Canny lass

I don't know but they go great with purple hats.

I think you guys are missing the most important point. Does it matter if GPS is being used or not? Does it matter if idiots are sitting on motorway bridges with spoofers? Does it matter if these cars are using the same spatial clues as humans? NO!! What matters is where they place the make-up mirror and the mug holder!

Well, to be fair, he didn't say that the spoofer (lovely word that) was being used only that he was sitting on a motorway bridge with it. When webtrekker challenged me to imagine the carnage that might be caused I imagined it flying through the air like a brick. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

As I said - we are none of us too old to learn! Well done!

I wouldn't know what smart cars use. I'll get a pidgeon away to Volvo and ask them to let me in on their secrets. However, I do know what carnage looks like. I've seen the damage caused by striking workers throwing bricks off motorway bridges in Wales. Not a pretty sight.

I'm with you on that one, mercuryg.

You've obviously never worked in an A&E department.

I can - but I'd rather not!

The first rule, I was taught by Miss Gair at Nedderton Village Junior School when aged about 10 years so it's not rocket science but it's amazing how many people I've talked too who were never taught the all important second line! The second rule is one they use here when teaching English as a second language to roughly the same age group. I think it's better. We are none of us ever too old to learn!

The insurance problem has been solved by Volvo. Just a few months ago Volvo said that it accepts full liability for accidents in which their driverless cars are involved. They are so confident that they are 100% safe. I wish I had their optimism! I've also heard that 'pedestrian avoidance detectors' can be fitted as an optional extra!

That's it! I hadn't heard about the egg white trick but I once knew a lorry driver (ex father in law) who said a peeled boiled egg would block a leaking petrol tank. never tried it though.

I looked at 23 and thought: that's the double of Eric Burns - must be a relation! I didn't spot Brian though!

Speaking of "red", what was that fluid you could put in a leaking car radiator to seal the holes? It ran out and stained everything red.

You've missed the second line of the mnemonic: I before E except after C but only when it sounds like EE. OR a better way to get it right, according to me,is: I before E, except after C or when sounded as A as in neighbour and weigh. The spelling is related to the sound system

Sorry Maggie! Just home from Greece and couldn't make it in time. If it had been an hour later I might have been able to squeeze it in.

Well done!

Had the same problem last year for several months. Capital letters will start popping up in unexpected places next followed by not being able to quote anybody! Just take it in your stride!

The 'dig up your plants veg' bit had me wondering too. I need at least another month before I can even get my radishes up. Hackles, on the other hand, are up already.

That's them! Although I seem to remember currants as well. Perhaps they were my mother's own addition to the recipe.

... and one other thing: Nobel prizes being mentioned does not mean that a Nobel Prize will be given. They are mentioned almost daily in this household but neither myself nor the old man have one.

"I didn't read this link either. If you'd like to know why then I suggest you google 'Gatestone Institute'." Ad-hominem? If you consider this to be an 'ad-hominem' attack then you are clearly feeling more threatened than I thought. What's the "Torygraph"?

You've lost me there, I'm afraid. I don't know what any of this has to do with my finding the Sicilian people charming. I did in fact ask about unemployment while I was in Sicily. It would appear to be roughly the same as most other places in Europe - if I'm to believe the few people I talked to. They weren't too happy to talk about the 'connections' bit though. Pity! I would have liked to hear more about it. Immigrants and refugees are not always one and the same thing. You can be an immigrant - like yourself and myself - without being a refugee.

My mother always baked biscuits called Anzacs but she always made them for Easter. I understood they were something to do with the Australian army but don't know what.

If you like history, nature, good food and good wine then you’ll love Sicily. There’s a lot to see and do but if you take a few hours and plan your visit it’s surprising just how much you can achieve in just one week. We booked a hotel in Aci Trezza, just 20km from Catania airport, for one night but extended it to three as we thought it was a good base for visits to Etna and Taormina – with a fantastic Greek/Roman theatre. Book a walking tour with a guide around a couple of Etna’s craters. You can do that on site much cheaper than from the hotels. You won’t be disappointed! South from Aci Trezza you’ll find Siracusa. A visit to Parco Archeologico is a must before moving on to the island of Ortygia. Heading west toward central Sicily you’ll find Piazza Amerina and the roman Villa del Casale with it’s wonderful mosaics. Thank you ExBedlingtonian for that tip. It was a joy to visit! Driving south west from Piazza Amerina towards the coast you reach Agrigento. Stop off en route and take a slow walk through the Valley of the Temples ‘Valle di Templi’. There are a half dozen temples, some dating back to before Christ and in surprisingly good condition. It’s well signposted. You can hire a guide here as well but it’s an easy walk in a straight line so just buy a little cheap guide book and go by yourself. Follow the coast northwest from Agrigento through sloping vineyards towards Marsala and on the way take a few hours to visit the small medieval town of Erice. It’s a hair raising drive that takes you to a height of 750m above the sea but well worth the journey. It’s strewn with beautiful, small piazzas and some of the most wonderful courtyards I’ve ever seen. The views are out of this world! From there, cut across the north west tip of the island towards the capital, Palermo. Just enjoy wandering around the town. We visited the Capella Paletina which, if we understood the guide book correctly, is the chapel of the royal palace of the Norman kings. It’s very beautiful and extremely interesting both from a historical and religious point of view. From Palermo it’s just a short distance to Monreale, another small, old and very picturesque old town. Leaving Palermo follow the coast eastwards towards the small, medieval fishing village of Cefalu - dominated by a huge rock and a huge, Norman cathedral. Close up it’s not so huge. It’s just built on a bit of a hill in the town centre. We had hoped to make it to Messina but were a bit short of time so we drove directly from Cefalu to the airport in Catania. 3g was right about the mosquitos. They can be a bit of a pain in the evenings but their ‘bark’ was worse than their bite – so to speak. Their whining can get on your nerves but I didn’t get bitten until I got on the plane for the homeward journey! If I was to give any more advice on Sicily it would be: Buy a guidebook and guide yourself. It's much cheaper and you can do it at your own pace. Hire the smallest car you possibly can. Driving in Sicily is a pleasure until you hit the towns and villages where the roads are the narrowest I’ve ever seen and parking is a nightmare! Both as a driver and a pedestrian proceed with caution at all traffic lights. Why Italy has chosen red and green among its flag colours I do not know as Italians clearly can’t distinguish one from the other! Hire a room on the outskirts of town and the use public transport within the town. This way you'll avoid some of the frustration of parking the car. If you only speak English avoid talking to the elderly.They don't seem to have any knowledge of the language. They understood Spanish but answer in what I assume to be Sicillian. Drink wine instead of water. They are both the same price.

I wouldn,t know, 3g. I've only lived here 30 years. That doesn't make me an expert. I found the Sicilian people charming. I also, based on the couple of dozen or so with whom I had any in-depth conversation, found them to be extremely tolerant and respectful of others. They seem to be very proud of this tolerance and respect - pointing out that it's a long tradition dating back to Sicily's time as an Arab (Muslim) country. I asked a waiter in a restaurant if they minded that a clearly north African male came in to beg for money among their customers. His answer: "Why should I do that? He's only trying to make a living - same as I am." We could learn a lot from the Sicilians. I didn't read this link either. If you'd like to know why then I suggest you google 'Gatestone Institute'.