WHAT ATTRACTED YOUR ATTENTION TODAY?

[Christian]

A new puppy. Chopper at 10 and Darwin at 3 have led us to a third in order to maintain an age gap of not too much.

Chopper just wants his long walks,10 minutes of tennis ball, bit of scran at the end and a taxi ride home. Darwin on the other hand is after belting round fields chasing balls and anything else that moves. New pup is 3 days old so should be home in a couple of months. Now is the time I start buying a copy of The Times & Yorkshire Post again for the huge supplements to pee on.

Quite excited really!, Ill get some pictures up of them shortly.

[Stanley]

Best personal fitness trainers ever Christian, gentle walking with a dog is the best exercise in the world.

[Big Kev]

An article in the Pendle local press about 'free' nursery places. The government aren't providing sufficient funding to cover staff wages so the nurseries are running at a loss, that won't last long then.

[plaques]

They didn't really mean FREE it should be considered as SUBSIDIZED but this doesn't sound as good in the PR blurb. A touch of Joseph Goebbels going on here.

[Big Kev]

Sadly it was 'sold' to parents as free and that is what they expect

[Tizer]

We're settling in to the `new' house and I've got my PC set up in my den, one of the upstairs rooms. They've got good views and as I write I'm watching the sun set. We love open aspects and big skies so this suits us well. Although we've moved from a rural to a suburb location we've got better views here because the house is in an elevated position.

[Marilyn]

The builder's are back next door. Radio blaring, and all singing along at the tops of their voices.( and they are not bad, but it does wear after six or seven hours!)
I think I have worked out one possible reason they do this, apart from the sheer joy they seem to get from it...I think one of their work gang has Tourette's Syndrome. There is one among them who screams as if he has been badly injured, with profanities, fairly regularly. The rest get a bit Jack of it I think, and sing to drown him out! Every now and then they tell him to stop yelling and sing instead...
He must be a good worker and this is the way they cope with his problem?

[Stanley]

Kev, all part of the general attrition of public services under this lousy government..... I hate the buggers!
Tiz, nice to see you reaping the rewards of the move. What's Janet's immediate verdict?
Maz, it may not be accepted treatment but if he's being tolerated and doing good work it is perhaps working! Commiserations, I have had almost 3 years of intermittent builders noises from each side....
What grabs me today is the fitter upgrading my life, washer, hob, microwave, hand held cordless cleaner for the stairs and high quality wireless headphones for my TV listening and viewing. I shall report......
Later, a warning from conservationists that fish in the Niagara River in the US have high levels of anti depressants in their brains which is making them more vulnerable to predators, The explanation is that sewage treatment plants are not designed to clean pharmaceuticals from the urine which carries the drug.

[Tizer]

Tiz, nice to see you reaping the rewards of the move. What's Janet's immediate verdict?

She's a very happy bunny, loves the house and the proximity to shops - fortunately she's not hooked on spending money so I think we're safe.

Maz, we had a builder who employed his relatives. One was a young man with a heart pacemaker. The builder said "If he's not working hard enough we tell him we'll turn up his pacemaker". But they're were a happy bunch and the lad enjoyed the joke.

Stanley, it's not surprising about the high level of the drugs in fish. In the US they have a terrible problem now of many people addicted to antidepressants and massive quantities of the drugs are prescribed. Almost all of it going to poor people who are not sharing in the success of the mighty nation's economy.

[Marilyn]

In regard to the builders, where I had "sussed" out one had some kind of problem that the radio and singing covered, Febby
( who was glued to his computer working all day) asked me if I occasionally heard a high pitched scream over the loud music coming from next door.
"Oh...do you mean the screams, accompanied by profanity, that sounds as though someone has had their legs hacked off with a machete?"
Hubby actually looked at me over his glasses and paused a moment before he responded "Yes...exactly!."
I assured him everything was fine...no need to ring an ambulance.
They will be back tomorrow and it all starts again about 07.30am.
(Joy!)

[Tizer]

Perhaps you should put in a request for your favourite songs, Maz? The screamer may not have a medical problem - they are probably hiding from you the fact that he has terrible eyesight and bloody thumbs!

[plaques]

Drove into Barlick yesterday down Essex St and saw part of the Chapel being demolished. Anybody keeping a photo record of what's going on?

[Stanley]

Do you mean what is now the care home on the corner at the traffic lights P? I hadn't noticed anything, I'll have a look today if it's fine.....

[PanBiker]

It's not St Andrew's, I believe part of the Methodist Chapel is undergoing redevelopment.

[Stanley]

I'll have a look.....
While the site was AWOL this morning I was up to no good. I found THIS on Youtube. It's the full documentary that C4 did on the Magdalene Asylums. I see they are in the news again. If you can stand a harrowing watch look at it.....

[Bodger]

Must admit after living in Ireland for nearly 50 yrs. i have seen major changes in the attitude to religion and seeing a major fall off in church attendances along with the drop off to the number of males taking up the vocation of priesthood, ,the youngsters do not attend mass in the numbers that did years ago.

The Magdelene is only the tip of religious abuse, see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bon_Secou ... _Baby_Home, this along with sexual abuse from the clergy shows how much hypocrisy existed, and maybe still does ?.
I must admit as a born C of E by birth, i kicked religion into touch when my mother died aged 60, and i have no fear of not meeting my "maker", I think the words of On Ilkely Moor Baht Hat sums my future up.

[plaques]

I'll have a look.....

From the Pendle planning
St Andrews Methodist Church
Mosley Street
Barnoldswick
Lancashire
BB18 5BP

Full: Part demolition of school building and conversion to six 1 and 2 bed apartments and erection of two storey extension to rear, erection of single storey extension to rear of church.

[Stanley]

Thanks P. (What is a 'Full:Part' demolition?)
An upset day, first the site AWOL and second the fact I was missing my afternoon sleep because of the steaming at Bancroft. In the end I wrote two articles, ditched the shed and looked after myself. I'll have an easy day today as well. Upset routines are damaging!



Starting the Bradley engine at Bancroft yesterday. A credit to them and all went well!

[Stanley]

The fact that my new washing machine is so quiet! I suspect it's a direct drive and the only sound I hear is the water sloshing in the drum. I've realised also that it's a bigger drum than the old Hotpoint and this is going to give better washing. What an improvement!!

[PanBiker]

Our daughter Carla doing the Great North Run, 2nd time for her, she's running this year with three mates, Rachel, Yvette and Emma. Not seen them in the masses but waiting for news.

[Stanley]

Took me longer than usual to dry washing yesterday, could the new Bosch be a slower spin speed? No complaints otherwise and my washing is cleaner....
Abject failure in shed. Back to the drawing board!

[Marilyn]

Never underestimate the intelligence of a dog.
Son dropped his Black Labrador off to us yesterday as he was off on a holiday. Aged about 8 now, Abby ( "the Labby") just loves her toys and always comes with a big bag ( most of which I have bought over the years...and I always buy robust ones because I know she falls in love with them). She sleeps with these toys close by around her bed, and you only have to ask her where a particular one is, and she will find it and present it for play.
We had a few games of tug with her "rope" and another toy we call her "whacker" ( so named because she likes to bash knees with it...and it don't half hurt). Wanting to wind things down, I said "Go and get your Blue Cigar". This is a less aggressive tug toy, good for winding down, but she loves to polish off tug time with it.
Abby just immediately sat down in front of me and looked at the floor.
When she didn't respond, I went looking for it and couldn't find it among her cache.
I wondered if the toy had ended it's life since we last saw her.
Finally, I messaged son, who couldn't remember packing it, and thinks it may be left under the couch at home.
That dog KNEW that toy didn't come with her!
There was no point searching for it!

[PanBiker]

Our Carla completed the Great North Run in 2h:33m.58s, she bettered her last time by five minutes. An average pace of 11.45 minutes per mile. She was running for BE Bosom Friends.

[Big Kev]

UU have been out today and repaired the drain up the street, a dye test and all is looking good at the minute. I have mopped out the excess water and set the dehumidifier running. If all is good after a few days I'll plug up the hole in the wall and reinstate the heavy duty membrane, a bit of shuttering and a bit o' concrete will finish the job.

A lot of waterproof membrane and concrete later and we have a dry cellar, I think the amount of rain recently has provided a good test. I've replaced the dehumidifier with an extractor fan, it's just a 4in silent running bathroom model set on a timer. It runs twice a day for a couple of hours and is drawing fresh air across the room (I made provision for two 4in ducts when I built the kitchen extension).

I've replaced the missing floor tiles and now need to replace the rotten studwork and plasterboard, it all smelt a lot sweeter once I'd removed the damp wood. I'm considering using 12.5mm OSB to replace the plasterboard, I can give this a good couple of coats of a waterproof paint before installation and it's only the bottom 18in of wall.

[Stanley]

Maz, I often think they are more intelligent in some ways than us. Jack provides me with evidence of independent thinking every day! I often think the trick is to synchronise your activities with theirs. It makes for a quieter life!
Kev, I am glad you seem to have reached the solution at last. Damp is always a difficult condition to cure and takes longer than you think
What's 'OSB'?
How clean bedding = Big Sleeps! The new washer is good for me!
I forgot to mention..... I was quite surprised to see on Friday that the Pendle Mayoral limousine is a large 2017 registered Mercedes..... Surprisingly and slightly incongruous, the coat of arms on the door was very poor quality......