Well it would seem the secret is out and no longer am I just talking to my dawg, others have found this quiet little corner where I come for a Mud-out and a ponder. Ah well, become a follower and get regular updates as to what it's like to live with a Land Rover product, run a variety of old shyte and lumber and to try and stay one step ahead of the game when you're not even sure what the game is, let alone the rules.
So, this week so far... hunting was cancelled due to the weather which was a shame. Still looking for a decent hoss. The snow is starting to disappear but behind it is leaving a slimey mess.The diggers and kit are all rolling back out onto various jobs across the country and we have work on in the East Midlands, East Anglia and the South. The economy may be slow, our national credit rating on the verge of being downgraded but there is light at the end of the tunnel. Construction is raising its weary head and things are starting to look up. As for Agriculture, who knows, time will tell. The problem always seems to be when the average guy on the street does okay, farming is in a low and visa-versa.
The Case is in the shed, the Fastrac on the drive and the JD in the yard. I'll be glad when they're out and about with the other plant. The Komatsu dozer needs a new set of chains and bottom rollers and that's not going to be a five minute job so might get someone in to do it. May as well stick some new drive sprocket segments on at the same time.
Got a bill in for the last low-loader move for the dozer and it came to over £400. Everytime I get a bill for a move, everytime I think about getting another low-loader and tractor unit but the cost of having one standing by most of the while isn't worth it and I keep concluding it's better to pay someone who will come and move us at the drop of a hat almost rather than have the hassle of another waggon on the road. Having said that, a double-drive bonetted Scania and 4 axle Goldhofer trailer would be nice.
Then again so would be a Danish lap-dancer bathing in Wherry with a bra made from Egg Pies but the reality is that it's just not practical.
The Egg Pies would just get soggy...
Just had to get a TV licence which was nearly £150 - for what ? 50+ channels of utter shyte, most of which don't even belong to the BBC. "It's due to the unique way that the BBC is funded".
You're telling me.
If some Arse Goblin came up to you and said "I know you don't use public transport but we'd like you to subsidise all those that do" You'd tell them to piss off, well I feel the same about the BBC.
It has absolutely nothing of any worth to offer, well, except that program the other Sunday, Bomber Boys and Family guy on BBC3 and then American dad but apart from that its crap.
And the news and weather, and the David Attenborough stuff and the local news and radio.
But apart from that its tripe.
Anyway, the Bongo and Grot are all on independent channels and that's why I don't like paying the licence fee.
And Antiques Roadshow.... forgot that but apart from that its all old bollox.
And Live at the Apollo.
Elton John invented Brillo Pads.
Tuesday, 14 February 2012
Friday, 10 February 2012
Coming out
The snow is still hanging around but I doubt we'll see anymore. There wasn't a great deal of it but the wind got up and it drifted. The roads were fairly bad the following morning.
The lads have cracked on this week with the boat shed and mighty fine its looking too. The customer wanted it to look rustic and traditional so we have had timber sawn especially for it.
Having said that, it's took some getting hold of. First week it was meant to have been sawn, oh, sorry, only three-quarters has been done. The following Monday only half has been done..??!
Then its ready to be delivered - when ? "This afternoon or first thing tomorrow" (Friday)
Where is it ? "Nah, can't get to you until at least Wednesday or Thursday next week"....
I tell you what, I'll come and fetch the bastard myself, shall I ?
Why the hell can't people just be straight and tell you what is going on so you can organize around it ?
Well I have to admit that the deal has been done - I have bought a Case. I have had other Case products in the past and got on well with them so lets hope this will be no different. I've bought a Magnum 310, low hours, ex-hire. Managed to do a deal and sold my old Volvo loading shovel in the bargain. It is to be delivered down south where the shovel is and it will spend the next 5 months sat in a barn... I know, I know but I needed to do the deal before April. In truth, it's maybe a bit too big for what I need but it came down to price, power and value plus future potential on other projects.
Hopefully I wont have to see it again until next year and all I will have to do is send the invoices. All being well it should do it's harvest/autumn work and then go on to another little project we have in the wings...
Now all I need to do is find a nice 71 or 72 series Magnum for this neck of the woods to go on the pipe-layer. Having said that, an old 8000 series JD would do.
I was offered a tidy Ford 8730 a week ago but the days of being cooked at the front and back as I sat in a little bubble of tepid air-conditioning are long gone - Been there, done that, got the sweaty, dust covered T-shirt.
I still have my Defender at the moment until the end of the week apparently. You know, I'm going to miss her when she's gone. It's been a good truck really and the best Defender I think I have had (and I have had a few) lets hope the Discovery will be as good or even better (I would like to think it will be better, yes, far better, faster, more comfortable etc)
Hellif I haven't gone through some wood on the old wood-burner of late. I get in and rev it right up and it's fantastic. The other night I thought the top of it must get really hot so I decided to get a can of beans, open them and sit them on top of the wood-burner until they cooked and then I would do some toast and have beans on toast - lovely !
After half an hour I thought F*ck this, shoved the luke warm beans in the micro-wave and did the toast.
What on earth was I thinking ? I'll be putting my washing through a mangle next...
The poor old dawg seems to have got the squits. He keeps going outside, half running, half squatting and then showering the contents of his knotter like an exploding pheasant.
I might try the Mini-Cheddar's method on him to try and dry him up a bit. It certainly works for me and at one stage saw me pass a gretol' tud which was the size and density of a Hesston bale.
What was I saying about snow ? Just had another dollop.
What a pisser.
Simon and Garfunkel invented the rotary washing line.
The lads have cracked on this week with the boat shed and mighty fine its looking too. The customer wanted it to look rustic and traditional so we have had timber sawn especially for it.
Having said that, it's took some getting hold of. First week it was meant to have been sawn, oh, sorry, only three-quarters has been done. The following Monday only half has been done..??!
Then its ready to be delivered - when ? "This afternoon or first thing tomorrow" (Friday)
Where is it ? "Nah, can't get to you until at least Wednesday or Thursday next week"....
I tell you what, I'll come and fetch the bastard myself, shall I ?
Why the hell can't people just be straight and tell you what is going on so you can organize around it ?
Well I have to admit that the deal has been done - I have bought a Case. I have had other Case products in the past and got on well with them so lets hope this will be no different. I've bought a Magnum 310, low hours, ex-hire. Managed to do a deal and sold my old Volvo loading shovel in the bargain. It is to be delivered down south where the shovel is and it will spend the next 5 months sat in a barn... I know, I know but I needed to do the deal before April. In truth, it's maybe a bit too big for what I need but it came down to price, power and value plus future potential on other projects.
Hopefully I wont have to see it again until next year and all I will have to do is send the invoices. All being well it should do it's harvest/autumn work and then go on to another little project we have in the wings...
Now all I need to do is find a nice 71 or 72 series Magnum for this neck of the woods to go on the pipe-layer. Having said that, an old 8000 series JD would do.
I was offered a tidy Ford 8730 a week ago but the days of being cooked at the front and back as I sat in a little bubble of tepid air-conditioning are long gone - Been there, done that, got the sweaty, dust covered T-shirt.
I still have my Defender at the moment until the end of the week apparently. You know, I'm going to miss her when she's gone. It's been a good truck really and the best Defender I think I have had (and I have had a few) lets hope the Discovery will be as good or even better (I would like to think it will be better, yes, far better, faster, more comfortable etc)
Hellif I haven't gone through some wood on the old wood-burner of late. I get in and rev it right up and it's fantastic. The other night I thought the top of it must get really hot so I decided to get a can of beans, open them and sit them on top of the wood-burner until they cooked and then I would do some toast and have beans on toast - lovely !
After half an hour I thought F*ck this, shoved the luke warm beans in the micro-wave and did the toast.
What on earth was I thinking ? I'll be putting my washing through a mangle next...
The poor old dawg seems to have got the squits. He keeps going outside, half running, half squatting and then showering the contents of his knotter like an exploding pheasant.
I might try the Mini-Cheddar's method on him to try and dry him up a bit. It certainly works for me and at one stage saw me pass a gretol' tud which was the size and density of a Hesston bale.
What was I saying about snow ? Just had another dollop.
What a pisser.
Simon and Garfunkel invented the rotary washing line.
Monday, 6 February 2012
Bomber Boys
Last night I sat and watched Bomber Boys on BBC1 starring Colin and Ewan McGregor.
It was a very well put together program and showed the courage of those crews back then and on the whole was very balanced and well presented.
A fair bit was spoken about Dresden and as always, 70 years on, researchers are still taking the view that Dresden was unnecessary. Of course it was unnecessary, all war is but not at the time and there are a few factors which many at the time were unaware of and many are not aware of still.
The argument is that 'the war in Europe was already won' yet right up until March 27th 1945, German V2 rockets were still killing people in England as well as Holland and Belgium. In total 1358 V2's alone fell on London, some 44 on Norwich and Ipswich (there is a V2 crater on one of our neighbouring fields at home) and this was continuing nearly two months after Dresden.
The Germans had only just been defeated in the Ardennes forest, known as 'The Battle of the Bulge' in which the Americans saw the largest single capture of American troops in their military history.
In March, the Allies were still trying to cross the river Rhine at Remagen and V2's were still killing people back in England.
Dresden had a vital railway junction and this was used to move German troops and artillery to attack the Allies advancing in the west and the Russians in the east.
The raid itself was due to be led by the Americans with a daylight raid, being followed by the RAF at night, however, bad weather postponed the USAAF raid and so the British went in first that night.
Dresden was an historic town and had many wooden framed buildings and this is what the firestorm got hold of. The next day, the Americans bombed Dresden as they had been scheduled to do 24 hrs earlier.
How would history have been written if the USAAF had bombed first as planned ? Would Harris still have become the scape-goat of the liberal idealists ?
In March 1945, Joseph Goebbels said to Hitler that Dresden was too good an opportunity to miss. He ordered his Reich Press Authority to publish the death toll in Dresden of some 20,000 people but to add another '0'....
The next day, it was publicised that 200,000 people had died in the raid on Dresden.
A Labour politician in the house of commons, Richard Stokes, a fierce opponent to area bombing, quoted the figures from the German Press Agency to the members of the house and the rest, as they say, is history.
Any death in a war is a regrettable action but as we sit here now, some 70 years later, we do so in freedom and relative peace. This freedom and peace came at a terrible cost and sometimes you have to try and imagine what it was like back then, not now in the comfort of your homes.
Back then, families were being blown apart as V2's landed in civilian streets with no pre-warning, no air raid sirens, the first thing you knew was a massive, ground shaking explosion if you were at a safe distance, followed by the sound of a rocket (they came in faster than the speed of sound), if you were in the impact area, you knew nothing.
Families were still receiving letters to say that their husbands, fathers and brothers were being killed as they fought in Europe and the far east. Try standing there back then and telling these people that the war was 'nearly over'. Tell the thousands of Allied troops who had just been in battle and shot and blown to bits as the German 6th Army and SS Panzer divisions swept through the Ardennes that the war was 'nearly over'.
Germany, although facing defeat, was still making and producing weapons that the world could never imagine at places such as Peenemunde and these only became apparent after the Allied victory. The Germans had designed and started to build a battle tank (the chassis, hull and running gear had been made) that when the allies captured the factory in May, they found the plans to complete the tank and the technology used was only superseded by the British and Americans in the late 1950's !
The earlier raids on Hamburg had killed over 45,000 civilians, over double that of Dresden but Joseph Goebbels compiled maybe his finest work of fiction when he increased the death toll at Dresden ten-fold. It took one anti-bombing Labour MP using German propaganda to suit his agenda and the writings of the Reich propaganda machine were taken as gospel. So called 'respected' historians have continued to use these vastly exaggerated figures in their writings and publications as without them, Dresden was in the greater scheme of things, just another raid.
For Churchill to distance himself from the raid that he sanctioned was unforgivable. The way that the aircrews of Bomber Command were shunned after the war was disgusting.
Bomber Command took the fight to the Germans, they ensured that the Germans tied up troops on anti-aircraft defences, they smashed the U-boat pens, saving thousands of lives in the Atlantic, they broke the back of German Industry which ensured that aircraft, tanks, weapons and munitions would and could not kill allied personnel. They stopped the German counter-attack after D-Day and allowed the Allies to get a foot-hold in Europe. They knocked the very heart out of the wave of mindless mentality and ambition that swept over the German nation in the guise of the Nazi Party.
Bomber Command fought night after night for nearly five years to ensure final victory and freedom.
These men and women of Bomber Command earned and deserve our respect. You can sit and argue from the comfort of your homes about the rights and wrongs of war and the bombing of cities and civilian casualties. You can convince yourself from your own peaceful part of suburbia that the war in February 1945 was all but won and over, you can also believe and use the figures of an appointed liar and book-burning Nazi if it helps your cause but never, never forget that you have the freedom to believe and say what you wish because over 55,000 aircrew from Bomber Command died fighting for your freedom.
It was a very well put together program and showed the courage of those crews back then and on the whole was very balanced and well presented.
A fair bit was spoken about Dresden and as always, 70 years on, researchers are still taking the view that Dresden was unnecessary. Of course it was unnecessary, all war is but not at the time and there are a few factors which many at the time were unaware of and many are not aware of still.
The argument is that 'the war in Europe was already won' yet right up until March 27th 1945, German V2 rockets were still killing people in England as well as Holland and Belgium. In total 1358 V2's alone fell on London, some 44 on Norwich and Ipswich (there is a V2 crater on one of our neighbouring fields at home) and this was continuing nearly two months after Dresden.
The Germans had only just been defeated in the Ardennes forest, known as 'The Battle of the Bulge' in which the Americans saw the largest single capture of American troops in their military history.
In March, the Allies were still trying to cross the river Rhine at Remagen and V2's were still killing people back in England.
Dresden had a vital railway junction and this was used to move German troops and artillery to attack the Allies advancing in the west and the Russians in the east.
The raid itself was due to be led by the Americans with a daylight raid, being followed by the RAF at night, however, bad weather postponed the USAAF raid and so the British went in first that night.
Dresden was an historic town and had many wooden framed buildings and this is what the firestorm got hold of. The next day, the Americans bombed Dresden as they had been scheduled to do 24 hrs earlier.
How would history have been written if the USAAF had bombed first as planned ? Would Harris still have become the scape-goat of the liberal idealists ?
In March 1945, Joseph Goebbels said to Hitler that Dresden was too good an opportunity to miss. He ordered his Reich Press Authority to publish the death toll in Dresden of some 20,000 people but to add another '0'....
The next day, it was publicised that 200,000 people had died in the raid on Dresden.
A Labour politician in the house of commons, Richard Stokes, a fierce opponent to area bombing, quoted the figures from the German Press Agency to the members of the house and the rest, as they say, is history.
Any death in a war is a regrettable action but as we sit here now, some 70 years later, we do so in freedom and relative peace. This freedom and peace came at a terrible cost and sometimes you have to try and imagine what it was like back then, not now in the comfort of your homes.
Back then, families were being blown apart as V2's landed in civilian streets with no pre-warning, no air raid sirens, the first thing you knew was a massive, ground shaking explosion if you were at a safe distance, followed by the sound of a rocket (they came in faster than the speed of sound), if you were in the impact area, you knew nothing.
Families were still receiving letters to say that their husbands, fathers and brothers were being killed as they fought in Europe and the far east. Try standing there back then and telling these people that the war was 'nearly over'. Tell the thousands of Allied troops who had just been in battle and shot and blown to bits as the German 6th Army and SS Panzer divisions swept through the Ardennes that the war was 'nearly over'.
Germany, although facing defeat, was still making and producing weapons that the world could never imagine at places such as Peenemunde and these only became apparent after the Allied victory. The Germans had designed and started to build a battle tank (the chassis, hull and running gear had been made) that when the allies captured the factory in May, they found the plans to complete the tank and the technology used was only superseded by the British and Americans in the late 1950's !
The earlier raids on Hamburg had killed over 45,000 civilians, over double that of Dresden but Joseph Goebbels compiled maybe his finest work of fiction when he increased the death toll at Dresden ten-fold. It took one anti-bombing Labour MP using German propaganda to suit his agenda and the writings of the Reich propaganda machine were taken as gospel. So called 'respected' historians have continued to use these vastly exaggerated figures in their writings and publications as without them, Dresden was in the greater scheme of things, just another raid.
For Churchill to distance himself from the raid that he sanctioned was unforgivable. The way that the aircrews of Bomber Command were shunned after the war was disgusting.
Bomber Command took the fight to the Germans, they ensured that the Germans tied up troops on anti-aircraft defences, they smashed the U-boat pens, saving thousands of lives in the Atlantic, they broke the back of German Industry which ensured that aircraft, tanks, weapons and munitions would and could not kill allied personnel. They stopped the German counter-attack after D-Day and allowed the Allies to get a foot-hold in Europe. They knocked the very heart out of the wave of mindless mentality and ambition that swept over the German nation in the guise of the Nazi Party.
Bomber Command fought night after night for nearly five years to ensure final victory and freedom.
These men and women of Bomber Command earned and deserve our respect. You can sit and argue from the comfort of your homes about the rights and wrongs of war and the bombing of cities and civilian casualties. You can convince yourself from your own peaceful part of suburbia that the war in February 1945 was all but won and over, you can also believe and use the figures of an appointed liar and book-burning Nazi if it helps your cause but never, never forget that you have the freedom to believe and say what you wish because over 55,000 aircrew from Bomber Command died fighting for your freedom.
Friday, 3 February 2012
Magnum Force
Another morning and another dusting of snow, lets hope that's all it comes to.
Went and had a look at a Magnum 310 yesterday. It was a 200 houred ex-hire machine, very tidy, lots of extras and has only been used to pull a set of discs. The cab is a nice, roomy affair and the forward vision is good for the size of machine. It has a lovely sound to it also which, as we all know, is everything...
Just have to sit down now and work out the difference between that and a brand new one as far as the warranty and initial cost goes.
At least I'll be able to go and pull Warwickshire's premier farmer and U-Boat Captain, sorry, ploughing contractor out when he decides to head for deeper water.
I've just had to spend the majority of the morning going through a tender document in order to quote for some work which has gained European Funding. This means that all your method statements for the project are published publicly on the net, meaning that your competitors can therefore see your proposals and try and undercut you. True, in theory this should mean that we can do the same but the reality is that everyone just digs in to second-guess and undercut their competitors and the job becomes financially unviable. So far, the three similar projects carried out using this method have ended in the contractor having to pull out due to losing money and then having to wait until further funding is approved but they cannot receive any money or part-payment until the project is completed.
I have therefore decided to use the document to my advantage and light the woodburner with it.
I've never bought work and I'm not about to start now.
I'm meant to be attending a bit of a bash tomorrow night but I'm considering staying in. The trouble is that a couple of us made a bet a few weeks ago with the giggly, tippsy crowd that we would be able to drink them under the table on Port. The trouble is that although I have no doubt I can in fact do this, I reckon it's going to be a big old table and will take a fair bit of Port before they finally give in. I would probably be okay if they only played fair.
This is going to get messy...
A discarded cling-film tube strapped to a roller skate makes an excellent car for a snake.
Went and had a look at a Magnum 310 yesterday. It was a 200 houred ex-hire machine, very tidy, lots of extras and has only been used to pull a set of discs. The cab is a nice, roomy affair and the forward vision is good for the size of machine. It has a lovely sound to it also which, as we all know, is everything...
Just have to sit down now and work out the difference between that and a brand new one as far as the warranty and initial cost goes.
At least I'll be able to go and pull Warwickshire's premier farmer and U-Boat Captain, sorry, ploughing contractor out when he decides to head for deeper water.
I've just had to spend the majority of the morning going through a tender document in order to quote for some work which has gained European Funding. This means that all your method statements for the project are published publicly on the net, meaning that your competitors can therefore see your proposals and try and undercut you. True, in theory this should mean that we can do the same but the reality is that everyone just digs in to second-guess and undercut their competitors and the job becomes financially unviable. So far, the three similar projects carried out using this method have ended in the contractor having to pull out due to losing money and then having to wait until further funding is approved but they cannot receive any money or part-payment until the project is completed.
I have therefore decided to use the document to my advantage and light the woodburner with it.
I've never bought work and I'm not about to start now.
I'm meant to be attending a bit of a bash tomorrow night but I'm considering staying in. The trouble is that a couple of us made a bet a few weeks ago with the giggly, tippsy crowd that we would be able to drink them under the table on Port. The trouble is that although I have no doubt I can in fact do this, I reckon it's going to be a big old table and will take a fair bit of Port before they finally give in. I would probably be okay if they only played fair.
This is going to get messy...
A discarded cling-film tube strapped to a roller skate makes an excellent car for a snake.
Wednesday, 1 February 2012
Best laid plans
It's nice to see that I have some followers who read this crap. At this rate, we're going to get underground cult-status. At least this way when you feel you are having a bad day, you can read my ramblings and realise things could be worse.
Take this morning for example - I got up, fed the dogs, had a mud-out, had some breakfast, got ready to go shooting and got a phone call. It was the company who were meant to be delivering a load of pre-cast panels tomorrow but decided to send them today instead...
So, that knackered my days shooting while I had to go and unload the panels and get them on to a trailer ready to transport to the far end of the site next week. Okay, it's good that the panels are here but why on earth they couldn't carry out delivery tomorrow like we arranged I don't know. The result is that today I have a very disappointed dawg who was looking forward to going out to scare some pheasants and get very snarly in the process. Now he's just laying there looking all sad.
On the other hand, the lorry load of timber which I was promised yesterday has yet to appear. It was meant to have been sawn, treated and delivered first thing Tuesday but didn't materialise.
I suppose they're waiting for the leaves to fall off.
Hopefully I should be going to look at a couple of tractors later this week. It's never as straight forward as you would hope and although price plays a big part, dealer back-up and warranty are crucial. I can see a lot of sitting down and scribbling going on to work out what is the best deal overall.
I wonder if I'll get a free pair of overalls and a nice hat ?
Who mentioned arseless chaps ?....
You do have to wonder sometimes why you bother going out to work. Yesterday, I had a phone call from one of the guys doing a fencing job. The final invoice was due to be paid yesterday for some fencing which we did at a property some city types have just bought. My chap called me up to say the customer wanted some money off the invoice because (this is a classic) "We took 2 days longer than we said we would to complete the work"
This is a first class example of clutching at straws to get a reduction in cost.
Now, the reason for this is that the customer asked us to divide the field into 4 paddocks, not the 3 we originally quoted to do. This was not a problem and he was happy to pay for the extra material but obviously this took us another couple of days to do what with the extra fencing plus two extra gates etc.
I told my guy to thank the customer for reminding me that we spent an extra two days there as I had only charged for material (I hadn't but he didn't realise this) and said that we would therefore need to charge for the two extra days. I got a call straight back form my guy saying the customer wouldn't pay anymore than what was on the invoice.
I said that I was happy with this.
Of course I was - he's just convinced himself to pay the original f*cking invoice I sent him !
People are strange.
Salman Rushdie invented the Toblerone.
Take this morning for example - I got up, fed the dogs, had a mud-out, had some breakfast, got ready to go shooting and got a phone call. It was the company who were meant to be delivering a load of pre-cast panels tomorrow but decided to send them today instead...
So, that knackered my days shooting while I had to go and unload the panels and get them on to a trailer ready to transport to the far end of the site next week. Okay, it's good that the panels are here but why on earth they couldn't carry out delivery tomorrow like we arranged I don't know. The result is that today I have a very disappointed dawg who was looking forward to going out to scare some pheasants and get very snarly in the process. Now he's just laying there looking all sad.
On the other hand, the lorry load of timber which I was promised yesterday has yet to appear. It was meant to have been sawn, treated and delivered first thing Tuesday but didn't materialise.
I suppose they're waiting for the leaves to fall off.
Hopefully I should be going to look at a couple of tractors later this week. It's never as straight forward as you would hope and although price plays a big part, dealer back-up and warranty are crucial. I can see a lot of sitting down and scribbling going on to work out what is the best deal overall.
I wonder if I'll get a free pair of overalls and a nice hat ?
Who mentioned arseless chaps ?....
You do have to wonder sometimes why you bother going out to work. Yesterday, I had a phone call from one of the guys doing a fencing job. The final invoice was due to be paid yesterday for some fencing which we did at a property some city types have just bought. My chap called me up to say the customer wanted some money off the invoice because (this is a classic) "We took 2 days longer than we said we would to complete the work"
This is a first class example of clutching at straws to get a reduction in cost.
Now, the reason for this is that the customer asked us to divide the field into 4 paddocks, not the 3 we originally quoted to do. This was not a problem and he was happy to pay for the extra material but obviously this took us another couple of days to do what with the extra fencing plus two extra gates etc.
I told my guy to thank the customer for reminding me that we spent an extra two days there as I had only charged for material (I hadn't but he didn't realise this) and said that we would therefore need to charge for the two extra days. I got a call straight back form my guy saying the customer wouldn't pay anymore than what was on the invoice.
I said that I was happy with this.
Of course I was - he's just convinced himself to pay the original f*cking invoice I sent him !
People are strange.
Salman Rushdie invented the Toblerone.
Tuesday, 31 January 2012
Sold to the highest bidder
A day of paperwork, invoices and telephone calls chasing suppliers.
Oh, and I have sold the Defender.
Bit of luck really, was in the LR dealers yesterday sorting out some extra bits for the Discovery when it arrives and mentioned that I would probably sell the Defender privately. This morning I received a call from them to say they would like to buy it from me as they have a customer waiting and they would therefore offer me decent money, which they did, deal done. Looks as though I shall have to get one of the spare vehicles out of the shed for a few weeks. My little old car should suffice for now.
Mind you, if we get any snow, I can always smoke around in the Scammell.
I've got another day's shooting tomorrow which will be more of a grin than a shoot. I think I'll take the snarly Noodle along so he can get very tired and very angry with everything.
It's the gift that keeps on giving.
I should really go and get everything ready for next week when the diggers start rolling onto a site where we are installing a sluice and water control point but I'm sure it can wait another day.
Someone said to me yesterday "It's all very well earning this money but what are you going to do with it once you've got it ?"
What a stupid question.
I looked at him and said "Spend it all on crystal-meth and hookers"
I think he genuinely thought I meant it...
The search for a horse continues. I have seen a couple but people do tend to value them so highly.
"It's won £37 at affiliated show jumping, thats why we want nine grand for him" - Great but as soon as it hurts itself it's worth £200 for meat to feed the dawgs.
I might take a few days off this month and travel about a bit looking at a selection of nags.
I know what will happen in the end and I know what I will end up doing but time will tell....
Right, I have a woodburner to stoke up and some port to drink.
Be Lucky.
Oh, and I have sold the Defender.
Bit of luck really, was in the LR dealers yesterday sorting out some extra bits for the Discovery when it arrives and mentioned that I would probably sell the Defender privately. This morning I received a call from them to say they would like to buy it from me as they have a customer waiting and they would therefore offer me decent money, which they did, deal done. Looks as though I shall have to get one of the spare vehicles out of the shed for a few weeks. My little old car should suffice for now.
Mind you, if we get any snow, I can always smoke around in the Scammell.
I've got another day's shooting tomorrow which will be more of a grin than a shoot. I think I'll take the snarly Noodle along so he can get very tired and very angry with everything.
It's the gift that keeps on giving.
I should really go and get everything ready for next week when the diggers start rolling onto a site where we are installing a sluice and water control point but I'm sure it can wait another day.
Someone said to me yesterday "It's all very well earning this money but what are you going to do with it once you've got it ?"
What a stupid question.
I looked at him and said "Spend it all on crystal-meth and hookers"
I think he genuinely thought I meant it...
The search for a horse continues. I have seen a couple but people do tend to value them so highly.
"It's won £37 at affiliated show jumping, thats why we want nine grand for him" - Great but as soon as it hurts itself it's worth £200 for meat to feed the dawgs.
I might take a few days off this month and travel about a bit looking at a selection of nags.
I know what will happen in the end and I know what I will end up doing but time will tell....
Right, I have a woodburner to stoke up and some port to drink.
Be Lucky.
Monday, 30 January 2012
Snarly dawg
The weather is meant to become colder this week and apparently there is an increased risk of snow.
The TV and newspapers are going mad with tales of impending doom and 'arctic freeze' stories.
It's winter for heavens sake - what did you expect ?
I am due to go and have a look at a Case Magnum 310 this week. It's a bigger lump of a thing than I was initially looking to buy but I'm coming to the conclusion that I'd rather have the grunt and power at the end of the day. I could look at the smaller Magnums but you then need the horses to get the gretol chunk of iron moving in the first place ! This end of the market does tend to rule out the Fastrac as I am not over keen on the 8000 series but it does bring the 8r Deeres into the equation but you seem to get a lot more machine for your money with the Case.
Well, that's the theory...
I'm currently on the lookout for decent self employed staff. There are loads of guys out there who are willing to work but a much smaller number who have a degree of common sense and the ability to think for themselves. I suppose I have always been fortunate in having some of the best guys around and this does tend to highlight those who have less drive and the inability to sort out the simplest of problems.
I think it's worth waiting to find the right people rather than just accept those who are 'nearly good enough'. You would have thought that a recession would give you quite a broad field of talents from which to pick.
Apparently not.
The weekend was a good laugh and I managed to bag a few partridges and down the odd glass of port, cherry brandy, sloe gin...
I took the dawg along and he had a real blast but as the day wore on and he became more tired and started to ache, he became more and more angry. He started becoming angry with partridges, trees, gate posts, squirrels, rooks, nettles, brambles, old people, young people, Labradors, Spaniels, empty cartridges, twigs, Mitsubishi's, fence posts and dead pheasants.
I seem to remember a comment regarding him being fairly snarly and that they wondered where he could have got that from...
Later that evening I drew along to a wedding reception, had a sausage roll and a grin with some friends, insulted a few guests, farted and went home.
The dawg was still fairly snarly when I got back...
The TV and newspapers are going mad with tales of impending doom and 'arctic freeze' stories.
It's winter for heavens sake - what did you expect ?
I am due to go and have a look at a Case Magnum 310 this week. It's a bigger lump of a thing than I was initially looking to buy but I'm coming to the conclusion that I'd rather have the grunt and power at the end of the day. I could look at the smaller Magnums but you then need the horses to get the gretol chunk of iron moving in the first place ! This end of the market does tend to rule out the Fastrac as I am not over keen on the 8000 series but it does bring the 8r Deeres into the equation but you seem to get a lot more machine for your money with the Case.
Well, that's the theory...
I'm currently on the lookout for decent self employed staff. There are loads of guys out there who are willing to work but a much smaller number who have a degree of common sense and the ability to think for themselves. I suppose I have always been fortunate in having some of the best guys around and this does tend to highlight those who have less drive and the inability to sort out the simplest of problems.
I think it's worth waiting to find the right people rather than just accept those who are 'nearly good enough'. You would have thought that a recession would give you quite a broad field of talents from which to pick.
Apparently not.
The weekend was a good laugh and I managed to bag a few partridges and down the odd glass of port, cherry brandy, sloe gin...
I took the dawg along and he had a real blast but as the day wore on and he became more tired and started to ache, he became more and more angry. He started becoming angry with partridges, trees, gate posts, squirrels, rooks, nettles, brambles, old people, young people, Labradors, Spaniels, empty cartridges, twigs, Mitsubishi's, fence posts and dead pheasants.
I seem to remember a comment regarding him being fairly snarly and that they wondered where he could have got that from...
Later that evening I drew along to a wedding reception, had a sausage roll and a grin with some friends, insulted a few guests, farted and went home.
The dawg was still fairly snarly when I got back...
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