FastFreddy2

"That's funny" .... Double unlikely.

I need something that allows me to remove/replace with ease. I'll know by the end of today what the cost will be, when I've contacted the makers for a confirmed part number. Honestly, saving £15 against losing the heating again, isn't a decision I need to make. We were using £3 a day on electric to stay mildly warm. The bigger worry is a fan or bearing replacement. That's a bigger number that goes from under £4 to £100 or just over. Double that if the fan fails and takes the PCB with it (which isn't unheard of).

Found the reference for Hot Chick, but the linked video is missing/deleted. Did a quick search and found this video. There are others, but the 'kicker' (moral of the tale) came in the last words spoken, which is pertinent to our current debate in some way. As an aside, the owner/publisher does a good job of walking in them I have to say, especially given her likely shoe size. Those heels look a lot closer to 6" than just above 5. Time for some shut eye.

Speaking as your psychiatrist .... I recognise a lot of dangerous phrases there .... I very much doubt there's a conclusion as such, to anything that piques your curiosity in this way. It's just a road that is to be travelled. Many many many more than society in general, is ready to admit. A TV presenter (Carol McGiffin) once claimed on lunchtime TV where she was a panelist, the shoes she sold on Ebay, all went to men. Around three-quarters of the shoes I have sold, have gone to men. Try harder.

Hmmm. I have my doubts about his sincerity regarding that remark. There is here on H4M somewhere, references to a style he did called Hot Chick. They come with a claimed 130mm heels but measure higher. They are almost impossible to walk in. I'll try to find the reference, as it has video links too. Here are some pictures that illustrate Louboutin is more than capable of selling 'too high' shoes. None of these are Hot chick, though some have 130mm heels. These are the ones I had in mind, when I mentioned heels longer than soles, earlier. While there might be (young) women out there that could wear these styles, my personal experience suggests they would be VERY few and far between.

Close, but no prize ... Maybe you missed the bit about "being IN a heel" I have amended the original text for the benefit of any colonials, who may not have English as their first language and sometimes struggle to grasp the nuances of the grammar.

You with TWO smiling heads .... Now that's funny. Carpet cores, perfect! The printing industry processes roughly 2 billion pounds of ink, containing 1,900 tons of lead, every year. About half this amount will find its way into the waste stream, leaching heavy metals into the water table. Additionally, your industry is a major source of alkaline and acidic waste used to create film and clean your press equipment. From >> here << It's not where I read it, but it confirms it's a problem. Maybe not inside a pair of boots, but I prefer to avoid the stuff. I don't need another head, though another arm might be pretty useful.

I am happy to use "Plumbers Gold" to seal anything wet. Trouble is, it's semi-permanent, and I'm sure I'll have to remove the bloody siphon for some reason in the future. At this stage, I'm very reluctant to risk more time without proper heating. If I had to replace the fan and the bloody siphon, I've upgraded/refurbed the boiler, and it ought to be worth more than it was as an 8 year old (worn out) unit. There are two boilers identical to mine on Evilbay at the moment. One £50 B-I-N, another circa £21 with a couple of days left for bidding. I have the seal part number, and it might be worth a try ordering that. I might even find a part number for the orange bit, which could make a difference. Either way, I'm going to be replacing parts. I'm not cutting corners with a boiler, as attractive as not spending/wasting money might be. The combi boiler I already have is a 30kw rated one. Good enough to run 2 baths or showers at the same time. My current boiler (when new) is rated at 19kw. The heating demand for the house -on paper at least- is 10-13kw. The current boiler stops feeding two rads when asked to heat water too. It just isn't up to the job, even with the new H/E. That said, (and I repeat myself here) the boiler is at least 10m away from the H/W cylinder, and much of that pipework is 28mm copper. It may be we now use the immersion heater which can cook the cylinder in 30 minutes, rather than the hour or so it takes the boiler. The boiler should be cheaper, but I don't know it is, given how much effort goes into heating the water so inefficiently. Mrs F no longer likes a bath, preferring to shower. When the combi is connected, I very much doubt we will notice the potential 10 minute lull in CH performance, assuming there is one when she showers. I like a 'barfy', but given how much water I use, and how long I get to soak, I might as well shower too. Like today .... Bath well past half full with lovely hot water before I dipped my limbs into the wet stuff, with me out of it inside about 7 minutes. Given the current flow rate from the HW cylinder, it probably took as long to run, as I spent in it. What a waste. A shower would have used a third of the water and I would have been finished 7 minutes earlier. I dread to think how much money we could have saved by installing the combi the first year we moved in. Easily enough to pay for a pair of hand made "tailor" fitted crotch length leather boots with a 5" heel ... Every other year....

What prompts my 'urge'? Really, I have no idea. I often think me wearing a heel fills in for my partner (now Mrs F) not wearing a heel around me so I can enjoy the aesthetic appeal. Her wearing a heel rather like having a painting or picture in the room I can enjoy looking at. The concept is: I fill in the missing experience. That said, I used to like wearing a heel even when my girlfriends (way back) wore a heel to please/entice me, and look good too of course. Today I spent 2 hours walking around Brent X in high heel ankle boots. Mrs Freddy put me up to the trip too, knowing the only way I was going, was in a heel. I found a practical reason for going (double checking me camera shutter is making the right noise by comparing it to an identical camera), but that could be done anytime. I'll be out again mid-week, in a heel. I no longer have the burning desire I experienced in earlier years, but I am comfortable in a heel. More comfortable than in my (yeuk) trainers. Sure they are like wearing slippers, but my feet get hot and uncomfortable quite quickly. Wearing an almost 5" heel can be a challenge if I try to walk faster than my skills allow, but it just seems normal to be in wearing a heel. I can't say why, other than perhaps in a previous life .....

I had a pair called Natalie, sort of 'gifted' to me. Too big (UK9), so they went on Evilbay. Mrs Freddy liked them, (she likes shiny) but sadly waaay to big for her size 6 feet. As you can see from the top of the boots, I could probably get both legs into one shaft. I could certainly get one of my arms in there. Mr Louboutin did do some 'fetish' styles that were (I suppose) abstract designs, with heels that were longer than the sole of the shoes/boots they were attached to. If I can find pictures, I'll include them later. For those here, I suppose we have shoes we want to wear. Sounds obvious? I think some have heels beyond their walking ability, for aesthetic reasons, or to just enjoy the suffering. I have experience of both seemingly unlikely situations, but as before, in my past.

I think that is true for both of us. "We chose very wisely."

Unfortunately (for me at least) I've no experience of the problem, so no experience of a solution. I quite like the plastic (drain) pipe idea though. When I used to (regularly) buy background paper for studio work, the cardboard cores would have been ideal. I'm not sure about newspaper, because I *think* the ink has chemicals in it that is a bit unfriendly. I have a vague recollection of waste in landfill sites producing unexpected problems .... It would seem that plastics are pretty inert. Food waste produces methane (unwelcome) and dyes/inks (newspapers) were leaching into the water table and doing unpleasant things too. As I understood at the time, no-one had expected newspaper to be a problem. A couple of years ago I saw long boots (otk) for sale in Zara, with the tops of the boots clipped onto a hanger? They were very straight. Given what I saw in the sales today, it may have been a one off. Neither Zara, TopShop nor Fenwicks think suspending them is a good idea.

I couldn't stand with 7 inch heels, my knees would be bent. I might have managed 6 inch heels thirty years ago, but no longer. I've seen something similar on Evilbay, that were described as 'standing boots only', I suspect the shafts were so solid, they didn't bend. These look the same, not that I'd be walking anywhere in them anyway. If you don't know of them already, they are sometimes described as "CFM" heels 'Come F*** Me' heels.... In my younger, more virile days, a girlfriend wearing these would have had them on for one reason only - for about 10 minutes of my undivided attention. Ah, such heady days!

You are a good weight for your size! And becoming quite 'the dandy' dresser too. Were Mrs Puffer to visit, she would be furious.

200 miles in 24 hours? Good luck! If you don't have cheeks like a baboon before, you'll certainly have them after!

Rather depends on the floors, condition of the heel tips, and your weight (on the heel tips). Puffer has knowledge of laminate flooring that heel tips won't damage. I've seen heel tip marks in mahogany floor, so the tips you plan to acquire are a wise move. Heel tips when the wear, tend to wear unevenly. I file mine to endure the worn edges are kept smooth. It's quite easy for a worn tip with a sharp edge, to score the inside of the shoe on the opposite foot. I don't know if I explain it well, but a rough edge on the tip will damage the other shoe eventually, unless you are so bow-legged there's 6 inches of separation between your feet when you are walking. "Ideally", the walk will look best if each foot follows a single line. I'm not so good at doing it, but it makes the movement in a heel less ungainly. If I remember, you are fairly tall. It suggests you aren't likely to be 7 or 8 stone. Pressure on a heel tip for a full sized (6ft) man must run into tonnes per square inch. A "stiletto" heel can be as small as a 5mm circle (which I have) up to something like a 12mm horse-shoe shape. I can't imagine a 5mm tip on a 6ft man, not piercing any flooring, including decking found on patio's. I doubt 12mm would, but I'd expect a 12mm metal tip to mark anything except concrete.

Siphon. It slips across a flange, and a rubber seal prevents water from getting out of the join between the siphon bowl and the heat exchanger sump. The way it works (unlike a tundish,) is warm water collects and periodically leaves as a warm stream, rather than droplets. It helps prevent freezing if the outlet pipe goes outside. I've had another go at positioning it correctly this morning, and it still leaks. I either need a new seal, or a new assembly. New assembly £14-£18 from Evilbay. There are two versions, neither of which are exactly the same as the one I have. The earlier 'replacement' style looks to have an extra (orange) shim between the sump and the siphon. The MKIII version has a tube that goes up into the sump, with an internal seal. Obviously, there has been a longterm (design) problem with leaking..... I may be able to replace the bearings in the fan for £3-50. Might be worth a punt. Complete fan assemblies can be had for £100 from Evilbay, up to £190 retail, although £130-£140 delivered is more typical. If the bearing seize, they can take the PCB with them, not an attractive prospect. I need to start laying pipework for the new boiler as a matter of urgency.....

Stiletto shoes and boots come with plastic tips usually. Metal ones would be fairly unusual unless you'd bought a genuine retro article. I used metal tips on some shoes a good while back, because I was walking miles in them each week. Very noisy! The plastic tips are hard, and it's possible to buy specialist version that are 'super' hard, but even those won't last like metal tips. If you are looking for a softer tip that won't mark, then the options shown here might help. You might have a look at Evilbay #152111189663 Or >> here << Once you know they exist, and what their likely names are, finding a type you would prefer should be easy. Evilbay looks to be a good place to search.

Those boots look divine. Sadly for me waaaaay too much material around the calves. Mine measure around 13½ inches.

Ankle boots are about the only style I can wear. I have skinny legs, and OTK boots that fit my legs are almost impossible to find. Last year I found a style that fitted perfectly, but the ones delivered to me had a wonky heel. I forgot to re-order before they sold out. This year I found some that fitted well. Every one of the three pairs I had delivered, had glue on the shafts. It was glue, but that's not what it looked like. All three pairs returned. I couldn't even make one good pair from the three. The long boot season is coming to an end here, so another year without a long boot.

An open fire would have been very welcome over the last two weeks, believe me. It's going to take about a day to get the walls warmed up, having been allowed to cool off over a long period. I don't mean the outside walls either. Even though we've been using fan heaters, they have warmed the air, not the house. EVERYTHING is cold. We used a Christmas present for the first time 2 evenings ago. A 'steamer' used for cooking vegetables and fish. Interesting idea, like a pressure cooker without the pressure. Anyway, it put moisture in the air, which condensed on glasses inside a kitchen cupboard, because they were so cold. Tonight we have radiators that are too hot to touch. I can't remember the last time I felt them that warm. The new heat exchanger is so far, doing a good job. It was touch and go though .... The new seals supplied were the wrong size! I had to carefully reclaim the old ones. At the time of writing, they are holding up. Not sure how the siphon is not doing the job it's supposed to, because there's a lug to make sure it is positioned correctly, and a clamp to hold it in place. I have managed to rig up a cloth that is collecting the leaked water, and dropping it into a bucket. My biggest concern now, is the mixer fan. It sounds like a bag of spanners. Replacements are circa £140 I think, and I would be loathe to replace that too. I might price one up before the current item fails - just in case. If the house gets warm enough, I may be able to work in it, rather than sit huddled under a blanket with a hot water bottle, I kid you not. One day last week it was noticeably warmer outside than inside Maison Freddy. It's not nice, sitting in a cold house.

Yay! We have heat ..... And a leaking condense siphon. Not ideal, but I'll be fixing that much later today, or more likely tomorrow. But warm rooms while it's 0' outside.

We here in the UK are enjoying 0'C (32F') . While I have to assume OTK boots are the ones you would stop wearing 70'F or 21'C is a very enjoyable temperature for me.

And his neck of the woods. The further South he ventured, the bigger the potential 'market' of opportunity. A lot of elderly couples retire to the coast and sadly, both don't always live for long. It often leaves a woman without a partner to share her life, or even parts of it, with her reluctant (or plain unable) to move back to her old social circle again. Like all 'regular' people, these women aren't looking for a Don Juan or Howard Hughes figure (though one or two might), they are looking for agreeable company. Just that, agreeable company.

Were I to write a dissertation on the 'camera' (image recording) market, I might begin by declaring there are probably two (book) ends to it, with vastly different interests but using similar tools to meet their needs. The more obvious one, is the creative person who 'sees' an image they want to record. That might be a landscape, an object, a person, or it might be something they want to create, using a camera to begin the making of a final image. Someone with an 'urge' to create or record. At the other end, the technophile. They might have gotten into cars, audio, trains, but got into cameras. They will buy the latest 'all-singing-all-dancing' kit' simply because it happens to be the best available. Most buyers/users will sit inside those extremes, if being creative can be called an extreme. Being 'technically' aware is something that gives me confidence. When I did my photography course, I could afford the equipment I needed, so I acquired it. I don't remember anyone else in my class having a colour darkroom at home, but they were mostly interested in recording a good image, and letting someone else take care of the processing/printing anyway. The college had some studio lighting and processing for black and white film, but I had (and have) the whole kit. It would be fair to say I was seriously immersed in the course, putting in twice (or more) hours than anyone else, because I'd made the opportunity to do that. I had access to a lot of pretty ladies at the time too - which of course had no effect on my enthusiasm. If I'm going to have another stab at this, I need to be competent, and at the moment I suspect I'm not. Sure the camera records images most would think were okay, but I need to get myself good enough so people will pay for what they see. I've a lifelong belief that people lose their creativity as they get older. Youthful frustration (I think) develops into that creative need. As we get older, we become less dissatisfied, which (I think) removes that need for creative 'venting'. That said, my photographic course tutor was at least 60. He was still doing weddings, and told us of a short set of pictures he took using the bottom of a bottle as a lens.... Lovely man, I remember him still. So first orders for me ... Work out what the buttons and wheels do, and reprogram them if I need to. Find out what the camera can/won't do. These modern cameras are significantly more complex than film cameras, not least because each additional feature is designed as much as a sales opportunity, as being a useful tool for a photographer. Meaning 80-90% of them are likely to be redundant throughout the ownership cycle of the camera for owners, though the core set will always be used by most owners. I'm still working my way through the manual...