patches

Looks like Honda has been copying someone's homework... Husky seems to do a little better on the silencer though, haha

Ordered one of these of Amazon Australia the other day. Wera Tool-Check Plus They make a Bicycle version too that looks pretty awesome The little card at the bottom allows one to decant the essentials into an even smaller kit

😅 guilty... but hey! Maybe I should be getting some of that ad revenue from Bunnings, haha! That' said... I have a 1st world Bunnings problem... I received a Bunnings voucher for my birthday and I don't even know what to spend it on because I can't find much that I actually want or need from there. I've Bunnings'ed myself out! I'm Bunnings Broken.

Holy crap! That's horrific! Hopefully no one was injured and the damage was contained to the bike. So sorry man!

The good... Changing vehicle ownership. Easy, online, free. Sold one of my motorbikes last night. Buyer and I did the change of ownership then and there in under 5min. Stark contrast to the debacle when trying to change ownership after selling my last car in SA.

'Tis a sad day. My first 2-wheeled-petrol-powered love has moved on. The winner of my $1 auction came to collect her last night. (fortunately the bike went for $5749 above the reserve). But yeah, my first bike, bought not long after making a solo move to a new country, and using it to explore the wonders of the South Island. I almost feel like I need to make a video montage to Wind Beneath My Wings... ...but I'm not much of an editing wizard so some photos will have to do. So feel free to hum or sing Wind Beneath My Wings as you indulge me and read the rest of this post😅 *music starts* From the night she was delivered. Splinter Nuwe! Some offroad practice in the neighbourhood Exploratory day rides to scenic surrounds Sometimes a little too much exploration. Multi-day sleepovers (that's a campsite in rural NZ, not my backyard, promise! Gunning it through the Molesworth (NZ's biggest farm. 180,000Ha and a 250km dirt road right through it. No fuel. Only rivers to drink from. But one can easily hit 120kph on some sections so makes for a fun trek). And finally... our last adventure together... Getting my gravel on winding my way through a braided river bed. Sometimes the rivers needed crossing. Picturesque panoramic The little 350 did well! Hopefully the new owner gets as much joy and adventure outta it as I did!

Insurances are begrudged purchases, but I guess the question often is "can I afford to not buy this?".

Currently with Cigna think I'm getting a fairly decent deal. About $30pm for $500k cover (they wouldn't allow more when I was on a Working Visa). Compared to SA that was a bargain. Twice the cover at half the cost from my policy there. Now in the process of moving to Mercer-Marsh as they have a DHB employee discount, plus things like income protection etc. Initial discussions for comparison seem like they'll throw in income protection (75% of annual gross) and $50k of trauma cover for the same rate. Still haven't finalized though.

The ugly... Seems I have inadvertently rubbed someone the wrong way. For about the past 7 or so weeks I have been having issues with mess being left on my verge when council comes to collect rubbish. We have small green food scraps bins in my area, and the collectors spilled it on the lawn on a few consecutive occasions. After the 3rd time I contacted council to make a complaint. They were responsive and wanted to send someone to clean it up, but I said not to worry, I had already done so. I was merely informing them that the issue persisted.But then it happened again, so I replied to the email chain. They then said they'd take it up with the supervisors of that team. But then things changed... it went from an "accidental spill" to a deliberate dumping of ALL the bins contents onto the lawn. But wait, it's not over... this past Sunday I put the bins out for Monday morning collection. When I woke up Monday morning, I went to check the bin. Once again, contents strewn across the lawn, BUT when checking the neighbours bins, I could tell that they hadn't been collected yet. Therefore, my estimation is that someone (perhaps a rebuked disgruntled employee) is going out of their way to vandalise my property in the middle of the night. Doorbell cam footage confirms a vehicle stopping outside the house around 11:30pm then bins heard to be tossed around. Unfortunately the bins and perps are outta view. Rather petty and pathetic if you ask me. Initially I wanted to go all Liam Neeson, catch them in the act, reprimand, photograph and report them, but after I calmed down I figured I'll just put my bins out early Monday morning, and they're welcome to waste their $3/L liquid gold to drive by pointlessly.

Aaaand new Auckland CV's (Council Valuations) are out. Well, I saw mine about a week ago, but I just got the email from council this morning. Land value up by 30%. Total value up by 20%. Hope Auckland Council hasn't got too nasty a surprise in store when rates are adjusted after May. Also noticed that it's still about 15% lower than sales estimates. I wonder if council went easy on the CV update to avoid adding more fuel to the fiery housing market. Pre-covid CV's were used as an indicator or guideline for buyers, now they mean very little in that regard.

I'll do some asking around. Do you have a Seek link to the PD?

Super useful! I probably use my long 1/4" sockets more often than the short ones. Especially when attaching direct to a ratchet, they're a good length when an extender makes it too long and the regular sockets are too short.

Totally right! I'm completely overthinking it, and the fact that any shoes I pick will barely every experience more than a brisk stride means I could easily get away with some Northstars from Bata. As for the Onitsuka's, +1 on that for sure! These are my go-to casual shoe and they're more comfy than my "sports shoes" (Adidas Terrex Agravic). I could wear them all-day every day. Maybe I should just get a second identical pair and rotate to distribute mileage and avoid disappointment in the future when I cant'y find them as they're discontinued. (I did this a couple of times with certain model FiveTen riding shoes I loved). Then get some cheap and cheerful trail runners for the occasional trail walk.

I was going to say that Google must be listening, but I just saw this on our work screensaver, not my FB news feed. Maybe it's a sign!

Made the mistake of walking into a tool shop to get a tape measure. The shop happened to be a Milwaukee Red Centre, with some deals on hand. Ended up walking out with a tape measure and one of these😅

hahah indeed! I have looked at some New Balance options. I've heard that out of the "common brands" that New Balance and Asics are the ones podiatrists prefer, with the bigger names like Nike and Adidas less so. Brooks are also recommended. I just don't think I'm qualified to wear these yet... I quite like the "new look" large logo styles they have out at the moment: (probably a little less bold and more appropriate for the workplace) Yeah, was looking at the On Running as they're currently 50% off here. At full price (around R3000 equiv), I was leaning more towards New Balance or Asics. I have been impressed with my Asics squash shoes, casual sneakers (Onitsuka Ultimates) and current walk-arounds (some of those old school retro looking Asics, but they're probably not designed for high mileage). Those Noosas are wild! I'll definitely get noticed walking around the hospital, haha

I believe the green lasers are also more visible in daylight, but they cost a pretty penny more than the red ones.

Not a lie! As a lowly public servant don't get me started about the government 3yr pay freeze, haha! Tradies here can make some serious bank! As for the alleged "asbestos"... no comment 😅

This week on "What Tool is Worth its Weight in Gold"... ...the laser level! After ripping down my nasty textured study ceiling, only to find that the ceiling joists were about as straight and level as a government tender-preneur, I figured I would have to install an adjustable ceiling batten/rail system to fasten the new drywall sheets to. To give myself a fighting chance I made a quick "bracket", clamped a laser level to a joist, and used the little red target thingy (that's what I'm calling it) to level each batten clip. So easy to adjust, and great result all-round! An idea of how outta-whack the joists are! Laser suspended from joist via my high-precision custom made bracket Using the little red target thingy (which has magnets) to align the height of each of the 24 batten clips to the right height. New insulation in, drywall lift cranked up and using the laser to make sure I don't miss the batten when fastening the drywall Most level ceiling in the house!

As an occasional and lazy cyclist who has a problem with running (not a fan), I do find myself turning to this thread for some thoughts on "walking shoes". I commute to work via a combination of bus and foot. Looking for a comfortable walking shoe that doesn't look like a 90's power-boat (as I will probably wear them around the office and site) or the iconic white NB dad-shoes (as I'm not a dad yet, and my lawn-mowing and braai skills are novice at best). Been looking at the On Running shoes. (probably the Cloud Swift) I quite like the different look of the shoe, but have no idea whether or not they will be good as a daily walk-about. Anyone here had On Running shoes before?

What an awesome idea Wayne! Too often when life starts getting frantic, we hype ourselves up to get frantic with it. Taking a step back is a great way to properly assess the situation, figure out what actually matters most and chart a course ahead to take it on. And hey, if you get some awesome pics in the process, it's a bonus!

ALL.THE.TIME... Hardly ever go to the petrol station to pump tyres, unless I've been riding beach/sand/dune trails (at low pressures) and I want to pump back up to ride home on the tar. Here most of the air pumps are those automatic ones where one connects the hose, sets the pressure digitally, and leaves it to do its thing. Fine for cars, not recommended for bicycles (as the tyres are low volume) and are ok for motorbikes, but with the dual chamber on my tyres, I need to get the LVHP chamber to 100PSi, which may be dangerous/impossible on the auto machine. (Many NZ ones say not rated for bicycles) I have even used a bicycle hand pump. That was hard work though and wouldn't recommend unless you have the reflexes of a teenage boy 😅

Have a bunch of Leatt gear for the MTB and the dirt bike: neck braces, body armour, knee & elbow guards, paddy-pants (for the dirt bike) etc. Never had one of their helmets though (I use either my TLD D3 or POC Tectal for pip-protection while MTB-ing), Out of all the Leatt gear though, the only one I have had issue with is the zip failing on my Leatt 3DF Airfit Lite body armour. Was petty annoying, especially considering the R3000+ cost for a glorifies T-shirt. I bought it from CRC and it was likely out of warranty or not worth the schlep, so I ended up pulling out all the 3DF pads and cutting them into the shapes to install them in my Alpinestars rally-jacket, so not a total loss 😅

Then we stay, haha! Fortunately I have in-laws there. But I will take my work PC with just in case I need to hunker-down for a week or 2. TBH I'm almost hoping I catch it 3 weeks before the trip so that I don't have a last minute infection cancelling everything

As of today, no more self isolation when returning from Aus... that just made my trip next month a little easier!Still trying to figure out how to avoid paying $400+ in tests. I noticed that some of my RAT tests show up as "Verified" and taken under supervision. Maybe at some stage these will count?! (the older one was me testing the self reporting function).