bald marauder

Eh? You're Spanish Mockney? I didn't pick that up - creia que usted estaba un estudiante de espanol. !Que sorpresa!

Raddled - nice word! What does it mean exactly?

Dear DM, I believe for best effect, one should say "Oim black, and Oim proud". It's all in the accent and intonation, I think Roddy would agree. Cool though, Ireland is a great and beautiful nation. (I guess this explains your sudden feisty outbursts as well.) And my Godparents were Irish, so I've always felt a certain affinity - particularly with the West Coast, Galway area.

Haha! Coming from someone who went to the lav with Martha Stewart in handcuffs....I'm not sure how seriously it is possible to take that! :)

Apparently, baby M can now sit up in her pushchair in Cafe Nero, quietly 'reading' (more like eating) her little fish book, and eventually falling contentedly asleep, while Mrs M enjoys a cappufrothosoyachino in peace. (How come baby M never does that for ME?!)

*Takes a deep breath before beginning clarification of actions* "Said weeing took place INSIDE the garden shed, into a watering can specifically kept for that purpose. All potentially offending appendages were carefully tucked away before emerging from shed with watering can fully loaded and ready for use." *Raises corners of mouth in wry smile, suggesting bemusement (and amusement) at misinterpration of actions* *Quietly enjoys marauding reputation, even though at heart is warm and empathetic*

"Is that foxes I can hear outside?" *Pulls on wellington boots, turns up collar of overcoat against the cold, opens the back door and heads off across the lawn, towards a watering can which is leaning against the garden shed* *The sound of tinkling can be heard in the distance, followed by a frantic scampering as the foxes head for more pleasant pastures further afield*

Maybe someone should post some 'Missing dog' posters around ED? By Lordship Lane roundabout, outside Somerfield, maybe North Cross Road? Where is Mr Batdog known to hang out?

I suspect he may be - it could well be Mr Batdog who has been teaching the foxes how to surf the web....

Shall take your word for it!

Whilst that may be a very apt comment for comic effect DM, I suspect it couldn't be farther from the truth. BTW, don't worry about Mr Batdog - maybe he's out chasing foxes - I'm sure he'll surface soon. Too cold to go outside and worry about foxes now, shall retire for night-time nappy change and last feed. x

Wow! Mission Impossible is one of my all time favourite series - and the series is SO much better than the Tom Cruise films. One of my other old favourites is The Avengers - don't suppose Diana Rigg lived in ED by any chance?

DM, I am sure Mr Batdog is fine - probably turning round and round to make his bed comfortable before he settles down for the night, in the manner that dogs do... Perhaps he is tired out from a long walk?

I shared some of these with my colleagues at work today - they were very much appreciated - thank you everyone!

Incorrigible flirts, the pair of you! And to think Mr Holdsworth started out in such a provocative manner - DM has anyone ever remained beyond the influence of your charms?

Hahaha! dulwich mum you cheered me up after a fractious day at work! Of course you understand it's not the WHOLE lawn I consider to be my personal urinal, I just stand on the lawn while I wee on the borders - much more civilised I'm sure you'll agree. In all honesty, I haven't actually gone beyond a mental rehearsal of the exercise - yet - though I have peed into a watering can and used that instead (Mrs M wouldn't allow the full & direct approach, although after last night's disturbance she may be relaxing her principles). Mrs M is of course, absolutely horrified that I would a) really stoop to such a base practice and b) discuss it on this forum. We shall see if the situation worsens and forces her to change her mind.... One thing's for sure, it's far too cold to be out there tonight, can or no can!

I think Mrs M and baby M were woken up by this last night (I wear earplugs so was thankfully undisturbed). I'm drinking copious amounts of water and getting out on the lawn tonight - hope it's not too cold!

I think my last post on the fantasy LL thread was maybe a bit scary (me ranting about the need to show tolerance and empathy to those of us out and about in charge of small children). So how about setting some mutually acceptable (to parents and non-parents alike) principles for the use of buggies in and around ED?

Hey, I was just teasing, in my book feisty is a good thing. I took your comments as passionate rather than insensitive. It was, nevertheless, very entertaining to see the smoke coming off your keyboard!

Thank you DM, I should have known you were made made of stronger stuff. Stern with a soft centre, perhaps?

C'mon, who needs a bucket? Just wait until it's dark and follow the line of your flowerbeds directly, taking particular care with any vulnerable points in the fence...it's the most environmentally friendly and effective solution (though Mrs M worries that I might be spied by the neighbours one day). And just to put things in perspective, if you think that's not up to 'Village' standards, I have a friend who lives in an exceedingly posh house on a private road in Blackheath, who dumps directly into his compost bin! Suffice it to say I always politely decline any homegrown veg when dining at his house!!

Wow, DM, that was your turn to be feisty! South East London does often seem to be perceived by those who do not live or venture here, as one amporphous suburb of run-down, post Blitz concrete. Obviously this is far, far from the truth, and I would suggest that Dulwich Village is in close contention with Hampstead if not Primrose Hill as one of London's true centres of 'old money'. Now, to what degree that is a good thing or not is a matter of opinion, but I certainly can't believe that anyone would rather live in Catford (which is certainly not posh) than ED - so to have at least a little bit of poshness in one's environs must be a good thing. No?

Hey DM, I left a nice post for you on the 'What is everyone doing' lounge thread - wouldn't want you to miss it - not, I'm sure, that you need any more positive feedback! BTW, I think it must be a pretty fair assumption that everyone when buying their firt place can't really live exactly where they would like to - not in the size/type of property that would ideally like either. ED is no exception to that, and I'm sure there are people who would like to be here who have to settle for Honor Oak/Nunhead - and conversely there are people who would rather be in Clapham (not myself of course) who have had to 'settle' for ED.

Oh, BTW Jo, most of the staff in Pham are not Japanese either, but with a Japanese chef from Nobu, they just about get away with it. Their deep-fried soft shell crab is good too... Mrs M just asked me to point out (if you didn't already see my earlier post) that you can sometimes get sushi quality fish from Moxons too (better and cheaper than Borough Market in her opinion). OK, nice weekend everyone, enjoy your sushi if you're having any...

Haha, well, Mrs M is indeed a good cook - though sushi is not her speciality - but she doesn't even cook enough for me, never mind availing her services to the lovely residents of ED! Plus little baby M isn't really old enough to allow the 24/7 immersion that setting up a new restaurant would take. It would be a great thing to do though, but we would definitely need backers... Breakfast at Tsukiji, now that would be nice, though I always found the sushi was so BIG as well as being so fresh...kind of the equivalent of a 'builders breakfast' for all the market workers after their shifts I guess. Mmmmm..... (sighs nostalgically) BTW, if you do go to Pham, remember to ask specifically ffor the crunchy tuna roll - it's not on the menu - I think it might be a dish that the chef 'stole' from Nobu (where he used to work...)