Canny lass

Eggy, can you ever forgive me! I'm five days late for your birthday! I had planned to post when I posted the answers to last wek's quiz and I've just found the post-it note that should have reminded me. I can only blame old-age, cable-laying duties, lack of organisation in the office and possibly too much whisky. I can only wish you a very, very belated but very, very happy - - birthday and hope it was a good one.

Brrrrrrr Not att all envious! Haven't taken the shovel out of storage yet!

It's something peopledon't do often enough - cleaning feeders. Birds and squirrels alike need a clean feeding place and a clean feeder. Clean both at least once a fortnight and keep the animals healthy. It's the least we can do in return for the pleasure they give us.

Are you telling me that you're not learning anything here and that all my hard work is falling on stoney ground!! You must pay attention and work harder young man!

Time to give the old bumps of knowledge an airing: Which disease does the BCG vaccine protect us from? Which Greek island was the home to the Minoan civilisation? What does a pluviometer measure? Who replaced Phil Collins as lead singer of Genesis? Which football team won the English 1997-98 Premier league and F.A. Cup double? Where would you find breast buffers and bottom buffers at work? (keep it clean!) What is a female trout called? Who in Great Britain can never legally be a minor? Who was the eldest of the Bronte sisters? Which Royal house ruled in England from 1461 to 1485? On which day in April 1998 was the peace agreement signed in Northern Ireland? What do Americans call reindeer? I’ll bet you didn’t know …. Clark Gable is listed on his birth certificate as a girl. Answers on Thursday as usual.

We like it too but I think they are old programmes that are shown here. Here, the chair has just been taken over by Sandi Toksvig. I think she's every bit as good as Stephen Fry but OH thinks Fry was better.

Interesting to compare these two photos. As I said, I've no idea where I got this photo from. I can have had it for 20 years and it's labelled Feancis Pit. It's also how I remember it bur when I see bluebarbie's photo there are a few differences that I can't explain. The twophoos are clearly taken from different sides of the building: bluebarbies photo looking toward Bedlington and mine looking towards Netherton. On mine I can see a building to the left which I think is a part Bell's Ranch. However the pit building is asymmetric. The 'windows'/openings will surely have their explanation in the machinery of the era but I can't understand why two adjacent walls would be buttressed and not the other two. Maybe HPW can throw some light on the subject.

Answers to last week's quiz: Gypsy American Football Rhinoceros France Hangman Edinburgh The Sun The Taming of the Shrew The Knave of Hearts Stan Laurel Lake Bala (Welsh name: Llyn Tegid) Professor Plum ... and I've managed to get a quiz together for tomorrow, despite cable-laying duties.

I think that's where I got it from. Must make a note not to use anything from that programme!

I was having a clear out of unwanted files on my new lap-top and found this photo of the Francis pit. I have no idea where it came from so apologies to the photographer as I can't give you any credit. This is exactly how I remember it from the early 1950s. After the death of Mrs Watson's son, who fell to his death down the shaft, the building was demolished and the shaft covered with iron rails. Didn't stop us playing their as HPW describes above.

Thanks Eggy! I've had a play about with it and can now (following Andy's advice) successfully download an image to my downloads folder. From there it's then a simple matter to place it in a folder of my choice. I also had a bash at saving direct from the topic, rather than downloading, and I was able to 'save as' direct from the image by using a right click which produced the appropriate meny but I didn't need to save it in my downloads folder. I could choose my own folder immediately. Quite an achievement for me. I feel like the Brain of Britain. I'm sure Andy will be knocking on my door and offering me a job soon!

Time to trim the grey matter: Everything is coming up roses is from which musical? With which sport would you associate Joe Montana? Which animals collect together in a crash? Which was the first country to use number plates on road vehicles? What was the occupation of Jack Ketch? In which British city can you find Usher Hall? Which natural feature has been nicknamed The Lamp of Phoebus ? Which is the only Shakespeare play with an animal in the title? In Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland who stole the tarts baked by the Queen of hearts? By which name is Arthur Jefferson better known? What is the largest lake in Wales? In the game of Cluedo what is the name of the professor? I’ll bet you didn’t know …. Lord Nelson suffered from sea-sickness all his life. Answers on Thursday next week.

Thanks Andy! I owe you a pint next time I'm in the shire.

I'm sad to say that I have to agree with you. We've only been a week without restrictions and people are going mad. The damp, cold autumn weather is a perfect breeding ground for any virus - that's why we get colds and flu in autumn/winter and not so much in spring/summer. We're not out of the covid woods yet so stay safe everybody.

Here's another question: I don't know if it's this new lap-top, the site or just lack of knowledge on my part but I'm having difficulties downloading photos from the gallery. All I'm able to do is take a screen dump and cut away everything but the photo. Very time-consuming. Any ideas, anybody?

... quite by accident - same way I found out that it satisfied a craving for something but didn't know just what it was i craved. Just happened to pass a coal scuttle one day and instinctively took a piece of coal and started chewing it. I got a lovely sense of calm and well being from it and realized that coal (or something in it) was what was missing. Later, when I had heartburn, I noticed that it disappeared when I was eating coal and continued to use it for that purpose too. As children my brother and I both loved it when we were near a steam-roller because then we could get our hands on lumps of a hard, but chewy, black, material which we called pitch. I've no idea if that's the right name but it's the stuff they melt and mix with gravel for road resurfacing. It could be chewed for ages without losing its taste. Strange things we did as kids.

Answers to last week's quiz: Dieting Who dares wins Yellow Jack Nicholson Xenophobia Jack Brabham Pontiac Howard Hughes There is no upper limit, though earthquakes of a magnitude of 10 cannot happen. Geno Florence Bamboo New quiz tomorrow.

Is that you in the photo, Vic? Eating coal? You should have seen me during my pregnancies! I lived in Doncaster and it was the only thing I asked for if anybody was visiting me from the North East. Couldn't beat it for heartburn.

I've never stopped! I don't think I'm alone there. I think most women of my generation were brought up learning to help their mother with making plain, wholesome, home-cooked food. I could cook a Sunday dinner for 10 when I was 12 and I don't think I was alone there either. Unfortunately, I don't have access to any pigs but I do have hungry hares, deer and squirrels. I also have a fantastic, year-round, insulated compost so I've never had to buy potting compost and I use about 200 litres a year. I don't think youngsters are raised the same way in relation to cooking today and one of my nearest neighbours, on a visit to England, was flabbergasted at the amount of 'ready-made' frozen food on sale in the average supermarket, not to mention take-aways.

Here we go! What would you be doing if you practiced ‘banting’? What is the motto of the Special Air Service? What colour is the Circle Line on a map of the London underground? Who won his first Oscar for One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest? What is the name for a dislike of foreigners? Which Australian motor-racing driver was World Champion in 1959, 1960 and 1966? Which American car manufacturer produces the Firebird? Whose biography did Clifford Irving fake? What is the maximum number on a Richter scale? What was Dexy’s Midnight Runners first hit? The skyline of which Italian city has been dominated since 1488 by a cathedral dome designed by Filippo Brunelleschi? Which plant can grow up to three feet in 24 hours? I’ll bet you didn’t know …. The Foreign legion marches at 88 steps a minute. Answers next Thursday.

I remember the Bells well. They had a son, I think he was called Raymond, who used to do a round of the rows collecting 'tettie peelins' and any other vegetable peelings or waste food that most people put in a bucket or dish just inside the gate to feed the pigs. On Sundays he used to do two rounds as there was so much vegetable peelings from the Sunday dinner - 4 veg was the minimum! At the ranch they had an old pot-boiler of the type built into the colliery yards for heating water (and boiling the whites) on washing day. This was used for cooking the pig-swill. Sometimes it smelled lovely but sometimes it smelled b' awful.

@lilbill15 Junior is reserved for male offspring only and the abbreviation would be jr. Naming children was a relatively routine procedure well into the 20th century. The first son almost always got the name of his maternal grandfather. The first daughter almost always got the name of her paternal grandmother. The second son often got the name of his father and the second daughter often got the name of her mother. When looking at old records the capital J is particularly problematic. It can be misread (and therefore often wrongly transcribed) as capital I or capital F. It could even be confused with 'long S' (see attached picture) on printed documents up until the 1820s. On handwritten documents it could still be found well into the second half of the 19th century. If you're researching it's always worth looking at all three alternatives.

@lilbill15Short but informative. You've got the job! Looking forward to more reports.

Fingers crossed! It's the right time of year for hard pruning (this, of course, is pruning of a more drastic nature) but if they've managed to root they stand a chance. Hope the little (or big) beggars are caught and punished. I don't wish to sound hard or inhumane but I think they should have the same degree of hard pruning to their hands.