Nice people thread 2 - now even nicer

michaels

Au contraire..go straight on to the one way loop rather than turning left for Tesco, before the lights where you join it take the underpass on the left into the first carpark and do the cunning trick by travelling over the roof section of the carpark (accessed from the first parking level) to get in to the other carpark which exits a bit further back round the one way loop allowing you to head back towards the M1 without ever having gone round the loop...simples.

vivatifosi wrote: »

I have a technique for Watford too if you don't mind walking. Come off on the main road into town from J5 of M1 (not the A41) and then at second roundabout turn right towards Tesco. Park in the Tesco or top car park, walk into town from there (about 5-10 mins) and then get food shopping at end of main shopping and drive home. Not a hint of one way system and easy access to motorway.

Now, any other Hertfordshire towns you'd like help with, WGC, Stevenage, Royston, St Albans, Hatfield?

michaels

I sometimes sit outside Asda while the wife picks up a few branded items on special as it gives me a chance to watch the 40% of my income that is taxed off me being spent. Obviously I would prefer to spend it myself but seeing other people spending it is the closest I will ever get to it

lostinrates wrote: »

LOL. Its making me smile. For a very bizarre reason that made sense to me at the time I sometimes use to drive to Watford from N. London to do groceries at that HUGE asda.

vivatifosi

michaels wrote: »

Au contraire..go straight on to the one way loop rather than turning left for Tesco, before the lights where you join it take the underpass on the left into the first carpark and do the cunning trick by travelling over the roof section of the carpark (accessed from the first parking level) to get in to the other carpark which exits a bit further back round the one way loop allowing you to head back towards the M1 without ever having gone round the loop...simples.

Oooh, I did not know you could do that. I will have to try. I have a little in and out trick that I use with the one way but when I tried to type it was waaaaay too complicated. Will def have to try yours though.

lemonjelly

lostinrates wrote: »

Big dog has gone off to be washed, meanwhile dog-dog stole a victoria sandwich I did this morning for the freezer. Bad start to our ''special time'' together alone today. Anyway, whipped up the batter for an cinnamon ripple cake ...then realised I have no ground cinnamon. Blerugh.

lir I NEED this recipe!:)

lemonjelly

PasturesNew wrote: »

Practice the route on Google Streetview.

PasturesNew wrote: »

My generic advice to people is: Get a good, well-known, web host that has cpanel and fantastico (e.g. bluehost is one). Register your domain with a reputable company (I use 123-reg, but I don't use them for hosting). Point your domain name at the host. Then, because you have fantastico, poke about in there for scripts and you'll find you can "one click install" Wordpress. This is the version of Wordpress that you install on your own domain (so not Wordpress.com, which is the same software).

You'd then have:
- a domain name you aren't going to "lose" because the cheap. flakey s0ds went out of business (happened to me this year)
- hosting that you have good/easy control over (123-reg tends to tie you down to their packages too much for me).
- Wordpress would be installed.

Get a graphic designer who can design Wordpress themes. Install the theme (couple of clicks once you know which clicks).

Then you have: a highly optimisable, advanced, well supported, state of the art, customisable Content Management System that you can easily set up and run yourself. AND.... Wordpress has these fabulous (mostly free) things called plugins. You wake up one morning and decide your website needs extra functionality, do a google search and there's the instant solution either free or cheap, just a couple of clicks away.

You can set Wordpress up in two ways:
1] It is a blog/works like a blog, when you post a new entry it's at the top, just like a blog.
2] It is a website, like a website. You create pages, not posts, so it's static.

You can run two separate installations, separating the web pages from the blog pages, or fiddle around and get them both working from one installation (I've never gone down this route, so can't say how that'd work, but I bet it's straight forward really).

When I set up Wordpress I instantly get dbackup installed and running: this automatically backs up my entire site and emails it to my gmail account as an attachment every day, that's backup sorted out immediately and painlessly.

After that I just sit and think "OK, so what do I want this domain to do then" and add in the necessary plugins. I've got all sorts of functionality.

Every one of my domains runs on different plugins.

My downfall is never actually paying for a theme, so I just pick up free ones and they're really pants. And they take you hours to find. Free themes are plentiful, seemingly good, but really suck up your time to control.... you don't want that, so just find yourself a good, reliable Wordpress theme designer.

You can have membership sites, mailing lists, newsletters.... all sorts of great things that you'll wish you'd thought of 3 months down the line - and if you need to call a programmer each time there'd be a 2 month delay to get something vaguely like you meant, with a cr4p front end and a huge bill.

Two of my websites I've got set up so that the urls aren't dated. I've installed a plugin that says to itself: "Oh, she's not posted anything for 4 days, I'll take the oldest one and repost it". Which then automatically pings ... and google goes "oh - look - a new post - marvellous".

There's a lot more to it all than just the above. But that's what I'd say to anybody to do if they want: An instant, easy to use, reliable website that has 1000 different plugin functionalities that they can have up and running within 5 minutes of thinking of it (except some do require a bit more setting up, like mailing lists/newsletter list management). But you cut out all the time delays and specification writing and testing and costs.

HTH

It's a BIG subject.

These 2 posts alone highlight how doggarn clever you are.:)

lostinrates

lemonjelly wrote: »

lir I NEED this recipe!:)

Loosen your belt, then look at the butter quantity. Its US cup measurements, is that ok?


Oven to about 170c (350f).

Line and grease a tin (I've actually used a nine inch suace pan to day...most tins still packed. IMO its better in a bundt, I've had to lengthen the cooking time today for the ''normal'' cake shape)

Mix (electric hand whisk used in the lost house) 1 1/2 cups of melted butter,2 1/2 cups granulated sugar (I use golden but white is fine), 6 eggs, 2 tspns vanilla extract. I often also add the finely grated zest of an orange. Mix till all smooth.

In another bowl sift together 4 cups plain flour, 5, oh yes FIVE teaspoons of baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt.

Then add the dry stuff to the wet stuff gradually and combine (I use mixer). Then add a cup and a half of orange juice (or milk if not fancying orange flavour) and mix again till smooth.

Put some batter (1/4 or a third) in the cake then sprinkle with some, say a teaspoon, of cinnamon. pour another 1/4-1/3 batter and sprinkle some cinnamon, and so on.

On top of cake sprinkle some sugar (say a teaspoon or two). Bake for 1hr or and hour and a quarter (though mine was longer today)

COOL IN TIN. Serve with icing sugar if desired.

edit: NB, the sugar on top makes it lovely and crunchy, but also means you can't do the spring back test very easily...all I can say is it takes longer to bake than you think.

lemonjelly

Thank you angel!

What is the difference (if any) between american & uk cups?:o

silvercar

michaels wrote: »

Au contraire..go straight on to the one way loop rather than turning left for Tesco, before the lights where you join it take the underpass on the left into the first carpark Kingsand do the cunning trick by travelling over the roof section of the carpark (accessed from the first parking level) to get in to the other carpark Queenswhich exits a bit further back round the one way loop allowing you to head back towards the M1 without ever having gone round the loop...simples.

That's the way I do it. If you ever can't get between the two on level 1 (and I have known it to be cordened off) you can also get from one to the other on the top level.

You can also use the pay on exit machines from either car park - it doesn't need to be the one your parked in.

lostinrates

lemonjelly wrote: »

Thank you angel!

What is the difference (if any) between american & uk cups?:o

Well, mainly that US cooks cook by volume, not weight, so a measuring cup is standardised....if you have a measuring cup its ''a cup'' but a tea cup might not be.

I think 1 cup of flour is 5 oz, a cup of granulated sugar is 6 oz and a cup of caster sugar is 8 oz! So using the standardised cup can be reasonably important in baking. I can't find mine, so used a small tea cup.:o:o

lemonjelly

lostinrates wrote: »

Loosen your belt, then look at the butter quantity. Its US cup measurements, is that ok?


Oven to about 170c (350f).

Line and grease a tin (I've actually used a nine inch suace pan to day...most tins still packed. IMO its better in a bundt, I've had to lengthen the cooking time today for the ''normal'' cake shape)

Mix (electric hand whisk used in the lost house) 1 1/2 cups of melted butter,2 1/2 cups granulated sugar (I use golden but white is fine), 6 eggs, 2 tspns vanilla extract. I often also add the finely grated zest of an orange. Mix till all smooth.

In another bowl sift together 4 cups plain flour, 5, oh yes FIVE teaspoons of baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt.

Then add the dry stuff to the wet stuff gradually and combine (I use mixer). Then add a cup and a half of orange juice (or milk if not fancying orange flavour) and mix again till smooth.

Put some batter (1/4 or a third) in the cake then sprinkle with some, say a teaspoon, of cinnamon. pour another 1/4-1/3 batter and sprinkle some cinnamon, and so on.

On top of cake sprinkle some sugar (say a teaspoon or two). Bake for 1hr or and hour and a quarter (though mine was longer today)

COOL IN TIN. Serve with icing sugar if desired.

edit: NB, the sugar on top makes it lovely and crunchy, but also means you can't do the spring back test very easily...all I can say is it takes longer to bake than you think.

lostinrates wrote: »

Well, mainly that US cooks cook by volume, not weight, so a measuring cup is standardised....if you have a measuring cup its ''a cup'' but a tea cup might not be.

I think 1 cup of flour is 5 oz, a cup of granulated sugar is 6 oz and a cup of caster sugar is 8 oz! So using the standardised cup can be reasonably important in baking. I can't find mine, so used a small tea cup.:o:o

:kisses3: thanks for this lir.
Both myself & a close friend are big cinnamon fans.

Personally, I am a fan of most things cake related