Absolutely Anything Else

fluffy2560 wrote:

but this is more and I ain't so young nowadays - more to do than I implied with my "just to do our fences" - basically remove the old fences,  dig trenches for fence foundations (not just holes in the ground), fix up the drains, retaining walls, replace the drain covers to sufficient strength, dig out and level the ground ready for paving and drainage, removal of old concrete cess pit and expand hole for underground water storage tank...supports for decking and on and on... !

Good grief. Sounds like building a new house would be easier....   

fluffy2560 wrote:

I really want a digging machine!

After I bought my tractor, my wife said, if she had known how much fun the hydrolics gave me, she would have ... cough... agreed to it sooner.....

fluffy2560 wrote:

Not doing anything today as it's bloody raining again!

Bloody right. WTFIGOWTH? (What the... fudge... is going on with the weather). 

klsallee wrote:

fluffy2560 wrote:

but this is more and I ain't so young nowadays - more to do than I implied with my "just to do our fences" - basically remove the old fences,  dig trenches for fence foundations (not just holes in the ground), fix up the drains, retaining walls, replace the drain covers to sufficient strength, dig out and level the ground ready for paving and drainage, removal of old concrete cess pit and expand hole for underground water storage tank...supports for decking and on and on... !

Good grief. Sounds like building a new house would be easier....   

fluffy2560 wrote:

I really want a digging machine!

After I bought my tractor, my wife said, if she had known how much fun the hydrolics gave me, she would have ... cough... agreed to it sooner.....

fluffy2560 wrote:

Not doing anything today as it's bloody raining again!

Bloody right. WTFIGOWTH? (What the... fudge... is going on with the weather). 

Well, yes, indeed, it's not a simple job at all.  Would be for construction workers though but pour little old moi, c'est tres difficile!   I forgot about the new water line to the outbuilding and the removal of another reinforced concrete box buried in the ground.  It's at least 1m deep with some unused pipes at the bottom.  ...oh and the tree stumps....and the cables that need burying....

...Oh and nothing can start on the boundaries until the surveyor has put the pegs in down the previously disputed boundary.....

Tractor - your Mrs is a wise person.  I was actually thinking of buying Mrs Fluffy a small digger as they aren't really that expensive second hand.  I thought she could mess about in the garden with it but I think we might be able to actually really use it as we have a lot of stuff to do.   I know it's what she really wants.  I am sure she really likes the angle grinder I got her for Christmas.  Oh and then there's the ratchet spanners she wanted for her birthday.  And I definitely know she's keen on the electric knife sharpener in the shed.  All she needs is a lathe and some other workshop equipment and I'll ....ooops..she'll be set.

I am so annoyed with the weather. It's absolutely screwing me up. I've got stuff to do!  I've got to seal up some edges on my porch roof and it needs to be dry for the bitumen type adhesive to stick.   Car needs fixing too - don't want to lay on the wet ground. 

I also been musing a mini project to put a publicly accessible weathercam on my roof - pointing over the Buda hills to a landmark we have  - Erszebet Tower.   I've been looking for something I can use to put overlays of weather and time or whatever on the video feed.    Got the camera already left over from previously.   I think I can do the overlays with a Raspberry Pi with a bit of freeware. 

Be a winter project probably but I don't want to be on the roof in icy or wet weather.

I'm sure Mrs. Fluffy is just dying for a digger or grinder.
You sound like my husband many years ago when he had new machinery in his shop.
I mentioned I wanted a nice new car and he said, what for ? You have a Mori Seiki lathe and a Bridgeport mill, how many women have those?
He then said you can't make money with a new car but you can with machinery. Logic just isn't my thing!

I suppose though these days you could make a few bucks with a new car  as a Uber driver.
I'm not sure I'd enjoy giving rides to strangers in my new clean car though...
I once just about slapped a HU women I knew in Ca. I was 19 and had an old Opel car. I kept it neat and clean at all times, have to have some pride in your things even if they are junk.
I had just spent the morning at the car wash and gave it a good  "hoovering" inside.
It was my day off of work and this women even got her job through me asking my boss to hire her. Ok, so she asked me to give her a ride somewhere, no problem always ready to help out a friend.
Well as we were going along she pulls out a huge bag of soda crackers and starts munching on them in my clean car.
WTH?? Not the sharpest tool in the shed.
I pulled over to the curb and told her either the crackers go or she does.
There are limits on how far a person can go.

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

He then said you can't make money with a new car but you can with machinery.

But one can not put the roof down on a Mori Selki lathe and take it for a drive up the coast highway on the weekend..... There is more to life than making money. That is the work part. There is also the other half: Spending the money, which should be the fun part. What is the point of doing one if one can not do the other?

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

I'm sure Mrs. Fluffy is just dying for a digger or grinder.
You sound like my husband many years ago when he had new machinery in his shop.
I mentioned I wanted a nice new car and he said, what for ? You have a Mori Seiki lathe and a Bridgeport mill, how many women have those?
He then said you can't make money with a new car but you can with machinery. Logic just isn't my thing!

Hmmm.....Mrs Fluffy is far too polite to say she's not enjoying sharpening the garden shears.  I suppose she might draw the line on a lathe and a milling machine but then again she's got a nice sewing machine she wanted.  I thought she might have liked a TIG welder attachment.

klsallee wrote:

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

He then said you can't make money with a new car but you can with machinery.

But one can not put the roof down on a Mori Selki lathe and take it for a drive up the coast highway on the weekend..... There is more to life than making money. That is the work part. There is also the other half: Spending the money, which should be the fun part. What is the point of doing one if one can not do the other?

Ah, work to live or live to work! 

Some people can actually do both and enjoy both.   Important to have purpose whatever it might be.  I am sure I could find more worthwhile purpose with a couple of billions (or millions) in the bank.  I could even start my own rocket company and beat Bezos or Musk to Mars!

We no longer care about making money at all.
When you're younger and raising a family then people tend to think of money.
Now we think of health, that really is the most important thing to have.
My "poor" husband started working at age 14 in HU, part-time trade classes and part-time working under a master machinist in a factory, being his helper.
Probably the hardest and best way to learn a trade, took 4 years and at age 18 was already skilled and ready to start life without depending on anyone but his own 2 hands.
I admit these days when I see a mid 20 year old riding a scooter on the sidewalk I am really put off, they look to my mind to be such immature babies and I don't even see them as adults at all.
I guess every generation sees the younger one in that light? Not sure though as my generation had 18 year old's going off to Vietnam and dying. They were men at that young age.
Our elderly parents generation also had to grow up fast with wars and no welfare system in place .
My mom had to quit school at 14 and get a job because there was no such thing as welfare in the US. Her mother died when she was 13 and it was a luxury for her grandmother to let her finish the last year of jr,hi school.
Oh well, at least we know who to stay far away from, a person of adult age who never wishes to grow up.
My son comes to mind, age 43 and calling just about everyday from Japan for advice from his father on life issues.
My husband left HU at age 23 and never ever shared any life issues with his mother. He knew there was nothing she could do from HU while he was in the US.Why worry her?
I find this younger generation to be way too emotional and helpless.
Not all but far too many.
Seems I've turned into a grumpy old lady, might just be this crazy weather.
No, I seem to be the one who is too emotional.
It's very strange to live in HU and have our son in Japan.
It's not so easy to leave your roots.
Things are going his way, the job he wanted in Japan seems to be happening, at least he has a interview next week for it. Won't go further with that in case it doesn't come true.
His wife is working, dang though, we tried so hard to get her off her duff in the states for 7 years!
I taught her how to deal cards, took her on several casino interviews and even found domestic jobs that were easy and near their home. Couldn't get her to budge.
Now she  is working nearly 10 or more hours a day in Japan. Oh well live and learn.
Over there most jobs are salary. They can ask you to do overtime and work 6 days a week if they wish to.
They are staying with his in-laws but have a new flat in just 4 days.
Starting out in a new country is always difficult at first.
I find it very eye opening to see how life is over there.
My boy's FIL is an electrical engineer and the mother never worked.
The SIL cooks dinner for the whole family every night when he gets home from work, he plans the meals etc. The MIL does nothing much but laundry for everyone. She babysits her grandson while his mom works her 2 jobs.
The FIL has his own house about 2 hours away in the mountains where he spends most of his time, he just pays the bills at the second home. Not a man cave but a man house.
They live in a large home 2 stories high with 2 kitchens and two homes in one but they share housework and meals.
Just a different way of living.

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

His wife is working, dang though, we tried so hard to get her off her duff in the states for 7 years!

In some cultures, work is also a very social issue, and very much about the people (and language) around at the office. She may never have felt "right" in any job in the USA because of these many "surrounding" issues.

klsallee wrote:

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

His wife is working, dang though, we tried so hard to get her off her duff in the states for 7 years!

In some cultures, work is also a very social issue, and very much about the people (and language) around at the office. She may never have felt "right" in any job in the USA because of these many "surrounding" issues.

True but as an American  born and bredI've also never felt comfy at any job.
I am a big homebody and hate being in public even though I am great at covering it up and seeming to enjoy myself in public.One big act on my part to even talk to a stranger.

My DIL is into her video games and that's about it.
My son's ex -girl was a much more  active person. She came to the US by herself to go to college in NV.
She also was from Japan. Her mom and sis came to stay with us when she finished up college, a super nice family.
She worked her way through a 4 year degree and even joined yoga classes and swam all the time.
I was so heartbroken when my son dumped her, she was a real positive sort of go getter person.
She also beat out 10 Americans in Vegas for one open job in the IT field when she was ready to get into her chosen field.
I was proud of her, oh well what can a mom do?
It's hard to coach someone who will not listen.

Life is good though, I have no drama. Seems I must out source any drama, thankfully!
These last couple of days I've been thinking of going natural with my hair color.
That is a real DRAMA!
Considering how drastic it would be and how to grow it out etc.
Then reality hit me, thought well... maybe I'll have  a go of it in "hat season" this fall and just cut my locks short as I can stand it and let her rip...
Then today I looked out the window at a silver fox lady and thought, "dang that looks sort of messed up" so now I am doing my hair red once again...
Life is so hard, all these major decisions to make.

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

Then today I looked out the window at a silver fox lady and thought, "dang that looks sort of messed up" so now I am doing my hair red once again...
Life is so hard, all these major decisions to make.

Yes, such decisions are hard.

I personally like the rainbow look for hair. Any woman of any age. Blue. Red. Yellow. Demonstrates freedom and a bit of a wild nature (---- which I like).

Either that or the peppered look of maturing beauty. But that is best done with a short hair style, in my humble opinion. Longer hair does not look quite right graying (but there are exceptions -- if the hair is wavy and the gray is in streaks -- that is also attractive as the "artistic Bohemia look").

But... that is all just me.

klsallee wrote:

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

Then today I looked out the window at a silver fox lady and thought, "dang that looks sort of messed up" so now I am doing my hair red once again...
Life is so hard, all these major decisions to make.

Yes, such decisions are hard.

I personally like the rainbow look for hair. Any woman of any age. Blue. Red. Yellow. Demonstrates freedom and a bit of a wild nature (---- which I like).

Either that or the peppered look of maturing beauty. But that is best done with a short hair style, in my humble opinion. Longer hair does not look quite right graying (but there are exceptions -- if the hair is wavy and the gray is in streaks -- that is also attractive as the "artistic Bohemia look").

But... that is all just me.

I tend to agree.  Bit of individuality goes a long way. 

I used to have blonde streaks in my hair about 40 years ago - it was age of the punk.   Now it's just grey with dark streaks.  I think if hair is grey and long it'll look too witch like.  Grey hair in buns looks Grandma'ish. 

The older Fluffyette now has blue hair and multiple earrings which the teachers commented on at school.  My opinion was that if they wanted to discuss it they'd have to argue with us both.  We support and defend our child's right to have blue hair and multiple earrings!  We said it looks OK.

But we've said we don't like more permanent displays like tattoos.  Not a good idea.

Many years ago when having purple hair was about as strange looking as the kid in the old 50's movie, "The boy with Green Hair" was.
I was in beauty college and the "new" product called,cellophane just arrived at our school for us to play with.
I decided to turn my redish hair to purple.
I sat under the dryer to fix it in really deep, turned a bright purple color.
Was going to night school, my husband would sit our son when he got home from work.
Did this on a Friday night and just came home and went to bed.
In the morning on Sat. my husband woke up and had the shock of his life.
He saw my bright purple hair and jumped up in bed.
We all went out to Westwood area for a Sat. family walk about together. People were starring and making comments as we passed by. My husband who is mostly shy couldn't handle it so he walked on the other side of the st.! He asked me to take that color out of my hiar but i refused, just let it slowly fade away...
Now everyone even their grandmother has bright colored hair.
I was called out in Budapest in 78 when walking the city with my husband, son , bro and sis in -laws. Some lamo construction workers had to cat call to me because I had a huge perm with super red Lucille Ball red hair.
I'm sort of over it, grey, white, red anything but bald is ok with me.
I've had so many odd haircuts and colors over the years that normal is new to me now.

I read that last night a tour boat turned over and at least 7 people have been killed in the Danube here in the city.
They were from S. Korea.
Wasn't it pouring rain at 10 pm last night? Why did the boat go out in a storm? Anything to make a buck?
They should provide lifevests to everyone before going out on the water, wonder if they did that or not?
It's really sad what a vacation for those people.
Vacation accidents are the worst.
Yesterday at the hotel in Japan where my DIL works a guy was found dead after check out time.
The camera saw him alive at 6 am but at 1 pm he was gone. Check out was 10 am so 3 hours was sort of a long while to see where he was...

My great niece who is 13 had blue hair when I saw her this last visit in Vegas.
Must be a shade young teens like, or the Rue  color toners that white haired old ladies put on to shine.

I moved my comment here as my comment below was off topic at the originating topic.

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

That's how a neighborhood goes down, because people do not respect the rights of others.

And sometimes they get sweet justice.

Type into any search engine, something like "fire hydrant hose through car" and laugh at how firefighters don't put up with BS. 

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

I read that last night a tour boat turned over and at least 7 people have been killed in the Danube here in the city.
They were from S. Korea.
Wasn't it pouring rain at 10 pm last night? Why did the boat go out in a storm? Anything to make a buck?
They should provide lifevests to everyone before going out on the water, wonder if they did that or not?
It's really sad what a vacation for those people.
Vacation accidents are the worst.

Yes very sad, 7 dead, and 21 people are missing

The Police have now launched a criminal investigation into the accident.

The boat that sank near the parliament building in central Budapest was identified as the Hableany, or Mermaid.

It has two decks and a capacity of 45 people for sightseeing trips.

Footage has emerged purportedly showing the Hableany and a larger vessel colliding near the Margit (Margaret) Bridge.

Some reports suggest that the Hableany was hit from behind.

This has not been confirmed by the Hungarian authorities, as they investigate a rare incident on the Danube, where navigation is busy but generally safe.

Source: BBC News (Hungary)

SimCityAT wrote:

....
Footage has emerged purportedly showing the Hableany and a larger vessel colliding near the Margit (Margaret) Bridge.
....

Yes, seen the video of the accident online.  They didn't stand a chance. They were run down by the larger ship and probably the captain of the larger vessel couldn't see them as the Mermaid boat was relatively small and low and it was raining and stormy. 

Basically the larger ship pushes it to one side and then runs over the top of it.   Very nasty accident.

Here's the link to the video: Mermaid Tragedy Margit Hid

fluffy2560 wrote:

SimCityAT wrote:

....
Footage has emerged purportedly showing the Hableany and a larger vessel colliding near the Margit (Margaret) Bridge.
....

Yes, seen the video of the accident online.  They didn't stand a chance. They were run down by the larger ship and probably the captain of the larger vessel couldn't see them as the Mermaid boat was relatively small and low and it was raining and stormy. 

Basically the larger ship pushes it to one side and then runs over the top of it.   Very nasty accident.

Here's the link to the video: Mermaid Tragedy Margit Hid

It sank in a matter of seconds. Due to the current of the water, those that are missing could have been swept away down the river, quite a few Km's.

SimCityAT wrote:

.....
It sank in a matter of seconds. Due to the current of the water, those that are missing could have been swept away down the river, quite a few Km's.

Yes, it did. You can see in the video it was there one second and then gone the next.    Apparently one person was found at Petofi bridge only 15 minutes after the  accident.  That's some distance.   They think most are inside the boat or gone downstream.

There was a film crew on Szabadsag (Freedom) Bridge and they used their film lights to illuminate the river - not sure if it's the same crew that were in Andrassy during the week.   Don't know if it made any difference using the lights.

I truly feel horrible about this accident. I always rag on how Budapest become another, "Disneyland" but dang, those poor souls.
I will reflect on my bad attitude and remember some people just want to enjoy life.
I smell a law suit, or perhaps in HU they don't have such things as personal injury and wrongful death?
Last leg of their vacation and this happens...
I will remember to include these lost people in my prayers...
I hope this is a wake up call to money hungry business owners to put safety before profit.
Many years back my now deceased sister's live in BF was a personal injury lawyer in Encino, Ca.
Their office got a good rep after several people used the firm after the huge MGM fire in Las Vegas.
What a sad thing when people are expecting a good time and get the shaft.

Update: The captain of the Viking Cruise Sigyn ship has now been arrested, charged with endangering water transport leading to a deadly mass accident. The Hableany (Mermaid) sank in 7 seconds. None of its passengers had life jackets on.

SimCityAT wrote:

Update: The captain of the Viking Cruise Sigyn ship has now been arrested, charged with endangering water transport leading to a deadly mass accident.

Will any politician be arrested who allowed an unrealistic and dangerous and unregulated increase in boat traffic to occur in the past few years?

Nothing happens in a vacuum.

SimCityAT wrote:

None of its passengers had life jackets on.

Been on boats on the Danube and Lake Balaton. Never had life vests issued.

klsallee wrote:

SimCityAT wrote:

None of its passengers had life jackets on.

Been on boats on the Danube and Lake Balaton. Never had life vests issued.

For small boats on a busy shipping channel, maybe this needs to be addressed?

SimCityAT wrote:

For small boats on a busy shipping channel, maybe this needs to be addressed?

Won't hold my breath. Would require a change in government and a change in local ideology and culture.

klsallee wrote:

SimCityAT wrote:

Update: The captain of the Viking Cruise Sigyn ship has now been arrested, charged with endangering water transport leading to a deadly mass accident.......None of its passengers had life jackets on.

klsallee wrote:

Been on boats on the Danube and Lake Balaton. Never had life vests issued.

Difference between the Danube and Balaton is that there's no high speed flowing water on Balaton.   Of course it can get stormy on Balaton but people get plenty of warning to get out of the water.   I've heard there are a couple of places where there can be very strong water flows where people can get sucked under during storms but don't know the details.

We went over a Duna bridge a bit further down last night very late as we were on the way back from the airport and we couldn't see a thing going on there under Margit Hid.   

I heard in the latest news that a diver was trapped down there caught up in some wire or jagged metal and had to be rescued by another diver.  The visibility is reported as zero, the current extremely strong and the depth increasing due to flood/rain water.  Also heard the arrested captain (from Ukraine) has been released and has left the country!!

Correction:

The captain of the cruise ship asked for bail and maybe released if he stays in-country and wears an ankle tag.  This is likely to lead to formal charges.   Presumably the charges are "holding" charges to allow investigations.

fluffy2560 wrote:

Difference between the Danube and Balaton is that there's no high speed flowing water on Balaton.   Of course it can get stormy on Balaton but people get plenty of warning to get out of the water.

Why do you assume the only risk on water is weather? Maybe there is a fire in the engine compartment, and the boat can not make it to shore and the people need to go over board. What if a person on the boat can not swim?

klsallee wrote:

fluffy2560 wrote:

Difference between the Danube and Balaton is that there's no high speed flowing water on Balaton.   Of course it can get stormy on Balaton but people get plenty of warning to get out of the water.

Why do you assume the only risk on water is weather? Maybe there is a fire in the engine compartment, and the boat can not make it to shore and the people need to go over board. What if a person on the boat can not swim?

Good point. 

But even if you are 500m out you might be able to walk back!   With the strong currents in the Duna, one would be gone downstream in a flash.  I think if there was a fire, about 50 boats would be there within a couple of minutes.  It's pretty busy on that lake.   

And of course,  most able bodied people can swim.  I know that's not everywhere (particularly Africa) but certainly in HU, nearly everyone can do it.  Don't know about South Korea.

Kids have swimming lessons in school (mine do anyway) and I've noticed nearly all larger schools are starting to have sports centres attached to them.   All of the ones around here seem to.

I expect the tourist boats will now require people to wear life jackets.  Going to be hard to enforce. 

I think weather must have been a factor in the accident. I looked at the designs of the river cruiser (it's a series of designs all with similar names) and it seems that the captain's or helmsman's view might have been obscured in severe weather, the darkness under the bridge and the high sides of the Viking cruiser. Interestingly enough when I saw the Viking Cruises video (it's on their web site), the last picture that comes up on their Amsterdam-Budapest cruise is of a cruiser going past the parliament.

Just such a tragic event.
My husband nearly drown in the Danube as an 8 year old boy. He was recused by some old fisherman that happened to be near by.
As they say, when your time is up, it's up.
I've said my prayers for these people and that's about all one can do.
The caption should retire, that's the least he can do.
On the lighter side, yesterday we took a walk and had to wait on Blaha for the tm to go by.
The light was red for walkers.
A group of Koreans just walked on the red light and the tram driver kept going and blasted his horn. None of these tourists seemed to even look twice they just kept on crossing.
My husband did that old sardonic thing that Hungarians seem to do, funny when it happens. He calmly stated that Koreans come to Hungary to die... I may be warped, thought it was funny considering how sad the boat event is.


In 1978 my husband asked 2 fisherman on the Danube to give us a private boat ride at night. A nice way to cap off our evening out.
He paid them a few bucks and they went up and down near Margret Island for about an hour. One funny guy started to even sing for us.
It was pitch dark outside and cold, mid Sept. We seemed to be the only boat out that night.

In Belize we took a ride in the open ocean to one of the outer Islands to site see and swim for the day.
The very last passenger was a huge local women, I mean at least a 400  pounder, one big fish as my husband would say.
The small open boat was tipping side to side as she got into it. I sort of thought, "crap" there were zero life vests on the boat and no one seemed to look like they could swim 20 feet. Took nearly one hour to get to the smaller Island.
Said my silent prayer and all was good.
These poor people on the Danube were to my eyes just run over like nothing by the larger craft.
The greed of these tour operators is a horror.
It's OK to take a chance with your own life but not with someone else's.

fluffy2560 wrote:

But even if you are 500m out you might be able to walk back!

May be true on the south side of Lake Balaton. But the North side gets deep fast. And there are plenty of schedules boats that just ply the northern shore.

https://en.balatonihajozas.hu/boating_o … ed_boating

fluffy2560 wrote:

And of course,  most able bodied people can swim.  I know that's not everywhere (particularly Africa) but certainly in HU, nearly everyone can do it.  Don't know about South Korea

Tourists are more likely to take boat trips. And their swimming skills, or their national school curriculum regarding swimming skills, can not to be assumed. Just saying. Hungary needs to grow up and realize there is a greater world outside Hungarian reality, and thus a larger range of skills than what may be "expected" in Hungary and so may differ from what is found in Hungary. Especially since the government is pushing tourism.

klsallee wrote:

......
May be true on the south side of Lake Balaton. But the North side gets deep fast. And there are plenty of schedules boats that just ply the northern shore.

.......And their swimming skills, or their national school curriculum regarding swimming skills, can not to be assumed. Just saying. Hungary needs to grow up and realize there is a greater world outside Hungarian reality, and thus a larger range of skills than what may be "expected" in Hungary and so may differ from what is found in Hungary. Especially since the government is pushing tourism.

Ach, the Northern Shore.  That's beyond the wall for us Southern Shore dwellers.  Over there, past Tihany in a Westerly direction, it might as well be land of the White Walkers

What I know of public administration hereabouts is that sometimes it's not thought through and their interpretation of one size fits usually means vagueness.  I think there's an element of nationalism as well which means not accepting anyone else's ideas.  My own country does that - if it's not invented there it's presumed to have no merit!

But regarding the HU boat disaster, I don't think anyone had a chance to swim anywhere.  Mrs Fluffy reported from web sites she reads, it's common in Budapest for large groups of people (tourists) from Asia to just walk across the  roads and ignore the crossings and "don't cross" red lights.

Moreover, it's spreading - see here: Venice Ship Crash

I see people who look Korean walking all the time in large groups and just walking against the red light.
Perhaps in Korea it is a thing to do?
Well, they also eat bugs for snacks over there on sticks, so not every habit is that great.
My son's old Korean girlfriend told me they used to run out as children to the bug man as he came down the street. Yummy , so she said although she is now so Americanized that even she thought eating bugs was nutty( wonder if they taste like chicken?)
It was dark, strange and the water very cold when the boat was crushed. Metal twisted and lots of confusion and panic.
Even a good swimmer would get chilled fast and cramp up.
Wonder if any passengers from the larger boat even knew what happened at the time?
So far I haven't seen any news about them recovering any bodies yet.
I'm sure they have but no mention of it so far that I've heard of.
My husband and I always run into tourists near Blaha corner who just cross the road.
We always direct them to the underground to cross over.
Sooner or later someone is going to get killed there. I also would dislike seeing a ugly sign posted at every corner to inform people how to cross the road.
We live not too far off from the large blvd. and during summer months I will not go that route on my walks, just far too many tables and chairs out on the sidewalks,people just stopping on a dime for no reason while walking, just way too touristy for a local.
Wasn't this way a decade ago, I'm considering moving because I hate crowds.
So far our area is nice, no bars or huge tourist attractions close by but things do change over time.
With so many closed small shops here and there it is just  prime to become the next'in" bar or hangout place.
I've personally never been a "bar" person. I could never see just sitting with strangers talking about old times and paying for over priced watered down drinks but to each his own.

New flash: Looks like they have found at least 2 bodies so far. Korean divers pulled them out. One deceased was found 100km away. May they all RIP.

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

I see people who look Korean walking all the time in large groups and just walking against the red light.
Perhaps in Korea it is a thing to do?
Well, they also eat bugs for snacks over there on sticks, so not every habit is that great.
My son's old Korean girlfriend told me they used to run out as children to the bug man as he came down the street. Yummy , so she said although she is now so Americanized that even she thought eating bugs was nutty( wonder if they taste like chicken?).....m
It was dark, strange and the water very cold when the boat was crushed. Metal twisted and lots of confusion and panic.
Even a good swimmer would get chilled fast and cramp up.
....
News flash: Looks like they have found at least 2 bodies so far. Korean divers pulled them out. One deceased was found 100km away. May they all RIP.

They like eating bugs in Africa as well.  If we believe the climate change things going we'll all be eating bugs as they will be the only food source but I guess McBug with Curly Bug Fries and a McBugShake to go will still satisfy The Big D.   

But according The Matrix everything tastes like chicken, even breakfast cereals.  They called it Goop!

I think you're right about the water being cold and dark.  They had no chance.   I heard also that one body had been recovered from the wreck and I also read about the one 100km away.  That shows how fast the river was moving.  I understood people on the cruise boat saw the crash. They were on deck taking photos of the parliament. 

I thought perhaps walking against the light was just because they don't want to get stuck at the lights and lose their flag waving tour guide.   I spend a lot of time at the airport and for sure they are all that - usually queueing up for their tax free goods refunds.   The leader always has a flag or an umbrella and for some reason they like hats - maybe problems in the sun.   Japan or Korea must be very different to here for people to come on holiday - I tend to think of it as not unusual or different here now.  It's totally Euro-normal.

My Japanese DIL never went in the sun. In some Asian societies it is "low class" to have any tan, hench the huge floppy hats and umbrellas.
My DIL even wore those arm coverings on a sunny day so her forearms wouldn't get tan. It's "different" for sure.
In Hawaii the local women do not wear swimsuits either, they will wear shorts and a t-shirt in the water. Not sure if they are super modest or just embarrassed to be mostly heavy set.
I used to get really nasty looks on local beaches in HI and I was wearing a one piece suit. The looks were mean really mean like you skinny thing, get outta here or else.... Just drove to another beach the next time.
My eldest sister and her husband had to attened the funeral of a good friend of theirs in the late 60's who had drown.
Some sort of boating accident  on a river. Took several days to find him so needless to say it was a closed casket service.
My ex' BIL's second  wife fell off a boat and drown in some lake in the mid west.I met her when I was a teenager. My sister liked her actually and we visited them a few times after my sis divorced her ex.
My niece mentioned she was a mean step-mom and didn't seem to miss her much although she gets on well with her 2 half brothers.
It's easy to say oh, I'd swim and save myself as an outsider to the situation but being there is different.
When I was only 7 and my bro 3, we went to a lovley house where our father was living with his girlfriend and her mom.
He had the house alone that day and brought us 4 kids over for swimming and lunch.
I couldn't swim and my bro couldn't either.
My teen sisters were in charge to watch us near the shallow end while dad fixed lunch in the house.
My spaced out older sister were 12 and 14 and could both swim.
The decided to go into the house and just called to me over their shoulder to watch my bro.
What?
He of course wouldn't listen to me and ran away towards the side of the deep end, it was slippery and he fell in the pool.
I saw it happen but it was so fast I could hardly move before my dad came running fully dressed out the door and jumped in the pool.
Was said my bro was going down for the 3rd time but I didn't see that.
Little I could do anyways as I was too small and couldn't swim either.
I was given a undo spank for not watching my bro. Life isn't fair at times, my sisters should of been punished not me.
Suppose this makes me extra sensitive to people who drown, just brings back bad memories.

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

My Japanese DIL never went in the sun. In some Asian societies it is "low class" to have any tan, hench the huge floppy hats and umbrellas.
My DIL even wore those arm coverings on a sunny day so her forearms wouldn't get tan. It's "different" for sure.
In Hawaii the local women do not wear swimsuits either, they will wear shorts and a t-shirt in the water. Not sure if they are super modest or just embarrassed to be mostly heavy set.
I used to get really nasty looks on local beaches in HI and I was wearing a one piece suit. The looks were mean really mean like you skinny thing, get outta here or else.... Just drove to another beach the next time.......
When I was only 7 and my bro 3, we went to a lovley house where our father was living with his girlfriend and her mom.
He had the house alone that day and brought us 4 kids over for swimming and lunch.
I couldn't swim and my bro couldn't either.
My teen sisters were in charge to watch us near the shallow end while dad fixed lunch in the house.
My spaced out older sisters were 12 and 14 and could both swim.
The decided to go into the house and just called to me over their shoulder to watch my bro.
What?
He of course wouldn't listen to me and ran away towards the side of the deep end, it was slippery and he fell in the pool.
I saw it happen but it was so fast I could hardly move before my dad came running fully dressed out the door and jumped in the pool.
Was said my bro was going down for the 3rd time but I didn't see that.
Little I could do anyways as I was too small and couldn't swim either.
I was given a undo spank for not watching my bro. Life isn't fair at times, my sisters should of been punished not me.....

I didn't realise the Japanese avoided the sun but now it's explained why they are all wearing so much gear when they are here. 

Never knew that about the Hawaiian women either.  Is that something they like, a bit of a full body shape?  And why not others on the beach?  Live and let live etc?!

Seems a bit unjust to give you a hard time over your sis putting responsibility on you.  But that's what selfish teenagers have - no responsibility  and no ability to see the consequences of their actions.  I have asked my Fluffyettes if they can predict possible outcomes in various scenarios and sure enough they cannot.  I am not sure it's just experience.  I've read it's an issue with brain development.  The brain is not fully developed  until the early 20s.

Most cases brain development  in the 20's but in many cases I am still waiting on people in their 70's to wake the heck up!
I was the 3rd child, a 3rd girl, the lost child.... No respect as the 3rd born  too young for some things and too old for others.
Guess my father panicked has he had to turn my bo upside down to get the water out of his lungs. He may of been arrested for this he had drown. My sisters both were "brats"...
They both always held my head under water when I attempted to learn to swim.
Maybe they were hoping we both went under and never came up, they hated to share.
I seem to still be resentful about that day.

Only had 2 spankings ever from my father and both were because of my silly bro who would never listen to me. No one can expect a 7 year old to sit a 3 year old.

I'm learning allot about the family dynamics in Japan.
They have their "issues". Just like anyone else does.
I personally enjoy a more straight forward honest lifestyle rather then people expecting things and judging behind your back.
Just spit it out and be done with it, I say.
My eldest sister tends to play little games of control with people I've learned. I see she is her own worst enemy because people will always let you down if they don't know what you want from them.
When my first cousin and his Thai wife visited us the first time here in HU a couple summers back, he mentioned something about my older sis. He just came right out and said, "Is she still bossy"? I haven't laughed that hard it awhile, so true. thought she saved that just for me but it seems she has a rep as a bossy person who needs to be in control.
It is amazing to me sometimes to see all the different personalities in one family unit.
They do say your birth order has  a lot to do with your personality.

Hawaiians have a left over thing about modesty etc. The Christian missionaries that went over there did a number on the locals.
Went from going half naked to covering up everything.
It's funny, I am slim but not boney, skinny. In Hawaii where I worked in a beauty salon the 2 local ladies both came to me one day and said the local clients were worried about me. When I asked why, they said everyone thought I was anorexic! I had wondered why my tips came in the form of sushi platters and my co-workers were always taking me out to eat and telling me to go to lunch.
Different attitudes over there.

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

Most cases brain development  in the 20's but in many cases I am still waiting on people in their 70's to wake the heck up!
.......My sisters both were "brats"...
They both always held my head under water when I attempted to learn to swim.
Maybe they were hoping we both went under and never came up, they hated to share.
I seem to still be resentful about that day.

Only had 2 spankings ever from my father and both were because of my silly bro who would never listen to me. No one can expect a 7 year old to sit a 3 year old.

.....he mentioned something about my older sis. He just came right out and said, "Is she still bossy"? I haven't laughed that hard it awhile, so true. thought she saved that just for me but it seems she has a rep as a bossy person who needs to be in control.
It is amazing to me sometimes to see all the different personalities in one family unit.
They do say your birth order has  a lot to do with your personality.

Hawaiians have a left over thing about modesty etc. The Christian missionaries that went over there did a number on the locals.
Went from going half naked to covering up everything.
It's funny, I am slim but not boney, skinny. In Hawaii where I worked in a beauty salon the 2 local ladies both came to me one day and said the local clients were worried about me. When I asked why, they said everyone thought I was anorexic! I had wondered why my tips came in the form of sushi platters and my co-workers were always taking me out to eat and telling me to go to lunch.
Different attitudes over there.

I hope your bossy sisters came to regret their behaviour.  Siblings can be expert torturers.  I know!

7 years old is far too young to watch over another child.  Mrs Fluffy and I were discussing it the other day and we decided (and I think it's the case legally in HU) that 14 is minimum age for baby sitting although personally I'd never entrust a baby to a 14 year old.  Maybe a 14 year old sitting a 8 year old (i.e. mainly self-sufficient for survival) would work but not 7 and 3.

Talking of anorexia and brain development there was a story yesterday in the news about a young woman of 17 who starved herself to death deliberately as a kind of suicide.  It's a weird one - her family realised she was mentally ill but agreed she was able to give permission to the medics to withdraw treatment (legal under much misreported Netherlands law).

Story here:

Dutch teen Noa Pothoven's death as euthanasia

It's a tragedy that she said (as reported in the above link):

"They think I'm too young to die. They think I should complete the trauma treatment and that my brain must first be fully grown. That lasts until you are 21. I'm devastated because I can't wait that long anymore."


In my mind this is a pretty shocking story as that's far too young to make that kind of elective decision. I am wondering if the two rapists and attackers should be charged with murder or at least manslaughter as what they did led directly to her death, even if it was by her own hand.   In my own country, if someone bashes someone over the head during say,  a robbery,  and that act injures a person and they die within a year, then a murder charge is possible but if they survive a year and a day, then it's not possible.  Interesting legal and logical niceties.

What a happy note for a Friday! And it's a really beautiful day!  The excitement of "working from home" will be punctuated by visiting the car wash, putting out garbage and maybe taking the dog walkies.  Mrs Fluffy is thinking of going to Balaton for the weekend if the good weather keeps up.  I'm thinking of going just for the day if at all - too many things to do here. Working is a pain - people don't seem to  realise that it interferes with personal activities and leisure time.  And school finishes end of next week!

Very sad about that Dutch girl, just that, still a girl. Her parents in my opinion should be mentally examined for abuse. She was too young to make such a decision.her own.
I knew a really beautiful girl in school. She was 2 grades ahead of me.
Actually, come to think of it, she and her twin brother were part Dutch.
He had black hair and she that wonderful straw blonde color. She was really tall and built nice.
She thought she was getting fat so stopped eating.
My friend and I ran into her on the st. after she had come out of the hospital, she was 5'10" or 11" and normal weight of about 140 lbs. She was a "chub" at 110 when we saw her! She had gone down as low as 85 lbs when she was placed by her parents in the hospital.
We asked when she was returning to school and she didn't know her entire life was now all about her hourly feedings. One tbls of food an hour, that's all her system could take at one time.
Insane, one of the prettiest girls at school and super popular and sweet.
Balaton sounds fantastic but think maybe the water is still to cold?
We may drive that way next week. We usually don't go out that way on weekends, too much traffic for us.
It's about time to start thinking of a sun burn again.
We were thinking about looking at holiday homes here but we sort of are getting cold feet.
Too old to make life more complicated, can't live in 2 places at one time.
Perhaps it's just better to rent for a few days without a care.
I'm looking into prices for swimming in the city, they have once again raised the fees. It's almost like you need to go get a bank loan just to take a swim around here!
Miss my one dollar a day swimming pool in Vegas... Complete with a good stereo system playing classic rock from the 70's and 80's.
Summer is really too short here in HU to buy a vacation home unless you have a large family to share it with.
Guess we will just buy a summer long highway pass and hit the road during the week.

My two older sisters are important to me but no, they both are/were selfish brats.
My mom spoiled them to death but with me, everyone was over it, I had to find my own way as the 3rd child is not so exciting for a family..
My husband's sister is the eldest child, older sisters tend to be bossy and cruel from what I've seen.
I lived a few times with my now deceased sister, once as a teenager and once at age 19 as a room mate.
Dang, I was very trusting with her, never asked to see any bills for our flat, I just handed her as much money as she said I had to chip in for bills every month without even looking at the bills.
Once I borrowed her VW bug for an evening. She was in Canada visiting her HU boyfriend.
I used the car to drive into Hollywood to take my husband  ( Then boy f.)my good friend and a HU guy to the movies. Tried to set my friend Holly up with that HU guy, both were brainy people and I knew they had alot in common.  Sort of dumb on my part, considering she had "stolen" a old boyfriend from me in the past..) This HU guy actually was a student teacher at UCLA in the English dept. He knew English that well without hardly an accent to be able to teach Americans their own language.
Ok, so I was warned that the hand brake was bad, thought I had turned the wheels against the curb so it wouldn't roll.
My bad, we left the movie and we couldn't find the car anywhere.
I laughed it off, was mortified to look stressed out or worried, that's not cool when your 19.
So instead of a nice evening out with everyone, I had to be driven on the back of that HU guys motorbike to the police station to report the car missing.Had to leave my Hubby with my friend and they didn't know each other well at all.
Found out the car had rolled into a major intersection in Hollywood, forgot which one, Hollywood and Vine?
It was towed across town into a wrecking yard with the bumper hit.
I paid the fees, took the car home and when my sis got back from Canada I told her what happened and I would pay to repair her car fender.
I must of paid on that car monthly for 18 months, she nevr fixed the fender as it wasn't too bad.
I know she made me pay more like for another car then just a small repair job.
Family,what can you do with them?
Of course I'd now pay anything just to spend the day with her again .

"My Japanese DIL never went in the sun. In some Asian societies it is 'low class' to have any tan, hench the huge floppy hats and umbrellas."

Very true. Historically a heavy tan on a woman meant she was a field worker, so tans tend to be avoided by Asian women to this day.

zif wrote:

"My Japanese DIL never went in the sun. In some Asian societies it is 'low class' to have any tan, hench the huge floppy hats and umbrellas."

Very true. Historically a heavy tan on a woman meant she was a field worker, so tans tend to be avoided by Asian women to this day.

And today, in many western societies, the woman who is tan is the one who has a lot of free time to "sun bath" -- ergo, having a tan means one is not a factory worker sewing cloths for 10 hours a day. Culture is a funny thing.

Side note: Oddly not considered is where the tan lines are. This matters. That is, there is a HUGE difference between a "farmers" tan lines and "lazy beach" tan lines. People are not called "red neck" without reason (bent over the plow tends to expose the back of the neck to sun burn).

In other words ... seriously.... tan culture is kind of silly as the differences of leisure class versus laborer are really obvious to anyone with two eyes and at least two brain cells. 

Not the mention... putting down laborers... the salt of the earth.... as "undesirables". Sad. Even sadder, I have a graduate degree in a topic that sent me to a lot of desert and tropical climates. So I got a tan. Having a tan or not does not really mean anything about one's education, skills or social position except in some narrowly defined "cultures". Appearance culture is really sad. People need to get over how one looks and spend more time on what each person actually knows or what they can bring to the table.

klsallee wrote:

.....Culture is a funny thing.

.....Appearance culture is really sad. People need to get over how one looks and spend more time on what each person actually knows or what they can bring to the table.

Case in point - The Donald.  Not very funny and overtly racist.  Tan presumably means Mexican and therefore bad guys  or illegal immigrants.   Strange times. 

Mrs Fluffy and I once gave an Albino guy a lift in Africa - he was just walking down the side of the road in the middle of nowhere. When I told my colleagues about him, they said he was lucky to have survived as his condition was considered "magical" and could have been sacrificed for his body parts.  Very strange again.

And once when I was in an underdeveloped Asian country, my interpreter asked if she could touch my arm to see what white skin felt like.  I thought it a bit odd but I suppose it was just an innocent request and she was surprised it felt the same as hers (maybe she thought it would be cold or slimey like all snakes are "slimey" - haha, not).   

She was kind of cute in a utterly unworldly and innocent way - we did some tourism one Saturday and  was really concerned I'd shrivel up if I went out in the sun.  I told her not to be so concerned as I'd just put some suntan lotion on and therefore acquire a controlled tan. 

It was major news to her that this could possibly happen! Shocker!