The grumpy thread

[Supernaut]

This just made my blood run cold.

 

I really feel for anybody in Minneapolis right now.

 

Sorry, it's a link to a reddit post with a video in it.

[Tamworthbay]

  On 31/05/2020 at 16:37, Supernaut said:

This just made my blood run cold.

 

I really feel for anybody in Minneapolis right now.

 

Sorry, it's a link to a reddit post with a video in it.

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America is seriously fucked up, it has been for years but the cracks are just getting wider and wider at the moment. Glad my brother has moved to Tucson from Boston as I gather it’s pretty rough up there as well.

Edit, stuff that, just spoke to my brother and he can see several plumes of smoke from his house and the police are driving around telling people to stay indoors. Seems it’s kicking off all over.

[Bren]

I got married in the states. I remember a cop yelling at my brother for stopping outside the building while I went in for the marriage licence. His attitude was abysmal.

[somewhatfoolish]

  On 31/05/2020 at 16:37, Supernaut said:

This just made my blood run cold.

I really feel for anybody in Minneapolis right now.

Sorry, it's a link to a reddit post with a video in it.

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While I agree that the US is in strife right now I'd caution against propagating unverified news/footage as Vladimir's bots and IRA are busy doing their best to make it worse.

[Fumbler]

  On 31/05/2020 at 18:58, somewhatfoolish said:

While I agree that the US is in strife right now I'd caution against propagating unverified news/footage as Vladimir's bots and IRA are busy doing their best to make it worse.

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Minneapolis' daily press release included the video and explained the situation if that helps

[somewhatfoolish]

  On 31/05/2020 at 20:58, Fumbler said:

Minneapolis' daily press release included the video and explained the situation if that helps

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I see that; attacking people standing on their front step with this tear gas paintball stuff seems like garden variety fascism. I take it back, they don't need Volodya's help to fuck things up.

[Fumbler]

Er... right. What I was meaning to say is that it has been referenced by an official source so I don't see it as unverified news material, that's all!

[Aston Martin]

I paid two car taxes online on Saturday... Still untaxed.

 

[Angrydicky]

  On 31/05/2020 at 11:45, Stevebrookman said:

Think I'll get rid of the Royale and Senator. Getting parts is a right fucking pain. Was on the lookout for a set of rubbers for my Royales master cylinder-brakes iffy (got a new set of pistons thanks to Angry Dicky), asked on ANS forum-ABS parts secretary replied that he had a 2nd hand master cylinder and a few other bits i wanted, replied within 2 hours of his email last sat-heard nothing-asked again today only to find it's all been sold to another member who's a trader and will most probably appear on his ebay shop.  Fuck paying £30 next time for membership-no point-the club even sells spares to non members via faceache. This has boiled my piss- MG fucking B next.

Rant over

 

Steve

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Steady on mate. Past Parts have the master cylinder seal kits on the shelf and will sell you just the kit.

TBH I’ve found exactly the same as you with the club.

[anonymous user]

  On 01/06/2020 at 05:34, Aston Martin said:

I paid two car taxes online on Saturday... Still untaxed.

 

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I thought everyone knew, the DVLA computer has the weekend off. Don't worry, Mavis takes the hamster home to look after it.

[Aston Martin]

  On 01/06/2020 at 08:56, anonymous user said:

I thought everyone knew, the DVLA computer has the weekend off. Don't worry, Mavis takes the hamster home to look after it.

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I didn't do the email receipt. I have my bank showing they took the money on sat... Processed it on Sun.... Took it this morning.

[Tamworthbay]

  On 31/05/2020 at 08:07, paulplom said:

I've lanced them a few times and squeezed the puss out. Eases it for a short while. Proper tooth ache has to be up there with the worst pain you can get.

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 I had a blood test this morning and mentioned it, they will do me some antibiotics and I lanced it last night. Took a night mouthful of brandy to get rid of the taste. Great timing for it! The one abscess I had a few years ago affected my eye sight as the swelling was so bad, that was truly horrendous. I remember an outing with a motorbike group I was part of many years ago, we were sat around a fire at the campsite at Wasdale Head. Someone got onto injuries and of course they got gorier and gorier until one bloke started on about dental surgery he had had in Africa, within  a minute everyone was yelling at him to shut up! ?

[Remspoor]

  On 31/05/2020 at 11:45, Stevebrookman said:

Think I'll get rid of the Royale and Senator. Getting parts is a right fucking pain. Was on the lookout for a set of rubbers for my Royales master cylinder-brakes iffy (got a new set of pistons thanks to Angry Dicky), asked on ANS forum-ABS parts secretary replied that he had a 2nd hand master cylinder and a few other bits i wanted, replied within 2 hours of his email last sat-heard nothing-asked again today only to find it's all been sold to another member who's a trader and will most probably appear on his ebay shop.  Fuck paying £30 next time for membership-no point-the club even sells spares to non members via faceache. This has boiled my piss- MG fucking B next.

Rant over

 

Steve

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Give this guy a shout. They may have something.

[Angrydicky]

Fuck.

Rover gearbox keeps losing drive, managed to limp it to Clacket Lane services. I’ve been waiting over 2hrs for recovery so far

[RayMK]

  On 27/05/2020 at 17:24, RayMK said:

Low profile tyres are hopeless over potholes.  In my Mitsubishi Mirage, I wince if I see a pothole that I can't avoid. It makes a colossal bang, though no punctures yet.  The same route in my '94 Tipo has no such stress. It has 'proper' tyres and decent suspension.

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My Tipo was the car of choice from 22nd May until today.  I had used the Mirage for a hospital appointment on the 21st and decided to forego its aircon and autobox for a few days whilst it purified itself in the heat. As mentioned above, the Tipo gave me stress free motoring over potholed lanes. It was genuinely a pleasure to drive. Today I swapped back to air conditioned, automatic modernity and, using the same route used with the Tipo to get to my exercise haunts, there was an almighty BANG as the f*****g thing hit an unremarkable pothole after just 7 miles. I swore loudly about modern rubbish tyres and suspension then continued muttering obscenities until I stopped to check for damage. All seemed to be well. For the rest of my local  journey I was on edge.  Designers should forget about the bloody Nurburgring and consider a bit of resilience and comfort in their equations. Note: The Tipo actually handles better than the Mirage on the limit as well - no sudden breakaway, all nicely progressive and controllable. I do however concede that the aircon was nice today. Grump over.  

[GrumpiusMaximus]

We bought an 'Event Shelter' for our garden to cover a swimming pool (yes, I know - but actually not a bad idea) and in putting up the pool yesterday, we realised that the shelter we had was too small.  Went to Go Outdoors (who were excellent with the social distancing, etc.) to get a bigger one - wallet relieved, drove home - went to put it up and it was evidently a display model that had a broken part.

Got back in the car quickly to exchange it (it was 5.20 at this point and it was closing at 6) and on the A2 down back to Canterbury a large stone hit my windscreen and has put a fuck-off chip, about the size of a £2 coin just to the left of the steering wheel.  Tried to book Autoglass online (covered by insurance, £75 excess) and they can't do anything until the 17th June - so now I have to call them.  Which I hate doing.  Along with £100 of new tyres yesterday on the front and it's looking to not be a cheap month...

Argh!

[flat4alfa]

Virtue-signalling in full effect

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-52889419

Bloke dies in the US.  US disquiet.  UK radio stations jump on the band wagon.

[Bren]

I have just braved my local tip.

It was on a par with entering East Germany.

I was waiting for somebody to tell me my papers were not in order.

[wuvvum]

  On 01/06/2020 at 23:08, RayMK said:

Note: The Tipo actually handles better than the Mirage on the limit as well - no sudden breakaway, all nicely progressive and controllable. I do however concede that the aircon was nice today. Grump over.  

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You must be the only Mitsubishi Mirage owner in Christendom to have ever taken one to the limit of its handling abilities.

[mitsisigma01]

  On 02/06/2020 at 10:52, Bren said:

I have just braved my local tip.

It was on a par with entering East Germany.

I was waiting for somebody to tell me my papers were not in order.

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You will not know until you get to the checkpoint after queueing for hours, here in Sussex they either change the rules too often or it is open to interpretation by somebody that can't speak English ?

[RayMK]

  On 02/06/2020 at 10:58, wuvvum said:

You must be the only Mitsubishi Mirage owner in Christendom to have ever taken one to the limit of its handling abilities.

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...and when I do, it is deliberate.  I like to know how far a car's handling can be pushed so that if I decide to drive rapidly (subject to conditions and laws of course) I know what to expect.  The Mirage understeers strongly but it's short travel suspension and stiff anti roll bar and torsion axle cause a rear wheel to unload suddenly, causing oversteer.  Many modern front drive superminis and city cars, Mirage included, will readily cock a rear wheel when parking on only moderately undulating surfaces. The Tipo's underlying characteristics are similar but it has longer travel suspension, taller profile tyres and is not as stiff in roll. Consequently, the transitions are more benign. Lift off oversteer (or tuck-in of the front) is quite pronounced on the Mirage but hardly noticeable on the Tipo. My Pug 205 also had excellent handling for similar reasons.  However, give me rear engined handling any day.  Contollable oversteer is so much nicer than the allegedly safer ploughing straight on understeer which reached chronic levels on some cars. Most moderns have high limits then breakaway suddenly, hence the electronic aids to prevent those limits being reached. I do go on a bit. Ever since having a Meccano set at 7 years old and testing all sorts of suspension characteristics it's become a slight obsession ?.  

[louiepj]

East Grinstead refuse site was about 2hr queue to get in yesterday made more fun by sharing its entry road with a garden centre.....

[C1am]

Unwittingly sat for 45 minutes in a queue for a McDonald's, until 50 metres before the entrance where they had placed a postage stamp sized sign reading McDonald's left hand lane, through traffic right hand lane. 

[Pieman]

If people's biggest priority in life right now is eating a McDonald's or going to Ikea, they can be redirected to the nearest large body of water and have their fucking empty heads held under it for half an hour.

There will probably be a much larger general rant from me tomorrow for many reasons.

[Spiny Norman]

They re-opened Starbucks in our retail park a couple of weeks back and I counted 40 cars in the queue before I gave up.
For a £3 paper cup of vile 'coffee'... ?

[Zelandeth]

I am seriously getting majorly fscked off with not being able to have the windows on the rear of our house open for 90% of the day or night without the house reeking of weed.

Really, really wish the owners of No 26 across the back fence hadn't decided to move out and rent the house out...The tenants have been a bloody nightmare since the day the moved in.  The five kids (it's a postage stamp sized two bed house) who spend the whole time murdering each other with dull spoons if the noise is anything to go by and the barking tea cosy do nothing to endear themselves to me either.   Not sure if they've just started smoking weed, or if they're just doing it in the house now rather then sneaking off to one of the underpasses for it...but it's been inescapable for at least the last couple of weeks.

Really would like to move back to the country now please.

[robinmasters]

  On 02/06/2020 at 22:55, Wack said:

Corgi " Oi you cunts stop blocking the fucking road , daily exercise my arse"

 

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Very much of this.  They're everywhere at the moment, with their fat, middle aged (I am one of those, but don't impose it upon others) pasty fucking horribleness sticking out between the inappropriate lycra.  

I had written a long angry rant about this, but have thought better of it (but have included some rantage later on).  Succinctly, the issue is this: if you're out on your bike to exercise, use a road where you're not inconveniencing others. If you're cycling to work at 8am on a Monday, in an anorak, because that's the quickest way to work, with a queue of traffic behind you, fine.  If you're wearing a full tour de France get up at 3pm on a Sunday on the same road with a big queue behind you, you're a cunt.  

Best local example of this:

NSL road just round the corner from me.  Double white lines, so you can't overtake.  Lycra dickheads cycle on the road.  Monday morning anorak man?  He uses the FUCKING CYCLE LANE RIGHT NEXT TO THE ROAD.  

[paulplom]

I agree with this. Fine if you're using your bike to commute but when your hobby infringes on my or other peoples day then it's a problem. The government has spent millions on cycle paths etc., why not fucking use them.

See also horses and riders.

Also what's the deal with using the lightest most expensive bike to do a hundred miles on? Sure 50 miles on a raleigh grifter would give you just as much exercise, if not more.

 

Edit: I'm a hobby cyclist but manage to keep off the roads. It's easy if you follow the signs.

[rainagain]

I used to have to drive along this road everyday, it largely consist of narrow winding turns with zero visibility like this (note cycle lane to left):

The council spent a fortune putting in a separate cycle lane, as you can see class A arseholes like this guy holding the bus up refused to use it, (this straight section is at the very end of it):

I'm also a hobby cyclist but I manage to enjoy myself without holding up people trying to go around their day to day business, in fact I can't think of any other hobby that interferes with others more than Lycra cycling?

[New POD]

I think we are all agreed.  I like a cycle ride, although my bike is in another county at present.  

If there are cycle paths use them. Choose routes that have cycle paths or have less traffic even if it's a bit further.