Nero

Two I can understand, but three is a real waste of resources.

Why do PCSOs go everywhere in twos, sometimes threes? I saw two groups of threes walking about thirty yards from each other, going in the same direction, the other week. I would have asked them whether they had codependency issues had I not been on a bus.

Stylistically, the reply stinks of wriggle-bottomed officialdom doing its best to gloss over a big mistake. Most people want a quick fix. Council folk are no different. How can anyone justify doing what that council department did? It's naff a l'extreme. What right-minded individual would do what's been done? None. This is the kind of stupidity that angers me, even more so when I am paying for it.

Hmmm. It was a temporary measure, he says. What rot. They went for the easiest option. Glad that the council knows that it has to do something good to make up the damage. Partial result, eh?

A 363 bus was apparently set on fire by a group of yoot/yoof (I'm not young enough to use the former) and taken away. Fire engines (two appliances) and the police were in attendance to the incident at abouut 1230 at the Forest Hill Road-Dunstan's Rd junction.

*Bob*, You're right. In the spirit of Gapseal, which bridges all manner of chasm, I will bury my hatchet.

Dunno about chav. It's so overused that it'll be eclipsed by something new soon. I don't think the interior, from what I've seen, is particularly gay. I'd say it is sub boutique hotel (another phrase that's had its day) in that it seems rather generic and lower-to-mid-end interior design magazine in style.

Full marks, Lozzyloz, for the use of cutting and pasting of a dictionary definition to try to persuade us you had a rather more high falutin meaning in mind rather than the pedestrian use of the word 'gay'. You are no Dr Johnson so please don't pretend you meant anything other than 'camply naff/naffly camp' in your description. As for the place itself, I've not been in, but it looks inviting when I go past it on the 176 to a night shift.

I have yet to experience the new P13 interior, er, experience. As soon as I do, I'll post a report. Perhaps it will have a motor that sounds like a bus engine rather than a consumptive hairdryer.

Stop press! There's a new P13 on the block, an altogether sleeker, bolder and, well, sassier version of the old shoe-box on wheels. I saw it today, slinking past the ED Deli like it ruled the road and had done so for years. Anyone else seen it?

Cultural vandalism that actually invites vandalism of the more prosaic kind. Jumpin Journo - sell this on to the Mail!

If you are just after information rather than flights and hotels, Fodors.com is good. It's mainly aimed at and used by Americans, but Americans who have and use their passport. It has chat forums where you can post information and read others' contributions and also areas where you can go and get Fodors' own information. Wanderlust.com is good too, and the Daily Telegraph, Times, Guardian and Independent all have good archives of their travel sections. BA.com has cheaper flights than you might expect and do single fares these days.

What rot. It's bad but not that bad. At the end of the twenties and in the thirties, there were fewer safety nets than there are today. People will still eat drink and buy tat, but they'll be doing it in between worrying about subprime mortgages, short-selling and other such new words and phrases. House prices will fall, but they'll increase again. Petrol will go up, then down, than back up a bit. My advice for this winter? Cut up your credit cards, knit a woolly pully and affect a full bladder when it's your round.

I agree with the last poster. If you want a tree, pester the council. And if you see a tree in distress or one with overgrown foliage, tell the council. This is the man to contact. He sent me an email after I'd told the council about the triffid-like trees in Whatley Road, a problem he says will be cleared up by the end of the month. Ernst Erasmus Arboricultural Officer for Environment and Housing Address: 151 Walworth Rd, SE17 1RY Tel: 0207 525 2000 Fax: 0207 525 2174 Email: [email protected]

I am back from holiday and was woken by the planes this morning. The only thing to do, for me at least, is to get up and do something less boring instead. It is the really early ones that are the worst. The far east planes come in first and they are all queueing up to get in, the varmints! Double glazing is not that effective, likewise earplugs. The only solution is to go to bed early and look forward to the early morning run/crossword/baking/gym visit.

Cobbles are nice to look at, but not nice to 'hear' when being driven over. I remember them from my childhood but would only appreciate them now in places where they wouldn't be too loud, such as in tourist areas or places with no traffic.

Cicely, if you post a link to the MP in question and to HACAN more people are likely to take a look and do something. You can take a horse to water but you can't make it drink, I know, but at least if you point them in the direction of the water you'll have more of a chance of garnering support.

I saw Jo Brand in Dulwich Village, near to the Village Bookshop. I smiled at her broadly, and she looked, smiled back, then almost instantly and at the same time as me looked puzzled and embarrassed as we realised that we didn't actually know each other. I also witnessed the humorous incident that Jenny Eclair wrote about in the August edition of Living Death, er, South.

How can it be a privacy thing? Why would the coppers be protecting outdoor sex fiends? That indeed would be political correctness gone mad! Anyway, I used to love walking to the top of Barry Road to ensure I got the back left hand seat on the 12 to go into town. It had much more leg room than the others. The bendy has nothing on the Routemaster. I also remember the heavy snow in 2003, and could see it getting thicker and stickier as the 176 mounted the hill to Dulwich Library. The difference in temperature from the Goose Green end to the Upper East Side (I know, some people hate the term) is quite marked.

?4.95 for a bowl of ice cream is too expensive. I'd've not paid it, and said, quite simply, that I thought it was poor value for money. Then again, I'd have checked the menu forensically for exorbitant prices. I like the place, but its service is patchy. When it's more than 50% full, you have to practically stand up to get the attention of the waiting staff. It's at times like that that I don't like paying a 12.5% service charge.

I don't like it. Why not a noble oak or a sturdy beech? It looks really wan and out of place.

Yes. One of them was 15%. Hangovers to me mean a headache, aversion to light, lethargy. This is the opposite. I feel like I've mainlined Sunny D. It's better now, but I still have the racing heart. True, Lizzie, a bottle is a lot, but it was over a whole evening and I drank about 1 1/2 pints of water while I was there and was savouring the wine rather than drinking it. One of the wines was S Africa, one NZ, one Oz, one Italian and one French. Each glass was about 75cl. In the past, if I had red wines I would wake up with a hot flush and a pounding heart. I am thinking it might be the sulphites?

I went to a wine tasting last night and had a nice time. I had about 4 glasses of win over about 3 hours. I had less than about 4/5 of a bottle, all told. This morning I've not got a headache but have palpitations and breathlessness. Is this an allergy, do you think? Or is it low blood sugar. I feel nauseous but not like I want to be sick. Strange.

Marmora Man, my geographical knowledge of the Olympics venue are is not that good, so could you tell me how you think the transport links will pan out? From Honor Oak to venue, how long do you think it would take? Is Stratford the station for the venue, or do you have to walk from there or get a bus? Walking from Goodrich School to Honor Oak, plus the transport, I reckon it could be done in about 50 mins if you time it right?

smile bank only lets you take money out abroad once you've told them so. It has been a faff in the past, when I didn't know the policy (which the bank says is made known to its customers) but it helps me not get ripped off.