bignumber5

likewise it has gotten a bit silly, hasn't it. particularly painful to be charged ?3 for a glass of OJ which you see come out of a carton from a supermarket, so you know it's no more than a quid a litre... the cheap, sociable option no longer seems to exist. I have been out a few times and thought i might switch to the softies after a pint or 3, but then see the price of the softies and think "sod it, for that much i might as well have another pint". Tight-fisted perhaps, but the Great British binge-drinker is hardly discouraged...

Sue - good point! Carrie - sound advice, thanks. Does the ?70 quote sound like the sort of ball-park you were in?

so no one has had anything made in merrifields, then? I was thinking about it - no end of dodgy knee and back trouble i'm sure not made any better by cheap shoes - had a chat with the guy and he is pretty knowledgeable. Reports a qualification in podiatry and that he can make orthotic inserts/insoles that you can then put in any shoe, budgeting about ?70. Reckons they'd last 2 years with daily use. If anyone has had anything made there that would sway me either way, please pipe up!

Quite right - designated driver isn't a valid excuse either as then we will lynch you for living in ED and having a car ;-)

*Bob* Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > SteveT Wrote: > -------------------------------------------------- > ----- > > I thought it was derived from 'cut'(?) > > I thought it's origins could be traced back to the > reign of King Canute, who - despite successfully > achieving an alliance of the English and Danish > kingdoms which lead (in part) to a golden age of > dominance across Scandinavia as well as within the > British Isles - was actually a bit of a c unt On the origins of profanities, f**k is derived from a prison term in the 19th century - rapists would have the 4 letters painted on their door as an abbreviation of Forced Unlawful Carnal Knowledge. Does that mean that one of the modern uses of the word (to f**k someone) is to imply that they have not consented? Isn't language a wonderfully colourful thing!? I'm in the "context and frequency" camp of argument, despite being a bit of a potty mouth myself - having a banter involves loose language when the parties involved are comfortable with that: I have a couple of old rugby mates that I greet with "ay oop, c**t" and they to me (I forget when it started or why) but they were both good enough to drop the habitual greeting on my wedding day. Context. Similarly, when i hear people swearing who do not normally do so, i am aware that it has a far greater impact than when i do. And when I hear true gutter talk (F every other word) i think it sounds unnaturally vulgar. Frequency. (just one reason of many why i hate Gordon Ramsey) Also, I suspect being an arse-licking admin-suck-up though this will be, the tone of a conversation calls for moderation of use - when making a serious point against someone who takes the opposite view, profanities imply aggression. Talking pants about things that don't matter to either party can have some slack cut.

seems to be getting worse on cpr at plough end...

Zorro

lozzyloz Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > From what I've seen of other qualifying doctors it must've been pretty stressful. nowhere near qualified unfortunately, 3 years still to go. Just a flippin big chunk done. Congrats on Kels promotion.

thank you all. more than happy to look at anyone's ankle, but i've only finished pre-clinical, which is the theory of the healthy body, so i'd probably just about be able to confirm that it is, in fact, an ankle ;-)

Zephyr, I don't think anyone is having a pop at you for having kids, but surely you are aware that there are environmental implications per head of population and since you have provided more heads, you can't be entirely suprised that you incur some cost into the process? As for the 4x4 arguements, I'd like to jump in with the sweeping assertion that absolutely no one that lives close enough to the CC zone to be arguing your point should ever need a 4x4. I grew up in london, my mum walked us to school and walked us home. Took ages but didn't cost a penny. I appreciate that time constraints in the modern world do not always allow this kind of gesture anymore, but to suggest that the only possible alternative is a 4x4 pollution machine with bull-bars set to toddler-stun height is a bit all-or-nothing. No one in London needs a porsche cayenne. Assuming that all 4 kids need transporting somwhere simultaneously, with one parent to drive takes the total number of seats needed to 5. That'd be any hatchback or saloon, then. I would suggest that living 5 miles from the heart of central london is close enough to manage without a tank. The concept of 4x4 was designed for off-roading. If your journey doesn't take you there, you don't need it. But you are entitled to drive one - as a luxury choice, rather than a necessity. And that's why it should cost you. Luxury items do.

david_carnell Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Bell to get 200? > > Broad on for his 1st ever test century?!! Well jinxed, that man ;-)

am with sweetgirl on this - running in dulwich park, frequently see people strolling around with the dog 10-20yds behind them taking a dump, owner no intention of stopping to clear up. And the park is full of poo-bins. Rate of incidence seems to be related to size of dog - man with alsatian always stops, lunching-lady types with those yappy little things that look like the head of a mop never stop. Found it particularly hard to bite my tongue when I saw a family settling down to a picnic on a brighter day, then need to move due to the poop, while their own dog squatted down next to the bushes just a few yards away. No act from any of the group to clean up. I assume these nasty mingers are the exception rather than the rule, or we'd be up to our knees in it the entire time, but it's still not pleasant. We get a fair bit outside our front door, as we live on a crappy corner that appears to be a public stop-and-gossip spot, which allows plenty of time for dogs to unload. What is the ettiquette on this - silence or challenge? EDF dog owners, a genuine question. Is it ok to say to the owner of a fouling dog "excuse me, your dog has just crapped next to the playground"? *transparent attempt to get the parents on side ;-)* Or, as Mayor Boris recommends, should I not challenge anyone on anything ever for fear of being stabbed?

I've received a hard time from many a forumite for never having been to the Gowlett, so sounds good to me

I should be so lucky - Kylie Minogue (!)

Guns 'n' Roses have done a few fantastic covers - their version of Live and Let Die is almost cartoonish (if it is possible to sound so), and their version of Knocking on Heavens Door is possibly the best version there is! For covers that are not so much better than the original but approach it so differently that it takes on a whole new form, the Tori Amos version of Smells Like Teen Spirit, performed as a solitary, emotional ballad and a tribute to Kurt, is chilling.

Steve T, Mike P, many thanks but I thought it was clear that any skills that I have in dealing with high maintenance women are not something that my wife needs to hear about... discretion, chaps ;-)

But it's two thousand and eight,

A day of study lost in favour of sitting eating crap and watching poor afternoon telly - god, i needed a night out! Nice to meet richard and mrs.richard (echos seanmac on memory issues), completely missed Bob S, and failed yet again to say hello to strawbs and jaws - sorry guys, a nervous man with a reduced alcohol tolerance. Have got to that funny "comfort zone" stage of having been to a couple of forum drinks and met a few people, now target those I've already met. Will endevour to be more sociable next time. I assume that the post-pub chez carnell group are all feeling on top of the world... :-S Motion to have the 10pm bullshit watershed brought forward to 9ish - i'm out of boozing practice so started talking crap a lot earlier than CWALD... (although was I overtaken by sheer quality ;-)) Smashing times, all, many thanks. [edited to clarify that i was talking crap, not taking it!]

*Echos SeanMac* You've done great things with the Plough, matey, best wishes for whatever you do next.

We've got a cross-thread type situation, Arming the Police and National Service are getting some attention here

Harsh stuff, mockers, much sympathy. [Have we considered the possibility that the future Mrs.mockers has just overspend on wedding flowers by a couple of grand and has yet to fess up? annaj needed keeping an eye on in the run up to our big day... ;-) ]

Have just realised that I haven't mentioned annaj... an unspoken rule that you can't nominate your own spouse?! Please? Help a chap stay out of the doghouse... ;-)

My mistake - I could have sworn I read on some other thread that you were related ;-)

Our Boris has publicly stated that if you see anything that looks like trouble, don't get involved. That appears to be a mayoral decree that advocates living in fear to survive. Outlook isn't great, is it?

On the serious threads, for an uncanny ability to write out my thoughts for me, but with bigger words and facts to back them up, I'd nominate the unstoppable debate-tag-team of moos and david_carnell !