The future starts now

I imagine the chainsaw must run it close if not trump it.

>>Incidentally, is there a worse, or less musical, instrument than the church organ?

If it is played properly, it is great. Its just very, very difficult and complicated to play properly. The little one started toying with the one up at the local village church under the auspices of the actual organ player a few years ago. She never got very good, she took up the drums instead [don't ask me] but listening to her play with the real organ person was impressive. An organ can sound great, very stirring and emotional.

...I couldn't find a better description....

Certainly true. I got the BMW Connected Drive and i Remote apps working today and pulled out our usage and energy stats for the 200 miles we've done so far. Energy cost averages about 3.4p a mile. I remember in 2003 running the S60 on super-cheap French gazole for the first time. That felt almost free but was probably about 6p a mile. This, of course, won't last once 'electric car' goes the way of 'digital camera' but it's mighty nice while it does.

I have a 25-mile round trip to make this evening and I'm going to take the CLS -
hardly grudgingly but mainly because it needs a run. The i3 would be the better horse for the course, though.

Meanwhile I lost the slot next week to get the Wallbox installed, while Chargemaster mislaid the pictures I'd sent them. It'll be the 28th now, not that 3-pin charging is a major chore.

For us it probably isn't essential, at least from a charge-maintenance point of view. But the car lives outside, and the nearest 13A socket is behind the garage door. This puts restrictions on where on the drive we can park the cars; we'd actually prefer to park the i3 on the side nearer the front door where, being shorter, it can escape the detritus from the tree beside the drive, but the standard cable won't reach that far. The Wallbox will be mounted on the front wall and will have enough cable to reach either side.

As we begin to venture further afield, I can foresee occasions when we get the car home and want it charged again later in the day, so the option of a 3-hour fill up will be useful then.

And it just seems neater than running a cable under the garage door. BMW has promised inductive charging as a retrofit option for the i3 next year, and the Wallbox will be able to supply the mat. Cars are electric now, so it makes sense to have the right charging hardware at home.

Clearly you don't like the church organ, WDB, but to say that 'it is impossible to play with any semblance of rhythm or timing' is so obviously untrue that it's hardly worth a reply. Just listen on Youtube to one of the major Bach organ works, or for something lighter and more fun, but extremely rhythmical, try Lefebure-Wely - Sortie in B flat.

Any instrument played badly (including the human voice) will upset a listener: but you don't have to be a professional player to play well enough to please people. I've played the organ for church services for 50 years and never (yet!) been asked not to come back! Just as when you write something, you need to think of the person or people reading it, so when you play, or sing, in public you need to think of the listeners.

I don't personally much like the sound of the bagpipes (I believe the definition of a Scottish gentleman is someone who can play the bagpipes but doesn't) but many people play them well and I would never say that any instrument is impossible to play with any semblance of rhythm or timing - even the vuvuzela. And Nogbad's point about Ypres is very well made.

Maybe dear old Dynamic Dave (former moderator on HJ, now on Car4play) had a point after all - perhaps we're more civilised when we stick to cars.