Cancel Christmas

[JMo]

I know it's lame to moan about the weather in this country, but I've had enough - it bright and sunny here in Brighton at the moment - has been all week to be honest, and yet every weekend we have something arranged it p!sses with rain...

Maybe we should campaign to have the week moved forward a couple of days in an effort to fool the weather - just cancel next Tuesday and Wednesday and everything will budge up nicely perhaps, eh?

Or conspiracy theorists might like to consider that perhaps God is now so p!ssed off with the greed and corruption in this country and the fact we let that c*nt Blair and his cronies get away with such tyranny here and on a global scale, that we are infact being punishing for our spinelessness... we are already bart of the machine, and now there is no respite!

Still, I've just had a set of soft luggage delivered this morning, so maybe I'll just head off to the nearest BMW dealer and get myself a GS - so long suckers...

As a great man once said,

Ta ra!

xxx

[SazzaG]

I have a feeling that this is all my fault.

Yesterday, I picked up my new car. And of course, as it's a convertible, it's now going to rain until the end of the year, particularly at weekends....

Sorry.

Saz

[mark cross]

Try living in N.Ireland esp Fermanagh. It rains here all the time. Stop complaining and have a drink:D

[squiffything]

oh no Jmo don't start the god and all it means debate again!

It's been bloody miserable here in suffolk all week despite the forcast for an even hotter August than July what does that fish bloke know anyway...

[SazzaG]

I heard a guy from the Met Office on the radio yesterday, talking to Steve Wright. Apparently, the BBC have never said that we were going to have a hot August - it was all the red tops! And of course, whatever's in The Sun must be right.

He did say that it's going to get warmer again towards September. Not scorching, but quite pleasant. Fingers crossed then!

[squiffything]

it must have been the beeb coz i don't read the papers but then they are all tarred with the same brush - when they get it wrong they blame everyone else

[squiffything]

btw what soft top did u get Sazza

[SazzaG]

Ah, not a soft top. I did take the english weather into account!

I've got a Renault Megane Cabriolet. Not exactly sporty, but very nice, and the electric glass roof is really cool! Just one button, no clips or anything like that.

[queen_gpants]

Sorry Jenny its all my fault actually!

I took the waterproof linings out of my Hein Gericke 2 piece when I met up with the Beds & Bucks lot last month and it's rained every since! :o

So if my theory is correct, if I put the linings back in tomorrow in time for Laydeeeeeez Day at the Ace on Sunday, we will have a tropical heatwave this weekend and not a storm cloud in sight! :D

[squiffything]

tut. going soft after all fancy not wanting to get out at every layby to put it up then put it down again. Whatever happened to the proper open air motoring experience.

When i was a lad etc etc ......

[Pugi]

No no...it's all my fault. I exist and therefore I must be punished, and you lot are being punished for letting me live. :toilet:

Come on. It's not that bad. Ride weekday evenings and stay in for a drink and a game of chess during weekends. :drunk:

[Gilps]

A couple of points. Firstly, the weather in this country is usually cr@p. That's why I want to live in Spain. Wouldn't it be nice to organise a BBQ for any date in August and just know it isn't going to rain. I used to quite like English weather. It was nice knowing that you got 4 different seasons. But now I find myself wanting to ride my bike more and more and the weather is awful. We usually get about 8 weeks of decent weather AKA summer, spread sometime between June and September, and the other 44 weeks seem pretty much the same.
Secondly Jen, if you want to extend your biking season then go get that GS. I did and so have several others on here. I've got brush guards to keep the worst of the crap off, heated grips, ABS, a decent screen, luggage that looks like it's supposed to be there, not just some add-on, and best of all, BMW service.
And finally, the two best days for weather that you will get when owning a convertible are the day you pick it up, and the day you drive it to the dealers to trade it in.
Hasta luego

[Julie]

It could be worse!

[SazzaG]

Squiffy, I earned my "proper motoring" badge when I used a Westfield every day for commuting - no heating, leaking roof, etc etc. Great fun in the snow. I deserve a solid roof with rubber seals!

Julie, I agree, it could be much worse. What a bunch of whingers we are!

[SimonH]

Thanks for the sanity check Julie. Phil and I have just come back from Belgium where it rained quite a lot. We still managed to have a good time. Ask Maddhatter who we bumped into over there in some bar............... you know how it is.

Look on the bright side - the rain is warm!

[Chaos Inc.]

Gilps, where in Spain?

[gary tompkins]

It's all my fault.

Bought a nice armoured airtex mesh jacket at the end of July, after deciding I couldn't cope with the heatwave riding the trike. Managed to wear it twice before the weather turned crap - arse! :hissy:

My work mate bought matching airtex jacket & trousers at the same time, and is even more pissed off than me. He reckons we should go back to J&S and ask for a refund - what a pair of mugs ;)

Ah well.. roll on next summer :rolleyes:

[Paranoid Dave]

HURRAH!

That horrid sunshine and heatwave is over, finally we have cooler weather and a nice shower of rain from time to time.
Its great so why complain.

[Gilps]

Gilps, where in Spain?
I really like Andalucia. My preference would be somewhere around Nerja/Frigiliana to the north of the region, or south of Malaga. I was looking at buying a place with my wife but that's all gone out of the window now we're splitting up, but I still fancy a place over there. Nothing too big, 1 bedroom, little pool, BBQ area, surrounded by olive trees, on a hill overlooking a puerto blanco, small garage with a Monster and a BMW GS in it. Thanks Alex, now I feel really miserable.

[bigredduke]

Having just returned from southern France & superb biking weather I totally agree about living somewhere hotter/nicer/less crowded/better cheaper food & drink/more sense of society etc etc.

It also underlined the feeling that GB is an expensive, celebrity obsessed, shallow place full of low life chavvy scumbags who would relieve you of your hard earned as readily as they would don a Burberry cap.

One interesting difference is car ownership over there. Even people who are clearly well off seem to drive around in small renaults/peugeots/citroen/fiats etc. You see the odd merc but not that many. They also don't go in for BMW's like people seem to over here. Cars just don't seem to be regarded as a status symbol like they are in the UK. They do seem to value the things that matter (to me anyway).

I plan to learn to sail before I retire and when I do, we will flog the house, buy a nice boat and sail around the Med and live on board for the rest of our naturals! I will have a bike on board of course!

That's my dream anyway!

[Gilps]

I also like the area that you've just come back from. We looked at the area due west from Perpignan and really liked Thuir and Prades. It was a toss up between Languedoc-Rousillon or Andalucia. I think France has the better quality of life, but Spain has the slightly better weather.

[benson]

Gilps - I want to come too!!! I love Andalucia - just got back from around Riogordo - I'd move like a shot... Room for another monster and a Buell???

[bigredduke]

Yes, I like it because there is so much variety. There is the mediterranean coast, and the pyrenees very close and of course, you can nip across to Spain very easily. We had a great day in Spain, visited Salvador Dali's house in Portliggat which was brilliant followed by a nice long lunch in Port de selva. That part of the Costa Brava around Roses is lovely with no hi-rise and excessive develpment. Barcelona is also reasonably close and is brilliant!

[Gilps]

Looks like we're all off then. Plenty of room for a Buell. I rode a Lightning 900 about 2 years ago. Grinned for days afterwards. See you all over there.

[bigredduke]

Looks like we're all off then. Plenty of room for a Buell. I rode a Lightning 900 about 2 years ago. Grinned for days afterwards. See you all over there.

Perhaps we could set up a Monster commune?

[Gilps]

Gilps - I want to come too!!! I love Andalucia - just got back from around Riogordo - I'd move like a shot... Room for another monster and a Buell???
There's a guy on the GS site who rides motocross in the UK in summer, then goes back to Andalucia for the cooler months. He runs holidays. He picks you up from the airport, takes you back to his B&B where he and his wife provide the meals, then you go out on his F650 GS's for guided tours through the hills. Once I get the house sold I'm going to be paying him a visit.
http://www.bikespana.com/

[eonan]

I must admit I can usually handle it up until Christmas Day. At the stroke of midnight though, for me it turns into hell, right up until the middle of bloody April! Last year was the first year for ages that I've been in this country for those months, and well...I ain't doing it again, no way hosay!!!

My life for the past five years has been to travel to as many places as I can, to find the spot to fulfil my dream of having my on little cafe/bar. Trouble is, all the while I'm doing this, I'm p*ssing away all the funds I had to be able to do it in the first place! Good fun though ;)

This past 10 months has been the longest I’ve spent here for a while. It’s been great to see family and friends, and great to have picked up a hobby in Monster Mastectomy but I’m yearning for something more again.

I bought that new bike with the intention of having a winter project to work on, to see me through that hell. Well b*llocks…I’ve started it now with the intention of having it finished on Christmas Eve. Then, when I come back in April she’ll be sitting waiting for me.

Now...where is that atlas :pedro: Any suggestions very welcome :thumbsup:

[DesmoJohnny]

come and visit NZ - its lonely here just me and the 14 million sheep ! :mand:
quite a good Ducati following - but we need to get the monster numbers up!
Awesome roads, not too many people and good weather through the summer.
All welcome

[gary tompkins]

come and visit NZ - its lonely here just me and the 14 million sheep ! :mand:
quite a good Ducati following - but we need to get the monster numbers up!
Awesome roads, not too many people and good weather through the summer.
All welcome

Oooh look a chap from NZ :mand:

I have a lot of family in NZ. My dad's brother emigrated there in the late 60's and there's quite a clan there now. We obviously breed well as think I have more relations living on the other side of the globe than the UK now - mainly around Auckland and Christchurch I think?

I may get over there one day. My dad went out visit the Tompkins clan last year, as part of a 6 week whistle stop tour of NZ, Oz and the USA. The furthest I've flown so far is Italy - so my old man (now 72) is putting me to shame at the moment :o

[Fodder]

What bad weather?:confused:

Hey Julie & Ruth my daughter just got her A level results and she is now off to loughborough for the next 5 years to go for a masters in Mech eng. Any good tips about living there, places to go or avoid etc.

[Julie]

What bad weather?:confused:

Hey Julie & Ruth my daughter just got her A level results and she is now off to loughborough for the next 5 years to go for a masters in Mech eng. Any good tips about living there, places to go or avoid etc.

Hi Fod's!!

Wow! gret news.

I should do this in an e-mail but hey-ho i dont have your e-mail....

Anyway.

Places to live should be on campus and if she's in at teh Uni they should be able to ofer her accomidation for the full 5 years. If she wants to live out and be independent (alot of students do) Then she needs to look at the following streets
Oxford Street
Paget Streer
Station street
Leopld Street
or Ashby Road

Thats the student village - and there is an estate agent who ca sort her out with a house if she wans to go down that road. However i really think she should go for halls in her first year - meals provided as well. It means she can make freinds and not worry about all the oher stuf that goes with renting a house.
If she does live out tell her to tell the estate agent she wants to live inthose streets - Do not live in Shelthope at all - that is the 'not so nice' area of loughborough.

If you want the estate agents details PM me and i can get them - Its nickolas humprys f lughborought but i'm not sure of the phone number.

If she is in halls then they have a freshers week and during that week she will be taken care of and shown whats what. If she's like ruth she may not even leave campus for teh first year at all!

If you need her to have a contact number someone local she can call on then i'd be happy for you to give her our name and address.

Campus has changed so much since i was there - graduated in 1994.
YOu need swipe cards to drive onto the huge campus now! The campus is massive and safe and most of the halls are in the campus area and they have a small set of shops that will fill her needs - hense her not having to leave campus if she doesn't want to!

If you need to know anything about loughborough or the Uni then just ask - or if you need me to do anything for her then just ask.

Also if you ever come over to see her then you must let me know and you know you and Sam are more than welcome to stay here.

PS. If she wants fish and chips there is only one place in town! Thats WANS chips in the student village on oxford street! I still drive all the way across town for my chips from wans! (and he stil asks me how my degree is going!) Most of the MMM have had chips from WANS at somepoint! Oh and our very own Jmo has also had chips many times from WANS!

[Fodder]

Thanks for the info and advice I have passed it on.
She is in halls for the first year so I guess as a freshman she will probably spend most of her time on campus anyway, but not having ever been to Loughborough (apart form a brief visit to your home) I was just wondering what sort of a town it was, bearing in mind that she grew up in Crawley so it must be a marked improvement, I hope:D
When we are over visiting we will definately meet up as I suspect I will be there several times over the next few years.

Si & Sam

P.S. Why did you have to mention fish & chips? :( We miss those , you can sort of get them over here but it's just not the same. I'll take mine with mushy peas and onion vinegar. Damn i'm homesick and craving now, with them and the lack of a decent curry i'm almost tempted to fly home tomorrow.:D

simonbrowne@cox.net

[squiffything]

come and visit NZ - its lonely here just me and the 14 million sheep ! :mand:
quite a good Ducati following - but we need to get the monster numbers up!
Awesome roads, not too many people and good weather through the summer.
All welcome

I went out to NZ a few years ago to stay with friends and it is the best place would def go there if I was to emigrate The vilages have between 50-200 people living in them and yet they al have a golf course the schools are second to none (my mate was a deputy head) and the people are so laid back and friendly The house prices were crazy you could pick up a place with half a dozen acres 4 bedrooms + for the price of a two up terrace over here

DJ have you got room for a little bloke to come and live :)

[neilp]

I went out to NZ a few years ago to stay with friends and it is the best place would def go there if I was to emigrate The vilages have between 50-200 people living in them and yet they al have a golf course the schools are second to none (my mate was a deputy head) and the people are so laid back and friendly The house prices were crazy you could pick up a place with half a dozen acres 4 bedrooms + for the price of a two up terrace over here

DJ have you got room for a little bloke to come and live :)
You obviously mean little as in short rather than little in waist size?:chuckle:

[DesmoJohnny]

I went out to NZ a few years ago to stay with friends and it is the best place would def go there if I was to emigrate The vilages have between 50-200 people living in them and yet they al have a golf course the schools are second to none (my mate was a deputy head) and the people are so laid back and friendly The house prices were crazy you could pick up a place with half a dozen acres 4 bedrooms + for the price of a two up terrace over here

DJ have you got room for a little bloke to come and live :)

Always room as long as you bring me another monster,as they hold there value here pretty good. :idea:
I think you'd be surprised at house prices now though, in the 6 years we've been here the have rocketed up.

[squiffything]

Damn If only i'd sorted it when I was over there I was really tempted.

Hey NP no fair i'm not fat just big boned.............

You doing anything Wed night? Fancy a rideout to Gt Bentley

[benson]

And remember that fat people are harder to kidnap so being of reasonable girth is in fact, like loud cans, a safety feature!!!:mand: :mand: :mand:

[squiffything]

oi i'm not fat!!!