The AH Coffee Shop and Reading Room 02: A Comma (is a Restful Pause)

[NotWise]

It's an overcast morning, though not especially cold (high 20's). There were a few balloons up, but not as many as in recent days.

I was surprised this morning when I found a large flock of Canada geese grazing in a city park. That's something I don't see every day.

 

[Handley_Page]

Tuning is easy. Re-stringing takes effort.

And nothing is guaranteed. Any experiment could end in failure. That's the learning process, hey? Every fuckup instructs us what not to do again. But as they say: Some learn by reading, some by watching. And some just have to piss on the electric fence to see if it's hot.
'
Hmm, caffeine is used to boost other painkillers -- will hydrocodone coffee work?

Meanwhile, the mandola is calling out. "Re-string me, oh please re-string me," it cries plaintively. It's not yet nibbled at my toes. How far can this go?

See here.

Theobromine is literally "food of the gods" so suck some up and get divine. A splash of rum or brandy in the cup rarely hurts the holy effect.

Cocoa seems a good idea. With a dash of jalapeño sugar. For inspiration. Right.

There's a bit of quandary here.
Meds for blood pressure tend to be diuretic. The problem is that the dim dark hours of the winter night are not the ideal time to tiptoe across the upstairs landing to go for a p1$$.

 

[Hypoxia]

See here.

My grammar was correct. "It's not yet..." is contracted from "it has not yet nibbled at my toes." I daresay my grammar is GILFier than yours.

There's a bit of quandary here.
Meds for blood pressure tend to be diuretic. The problem is that the dim dark hours of the winter night are not the ideal time to tiptoe across the upstairs landing to go for a p1$$.

You've never overnighted in a caravan, then? Keep a pisspot nearby. Don't kick it over. Save it for the bunnies looming outside.

The espresso is taking effect. Good thing, as we must venture through the gathering storm down to the county seat and tend to matters. Tending requires caffeine., yes? We may stop at a taco truck, too. To investigate.

 

[Handley_Page]

My grammar was correct. "It's not yet..." is contracted from "it has not yet nibbled at my toes." I daresay my grammar is GILFier than yours.

You've never overnighted in a caravan, then? Keep a pisspot nearby. Don't kick it over. Save it for the bunnies looming outside.

The espresso is taking effect. Good thing, as we must venture through the gathering storm down to the county seat and tend to matters. Tending requires caffeine., yes? We may stop at a taco truck, too. To investigate.

Overnight in a Caravan ?
Well, Yes, when I was a lot younger. Also a motor-caravan, and several species of tent. I still do not like tiptoeing across the landing at 3 or 4 am: And suffering wet grass at that time is arguably as bad, if not worse.

Is there any theobromine in Tea ?

 

[TxRad]

Evening all,

Today has been a big day. I finished the last of the last book. Now all that is left is the edit on the last part and then a check over the nine that haven't been put out yet to make sure everything flows correctly and everything is wrapped up with pretty bows. Ten books and a total of 544+k words.

Time to relax a little and see what I can dig up for the Valentine Day contest. But then again, there is the problem of the next mainstream project. I have several ideas but.... None hold my interest well at the moment.

Okay, fresh coffee. There's extra chili for those that need to warm up from the inside out.

 

[NotWise]

Is there any theobromine in Tea ?

Yes there is.

 

[ChloeTzang]

And a movie link for Handley Page

And a movie link for Handley Page

Now here is the chinese version of "Top Gun" for those that aren't watching chinese movie news with bated breath... Yes Folks, here we go, the Magnificent Men in their Chengdu J-10 lightweight multirole fighter aircraft... as filmed in "Sky Fighters."

It's a classically bad B-movie and here's some good lines from reviews. After you read these, you're going to WANT to watch this movie, just like I did.... Sorry, I know you're not going to forgive me for this....

Made by the Chinese military as domestic propaganda, Sky Fighters is possibly the worst movie with fighter planes ever made. And that’s saying a lot.

Sky Fighters is China's version, following Top Gun's wikipedia plot outline almost to the letter but infusing it with infinitely terrible special effects, wooden acting, blatant domestic propaganda, and a complete lack of the style and cultural energy that made Top Gun so amazing.

Now, if this were an American/Western movie, like Top Gun, the film's hero would be Maverick with his motorcycles and his rock and roll music and his disrespectful attitude. But it's actually the old guy who is this film's hero, because he steadfastly holds to the Communist Party doctrines and teachings, refusing to bend the rules and his personal beliefs to appease the cocky Maverick.

Unlike in Top Gun, the maverick fighter pilot is the antagonist. You were looking for a rebel hero? You’re not getting one. Why? Because the Chinese government doesn’t want rebels.

First off there's absolutely nothing in the way of character background material for our two main guys (or for anyone actually).

Secondly, the “acting” is terrible. I've seen other Chinese movies and while there are indeed some z-list actors working in their industry, they also have their fair share of very talented people who do outstanding work. Not a single one of those quality actors were hired for Sky Fighters.

The optical effects are ten times worse. Top Gun was fantastic in part because the US Navy allowed them to film their jets in the air, flying combat maneuvers with afterburners glowing and testosterone exploding. On Sky Fighters, though, the Chinese military would only let the production team film the jets on the ground so any air-to-air scenes had to be done with CGI. That would have been OK if the VFX company who did the work wasn't staffed with blinddrunk homeless guys working on Commodore 64s.

....whoever modeled the flight dynamics had clearly never seen an airplane before in his life because real planes don't bounce and flounce around in the sky like these do. Seriously, if any airplane that ever existed attempted some of the insane aerobatic moves we see in the movie, the wings would rip right off them in seconds.

etc etc etc

 

[NotWise]

....whoever modeled the flight dynamics had clearly never seen an airplane before in his life because real planes don't bounce and flounce around in the sky like these do. Seriously, if any airplane that ever existed attempted some of the insane aerobatic moves we see in the movie, the wings would rip right off them in seconds.

Maybe they were thinking of a WW-I vintage Fokker, or Jenny, or De Havilland. They bounced around at about 40 miles an hour.

On the other hand... I'm not sure that Top Gun was much more than domestic propaganda.

 

[TxRad]

Thanks Chloe, but I think I'll pass on the propaganda junket.

I think I saw "Top Gun" way back when and I wasn't all that impressed then so....

Fresh coffee for the night crew and a cup of tea to keep HP awake for the movie.

 

[MagicaPractica]

Evening all,

Today has been a big day. I finished the last of the last book. Now all that is left is the edit on the last part and then a check over the nine that haven't been put out yet to make sure everything flows correctly and everything is wrapped up with pretty bows. Ten books and a total of 544+k words.

Time to relax a little and see what I can dig up for the Valentine Day contest. But then again, there is the problem of the next mainstream project. I have several ideas but.... None hold my interest well at the moment.

Okay, fresh coffee. There's extra chili for those that need to warm up from the inside out.

Congrats Tx!

School closed for tomorrow due to frigid temps, but I still have to go out to an appt.

 

[sharingfantasies]

Thanks Chloe, but I think I'll pass on the propaganda junket.

I think I saw "Top Gun" way back when and I wasn't all that impressed then so....

Fresh coffee for the night crew and a cup of tea to keep HP awake for the movie.

I grew up in San Diego so it was fun to watch for recognizable landmarks in the movie. I have been in the base bar that was used for the movie. But all in all, it wasn't very realistic.

 

[NotWise]

Congrats Tx!

School closed for tomorrow due to frigid temps, but I still have to go out to an appt.

Your schools close because of low temps? That's convenient. If they did that when I was growing up then there were some years when I'd have been in school 'till July.

 

[ishtat]

School closed for tomorrow due to frigid temps, but I still have to go out to an appt.

All the kids in Sydney will be at the beach this weekend. Forecast is for a maximum of 45 celsius (113 f) in Sydney's western suburbs on Sunday. Much better on the coast - where we are, 20 miles to the east - only 39 celsius.

More seriously with strong to gale force winds, catastrophic fire conditions have been declared for South Australia and Victoria. Total fire bans in force for about half the country. We are gunna burn but we hope no-one gets hurt.

 

[Handley_Page]

Congrats Tx!

School closed for tomorrow due to frigid temps, but I still have to go out to an appt.

I cannot get my head round this "it's too cold; close the schools".
It's as if low temperatures are uncommon, rather than a winter norm. Then I wondered if it's a case of the Insurance, or "risk assessment" (if the builder has failed to make the fabric good and safe (as once was the case) we don't want to risk being sued by a parent !
But if the schools close, who is supposed to look after a young pupil ?
The days of the stay-at-home Mum are long gone. And Granny lives a hundred miles away !

 

[oggbashan]

I cannot get my head round this "it's too cold; close the schools".
It's as if low temperatures are uncommon, rather thanb a winter norm. Then I wondered if it's a case of the Insurance, or "risk assessment" (if the builder has failed to make the fabric good and safe (as once was the case) we don't want to risk being sued by a parent !
But if the schools close, who is supposed to look after a young pupil ?
The days of the stay-at-home Mum are long gone. And Granny lives a hundred miles away !

Tell me about it. I had that with my three daughters. School was 300 yards away yet closed several times in some winters because it was too cold; the central heating had failed; the power had been cut...

My wife used to be a teacher but gave up when she had our first. Our large house turned into a child-minding venue in cold winters because she was at home when other children's mothers were at work and we had space.

For one week she had 18 children for most of each school day. A couple of the other mothers were able to help for some of the time. We needed the three toilets!

The children behaved very well. They played together, used our extensive library of children's books, and tidied up at the end of each day. What most of them enjoyed most was the massive indoor space. One child who lived in a tiny flat spent at least an hour each day running from the front door to the back door of the kitchen. She just couldn't believe a family house could be that large.

 

[MagicaPractica]

Schools are closed because they don't want students waiting for busses. Wind chills of negative 33 are predicted. They very rarely do this. Yes, mums, dads, grandparents and parents of friends do all pitch in to watch kids. I happen to be off today. We also still have many stay at home moms around, as well as second shifters. When you've got kids, you figure it out.

 

[oggbashan]

Schools are closed because they don't want students waiting for busses. Wind chills of negative 33 are predicted. They very rarely do this. Yes, mums, dads, grandparents and parents of friends do all pitch in to watch kids. I happen to be off today. We also still have many stay at home moms around, as well as second shifters. When you've got kids, you figure it out.

In those temperatures I can understand the concern. We don't have that many stay-at-home people now. But in the UK, particularly the SE, schools can be shut at 28 F if there is lying snow or ice. UK parents get fined if children miss school; schools should be fined for closing unnecessarily because of the impact on families.

 

[Hypoxia]

Weather is mild here so I can't complain.
Schools and traffic are about normal so I can't whine.
My latest meds are to be taken with peanut butter so no complaints.
The pseudo-cittern tuning of my baritone 'uke didn't work but that's all my fault.
Further cardiac and retinal procedures are a couple weeks off; I can wait.
Fuel prices have declined recently so we can afford a scenic drive.
Bears didn't disturb the trash pickup so all is well.
Nothing much to complain about.
Whew.

I could work myself into a philosophical snit but why bother?

 

[TxRad]

I stayed up late, got up early, went back to bed shortly after that. No wonder my body is confused. Confusion is a good thing at times.

HM made fresh cinnamon rolls for breakfast that ended up being my lunch. (Insert kinky ideas for supper)

Fresh coffee for one and all.

 

[Handley_Page]

Weather is mild here so I can't complain.
Schools and traffic are about normal so I can't whine.
My latest meds are to be taken with peanut butter so no complaints.
The pseudo-cittern tuning of my baritone 'uke didn't work but that's all my fault.
Further cardiac and retinal procedures are a couple weeks off; I can wait.
Fuel prices have declined recently so we can afford a scenic drive.
Bears didn't disturb the trash pickup so all is well.
Nothing much to complain about.
Whew.

We rarely enjoy fuel prices declining.

I stayed up late, got up early, went back to bed shortly after that. No wonder my body is confused. Confusion is a good thing at times.

HM made fresh cinnamon rolls for breakfast that ended up being my lunch. (Insert kinky ideas for supper)

Fresh coffee for one and all.

Ah - Fresh Coffee ?
Just the job, thank you.

 

[MagicaPractica]

Ah, coffee, thank goodness. Wind is playing silly buggers with my head.

 

[TxRad]

High pressure moving to the east. Wind turning around to the south. 70 degrees on Sunday. Potatoes baking in the oven. A couple of small sirloins ready for the grill. Salads made and chilling in the fridge.Waiting for HM to get home.

Ya'll have a great evening.

 

[Handley_Page]

High pressure moving to the east. Wind turning around to the south. 70 degrees on Sunday. Potatoes baking in the oven. A couple of small sirloins ready for the grill. Salads made and chilling in the fridge.Waiting for HM to get home.

Ya'll have a great evening.

We are in that ghastly interval where the TV programmes for the new season have not yet begun (next week, I think).
So a 'great' evening was unlikely; But I found something on the box.
Have we any Flight Simulator enthusiasts among the inhabitants please ?

Time for a cup of Tea !

 

[TxRad]

TV programs? Other than a few shows and NASCAR the TV is for HM & HG. News occasionally and background noise. I record what I want to watch, so I can watch it when I want to and without commercials.

One cuppa tea coming up.

 

[Handley_Page]

TV programs? Other than a few shows and NASCAR the TV is for HM & HG. News occasionally and background noise. I record what I want to watch, so I can watch it when I want to and without commercials.

One cuppa tea coming up.

And it was delicious, thanks.
How do you manage to watch a recorded programme without the commercials ?
I manage to put the player on Fast Forward for a short spell.

But now we are headed into cold weather, And according to the forecast, it'll get worse.
buckle up folks, and get a long, hot drink. I think you'll need it.