[savoche]

Salary?

You should form a union and demand better pay and working conditions.

Oh, we have unions, don't you worry. Everything worklife here revolves around unions. Less in the IT business than elsewhere, but in our company most are in a union.

Not that it matters too much anymore as there's quite a stringent set of laws regulating working conditions these days.

They do demand better pay, though, the typical dialog going like this:
CEO: We offer you peanuts
Union: We want more
CEO: No
Union: OK

(Not that I have much reason to complain about the pay, really. But I do anyway - as one is supposed to do, right?)

[savoche]

The challenge: slow smoke it

Less of a challenge as more and more states legalise it, isn't it?

[BigMackCam]

Think how your first sentence reads if you do not realise that the bats to which you refer are flying mammals, and the way you tell the story that clue is left till after.

Ha! No, thankfully it's not that sort of area. Very quiet around these parts. There is an area of town, though, where you might dodge a flying beer bottle or two late on a Friday night... a council "sink estate" that always seems to require a police presence to some extent. But it's nowhere near me, and I have no need to pass through it...

Curious - is it actually the colder temperature that makes it less prevalent. Or are the bats a different genetic lot, and less susceptible?

According to the wiki article:

"The fungus Pseudogymnoascus destructans is the primary cause of WNS.[24] It preferably grows in the 4–15 °C range (39–59 °F) and will not grow at temperatures above 20 °C (68 °F). It is cold loving or psychrophilic."

... and:

"The species has been found on bats in Europe and Asia, however, no unusual mortality could be assigned to the infections. Genetic studies have shown that the fungus must have been in Europe for a long time and was most likely transported to North America as a novel pathogen"

So, the temperature range here is about right for the fungus to grow... maybe a little too warm during the better parts of Summer, but not by much. But I've never heard mention of it.

EDIT: I've just found an article regarding white-nose syndrome in the UK and Europe, and it says:

"It is thought probable that European bats have a resistance to the fungus, possibly evolved over thousands of years of exposure. Evidence to date from the UK supports the theory that our bats have similar resistance to those elsewhere in Europe"

I am puzzled how in a country with such a long history of continuous government within the current tradition (at least from 1066) the best they could come up with for a celebration was that bank employees were getting the day off.

For the benefit of our non-UK-based friends, a UK "bank holiday" is just any public holiday where high street banking is closed for business. According to this article, the term was introduced in the late 19th century. Take notes - there'll be a test later

Does Newcastle Airport have a curfew. The grey airline at Brize Norton do not have a curfew.

It might have. Looking at today's airport info, there are 37 scheduled departures between 8am and 8pm, and 44 arrivals between 8am and 1am. But although I'm on a flight path for some of them, the airport is 22km / 13 miles from me, so the aircraft are still at reasonable altitudes when they pass over. There's very little noise - if you didn't listen for it, you probably wouldn't notice it...

[gaweidert]

Well. I rototilled the garden yesterday. At least I think I did. It appears that instead of things like tomatoes and peppers, this year I will be planting rice.

[Racer X 69]

Sounds kinky.

Well the ultrasound device has a coiled cord.

[Racer X 69]

Well. I rototilled the garden yesterday. At least I think I did. It appears that instead of things like tomatoes and peppers, this year I will be planting rice.

A bit late to be starting a garden, isn't it George?

I know you and Mrs. George went to Jellystone and all, but sheesh, half the growing season has passed.

[normhead]

I know you and Mrs. George went to Jellystone and all, but sheesh, half the growing season has passed.

We are still having spring run off around here, and had freezing temperature 4 nights ago. We do finally have the plants we started indoors in the ground.

[Racer X 69]

For the benefit of our non-UK-based friends, a UK "bank holiday" is just any public holiday where high street banking is closed for business. According to this article, the term was introduced in the late 19th century. Take notes - there'll be a test later

Any excuse to take a day off, screw around and not do any productive work, and get paid for it.

Oh yeah!

It might have. Looking at today's airport info, there are 37 scheduled departures between 8am and 8pm, and 44 arrivals between 8am and 1am. But although I'm on a flight path for some of them, the airport is 22km / 13 miles from me, so the aircraft are still at reasonable altitudes when they pass over. There's very little noise - if you didn't listen for it, you probably wouldn't notice it...

When the airplanes are coming in for a landing they are mostly gliding, so they produce less noise.


And I learned a new word today.

Psychrophilic.

Psyco for cold.

I guess that would be me.

I love snow skiing.

In fact I love playing in the snow period.

Skiing, snowmobiling, driving, camping, hiking . . . . . . . . .

Yep, I think I may be psychrophilic.

[Racer X 69]

We are still having spring run off around here, and had freezing temperature 4 nights ago. We do finally have the plants we started indoors in the ground.

Two words.

Cold frames.

The key to getting a decent garden in Northern latitudes.

[Racer X 69]

The Johnsonville ACL Cornhole Championships.

Now there is an inbred redneck game if there ever was one.

Check them out here: American Cornhole League

[robtcorl]

Psychrophilic.

Sounds like an STD that's all in your head.
(Charlie, sit on your hands and count to 100 before responding)

[savoche]

Sounds like an STD that's all in your head.
(Charlie, sit on your hands and count to 100 before responding)

[gaweidert]

A bit late to be starting a garden, isn't it George?

I know you and Mrs. George went to Jellystone and all, but sheesh, half the growing season has passed.

Been a long winter here south of Lake Ontario too. Everything is late this year. And the wet ground isn't helping either. We jut ended a 10 day Lilac Festival here in Rochester. The lilacs seem to have waited until after the festival was over. Still not as bad as places like the Black Hills in South Dakota. They had 12 inches of snow earlier this week. Pouring rain right now and Norm is getting it even harder and longer north of the lake.

[Racer X 69]

Thanks. The date selected BECAUSE nothing special happened that day to make it generic.

{Quoted from the link Bob posted, with a slight edit, for clarity.}

The original date, May 30, was chosen by General John A. Logan — a leader for an organization for Northern Civil War veterans — because it wasn't the anniversary of any particular battle and could serve as a day to commemorate any and all who died in the defense of the United States.

Note the highlighted, bold, underlined text.

When pausing once each year to memorialize those who have perished in defense of the United States, we pause to remember all who perished, including those from other nations and cultures, who gave all for the Red, White and Blue.

Of course I pause frequently many times through out the year to do what we traditionally do this weekend. I don't need a holiday to remember the ones who gave all.

[robtcorl]

Edit, never mind, I tested it on the bbq forum and it stayed up for a little while and now it's gone there and will be soon here too. Back to Flickr.

Please ignore this post, it's a test to see if a plug-in for Google Photos allows me to post cell pics here without first transferring them to Flickr. I can test using Explorer because they always show up for me using Chrome.
Thank you!