Where Have You Just Been?

[Travis]

Las Vegas, Honolulu, Sydney, Tamworth NSW and Dubai. Quite a busy month's holiday. Anglesey on Friday in the caravan.

[Stanley]

I'd say so! Morning T, nice to see you popping up.

[Wendyf]

I was In Colne library yesterday morning, plugging away at my endless task of producing a surname index to Doreen Crowther's Colne Deeds, when Plaques came in to say hello. That was nice.

[Gloria]

We got back yesterday from Sirmione on Lake Garda where we went to watch the Mille Miglia---fantastic experience.

[Sue]

I love Lake Garda

[Stanley]

That was nice Wendy, is he handsome and debonair?

[plaques]

is he handsome and debonair?

Of course, Roger Moore's double but with a look of Michael Hesletine, The trouble is that Heseltine's got all my money. When I was a kid and the Beatles were just starting out one young girl asked me for my autograph thinking I was Paul McCartney. God knows where she was looking.
PS I think he has some of my money as well!

[Wendyf]

Dammit, should have got your autograph while I had the chance!

[PanBiker]

Just got back from Stratford picking Ruby up for half term. Working this morning so could not set off until 2.00pm. The road down reminded me of Chris Rea's "Road to Hell" written about the M25 but could have equally applied to the M6 today. Total gridlock from J21a (M62) down to the other side of Birmingham on the Southbound. I ditched the motorway as soon as I got over the ship canal at Thelwall and exited on the A50 got back on at Cannock and picked up the Toll (clear of course) for the M42 and M40, just short of 5 hours for the journey down, would have been longer if I had crawled all the way down the M6. Radio said M6 Northbound was backing up just as bad so we came back up via the M1, off at the A650 and over Morley top to Bradford and home. Long day, having a brew and then bed.

[Stanley]

In the old days before the M6 and in a motor limited to 42mph I could get from Barlick to Walsall in well under three hours.... I feel sorry for anyone who has to do what you did....
P. Don't worry about the money.... You are in better shape than either of them! I used to be a dead ringer for Freddy Garrity.....

[PanBiker]

In the old days before the M6 and in a motor limited to 42mph I could get from Barlick to Walsall in well under three hours.... I feel sorry for anyone who has to do what you did....
P. Don't worry about the money.... You are in better shape than either of them! I used to be a dead ringer for Freddy Garrity.....

Aye, it's more labour of love than anything else. Goes with having our Dan's lass 170 miles away.

With regard to your second comment, could you (and did you) do the silly dance that Freddy did?

[Stanley]

Certainly not!

[Stanley]

Certainly not!

[Nolic]

Freddy was a milkman too Comrade. Nolic

[Stanley]

Yes! forgotten that.....

[PanBiker]

The excellent Malham Safari. The theme this year is Le tour de Malham. Twelve animal tableaux presentations arranged around the nooks and crannies of the village duly found and their numbers attached to their respective cryptic clues on the entry form. A parallel competition for who could find and count the total number of cycling jerseys secreted around the route as well. The daily duck race was entered and the only thing I can say about that is that our entries were supporting the same colours as the winner, number 306 in our race this year, we had four up in the 600's! Sandwiches, cake and tea at the village institute and a nice 99 ice cream for me from one of the vendors and a blackcurrant lolly for Ruby. The Safari started on Saturday 24th and runs each day until Thursday 29th, smashing day out and belting weather today.

[Stanley]

I was only thinking yesterday that it was probably the best early Bank Holiday weather we've had for a long time....

[Gloria]

The Fishermans Retreat at Ramsbottom, never been before, but will certainly go again. Takes a bit of finding but well worth it when you get there.

[plaques]

Second day in the loft cleaning up after a major spill from the header tank. Water everywhere. Loft, bedroom and downstairs dining room, what a mess. Why? the ball cock was leaking, but why didn't the overflow signal a warning? Because someone in their wisdom thought that by just clamping the overflow pipe to the side of the tank was good enough, never mind that the water just leaked along the thread and down the tank side. All for the sake of a penny worth of tape and sealant. Not a happy man or wife for that matter.

[Stanley]

Hard luck P! The Phantom Botcher strikes again! Sounds much worse than my experience when the same combination of events flooded my workshop, the bloke next door saved money by getting his son to fit a CH boiler and he made a complete mess of it....

[Nolic]

Just been to Lupton Tower a bit past Kirkby Lonsdale. Looked to be facing delays on A65 as a result of horse drawn Gypsy caravans but the lads driving them were very good to traffic behind and waving us through so no real delays.
On the way back near the turn off for Bentham traffic towards Kendal was backed up behind 5 horse drawn caravans and probably tailed back half a mile. Then on the stretch from Settle to Long Preston the utility services were out searching for a gas leak and traffic must have been backed up well over a mile behind them. Nolic

[Wendyf]

It's Appleby Horse Fair next weekend. I've just had my peace disturbed by men in a white van with an Irish number plate and accents selling cheap tools. They were annoyed to find the master of the house wasn't at home and sped off down the track at high speed. Not nice, but I was very pleased that Bertie, who can be quite scary with his big bark and raised hackles, was with me. No doubt on their way to Appleby.

[plaques]

They were annoyed to find the master of the house wasn't at home

Perhaps they were more annoyed to find that someone was at home. Cheap tools, a perfect excuse for carrying house breaking tools. Perhaps a call to the police is in order.

[PanBiker]

Just got back from taking Ruby back to meet her mum. Only half way to Stratford this time, we agreed to meet a Sandbach services on the M6 which is roughly half way between Barlick and Stratford, between junctions 16 and 17, convenient turning poinst for both parties. Glad I wasn't going the whole way, it took 3 hours to get there about 85 miles in total. M6 stop start for over 40 miles with no apparent reason for the delays.

We stopped on the Southbound and went over the walkway to the Northern side to meet up with Ruby's mum and older sister. We had noticed on the way down that the Northbound carriageway was as bad if not worse than what we had experienced on the way down so we continued down to the A500 which would have been our turning point back onto the motorway but kept to the A roads instead to head back up country. We had an hours stop at a pub around Congleton for a meal on the way back and then headed for Manchester and the ring road and back via Bury and Rawtenstall. M6 is getting worse it seems every time we make the trip, needs must though.

[Stanley]

P is a realist Wendy, why did they go down that long track? Ian, that was part of my old route to London before the M6... I know it well.