Voyageur

Manslaughter seems a but harsh - seems more like negligence to me. Feel very sorry for all concerned, how tragic :(

I have one - I didn't know its rather grand name though.. http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2007/03/05/05_dunce_lgl.jpg

Exonerated! :D

Jeremy Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I honestly don't think I've ever heard any > dubstep. Nor I - I consider it one of life's rare dollops of good fortune :)

Although I accept that we all have our political leanings, I tend to steer clear of people who froth, rabidly at the mouth at the mention of any particular mainstream newspaper - polarised and entrenched views don't normally allow for balanced and informed conversations.

Alex K Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Certainly I do. Free on-line and VERY > entertaining. Any paper that lets me follow Liz > Jones... I love a bit of Jones. She is an attention whore (well, probably like most media celebs TBH) and must be hell to live/work with but she makes me laugh with her outspokenness.

Otta Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > The Pizza Express thing did make me laugh because > their design always leads to a noisy acoustic. > Plus they are very child friendly. > > A place I'd always avoid if I wanted peace. I did say we knew we were beaten :) I love a good PE and the many we have been to in the past have had a good mix of ages if erring on the kiddy side, the Dulwich one was surreal though in being like one giant kids party, albeit the groupings were evidently separate. We haven't been back and indeed won't in the future - no worries though as I am confident that they will remain packed to the gills.

Loz Wrote: > Have you ever considered that the problem just > might be you? Really, as a pedestrian (never mind > a car driver) if I had this many issues over the > years I'd be looking a bit closer to home for the > solution. Very good point.

Why ask? I read a variety of papers - DM, Financial Times, Independent, Times, Observer, Guardian and Telegraph being the main ones, although obviously not on a daily basis.

'Before modern times, the Berbers (also known as the Amazighs) of Morocco would collect undigested argan pits from the waste of goats which climb the trees to eat their fruit. The pits were then ground and pressed to make the nutty oil used in cooking and cosmetics. However, the oil used in cosmetic and culinary products available for sale today has most likely been harvested directly from the tree and processed with machines.' My bold. Food for thought ;) I bought a bottle of argan oil back from Morocco a few years ago - it has sat on my shelf ever since. I will use it at some point when I manage to get my head around its likely origins!

yawn...

Husker Wrote: > Don't get me wrong. I'm with everyone else - > parents should remove disruptive kids and they > shouldn't be there after 7pm, That's it sorted though - if followed through.

We had a somewhat overwhelming (well for us anyway) experience at the Pizza Express in Dulwich a couple of years ago. After a long walk in the park we decided to go for a Pizza at around 6'ish on a Sunday. When we entered we found that about 50 percent of the clientele were toddlers, a fair proportion of them in jim-jams presumably for a streamlined meal/bed-time experience, and the noise levels were awseomely high. We asked if we could try upstairs as it was pretty empty (and where we would at least be able to hear each other speak) but after about 10 minutes the place was full of parents with toddlers too. We fled in search of a more relaxing environment. We haven't been back - we know when we are beaten.

Not if you take your child outside for a while if he starts making a racket and won't pipe down in a restaurant full of people trying to chill out with friends. Or maybe suggest meeting for a coffee somewhere child friendly instead.

In my extended family if we were out at a restaurant or similar, and one of the tots starts creating a din for whatever reason, said tot would be taken out of the main public area without delay - and brought back in when all was peaceful. It certainly reinforced the fact - as kids got older - that if they created a din then they had access to their din dins removed until they buttoned it. Worked a treat.

Maybe you have just been lucky or maybe you have high tolerance levels - I would personally appreciate having the latter but it just ain't going to happen.

Monkey Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I don't recognise the East Dulwich some of you > describe, I really don't. > > Chill, ED residents, chill. You don't recognise the scenarios people have described as a problem or you have never experienced such a scenario when out and about in pubs/restaurants?

Chillaxed Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > "It's not rocket science, but I think considerate > parenting is something lacking in a lot of > people." > > But a very small minority nonetheless. A minority yes, but not a 'very small' one in my experience sadly., although that would have been the case 20-30 years ago.

Very much with Nanny and Michael P. We went to a pub/restaurant for lunch yesterday which was full to the gills. We had a lovely meal with charming service and a very good bottle of red. About half of the tables had babies or toddlers present which I have no particular issue with, apart from the thick forest of massive bugaboos which blocked walkways and made the serving staff's job a bit of a nightmare. What I DID have a problem with was the 2-3 tables of adults that thought it was perfectly ok for their tiny offspring to cry/scream loudly for long periods of time, making conversation very difficult and making most there grit their teeth in irritation. If your kid can't be quiet in such an environment either, please either take them outside until they quieten or, as someone suggested, socialise elsewhere with other families in an environment where prolonged crying/tantrums etc. are tolerated.

I am fast approaching my half century and find that my tastes have changed over the years from the point of view of my idea of a good night out. I still like to be in lively places but I need a seat if I am going to be there all night as otherwise my back starts aching. I am also pretty intolerant places with loud music (because I can't hear as well as I could in my twenties plus I find it pretty irritating) and crap toilets (weak pun intended). We went to a gig at the Brixton Academy a couple of weeks ago which was fun, but I think that my concert going days are numbered as I didn't like the hours of standing about and the general pushing and shoving - again something I wouldn't have minded a couple of decades ago. We therefore tend to avoid noisy places full of 20 somethings (that I would have adored when I was younger) in favour of somewhere a bit more comfortable and a bit less loud - plenty of bars and pubs to be found with a good mix of ages that accommodate this though. If I were to be looking to meet new people this is the sort of venue I would go to. Going out and meeting friends in a decent pub/bar is something I can't imagine growing tired of.

Ridiculous over-reaction.

maxxi Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Is it time related? A good long sleep and you wake > up in Fiji but a catnap condemns you to Farnham? http://emotloader.hu/emoticons/happy/Content_8%20-%20emotloader.hu.gif

Anstergirl Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Spotted who I thought was Adrian Crowley in > Peckham Rye this afternoon when walking my dogs. > Was right ! At gig at St Pancras he named checked > the park! > > http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adrian_Crowley#sect > ion_6 Wouldn't know him if I tripped over him. Suspect he wouldn't be wowed by me either. By the way - he has an unfortunate second name. Crawley is the pits :(

the-e-dealer Wrote: > the World > is ending on 20th December! It is? Excellent. That will take care of all my debts nicely :)

What's the scam?