chrisp65

When the sun is out and nobody else has noticed and I want to pootle up a country lane to a pub lunch, I have a part share in a manual Triumph Spitfire. When I'm on the M25 at 5:30pm, or commuting in to town on the morning rush hour, or negotiating my third multi storey car park of the day...not so much. Like I say, I've done a quarter of a million miles on that automatic box, I'd be on my third set of knees now if that was a manual.

It's almost like different people like different things! Quarter of a million miles on an auto box with sport, standard and comfort settings at the press of a button. 0-60 in 9 seconds, or, 47mpg Left hand free for pasties or coffee or rooting through the CD box. Had to drive a manual through rush hour traffic a little while back, slow down...clutch...neutral...hand brake..clutch...first...hand brake and away!...oooh we're stopping again..slow down...clutch..neutral..hand brake... The equivalent in my auto is..press go.. press stop. No wonder you're all so slow through town. Can you get full cruise control and speed limiter on a manual these days, or is it still one or the other?

I'd never ever voluntarily go back to a manual. Stupid things.

Don't forget to put plywood over your windows. Hopefully you have enough dry goods in storage to wait this one out. Personally, I just bought a ticket for a weekender music festival. **** 'em. I'll die dad dancing.

I'm not at liberty to talk about individual cases. On the whole, over the last few years, we've disrupted dozens of plots and saved countless lives. Now stop playing for time and get your family on that **** chinook. If you have a complaint about lack of evidence or human rights or some other do gooder nonsense you can write me a letter from the Benghazi Hilton.

32.87% But I have you in the guilty pile, you're on the next Chinook. I can't tell you why, it would compromise my sources and risk more lives. You are guilty. We've got to be seen to do something visible, quick and simple. I don't apologise for being tough, I don't apologise for protecting democracy.

don't take this as aggressive it's just an illustration, insert any name you fancy: I know that mykeyb/paulc/rugeley is a real threat to the UK. I can't show people the evidence, you will have to trust my secret information, it's not going to court it wouldn't make the grade for a prosecution, you will have to trust me and my informants, you will have to accept that to stop innocent men, women and children being murdered it is for the general good of the nation that mykeyb is somehow dropped off in Libya. Obviously we can't afford to leave a now disgruntled wife and child to stay here with a grievance, so they are also being sent to Tripoli to fend for themselves. Anybody protesting for him to remain, is also part of the same cell. You'll be able to see the evidence in maybe 25 years or so. Just being pro-active in the interest of the majority. What's the alternative? Off you go. Just protecting our freedom. Bye.

If there is actual evidence of anything, why are they on the streets and not in prison? If there isn't evidence, are we just going to accept the state nominating people for removal without any substantive evidence? We don't have the evidence to prosecute but we do have the evidence to deport families into failed state war zones? Quite a knee jerk couple of days.

my love of the repetitive

The Beatles: Were just a band.Led Zepplin: Just a band.The Beach Boys: Just a band.The Sex Pistols: Just a band.The Clash: Just a band.Crass: Just a band.Minor Threat: Just a band.The Cure: Were just a band.The Smiths: Just a band.Nirvana: Just a band.The Pixies: Just a band.Oasis: Just a band.Radiohead: Just a band.Bloc Party: Just a band.The Arctic Monkeys: Just a band.The next big thing... Just a band.Thou shalt not make repetitive generic music, thou shalt not make repetitive generic music, thou shalt not make repetitive generic music, thou shalt not make repetitive generic music.

I've just been taken to a whole new level of WTF!

Yep, that's nice. Track 6 on 17 minutes is a fave, don't think I've ever heard a version of None Shall Escape The Judgement that I didn't like. Got the Johnnie Clarke version on a CD for the weekend. Going to Merthyr Rising so it's important to get the car music sorted early!

No, don't have that, but it looks like a buy without too much thought required, doesn't it. Bunny on the cover and that little 'J'. Got to go out now 'cos I'm too disorganised to have got the kids lunch stuff earlier when I was stood by a shop having a right good natter...

strong stable

Tories have removed stopping the sale of all ivory from their manifesto. Apply a little stress, scratch the surface, there they are, the nasty party.

Theresa May, go and look in the mirror and say 'strong and stable'. But don't say it like your about to cry, don't say it like you forgot your homework and don't say it like you just sharted. Say it like you believe it, because if you don't, well that means nobody does. (I appreciate mirrors may have their own pitfalls for you)

there's a slow build drama going between a frog and a bug in my pond

hmmm, I don't think I'm naive in these matters. My wife is a secret agent and often has to work away for days at a time with D'wayne and Shakaal from the same undercover unit. So I get loads of time to look up this sort of stuff. I'm not stupid.

I want to join in this conversation, but I've just realised a flaw in my plan. I mix it up a bit because en route home I pass Waitrose and Aldi/Lidl so I shop at both. But I genuinely can't remember if it's a Lidl or an Aldi that I'm going in? Anyway, it's really good at the stuff it's really good at. Cartons of orange juice and apple juice taste great and are a fraction of the price of other shops. We also picked up a full size drum kit for £99 that turned out to be bloody excellent. Oh, and their Jaffa Cakes are world class. It's the one with a crazy aisle of cheap random stuff down the middle, pensioners slippers, greenhouses, thermal underwear and axes. Anyway, yeah, Waitrose for veg, passata, vegetarian stuff, The Observer and perving at posh milf. Aldi / Lidl for the milk, orange juice, roof insulation and perving at chav girls. Girl at the Aldi/Lidl till showed me her muff once. She was scanning my purchases through when her phone buzzed. For reasons I've often pondered she was keeping her phone tucked down the front of her knickers, so she just pulled the waist band of her trousers and knickers, had a quick look at the old Nokia, snapped it all shut, then carried on with the scanning. No tattoo, light skin, neat hair. I reckon I'd recognise her again.

apparently it's only if you've got loads of kids, because then that counts as a litter