Off Topic Away from football....

OK!!! Is that preparing the ground coz you know you need one already? Or are you being as nice as we know you are? Why didn't you and Mrs Remote enjoy a surprise tea? Or had she already cooked something else coz she had no trust in you to bring home the bacon?

 

Depends what you mean by out trouting.

In my day if you found and offered a couple to someone, they'd owe more than just a favour.

 

Nothing specific needed, but you never know.......

To be honest, the husband and wife concerned are good eggs in general.
The husband is good mates with a 2nd hand tractor dealer and helped us source our current machine. He came to the dealer with us to ensure we got a good deal, though I think it was as much an excuse to see what he had in stock as he collects tractors. He has about 50, mainly restored to show condition, in a barn at his farm.
Our daughter looks after the wife's horses when she's away (they have a stud breeding Welsh section 'A's).
She also did our daughter a deal on the pygmy goats she bought my wife for Christmas.

To be honest, fishing is my big hobby. I caught over 370 trout last year, 85-90% of which I returned. We eat trout from time to time, had trout for tea about a week ago, and there are always a couple in the freezer, but we're not big fish eaters.
The bulk of my fishing is done on my local club water. I pay for the season and am allowed to keep a couple every time I go, so in effect any I kill are 'free'.
There are a couple neighbours at home and at the small holding I drop a fish or two off for. Some that do us favours anyway (bits of free grazing) and some just because 'I'm a nice guy'.

There's a lot of mutual back scratching goes on in the neighbourhood to be fair. Often borrowing or loaning bits of machinery. Its a nice way of living. Every spring one of my daughters friends comes and borrows our 2 tonne flat roller to roll the rugby pitches at the club he plays for.
Near the small holding I'm as likely to deliver a tractor bucket full of manure to someone as trout.

 

There's a lot to be said for rural living.

 

We live on a housing development just outside Northwich but can walk to the countryside in 10 mins.
The small holding is about 6 miles away and in the sticks.
Still have aspirations to put a house in the corner of one of our fields.

You're right though, people who are at one with the countryside can be quite relaxed about things and are happy to muck in.

Saying that, there are 6 barn conversions adjacent to the small holding. A couple of the owners wanted to live in the countryside. Don't think they knew what it actually meant. Nice enough people but have odd ideas about the reality.
One asked if we'd cut down a small group of young trees in our field so they had a better view. In general they are fine though.
Another doesn't like the tractor up and down the field especially when they have visitors. Or the horses that lean over the fence (To be fair, an electric fence stopped that for them.) Or the disturbance to their peace when the sheep are being sheared. They even asked if we'd remove one of our outbuildings, again to improve their view. Don't know what they thought when we were ferrying 700 hay bales one night, finishing about 2am.
They must think our fields are an extension of their garden.
All the others are fine. One couple regularly lean over the fence for a chat and ask what animals they will be seeing next. They enjoy waking up to moos and baas. They also enjoy the 'spares' from the veg plot that I pass over from time to time
We do try and be considerate, but sometimes, rarely, things just need to get done.

The other is the dog walkers who park on a country lane on the verge, sticking out into the lane. Struggled to get past in the tractor a few times. Had a couple drivers moaning about tractors and trailers up and down the lane. Not sure how the fields off the lane are supposed to be accessed.
The best ones are car drivers who stop in the middle of the lane expecting you in tractor and trailer, to reverse back.

And don't mention cyclists........

It takes all sorts. I just roll with most of it.

It is usually a pleasant environment though.

 

Not dissimilar to the cricket club considering shutting down a week or so ago as new homeowners bordering the field objected to the odd boundary landing in their garden.

Think they would have noticed and allowed for the cricket field when considering their purchase.

 

Its like people never consider what is around the house they are looking at or what its used for.

Wouldn't mind, but the fields have been used for farming for generations. In fact the two families that moan live in the old milking parlour.
We were there about 4 years before the conversions were complete.

 

My gas boiler's just packed up. ................or so I thought.

Got up usual time Saturday morning and thought this bedroom is bloody cold. Felt the radiator - stone cold and feared the worst. The programmer's set to bring the heating on around half 6 to warm the house up and when I checked it, it was working fine but no boiler - it stared back at me in silence. Then I realised the pump wasn't running either - aha.

The programmer doesn't directly power the boiler and pump. It powers the motorised valves - one for the heating and one for the domestic hot water. Only when either or both are fully open do they actuate a microswitch in each that then brings on the boiler and pump together. Only had the heating programmed to come on early in the morning and checked the valve - it had motored open but no cigar for the pump and boiler.

Flicked the hot water button on the programmer to the "on" position and waited 10 seconds. Varoomph - boiler fired and the pump came on. Although it was motoring open, there was obvioulsy a problem with the zone valve on the heating circuit. As long as I had the domestic hot water switched on, I was getting both that and the heating fine.

Left it alone as it was match day but had a fiddle yesterday. Took the cover off the valve, blew out the dust with an aerosol of compressed air (very handy) and hit it with a hammer. Not joking - the microswitch either had some dust on the contacts or there was something preventing the valve fully opening to actuate the switch. Put it back together and all OK.

Enjoyed the Arse/Manure game even more last night with a decent glass of Talisker Skye.

 

‘but had a fiddle yesterday’

Well at least you had a fiddle!

 

Did you have to lower the tone - this is a serious subject!.....

 

Dirty boys

 

@BrizzleBluebird - hey Brizzo, you mentioned heat pumps in a post of yours a couple of weeks back.

If you're a geek on the subject (and you don't have to be ) here's an article on the subject that's just popped up on the Beeb business tab.

Expensive option up front with all the other things you have to do to your home to make it effective, but still very interesting..........

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-64261457

 

Not away from football but should be away from football.....that simple jack twat taffvalerowdy type ...child minded hollies

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/64459729

 

Sorry mate, only just noticed this.... Will have a read later.

I'm certainly no geek on these things, more just a curious sod who's aware he's been darned lucky with his old boiler (and no, I don't mean Mrs Brizzle, despite her dubious choice of football teams) and was thinking of "modernising" for something a bit more efficient and environmentally friendly....

 

I wonder if this is what the Audi engineers had in mind when they designed the A4.
Ours is a multi-function vehicle.

 

We always used a transit van when we were out rustling

 

Best "nodding dog" I've ever seen in a car....

 

Bah oh yes bah

 

Are you running a home delivery service for desperate men?

 

Off to a party.