I too disliked E1. I got the impression Mr Ayoade wasn’t really enjoying it and the whole episode was just padded out with dull non-bants.

Much preferred E2 because Grayson brought some much needed energy and enthusiasm that David fed off. Yes, he’s loud and and in yer face, but IMO he wasn’t offensive or OTT. He just seemed genuinely happy to spend a couple of faffing round with another funny bloke on bikes.

20-3. Time for bed. Reckon the Aussies will have chased down our total by the time I get up for a pee in the night.

2022 range was released a few days ago.

Am liking the look of the updated styling of the space sets. Little Technic vehicles aren’t for me, but can see a younger audience tapping into them. Modular Boutique Hotel looks cool – might get that.

I’ve broken/fractured mine 4 times. Docs did start wondering if I had brittle bones, but it was basically me doing stupid things like falling out of a tree, jumping off a moving London bus and crashing bikes when I was a lad. Thankfully all repaired well and caused somewhat less grief than, for example, ankle ligament damage.

I personally think it’ll be closer than we think, but the Aussie’s should win it.

Hmm, I reckon we’ll not win a single Test. Not saying we’ll lose 5-0, but I have a feeling the Aussies will hit some form, especially when they’re playing an England side that’s been so bedraggled this calendar year. Hope I’m wrong.

Sequence is a game we picked up before Covid to play with the elders. Sounds really dull but is actually pretty cool because you team up in pairs but can’t confer, so you end up trying to win the game yourself while hoping your partner has cottoned on and starts helping, only to find they have their own ideas that screw you over. Simple to play, and the pressure ramps up if both/all teams are level towards the end.

+1 Forbidden Desert. We played three times as a foursome. Screwed up big time on the first attempt. Lost it on the penultimate turn on the second game – boy, was that frustrating. Then won it with 1 turn to spare on the third go. A really clever game and great for teamwork.

Pandemic is cool. We also have the Cthulu version but not got round to it yet.

Catan is surprisingly fun too. I think we have the basic/starter set.

Scotland Yard is great for kids because you have an ‘invisible’ baddie on the run and you X moves to capture him/her.

Sherlock requires a bit of lateral thinking, and is particularly suited to people who love words/saying/phrases.

FTR, monkey junior started playing all of these aged 8 and had no problem picking up the rules and getting stuck in. He’s beaten us all at Catan and Scotland Yard, and contributed loads to the others.

Have Betrayal at House on the Hill in the loft, and will give it a go now junior is a bit older (11).

SmallWorld and Kings of Tokyo we wanted to get on with, but neither lasted a full game. Just didn’t engage with either of them.

Have only had a couple of hiccups with Hermes over the years. Lightning appears to have struck twice this week though, with both of my sportshoes.com orders going missing with no info available. First world problem TBH.

A mate used yacht varnish on his driveway gates about 5 years ago. He applied it in a rush and it looked pretty shonky. It looks even worse now. It’s weathered fairly well, but also accentuated the messy areas. Had he taken his time it would probably be quite decent.

I’d speak to Wood Finishes Direct. I’ve going them excellent so far for all exterior timbers I’ve worked on at home.

@chakaping

Might give that a go, but is it very depressing?

It might be for those struggling with med-dependent conditions. However, like @uponthedowns says, it sucks you in because of how PP and the FDA operated. That’s enough of the spoilers, and I’d also suggest not not Googling the topic in advance. 5 episodes available at the mo, with a new one every Wednesday.

Is it not a fact of life that the older we get, the more (most of us) feel the cold?

I had the same problem with my first Pro 2 years ago. Apple couldn’t resolve it over the phone so took it a store where they diagnosed a faulty battery.

Hmm, my red M Extreme has gone missing in transit. Might not be a bad thing if it’s as in yer face as some of you peeps think. A matt finish I can handle, anything too glossy I think not.

Ta for the PSA.

Ground Control ordered for the missus (via LD as they were £40 cheaper) and an Extreme for me. Not sure I really need the latter, but I do seem to have N+1 of lots of outdoor kit these days.

We’ve been watching Dopesick over the last fortnight. Bloody excellent, even more so as it’s based on true events. Very sinister, in they way that only US Pharma can conjure up.

Similar topic…

I ordered some Nordwand Pros over the weekend. £66 down from £95 I think. Plenty of choice on there.

The Protein Works have one of their obligatory price drops on.

Plenty to tuck into.

20% off some sets at Disney Store online if anyone is interested. That includes the Mos Eisley Cantina.

JL have it too for 20% off. Am kind of tempted, but only for the selection of figures because IMO the cantina itself is pretty uninspiring for £300+ RRP (and at the current price of £250). I’ve also just taken delivery of the reduced police station to add to the Modular buildings that one day I hope to build.

Check out Sofology. Friends have some of their sofas and chairs in a property they let out all year round. We stayed there 2 years ago and were very impressed with the styling and quality. Always said we’d buy similar and last month we finally did. Staff (Croydon store) were excellent – totally chilled, very knowledgeable and no sales pitch/pressure at all.

Ooni are offering 20% discounts until end of Nov. Gosney a bit less.

Hmm, I never did get round to choosing a pizza oven this summer, may have to revisit that thread we had going and fire up some Xmas flavours.

Depends on what your wanting to use it for, how much you can flex your budget and how much time you have available.

We’re looking for a studio design for use as an office and space to chill. Have a sparky mate to do all leccy and don’t want/need other services. Concrete pad is already in situ – just need to remove existing summerhouse then build similar shell to Mr Dymock, ie 45mm+ timbers, Tyvek, insulation all round, plastering or T&G, UPVC windows/doors etc.

I’m confident enough to say I could take on the work, but like you say, it’s the research, planning and build time that spirals, but must remain feasible. Doesn’t help that prices have rocketed this year too.

Did you find it quicker using those 100mm SIPS panels?

Good timing this thread as I’m looking to replace our summerhouse with a garden room/office. Has anyone here visited a Dunster showroom? Basingstoke is the only one near us and I don’t want to do the round trip unless its worthwhile. A few other forum peeps say the experience is underwhelming and very salesy.

Quite hard to find competitors’ showrooms around Surrey/Sussex, other than those looking for £15k+ starting prices.

Happy (ish) to do an Ali Dymock if I can convince myself of getting every element right and the cost is justifiable vs OTS.

I use helitape on all our bikes. It stood up to all sorts of abuse on both Islabikes and certainly helped with resale value. Remember to protect the cable runs.

Halfords tool chests (and bundles) are on offer again. Seeing as I started yet another shed clearout at the weekend, and need better organisation, it seemed an opportune moment to buy a second bundle. Have had the first since 2017 and all chests are working exactly as they were on day one.

2 big hitters back in the hutch!

Purely on brick count alone, a 6785-piece set should be coming in sub-£400.

You should see the markup on Minecraft sets. Some of them are obscenely overpriced.

Yes, as cool as it is, £750 is way OTT for that AT-AT. I’m also not sure it has the playability factor that a couple of earlier reviewers believe it has. Sure, it contains loads of internal space for figures and speederbikes etc, but the legs require a special ‘screwdriver’ to manipulate them into various poses. While the articulation looks great – and is pretty true to TESB – it’s going to test the patience of people IMO and they’ll end up keeping it as another display piece.

I’ve met a few dog walkers and families with young kids on various trails around the Surrey Hills and normally we acknowledge each other and are on our way. Often I’ll point out that they’re on a (unofficial) MTB trail, and they need to i) keep an eye on their dog(s) and ii) keep a look out for bikers.

A bit of mutual respect is all it takes with most people. OTOH a grown adult who retorts with “WTF are you gonna do about it” is an arsehole, plain and simple. No need for that. We’re all there to enjoy the trails, not act like self-entitled Billy Big Bo11ock5. Keep behaving like that and one day they’ll say it to the wrong person.

Yep, pics or it didn’t happen…

Depends on what you want to say and how those to whom you send it might receive it. Before becoming a contractor, I worked for a large corp with a strong people culture. There was a lot of respect and far less BS and politics than the norm. So when people left having been there a few years, most would send round a goodbye email to a few select peeps. TBH, they were all genuinely sincere (and often humorous) and certainly felt appropriate.

For a bit of ‘me time’, I’d have to pick the X-Wing. For hanging out with mates it would be the Millenium Falcon, even more so if Chewie was part of the crew. Sure, there are loads of others to choose from, but I’ll always have a bias for the original Star Wars ships.

I’ve not ridden a bike since Sep/Oct last year. Instead, I’ve done a lot of XC walking and running, and kept at it regularly, probably going out 5 days/week. It’s unusual for me to park my bikes for that length of time but I’m not going to get wrapped up in analysing it. I have 3 bikes (road, MTB and gravel) and enjoy them equally. Historically (since 2001) I’d ride for probably 9 months of the year, sometimes chilling out over winter, other times dipping out at different times. No big issue IMO. I also rode a LOT as a teenager, so I know biking is an important part of my life.

However, I’m always busy – family, self-employed contractor, home improvement, etc – and I think I’ve decided in the last year that I want to head out on more of an ad hoc basis, get a session in, get back, get freshened up, and get on with my day. Walking/running promotes that more easily IME, especially when I bolt it on to the school run, or doing a club drop-off or similar. Most of all, I enjoy it, and I’m not going to beat myself up for doing it on foot as opposed to on a bike.

Sure, I look at my bikes tucked away under wraps, but deep down I know I’ve not lost my mojo and therefore wouldn’t sell any of them. I think I would only do so if I decided to swap out one of them for something like a do-it-all 29er, ie another bike that gave me a different perspective. But that’s a thought for another day. Until then, I’ll keep heading out on foot, get the physical and mental headspace I need, and be grateful for that.

Have I any advice? As others have said, try something else over the winter. Avoid analysing the bike thang and just enjoy whatever you do. Winter always turns to spring, by which time, you might fancy cranking those pedals again.

@wheelsonfire1

I guess you’re referring to https://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/well-this-made-me-chuckle-😂-warning-knucklehead-content/

Hmm, good thread because I think I need to add something similar to my wardrobe for this winter. Paramor Cascada are my go to for seriously shite weather, but I really need something lighter. Liking the Revolution range – not heard of them before, but reckon the Nordwand are a good match.

Also nabbed the Lamborghini Urus & Huracán set from Smyths this morning because they mistakenly had it priced at £39 instead of £54. Monkey jnr is currently self isolating and Lego has always been a reliable medicine. He’s a very happy chap.

Tried to hold off from purchasing the Bugatti but just gave in because Argos still had stock. £186 inc del. Not sure I’ll keep it as an investment, will probably tuck into it on a rainy day over winter.

Yep, big respect to Wilder for literally hanging in there whilst still looking capable of landing that KO right from time to time. If he didn’t know deep down before, then surely he must now, that he can’t beat Fury and will always be remembered for such.

Fury on the other hand is such an unusual beast in the ring. He’s pure box office. His post-fight interviews – and singing – only add to his legacy.

NP @Alex. I’ve had my eye on the reduced-price Defender for a while as I really like it, but have enough kits to be cracking on with when time permits.

I had an AW4 for a few days about 2 years ago. Really wanted to like it, but found it totally superfluous to pretty much everything I did. Kept trying o find ways to incorporate it into my routines but found it easier/quicker/better just to use my phone.

I have been thinking about getting an SE recently though, but haven’t done so because I think that, once again, it’ll just sit on my wrist and be under-appreciated.

There’s a known flaw with the Defender build that causes the gearbox to creak, so you might want to check this out…

You mean I should call them up or pay them a visit and ask for evidence?

I’d get a full and calm explanation from the boys and have them explain exactly who it was behind the counter that reprimanded them. I then be down there immediately – by myself (perhaps with boys outside in case they were needed for any explaining) – and ask politely but firmly to speak with the individual concerned. I’d let them put forward their case and ask for evidence etc. I’d ask what right they had bringing the school element into it. No point getting shirty first, just keep it calm and concise. Weigh up the facts at the end and play it from there.

IME as a dad, boys can exaggerate things, especially when they’re the ones in trouble. So it might end up being their words against the boys’ words. If you need to escalate, then get the manager/shopkeeper out front and make your feelings clear and any action you expect to be taken, eg ‘I suggest you have a word with employee X about their response… blah blah”.

No doubt it’ll blow over soon enough and the boys have to decide when next to return to the shop. Either way, rock up, say your bit, avoid getting shirty, draw your conclusion and move on.

EDIT: I’d also speak to the boys’ teachers and head/deputy to clear the air.