Life, the Universe and Everything

 It's easy to embed a YouTube video on your web page by inserting something like this into the HTML: <div class =" youtube_responsive "> <iframe allow =" accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture " allowfullscreen ="" frameborder =" 0 " src =" https://www.youtube.com/embed/amgybZEP-TI?enablejsapi=1 " title =" YouTube video player "> </iframe> </div> What's more tricky is doing things with it once it's there. For example, you might want it to start playing automatically and if you Google, you'll find lots of (mainly) old stuff about how to do it. Unfortunately, those techniques don't work any more because YouTube "depreciated" them. That's why the title of this post about stopping a video playing says "in 2025" because it may become out of date - although my technique is quite brutal and I'm not sure that YouTu...

My doctor's surgery offers free parking for patients in a nearby commercial car park. The reception desk has a touchscreen where patients can enter their car registration number so as to avoid getting a ticket. Unfortunately, this touchscreen ignores my fingers so I have to ask the staff to enter my registration which they do, albeit with some condescension given that I look like a doddery old person apologising for having the "wrong sort of fingers" Turns out that I really do have the wrong sort of fingers! I  found this article which says: Touch screens have become increasingly used for many personal technologies. However, older adults have trouble using touch screen interfaces. The general assumption is that older adults struggle with touch screen devices because they are unfamiliar with the technology and that with practice, they will become proficient. This study provides evidential support of a probable physiological barrier contributing to some older adults’ touch...

 One of our local pharmacist shops - part of a national chain offers recycling of the blister packs many tablets come in nowadays. Ostensibly, it's a great idea but I'm wondering if it's just a token gesture? For a start, the box in the shop has a tiny slot for posting your used blister packs into. Recently, they've added signs banning bulk drop-offs and stressing that you can only recycle your own packs. It's almost as if they don't want the scheme to be too successful! You'd think they'd be delighted to welcome the output of local Care Homes, etc. The slot provided is even too small and fiddly for my personal pharmaceutical debris - although I do produce a lot. I'm wondering if the scrap value of  these packs is just too low and if it's more about being seen to do the right thing?

This is a 'black' cherry tomato that's well worth growing outdoors in the UK. It's  sweet and when cooked has a superb rich flavour. However, it's tricky to harvest at the right time so I've written this guide to make it easier. Most tomatoes start green and stay that way for quite a few weeks as they grow towards harvest size. Not this one! It quickly turns from green into a very dark blue/black cherry. An easy mistake is to harvest at this stage. It's still really a green tomato .  Here's three pictures of the same (unripe) tomato  A casual view Underside shows some green Inside is green and not nice Here's a truly ripe fruit Has a red patch and no green Inside, red and delicious 

 This hardy* Fuchsia isn't rare - lots of garden centres have them. At fist sight, they look quite good with cream/grey/green leaves and decent red flowers but in late May/early June, they have a lot of red on the leaves like this!  Catch it even earlier and the new shoots are a dark chocolate red. So, to summarise, it offers the standard hardy Fuchsia characteristics,  in leaf and flower from around June to December plus a couple of months of  chocolate, red and purple foliage before that. *Yes, it is hardy in Gloucestershire, UK but not quite as hardy as some. I lost one out of three plants last Winter.

 I don’t have a broken ankle, but my partner recently broke hers. Most of my experience before this was at school where there always seemed to be someone who’d broken something and had a nice white cast which we gathered around to autograph. It seemed like a trivial rite of passage for the unfortunate few. Turns out that a broken ankle is quite a big deal. To start with, you can’t put any weight on it for about 6 weeks.   If you have a job that requires you to be walking around, it’s just about impossible for several months. The NHS doesn’t provide you with a wheelchair and in any case, one wouldn’t be particularly useful if you have a substantial number of steps to reach your front door. You’re not totally immobile, the NHS does give you crutches and for the first 6 weeks or so, you can make some progress relying on your good leg to bear a lot of the weight. A major irritation with crutches is what to do with them when you’re NOT using them. Wherever you “park” them, they...

This is a one off gardening "discovery".  Take a look at these two Fuchsia 'Genii" plants photographed today...     The one on the left has been planted in a sunny bed for several years.  The other one was in a pot in a fairly shady location for a similar period - until about a month ago when I moved the container into the sun. As one might expect, the "shady" plant has mainly green leaves rather than the yellow-green in the sun.  It didn't have many flowers either.  Now that the previously shaded plant is in the sun, this seems to have triggered lots of flowering. This suggests that the way to get a great floral display from a Fuchsia is to keep it fairly shady and then expose it to bright sunshine when you want a display? Of course, the display may be short-lived!

 I've been amused by a recent news item, "Eat turnips during vegetable shortage, suggests Therese Coffey"   as I've been eating very nice turnips for years. Sure, the standard turnip, often sold as part of a "stew pack" in supermarkets can be pretty ordinary. Growing a similar crop in your garden may get you a better standard of vegetable but going a bit further can get you something fantastic! Two sorts of Turnips Maincrop/Winter Turnips This is the standard turnip. Fairly large and capable of being stored, the flavour is fairly mild. Typical colours are yellow and green. You sow seeds July/August and harvest in October or later. They're decent eating. But instead, consider (drum roll) Early/Spring Turnips These varieties are far less commonly seen. Ideally you  pull them out of the garden at golf-ball size and  eat them raw or lightly boiled. They're typically cream/purple. You sow seed February - June and harvest May - September. They have much mo...

In 2019 and for over 30 years before, similar dances have been offered once a month on a Saturday night during except during summer. This was the second scheduled event this winter although the first in January was cancelled. In years gone by, entry was usually by cash on the door and numbers could go over 100 although occasionally they were much lower. This event was limited to 80  tickets bought online in advance. All 80 tickets were sold and I know at least two people who missed out.  Quite a few of the dancers were people who would have been there in 2019 but there were a lot of first timers - and that wouldn't have been so unusual prior to the pandemic. The organisers were keen to be "Covid-safe",  all stewards were masked-up and there was guidance on the website: Covid-19 Safety Guidance We know that we need to keep everyone who wants to come to our dances as safe as possible. Our safety guidance for everyone attending is this: If you have Covid symptoms please don’...

 In 2019 and for several decades before, similar dances have been offered once a month on a Friday night during except during summer. This was the second scheduled event this winter although the first in December was cancelled. We certainly had 16 people on the floor quite often and it might have occasionally got up to 20.  In normal times, numbers could go over 100 although occasionally it's much less.  Most of the dancers were people who would have been there in 2019 although I did spot at least one completely novice couple. The organisers were keen to be "Covid-safe" and advertised Compulsory Covid Pass checking Compulsory LFT before attending Compulsory Green/Yellow/Red ribbons for 2019-style/distancing/own partners only choices. These were enforced with the possible exception of the LTF (If the NHS checker App was set to only show "pass" if the vaccination and test were both in order, then it was enforced)  Nearly everyone chose a green ribbon. I've ...

 Chippenham Folk Festival is normally in late-May but this year they put on slightly over a day of events 22-23 October. No campsite was offered and most of the larger venues were not used. Tickets for events were initially only available online although at the last minute, they were made available from the box office. I attended two dance events Balfolk workshop and Bal This attracted about 30 people although I was told that 60 tickets were available. It was held on the Saturday afternoon in Chippenham Town Hall, a superb upstairs room with an excellent floor. A handful of dancers arrived wearing masks and one kept hers on when dancing. Otherwise, it was very much as "normal".  It's difficult to comment on numbers because a directly comparable event didn't happen in pre-pandemic times. My feeling is that in normal times, selling all 60 tickets would have been hard - although had there, by chance, been a lack of recent similar events.it could well have happened. Ceili...

 In normal years,  this festival offers 3-4 ceilidhs on the greenfield site as well as a "Day of Dance" featuring Contra, etc. at a venue in the town. This year, the "Day of Dance" was cancelled and there were just two ceilidhs. The organisers were a little coy about exactly what was on offer saying, "Not comfortable dancing in a crowd? Don’t worry! The evenings will start out as an upbeat standing concert and with callers on hand" and the programme  billed the ceilidhs as  "An evening with" followed by the name of the band. The Friday event did start with an hour of concert but the Saturday was a dance from the start. Concessions to Covid included: A large container of hand sanitiser near the entrance A last minute email from the festival "Please take a Lateral Flow Test within 24 hours before your expected arrival at the site.". This caused some confusion on the Facebook page as people tried to establish what proof they'd need. Th...

 In normal times, this is a series of monthly events attracting over 100 dancers. This was a "restart" event and the intention is that there will be another dance in October and presumably monthly thereafter. Differences from normal included: A different hall with around a quarter of the floor area of the usual spaces. I asked the organiser if this was deliberate but she said not. .The usual spaces were not available. There were nearly always 32 dancers on the floor and no more than 40. This was low compared to the usual 100+ but fitted the hall well. The large number of students normally seen were absent but this is probably because it's still the vacation. It was my impression that the proportion of the very oldest dancers was less and the that the middle-aged were more prominent. I saw 3 masks being worn by 20-somethings Everyone danced normally but perhaps with a little more enthusiasm and joy than normal.

Moira Furnace Folk Festival is a small event usually held in late-August in the North West Leicestershire village of  Moira  which advertised a ceilidh: For comparison here's  video of the 2019 event which shows the same band, venue and number of dancers as at the 2021 event.  It's typical of many smaller festivals in that the ceilidh is a small event with a local band and attracts a crowd of  30-40 people.  So, does this imply that Covid-19 has ceased to impact public dance events? Almost!  I saw just one face covering and the wearer did not attempt to dance  Hand sanitiser was available and I saw a few people use it  The caller asked at the beginning if we were Ok with dances involving touching other people and did we mind changing partners?  There was no dissent and many accepted "Dance line it's 2019" stickers from me On a couple of occasions, the caller made  (possibly humourous) concessions to infection control such as calli...

This post is written to document what is and is not happening as of early August 2021 at a festival that usually sees lots of dancing. It's hoped that the observations will help dancers, organisers and others to plan for the future. Introduction In normal years, this festival has a lot of social dancing in the form of ceilidhs, contras, American squares and the odd Bal or two. Typically, theses events are in marquees or local community halls. The number of  different people dancing over the course of the week probably approaches 1000. By the time the festival started in 2021, "dancing like it was 2019" had been legal for several weeks  but due to the long lead times for booking infrastructure, etc. the cut-down festival planned no indoor events and no dancing.  The Anchor Ceilidhs One of the pubs, The Anchor Inn put on their lunchtime ceilidh series. Differences from 2019 included: No late-afternoon ceilidh Another row of tables on each side of the dancefloor which reduce...

 Many years ago, I stayed at a Youth Hostel where the warden had papered on wall with Bartholomew's Half-Inch maps covering all of Wales and the borders.   This inspired me to do something similar with OS 1:50,000 maps in the first house I bought. It was quite difficult because some of the map sheets had been printed at different times to different standards. There were woods that changed their shade of green half way across and and "C" was missing from "Cotswold Hills". It's a lot easier today as the OS (and some of their distributors)  offer what are essentially paper prints from their database. The actual map area of the sheets is 80cm  x 80cm corresponding to 20km x 20km (1:25,000) or 40km x 40km (1:50,000). You can specify the exact centre point of the map you want so I chose my house.  (Actually, that's not quite true, you can only specify the nearest Postcode and the software jumps to the grid reference for that. If you wanted to order more than o...

If your toilet cistern is taking too long to refill and be ready for the next user (Mine was taking 10 minutes!) you may have found some of the great articles and videos that basically tell you to dismantle the float valve and clean out the blockage. A few others suggest you may have low water pressure but are using a high pressure nozzle.  Try those approached first and if one of them solves your problem, that’s great and you can stop reading now.  Another cause can be that the rubber diaphragm in the float valve is the wrong way round.   Here’s the story… I actually had two problems with my cistern. As well as being slow to fill, after about 18 hours, it started to overflow very gently. I replaced the rubber diaphragm being careful to put it the same way round as the old one. This fixed the overflow – although adjusting this correctly was difficult because it took tens of hours for the water flow to reduce from extremely low to zero. However, the filling was just a...

In the 1960s, 70s & 80s, I did a lot of touring cycling in the UK, Ireland and France. Typically 50 hilly miles a day. I put together a nice Mercian frame and decent parts to make an effective touring machine. As I lived in Cheltenham, which is fairly flat and prone to cycle theft, I also assembled a shopping/commuting machine with just 5 gears, straight handlebars, a basket and a powerful horn. The mudguards didn't match partly to save me buying a new set and also to uglify the machine and make it less likely to catch the eye of a thief. Recently I moved to Stroud, a town that has hardly any flat roads at all - and neither does much of the surrounding countryside. I brought my old Mercian with me and did some basic maintenance to deal with it being almost entirely unused for 35 years. As the washer in the pump had perished, I ordered one through Amazon and also 2 inner tubes. Being used to an 18" pump, I was pretty dubious about the 34cm Draper pump but it was ver...

A couple of months ago I bought a JBL Link 10 "smart speaker". It worked fine with a couple of niggles: Every few days, it would mute itself. You could tell it was still alive by the way the lights flashed for the appropriated length of time when you asked Google something. A full power cycle was needed to get it to speak again If I unplugged it to use it as a "radio" in the bathroom, it shut down after 15-30 minutes I finally got a clue when it it was providing the sound for a YouTube video over Bluetooth and it muted itself while I was "watching". This coincided with the sound of my central heating system shutting down for the night.  So I suspected a power surge issue. Looking at the back of the speaker, I noticed that the battery indicator had just one flashing light rather than the 5 available. Now, JBL don't supply a mains charger, but they do supply a micro-USB cable which I didn't have a convenient socket for. What I did have was...

At the time of writing, it is still legal to take exercise in the form of going for a walk. To check the current rules in more detail, see here . Here's some suggestions about doing it in a safe and pleasant way. To keep at least 2m away from other people (as you should), then you probably want less crowded places. So, if you're used to getting out into the great outdoors, think about the places you've been before. Are they often crowded? Is there a large car park, nice cafe, public toilets, etc? Give these places a miss. If there's hardly ever anyone around your favourite place, that could be a better choice. With places you don't know, you're probably best off with places you've never heard of before.  If a place is famous (EG: The Pennine Way), don't go there. Some of the unknown places have great scenery and if they don't, at least they're empty of people and therefore safer. Another good trick is to go for a walk at a quiet time. It...