I forgot to post the solution!Anji and apples both got it right.
It's a Half Crown... which you can just about see on both sides of the date at the bottom.
Monday, November 27, 2006
The Obverse
I forgot to post the solution!Anji and apples both got it right.
It's a Half Crown... which you can just about see on both sides of the date at the bottom.
Saturday, November 25, 2006
Passage to India...
So, about a month into their holiday in India my younger daughter Biddy and her two travelling companions have already clocked up an impressive list of experiences. First they got out of steaming Bombay as fast as they could and moved down to Goa to relax.
After that there have been trips to temples, old forts, markets, a ride on rented mopeds which ended face-to-trunk with an elephant; they have been to Kollam where the backwaters are, suffered the Indian equivalent of Montezuma's revenge after eating European food, treated themselves to whole-body Ayurveda massages, bought themselves material which they intend to get made into saris and Biddy even managed to get a bloodsucking leech on her leg - which she insists is really healthy!
It all makes it a bit difficult to mail them back when all you can say is; "erm, the leaves have fallen off the trees here and we had a look at the new Ikea catalogue last Thursday..."
After that there have been trips to temples, old forts, markets, a ride on rented mopeds which ended face-to-trunk with an elephant; they have been to Kollam where the backwaters are, suffered the Indian equivalent of Montezuma's revenge after eating European food, treated themselves to whole-body Ayurveda massages, bought themselves material which they intend to get made into saris and Biddy even managed to get a bloodsucking leech on her leg - which she insists is really healthy!
It all makes it a bit difficult to mail them back when all you can say is; "erm, the leaves have fallen off the trees here and we had a look at the new Ikea catalogue last Thursday..."
Wednesday, November 22, 2006
So, What the Hell Is It Then...?
Millions of people around the world are now trying to work out what this coin could possibly be!
It's not a crown, nor is it a florin or a shilling...
The date on the back is 1920 which means it is 50% silver!! If it had been a year older it would have consisted of 95% silver!! Bloody hell, they really made coins back in those days.
In the useless clue in the previous post I said it was worth the same as five tanners; a tanner is (was) a sixpenny bit... so we are talking about a coin which is worth 30d (that is 30 "old" pence - the d stands for pence - don't ask). Divide that by 12, as there were 12d in a shilling, and you get 2/6 - two and six - or as my dad used to say half a dollar (<- clue).
If I may be permitted a quick aside/rant... this is my problem with metric, decimalised centigradual measuring systems - they are so BORING! It's all 10s and 100s and 1000s!
Pre decimalisation in England we had 240 pence in a pound.
240! Now there's a number you can get your teeth into!
12 pence was a shilling - which is why we had sixpenny bits - half a shilling. There was a threepenny bit too (quarter of a shilling?? Ok?)
20 shillings was a pound - BRILLIANT!
And then there was a Guinea which was one pound and one shiling: 21/-. Furniture shops and car showrooms always had prices in Guineas for the same reason that everything now is 9.99 or 199.99 - you thought the article cost 399 pounds...but it turned out to be 399 Guineas which is 399 pounds PLUS 399 shillings.
Right, anyway, numismatists or oldmismatists... what is it?
It's not a crown, nor is it a florin or a shilling...
The date on the back is 1920 which means it is 50% silver!! If it had been a year older it would have consisted of 95% silver!! Bloody hell, they really made coins back in those days.
In the useless clue in the previous post I said it was worth the same as five tanners; a tanner is (was) a sixpenny bit... so we are talking about a coin which is worth 30d (that is 30 "old" pence - the d stands for pence - don't ask). Divide that by 12, as there were 12d in a shilling, and you get 2/6 - two and six - or as my dad used to say half a dollar (<- clue).
If I may be permitted a quick aside/rant... this is my problem with metric, decimalised centigradual measuring systems - they are so BORING! It's all 10s and 100s and 1000s!
Pre decimalisation in England we had 240 pence in a pound.
240! Now there's a number you can get your teeth into!
12 pence was a shilling - which is why we had sixpenny bits - half a shilling. There was a threepenny bit too (quarter of a shilling?? Ok?)
20 shillings was a pound - BRILLIANT!
And then there was a Guinea which was one pound and one shiling: 21/-. Furniture shops and car showrooms always had prices in Guineas for the same reason that everything now is 9.99 or 199.99 - you thought the article cost 399 pounds...but it turned out to be 399 Guineas which is 399 pounds PLUS 399 shillings.
Right, anyway, numismatists or oldmismatists... what is it?
Tuesday, November 21, 2006
Remember these...?
Right, here is the clue I promised yesterday... it's worth the same as five tanners.
What a crap clue!!!
Monday, November 20, 2006
Does Anyone Remember...
...real money? On the right here, opposite a "new" penny, this is a very old something.Does anyone even know?? Come on you numismatic freaks...!
There will be a clue tomorrow...
Thursday, November 16, 2006
Snore Draw
Once again the country which invented football shows just how dismal the game can be.
I would have thought that by now the England team/mangers/tacticians or whatever would have realised that after scoring the first goal it is totally and disasterously stupid to sit back and invite the other team to attack in the hope of holding on till the end. Admittedly the Dutch were almost as abysmal as we were but we should have pushed on to take advantage of that!!
Anyway, 7 minutes to go and I turned to TM who was dozing off and said, "right, now it's time for Holland to score two late goals and win!"
And with that Holland took a long throw and scored the equaliser!!
Then there was another 6 minutes of frenzied activity from both teams which was more entertaining than the previous 85 and it ended in a draw, a snore draw, a bore draw...
I love footy!!
I would have thought that by now the England team/mangers/tacticians or whatever would have realised that after scoring the first goal it is totally and disasterously stupid to sit back and invite the other team to attack in the hope of holding on till the end. Admittedly the Dutch were almost as abysmal as we were but we should have pushed on to take advantage of that!!
Anyway, 7 minutes to go and I turned to TM who was dozing off and said, "right, now it's time for Holland to score two late goals and win!"
And with that Holland took a long throw and scored the equaliser!!
Then there was another 6 minutes of frenzied activity from both teams which was more entertaining than the previous 85 and it ended in a draw, a snore draw, a bore draw...
I love footy!!
Wednesday, November 15, 2006
Flying Dutchmen
Right... off to watch England get hammered by the Dutch, if their last desultory, depressing performance was anything to go by.
Shades of the World Cup - why does anyone put themselves willingly through what is probably going to be an hour and a half just as excruciatingly awful as, say, England v. Portugal in the summer?
This is the cross the England fan has to bear - that explains the flag!
C'mon England...clap clap!!
Shades of the World Cup - why does anyone put themselves willingly through what is probably going to be an hour and a half just as excruciatingly awful as, say, England v. Portugal in the summer?
This is the cross the England fan has to bear - that explains the flag!
C'mon England...clap clap!!
Is Sleep Tiring?
You see, I go to bed and spend hours trying to get tired enough to drop off into a sleep and then when I wake up I feel absolutely exhausted!
Now, I am far from being an expert but isn't that the wrong way round? Aren't you supposed to be tired before you go to sleep and then feel full of energy when you wake up??
AM I MISSING SOMETHING HERE???
(Apart from sleep that is)
Now, I am far from being an expert but isn't that the wrong way round? Aren't you supposed to be tired before you go to sleep and then feel full of energy when you wake up??
AM I MISSING SOMETHING HERE???
(Apart from sleep that is)
Monday, November 13, 2006
Two Questions for Brain-Boxes Out There
First of all, I am merrily translating away using WORD. The page I am doing has lots of text fields, but that's ok!
I type two wrong letters... oh well!
I hit backspace and the first letter's gone, brilliant!
I hit backspace again... and the whole bleedin' text disappears - not ok, not well, decidedly unbrilliant...
This seems to be a 'feature' of WORD in text field infected pages... but hang on, I'm sorry, what kind of imbecile created that feature? Was it the product of a long Friday afternoon open-end brainstorming session at MicroSoft HQ..?
"Ok, so we can make this feature where you hit the back space twice and the whole text vanishes, what do you think guys?"
"Ok, Bill.."
"Whatever you say, Bill..."
"Sounds great, Bill.."
"Bill, you're the man!!"
The question is:
WHY?
The second question is a little less technical... it's about pigs.
How many trotters do ten pigs have... assuming none of them have been involved in piggy wars or walked through piggy landmine areas?
In other words is there one trotter at the end of each leg of each pig or are there more...? I originally thought two trotters per leg... but subsequent research has completely bamboozled me... so come on, pig fans out there in Pig County...
I type two wrong letters... oh well!
I hit backspace and the first letter's gone, brilliant!
I hit backspace again... and the whole bleedin' text disappears - not ok, not well, decidedly unbrilliant...
This seems to be a 'feature' of WORD in text field infected pages... but hang on, I'm sorry, what kind of imbecile created that feature? Was it the product of a long Friday afternoon open-end brainstorming session at MicroSoft HQ..?
"Ok, so we can make this feature where you hit the back space twice and the whole text vanishes, what do you think guys?"
"Ok, Bill.."
"Whatever you say, Bill..."
"Sounds great, Bill.."
"Bill, you're the man!!"
The question is:
WHY?
The second question is a little less technical... it's about pigs.
How many trotters do ten pigs have... assuming none of them have been involved in piggy wars or walked through piggy landmine areas?
In other words is there one trotter at the end of each leg of each pig or are there more...? I originally thought two trotters per leg... but subsequent research has completely bamboozled me... so come on, pig fans out there in Pig County...
Friday, November 10, 2006
Getting Near to 10ks
...about 30 more visitors and my website will actually reach 10,000 visitors!! So either you lot have to click there or I have to stay up all night clicking...
Sunday, November 05, 2006
Happy Birthday, Ma!
Cor blimey, that's my mum with me, back... oh, about twenty years ago, ahem... or is it a hundred?Look at those socks!
Well, it would have been her birthday today - Guy Fawkes' Day in England, the day when we celebrate the fact that something didn't happen and if you can find a more English celebration than that let me know.
My mum always said there was no excuse for forgetting her birthday it being firework night - so just to prove I haven't forgotten... Happy Birthday!
Friday, November 03, 2006
Telephone Marketing Table Turning
I just got a phone call from a guy trying to persuade me to change my mobile phone provider. He asked if I was from England and when I said yes he started trying to speak English to me. Years ago that really used to piss me off... you speak perfectly fluent German to someone but they insist on speaking broken English back to you. These days I don't mind - it can be quite amusing.
Anyway, after he had made a couple of mistakes I suggested he should buy my book for Germans learning English! He then took down my web address and promised to have a look!
I doubt that it will lead to a sale but it was nice to turn the tables for once.
Anyway, after he had made a couple of mistakes I suggested he should buy my book for Germans learning English! He then took down my web address and promised to have a look!
I doubt that it will lead to a sale but it was nice to turn the tables for once.
Thursday, November 02, 2006
Temptation
You want a new definition of temptation? Well, try this: your daughter is in India for 2 months with 2 other girls and you have a number which you can use to call her on her mobile phone for only 5.4 cents a minute. I defy you to resist the temptation of wanting to call up every ten minutes and ask how they are, where they are, if they are eating enough, if things are ok…
When I was talking to her on Tuesday (me in Munich, she in Bombay!!) I was thinking, “wow, that’s the first time I have spoken to someone in India!”
But then I remembered the last time I called British Telecom with a query about the telephone bill…
When I was talking to her on Tuesday (me in Munich, she in Bombay!!) I was thinking, “wow, that’s the first time I have spoken to someone in India!”
But then I remembered the last time I called British Telecom with a query about the telephone bill…
Disappearing Money
I heard a news item this morning about a problem with Euros in some German cities. It seems that the notes are disappearing…well, what a surprise!
To be more accurate the notes are actually dissolving in unsuspecting people’s pockets.
It seems that some of these banknotes have been treated with a sulphate salt which turns into a kind of sulphuric acid when it comes into contact with human sweat…for example on your palm! Then the acid eats away the banknote and you end up with nothing.
I have been getting notes like that for years!
To be more accurate the notes are actually dissolving in unsuspecting people’s pockets.
It seems that some of these banknotes have been treated with a sulphate salt which turns into a kind of sulphuric acid when it comes into contact with human sweat…for example on your palm! Then the acid eats away the banknote and you end up with nothing.
I have been getting notes like that for years!
Wednesday, November 01, 2006
Leaving on a jet plane, etc..
This is at Munich airport just before Bid set off for London and then India...They are now in a small hotel in Bombay. I spoke to her yesterday through the wonders of modern mobile phone technology. They got themselves a chip there for their mobile which means I can phone them from Munich and, with the help of a special dialling number here, only pay €0.054 per minute!
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