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Post by bixaorellana on Apr 10, 2021 22:52:52 GMT
Tod! You live! That is a very good thing!
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Post by mich64 on Apr 11, 2021 2:00:56 GMT
Tod, it was a really good thing you were home and heard that noise and went to investigate! Along with you, I will be eager to hear what your repairman says.
While I was sitting on the couch this afternoon watching an HGTV program, I heard a loud bang outside and then all my power went out. I had just turned on the washing machine so I was concerned what I should do when the power comes back since it had just about filled with water when the power went out.
So I called Mr. M. (he was on shift) to tell him what had happened, he told me what to expect, so that was a good thing! (and it worked) Then he said he would probably be getting a call out to our area to assist Hydro. Sure enough about 10 minutes later I heard the sirens. I went out on my deck and looked across the lake and could see the fire trucks pass along the road on the other side. A tree had fallen on to a hydro wire. They got it all fixed up in about an hour and then they doused the ground with water where the wire came down before heading back to town.
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Post by bixaorellana on Apr 11, 2021 3:23:46 GMT
Mich, do they douse the ground with water because the wire might have left something smoldering?
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Post by mich64 on Apr 11, 2021 4:27:32 GMT
Mich, do they douse the ground with water because the wire might have left something smoldering? That is exactly why Bixa. Also we are having an incredibly dry spring, there has been grass fires already. They would over spray in case a spark or in case pieces of the burnt wire scattered when it hit the ground.
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Post by bixaorellana on Apr 11, 2021 5:00:14 GMT
Thanks, Mich -- that is informative & interesting!
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Post by kerouac2 on Apr 11, 2021 13:16:02 GMT
While decluttering today and throwing stuff away, I found a 20 euro note in something that was about to go in the bin.
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Post by tod2 on Apr 11, 2021 16:20:54 GMT
That must have made the de-clutter task really worthwhile
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Post by questa on Apr 12, 2021 2:04:06 GMT
They would over spray in case a spark or in case pieces of the burnt wire scattered when it hit the ground. One of the main causes of bushfires here is electrical wires swinging in the wind and arc-ing sparks which fall to the ground and ignite. All wires now have spacers to keep them apart, but the wind brings down branches to lie across the wires. Now they cut off the electricity on high fire days in such areas.
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Post by mich64 on Apr 12, 2021 16:46:54 GMT
One of the main causes of bushfires here is electrical wires swinging in the wind and arc-ing sparks which fall to the ground and ignite. All wires now have spacers to keep them apart, but the wind brings down branches to lie across the wires. Now they cut off the electricity on high fire days in such areas. Where the climate is very dry, I think this is an excellent idea Questa. Normally here in the spring it is quite wet but this winter was unusual and additionally our spring has not brought a lot of rain so far thus extreme dry conditions. I think when we have high winds in the forcast and under an extreme forest fire risk they should do that here as well.
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Post by Kimby on Apr 12, 2021 17:41:56 GMT
Of the three fires requiring air tanker suppression in my valley in 33 years, two were caused by trees or branches falling on power lines. One thing we can count on is that if there is a fire, power will be cut, whether by accident or by utility decision.
As everyone here is on a well with an electric pump, we lose all ability to proactively wet down flammable surfaces or to suppress flames or sparks. Some people have generators to power their pumps. We have a little creek flowing along the back of our yard, so we got a gas-powered pump that can suck water from the creek and deliver it via 200 feet of 2” fire hose onto the roof or even into the tops of 60-80’ tall pine trees.
The good thing is that we have not yet had to use it...
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Post by kerouac2 on Apr 12, 2021 17:44:54 GMT
In quite a bit of Europe, particularly the smaller countries, the electrical network is underground. France is too big (or too stingy) to do this everywhere, but in just about all of the cities all of the cables are underground. One good thing about this is that we never lose power no matter how violently the wind blows.
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Post by Kimby on Apr 12, 2021 18:32:38 GMT
Our neighborhood has buried lines. But the transmission lines connecting us TO our power supply are above ground. As are a couple lines crossing over our valley on their way to other areas.
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Post by questa on Apr 12, 2021 23:10:58 GMT
The good thing is that we have not yet had to use it... Except OF COURSE for your annual pre=season's TESTING
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Post by Kimby on Apr 13, 2021 1:42:59 GMT
We test it every other year.
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Post by htmb on Apr 28, 2021 2:31:32 GMT
On my last trip, the airline screwed up my ticket a bit and I firmly, but politely, complained. Today I learned I will be getting a voucher for future travel, along with a partial refund and additional mile credits. I’m fairly happy with all that. It adds up to a nice chunk of change.
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Post by bixaorellana on Apr 28, 2021 2:37:16 GMT
Hooray! This is fair. I feel like the airlines are like banks. What they're dealing with is so important to their customers that no mistakes should be made, ever.
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Post by mich64 on Apr 28, 2021 2:42:27 GMT
That must have felt very satisfying htmb! It is not very often I hear of someone being even partially refunded for an error on their part. Good for you!
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Post by kerouac2 on May 6, 2021 19:31:14 GMT
I received another free year of transportation from the city of Paris (valid until 31 May 2022) for the entire metropolitan region. That's worth more than 800 euros, and I used to pay for it year after year.
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Post by questa on May 7, 2021 0:10:05 GMT
Kuala Lumpur airport. I was in the check in line to fly back to Oz. Well dressed man in next line extremely distressed as there had been a error and his seat re-assigned. He HAD to be in Melbourne and there were no seats left. I was in no hurry so I offered my seat and was thanked profusely. About an hour later a Malaysian Airways chap came up and offered me a free return ticket and 3 nights stay in a 3 star hotel on the riverfront in Kuching, Sarawak on island of Borneo. Some quick phone calls to Oz and I had the most enjoyable holiday out of all the trips I've done. (Pics in Asia file)
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Post by mossie on May 7, 2021 6:44:48 GMT
The Good Samaritan gets her just reward
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Post by mickthecactus on May 7, 2021 6:47:56 GMT
Absolutely!
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Post by onlyMark on May 7, 2021 6:51:58 GMT
I received another free year of transportation from the city of Paris (valid until 31 May 2022) for the entire metropolitan region. Is that just age related? Good scheme and I need to see if there is something similar in Germany. The UK has a free bus pass or something but I don't know the details of that either.
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Post by kerouac2 on May 7, 2021 7:02:45 GMT
It's both age (minimum 65) and revenue related. The revenue threshold is much higher than I would ever have imagined. I thought I had too much money to qualify, but was well within the limits.
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Post by onlyMark on May 7, 2021 8:10:32 GMT
It's a good idea. I'll have to see what Germany has to offer me.
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Post by kerouac2 on May 7, 2021 10:49:34 GMT
It is not actually the city of Paris that I should thank but the regional authorities. The city itself is quite small but "Greater Paris" is almost as big as "Greater London." More and more French cities are making municipal transportation totally free, either all the time or on the weekends.
You might also have seen in the news that all forms of public transportation in Luxembourg became free starting in March 2020 -- no more tickets, no more validation machines, no more ticket checkers... Just those things alone cost up to 50% of the operating expenses.
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Post by onlyMark on May 7, 2021 12:54:28 GMT
Just found out there's no scheme like that at all for free public transport over a certain age where I am. I think when I get to a ripe old age I'll move to Paris.
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Post by Kimby on May 7, 2021 14:58:06 GMT
My city of Missoula Montana has had free bus service for several years. It’s partially subsidized by the city and partially by businesses and large employers.
The buses all have free WiFi too, and most if not all buses have bike racks so cyclists can get to where they want to ride rather than having to ride all the way there. Each year more diesel buses are replaced with electric buses.
Unfortunately, my area is a long ways from the nearest bus stop, and no signs that the bus company “Mountain Line” plans to extend there in the foreseeable future.
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Post by Kimby on May 7, 2021 15:39:02 GMT
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Post by patricklondon on May 7, 2021 16:52:07 GMT
Just found out there's no scheme like that at all for free public transport over a certain age where I am. I think when I get to a ripe old age I'll move to Paris. Or the UK. Or at least London, where the Freedom Pass is available at 60 (not sure what they're worth in other parts of the country).
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Post by kerouac2 on May 7, 2021 16:56:43 GMT
Since my employer had financed my travel pass, it was a bit painful to pay something like 75 euros a month until the pass was made free for me. But talking to a number of my former colleagues, I discovered that not having the company pay for the pass didn't bother them a bit. When they stopped working, they stopped going anywhere, not because it was too expensive but because work was just about their only destination. So sad.
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