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Rincewind

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Cold snap grips UK as -20C possible overnight​

Yellow snow and ice warnings spanning Wednesday and Thursday are in place across the UK. -

Hmm, always was wary of yellow snow - still made snowballs out of it ( with gloves on ) and threw them at 'mates' when i was a kid though :)
 
Try living on the north wales coast . -1 this morning up to a balmy 3 degrees this afternoon
 
East coast of NI: -3.5 when I went out with the dog at 7am, -1 an hour or so later, up to +2 now. Mountains of Mourne and Dromara hills covered with snow to our south and west respectively. Heavy frost on the ground. Oil boiler running quite a lot, which could be expensive!
 
Snow frozen solid onto Mrs Nod's car's roof and bonnet this morning - tried to shift it but no chance! Screens and windows were clear by the time she went out to it thanks to being able to set it to pre-heat from her phone! Still stuck at 10:30 but melted after an hour in the sunshine.
 
-5ºC here this morning so not too bad considering what Braemar got...-13ºC. Not as bad as January 10th 1982 when it got down to -27.5ºC up there.
 
-7 here in rural Oxfordshire this morning, and it didn't defrost all day. The upside is that the air is dry and doesn't suck the warmth from your bones. The downside is that it makes skin dry and itchy, plus lots of heating needed. We have the log burner and central heating running.
 
North West of Scotland today, -12
 
Nod said:
Snow frozen solid onto Mrs Nod's car's roof and bonnet this morning - tried to shift it but no chance! Screens and windows were clear by the time she went out to it thanks to being able to set it to pre-heat from her phone! Still stuck at 10:30 but melted after an hour in the sunshine.
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We bought this Holts de-icer a few days ago at Morrisons (in store not online) and it was amazing how quickly..just a minute or so, it cleared the heavy frost off the windscreen and windows and I also do the rear lights so they can easily be seen....brake lights. It's far better than any other one we've bought. Unfortunately, there are no chemicals listed so I can't compare it to another brand we have that doesn't do anywhere near as quick a job but I assume this Holts one must have a higher content of of isopropanol.

It cost £3 but at Amazon it's £5.99 and unless someone has Prime, then plus £4.99 postage.

groceries.morrisons.com

Holts Aerosol De-Icer -20C

Holts professional De-Icer works quickly to remove frost, ice and snow down to temperatures of 20ºC, preventing dangerous re-freeze and enabling you to drive away quicker. It is also paintwork safe.
groceries.morrisons.com groceries.morrisons.com

It's double the price through Amazon https://www.amazon.co.uk/Holts-LOYDI6-De-Icer-600ml/dp/B001156DQI
 
Rincewind said:
Toulouse area of S France +12c :)
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If I could turn the clock back I think I could have perusaded my wife to emigrate into Europe to a much warmer climate when we retired..France is a lovely country. I speak German,though I..lived there for three years so I might have considered there..southern Germany. My ideal country would be Switzerland . Anyone thinking of there would have to show they have means to support themselves including medical care. "Tim"(Hughes) ...on here, lives there.

One great pull ,too is a dream I had for years . To be able to, so easily, travel to all the surrounding countries and especially down to the Italian Lakes and into Spain in a Mercedes E 300..BMW 5 Series or an Audi A6.. :) Two years ago there was a German couple in the room next to us at Lake Maggiore. Took them 5 hours to drive from Munich. The envy.. :( I am a Europhile and love to meet the people of those countries.
 
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Rincewind said:
Toulouse area of S France +12c :)
Click to expand...

It was about +2'C maximum at Cussy where we have the house. Our son is working in Verbier, Switzerland, and they've had some great snow for several weeks.
 
-9 last night up near Huddersfield where I am but only -4 tonight apparently
just been out to bin and feels colder
 
It's warming up now. No frost last night, light rain this morning. It appears to be 4 degrees rising to 6 today, and up to 13 by Sunday!
 
JohnC6 said:
If I could turn the clock back I think I could have perusaded my wife to emigrate into Europe to a much warmer climate when we retired..France is a lovely country. I speak German,though I..lived there for three years so I might have considered there..southern Germany. My ideal country would be Switzerland . Anyone thinking of there would have to show they have means to support themselves including medical care. "Tim"(Hughs) ...on here, lives there.

One great pull ,too is a dream I had for years . To be able to, so easily, travel to all the surrounding countries and especially down to the Italian Lakes and into Spain in a Mercedes E 300..BMW 5 Series or an Audi A6.. :) Two years ago there was a German couple in the room next to us at Lake Maggiore. Took them 5 hours to drive from Munich. The envy.. :( I am a Europhile and love to meet the people of those countries.
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If you like that sort of place, but don't want the cost, I suggest the Alsace. Probably the nicest part of near Europe I've ever been too. fantastic scenery, great forrd (and wine) and, brilliant roads.
 
Immigration into EU countries is now a lot of hassle imho, I have investigated it at length before moving to Northern Ireland. There are big problems in France at present with the IT system processing long stay visa extensions; Germany requires a fairly substantial income to support yourself. Portugal lots of hassle and you really need an immigration lawyer to navigate the bureaucracy like Spain. But that's a whole other thread so best not dwell on that...
 
I'm stuck indoors and it's driving me mad:(
Two entrances, my car is parked at the back, top of a hill, it's a cul de sac that doesn't get any council attention and will continue to be unusable until the snow and ice eventually melts away.

The other side of the building is on a bus route, the council cleared it fairly quickly but some idiots have parked badly, making it too narrow for buses.

By contrast, the farm is perfectly OK. Those lazy, greedy rich farmers that people like to moan about went out with their tractors, forklifts and drots and cleared all the roads straight away, as they always do.
 
Freezing fog here this morning.
 
It's so irritating that, having set the new theme of the 52 as Cold on Thursday, all the frost here has melted and I may struggle to get to the top of the mountains this weekend, so I'm going to have to do something not so obvious for my week's image.
 
Garry Edwards said:
Those lazy, greedy rich farmers that people like to moan about went out with their tractors, forklifts and drots and cleared all the roads straight away, as they always do.
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Rich, greedy farmers do exist, I've met a couple.

However, as you say, the majority of farmers are hard working, decent and helpful. I've met a lot of them. (y)
 
Jelster said:
If you like that sort of place, but don't want the cost, I suggest the Alsace. Probably the nicest part of near Europe I've ever been too. fantastic scenery, great forrd (and wine) and, brilliant roads.
Click to expand...
We had a holiday there. I recall you mentioning it before and I remember telling you about our visit to "Monkey Mountain" so that's the location where we stayed...Königsbourg. They're actually Barbary apes not monkeys and they certainly keep the visitors amused.

worldwidewalkies.blog

Haut Koenigsberg Castle & Kaysersburg, Alsace, France

In a thoroughly modern way, one of the tourist brochures for Alsace featured a list of ‘Spots Instagrammables’. The Château de Haut Koenigsberg was Number 1.
worldwidewalkies.blog worldwidewalkies.blog


 
Barbary Apes are monkeys rather than apes.
 
still chilly up in the Hudd
off to walk to coop in a mo for some beers

1736611313083.png
 
Nod said:
Barbary Apes are monkeys rather than apes.
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I wondered why, then, are they described as apes ? You know me.. :D

It's because Barbary monkeys, unlike their cousins, Macaques, don't have a tail and it's the only one of the species that doesn't and no ape has a tail. There are 25 species of Macaque ,Barbary being one of them. If someone wants to be pedantic then Barabaries do actually have a tail but only a stump and it's hidden under its fur. They are the oldest member of the Macaque family..7.5 million years and originated on the Barabary coast..West Africa.They are listed as endangered and because of their appeal to tourists they are sold in the illegal pet trade...about 200 a year come into Europe.

That link.."Monkey Mountain" I put into my reply to Jelster describes them as Barbary Apes which begs the question why as the location is, correctly, called Monkey Mountain. I'll Email them... :D

We live and learn.
 
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It can all be complicated! Apes COULD be classed as tailless Monkeys but then the Barbary Macaque (and the Black Macaque?) muddy those waters. Then there are the rare humans with vestigial tails...
 
Had a brilliant walk in the frosty countryside this afternoon, everything covered in sparkly white needles. The sunset this evening was the icing on the cake.
 
Nod said:
It can all be complicated! Apes COULD be classed as tailless Monkeys but then the Barbary Macaque (and the Black Macaque?) muddy those waters. Then there are the rare humans with vestigial tails...
Click to expand...
Yes. As I was reading up on it all I realised it's not atall straightforward but I certainly learnt a few things I wasn't aware of.
 
Isn't it wonderful how a discussion can go from the cold weather in England to the physiology of apes and monkeys, and all in a nice civilised chat. I love it.
 
On a similar note, some scientists have said than an infinite number of apes could never come up with the complete works of Shakspere (one of many of his own spellings of his name!), forgetting that one already has!
 
Nod said:
On a similar note, some scientists have said than an infinite number of apes could never come up with the complete works of Shakspere (one of many of his own spellings of his name!), forgetting that one already has!
Click to expand...
Richard Dawkins, The Blind Watchmaker
 
No, it was Shakespeare himself, I'm sure!!! :P
 
Lindsay mentions the change of discussion from cold weather in England to the physiology of apes and monkeys and how wonderful it is and now it's taken another turn to include the words of Dawkins and Shakespeare, or not, depending on what source you read. :D
 
We got down to -11°c last week but not a flake of snow. It's been +11°c today ........ and still no snow. :D
 
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