willedoo

I got the B part right, it was Beryl.

Beverley someone; I forget her last name.

A pumpkin scone.

This is the Ukrainian 'Backfire K1' UAV bomber which is going into serial production. It's GPS guided and recoverable by parachute.

The latest unconfirmed reports on yesterday's airbase attacks are saying serious damage was caused to at least three Tu-95 bombers at Engels air base, and two Su-25 aircraft were destroyed at Yeysk airfield on the Azov Sea coast. Combined with losses at Morozovsk airfield, if all are confirmed, the total for the day would be 19 aircraft destroyed or damaged.

There were reports this morning of the drone attacks, but at that stage it was not known how many aircraft were hit. It was quite a swarm of drones apparently, resulting in a lot of explosions. Six bombers destroyed and eight damaged is a good result. There were also reports of Engels air base being hit as well. That's where the big bombers hang out; hopefully they did some damage there as well.

The crazy thing about the Republicans is that they can't add up. The war in Ukraine has had a devastating impact on the Russian military and has greatly reduced their ability to wage a conventional war against NATO countries. For that benefit, America has spent 3% of it's defence budget on military aid to Ukraine. It's worth noting that the primary goal of that total defence budget is to deter and contain Russia anyway. Added to that is the fact that up to 90% of the money value of military aid is spent in the U.S. and goes to American companies and benefits the American economy. Most of the gear supplied to Ukraine is earmarked for retirement and replacement (by U.S. companies). The old, near end of life equipment is sent to Ukraine and American companies manufacture the replacement gear. The money stays in the U.S.. What part of that can't the Republicans understand?

My biggest concern is trying to find a phone that will comfortably fit in pockets and in the hand. A lot of them now are so long they always feel like they're trying to escape from trouser side pockets. So many people these days use their phones as internet and media devices that the designs are getting longer and wider. I just need one I can work with and carry in pockets without always feeling like it's going to fall out. I bought a new Nokia a while back and only used it for a month before parking it up for mainly that reason (size too big). I recommissioned the old S5 after that and am still using it.

A lot of people will have to get new phones before the end of June. To make calls using the Telstra network, from that date on, phones must be 5G capable or 4G with Voice over LTE (VoLTE) capability. A 4G phone without VoLTE capability will still be able to send and receive data, but won't be able to make or receive voice calls. My old Samsung Galaxy S5 will have to go; I'll miss that old phone for it's simplicity and compact size.

U.S. Speaker Mike Johnson has again postponed the vote on Ukraine aid for several more weeks. He said it would happen after Easter and the vote was due to happen on April 9th., but he's come up with more excuses. If put to a vote, the bill is expected to pass with a large majority in favor as it did in the Senate. The only problem is Johnson refusing to put the aid bill to a vote. Aid has been delayed by months by this clown. The only likely path to passing the Ukraine aid is a discharge petition which so far has 191 of 218 required signatures to force a floor vote.

Here's another one: the Panama Canal. You tend to think of it as running east/west, but Panama itself lies roughly east/west and the canal runs north-west to south-east. The Atlantic entrance is further west than the Pacific entrance.

Did you know the Amazon River is 6400km long, and there’s not a single bridge across it.

An official of the Ukrainian military intelligence has said the Crimean bridge will be destroyed in the first half of 2024. That makes it sometime in the next 12 weeks. A lot would depend on the definition of destroyed. In my way of thinking, destroyed would mean all four road traffic lanes and the two rail lines brought down for a long time. To knock out the whole bridge for an extended period, they would need to bring some concrete pylons down.

It looks like Ukraine is using Foxbats for their new long range suicide drones. They struck the Russian drone factory in Tatarstan 1,200 kilometres from the Ukrainian border.

Donald Trump Junior is as crazy as his dad. He's saying that Biden's Department of Justice is treating Catholics as domestic terrorists. He said that banks mark anyone who buys a bible and forward the information to the FBI and the DoJ. The odd thing is that Biden is a Catholic and Trump is not.

spacey, do you mean movie historian Bill Collins? Phil Collins is the singer.

Saturday Night Live did a good parody of it but I don't think it's on youtube yet.

It varies with varieties, districts and moisture levels. Winter wheat crops can be planted mid April if there's enough soil moisture, but most wouldn't start until at least the end of April. Planting is usually over by mid June. Wheat crops mature at different times down the east coast. Queensland usually starts harvesting in mid October, later as you go down the coast. Some harvesting contractors start their season in central Queensland and work their way down to Victoria.

850mm for the first three months of the year, about 33.4".

It's all what you get used to. If you mainly drive semi-trailers, you will find it tricky to back a body truck and will keep turning the wrong way. The longer the trailer, the easier to reverse. I never had a problem with single trailers but always had respect for those that could back road trains (conventional, not B Doubles). Every time I tried it, I would plait the whole show up quick smart. The other ones I used to like watching was the tipper and dog drivers dumping fill. Some used to stop and pin the dolly but the better drivers would back them unpinned. I think it would be a lot harder backing those unpinned articulated dog trailers than the pig trailers. One of the hardest things I've backed is those little 6x4 car trailers. You can't see the damn things and they get away from you in a flash.

80 is low for me. Mine averages around 90 to 95.