Taupotreeman

Just watched the press conference they did. Apparently they aren't going to change a thing, maybe get a new car for the wife. Is it just me getting sick of hearing this BS when someone wins big on something like lotto? This is a life changing event and something that happens to only a few. Maybe it's just me but I'd be spending up large. New houses (yep, plural) cars etc, setting up some of the family and friends and with that kind of dosh I'd be putting some towards some needy charities too. You only get one life and one chance so why not enjoy it while you can. I don't/wouldn't need all of it so it would take a while to figure out exactly who was going to get what but "maybe a new car"? get real.

Yep, have done Waitomo. Only the glow worm caves though. They also do this blackwater thing where you go through the caves in wetsuits and the pitch black. Apparently it's awesome so if you get a chance have a go. Don't bother if you're scared of the dark. Be a good day out if the weather holds but there's not much else going on down there. Farming country mainly. Oh, and wait for the sales at the outdoor shops. Kathmandu just had a 60% off sale so this is usually the best time to buy.

Hold off on your waterproof. If you start up with a bigger outfit it should be part of the kit issued to you. If you're looking to splash out on a good one for yourself, Bivuoac, hunting and fishing, Kathmandu or similar will have decent ones. If you're looking for a cheaper option there's an army and navy surplus on K road in the city.

Bandit and Morbark seem to have held true to the Keep it Simple design plan.Something I think Vermeer could benefit reflecting on. We have just bought a 12 inch drum. Looked at the Morbark but back up service wasn't too crash hot, although the chipper was a good one. The Vermeers, according to all I talked to, have too many things that slow the job down like poor auto feed and a safety bar that gets knocked by every branch that goes through. Out of all of them the Bandit looked like it meant business and was the easiest to use with good back up service. Two of the biggest outfits here have been using nearly all bandits (in one case that's over 30 machines) so can't be too much wrong with them. The guys don't treat them very well and they get bashed and battered but still keep going. The only thing that seems to let them down is when the springs go on the hydraulic crusher/infeed.

Slightly more information than was probably required

Fine for the weekend LSD and there's a heap of snow on the mountains now though I'll guess you know that if you have been watching the news. Blue skies for tomorrow though which is good news as my gardens resemble a swamp.

I have to say Janey, that costume leaves very little to the imagination

I just use a MP3 player under my ear defenders. Works primo and I don't get the issue of losing signal everytime I move which seems to be a problem with the built in ones I have tried. I just make sure I don't turn the volume up to loud or over compensate with the volume when I'm chipping. It also means I can play my own music as well as listen to the radio. MP3's are cheap as chips these days so if it only last 6 months so what.

We have had a speight of "dog attacks" over the past few years here, mainly kids, but a couple of adults. This resulted in many dog breeds being banned and others labelled as devil dogs. Most of the attacks came from children not known to the dog or dog owner coming over and trying to fuss the dog. I am not insinuating it is the childs fault in anyway whatsoever but I do believe parents should teach their kids not to pat dogs or even approach them if permission is not given from the owner and under their control. It wouldn't stop all attacks but might cut down the number. Same applies to adults. Having said all that; there are plenty of people who ill treat their dogs so that the it becomes aggressive. These people shouldn't be allowed any animals ever. Imagine if a fight trained pitbull got loose on the streets. I have two french mastiffs and I don't allow kids to approach them until I have them on a short leash. Then the kids can come over one by one and on my say so. I'm always scared witless that one of them will bite a kiddy even though they never show any signs of agression towards kids. All the hype around attacks leaves the dog owner constantly worried.Common sense has to come into the equation somewhere. Dean, hope your bro heals up quick sharp. Hope it hasn't put him off dogs either.

If you hadn't told me it was a Magnolia I'd have thought it was a lemon tree from that picture. Looks just like mine as develops the new fruit

What species? I cut down a grandiflora over twice that size a couple of months ago. Tree was about 80 to 100 years old. Does that count?

UNDERSTATEMENT! Slightly more than toasty that does look.

Not going to the show for blindingly obvious reasons but changed my avatar anyway. If the missus finds out her mugshot is on here I'm dead meat.

No Idea Hama but it's growing out of the grass and the nearby woodchip. I don't think it was red to start with though as there are some other specimens close by that are almost pure white and still quite small.

Not exactly tree pics but a couple of some NZ native mistletoe (Tupeia antarctica I think) that is now endangered due to possum browsing etc. Some species are now limited to the odd island in the Hauraki Gulf or are extinct altogether so one of the locals has taken it upon herself to find suitable host trees and let the mistletoe loose. This one is on Council land but has been done in conjunction with council and department of conservation.

Couple here I found today and as per usual I've no idea and, as per usual they are probably as common as the proverbial but if you can ID for me please?

Seriously, she needs to eat something.

Try Gimp, it's a free software that you can get and it does the same type of things as photoshop, just not as good.

Oh no, I've started you off haven't I

Yep, just tried to have a look but it's all blocked except for friends. Double bugger!!

Bugger! didn't work.

Unfortunately we never bother; just drive in with chainsaws and bulldozers and destroy and entire eco system and way of life in one fell swoop. Agree with your sentiments though.

I'm probably going off my experience with older service lines. The only ones I have dealt with whereby the chance of a shock is limited is with neutral screen core lines. Most of the stuff here and the older stuff I dealt with in the UK didn't have the outer sheaths, only a weatherproof coating. Even having the protection on it is still bad pratice to get that close to any conductor especially if your ID skills aren't too crash hot. You get cocky with a service line it may lead on to getting too cocky with other stuff. Better off just treating everything as live and deadly.

Yeesh, I'm still learning. That all sounds like gobbledeegook to me. I'll have to have a nosey.

So comon, what software do you use and how do you do it? I can't afford any of those fancy shmancy pants ones and only have freebie that I downloaded. Spill the beans and give me a few hints...............please:biggrin: