Hawley

Hello all The ABS system on my 2004 Golf started playing up over the weekend. Warning light has come on in the dashboard. A browse online has indicated that it may be a common VW fault with the MkV Golfs. Just wondering if anyone local has encountered anyting similar? And also whether any kind soul has a VAG-COM (or similar) diagnostic tool they could lend me for an hour or so. Thanks

Slightly off-topic, but Rivertown by Peter Hessler is a great book that you and your son might enjoy reading. Hessler and a friend spent two years in Fuling, a small (by Chinese standards) city on the banks of the Yangtze. Ostensibly there to teach English, Hessler documented his time there in fascinating detail and his insights into Chinese culture and customs are fascinating. Best of all, he and his friend made a real attempt to assimilate into the Chinese way of life, even though they were basically the only two westerners for miles around. It's worth reading for the story of their gradual acceptance by the locals alone. I wish your son good luck and good travels!

Sent you a pm

Jah's right about the EDT. Cracking selection of changing ales in there.

I'm just about to re-read 'Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk', a brilliant satire on the second Gulf War by an American writer called Ben Fountain. The Billy of the title is one of a number of men from a U.S. platoon involved in a skirmish with Iraqi insurgents, which just happened to be captured by an embedded news crew and shown coast to coast in the U.S. The Platoon are now heroes back home and have been sent back Stateside for a couple of weeks to basically fly the flag and drum up support for the war. Most of the book centres on one day at the Dallas Cowboys football stadium as they gear up for the halftime shenanigans alongside Destiny's Child. It's all told through the eyes of Billy, who's 19, old beyond his years in some respects, achingly innocent in others. It's a truly incredible novel and beautifully written: angry, poignant, sad and uproariously funny. The best thing I've read since The Corrections. I can't recommend it highly enough. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/20/books/review/billy-lynns-long-halftime-walk-by-ben-fountain.html?_r=0

Sublime:

Little bit like Spacemen 3, maybe even a touch of Velvet Underground?

This lot:

We went last Sunday aand enjoyed an enormous roast with more trimmings than a barbers' shop floor. There's a relaxed, welcoming feel about the place and I thought it very keenly priced.

KidKruger Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > There used to be a guy who walked around Camden > with a huge gash in his arm. He'd basically rely > on your shock - first time I saw it I have him a > ?5er for a cab to hospital. Next time, when he > had the same gash 2 weeks later and was hassling > someone else, I demanded my ?5er back ! > The wound was gross, like something off a > battlefield. Sure it wasn't his leg? If so, he's still around. Saw him this lunchtime actually!

I can vouch for their estate emulsion, which dries to a very flat, chalky finish but you've got to be prepared to put the legwork in and prepare your surfaces well first as any small bumps, kinks etc will show through. Although their primer is pricey, I've found that the paint goes on a lot easier and coverage is improved when the walls are primed first. As Seabag points out, Little Green is also good. More expensive than Crown etc, but cheaper than F&B and they have a substantially larger palette. Our downstairs khazi is painted in LG Deep Space Blue. We used the Intelligent Matt Emulsion, which is surprisingly tough and wipeable as well as being very low sheen.

Have discovered some fantastic new stuff thanks to Tom Ravenscroft on Fridays. Marc Riley's also great - the best show on the radio in my opinion.

Thanks all. @ Mick Mac: Merryfields say they can't do it...

Posted this in the ED Businesses section, but had no joy so I thought I'd try the Lounge. Apart from Merryfields, does anyone know of a highly skilled cobblers that might be able to repair the inside of a pair of ladies boots? Doesn't have to be on ED, happy to travel within London. Grateful for any tips. Thanks.

Mix CD of M Ward, TVOTR, The Fall, Wild Beasts, Nina Simone, Spaceshipp, Dead Prez, Ministry & Bryan Ferry

Have you considered wood-effect tiles? Pricey, but some can look excellent: http://www.porcelanosa.com/gb/floor-tiles/ceramic-parquet.php

Fantastic place run by a great guy. Granted their cheese isn't priced at supermarket levels, but good value for the quality and range on offer.

Stop! I camembert any more of these puns...

According to the prerecored phone message they are carrying out some tests and everything should be back to normal by 4pm. HOWEVER, I had quite a long conversation with them at about 10pm last night during which I was told the fix would likely only be temporary. Great. Apparently the problem is a broken cable and 500+ homes are affected.

I'll have mixed feelings if this is last orders for The Patch. I think they should have taken much more advantage of the goodwill towards them at the outset. I remember the landlord of the Great Exhibition posting on here, welcoming them to the area and offering them help if ever needed etc. I spoke to one of the owners a few times during the refurb and his plans sounded fantastic. I backed him on Kickstarter. I thought he deserved it. What I couldn't understand at the time - and still don't - is why they didn't engage with their target audience: residents of East Dulwich, Dulwich Village etc, and yes, even the EDF. There were some cards on the bar during the early days introducing themselves, explaining what the concept was, bigging up the Keri Moss link etc, but why not put them through people's doors too? Why no opening night, a few free nibbles to showcase the kitchen? My wife and I ate there while Keri Moss was still involved - must have been about this time last year - and the food was truly excellent. I think the head chef was a South African guy called Bart. I walk past The Patch every morning and evening and used to see him and another chef beavering away at 8am ever morning preparing sauces etc. It was a proper kitchen. A few weeks after our meal I bumped into Keri in Sainsburys and complimented her on the menu and she looked a bit awkward. Obviously, she'd upped and left by then. I popped in a few more times for a drink, but the atmosphere felt all wrong. As others have said, the bar service was slipshod, and there was an awkwardness about the place. No one seemed to smile much. It felt stilted. Maybe it was me. I realise the location isn't the best, but someone with talent could make a great success of this place. Look at what the Toasted lot have done with Green & Blue. Similar concept, but the exection is 1,000 times better. Great staff, buzzing atmosphere, amazing food. And okay, a good location. The Crooked Well guys have done a similar thing. Remember The Kerfield? And Le Petit Parisien? They've made a massive success out of the same space and the same location. If it is the end, I feel for them. Obviously it's never nice to see a business suffer but, as others have said, in some ways they've been the architects of their own downfall.

It's particularly grim when it's wet out. Dogowners, just take a plastic bag with you, please!

I can spare you one if you'd like to send me a PM.

Great atmosphere today and a really exciting game, especially the second half. Could have sneaked it at the death if Xavier had shown a tad more composure, but no matter: a fair result I think. Congrats to all involved in advertising the match too.

Both Bells on Lordship Lane and Bromley & Ellis in Brixton were very helpful when we redid our bathroom. You'll also find discontinued ranges of taps etc on Ebay, which might help free up cash for other parts of the project.

Oztumer's gone upmarket... http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/27763323