Happy Crisis

To each and every one of you, my wife and I wish you a happy crisis and may you avoid volcanic fall out in the New Year.

Or, as they say in Greek:

 

Καλά Χριστούγεννα και Καλή Xρονιά με Υγεία, Χαρά και Ειρήνη!

Boot Fetishism: How to do Everything.

A box of  bits arrive from Motorworks masquerading as a highly prized set of Authority ("Plod") engine protection bars for a BMW K75RT motorcycle.

Rarely in my 30 year career as a professional Engineer and part time motorcycle mechanic, have I had to resort to fetishm to acheive an end result.  In the absence of fitting instructions but with the heartening knowledge gained from the legendary oracle of Pensylvania Jack Riepe that the best way to fit BMW OEM parts is to drink a quart of Bourbon in the house whilst a mate struggles in the garage, I scoured the internet for clues.

First port of call is the excellent RealOEM website where an exploded parts diagram may be found for probably every BMW car or motorcycle ever made.  These diagrams are generally extremely useful. The trouble is the diagrams tend to be generic across different variants and certain parts such as item 19 below do not seem to have a home. The parts lists are specific to a variant and revealed that I need 2 part 19s but part 6 is in fact  a 10 x 65mm fillister head screw.

The BMW OEM parts list obtained from RealOEM.com

I am indebted to Jean Bootsservice in Paris for showing me how Plod bars look installed on a K100.

Left hand bar complete with klaxon.

Right hand bar complete with klaxon.

Nice boots...

Another Place, Another Iconic Art Deco Renovation, Another Birthday.

Back when I had more grey hair on my head than today, I went to Antony Gormley's  Another Place.

On Mrs Nikos' recent birthday, I saw it as fitting recollection of our time in Cuxhaven to revisit Crosby beach on our way to another place.

No.97 is feeling the effects in this brass monkey weather

The drive from Crosby Beach to Windermere (not the another place but another place on route to another place), took us through the grinding suburbia of Southport and miles of semi-detatched squalor that seems to take away the feeling of being beside the sea.

Lake Windermere, another place but not the Another Place - the Cumbrian mountains form a backdrop.

We drove into the town of Windermere and made a stop for a traditional English lunch of chicken tikka massala.  After paying the Polish waitress and as the sun was  setting we headed for yet another place, but not Another Place a place where we would spend the night in non decadent style. Skirting around Lake Windermere we headed south with Coniston Water to our port beam.  I told Mrs Nikos about Donald Campbell, Bluebird and Mr Woppet.

Yet another place on Mrs Nikos' birthday tour of North West England.

This would be our first ever stay in a fully functional Iconic Art Deco Hotel dominated by a sea horse motif.

Shower drain

Clever staircase would work if the hotel listed by 90degrees

Early morning view of the prom and Cumbria.

Trouble is, the railway stopped coming to Morecambe Promenade.

The Midland Hotel Iconic Art Deco Hotel from the Promenade

The sun is eclipsed by the light of the Lighthouse cafe where overpriced Asda* instant coffee may be consumed.

* A typical ASDA shopper with her master.

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Addendum

Following a clarifying comment I present to you another typical ASDA shopper:

World Cup Euphoria

Nikos' soccer adverse pussy has been hiding for weeks now in the cat treat cupboard.

Hearing the news he emerged to steal milk

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