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When you get used to it you can shift the gears without the clutch at all, just run the revs up and down with the throttle



to upshift fast they used to have a clutch brake

I remembered something else from my childhood holidays, as a special treat I would get one of those packs of small boxes of different breakfast cereals to eat in the evening when we were in a bed and breakfast. That obviously didn't do much good. Also a special treat - orange and passion fruit juice in a stylish bottle. Hot dogs, not so much.

The old cumbersome and slow breakdown truck we had at the garage I worked at had a gearbox that needed double declutch, it took me a while getting used to it but eventually it was no trouble, that said I don't think I'd like to go back to it modern synchromesh boxes are far superior

Yes and no, a decent multispeed box like a Fuller is a class apart from a David Brown, and some synchro truck boxes had a very heavy shift in comparison. A lot of modern trucks have auto boxes, then they need a bunch of buttons and switches to override them when necessary, I bet they wouldn't go half a million miles without maintenance.

Admit synchros work well in cars, they don't have to handle the torque and don't wear out so fast. My previous Qashqai was the best of both worlds, synchro but would happily do clutchless shifts mainly between the top three close ratio gears. My current one has a different box and insists on the clutch.

My other favourite was the Wilson/self changing gears five speed much used in Bristol buses, you chose when to shift with the lever and the box worked out the details



too much power loss/not fuel efficient in trucks

Back to the swimmer guy, I decided to look up what he ate

https://www.redbull.com/gb-en/ross-edgley-great-british-swim

it seems just about everything. Sponsored by Red Bull, grrrr.

Pretty sure Lewis Pugh is a low carber though.

I spent yesterday cleaning out the pipe to our septic tank which is across the road near the river.
I have a special pipe with a multi jet nozzle that pulls itself along the pipe cleaning as it goes when attach to a pressure washer. My pressure washer is a Kew Hobby and it still works great after many years.
I once found it a satisfying job now I find it all very hard work but I can't think of a man I would trust to do it properly for the price I charge.
Derek

Long birder wrote:I spent yesterday cleaning out the pipe to our septic tank which is across the road near the river.
I have a special pipe with a multi jet nozzle that pulls itself along the pipe cleaning as it goes when attach to a pressure washer. My pressure washer is a Kew Hobby and it still works great after many years.
I once found it a satisfying job now I find it all very hard work but I can't think of a man I would trust to do it properly for the price I charge.
Derek

Yes I find as I get older routine jobs around the house and gardens take longer and and seem more tiring, unfortunately we can't reverse ageing it's just something we have to live with 

Yes I'm increasingly paying people to do stuff I used to do myself. Especially when shit is involved. Last time I had a blockage I tried Dyno-Rod, £85 and the best thing was they poked a video camera up the sewer which showed the actual structure of the pipe was excellent once the crud had been blasted off the surface.

Had to do a hard reset on my Moto g4 last week. Playstore would not work and I had lost a number of functions. Somewhat of a bind.

Oh and after 12 weeks in ketosis my hba1c is not improved much at 45. With cutting out refined carb completely my hba1c has only come down from max of 50 six years ago.
Mind you low carb stopped RH completely.
I'll never get any meds to bring it down further because I am in the pre-diabetic range.

Hba1c is key to poor diagnosis, it's a crap parameter!
regards
Derek

I've been lucky with mine, no problems but then I don't use it much. I spent so much or my working life nailed to a phone that I've become somewhat allergic in recent years.

Roll on the invention of a pocket insulin meter, that would be VERY useful.

Well this is different!

Parrot tries to order strawberries and watermelon from Amazon's Alexa !

Yes, apparently "A mischievous parrot was caught ordering strawberries, watermelons and ice-cream after ‘falling in love’ with Amazon’s voice-activated device Alexa.

Rocco, a homeless African grey, keeps using the personal assistant to order his favourite treats, as well kites and light bulbs, and likes to set the mood by playing romantic music.

The clever bird was taken in by the National Animal Welfare Trust’s Berkshire centre earlier this year after he was found as a stray."

Read/see more here
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/offbeat/parrot-tries-to-order-strawberries-and-watermelon-from-amazons-alexa/ar-BBQZ20P?ocid=spartanntp

All the best Jan

> > > > >

I see in many of the news outlets today, that the worlds oldest man has died at the age of 113yrs … what an amazing age.

Masazo Nonaka died in the early hours of Sunday while sleeping at his home - a hot springs inn - in northern Japan.

He was born on July 25, 1905, two years after the Wright Brothers celebrated the first power-driven flight and just months before Einstein published his theory of relativity.

He was already 40 when America dropped the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki at the end of the Second World War.

Nonaka grew up in a large family and succeeded his parents running the families 106-year-old inn - now managed by Yuko, (his grand-daughter).

His family put his long life down to the fact he lived his life in a way that did not bring him stress.

May he R.I.P.

All the best Jan

Can you believe it's the 1st of June 2019 where is this year going? It's certainly flying by very quickly.


Beautiful sunshine today, spent some time sitting in the garden … a cup of tea always tastes better outside must be getting near Pimms summer-time LOL!

Enjoy your weekend and have a happy month of June.

All the best Jan

I last wrote here (1st June) beautiful sunshine …

Well, a little bit different today! The rain was hammering down

Checking the news it seems Storm Miguel is to blame, see more here
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7115367/UK-weather-Storm-Miguel-bring-rain-thunderstorms-flooding-risk-south.html

Keep as dry as you can … if all else fails stay in and enjoy a cuppa

All the best Jan

> > > > >

Looks like we (in the UK) are in for a hot weekend and some glorious sunshine

So do have a good one and don't forget to stay hydrated …
https://thelowcarbdiabetic.blogspot.com/2019/06/its-hot-stay-hydrated-these-foods-may.html

Wherever you are and whatever the weather, have a great weekend.

All the best Jan

There's a lot of truth in this I think !!!

All the best Jan

Tuesday 5th November and Bonfire Night (Fireworks) here in the UK...

I'm not sure how many will be having 'Bonfire Night' tonight the weather isn't too good in my part of the UK.

Several family members were going to an organised event last weekend but it was postponed due to the weather, shame for those who were organising it, but I believe it has been re-scheduled!

Take care, and keep safe.

All the best Jan

It's 7th February 2020 and there are weather warnings in force for the UK …

'STORM CIARA is on course to hit the UK this weekend, with five days of Met Office weather warnings in force for wind, rain, snow and fog.'

More to read here
https://www.express.co.uk/news/weather/1239134/UK-weather-forecast-storm-ciara-live-updates-met-office-weather-warnings-snow-wind-rain

In case the weather gets too bad to go out - I checked the kitchen larder and fridge to make sure we had a plentiful supply of low carb food … yes, all ok!

But stay safe and warm  

All the best Jan