Total drama!

Pulled the car up at Blaenau Ffestiniog yesterday and encountered this!

Total drama and lots of Desmond! (Toot-toot !)

Speed!

When I arrived home a moment ago I fired up my work lappy in order to bang out a fast email. Something came up that needed a speedy solution (I was walking home from the train and a meeting in Birmingham).

My 21st C laptop is a work machine and was given to me 7 weeks ago to replace my previous one.

Look at the lightning time below.....it records the moment from pressing the on switch to detection of my wifi network and connection to my work server.

Nuclear attack warnings are are faster.....

Top smart!

Total crane action at Kings Cross St . A bit precarious gaffer taped on to that hotel roof though.

Cool!

Reading near Reading

Now without getting all Jules from Pulp Fiction on you, here is a part of the OT that I like and just enjoyed reading on the train today.

Hey if it's not your thing ( or you think 'pretend friends' as my deliberately irreverent brother says), them that's cool but I just like this bit particularly.

And there's a woman in the opposite seat who is reading the same book! Mind you, she has a leather bound book but mine's on IPhone today.

Fear doesn't really mean following through sort of fear in this verse; more 'aware of' I think.

Trains and bridges will be back soon! Well before peace on Israel probably .....

Updates!

An hour or so to back up my phone (always a slow process) and install a new version of OS4.

The result?

Smaller signal bars to make me think I am not losing signal really.

Here they are, courtesy of the 18 Phd employees at Apple mentioned by Steve Jobs in his Friday press conference.

Well spotted before now but ignored 'til you were rumbled, chaps.

£140,000 combine harvesters.

I'm on the train home from London tonight and all week I've been on a retail refit in Sussex. During the visit I happened upon 'Used Machinery Trader'.

What a cracking read! Take this Claas Lexion 600 as an example. Second hand and it still costs 140 large but you get a vertical knifestraw chop, power spread, laser steering (cool) and a yield per quality meter. Ideal! 0 - 60 is a bit sluggish but hey ho.

You can't go wrong being a spod , especially when you haven't got a clue about vertical knifestraw chop action.

Me and a billion people ...

Fab company and The World Cup Final.

Radio and tv action planet-wide.

I like my seat for the game very much.

Cool!

Buy one, get your money back.

To Waitrose today in Monmouth before heading for BS5 and the World Cup Final.

BS7 and I picked up this and that, and spotted bags of peas on RTC (reduced to clear) so we nabbed two.

At the checkout they came up at their reduced price of 99p down from £3, but they were originally on a BOGOF and this still kicked in, taking £3 off.

Everyone loves a bargain. Spend two quid, get three quid off!

Thank you John Lewis Partnership.

More scoff!

Summer barbecue prep' today.

This is the veggie end but there's venison and sausages too...

Must be time to crack a cold lager....

Prepping!

Fabulous lamb curry to follow .

We have:

Lamb
Coriander
Mint
Chilli
Ginger
Cumin
Peppers
Onions
Garlic
Tomatoes
Cardamom
Olive oil

On a slow heat now!

Top deck action!

More fascinating video action here on BlogBS5 this morning!

Here is a view of the lower end of Park St in BS1, and College Green where the Cathedral (just visible) has been since the early 10th Century.

After College Green and the rather swanky hotel (always good for a posh pee stop!) the vid' swings around into the centre of the city.

No spaceships but I hope you enjoy this Friday morning view.

The perils of afternoon ales

I am 38 and my brother is 40. We should know better really.

He lives in Manila and I live in BS5 so when he visits it's a real treat and a catch up. We took a stroll to look at doors for some impending work on my house but then repaired to The Seven Stars. 'Just a couple' was the order of the day so we could catch Spain Germany in the World Cup later on.

On the way home the swings and rides looked a good lark, so here we are near my house!

Bleat!

Curried goat today as my brother is coming to visit and he hasn't had goat before and requested it.

The goat in question must have been a bony bugger and I am making stock from his bones now!

Curry picture to follow tonight!

Quite smart!

Now I'm not one for irregular pint glasses most of the time, but I liked this one lots! The beer was great too. I had this is 'The Mall', a smart pub near the suspension bridge.

I thought about slipping the glass into BS7's handbag but that's not good and it was too small anyhow!

Domestic Saturday .

A mighty Saturday here in BS5. Off for a run soon ( it's half six) and then I'm going to clean my sofa covers, clean me, and wash the car.

Do weekends get any more active?

Top transport action.

A pal of mine sent this to me on Friday ( the image, not the vehicle) .

These were on site where he works and are used to lift parts of bridges into place!

Cheers Jack.

A right old lark!

Had a good old go with one of these today at the blissfully quiet Apple store in Bristol.

Had a go with an IPhone 4 too. The display is sharp and the video camera is great, but I wouldn't shell out for one over a 3GS just yet.

The iPad was pretty heavy for its size but really tactile too. I'd definitely get one if I had dollars to burn.

Blimey!

Well here's a thing!

This is the train on the Wrexham and Shropshire line and I'm on it from Wolverhampton to Shrewsbury .

I've just stepped on and thought I had the first class carriage. It's clean as a whistle, very roomy and very well appointed. This is really elegant and everyone has a roomy table!

Top stuff and most impressed here.

Whiiiiiiiiinge!

Here's a thing that I find a bit crazy.

As you will know if you look in regularly, I use the train a great deal and enjoy doing so (500 miles this week).

There are always plenty of people and plenty of people watching to be had. As regular as clockwork each journey will have an insistent passenger who has to sit in the direction of travel because they cannot cope with not seeing where they are going; kinda mental given there's only windows on the sides. I wonder if they make a fuss on planes and buses?

Travels

Off to mid Wales today and a really picturesque store on a reservoir. The train journey is via Wolverhampton and Shrewsbury.

No football when I get back but some cracking Friday and Saturday fixtures to come.

Train drama from Wolverhampton (always good for action) may follow....