Excessive Everywhere

Well have I got some stuff to do!

 

Excessive hydrocarbons

Excessive play in front suspension

 

Yes that’s right its MOT time and for the first time it failed on stuff that will need real work to sort out.

The first one was to be expected, coming back from M’boro it smoked badly.  Whatever was behaving in place of the piston rings (carbon?) gave up.  Mot tester couldn't measure the levels they were so high.  As usual my mouse like plans have evaporated in the heat of necessity - new engine now, not in 4 months like I’d intended.  So it's full steam ahead to build another one.

 

The suspension was a bit of a surprise. I'll confess I didn't check it over - too busy using it recently.  Last time I did, autumn sometime, seemed fine to me, but I suppose these things can fail quickly. 

Mot man he say he could hear it when he drove it in. 

Weird thing is I can now.

 

The great thing is that this year the tax ran out before the mot, unlike previous years when they ran out together.  So I’ve got 12 months tax and don't have to SORN it - yippee.  However as sandy pointed out, we’re paying tax just to park outside the house.

 

Lots of shopping to do now for obscure performance vw bits. 

Why not eh?

 

Any reports on café racer construction from Tim?

 

Meanwhile I’ve another job to due, applying for my own job.  I only have a short term contract with the council, have done for nearly 4 years now, and they finally decided that the work I do warrants a proper job.  Because this is local government they can't just give it me, it's got to be fair and open to anyone so I’ve got to apply. 

I bloody hate filling in application forms, the process is endless, writing awkward statements in answer to inept questions, reviewing and editing, trying to work out what the bejabbers proves what etc. etc.

 

To Hell in an Air-cooled Cart

I’m trying to stick to Friday lists but it's a bit off the beam this one.

Great traffic jams of the 25/01/08

Item - The Parkway M1 junction

We're off to Middlesborough for a weekend jaunt. The first problem is getting out off Sheffield on Fridays.

Item - j34 etc s York’s

The plan was m1/m18 towards hull, but m1 south full and stopped

I'm nearly of a mind to forget it in future, but a weekend away that starts sat noontime and finishes Sunday mid pm isn't much of a jolly. But whatever time or whereever we set off on Fridays we have major urban traffic grief to deal with.

Hopefully here's an interlude for those less interested in traffic snarl ups in the ne England.

Bauhaus in Middlesborough

They have a cool new museum here called MIMA - it's what you'd expect in a new modern art museum - mash up of modernism and brutalism, architects not bold enough to build a bunker and those commissioning not bold enough to disregard all the other museums of modern art. Did you know the Tate Modern is UK's most popular museum? I think they pussyfooted there too. If you been imagine how great it could have been if they'd left the turbines in the turbine hall. There's modern art, great big unfeasibly energetic machines. Paint on canvas is really a bit medieval.

Item - Bawtry by pass Rotherham

North on the m1 goes to Leeds which is the 3rd circle of hell at 1700 on Fridays. We were bold and set off x-country through Rotherham - bad idea. We got in okay, getting out was different. Turns out we divved up the Rotterdam (I’ve given up fighting the spell checker) circulatory see g-earth map for details.

The Bauhaus exhibition was great, as per usual it was the unexpected that was the best bits for me fabrics by Gertrud Arndt and woodcuts by Lyonel Feininger.

Item - A1M J46-47 northbound

Accident closed whole carriageway - inevitable chaos.

After the exhibition M'boro was just like any similar sized town - pretty unremarkable and drab. Thankfully, the experience was saved probably again for the same reason - the people of these towns seem very particular - praise for parochialism. M'boro's youths baby perky Goths lurking everywhere hanging off their EMO BF's - quality!

Item A64 York ring road

Pigging major r/works; we've averaged 6 mph for the last hour. It wasn't difficult to calculate the last 6 miles took an hour.

The camper is refusing to tick over; I think the damage from Ireland is finally beginning to tell. The HSD took chunks out of the combustion chambers so its compression is lower than Carry On Abroad's humour. Oil and combustion gases are exchanging places like Herr Otto never intended, the wonky pressures are blowing oil out off any available orifice and it's drinking fuel.

Here's the map