what I have learned today.

[Cudzoziemiec]

That in addition to the one in South Gloucestershire, there is a Pennsylvania in Devon. Both were named after the US state.

Were they? I always thought the one in Gloucestershire – I didn't know there was one in Devon – was named after the Penn Family, one of who (William?) later went on to found the US state; ie the village and the state were named independently but after the same person or family. But it sounds like you actually know what you're talking about!

[Vince]

I couldn't believe that the one horse petrol station village on the A46 could have given rise to a whole US state and it turns out it didn't.
It was the Quakers in the case of both UK Pennsylvanias.

Courtesy of Wikinaccurate.

[David Martin]

That in addition to the one in South Gloucestershire, there is a Pennsylvania in Devon. Both were named after the US state.

There is one just outside Bath as well, on the road to the M4

[Kim]

How to reboot barakta's desk.   

[Cudzoziemiec]

That in addition to the one in South Gloucestershire, there is a Pennsylvania in Devon. Both were named after the US state.

There is one just outside Bath as well, on the road to the M4

I presume that's the S. Glos one that Vince is talking about.
Yes, the Penns were defo Quakers.

Mind you, talking about the A46 not that far from Bath, I always confuse Dunkirk and Petty France. Can never remember which is the place and which the hotel (there are – or used to be – two hotels there. I'm pretty sure the one on the right as you head north used to be the Petty France. Or was it the one on the other side? Or was Petty France strictly speaking a separate hamlet?)

[cycleman]

How to reboot barakta's desk.   

What. You kicked it    ☺

[Kim]

How to reboot barakta's desk.   

What. You kicked it    ☺

It goes up and down, so she can vary her posture.  For barakta-friendliness, this is motorised, rather than the usual hand-cranked arrangement, and it's a legal requirement to hum the Thunderbirds theme when it's in action.  She was demonstrating this to nikki OTP, when it got to the bottom of the range of travel and stubbornly refused to move again (which, with hindsight, I realise is preferable to it getting stuck at the top - about head height).

Turns out there's a procedure for calibrating what position the motor controller thinks it's in.  Invoking that brought it back to life.  And yes, I did try thumping it first (and more scientifically, checking the continuity on the switch, which is a known failure point).

[Canardly]

That Saladin was a Kurd.

[Vince]

That in addition to the one in South Gloucestershire, there is a Pennsylvania in Devon. Both were named after the US state.

There is one just outside Bath as well, on the road to the M4

I presume that's the S. Glos one that Vince is talking about.
Yes, the Penns were defo Quakers.

Mind you, talking about the A46 not that far from Bath, I always confuse Dunkirk and Petty France. Can never remember which is the place and which the hotel (there are – or used to be – two hotels there. I'm pretty sure the one on the right as you head north used to be the Petty France. Or was it the one on the other side? Or was Petty France strictly speaking a separate hamlet?)

They are separate hamlets. Petty France is first as you head North on the A46, then Dunkirk is on the junction with A433 to Tetbury.

[Tim Hall]

How to reboot barakta's desk.   

What. You kicked it    ☺

It goes up and down, so she can vary her posture.  For barakta-friendliness, this is motorised, rather than the usual hand-cranked arrangement, and it's a legal requirement to hum the Thunderbirds theme when it's in action. 

When a stair lift was first installed for my mum, a norty boy (1), who should know better, downloaded onto his phone, and then played, the Thunderbirds theme as she made her inaugural descent.



(1) Me.

[ElyDave]

How to reboot barakta's desk.   

What. You kicked it    ☺

It goes up and down, so she can vary her posture.  For barakta-friendliness, this is motorised, rather than the usual hand-cranked arrangement, and it's a legal requirement to hum the Thunderbirds theme when it's in action. 

When a stair lift was first installed for my mum, a norty boy (1), who should know better, downloaded onto his phone, and then played, the Thunderbirds theme as she made her inaugural descent.



(1) Me.

I will now have that in mind every time I play with my own sit/stand desk (also motorised)

[ElyDave]

That in addition to the one in South Gloucestershire, there is a Pennsylvania in Devon. Both were named after the US state.

There is one just outside Bath as well, on the road to the M4

I presume that's the S. Glos one that Vince is talking about.
Yes, the Penns were defo Quakers.

Mind you, talking about the A46 not that far from Bath, I always confuse Dunkirk and Petty France. Can never remember which is the place and which the hotel (there are – or used to be – two hotels there. I'm pretty sure the one on the right as you head north used to be the Petty France. Or was it the one on the other side? Or was Petty France strictly speaking a separate hamlet?)

I remember Petty France well, passing there in my Uni days.

There is a Dunkirk around the corner from me as well in rural Cambs.

[Steph]

There is a Dunkirk in Kent, and in County Durham near Washington there are New York, Quebec and Philadelphia.

Anyway, what a name for a beasty
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Screaming_hairy_armadillo

[Cudzoziemiec]

The best New-World-in-the-Old-Continent placename I've ever seen was by the side of the S7 expressway somewhere between Warsaw and Olsztyn in northern Poland, where a huge, handcarved sign proudly proclaimed AMERYKA by two dilapidated wooden shacks. Pitifully inspiring.

[Guy]

I was transported to Botany Bay. (My Dad had to see someone in Enfield so we put my bike in the car. I got dropped off in Botany Bay and rode home, about 60 miles avoiding major roads.)

I've also ridden through Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and Gibraltar, all without leaving England.

[Vince]

Alt Graphic.

On the UK international keyboard alt gr 4 is € for instance.   alt gr 2 on a Swedish keyboard should be the @ symbol.   Perhaps the keyboard is not Swedish?

This. Thanks PB.
€€€€€€€€€€€€€

[mcshroom]

Also a New York in Rotherham, and a Rhodesia and a Wales not far away

[ElyDave]

The value of a sharp knife.

Whilst preparing my very tasty lunch of assorted veggies sauted in copious olive oil with a nice tofu sausage thrown in, I managed to remove a chunk of the end of my thumb. 

It was surprisingy less bleedy and ouchie than I expected, glad I keep the knives sharp.

[Wombat]

Also a New York in Rotherham, and a Rhodesia and a Wales not far away

and a Palestine in Hampshire, and an Alamein not far away.

[ElyDave]

also a few Hollands or New Hollands around in the flatlands of East Anglia, Linclolnshire, East Yorks

[Mr Larrington]

There's also a New York near Coningsby, Lincs, and I think there's a Californi near there too.  By way of contrast, in Montana it is possible to drive from Chester to Inverness in under ten minutes.

[ElyDave]

I live in California.

One of the neighbouring villages has a The Americas

Lots of ex-WWII USAF/USAAC airbases in these parts

[Tim Hall]

also a few Hollands or New Hollands around in the flatlands of East Anglia, Linclolnshire, East Yorks

New Hollands are often found on farms.

[Torslanda]

That DuraAce 11spd bar end shifters come with left and right specific spacers. And that it is important not to mix them up. Because when, inadvertently or inattentively, you do (hypothetically speaking) and realise your mistake, you might then find that the ratchety bit on the RH shifter might detach itself from the lever leaving you with a useless pile of bits.*

Hmm... That would be an expensive mistake to make, wouldn't it?



*Might have helped if they'd come with instructions but that's the penalty of buying stuff that's not boxed.

[Basil]

Are the several place name posters above aware of this thread?
https://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=16657.0