billythehat

$1000? I assume you’re quoting per month which maybe a reasonable approximation although I don’t know why you didn’t quote the King’s pound! Should you have a private pension pot, all the better. Current UK full state pension is about £200 per week depending on marital status and having at least 30 years of paying in full NI contributions upon reaching the retirement age of 67 for men to qualify for full state pension. Sure, move anywhere you want to but do keep your passport up to date for any escape that may or not be required (you mention health issues) and to pick up some free spare choppers/specs whilst in the UK! The expense of international travel could be a problem but I guess you’ve covered this issue in the future pension budget. As to be teaching the unteachable at 80 years young, that would seem an admirable goal to help negate the terminal boredom of living there full time in retirement, especially for an active mind. Ao Nang, dunno, as I’ve only stayed there a couple of times, mainly just passing through. Myself, I would go back for a month to see if it still was for me as we sometimes remember times/places being better than they actually were. Up to you, Farang.

aye, that was it, dosed by the teaspoon to naughty kids!

Introduction of drinkable coffee. There was a liquid substitute coffee liquid that came in a bottle (can’t remember the name) that tasted awful. No ‘alternative’ teas. Cocoa powder with hot creamy milk and sugar was a treat. My hardworking mum having 3 jobs. I didn’t personally appreciate the sacrifices she made when we were kids until became an adult with responsibilities. My dad introducing us to curry powder leading to a lifetime addiction to spicy food. His wardrobe smelling of Old Spice after shave lotion and Brylcreem hair cream. He never used anything else. A constipated Uncle Ron not reading the label on a bottle of Syrup of Figs and chugging the whole bottle down – we laughed like drains for a week after the outcome! Riding old pedal petrol mopeds on the nearby disused railway line (the tracks long removed), again leading to a lifetime of riding motorcycles. Having a paper round, a Saturday job, being a golf caddy and dragging wet coal sacks up the steep hill to where we lived….eeeee it were tuff but seemed quite normal, you just got on with it. Collecting early Marvel comics – probably worth a few shillings now. Living with neighbours that knew it each other and looked out for them. Everyone knew everyone. Yer mates from school and what mischief we got up to. The local chippy that didn’t cost an arm and a leg for a meal. Always a big queue on a Friday and I loved the onion vinegar supplied from the giant glass jar of pickled onions. Never got the gherkins thing though… Collecting old stamps (later stolen by some scumbag) and an interest in astronomy. I remember the wonder of viewing the heavens through a proper telescope. Keeping pets although my dad never liked or wanted a dog in the house. Secondary school teachers with anger management issues, especially after they’d had a few scoops in the pub opposite the school at dinnertime. The kindness of most adults when we were young. Mum taking us to her Bingo club on a Thursday night – no problem for us boys as it meant plenty of crisps and coke all evening! Disco/activity clubs for young lads and lasses to meet up and socialize and then a skateboard race home after. You could buy a packet of 5 Park Drive cigarettes. Party 7 beer cans, Old English Cider, milk stout and packets and packets of real crisps. The one Chinese takeaway in town. Sports day at school. Walking for miles to get somewhere where there was no local transport in town. Never a problem. Visits from the local chimney sweep. He kept champion winning sheep dogs and out-lived his wife and son. He never complained and had many interesting stories of his youth, one of which was riding speedway bikes at the Wimbledon Speedway. Checking out the female babysitters. Having jabs for various diseases. My dad’s sister married a Canadian pilot (she was a WAAF in WW2) and emigrated to Canada after the war. She would send the occasional parcel of a round of extra strong mature Canadian cheese. It was delicious and until this day, I cannot eat mild cheeses. My immediate neighbour was a Scottish man. We understood (my dad’s fault entirely) that his name was Jock and we called him that. Later, we kids discovered his real name was John although he or his wife never corrected us! His mum lived with them and used to feed Hedgehogs in the evening. I haven’t seen one for years now. The trauma of my parent’s divorce and its affect later in life. Searching for crabs amongst the mussel beds under the white chalk cliffs where folk sold cockles, mussels, large crabs and lobsters. Mum liked jellied Ells. Our opinion was that she was welcome to them and no, we didn’t want any! A wee bit later, the importance of education and learning a trade. Having proper seasons; it pretty much always snowed at Christmas and the other seasons followed their course. Watching the first moon landing on an old black and white telly and loved watching Star Trek. Dad always had his radio on somewhere in the house. He used to play piano at the local pub near his air-base during WW2. The one coal fire in the house to huddle around during the cold winter. You could have hung meat for keeping in the other rooms. Going to bed with hot water bottles. And so much more but I’ll leave it there for now. I had an operation yesterday and feeling a bit sore and groggy from the anesthetic this morning. All those moments lost in time…pass me that tissue box would you please?

Sir, may I suggest fitting one of these to your trusty steed to deal with those pesky wandering in the street folk?

message sent

The trusty Suzi still going strong I see! To the topic under discussion and my own 2 Baht as an Engineer: The soil is mainly a sandy loam (sand & clay) with free drainage characteristics. From the photos shown so far, the removal of the road appears to show shear failure of the road metal where the movement of the underlying soil tends to slide due to the overbearing pressure/loading on the soil. The friction of the road foundation is unable to resist the shear force of the moving soil and fails. The movement does not ‘wash away’ foundations but alters the way one structure movement affects another structure (soil friction/angle.) If, after some deliberation and cost analysis, the road is to be retained, the stabilization of the existing soil would be a priority before any works are undertaken. The use of piling/other systems would incur, due to the soil type, to be of some considerable depth for an effective retaining structure. Long term, the slope in this location will continue to fail due to several factors; the removal of trees etc. and the current road alignment abandoned and a new road alignment built. The soil report, post failure, and its’ recommendations should reveal the mystery…

Sir, pray allow me to suggest a suitable identity to soothe your doubt in this area. I suggest Handsome Man a most agreeable moniker.

Sir, you missed an equally valid reason; Staff Attitude.

Not necessarily in the gym…about 7 quid on Ebay...