How to sell a model railway

"beamendsltd" wrote

Like it. Vive la France! :-)

John.

"MartinS" wrote

'Twas a good place to learn what to do with 'ladies' when I were a lad. Still think there's probably some of my offspring kicking around Skeggy! ;-)

John.

"beamendsltd" wrote > The guy in the unit nest door's mate was here on Saturday picking > up the last of his stuff to take to France. His teenage daughter > had been a "problem child" over here, but 6 months in a French > school had transformed her. Here she'd been for eye tests, hearing > tests, been evaluated by everyone including Mr. T. Cobbley, and > finaly "diagnosed" a having Attention Deficit Disorder or whatever > it's called. Had she been "cured" by councelling? Special Needs? > Behavioural Psychologist? Nope. Every time she messed about they > put sellotape on her gob and stood her in the naughty corner for > an hour. As the Head explained to him; "We'll sort out your English > hooligan. Don't worry, people here would only complian if we

*didn't* > do it." >

Life in the paysage is good because the large family units still exist and all levels respect the elders.

My wife taught in a College and vowed never again. The girls had difficulty with any events above the navel and the boys held that if daddy had 200 hectares no-one was entitled to tell them anything.

Discipline and good manners went out of the window more than 30 years ago --- inversely proportional to TV influence. Thatcher then showed everyone how to be well thought of by being selfish. Her favourite people were asset strippers!

The chances of my kids having a pension are very low and no doubt will be told that they are paying for my 5 pensions! This despite my willingness to suffer defferred gratification with a 5 year appenticeship and some 11 years of further education including 2 degrees -- these needed to keep my job! At one time my monthly stoppages were so high that I am sure that the government bought a new hospital each month and that I was responsible for keeping several workshy families.

I have great fondness for the Britain which gave me my start in life but not the one that has bred the new age of polyglot, non anglo self seekers with their 400? languages!

The child referred to in the post would have been expected to function in French from day one without handouts, concessions or special privileges and if retaining britishness and nationality could look forward to unemployment and exclusion from society.

Regards

Very happy in my little backward niche.

All I can say is that from my brief vistits to Brittany if there was a screaming brat in a restaurant, cafe, or even on the street, they were, without exception, British. Completely contrary to my preconceptions, I found the French to be polite enough, friendly, and at least as washed as the British! I did, in a bar, have to pretend to support the IRA thought (there's a Brittany Sepratist Moevement, whatever it's called - painting over town names etc in the local Celitc dialect etc). I also had to drive over couple of hundred yards of cauliflowers that had been dumped on the road to gain compensation as a late frost had damaged the crop - much to the amusement of the protesting farmers who offered cheeful encouragement - thank god for my Defender!

There may be regional variations, but this chap above's three children (teen, ten or so and about eight) had no problem with schools finding English speaking teachers to help them integrate, as was the same for Marky Marks two kids in a different area. Both areas are off the beaten track as far as expat Brits are concerned, so maybe that is significant. Certainly from some of the TV "new life abroad" type programmes some UK people seem to expect to take Little Britain with them and wonder why the locals get annoyed.

Marky Mark was there for five years, and from his experience I'd move at the drop of a hat - a country that simply ignores idiot laws as far as possible has my vote - but I would remember the two golden rules - introduce myself to the Mayor on arrival and listen to him, acting on his "suggestions", and learn the lingo fast. Oh, and never try *too* hard to win at boules!

To show there is another side to the coin, 'Er Indoors went to Paris and had a terrible time - but then that's the same as comparing The Peak District to London I suppose.

Cheers Richard

On Thu, 06 Mar 2008 08:28:30 +0000, beamendsltd wrote:

In message Peter Abraham wrote: > On Wed, 5 Mar 2008 23:16:02 -0000, "John Turner" > wrote: > > > > Regards > > Very happy in my little backward niche. All I can say is that from my brief vistits to Brittany if there was a screaming brat in a restaurant, cafe, or even on the street, they were, without exception, British. Completely contrary to my preconceptions, I found the French to be polite enough, friendly, and at least as washed as the British! I did, in a bar, have to pretend to support the IRA thought (there's a Brittany Sepratist Moevement, whatever it's called - painting over town names etc in the local Celitc dialect etc). I also had to drive over couple of hundred yards of cauliflowers that had been dumped on the road to gain compensation as a late frost had damaged the crop - much to the amusement of the protesting farmers who offered cheeful encouragement - thank god for my Defender! There may be regional variations, but this chap above's three children (teen, ten or so and about eight) had no problem with schools finding English speaking teachers to help them integrate, as was the same for Marky Marks two kids in a different area. Both areas are off the beaten track as far as expat Brits are concerned, so maybe that is significant. Certainly from some of the TV "new life abroad" type programmes some UK people seem to expect to take Little Britain with them and wonder why the locals get annoyed. Marky Mark was there for five years, and from his experience I'd move at the drop of a hat - a country that simply ignores idiot laws as far as possible has my vote - but I would remember the two golden rules - introduce myself to the Mayor on arrival and listen to him, acting on his "suggestions", and learn the lingo fast. Oh, and never try *too* hard to win at boules! To show there is another side to the coin, 'Er Indoors went to Paris and had a terrible time - but then that's the same as comparing The Peak District to London I suppose. Cheers Richard

You have all the right ideas there Richard but Brittany was rapidly becoming Little Britain when we left there 4 years since and vying with the Dordogne to have the most brits.

Small isolated schools can be havens for incoming kids but the troubles start with numbers and the Breton were getting very agressive when we moved east -- they hated it when we learnt the language as few of them have and over half the region would speak Gallo and not one of the varieties of Breton.

Ignoring the rules is their forté and it runs throughout society. Brittany is one of the most polluted regions of France thanks to excessive pigs, chickens and fertilizer -- it even rains nitrates! However , I have seen most of the world and am very happy here still after 15 years.

Regards

Peter A

Thatcher then

Often see this written, but I wonder if she actually said you shouldnt be penalised just because you are successful.

Cheers, Simon

(One of the few people to proudly admit voting for her.)

There's very little mileage (or tax revenue) in penalizing the unsuccessful!

Regards, Greg.P.

Is money your only measure of success ?

Cheers, Simon

We were talking about "penalizing" plus right wing government in relation to success. IMH experience those sorts of people aren't much interested in 1:87 scale golden spike ceremonies. (Did someone mention gold - tax him!)

Regards, Greg.P.

Thatcher then > showed everyone how to be well thought of by being selfish. Her > favourite people were asset strippers! >

Often see this written, but I wonder if she actually said you shouldnt be penalised just because you are successful. Cheers, Simon (One of the few people to proudly admit voting for her.)

I cannot possibly know "what" she said or when but well well aware of who she rewarded. The news of today regarding the people who are pseudo non resident and therefore pay no taxes is not new and was attributable to her government. (remember Lord Vesty?)

Even now I pay a wedge into the UK exchequer but am entitled to sweet f a . At least here I can have a voice in where my money goes as so much public spending is done at a local level and generally outside of politicing.

As Simon has young children I reckon that he knows nothing of the +50 cull that Thatcher organised -- the Miners & Steelworkers were far from being the only dispossessed!

The cult of the easy money "professions"such as law ( aspired to equally by many asian people) and the rejection of trade / manufacturing which truly makes national wealth had turned GB Ltd into an unstable and vunerable society. Like the over inflated housing market, the bubble will burst.

It is 15 years since I retired and despite regular increments to my UK sourced pensions my net income has deminished. When Brown became chancellor I paid no UK tax but now I pay more and more each year unlike the chaps whose income is 10 to the several powers higher than mine.

My favourite countries ( US & Europe) all treat their ex Military and Civil Service with respect and support. The UK hands out nothing and hopes that they will go off and die quietly whilst applauding the latest stupidity of footie and pop -- almost as if the adult population has rejected the ideas of responsibility and is trying to metamorph into Peter Pan type ados --- leave it all to the ( well who exactly?)

Regards

I'm no Maggie fan, but she did initially sort out a lot of problems that had to be addressed one way or another if we weren't to go begging to the IMF again. But then she got carried away (I'm very fair, I treat all politicians with equal contempt, whatever party).....

What she did unleash, probably not deliberately, was the "me, me" attitute to everything. That is what led to the delicine of British industry, as almost everyone then became quite happpy to buy overseas goods (for whatever reason, perceived or genuine) even if it put their neighbour out of a job. Happily, those who thought it didn't matter are now finding their jobs "out-sourced", which is nicely ironic. It's even more ironic that people are prepared to pay more (Co-Op ground coffee trippled in price when it went "fair-trade", there must be some *exetremely" wealthy coffee growers about) to be seen to be fair to someone overseas, but won't pay 20 quid more to keep the guy down the road in a job making fridges etc.

It's very easy to blame "them" for our decline, but often the cause is "us".

Cheers Richard

Apparantly there's a programme on BBC2 tonight (9pm) entitled 'White'. Trailers suggest it tells how the white working classes here in the UK consider themselves worthless and unwanted following the actions & policies of successive governments of both persuasions.

This group now believe they are disenfranchised as neither serious political party (Tories or New Tories) effectively looks after their interests.

It may make interesting viewing.

John.

That'll be me then!

It'll be interesting to see how the issue is covered - the usual media attitude is to sneer at those who aren't into "PC" etc

Cheers Richard

I wasnt referring to just government 'penalizing', it is anyone that is successful in creating something or even having a particular skill. there are exceptions of course.

Cheers, Simon

Young child - am blessed with only the one, although he has the energy and presence of several. thank you,

I do look and act young, but am over 50, so remember the closing of the uneconomic mines quite well. I live in the middle of the east midlands coalfield, my father, grandfather and various relations.... worked in the pit. I personally am modelling a coal mine - with a scratch built pit head. Am of the opinion that the closing of the coal mines was much needed. Most people were/are far better off for it.

But after that you seem to be wandering a bit. I suspect I agree with a lot of what you say but weve moved from Thatcher to the more recent labour government. I have no time for nearly all of them.

cheers, Simon

(one of the few people that can honestly say he didnt vote for Blair cos realised right from the start that he was all talk and no trousers)

One of my very favourite things is to wander -- in all possible ways! You are not much older than my own children and they have little recollection of 1979+ because neither they, their friends or mother had any time for the serious subjects of the time. Pop, TV, clubs and the cool idea of Drugs held sway throughout the affluent society in which we lived.

Having just retired from the military (at that time), I found myself in a world of backsheesh, self agrandisement and a willingness to rubbish anyone more experienced or qualified,(especially ex military). Things which my collegues found difficult in an engineering environment had their drawings and handbooks destroyed or "lost" thus providing the ideal reason for incompetance.

It had its drawbacks though -- having been trained to think and act responsibly found it hard to break the habit and worked too many hours rectifying years of neglect and laziness causing the failure of yet another marriage!

Since then, I have decided to indulge myself and have the deferred gratification by making my model railway and going where ever and when ever I (we) can (wandering).

Just yesterday one of my very elderly neighbours came by ( yes zimmer et al) and stopped for a chat. He turned out to be a 93 y.o. retired cheminot who when asked if he drove locomotives on our local (closed) line dismissed it with a hand wave and announced " I drove expresses from the Gare du Nord". This delivered with real pride such that I found it infectious.

Hows that for a ramble?

Regards

Peter A

"simon" wrote

Really Simon? I suspect the exhorbitant prices we're now having to pay for gas & electricity are a direct result of those 'uneconomic' pit closures, and tell me how keeping the entire populace of former coal mining areas in state benefits are helping them or our economy.

The virtual elimination of productive 'working class' jobs here in the UK is perhaps the greatest crime perpetuated on the British people throughout the Thatcher era and that of the current New Tory government.

John.

d.

Do not a lot of people from the Military find that adjustment difficult? The cynic in me would suggest that the world in which you found yourself is the normal one , whereas within the military there is a well ordered structure for everything in normal peacetime operations. A task somewhat made simpler by the fact we do not expect the armed forces to return a profit on a balance sheet. To take a really simple example when you were maintaining your reactors others had the task of ensuring the supplies for breakfast had been procured and cooked for you. Your civilian opposite number on land had to take time out to do the same with less personnel to help and organise the transport themselves.

You can tell an ex marine engineer or electrician, they never turn bloody lights off after them. Never had to pay for electricity themselves

Common amongst many people ending a sea career not just ex Military. The partner at home has got used to running things and then Husband comes back for good . He is used to a life of getting things done through others organisation whether the chain is Grey funnel lines or P and O's. He thinks he can do better than she has done for

25 years or so and the arguments start. They then find that rather than growing together over the years they have lived two separate lives interspersed with repeat honeymoons and within day to day living they don't actually like each other much.

G.Harman

G.Harman

After a long RN career my father entered the civilian world working for a defence contactor and discovered, even in a site largely occupied by ex-forces personnel, that he had to *ask* for things to be done, and those who he asked were quite likely to say no, sometimes even if just to be bloody minded. And further, despite holding a senior position in the company, respect for that position still had to be earned rather than be expected. All quite a shock after being a submariner, though his background probably prepared him better than others who had come from rather more privilaged backgrounds.

Cheers Richard