floydraser

I keep buying interesting stuff at auction when maybe I shouldn't. A while ago I acquired a quantity of these magazines simply because I had never heard of them before and I was fascinated. However, I seem to have found something for which there is very little information available, even through this interweb thingy. Reading them makes me think they were aimed at the Merchant Navy? This issue has adverts for shipbuilders (Vickers Armstrongs), ship's engineers and shipping companies. And Dewars whisky! I wondered if anyone here has ever heard of it?

And going back to somewhere near the original subject: one reason for today's catering problems could be to do with the way we have come to expect higher standards when we dine out. I'll bet the places we hear praised on this forum and elsewhere all use the best available fresh ingredients and staff to prepare it? Remember Little Chefs? Happy Eaters? I was Distribution Manager in a Puritan Maid depot. They were a wholly owned distribution subsidiary of Trusthouse Forte who owned the afore mentioned as well the hotels. We supplied the hotels with fresh stuff while the roadsiders got frozen and tinned. The idea being that during slack periods very little food was wasted. Sounds awful now but August Bank Holidays were hysterically busy!

Cor blimey it's all Lorry Drivers round here! You can't seem to get away from them.. I was a Distribution Manager around 1988 and when the big warehouses opened up around here (Magna Park) it was like a magnet for all logistics staff, me included; I could earn more as a class 1 driver with no responsibility. However: 1994 - time and a half for Saturdays, double time Sundays. the rota said we work one in eight Saturdays. Then the big supermarkets started opening on Sundays and over Christmas. Saturdays and Sundays became normal time. So now it's anti social hours, weekends and Bank Holidays and every year you have to have a day's CPC training (thanks Europe, have we binned that yet?). I may be out of date?? How much is medical now? Was about £120. I couldn't wait to get out as soon as my mortgage was paid off. Thankfully for me, all the planets lined up nicely thank you.

It can't be easy trying to get staff in the catering trade at the moment. What future could they offer anybody? The threat of another change to the rules is always there for now. People have had over 12 months now to look around for more permanent jobs or a different career.

Thanks for the heads up, not been in mine either. Risky business being a thief; there's a lot of stealth cameras around these days, and some have alarms. Not noisey alarms, silent ones that alert the owner and start recording. That Ronald Reagan mask won't save yer.

Blimey, that was a hectic few days! We were disappointed to cancel our first "blow the cowebs out" caravan long weekend due to the storm a week before the Bank Holiday. I have a load of auction bought stuff to clear out but because of the Indian Variant, we still don't fancy the idea of attending car boot sales. So Friday morning Mrs Raser suggests we join the traffic and get some use out of the boat. We arrived eventually at 21.20 but the marina has good lighting so no bother there. No running water until lunchtime Saturday while I sterilise the tanks but again, no real bother. Saturday morning we headed off the Blakeney Quay which we have visited a couple of times and love. Saturday afternoon we were joined by Mrs Raser's sister and husband and alcohol may have been taken. Sunday we visited Wroxham as reported elsewhere, chilled out in the afternoon and had a steady trundle home late evening. This is because we had things to do and Mrs Raser needs to work to keep me in boats. Due to the good weather forecast I decided to return to the boat on Tuesday to carry on with the smelly work required to make it waterproof from the top. As I'm preparing for the trip I get a message from Son No.2: he's found me some more work! B*gger! After 18 months avoiding Covid I thought those around me hadn't noticed and the whole business had been forgotten. Damn. The Electrical Engineer I do the work for would be in the office on Thursday and could I meet him there? OK. I actually did well to avoid working in that office as they did have a bout of Covid go through the place. My Son actually had it as did most of his family but a couple who have worked there for years, and coming up to retirement age both got it really bad. Thankfully, after spells in hospital, both have recovered. Each working visit to the Denham Owl has two parts: one is obviously to get some work done but the second is to plan the work for the next visit. I managed to get some timber into the gaping holes left when I removed the rotten wood last year, and even got to fibreglass over the top to make a stronger, waterproof structure. Then I took some measurements for bits to be made at home for next time. The return of work means I'll be limited to weekend visits to the boat for most of the summer so let's hope the weather patterns are kind...

Hmm, difficult one that. Do any of the squad normally play for Ip***ch? If so, no chance at all near Norwich.

And is she allowed to put it down for a drink at half-time?

The leisure battery on my caravan is now 10 years old but then it hardly does any work. We always have a mains hook up and when not in use it's disconnected. The batteries on the boat are conected as Mark's, via smart charging and shore power. Without the shore power and left connected for alarms, bilge pumps etc I would imagine the battery is earning it's keep a bit more and wouldn't last as long. Luckily though, there are instruments available to monitor or check the condition of a battery to help avoid disasters.

Here's DO 22. This one's a bit different due to Covid and my imagination. In it I announce that I will be aiming to part ways with the Denham Owl sometime during the rest of this mooring period, in other words, before April 2022. Work still carries on though and I will be taking a trip to the Norfolk Records Office to fill in the missing part of the boat's history.

///vanish.trombone.swaps What3words will get you close.

They do look like an ideal place for launching canoes and the other one being straight, looks like a bathing place. But with the link to the main channel I had my doubts, hence the question on here.

Sorry if I didn't make the irony more visible; I was joking.

We've actually started using the boat for accommodation at last. Who knows, one day it may even move. So for the first time ever, we visited Wroxham this morning (Sunday). Or should they just change the name of the place to Roy's? It's a bit spooky; it's like he's watching you! Anyway, Mrs Raser bought a new dress and a new top from the boutique which wasn't called Roy's but frankly I shouldn't be surprised if he isn't something to do with it somewhere. We did buy a bottle of Whitley Neill Orange Gin from Roy's though, just to help with his cashflow. This caused a massive argument: I insisted the gin should stay on the boat but Mrs Raser said it should come home to be consumed here. I lost of course but I put up a good fight. Good news for all the traders though, there were plenty of people about and loads of youngsters with coolboxes and beer, queuing for day boats. Mrs Raser noticed that some of the young females were slightly under dressed but I was more interested in the scenery like this photo: What are these? They look deserted but at the same time, quite modern???

But doesn't eliminate the postman.

How about a large fake cat?

No Griff, this is what you do with a Dutton Phaeton: It starts at 3.16 but keep watching.

I've done both festival and the revival a few years ago but no more I'm afraid. It used to be quite inclusive in the early years but the last time we went, having spent quite a bit on travel etc to be there, VIP passes were needed to get anywhere special.

We nearly treated ourselves to ticking the Monaco GP off our bucket list a few years ago. I'm not sure if they still do but back then, every other year they used to have a Classic GP a week before the main race.

Could I work from home?

I'm sure by now Griff, you've casually dropped this into a conversation: "Goodness me Darling, what a coincidence. There just happens to be a fine looking shooting club right next to the runway which I think may be open the day after my flight." Obviously translated into Proper Yorkshire.

Look out for this place, it's next to the runway. http://northamptonshootingground.com/

Lovely clock Paul. As a hobby which keeps the grey cells ticking over, it's priceless. But selling them: price would depend on the quality of the clock mechanism in part. A cheapo from China via Ebay or better one via somewhere like Cousins. I can't see if it's varnished but bare wood collects dust and would be a pain to clean after a few months. As Mark says, minimum wage per hour plus materials plus vat and you would have to pay tax on your declared earnings.......

My Brother in law put me right on that one, although I was sort of suspicous and asked him before I even attempted it!