A Comedy Turn At Highbury Corner
I went up to the new littleWaitrose at Highbury Corner this afternoon. No problems in the shopping and in fact the shop is better than its medium sized sister at Islington, as the gluten-free selection is better and the self-service tills are easier to use.
Catching the 277 bus home, I was treated to one of the funniest comedy drunk acts in quite a few years. An obese lady, probably about fifty, with hair died a bright purple, was trying to board a bus. The stream of invective would have outshone a navvy, who had just dropped a sledge-hammer on their foot. When I arrived the lady driver of the bus, opened the door and let me in. she seemed totally unmoved at the invective and smiled widely, when I said thanks for waiting for me. In the end, the drunk was left on the pavement, still screaming loudly, much to the amusement of passengers.
One of the great advantages of Routemasters and their predecessors, was that the conductor could give a signal for the driver to leave quickly. I’ve actually seen a conductor do this, when a drunk was balanced on the rear platform and then give a small push, to make sure the drunk toppled into the road. Health and safety would stop such extreme measures these days.
The Magnificent Olympic Park Flowers
So many have remarked that the best part of the Olympic Park is the flowers.
Judge for yourself! Read about how the gardens were created in the Daily Telegraph.
Britain’s Secret Ingredient – The Twenty-Third Of March
Someone has just pointed out on Radio 5 Live, that Steve Redgrave, Chris Hoy and Mo Farah, all share the same birthday; the 23rd of March. They were born in 1962, 1976 and 1982 respectively.
Believe it or not they share the date with Roger Bannister, who was born in 1921.
The theme is carried on by Chris Hoy’s colleague Jason Kenny, who won gold in Beijing and London.
Kingston Comes To Stratford
On Friday night, there was a lot of Jamaican flags in the crowd at the Olympic Stadium. I think it is true to say, that after the British, Jamaica was one of the best supported nations in the athletics. But then Jamaica is a small nation and London, or perhaps New York, are the nearest they’ll get to a home Olympics.
In fact, this must have been the best games for other Caribbean nations too!
On the other hand, Usain Bolt and others in the Jamaican team, were fulsome in their praise of the help they received in Birmingham, where they were based in the UK. Did it help training amongst friends? And did it help the other Caribbean nations too?
We’ll never know for sure. But surely friendships made during these Games, will in future benefit everybody!
Saturday Night Fever
Is there any other headline for Mo Farah‘s two triumphs on successive Saturday nights in the 10,000 and 5,000 metres? Let’s hope after tonight’s exertion, his wife doesn’t give birth to the twins she’s expecting. Now that would be a double double!
I can just about remember the second of Lasse Viren‘s second Olympic double in 1976, although for his first in 1972, C and I were pre-occupied with the arrival of our third son. But I don’t think there will ever be another long distance double done by a British Athlete in an Olympic Games held in the UK. And remember, that Mo Farah has spent most of his life in London. But what odds will I get on Mo repeating the feat in the Athletics World Championships in London in 2017?
Hopefully, I’ll see it.
The last few years have been difficult for me to say the least.
Mo’s feat has given me a big lift and hopefully, the thought of seeing a repeat might keep me going.
If there is any sport, I wanted to be good at, it was running the classic distances of 1,500 metres upwards. But I wasn’t any good, although I got great pleasure in watching the classic races as they were shown live on the BBC. I can remember Chataway defeating Kuts , to claim the world record at the White City, Derek Ibbotson‘s mile record and Bruce Tulloh‘s triumph in Belgrade from my childhood. All gave me a tremendous lift, but all feats are small when compared to what Mo has done.
Hopefully, the lift I get will be proportionate. I need it more than ever I did all those fifty or more years ago.
Chasing Jessica
I’ve been trying to get this iconic advert using Jessica Ennis for a few days now, before it disappears.
Chasing Jessica
I finally caught it on a 38 bus at Islington tonight.
Judging By The Number of Adverts, Keith Is A Lemon
The film Keith Lemon is getting a lot of bus adverts.
Judging By The Number of Adverts, Keith Is A Lemon
This generally means only one thing; the film is terrible.
Jerry Strikes Again
I want to replace my washing machine with a washer-dryer, so I have more space in the garage by selling the tumble-dryer there, but it’s not as easy as it looks.
Jerry Strikes Again
As you can see it looks a bit tight. Note the floral monstrosity on the right. It’s an ironing board. Real men like me, don’t iron! We pay someone to do it, or buy a new shirt, we can wear out of the packet!
Note how the plumbing seems to have been bent around the washing mashing and the crude stand, that it is supported on. Here’s some detail.
Crazy Pipework
If you think this is bad, then the outlet pipe is a masterpiece of bodging!
A Masterpiece Of Bodging!
I dread to think what you would have to do if the pump above the washing machine failed and had to be changed.
As it is, I think I’ll have to sort this mess out before I change the washing machine for a washer-dryer. I’ll also need to change the crude stand that holds up the machine.
I also am getting fed up with moving wet washing through two doors from the hall cupboard into the garage to get it dry. currently, if there’s a car in the garage, I can’t really use the tumbler-dryer, as the door can’t be opened.
I can’t abide bad design and workmanship.
The Olympic Park At Night
I took these pictures as I left last night.
In fact I wish I’d taken more.
Advertising At The Olympics
The Olympics is not an advert-free zone.
Advertising At The Olympics
Surely these little cars, used to pick up the shots, discuses and hammers are nothing but blatant advertising for Minis.
The Anonymous Widower 