A little whisky related story, to perhaps change the tone…

My father died recently and being the forethinking type (and being 82) had saved a decent sum so that the cost of his funeral wouldn’t be borne by his beloved. However, it being Covid times we couldn’t have the big bash that he wanted and only me and my siblings could attend.

So I used the money to buy a bottle of whisky from the year of his birth. At the grave poured 3 glasses, the first I gave to my eldest brother and said: “this whisky is like our dad, because it went around the sun the same number of times he did.” Then my eldest brother poured it on the grave, we all feel a bit low.

Next glass to next brother and I said: “This whisky is like our dad because it’s golden colour reminds us of the way conversations with him could illuminate ideas like no other.” Middle brother pours it on the grave, there’s a bit of tearing up.

Last glass I give to my youngest sister and I said: “This whisky is like our dad because too much of it will give you a headache.” Which made us all laugh as she poured it on the grave.

Then we ate some lunch and afterwards we drank the rest of the whisky, it wasn’t the best I’d ever drunk (despite being the most expensive), but it was the most meaningful.

It’s funny how we value things.

There are people trying to get the town back on its feet. For example this project, which could be really exciting: https://www.midsteeplequarter.org/the-oven-dumfries

I always love a dub/reggae Christmas cover. Seems to always cheer me up

Wow, I hadn’t realised, neither have I. But even more miraculously I haven’t heard The Slade yet either!

Hummmm, might finally have found a bike to replace my 2017 Smuggler. I wonder if it’ll be a bit lighter?

Also, I don’t quite understand how these can have the same angles as a smuggler, a longer top tube, but shorter reach?

Can I go the other way and suggest that The Killing (1956) and Rififi (1955) are two classic thrillers that really hold up to modern films.

A friend of mine went to the supermarket for milk and came back with a new car.

We took our 9 month old with us on honeymoon to Vietnam and then when I had a couple of months work in Los Angeles we took our then 3 year old and another 5 months old. Travelling with kids for us has been fine, just don’t expect to do much while they get over jet lag.

Would agree that (not too hot) hot tubs are great on holidays with kids, also bathing them in sinks, buckets whatever.

Our third child was born 29th of December 2019 and been nowhere!

I have a mother in law and a step mother, both in their late 70s and both what you’d probably think of as quite elegant. In lockdown they both bought Vanmoofs and have genuinely gone crazy. They love them.

I have a Longshot BFe set up rigid (the first year when they still weren’t boost) it’s got a Jones fork and 29+ wheel in the front and it’s flipping brilliant. (Although I’ve hardly ridden it this year as I have should surgery in June).

I made a film where where the subtitlist translated “jazz mags” to “magazine du jazz”, which still makes me laugh, which is good, because it was a comedy.

This one makes me feel like I’m on drugs. In my eyes, the fact that it’s imperfect just adds to the effect, it’s a mash up, not a blend.

Minor dissenting position… Don’t pay up!

My dad and I had a long running joke argument about £50 he owed me on a bet he made with me when I was 10 and he didn’t pay up. Last time I teased him about it was just before he died and it was one of the last time I saw him laugh.

If quizzes are quizzical, what are tests?

You’re telling me that Lapland isn’t just full of people’s temporarily discarded laps?

We only see baby pigeons, it’s the 2m tall adults that live underground that we don’t see.

I’d missed all of Pratchett’s books until lockdown insomnia hit and I’ve now basically listened to the lot on Audible. I’ve always had Roger Allam as Vimes in my head (and I realise that he’s a bit old for the early books) Pete Postlethwaite would have been wonderful, although I’ve always had someone in my mind a little heavier set. As for Carrot, I’ve always had Van Damme’s dancing from Kickboxer in my head.

I agree that Vivos are expensive, but I’ve had a pair for nearly 9 years and they’re still functionally fine

I had a mesh repair in Feb last year. It’s been transformative. I’ve now managed to strengthen my core muscles without risking it popping out and that in turn has helped me with my lower back where I’ve a congenitally fused vertebrae. What you’re going through sounds rough, but get it sorted, hang on in there and I’m sure in the long run it’ll be worth it.

Oh yeah, totally a normal response to a situation… now that I know about it! :-) it’s just not the way people normally think about it. It was only the TRE classes that got me thinking about it in that way.

I have anxiety that’s the reverse of most people in that, instead of going into fight or flight, I do the opposite and go into a playing dead/dissociating state. So I don’t actually look anxious, I go quiet, it looks like I’m chilled, but it’s actually a bit locked in.

The two things I’ve been doing recently are EMDR and TRE. Both of them sound a bit crazy, but have grown out of people treating PTSD. EMDR is currently used by the LAPD and involves stimulating the different hemispheres of your brain in a way that gets them to chill out (obvs not the medical explanation, but that’s my sense of the experience) TRE takes the body’s natural unconscious anxiety processing (shaking essentially) and teaches you how to use it consciously. They’ve both had a profound effect on my life and would recommend them to anyone.

*Cracks knuckles in preparation to write most middle class sentence in all of STW history*

My godmother has rented her converted cow shed in Suffolk to a couple who make their own chocolate.

It’s here: https://tosier.co.uk

Their chocolate is bloody amazing. I get 4 random bars from them a fortnight, I’m worried that now we’re out of lockdown and people start coming round, they won’t last a week.

I put a ohlins coil on my 2017 Smuggler (after I’d seen lots of other people do it). It’s brill.

I’m definitely a fan of the Punk / Punk AF 50/50. My glass is initially filled with both and then I top up with alternating cans.

I also had the AZ yesterday at 430. Was fine until about 5am, when I woke up feeling a bit achey. Had breakfast and then got hit by a wall of exhaustion. Been napping on and off since then, a bit like a hangover but without the existential dread.

I had the virus pretty badly in March last year. Didn’t go to hospital, but was quite delirious and in and out of symptoms for a couple of months. Still had antibodies in Jan as I had a test to see if I could join up to the blood plasma trial, but I think that’s been cancelled.

+1 on the Giro DND, perfect in every way except for the freezing cold.

I’ve got a set coming for a Seven Cycles road bike I’ve had built, but the frame seems to have got stuck in the US.

Hummmm, that’s interesting about the mullet bike thing. My BFe is sort of a mullet with a 29×3 on the front and a 27.5×2.8 on the back and I love it like that.

I had one of the first round of merlin Jones. Loved it for ages, once I started riding LLS bikes it started feeling really small, but to be fair I’m 6”4’ so I was always stretching (shrinking?) the one size fits all idea.

Then I found a crack on a weld on the tiny tube that joins the twin top tubes and Jeff wasn’t very helpful. So I picked up a 2017 Bfe and put my Jones forks on that and it’s been brilliant, so I got a newer truss fork so I could run a 29×3.0 tyre and I’ve never looked back.

Slash backslash escape!

They’ve arrived! This is going to be brilliant!

I’ve been thinking about getting a crawler for the garden to keep the kids amused in Lockdown, does anyone have any advice for where to get ramps etc? They don’t seem to sell them on banggood or Modelsport.

I bought a set of Rollerblade Cruisers, should arrive today. Pity about the weather for the next week or so, but I’ll get out as soon as it stops being slippy.

All the videos are great, I started skating in the late 80s and had a great set of Bauers… Turbo 33s I think, with miss matched pink and green wheels. They were awesome. Then I had a variety of rollerblades through the 90s, ending with a set of Roces Majestic 13s (I think that’s right or are they Majestic 12s) then didn’t skate until the late 00s when I picked up the Rollerblade Twister.

I called up Loco, they were great and I’ve ordered a new pair of Rollerblades. Very excited to try them when they arrive. Thanks all.

Thanks everyone.

Chorizo and taramasalata? I thought I was the only one! In a similar vein for years my wife has made a little vom noise as I, face in the fridge, scoop taramasalata up with a roll of Parma ham.

I’m putting the kids to bed, so don’t have the time to write a long answer, but the short answer is that ours has been rubbish. Easily scratched, water ingress, damage from steam.

I also bought a kneeling chair. It’s been a revelation. Really strengthened up my core and stopped the tilt I had in my pelvis.

Just joining this thread after lurking around it for sometime (actually seem to be doing a lot of that on STW this week).
Anyhow, I recently bought a http://www.Ming.watch which I’m really looking forward to arriving. I know the guy who designs them a bit and little by little he and this thread have sucked me into the world of watch appreciation.

They are indeed, but then so is the frame they’re on! They’ve also lasted for 15 years and will probably do at least another, so reasonable VFM.