Friday 21 October 2011

No regrets

You should have heard the `ashamed to be British` brigade on Vine @ BBC today, arguing that Gadaffi's convoy shouldn’t have been targetted to allow the `mob to murder him`. For me, I hope it was a missile from a British aircraft that stopped him in his tracks (even if it WAS loaned by a reluctant Uncle Sam). I say `thanks Sam for the munitions, the logistial support and everything else you provided`. That bastard had a colleague of mine machine-gunned to death in a London street, his semtex killed and maimed many of my countrymen and women as well as our brethren on Pan Am 103 and those upon whom the debris fell. I saw a flight of RAF Tornados pass over my home this morning. Highly likely having been in Libyan skies. I welcomed them back and said a prayer for Yvonne Fletcher and her colleagues from Bow Street Police Station who watched her die.

Thursday 20 October 2011

Anglian Odyssey

Hi Blogpals, (if anyone is out there). I have been a bit irregular I know (note to self: eat more porridge and green veg), but there are several reasons for this. Firstly we've been swirling about in the vortex of the house move which, as anyone who has done similar will know, throws everything into a big box, shakes it all about and then tips it out in a different location leaving you dozens of things to do and putting your finances in freefall.

Secondly, we still feel like we're on holiday as neither of us have jobs, although I have more experience of this phenomenon as I have quit 4 in the last 5 years (the last in April in a joyous, quietly dignified but swift, exit - never piss off a bloke with a private pension because he can vanish in 7 seconds). Thirdly, blogging or that other thing, twitting, or whatever it's called has never been that high on my list of `must-do-first` things, although I really enjoy the comments my posts get and, strange as it may seem, I get a sort of feel for the people who leave them on a regular basis and really look forward to reading them.

So after 3 weeks and one day of unpacking boxes (lots still in the barn in the back garden), dismantling and chopping up a shed (40 quids worth of kindling), having 5 bar gates fitted to secure the Jack Rascal Terrorist and removing a built in cupboard in the downstairs bathroom to reveal a lovely window, I suddenly felt the urge to get it out in the open  (and will accept a caution from the local plod if anyone spots me doing it). I've added a few pics from a little outing we treated ourselves to today, all within a 12 mile radius of our new gaff.









Coming soon: The Day of the Hog - or The day Edward Fox once appeared in a film I starred in.....

Friday 14 October 2011

No Mercy in Switzerland

Wipeout: A motorcyclist in Switzerland sets off a speed camera by sliding along the ground without his bike
Sparks are flying from his bike, which he is thought to have lost control of after noticing the traffic camera ahead of him.

The incident happened between the towns of Cibourg and La Chaux-de-fonds, close to Bern and the French border, on October 2.
A police spokesman said: ‘It appears that he suddenly saw the traffic control measure ahead and lost control as he tried to slow down.
Police say the motorcyclist, who was wearing protective leathers, was unhurt apart from minor cuts and bruises, as well as a degree of shock.
He confirmed that the man was still facing a fine and the withdrawal of his driving licence for up to three months.
The officer said some 18 motorists had been caught speeding on the same stretch of mountain road on the same Sunday morning.
 
Its a moot point, but I’d be on to any old defence solicitor I've known if I was him! I can hear the glorious bullshit as I type this: 
“Your worships, it was the bike that was speeding, not my client. My client was actually travelling at 3 Kmph below the limit as he had a jammed throttle and, not wishing to break the law, threw himself onto the road in order to prevent a crime from being committed. His bike, being on it’s side, picked up speed due to less friction and so exceeded the limit – oh and his mother dropped him on his head when he was two, so he should be acquitted”.

Thursday 13 October 2011

Tuesday 11 October 2011

East Anglia Adventure

Hello Chums,
Just a quick message from the eastern front. Successfully struck camp a couple of weeks ago and relocated
A couple of things were necessary upon arrival; 1. Setting one’s watch back 20 years in order to blend in with the locals.
2. Adding an extra `o` to any words containing that fourth vowel eg: “Norfolk” becomes “NOOfolk”. “Hotel” becomes “hootel”, “Cromer” = “Croomer”, “Lifeboat” = “Lifeboot”, etc. 
3. Removing certain other consonents to remove unnecessary syllables eg; “Norwich” is pronounced “Norge”. 3(counting is difficult at the moment). Learning other bits of useful lingo. The other night we were having a mardle, oover the 5 bar gate. (no photos I'm afraid).

Local produce is for sale at the end of quite a few front gardens so we are treating ourselves to fresh, free range eggs, jams, chutneys and fresh veg. We'll be growing our own soon as we're getting an allotment that seems to be half the size of the Isle of Wight. I'll need to get a tractor (no jokes about my Harley Davidson please)
We live near the hill. It doesn’t need a name as it’s the only one in the county which means RAF pilots are narrowly avoiding it all the time, in fact now I think about it, it's actually in Suffolk. On that RAF subject, I saw the RAF Tornado the other day. It took off from what I presumed was RAF Marham (pron. Marm), batted low and fast due south, turned left at the hill and after a couple of top-ups, delivered some munitions onto a suburb of Sirte, Libya, before returning to UK at about 1530 and taking up air defence duties until it got dark at 7pm and they had to conserve energy and turn out the runway lights and approach radar.
Anyway old chums, that’s all for the moment. Must get back to erecting the peat wall defences – south facing - as we’re only 100 meters from the Suffolk border (haven’t yet mentioned to the neighbours that I come from 300+ years worth of the Suffolk Hogday's of Wickham Market, apparently that sort of thing can stop a conversation round these ‘ere marshes.
Yours etc,

Friday 7 October 2011

Interlude

Thanks to everyone for posting the messages on the previous re my move. We're still unpacking, so for your entertainment and enjoyment, please accept the below as a little interlude while I work up to write something. Can't believe I actually rode some of those roads in 2003. Time to do it again, methinks.Hasta la vista, baby.