Thread 9 - TalkLair: “Russell's teapot goes on being round”

[Kucinghitam]

Continuation of previous threads (thread 8).

The new lair of JTT escapees is all cosy and homey; we have truly settled here. Outside, the garden is blooming with summer flowers - should bloody well be, what with all that rain. Inside, the hearth is glowing, pictures are up on the walls, rugs are down on the floors (and assorted pets curled up on them).

We just won’t mention the gnawed bones of our prey over there in the corner of the cave…

I was going to brag (not humbly!) about my fabulous weekend and somehow forgot! On Sunday we went to Whitby for first-time fossil hunting (DH ordered a rock hammer from Amazon) and general seaside-ness. The weather was amazing, and a random chap told us that it was the second lowest tide of the year; parts of the seabed that are normally under water became fully accessible. It was quite mind-blowing to be able to walk for miles on what looked rather like cement screeding, but was actually shale.

Anyway, we had insane success with fossil hunting. Lots of little pieces and detailed imprints. Then DH successfully split a large nodule with his new toy, and we got a palm-sized ammonite. But my prize find was a set of ichthyosaur vertebrae!

We've decided we are addicted to fossil hunting and are planning our next trip...

So the whole thread was a makey-uppey problem looking for attention? Gosh.

Green with envy at the fossils!

Me too! Wow, what finds.

It was my birthday at the weekend and had grand plans with a friend, but unfortunately she became incapacitated with her back which put paid to them. I ended up driving over to see her instead and we had lunch in a nice cafe. This weekend I’m going out for a belated birthday meal with another friend at a restaurant I was supposed to go to with my mum, but didn’t because.. my mum is my mum which I’m looking forward to.

Good finds, Kuc!

We had a guided fossil walk at Lyme Regis last year and it just happened to be the one day when the entire beach was covered in a thick layer of sand and almost no fossils were visible. It was really disappointing, but I'd like to try again some time.

There's a lot of Jurassic stuff around here and, using this site, I found a rich seam a couple of fields over from where I work. A fair bit has been mixed up by ploughing action but there's loads to find. I mainly use the site to find out about the geology underlying gardens I work in, but it's useful for fossils too.

Not a bad first try, Kuc!

OK, I'll ask, if no-one else will! How the hell did you know it was a ichthyosaur vertebrae, Kuc? Top ammonite, too!

Ichthyosaur vertebrae are quite characteristic, I think of them as a pack of Fizzers (here's a Googled example of some articulated vertebrae).

Also, for confirmation, I asked in a fossil shop

Fizzers! I recognise that packet! But they didn't used to be called Fizzers, did they...? There was Love Hearts, with the writing on them. But also one like that, with a concave surface...

They're a bit like shark vertebrae - were they cartilaginous?.

Ha ha! Just watched my nearest neighbour’s cockerpoo cheerfully run down our garden and into the woods! Nobody calling for him either, think he was solo jaunting. He’s about 18-months old, and hadn’t been neutered (“yet”) when I asked about 6 months ago.

Hooray! Mine isn’t the only bad boy wanderer in town!

Maybe they’ll team up and patrol the village like a pack of street dogs.

Whitby is a great place for fossils. Sounds like a lovely day Kuc.

In the Birmingham suburb where I grew up the local dogs used to form packs in summer and frighten the children. Our dog was one of them, there was no keeping him in and he could easily scale a six foot fence, or dig under it.

Fizzers, I like it!

@MavisMcMintyMaybe they’ll team up and patrol the village like a pack of street dogs.

I think all spaniels should be given Very Important Work fighting crime. One of the things I like about our local paper is that all stories involving police dogs feature a photo of the dog, always named. Here is a photo of PD Cloud, who has just completed some vital sniffing and helped to send a couple of thugs to prison. Woof!

https://i0.wp.com/theisleofthanetnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/PD-Cloud.jpg?resize=584%2C600&ssl=1

Where was that, Tri? I was a black country boy and learnt very early to be careful of strays - there were always some around. But now that I think, I remember that people often let their dogs run free, so not technically strays.

Lovely post, gonners. VIP dogs.

Very Important Indeed! (Still not as good-looking as my boy though, sorry.)

Obviously nowhere near as handsome as your boy, Mavis!

One of our neighbours has the most steal-able dog ever. Jack is about knee-high, black and white with soft hair, and so lightweight that when he stands up against your legs for a fuss you hardly know he's there. The neighbour used to live in Spain and he's a rescue dog, built like a smaller Valencian terrier but very definitely with a lot of spaniel in the ears, tail and hair. He loves everyone but understands (with tragic eyes) that not everyone wants to be covered in wet sand after a beach walk. Luckily he knows that dog-magnet MrGon and I prefer a cuddle to clean clothes.

So many things to respond to that I will forget most of them!

@Kucinghitam magnificent fossil finds! I'd love to go fossil hunting.

@Tricyrtis2022 I'm guessing that you would describe Lyme Regis as very disappointing given that, I know I would. A story for the other thread! "Lyme Regis is rubbish. I expected fossils but there was too much sand to see any fossils. Also, no ladies in Victorian clothes looking for the fossils that we couldn't find. No Stars. Would not recommend. Mr Dis Gruntled and Mrs Moon ona' Stick, from la-fucking-la land.

If someone said to me "Once you've seen one painting ..." that would be the end of anything I wanted to do with them. That's on a par with, "I read a book once." or "I listened to a song. Won't do that again." I'm with John Waters on this sort of thing. If you go back to a date's home and they don't have any books, don't fuck them.

Tourists who complain about places being too touristy need to shut up.

Oh and Mr Kitter is wonderful. So many cat friends, so noisy! Django is noisy and while sometimes it's a bit annoying I do love being told that he's coming in and has something to say about that.

Loving the weather. I sat on the beach for a little while today, prepped a jumpsuit to be taken up, took in a big basket of ironing to start tomorrow and went out for a drink. The pub we went to has an impressive outdoor space overlooking the river Adur. While we were sitting and chatting I was assaulted by a gorgeous lurcher who was sitting behind me. I leant back and the next thing I knew my neck was being licked by a very bold dog. His name was Riley. He kept trying to hump Seamus who, unsurprisingly, wasn't impressed. I'm so glad we're getting this week of lovely weather, heaven knows we deserve something nice in this bleak world of ours.

So hot here today! The thermostat in my bedroom was still reading in the mid 80s (F) when I went to bed, so I'm listening to the roar of the window-shaker air conditioner and hoping it cools down soon.

Castle Bromwich, to the east of Birmingham. Horrible place, I was very glad to leave it. Whereabouts did you grow up?

@MouseMinge it wasn't entirely disappointing. The guide was very engaging and told us interesting stuff about the history of the place and the local geology and, despite the sand, we did find a few bits of fossil, just not the ones I'd hoped for. There was also an old rubbish dump slowly eroding onto the beach, bits of pottery, sea glass, metal and whatnot. I'm always up for a rummage in an old rubbish dump. Even tiny pieces can take you on a journey of exploration. There was a pottery sherd I found in the spoil heap on a farm where building work was going on and it was from that I learned about the strange life of Louis Wain, who I think did the artwork on the sherd.

There's an excellent film about him: https://m.imdb.com/title/tt10687506/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_2_nm_6_q_louis%2520wain

Apparently somewhat chaotic to make because it contains rather a lot of cats and the director insisted on using real ones for all of them, not CGI.