Norman Painting OBE 1925 - 2009

Very sad to hear that Mr Norman Painting OBE passed away yesterday (29th October 2009). Norman had played Phil Archer in the long running BBC radio show "The Archers" Since the pilot episodes went out in 1950. In fact is in the guinness book of records for being the Actor playing the longest continuous role - almost 60 years!

We Archers fans will now have to wait to see how they write "Phil" out of the show. I hope he goes peacefully - It will be hard not to shed a tear.

Firsts

The last few days I have had some new experiences, We have harvested our very first Pumpkin, a fine specimen which will make a good Hallowe'en Lantern. It is about 11 or 12 inches diameter and weighs in at (I guess) 25 lbs

I have placed a Kodak Brownie 127 next to it to give some idea of scale.

Another first, is the first proper attempt at "Bowl Turning" I have recently aquired a small woodturning Lathe, A proper one! previously I have attempted turning on a rather primitive 'bolt on the bench' type of contraption - which has taught me a few things, but the difference in using a real lathe is amazing. So, from a blank of Plane tree (Platanus acerifolia) I have turned a rather splendid wooden bowl. I have also done a few practice pieces like mushrooms and tea-light holders

The Final First, is an attempt at candle making. She who must be obeyed enjoys having a candle burning, and most of them only burn half way, if that. So with a cheap mold and a boiling pan (bain-marie) type pan within an pan, I have been melting down the left over bits and making new ones. Not taken a photo of the candles yet, having problems getting photographs positioned in this blog so I may start using flicker and giving you a link to that.

I have also started using the aforementioned flickr, If you want to look at a couple of motorbikes, go to www.flickr.com and do a search for hgj1948

Fishing

Took my Friend Chris on his first fishing trip last Monday, we picked a glorious day but the fish weren't playing as well as they could have, It was a bit too bright to be ideal. However, I managed to hook a decent trout (more by good luck than by fishing skill) and then handed my rod to Chris who managed to get the fish in the net.
By the end of the session He was managing to get a line out, which is no mean feat, we older fly fishermen forget how hard it is to master the timing required to cast a fly line!


This is Chris holding a 2.5 Lb Rainbow trout

A scenic picture of Chris trying to master the art of casting a fly line.

An enjoyable couple hours in good company, Chris tells me he enjoyed himself and he and Mrs B enjoyed their evening meal! Hopefully I have given him an insight to the noble art of Game Fishing.

For the fisherman amongst my readers, It was a bright day with a light variable wind, although fish were rising earlier in the session, they were not taking any of the standard dry flies, I tried Daddys, Small Blacks, Foam beetles, muddlers, and various buzzers. I also tried teams of traditional wets and even a lure or two but didn't get a touch. Until we moved position and I tried another Daddy just drifting in a small ripple, The fish I took came out of the depths and almost took me by surprise. after that we didn't see another rise. But as an Irish friend of mine once said "That's the Fishing for you"

Rum, Bum and Baccy

I have just pinched this from my friend Jake (Old Scrotes Home) see the link at the bottom of the page - who has recently pinched it from someone else

How would Nelson have fared if he had been subject to modern health and safety regulations?

"Order the signal to be sent, Hardy."
"Aye, aye sir."
"Hold on, that's not what I dictated to the signal officer. What's the meaning of this?"
"Sorry sir?"
"England expects every person to do his duty, regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, religious persuasion or disability. What gobbledegook is this?"
"Admiralty policy, I'm afraid, sir. We're an equal opportunities employer now. We had the devil's own job getting 'England' past the censors, lest it be considered racist."
"Gadzooks, Hardy. Hand me my pipe and tobacco."
"Sorry sir. All naval vessels have been designated smoke-free working environments."
"In that case, break open the rum ration. Let us splice the main brace to steel the men before battle."
"The rum ration has been abolished, Admiral. It's part of the Government's policy on binge drinking."
"Good heavens, Hardy. I suppose we'd better get on with it. Full speed ahead."
"I think you'll find that there's a 4 knot speed limit in this stretch of water."
"Damn it man! We are on the eve of the greatest sea battle in history. We must advance with all dispatch. Report from the crow's nest, please."
"That won't be possible, sir."
"What?"
"Health and Safety have closed the crow's nest, sir. No harness. And they said that rope ladder doesn't meet regulations. They won't let anyone up there until a proper scaffolding can be erected."
"Then get me the ship's carpenter without delay, Hardy."
"He's busy knocking up a wheelchair access to the fo'c'sle Admiral."
"Wheelchair access? I've never heard anything so absurd."
"Health and Safety again, sir. We have to provide a barrier-free environment for the differently abled."
"Differently abled? I've only one arm and one eye and I refuse even to hear mention of the word. I didn't rise to the rank of admiral by playing the disability card."
"Actually, sir, you did. The Royal Navy is under-represented in the areas of visual impairment and limb deficiency."
"Whatever next? Give me full sail. The salt spray beckons."
"A couple of problems there too, sir. Health and Safety won't let the crew up the rigging without crash helmets. And they don't want anyone breathing in too much salt - haven't you seen the adverts?"
"I've never heard such infamy. Break out the cannon and tell the men to stand by to engage the enemy."
"The men are a bit worried about shooting at anyone, Admiral."
"What? This is mutiny."
"It's not that, sir. It's just that they're afraid of being charged with murder if they actually kill anyone. There's a couple of legal aid lawyers on board, watching everyone like hawks."
"Then how are we to sink the Frenchies and the Spanish?"
"Actually, sir, we're not."
"We're not?"
"No, sir. The Frenchies and the Spanish are our European partners now. According to the Common Fisheries Policy, we shouldn't even be in this stretch of water. We could get hit with a claim for compensation."
"But you must hate a Frenchman as you hate the devil."
"I wouldn't let the ship's diversity co-ordinator hear you saying that sir. You'll be up on a disciplinary charge."
"You must consider every man an enemy who speaks ill of your King."
"Not any more, sir. We must be inclusive in this multicultural age. Now put on your Kevlar vest; it's the rules."
"Don't tell me - Health and Safety. Whatever happened to rum, sodomy and the lash?"
"As I explained, sir, rum is off the menu. And now there's a ban on corporal punishment."
"What about sodomy?"
"I believe it's to be encouraged, sir."
"In that case... kiss me, Hardy."

Last Run

Sunday was the last run of the season on the old Bikes, we had a 60 mile run which took us from Rawtenstall towards Burnley, then a diverse route over the hills passing Blackshawhead, Colden, Trawden, Laneshaw Bridge, Ponden Reservoir, Stanbury, Oxenhope and stopped for lunch at a pub called "The Delvers" in Wainstalls. This we were told is about 5 miles from Halifax.

The first 40 miles or so were done in slightly inclement weather, but at lunchtime it dried up, and the ride home which took us via Luddendenfoot (Isn't that a wonderful name), Hebden Bridge, Todmorden, Bacup and back to Rawtenstall was a little less damp.

veni, vidi, vici.

Recently via the social networking site that I call Face-Ache, some friends and I have been playing with puns based on the above quotation from Julius Caesar. The real meaning of course is "I came, I saw, I conquered" all three words being the first person perfect tense of the verbs venire, to come: -videre, to see: - vincere, to conquer. The quotation can be found in the writings of Plutarch and Suetonius and was made in c47BC
And of course the classical latin pronunciation would have been wenni, widi, wicki. Forgive my amateurish phonetic interpretation, but I have never mastered the correct OED method.
I have been quite amused by these I hope you are - feel free to send me any more.

veni, vidi, vici - I came, I saw, I conquered

veni, vidi, veggie - I came, I saw, I had a Salad

veni, vidi, verily - I came, I saw, I Concurred

veni, vidi, vd - I came, I saw, I Clapped

veni, vidi, V8 - I came, I saw, I left very Quickly

veni, vidi, viola - I came, I saw, I made a screeching noise

veni, vidi, vacuum - I came, I saw, I cleaned up

veni, vidi, velcro - I came, I saw, I stuck around

veni, vidi, vendor - I came, I saw, I sold

veni, vidi, vomit - I came, I saw, I drank too much

veni, vidi, vacuus - I came, I saw, I didn’t think

veni, vidi, venturi - I came, I saw, I created a vacuum

veni, vidi, ventilate - I came, I saw, I breathed fresh air

veni, vidi, velociraptor - I came, I saw, I watched a Spielberg movie

veni, vidi, VCR - I came, I saw, I rented the Video

veni, vidi, vanish - I came, I saw, I disappeared

veni, vidi, varnish - I came, I saw, I had a beautiful finish

veni, vidi, venison - I came, I saw, I ran over a deer

veni, vidi, Volvo - I came, I saw, I failed to indicate

veni, vidi, visa - I came, I saw, I did a little shopping

veni, vidi, V-Rod - I came, I saw, I bought a Harley
veni, vidi, Victoria - I came, I saw, I was not amused
veni, vidi, Vinci - I came, I saw, I smiled enigmatically