Bellenden Belle

Yers it drives me nuts.... I remember my first encouter with a chugger was about seven/ eight years ago. They were wearing a tabard for The Samaritans - something I had been considering and naively I thought they might have some information. Trying to engage them in conversation it soon became apparent that they knew absolutely nothing about the charity. But I do understand why they are used by so many charities. A direct debit/ standing order is gold for a charity - it's that long-term commitment, the donation that is silently forgotten by the giver, the gift that gives on giving. Far better than people rattling a tin where a few coppers salves a person's conscience meaning they feel no need to give again for a while.

I certainly think there has been a lack of imagination in the new shops that have opened recently - a very downmarket fish and chip shop; a locksmith (really? is that soooo necessary?); the poor takeover of Peckham Experiment; the "organic" shop which seems to have arrived with price tags to match East Dulwich Deli and stock to match Costcutter across the road. But mostly I don't mind the mix and match of the street - in fact I rather like it (I feel equally served by Petitou and Sam's Kebab house!) - but I fear what a recession might do to the likes of Fenton Walsh or even the gorgeous Review bookshop. But ultimately I don't fear too much for the area - the regeneration has worked in that the streets have been cleared up, and I sense people take pride in their area. Living currently in Queens Road area which is about six years behind Bellenden but is undergoing a similar regeneration project, there is a palpable difference. I look forward to returning to the Bellenden area very soon....

Restaurante Illary (Hotel Monasterio) in Cuzco, Peru Hotel Bristol, Vienna Bonsai Japanese restaurant in Edinburgh (just round the corner from the Pleasance courtyard)

giggirl Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > If toast always lands butter-side down, and cats > always land on their feet, what happens if you > strap toast on the back of a cat and drop it? I get all my scientific knowledge from fiction - so forgive me if ths is wrong.... but according to Jonathan Safran Foer in his book Extrememly Loud and Incredibly Close - if you drop a cat from say the second floor, they will die.... but drop them from say the top of a tower block - say eighteen floors - and they will have time to relax, and arch their bodies, effectively creating a parachute effect, so they will land on their feet. There's even an illustration in the book to demonstrate this. So if the bread is fresh and has the ability to bend, it will survive; toast or a bagel I believe would hinder the cat's ability to arch its back ... meaning death for both.

Nah Azul - you must just seem older! Distinguised, mature, greying and fraying round the edges! Still... warm birthday wishes coming at you!

When I first read mlteenie's post I imagined she was referring to the forum needing a tidy - I imagined mlteenie neatly posting on long meandering threads, offering a concise summary, ending feuds, and gently offering a conclusion. I now wonder if I have reache stage six of forumitis where I actually have no concept of life beyond the forum...help!

Okay I am going to run and hide for cover after I post this. Ganapati is good. I would go so far as to say it is without doubt the best in Peckham Rye/ East Dulwich borders. But it is not amazing in my humble opinion. Babur in Brockley is amazing.... http://www.babur.info/website/index.php?pageId=home Try it! It's worth the trip...

Kendel's mint cake worked for me on the Inca Trail .... And I was super fit when I did it (I had a personal trainer for eight months.... first day I met her, she looked at me and said "some people would call it fat, but I would say you have excess energy" - totally evil, but it did the trick.

Never Call anywhere but London my home again Spend an extortionate amount on a meal again Go to Mikonos again Resist but might have to accept Dating again Visiting the home counties Listening to the advice of shop assistants Taking the advice of all my friends - particularly in relation to number 1. edited because I was so embarrassed by mentioning the cost of said meal...

Absolutely extraordinary post Luvpeckham. In the face of so much logical argument, I never fail to be astonished that people stick to their guns - but then the rest of us are clearly brainwashed - probably by all those books I've read, sent to me by the evil Amazon.

SeanMacGabhann Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > at least men content themselves with a look - > women seem happier to grab hold of men's arses Mmmm, Sean - have a closer look at AndrewsCBlacks' photos from the last forum meet .... looks like girls aren't the only ones with a penchant for arses.... Hee hee - I know many eclipse men Annaj - in fact even my gay male friends are eclipse men (and they can get away with absolute murder....) I just think men of all persuasions find breasts fantastic. And quite right too!

It strikes me this thread should now be called Divorce, Death and Taxes.... or ironically, Bellenden Belle's Bloody Awful Decade. (Everything is always about me, of course!) Firstly, I can't believe some of the advice being offered here on divorcing someone. Stop paying mortgage; get her evicted; she should be ashamed to be a woman.... bloody hell, no wonder divorces are so messy when this is how we respond to them. So much anger surrounding a hypothetical question. I think schools need to teach people the skills to deal with these kind of stressful situations.... so that people have more tricks up their sleeves than merely getting angry and bitter.... And who knows maybe I will eat my words... but so far my own separation (and I am in week three, so early days) is being handled with great dignity - and if it continues in that fashion I will consider it a very fine achievement indeed - to be able to part from someone I love (yes, present tense) without the need to annihilate them, or without sacrificing my own needs - both emotional and financial. As for inheritance tax - I have written on this subject in great detail before - http://www.eastdulwichforum.co.uk/forum/read.php?5,39937,39987#msg-39987 Yes my arguments on both points are purely based on emotions .... I apologise to those needing something meatier or something more substantial to grapple with.

A very happy birthday to the both of you! :)-D Love Bellenden Belle

SteveT Wrote: We're all posting local stuff rather than bettering our > selves gathering internet goodies for the next > degree. Ah but SteveT if you read the 'Has this forum changed your behaviour thread' you will see lots of instances not of people necessarily "bettering" themselves - but certainly people thinking about different issues, trying new things, gently challenging themselves - to be more sociable, to be greener, to debate issues in different ways, to be more community focused...to name but a few. And above all what we do on here is engage with each other - and actually how many of us can we were engaged or participated at school. So that's how I justify whiling the hours away on here. That said I wouldn't rule out me developing a penchant for porn in the future... perhaps that could be a new thread, Favourite Porn Sites ...now that's what I call education.

Moos Wrote: I have to say that all this > 'authority sucks' thing is quite true, but there > are down sides to the general move away from > respect for authority, aren't there? ... anarchy is a beautiful thing but only > if, er, everyone is terribly NICE. > Oh Moos you're so righter! I like boundaries, I like learning from other people who have more experience and more knowledge than me, I respect people in that position.... But in my experience the problem comes when those in authority cling to their position, and when challenged or questioned (which I always do out of curiosity and from a place of goodwill to begin with) feel threatened and so shut down dialogue with me. And it's when I feel I am not being listened to, or I'm not able to make a full contribution, that I start to get bored... and then restless ... and then cross.... Yes A is a perfect peach! As are you my dear Moos. x

mockney piers Wrote: I realised that systems > and authority figures really were petty and absurd > and I wasn't alone in thinking that. My mind has > not changed much since then. Agreed Mockney... it dawned on me recently that the last person to successfully "manage" me was Andrew (my friend from forum drinks) - and that was only because our friendship was more important than the job. Since then I have had problems with every single manager I have ever had ... though my publishing boss was astute enough to understand me and while he and I both know I was hell to work with at the end, he remains a close friend. Freelance and contract work is the only way forward....

mockney piers Wrote: > In fact my reference from Mr Cossy (spits) for my > ucas/pcas applications said pretty much exactly > that, meaning 8 out of the 9 institutions didn't > even offer me a place. Tosser!! Oh I hear you Mockney.... Mr Ward predicted me a C in English - I am convinced purely out of spite - and so only Warwick accepted me; everywhere else rejected me. And who the hell wants to go to a university that will accept a student no other place wants. So I rejected Warwick. So I got an A in my A-Level; went to Africa, came back and did rather well in English Literature and Drama from one of the universities that originally rejected me. God I can't believe how cross I still am. I could actually swear at this precise moment.

Ahhhh, I think I have killed this thread ... so I am going to re-start it... At 7, my teacher said that while I couldn't physically fight bullies, I had a razor-sharp tongue. And throughout secondary school I infuriated teachers by doing well while distracting everyone else and as one teacher put it "flying by the seat of my pants". Twenty years on I think I am much the same .... but I have learnt to bite my tongue and the pants have got bigger! So my question: How did people's teachers describe them in reports and suchlike and more importantly twenty, thirty years on - were they right?

annaj Wrote: > Well, you could be could be called bubbly I > suppose. Personally, I'd go for engaging, > scintillating, vivacious or vibrant to describe > you. Ooooh I had to quote that again because it is so very lovely - I am tickled pink - thank you x

I would definitely seek advice...but actually I am not convinced digging your heels in, and staying under the same roof - particularly when relatives are offering a haven - is the best option. Two people forced to live together when they are feeling hurt, angry, and a whole gamut of emotions - it just creates more bad feeling. And bad feeling is what makes very messy divorces.

Michael Palaeologus Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Similarly: > > Fuckwit I was once introduced to a bloke known as a bit of a lad with the ongoing joke that he always had a "fuckbuddy" Slightly tipsy but with the intention of making pleasant conversation I smiled enthusiastically and said "Soooooo, I hear you've got a new fuckwit in your life".

annaj Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I?m completely with you on comic sans. > It?s the typeface of Bubbly and Wacky people, Oh dear AnnaJ - I am often described as Bubbly - is it so bad? :'( But I am very particular about typefaces. I always remember the look on a funeral director's face when I requested that the words on a floral tribute (where the flowers made the words) be in italic rather than BLOCK PRINT... apparently in thirty years she had never come across such a request!

I am pretty sure that moving out does NOT have an impact on assets - I imagine this is different if children are involved because it becomes an issue about who has taken responsibility for childcare. I am aware that for amicable divorces which can take place after a two year period of separation - assets are divided up NOT at the point of separation, but at the point of divorce. http://www.resolution.org.uk/ is a very good website. And wish them luck....they may need it (as indeed I do myself!)

LuvPeckham Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Ahhh > > it isn't the website I have problems with, it is > the delay in posting out if you use supersaver... > why can't they send it out the same time as they > send out paid for mail... after all it is only > being delayed in the delivery option and not in > the processing option (which in my opinion has to > be the same internal process Quite simply - you get what you pay for... if you want something delivered the next day you need to do as Keef has done; and pay for the postage... how unfair on Keef or myself or anyone else who forks out for postage costs, if it meant absolutely nothing and you, who had chosen to not pay, got your goods at the same time. I like the fact Amazon gives you a free delivery option - I think it is a good selling point. And in business we all prioritise our workload - Amazon is no different. If an Amazon employee can only wrap 50 books in a day and he has 51 in his pile - and 50 of them have paid for first class post,.... well, it's a no brainer really. Sorry - I think I'm being patronising... I don't mean to be... but I find your argument totally illogical.

Better than a slap in the face with a wet fish. (the 'better than a' should be slurred - with the aid of gin if necessary)