacy and Trussonomics changed all that. I'll let them off with Putrid's invasion of Ukraine, though there's still a lot of explaining to do around UK Tory links with Russia.

If I'm not mistaken, Wallace has actual Military experience. But then we've 'had enough of experts'.. Wallace 'copped some flak' a little while back for allegedly telling Zelensky he 'should be more grateful' to us. Reading around that a bit, I reckon he was actually asking Zelensky to allow for the 'domestic' difficulties Western Govt's face when justifying the cost of supporting Ukraine.