The grumpy thread

[Tadhg Tiogar]

  On 03/06/2021 at 19:16, Remspoor said:

Or in London,  the Smell of Diesel form an old RT

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Actually in London, it's often the smell of weed as well!

[chaseracer]

  On 03/06/2021 at 16:47, brownnova said:

Mes_brownnova thinks we really need a 1950s/60s tractor to pull some kind of mowing attachment around... I’m not inclined to argue. 

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@Talbot's yer man for obscure mowing contraptions...

[Tadhg Tiogar]

  On 03/06/2021 at 16:47, brownnova said:

...Mes_brownnova thinks we really need a 1950s/60s tractor to pull some kind of mowing attachment around... 

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I look forward to ploughing competitions at the FoD.

[wuvvum]

Maybe @Mrs6C would loan you the 1958 Massey Ferguson?  Would be great fun* driving that back to Wales from the FOD at 19mph.

[Talbot]

  On 03/06/2021 at 22:03, chaseracer said:

@Talbot's yer man for obscure mowing contraptions...

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You do NOT want a mower I've designed.  Well, not anything like the Mk1 anyway.  Maybe a slightly* safer Mk2 perhaps.

[Wack]

People like this really boil my piss , if that were me I'd be making a claim on her insurance , what a cunt of a woman 

[goosey]

Cant replace just the worn bearings in my washing machine, have to replace the whole Drum.

Oh bother

[Jerzy Woking]

  On 03/06/2021 at 16:47, brownnova said:

Mes_brownnova thinks we really need a 1950s/60s tractor to pull some kind of mowing attachment around... I’m not inclined to argue. 

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Local farmer/bloke with a tractor cleared the garden to the side of my house with his old tractor and some cutting attachment.

The shrubs, bushes and weeds growing were so thick they were resisting my attacks with a steel bladed brush cutter.

Took him 90 minutes to clear and cost me €70. Brilliant, and I didn't even break sweat.

Worth seeing (when you can get out) if a local farmer wants a bit of cash to run a tractor and cutter around your meadow.

[High Jetter]

  On 04/06/2021 at 16:25, goosey said:

Cant replace just the worn bearings in my washing machine, have to replace the whole Drum.

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It might be physically possible to replace them, if you can extract them without the (probably) plastic drum cracking. They will be stock bearings, with their number on them. Finding the replacement seal(s) though could be a whole world of pain and frustration.

[Talbot]

  On 04/06/2021 at 16:25, goosey said:

Cant replace just the worn bearings in my washing machine, have to replace the whole Drum.

Oh bother

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There are various videos on youtube of people who have modified their welded plastic drum to be bolt-together and have successfully changed bearings and seals.  The bearings (as High Jetter has mentioned above) will be very cheap standard bearings.  The seal (which is almost always a single-lip gartered oil-seal fitted backwards to "face" the water side) will also be a bog-standard unit available from any bearing supplier over the internet for a couple of quid.

It'll take you a few hours, but probably well worth it compared to £100 for a new drum.

Edit: if you can be bothered while it's all apart, a weep hole drilled between the water seal and the first bearing out to the outside world (just like in an automotive water pump) would save the bearings from the very slight water that will always get past the seal.  The bearings would probably last forever if you did that.  Especially if you "splash out" for sealed bearings. (the ones with an integrated rubber seal either side of the rolling elements)

[Fumbler]

And the high of today's fixing has been lowered quite a bit because I've just been told my grandmother next door is now struggling to breathe. Convenient, as my parents (gran's on the maternal side of the family and is rather ill and we're essentially her carers) have just left to embark on a narrowboat holiday. There's literally only myself and my brother to help at the moment and gran has heart palpatations along with a myriad of other health problems.

As her daughter (and main carer) has just left to go and trundle around a canal for a few days to escape it all, my brother and I have a feeling this breathing stuff is all psychosomatic. Gran always has a turn when my parents go away for a spell of time, leaving us to deal with the fallout.

She dialled 111 earlier today and has now got a friend over to take her to hospital. She hates hospitals after losing a son and daughter to hospital failings 50 years ago, so that's understandable. I have yet to call my mother to tell her what's going on. She's having a lovely time with my dad and extended family, boating on a canal. I'm questioning whether I should tell her and potentially make her worry for the whole trip, destroying what it was meant for: a time where she needn't worry. We know why my gran is doing this, it's to make my parents guilty for going away for a while. She loves to control people in this way and is growing ever more grumpy as she's gradually losing control over herself. Why can't family living be just uncomplicated for once?

[High Jetter]

i.e 6204-2rs, the rs referring to rubber shields. Rather essential, IMHO

[Fumbler]

And off to hospital my grandmother goes. At least we won't need to come in every 5 minutes to make sure she hasn't collapsed or died. Calling this stressful is an understatement.

[Parky]

Left the UK last November.  Settled all bills, closed accounts off etc.

Due to minor delays the guy who bought my house didn’t complete until early January so technically I was the homeowner up to January 10th.  As a result the house had been quietly consuming a little bit of electricity for the alarm system and probably a few other bits like the timer for the heating (even though I shut that off).

Anyway, yesterday Mum receives a letter from a debt agency relating to an outstanding amount owed to EDF for the period 14th November to 10th January.  No idea how much it is as that wasn’t specified but so pissed off that EDF didn’t just contact me to inform me of this outstanding amount so I could have paid it.  

I presume I am now going to be asked for £8 for electricity and £500 for the “administration” right???

[GrumpiusMaximus]

  On 04/06/2021 at 22:06, Parky said:

Left the UK last November.  Settled all bills, closed accounts off etc.

Due to minor delays the guy who bought my house didn’t complete until early January so technically I was the homeowner up to January 10th.  As a result the house had been quietly consuming a little bit of electricity for the alarm system and probably a few other bits like the timer for the heating (even though I shut that off).

Anyway, yesterday Mum receives a letter from a debt agency relating to an outstanding amount owed to EDF for the period 14th November to 10th January.  No idea how much it is as that wasn’t specified but so pissed off that EDF didn’t just contact me to inform me of this outstanding amount so I could have paid it.  

I presume I am now going to be asked for £8 for electricity and £500 for the “administration” right???

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To be fair, the house being in Essex I'd imagine the alarm was going off all the time.

[Fumbler]

The paramedics say my gran has a nasty chest infection and they hope they can get a consultant in ASAP. She's in good care tonight at least.

[Parky]

  On 04/06/2021 at 22:13, GrumpiusMaximus said:

To be fair, the house being in Essex I'd imagine the alarm was going off all the time.

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Either that or my neighbours broke in and turned it into a cannabis factory....

It’ll be fine.  I spoke to EDF who confirmed my account was closed and nothing was owed.  I’ll happily pay the £20 or whatever was used (our bill for a family of four was on average £100 a month when we all lived there) so an empty place can’t consume much.  Ultimately what’s a debt collector in Leeds gonna do?  Come to New Zealand and take my TV?

[Talbot]

  On 04/06/2021 at 22:26, Fumbler said:

The paramedics say my gran has a nasty chest infection and they hope they can get a consultant in ASAP. She's in good care tonight at least.

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Not liked for the infection, just for the fact that your gran is in good care and you don't have to worry quite as much.

[Talbot]

  On 04/06/2021 at 23:12, Parky said:

I’ll happily pay the £20 or whatever was used (our bill for a family of four was on average £100 a month when we all lived there) so an empty place can’t consume much

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On the basis of it being an alarm power feed, a neon or two on somewhere and possibly a central heating timer for 8 weeks, that should be closer to a quid.  The meter has probably only ticked over a few units of electricity between your move-out date and the new owner move-in date.  Most electricity companies will determine that bit to be not worth the administration to bill for.

[Fumbler]

The plot thickens! It turns out my gran missed a dose of heart medication yesterday which is why her heatbeat was off the end of the scale. She was discharged at 4:00 this morning with the consultant's advice to get an emergency GP appointment on Monday. Not liking this, she announces to us that the consultant said she needn't go to the GP, it's only a small chest infection and she needs to go to her CT scan first. She also failed to mention the majority of her health problems to the paramedics yesterday, claiming she was "absolutely fine apart from my breathing". It's never easy, is it.

She's also forgetting things and incorrectly ordering words/objects at a frightful rate now. My brother and I have the suspicion this is the beginning of Alzheimer's. It would also tie in well with her suddenly forgetting to take her vital medication. Hopefully the GP throws in a dementia test during the appointment so we can see what's going on.

[R1152]

I never understood why, but I was offered a dementia test when I was diagnosed with diabetes back in 2014.

@Fumbler - at its most basic level It's known as the Six-Item Cognitive Impairment Test, or 6-CIT for short.

https://patient.info/doctor/six-item-cognitive-impairment-test-6cit

[Fumbler]

  On 05/06/2021 at 12:00, R1152 said:

I never understood why, but I was offered a dementia test when I was diagnosed with diabetes back in 2014.

@Fumbler - at its most basic level It's known as the Six-Item Cognitive Impairment Test, or 6-CIT for short.

https://patient.info/doctor/six-item-cognitive-impairment-test-6cit

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Hopefully the GP calls it something like that or else gran will go thin-lipped and outright refuse to take the test. She was a social worker for most of her later life, controlling those who were old and frail, losing control of themselves, and visiting people in institutions. It's taken some time but she's now in their position and is in denial about the fact she is losing control of herself. This is probably why she compulsively lies to professionals about her legitimate and significant health problems. She relies on us for care, but is needing more of it by the month, and, is taking away our lives' freedoms as it happens. At some point she'll need to be in constant professional care as we're at breaking point trying to do what trained nurses do.

[R1152]

You have my deepest sympathy, @fumbler - there's a whole army of unrecognised carers out there; I was one for many years.

I was asked if I wanted a "dementia test" in those very words - so you might not get the result you desire because it does sound like she'll refuse to take it, and GPs rarely say "indulge me" or "okay, prove you don't have a problem".

Could you do this surreptitiously?

[Talbot]

  On 05/06/2021 at 11:06, Fumbler said:

turns out my gran missed a dose of heart medication yesterday

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Did she actually forget, or was it part of the attempt at controlling the situation because of people going away on holiday?

I know that's a nasty question to have to ask, but given what you've written about the situation, that must be a possibility.

"I don't want people to go on holiday, so I'll not take this bit of medication, have to go to hospital and then people will come rushing back from their holiday for me".  I've seen it before.  If that is indeed the case, you may have to get help in from some agency just to ensure she takes the medication prescribed to her.

[cobblers]

My gran does exactly the same - We've managed to move her from a large unsuitable house to a more suitable bungalow (which was a big undertaking in itself) but she needs regular assistance and absolutely refuses to accept help from the professionals - lumping it all on my mother, and often making ridiculous demands at all hours of the day.

We arranged for an "interview" to get her a carer (she's not quite all their mentally, but physically fairly fit) and she just lied through her teeth and said she was absolutely fine on her own. She's very manipulative, despite not having all her faculties. 

[Fumbler]

  On 05/06/2021 at 12:14, Talbot said:

Did she actually forget, or was it part of the attempt at controlling the situation because of people going away on holiday?

I know that's a nasty question to have to ask, but given what you've written about the situation, that must be a possibility.

"I don't want people to go on holiday, so I'll not take this bit of medication, have to go to hospital and then people will come rushing back from their holiday for me".  I've seen it before.  If that is indeed the case, you may have to get help in from some agency just to ensure she takes the medication prescribed to her.

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It's not nasty at all, it's realistic in this family! She does do this, yes, but she nearly put herself in cardiac arrest last night. Nobody knows how or why she forgot to take her meds and, while she could have done it out of spite, we're near certain it's down to her gradually losing it.

Her stubborness due to her want to remain in control has landed her in a pile of shit when it comes to medical stuff. She has refused physiotherapist advice with both knee and hip replacements, causing her to dislocate her hip twice because she refused to stop bending over at the waist. She didn't call for help or ask us to dial 999 immediately. We had to use our initiative as she wouldn't tell us exactly what happened. Instead, she made sure we hoisted her onto a chair instead of trained personnel. She ignored advice on her knee as well meaning she walks worse than before having it replaced.

Even if we did get an agent in to make sure she takes her medication, she'll pull every string to put on a facade of "it's alright, everyone else is making a mountain out of a molehill" or "it's everyone else's fault" which are both bald faced lies. I'm glad the paramedics yesterday had good bullshit detectors and managed to get the right info out of her.

  On 05/06/2021 at 12:15, cobblers said:

My gran does exactly the same - We've managed to move her from a large unsuitable house to a more suitable bungalow (which was a big undertaking in itself) but she needs regular assistance and absolutely refuses to accept help from the professionals - lumping it all on my mother, and often making ridiculous demands at all hours of the day.

We arranged for an "interview" to get her a carer (she's not quite all their mentally, but physically fairly fit) and she just lied through her teeth and said she was absolutely fine on her own. She's very manipulative, despite not having all her faculties. 

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She's incredibly manipulative, she loves to be at the centre of attention and managing people's doings. She's unfortunately not as fit as she once used to be and hates it.

Fortunately my mum was informed this morning and she along with my uncle (his wife's a nurse) are going to have a big discussion about that we should do to prevent this from happening again.

[andy18s]

  On 05/06/2021 at 10:30, Talbot said:

On the basis of it being an alarm power feed, a neon or two on somewhere and possibly a central heating timer for 8 weeks, that should be closer to a quid.  The meter has probably only ticked over a few units of electricity between your move-out date and the new owner move-in date.  Most electricity companies will determine that bit to be not worth the administration to bill for.

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Watch out for the Norweb Federation 

 

[Rod/b]

Fucking hell.  The other day i was burbling along in the F150 when something small and hard hit the windscreen. I had a look later and there was a tiny chip in the screen just above the passenger side wiper, smaller than 5p size. So i went and bought one of those Rainex chip repair thingummies, did what needed doing and thought “that’ll do”

So of course when I got in it this morning there’s an 18” long crack across the bottom of the screen. 

[Zelandeth]

What's that on the ground?

Ah balls...

Yep... that's going to need sorting.

Looking around it seems that a lot of the soffits haven't weathered this last winter well.

Have a horrible feeling that the board at the base of these is asbestos as well which will likely vastly complicate and multiply the costs of replacement by about five times.

What fun.

[mitsisigma01]

Upvc cover board fascia and hollow soffit, with shitloads of silicon. 

Leave all the old stuff insitu as long as you make sure it is securely attached 👍