StreetCowboy

On 1/14/2025 at 11:01 AM, marin said:

Please get a life, your verbal garbage is grating on the whole forum. These post are in no way either intellectual or witty which is what you seem to be aiming at. 

I read his posts because they are different, and thought-out.  I regret reading the abuse that he receives.

It’s interesting to read opinions that are different from your own, when they are clearly expressed; it is less interesting to read offensive and abusive opinions, even when they are widely held.

My buddy hopes he will have recovered sufficiently to ride tomorrow with his sister, who is visiting from The Old Country.  I will plan a couple of short rides on the way down to the station tomorrow. These last couple of weeks have been quiet - mostly commuting to the office, the supermarket, pub and physio. Maybe the highlight was a commute down to Kuchai MRT, to watch a train waking up.  It turned out we’d be catching our train from Sungai Besi, but Google Maps could not help me figure out a safe way there, so I left my bike at Kuchai station bike rack - a tourist attraction in its own right - 

and took a service train from there.

I am getting good use out of the shopping bike - I think the slightly more upright position is easier on my back, although I clipped a bloke’s wing mirror filtering through traffic today. I washed it today, which I think is the cause of tonight’s rain while it’s outside OK Restoran .

Saturday will see Edinburgh Eagles take the long road South to West Hull for their first match on this years’ Road To Wembellee! Wembellee! Wembellee!

unless it’s postponed again…

The back pain has eased substantially, and the Sciatica almost disappeared, but the doctor has me on preventive physio; I’m not planning any long rides, particularly not on the road bike.  For last Sunday’s ride, I leant that to the Young Lad, to let him have a try of the Integrated Shifters.

My buddy has been suffering from drink-related illness, and still had his arm in a sling, so The Lad and I rode into town on quiet roads, bar the LDP and Sprint highways, and took the train to bypass a possibly-tricky junction.  It wasn’t the smoothest train in the fleet, but there were no grounds for complaint.

I had to wait for the rain to ease off before I left from Physio this afternoon,

and by the time I got home the rain had almost stopped.

23 hours ago, save the frogs said:

cycling is probably causing your lower back pain.

you're probably hunched over too much.

maybe get an upright bike like they use in amsterdam. 

you can even do your groceries with this thing. 

 

(mods, how come I cannot copy and paste images into here anymore like I used to?)

 

I was crippled with sciatic nerve impairment on Wednesday 18th December.  It more or less cleared within a few days.  I occasionally had mild lower back pain after cycling on my road bike, never on the shopping bike, but I don’t go so far on that, and I do get sore shoulders after 50 or 60 km.  The physio gives me twenty minutes on the TENS machine, which may or may not do some good.

16 hours ago, GammaGlobulin said:

 

Is JT ready to pass the torch....?

But, then....

To whom?

 

Nobody living, today, is qualified enough to take up JT's cudgels, for everything JT cares about, here on TV.

 

Still, even Mick must stop singing, one day.....much as I wish this were not so.

 

Age is the enemy of us all.

 

 

I wouldn't lay a hand on JT's cudgel.

17 hours ago, Ralf001 said:

wow... doubling down on dumb.

 

feck is forum freindly for f_u_c_k.

Is "Freindly" forum-speak for "f r i e n d l y"?
The depths of stupidity that you can plumb are as deep as your piece of string is long.

I’ve been suffering occasional hip and back pain, and I’d been meaning to book a routine inspection.  This week, it rose up on my agenda, to the extent that I could hardly walk from the hospital car park to A&E, and gratefully accepted a wheelchair back… “Let’s race that old fella there”

”Don’t be daft, please, sir”

”Alright- we’ll race the cleaner with her trolley”

I don’t think the porter was very competitive.

Anyway, a day of rest, and I felt well enough to cycle down to my local walking-stick merchant

On 12/13/2024 at 9:56 PM, still kicking said:

So being a pensioner I am not rich but I do donate to certain Groups for helping people (like handicapped kids or home less ones ) I feel better Do you think I am stupid?

Working for the benefit of others builds pride and self-worth. It is recommended as a diversion from addictive behaviours.

Giving money is an easy way to do this, but it can easily get addictive in itself and get out of control.

We support a local orphanage, where we can see where the money goes; for beggars in the street, I’ll support the visibly blind or maimed - the overheads as a beggar to gangsters are  not much different than the overhead of employing the person in a factory, and you have to trust the gangsters to keep the person safe and their territory free from intruders.  I generally don’t support foreign charities, least of all in response to canvassers on the street.

On 12/8/2024 at 4:59 PM, novacova said:

I don’t spend time thinking about it at all.

It’s the same and plan on continuing unless I come down with a severe case of dementia, then I’ll find a high spot to leap from for a last fun adventure.

Staying physically, mentally and socially active is paramount for a long fulfilling life.

You’re kidding yourself.  The first thing you lose with dementia is self-awareness.  You can’t fix dementia, but you can avoid it by going early.

We were out on a lethargic daunder round KL, lacking in motivation.  I thought we might take a pause on one of the quieter sections. “Drink stop?” I suggested;

”Aye”

”Drink Stop!” I called out, as there was a stranger passing us, and he stopped too.  He was a young fella, and not very talkative. Anyway, he joined us as far as Bukit Tunku; “If you want to join us to TTDI we can lead you to the MRT station for the train back to Bukit Bintang”

”Should we take him to the station before or after the pub?”

”Lets burn that boat when we get to it; he doesn’t look like much of a drinker, but he might learn”

I thought we’d lost him, but he’d pulled up with a broken rear derailleur, so I popped home, picked up my car and delivered him safely to the station, checking that he had a train pass.  With his helmet off, he looked distinctly callow, and I think we were all lucky he didn’t join us in the pub.  If his mother knew of his narrow escape, his bike would be in the Recycling Bin now.

He's got a fair point - what to do when  we have more money than sense?  Most of us are not bragging when we say that, and we may be quite impecunious.

SC

I am not sure if this is of any relevance or interest...

Even if you complain, no-one listens, so you might as well not bother.

On 1/15/2024 at 7:55 AM, Red Phoenix said:

???

I - and with me most people - can think of several other factors contributing to the outbreak of the civil war. 

Slavery was surely a main factor, but attributing the outbreak 100% to slavery is obviously an incorrect Black-or-White (no pun intended) point-of-view.  

So yes I claim that that there are also other factors that contributed to the outbreak of the conflict. 

Would  that make me in your twisted world-view a 'card carrying racist'?

FYI > I asked ChatGPT and it came up with 6 intertwined factors:

> The American Civil War, which took place from 1861 to 1865, was primarily caused by several key factors:

1. Slavery: The deep-rooted controversy over the institution of slavery in the United States was a major catalyst for the war. The stark differences between the Northern and Southern states on the issue of slavery, including the moral, economic, and political implications, played a significant role in the conflict.

2. State's Rights vs. Federal Authority: The struggle between state sovereignty and federal authority was another crucial factor leading to the war. Southern states believed in the concept of states' rights, arguing that they had the right to determine their own laws and policies, including those regarding slavery. On the other hand, the federal government aimed to maintain its authority and uphold the United States Constitution.

3. Sectionalism: Over time, economic, cultural, and social differences between the Northern and Southern states intensified, leading to heightened sectionalism. The North was primarily industrialized, while the South relied heavily on agriculture, particularly cotton plantations dependent on slave labor. These sectional differences further exacerbated tensions between the regions.

4. Political Factors: The political landscape during this period also contributed to the outbreak of war. The election of Abraham Lincoln as the President of the United States in 1860, representing the anti-slavery Republican Party, triggered deep concerns among Southerners, leading to their subsequent secession from the Union.

5. Economic Disparities: Economic factors, such as trade policies, tariffs, and control over resources, also played a role. The South, heavily reliant on cotton exports, feared that their economic interests would be undermined by the North's industrial dominance and perceived protectionist policies.

It is essential to note that these factors intersected and intertwined, creating complex dynamics that eventually led to the outbreak of the Civil War.

2. The state rights v federal rights was about preserving the right to own slaves, even when the federal government opposed it

3. The South’s agriculture was entirely dependent on slave labour

4. As you say, the president of the USA opposed slavery

5. This is secessionism - we want to be an agrarian slave economy governed by ourselves, not part of a modern free industrial economy, and we are afraid that our agrarian slave economy cannot compete for wealth or power with a modern industrial economy.

Tell us again what else it was about.

On 1/4/2024 at 11:17 AM, Will B Good said:

Unadulterated dross for the hard of thinking.

 

The war on woke.......if wokeness ever existed....... is a rightwing construct to distract people from focussing on things that really matter in their lives.....healthcare, education, environment, cost of living.

Lack of healthcare, lack of education…

1 hour ago, Greensprout said:

Thanks Albo!  It's weird,  People where I worked always said "klidgey".  But that's the one.

They were trying to sound posh, like missing out the R in Karzi

Following on from a couple of recent threads, do you practice what you preach?

Last Sunday we’d stopped for cider at a pub we thought we could trust, only to be sent on our way ciderless to Sid’s; they’ll not let us down … you can imagine our distress when our faith was cruelly betrayed, and we ordered Guinness in lieu. 
I checked in 7-11 next door, and resolved that the following week we’d take photos sat on their steps drinking Apple Fox and Somersby, for the chagrin of the brewery, but fortunately Strongbow is back in the pubs.  It was scarcely the Great Kilkenny Drought of 2007 in Dubai, when there was naught but Guinness or lager on either side of The Creek for weeks on end, but I’d been worried how long we might last.  Would we have to shorten our rides to limit our thirst, if there was no cider?  Luckily, all’s well that ends well, until it doesn’t.

2 hours ago, Mutt Daeng said:

I knew what you meant mate,  Just pulling your plonker.

Gentlemen only pull their own pudding, but no offence taken; to take offence when none was intended is theft of the worst kind; or in this instance- wurst kind

12 hours ago, Mutt Daeng said:

Is Lorna sausage the LGBTQ etc version of Lorne sausage?

My apologies - auto-correct run amok.

If there’s no Lorna sausage or potato scones you might as well be eating an English breakfast

11 hours ago, GammaGlobulin said:

 

Please just try to keep in mind, in case you might have forgotten:

“A writer is someone for whom writing is more difficult than it is for other people to read the writer's writing.”

 

And, by now, you probably know that I am a writer.

 

 

I walked amongst them, back in the day, and what I found surprising about Americans was that they believed their own stories. Call it gullibility, call it faith, but that is the soul of the American Dream.

42 minutes ago, proton said:

I'd rather have a dump or a Barclays Bank these days, sex is in the past thank goodness

There’s nothing as over-rated as a bad shag, or as under-rated as a good dump.