The grumpy thread

[Wibble]

I’ve been executor of my late aunt’s estate for over three years now and seem to finally be getting close to a conclusion and sale of house also nearly resolved. It needn’t have taken so long but for incompetence of solicitor. Anyway, grump is I need to get to Bundoran, County Donegal to sign some bits (and retrieve my dapping rods) so thought we’d make a short holiday of it for 5 days in August. Can we get anywhere for the four of us to stay? Of course not, it’s a popular holiday destination so fully booked. I’m not at all surprised really. Had I known the house would sell so quickly, I would have booked earlier but didn’t think I’d need to get there this year after how long it’s all taken so far. Ho hum!

[High Jetter]

  On 19/07/2022 at 18:48, Yoss said:

I really hope this RF was alright. 

They showed this shot on the 6 o'clock news but made no mention of the bus. I hope it wasn't broken down there. I know people have lost their homes which is probably worse in the grand of scheme of things but it would be a shame to last 70 years and then break down in exactly the wrong place. 

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It' a puppet!

[mitsisigma01]

  On 19/07/2022 at 13:01, jakebullet said:

How can she phone her bestie tonight?

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Pop round to your friendly neighbour and borrow his phone ... 

[artdjones]

  On 19/07/2022 at 21:17, Wibble said:

I’ve been executor of my late aunt’s estate for over three years now and seem to finally be getting close to a conclusion and sale of house also nearly resolved. It needn’t have taken so long but for incompetence of solicitor. Anyway, grump is I need to get to Bundoran, County Donegal to sign some bits (and retrieve my dapping rods) so thought we’d make a short holiday of it for 5 days in August. Can we get anywhere for the four of us to stay? Of course not, it’s a popular holiday destination so fully booked. I’m not at all surprised really. Had I known the house would sell so quickly, I would have booked earlier but didn’t think I’d need to get there this year after how long it’s all taken so far. Ho hum!

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You could try Belleek, not very far away, in County Fermanagh.

[Wibble]

  On 19/07/2022 at 22:10, artdjones said:

You could try Belleek, not very far away, in County Fermanagh.

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Thanks, I will. Don’t know why I didn’t think of that as always come through Belleek on way to Bundoran from Scotland. Best of both worlds there I think, just doesn’t have the vibe of a holiday destination but close enough to where I need to be 👍 

[Split_Pin]

We decided last minute to go to the beach this evening.

I was initially reluctant as I thought it would be jam packed but was outvoted 2 to 1. We chose Silver Sands at Aberdour as it is a nice spot, clean, good parking and facilities.

Although we had a fun time and it wasn't too busy, there was litter strewn *everywhere* and I mean A LOT. It had clearly been mobbed earlier in the day. Overflowing bins is not an excuse, take your shite home with you!

For those that remained, the classic beach icons were all present, in addition to the litter:

- the dry sand was filthy from pollution 

-fag ends in the sand

-feral kids

- stench of hash

- massive fires with no purpose 

- men wearing tracky bottoms and no top

- early 20-somethings gathering in the car park with inexplicably expensive cars. Big new BMWs, Audis and such like.

Is this just a Scotland thing?

In any case, I am ashamed to be human right now. 

Sorry, Earth.

[LightBulbFun]

  On 19/07/2022 at 18:48, Yoss said:

I really hope this RF was alright. 

They showed this shot on the 6 o'clock news but made no mention of the bus. I hope it wasn't broken down there. I know people have lost their homes which is probably worse in the grand of scheme of things but it would be a shame to last 70 years and then break down in exactly the wrong place. 

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oh thats a deeply distressing photograph! even more so that I cant find out what happened in the end

I tried to reverse image search it to find the original this is as far back as I can find 

I noticed in this video tweet you can see the RF and people attending to it, so hopefully it was moved to safety 

 

[Spurious]

  On 19/07/2022 at 21:17, Wibble said:

I’ve been executor of my late aunt’s estate for over three years now and seem to finally be getting close to a conclusion and sale of house also nearly resolved. It needn’t have taken so long but for incompetence of solicitor. Anyway, grump is I need to get to Bundoran, County Donegal to sign some bits (and retrieve my dapping rods) so thought we’d make a short holiday of it for 5 days in August. Can we get anywhere for the four of us to stay? Of course not, it’s a popular holiday destination so fully booked. I’m not at all surprised really. Had I known the house would sell so quickly, I would have booked earlier but didn’t think I’d need to get there this year after how long it’s all taken so far. Ho hum!

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Some lovely spots round there, used to spend a lot of time up there potholing, up 8-9 time of the year. 

Manorhamilton is nice in Sligo. Belcoo/Blacklion are good. Rossinivor on the shore of Lough Melvin.

Some fantastic scenery, hillwalking, surfing, swimming, fishing, pubs and restaurants around there. 

Lovely part of the world, it's super pretty. 

[Wibble]

  On 19/07/2022 at 23:18, Spurious said:

Some lovely spots round there, used to spend a lot of time up there potholing, up 8-9 time of the year. 

Manorhamilton is nice in Sligo. Belcoo/Blacklion are good. Rossinivor on the shore of Lough Melvin.

Some fantastic scenery, hillwalking, surfing, swimming, fishing, pubs and restaurants around there. 

Lovely part of the world, it's super pretty. 

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It is indeed. I have spent many hours on lough Melvin, in a boat with my Dad fishing for trout and having a pint and whisky chaser in Kinlough afterwards and have good memories of a local who thought we were priests! Wish we could do it again. Bloody brilliant that someone else on here knows where I’m talking about.

[Datsuncog]

  On 19/07/2022 at 23:02, Split_Pin said:

Is this just a Scotland thing?

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Nope. Pretty much all of the above applies to anywhere nice by the sea in Northern Ireland too.

One local beauty spot, Crawfordsburn Country Park, is routinely trashed anytime the sun peeks out and the temperature rises much above 15°C.

Here's a rundown of today's delightful* activities.

BBC News - Beaches: Crawfordsburn and Helen's Bay anti-social issues concern

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-62226478

[Metal Guru]

  On 20/07/2022 at 00:08, Datsuncog said:

Nope. Pretty much all of the above applies to anywhere nice by the sea in Northern Ireland too.

One local beauty spot, Crawfordsburn Country Park, is routinely trashed anytime the sun peeks out and the temperature rises much above 15°C.

Here's a rundown of today's delightful* activities.

BBC News - Beaches: Crawfordsburn and Helen's Bay anti-social issues concern

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-62226478

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A lot of people are just pigs , just chucking their rubbish down where they stand. You really have to wonder what their houses are like .

Kids are being brainwashed at school regarding climate change but it doesn’t seem to occur to either teachers or pupil, that litter is pollution as much as “carbon” is.

We really need to start handing out big fines for littering. Unfortunately when  any council tries to get tough with littering, some jobsworth spots a three year old drop a sweet paper and fines the parents £100. The news gets hold of the story and the council decides it’s more trouble than it’s worth.

[artdjones]

  On 19/07/2022 at 23:02, Split_Pin said:

We decided last minute to go to the beach this evening.

I was initially reluctant as I thought it would be jam packed but was outvoted 2 to 1. We chose Silver Sands at Aberdour as it is a nice spot, clean, good parking and facilities.

Although we had a fun time and it wasn't too busy, there was litter strewn *everywhere* and I mean A LOT. It had clearly been mobbed earlier in the day. Overflowing bins is not an excuse, take your shite home with you!

For those that remained, the classic beach icons were all present, in addition to the litter:

- the dry sand was filthy from pollution 

-fag ends in the sand

-feral kids

- stench of hash

- massive fires with no purpose 

- men wearing tracky bottoms and no top

- early 20-somethings gathering in the car park with inexplicably expensive cars. Big new BMWs, Audis and such like.

Is this just a Scotland thing?

In any case, I am ashamed to be human right now. 

Sorry, Earth.

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Learn to look on the bright side. At least the man wasn't wearing a tracky top with no bottoms. 

[New POD]

  On 19/07/2022 at 23:02, Split_Pin said:

We decided last minute to go to the beach this evening.

I was initially reluctant as I thought it would be jam packed but was outvoted 2 to 1. We chose Silver Sands at Aberdour as it is a nice spot, clean, good parking and facilities.

Although we had a fun time and it wasn't too busy, there was litter strewn *everywhere* and I mean A LOT. It had clearly been mobbed earlier in the day. Overflowing bins is not an excuse, take your shite home with you!

For those that remained, the classic beach icons were all present, in addition to the litter:

- the dry sand was filthy from pollution 

-fag ends in the sand

-feral kids

- stench of hash

- massive fires with no purpose 

- men wearing tracky bottoms and no top

- early 20-somethings gathering in the car park with inexplicably expensive cars. Big new BMWs, Audis and such like.

Is this just a Scotland thing?

In any case, I am ashamed to be human right now. 

Sorry, Earth.

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The scallies, come from Liverpool on the train, carrying beer and barbeques, get off the train at Formby or Freshfield, and walk the mile to the beach, where they are joined by people with a million cars queuing up, to get into National trust car parks, or double parking in residential streets. 

There are inadequate toilets, the national trust no longer have bins, because they end up getting set on fire. 

There are local bylaws preventing alcohol and bbqs because as evening comes there are fights.  Children have been burnt when they stand on bbqs buried in the sand.  

The NT then spend days picking up litter. 

https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/formby/features/talking-rubbish-at-formby

It's a beautiful place. I only go in winter when it's raining. 

[Lacquer Peel]

  On 20/07/2022 at 01:55, Metal Guru said:

Kids are being brainwashed at school regarding climate change 

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You can prove anything with facts.

Re: littering. We live in a highly individualistic society where being selfish is rewarded, your own life being easier is the ultimate goal and fuck everyone else, maybe start there instead. 

[GrumpiusMaximus]

  On 19/07/2022 at 16:11, paulplom said:

Virgin media have to be the biggest pile of wank I've ever had the displeasure of dealing with. Their customer service is diabolical. When ringing them it was 50/50 if you'd get someone who actually spoke English after being on hold for a minimum of four hours.

This was about seven years ago and their superfast was quick 90mbps iirc but when it only works about 50% of the time and drops out every hour when it was working the fucking speed is pretty pointless.

Now been with plusnet for the last two years. I chose them because of their customer service reviews. On the rare occasion I've had to ring them you get a Yorkshire person to talk to with a next day visit by an 'engineer'.

£24 a month and a guaranteed 67mbps.

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I was with Virgin Mobile for years until they fucked me about (long story to do with call charges to Guernsey) and cut off my number.  When I called them on the landline to discuss it, the call operator openly lied to me when I asked if I could be passed up the tree to her manager.  When I pointed out that what she was saying was utter bullshit, she said something different and I was able to tie her into complete knots.  At which point she relented and I got the promise of a call back.  I did actually get a call back and my issue resolved but when that contract expired I fucked right off Virgin Mobile and went to Three, then O2.  I'll never go back and this was ten years ago.  Different section to Virgin Media but much the same experience.

I had a pretty good time with Plusnet when I lived in my old flat.  The couple of times I called them they were quick, responsive and courteous.  Certainly can't complain.

[barefoot]

  On 19/07/2022 at 07:40, MikeR said:

I find having a white car in this weather quite useful , wont have another black car after the one we had in the past was like an oven in the sun ..

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Our 944 is white. Sadly the interior is like the inside of a wheely bin, with its black plastic headlining & black pinstriped velour everywhere.  Couple this with the vast quantities of heat coming off the central transmission tunnel and it's the most dreadful thing to drive anywhere on a hot day!

[GrumpiusMaximus]

A resolved grump this morning.  Last week, one of my mates found a clear plastic wallet full of medical information that had been left on a London morning train with traceable patient information (names of patients, prescription changes and ward locations) that had been printed from emails sent by a hospital.  She didn't want to make a fuss but data protection is one of my pet topics so I called up the hospital trust that was part of the email chain and left a voicemail with their information governance officer.

I got a phone call the next day, sent another email with the picture my mate had taken.  Only the top page was visible but there were easily 30 pages in there of emails.  Got an email yesterday saying that it had been reported to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) but that it was a Boots Pharmacy employee that had been the source of the information leak.  In that manner, it's resolved because that's the statuatory legal duty with shit like this.  The ICO will decide if further action (including fines for both the organisation and individual) needs to occur.

A couple of things here really.  Who the fuck prints emails in this day and age?  If you need emails on the move, then the business can get you a mobile phone or laptop?  Secondly, what kind of system lets people take that kind of information off-site and unsecured in such a manner that it can just be left on a train with indentifiable information clearly visible?

I used to work in mental health and at the most basic level, we had to anonymise all of our notes (i.e. initials rather than names in everything) and if there was anything being taken off site other than notebooks, there were locked briefcases provided with combination locks so that it would take a bit of effort to steal the information.

Added to all that, everybody has an NHS number that is shared with other providers  like pharmacies - so why they couldn't use those rather than full names in the emails is beyond me.

[MikeR]

  On 20/07/2022 at 04:46, New POD said:

The scallies, come from Liverpool on the train, carrying beer and barbeques, get off the train at Formby or Freshfield, and walk the mile to the beach, where they are joined by people with a million cars queuing up, to get into National trust car parks, or double parking in residential streets. 

There are inadequate toilets, the national trust no longer have bins, because they end up getting set on fire. 

There are local bylaws preventing alcohol and bbqs because as evening comes there are fights.  Children have been burnt when they stand on bbqs buried in the sand.  

The NT then spend days picking up litter. 

https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/formby/features/talking-rubbish-at-formby

It's a beautiful place. I only go in winter when it's raining. 

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every summer we have this ..

15 years ago  I used to sit in the care home top window with the police (and  cups of tea , ice cream )   watching visitors walk down to the beach from the trains , carrying booze etc  , kicking balls into the gardens so they could climb over the high walls .  never ever saw rubbish being carried back ..    and the train  station  would have a holding area for all those that were trying the bunk the train , for the group of ticket inspectors to process , so that showed  the mentality of some of the visitors ..   

the irony of it , the police originally thought the care home kids were causing the trouble and  thats why they visited !!

I have sugested leaving the beach like a shit hole .. instead of having volunteers clear up all the time

it might persaude  visitors that leave it like a shit hole not to come back   ..  then clear it up at the end of season

 I cant even remember the last time I went down to that bit of the  beach despite it bing a mile or so away ....

they have just posted an Event to help clear the beach ...

 

 

[Metal Guru]

  On 20/07/2022 at 06:15, Lacquer Peel said:

You can prove anything with facts.

Re: littering. We live in a highly individualistic society where being selfish is rewarded, your own life being easier is the ultimate goal and fuck everyone else, maybe start there instead. 

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You only have to see any article on a TB news programme re climate change and if they show “what x primary school is doing about it”, 8-10 year old kids spout the party line perfectly. I’m not saying there’s no such thing just that they should be taught that there is other  pollution not just what come from a car exhaust.

Your second point, agree 100% sadly.

[MikeR]

  On 20/07/2022 at 09:04, GrumpiusMaximus said:

A resolved grump this morning.  Last week, one of my mates found a clear plastic wallet full of medical information that had been left on a London morning train with traceable patient information (names of patients, prescription changes and ward locations) that had been printed from emails sent by a hospital.  She didn't want to make a fuss but data protection is one of my pet topics so I called up the hospital trust that was part of the email chain and left a voicemail with their information governance officer.

I got a phone call the next day, sent another email with the picture my mate had taken.  Only the top page was visible but there were easily 30 pages in there of emails.  Got an email yesterday saying that it had been reported to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) but that it was a Boots Pharmacy employee that had been the source of the information leak.  In that manner, it's resolved because that's the statuatory legal duty with shit like this.  The ICO will decide if further action (including fines for both the organisation and individual) needs to occur.

A couple of things here really.  Who the fuck prints emails in this day and age?  If you need emails on the move, then the business can get you a mobile phone or laptop?  Secondly, what kind of system lets people take that kind of information off-site and unsecured in such a manner that it can just be left on a train with indentifiable information clearly visible?

I used to work in mental health and at the most basic level, we had to anonymise all of our notes (i.e. initials rather than names in everything) and if there was anything being taken off site other than notebooks, there were locked briefcases provided with combination locks so that it would take a bit of effort to steal the information.

Added to all that, everybody has an NHS number that is shared with other providers  like pharmacies - so why they couldn't use those rather than full names in the emails is beyond me.

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you would be surprised at the number of people who cant use a PC in the care system , never mind a network , mail , etc , with many still working from a memory stick !! , because thats were they can find their files !! , and given that a lot of care PC's are quite frankly shite and overworked I am not surprised people take short cuts , when I left care work this year the PCs were still 32 bit and they struggled to work , never mind be useable ,,

[GrumpiusMaximus]

I work in IT Support.  I can fully understand the number of people that can't do basic tasks with a computer and I'm not in the slightest bit surprised by anything.

What gets me about it is that using the computer is an inherent part of many jobs now.  Laughing off your inability because you're crap with it or doing things like printing out a compendium of emails because you don't know what you're doing is just plain incompetence.  But because it's computer incompetence people seem to get away with it in a way that they wouldn't if it was any other part of their job.

In my last IT job, we had people that were professional administrators that couldn't use Microsoft Word or Excel to do basic tasks that were key to their role and performance.  To be honest, if I had any power over it I would have made training mandatory (I raised this numerous times with senior management) and initiate a strategy to pick up those that couldn't use the technology to an agreed standard (maybe a basic Microsoft exam).  Those that continually failed to pass would then have further remedial training followed by a competence review and eventual dismissal - because it really is that important.  It drives me fucking nuts.

The amount of money that organisations waste because of IT ineptitude is astonishing and far more than the cost of training...

EDIT:  We had one user at my last job that had their account compromised three times in the space of four months through phishing emails.  Despite the fact that we implemented training and explained the issue and what was going wrong every time, it kept happening because they just didn't get it.  At that point I would personally be sitting down for a competence review with them if I had any sway because the potential impact to the business is enormous.  We did get MFA implemented shortly after so that helped - but we still got stupid calls all the time from them...

[High Jetter]

Dentist appt yesterday. Well, it should have been but surgery was closed. I'd been with them for over 20 years, last appt in April 2020 was understandably cancelled due to covid. Rang back in January to re-book, was told it had changed hands and they didn't have a dentist yet, hence 6 month wait for appt. No cancellation from them. You'd think they would have a dentist by now or reschedule me in one of their other 2 branches in the town 

[myglaren]

  On 20/07/2022 at 09:04, GrumpiusMaximus said:

A couple of things here really.  Who the fuck prints emails in this day and age?  If you need emails on the move, then the business can get you a mobile phone or laptop?  Secondly, what kind of system lets people take that kind of information off-site and unsecured in such a manner that it can just be left on a train with indentifiable information clearly visible?

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My daughter worked in a large hospital, librarian for the doctors, lots of info needed and up-to-date info of course.

It was pretty chaotic and she inherited it all when she started.

Two of the staff had no idea what they were doing on their computers.

One of them printed out all emails, filed them in a drawer and deleted the original.

[Pieman]

  On 20/07/2022 at 09:04, GrumpiusMaximus said:

A resolved grump this morning.  Last week, one of my mates found a clear plastic wallet full of medical information that had been left on a London morning train with traceable patient information (names of patients, prescription changes and ward locations) that had been printed from emails sent by a hospital.  She didn't want to make a fuss but data protection is one of my pet topics so I called up the hospital trust that was part of the email chain and left a voicemail with their information governance officer.

I got a phone call the next day, sent another email with the picture my mate had taken.  Only the top page was visible but there were easily 30 pages in there of emails.  Got an email yesterday saying that it had been reported to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) but that it was a Boots Pharmacy employee that had been the source of the information leak.  In that manner, it's resolved because that's the statuatory legal duty with shit like this.  The ICO will decide if further action (including fines for both the organisation and individual) needs to occur.

A couple of things here really.  Who the fuck prints emails in this day and age?  If you need emails on the move, then the business can get you a mobile phone or laptop?  Secondly, what kind of system lets people take that kind of information off-site and unsecured in such a manner that it can just be left on a train with indentifiable information clearly visible?

I used to work in mental health and at the most basic level, we had to anonymise all of our notes (i.e. initials rather than names in everything) and if there was anything being taken off site other than notebooks, there were locked briefcases provided with combination locks so that it would take a bit of effort to steal the information.

Added to all that, everybody has an NHS number that is shared with other providers  like pharmacies - so why they couldn't use those rather than full names in the emails is beyond me.

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Conspiracy theory: maybe said pharmacy employee was being paid by a spam/scam company to give them the personal details and that's how they get them, but you intercepted the package...

[GrumpiusMaximus]

  On 20/07/2022 at 09:58, myglaren said:

One of them printed out all emails, filed them in a drawer and deleted the original.

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So, so many data compliance issues there.  So many.  Least of all the archiving issue... in some sectors (e.g. financial) it's mandatory to have complete archives of all correspondence.  If she's gone ad-hoc then that would be a sacking offence in some cases.

[GMcD]

  On 19/07/2022 at 23:02, Split_Pin said:

We decided last minute to go to the beach this evening.

I was initially reluctant as I thought it would be jam packed but was outvoted 2 to 1. We chose Silver Sands at Aberdour as it is a nice spot, clean, good parking and facilities.

Although we had a fun time and it wasn't too busy, there was litter strewn *everywhere* and I mean A LOT. It had clearly been mobbed earlier in the day. Overflowing bins is not an excuse, take your shite home with you!

For those that remained, the classic beach icons were all present, in addition to the litter:

- the dry sand was filthy from pollution 

-fag ends in the sand

-feral kids

- stench of hash

- massive fires with no purpose 

- men wearing tracky bottoms and no top

- early 20-somethings gathering in the car park with inexplicably expensive cars. Big new BMWs, Audis and such like.

Is this just a Scotland thing?

In any case, I am ashamed to be human right now. 

Sorry, Earth.

Expand  

Reminds me of this scene from Madmen.

Only more swearing, spare tyres and less clothing. 

Link

Anyone caught littering should be sentenced to a months hard labour picking peanuts out of turds at the local sewage works.

Absolute scum.

[myglaren]

Garden doors welded shut, expanded with the heat.

Put a new lump of butter in the dish and it melted and overflowed onto the counter.  No photo

 

 

[Zelandeth]

Ordered something from a company over in the Netherlands a few days back - value ~£150.

Customs/handling charges before DHL would hand it over?  £80.

Lovely.

[GrumpiusMaximus]

  On 20/07/2022 at 13:22, Nyphur said:

No company with a regulatory requirement to store all correspondence relies on users not deleting mails out their inbox. 

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That's true.  Good point.

[mitsisigma01]

  On 20/07/2022 at 10:21, GrumpiusMaximus said:

in some sectors (e.g. financial) it's mandatory to have complete archives of all correspondence

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Is there a time limit ? I phoned an investment company with details and bond numbers for what was a largish amount 20+ years ago and they are claiming that they have no record of them and can't tell me if they have been cashed or are still earning ...🤔 .... what should be my next move ???