Nero

If you have a reserve of ? in your Oyster top-up, I suspect that you would then not need to do anything if you want to go outside the zone you have paid for, as long as you stayed within the Zones 1-6 (or is it 9 now) that Oyster covers. Please advise!

Hitler's Diaries (offered by a Mr A Neill, wanting a quick sale); Ark of the Covenant (one of a pair - could find more if anyone interested); What a Load of Grit - The Good Neighbour's Guide to Winter-time Politesse (still on offer)

Given that the council cannot grit every pavement in teh borough, and given that some people on here are very up in arms about it, I suggest getting some salt and doing the small bit outside your own home. If you are that concerned over people lacerating their scalps, you will do as I suggest. If not, then you will just carry on whining.

So when is the pool likely to be open for business? I can't work it out from any post on here.

Stockport Longwood - near Orlando, Fla Leeds Shanghai Camerino Leeds Darlington Sheffield Stockport Leeds London R/A - Herford - My mum lived there in the mid/late 80s and I visited often. Herforder Pils is great. Do you know the Katten Stuben?

Is the site of the fire on the 63 bus route? I recognise those flats, I think.

Thanks for the efforts on the feets/seats announcements.

Hung

It is a start - thanks. If it were repeated by teh driver, even better. Indeed, the very sound of a driver - only heard when there is a problem, it seems - would do something to alert people to the fact that there is someone 'in charge' and might prevent anti-social behaviour to an extent.

I will be having mine on Thursday. I have asthma - not severely, though - and I have the flu jab each year anyway. I have about one cold a year, never get flu, and thus never have the chance to pass it on to people at home, at work, on the bus etc! If you are not in an 'at danger' group, then, as Karter says, it is not worth having one, unless you live with someone who is at risk of complications. Just keep washing those hands in warm, soapy water after you've been on public transport, before you eat, after going to the toilet etc and you'll have less of a chance of getting flu, cold or other virus-born illnesses.

Barry, I meant that the issue, I would have thought, has less to do with marketing and more to do with safety and security, or some such department. Why shoudl the marketing department have more ideas about how to make train journeys more pleasant than, say, the operations department? N

Hoo-bloody-rah! At least it means that me and other U E Siders won't have to drag our sorry bods off to the hell that is Co-Op on FHR when we need some (insert everyday foodstuff here, which Co-Op is v unlikely to have anyway). Nectar points, too! Double word score.

Giggirl - I agree with you about small children having to sit on a parent's lap or sharing with another small child. I asked one man to let his kid sit on his lap on a crowded bus, and he acted as if I had asked him to wipe my arse. I explained that she was little and she hadn't paid and that I had a ticket and was tired after an 11 hour shift. He still couldn't quite see why I felt it was the right thing for his daughter to do but relented - grudgingly - in the end. Now, if it had been a fat kid....

From a media-interest point of view, I am pretty sure that any effort you make to stop people putting their feet on seats would get lots of attention. It's something that a lot of people think about, it ties in with the 'broke Britain' idea and it's a good topic for interactivity (ie people ranting on web pages and phone-ins). I hope your marketing department are savvy enough to recognise this and pick up on it, but would like to add that it is not something that should be seen solely as an income/publicity generator! Your non-marketing managers should be thinking about such anti-social behaviour too.

No!

Legal, aren't chicken and lamb bones dangerous for dogs? They are more brittle and likely to splinter, and could get caught in mutt's throat! Our hounds were given lots of dregs too eat, but never those kind of bones! To keep on topio, and this is pretty boring and not v inspired, save ?? by not using the work canteen or Pret etc. I never buy a tea or coffee at work - we have a kettle and I take my own bags - and take all my own food. Others spend up to ?10 a day on food and drinks, especially the younger ones and the work experience people. Crazy youth!

Barry, Could you tell me what our train company is doing to prevent people from littering trains and stations and resting their feet on seats? Some companies have put stickers inside train carriages. I think yours should do so too, and ask drivers to make announcements to the same effect. The default position for lots of people, from schoolkids to Guardian-reading professionals, is to plonk themseleves down and immediately put their feet on the seat opposite. It's infuriating! I do ask people to take them down myself, so I am not asking your company to do something I wouldn't do, even though I maintain it is its responsibility to do so. I look forward to your reply. N

A Waitrozzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

No. It is confusing and will serve to legitimise the idea of cycling on pavements/against the flow of traffic. Rye Lane needs proper traffic management all through the day. Too may cars and vans and lorries park illegally.

Napier is worth a visit. It's a small town that is famous for its art deco architecture, having been reubuilt following an earthquake (if my memory serves me well). Otherwise, Russell is a great little town that is worth an overnight stay. It's historic (first RC church in NZ) and on the sea and has a lovely feel to it. If you are travelling there in one journey and not getting off for a night on teh way, do expect to be jetlagged, and try to avoid it as much as possible!

Ring 7525 2000 and ask them to spray 'Bag it and bin it' signs. If you explain that a school is nearby, it might make them act more quickly. Ask them to respray them every six months so you don;t ahve to keep chasing it up.

Don't think the trains run at teh weekend, though. It is a great service to get from Peckham Rye to King's X, St Pancras etc.

Normal is a cycle on the (Smeg, candy-coloured, A+ rated) washing machine.

But then so is crushing the heads of a spare box of Bryant & May - I used to call that a 'genie' when I was younger (so much younger not to have pubic hair).

Dear Councillor, I agree that it is good news about ED moving down the crime hot-spot charts* but since most people are not affected by crime either directly or indirectly, I would prefer that any crowing be kept to a minimum and any effort used therein be put into the myriad other problems that do touch people on a regular basis. By that I mean poor schools, bad transport, traffic woes etc. * whether you believe in them or not