Did you make the list?

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Which list? Well, the name of storm names for the UK, Ireland and the Netherlands for the 2025/26 season, of course!

Some of them are clearly UK names, some are clearly Irish and some are clearly Dutch, and no-one seems really sure how they are chosen.

Although…

Hmm.

And there has been much comment on that last one: “Wubbo” – which of course, and as you can see, is pronounced “Vuh-boh”.

“I refuse to die in a storm called Wubbo,” stated one person ‘on the socials’, but to the Dutch, Wubbo is a famous name. Remember Wubbo Ockels – the first Dutch astronaut? His journey to space on the Challenger space shuttle (mission STS-61-A) in 1985 was made even more impressive than most, given that he probably had to start from below sea level, being from the Netherlands and all.

Amazing.

Mind you, if they do get through to Wubbo, that’ll be 21 major storms and that would be very bad news for those bits of Europe.

But you’d never rule it out because of Climate Change.

I note that there was no requirement to help us out with the pronunciation of “Dave” or “Eddie”. And I do wonder if Storm Bram (when it comes) will leave a mysterious shipwreck upon the beach at Whitby…

“But, strangest of all, the very instant the shore was touched, an immense dog sprang up on deck from below … and running forward, jumped from the bow on to the sand. Making straight for the steep cliff, where the churchyard hangs over the laneway to the East Pier … it disappeared in the darkness.
Also, please take care on the A171 Guisborough Road, where there are reports of a fallen tree.”

Beneath Budapest

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A little pushed for time this evening, so please can I send you elsewhere (and request that you come back here again tomorrow)?

And the elsewhere is this CNN article on the hidden thermal caves beneath Budapest.

Some really interesting information:

Molnár János is still alive and growing. Water rich in hydrogen sulfide and carbon dioxide continues to percolate through the rock, creating a mildly acidic cocktail that eats at the walls. The result is a Swiss cheese labyrinth of chambers and passages.

And some stunning images:

I’ve been to Budapest a few times, and I had no idea about any of this.

I probably should have asked more questions.

A good weekend

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We headed down to Agulhas in the dark on Friday. That meant that we managed to get a whole Friday afternoon of activities in Cape Town and still wake up down at the Southern Tip on Saturday morning.

And actually, I have no issue with driving down the R316 at any time of the day or night. Always fun.

And it was a fun family weekend with some superb weather.

Walking on the beach, braai’ing and games night yesterday.

And then, after a lovely lie in, 8½kms  barefoot along Struisbaai beach with some considerable pace and speed. And yes, some blisters on my toes, but I’ll probably survive.

Home in time for a bit of footy on the TV and off to bed before the new week kicks off horribly early tomorrow.

Bad luck at games and sports

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United lose again. Shots on target?

Nil.

So glad we appointed this new manager that no-one wanted.

And then tonight’s game of Mexican Train. I’m getting hammered in every meaning of the word.

I need to be a bit more sober to work out these stats*, but it does seem like I’m the least fortunate player IN HISTORY.

It’s literally like maths is against me.

Meh. I’m heading back to the 12 year old KWV brandy.

* seriously. I will do this. It’s unbelievable.

UK seagull war continues

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We’ve covered this extensively. But physical attacks are only part of any modern warfare scenario.

There’s the psychological efforts that need to be considered as well. And part of that is the battle for hearts and minds, and part of that is portraying the enemy in a very negative light at every opportunity.

Every type of bird can be occasionally nasty, but as we have documented in many posts, seagulls seem to be the worst for that sort of thing. Still, this sort clearly premeditated slur is not going to build any bridges in the ongoing, escalating conflict in the UK twixt human and seagull.