Friends in high places

The first photo I got was from Wolfgang (red jacket), who bought my last bike from me, shown here at just over 9000 feet up in the french alps. He tells us the air is so clear that you believe you could just reach out and grab those mountains.

Next, a photo from Dirk, fourth from the left, taken in the Col d'Izoard area. While they were at the peak of the pass a car pulled up with a racing bicycle on the roofrack. The driver got out wearing full Tour de France spantex and poured a bottle of water over his head and chest, looking like he was covered in sweat. His GF then got out of the car and photographed him at the pass-peak notice-boards in a victory pose. Then he rode down the pass and she followed in the car. Instagram cheat!

Third photo was from Scotland where Rudiger (4th from the right) had followed a tip of mine and had ridden the renowned Bealach na Baa, Scotland's highest pass, a single-track pass (video here), even lunching on fish and chips at the famous Applecross Inn. I had a venison chops and neeps when I was there.

Best friend Frank didn`t send a photo from the Dolomites, but stopped for a late lunch at the SpeckAlm (Ham farm) I had once showed him up in the Sudelfeld hills and sent me a delicious pork ham and some venison sausages. You can buy their hams online here. Website in German. Probably illegal to import hams to the USA?

Friends in high places, all of them, indeed.

Copyright ^© Ole Phat Stu on September 15, 2023 permalink Comments Email

Not nine eleven

Doubtless there will have been several american blogs yesterday about remembering nine-eleven. Three buildings damaged, is that right? 22 years ago, America was attacked by zero Iraqis, zero Iranians & zero Afghans. Which is why Bush started attacking their countries.

So for a change of subject and for my UK blogreaders, here is another anniversary, the 355th anniversary of the Great Fire of London, on 2nd of september. 13,200 buildings burnt down, only 60% of which were rebuilt. 80,000 people made homeless. Just a comparison.

Copyright ^© Ole Phat Stu on September 12, 2023 permalink Comments Email

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Tuesday, September 5

Falling down in Germany

Whereas the USA has a laugh every couple of months because Joe Biden (80) stumbles and perhaps falls, he never seems to injure himself seriously. Here in Germany it is a rare occasion that our Bundeskanzler (head of government) stumbles and injures himself. But this weekend Olaf Scholz (aged 65) went jogging and fell flat on his face before his bodyguards could catch him. So now he has cuts and bruises in his face and is wearing an eye patch for 2 or 3 weeks until his eye injury heals. Doesn't he look dashing now though?

Of course he'll get political jokes about being blind to the right though ;-)

Two weeks ago I (aged 79) myself fell over at home, bruising my ribs and losing a lower front tooth, but maybe this is just a consequence of getting older. The ribs are still black and blue and hurt horribly although the X-ray shows no breakage, my doc says.

So watch how you go folks, and stay healthy.

Comments(2)
Cop Car wrote " Yes, your Bundeskanzler has had much publicity over his fall. Yikes, though. A fall bad enough to cause loss of a tooth? No wonder you hurt. I am reminded that, at about your age, Hunky Husband fell while out jogging and broke his wrist. Get over all that hurting. quickly, Stu. " It is mostly the ribs that hurt; about another fortnight says my doc.
Billions of Versions... wrote " Last year the dog caught me off balance pulling on a toy and down I went. I landed on my front left side. I think I broke a rib. I never went to the doctor because all they do is tell you, yep you broke a rib." Exactly. But if it was more complex, the insurance here only pays if you had the Xrays done thus showing due diligence.

Copyright ^© Ole Phat Stu on September 5, 2023 permalink Comments Email

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Sunday, September 3

Donkey Kong and I

About a couple of decades ago I was talking to a friend who was an avid video-game player. He asked me if I had ever worked for Nintendo on video games. I told him no, I had worked at Nixdorf Computer AG , where I managed the AI R&D team. But why did he ask? He told me they have a video game called Donkey Kong in which one of the bosses is called Savory Stu, my name or a namesake? he asked.

So I told him I do have a namesake in the UK who runs a luxury car chauffeur company for weddings, funerals, it could well be him. I asked if he had a picture, so we could see who it is. But the screenshot didn't help.

So we looked up Savory Stu in the Donkey Kong Wiki

Maybe I had pissed someone off and this was his revenge? Back in the nineties(?) one of my employees quit without giving notice, I remembered. Just wrote Sayonara in his desk diary and never came back. Maybe he thought I was a lousy boss? Who cares? Don't know if he went to Nintendo.

So that's my claim to fame, I'm a lousy boss in the Donkey Kong video game.

Comments(3)
Billions of Versions... wrote "You wrote "Maybe I had pissed someone off"? I don't think anyone can go through life without pissing off a LOT of people." IYHO?
Ed (USA) asks "What does Sayonara mean?" Japanese sayonara, “goodbye”, literally “if that's the way it is”. Not sure which one he meant.
Cop Car wrote ".... Ed continues to amaze me with the questions he asks. I guess only those of us old enough to remember WWII should be expected to know “Sayonara”. BTW: Had it not been for the Clarence Thomas confirmation hearing, I should probably never have heard of Donkey Kong until reading your posting about it." Afaik, there were a couple of movies in the fifties(?) called Sayonara.

Copyright ^© Ole Phat Stu on September 3, 2023 permalink Comments Email

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Link to the previous month's blog.

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