First Commuting Fall

"Padders" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I regularly commute along the Thames cycle path between Teddington Lock and
Barnes bridge and often have to trudge my way though delightful Thames mud
after a high tide, and on the odd occasion wade through knee high water.

Which, despite the cold weather creeping upon us, I've always found
immensely enjoyable. I might get to work covered head to toe in mud, but
it's damn fun.

But it had to happen eventually, bombing it along around the back of the
Mortlake brewery after a high tide, swerved to avoid some flotsam (or is
it
jetsam?) brought in by the tide, hit Thames mud covered concrete, and the
bike disappeared. Chinned the concrete, literally.

Got to work, how? No recollection of getting back on the bike, but at some
point I'm sitting at my desk covered in mud, blood, scrapes and bruises,
much to the horror of my manager who promptly drives me to Kingston
hospital.

Result: Large lump on chin - initial contact point. Large chunk of flesh
gouged from knee, and the usual assortment of scrapes and bruises. BUT,
after much examination nothing seriously wrong with the head, a sore neck
from the impact on chin, but all in all nothing too bad. Despite landing
chin first the knee seems to have come out the worst, nasty deep chunk
flesh missing, filled nicely with rat-urine infested mud.

Oh, and no helmet. Although a knee guard of some sort might have been
handy.

--
Padders

I took a chunk out of my knee in October - out running in the dark and fell
over a manhole cover. It healed, eventually, but is still itchy. Be
careful - mine got infected and I was on antibiotics for 2 weeks. Nice
square hole in my tan (I'm still tanned from Spain in September).

"Geoff Pearson" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

(I'm still tanned from Spain in September).

You're still tanned from September. You *******.

Oh, and get well soon Padders.

"Padders" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I regularly commute along the Thames cycle path between Teddington Lock

and

Quoted message said:

Barnes bridge and often have to trudge my way though delightful Thames mud
after a high tide, and on the odd occasion wade through knee high water.

Which, despite the cold weather creeping upon us, I've always found
immensely enjoyable. I might get to work covered head to toe in mud, but
it's damn fun.

But it had to happen eventually, bombing it along around the back of the
Mortlake brewery after a high tide, swerved to avoid some flotsam (or is

it

Quoted message said:

jetsam?) brought in by the tide, hit Thames mud covered concrete, and the
bike disappeared. Chinned the concrete, literally.

Got to work, how? No recollection of getting back on the bike, but at some
point I'm sitting at my desk covered in mud, blood, scrapes and bruises,
much to the horror of my manager who promptly drives me to Kingston
hospital.

Result: Large lump on chin - initial contact point. Large chunk of flesh
gouged from knee, and the usual assortment of scrapes and bruises. BUT,
after much examination nothing seriously wrong with the head, a sore neck
from the impact on chin, but all in all nothing too bad. Despite landing
chin first the knee seems to have come out the worst, nasty deep chunk
flesh missing, filled nicely with rat-urine infested mud.

Oh, and no helmet. Although a knee guard of some sort might have been
handy.

Welcome to the club. Hope you feel better soon.

Andrew

"andrew carver" <[email hidden]> wrote in
news:[email hidden]:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Oh, and no helmet. Although a knee guard of some sort might have been
handy.

Welcome to the club. Hope you feel better soon.

Cheers.

One amusing point. The first question I was asked was whether I was
wearing a helmet, on answered no, the looks of horror were fairly extreme.
It took a while for (them to realise\me to explain) that I hadn't been on a
motorcycle.

--
Padders

"elyob" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Geoff Pearson" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

(I'm still tanned from Spain in September).

You're still tanned from September. You *******.

Oh, and get well soon Padders.

It was just a moment of nostalgia as I admired the white square on my knee,
with long white trails - healed scratches. And then I remembered the pain
and the 3 weeks of oozing.

Quoted message said:

You're still tanned from September. You *******.

I'm still tanned from my Land's End to Leeds ride in August nyah!

Hope you feel better soon Padders!

Geoff, 3 weeks of oozing? You need some of those high-tech keep moist
plasters, they are excellent for healing scrapes. Best of all since
they keep the wound moist you don't get a scab and as a result there's
no pain. Bit like what Compeed is to blisters, but the bummer is that
like Compeed they are expensive. As an inline skater, I use them a
little more than most.

Padders said:

But it had to happen eventually, bombing it along around the back of the
Mortlake brewery after a high tide, swerved to avoid some flotsam (or is it
jetsam?) brought in by the tide, hit Thames mud covered concrete, and the
bike disappeared. Chinned the concrete, literally.

Ouch! Hope you feel better soon and it heals up cleanly.

In answer to your flotsam/jetsam question BTW, it's flotsam while it's
floating on the water and then becomes jetsam when it's washed up on the
shore. Although whichever it was, I expect you cursed it roundly.

--
Carol
"Mmmmooooowooooff!" - the Moobark, "The Treacle People"

Carol Hague said:

In answer to your flotsam/jetsam question BTW, it's flotsam
while it's floating on the water and then becomes jetsam when
it's washed up on the shore.

Technically I think you'll find that flotsam is wreckage or cargo that
remains floating after a vessel has sunk, and jetsam is cargo or other
material thrown overboard (jettisoned) to lighten a vessel in danger of
sinking.

--
Dave...

dkahn400 said:

Carol Hague said:

In answer to your flotsam/jetsam question BTW, it's flotsam
while it's floating on the water and then becomes jetsam when
it's washed up on the shore.

Technically I think you'll find that flotsam is wreckage or cargo that
remains floating after a vessel has sunk, and jetsam is cargo or other
material thrown overboard (jettisoned) to lighten a vessel in danger of
sinking.

<Chambers English Dictionary>

Flotsam: goods lost by shipwreck and found floating on the sea
Jetsam: goods jettisoned from a ship and washed up on the shore
Flotsam and Jetsam: unclaimed odds and ends

</Chambers English Dictionary>

Tony

In message <[email hidden]>, vernon levy
<[email hidden]> writes

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

You're still tanned from September. You *******.

I'm still tanned from my Land's End to Leeds ride in August nyah!

I've still got a trace of my July tan.

--
congokid
Good restaurants in London? Number one on Google
http://congokid.com

in message <[email hidden]>, Carol Hague

(') said:

Padders said:

But it had to happen eventually, bombing it along around the back of
the Mortlake brewery after a high tide, swerved to avoid some flotsam
(or is it jetsam?) brought in by the tide, hit Thames mud covered
concrete, and the bike disappeared. Chinned the concrete, literally.

In answer to your flotsam/jetsam question BTW, it's flotsam while it's
floating on the water and then becomes jetsam when it's washed up on
the shore. Although whichever it was, I expect you cursed it roundly.

No, it's flotsam when it washes up on the shore. It only becomes jetsam
when someone throws it (e.g. for their dog to catch). Think about what
'flot' and 'jet' mean.

--
[email hidden] (Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/
,/| _.--''^``-...___.._.,;
/, \'. _-' ,--,,,--'''
{ \ `_-'' ' /
`;;' ; ; ;
._..--'' ._,,, _..' .;.'
(,_....----''' (,..--''

Padders said:

I regularly commute along the Thames cycle path between Teddington Lock and
Barnes bridge

That would be the Thames footpath 😉, only a few sections are actually
cycle path. The real cycle path is teddington lock across the park, which
is about 2 miles shorter than the river to where your going.

Of course you could call it towpath.

Quoted message said:

But it had to happen eventually, bombing it along around the back of the
Mortlake brewery after a high tide, swerved to avoid some flotsam (or is it
jetsam?) brought in by the tide, hit Thames mud covered concrete, and the
bike disappeared. Chinned the concrete, literally.

LOL, I hit a TV just there once. Best to avoid that section, use the road
between the old police station at barnes and the mortlake brewary. That
section is horrid 9 months of the year.

Quoted message said:

filled nicely with rat-urine infested mud.

I would be more worried by what Thames water puts in the river.

Steve

Simon Brooke said:

No, it's flotsam when it washes up on the shore. It only becomes jetsam
when someone throws it (e.g. for their dog to catch). Think about what
'flot' and 'jet' mean.

Nope:

<Chambers English Dictionary>

Flotsam: goods lost by shipwreck and found floating on the sea
Jetsam: goods jettisoned from a ship and washed up on the shore
Flotsam and Jetsam: unclaimed odds and ends

</Chambers English Dictionary>

Tony

Tony Raven said:

Flotsam and Jetsam: unclaimed odds and ends

An early musical duo, not entirely unlike Flanders and Swann.

Tony Raven said:

Simon Brooke said:

No, it's flotsam when it washes up on the shore. It only becomes jetsam
when someone throws it (e.g. for their dog to catch). Think about what
'flot' and 'jet' mean.

Nope:

<Chambers English Dictionary>

Flotsam: goods lost by shipwreck and found floating on the sea
Jetsam: goods jettisoned from a ship and washed up on the shore
Flotsam and Jetsam: unclaimed odds and ends

</Chambers English Dictionary>

Tony

But as dkahn400 pointed out Chambers isn't totally correct either.

% jetsam is cargo or other
% material thrown overboard (jettisoned) to lighten a vessel in danger of
% sinking.

There's nothing in the proper definition that says it has to be washed up
on shore. It doesn't have to be floating, either, as it could be on the
bottom of the sea.

--
Michael MacClancy

Michael MacClancy said:

But as dkahn400 pointed out Chambers isn't totally correct either.

% jetsam is cargo or other
% material thrown overboard (jettisoned) to lighten a vessel in danger of
% sinking.

There's nothing in the proper definition that says it has to be washed up
on shore. It doesn't have to be floating, either, as it could be on the
bottom of the sea.

For brevity I omitted the part of Chambers which notes that, according
to some, jetsam can also be goods from a wreck that remain under water.

The Oxford Dictionary* concurs with Chambers that jetsam is washed up on
shore but in any case I am minded to prefer Chambers and the OED as
definitive over the unreferenced views of dkahn400 (sorry d, nothing
personal)

Tony

* Jetsam, n, Goods thrown overboard from a ship to lighten it & washed
ashore.

Tony Raven said:

For brevity I omitted the part of Chambers which notes that, according
to some, jetsam can also be goods from a wreck that remain under water.

P.S. Apparently correctly known as "lagan" according to the OED.

Tony

Tony Raven said:

The Oxford Dictionary* concurs with Chambers that jetsam is washed up on
shore but in any case I am minded to prefer Chambers and the OED as
definitive over the unreferenced views of dkahn400 (sorry d, nothing
personal)

Tony

* Jetsam, n, Goods thrown overboard from a ship to lighten it & washed
ashore.

;-)

Personally I'm minded to prefer the definition of the Maritime and
Coastguard Agency:

"Definition of Wreck

Wreck is defined in section 255 of the Merchant Shipping Act 1995 as
including "jetsam, flotsam, lagan and derelict found in or on the shores of
the sea or any tidal water"

Jetsam: goods cast overboard in order to lighten a vessel which is in
danger of being sunk, not withstanding that afterwards it perishes.
Flotsam: goods lost from a ship which has sunk or otherwise perished which
are recoverable by reason of their remaining afloat.
Lagan: goods cast overboard from a ship which afterwards perishes, buoyed
so as to render them recoverable
Derelict: property, whether vessel or cargo, which has been abandoned and
deserted at sea by those who were in charge of it without any hope of
recovering it."

--
Michael MacClancy