The grumpy thread

[binhoker668]

Best of luck to you.  I've been on 'both sides' of mental health.  As a client and an employee for a mental health charity.  If you want to chat or just to rant, feel free to PM me.  If not, that's cool too.

Seconded.

I've struggled with 'things' in the past too - they're kinda raising their heads again at the minute.  Of course just as many other things start being difficult in life...

Also always available for chat or hang outs.

Totally understand Ghosty - you're far from on your own mate.

Chris

[Kiltox]

Offshoring can fucking do one.

 

Sat on a call (at work) with India trying to get something set up and a skilled U.K. based worker could’ve sorted it out in a fraction of the time.

 

But that’s more expensive

 

Despite it being a really expensive service from a really big company we have outsourced it to who have fucked it off to the cheapest shittest labour they can find

[Ghosty]

As it happens I've just onboarded with another delivery company called Stuart, that have a minimum hourly pay guarantee in place (which Deliveroo won't do in my zone). They seem loads more professional so I've that for the time being which is good. It's not ideal but it'll do me alright until I go back to uni in September hopefully. 

I know of most of the bike co-ops etc in Manchester and they aren't really looking for anyone - I'd know about it.

[Datsuncog]

Interesting; we pay the same rate to post within ROI as ROI to NI, mainland uk is quite a bit more

 

It's kinda annoying that NI to ROI is so expensive; posting an LP to a buyer in Dundalk cost the same as one posted to Barcelona, as they're both classified as International Mail - despite being a mere 45 miles down the road from me.

 

Glad that An Post has a slightly more sane approach to mail going north - though I s'pose it's swings and roundabouts, so that Royal Mail can offer a one-price tariff across the UK.

 

Extremely vexing that a lot of GB online sellers misunderstand the system, possibly wilfully. Someone on Ebay once tried to bill me £17 'excess postage' for a 99p stereo connector advertised as 'free UK postage'. FFS.

[madrat]

Have had CBT in the past, didn't help so was referred to a counsellor - my mum has been through the same system as she has OCD and said it was rubbish too, until she got more specialised help that I never managed, the CBT girl just had me sent to a general counsellor that latched on to the wrong things. Just kept going in circles so he discharged me as didn't know what to do. I need help higher up but can't get anyone to understand that.

Actual full-on therapy appears to be hard to get here.

Ahh I see nothing has changed, as someone who has been in the system from both sides it is a rat race, keep going back to your GP. Do you have a branch of MIND near you? www.mind.org.uk

[Ghosty]

Fairly - I'll be going to them if nothing goes anywhere.

[madrat]

Just done an oil change on the Splash, as soon as the sump plug was out, the wind decided to blow, tried to put plug back in, but oil was hot (who knew) so dropped it in bowl, oil spraying everywhere, got bowl in right place wind drops

[Kiltox]

Top tip for oil changes - buy an under bed storage box (plastic)

 

They are big and deep enough that you can undo the drain plug “inside” the box so you don’t have that horrible moment of having to make sure it’s in the right place for the money shot

[DodgeRover]

One of the outer rear tyres on the van has evidentially gone out of round as it's worn the tread oddly, I idley checked the dot date but couldn't find it so looked at the fronts, both produced 1991...oops I wish I hadn't looked now. Tonight will be spent shuffling tyres about - the fronts can become the outer rears as I know the inners are made in the last few years.

[purplebargeken]

My brother in law in Germany keeps in touch every now and again and phoned today to wish me birthday greetings. He sounded so old and frail on the phone and said that he hasn't been well of late. Made me feel so fucking sad and useless. He's a lovely, lovely bloke. Christ it's shit sometimes. Fuck

[dozeydustman]

My brother in law in Germany keeps in touch every now and again and phoned today to wish me birthday greetings. He sounded so old and frail on the phone and said that he hasn't been well of late. Made me feel so fucking sad and useless. He's a lovely, lovely bloke. Christ it's shit sometimes. Fuck

 

 

Make time to go and see him if possible. (Appreciate it can't be done at the drop of a hat). Might lift his (and your) spirits if he's been unwell.

[Guest Hooli]

Offshoring can fucking do one.

 

Sat on a call (at work) with India trying to get something set up and a skilled U.K. based worker could’ve sorted it out in a fraction of the time.

 

But that’s more expensive

 

Despite it being a really expensive service from a really big company we have outsourced it to who have fucked it off to the cheapest shittest labour they can find

[vulgalour]

Roundabouts.  People still can't seem to get these right.  Unless otherwise marked, if you're in the left hand lane you're going left or straight on, if you're in the right hand lane you're going right, or back where you came from.

 

You don't go straight on from the right hand lane, especially when I'm in the left hand lane and there isn't room for two cars at the exit.

 

You should, really, indicate to show your intended exit.  If you're taking the next exit from where you are, you need to be indicating before you even join the roundabout.  If there's a roundabout there, slow down perhaps, I dunno, have a quick look see to make sure there isn't traffic heading towards you.  People aren't beeping to say hello.

 

If you're in a the left lane, you do not need to drift across into the right lane and back to the left to go straight on.  Especially when there's a car in the right lane next to you.  You have a steering wheel, it helps you do things like go around corners, of which roundabouts are entirely made.

 

Oh, and you give way to traffic on your right.  No, your other right.  The right that's on your right, not your left.

 

Numpties.  Getting pretty good at roundabout clairvoyance now mind, so usually things don't get close enough to employ the horn.

 

 

AND ANOTHER THING.  What's with swinging all the way out in the opposite direction before you turn?  You're in an Aygo, not an articulated lorry, get it together.

[Noel Tidybeard]

Mr Angyl Roper seen pictured today in the recently refurbished Leylandii Princess after having a relaxing potter about town

 

 

[Pillock]

Oh don't even start on the swinging your supermini around like you're piloting a fucking supertanker. If you can't get a Ka around a 90 degree junction at barely above walking pace, try putting your phone/sandwich/cock down (delete as applicable) and use two hands on the wheel.

 

Watched said Ka driver nearly go under an artic earlier as they felt both lanes were appropriate for that particular manoeuvre.

 

Oh, and are there different rules for roundabouts in Eastern Europe? Seems quite common that foreign trucks will use the left hand lane for turning left, straight on, right, back on themselves.... In fact they'll only ever use the left lane and then stick on their indicators of invincibility and do whatever they like. All around the outside if that's what it takes.

[vulgalour]

It's always the smallest cars too!  Eastern European truck drivers get their licenses through the post, I'm sure of it.  Sometimes a good driver is picked, sometimes not, it's like some sort of postcode lottery.  Sometimes they pick someone that learned to drive by watching someone else do it on the telly, I'm sure of it.

[derskine]

Anyone who says you can change a Mercedes 190e clutch master cylinder without removing the pedal box is a lying cunt.

[Zelandeth]

As it happens I've just onboarded with another delivery company called Stuart, that have a minimum hourly pay guarantee in place (which Deliveroo won't do in my zone). They seem loads more professional so I've that for the time being which is good. It's not ideal but it'll do me alright until I go back to uni in September hopefully.

I know of most of the bike co-ops etc in Manchester and they aren't really looking for anyone - I'd know about it.

Sadly we've found here that they're really willing to help *once* something major happens. However trying to get anything pre-emptive done is nigh on impossible.

 

We've got someone in our household who has good medical knowledge, and basically was able to spell out what was going on better than our GP could. We bounced off a couple of rounds of CBT and various similar things for three years. Then she went and had a full on depressive breakdown on the way to work one day, totally out of the blue. First we knew was when she didn't turn up, and we eventually tracked them down to the police station two counties away, on suicide watch. Was another two days before we found the car!

 

THEN the NHS couldn't do enough to help and were virtually falling over themselves to help. Finally got the medication we were after for three years, and the specialist help we really needed...though there's now of course a hell of a lot more damage done that needs to heal in addition to the original foot problems which go all the way back to trauma 30 years ago.

 

...and the whole mess has left me suffering from what has been explained to me as a mild form of PTSD apparently as a result of how events unfolded. Great!

 

Really hope you have better luck getting sense out of them.

[vulgalour]

To get mental health treatment you have to be in the magical zone where you're not ill enough to be sectioned, but too ill to ask for help.  If you get help and in the process become well enough to function, they stop helping you, until you're too ill to ask for help again, or get so bad you need to be sectioned.  If you somehow find coping strategies that work they drop you like a hot brick.  If you find therapy is the only solution and medication won't help, then you get a handful of sessions before having to go private, at your own expense, which is super useful if you've been signed off sick.

 

It's infuriating.  Best you can do is try not to get ill and when you do get ill, well... just hope you pull through it somehow.  I hate it.

[wuvvum]

Oh, and are there different rules for roundabouts in Eastern Europe? Seems quite common that foreign trucks will use the left hand lane for turning left, straight on, right, back on themselves.... In fact they'll only ever use the left lane and then stick on their indicators of invincibility and do whatever they like. All around the outside if that's what it takes.

I'm pretty sure I remember reading that roundabouts in Poland work completely differently, so British roundabouts confuse the shit out of Polish lorry drivers.

[Captain Furious]

When you’re stuck in traffic, as I often am now they’ve decided to dig up the M6 for 'smart motorways' - and it’s clear that the person behind you is texting/facebooking

 

This morning, queuing onto the M6 at Cov and the woman behind me was obviously engrossed in her phone. To be fair she was quite highly adept at following traffic and phones simultaneously because I don’t think she looked up once while maintaining a perfect following distance. But one day I’m gonna get someone less skilled in this art, and they'll go in the back of me and I’ll have to fill that out on insurance forms for the next 5 years.

 

Either that or I’ll end up rear ending someone because I’m too busy watching them not paying attention in the rear view mirror that I’m not paying attention myself.

[Zelandeth]

When you’re stuck in traffic, as I often am now they’ve decided to dig up the M6 for 'smart motorways' - and it’s clear that the person behind you is texting/facebooking

 

This morning, queuing onto the M6 at Cov and the woman behind me was obviously engrossed in her phone. To be fair she was quite highly adept at following traffic and phones simultaneously because I don’t think she looked up once while maintaining a perfect following distance. But one day I’m gonna get someone less skilled in this art, and they'll go in the back of me and I’ll have to fill that out on insurance forms for the next 5 years.

 

Either that or I’ll end up rear ending someone because I’m too busy watching them not paying attention in the rear view mirror that I’m not paying attention myself.

Or her car has adaptive cruise control...so she didn't need to intervene at all beyond steering!

 

That system made Miami rush hour traffic sooooo much less stressful... especially given I was already jetlagged and my brain cells were all pretty busy trying to deal with driving on the wrong side of the road and making sense of the horrific road signage. The fact that the road numbers being shouted by the sat may never appear on half the signs is really unhelpful.

[dave21478]

 

Oh, and are there different rules for roundabouts in Eastern Europe? Seems quite common that foreign trucks will use the left hand lane for turning left, straight on, right, back on themselves.... In fact they'll only ever use the left lane and then stick on their indicators of invincibility and do whatever they like. All around the outside if that's what it takes.

 

 

I'm pretty sure I remember reading that roundabouts in Poland work completely differently, so British roundabouts confuse the shit out of Polish lorry drivers.

 

 

In France its a complete joke. The rules are technically the same as UK (opposite directions obviously) and the highway code says the use outside lane for first and second exit, inside lane for third or right round. But the highway code then goes on to say "alternatively, do whatever the fuck you want". 

Yeah, no, seriously - it says that using the inside lane is not obligatory and if you dont know what exit you want to go round in the outside lane.

 

Daves French motoring tips, section one....roundabouts. Never be beside someone, they WILL chop across lanes, and never assume people on the outside are exiting soon, because they might not. Get a fast start, leave everyone behind and keep away from all other cars. Fuck the indicators because literally nobody else uses them so save wear and tear on your indicator stalk by not bothering either.

[wuvvum]

To be fair, things aren't so very different here these days.

[Tadhg Tiogar]

In France its a complete joke. The rules are technically the same as UK (opposite directions obviously) and the highway code says the use outside lane for first and second exit, inside lane for third or right round. But the highway code then goes on to say "alternatively, do whatever the fuck you want". 

Yeah, no, seriously - it says that using the inside lane is not obligatory and if you dont know what exit you want to go round in the outside lane.

 

Daves French motoring tips, section one....roundabouts. Never be beside someone, they WILL chop across lanes, and never assume people on the outside are exiting soon, because they might not. Get a fast start, leave everyone behind and keep away from all other cars. Fuck the indicators because literally nobody else uses them so save wear and tear on your indicator stalk by not bothering either.

I can vaguely remember priorité à droite, which is another can of worms.....

[Parky]

Why does nobody leave feedback on eBay any more?

 

Sold a load of stuff recently, if anything I undersold it. Some folk got some nice items very cheap, beautifully packaged, emails sent to confirm dispatch with pics of their post office receipts to confirm the items were in the system, etc. I really made an effort.

 

Feedback? Thirty items sold, two feedbacks received. One said "cheers" and the other said "received". That was it!

 

Next thing sold gets put in a plastic bag with a vague address scribbled on it and sent second class

[cobblers]

Couple of months ago I spoke to a letting agent - our absolute dream house (in the grounds of a National Trust property) was coming up for let shortly. I told them we would 100% take it, just let us know as soon as it became available.

 

Rang them a few times in the meantime to check up and remind them.

 

 

Found it on rightmove last night. 

Rang this morning, They've only let it to some other fucker!

 

FFS

[alcyonecorporation]

Couple of months ago I spoke to a letting agent - our absolute dream house (in the grounds of a National Trust property) was coming up for let shortly. I told them we would 100% take it, just let us know as soon as it became available.

 

Rang them a few times in the meantime to check up and remind them.

 

 

Found it on rightmove last night. 

Rang this morning, They've only let it to some other fucker!

 

FFS

That's shit. Was there more than one person assigned to it? Perhaps the other didn't know.

 

Or they could just be crap. Lots of places and people are crap. Or carp, I forget which.

[alcyonecorporation]

Cobbs,

 

I have decided you didn't get that house because the people in charge were replaced with carp.

 

Carp are crap lettings agents. That would explain it.

 

Sorry.

 

For everything.

[The Moog]

Why does nobody leave feedback on eBay any more?

 

Sold a load of stuff recently, if anything I undersold it. Some folk got some nice items very cheap, beautifully packaged, emails sent to confirm dispatch with pics of their post office receipts to confirm the items were in the system, etc. I really made an effort.

 

Feedback? Thirty items sold, two feedbacks received. One said "cheers" and the other said "received". That was it!

 

Next thing sold gets put in a plastic bag with a vague address scribbled on it and sent second class

 

I am guilty of this. I dont leave feedback anymore. 

 

Mainly because I dont even look at feedback when I buy. Paypal will sort out any issues I might have so dont really care about whether the seller is trustworthy or not. 

 

I treat it like tescos.