Grump of the day

[LadyArowana]

I am currently suffering a lack of breathability. This article was written a couple of days ago and things have become worse, air quality currently "unhealthy" http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/environment/air-quality-turns-unhealthy-and-could-worsen-today

 

[Keithj]

I came extremely close to buying a Henry last week, when I realised the state my workshop had got into - and the cart lodge could do with a clear-out too. As I stood there contemplating where I'd start, I heard the Vax sobbing. I'd forgotten we had it. It did a super job of cleaning carpets at the previous house, but hasn't been used here. There's this giant cleaner bit that goes with it, like Henry on steroids.

So, some time in the next few (days, months, years) the workshop and cartlodge may be vacuumed..

 

[Feltwell]

Mrs F opened the bathroom cabinet earlier this week, and a glass deodorant bottle fell out, into the sink below.

The glass bottle is of course intact, but the sink cracked. :roll:

 

[Feltwell]

Grump de jour. Stripping paint off my window bay with a heat gun, just underneath the soon-to-be-replaced felt roof, and little spits of molten tar keep coming off and landing on my hands. Ouch.

Of course, thinking to wear gloves first would have been far too sensible :roll:

 

[88v8]

Haven't bought any solvent paint since we move house three years ago.

Bought 2.5l of Sikkens Satura black for the garage doors and door frame - £51
And I shall probably wish I'd painted then white as they're east facing.

Then a litre of Eastwood Extreme chassis black from Frost for the door hinges - delivered for £42.
Forty two pounds for a tin of paint
Unbelieeeevable :shock:

I blame QE.

 

[Feltwell]

I blame QE.

What's "Her Maj" got to do with it? :wink:

 

[jackpoint]

Celotexing skeilings. Arghhhhh!!! :evil:

 

[Penners]

Nothing wrong with an insulated ceiling - unless of course you meant "Artexing"!!

 

[jackpoint]

Definitely celotex. Foil backed vile dust producing yag. We are sure the end result will be well worth it. ..the execution, however, sucks :evil: :lol:

 

[mattice]

"What! You are spending another weekend on the house?"
"It'll just take me an hour, I just need to feed a wire through for the outdoor light...."

Lifted up a floorboard in the 'new' bit of the house, and 3 joists out of their hangers and the remainder teetering on the edge.....

8 hours later...... G&T O'Clock. :?

 

[Flyfisher]

Car insurance renewal time :evil:

I received an email from our existing insurance company reminding me of the pending renewal and that I don't need to do anything as they would take the renewal premium automatically from the card details they had on file. Fair enough, makes it nice and easy - except the renewal premium was substantially higher that previously.

So I checked for an online price from the same company, for the same two cars, for the same two drivers and it was almost exactly half price! :twisted:

I then phoned them up and said I wanted to renew at the online price . . . and they agreed.

My instinct is to change company out of principle but I can't be bothered filling in yet more forms etc.

Bah!

 

[tobydog]

I've had similar experiences with my roadside recovery renewal. The online price is just the cheap dangly carrot to lure in new customers. They then presume that a high proportion won't be bothered to switch again and the price slowly increases over time. Somewhat surprised to hear that yours went up substantially in one go because that somewhat defeats the object of premium increase by stealth. Good job on getting the online price. I have to beat up NFU each year for my house insurance and thankfully they manage to find a long lost discount hidden at the back of the drawer.

 

[Penners]

Car insurance renewal time :evil:

I received an email from our existing insurance company reminding me of the pending renewal and that I don't need to do anything as they would take the renewal premium automatically from the card details they had on file. Fair enough, makes it nice and easy - except the renewal premium was substantially higher that previously.

So I checked for an online price from the same company, for the same two cars, for the same two drivers and it was almost exactly half price! :twisted:

I then phoned them up and said I wanted to renew at the online price . . . and they agreed.

My instinct is to change company out of principle but I can't be bothered filling in yet more forms etc.

Bah!

Forgive the obvious, FF, but I hope you also told them that you no longer permit them to renew automatically. They'll always try this trick, unless you forbid it.

 

[Flyfisher]

Good point, though they always contact me well in advance so it's only a bit stealthy. It just seems to be the way things work these days. I've had similar experiences with broadband contract renewals and Mrs FF is currently getting her teeth into sorting out our energy suppliers, which I confess to have left slip over the past few years and it seems to have cost us quite a few shillings.

Tobydog - to give an idea of the scale of the changes, my last year policy cost (both cars) was £640. This year's renewal notice was £840. The online offer, and what we've just paid, was £406. All with the same company!

 

[noj]

A surfeit of squirrels!

This year they've been in the roof of the kitchen, they've nearly killed a lovely old cedar tree and dug up most of my carrots so I decided (reluctantly) a few weeks back that I needed to lower their numbers...

24 'removed' since then and there were still five running up the garden this morning - the task seems endless/futile

 

[Flyfisher]

- the task seems endless/futile

Rather like our permanent battle with moles. The current tally is 62 over the past five years or so, yet all we can do is to trap them on our border as they infiltrate from the seemingly inexhaustible surrounding farmland.

 

[noj]

62 over five years seems a reasonable level of control - but you'd think 24 in less than four weeks would at least have a thinning effect*

*it's certainly fattening the foxes though

 

[LadyArowana]

A surfeit of squirrels!

This year they've been in the roof of the kitchen, they've nearly killed a lovely old cedar tree and dug up most of my carrots so I decided (reluctantly) a few weeks back that I needed to lower their numbers...

24 'removed' since then and there were still five running up the garden this morning - the task seems endless/futile

No you're doing it wrong, put out some delicious nuts, maybe some rabbit food from the pet shop, they will leave the trees and carrots alone :wink:

 

[tobydog]

With the huge surplus of acorns and apples this year, our resident squirrels seem to be quite happy minding their own business. One squirrel spent at least an hour last weekend crossing our garden back and forth collecting individual acorns for his winter stash. Quite cute in a softie kind of way. Our problem is normally big fat wood pigeons, however, most of those seem to have succumb to the gun this year, but those who haven't are getting cleaned out by a very aggressive local sparrow hawk. It's fascinating watching the hawk chase the pigeons through the garden with inches between them. Yesterday both a pigeon and hawk flew directly into the large glass area of our kitchen. The hawk still claimed his prize but Mrs. T felt sorry for the pigeon and saw the hawk off. The stunned pigeon slowing came round and waddled off down the garden, no doubt to be caught again today.

 

[mims&pip]

Woodchip wallpaper. Twelve ceilings (not including hall, staircases & landings). Between beams. Numerous walls too. Hung as recently as 2000 :shock: Really? Why? The ceilings I've exposed so far are not even especially cracked......

If I were that way inclined I would willingly curse whoever desecrated an architectural gem in this way

Instead I soldier on with trusty scraper......grrrrr!

Mims x