Sunday 12th January 2025

My last night shift for the week, four days off and payday on Wednesday. Although the temperature is now in the plus side it's still chilly . There's another cold front on it's way. It seems that I feel the cold more now I'm getting older. In my younger years I'd be playing football/soccer or rugby in these conditions and not worrying about the cold. I'm not too sure that I can do that now, running for the bus is my limit.
Mobility wise I'm getting better and I can iron three shirts before needing a rest.
Working nights does mess up my sleeping pattern either wide awake when it's finished or dog tired and sleep all day.
I'm upto date with the series Yellowstone and the Tulsar King, just watching reruns of Los Angeles NCIS. Haircut, food and supplies are next on the agenda.

Wednesday 15th January 2025

Rent paid and my first council tax for 2025. I also received a text message from King's College Hospital to say that I have an appointment with the Us Scan Radiology Department on the 2nd of February, I've contacted work and they have given me the day off.

Been shopping on eBay, three rattle cans of grey Tamiya acrylic primer and a Mach2 Breguet Br.1150 Atlantic. The Atlantic will be sourced for parts so that the Shorts Swallow MR.1 can altered. I have a feeling that the M.A.D. boom will snap off. The twin tail fins could be replaced with the vertical tail fin, inspired by the Breguet Br.1250 concept drawing.
 I have also bought a household steam cleaner and a small tool set, as a treat I found a secondhand Hornby Platform 9&3/4's playworn set. Which includes the station over-roof which has a bit of damage, the through platforms with ramps and the iron foot bridge with the Platform arches.
I already have the Hornby London Road Station set and an resin arch from the Bachmann Harry Potter train set which will go towards a larger terminus or through station .
I have a couple of bids for Ho vehicles, emergency services although continental in origin, with a change of decals they will blend into my layout or will be converted into something else.

Saturday 18th January 2025

My journey to work didn't go as planned, the Jubilee Line is closed from Green Park to Stratford and there was a demonstration in Westminster which ran a bit longer, so my usual buses were stopping at North Lambeth Station. Luckily the Bakerloo Line was running so I caught the tube to Oxford Circus Underground Station.

There was loads of deliveries today, Christmas all over again but little sleep in between, I had made a batch of chicken stew. Just warned some up before getting ready for work.

I should have enough supplies to at least finish a few of my started builds, just 25 to choose from. Not forgetting the two that I recently started.

Quote from: McColm on January 18, 2025, 06:13:13 PM, so my usual buses were stopping at North Lambeth Station.

50 years or so ago I used to drink in a pub opposite the station. Long gone now 

Sunday 19th January 2025

As you know I like to recycle my started builds and a particular concept from Transall the
 C-161. Using the 1/72 Heller C-160 as the donor along with the front section from the vacform ATL-98 Carvair. This would give the impression of a roll-on-roll-off cargo aircraft. The engines will probably be replaced by turbofans or updated turboprops.
As to the other build this has what's leftover from the original C-97  and could be used for the Lockheed Starliner. Another pet project of mine, but this time an all plastic model.
 I'm not too sure if Grumman used a E-1 Tracer as a test rig for the E-2 Hawkeye but this would make an interesting whiff.
 This would mean that the C-130 L-400 would become a maritime patrol aircraft aka Shorts Venus MR.1.
The model railway is on hold until I get a wardrobe which will be next month these cubic pods aren't man enough to take the weight. A clothes rack might be a temporary measure. Selco is just across the road so a few hand tools and a few DIY projects will keep me busy.
 Health wise I still get tired from doing the easiest of chores, I thought that this was in the past but it seems that I'm using different muscles which need resting.
 I tried out my hair grooming set,not too bad at least the sides are shaved, definitely going to get it cut properly although it might be on the shorter than normal hair cut.

Monday 20th January 2025

I have found a heavy duty clothes rack with shelves online so it should arrive sometime this week. The 1/72 Hawkeye and Prowler arrived the varnish has turned yellow, they both will become donor models. Might be a simple of adding landing gear and a new paint scheme. I also received the Ho bundle of vehicles although the lorries seem to be the correct scale the cars aren't
I have ordered a menu pack from Wiltshire Foods the 7 day one, I have tried the Chef's Menu and the Essentials Menu which aren't that bad if you add a few items from your kitchen stores. Well at least I can hand back the trays after I wash them out.
Four days off and back in at the weekend.
It's a bit ironic that the London Headquarters of the Coca-Cola Group is in the grounds of the Royal Society of Medicine and there's a pharmacy at at the corner of the road so I have stocked up on cough medication and paracetamol tablets.

Quote from: McColm on January 20, 2025, 12:46:10 PMIt's a bit ironic that the London Headquarters of the Coca-Cola Group is in the grounds of the Royal Society of Medicine and there's a pharmacy at at the corner of the road so I have stocked up on cough medication and paracetamol tablets.

Well considering it was first marketed/sold as a temperance drink and pharmacutical it's perhaps apt 

The UK Coca-Cola HQ used to be just around the corner from our house in Uxbridge.

Small world moments: years ago in a Nova Scotia B&B got talking to a 20-something girl from Tennessee who, it transpired, had once temped there.  Lots of talk about the local area, much to the bemusement of her bewildered father!

Tuesday 21st January 2025

I've found out that I have 22 days of leave to take before the 1st June this year,  this works out to be six holidays well five at four days and the sixth for the two days. I have asked my mum if I can stay at her place down in Falmouth Cornwall for a few days in May which will be a welcomed break.
This is good news as I can get a few of my started builds to the nearly finished stage, there's a list which I can never complete as I keep getting distracted.

The former 1/72 Be-6 Madge is in the process of looking something similar to the Breguet Br.1250 as the M.A.D. boom from the Mach2 Breguet Br.1150 Atlantic has been glued on, so to are the Rolls-Royce Tyne turboprop engines .They just need some adjustments and also the cockpit with the canopy. The twin tail fins will remain in place.
Turns out that it's not as easy as I thought it would be so a compromise is needed.
I have used my hair clippers and apart from the back it looks very short and manageable.

Wednesday 22nd January 2025

Two very large boxes, one has the Heller 1/72 C-160 model kit whilst the other has the built 1/72 C-130 RAAF which only had a part of the tail section broken off in transit. Fortunately its a clean break so I have glued it back on and removed the two outer engines the gaps have been filled in by using the pair of drop fuel tanks so not quite the Lockheed C-130 L-400 but it does have two turboprop engines instead of the usual four.  The built kit I think was the Airfix model as there's quite a few gaps, it's a tail sitter at the moment. The grey paint does look good but I had to rub down a few areas due to the drips. As I have said the decals will be changed as I will need to do some PSR work on the wings.
 The Shorts Swallow MR.1 and the remaining parts from the Mach2 Breguet Br.1150 are being used like a jigsaw puzzle around the cockpit and on the engines.

Friday 24th January 2025

My heavy duty clothes rail arrived today, household toolkit, OZ-Mods 1/72 C-130J engine nacelle correction set ,1/72 Hasegawa Aircraft Weapons:IV (the one with the two AGM-84 Harpoon ASW/ASF), Hornby G.W.R.Station Kit Dunster without the platform,  00 playworn Triang Midland Blue Pullman; power car and coach plus a pair of adhesive grey & blue Pullman kitchen car printed on A4 paper.
As the blue pullman coach was very tatty I have used the adhesive decals which were a bit long meant for the Mk3 coach so they have been trimmed to size, there was a problem with the  bogies so I have swapped the underside of the coach over, just needs the top to be painted and a bit of detailing.
Put together my heavy duty clothes rail which is made from metal, the toolkit came in handy as it uses nuts and bolts. The other one just fell apart.
A lot of the parts from the Hornby G.W.R. station will be used on the ROVEX station.

Saturday 25th January 2025

I have just been informed that after my shift on Sunday night the security officer that I was covering is back to work on Monday night so no more shifts for me at the London Headquarters of the Coca-Cola Group until he retires later in the year, to make things worse I can't book any holiday leave until after the 23rd of February so it means contacting the scheduling team on Monday and asking if they have any work for me. This also means rescheduling my 22 days leave.
I have enough whiffery to be getting on with to fill in the time so the 1/72 Lockheed Venus MR.1 will get finished (well almost!) Now that I have found a  pile of Revell Breguet Br.1150 Atlantic decals.
1/72 Transall AC-162 Warrior Gunship: dry testing of parts and the gaps in the wings filled in with plasticard. Filler has been posted so that should arrive next week along with the Italeri Lockheed AC-130H Spectre. Plus printed cockpit details.
Various shelf queens and the ROVEX G.W.R. Dunster Station building which will undergo a full refurbishment, still need to asseble the Hornby footbridge and the other overhead station roof canopy.
Of course any excuse to run my Triang Pullman Express, still need to buy a second controller but that will have to wait until next payday. I should have a platform long enough for the Hogwarts Express and two carriages.
  This also means that I can try out my new household steamer, with the bathroom chair in situ, cleaning the bath is a bit of a challenge. Hopefully this should help with the parts I can't reach.
Now that I have my toolkit I can sort the bunkbed out and firm it up, add extra slats and steam clean the mattress.  Early spring cleaning, the bin men are going to love me for filling up the rubbish bins.
I'm still waiting for further information about my hospital appointment on the 2nd February. Well that's about it for now.

Sunday 26th January 2025

I didn't know that I was popular at work, the day officer has sent a convincing email to the scheduler and the contract manager of the site asking for me to be trained on the day shift as one of the team suffered a heartattack last week.
It's raining and I'm teaching the night officer well refreshing is a better word in the patrols plus site duties.
Next week will be busy with the deliveries.
 I've had second thoughts about kitbashing the 1/72 Shorts Sunderland with the C-130 as its a bit narrower. I think that the tail could be replaced and a loading ramp would work if reduced in size, the landing gear would work but the cockpit would remain as the Sunderland, just the interior would be changed. The C-130's nose would fit with some putty used to shape the front end. The turboprop engines could be fitted above the wings.
 With the success with the grey and blue Pullman, the Northern Belle will be the next project.

Quote from: McColm on January 26, 2025, 04:05:27 PMSunday 26th January 2025

I didn't know that I was popular at work, the day officer has sent a convincing email to the scheduler and the contract manager of the site asking for me to be trained on the day shift as one of the team suffered a heartattack last week.

Obviously it's a B for the guy who had the heart attack, and I hope it's not a serious one, but well done to you for making your prescence felt 

Quote from: NARSES2 on January 27, 2025, 04:59:01 AM

Quote from: McColm on January 26, 2025, 04:05:27 PMSunday 26th January 2025

I didn't know that I was popular at work, the day officer has sent a convincing email to the scheduler and the contract manager of the site asking for me to be trained on the day shift as one of the team suffered a heartattack last week.

Obviously it's a B for the guy who had the heart attack, and I hope it's not a serious one, but well done to you for making your prescence felt 

Good news, I'm back working the alternative night shift. Just received an email this afternoon. So Monday and Tuesday off back in on Wednesday night.