Anybody believe in fate?

[pjl83]

a fortnight ago I was made redundant. being an electrician, the bankers not lending the money to developers has killed the construction trade and 2 of us had to go :(

rather than sitting around sulking at home i decided to do something with my time, every moment that I wasn't filling in application forms and emailing my cv - I spent looking into the prospect of building myself a boat (which has always been a dream of mine), which is how I ended up here :toast:

Whilst reading the jobs section in the local paper I saw an advert for a marine elctrician vacancy at a shipping yard in Cowes on the island. Not having dabbled in marine electrics before, but having experience with control and instrumentation panels, I thought it'd be worth sending a cv anyway. On friday I was called for an interview at 2.30pm, and whilst in the pub having dinner at 7.20pm I got a phonecall offering me the job. I start monday :) in a shipping yard full of half built boats :laie_67:

a new challenge for me, and less time now to spend on my own project than i thought, but it will still go ahead. I will build my boat and take her to water! :JC_hurrah:

[Audrey S]

Well done fella, congratulations

Now if you see any half useful bits of timber laying around the yard, , , ,

[Mike]

Yes, Paul, I believe strongly in something similar called Karma. Or, at least, in 'what goes around, comes around' and 'what's meant for you, won't go past you'. :D

However, in your case, I would put your success down to your own mental approach and determination. Well done, that man! :appl: And we are very pleased - and proud - to have you here among us.

You'll have loads of time available for the modest start you propose to make in boatbuilding. You'd be surprised how an hour here and a couple there adds up to produce a very nice boat. Once you are established in your new endeavour, you must let us know where to find you. Most of us could do with a helping hand from time to time when it comes to marine electrics.

This news has topped off a very good day for me. I am an F1 fan and Jensen Button closed down his second pole position in a row driving for the new Brawn GP racing team, arisen from the ashes of Honda. Rule Brittania ... He he! :guitar:

As to our bankers and the harm they have done to the ordinary men and women on our streets, they make me sick to the stomach - but then they always have done. Money-grubbing userers, the lot of 'em. Sir Fred (and who gave the a-hole a knighthood, for goodness sake?) and his like ought to be stood against a wall somewhere and machine-gunned. :dead:
All the pigs with their noses in the trough of our hard-earned money paid in taxes ought to join him too. It's become a very sick world. But I can see a huge change in the wind, thank goodness (rant over).

Anyway, well done Paul. All power to your elbow mate. :ylsuper:

Rrrespeck!

[pjl83]

thanks guys.

of course, i would be happy to help out if ever I can once I have it sussed ;) and I'll be keeping an eye open for bits and bobs going begging. I expect the skip at a place that size would be like an aladins cave to backyard builder :stirthepot:

I'm looking forward to the challenges ahead.

And Mike, I'm a big F1 fan too so well done jenson :brittania_rules: Great start to the season, I just hope that the stewards are fair and stick to their decision about the appeal into the modifications under the rear wing. It's good for the sport that things have been shaken up a bit :award:

[Mike]

... I expect the skip at a place that size would be like an aladins cave to backyard builders :stirthepot:Ohoh, the dreaded skip topic rears its ugly head. Ha ha. Health warning: beware of timber salvaged from a skip. Remember that someone decided it was not worth using any more and ask yourself why that might have been. ;) Now, if you find some good bronze or brass that just needs a darned good polish and refurbishing, I'm your man, Paul. :approval:


... And Mike, I'm a big F1 fan too so well done Jenson :brittania_rules: Great start to the season, I just hope that the stewards are fair and stick to their decision about the appeal into the modifications under the rear wing. It's good for the sport that things have been shaken up a bit :award:Absolutely, Paul. It is so good to see the cream beginning to rise to the top after years of the pot being stirred too vigorously to allow it.

My expectation is that the FIA will uphold the stewards' decision on the diffuser issue and leave those who read the rules differently to do some catching up. Don't forget that most of the FIA stewards are judges and barristers, with some real experience of the proper interpretation and meaning of words. I seriously doubt that a skilled engineer like Ross Brawn would have got it wrong.

I agree the sport needed shaking up and it's so exciting to see the cars at last turning in lap times so very close to each other. Should make for the best season in many a long year. :D

Regards

[Clip]

Congratulations pjl83!!!! Totally agree in karma at times, or is it just an Existentialism moment ( a series of forks in the road that just led to it)? Personally I am believer in fate. And in Cowes, wow that is family ancestry happy hunting ground (as they say around here) got 300 years of relatives buried around St. Mildreds Church in Whippingham including my parents, overlooking Cowes. Fantastic area and for boating it is heaven.

Mike: loved your rant about bankers, this is a link to a recent BBC blog on Canada's banks, it may give you laugh. they were such a bore at the time (for investments)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/thereporters/stephanieflanders/2009/03/the_best_prepared_awar.html

[Mike]

Mike: loved your rant about bankers, this is a link to a recent BBC blog on Canada's banks, it may give you laugh. they were such a bore at the time (for investments)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/thereporters/stephanieflanders/2009/03/the_best_prepared_awar.html Ha haha! Thanks, Clip, for that link. It has started the day off brilliantly for me. And hats off to you Canadians. :appl: Those 'boring' Canadian bankers have been doing things the way they should have. And the result? An infinitely more stable country. Love it! Makes our boys look ... well ... it makes 'em look like they are, in fact. Viz. like the aforesaid 'pigs' snuffling at the trough of our taxpayers' hard-earned money.

Thanks also, Clip, for your very kind words about my rant. Here is a little more - it's becoming a daily venting of anger and frustration, I'm afraid. We are greeted this morning by the BBC's newsreaders with the revelation that one Geoff Hoon (our so-called Minister of 'Defence' - an oxymoron given that our poor old armed forces - God bless 'em - have hardly been involved in a 'defence' for many a long year) has been living it up at the taxpayers' expense for years. Wot? Nuthin' new in that, surely?

Ahah! Seems he has his own home, plus one he claims as a second home in our capital for which we pay his mortgage, plus ... now wait for it ... a third home (because he is a Minister) which we pay for in its entirety. We wouldn't mind so much, perhaps, if the two for which we pay were far removed, one from t'other - but they are both in London. And what is Mr Hoon doing with the one he never lives in? Well, he's renting it out to somebody else, of course. So, not only do we pay for the second home but Mr Hoon makes a killing by renting it out and pocketing the rent. Double dipping, if ever I saw it!

It ain't just our bankers who've been snuffling in the trough, then. It's our government Ministers - and goodness knows who else - too. If we were a third world country - don't laugh coz we may well become one very soon - this sort of thing would cause us to be rated as THOROUGHLY CORRUPT. Goodness me. Surely not? Not the Land of Hope and Glory. Oh dear!

The fact is that this sort of corruption has been systemic throughout Great Britain and it's former colonies for as long as I can remember - and far beyond that into our historical past. In fact, having flown in one of our former African colonies and spent half my life in another, I believe we were expert in teaching others just how to excel at the old corruption game. This perhaps hasn't become general knowledge until now, as our nation heads towards the slimy mire that is national bankruptcy.

For so long as we Brits only suspect that our leaders, our pollies and our management high-fliers, are corrupt, we prefer to turn a blind eye and make like the ostrich. However, when we see the very fabric of our society being torn asunder by the likes of the greedy Sir Fred and Mr Geoff Hoon (not to mention a certain Mrs Smith), we begin to feel like our backs are very firmly against the wall. And there is nothing stirs up the complacent and compliant Brits quite like having their backs against that wall. Were he still alive, and I am so glad he's not, of course, you could ask Adolf Hitler about that one. Remember 'The Few'!

Only now are we getting mighty angry. It's about time. Let's hope it is not too late to have their flaming heads off - and served on silver platters with apples in their greedy mouths! (rant over)

Right! That feels better already. I'm away to watch the Malaysian Grand Prix. I hope to see another brave and stoic English 'Few' shoot down in flames the likes of Ferrari and - oops - McLaren? Go Brawn GP! Go Jenson Button. Go you brave and decent Britons everywhere!

Ohhhh ... Rule Britannia, Britannia rules the waves .........:ylsuper:

With apologies for my ... exuberance ;)

[Mike]

Dummm ... Duddydah duddyduddydah ... dum. Isn't it great to hear that Fleetwood Mac lick on the Beeb again?

Jenson Button wins Malaysian GP in race marred by late afternoon thunderstorms and canned on lap 32.

Rule Britannia ... dee dah deedah deedah .... :innocent:

And now to Fred Dibnah's 'Made in Britain'. Yay!

I'm feeling very patriotic today! Have ya noticed? :bonk:

[pjl83]

well done jenson. 2 out of 2 so far :ylsuper:

shame about only half points but it could make all the difference at the end of the season if the wins need to be taken into account.

:brittania_rules:

[Mike]

Y'know Paul, maybe we should have a little forum of our own just for the F1 fanatics. Perhaps we could make it invisible to the others so that we don't annoy them with our enthusiasm! Ha ha. ;)

The points, I think, matter little. It was the two wins in a row that really count. Long may this success continue. Jenson has had a tough time of it for a while now and deserves this. Same goes for the miracle that is the Brawn GP team. So pleased for all of 'em. Did you notice how tough the car is? Certainly not a fragile thing. I think one of the commentators described it in the hands of Barrichello in Oz as 'like a bumper car'.

Regards

[pjl83]

yeah you've got too love the brits doing well mike! Great stuff. :toast:

The new job is looking great. it's a huge place full of big boats all at different build stages. The majority of them are alluminium catamarans between 15 and 20 metres. The company I work for are the electrical contractor for these guys http://www.southboatssp.co.uk/ there are some pictures on there of the models that I'm working on now. ;)

The only down side is monthly pay. It'll work out fine in the long run but until the 30th I'm still skint :(

[Mike]

Well, monthly pay is only a negative until you get things sorted out. There is an advantage too, in that employment contracts usually require that you have to receive or give a month's notice. So you are not likely to find yourself suddenly on the street with only a few day's notice.

Those cats are interesting. I know John Welsford got involved in designing a cat and he reckons they are extremely stable, seaworthy, and darned comfortable inside. I think they cost a bit more than a monohull (more materials, of course) but even the biggest ferries these days seem to be giant cats.

I think you're on a winner in your new job, Paul. Well done my friend. All power to you. Hang in there until the 30th and you'll be fine. And don't forget to leave some of the first month's pay to tide you over until the end of the next month. It is always tempting to spend that large sum when it arrives in your account. You suddenly feel rather well off. :D

Regards

[pjl83]

the engines and the jets are huge. I cant wait to see the frst one I've worked on launched. :D

thanks for your kind wors mike. i hope it works out well, it seems a good place. the pay thing should be fine, i'll just have to be tight for the first couple of months until I catch up on everything. hopefully there'll be some spare for a few sheets of ply though :thinking:

[Mike]

Have you decided on a boat yet, Paul? If you are going for a clinker ply build, you can always start with buying the plywood for just the frames first, plus a bit of timber for the stringers if you are using that method. Your planking can then be done two planks at a time (one on each side, of course). The ply may cost a little more when you buy it piecemeal (I find that orders over 10 sheets will attract a reasonable discount) but, this 'bit by bit' approach means you don't have to pay for it until you actually need it. Horses for courses! :D

For S & G designs, you are best to buy all the ply in one go. Otherwise you can't keep the continuity going. Remember to store 'on the flat' any ply you are not actually working on, otherwise you can induce warping. I find it best to keep it off the deck and well protected from any damp until you are ready to use it.

Best wishes

[pjl83]

to be honest mike, i had considered doing it that way. buying bits for each stage as I need them. Good shout though, thanks for mentioning it. The more I think about the build, I reckon I'd enjoy the clinker method moreas it would be a bigger challenge and now I'm working again, it would easier to break the build up and do it in lots of small stages at weekends and the odd night when I'm not coming home too tired.

[Mike]

Yup, all that is achievable, Paul, even on a tight budget - and the key to success is to not bite off more than you can comfortably chew.

Perhaps the biggest advantage in starting on a small clinker ply boat is that it is excellent practice for a much bigger build. There are plenty of really nice larger designs to choose from in clinker ply.

Take your time with it. This is a thoroughly enjoyable pastime - but be warned (as another member has said), it can become something of an obsession as do most things in which you derive enormous pleasure and satisfaction from the making of something with your own two hands. :approval:

Best of luck at work and at play

[Audrey S]

Slightly off topic,:offtopic: but it "could" have been fate:hmmm:, when I came across Audrey:thinking:


But Mike, may I be as bold as to ask if you could change your signature :please2:


As, bearing in mind how much I "paid" for Audrey, I find it a bit unnerving, :yikes[1]:


Thanks

Audrey

[Mike]

:22: Not so much off topic as it is .... errr .... obsessive? I'd like to know more about the skate Issy was on about in your blog. And where is my share of the catch? A couple of nice pan-fried skate fillets would go down a treat for supper this evening. Yummmmm. :yikes[1]:

Hang on a minute. What boat were you out on while fishing for skate? Don't tell me you've finished that rebuild already! ;)

Oh, I just read your addition about my signature, Audrey. Twasn't directed at anyone in particular so don't take it personally. In any event, I change it every few days as and when the mood takes me. I was referring, obliquely (as is my way don't ya know? Ha! :D) to picking up timber from other people's skips. The subject pops up here from time to time and I counsel against using such timber in boats UNLESS you are certain about its species and properties. There is economy ... and there is safety. They are not necessarily compatible.

[Audrey S]

I wasn't out skate fishing, I had an invite to go out aboard "Rebel", "Eseex Anglers" boat with Issy and a couple of fellas from WSF, last Saturday, but had other plans made,

Issy takes great delight in ringing me up when i'm not fishing and he is, to tell me how good the fishing is,


It's funny you know, he never rings when it's dire out in the Wallet,


As for your share of the catch, my friend, you're more than welcome to come over this way and help yourself when she finally gets wet

[Mike]

Kind of you, my friend, but we do have skate in the Bristol Channel don't y'know. And I'm way too busy to drive over to your neck of the woods just yet. I might be tempted to come and join you in Saving Grace one day though. That could be fun.

I'll drill the family on how to repel raucous boarders first.

"Hand me that fire hose, Jeannette. We're about to be boarded by a bunch of ribald Essex fishermen. Aaargh!" ;)

Now, let's get this thread back to where Paul started it please ... anybody believe in fate?

[Clip]

Do I believe in fate: for sure....

Too many close calls not to. Like the time I was on a tug maneuvering a drill barge in Saint John Harbour, with ships moored all around us. I had just bent over to pickup my clipboard off the deck, when a 6" mooring line snapped over me cutting my ear and took my hard hat off. The cable had caught on the tugs searchlight, when the light base snapped-----.

or the time I was doing nuclear densometer tests on a large busy construction site. I was kneeling on the ground doing my test when a dozer driver tapped me on my shoulder. I turned around and saw a large dozer tread about 6" behind me. He had stopped his machine after getting a sixth sense.

or the time, I was working on a mine shaft sinking as a blast inspector. I was talking to 3 others when suddenly I brought my arm up in a classic karate block, just as a 6' scaling bar was about enter my skull, after falling 300' down the shaft. I knocked the bar aside with my hand, breaking a few bones in the top of my hand. I didn't hear it, neither did anyone else????

or the time, last winter when flying in a copter up north when I asked the pilot to land and wait for the mist to clear before we cross the river since we wouldn't be able see our objective. On landing he couldn't take off again because there was 1/4" of ice built up all over copter and blades. We were seconds from dropping out of the sky.

or the time... well I could on and on..

Just to many close ones, to not believe in fate or that someone or something is looking out for you. You just need to be listening

[pjl83]

wow, a few near misses there clip.

i was on a site once and there was a guy called "shoot". After a few weeks we asked his mate where the nickname came from. It turns out that he used to work at a coal mine, the lazy ones always used to ride the conveyor belt towrds the hopper rather than walking, one day "shoot" tripped at the end whilst hopping off it and fell into the hopper that filled up with coal at a fair rate. his hard hat fell off and he landed face down in it, giving him a small air pocket to survive on before he was rescued from the coal that burried him. Now that's a close shave! "Shute" was a lucky boy that day!