Have got a badge on my profile for bug hunting, anyone else got any badges ?

Southern Pink Underwing moth caterpillar from Australia

Anybody watch the first episode last night - what did you think ?
I watched 30 mins. and it felt like 2 hours.

Many people appear to be booking holidays abroad for the summer. Here is an idea:- 'Dracula's castle' offers visitors COVID jab and free visit to torture exhibition.

Where do you fancy going this summer?

https://news.sky.com/story/draculas-castle-offers-visitors-covid-jab-and-free-visit-to-torture-exhibition-12302389

Final result
Sadiq Khan 69.5% of the vote
Shaun Bailey 30.5%

Quite surprised nobody has mentioned this, or is it too non PC now.

"Charity shops are the ultimate place to bag a bargain sustainably and a new online marketplace, Thriftify, is hoping to make this easier by “connecting” well-known retailers with consumers.

The company, which has just launched in the UK, lets shopaholics browse second-hand products online, meaning they can enjoy some retail therapy and save the planet at the same time.

Users can buy books, music, games, gifts and accessories via the platform, which boasts partnerships with stores including Oxfam, St Vincent De Paul, Sue Ryder and Wessex Cancer Trust.

Bosses of the social enterprise, which was founded in Ireland in 2018, said it is also integrated into eBay, Google Shopping, Facebook Marketplace and Amazon, giving charities “access to millions of shoppers across the world”.

Announcing the UK launch, founder Rónán Ó Dálaigh said: “Fashion is the second most polluting industry after oil but thankfully, consumers are becoming aware of the damaging effects of ‘fast fashion’ on our planet and are looking for alternatives.

“Instead of buying new, we can lower our impact significantly by opting for used items, making the most of products already out there and discouraging further unnecessary manufacturing.”

Info found in "THE BIG ISSUE"
Hope this is of interest.

..

Hope you're having a great day

I received the following letter. Has anyone joined this test? Does anyone know what is involved? Is it safe?
Opinions required please.

A woman  is throwing a big Party for her Granddaughter, and had gone all out... a Caterer, a Band, and even hired a Clown.
Just before the Party started, two old Tramps showed up looking for a free handout, feeling sorry for the old guys, the woman told them that she would give them a good meal if they will help chop some wood for her. Gratefully, they headed to the Rear of the House.

The guests arrived, and all was going well with the children having a wonderful time. But the clown hadn't shown up. After an half an hour, the clown finally called to report that he was stuck as the A9 was closed due to a RTA  and would probably NOT make the party at all.  The woman was very disappointed and unsuccessfully tried to entertain the children herself.

She happened to look out the window and saw one of the old tramps doing cartwheels an back flips across the Lawn. She watched in awe as he swung from tree branches, did mid-air flips, and leaped high in the air.

She spoke to the other tramp and said, "What your friend is doing is absolutely marvellous. I have never seen such a thing. Do you think your friend would consider repeating this performance for the children at the party..???? I would pay him £250"...!

The other guy says,
.
.
.
"Well, I Dunno.. Let me ask him".."HEY CHARLIE. FOR £250, WOULD YOU CHOP OFF ANOTHER TOE"..???  📷

... The Sussex family have published a picture of their son in an advert.

I was under the impression that anything to do with the media was a no, no for the children.

So many countries have nuclear weapons now that a major war seems a thing of the past, unless some idiotic nation starts one and then God help us all.

The nuclear club -
Russia, 6,375 nuclear warheads

The United States of America, 5,800 nuclear warheads

France, 290 nuclear warheads

China, 320 nuclear warheads

The United Kingdom, 215 nuclear warheads

Pakistan, 160 nuclear warheads

India, 135 nuclear warheads

Israel, 90 nuclear warheads

North Korea, 30-40 nuclear warheads

The atom bombs used at Hiroshima and Nagasaki created blasts equivalent to 16 Kilotons.

However the most powerful hydrogen bomb can be 50 Megatons - more than 5,000 times more powerful than a single atomic bomb

If you are voting tomorrow, you have to take your own pen. There will be none at the polling stations.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ijEzz5pSlaQ

Nick Kamen - died age 59

Watching Call the Midwife a lady trying to see a doctor about pregnancy was asked about her Co-op card. I never was and don't know what this was about - neither does my 82 year old friend.
Can anyone explain please ?

In Russia, radio station MDZhB, known as The Buzzer, has been broadcasting since 1982, and one knows why. It constantly transmits a buzz, and sometimes a few words. Let's hope that it never stops! Full story here: https://bbc.in/2RmvGUD
. Here's a recording of it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c1F1c-0OZxs

Over the years like many others I have had problems dealing with retail goods, shops and companies.
Having gone through the normal channels with my disputes, I have many times had to resort to the following link in sheer desperation.

AND believe me it has never failed to work in resolving my problems and always with extreme kindness and consideration.
Save it on your computer as a bookmark.

https://www.ceoemail.com/index.php?s=E

🤔🤔🤔

I have just listened to a dreadfully sad story of what happened to someone as a result of a statistic presented at a trial being believed. It lasts 30mins: https://bbc.in/3vFUe9R

In Surrey four children have been taken to hospital after suffering a "violent reaction" from eating sweets believed to contain cannabis.
https://news.sky.com/story/four-children-taken-to-hospital-after-eating-sweets-containing-cannabis-12292755

I do not really use FB much, but I keep getting a list of "new friends" - people I have never heard of.
Are these actual friend applications or just FB randomly listing them ?

Puns. Puns for the Educated Minds

1.

The fattest knight at King Arthur's round table was Sir Cumference. He acquired his size from too much pi.

2.

I thought I saw an eye - doctor on an Alaskan island, but it turned out to be an optical Aleutian .

3.

She was only a whisky - maker, but he loved her still.

4.

A rubber - band pistol was confiscated from an algebra class, because it was a weapon of math disruption.

5.

No matter how much you push the envelope it'll still be stationery.

6.

A dog gave birth to puppies near the road and was cited for littering.

7.

A grenade thrown into a kitchen in France would result in Linoleum Blownapart.

8.

Two silk worms had a race. They ended up in a tie.

9.

A hole has been found in the nudist - camp wall. The police are looking into it.

10.

Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.

11.

Atheism is a non-prophet organization.

12.

Two hats were hanging on a hat rack in the hallway. One hat said to the other: 'You stay here; I'll go on a head.'

13.

I wondered why the baseball kept getting bigger. Then it hit me.

14.

A sign on the lawn at a drug rehab center said: 'Keep off the Grass.'

15.

The midget fortune-teller who escaped from prison was a small medium at large.

16.

The soldier who survived mustard gas and pepper spray is now a seasoned veteran.

17.

A backward poet writes inverse.

18.

In a democracy it's your vote that counts. In feudalism it's your count that votes.

19 .

When cannibals ate a missionary, they got a taste of religion.

20.

If you jumped off the bridge in Paris , you'd be in Seine .

21.

A vulture carrying two dead raccoons boards an airplane. The stewardess looks at him and says: 'I'm sorry, sir, only one carrion allowed per passenger.'

22.

Two fish swim into a concrete wall. One turns to the other and says: 'Dam!'

23.

Two Eskimos sitting in a kayak were chilly, so they lit a fire in the craft. Unsurprisingly it sank, proving once again that you can't have your kayak and heat it too.

24.

Two hydrogen atoms meet. One says, 'I've lost my electron.' The other says, 'Are you sure?'

The first replies, 'Yes, I'm positive.'

25.

Did you hear about the Buddhist who refused Novocain during a root - canal? His goal: transcend dental medication.

26. There was the person who sent ten puns to friends, with the hope that at least one of the puns would make them laugh. No pun in ten did.

Hi all, ScoopLoop Support have changed the policy on when joining Public Groups, now requiring Group Moderators to 'Approve' new members. I apologise for any delays this might cause, but I will endeavour to approve any request's as soon as I can get to them !
CliveF

I had a spare green bin so requested the council to take it away, before they came a friend said they wanted it so they came and got it.
2 days later the council came and left me 'the replacement bin you requested' !
Filthy an battered and with a different number on.
i sent a new bin removal request and have now got an email saying my replacement bin will be delivered within 10 days.

A firm are going to charge £1 for putting your bins out. Its to help forgetful customers. I need someone to help find my bin and bring it back. Some weeks its up the road, other weeks next door.

I've a small patch of ground at top of garden which I want to make into a small nature garden for my grandchildren. It's only about 6ft x 4ft but big enough to get them interested.

I'm going to put in some plants that will attract bees/butterflies and I've bought a bug hotel which my grand-daughter can decorate. Planning to fill a shallow stone bowl with stones to make somewhere for bees to get a drink.

Any ideas what else I could add to make it interesting?

I've received my postal vote papers, 3 to complete and the one with my details to sign.
20 candidates to choose from, 1st and 2nd choice for Mayor of London!
Members of the London Assembly is by party, 18 to choose from and no explanation of how this works!
Only 5 candidate to choose from for the LA constituency member and not one for each borough / constituency!
They have combined Bexley and Bromley together plus some candidates are standing for more then one party!

I cannot understand how or why they have combined Bexley and Bromley together with only one London Assembly Constituency Member to be voted for when the London Borough of Bexley has three Parliamentary constituencies and the London Borough of Bromley has four Parliamentary constituencies.
I'm resuming the other 6 will be unnamed members picked according to the party vote. To me this looks like "jobs for the boys".
Very undemocratic and all very fishy.

Recommendation appreciated for french doors.

Does anyone use one? If so, are they any good or a waste of money?

India is reporting a third of a million new cases of Covid-19 each day at the moment with thousand of people dying each day. And yet, in this country there are stupid people who claim that there is no such illness, but, instead, there is a conspiracy by governments to put something into your body so that they can spy on you and that there is no need to wear a face mask to keep the (non-existent) disease at bay.

I imagine the population of India would kill for the vaccine to be available to them, for the masks to help restrict the transmission of this killer and for the oxygen supply, they so sadly do not have.

My thoughts and prayers are with all the Covid-19 suffering people around the world and in particular those in the Indian sub-continent who don't have the options that the idiotic anti-vaxxers have here.

Report finds ‘apparent systemic bias’ in award of lucrative PPE deals favouring firms connected to Tories

Nothing we didn't already suspect, but this is an independent report.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/apr/22/fifth-of-uk-covid-contracts-raised-red-flags-for-possible-corruption?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Other

.

A couple of days ago, I got out some shoes I hadn't worn for a while - have had them some years, but no occasion to wear them in the last 18 months. Sadly, the moulded "rubber" - synthetic? - soles fell to pieces as I wore them. I asked about repairs but, as I thought, they can't be repaired. But I was told that, kept in the dark, shoes with these soles do this. It's happened to a couple of other pairs, but after about 15 years of heavy wear, and the uppers were going. Can anyone throw light on this?

We have been chosen to complete an Office for National Statistics study, and will be rewarded with a £10 voucher! Have you struck lucky?

"In the EU referendum and again in 2017 age was a new dividing line in British politics. The data indicates that little has changed on this front over the past two years, with Labour still winning a majority of younger voters and the Conservatives miles ahead among older Britons.

In fact, for every 10 years older a voter is, their chance of voting Tory increases by around nine points, and the chance of them voting Labour decreases by eight points.

The tipping point - the age at which a voter is more likely to have voted Conservative than Labour - is now 39, down from 47 at the last election." SOURCE > YOUGOV POLL.

Are you infected, diseased or don't care?

What about the Lib-Dems, Greens and Plaid and SNP?

Radio 4's Life Scientific today is about how Martin Sweeting made a satellite on his kitchen table and persuaded Nasa to launch it into space. Martin tells about his life and work.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000v7pb

Swiss women can now vote in federal elections and stand for parliament after a national referendum.

The official result shows 621,403 of the all-male electorate supported the vote for women and 323,596 were against.

The poll was almost a complete reversal of a previous referendum, when women were refused the federal vote by a 2-1 majority.

'Children, Church and Kitchen'

This time round, political pundits were expecting a repeat performance with the rural and traditionally more conservative German-speaking cantons resisting the proposal.

Even one women's group had argued against change. The Swiss Women Against Voting Rights Association campaigned on the grounds that women's responsibilities lie in the household."


Guess the year, and any comments welcome!

Two men were killed after a Tesla car crashed into a tree and caught fire in Texas, and police believe there was nobody present in the driver's seat at the time of the accident.

The 2019 Tesla Model S was travelling at a high speed when it failed to negotiate a curve on a winding road.

The victims, both in their 50s, were found in the front passenger seat and in the back of the vehicle.

Tesla did not respond immediately to the BBC's request for comment.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-56799749.amp

Out the garden today I saw 3 really huge wasps, not hornets but much bigger than wasps usually are. I assume they are queens.
Also saw a couple of the false black widow spiders on the fence.

Out of curiosity. is anyone taking this drug?
Do they think it’s safe for long term use and have they any side effects?

Considering buying a Sound bar for my TV to improve the sound level.
Under £100 preferred.

Do they have a power supply ? I do not want batteries.
From my web search they only have an HDMI connection and a handset ?

Has anybody got one of these and do they improve the TV speaker sound significantly ?

The Louvre has put its entire art collection online for free. This includes items in storage, and in the new art facility in Lievin in northern France. You can click to select a collection, or type in to the search box. There is an interactive map at the bottom of the page. All images can be downloaded, and some are shown in greater detail below the image: https://bit.ly/3glH3Xi

Very clever, but possible. Another good watch. https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=259411679208818

In 2019 Facebook was hacked, and 533 million phone numbers were acquired. Shortly after, Facebook found and fixed the breach. 11.5 million of these were in the UK. Hackers have now made this information available for free on the Internet. If you have given your mobile phone number to Facebook, you can check to see if yours was included, by visiting https://haveibeenpwned.com/ and entering your phone number as follows: start with 44, then omit the zero at the beginning, then the rest of the number. Whilst you are there, you can also check to see if your email address has been acquired in a breach of any website you have given it to.