Sue

ImpetuousVrouw Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > The snobby remarks about the type of clientelle > who frequent Wetherspoons are disgusting and I > hope those sitting so comfortably in their ivory > towers lose all they own in the tsunami of a > recession that is heading our way, then they might > be glad they can crawl out of their pit for a > drink in the new Wetherspoons every 2 weeks when > their benefit comes through. xxxxxxxx I completely agree.

The Minkey Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > If they do tart the Vale up with a nod towards ED > then it will probably attract a broader crowd than > most of the current venues - which is a good > thing, imo. I just can't see it as a threat to > local business, those who prefer an indie > atmosphere will continue to drink at the usual > venues. xxxxxx Yes exactly - it's good to have the choice!

sillysue Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > > With the number of muggings etc in these parts of > late, at least a JDW will give the police a good > place to initiate their inquiries from. xxxxxxxx That's just an absolutely disgraceful thing to say (6)

Jeremy Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Yeah, they do cheap booze.... but so do Samuel > Smiths, and I'd rather have one of those! xxxxxx I'm sure Wetherspoons have Sam Smiths amongst their ales :))

louisiana Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Ah, Sue, so maybe I should be giving my money to > the Vince Power/Mean Fiddler/Festival > Republic/Melvin Benn events axis, rather than to > small, independently-owned music events run by a > people with a passion for what they do. Right! xxxxxxx I would hope you'd do as I do and go to whatever events/festivals have the music/artists on that you want to see, regardless of who's running them. If there'd been a large organisation running folk music gigs in ED I'd have been only too happy to go to them, and would have saved myself a hell of a lot of work :)) So I don't agree with whatever point you're making about pubs, sorry!

There are good chains and bad chains, surely, just as there are good independent businesses and bad independent businesses. The people in ED who can't afford to drink and eat in the places charging nearly four quid a pint and thirty quid for a meal will go to Wetherspoons. And maybe also those who like a decent selection of real ale at a reasonable price. The snobby people who look down their noses at the people who like/can only afford Wetherspoons won't go to Wetherspoons. Good. Horses for courses. And maybe whoever opened the first Wetherspoons had a passion for what they were doing and wanted to spread it elsewhere. Just a thought.

skidmarks Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Oh Christ, sticky tables and no atmosphere apart > from the ambient background din of the glass > washer and chillers plus the old man at the bar > counting through his pennies to calculate how many > ?1.99 pints he can have before his heart stops. > Why do they insist on covering the tables with so > many dirty and sticky laminated menus and price > lists! I?d rather cut my balls off with a rusty > saw than go in any Tescospoons. xxxxxxx So if you know what the owner looks like, their pub isn't like this? And be bloody glad you're not an old man having to work out whether he can afford a pint or not.

skidmarks Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Support your (Real) local pub! xxxxx So which one's that then?

I am very happy to hear this news. Wetherspoons have a great range of well-kept real ale at excellent prices - which hopefully they won't raise because it's ED. Agree the food is bog-standard microwaved crap, but it is filling and cheap crap, and good value for what you get, especially with their two-for-one offers. They're not in the market for competing with Franklins! The atmosphere varies depending on the pub, but I used to run a group which had regular monthly get-togethers at Penderel's Oak on High Holborn, and it was ideal for us because there was a large no-smoking area (in the days before the ban), and no music, so we could hear ourselves speak. Its loos were also, deservedly, featured in the Good Loo Guide! I think The Vale is in a good spot, near the station, but it's always had a rather strange atmosphere and the ale not always well kept. I hope its new incarnation thrives! :)-D ETA: Guess we won't be seeing the gloomy Skidmarks in there :)) Best stick to the Bishop, mate :)) I'd rather cut myself to bits with a rusty saw than drink in there, but each to their own :))

This happened to me a few years back. Three windowboxes taken from my front bay window sills in broad daylight. I was at the back of the house, heard a scraping noise and thought nothing of it - till a visitor later on that day asked where my window boxes were (6) When I replaced them, I chained them to the sills. The police said someone had evidently gone round the neighbourhood in a van taking window boxes. It was just before Mother's Day. Then the insurance company wouldn't pay for the plants and compost, which were probably worth more than the boxes themselves. And so it wasn't worth claiming on the insurance because of the excess (6)

Hey, have a great time Karrie :) Hope you come back refreshed. Sounds a brilliant thing to do. I had a PM about my source of bird food, so I thought I'd share this in case anyone else has been looking. I didn't find the receipt from the supplier I used before, so I used Charlies Direct this time - www.charliesdirect.co.uk - it was the cheapest I could find, but you might do better if you can be bothered to google and then search through loads of possible sites! 120 Gardman Fat Snax for ?18.99 (though I think they had a limited number of packs left) and 12.75 kg Gardman No Mess Seed Mix for ?12.99. There was a flat delivery charge of ?3.95 so if I had more storage space I would have bought more - but I haven't. The 120 pack of Fat Snax comes in a cardboard box so it's better if you have old plastic Fat Snax or other containers to transfer them into - so rodent-proof! My daughter gets her Fat Snax cheap from Wilcos/Wilkinson (can't remember which) but as far as I know there isn't one round here. If anyone knows of a cheaper supplier (for the same goods) please let me know. I did get a load of Fat Snax very cheap from Wyevale off the Purley Way once, but I think it must have been at the end of the Winter, can't remember now.

DJKillaQueen Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > What LM isn't a lesbian and Sue is? Crikey! xxxxxx Eh?

Yawn

DJKillaQueen Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- >> > I did a cycling proficiency at school and it was > FREE. There are also similar schemes today for > anyone to do that are FREE. xxxxxxx SilverFox's point was that they should be compulsory. I doubt if the idiot cyclists who jump red lights, ignore people on pedestrian crossings and cycle without lights at night are going to go out of their way voluntarily to do a cycling proficiency course, free or not.

silverfox Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I've said this before but in my opinion it should > be compulsory for cyclists to pass a cycling > proficiency test, ie a paid for taught course. > Some of the antics of cyclists are frightening and > a danger to themselves and the motorists who will > get the blame if they're hurt through their own > silly actions. Also, in these straitened times an > annual road licence for cyclists of say, ?25 a > year, would be a good idea with points deducted > (and leading to loss of licence) for going down > one-way streets, through red lights and pulling > out from behind parked cars without looking over > their shoulders and no hand signals. xxxxxxxxx I agree with all that

louisiana Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Sue Wrote: > -------------------------------------------------- > ----- > > louisiana Wrote: > > > -------------------------------------------------- > > > ----- > > > The Slanket > > > > > > Gizmodo did a review of all Slanket-style > > > sofa-lolling outfits, and the Slanket came > out > > way > > > ahead. > > > > xxxxxx > > > > I was totally disappointed with my Slanket. > > > > The fleece is quite thin and it was COLD (6) > plus > > although I'm only five foot four, it wasn't > long > > enough to cover my feet properly when lounging > on > > the sofa. > > > > You can get slanket-type things which have > little > > pockets for your feet, and next Winter it will > be > > one of those for me :)) > > The Slanket is almost 8 feet long (7.9)! How can > that be too short? > Are you sure you didn't have a 'competitor > product'? Some of them are trash e.g. the Snuggie > (too short and very much an inferior product). xxxxxxx It was a genuine Slanket and quite expensive. It is long when you are standing up, yes, but when slouching about on a sofa with it wrapped around you, and trying to keep your feet under it, believe me it does not seem long. Hence, presumably, why some competitors' versions have pockets for the feet. Have you actually tried one? If you have, you will find out what I mean.

louisiana Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > The Slanket > > Gizmodo did a review of all Slanket-style > sofa-lolling outfits, and the Slanket came out way > ahead. xxxxxx I was totally disappointed with my Slanket. The fleece is quite thin and it was COLD (6) plus although I'm only five foot four, it wasn't long enough to cover my feet properly when lounging on the sofa. You can get slanket-type things which have little pockets for your feet, and next Winter it will be one of those for me :))

zeban Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- and > was wondering firstly, as a renter, can I change > my supplier? xxxxxxx Please spare a thought for the landlord. I let my house for a while when I was working out of London, and the tenants changed the supplier without telling me. It caused me all sorts of problems when I moved back. It would probably be a kind thing to do to discuss this with the landlord before you go ahead. There are lots of price comparison sites, but I usually find it easier to talk to someone in person as you can discuss all the pros and cons. The sites usually give a phone number, and they're usually free 0800 numbers.

Is thistle seed the same as niger??

elliescott Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Hi James, > > I wrote some time ago and we discussed the radar > speed sign at the top of Barry Rd. It has not > been working for months in fact I think it stopped > working last year. This is the only thing we have > on Barry Rd to make people aware of their speed. > I appreciate its a main bus route and that rules > out speed bumps but there has to be something else > that can be done to reduce the speed that some > drivers do. Its scary sometimes how fast cars fly > down the road. I have a 2 1/2 year old and it > really concerns me that I don't feel safe walking > down our road. > The least that can happen is that the sign is > repaired but it would be good to get a speed > camera set up. > Please, this is important for all the residence of > Barry Rd. > > Thanks > Ellie xxxxxxx You might be better putting this on James's thread, as it's addressed to him? ETA: Sorry, just seen you have done :-$

Thanks - niger seeds are all I have at the mo, apart from peanuts, waiting for my fat balls and seed mix to arrive :) But I've never yet seen a goldfinch in my garden, or any other finches come to that - not sure why.

Has anybody on here had any luck attracting goldfinches with niger seeds?

Scratches head? Some people can't afford expensive and nice things in the first place, was what I meant, so be grateful if you can :)

This probably won't make you feel any better, and I'm truly sorry you've been burgled, but look on the bright side and be grateful you have such nice stuff for people to steal. When I was living in South Norwood, I came home one day to find my front door kicked in and the whole house gone through, including under the mattresses. Nothing was missing at all - they couldn't find anything worth taking!! Guess they weren't readers - I had loads of books ... Then when I was living in Devon, someone broke in one night (when I was in bed and alone in the house) but all they could find was a portable telly and a five pound note in a drawer.

THEY ACCUSED ME OF STEALING ELECTRIC BECAUSE A METER READER REPORTED THAT IT HAD BEEN TAMPERED WITH xxxxxxxxx And had your meter been tampered with?