glau

We have been working with Robert and Elaine from Tpid (https://tpid.co.uk/) on a major kitchen redesign and extension and we have found the whole process smooth from start to finish. They have been extremely professional throughout and went above and beyond. They have completed the project whilst we were away, leaving the house empty and we were able to trust them completely with our keys. They were involved in all aspects, including initial design, obtaining planning permissions, and liaising with builders and various other suppliers. We live on Dulwich Estates and therefore their experience of working harmoniously and creatively with the Estate Management was a huge bonus as we know that they can be complex to manage. All in all, we would not hesitate to recommend Tpid and, in fact, have already done so to friends and family. They are currently looking after a building project at our daughter's house.

Dear Victor, we are interested in a similar job - could you please give me a call on 07897003370? thank you very much, Kristina

Another recommendation for Saied, he is fantastically reliable, enthusiastic and professional. He's been looking after our garden for years and we cannot recommend him highly enough.

Does anyone have a view on which pub makes the best fish and chips in the area? Taking out my mother who is in her 70s and that is her favourite meal so would like to find a decent one. Any recommendations?

I would like to add to this that the staff is equally lovely at Day Lewis Pharmacy on Forest Hill Road. The same friendly smiles and they also seem to know my name when I phone and remember my prescription, even though I am a very occasional user. It makes me feel part of a community.

Our usual dog boarder we had booked for a couple of days had to cancel due to an emergency and is unable to take our lovely, well behaved, lively 12 year old dog for a couple of days from next Friday. Anyone might have a recommendation? Many thanks Christina

A second recommendation for Melanie. Both my husband and I use her regularly for both deep tissue sports and holistic message and she is really excellent.

My children have now grown out of their prams and buggies and are teenagers and thus blight OP's enjoyment of our local pubs in all sorts of other ways no doubt. I do apologise.

This was many years ago and it was actually Mr G who happened upon my bike at what was still a junk shop and not yet Cash Converters. He basically said that this was our stolen bike and he had proof of ownership so the guy in the shop just said ok, take it away then. I miraculously got my bike back. I know now that the right thing would have been to call the police and all but it was so shocking and unexpected and we were just so happy to find our much beloved bike that we didn't think of it at the time.

I once found my stolen bike, complete with child seat and all, a day or two later at Cash Converters in Camberwell.

now it is the morning and still not a drop

Dear Autumn Babies Club, I wonder if one of you might be interested in helping me with this. I am a psychotherapist and I am starting an Infant Observation study course at The Tavistock Centre for Couple Relationships as part of my continuing professional development. I am looking for an expectant mother whose baby is due late September or early October and who might be interested in having her new baby observed once a week in the home environment. This is meant to be an observation of the new baby's emotional, social and intellectual development from the earliest stages of life to about 9 to 12 months of age. It would mean that I would need to visit your home for an hour at a time that suits you and unobtrusively observe the baby and its interactions. It is a but of a commitment but it can also be a rewarding experience for all concerned. If you think you might be interested or would like to know further details, please PM me and I will call you for a chat. Thank you very much for your help. Christina

Can't you just make them up?

I'm "glau"s younger daughter. I am going to say that I liked Russell Brands radio 2 podcasts and i don't think any of the listeners (apart from the first two people that) complained would have a problem with it. I do agree however that it may have offensive to the guy and his granddaughter but no one else had a right to complain. I highly doubt that the phone call offended the entire population of daily mail readers. How many of them listen to Russell Brand anyway?

Also - my 16 year old actually listened to BBC radio. She forgave the Archers because she enjoyed Brand. She doesn't think too highly of what has just happened which is a shame as I put a lot of effort into showing her that the BBC is not only quality talk radio but also relevant and fun.

I'm also a licence fee payer and heartily dislike The Vicar of Dibley. I actually find Dawn French's comic stlye offensive. Should we get her sacked/suspended? Also don't care for the Antiques Roadshow or whatever it is called and I do not enjoy Songs of Praise either. I am launching my petition now.

I occasionally have lunch at the Bishop and on those occasions tend to have the Salade Nicoise. A year or so ago this was made with fresh tuna steak, last time I went it was canned tuna - same price, mind you. Could the S Nicoise test be introduced as standard measure of quality?

I can report no improvement in evening service - just got home on the no 40 where two old ladies, one drunk, one deranged, got into a fight, making it a tedious if slightly hallucinogenic journey. Are the trains any better?

Ah, mothers-in-law... a separate thread perhaps dedicated to the delights of?

My mother-in-law is an astrologer and she likened my chakra, or was it my aura? to Al Kaida's in general and Osama bin Laden's in particular. No. Really.

I love Peckham Rye park. I actually live much nearer Dulwich Park but tend to choose PRP for my daily dog walking over Dulwich for the sheer variety and beauty of it - I love the meadow-y bit, the formal beauty of Sexby gardens, fantastic planting, I love seeing the seasons change (even though that tells me that I really must be getting old). Dulwich Park is really rather boring with its circular carriage way layout if you compare the two. Oh yes, and I think the cafe is much better at the rye. I'm not sure the dog has an opinion but my hunch is he also favours PRP.

But when is the VP debate? For pure entertainment value it would be hard to beat. Here's a trailer - Palin holding forth on the Bush doctrine. Palin on Bush doctrine

It is the telephone consultation that is a bit of an odd idea - call me old fashioned but I do think that there is some value in the clinician actually seeing the patient who might be flushed or deathly pale, obese or anorexic. Breathlessness, say, would mean something completely different for an over or underweight patient. Not to mention the utterly humiliating experience of having to describe your symptoms in the middle of an open-plan office or Sainsbury's to a bored locum nurse. It just doesn't feel right to me.

same thing happened to me - not the toilet bit, but after trying for two days to get through and arrange a humiliating and inappropriate "telephone consultation", they rang me at a totally different time from what was arranged, I promptly missed their call and thus - through no fault of my own, I was catapulted right back to the very beginning of their ridiculous system. At an earlier telephone consultation a bored locum nurse told me that I do not warrant an appointment and then called me back 5 minutes later saying that I actually should go immediately to A and E. Hm. I am sort of fed up with just moaning about this and have now decided to change GPs - after 16 years with the practice - but could there be a more organized or efficient way of feeding back on this new system that is clearly not working. Or is it not the system but the actual reception staff who are totally incompetent?