Hear Hear

Had a hearing test yesterday, as I keep turning the TV sound up and asking people to repeat what they just said. I've never had a hearing test before, so it was a new experience.

The degradation in my hearing has only manifested itself since I caught Covid last November, plus I have tinnitus in my left ear after it was blasted by using someone else's phone a couple of months ago, which was very painful at the time.

Click on the image above to enlarge it. The letters and symbols above the line are sounds I can apparently no longer hear or differentiate, which is strange, as they're in the higher frequencies, whereas it's the lower frequencies on TV that leave me confused.

There's no damage to my eardrums, but my ability to hear has nevertheless deteriorated, although no more than expected with age; however, I'm sure it has deteriorated more than someone of a similar age. 

We were watching the series 1883 (after having binge watched 1923 - we're doing it in a weird order) and someone said; "When he came home, my mother said he weighed 97 pounds." I though she said; "When he came home he was wearing a 2nd pair of pants." It makes a world of difference to the storyline. 

Inflation

While we've been away in Broadway in the motorhome, the rate of inflation hit me hard.

Firstly, we went for dinner with Hay's dad and his partner, who were staying in a local hotel. I spotted that they had Jam Shed Shiraz on the wine list. Now I can buy this at Tesco for £7 at retail value; I'm sure that it can be bought for £6 at wholesale rates, if not less. The price being charged by the hotel was £31 - that's more than 5 times the price and tantamount to price gouging. You expect to pay 2 or 3 times the retail price, but not more than 5 times. It's not as if the food prices were low either - fish and chips was £18, as compared to under £15 in a local hostelry.

I bought a couple of Cook meals from the local Co-Op for us to eat in the motorhome on our last night. The single portions were pitifully small and wouldn't even satisfy the hunger of a small child, so I had to buy 2 x 2 person portions at £8.95 each to give is a decent meal for two. Very nice they were too, but I'm certain they've reduced the portion sizes to maximise profit.

Net Migration

Net migration is the difference between those foreign nationals entering the UK and the foreign nationals AND indigenous Brits leaving the UK.

Those leaving the UK are immaterial; we should be focusing on the number coming here and not those leaving, over which there is not a shred of control.

What's plain is that there simply aren't enough Brits leaving the UK for Australia, Canada and New Zealand. If the government could just persuade more Brits to leave the UK, then the net migration figures wouldn't look so bad.

Actually, they're doing a sterling job of persuading more to leave.

Gun Cartridges

We visited Broadway in the Cotswolds and I spotted these gewgaws made from shotgun cartridge tops.

Cufflinks, keyrings and decorations to leather belts.

I got a huge bag of spent cartridges from my neighbour and tame builder, Colin, who is a keen clay pigeon shooter, making some into resin coasters - but that was before I developed the allergy to resin. As a result, I have a couple of hundred of the things, which are impossible to dispose of sensibly. 

I may give the cufflinks a try, but the shop owner volunteered to take the excess off my hands, as the cufflinks and belts are made on-site. I'll swap them for a set of their cufflinks for me (not that I wear shirts that require cufflinks anymore) and a keyring for Hay.

Bargain

2 tonne engine hoist from Facebook Market.

Most 2nd hand ones being advertised are between £100 and £150, unless I'm willing to travel a hundred miles or more. So, a bargain, if I'm not mistaken. Perfect for what I have in mind later this month, when I collect the Triumph GT6 project.

My only worry is that the travel on the hydraulic piston isn't that long; however, the engine on a GT6 is very accessible due to the whole front of the car being the bonnet, which hinges forward and makes engine work simple, as shown in the photo below.

Ami

 Spotted a Citroen Ami yesterday. Can't say I'm impressed, but the price is certainly low.

They're symmetrical  about the midpoint, fully electric and have a range of 75 miles.

When I first saw it I thought it was a mock-up for some advertising campaign, but it had springs and shock absorbers and so was a real car.

It's somewhat redolent of a military vehicle from WWII and not at all attractive but, with a 2CV in its stable, Citroen has a penchant for ugly vehicles. They did, however, make the very beautiful DS21 Convertible.

Testa Di Moro Update

Hayley's sister, Michelle, has finished her take on a Testa di Moro I suggested she make and we have taken delivery of it.

It's 32cm tall, 30 cm across and very heavy.

Shades of a very scary Carmen Miranda accompanied by a human-faced snake. We're pleased with the result and can't wait to see the next incarnation.

I think I've shown these before, but they are Michelle's ceramic take on The Green Man theme. They're not weatherproof and so cannot be mounted outside, although she did make us a terracotta one for outside.

The bowl with the two birds in the bottom photo is by one of her associates.

Ravens

We have a breeding pair of ravens in our garden. We can tell they're ravens, rather than a crows, by their size and the fact their tails are diamond shaped, as opposed to the crow's cut off end to its tail. They're also a lot more confident on landing in trees.

It's estimated that there are no more than 7.400 breeding pairs of ravens in the UK, so we're quite lucky.

Pork Jerky

Apparently you can make jerky out of pork, which is cheaper than steak, so I had a go.

I used casserole pork, which is the leanest, cheap cut you can buy, but even then there's still quite a lot of fat on it. 

The problem with the fat is that, unless removed, it can cause the jerky to go rancid, so you either have to remove every shred of fat (which is difficult), or eat it before it goes off (which is easy).

The stuff on the left of the photo is the crackling from the lump of porK I purchased, which I cooked separately.

Not too bad and slightly more chewy than the skirt steak, but I think I still prefer the steak jerky.

I also tried a modification for making beef jerky - to leave as large a slab as possible to dehydrate, rather then cutting it up. It saves on space in the air fryer and you can simply cut it to regular shapes after it has dried. Instead of 100 degrees, I set the air fryer to 80 degrees.

I can't say it was a total success. It tastes fine, but came out more cooked and friable than dehydrated. The slab was too thick for optimal dehydration. Think I'll sick to cutting it up before drying it. additionally the rub hadn't covered all the exposed surface when cut up and covered just the edges.

Skirt steak used to be about £10 per kilo, but it's now £15. I have noticed that restaurants are increasingly offering what they call flat-iron steaks (skirt by another name) to cut costs and keep prices down. I actually prefer skirt to rump or sirloin, as it has more depth of flavour. Other names for skirt are flank, hangar and butcher's steak. Our local butcher always has plenty, as few people know what it is.

Table Base

Apropos of yesterday's post about visiting Broadway, one of the fancy shops was selling a table with a base that's given me fuel for thought about a base for the live edge ash table top.

I have no idea how the bits of driftwood are held together - there are no obvious signs of dowels or pins going right through the timbers.

However, finding suitable bits of wood will be a problem anyway, so this might just be a pipedream.

 

Unconscious Bias

Hay works part time in clinics in doctors' surgeries and she has noticed some unconscious bias in patients.

If you're a woman, even if a qualified medic, you're called nurse; if you're a man, even if a paramedic and not a doctor, you're called doctor.

Beep Beep

Spotted this rather unique form of transport on Facebook Market last week.

It isn't street legal, so can only be used on private property. Looks as if it's lawnmower engine powered. The bloke who made it is now making an electric version. A bit steep at £900.

I've lost the listing now, but it seems to me that the handlebars don't turn, so leaning is the only way of altering direction.

Fat Füx, And Other Things

I made a flying visit to Liverpool on Tuesday for a reunion of  the Class of '71 of Riversdale Technical College students. It was a maritime reunion for we navigating cadets who attended the nautical faculty, many of  whom sailed together on our first trip to sea.

We met up for a libation at the Philharmonic Dining Rooms on Hope Street, which is a wonderful example of over-the-top, Victorian bling.

There is one problem with the gents' loos - the toilet bowl obviously broke at some time and has been replaced with a 20th / 21st century, white, Twyford ensemble, which ruins the overall effect.

We then repaired to a Chinese restaurant just outside of Liverpool's Chinatown area for a fine repast.

Spotted this statue in the grounds of the bombed out St Luke's church. It's a WWI Christmas Truce memorial.

Opposite the church there used to be a place called The Cabin Club, which was a favourite haunt of ours in the early 70s. It no longer exists.

On the way back to the train station to get to my friend's house in Formby, where we were staying for the night, I saw this advert for a new chocolate and coffee shop that's opening soon on Bold St.

It's called Fat Füx. Quite apposite.

I must say Liverpool has changed a lot since I last visited and has become a hotbed of independent cafes and eateries, somewhat resembling Totness. It has a totally new vibe.

King of America

 I suspect all Harry and Meghan's security problems would be resolved by one simple invitation.

The Americans should invite them to become King and Queen of America, purely in a ceremonial role, of course. Harry would no longer be a Spare, not that he is anymore anyway.

Addendum to Advert Translations

Was looking at a power scythe on Facebook and came across a sentence I often see on cars. "Was working well when last used."

The translation of this is that it hasn't been used for the best part of a decade, and it's pot luck as to whether it will fire up at all. Caveat emptor!

I wouldn't mind, but the bloody thing was being advertise at £450, which is 60 quid and 150 quid more than similar power scythes that are in full working order.

What are these people smoking? For God's sake get it working before you sell it, else sell it for a song.

Coronation Tat

Hay ordered a couple of Old Sodbury Coronation mugs.

Elegant, understated and bone china. No hideous photos of Charles wearing his crown at a jaunty angle either. Give it 100 years and they'll be worth all of 50p.

The Turner Prize

Finished the cup I turned with the Lidl wood lathe but, as the wood was just an old bit of rubbish and not a kiln dried blank, it split slightly.

Still. not bad for a first attempt at something useful.

Given I'm taking delivery of my Triumph GT6 project on the 21st June, I feel I'm going to have to router the ash slab that's been sitting drying in our dining room before much longer, else I'm not going to have a garage in which to perform the feat.

The routing sled is ready and there's ample space at present in the garage. If I don't do it soon, then I'm going to have to do it in the dining room itself, which will not impress Hay.

Still haven't decided on the legs, but I'm leaning toward buying some tree stumps to clean up and fix a rectangular frame on. These, for example, are going free in Dorchester.

Getting them the right height will be key, along with a decent spread at the bottom for stability. I like the concept of a tree appearing to grow out of the oak floor to support the table top.

These jobs I'm taking on a real blue jobs, rather than pink jobs. Hay's pink jobs are more concerned with the gardening, which bores be rigid, as it can take years to see the result. That said, the GT6 may yet take years...

Not For Turning

Yesterday I finally broke out the wood lathe I bought in Lidl about 18 months ago in a fit of tool buying. I bolted it to the garage workbench I refurbished last week, which has since been painted with boiled linseed oil as a preservative and protection.

OK, it's nothing like a professional setup, but it's fine for a hobbyist. Depending on how I get on, I may decide to invest in something from e-Bay that's a bit more robust and has a multiplicity of wood-grabbing ends.

I used a bit of leylandii offcut from the trees we felled in 2021 and it turned quite nicely, but I got covered in woodchips. I always seem to wear clothes that are magnets for sawdust or woodchips and they're impossible to brush off or remove, even with sticky tape. 

I didn't read the instructions, which resulted in a bit of faffing about before I understood the mechanics of it and got it to work properly.

I made this beautiful object, which has 1001 uses, any one of which escapes me at this precise moment, but I'm sure I'll think of some, given enough time.

I'm now going to make one of these for people in the family for birthday and Christmas presents, saying; "Well, I didn't buy it - I made it, especially for you!" They will be so pleased.... I'll save a fortune too....

I even made a start on something vaguely cup-shaped.

Had to give up, as the chisels now require sharpening. The ones that come wit the lathe are quite tiny, so I will look for some larger ones that produce quicker results.

Next I'm going to have to trial the Lidl plasma cutter; however, I suspect the power in the garage won't be enough to run it.

New Word

You're never too old to learn. I saw a word I've never heard before - spelunker.

A spelunker is one who makes exploring caves a hobby, being derived from the Latin spelunca, which means cave.

Pylons

 Spotted some of the new design electricity pylons the other day.

It's incredible to think that the old design is nearly 100 years old, having been designed in 1927 by Sir Reginald Blomfield, with the first one being erected in 1928 in Scotland.

Welsh Space Programme

Went to Penarth during the week to collect a car and passed through the ruins of the Welsh Space Programme somewhere in the Cardiff dock area, which seems to be where all the world's scrap metal goes to die.

Not wanting to take a photo while driving, I scraped a shot from Google Street View when I got home.

As you can see, the building of the rocket was suspended for some reason, seemingly decades ago, as it has rusted somewhat.

Never been to Penarth before, and I was quite impressed. It's a bit like the Clifton area of Bristol - an oasis.

Routing Sled

I've decided I will have to router the ash slab on at least one side and, to that purpose, I made a DIY routing sled with a bit of wood butchery.

Given I've cut one side to a depth of half way through, I can't take too much off, else the thing will collapse into matchsticks. 

The router fits in the sled with about 1/8th of an inch tolerance, so it doesn't stick in the guide rails as it moves along. I used pocket holes to fasten the guide rails to the base (I could have just used ordinary screws, but I wanted a reason to buy a pocket hole jig - anything for a new tool).

The photo above shows how it will be used, minus the runners that should go horizontal and level along the length, either side of the slab. The slab will need to be stabilised with wooden wedges. The object is to gradually shave off high spots with each pass, gradually extending the router bit through the bottom of the sled after each complete traverse of the length. 

I'm hoping that shaving/routing a bit off the raised corners and then lopping off 25cm at each end, to bring it to 2m and eliminate the 2 inch cracks that have appeared in the ends, will be sufficient. The base of the slab not being level can be compensated for in the table supports I choose.

While I was at it, I thought I'd make a new, garage workbench top from some reclaimed wood I scavenged, as the bench had been in the garden for a year and the top (OSB) had gotten waterlogged and sagged.

I'm getting hang of this wood butchery thing.