billythehat

2 minutes ago, CharlieH said:

Was that "Camp Coffee " , that was awful stuff, mostly chicory if I remember.

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

12 hours ago, The Cobra said:

I find as I am getting older that I often reflect back on how things have changed from when I was a kid. What do you remember ?

Here are some of the things that come to mind, 

 

Dad starting the car with a handle.

Mother fighting with a clothes wringer

Lighting a fire in the living room.

Carrying coal

Lighting it with paraffin block firelighters.

Keeping pigeons as pets

Sunday night bathtime

Test card on TV

Only 2 channels

45, 33 and 78 records

Radiograms

Fruit salad, black-jacks, bronco busters

Coppers had capes that walked the street.

Milk delivered in glass bottles

Phonecall from a box in the street.

Party lines

Pathe News before the A and B movie

Saturday cinema

Saturday job in a Butchers

Sunday was a day of rest and everything was closed.

Playing "kick the can" 

 

 

What do you remember ? Not what you were told about but actually remember from when you were a kid ?

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?

On 11/7/2022 at 3:10 AM, xylophone said:

Thanks for the information BTH and I'm sure you're right, given your expertise in this area, however I also do believe the water run-off from the hill on the other side of the road which was "re-routed" had something to do with it, this especially as the road collapse happened about three weeks after they had finished this so-called "remedial work"!! However I bow to your superior knowledge.

 

Yes the old Suzuki Swift is going well and is just about to clock up 40,000 km in just over 10 years, so not really used a great deal, however I will be trying the Patong-Kathu road today in order to buy some more wine.

 

Are you due over to this part of the world any time soon?? If you are, don't hesitate to give me a call so that we can catch up.

 

All the very best. Xylo

message sent

5 hours ago, xylophone said:

my little Suzuki Swift
 

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…
 

16 hours ago, EVENKEEL said:

Things which makes a bar noteworthy -

Pretty staff 

decent priced booze

good food

music 

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

On 3/16/2022 at 3:14 AM, simon43 said:

[quote]

Daily News had pictures of a foreigner with a quite reasonable set of abs, with no explanation as to where they got this. 

[/quote]

 

I would hazard a guess - daily workouts in the gym? ????

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

 

1 hour ago, GrandPapillon said:

link? always game for a funny story to read ????

 

This reminded me that I hadn’t heard from Phet for many years. I assume he’s now retired and tapping out his memoirs somewhere in the west midlands of England. 

 

This link shows he was still scribbling tales of Lalaland after we met up in Bangkok in 2011 for a pizza and a few scoops of ale. 
https://brokenmanrepaired.wordpress.com/page/2/
 

A bit more on Marky boy:

 

Biography

Mr Mark Gooding OBE is Her Majesty’s Ambassador to the Kingdom of Thailand. He started his role in Thailand in July 2021.

Mark joined the FCO in 1999 and has spent his career working mostly on Europe and Asia. His previous FCO roles include Director Covid (Repatriations), Director EU (Future Partnership), Deputy Director Europe, Minister Counsellor (Political) at the British Embassy in Beijing, British Ambassador to Cambodia, British Deputy High Commissioner to Sri Lanka and the Maldives, and Private Secretary to the Foreign Secretary.

Mark holds a Master’s Degree in Modern Languages from Oxford University. He speaks Thai, Mandarin Chinese, French, German, and Spanish. In his spare time, he enjoys running, music and travelling. Mark is married to Dr Christopher McCormick, an education specialist.

British Ambassador to Thailand

The Ambassador represents Her Majesty The Queen and the UK government in the country to which they are appointed. They are responsible for the direction and work of the Embassy and its Consulates, including political work, trade and investment, press and cultural relations, and visa and consular services.

Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office

Previous roles in government

 

As the British embassy there will have a team of Flunkies to deal/not deal with issues concerning problems with its own citizens in Lalaland, it's unlikely Uncle Mark will be answering one to one queries. His previous role in Cambodia would have given him good experience in the ways of the machinations of 3rd world countries.

25 minutes ago, StreetCowboy said:

Let's just hope that Mr Genereally-good-natured-and-soon-to-be-released-from-prison-for-crimes-of-violence doesn't think we are talking about him.

 

EDIT: I shouldn't have said that, should I?

Sir, should it come to defending your honour and position, I suggest you refresh yourself to the rules to such. I draw your attention to Rule 11. 

 

 

2 hours ago, ukrules said:

The guy should be given a medal

 

Sir, surely a large brown envelope would be the order of the day. He may need the cash soon…

meanwhile...

 

https://www.cnbc.com/2021/07/26/asian-currencies-thailand-covid-lack-of-tourism-hit-thai-baht.html

 

9 minutes ago, ChC1 said:

 

It is an absurd story. But here we go:

Father-of-three quoted £71k for week's stay in Cornwall holiday home | Daily Mail Online

 

Sorry had to cite from the Daily XXXX. From this article:

[QUOTE]A father-of-three was quoted £71,000 for a week's stay in a Cornwall holiday home and has slammed firms for 'exploiting' families on staycations. 

Conservative councillor Paul Nickerson said a three-bedroom contemporary home in St Ives he was interested in came to a whopping £10,232-per-night when he enquired about a week's stay.[/QUOTE]

 

and

 

[QUOTE]Nurse Donna Brunton from Consett, County Durham, looked into UK holidays after she became concerned that her £2,500 all-inclusive Malta trip might be a no-go.

She said: 'A holiday park in north Cornwall was quoting £3,699 for the four of us to stay seven nights, self-catering in what looks like an upmarket caravan. [/QUOTE]

 

Of course it does not represent the actual market and some of the quotation are selective to reflect the absurdity of the market. But the reality is it does happen, rarely, but exist. 

 

Crivvens, and I bet there was no Unicorn offered in those pricy quotes.

 

There’s me thinking Thailand had become dear…

12 hours ago, ChC1 said:

 

Your honourable gentleman, of course you are right. But if you follow the British news, you may notice a week in Cornwall at this time of year, we are looking at anywhere between £2,500 (TH100,000B) to £71,000 (TH2,980,000B) depends on the accommodation availability. Then factor in food, drinks and activities, it is cheaper to go to the Maldives. Except Maldives is in red list currently.

 

Plus, have been quarantined in UK for almost 470 days, an overseas trip is on the top agenda for many British residence like me. 

Sir, if indeed these were the figures you were supplied with, could you please confirm they were for a location in Cornwall, England and not Cornwall, Narnia.

 

My aunty runs a guest house in Penzance, Cornwall, and informed me that for £71k, she will not only provide a sea view suite but also provide a genuine Unicorn for your exclusive use during your stay.
 

“or heaven forbid, even Welsh.”

 

Sir, I really must protest in the strongest possible terms at the reference to the Welsh. In defense of that fine nation, I would just like to say…erm, er, um, er…I’ll get back to you on that one.

 

My sources amongst the medicated here, inform that as you sit on the ‘High Somtam Table’ you will have to report yourself to yourself for such egregious behaviour. 
 

On 6/29/2021 at 9:03 AM, connda said:

I think it will be like sharks when there is blood in the water. 
Anything that smells like blood is food.
In this case, anything that looks like a tourist will need to be monitored and harassed.  Like I mentioned above.  The cue to harrass will be something as innocuous as not having a GPS wrist-band. 
"Where wrist track device?  Show passport!  Show phone. Why no phone track app? Why no passport?  Where you go?  You bad person for sure! Why no wrist track device???" What you do?" 

This will be entertaining!

 

Sir, whilst some of your predictions may indeed come to pass when the visitors return, the aged (like a fine cask whisky) expats will, I’m sure, have adaptations for such. The main problem will be those who endure the endless laughter of running any kind of business in Lalaland, mainly tourist related, that rely on the regularly generated biznit from them. I feel sorry for these business expats, as forming any type of future business plan in the current situation where stupidity and corruption is king, coupled with huge uncertainty compounded with polices written by those that couldn’t manage a round of toast, will be the root problem.

 

Before the issue of fleecing the tourists can be addressed, they first have to get them there. With travel restrictions already in place in the countries of origin, increased lack of affordability plus all the other negative news affecting Lalaland, there sure isn’t going to be a stampede from western countries.

 

My advice to any approached for a cash bonus by the BIB would be to ask for "Thai price". ????

Latest from the BBC.

 

Lalaland still in amber zone.

 

“You should not travel to amber list countries or territories.”

 

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/red-amber-and-green-list-rules-for-entering-england#amber-list

 

1 hour ago, VocalNeal said:

^ Ahem. Routemasters had either a fully or semi-automatic transmission. 

 

 

Ahem, my humble apology for not saying the crash sound was the sound made as the driver attempted the next gear via the quadrant. Thinking about it, it was more of a crunch sound and I accept my  onomatopoeia reference in this instance was wholly incorrect.

 

General sequence: 

The driver operates the gearchange by the selection of the gear required on a quadrant similar to an auto box selector but marked...... R (reverse) N (neutral) 1 2 3 4

The basic idea is FIRST you move the gear lever to the next desired gear, and THEN when you wish to change you operate the pedal.

To start off from stationary first (second in some cases) is selected and the change gear pedal depressed. As soon as the change gear pedal has been released the next gear can be selected.

With the engine speed increased -

The centrifugal clutch bites by means of bob weights which fly out and cause pressure plates to close on twin clutch plates.

A fluid flywheel achieves this by the transfer of fluid to the outside or periphery of the flywheel.