The Beast from the East....

[bungeejumper]

Yes especially as they only get 3 months of the year off !!!

Sigh, here we go again. Have you actually been in a school during the last twenty years?

In loco parentis, they call it. If little Jimmy falls over on the ice and cracks his head, it's the school's legal liability, because it was its responsibility to make sure that it could never have happened. And if little Jimmy happens to be on medication that sometimes dulls his brain, well the law makes no allowances for that. And if there are four kids in the class of 32 with disruptive personalities, well, the teacher is supposed to sort out the classroom fights and then get on with the teaching and achieve the Ofsted targets as if everything had been hunky-dory.

I, for one, couldn't stand it, which is why I quit the classroom - forty years ago. Could say more - but hey, if you think that teachers do a six hour day with three months' holiday, then I'm not going to persuade you otherwise. Heroes, all of them. But as to why schools are shutting because of danger (and liability), maybe we can at least clarify that one?

BJ

[Howard]

Because of the cold weather and the need to keep moving, the missus and I are going to do something later on that we haven't done in decades.

Build a snowman.

Photo please!

Howard

[kiloran]

Because of the cold weather and the need to keep moving, the missus and I are going to do something later on that we haven't done in decades.

Build a snowman.

A snowwoman would be much more fun

--kiloran

[bungeejumper]

Pah! Down here in the Somerset borders, people have been trapped in their cars for 20 hours. That's 20 hours without a toilet break, and with absolutely nothing to do. As the BBC's roving reporter says, people have been reduced to keeping warm any way they can.

https://ichef-1.bbci.co.uk/news/624/cps ... 8_de27.jpg

BJ

[AleisterCrowley]

A furry willy warmer - very 1980s

[panamagold]

Full sun and 14°c. Blossom out on some trees and I saw two butterflies earlier this afternoon. Stuff that winter shyte, unless of course there's skiing to be done.

[JMN2]

Full sun and 14°c. Blossom out on some trees and I saw two butterflies earlier this afternoon. Stuff that winter shyte, unless of course there's skiing to be done.

Panama City?

[panamagold]

Somebody, anybody, giz'a hand up.

[AleisterCrowley]

It's pretty good - Fozzie Bear?

[ten0rman]

Dod,

It certainly does look that this little lot is worse than usual, even allowing for the tendency of the reporters to exaggerate, so it's looking like my prediction "be gone in a week or so" might well be wrong. Sorry about that.

ten0rman

[bungeejumper]

Thawing a little bit now in West Wilts, although only by a degree or so. We had a frozen-up hot water pipe inside the house, which was a bit of a worry, but it's thawed out overnight, and no sign of any leaks, thank goodness.

We had a surprise when we opened the garage door to find that the whole interior was half an inch deep in driven snow which had been forced through the roof and windows by the perishing wind. And I don't reckon I'll be able to dig my car out for a couple of days. Right now, the only cars that are moving around here are the 4WD variety.

Weather forecast says we're due for rain which will turn instantly to black ice. Think I'll take a quick stroll up to the main road to see whether the garage has sold out of wine (and other essential supplies) yet. We have the neighbours coming round this evening, and it's just not the time of year for drinking Prosecco, which is all we have left in the house. Well, apart from some vintage champagne, and it's not the season for that either.

BJ

[redsturgeon]

Thawing here in Hampshire big time, I think all traces of snow near me will be gone by tomorrow night.

I think I might try some of my Hungarian Palinka tonight, bought as a birthday present and I've been saving it for the right moment.

John

[AleisterCrowley]

Looked out about 9am and still white and frosty: wandered up to shops at lunch and almost completely gone - much milder.

[Clitheroekid]

I've loved the last few days. Because the Pennines tend to stop the snow it's a fairly rare sight in the County Palatine of Lancaster. But this time said snow managed to escape the clutches of the White Rose, and I've been out playing in my Fiat Panda 4x4 ever since

Wednesday was a perfect day, blue skies and sunshine, and plenty of back roads with a couple of inches of snow. I had the roads to myself, and had as much fun as is possible without the removal of clothing



There was more snow overnight, so I set off for further frolics on Thursday morning - and rapidly learned the limits of 4x4 ...

I was merrily bowling along a back road and it was fine - very similar to the road in the first pic. But as I came round a bend there was a sort of `flump' sound, as I headed straight into a snowdrift! The road was next to a fairly open hedge, and the very strong wind had blown snow off the adjacent field to make a drift across the road a couple of feet deep.

I'd only been driving at around 20 - 25 mph, but the momentum of the car had carried it about 15 feet into the drift. This meant that the car was actually resting on snow, so although I shifted some of the snow from around the car I soon realised it was a waste of time, as the wheels were no longer in touch with the road surface.

In order to get the wheels back on the road I would have had to clear the snow from underneath the car. But (slap wrists!) I didn't have a shovel, so there was no way I could do this. I was also working in the equivalent of a blizzard, as the snow was being blown at high speed against both me and the car.



It was very frustrating, as I was so near to driveable road, but I'm afraid I had to admit defeat. I rang a chum who came up and towed me, rather ignominiously, the 15 feet back to civilisation.

But splendid fun - just the way winter should be!

[Dod101]

But splendid fun - just the way winter should be!

Actually no. If you lived any where near me you would have been (correctly) called an irresponsible so and so. We have had a huge amount of problems getting to what seem accessible local villages but finding them just the opposite, and, what is more, they are rapidly running out of stuff like milk, bread, fresh butcher meat and so on. Actually the stuff of survival for some.

The other side of it is that milk tankers have been unable to access farms so that milk has been poured away at the same time as pasteurised stuff has not arrived at the local NISA. It has actually been quite a serious week or so.

Sorry to put a damper on your fun.

Dod

[Pastcaring]

cI remember winter.

Working on Esso Northumbria,ship aii open on a cold day on the banks of the Tyne.

The icicle on the end of my nose ,always there.

Bus always getting stuck in snow going home in the pich black

Sorry about this but if it is any comfort we are having our coldest summer on record down here in Western Aus.Every day is 30 C,blue skies and a gentle breeze. I feel really guilty if I don't do 2 hours on the pushbike,off to have a ride along the coast now.

Hope everybody does OK and keeps warm.

Working in the Amsterdam north shipyard ,January 76 I think,cold snap overnight.I think it rained and we woke up to everything being covered in two inches of ice,seemed as if it froze instantly.

Everybody ice skating on the canals,when the ice started breaking up it was about 12 inches thick. Happy days ( possibly )

[Pastcaring]

Forgot again,bloody old age

As Frank Zappa wisely said ( father Eskimo talking to young son )

Always watch where the huskies go,never eat that yellow snow.

[redsturgeon]

No snow at all on the ground now...went out for coffee...8.5c and sunny like a spring day!

John

[Howard]

In order to get the wheels back on the road I would have had to clear the snow from underneath the car. But (slap wrists!) I didn't have a shovel, so there was no way I could do this.

When I lived in the North East, in winter, I occasionally had a similar experience to yours. Rather than a shovel, the best solution was to put 3ft by 2ft strips of old carpet under the driving wheels. Driving over them, they were amazingly effective in lifting the car up onto the snow and allowed perhaps a 10 ft "leap" along the road. I only used two with a front wheel drive car, but with four wheel drive, four strips might be even better.

Much easier and more effective than shovelling and not too heavy or bulky if kept in the boot during winter.

Apologies if this advice is too late! But should you experience the urge to drive in snow again, they would be a useful accessory.

Happy Driving.

Howard

[AleisterCrowley]

Well yer cat likes it.

I walked past a patch of grass yesterday, on which there was a solitary carrot.
A snowman skeleton?