What have we become in the UK – a nation of bullies?
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So to some of you you know my predicament of being homeless. But yesterday morning I woke up feeling wet socks and clothes thought I might of left a bottle open or something. I then get told by the security of Debenhams I have 10 minutes which was fine. But as he walked away he said enjoy your water bed. So I bite back as it being boxing day. So I then begin to pack up my bedding to then discover that the secunity guard from the inside of debenhams had flooded all my bedding. And ruined clothing food dog bedding public donations brought by the kind members of public. So a few of us went into speak to management didn’t do anything apparently it’s acceptable to bullying the…
Mainly photographs – a drone that my nephew was given for Christmas and some pictures from a walk I took in the winter sun today. Read, enjoy and please share!
INTRODUCTION
I am having a quiet day today, having spent Christmas Eve and Christmas Day in the company of various family members. Earlier today there was blue sky and bright sun over King’s Lynn, so I went for a walk.
THE STAR GIFT OF YESTERDAY
Although most of the presents given out yesterday seemed to go down very well there was no doubt as to which was the best received – a drone that was given to my nephew. Here are some photos from yesterday…
My cousin and his Swedish girlfriend came bearing gifts – this crispbread is exceedingly good.A piece of stained glass at my aunt’s house.The side view of my parents new burner.Front on picture of the same.The remaining pictures all feature this drone…
A WINTER WALK
I walked along the riverbank as far as Hardings Pits and then back into town by way of the parkland…
The Custom HouseTwo pictures of the bright but very low sun reflecting off the river.
West Lynn Church.Moorhens in and around the NarThe South GateThe Red Mount Chapel from a distance.
From the Australian Governments “Australian Antarctic Division” by way of whyevolutionistrue comes a truly wonderful video featuring footage from underneath the sea ice of East Antarctica…
The Australian Governments “Australian Antarctic Division: has produced a wonderful 8½-minute film of video taken by a submersible camera under the sea ice of East Antarctica. It’s full of colorful life down there, and I bet a lot of these species haven’t yet been described and named. The action ends at 4:58 and then there’s explanation.
How many groups can you identify? Did you see any fish?
A brief post about last nights autism friendly performance of Cinderella at the Corn Exchange, King’s Lynn.
INTRODUCTION
Welcome to this post about last night’s autism friendly production of Cinderella at the Corn Exchange, King’s Lynn last night. I was there because NAS West Norfolk, of which I am branch secretary, had lavished some of its money on tickets for the evening – in total some 120 people who are either autistic themselves or were accompanying autistic family members took advantage of the opportunity. No photographs today, because the Corn Exchange forbids photography in the auditorium.
GETTING THERE
Yesterday was a working day for me, and heavy traffic on the way into King’s Lynn in the evening left me with less turnaround time than I would have liked. Nevertheless, I got to the venue, which is very close to my flat, in time to take my seat, although entering the building at 6:25 for a show starting at 6:30 is not the sort of timing I generally aim for!
WHAT IS AN AUTISM FRIENDLY PERFORMANCE?
An autism friendly performance means that the lights in the auditorium go down rather than right off for the show, that there are no sudden loud bangs or other noises etc. For more about autism friendly performances and how they can lead people to enjoy regular performances please visit this post.
THE SHOW ITSELF
The autism friendly aspect of the show was not the only adaptation the cast had made – they infused this fairy tale with some local colour which was extremely well received. The ugly sisters had us all laughing with their moaning about the inadequacy of King’s Lynn shops. Another good locally themed joke was in a journey scene when mention was made of “making up time once we hit the A47” – anyone who has travelled along said road, which was most of the audience, realised that this was the single most fictional line of the night!
Some of the special effects were superb, the acting was excellent, and it was an excellent evening.
On Sunday Anna put up a post showing some winter pictures from Sweden. Now I am putting up a couple of winter pictures from here in Norfolk.
PICTURES
Here are the pictures…
A spider web highlighted by droplets of water.Moss growing on the wall the bounds my outside area.Detail from King’s Lynn library.Not bad for £4 plus commission! These last two pictures are of my most recent railway themed acquisition.
My first post created using my new computer. It covers my work for James and Sons this week and includes solutions to the puzzle contained in my previous blog post.
INTRODUCTION
Welcome to this post, the first to be composed using my brand new Acer Chromebook 15, of which more later. As well as covering the events of Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, with a few pictures, and of course explaining the computer situation I will be providing an answer the puzzle that I included in my last post.
THE COMPUTER SITUATION
My old computer (and by computer standards it was a veritable Methusalah) had been struggling for some while when it finally decided to give up the ghost completely. My mother by way of an early Christmas present transferred the funds necessary to buy a replacement to my account, and I made the purchase today. All I am now waiting for is the arrival of the hard drive caddy that I ordered online which will enable me to connect the hard drive that I extracted from my old computer to this one and all will again be as it should be.
A HEAVY WORKLOAD AND HEAVY LIFTING
James and Sons had its last auction of this year on Wednesday (our next auction is taking place on January 18, 19 and 20 at our shop in Fakenham), and on either side of that I was getting as many images ready for January as I could. The auction we have just had took place in Norwich, and a shortage of people available to help combined with the fact that one of my colleagues was experiencing knee trouble meant that most of the heavy lifting had to be done by yours truly.
DAY 1: TUESDAY
Most of the work of loading the van had been accomplished on the Friday, but some still remained to be done. Additionally there were last minute queries to be resolved, work to be done for our next auction and a few other things. I made enough of a fuss about the extra expense of catching the very early bus to Norwich (a First Eastern Counties X1, which leaves at 5:30AM and on which a return costs £11 as opposed to the £5.50 it would have cost me if I could have caught the Stagecoach X29 which leaves at 6:28AM) that I was authorised to extract the bus fare from the till.
DAY 2: WEDNESDAY
I managed to catch the 5:30AM bus, and was the first James and Sons employee at the venue. Once the van arrived it was time to unload everything and get the place set up for the auction. After a few hitches, including requiring an emergency replacement for the computer which we had been using to run the auctioneer’s view screen we got underway on time at 10AM, and the sale proceeded fairly smoothly. The coins fared especially well, and much to my relief some of the larger boxes of stamps sold in the room, meaning that they did not have to go back on the van. The militaria also did well.
Once the van was loaded I was able to take my leave, and being in Norwichtook the opportunity to visit Norwich Millennium Library before getting the bus home. In the end I arrived back at my flat a little under 14 hours after I had left it in the morning.
These old coins fared especially well, two of them (213 and 215 fro memory) going for £170 each after protracted online bidding battles.
DAY 3: THURSDAY
After unloading the sold goods from the van it was back to work on the January auction. The catalogue cover was ready by the end of the day, and the images were about 70% done, a near miracle in the circumstances. Here are some of the new images from yesterday…
These postcards were needed for the catalogue cover, so with time pressing I scanned them at 150 DPI – and they looked superb on the printed page.
THE PUZZLE EXPLAINED
I asked you to take any three digit number, multiply by 7, then multiply the new answer by 11 and finally multiply that answer by 13. I then asked how your final answer compared to your original number. That final answer consists of two copies of your original number. The reason for this is that 7 x 11 x 13 = 1,001 – and that post beinbg my 1,001st on aspiblog was why I set that puzzle in it. As a bonus I asked what multipliers you would need to produce a similar effect with four digit numbers, and the answer to that is 73 and 137, because 73 x 137 = 10,001.
A link to an excellent and important petition, and also a mathematical teaser.
INTRODUCTION
There will be no photographs in this post, but I wanted to put something up today because I several new people are following this blog – my thanks to you all.
THE PUZZLE
This puzzle comes from one my books at home (cannot remember which) and has a particular relevance which I will reveal in my next post: take any three digit number, and multiply by 7, then multiply the new number 11 and finally multiply that number by 13. What do you notice about this latest answer as compared to your original number? For a bonus what two numbers would you need to use as multipliers to achieve an equivalent effect with a four digit starting number?
A REALLY EXCELLENT PETITION
My latest twitter follower, Laura Warwick by name, has created a petition on the British government’s official petitions site (which means it is open only to UK citizens to sign) calling on the government to not allow train companies to increase their fares until they have improved their services. Click the screenshot below to sign and share the perition:
My 1,000th post on aspiblog, a typically eclectic mix of stuff – read, enjoy and please share!
INTRODUCTION
As the title suggests this post contains a variety of different elements. There is another reason for choosing this title which will be revealed later.
MUMBAI MASSACRE
With two scheduled days to go the 4th India vs England Test Match in Mumbai seemed to be headed for a high-scoring draw, but two things happened thereafter – India got right away, pushing their first innings total up to 631, and then England fell in a heap in their second innings – all out 195, beaten by an innings and 36.
THE NAS WEST NORFOLK COMMITTEE CHRISTMAS MEAL
This took place on Thursday at Frankie and Benny’s on the Hardwick Industrial Estate. Here are some pictures…
My chosen mealRachelf (sic!) showing true Christmas spirit.Karan (branch chair) hold aloft her Poldark colouring book.Santa reveals a little secret.A chicken puppet – she owns some real chickens, currently confined to their run because of an avian flu alert.
THE DUKE’S HEAD HOTEL
Those familiar with my 2017 wall mounted calendars will recall that the Duke’s Head Hotel frontage featured as the April picture. Well, since then it has been done up – here are a couple of pictures…
The calendar pictureThe Duke’s Head frontage as it looks today after being redone.
THE PUZZLE IN THE INTRODUCTION
My title for this post “Monday Mixture” is apt given its nature, but I also chose this particular title because both parts thereof begin with the letter M, the Roman numeral for 1,000, and this is my 1,000th post on aspiblog.
LINKS AND CLOSING PICS
My first link is to a petition on avaaz protesting against an Australian plan to put a toxic coal complex next to the Great Barrier Reef. Please click on the image below to sign and share the petition.
My next link, also contained within a picture is to a piece on whyevolutionistrue titled A Photobook of Biological Marvels and My Own Take on Them.
Rachael Swindon’s new blog continues to impress and amuse. Her target in this post, struck in the bullseye as usual for her, is hard right Tory MP for Witham, Priti Patel.
I started this links section with an environment related piece and I end it with another, courtesy of the Guardian, which provides this report of a study detailing how wind power is key to curbing greenhouse emissions – click the image below to read more…
I end this post with some more of my own pictures…
aspiblog 