"Carl's Lounge" (Off-Topic Discussion, Traditional Knife "Tales & Vignettes")

dantzk8 said:
Thanks Jack,
I've spent, back in the seventies, so much time at listening the BBC and at travelling in Scotland, Wales, Ireland and Yorkshire that i could, understandably, order a pint of beer while keeping a Player's Navy Cut on my lips! Not that easy.

Dan
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LOL! :D Very good Dan! :D Player's Navy Cut were my favourite uncle's cig of choice :) When I taught English in France, I had students who had learned their English entirely from the BBC World Service, and had never visited these shores at all. Their English was very good, but their accents much 'plummier' than my own! :D I think they would have struggled with the accents in many of the places you've visited :) :thumbsup:
 
Jack Black said:
LOL! :D Very good Dan! :D Player's Navy Cut were my favourite uncle's cig of choice :) When I taught English in France, I had students who had learned their English entirely from the BBC World Service, and had never visited these shores at all. Their English was very good, but their accents much 'plummier' than my own! :D I think they would have struggled with the accents in many of the places you've visited :) :thumbsup:
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The British and Irish accents! A nightmare! In Scotland to say "three" they said "drrrrrree", not far from Dublin they said "tank" instead of "thank". I remember that at the French Republic school the three first months at learning English were busy at learning the pronunciation of "TH". " Repeat after me, The, This, That, Thank, Think. Repeat again, again..." saîd the teacher. I still think that the words " A French english teacher" mean "stupid". I won't comment about the Yorkshire accent. Let's stay good friends!

Dan.
 
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dantzk8 said:
The British and Irish accents! A nightmare! In Scotland to say "three" they said "drrrrrree", not far from Dublin they said "tank" instead of "thank". I remember that at the French Republic school the three first months at learning English were busy at learning the pronunciation of "TH". " Repeat after me, The, This, That, Thank, Think. Repeat again, again..." saîd the teacher. I still think that the words " A French english teacher" mean "stupid". I won't comment about the Yorkshire accent. Let's stay good friends!

Dan.
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I know what you mean Dan! :eek: :D Did you ever go to Glasgow, or Newcastle, or Barnsley (in Yorkshire)?! :eek: My school French lessons seemed to be fixated on the words for school stationery items, some of which I've certainly never used since! :rolleyes: My sister was 'taught' French by a teacher with a strong Polish accent! :eek: :rolleyes: :thumbsup:
 
I've gone through Glasgow on the road to the Hebrides islands. At that time it was a Black walls town. I've been said it's been cleaned since. Anyway I had no money enough to stay in town, i traveled by hitchhiking and by walking. I can say i've walked in Glasgow !
I've lived in Bradford and have visite Leeds, York and some other smaller towns I can't remember the names. What has surprised me the most is the beauty of some back country landscapes.

Dan.
 
Glasgow is positively swanky these days Dan, barely recognisable compared to the past (Leeds has also changed a lot). It sounds like you've had some interesting travels, and they remind me of my own early travels in France, getting about by foot, and by the thumb (which I have to say I have never found easy in France), and the odd train. It's a good way to see the world :) :thumbsup:
 
Jack Black said:
Glasgow is positively swanky these days Dan, barely recognisable compared to the past (Leeds has also changed a lot). It sounds like you've had some interesting travels, and they remind me of my own early travels in France, getting about by foot, and by the thumb (which I have to say I have never found easy in France), and the odd train. It's a good way to see the world :) :thumbsup:
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In France the trick was to carry a small backpack, chino pants, a jacket on a shirt and, most important, have a short hair cut. The idea was to look like a guy doing his military service. I've never waited for a long time on the road side. When the driver understood he had been fooled he had a good laugh and said "Well played!".
In Great Britain it was easier. My first trip was a race with three friends, Plymouth to Kyle Of Lochalsh where we had to take the ferry to Skye Island. At the ferry way out i wrote "Scotland" on a piece of cardboard. Some minutes later a truck which was going straight to Glasgow stopped for me! Full speed on the middle lane of the M5 highway! The only problem has been that the driver offered me one of the pills he took. I asked what it was and understood " Vitamins". I took a one by politeness. Well, it wasn't vitamins, i didn't sleep for 24 hours but quickly arrived to Glasgow and won easily the race. It has been a crazy experience and a lot of fun.

Dan.
 
I needed a laugh today. This worked.
H4mStuS.jpg
 
dantzk8 said:
In France the trick was to carry a small backpack, chino pants, a jacket on a shirt and, most important, have a short hair cut. The idea was to look like a guy doing his military service. I've never waited for a long time on the road side. When the driver understood he had been fooled he had a good laugh and said "Well played!".
In Great Britain it was easier. My first trip was a race with three friends, Plymouth to Kyle Of Lochalsh where we had to take the ferry to Skye Island. At the ferry way out i wrote "Scotland" on a piece of cardboard. Some minutes later a truck which was going straight to Glasgow stopped for me! Full speed on the middle lane of the M5 highway! The only problem has been that the driver offered me one of the pills he took. I asked what it was and understood " Vitamins". I took a one by politeness. Well, it wasn't vitamins, i didn't sleep for 24 hours but quickly arrived to Glasgow and won easily the race. It has been a crazy experience and a lot of fun.

Dan.
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From what I saw the trick was to look like a pretty young girl, and I was never able to pull that off! :D Short hair and the rest didn't work that well for me I'm afraid. When I lived in France, due to a cancelled train, I once tried hitching from Calais to Boulogne, having no other options. I ended up walking the entire way, through the night, in the rain, down the hard shoulder, and there was no shortage of traffic o_O That is quite a trip, and a happy memory to look back on! :D Years ago, I've heard people tell some incredibly lucky hitching stories :) :thumbsup:

Peregrin said:
I needed a laugh today. This worked.
H4mStuS.jpg
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Very good Gary! :D :D :thumbsup:
 
Jack Black said:
When I lived in France, due to a cancelled train, I once tried hitching from Calais to Boulogne, having no other options. I ended up walking the entire way, through the night, in the rain, down the hard shoulder, and there was no shortage of traffic
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Jack, what a mistake!

 
dantzk8 said:
Jack, what a mistake!

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Yeah, I was in bed 2 or 3 days recovering from hypothermia! It was April, and I had gone to a wine fair in Lille. It was a sunny day, and as I was going on the train, I was only wearing a thin shirt and a light jacket. There was a delay of 2 hours at Hazebrouck, for a reason I forget, and so by the time I arrived in Calais, I'd missed my connection, it was nearly midnight, everything was closed, and it was cold. Since there was plenty of traffic still coming from the port, I figured I'd be able to hitch a lift, and when it first started raining, I thought it might even help. It was a long walk, and I got passed by cars, lorries, buses, even taxis, but not a single one stopped. To cap it all, when I was laid up in bed, my girlfriend phoned my employer to tell them what had happened, and they didn't believe her, saying the distance was too far to walk! o_O
 
r8shell said:
de-verandaed? o_O
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That's what my dad called 'A good old-fashioned coat-tailing'! :eek: :D :thumbsup:

I've only ever seen it done properly once, I was in a Sheffield pub, quite a respectable place, having an afternoon pint with my dad in 1982. The pub is called The Lescar Hotel, but it was known locally as, 'The George & Dragon', after the landlord and his rotten wife. The pub was pretty quiet, but a middle-aged lady came to the bar, and told George that a rough-looking character had urinated into a glass. Looking over at this scumbag, I'd say he was about 225 lbs, scruffy, slightly drunk, and a nasty piece of work. George, who was probably 20 pounds heavier, a quiet feller, who moved slowly, came out from behind the bar with a coal shovel. Without looking at the drunk, he walked to the door, and rammed the shovel under the door to force it open. Then he walked to the drunk, and without saying a word, he grabbed him by back of the collar of his donkey jacket, straight out of his seat, across the room, where in a movement I still marvel at, he grabbed him by the back of the pants, swung him back as if he weighed nothing, and threw him bodily out into the street! Best old-fashioned coat-tailing I've ever seen! :cool: :thumbsup:
 
Jack Black said:
Yeah, I was in bed 2 or 3 days recovering from hypothermia! It was April, and I had gone to a wine fair in Lille. It was a sunny day, and as I was going on the train, I was only wearing a thin shirt and a light jacket. There was a delay of 2 hours at Hazebrouck, for a reason I forget, and so by the time I arrived in Calais, I'd missed my connection, it was nearly midnight, everything was closed, and it was cold. Since there was plenty of traffic still coming from the port, I figured I'd be able to hitch a lift, and when it first started raining, I thought it might even help. It was a long walk, and I got passed by cars, lorries, buses, even taxis, but not a single one stopped. To cap it all, when I was laid up in bed, my girlfriend phoned my employer to tell them what had happened, and they didn't believe her, saying the distance was too far to walk! o_O
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Calais Boulogne! About 22 miles of walk by a cold rainy night! Congrats Jack, it's not everyone who can do that! I'm not surprised you didn't get any help. A British named Jack on the road side? Could be Jack The Ripper! By the way, didn't you carry a knife?

Dan.
 
Peregrin said:
From the Latin for window, fenestra. I studied it for 4 years. Why you ask? I have no clue...:D
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Fascinating Gary, I would never have made that connection :thumbsup: My state school still taught Latin when I was a teenager, but though I took Classical Studies, I didn't take Latin :rolleyes: :thumbsup:

dantzk8 said:
Calais Boulogne! About 22 miles of walk by a cold rainy night! Congrats Jack, it's not everyone who can do that! I'm not surprised you didn't get any help. A British named Jack on the road side? Could be Jack The Ripper! By the way, didn't you carry a knife?

Dan.
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Thank you, I hope I never have to do a walk like that again :eek: It was pretty dangerous, as there were unlit sections and no space for pedestrians, and I extended the route by walking down to the port from the train station (a couple of miles), and then going round the ring road o_O

I carried THIS knife, along with a small rucsac with a couple of pieces of cake, some water, and a couple of bottles of expensive wine I had bought.

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I was glad to have the knife. I turned off the highway at Wimereux (a longer route, but at least with pavements, and a better view), and shortly after I did so, I passed what I think was a scrap-yard. The next thing I could hear three snarling dogs racing towards me through the darkness. I opened my knife, and prepared to defend myself as best I could. Then, 'CHING!' their chains, which I obviously didn't know about, reached their limit! That was quite a relief! :eek: :D :thumbsup:
 
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