Tuesday, February 19, 2008

Karen Day - Misty/frosty morning

Picture 1 is my new garlic press, a Valentine's day present from Y from Lakeland yesterday. A powerful tool to replace a particularly ineffective plastic job I've hated for years, or 'yonks' . This one has a metal cutting plate which works beautifully. If the red attachment intrigues? You turn the handle anti-clockwise 180 degrees and the rubber spikes clear the cutting plate of the irritating mess that normally... (that's enough about garlic presses..ed)

Today has been a Karen day and we heard the latest on her domestic/separation saga. She had been 'home' to sort some things our for her daughter and had taken her lunch sandwiches with her. Apparently she won't go in the fridge because she "doesn't want him accusing her of eating his 'chuffing snap'". Delightfully put Karen. Direct and to the point. We nipped out shopping so she could get on, and bought in Lidl one of the larger-flowered creamy orchids.

After lunch I decided to try another flower portrait and Picture 2 is the result. The central 'bits' of orchids always look vaguely unsettling. At best like alien creatures but at worst, whatever the female equivalent of 'phallic' is. My online Thesaurus was most unhelpful on the point and my old-fashioned hard-cover Roget wasn't much better. Perhaps best not pursued anyway !

Comments.... A great comments day. Thank your all. And thanks for sorting the 'names' bit because your missives all arrive now, individually, in my inbox. That teething-problem day I was just getting Anonymous (7) without knowing it was Reg for instance.

Bungus/Rob/Reg .... this 'saw' thread really has teeth, I think. I loved the Irish origin for the jigsaw and the saw that just manages to cope. I guess the 'crosscut' must be one tetchily waking-up with a hangover.

Jill...Re children cooking. All ours do, properly too, although Tracy admits to leaning heavily on M&S if entertaining more than a few. And grandaughters are following suit. Hannah makes exceedingly good cakes. I don't like 'ginger cake' but make an exception if offered a slice of Hannah's.

Thank you for sharing your Hospital Saga. This sort of complete absence of common sense is difficult to understand. One thinks "Why ever not?" when the most obviously efficient administrative step is not taken. This 'can't do it because of The Data Protection Act' is simply a cover-up for stupidity.

I too, hate being called by my Christian name and complain whenever it happens. I usually say "You might think of me as an Alzheimer's patient in an Old Folks Home, but I'm not". Often I follow it up with "At work I was addressed either as Mr. Marsden or Sir, either will do".

You have told us before how your threat to sit on the floor invariably causes a chair to be produced. I'd love to see you in action, and don't feel you shouldn't tell us again, because I love it.

AnonymousRob..... Thanks for Chapter 5 of the DIY saga. And don't worry about "inciting terrorism" re the so called 'sportsmen'. When I come to power.........................

Thanks for trying with the problems of PC and ugly sentences. Unfortunately "every person to their own trade"? is grammatically flawed. 'Person' is singular while 'their' is plural-possessive. But it would carry the meaning well enough, which is what matters. I should have just said "Every man to his own trade" and risked criticism.
I enjoyed the 'chain' saw anecdote - pity it wasn't a 'circular' saw.

Thanks for the vintage saw info and here is a link for everybody.

Quotation time.....Relevant to earlier discussions.....

"Nine times out of ten the coarse word is the word that condemns, while the refined word is word that excuses"



An early night is called for because I am hoping to go WoW-ing tomorrow and Y might go down to Bromley House. Lucky her! She will have an excellent view of Nottingham Eye. I must spend a morning in Bromley House because there's a few things I can research more easily there. The weather forecasts sound promising. We shall see. Sleep tight !!.....



4 comments:

Anonymous said...

RadioG tells me I must post this explaination
Definition of a Yonk. During the first days (square bashing) of National Service we asked the longer serving personal Whats a Yonk? Answer-- A Yonk is the period of time between Credits.
Explanation -- The RAF and probably other services paid wages weekly to the nearest two shillings below the amount due on Thursdays (The Golden Eagle S***s Today)
The differance known as credits was payed every either three or four mounths I cannot remenber which. The period between credits was therefore along time and known as a 'Yonk' Where the actual term yonk came from I have no idea

Anonymous said...

Good for you Jill, I like the way you got a chair to sit on. I guess the reason nobody would take responsibility is because they are encouraged not to by 'management'. Maybe you should complain to the Secretary of State, whoever it is........ please don't tell me it's Alan Johnson.

Paul the Plasterer is now making good progress - the plaster is going up and so are the costs. Andrew the Plumber arrived today to size up the job and is pencilled in for 5th March. More snaps have been taken and may be forwarded to RG tomorrow if I have time. I've been on leave today getting pictures ready for 2 exhibitions. I need to finish them off tomorrow. I've also got man-flu and am, therefore, incapable of doing anything.

Hope everyone else is OK.

Rob

Anonymous said...

Long day. Up at 7.15 to be ready for hospital transport. Home 12 hours later.
Comment on Tue and Wed Blog and Comment to follow. Possibly in bits. Possibly tomorrow.

Anonymous said...

Dinosaurs are extinct. Welcome to the 20C.
All right, I exaggerate but I cannot share the objection to the use of forenames (Mohammed is one of the most common Christian names in the world [David Jensen]).
I cannot get upset because I have been accustomed to it since my teens when my best friend and I addressed both sets of parents by their forenames (as I did my uncles and aunts). Also, since 1959, when I gave up calling anyone ‘Sir’ (although, against my better nature, I would make an exception in the case of royalty) I have only worked in firms/organisations where forenames were used from top to bottom.
I certainly find it agreeable in a hospital situation, where it is by no means ageist and the alternative WOULD seem to be ageist, ie, differentiating me because of my age. I am only riled when a complete stranger phones me and says ‘Is that Robert’.
According to Dom (the cheeky chappy) the way to get a bargain(20% to 30% off) is first to get on forename terms with the shop assistant and his superiors.
Certainly, if anyone responded to me in the way that RG claims he does, I would make sure that I made life as difficult as possible for him/her. (Does Karen have to call you Mr Marsden or just Sir?)

That said, I totally sympathise and empathise with Jill over the hospital waiting etc (see tomorow's comment). Sandra’s response to your sit down protest was ‘Good on ya, gal,’. But from her everyday contact with legislation such as Health & Safety, Data Protection, etc,, she believes that they were almost certainly correct.
My conclusion is that the medical staff are great and give the best possible treatment at least 90% of he time within the constraints of understaffing etc. Admin is generally a near shambles.
In hospital I was called Robert until I told them I preferred Bob. And it was a two way thing: When I asked a junior doctor his name he said ‘Simon’, to which I replied, with a smile, “No, your surname. I want to talk about you, not to you.” Senior doctors/surgeons address me as Mr Renshaw and I respond in like fashion.

Whilst "every person to their own trade"? is grammatically flawed, I believe it is now accepted. I shall do my best to avoid it however (if I notice!)...

anonymousrob:
In spite of your protests I still enjoy eating pheasant (with reservations about the antibiotics) and partridge and rabbit and squirrel and (most of all) hare. I am yet to be convinced about venison. And the way they die after a spell of freedom strikes me as no worse than what happens in the slaughterhouse. But I can see the argument for vegetarianism (although it would mean the demise of cattle and sheep and pigs, except thios kept as pets).
I am not convinced by ‘Aquaseal’ or any other damp proofing method but I hope it works.
I too like the chainsaw link (boom boom).
I have never had flu, Reg, but I have got ‘man head cold’ which is making me feel very low. But my temperature stays at or below normal (although I did have to have a heated blanket for my hands before the canula could be insertd today (Wed). More about that tomorrow


I like Reg’s ‘yonks’ explanation. It sounds plausible.