The grumpy thread

[Popsicle]

14 hours ago, maxxo said:

I suppose the one positive is I got 64 mpg out of an XM on the way there and back

Thats good mpg's especially with shit loads of 0-70-0 every mile around MK.

[maxxo]

6 minutes ago, Popsicle said:

Thats good mpg's especially with shit loads of 0-70-0 every mile around MK.

I didn’t even bother trying to get to 70 as I could see on the sat nav I’d have to stop again in half a mile so didn’t see the piint

[IronStar]

On 09/09/2024 at 18:19, IronStar said:

I ordered an LPG mixer plate for Florida. Actually, I ordered two just in case so I have a spare. Guy #1 shipped it on Friday, I get a message on Saturday that delivery is scheduled. I need to pop out. I call the delivery guy, phone is off. I leave the money with the store on the ground floor. I come back home, no one called, no one dropped off the parcel. 4PM I get an updated “sorry we missed you” status. No you fucking didn’t, I was there! Your phone is turned off! No attempted delivery note either.

Right, fine, it’s in the post office on Monday then. What’s this, not my post office? Nevermind, I’ll drive there on lunch break. Oh, what’s that, it’s temporarily* working until 2PM not 7PM? Fine, I’ll pick it up tomorrow morn…oh, it works from 1PM tomorrow. 

Guy #2 shipped it today, not on Friday as we agreed. As the usual delivery driver is on holiday, I have a distinct feeling that one will be a wild chase as well.

Chances of having the car fully functional this weekend- rapidly slimming 🙄

Chased down the packages. Called the LPG / Carb dudes. Carb half of the duo is away on holiday, and is back on 21st. They were both supposed to be back on 1st of September, but apparently this guy took off again.

Chances of car working this weekend- officially 0.

The biggest Zastava meet is on 22nd of September. If anything, a single thing goes wrong on 21st and I can’t fetch the part immediately, I can’t take the car, and I was really hoping I would be able to go.  

[BorniteIdentity]

12 hours ago, omegod said:

Solicitors ...bleurgh .... Sadly my MIL is at the end of her life and wanted to get her ducks in a row , her will leaves her house to Mrs Omegod and her brother and she was advised by a solicitor to transfer the house equity to them now rather than them having to go through probate after the fact, I contacted a local conveyancing solicitors for her who seemed happy to assist but have been pissing us around for weeks, not returning calls  and they have now suddenly decided they don't do home visits ,she's bedbound which they knew all along FFS ! 

I suggested we set up a teams type meeting where they can confirm this is her wishes and them then prepare the deed of transfer for signing, needless to say this has met with huffs and puffs 

I know they need to be extremely careful with this stuff but FFS they have been useless 

Fuckem, we'll do probate  

Do probate.

There’s literally nothing to be gained. Not financially, not time wise. Every single conveyancer will have at least one or two probate sales going through at any one time, and the process has changed little in years.

Good luck through the next few weeks and be kind to one another (and yourself.)

[maxxo]

Oh yeah more exciting stuff

great news

ive been diagnosed with both arthritis and diabetes in the same week

lovely

more stuff to look forward to as I get older 

[High Jetter]

6 hours ago, maxxo said:

Oh yeah more exciting stuff

great news

ive been diagnosed with both arthritis and diabetes in the same week

lovely

more stuff to look forward to as I get older 

Hang on, are you even 30 yet? Though my Uncle was diagnosed way back when with diabetes when he was in his teens. Still active now in his 80s, has had to inject all this time - hope you don't need that.

[maxxo]

3 hours ago, High Jetter said:

Hang on, are you even 30 yet? Though my Uncle was diagnosed way back when with diabetes when he was in his teens. Still active now in his 80s, has had to inject all this time - hope you don't need that.

I’m 25 so it came as a surprise if not unexpected

[Spiny Norman]

Fucking Parcelfarce!
Parcel posted yesterday on 48 hour delivery allegedly* had an attempted delivery an hour ago when I was sitting within 20 feet of the front door. 
No doorbell, no knock, no card, nothing....

 

[Supernaut]

12 hours ago, maxxo said:

Oh yeah more exciting stuff

great news

ive been diagnosed with both arthritis and diabetes in the same week

lovely

more stuff to look forward to as I get older 

Type 1 or type 2?

I was diagnosed with type 1 when I was 17... in 2005.

Still here, still injecting! These days you can get fancy sensors that just plug into your arm and last a fortnight at a time while sending blood glucose readings to your phone via bluetooth.

 

It's a huge shock when you're diagnosed, but you'll get there. I still have the odd hypo every now and then. It's feels like being drunk but less fun.

[vulgalour]

Been told not to return to work until I've seen my GP to find out wtf is wrong with me.   Serious memory issues where I've got to the point I literally couldn't remember how to do my job today, doing the stuff I was doing yesterday.  Nothing made sense, I just stared at it like I'd never seen it before.  If it hadn't been for the way things are recorded in my current role I doubt I would have been made aware of bad it really is.  There's stuff I've done that I can tell I've done because of how it's inputted and have zero memory of doing.  I've been doing it at home too, the housemate pointed out a few things I was totally unaware of.

That's the problem with memory loss stuff, you don't know it's happening until someone else shows you.  Hopefully it's just a stress thing and not something more serious.

[MikeKnight]

1 hour ago, vulgalour said:

Been told not to return to work until I've seen my GP to find out wtf is wrong with me.   Serious memory issues where I've got to the point I literally couldn't remember how to do my job today, doing the stuff I was doing yesterday.  Nothing made sense, I just stared at it like I'd never seen it before.  If it hadn't been for the way things are recorded in my current role I doubt I would have been made aware of bad it really is.  There's stuff I've done that I can tell I've done because of how it's inputted and have zero memory of doing.  I've been doing it at home too, the housemate pointed out a few things I was totally unaware of.

That's the problem with memory loss stuff, you don't know it's happening until someone else shows you.  Hopefully it's just a stress thing and not something more serious.

Good to know you're ok, I don't come here much but when telegram was telling me the last time you logged into it was back in August I got my normal paranoid self and got worried. Didn't realise I hadn't spoken to you in a while, then it all clicked and of course I thought the worst situation I possibly could.

Hope the GP can sort something out for you. I have a terrible memory at the best of times (as you know) but true memory loss is awful.

[Zelandeth]

Finally actually got to see my GP today.  This is something I have been attempting to do since... I've lost track.  Early 2019 I think.

They were running a full 45 minutes late by the time I actually got seen.  Saw a total of four people in the practice.  Including me, the receptionist and my GP.

Because it's so long since I've seen them, first thing they insisted on doing after berating me like a three year old for not having been in there for so long, was taking my weight (which is too high, I'm well aware of and have been working on trying to lose since I put it on while basically unable to get any exercise done for six months after I got COVID the first time), spending ten minutes explaining why that was a huge health issue and everything I needed to do to sort it.  Then they insisted on taking my blood pressure - which took about ten minutes as she couldn't get the machine to work.  No surprises that's also high.  

At this point I'd been in there for about 20 minutes - and she declared we were out of time, and I'd need to book another appointment to discuss anything further.  Like...everything I booked the appointment for.  Based on my experience last time, that will be mid 2028 then.

So in five-ish years I've established that I'm overweight and have slightly high blood pressure.  Both things I already knew.

Do just wonder why I even bother trying.

[maxxo]

another grump

helped a few family members out today with vacuuming their houses

why oh why in this day and age do we still have cleaners where you have to move the hose yourself from the baseplate to the hose when required

my 20 odd year old dyson is piss easy just lift the wand off

say what you want about dyson, they're my favourite ones to use, just easy

[vulgalour]

4 hours ago, MikeKnight said:

telegram was telling me the last time you logged into it was back in August

 

I shall DM you, there's a different reason I've not been on Telegram since August.

[LightBulbFun]

2 hours ago, Zelandeth said:

Finally actually got to see my GP today.  This is something I have been attempting to do since... I've lost track.  Early 2019 I think.

They were running a full 45 minutes late by the time I actually got seen.  Saw a total of four people in the practice.  Including me, the receptionist and my GP.

Because it's so long since I've seen them, first thing they insisted on doing after berating me like a three year old for not having been in there for so long, was taking my weight (which is too high, I'm well aware of and have been working on trying to lose since I put it on while basically unable to get any exercise done for six months after I got COVID the first time), spending ten minutes explaining why that was a huge health issue and everything I needed to do to sort it.  Then they insisted on taking my blood pressure - which took about ten minutes as she couldn't get the machine to work.  No surprises that's also high.  

At this point I'd been in there for about 20 minutes - and she declared we were out of time, and I'd need to book another appointment to discuss anything further.  Like...everything I booked the appointment for.  Based on my experience last time, that will be mid 2028 then.

So in five-ish years I've established that I'm overweight and have slightly high blood pressure.  Both things I already knew.

Do just wonder why I even bother trying.

I have to wonder, is there some official body you can complain to about this sort of shit? some sort of ombudsman or such?  because thats just complete bollocks and genuinely not fair nor is it right, how they can waste your time on things your already know then refuse to hear you about your actual concerns, and its also a horrible use of what little use of resources there are

given the amount of stories I have heard of people who have gotten depressed and then killed themselves because they could not get the support they need from the system, this sort of thing *really* angers me that its still happening, espically to someone like you, who really does not dserve any of this sort of bollocks, that you seem to get straddled with far too often

I really wish there was something I could do for you in that regard! its all the small injustices that really piss me off too, like that time you where driving the camper-van and got tugged for "driving it aggressively" just because you dared down shift a gear in preperation for the up coming roundabout, yet all the genuine scrotes that run around in illegal cars are completely left alone 

 

[sheffcortinacentre]

I've not seen mine this year ,you have to ring at 8am to be told no appointments.

I'm in the depression category ( not been great for last fortnight).

Before now I've gone in there middle of day as a bloke in his 50's crying & begging to see someone to be told have to ring at 8am, ring 101, go to A&E or walkin centre ( who say they can't help with mental health problems)  in the meen time surrounded by posters saying we're concerned about your  mental health problems, mental health is a priority blah blah contact your GP etc.

The NHS like the whole country as had it, it's been run into the ground, sold off, etc  & this shower will be no better than the last lot.

[New POD]

8 hours ago, maxxo said:

another grump

helped a few family members out today with vacuuming their houses

why oh why in this day and age do we still have cleaners where you have to move the hose yourself from the baseplate to the hose when required

my 20 odd year old dyson is piss easy just lift the wand off

say what you want about dyson, they're my favourite ones to use, just easy

Just don't use it on plaster dust. It will fail. 

Hetty for the win. 

[beko1987]

8 hours ago, maxxo said:

another grump

helped a few family members out today with vacuuming their houses

why oh why in this day and age do we still have cleaners where you have to move the hose yourself from the baseplate to the hose when required

my 20 odd year old dyson is piss easy just lift the wand off

say what you want about dyson, they're my favourite ones to use, just easy

Because their cheap and nasty! I bet it had a pleated inner filter too 🤮

[vulgalour]

8 hours ago, LightBulbFun said:

I have to wonder, is there some official body you can complain to about this sort of shit? some sort of ombudsman or such? 

You can complain, it varies who you complain to depending on your area, the Trust that covers it, you practice etc. so there's often a bit of digging to find out the right contact.  This does sound like it's probably an issue with the practice itself so a complaint there is likely the best first step and then escalate to the wider Trust covering your area if you can't get a suitable resolution.

Beyond that, the practical solution here is to book a double slot, regardless of how many problems you're going for.  When you do the triage at reception, you can be quite vague, "mental health", or "pain" is enough for them to triage you to the revelant clinician, you don't need to go into more detail than that if you don't want to, patient confidentiality and all that.  Generally speaking these days a GP appointment is 10 minutes for 1 problem.  That's why if you go in and say "oh there is this other thing" you'll be told to book another appointment where in the olden days you'd be able to discuss that too as it may be related to the first problem.  How a patient is supposed to know how many problems they have is beyond me, but that's the sort of decisions that get made with an organisation that has more demand than capacity.

[Markeh]

I gave up on my GP after a referral from an opticians got scanned in the wrong pile and didn't get picked up until 15 months later when I suddenly remembered and was about to ring and complain to Vision Express for not sending the referral, but figured I'd try them first. Then when I had a bad case of post-nasal drip, they said 'in a month if it doesn't get better come back', I came back a month later to be snottily told 'you haven't given it long enough'. Now waiting for the opthalmology department at the hospital to give me a 3 month checkup. I'm currently on month 10 of waiting. I keep being told there's a backlog when I call. The GP said (again with a snotty tone) that they can't do anything either. Only my eyesight folks, not like I rely on it or anything...

And don't start me off on this 'ring up at 8am if you want to be seen we don't do advance appointments' bullshit.

[MikeR]

her indoors got a overdue notice from the library about a book she had renewed , so despite the pissing down rain we went with  the 

renewal slip she had kept ..

oh thats ok then we will waive it then  ....  not oh sorry we fucked up it should not of happened ..  council IT systems !!

[St.Jude]

1 hour ago, Markeh said:

And don't start me off on this 'ring up at 8am if you want to be seen we don't do advance appointments' bullshit.

I remember waiting to see the doctor and there was this old boy who must have been well in to his 80's (if not 90) talking to the receptionist. He wants to make an appointment. The receptionist is telling him to ring up and do it. He's hard of hearing, so she's broadcasting this to everyone. "YOU NEED TO RING UP AT 8AM AND BOOK AN APPOINTMENT, WE CAN'T BOOK ONE HERE". He tells her that he doesn't have a phone, because she then shouts "THEN YOU NEED TO DO IT ONLINE". Well that went as well as you would think. Telling him to speak to a family member or a relative and get them to do it then. And here was me thinking most of the elderly folk in the country are lonely because they know no one and that jumped up cunt of a "care navigator" (tickle ye not, that's what my GP calls these fuckers) is going out of her way to just do a decent thing and book the bloke in for an appointment.

The online thing is fucking bullshit too. You can do it through the NHS app and I've tried several times, but unless I am making an appointment for a cervical scan or contraceptive pill I can't actually make an appointment through it. Total nonsense.

[comfortablynumb]

I don't ring my gp

If I need to talk to them, I'll get in the car and drive three mile to sit on the doorstep at 7.50am.

Fuck ringing them, two minutes of bullshit of how you mustn't get cross with them, and how they're doing their best, to be told that 'you are number 45 in the call queue'

Yeah, I'm a full time carer, I don't have  45 minutes to wait to be told you can't help 🤦edit -fortunately daughter MK3, who is one of the family members I care for, has a FUCKING MARVELLOUS ( can't state that highly enough) consultant at our local hospital, which just means that she gets piled on with any care needs we have, which she ALWAYS sorts out, or her secretary does, regardless of whether it's part of their job or not.

Edited September 12 by comfortablynumb
Additional

[Zelandeth]

53 minutes ago, comfortablynumb said:

I don't ring my gp

If I need to talk to them, I'll get in the car and drive three mile to sit on the doorstep at 7.50am.

Fuck ringing them, two minutes of bullshit of how you mustn't get cross with them, and how they're doing their best, to be told that 'you are number 45 in the call queue'

Yeah, I'm a full time carer, I don't have  45 minutes to wait to be told you can't help 🤦edit -fortunately daughter MK3, who is one of the family members I care for, has a FUCKING MARVELLOUS ( can't state that highly enough) consultant at our local hospital, which just means that she gets piled on with any care needs we have, which she ALWAYS sorts out, or her secretary does, regardless of whether it's part of their job or not.

This lot won't take any appointments etc in person, not even at 8am.  You have to book *everything* through the website.  For on-the-day appointments, that's opened at 0800 in the morning, and the slots are filled by 0801.

Pretty sure this is in direct response to the fact that there were a hundred people queued up in the car park every morning before.

If you're too vague in what you ask for in the appt, they'll just either phone you to ask for further details or just cancel it.  You don't get to decide whether it's a telephone or in person appointment, they make that call.

The sequence of events here is basically that the wait for an appointment is 8-12 weeks.  Usually for a phone appointment.  Which they then either cancel the day before, or just fail to call.  Then send you the angry "you missed an appointment, you're costing the NHS thousands of pounds a day..." Letter.  Then you go to the back of the queue and the cycle repeats.

I do actually have private health insurance through my other half's work, but what I need to see them about is something they won't take on without a referral letter.  Which my GP won't issue until they've seen me.  So it's back on to the merry-go-round.

The simple fact is that our practice is over-subscribed by about 5 times even before you take into account the country wide resourcing issues that affect all practices, so it's no great surprise it's a disaster.  Unfortunately none of the alternatives around here are taking on patients from out of zone (as they're also all over capacity), so we're stuck with what we've got.

Yes, I've tried the walk-in centres, and was told basically that if I wasn't bleeding to death, having a heart attack or a stroke that they basically couldn't help me and I needed to see my GP.

[Markeh]

1 hour ago, St.Jude said:

I remember waiting to see the doctor and there was this old boy who must have been well in to his 80's (if not 90) talking to the receptionist. He wants to make an appointment. The receptionist is telling him to ring up and do it. He's hard of hearing, so she's broadcasting this to everyone. "YOU NEED TO RING UP AT 8AM AND BOOK AN APPOINTMENT, WE CAN'T BOOK ONE HERE". He tells her that he doesn't have a phone, because she then shouts "THEN YOU NEED TO DO IT ONLINE". Well that went as well as you would think. Telling him to speak to a family member or a relative and get them to do it then. And here was me thinking most of the elderly folk in the country are lonely because they know no one and that jumped up cunt of a "care navigator" (tickle ye not, that's what my GP calls these fuckers) is going out of her way to just do a decent thing and book the bloke in for an appointment.

The online thing is fucking bullshit too. You can do it through the NHS app and I've tried several times, but unless I am making an appointment for a cervical scan or contraceptive pill I can't actually make an appointment through it. Total nonsense.

I can book an appointment through the NHS app, but what they don't tell you at my GP is that it's a phone appointment only!

[jakebullet]

Mad Jean's done it this time

Gone and got herself banned from the GP. Guessing it's for abusing the staff, but whatever the reason I'd imagine it makes you fairly fucked, and going to be difficult to get a replacement vets.

 

[LightBulbFun]

2 hours ago, Zelandeth said:

The sequence of events here is basically that the wait for an appointment is 8-12 weeks.  Usually for a phone appointment.  Which they then either cancel the day before, or just fail to call.  Then send you the angry "you missed an appointment, you're costing the NHS thousands of pounds a day..." Letter.  Then you go to the back of the queue and the cycle repeats.

ok that in itself is bollocks, especially if they are accusing *you* of missing the appointment, that in itself I would not stand for and really complain about to someone, especially because knowing my luck, they would log it somewhere that you had missed say 10 appointments  and go "oh you missed 10 appointments, you are unreliable so we deprioritise   you" when actually no its them that failed to call back 10 times

2 hours ago, Zelandeth said:

The simple fact is that our practice is over-subscribed by about 5 times even before you take into account the country wide resourcing issues that affect all practices, so it's no great surprise it's a disaster.  Unfortunately none of the alternatives around here are taking on patients from out of zone (as they're also all over capacity), so we're stuck with what we've got.

see I recognise that, that the NHS is currently taking it up the back passage without any lube, and so everything has a 300 week lead time, but its still no excuse for the shit you describe, like the wasting of a valuable appointment for something your well aware of already and then refusing to hear about what you actually came for, or blaming you for missing an appointment when it was them who failed to call back

that would not stand in my book or certainly it would piss me off greatly, as it has done now LOL

[Dave_Q]

3 hours ago, Zelandeth said:

This lot won't take any appointments etc in person, not even at 8am.  You have to book *everything* through the website.  For on-the-day appointments, that's opened at 0800 in the morning, and the slots are filled by 0801.

Pretty sure this is in direct response to the fact that there were a hundred people queued up in the car park every morning before.

If you're too vague in what you ask for in the appt, they'll just either phone you to ask for further details or just cancel it.  You don't get to decide whether it's a telephone or in person appointment, they make that call.

The sequence of events here is basically that the wait for an appointment is 8-12 weeks.  Usually for a phone appointment.  Which they then either cancel the day before, or just fail to call.  Then send you the angry "you missed an appointment, you're costing the NHS thousands of pounds a day..." Letter.  Then you go to the back of the queue and the cycle repeats.

I do actually have private health insurance through my other half's work, but what I need to see them about is something they won't take on without a referral letter.  Which my GP won't issue until they've seen me.  So it's back on to the merry-go-round.

The simple fact is that our practice is over-subscribed by about 5 times even before you take into account the country wide resourcing issues that affect all practices, so it's no great surprise it's a disaster.  Unfortunately none of the alternatives around here are taking on patients from out of zone (as they're also all over capacity), so we're stuck with what we've got.

Yes, I've tried the walk-in centres, and was told basically that if I wasn't bleeding to death, having a heart attack or a stroke that they basically couldn't help me and I needed to see my GP.

If it's Bupa they have an online GP service you should be able to use to get a referral.

[artdjones]

Maybe the answer is the Irish solution.

I pay €60 for an appointment, and it's literally always been next day. ( Those on very low incomes, pensioners and small children get it free.) If your health is so important maybe it's worth spending money on. I know the NHS is supposed to be free, but if the alternatives are, wait years for a free GP appointment about real issues, and maybe die young, or go private and maybe extend your life by many years?

 

[Zelandeth]

38 minutes ago, Dave_Q said:

If it's Bupa they have an online GP service you should be able to use to get a referral.

AXA sadly.  The way it works seems to vary a lot depending on exactly which plan you're on as well.  I have spoken to them directly on a few occasions, and the folks I spoke to really did try everything to find a way around it, but at the end of the day they're slaves to the system, and it's that system that has problems.  It sounds like a lot of things have been streamlined in the last few years, but some departments still catching up.  

I can't fault them for that really - getting that referral letter from the doctor should be a five minute job via a phone call, then we're off.  They've been the picture of efficiency when I've talked to them, been absolutely perfectly polite, knowledgeable and did everything they could to help.

They also moved heaven and earth (up to and including having directly contacting the US Consulate who had people knocking on the door at the hospital) when my husband had a stroke at 2am while on a business trip to China...so they have earned my respect.