stringvest

Transferring data from great big obsolete disks in a large central computer unit to small disks for lots of little computer units ... months and months of it. BRAIN DEAD DDDDDDD. 1010101000011010101010.

Thanks for ALL your replies. No! I am not about to buy a cape and call myself the crimson avenger or whatever. Sometimes I can't help but involve myself and I am sure others do too. A few weeks ago a smelly drunk tried to cross the road, he fell straight backwards and his head crunched on the kerb stone. PEOPLE WERE DRIVING AROUND HIM and walking by? I bore the smell, got him by the armpits dragged him to the side of the road (he'd peed himself too!). His name was Sam and he had a very nasty lump and gash on the back of his head. I called an ambulance and waited with him in the kerb, so something didn't come round the corner and run him over. I chatted to him and said help was on its way. The ambulance that attended was one of those 1 man estate cars, so I had to help the paramedic get Sam up on his feet and attended to. To some he was a waste of space tramp I suppose, to me he was someones son, brother .... A lady was broken down with a small child in the back of her car, I helped a man push her car into the kerb (he steered it...) whilst she held her child, and asked if I could phone anyone for her? She was very grateful. Some youths set fire to some old bike sheds under a block of flats a couple of years ago, there was black smoke billowing and people had come out to look. There was an old and infirm lady coughing at the window above the flames licking up the balcony. I went up and banged on her door and got her to come out and wait with her neighbours while the fire brigade attended. They seemed like the right things to do at the time? AS FOR THE COUNTRYSIDE: I do thank you for your advice and brutal honesty. Yes, things are not all rosey. Most of my country acquaintances are in agriculture (potatoes, veg), not livestock, they say they haven't the stomach for it. One friends dad had a pig farm. She can despatch a rat in an instant! Diary farming particular is hard and can be very brutal. In my London garden, there are often feathers from where the local Peregrine has picked off a blackbird or pigeon that I have fattened up for him! Being interested in animals and nature, I have researched a lot of things from fox-hunting, lab practices, EU agricultural policy (yawn), horse racing & foal farms (brutal too), dog racing etc, vet nursing, its nice to be able to have a bit knowledge about domestic pets and wildlife etc., forewarned is forearmed or whatever .... When/if I do get the country I will bear in mind what you said. I will have some stresses, it's a long old life, they will be different stresses and a change is as good as a rest. But if someone decides its a good idea to drag granny off on holiday by tying her in a wheelchair to the back of the car, I might have to intervene .... Thank you again.

Twats

I was on business in Holborn, by the tube. I was approached THREE times by beggars, pretending to be "all alone in country to go to job" and wanting 5 pounds for their oyster card. I knew they were scamming and offered to take one to the shop to put money on the card, but NO! they just wanted the money "just two pounds would be ok". I told 1st one to go away, 2nd one to go away, was avoided by 3rd one who had seen second one ... then flipping first one comes back and was very persistent, pleading in a shrill voice with praying hands. They all went off when I said I would call the police. They all have blue back packs so can see each other and are NOT alone. youths: I was on different business somewhere else! Tried to get along pavement but couldn't for gang of youths, bikes chucked on pavement outside the chicken shop. I asked several times to get past, but they were too busy laughing and shouting. I walked back further and crossed over, so that I could pass them without being in the road. THEN I SAW WHAT THEY WERE DOING. Chucking chips and chicken in the road to a flock of pigeons and ROARING with laughter as they were maimed and killed. Traffic was trying to avoid the flock etc. People at the bus stop were distressed and exclaiming, but NOT DOING ANYTHING. After the fourth was squashed and one flailing in the kerb, I stepped in. I picked up the pigeon with its neck broken and innards hanging out and headed for the youths. DO YOU WANT THIS FOR YOUR MUM? DO YOU WANT THIS WITH YOUR CHIPS? LOOK WHAT YOU DID. "EUUUUGHHH They were all screeching, you'll get rabies you nasty bit**" "eff off" ... YOU ARE THE NASTY ONES, WICKED AND CRUEL I said. They got mouthy and wouldn't leave so I called the police. I also despatched the pigeon flapping in the kerb and put them in the bin. Police have better things to do, but if kids aged 10-15 think this cruelty is REALLY FUNNY and acceptable, what is next for them KITTENS, PUPPIES .....??? I think PIGEONS are protected under the Wildlife and countryside act and can only be killed by licensed pest control etc. Regards.

Terrazzo is very nice and durable. (It's polished chips of marble and granite set in a concrete). I helped with the Ideal Home Show a few years ago, we used in a kitchen. There were some lovely examples of it. Choose wisely though else it can look municipal, like it was supposed to be on the floor, or like polished pavement? Some of the warmer pinky/terracotta examples can look nicer than the greys. Theres granite also, very durable, to do on the cheap you can use veneers over existing cupboards and worktop instead of large heavy slabs, this also allows for less reinforcement for the weight. Theres also corian, it has to be manufactured to measure it can wear and always needs bleaching to get rid of tea or tomato sauce stains etc. Hope that helps.

I'm getting out of London asap! No folks to worry about caring for or visiting, so anywhere will do! I am going completely rural - got mains water, so that's ok, got a small town for shopping 5 mins drive. Detached, no-one banging on the walls. A garage, put the car in. Those are my priorities. Its completely different if you have small children or work commitments. But the property is cheaper further out. There are a lot of great places in London, but I dread getting to any of them ... in the car you can't park, theres congestion charges, then it gets vandalised and left with the rain pouring in. Then, in a nice car your are worried about getting acid attacked and mugged(they do it for a scooter or phone!). I had to use the bus, couldn't sit or hold on the pole for blood everywhere! I went to Old Kent Rd supermarket shopping and some woman was actually poo-ing in the car park I reversed away and parked elswhere! I was going to Borough Market on the evening of terror attack, and left St Thomas's in time for Westminster one! I went to the Post Office and mentioned to the person that there was a queue, only to get racially abused as "old white trash mix-up need teaching not to diss??" Driving through peckham rye a car in front threw remains of KFC out the windows, I had to retrieve a drumstick from under my wipers! Im off!

Hello. Hope the kittens got a good home. I have had very many cats. Never gone looking for them or bought them, somehow they've found me, or I've found them. HERE IS THE HAPPY STORY OF JUST ONE: The latest turned up looking for food in the garden, skin and bone with various wounds, limping from being kicked. It was unneutered and unchipped. We fed it for a while, so it would know to come back. It was frightened of feet, sticks, hoses .... We made it a house from a blue recycling box and put that in the garden with straw in it. It turned up in the box in a terrible state with its ear hanging off from a burst abcess or infection. We took it to the vet and got it some antibiotics. We couldn't neuter it because of the infection ... and vets want you to make an appointment for neutering and make sure it hadn't eaten for the anaesthetic etc. One day after it had been turning up regularly for dinner, it turned up at 5pm so we grabbed it and whisked it to the vet, so they could keep it overnight for neutering the next day. After you have their "wanderings" taken away, you are supposed to keep them in for a few days, but with a hobo climbing the walls, that was too difficult and stressful for it. So we let him back out after a whole day & night and hoped he'd be sensible. He kept coming back everyday for his dinner. He stupidly thought he had to leave at night. He fortunately, wasn't feral, he'd had owners, just bad ones ... he was fearful and cautious and didn't know how to play. One day he came and sat on my lap, you could feel his spine like fishbones. We got him back to the vet, had his jabs and a microchip! He would fill himself up on several bowls of food and go off again. He started visiting during the day, he would sleep for hours on end, and then disappear off all night. (That was to change as I don't like them out all night). We had decided to keep him, he had chosen us. In talking to local people we found that the previous "owner" had moved away and left two cats, but didn't care for them anyway, two brothers, fighting for being unneutered etc. Im not sure if its true though. He started to play, a favourite bell ball he would carry about with him! He would go for you if you stroked his back end, and was quite vicious to play with, he would attack your hands as if was killing something. He had issues and needed understanding. I was pleased we had kept him, as others might not have understood if they had rehomed from the cats home, he might had scratched the children and been turfed out again, or returned to the cats home. After a few weeks, he decided he liked being in at night. We "conditioned/trained" him in that every time he came in he would get treats. We would whistle him in and he would get treats ... all we have to do is whistle and he comes straight back. He plays normally and safely. He enjoys a brush now. He will sit at your feet, sit on your lap, and follow me around, he likes to be where I am, whether I'm hoovering or watering plants etc. You can pick him up for a cuddle. You can twiddle his tail or his toes now. In the beginning, he didn't trust us and I didn't trust him, I wouldn't kiss him goodnight him for thinking he'd stretch my face. But that was then. Now he is a normal cat infant he is an exceptional cat and I'm glad he found me. There are about ten more like that: one bald, one epileptic, FIV, one thrown from flats stuck on a parapet, and one too feral except for me that I had to drive 3 miles to feed daily. s

I think dogs should be on leads for their own safety as much as anything. It's surprising also that in bird breeding season, the council send the tree trimmers out, and people butcher their hedges!

I have heard of this. A few years ago, they had a "fake queuer" in the post office who would swipe the pensioner with some chalk, so that when they left their accomplice outside could follow the cash. I would not have a front door with a large enough amount of glass that someone could smash it and gain entry, this was done many times in Nunhead not long ago.

Fact: We had a family telegram from Elvis because he couldn't be bothered to turn up for the prize winners of a rock and roll competition. Fact: When I am in my nicer sports car road users are more polite and give way more often than when I am transporting oldies in the old farts estate car!

Good luck ....

In the bible, which I am not saying is a factual work, it is a fact that in it, some youths called an old man baldy so god sent 42 bears to attack them! Also that you can't get into heaven without your goodies apparently. We got a letter from the council "AN ANNUAL REVIEW ... THAT IS CARRIED OUT EVERY TWO YEARS"????

Unpaid trial, just an excuse to make youngsters work for nothing, and keep getting free labour. When we employed random saturday people and "casual labour" even if they only lasted a day, they got paid for it.

Any news??????? We had noisy argumentative neighbours, constantly screaming and arguing, children crying, doors slamming, we feared for the kids. They were not approachable - if we asked if they was ok or what all the noise was about we got told to F off. One day it was going on the same, I called the police, the eldest child was taken away and the mother and baby put in a special unit. Good luck.

On the bird feeder today A CHEEKY MOUSE nibbling at the peanuts!! Also, saw a goldfinch pecking at the seed feeder and passing food to either a great tit or coal tit sitting with it? (larger than a blue tit with black crown?), "bird people" say this wouldn't happen, the gold finch would go first. The ground feeders lurk at the bottom waiting for bits of suet. Had to give up on some plants for being eaten by slugs and snails, the perennial red lobelia cardinal was stalks! Find myself putting old greens out for them now to keep them off other plants .... have mostly changed plants to inedible varieties.

Thanks for your replies. Yes! LPAs - completely flummoxes anyone you see about it, they want to appear like they know what they are doing, or know what they are saying, so tell you wrong stuff and push the wrong buttons ... or don't push the button that actions the proper request ... instead of telling you to do A,B and C, they tell you X,Y Z so when you ask whats going on? Have you done ABC, "No, I did XYZ" You shouldn't have done XYZ, why was I told to then???? It's not FRAUD, its just total incompetence and apathy!

I cannot help. All my feeders have been mangled by squirrels. Even the expensive metal "squirrel chew proof" ... they've chewed through. I made two christmas wreaths, thought it was nice to do a natural theme! Got some Ivy and foliage, wrapped round a wire ring, added walnuts and berries etc they looked nice. I made one for my mum also. We heard a clattering on the front door and saw the squirrel running off with it! TWICE !! I've got a plastic one now. Ha, also saw a squirrel, running along, up a tree trunk ... up the tree trunk ... up and up. Only to find himself on top of a telegraph graph pole, with a face that look like "OMG - wrong tree" too far to jump across, he came straight back down and up the tree next-door to it.

Thank you blah blah. Its nice to hear from someone knowledgeable about the countryside. Ive never gone looking for a pet. They've turned up on the doorstep in a sorry state, or been neglected and unwanted and I've took them on, got them well etc., I think I'm a responsible cat owner. My cat is only allowed out at certain times, mostly supervised and can be seen on CCTV! He sleeps most of the time, and is kept in at night. NO CAT FLAP. I also have an interest in birds, I give them food and water. I have robins, blue tits, woodpeckers, wrens, blackbirds, thrushes. I also had a strange water rail/hen take up residence in one of the water bowls. Very FEW SPARROWS though! I had to rescue a swan. My cat hasn't bothered to catch any birds, he has brought us a few mice in NINE YEARS. I think the good I do for animals far outweighs the occasional misdemeanour of my cat. Even the RSPB says that cats are not as much to blame for decline as people like to think, there are losses of habitat, new buildings not accommodating them, some farming practices and chemicals (killing pests, reducing their food etc). Some farmers are very good, providing wild areas and protecting their hedgerows etc ... Thank you.

Thanks for most replies! The Fox Hunting debate will go on forever, I am not a supporter of it. I understand people do things differently in the countryside. I do not understand if its a vermin control thing, the pomp and ceremony surrounding it, and that it has a "closed season". Vermin is vermin, the rat man doesn't turn up looking like a matador or say he can only kill them at certain times of year, because killing them all off completely would in effect make them all redundant? My cat was a stray, his owners moved away and left him, he was in such a state ... he'd been living on scraps and rodents and spiders! People appreciate cats when they are "mousers" but not so much for anything else it would seem.

Or better, a flashy sports car and a toy-boy? toy/girl .. whatever! I was pursued by a hoodie on a bicycle, he said "hot wagon - you and me should go out innit?" I replied "you want to give me a cross bar?" He said "no, no, not on my wheels, on yours, we should go drive in your wagon". I replied I don't fink so, Im old enough to your mum innit!

Stilt

Mum had Dementia, Dad Alzheimers. There came a time when they couldn't manage their finances. Dad would go out with five and a half? for a newspaper and some milk. Mum couldn't see to write a cheque for the insurance etc. I already had Lasting Powers of Attorney with the solicitor, so I have to get them in place. The doctor had to tell the solicitor that they "lacked capacity" for this to happen and some goings on at the Office of the Public Guardian etc. When this was done I went to Barclays. Took "powers" for both. Instead of issuing me a cheque book, new card, pin no to me at my address. They made mum in charge of dad, dad in charge of mum and issued them both cheque books, cards and pin numbers. I complained. THEY DID IT WRONG. I TOLD THEM NEVER TO USE THE OLD ADDRESS, as we couldn't be sure what would happen to anything sent there. I had to go back and do it again. This time they did it correctly, re-sent a cheque book, card and pin TO THEIR ADDRESS which got lost, stolen or hidden ... so they did it again!! Mum died. I phoned the bank. I was told to go to a branch with ID, LPA for Dad, death cert for mum. I did this, I went to the office with a lady, who photocopied it all and said mum would be taken off the account TWO YEARS AGO. Dad went into care, his home sold to pay bills. I had to write a cheque to the home for ?10k, the home lost the cheque, so I stopped it and wrote a new one. The home presented the stopped cheque, so it was returned to me AT THEIR OLD HOUSE?? Dad recently passed. I phoned the bank. Thats ok, come in with the certificates and they would take dad off MUM'S ACCOUNT? I said she died two years ago! Why didn't you tell us they asked?? I have 2 deaths now to deal with because they didn't deal with the first one ??? January the registry is busy, had to wait 2 weeks for appt. Got there with all docs, ID etc DADS BIRTH CERT etc .. the lady printed a draft I checked it was fine. She then said "when did dad die" ... I told her. She printed off the certs, signed them with her posh pen, stuffed them in an envelope whilst I gathered all my papers together. I looked at the certificate .. SHE HAD DELETED DADS BIRTHDAY AND PUT HIS DEATH DATE. So he was now "0" days old, having died the same day he was born!!! THEY ARE NO GOOD i said. She said she had entered them now, so I would have to come back tomorrow as they were closing and apply for an amendment. I had an appointment with the manager the next day (FRI). They said they would waive the ?90 amendment fee (like they are doing me a favour) and that it would take 10 days to get new ones. I SAID NO - I AM NOT HAPPY WITH THAT, Ive got a funeral to sort. She said she would put them through URGENTLY, and phone me MONDAY. I waited for a call til 3,30 (they shut at 4pm). I phoned them. Some "gate-keeper" wouldn't put me through to the manager, telling me to turn up fill the amendment forms, pay ?90 wait ten days ..." I SAID NO - IVE DONE ALL THAT... i need to speak to the manager urgently. She took a message. I PHONED THE GOVERNMENT GENERAL REGISTRY ... they said they had "authorised the amendment and it should be done NOW". The register office manager phoned and said, sorry she had NOT had authorisation so couldn't do it. I told her I had phoned the general registry and they told me THEY HAD suthorised it, she said they hadn't, I said they definitely had. So she checked again ... she found they HAD authorisation and said I could come in this morning to collect proper death certificates.!!! HOW MANY OVER PAID NUMPTIES ARE OUT THERE????????? Barclays, said I need to apply for Probate now before they will release funds- the accounts are frozen, thats all they tell you. To apply for probate you have to go to a probate registry and swear an oath etc., Before you can apply for probate appointment, you have to apply to HMRC with details of the estate for inheritance tax etc. They give you a reference number and details of your agreement to pay the tax before Probate will see you? This is a worry, should I use a solicitor? I contacted the solicitor who sent me their terms of business: ?210 per hour for an unknown number of hours/weeks? plus a percentage of the estate? For a simple release of bank funds? I contacted HMRC for help, quite complicated, but not necessarily worth employing a solicitor for: complete form for a reference number. Complete 3 other forms with that reference number IHT400 (general), IHT421 (money), IHT423 (bank release) .... theres an array of forms depending on how complex the estate is, properties, stocks, shares, debts, etc ... IT LOOKS MUCH WORSE THAN IT REALLY IS. I've printed off all the forms I need so I can fill them in draft, and then do it online, I will then have a hard copy. Complicated estates can take months, with valuers needed, property sold etc ... others can take several weeks. Once Ive done the HMRC stuff, I can apply for probate, original will, 3 copies of will, ID, death cert, Tax forms, ?215 cheque payable to the courts! Aaaaaaarrrrgggggghhhh! What doesn't kill you ..... makes you a snivelling half person and then kills you! Stringy 2018

How amazing, my friend lived in Rome for a while, but I never got there! I REALLY REALLY want to see the Michangelo sculptures. Its on my bucket list. My friend used to help cats. HAVE A WONDERFUL TIME.

silks

I have seen several horrible reports of "out of control" hounds. A greyhound and two owners attacked whilst walking in cornwall, a cat attacked - whats left of its body brought back to the owners in a dog kibble sack ... many terrible tales of when hounds attack things they shouldn't, clambering into gardens after little dogs. I think our cat will have to be an indoor cat now. At the house I want, there is a tall wooden dog run about 6ft x 6ft, I will have to secure the top and let that be the cats outside space ... thens theres the windows to think about? Aaaarrrgh. !!! Maybe thats why the run is there in the first place. Hmmmmn