One of the most controversial things I discovered in my #CrossChannelRail work is that the Avelia Horizon trains ordered by Eurostar do not comply with existing Channel Tunnel evacuation rules in the case of a controlled stop The whole background, and how to […] [Original post on gruene.social]

There's an omnibus autobiography of Roald Dahl on BBC Sounds Radio 4 Extra at the moment. Have a listen, it's more interesting / fascinating than you might think. It is,also a reminder of how deadly measles was before vaccination ( and still can be if you ignore science). #biography […]

If ever you're about in #Plymouth and in search of good coffee, do yourself the favour of popping into the Green Room, diagonally opposite the Armada Centre. Really good #coffee

Given the state of the weather (rain, lots of it) it's a good thing that the petanque club is closed to us mere mortals today. The rain also means that my Plan B is out of the question - so I'm not going to the allotment. Given that I'm not dressed yet, that's a good thing too! #today

I am just too German/Austrian/Swiss/Czech/Belgian/Dutch for French railways Oddly I actually would like: - trains that go when I want them, not when the railway company chooses to run them so as to suit them - trains that also go at off peak hours - a way to my destination even when there are […]

Lots of driving plus eating at a strange time plus eating rich food equals feeling really quite unwell. Dizziness / vertigo and a rotating stomach to round off the day. It was a great day though - one of the best.

And in other good news ( although rather niche) I've been invited to join a Petanque League team, rather than ad hoc propping up the main club team when they were desperate. Someone, somewhere appreciates me 😆 #petanque

Apparently a 25% off #interrail sale coming up next week. Should I? (Rhetorical question.)

Back home from a visit with our daughter to Bletchley Park where we had a bit of a mooch round parts of the museum, and we had afternoon tea in the Mansion. Of course the highlight for me was operating GB3RS at the National Radio Centre ( as in my previous […] [Original post on cupoftea.social]

Guess who got to play with a 400 watt transmitter and an SDR radio linked to a 3 element beam on 20 metres. At GB3RS at the National Radio Centre at Bletchley Park Me! #amateurradio #hamradio #bletchleypark

PSA to anyone who uses Gmail! "Reportedly, Google has recently started automatically opting users in to allow Gmail to access all private messages and attachments for training its AI models. This means your emails could be analyzed to improve Google’s AI assistants, like Smart Compose or […]

It's probably the cold weather but the #arthritis (osteoarthritis) in my hands has been really bad over the last couple of days. I'm trying to keep my hands warm with fingerless gloves, while keeping the amount of painkillers to a minimum. This is the first year I've suffered with this. Anyone […]

New @Vivaldi on Android as arrived! This one has a much requested feature: custom search engines. This is something we have had on desktop, but it has finally arrived on mobile as well. What is unique here is that you can take most any search and just long click in the search field and add it […]

Good morning #Today from #battambang. The weather here is what my wife calls cold. That’s about 19 for the rest of us. Cambodians wrap up in hoodies and sweaters and then brave the elements. Us barang watch them with some amusement. Perhaps like they watch us […] [Original post on cupoftea.social]

Battambang day 2 https://mikesthoughts.blog/blog/Battambang%20day%202/

What's the deal with toot.bike? Is it still alive? I was pruning a few servers in the federation earlier and not sure what to do

This is the post you wish you hadn’t waited for: 4-day #interrail, 3 #travel days, 1 wounded spreadsheet, 1 #nighttrain bunk untouched, all Pantone Fanny-Magnet Red dreams dashed: https://www.siegeavecvue.eu/impromptu-four-day-tour-sums/ #eurostar #travelchaos #avanti #transportforwales #SNCF […]

If the Home Secretary is seriously thinking about a major reform of how policing works in the UK then it's going to be a slow process , but an overdue and important one. I'm very much in favour of an overhaul no matter where it leads ( pretty much). I know what I'd do if I were the policing god […]

At the Japan Mobility Show 2025, Toyota revealed Walk Me, a four-legged autonomous chair designed to transform mobility. Unlike wheelchairs, Walk Me well, walks: its robotic legs can climb stairs, cross gravel and manoeuvre on rough ground. Lidar, collision radars and weight sensors keep riders […]

I have written a (long) blog post on the subject of travel money based on my own experiences and the responses of many friends on here. This was all set in motion by @debby to whom I'm grateful for her thoughts. All comments very welcome - back to this account as I've disabled blog comments […]

Today's fruit cake making adventure was much less successful. I only had two eggs, instead of the three in the recipe. It tastes great, but it has fallen apart - it almost certainly needed the egg to hold it together. At least I'm not entering any competitions😁 #cooking #baking #cakes #housework

Good morning all I've got the house to myself (& the cat) until mid afternoon, so lots of jobs will at least get thought about - I'm leaving the cat in charge of strategic planning. Lots of Pink Floyd on Radio Caroline's top 15 this morning which has been excellent. I'm reeling from the […]

Battambang day 1 https://mikesthoughts.blog/blog/Battambang%20day%201/

Intriguing article about an experimental cargo ship using massive sails to reduce its fuel consumption. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/nov/19/shipping-carbon-emissions-neoliner-origin-cargo-age-of-sail?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

Hi Tooters - I'm looking for your experiences of different ways of spending during European travel. I'm hoping to write a blog post on the advantages & disadvantages of - for example - cash, credit cards, currency cards, phone payments, travellers cheques, and anything else. Is cash still king? […]

I'm looking for a thing but my web searching skills are failing me... I was in an online training thing once, and the presenter shared a link to an online map. This map allowed everyone in the meeting to click on the map to indicate where they were in the real world, and then the presenter was […]

Today's Burntwood Afternoon Cinema is rammed! Nearly 100 people, more than we've ever had before. We had to set out another 5 road of seats after this photo was taken. I started this monthly community cinema to reduce social isolation by giving people […] [Original post on mastodon.me.uk]

Oops: MoD blunder reveals secret details of bomb project https://www.theferret.scot/mod-details-of-secret-bomb-project/ A botched freedom of information response has revealed sites in the frame for the UK’s expanding weapons programme.

I thought I was having a good day but it's been going downhill since lunchtime. I'm possibly really very tired and need my bed.

Ooh, Mrs @MikeFromLFE - clutch those pearls and steady yourself! Days 12–16 of the #travel #podcast are uploaded and ready to aid you with your… evening indulgences. https://siegeavecvue.podbean.com/ #morocco #marrakech #solotravel

The #CrossChannelRail report PDF, and the video from the launch today, are now online: https://crossborderrail.trainsforeurope.eu/crosschannelrail-final-report-released-and-the-next-steps/ And the questions I couldn't answer at the event are answered in […] [Original post on gruene.social]

So, rather than the planned ICE4, @darkphoenix noticed we could catch a TGV Euroduplex from Frankfurt down to Karlsruhe. It turns out you don't need reservations on TGVs when in Germany. So, we decided that a high level view of the sunset sounded like a fun idea. We got on the train, found […]

Russian Sabotage Poland's PM Tusk: "The explosion was most likely intended to blow up a train on the Warsaw-Dębli line. Unfortunately, there is no doubt that we are dealing with an act of sabotage. Fortunately, a tragedy did not occur, but the matter is very […] [Original post on mstdn.social]

I'm quite liking Moshidon. I couldn't quite get on with Fedilab I've been using Tusky for so long it's very odd using anything else!

The #crosschannelrail final report is now out! You can download it here: https://crossborderrail.trainsforeurope.eu/projects/crosschannelrail/crosschannelrail-report/

A few hours in Brussels to kill before the train back. How will I cope?

Cake made. Looks OK although it could have risen a bit more. Oh! I'm such a domestic god(dess)🤣

The #mostdirectconnection from Karlsruhe to Alsace is via Rotterdam, Groningen, Rotterdam, Basel, Mannheim, Frankfurt, Mannheim and Karlsruhe, right ? @direkter_weg

There is an excellent summary of what's right & wrong about Your Party in this Leicester Gazette reporter's visit to a rally. Scaled up this would be a summary of where Corbyn & Sultana have landed themselves - and in my opinion its both a complete mess & a crying shame […]

What does this sticker mean in Thalys Eurostar? No acrobatics doing pull ups on the overhead luggage racks?

Right, I've got the recipe book out. Ready to go. (It's from 1969)

I'm going to be baking a cake today for the first time in ages. Ive got a simple fruit cake recipe I used to use which has never let me down. Kasa has volunteered to make a cake for a charity event, but I know she'll procrastinate and it'll get embarrassing. So, I'll fit that around this […]

Im trying out Moshidon as an Android client after Tusky crashed on me again mid-post as soon as I added a hashtag. It's very frustrating adjusting to a new interface!

Northampton town centre Flying sculpture & demolition #northampton #unclassifiedphoto

"You cannot elect criminals into government and then be surprised when they act like criminals"

We're back from a cold allotment trip. I got the garlic planted, but did several other jobs instead of the main other thing I wanted to get done. Nevertheless, it was a useful and productive trip. We've met our new neighbours who moved in diagonally opposite us on Friday. They seem like a nice […]

"If you're not careful, the newspapers will have you hating the people who are being oppressed and loving the people who are doing the oppressing." Malcolm X. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

I went to bed at about 9pm last night feeling dreadful. I had a very rumbly tummy, and non-specfic general unwellness - although I appreciate they are far from medical symptoms! I slept really well until about 5 and have dozed fitfully since. I feel a lot better at the moment although my head […]

[Religion, CSA] When I was a kid, the Jesus Army was a kooky group who wore colourful jackets and drove around in colourful buses. They were also a strict hierarchical community who separated children from their parents and engaged in mass child abuse, only shutting down in 2019 […]