Mister Toad

My deepest condolences to Newt.

You are not alone! I can toady with the best - just ask my boss

No - You're not that lucky. I've been around - lurking in the background. It's just that I seem to have gotten out of the habit of posting. Sheer laziness really.

Who asked you to stick your oar in? Your judgement must be pretty poor going by the football team you support Hi Bluey. How're you doing?

Happy Birthday to Angler's Net and all the members.

It was along Maynooth Gardens next to the Mitcham RUFC ground.

I caught this roach yesterday during a short session on the Wandle. At least, I'm pretty certain it's a roach - it's definitely not a chub and I doubt it's a hybrid. I've printed out the picture and based on the size of the net (25-inches along each side) I estimate the length to be about 13-inches or so. It's far and away the biggest roach I've ever caught. It's particularly satisfying because I've blanked on all my other recent visits to the Wandle in search of my first barbel. I caught it in an eddy on the far side of the river and then had to bring it back across the fast water. I could hardly hold the net against the flow and was scared all the time that something would give way.

It just makes my blood boil to think that someone who led the overthrow of the oppressive colonial masters has systematically destroyed the very country that he purported to save. He has completely betrayed the people of Zimbabwe and he and his cronies will do anything, repeat anything, to stay in power. I have no faith at all in the current talks - I believe that its just a white wash and a sop to African leaders. The military leaders that surround Mugabe will never let him stand down as they will then be exposed to prosecution in the Internatinal Court of Justice for the crimes against humanity that they have committed in the name of freedom.

No problem - wait until tomorrow and you can get one for 50p

Hi Rick, For still water fishing in or near West London, you could try: Twynersh Fishing Complex at Cherstsey, near Thorpe Park http://www.twynershfishingcomplex.com/ There are lakes in both Hampton Court and Bushey Park but you need to apply for a permit (apart from the regular EA one) from http://www.hrp.org.uk/HamptonCourtPalace/p...andleisure.aspx There's also the Grand Union canal in North West London but I don't have a clue where the best places to fish would be. If none of these take your fancy, try looking here: http://www.fishsoutheast.co.uk/ Good luck. Let us know how you get on.

Nice one BZ. I guess the rest of the season will be an anti-climax now

I have this strange sense of deja vu. When I was young and lived with my parents in Bristol we practised a form of recycling. In addition to the "ash bin", we had a "pig bin" and a paper sack. The ash bin was metal and used for the ashes from the coal fire and other general household waste. The pig bin was a small metal bin with a lid that was held closed by a strong catch. This was used for kitchen waste hence the need for a strong catch to discourage unwanted attention. The paper sack, as its name suggests, was a sack for newspapers, cardboard etc. Have now come full circle?

Yes we went for an upgrade - replaced the rubber band with No 20 pole elastic

BMW = British Mini Wannabe My son is a Mini enthusiast. He's done the London to Brighton run six times but not always in his beloved Mini. We've just finished rebuilding the engine then, with a bit more work, it will be going for its MoT and back on the road.

If you're interested in reading The Compleat Angler but don't want to buy it, you can find it here. http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/9198 Project Gutenberg is a fantastic resource of over 25,000 copyright free books that can be downloaded for nothing including the complete works of Shakespeare and Dickens.

Do you think someone reads AN? http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/staffordshire/7430749.stm

Perhaps they should introduce a points system with, say, 1 point for fining someone for dropping litter, 100 points for catching a shop lifter and 1,000 points for arresting a burglar. If the monthly target was then set to 10,000, the only realistic way to meet it would be to go after the "real" criminals.

Didn't monks used to ring a bell to attract the carp in their fish ponds when it was feeding time? Probably also made them easier to catch on a Friday morning!

All of the examples in this thread are pretty obvious but it does pay to check any parking ticket very carefully. My son was really ticked off when he returned to his car to find a parking ticket on the windscreen despite having paid and displayed! He was trying to figure out why he'd got a ticket (incorrectly displayed, upside down, not fixed to the windscreeen in a prominent position etc) when he realised that the registration number on the ticket was for a totally different vehicle. It appears that some bright spark had been given the ticket and then moved it to my son's car in the hope that he would pay it without noticing. I hope the idiot concerned gets a big fat fine for non-payment!

I have a kettle type barbecue (Weber) and once cooked a couple of trout fillets on it after adding a handful of soaked hickory chips to the charcoal.

Way to go, Janet

Gray, I really don't know what to say except that you have my heartfelt sympathy. I can't imagine what you are feeling at teh moment. Death is hard enough to deal with at any time but for it to happen in such a senseless manner makes it even worse. I hope they catch those responsible and that they get everything they deserve.

Glad you had a red letter day. Can't wait for the unexpurgated version.

"PS. Steve. No! My comments don't necessarily mean that you'll convert me to pole fishing! But you never know......" Are you sure he doesn't just want you to buy a £2,000 pole I hope you have a great day. Looking forward to hearing how you get on.

Ah ha. I just found an (incomplete) list of other things that Jan's joke reminded me of FREEZER BAGS: They are male, because they hold everything in, but you can see right through them. PHOTOCOPIERS: These are female, because once turned off, it takes a while to warm them up again. They are an effective reproductive device if the right buttons are pushed, but can also wreak havoc if you push the wrong buttons. TIRE: Tire are male, because they go bald easily and are often over inflated. HOT AIR BALLOONS: Also a male object, because to get them to go anywhere, you have to light a fire under their arce SPONGES: These are female, because they are soft, squeezable and retain water. WEB PAGES: Female, because they're constantly being looked at and frequently getting hit on. TRAINS: Definitely male, because they always use the same old lines for picking up people. EGG TIMERS: Egg timers are female because, over time, all the weight shifts to the bottom. HAMMERS: Male, because in the last 5000 years, they've hardly changed at all, and are occasionally handy to have around.