My Volvo V40

Well, I have owned this car for a little over 2 weeks now and so far?

It's nice.

It's nice to look at, it's nice to drive, it's nice to be in, it's nice and comfortable, it's nice and relaxing, it's nice and fuss free, it's gear change is nice, it's handling is nice, economy is nice, the heated leather seats are nice, and hold you in a nice way, the visibility is nice, the heater is nice.

I can't say anything bad really.

Except one thing.

It's nice.

Don't get me wrong, I like the car. It is hard not to. But I like it in the same way I like not having the clap.

It is a lot of car. It has enough toys to keep anyone happy. It has nice features like the light you home headlamps, and the little plastic clip on the windscreen for holding parking tickets.
I can get in it knowing that it will work. It's a Volvo for christ sake. As long as it has an engine and 4 wheels, it will work. It is not an unpleasant car.

But, it isn't fun.
The Vitara I had was fun. No matter where I drove, I did so with a smile on my face. The Vitara was fun to drive, fun to be in, fun to look at, fun knowing that despite having a foot of snow on the roof, it will still start and go. I got in it with a smile on my face, and I got out with a smile on my face. I put that car through hell and back, and it just laughed back with that look of 'Let's do it again' about it. The exhaust got ripped off in blaenau ffestiniog, and it charged down the M5 sounding like a WW2 fighter bomber. I had ear defenders on my head, and I still had a smile on my face.

I don't get that fun factor in the Volvo, but to be fair, a Volvo isn't meant to be fun. It's meant to be,
Well....


Nice.

Lady goes to market?

"Lady goes to Market, Prim prim prim.
Gentleman goes to market, Trott, trott, trott.
But the farmer goes to market, Jigga jigga jigga jigga jigga jigga jig."

These words were often recited to me while I was growing up. Mostly by my Grandmother on the Smith side of the family. All my infanthood, I heard this. As younger cousins grew up, I heard these words, As the children of my elder cousins grew, they were subjected to these words.
So it is only natural that I recite these words to my children as they grow.

I thought this was a common rhyme. Said when jigging the child upon your knee. But while recently visiting my youngest child, his mother told me off for saying it, because it is 'made up shit'.

So in a lull from my usual internet activities, I decide to google this rhyme.
1 result.
Yep, just one result.
A very brief mention of the rhyme, on emma's diary.
That is it.
So is this rhyme rare, or is the lack of info about it on the net a sign that rhymes are dying?
Maybe, it is a Black Country rhyme. As my grandmother was from there.
Who knows. But because of the lack of mentions of it, I decided to give it one.

Lady goes to Market, Prim prim prim.
Gentleman goes to market, Trott, trott, trott.
But the farmer goes to market, Jigga jigga jigga jigga jigga jigga jig.

Wierd things I think of #1

Car ages:

I was thinking earlier, that the car I currently own is the newest I have owned. It is a 1997 P reg.
Or is it?
It is the newest in the sense that it is newer than the rest of the cars I have owned, if I still had them all. But is it the newest car relative to when I owned it?
No

My first car was a 1982 Austin maxi. I owned this in 1993. So that was 11 years old.
Next was a MK4 Cortina. 1976. It was 17 years old when I owned it in 1993.
Next was a 1983 Ford Escort MK3. I owned this in 1994. 11 years old.
Mk3 Capri. 1983 again. I had this in 1995. 12 years old.
Sierra Sapphire. 1987. I owned this in 1995. 8 years old.
Mk3 Escort. 1982. Owned in 97. 15 years old.
Peugeot 309GTi. 1988. owned in 98. 10 years old.
Mk2 Sierra. 1990. owned in 2000. 10 years old.
MK5 Escort. 1993. Owned in 2002. 9 years old.
Vauxhall Senator. 1992. owned in 2004. 12 years old.
Renault Espace. 1990. Owned in 2004. 14 years old.
LDV200. 1997. Owned in 2005. 8 years old.
Vauxhall Astra. 1996. Owned in 2007. 11 years old.
Suzuki Vitara. 1997. Owned in 2008. 11 years old.
Vauxhall Frontera. 1997. Owned now. 15 years old.

So the Sierra Sapphire, and the LDV200 were both 8 years old when I got them. So maybe they were the newest cars I have ever owned?

But there is one last thing to consider. I used to be the registered keeper of a van that the re-enactment group I am with once owned. We bought it in early 2000, and it was a 1997 N reg. So could that be the newest car I have owned?
We had it 10 years before we scrapped it in 2010. It did us well.

The naked Rambler.

RE: BBC News
I see nothing wrong here.
It is the prudishness of others that cause a problem. I reckon if the naked rambler was a woman, then there would be no problems.
Hiding the human body is a way of saying we should be embarrassed about our bodies. Well we shouldn't. Our bodies are part of who we are. No one should ever be embarrassed about who they are. Why should we cover up to spare the blushes of others. We come into the world naked, we create life naked and for the early parts of our evolution we were naked. Clothes are there to keep us warm, not keep us hidden. Yes there is an element of decency in wearing clothes, but this again has evolved from fashion. Not from necessity.
This guy should be left alone to do whatever he is doing in peace. He is harming no one except himself.

Another thought, by telling people that the body must be covered, you end up with people embarrassed about their bodies. I have had several partners over the years that refused to wear skirts, short sleeved or strapped tops, or even shorts on extremely hot days. Why? Because they were embarrassed about their bodies. I myself used to refuse wearing shorts for many years due to scarring on my legs. One day, it was just too hot to be wearing jeans so I cut the legs off. I haven't looked back since.

Enjoy your body. It is the only one you will ever have.

Royal photos.

So Prince Harry gets naked, with friends, at a private party. Photo's are leaked, and the publike are outraged at his behaviour.

Kate Middleton gets naked on holiday, a pervy photographer takes a picture, and the public sympathise with her.

What's the difference between the two?
Why is Harry being singled out here?
Why does the public hate Harry so much, when all he has done nothing wrong. I bet many of you have been naked at parties. I know I have.

My new car.

Well a few weeks back, I decided to part with my lovely Suzuki Vitara.
There was 2 reasons for this.
1. It was starting to rust badly.
2. Strange noise from transfer box.
I had been fairly lucky with this car. It had done me proud, lasted well and has been relatively cheap to repair. (compared to previous cars).
my new choice of chariot is a Vauxhall Frontera.
Even though it is not the best model of the group, it is still a very good car and I got it for a very good price.
However, it isn't without flaw.
The first flaw is that you only have 10 seconds from unlocking the car to turning ignition on. Which means, you cant unlock the car, put your shopping in, strap the kids in then get in and start it. Oh no, you have to unlock and turn it on within 10 seconds. This is a pain in the arse.
The second fault was that before I had it, it had to have a repair to the fuel line. Somehow, the repair had come adrift resulting in me using £60 of petrol in 70 miles. Trip back to garage fixed this in 2 minutes.
Other than that, it has been an awesome car so far. Nice to drive, comfortable to sit in, easy to control.  I have enjoyed every minute behind the wheel.
The only issue with it is me. I have spent the best part of the last 4 years driving a low geared car. Which meant I could go up hills in top gear, where most cars would have to change down a gear. Now I drive one of these cars, and I keep forgetting. So end up bogging down on hills.
Tis a minor inconvenience.

It's not f*cking PETROL!!

There is nothing worse, when outside trying to have a little 'quiet' time. I say quiet time, but what I really mean is taking 10 minutes out to play with my radio controlled model cars. Not toys, models.
They are mainly Tamiya, but recently I acquired a Haboa Hyper 7 .21. Where as all the Tamiya cars are electric, the Hyper 7 is nitro fuelled. But while trying to have quiet time, you get the local oiks coming up and giving it the 'wot you doin' mister?' or 'nice petrol car'.
What really pisses me of is when people call them 'petrol cars'. They aren't. They use a fuel called nitro so no petrol there. And the engine is basically a 2 stroke diesel engine. It has a glow plug not a spark plug, and the lubrication is supplied by the fuel.
It's a nice car, I got it second hand as 'faulty'. I was told the reverse doesn't work, and it cuts out on full revs. For a start, not many nitro cars have a reverse. And cutting out on full revs is a sign of poor tuning.
Once I got it home, I cleaned it and tried to start it. It was trying to fire, but it just didn't have the balls.
A quick visit by my brother in law, who has vast knowledge of nitro cars, and we managed to get it running. A few tweeks and I now have a working car.
It does need a stronger steering servo, but it is drivable. So all in all I am quite happy with it.
Not a bad car really.