“Fitting out for camping in the open is a matter of discarding as much as possible rather than taking everything that may be useful. Choose first the clothes that are least likely to suffer from getting wet, crumpled, or even slept in, and only take enough to last out the expedition. Don’t put in a [...]
Posted on December 30th, 2008 by PTC*
Filed under: Items Various | 10 Comments »
My newly acquired holiday spirit continued to make up for lost time today.
Holly drove us to the Trossachs in a little red tractor. There was gadding about, the viewing of views, drinking of cuppas and generally a rather nice time. The sky was clear and the air was chilled, but the three of us were well [...]
Posted on December 29th, 2008 by PTC*
Filed under: Items Various | 5 Comments »
Took a wee wander in the Kilpatricks with Joycee today. It was very dull, and very cold. The ground still frozen hard in the late afternoon. The sun set in a blaze of colour, just out of sight behind the thick grey clouds.
But we bantered away regardless of all that like always, and the time [...]
Posted on December 28th, 2008 by PTC*
Filed under: Items Various | 2 Comments »
I used to get chocolate tool sets for Christmas in the 70’s, and chocolate smokers sets, even chocolate guns. I did become an engineer, but not a smoker or a cowboy/mercenary. However these things all disappeared, went out of fashion or got banned by the same toothless dogooder bastards that helped to build our current [...]
Posted on December 28th, 2008 by PTC*
Filed under: Items Various | 14 Comments »
I was 40 yesterday, and it kind of came and went uneventfully. Dinner at the folks, Holly running around crazy, and later on, some sitting on chairs in front of the telly. That works for me.
Christmas Eve is always an odd one for me, a day inbetween, a personal 29th of February when it’s not [...]
Posted on December 24th, 2008 by PTC*
Filed under: Items Various | 21 Comments »
The weather is looking grey. A slow thaw at all levels. It’s a bugger isn’t it?
Making the best of it is the trick, not giving into turkey and stuffing apathy, trifle and After Eight lethargy.
During the holidays I’m wanting to get to all the places I haven’t managed this year, the Cairngorms, the far North [...]
Posted on December 20th, 2008 by PTC*
Filed under: Items Various | 22 Comments »
Last day of work yesterday except for unscheduled breakdowns.
Mine or customers.
Jimmy said something wise, “I don’t mind working for my money, but I sure as hell shouldn’t be fighting for it”.
My last action of the year was closing business with two customers. One visit found me sitting down for a cuppa and a bit of banter, and I left [...]
Posted on December 20th, 2008 by PTC*
Filed under: Items Various | 2 Comments »
The wind is rattling the slates, there’s rippling along the roof from one end to the other with every strong gust, like tombstones doing a Mexican wave.
The rain is incessant, the council Christmas tree is lurching like a drunken man trying to climb onto a high kerb without dropping the filling out of his kebab.
The snow [...]
Posted on December 18th, 2008 by PTC*
Filed under: Items Various | No Comments »
I got a hold of the winter LIM stuff months ago, and it’s just as well. Although folk think of down insulation as just being for winter, on cool camps high on the hill in summer a light piece of down kit is perfect. Then in winter it becomes your best pal on every trip.
The [...]
Posted on December 15th, 2008 by PTC*
Filed under: Kit Reviews | 33 Comments »
Although there’s more in the LX3, it is still point and click. Praise be.
Posted on December 14th, 2008 by PTC*
Filed under: Items Various | 16 Comments »
He stood in the centre of the room, rocking slowly and rhythmically forward onto his toes. His hands deep in his overcoat pockets, hidden forefingers and thumbs making gentle circles as if he were carefully teasing the right amount of seasoning into a simmering cooking pot. Eyes blank, he did not blink.
He had missed the meeting, partly communication [...]
Posted on December 14th, 2008 by PTC*
Filed under: Items Various | 6 Comments »
Regular listeners might remember the Taranaki Crew Neck from Chocolate Fish that I featured a few months back. On almost every trip I’ve had since then it’s been my baselayer. I’ve worn it to work, so it’s been crawling around on its belly under church floors looking for cast iron pipes, inside steam boilers repairing [...]
Posted on December 10th, 2008 by PTC*
Filed under: Kit Reviews | 15 Comments »
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