St Landrew

I've just read that the Chinese objected to the circular hole because it was too much like the Japanese Rising Sun. So the hole became a trapezoid. Can't find out how big it is though, so I can't select an aircraft to try my luck with.

Does anyone else think this might be inviting have-a-go merchants in aircraft..? That's a big hole. It's the Shanghai World Finance Centre. Currently 3rd tallest building.

And in certain parts of Kent. I once asked for a pea fritter in a chip shop in Rainham, and they looked at me as if I was mad. They'ed never even heard of a pea fritter..! In Newcastle I had a choice of peas. Things I miss are Greek tomatoes, NZ mutton joints, although you can get reasonable mutton joint in International Stores in Mount Pleasant. Basically, most of the local market vegetables from the Med' region are unbeatable.

The Terminal..?

Lifts are extremely safe. It's films which have exploited our jitters about lifts. Even if the cables break, which they won't, unless sabotaged, there are brakes and secondary/tertiary safety measures to hold the lift in position.

One of the things I check whenever I fly to a destination is what the carrier's aircraft is. 99% of the time there's no problem, but back in the early 1990s I flew to southern France and back in a Lockheed Tristar L-1011. The alternative carrier used DC-10s and were cheaper. I paid the extra money. And I've not forgotten that if a piece of DC-10 hadn't fallen off onto a runway in France, then Concorde might still be flying.

I'm not overly happy at heights either, but I remember going to the top of the Eiffel Tower, and my girlfriend had her face pressed into my chest and was hugging me like she'd never let go. I could see the skeletal structure getting smaller and smaller as the lift rose to the top, and my main thought was, do I trust 100 year old French engineering..? Well I did, and the Eiffel Tower is an amazing experience, mainly because it is a tall tower, not a building, that is over 100 years old.

Oh dear, they're playing Gary Glitter's Do You Wanna Be In My Gang in the spaces between points during the Beach Volleyball. Ignorance is a beautiful thing for some.

Yeah, I remember season 2006, when Nicky Hayden became World Champion, Stoner was falling off so much it was becoming a commentator's joke. But he seems to have a style which takes the bike he's riding to the very limit. He has yet to hone his style so that he can go fast, stay on board all the race, and pick up points. Saying that, he is a superb rider, being able to screw the living daylights out of that Ducati, when all others have failed. BTW, it'll be interesting to see if Nicky Hayden can do it next season, as he likes a bike with rawish power. But Stoner needs to do the percentage type rides which pick up points, don't ruin the tyres, and go fast. This is where Rossi is supreme. The Yamaha still isn't as fast as either the Repsol Honda or the factory Ducati, yet Rossi manages to screw it into fast times by the fact of fine tuning of its obviously superb handling, and making the most of getting its power into the rear tyre, and onto the tarmac. Once the Yamaha gets close, Rossi does the rest.

Arsehole..! But back to the topic... In an Olympic world which allows speed WALKING as a sport, in which the competitors routinely accidentally[!?!] run [have both feet off the ground at the same time], anything goes.

Blimey, that's about 1989-90. Must have been shortly before Drum's keel fell off. Not the best of manufactured boats was Drum. I think Le Bon resurrected it though, so good on him. The keel hasn't fallen off since.

He could feasibly live out the remainder of his life flying from airport to airport, being fed on airline food. Blimey, he could even get into the Guiness Book Of Records. Who will let him in..? Some South American country..? Of course, he'd have to be able to find a carrier who would be prepared to get him that far.

I can fly in an aircraft all day, and have done. In fact, I'd have a holiday of just take offs and landings, I love them so much, but SOD THAT..!

It's the focal length of the lens on the camera taking the [top of post] photograph. Look at the other buildings. They lean in the opposite to the vertical. I'd imagine the lens is quite a wide angle type. Anything around 35mm or under will cause that kind of distortion.

Awful, awful accident, as these things always are. RIP to all involved. Isn't the MD-80 series a development of the old DC-9..? The DC-9 was pretty much ok, and if I have my memory right, was developed into the MD-80. This was an MD-82, but a 15 year old one. I would have thought we have a case of pilot error in extreme circumstances. Now if we were talking about a DC-10..? BTW, doesn't SpanishAir fly out of Eastleigh. Normally an excellent safety record I hear.

An adjustment, diet wise perhaps..? And maybe the odd spot of exercise. That'll stop the smelly farts.

I'm no expert on this, but I believe they do, if to a much lesser extent. I had an Exotic Shorthair pedigree cat, which I regret having bought several years ago, after being pushed into being the owner. I have since given her away to a relative who wanted her and could spend the time giving her a better home. From day one of my ownership of her I noticed that her flattened face characteristic played havoc with her breathing, and her eyes regularly watered and sludged up. She was fine for me to clean her face once a day, but it was the breeding of this characteristic that brought on this condition. When I see her nowadays, she still has it, and still gets her eyes cleaned. It does mean occasional visits to the vet to curb eye infections. A normal tabby wouldn't suffer any of this. EDIT: Great name for you Greyhound PES. Is he deaf..?

I can easily avoid the tabloids, as they have zero attraction for me, so all I need to do is stay healthy myself.

I always thought it was just thick to gamble period. Each to their own though.

Out of the public eye, most certainly. For her sake I hope she recovers. I hope we don't have to hear about it though, if you see what I mean.

That's more like it. Many years ago I had a Golden Labrador who was the most wonderful pet. When he died I knew I could never have another, especially one's verging on being lapdogs. But Westie's are such great characters. Maybe one day... or a Beagle. So, so cute. Maybe when I get my boat, so he can have a passport too.

Haven't you seen the Google Gary Glitter tracker..?

Well he has done real harm to people, so I agree with your sentiment. I'm not sure that this Jade Goody person quite comes into that category.

I know what you're saying WSS, but yes they are. A topical example, Gary Glitter, is an arguable point though.

No, but don't send me loads, or I would. Generally it's for people who want their old Saints videos converted to DVD because there isn't a DVD version out there, and they don't have the technology or the expertise themselves. But I suppose I could easily convert home videos too, if that is what you're thinking. The odd one I'd do for free, but after that I'd charge.