The Good News Thread

[itsbruce]

At the beginning of this week, there were over 1000 e-mails in my work in-tray.  I finally managed to allocate the time to set up a proper ticketing system; now there are fewer than 100.

And I persuaded the chairman of the board to let me recruit more staff.

[Jaded]

I is 40. 

40 is the new 21! 

Belated felicitations...   how's the head?

Misread. Again.   

Happy birthday!!!

[Jaded]

The testator made you the beneficiary of the deposit box which contains 314,000GB

Are you sure it isn't just a RAID Array?

[CAMRAMan]

Ms AWL was 40 yesterday as well!

[L CC]

What a present.
The hospital phoned to say it's all clear.
I'm amazed how relieved I am, I was obviously more worried than I thought, or pretended to be. Excellent.

[clarion]

Great news.

[mike]

I'm on a weekend walking holiday, a birthday present from the lovely mrs mike, staying in a b&b about 5 miles from Aviemore. I wandered down to the local for a refreshing pint before dinner and was walking to the bar for my second when I realized the bloke I sort of recognised at the table on the far side of the room, the one who I'd seen looking at me before, was someone I was at uni with 18 years ago and haven't seen for 15!!  He was living in Moscow for years but just moved to 1/2 mile away and I was drinking in his local!

   

Am now very, very drunk.

[TimO]

I just got an email from Planet-X saying that they'll be building my n+1, in a few days.

Yay!
Happy bounce.

It's shipped, so it ought to be here tomorrow.

Even happier bounce!

(Assuming my Arkel Trunk Bag and Randonneur Rack arrives in time, and it's dry, I may use it for the next, and year's final, FNRttC).

[CrinklyLion]

Dearly_Beloved just came home from work clutching his latest purchase.  Marathon Winters.  For his bike because he doesn't want to have to stop riding when the snow starts

(Mind, you know who'll get lumbered with all the bike-cleaning, don't you...)

[LindaG]

Dearly_Beloved just came home from work clutching his latest purchase.  Marathon Winters.  For his bike because he doesn't want to have to stop riding when the snow starts

(Mind, you know who'll get lumbered with all the bike-cleaning, don't you...)

Blimey!  Did you convert him?  I thought he was a bit of a reluctant cyclist, but Marathon Winters ... that's a hardcore purchase   

[CrinklyLion]

Well, he came off on ice twice last year, and once was when turning right at a junction with traffic and with the littly in the babyseat at the time so I can see his logic.... but, for someone who a year ago hadn't ridden a bike since his paper round the best part of 20 years ago, he was bizarrely pleased with his purchase!

[Andrij]

(Mind, you know who'll get lumbered with all the bike-cleaning, don't you...)

Well, the cubs need to learn at some point.
 

[CrinklyLion]

And, of course, the other plus point is that his bike is only slightly too big for me.... as in, if I hammer the seat down as far as it'll go I can turn the pedals and can just about get a foot down without causing injury.  So I can 'borrow' it when necessary 

[Arch]

(Mind, you know who'll get lumbered with all the bike-cleaning, don't you...)

Well, the cubs need to learn at some point.
 

I have a vision of a three year old armed with Muck Off and j cloths, and it isn't pretty!

[perpetual dan]

(Mind, you know who'll get lumbered with all the bike-cleaning, don't you...)

Well, the cubs need to learn at some point.
 

I have a vision of a three year old armed with Muck Off and j cloths, and it isn't pretty!

I'm never sure whether it would be easier to clean the bike rather than clean the child that's helped to clean the bike.

[Regulator]

(Mind, you know who'll get lumbered with all the bike-cleaning, don't you...)

Well, the cubs need to learn at some point.
 

I have a vision of a three year old armed with Muck Off and j cloths, and it isn't pretty!

I'm never sure whether it would be easier to clean the bike rather than clean the child that's helped to clean the bike.

You can hose both down.... 

[TimO]

I just got an email from Planet-X saying that they'll be building my n+1, in a few days.

It's shipped, so it ought to be here tomorrow.
...(Assuming my Arkel Trunk Bag and Randonneur Rack arrives in time, and it's dry, I may use it for the next, and year's final, FNRttC).

The Trunk Bag and Rack arrived this morning, and the bicycle is due to arrive this afternoon.

Perfect timing with the deliveries.  Unfortunately it'll be after sunset by the time it turns up, and I'm not sure that cycling a brand new bike, even if I fitted lights, would be a smart move in the dark!

The Arkel Bag is rather nicely put together.  For the second time running, a delivery from Arkel has not been caught for VAT or Duty.  More yay!

[TimO]

It's shipped, so it ought to be here tomorrow.

DPD bod just arrived with a very big parcel.  I've never had an entire bicycle posted to me assembled before, and gods that's a big box.  The Kaffenback was delivered in bits, so wasn't half as voluminous.

The box was so big, I had to take it outside to fold it flat, I didn't have enough room in the house to bend it over!  I feel a trip to the local recycling place coming on, I've got enough cardboard boxes in the house to build a small house out of cardboard.

The bike is lovely, and very red.  I'll post some piccies tomorrow, when I'm at work, where the cable to connect to my phone is!

I've had a little play with the double tap shifters, which are a bit odd.  You press them inwards to both shift up and down, just a slight push vs a bigger push.  Rather strange, but I guess I'll get used to it.

It has white brake hoods, which are just asking to get dirty.  I think I'll use a set of white pedals, so the hoods, pedals, and lettering on the frame are all white on red.

Happy jig.

[CrinklyLion]

So, has it been out for its first trip yet?  How is it?  Will the kaffenback's feelings be hurt at the new arrival?  When will it appear on member's bikes?

[TimO]

I'm afraid once I'd unpacked it, and fiddled with it, it was too dark to take it out.

I think I can fit a spare front light mount to it, but I haven't worked out where to put rear lights yet.

That aside, I think riding it in the dark would be a bad idea, until I'm totally comfy with things like the double tap shifters, which are quite different from anything else I've ever had.

I'm not sure I'll have time to try it out tomorrow either.  I need to be in early for a meeting, and then I'll probably spend the rest of the day trying to complete the stuff which was meant to be done today whilst I was at home waiting for the bike to be delivered.

It's probably best left until the weekend, so I can adjust everything carefully, and make sure it's all done up tight.  I don't entirely trust bikes put together by someone else.

[hellymedic]

(Mind, you know who'll get lumbered with all the bike-cleaning, don't you...)

Well, the cubs need to learn at some point.
 

I have a vision of a three year old armed with Muck Off and j cloths, and it isn't pretty!

I'm never sure whether it would be easier to clean the bike rather than clean the child that's helped to clean the bike.

IME bikes don't scream if soap goes in the wrong place...

[Kim]

IME bikes don't scream if soap goes in the wrong place...

There must be a Kool Stop toe-in thread somewhere to prove the contrary...   

[TimO]

... When will it appear on member's bikes?

It's up there, and very red.

[clarion]

Having obtained some blotting paper, I have now filled my fountain pen and had fun writing with it.

I also have a black thumb

[Mr Larrington]

It seems that the department in which I earn my crust is to be merged with its equivalent in another division of The BigCo.  It is therefore suspected that we will want to have all the machines in one place, and that's unlikely to be here coz our machine room is already full and there's no space to expand it.  So it'd have to be at the other lot's place, which is in High Holborn.  Which would mean I'd have to start riding to jbex again.

(Crosses fingers)