Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread

[bd139]

East London always makes me laugh. Why would you name a place that!?

[Specmaster]

So today’s task is to find some toilet paper  . Down to three rolls. I usually have about 45-60 in but my stocking has been pretty lax recently. Not panic buying, 9 rolls will do.

I am actually more worried about protecting myself from my fellow citizens than any natural or biological disasters if I’m honest. There are a lot of barely evolved morons being influenced by the Daily Mail and Sun at the moment who are panic stricken after being programmed for years into fearing everything because it sells

Edit: so I got toilet roll. Turns out that the early bird catches the worm. Within ten minutes of the store doors opening there were people fighting over the last two packs. Also to note only the cheap shit is all gone. For example there is no pasta other than expensive brand stuff. Fucking morons

I usually get in 2 or 3 packs of 24 rolls at a time myself as I get them from Asda (Wallmart) own brand, they are about the softest I've ever found and it and cat latter are about the only thing I now buy there, hence why I stock up when I do go there. Still have about 24 rolls so not desperate at the moment, I can wait till it dies down a bit 

[bd139]

Same ones I usually get. Got cushelle today as everyone was bundling the own brand stuff so I slid in and grabbed it quick.

Basket looked like this  (there’s a roast dinner and hot dogs hiding)

[Specmaster]

Did nobody who headed west from England have the wits to think up some new place names?

It's not limited to westward travellers. Take a look at South Africa: Aberdeen, Llandudno, Dundee, Motherwell, Scarborough, East London, Ramsgate, Belfast, Margate, Worcester, Sutherland, Newcastle, York and Dublin.

Interestingly, Belfast and Dublin are approximately the same distance apart as their counterparts in Ireland, but tend to get on better with each other.

McBryce.

I guess it must be that they enjoyed the old place so much that they wanted to name another place the same, much the same as Frank Sinatra

[Specmaster]

Same ones I usually get. Got cushelle today as everyone was bundling the own brand stuff so I slid in and grabbed it quick.

Basket looked like this  (there’s a roast dinner and hot dogs hiding)

(Attachment Link)

So you say.. they aren't as good as the Asda own brand though but better than nothing.

[bd139]

Totally agree.

Asda = hewlett packard / tektronix / TTi
Cushelle = Rigol / Siglent
Tesco value = feeltech
Stuff at service stations = shit board from adafruit that doesn’t work properly

 

[med6753]

Did nobody who headed west from England have the wits to think up some new place names?

It's not limited to westward travellers. Take a look at South Africa: Aberdeen, Llandudno, Dundee, Motherwell, Scarborough, East London, Ramsgate, Belfast, Margate, Worcester, Sutherland, Newcastle, York and Dublin.

Interestingly, Belfast and Dublin are approximately the same distance apart as their counterparts in Ireland, but tend to get on better with each other.

McBryce.

The county I live in is named Ulster.

[tautech]

My surname is a county near the Scotland English border. In past centuries we apparently fought with the Poms.

[med6753]

Funny...seems you Brits have gone soft on your toilet paper.

When I was a kid I recall some family traveling to Europe and one of their major complaints was the toilet paper over there seemed to have been made from tree bark. 

[bd139]

Yeah it used to be terrible. The standard stuff was like tracing paper. My arse bled when I was at primary school. We’re now working on making it really soft but so narrow you need about 30 feet of it to avoid getting brown fingers. Vue Cinemas toilet paper is the worst. Literally 2 inches wide. I think they are trying to suggest you just floss your crack. 

Bingo just got accepted for another zero interest card to stooze TE purchases on 

[fcb]

Funny...seems you Brits have gone soft on your toilet paper.

When I was a kid I recall some family traveling to Europe and one of their major complaints was the toilet paper over there seemed to have been made from tree bark. 

1979-1981 I lived in Sheffield, UK - near the IZAL toilet paper factory - that stuff still gives me nightmares.

[McBryce]

The county I live in is named Ulster.

Would that be an "Alternative Ulster"?



McBryce.

[Specmaster]

It seems as if the leavers have only just realised that leave means leave, and we (the UK) now have to rapidly set up our own Aviation Authority to ensure that our airliners are safe to fly etc at a massive extra cost, and the cost of this is likely to around £40 million a year plus the set up costs. Add this to the extra costs of 50,000 customs officers that we need and if they are only paid £25,000 a year each. Suddenly being in Europe looks to be rather inviting after all.

So Project Fear is slowly becoming Project Fact, the experts all tried to warn us that it was an ill-conceived idea, but they were rapidly dispatched and buried beneath an avalanche of lies.

To think that we still of plenty of other centralised services and agencies to unravel yet, like medicines, shipping, railways, transport, nuclear and space etc, will we be able to afford all of this extra cost without having to resort to increasing taxation, and we all know where that extra burden will fall don't we? 

[med6753]

I guess so. Is that one of those underground Irish bands?

[Specmaster]

My surname is a county near the Scotland English border. In past centuries we apparently fought with the Poms.

You must clearly have lost that battle then and had to have the surname of the victors foisted upon you.

[Specmaster]

Totally agree.

Asda = hewlett packard / tektronix / TTi
Cushelle = Rigol / Siglent
Tesco value = feeltech
Stuff at service stations = shit board from adafruit that doesn’t work properly

 

the stuff at service stations has been nicknamed John Wayne....it don't take shit from no one 

[mnementh]

I dropped into the local supermarket today. Only needed a few things but my route to get them took me past the pasta section - looked like locusts had been through, about 3 packets left, all of things that most people have no clue what to do with like orzo. Even the wholewheat pasta was cleaned out.

Was pretty normal over here. But I guess it's a question of time 

Well, in the Great White North you'd expect that folks had some basic preparedness for times you might not be able to get out of the house for a week or so in the winter. Even my sister in law in sleepy urban Kelowna gets snowed in from time to time. So I guess you all won't feel the need to go out and get emergency supplies quite as much as the suburbanites of London or Sydney, some of whom don't have more than 1 or 2 days worth of food on hand at any time. Judging from the number of young people around here who seem to get a takeaway delivered every day there are probably some who'd starve of they had to buy, store and prepare food themselves.

For about ten years, I lived part time in the San Luis Valley in southern Colorado. It was fifteen minutes just to get to the two line "highway" and about an hour to the nearest town and grocery store. I only had to spend two hours in the truck once or twice because we ran out of toilet paper or rice to get pretty good at stocking the house for six weeks at a go. When we moved to Portland, things got a little easier but old habits die hard, so there's usually a month's worth of necessities tucked away around here. 

In Colorado, that's just what you did.  In Portland, it classifies you as a prepper.     

Yup; same here. For anybody who grew up in anything like a rural area, a big freezer in the garage is just how you were raised.  "Stocking up" when you find things you already use on sale and the mental list for the "monthly grocery run" are persistent background processes; just second nature. You don't even think about it. Perishables like fresh meat, milk & eggs are the only thing you get locally (or grow yourself) on a regular basis. We even had a shelf in the freezer just for bread products. 

   And as the first Beer of the Afternoon is sipped. Some 4 lots of shellacking topped off with some Mr Miyagi Wax on Wax Off action and my little cutting bench is now way to pretty to use The first scratch or slip with the Saw will hurt more than just a bit 

Nice to finally 'finish' one 

When I come to visit, I'll bring my Chessboard and Dominoes; maybe some oversized cargo shorts and flumpy slouch hats for the both of us. We can sit around and grump about the youth of today like two proper old codgers; I'll even drink A (as in one, singular) beer with ya for old times' sake.

mnem

[McBryce]

I guess so. Is that one of those underground Irish bands?

Not really underground. They were (are) a relatively successful punk band from Belfast and released quite a few albums in their day. They still exist as a band as far as I know.

McBryce.

[mnementh]

   Oh...and the Apple Fan Boys are lining up at the stores for these....

The memes are good with this disease so far 

https://shop.minimuseum.com/products/steve-jobs-turtleneck

But... but... but... each mask comes with a microscopic shred of Steve Jobs' signature turtleneck! You get to inhale a bit of history with every breath; your very own personal reality distortion field!!! * 

*First thousand customers only; all others receive some randomly selected microscopic drop of "Jobs'" bodily fluids extracted before or after death. Your mileage may vary; no substitutions except where we find it most profitable. Your personal information will be collected, collated, copied ad nauseum, sold to the highest and lowest bidder, then buried in soft beat and fed to the Ravenous Bugblatter Beast of Traal before being sucked into a blackhole to another universe populated entirely by Ferengi. Have a fabulous day and thank you for making the dream of aspirational branding a reality!

mnem

[AVGresponding]

My surname refers to an industrial town near the German/Dutch border...

Just missed out on a Philips 6 digit nixie frequency counter, it went for stupid money (more than 90 quid shipped).

I'll just have to stay patiently waiting for a cute little glow-tube TE.   

[beanflying]

   And as the first Beer of the Afternoon is sipped. Some 4 lots of shellacking topped off with some Mr Miyagi Wax on Wax Off action and my little cutting bench is now way to pretty to use The first scratch or slip with the Saw will hurt more than just a bit 

Nice to finally 'finish' one 

When I come to visit, I'll bring my Chessboard and Dominoes; maybe some oversized cargo shorts and flumpy slouch hats for the both of us. We can sit around and grump about the youth of today like two proper old codgers; I'll even drink A (as in one, singular) beer with ya for old times' sake.

mnem

Done deal, the bottom of your slops trough is Shellacked and Waxed so just need to remove the filler strip it should cope with a messy dwagon

[URI]

And as the first Beer of the Afternoon is sipped. Some 4 lots of shellacking topped off with some Mr Miyagi Wax on Wax Off action and my little cutting bench is now way to pretty to use The first scratch or slip with the Saw will hurt more than just a bit 

Nice to finally 'finish' one 

Wow. Very fine finish. Looks like furniture not like part of a tool.   
This is like using the good dining room table for woodworking.      

Toilet paper:
Keep calm and carry on, I'd like to say.
Haven't seen toilet paper sold out around here but pasta, canned fish and ready-mixes for bread. 

[URI]

Looking for a micro, stand and mixer cheap with good value for money after yesterdays experience of only be able of listening.   

[beanflying]

Looking for a micro, stand and mixer cheap with good value for money after yesterdays experience of only be able of listening.   

After sorting out my Hardware conflict as the issue this is what I have been using eBay auction: #324030959176 Plenty of reviews on youtube for it and the sound is good for the $. With a proper phantom mixer likely better again but I don't see the need just for discord.

And yes the Oak edge on the workbench is maybe a touch over the top

[bd139]

I would just like to say "fuck today". went outside to reterminate my antenna so I can put an inline disconnect in and disaster:

1. Firstly it's too damn cold to install Solder BNC connectors today so my hands stopped working
2. It started raining right in the middle of it. I'm perching on a chair outside with a metcal. Not good.
3. I ran out of insulation tape to seal off the open end of the feed literally right now (whyyyy) so I'm probably going to have rain dielectric now 

So fail, fail and fail.

Edit: now going to buy a decent crimp tool, a coax stripper and some crimp on BNCs.

Edit 2: does anyone know any BNC crimps that aren't a piece of shit? Don't mind spending 50-60 quid on these at the moment as it's a fucking pain in the arse doing clamp ons.