Friday, March 28, 2008

Nat Trust Agenda - New Telly - Nottingham

Our new TV arrived this morning, and as Jill is always interested in the minutiae of life I though you might like snaps.

Tables, chairs, tellies, cruises......? I hear you think.

The explanation is that for over 2 years, while we have been trying to sell the house, we have decided against much expenditure because "We might need it when we move" and "We'd better wait to see what the new rooms are like"...etc., etc.

This last time of being let down though we have decided, at 70+, that we ought to get on with living, and boo-sucks to caution. And it is nice to treat youself occasionally. It doesn't have to be a lot.

Picture 1 is to show the picture quality. I think that, if I set my Nikon up right, through trial and error, I can produce some NEMPF-worthy images of exotoc places which, with a little judicious blur and photoshoppery etc...

Picture 2 is to demonstrate that it isn't an enormous 42" plasma job. We both think that some domestic TV screens are too large for comfortable viewing. This one is just right for us, in relation to where we sit while telly-watching. And, compared with our last one, so easy to understand, and intuitive. We had the John Lewis installation service and both sat with notepads while the engineer was doing his stuff. But I don't think we took a single note. Everything works, quickly and easily.

And, would you believe, I can use it as a monitor for my lappy ! I just need a VGA cable, so a trip to Maplins is called for in the morning.

This morning we did an Agenda for the next meeting of The Mansfield Chapter of the Nat. Trst. It's along time since I've delved into Microsoft Office and I'm doing templates for the major documents we shall need. Fortunately I have a 'teach yourself series' handbook which tells me all about decimal tabs, and headers and footers et al. And Y is now keen to learn these things so it's a joint learning-curve which is fun.

I spoke to John, to wish him a happy 49th birthday - this coming year is his last full year before retirement. He, Yvonne and Alannah are coming to TJ's for our 25th Wedding Anniversary so I shall really enjoy that. The poor lad had been bitten quite badly by a Sharpie dog on the Motorway and had needed anti-tetanus injections. He had managed to get a dog-pole round its neck but when he was trying to extricate it from the wreckage it turned vicious and sank its teeth into his wrist. His watch absorbed some of the damage. A colleague then managed to get another dog-pole round its neck so they could transport it to a vehicle and put it into the boot. Quite accidentally the officers happened to pull in opposite directions and the poor creature expired !

Steve and the children, and TJ, are coming for lunch on Sunday. Millicent is getting so good at hide & seek she will enjoy a different house, with exciting new places. She has got the knack of it now and is good at hiding quietly ! And she loves 'seeking' and can count, one two, ten, three, twenty, five etc., and does a reasonable job of the 'coming, ready or not'. Kids have probably been playing it with glee since we were cave-dwellers. Now there's a good doctoral-thesis topic for some one. More interesting than some of the rubbish pursued.

Comments..... AnonymousReg... Thanks for sorting the programme items for Rob. And thanks particularly for the medical bulletin on Roy. He has done extremely well in so short a time and will be WoW-ing 'before you can say Jack Robinson'. Another one for Bungus's local sayings collection.

I'm sure, with your Chairman's Hat firmly in place, you said what needed to be said in the Nempf Exhibition comments book. Good for you - if anyone queries it, we will all be there with our placards. Brian Smith (ex commercial) certainly agreed and others did too.

Bungus...... Getting shorter is just normal decrepitude and not to be worried about. Glad you irritatingly loose tooth gave up the struggle. And so pleased that you won't need to interrupt the chemo for dental treatment. You will be an expert at 'gumming' things before you are sorted.

You are right of course about Beef Wellington. I was just making the general point that fillet will stand being well undercooked.

For your 'things we were told' slot. One of my Gran's favourites was -

"He/she is neither use nor ornament". I can't remember her saying it to me though, so perhaps it doesn't count.

Rather than start another diatribe I will expand on the digital/slide film problem at a later date.

Quotation time.... As I am sitting in the office, with real books to hand, I have decided on a proper quote rather than an 'online' job.....

"April, April,
Laugh thy girlish laughter;
Then, the moment after,
Weep thy girlish tears"

Sir William Watson

He had a somewhat tenuous connection with the PreRaphaelite Brotherhood. Which is, as they say, another ball game. The link above is fine for the PRB and tells you what is necessary. Wikipedia doesn't know what we are talking about. A major art-movement as well - I suppose its because they were Brits basically. Perhaps I should pen a page !


Sleep tight and I'll catch you tomorrow.



3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Going back a couple of posts, I watched Ken Stott as Tony Hancock - I thought the whole drama was extremely well-done (if a bit too long) but I didn't see why it had to be done at all.....the people in it seemed uniformly unpleasant to me. I liked Frankie Howerd the best out of the comedians in the series, especially good live.

Bungus, so glad to hear the tooth is out.

I had a hosp. appointment Thursday - yes, I got a chair and didn't have to wait too long. Sir is peased I have healed up so quickly, no more dressings and I can drive again. Still can't fully straighten my arm, and it is still a bit swollen and sore to touch - he says my arm has been 'traumatised' and given me some exercises to do. Anything from six weeks to (now) six months before it 'settles down'.

Yesterday I went to a craft fair at Olympia - more a social occasion than anything, I get to sit on the 'Knit & Relax' stand and help with anyone who has any knitting queries - a lot of people do, as it seems to be the only place where there are any chairs....and it was by a tea.coffee kiosk! Some interesting trade stands, I bought some gadgetty-type things, like plastic flower vases that fold flat!

Your tv looks great. I totally agree about the size of domestic tv screens, though I suppose it depends on the size of the room. Perry and Carol have a huge screen above the fireplace on the wall - it is too high for my preference, and I reckon the best viewing place for it is half-way up the stairs.....

Anonymous said...

Sorry Jill, but you cannot have drama without unpleasant people; it would be boring.
I am sure ypou will be delighted to be able to drive again; something to do with freedom.
I absolutely agree about monster TVs. They take over eventually you know, with the aim of world domination.

Anonymous said...

I like the look of your new widescreen telly.
Ours gave up the ghost a few evenings ago but friend Alan had a spare one which looks identical to ours although it is in fact an earlier or later model with differences in settings etc. Lacking a manual, we have been unable to tune it in and need 2 remote controls to get our usual four channels.
We do now have a new aerial fitted by Stephanie’s new boyfriend who happens to be an electrician and part-time poultry farmer which sounds promising. So far my digibox remains in its packaging but Sandra has had hers fitted in the bedroom (by guess who) so that Jessica, who is accustomed to Sky, has a wider range of programmes.

I think you are right to say sod it, let’s live. You can afford it, I believe, so why not?

See comment on large TVs in Jill section below.

I feel very sorry for the dog in the RTA (sympathy with John too, of course) but dogs, in my limited experience, do not like dog poles. We had to have Blaze put down because he bit the dog warden when restrained quite unnecessarily at the end of our drive.
I think anyone viewing the blog will read between the lines when you say “Quite accidentally the officers happened to pull in opposite directions”. I know you are not very much a ‘dog person’ so you may not understand.

I am getting confused with the Rob/Reg/Roy trio (good job I chose Bungus rather than Bob). Would 2 of them like to change their names to Claude and Gerald?
I think 'before you can say Jack Robinson' is outside the fence surrounding ‘warnings and instructions to children’.

I am nor worried about losing height until I become in danger of disappearing altogether. It just came as bit of a shock to discover it was more than an inch! Thank god it was in overall height.
Someone I knew quite well did shrink noticeably because of some affliction (collapse of his bones or something). He eventually had to wear a leather waitcoat thing to support his ribcage and, sadly, he died shortly afterwards in his mid 40s. It was something I have not otherwise encountered before or since (contradicting the recent theory).

Eating is certainly easier now, but still something of a problem. I must consult my nurses about the possibility of acquiring a new bottom plate complete with molars.

"He/she is neither use nor ornament” was something my mother would occasionally say. One of her favourite adjectives to describe someone who repeatedly did stupid things was ‘wappy’. I do not recall anyone else using it.

I didn’t realise the digital/ slide thing was so controversial! But I don’t even know what you are on about. I don’t wish to start a war so perhaps you will explain it to me face to face.

Yesterday ((Fri) I managed a chicken cob (soft) for my tea/dinner and this morning had bacon, egg & beans for breakfast. Unfortunately I let Sandra cook the bacon (Lidl’s Dry Cured). She always grills it and grilling (of anything but plaice) for me virtually removes any flavour. No doubt someone will disagree.

SPORTS CORNER
Today (Sat) I have been watching the cycling on BBC1. How complicated the races seem to a non-aficionado; but fascinating nevertheless; the pursuits being particularly exciting. And GB gaining a clutch of Gold Medals.
I recall being enthralled, at Rufford Colliery Sports Ground in the 40s, watching a guest appearance by Reg Harris (then world champion) in the sprint. At the time I could not understand why he did not lead from the start but stood on his pedals to force his opponent to take the lead (I later read about the Italian who forced a rules change).
The next time I saw RH was in the dining room at the Mackworth Hotel in Derby. It was the late 60s and I was the dinner guest of a group of quantity surveyors from Leeds who were as well behaved as the Who; facing a considerable bill at the end of their 4 day stay for damage to doors, furniture, etc.
Coming up is a live commentary on Radio Nottm of the critical Notts County/Mansfield Town match. If ever there was a six-pointer, this is it.
The new bidder for ownership of Mansfield Town says that he intends to change the name of the club to Harchester United which he claims will give them a more significant profile (how useful will that be in the Conference?). I’ve never heard of Harchester United.