The Masurian Lakes Have Got What It Takes

Although That Does Kind Of Depend On Exactly What "It" Is
I did mention this area of what is now Poland briefly a few days ago, after seeing a Youtube video of our gallant Perfidious soldiers training there, in Bemowo Piskie.  They are there to discourage any - ah - speculative moves across the border by our Ruffian brothers.  Who can, on occasion, be somewhat confused about what belongs to them and what doesn't.*  Art?

Bemowo Piskie

     This part of Poland used to be part of East Prussia, back when the Hohenzollerns were running things, and it was where a lot of the Prussian Junker aristocracy had their estates.
     Now let us abruptly switch to the French Third Republic, which had just been invaded by the Hohenzollern armies - who also had a tendency to be hazy about what belonged to whom - as of summer 1914.  The French prodded their gallant Ruffian allies and said that their mobilisation needed to be sped up enormously, or the French would be crushed.
     O noes!
     Well, the Ruffian mobilisation was sped up, making quite a mess of things since mobilising at the time was run on railway schedules that couldn't be altered.  Or at least not without mucking everything up.  Art?

Luxurious accomodation, Ruffian style.

     The Ruffian armies rolled into East Prussia, and onto those Junker estates, defeating and pushing back the Teuton defenders.  The Junkers sent up a collective wail heard in Berlin, causing several army corps to be detached from invading France and railroaded across Europe to East Prussia.  These Teuton divisions might have tipped the balance at the Battle of the Marne, which was a rather close-run affair, so ironically a hundred years ago our noble Ruffian allies helped save Western Europe.  Which they might be looking back on a bit ruefully now.* Art?

Equally good for boating or splitting up invading armies

     As has been observed, war and politics make for strange bedfellows.
     Now, time to lower the motley on a cable into the volcano!**

How Is This Man Still Alive?
Conrad only talks and types about explosions and bombs and flamethrowers, whereas Mister Colin Furze goes out and builds them.  Not only those kinds of inherently dangerous devices, but he goes out of his way to create other pieces of kit that are even more dangerous.  Bike-propelled by flaming propane gas?  Yup.  Gun that fires bolts of fiery thermite?  That, too.  Voice-activated fire blaster?  Oh yes.  Hence the title to this post.  Art?

Do NOT ask what's going on here!

     Well now, a good few years ago Colin got the idea, either all on his own or via fan suggestion, that he ought to replicate that fun-loving criminal Wolverine's claws, you know, foot long blades that shoot out and retract, and - he did. Art?

Colin: still alive
(for now)

      The claws are fully retractable, and also shoot out convincingly, powered by a canister of compressed air that Colin wears on his back.  I think he also runs an electric charge through them, because they also spark if he crosses them.  Art?

Disguised!

     You can imagine the pant-wetting terror of some miscreant who picked on Colin as he walked the streets, only to be confronted by six foot-long blades of gleaming sharpened steel ...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fGr0oifJMEI
     There's a link to Colin building the world's fastest dodgem car.  Look now, because one day soon there's going to be an announcement in his local newspaper about " - much-loved madcap inventor Colin Furze is survived by a wife and two children -"

Today's Haul -
For the first time in ages, I went to a car boot sale, the very large one held at Bowlee in Rochdale.  Art?

The larger area is the sellers area

     As expected it was unusually large and exceptionally busy, because SUNSHINE! which is the third successive day of same, and officially the end of the British summer.  You just wait and see.
     Anyway, I did pick up a few books - you were probably ahead of the there, weren't you? and here they are.  Art?

     Not sure if I've already got the M & S one on the Second Unpleasantness or not, but at only £1 why risk missing it?  Also, "How to be a Brit", written by a Hungarian resident in the Allotment of Eden for many decades, tickled my sense of humour.***

Ooops

     Oh.  It wasn't extinct after all.  Sorry, motley!


*  I know, I know, dangerously close to Politics.
**  Don't worry, it's an extinct volcano. Ignore the fumes and trembling.
***   Yes I do have one.  It's mine, however, and you may not like it.