Essem

When I used it, I wanted it to do just that. My background is coding but only limited web stuff. When I needed to make some web stuff with user interaction, rather than spend time learning HTML, CSS, JavaScript etc, I paid for GitHub copilot and instructed it to do the donkey work.

Just tell it what you want, then ask for explanation anything not understood

Get access to GitHub copilot, it will write the code for you pretty much

Just look at the bike buying demographic. Back in the hay days of the hill, almost everyone was under the age of 30. When I’m out on the bike now, most people I encounter are nearer 60. We are in the last days of biking as we know it.

Bought my MGuzzi 250 from Kitsons on the hill in ‘75. Used to go to hill many a Saturday between 75 and about 79, would do a circuit of various shops - Graham Littles in Felling, a place I can’t remember name of in Dunston, Kawasaki shop at Sth shields. Used to go to Ncle town of a weekday night on the bike, Percy Arms - park bike up alley way to side of pub, the Moon - park bike in concrete car park underneath. Blast down to the Angel in Durham. And maybe Chester le street mway services at midnight on way home. There was rarely a day went by which did not see me out on the bike. Wish I’d kept that Guzzi 250, it was a scream, but likely joy coz I was 17 and discovering life outside the parental home. Things went a bit sideways around ‘80, the collapse of industry, a lot of my mates started hanging around with the angels in Stu shields which wasn’t my cup of tea.

Used to go there in the 70s, Harry Woods, Kens. Used to sit on wall with chips watching the entertainment. Life time ago.

I’ve used phone for last 5 years, no issues with vibration. Have had iPhone overheat and shut down in 35+ degs in France. Have had phone get upset in pissing down rain. I also have a cheaper Android phone with no SIM card, which I sometimes fix to the bike and tether it to iPhone in my pocket. Biggest advantage of phone is real time traffic warnings. Getting off Plymouth ferry this year I followed my mate who has a zumo of a few years age, and he rode straight into a traffic jam due to accident. My phone had highlighted the 30 minute delay but I couldn’t get his attention in time. I should have let mate go but you know how it is.

We did Plym-Santander return last week of Sept/first week of Oct this year, was £550 each for three of us sharing a 4 birth cabin. Managed to upgrade to a posh cabin on way out - another £50 each. My fag packet calculations made it pretty much cost equivalent to the alternatives, and I concluded it was only worth the short ferry crossing to northern France if the ride through France was part of the holiday. I’ve done the blast down autoroute several times and don’t enjoy it much. We did 12 days zig-zagging between Spain and France in Pyrenees, then looped south through northern Spain on way back to Santander. Not one day of rain, blue skies throughout and too hot (for my preference) on many days. We pre-booked the first two nights after ferry, but left it such that we could head north or south of Pyrenees on day 3, depending on weather. We booked ahead a day at a time, combination of hotels and airbnb. This was the biggest ‘error’, as it meant buggering around finding decent places within budget, and it caused us to have two days on roads I would have rather not been on - northern Spain has some stunning twisty roads, but there are some heavily industrial areas worth avoiding. Next time I would have the alternative routes and potential stopovers all pre-researched.

If you like small, twisty roads, some with passing places. Take the A7 from Carlisle to Langholm, and at Langholm take the B709 through Eskdalemuir. At St.Mary’s loch you can head to Edinburgh via Tala reservoir - pretty, but very single track; or you can head to Innerleithen and stick with the B709 heading over the Moorfoot hills - small road but open twisties. That drops you on the outskirts of Auld Reekie.

I’m not a fan of passes which are endless hairpins, nor of roads which get a must-do reputation. Give me the more open twisties with little traffic.

These days I only filter on mways in stationary, or near stationary traffic. I only end up on mways when I’m going on a trip - heading to south coast for ferry or north to Scotland. Am cautious, speed differential low, maybe 10-20mph, and once traffic is moving much over 20 I stop filtering. encountered the occasional car that tried to squeeze the gap to prevent me passing, always treat them with utmost caution. Had a stationary truck open drivers door at head height, accidental not deliberate, but was a new one on me at the time so added to the list of what to watch for. i try to allow time for journeys to avoid ending up in risky situations, and modern satnavs make this a lot easier. Wake hooked up to helmet earphones gives warnings of snarl ups, allowing for reroute.

I read something recently indicating a lot (like 50%) of France’s reactors have problems with earlier than expected corrosion.

Historically, India buys much of their weapons tech from Russia

last two PMs in UK elected by an anonymous 0.3% of the electorate (tongue in cheek)

need to get mega tough with countries supporting Russia - no tech exports, chips, weapons, aid. Need to increase the weapons to Ukraine, don’t bow down to bully. Could get very messy.