The grumpy thread

[castros_bro]

I'm just about to phone plumber No.3 in an attempt to get things moving on my place. In fairness many tradesman I meet are old, worn out bastards who can barely get up in the loft.

There is plenty of work to do and it pays alright but the Yoofs are too good for that.

 

I disagree with some of that. I was sacked from an engineering office type job 6 months ago so decided (well no choice really) to go back to site work after 15 years. 6 months and I haven't quite got all the papers to be a unskilled labourer yet, ie CSCS card etc. The obstacles of "paperwork" and upfront costs have put a stop to most people starting any " building" sort of employment. 

 

Have quick read of this to see some of the hoops and costs.

http://autoshite.com/topic/27733-for-nyphur-and-others-how-i-changed-my-career/

[GrumpiusMaximus]

Complaining about what? Having my Threads Locked and Moved? No disrespect but but just been reading through a thread thats about HMC the OP even stated it was a grump but the whole thread several pages long is still there as its own thread? Getting to the point where im wondering if I state in my project thread I cant remove a bolt it may be construed a grump and all 51 pages of the thread moved here?

I think you’re missing the point. Of both the grumpy thread and what I’ve said above. I’ll explain it. In crayon too, if it helps.

 

The grumpy thread is generally for one-off or short-standing grumps. The sort of thing that pisses you off on the day or over a couple of days. It’s usually a personal thing or something minor. It’s a thread for amusing things that some of us read every day for a bit of a laugh. Sometimes more serious things go in but that’s up to the poster.

 

The HMRC thread is a thread about a serious topic that may affect others and thus, for the sake of helping everyone, it stays up. Hence why we also have Single and Sad and the Depressed threads. Threads where a community might come together to discuss a topic a bit more important than the fact that your ball joint separator has gone missing.

 

The moderators and administrators have final say over what happens and what goes where. Their job is not to punish you but to help find the right balance between topics being discussed and keeping the forum searchable so you can find what you want. It’s particualrly important on forums like this that have been around a long time. One other forum I’ve been on since 2004 has the opposite approach and as a result, we’ve had literally dozens of repetitions of the same questions so many times that regulars leave because it becomes dull.

 

I’ll also say that on some forums, questioning a moderator decision publicly can result in a ban. This is not one of those forums but you have to remember, it’s not ‘free speech’, it’s more like a dinner party where anybody is welcome to join and bring a bottle of wine but if you act out of line, you can still get kicked out by the host.

 

Posting about space lizards from the planet Gargothrax may also be closed because nobody gives a shit.

[GrumpiusMaximus]

I used to do a bit of work training people to take the CSCS test. If you’ve got half a brain it’s a piece of piss but actually paying for it, etc. is a pain in the arse.

 

If somebody happens to be in touch with the Job Centre and claiming, you might want to have a chat with your advisor about them covering some of those costs. After all, it’s cheaper for them in the long run to pay for a test than to keep giving you JSA...

 

Not aimed at anyone in particular. Just something I used to help people with.

[Captain Furious]

I know there are different levels of the CSCS but I had to do the site visitor one years ago because I worked for a construction company and, on occasion, had to visit sites.  TBH anyone who failed that test ought to be made to wear a hard hat in public, nevermind on a construction site.

[Crispian_J_Hotson]

I work with cscs members. 30% of them = REALLY?

 

I've actually had to check the entire workforce online in disbelief. Sure enough, these gormless c-nuts obtained a card that says they possess the required knowledge and appropriate skilz to enter this line of work. I was lecturing one just yesterday when he called a dust mask a 'gas mask'. Legit.

 

I understand why the cscs membership exists and what it's trying to achieve, it's still not working though. The biggest problems are the 'I don't or won't give a fuck' attitude and the lack of a bit of common.

 

Does CSCS reassure me that someone is competent? Not at all and neither should it. So what's the point of it? I'm not going to assume that Tiberiu* the chippy* is a safe working carpenter as I've only known him for 5 minutes, since passing his test he could have had a donk on the head and turned into a maniac or gets depressed whenever the missis calls... who knows?

 

I have never agreed with it, especially paying for it. They (CITB) want the industry to be safer, we all do... so they should welcome safe people, not make lives more complicated with cash cow nonsense. I'll be glad the day it falls on it's arse.

 

 

*fictitious name and trade to protect privacy. His real name is Tony and he does ventilation.

[dozeydustman]

I sometimes aim a strong jet of slash at the chod and can usually "hose" most of it off if it's "same day". If it's been there for ages it's a different story. Dislodging aged chod takes a slash jet of about 30 bar, I reckon.

 

I sometimes wonder if there's a parallel universe where pissing chod off filthy bogs is a game show - or even a national sport like darts, with elaborate scoring systems and celebrities with their own range of apparel, etc.

 

I appreciate this would be a very male dominated sport btw. So I suppose there'd also be a women's league that got really low numbers of spectators etc.  

 

 

Girls could use "She-Pees"

[dozeydustman]

My hotmail account has been hacked yet again. More fucking holes than a colander Microsoft.

[Guest Hooli]

My hotmail account has been hacked yet again. More fucking holes than a colander Microsoft.

 

Mine has never been hacked in 20+ years.

 

You are changing your memorable questions as well as your password aren't you? that's how most attacks get in.

[vulgalour]

The first day of November.  The day when I know work is going to wind down until February and income will be quite sporadic.  There'll be a little bump in print sales in December for the Christmas rush, but there won't be much in the way of commission sales.  Because of the limited luxury nature of my work, attending conventions and the like is cost prohibitive.  I don't create a product that folks impulse buy, it's very slow burn, so spunking £2k plus on attending the more profitable conventions in the USA (flights, hotels, work visa, passport, etc) isn't tenable and besides, I don't think I'd want to risk my art supplies over that sort of journey.  UK conventions aren't as profitable, they aren't as expensive either, but still not worth it compared to online sales.

 

I always feel like this is a bit of a wall in the year.  Causes a fair bit of self-doubt about my abilities, too much introvertion, that sort of thing.  I should be focusing on the fact that I've done really well this year, am ahead on my projects, have had some of the best feedback I've ever had from customers old and new and have generally had a fun time of it this year.  The trouble is the stress of the house moving debacle that didn't happen and now won't happen until next year has hung over everything, I've never been able to really push advertising etc. because I've not been sure when I'm going to be moving or not so it's been difficult to know where I sit with taking on any bigger projects (actually had to turn a few away because of this uncertainty, and now regret it).

 

I'm also looking for new platforms to share artwork on.  DeviantArt and Tumblr are no longer suitable and Twitter is showing signs that it's not as great a platform as it once was.  I have no idea where to go with the car artwork, unfortunately, and am presently only really using here, RR, and Twitter which feels too limited an audience.

 

I guess this is a shout for advice and general grump about self-employment being tough when you run out of ideas but desperately want to improve the business side of things.  I'm not as good at the business side of things as I'd like to be, I just want to make art and make folks happy.

[The Moog]

Have you tried Instagram Vulgalour? Out of all the platforms it is growing the most. This like Instagram stories can be used to drive interest in project, perhaps showing things like speeded up artwork completion.  Twitter use is in decline - its not where people are. 

 

Another place that may be worth a punt is Reddit. I was reading something on there a while about an artist who did Furry art. They started using the subreddits that were relevant to show their abilities and that led to a decent income with bespoke drawings being requested. this also has benefit of not being geographically limited. 

 

Also what about a youtube series? perhaps a bit of a vlog on what you are working on, a day in the life of an artist, how to draw x etc.   Could that be something you can create in the quieter periods? 

[Alfamale]

Have you got a link to the advert, please?

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/rover-200-BRM/153237529211?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649

[nebuchenezer]

I sometimes aim a strong jet of slash at the chod and can usually "hose" most of it off if it's "same day". If it's been there for ages it's a different story. Dislodging aged chod takes a slash jet of about 30 bar, I reckon.

 

I sometimes wonder if there's a parallel universe where pissing chod off filthy bogs is a game show - or even a national sport like darts, with elaborate scoring systems and celebrities with their own range of apparel, etc.

 

I appreciate this would be a very male dominated sport btw. So I suppose there'd also be a women's league that got really low numbers of spectators etc.

Ahhh, the good old piss chisel. Hours of fun if your that way inclined.

 

The women at work complain continually about the state of their toilets. Fuck only knows what goes on in them.

[nebuchenezer]

Meanwhile, in vauxhall Zafira owners land...

 

Screenshot_20181031-200959.jpg

 

Do feel a little bit sorry for the bloke but bloody hell why would you ever do that! Massive face-palm as I read it.

 

I'm talking him through how to get his android location history, because he needs all the help he can get!

Many moons ago, in Aberdeen a mate of mine flogged his R5 to some geezer.

 

He most most unamused when several days later when an armed police unit kicked in his parents front door at 2 in the morning and dragged him of to the police station.

 

Turns out the car was still registered in his name and had been used in an armed robbery gone bad somewhere down south.

 

Good thing he had a descent alibi as he didn't have a bill of sale.

 

Police eventually paid for door repairs.

[nebuchenezer]

In my field of work some people have a habit of calling me an expert and happily pass on any random or unanswerable question to me coz "he's an expert and will know the answer"

 

So what makes you think I know how many non uk nationals it takes to design, build and FAT test a 9m diameter TBM when we don't even know who will be supplying it coz we haven't started procuring the fucking thing yet.

 

Toss Wank.

[Christine]

Parents evening ... I has done meself up to look young  ...( ger).  Ironed me Cargo trollies , black shirt , newish trainers .. Dead cool Dad eh ?  And she comes home and says ,  F.F.S.  Dad !!   You can't go like that, you look like a 70 year old gardener ..nowt wrong with that either ???      

So now i'm in fucked up baggy work jeans, a sweatshirt i've never worn as it feels too tight ..but apparently that's ok

[New POD]

Many moons ago, in Aberdeen a mate of mine flogged his R5 to some geezer.

 

He most most unamused when several days later when an armed police unit kicked in his parents front door at 2 in the morning and dragged him of to the police station.

 

Turns out the car was still registered in his name and had been used in an armed robbery gone bad somewhere down south.

 

Good thing he had a descent alibi as he didn't have a bill of sale.

 

Police eventually paid for door repairs.

I had a polite conversation with Rochdale CID on the phone once, 2 weeks after we sold my wife's metro in px for a polo.

I think that they couldn't be arsed to drive up to the Yorkshire Dales and smash the door down.

The metro had obviously been sold on by the dodgy dealer and not registered in the new owners name and then used in a bank robbery.

I had paperwork showing the details of the trade in. But I always thought it strange that they insisted on talking to me as the metro and polo were both registered to her.

[New POD]

Parents evening ... I has done meself up to look young ...( ger). Ironed me Cargo trollies , black shirt , newish trainers .. Dead cool Dad eh ? And she comes home and says , F.F.S. Dad !! You can't go like that, you look like a 70 year old gardener ..nowt wrong with that either ???

So now i'm in fucked up baggy work jeans, a sweatshirt i've never worn as it feels too tight ..but apparently that's ok

My son did his first parents evening last week on the other side of the desk.

An evening of shit sandwiches.

Say something positive about the child, criticise the child and end on something positive.

[Aston Martin]

The sun, drove from Birmingham to Newport blind.

[Supernaut]

Many moons ago, in Aberdeen a mate of mine flogged his R5 to some geezer.

 

He most most unamused when several days later when an armed police unit kicked in his parents front door at 2 in the morning and dragged him of to the police station.

 

Turns out the car was still registered in his name and had been used in an armed robbery gone bad somewhere down south.

 

Good thing he had a descent alibi as he didn't have a bill of sale.

 

Police eventually paid for door repairs.

An old colleague of mine used to race motorbikes in the 80s/90s. Him and his mate would test their racing bikes on the road in the early hours of the morning, and they'd just make up number plates for them.

 

His mate once got pulled over because the plate he'd made, at random, matched that of a Capri used in an armed robbery in London the day before. Whoops!

[Eddie Honda]

It's gone dark, I'm on me jack and trying to work out how to get a bastard heavy Miele washing machine from the back of the house to the trailer.

 

Might have to fortify myself with a doner pizza...

[vulgalour]

Moog:  I've never used Instagram or Reddit, if they're on the up I probably should.  I suspect Twitter is in decline because they keep making stupid decisions about what their userbase actually wants.  How do you figure out what platforms to use?  I seem to latch on to stuff just as it's going out of fashion, I'm not very good at being on trend with social media.

[DodgeRover]

I disagree with some of that. I was sacked from an engineering office type job 6 months ago so decided (well no choice really) to go back to site work after 15 years. 6 months and I haven't quite got all the papers to be a unskilled labourer yet, ie CSCS card etc. The obstacles of "paperwork" and upfront costs have put a stop to most people starting any " building" sort of employment.

 

Have quick read of this to see some of the hoops and costs.

http://autoshite.com/topic/27733-for-nyphur-and-others-how-i-changed-my-career/

What on earth are you doing - a basic CSCS card for labouring costs about £30 and you need to learn colours of fire extinguishers and what angle ladders should be at, test takes about 20 mins.

No bugger ever asks to see it either unless you are on really big sites.

We set on labourers based on ability to turn up regularly on time and do the donkey work and or ability to ask advice if there is a problem, just need a CIS number and NI number and probably a set of wellies and some steel cap safety boots.

[DodgeRover]

It's gone dark, I'm on me jack and trying to work out how to get a bastard heavy Miele washing machine from the back of the house to the trailer.

 

Might have to fortify myself with a doner pizza...

Wriggle it onto a plank then it will wriggle easier, then walk it up 2 planks into the trailer.

[BorniteIdentity]

Unnecessary use of ‘fonts’.

 

To be filed alongside meaningless logos on t-shirts (generally a random US state followed by any year of your choice from the 20th Century) - I just don’t understand why, 25 years after we all first discovered ‘word art’ and comic sans, grown ups feel the need to use them on - err - anything. I just want to read what you have to say: nothing more and nothing less.

 

EBay adverts, shop posters and now car forums! Grrr. It’s a little known fact that road signs are not in capital letters because it’s easier to read lower case quickly. Anyone who thinks writing something in a bold, stout serif font is helping anyone is sorely mistaken.

[vulgalour]

Can we file that alongside people who don't read instructions and then complain there are no instructions?  I get "What's that in USD" fairly regularly on commissions, even when I state what it is in USD and even when I give directions on how to convert GBP to USD.  I also get "is that like Euros" which... where to even begin?

[The Moog]

Moog:  I've never used Instagram or Reddit, if they're on the up I probably should.  I suspect Twitter is in decline because they keep making stupid decisions about what their userbase actually wants.  How do you figure out what platforms to use?  I seem to latch on to stuff just as it's going out of fashion, I'm not very good at being on trend with social media.

 

Instagram is a definite - Would really fit into your methods. Its like a trendy flickr. 

Current SM usage 

 

 

But would need to look at your buyers profiles etc. One of the things I do is train future marketers including digital media methodologies. 

 

 

Not really relevant for grumpy thread so PM me and I will see if I can help. 

[GrumpiusMaximus]

Word Art can go and fuck itself with a splintery spoon.

[Kiltox]

My hotmail account has been hacked yet again. More fucking holes than a colander Microsoft.

TWO. FACTOR. AUTHENTICATION.

 

Enable it right now.

 

Disgusts me that it isn’t standard - i know you’ll probably have to google it to work out what the fuck I’m on about but Microsoft/Google/etc know better.

[dozeydustman]

Mine has never been hacked in 20+ years.

 

You are changing your memorable questions as well as your password aren't you? that's how most attacks get in.

 

 

Yep, change the password once a month, I still think I have a tracker or trojan on my computer that hasn't gone away. think save anything important and do a clean install of MacOS.

[iainrcz]

The cost of a TV license has gone up by £3.50. Or the way I'm looking at it, an extra £3.50 to ogle Victoria Coren Mitchell once a week.