The Chariot is now an EV

Huh?

Well, not the Chariot precisely, but the conveyance used by our Boadicea to travel from place to place. We’ve put our ICE-powered companion out to grass- she was getting a little frail and battered around the edges – and purchased a bright-eyed, lecky-driven, millennium replacement.

Well, not quite, but the warrants have been signed, the executioner booked and the changeover set for the end of the month. Our extended test drive convinced us both that the future is already here, even for a pair of seniors like us.

Once we have our new chariot we’ll bore you with the details of our experiences, no doubt. 😎

EV = Electric Vehicle.
ICE = Internal Combustion Engine (petrol/gas or diesel)

Dysfunctional Canadians

One thing I like about the gym I belong to is that I can watch Netflix on most of the exercise equipment. Recently, I’ve been watching a Canadian television programme: “Under Arrest”. It follows police throughout Canada as they make arrests and deal with crimes. One thing that struck me is just how many dysfunctional people there are in Canada. The Americans are accused of having problems, a fact they don’t deny. Canada is portrayed as some sort of paradise which, clearly, it is not. Has anyone else had their eyes opened about a place that is perhaps more celebrated than it should be?

Sorry, what did you say?

From time to time, I use australianisms in my posts – that is, I drop into Strine rather than sticking with the Sarf Lunnon English that I grew up speaking. After nigh on 30 years, it’s hard not to go native. A few of youse respected Charioteers are not bothered by my use of Strine – OZ and Christopher in particular are both reasonably fluent in the dialect – but it’s harder on those of you that haven’t been Down Under.

Today I found an article in the SMH (Sydney Morning Herald) written by a journo who obviously deplores the development and use of our own variety of English, which may amuse you. I hope so, anyway.

He’s wrong, of course; Aussies will speak whatever dialect our teenagers tell us to, and if visitors can’t understand – tough!

The author even gets his standard Italian spelling wrong – it’s Parmigiana with a ‘g’, not a ‘j’, but not to worry! 😎

Question for Sipu

I’ve recently been following the saga of the DA and Patricia de Lille. I’m having a hard time following what’s actually going on and what the story is. There’s been so much obfuscation and mud slinging on both sides that it’s hard to sift through it all.

It seems as if de Lille is a big name in South African politics, but that she’s always been damaged goods and a bit of a problematic case for the DA from the beginning. Refusing her admission wasn’t easy, but getting rid of her has been just as, if not more, problematic. It seems as if the only one that’s benefiting from the infighting in the ANC and now DA is Julius Malema and his EFF.

For Christina

One of the leading lights of this Extinction Rebellion carry-on is a woman who teaches Indonesian gamelan music in prisons.  I just wondered whether you might care to switch from Bessarabian clog dancing to this, Christina, as an alternative example of useless qualifications (unless of course you’re actually living in Indonesia).

Of Laksa and Kangaroos II

There is something off-putting about Melbourne’s airport. Whereas Sydney and Brisbane have trains connecting their airports to the city centre, Melbourne only has coaches. That’s fair enough, I suppose. One does get there eventually. It does, however, come off as being a bit naff. One expects that from Sacramento, from Cardiff or even from Dublin — not the second city and former capital of a major country. Continue reading “Of Laksa and Kangaroos II”

Nervous Flyers . . .

. . . close your eyes or hide behind the sofa

Amongst our Charioteers there are, as far as I remember, at least two qualified commercial pilots who have flown 737s, another who has worked on building and testing air frames, and a further couple or perhaps more of us who have worked in one or more fields in ATC. If any of you don’t agree with my take on recent events, don’t be shy, tell me why I’m wrong.

Continue reading “Nervous Flyers . . .”

Six years for Paedo-ex-Cardinal Pell

The gag order was cancelled when the second trial was not proceeded with – the prosecution said something silly about leaving the papers on a train, or the dog eating them – whatever. The victim(s) were, unsurprisingly, more than a little miffed, but the official response was “tough”.

So Australians were then allowed to know what the rest of the world already knew, that Pell had been found guilty at the first trial by a unanimous jury. His rich and powerful friends and colleagues immediately screamed that they didn’t believe it, that their mate George wouldn’t do anything like that, that the jury was corrupt and so on, ad bloody nauseam. They were a little stunned when most Aussies and the official Roman Catholic church told them to shut up and respect the court, the jury and the victims. Pell immediately applied for an appeal (three points, one of which was that the jury’s verdict had been unreasonable! The arrogance of the man!).

Today Pell was sentenced to 6 years in prison, with a minimum of 3 years and 8 months to be served before he could apply for parole. The Judge was scathing about Pell’s lack of remorse and his refusal to accept his guilt.

The initial appeal hearing will be in June, but for now it’s back to his cell for George. Once regarded as the third most powerful man in the RC church, earmarked by many as the next pope in waiting, regarding himself as cast iron and far too senior to be troubled by the laws of men, he’s finally got his comeuppance. How are the mighty fallen!

Perhaps this will “encourager les autres”. Je m’en doubte. 😢