This morning one of my university mornings I was bustling along getting myself semi human looking - no mean task.
The student moved by my plight decided she needed to help and she decided I needed a hair cut. She got the trimmers out cleaned the blades and started on my head.
Trouble was she didn't put one of the little height thingies on she started shaving my head!
So if came to pass I have a big bald stripe up my head.
I would like to report that she who did the deed was horrified and mortified, but alas I must tell the truth.
When she was able to see again from the tears that were pouring down her cheeks and stand again and breathe, she finished doing my head and off I went to be all responsible intellectual and clever with a big bald stripe up the side of my head.
I got through the day without anyone actually calling me slap head but I think there were a few odd looks.
Of course when they got home the children were models of sympathy. Branwen was the first to notice and managed hysteria for a whole 4 minutes, people were worrying that she was going funny colours.
Really makes a man feel loved it does.....
R
Thursday, 4 November 2010
Wednesday, 3 November 2010
Mechanical mayhem.
Things seem to run in cycles here, everything goes well then, without even a hint of warning smelly brown stuff says hello to the fan and it all kicks off.
First of all the 806 died, clever money now says the water pump seized solid triggering a series of cataclysmic events. So huge amounts of Greasy Garage time were taken up replacing the engine with one from a 306 which has different everything so all the ancillaries had to be changed before it could be fitted.
Not to mention the aircon which had to be drained and cannot be left for too long without sixty pounds worth of coolant because the pump will burn itself out. Might not be on the same engine trashing system as the water pump but I am not sure...
Then we had random suspension Xantia which beguiled us into thinking it was OK before recording a fail big style on the way back from Brittany.
That has gone on the ramps at Greasy Garage the height sensing valves have come off and been cleaned, the old mucky hydraulic fluid has been drained and replaced. 2 of the spheres, citroen equivalent to springs have been binned. To put the tin hat on it, it now appears that the drive belt for all the anciliaries is shredded and that and the idler wheel that did the shreading needs to go too.
This is all feeling awfully dear, oh and the little AX is treating it's auxiliary drive belt like a bit of elastic and that has to be changed too!! I will do that in house, but have to observe that it is a job that is really easy to do if the car is up on a ramp. Outside, on the floor, in the pouring rain, adds a few complications.
Think I will be reduced to walking soon, though I bet one of my wellies will have a blow out if I try that.
R
First of all the 806 died, clever money now says the water pump seized solid triggering a series of cataclysmic events. So huge amounts of Greasy Garage time were taken up replacing the engine with one from a 306 which has different everything so all the ancillaries had to be changed before it could be fitted.
Not to mention the aircon which had to be drained and cannot be left for too long without sixty pounds worth of coolant because the pump will burn itself out. Might not be on the same engine trashing system as the water pump but I am not sure...
Then we had random suspension Xantia which beguiled us into thinking it was OK before recording a fail big style on the way back from Brittany.
That has gone on the ramps at Greasy Garage the height sensing valves have come off and been cleaned, the old mucky hydraulic fluid has been drained and replaced. 2 of the spheres, citroen equivalent to springs have been binned. To put the tin hat on it, it now appears that the drive belt for all the anciliaries is shredded and that and the idler wheel that did the shreading needs to go too.
This is all feeling awfully dear, oh and the little AX is treating it's auxiliary drive belt like a bit of elastic and that has to be changed too!! I will do that in house, but have to observe that it is a job that is really easy to do if the car is up on a ramp. Outside, on the floor, in the pouring rain, adds a few complications.
Think I will be reduced to walking soon, though I bet one of my wellies will have a blow out if I try that.
R
Tuesday, 2 November 2010
Cats......
In the summer cats can often be encouraged to enjoy the wild life in the countryside. A cats principle need, after unbelievable amounts of food is somewhere warm to sleep and there are plenty of sunny spots in summer.
Of course come the wintery months and your average cat will have worked out that it is about 15 degree warmer inside the house than outside and the battle commences.
If you told me that Adam the oldest car here at about 10 had his own personal door I would be inclined to believe you. He gets into the house without anyone noticing and with feline cunning then has a number of places where he can discretely vanish.
Da man of course has a hutch where he keeps his humans so as their owner he has total right of access in there. He will get quite upity if the humans don't get that. For him it's also very important to let thm know that all food is his, this is a matter which he is quite prepared to settle with a scrap.
If should also be noted at this point that if humans are stupid enough to put food in black plastic bags they only have themselves to blame when he has to rip them apart to eat it.
Da man also has "his" chair next to the fire and god help anyone else who sits in it. Unless he is so hot that he needs to sit somewhere else.
Deimund though has taken this in the house thing to another level, locked out, he simply hammers his paws on the window till someone opens it.
Once inside though Deimund knows he likes mushrooms and peppers, you can often find those in the compost bun and there is only one way to know if there are any in the bottom of the bin......
R
Of course come the wintery months and your average cat will have worked out that it is about 15 degree warmer inside the house than outside and the battle commences.
If you told me that Adam the oldest car here at about 10 had his own personal door I would be inclined to believe you. He gets into the house without anyone noticing and with feline cunning then has a number of places where he can discretely vanish.
Da man of course has a hutch where he keeps his humans so as their owner he has total right of access in there. He will get quite upity if the humans don't get that. For him it's also very important to let thm know that all food is his, this is a matter which he is quite prepared to settle with a scrap.
If should also be noted at this point that if humans are stupid enough to put food in black plastic bags they only have themselves to blame when he has to rip them apart to eat it.
Da man also has "his" chair next to the fire and god help anyone else who sits in it. Unless he is so hot that he needs to sit somewhere else.
Deimund though has taken this in the house thing to another level, locked out, he simply hammers his paws on the window till someone opens it.
Once inside though Deimund knows he likes mushrooms and peppers, you can often find those in the compost bun and there is only one way to know if there are any in the bottom of the bin......
R
Tne downside to builders.
As part of the grand design and build project we are creating a separate dwelling next door with the aim of renting out and getting a bit of money.
Of course to be a next door it cannot have one, a connecting door that it is. So today the builder removed the connecting door and started to brick up the hole. Note the word started. We currently have a large hole in the wall through which the wind is roaring.
I am going to have to change to stoker mode and get this fire roaring hot
It's bloody cold in the house just now.
R
Of course to be a next door it cannot have one, a connecting door that it is. So today the builder removed the connecting door and started to brick up the hole. Note the word started. We currently have a large hole in the wall through which the wind is roaring.
I am going to have to change to stoker mode and get this fire roaring hot
It's bloody cold in the house just now.
R
Monday, 1 November 2010
Day of domestic enginering
Tomorrow I get to be an domestic engineer, long hard day of slog.
Especially as we are now guaranteed that the "unannounced" visit will be Wednesday. The young people in this house are now getting seriously fed up that we cannot do anything good as the place has to be casualty sterile for when the social worker turns up.
Today was a interesting one, getting to tea time and realising we had no wood in the house and wood of course is in the woodpile which is outside where of course the wind is winding and the rain is raining.
I was bloody soaked coming back in with the wood. So was she who went off to sell wine to her little mate.
Stuff this for a game of skittles.
R
Especially as we are now guaranteed that the "unannounced" visit will be Wednesday. The young people in this house are now getting seriously fed up that we cannot do anything good as the place has to be casualty sterile for when the social worker turns up.
Today was a interesting one, getting to tea time and realising we had no wood in the house and wood of course is in the woodpile which is outside where of course the wind is winding and the rain is raining.
I was bloody soaked coming back in with the wood. So was she who went off to sell wine to her little mate.
Stuff this for a game of skittles.
R
The truth is out there
The truth is out there front line services will be protected under the spending review.
So well protected are they in England that the budget for children looked after will be halved over the next for years.
Lets look at that, much of what is done is statutory. That is it's required by law, so how can that be done without running an illegal service?
Reminds me of the Climbie case where the head of service said the poor performance of child protection in Harringey was unrelated to his decision to take money out of child protection and use it in education instead.
Lets be logical, if someone told you to halve your expenditure could you do it?
Would someone really have to suffer to achieve that
There are no efficiency savings that will cover that, the only thing that will is taking less children into care and caring less well for the ones in care now.
Maore baby P's are inevitable
Someone in the Torygraph was briefing against the care system last week, I can see why now.
R
So well protected are they in England that the budget for children looked after will be halved over the next for years.
Lets look at that, much of what is done is statutory. That is it's required by law, so how can that be done without running an illegal service?
Reminds me of the Climbie case where the head of service said the poor performance of child protection in Harringey was unrelated to his decision to take money out of child protection and use it in education instead.
Lets be logical, if someone told you to halve your expenditure could you do it?
Would someone really have to suffer to achieve that
There are no efficiency savings that will cover that, the only thing that will is taking less children into care and caring less well for the ones in care now.
Maore baby P's are inevitable
Someone in the Torygraph was briefing against the care system last week, I can see why now.
R
Posting and reflecting
The student has a lot on her plate today with her poster which god bless her she worked out how to change this size from A4 to A2 all on her own.
She is insisting she is behind with everything and it's all daunting, in fact she is doing very well and I think ahead of herself.
I am charged with keeping the fire going but not too well.as it's formidable heat rendered our bedroom nigh on unlivable in last night.
Currently, the little angel is writing away on her reflective blog. Something I have just found out I have been doing for years, strange what you learn isn't it.
R
She is insisting she is behind with everything and it's all daunting, in fact she is doing very well and I think ahead of herself.
I am charged with keeping the fire going but not too well.as it's formidable heat rendered our bedroom nigh on unlivable in last night.
Currently, the little angel is writing away on her reflective blog. Something I have just found out I have been doing for years, strange what you learn isn't it.
R
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