Now is the time to buy Union Jack Souvenirs - on Amazon, in supermarkets, everywhere

 

All this year you can celebrate the platinum Jubilee year and buy from the abundant supply of Union Jack items. 

Even friends and family who are not avid supporters of the royal family can find something amusing. My relatives were delighted when somebody gave them a vase in the shape of a Corgi dog. 

All from Amazon.

Dresses from Asda supermarket, UK, label George,

and from AliExpress, China but you pay postage to the UK.

Useful Websites

Cheapest Union Jack t-shirt but distressed pattern

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Union-distressed-colour-patriotic-Medium

11.99 pounds sterling from Amazon Union Jack t-shirt with sleeves

New Bike? Saddle up! Tips on buying Parts, Clothing, Helmets, Locks, Magazines, Bars, Events

Mountain Bicycle saddle. Photo by Angela Lansbury.

After you have spent money on your bike, mountain bike, motorbike, or scooter, your next purchases are upgrades, accessories and clothes. Trevor is a keen biker, motorbikes and mountain bikes. He has done training courses on circuits with champions. He avidly watched YouTube videos on riding. Taking corners. How to balance on a motorbike differs from balance on a mountain bike. How to repair or adjust or upgrade the parts of your bike.

Bike Lock

Before you even go out on your bike, shopping in an urban area, you need a security lock. The locks are attached to a thick black part which you attach to something strong and immovable such as a railing.

The bigger, stronger ones, which resist a little bolt cutter, are more expensive, thicker, and heavier to carry. 

Some areas or a town or city are more prone to theft than others.

After buying your lock, or upgrading it, next you need your clothes to go out.

He says,

Cycling Clothes - Shorts

'Bikers like to wear close, thigh-gripping shorts when cycling. If you wear loose shorts, they tend to get caught on the front of the saddle when you get on and off.'

Motorbike Clothes

Motorbike clothes have more protection Padded knees and elbows. Hot to wear.

Expensive. Look at them in a shop. Are the seams sewn securely. Sealed. Is there lining? Padding? 

Ask the assistant for advice. Then buy more in the sales. 

Eventually the stitching of gloves and suits will go. Or you fall off and a layer of the leather or fabric has scraped off. That's good. That would have been your skin if you had not worn the protection. It has done its job. It is worth the money. But time to buy another one, or bring out the spare.

Rain

Thunder and lightning sign in China. Photo from wikipedia, signs in China.

You might want to carry a rainproof poncho. A rainproof poncho is hot and sticky. So you have to look for a safe place to pull in when it rains to don the outfit. Wait in the shelter. 

Motorways in Singapore have shelters for bikers under some bridges. Look for the umbrella sign. The same applies in Malaysia.

Sign for shelter without distance marked in Malaysia.

Malaysian shelter for motobikes sign, with distance of 200 metres. From Wikipedia, road signs in Malaysia.

You can also buy a tiny umbrella to cover your mobile phone. 

Bike Helmet - photo by Angela Lansbury.

Helmets

You might want a spare helmet for a passenger. If two members of your family share a motorbike, and occasionally you go out together.

'If you already have a bike, then you buy a motorbike, you need another helmet. The same applies the other way. For a helmet, you obviously need adequate protection. But cycling helmets are not the same as motorbike helmets. Motorbike helmets have to be much stronger. You are likely to fall off a bicycle, but you could be catapulted through the air from a motorbike. Motorbike helmets have a visor protecting your face. They are heavier to wear. 

'A cycling helmet for a bicycle, or mountain bike, just covers your head. Then you wear a face mask when you walk into a shopping mall.'

Branded Scooter/Motorbike parts - real or fake?

'I have been buying parts to upgrade an old motorbike and an old bike. You go on the internet and you can see the prices for branded goods are high from the manufacturers. What are the branded goods made of? 

'If you saw gold at a very cheap price, you would suspect it was gold-plated or an alloy.  The same applies to the metals in component parts.

'Is it really titanium or stainless steel or aluminium? Is it strong enough? Flexible enough? Rustproof? 

Brand Names

'I sometimes draw up alongside a scooter at the lights. I can see that parts on a cheap Scooter have famous brand names. I see parts which cost as much or more than a second hand scooter. That's absurd.

'I don't know whether the owner knows the parts are fake and just wants to look good.  Or whether the owner has been misled by the fake goods. 

Buyer Beware

'When I buy, I look down to the specifications. If you saw something advertised as a diamond in the headline, but under product description, you read cubic zircona, you would know it's not a real diamond. If it says diamond in the headline and doesn't specify what it is in the product description, again, that's a warning sign. When buying parts, I compare the manufacturer's specifications, then I compare Lazada and Amazon.  

I have had more success with Amazon. But no website can be 100% guaranteed. It's not their fault. They have hundreds of items from third parties. They can't check every one. You can return goods. Keep the packaging. Look at it before you open it. Keep the labels and packing slips.

I often lose track of where I ordered an item from. It arrives from some address overseas. 

(Angela's note: I have the same problem with clothes. Did I order from Amazon, Lacada, Ebay, Etsy, Shein? The solution is to to keep a copy of purchases in your diary, or a dedicated notebook, or a folder, or in notes on your mobile phone. I write down what the item looked like on arrival, and a month after use. I give feedback and note it. Also, I add anything I didn't say in the feedback, such as I didn't like the look of it when it arrived, or it looked great. I might change my mind later. This is not only useful when you want to return the item. It is handy if you want to re-order for a friend, as a gift, or for yourself as a replacement or spare or another colour a year later.)

Finally, photograph everything. Yourself on the bike when it is new to prove it is yours. (A thief could claim you have stolen the bike from him when you try to retrieve it!)

You might want a picture to show at a mall or airport or police station when reporting the bike or helmet or key is missing. Or even a missing person. Insurance might want a picture of it. You might want to show that the bike was new and got damaged in the car park or on the plane or bike repair shop.  They can't say that parts of the item, or paintwork, was damaged already when you left it if you have a photo showing it in pristine condition hours before.

In Singapore you can hire bikes, Segway (Single large wheel vehicle).

Cycling alone is lonely. But in November 2021 the rules have changed to allow up to 5 persons from different households to meet up. Please check the latest regulations.

Useful Websites

CLOTHES

https://www.infinitymotorcycles.com/store

EVENTS

SINGAPORE Travel By Bike & Meetup Information

Four hours, 99 Singapore dollars:

https://www.letsgotoursingapore.com/trails-of-tan-ah-huat-3/

https://www.facebook.com/SoekSeng1954BicycleCafe/

https://www.facebook.com/HandlebarSGGillmanBarracks/

https://www.meetup.com/My-Bike-Group/

https://www.moh.gov.sg/covid-19-phase-advisory

UK

https://www.timeout.com/london/things-to-do/brilliant-bike-rides-from-london

Meetup in NE London (other groups around the UK)

https://www.meetup.com/Hubbub/events/282122726

USA

https://usacycling.org/encyclingpedia/events

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USA_Cycling

Europe

Flat country The Netherlands is a popular place for cycling

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cycling_in_the_Netherlands

MAGAZINES

https://cyclistmag.co.uk/christmas2021

https://www.motorcyclenews.com/

If money is no object, sign up to this course on ficing your bike, currently 57 Dollars.

https://www.masterofbikes.com/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=BB-ACQ-Bikes-Broad-WW&utm_content=BB-BroadTargeting-WW&utm_term=Bike_Break%2BTestimonialV1-Text_2&fbclid=IwAR3fUV2mmOujx6BlKk1CPPeOjPGLmjnRHmsncINUuO9ZkK7OzZttOPzypgk

About the Author of this blog, Author Angela Lansbury

BIOGRAPHY

Angela Lansbury B A Hons ACG ALB PM5 EH5 DL5 VC5 
The Author of several books, including  Etiquette For Every Occasion. Wedding Speeches & Toasts. How to be the Best Man. Quick Quotations. Who Said What When.

Blogs travelwithangelalansbury.blogspot.com

dressofthedayangela.blogspot.com

translateforfun.blogspot.com

Braddell Heights Advanced Toastmasters Speakers Club Vice President Public Relations (VPPR), Previous President

Join BHA 1st Wednesday 7pm and 3rd Saturday 2 pm Singapore time 

Vice President Public Relations (VP PR) of Tampines Changkat Advanced;

Secretary of weekly online Singapore International Dynamic Toastmasters Speakers’ Club;

Member and past president of Harrovians toastmasters club, UK; Past member of HOD Toastmasters, London. Past member in Singapore of: Toastmasters Club of Singapore (TCS); Tiarel; and Senja Cashew.

More details from Toastmasters International find a club.

Regular attendee at annual Swanwick Writers’ School, England.

Regular attendee at annual Writers’ Holiday, Wales.

Contributor to poetry readings, and after tea courses on: Speaking On Radio To Promote Books; and Plots And Character.

Winner of many club and area speaking contests in the UK and Singapore.

Language advisor to Empire Toastmasters club in Indonesia.

Language and speech workshops in Singapore.

Speaker on radio and TV in England, Scotland, the USA, and Australia.

Compiler of a school course on public speaking for teachers to prepare pupils for school open days with attending ceremonies before government ministers, Singapore.

Former member of Harrow Writers’ Circle, London, and two writing groups in Singapore.

Angela is on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Twitter. She would be delighted to link up with new friends.

I  also have a blog on comic poems.

 Please share links to your favourite posts.

What can you do with old, unworn and unwanted shorts sets and sarongs? Turn them into dresses

Mdo and mend, said government leaflets on the UK in WW2.

Are your cupboards full of items bought abroad, which no longer fit, are the wrong style?

Are they sitting at the back of your cupboard, doing nothing, taking up space?

A friend of mine, Timmy, told me, "When my father died, I found boxes of shirts, unworn, in the packets, still with the labels on. What was he saving them for?"

I found electronic items still in the box unused at my late uncle's home. Plus neck ties.

Unused clothes are the easiest leftover items to deal with.

WW2

My mother lived through WWII when you could not get new fabric. Clothes rationing was introducd on June 1st 1941. The catchphrase was Make Do and Mend.

Food rationing did not end until 1952. The government issued booklets on recipes using leftovers, and how to reuse items.

Householders became adept at repurposing items.

Sheets Re-used
I remember how my mother would cut up old white sheets to make hankies when somebody was suffering from a cold.

Sheets which had a hole in the middle were recycled by cutting them down the middle lengthwise and sewing together the outside seams.

Could you turn a white cotton sheet into a wedding dress?

For weddings dresses, parachute silk was reused.

Covid-19 Masks
More recently, during Covid-19, I have seen videos showing how you can make masks out of scarves and socks.

I have been stuck at home for weeks due to homestays in Singapore.

I started going through my wardrobes, looking out old items to wear. I found at the back of cupboards, unworn items.


Short and T-shirt Sets
Look at these two sets of shorts and tops, one green with seahorse, one blue with mushrooms. They

had sat in my cupboard for years.

This week I got them out. I wondered whether to wear the tee-shirt without the top.

The tee-shirts fitted. To my surprise, I could get into the shorts. they were uncomfortable, tight on the waist. Besides, with my being overweight, not very elegant. However, I was loathe to start taking the scissors to them, in case the experiment did not work.

I asked my hsuband, "Should  I wear the outfit with the shorts?" 

He told me, "I don't like shorts on women. Or on men, for that matter."

That settled it. Nothing to lose. I had to cut up the shorts. I considered several possibilities. Make them into a scarf, a hat, a jacket. How about a simple edging to extend the length of the tee-shirt?

More recently, during Covid-19, I have seen videos showing how you can make masks out of scarves and socks.
the first hing I did was cut off the waistband. I considered pulling out the white rope. However there were several rows of shirred stitching. So I decided to make that into a headband.

Once the waist band was cut off, the straight top could be sewn onto the tee shirt's hem.

I pinned both ends together with safety pins. Previous experience had taught me that if you start with tow items together at one end, as you sew along, one slips so that one piece overhangs. To prevent this happening, I started sewing from the middle, held both ends tightly together, and sewed along.

I did a running stitch on the reverse for fast results.

This is the result.
I am so happy with my new dress. I love the seahorses. I love the colour.

My next post will show the blue outfit.

About the author
Angela Lansbury
Author of How To Get Out Of The Mess You're In
About the author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.

I and my family have lived in the UK, Spain, the USA and Singapore. I am a travel writer and photographer and teacher of English A level and English as a foreign language.

Please come to a Toastmasters International Club where the English clubs have a language evaluator or grammarian.  We also have French, German, Mandarin Chinese, Tamil and other language clubs based in Singapore and many more online around the world which because of Covid-19 are now meeting online.

I am President of Braddell Heights Advanced, meeting the first Wednesday of the month, Usually on Zoom. But the other Wednesdays have workshops on app learncool.sg

Incoming president Faith from July 15th 2020 change dates and platforms so please contact the club.

Latest is only two meetings each month.

For meetings learncool it is quicker to type and easier to remember: 

 tinyurl.com/BHACOOL

Useful Websites On Speaking and Languages

https://www.toastmasters.org/find-a-club
translate.google.com
duolingo.com

https://www.duolingo.com/enroll/vi/en/Learn-Vietnamese

https://www.facebook.com/groups/polygotcommunity/

Other Useful Posts By Angela Lansbury Author

https://travelwithangelalansbury.blogs
https://travelwithangelalansbury.blogspot.com/2019/04/how-to-say-thank-you-in-several.html
https://travelwithangelalansbury.blogspot.com/2019/05/introducing-yourself-in-english-spanish.html
https://travelwithangelalansbury.blogspot.com/2020/01/second-set-of-portuguese-words.html 

Please share links to your favourite posts

Singapore in November - What Is So Singular? Shorts and E-Scooters (personal mobility vehicle)

What is different about Singapore?

I live partly in London, England, and partly in Singapore, so I can tell you. The UK is in the northern hemisphere and has four seasons. In November in London, it's getting cold and people are wearing warm winter clothes.

Summery, warm weather
In tropical Singapore the temperature is hot and clammy all year. Shorts are worn by men, women and children, in the streets, in the underground trains and even in restaurants.

In my photo you can see what is different about Singapore. The girls in the distance are wearing shorts or short skirts in November.

E-scooters
The man approaching, spinning towards us, zooming along silently, is on a personal mobility device, an electronic scooter, e-scooter for short. If one comes up behind you, you hear a bell ring. E-scooters whizz along the covered walkways.

Covered Walkways
The covered walkway, installed this year, leads from the station to the nearby schools.

In Singapore, it's equally different inside the shopping malls and Community Club buildings. The drinks are different, the food is different, and the habits are different.

Applaud Yourself
I go to a Toastmasters club every day or evening. When the  President introduces or praises somebody, the person being praised applauds, along with the rest of the audience.

Author, Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.

Cheap T Shirts for making matching outfits

t shirts for only a pound in a variety of colours? Just what I need.  I have been through my wardrobe. I have shorts in patterns and t-shirt with slogans and pictures and they clash. I need plain colour shorts and plain colour t-shirts to make up sets to wear.

Otherwise I have loads of separates which don't match anything. But the family have banned me from buying more clothes because I am spending too much and the wardrobes are overflowing yet aI claim I never have anything to wear and to out looking bizarre with two many clashing patterns, or take hours to dress.

Yes, I know the problems with cheap tee-shirts. Wear it once and it's stained.  (Answer is to tie - dye it.) The seams split. The fit isn't right - too tight or too baggy or just not smart enough for the nice restaurant at lunch or supper.

Needs ironing if it's cotton. Cheap and nasty if it's synthetic, and the fabric won't match anything else.

I still feel I must look at the website. What do I find. Most of those lovely colours, the emerald green and bright orange are only for children. Ladies long sleeves are black, or white, OK, that goes with a lot of things. Ladies are also in pink and yellow. But what If I want long sleeves to guard against mosquito bites and dengue fever? I can wear a jacket or blouse on top of a short sleeve tee. To get navy I would have to buy a men's size. Best to go into a shop to see the sizes and colours and fabric. Good for a gift for a meeting, Xmas, or summer picnic or barbecue, sports day or running club or give or lend to a friend for jogging together.

http://www.poundshop.com/fashion/clothing?p=2&utm_campaign=HFPS-TS-26-03-16&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Newsletter

Sewing an outfit
If you want matching shorts, at that price you can afford to buy two pairs and cut shorts. Or use the second pair to make a wide strip into a wrap around skirt to wear over bikini bottoms or shorts which don't match but provide a flash of contrasting colour. You could even buy three to make matching shorts, t shirt and long sleeve shirt or jacket. Use a spare strip to add a scarf or attach it as a mock scarf. Make a belt to match from strips seemed and turn inside out. Sew both narrow end edges straight or in a v-shape.

Pocket using No sew Velcro
To make a safety pocket for your keys, travel card or credit card or phone, use a strip on the inside for a pocket. To fasten sew a loop and a button. Or a slit edged with blanked stitch and a button which matches or contrasts. Or iron on or sew on a piece of velcro (stick and loop tape).

If you can't get to Poundland for summer offers, also look at Primark. Primark has white crew short sleeve t-shirts for ladies from £3. Stores are in UK, Wales, Ireland, the USA and Europe.
See
primark.com

Angela Lansbury, travel writer