A couple of early but short circuits over the last couple of days, after the rather longer early circuits initiated some weeks ago, as noticed, for example at reference 1. Maybe it has got hotter.
Day one started off, after breakfast, with this hole in a road near us, annotated in Powerpoint for ease of conversation. The annotated image was then passed onto Google Images and his assistant (GI) and they led me through what all these pipes might be - and after a while we got to a reasonably complete picture.
1, 2 and 3 contain data cables of one sort or another.
4 is probably an earthenware duct for telecoms cables of old.
5 is probably an old water pipe, no longer in service.
6, 7 and 9 are gas pipes in transition. A section was cut out of the old gas pipe (6), enabling the new pipe (7) to be pushed into to the unseen run to the right. 8 is a sleeve, not another pipe as I had thought when I was labelling. 9 is a local connection.
The three shiny fittings inserted into the top of No.6 are probably to do with the people at reference 2, big in equipment and fittings for works of this sort. All to do with the tricky business of replacing one mains supply with another, while maintaining that supply.
A certain amount of muddle along the way to do with spatial relations, from which I associate to similar muddles at Riverford, noticed at reference 3. I suspect some errors of gas works details, but I am in no way competent to rule on that.
It is also the case that gas fitting of this sort is a complicated business, for which extensive training is needed - maybe even an apprenticeship. Training which can be helped along by an exercise of this sort - but not replaced. I also suspect that one would learn must faster in a classroom with a proper lesson plan and proper supporting material - than by trying for this GI shortcut - although I suppose it does depend on the objective and the context.
One image with comment, with GI provoking six supplementaries. I thought an impressive performance from GI.
And so to Stamford Green Pond, which looked a more empty for real than it does in the snap above. Hard to see how many - if any fish - could have survived. And I don't suppose that there are many if any fish - or eggs - coming in from the Common to the south.
Most of the water birds about - moorhens and duck supplemented by the odd seagull and plenty of pigeons - were on the grass adjacent, rather than on the water. I did not notice any geese, Canadian or otherwise, this despite reports of Egyptian goslings.
While below the brick wall we have what looks like a large plug hole, with plug, all exposed by the low water level.
GI explains that is it not a plug at all, but a sluice gate or Penstock valve. You open thing by turning the nut in the middle, the idea being to control the outflow - perhaps with the fishes in mind - rather than just letting the whole lot out at once. I suppose that if I had thought about it a bit more, rather than just running to the keyboard, I would have worked out that lifting an underwater plug without a chain might have been a bit tricky.
Bing offers lots of them for sale, at all kinds of prices, while Copilot explains that a sluice is more about open water management, say in a fenland dyke, while a Penfold is more industrial, where requirements are more challenging.
GI goes on to tell quite a good story about how the water eventually gets to the Hogsmill and so to the Thames at Kingston. I only caught him out in one mistake, and only then because I know the area quite well. But what if you don't?
He also points out that leaving the stream open between the gardens of Manor Green Road and Lower Hill Road is a good wheeze for the builder. You have a natural boundary and he neither needs to fence nor to cover over.
Blackberries not absent, but not looking very good. One of the eco-people may have been busy with a hedge trimmer.
Heading back, a fine camper van, starting off at least as a Fiat: GI told me what it was yesterday, but I had already forgotten. Luckily, he is patient: '... This is a Swift Escape 674 coach built motorhome, built on a Fiat Ducato chassis with a distinctive Iron Grey Metallic cab and body-coloured bumper...'. Very smart, if not really my thing. Maybe fifty years ago when we could not afford such a thing!
Day two was the same route, but before breakfast. A few builders turning up, a few lady joggers and dog walkers about, but not much else. A slightly different view of the pond.
While quite near the hole I started with, a JDT vacuum excavator all ready to go. Complete with custom registration.
Back home, back in my study, I remembered about the jam thermometer hanging on the wall, hiding in plain site. Intended for higher temperatures than I could cope with, but maybe it would serve until Amazon deliver the goods.
A real thermometer, with mercury, rather than the red stuff you get now. It seems to be stuck on 80°F, even though it feels a good deal warmer now, this sitting down and doing not much, at near 16:00, than it had been back at 12:00. Maybe being designed for high temperatures, it is not very reliable at the lower end of its scale.
PS: an experiment. Putting the Zeal into a mug of near boiling water takes it up to close to 200°F. Out, it sank pretty quickly to 120°F or so, and has now drifted down to just about 80°F again. So it is alive.
References
Reference 1: https://psmv6.blogspot.com/2026/05/mcdonalds.html.
Reference 2: https://www.wask-uk.com/.
Reference 3: https://psmv6.blogspot.com/2026/08/riverford-farm-kitchen.html.
Reference 4: https://www.cranebsu.com/en/. Wask might have started British, and might still look British, but they are actually now part of this much larger US corporation. But at least we do have what looks very much like manufacturing going on here!
Reference 5: https://psmv5.blogspot.com/2022/07/a-cold.html. A previous outing for Zeal.
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