The grumpy thread

[sheffcortinacentre]

Fuxsake didn't you check orientation first.

[myglaren]

Had BT here on Friday, they have been coming since November.  Installed a new master socket, a hybrid thingumyjig and a wifi repeater.

Convinced it has been even slower since and today it has been getting slower and slower.

Ran bleachbit (like CCleaner) and rebooted and it has taken ages to get anything going, especially the BT site, hasn't got into that at all.

I'm convinced it is the rain slowing down the internet electrons.

[Bren]

Booked a dentist appointment a couple of months ago. For April. The best they could do.

I got a letter today informing me the appointment was cancelled. Nothing to even say " arrange new appointment."

[sierraman]

On 09/03/2024 at 01:14, Pieman said:

On similar lines - when you take something such as an exhaust pipe off a car, you "remove" it, not "delete" it.

And something going vaguely sideways is not "drifting".  (A guy on my Facebook says stuff like this all the time and shares unintelligible chavspeak "quotes", he likes to think he's some hard-man "gangsta" but is really a silly little chav-boy who lives with his mum and if ever he tried to act hard in front of anyone would just be laughed at and melt quicker than an ice cream in July.)

I’ve noticed a lot of kids use Americanisms these days, I’ve had to reprimand my own for using ‘windshield’ and ‘sidewalk’ in the past. 

[Stanky]

1 minute ago, Bren said:

Booked a dentist appointment a couple of months ago. For April. The best they could do.

I got a letter today informing me the appointment was cancelled. Nothing to even say " arrange new appointment."

NHS? My wife and eldest daughter go through this hoo-har virtually every time. They have 6-monthly appointments (mandatory, to remain on the books) except 75% of appointments get cancelled, often on the day of the appointment. Then several weeks later they get a new appointment and the merry-go-round starts again.

I got so sick of it all I went private about 10 years ago, I have a choice of private practices within a 10 minute walk, I can get appointments within 72 hours if needed, can book months ahead and be assured that the appointment will never be cancelled and I pay no more than they do to be treated like lepers at the NHS dentist - because I only need to go once a year, whereas they must go twice or be struck off.

Just tell them to FRO and go private, yeah, we all pay taxes and NHS dentistry should be better than this in the 5th richest economy on earth, but you're only frustrating yourself by persevering with the shit service. Go private and you won't look back. Fully appreeciate it should be better than this, but it isn't, so do something about it. 

If you're a private patient then tell the practice to FRO and go elsewhere. Money talks.

 

[sierraman]

10 minutes ago, Bren said:

Booked a dentist appointment a couple of months ago. For April. The best they could do.

I got a letter today informing me the appointment was cancelled. Nothing to even say " arrange new appointment."

Probably some better paying private work came in. 

[Bren]

13 minutes ago, sierraman said:

Probably some better paying private work came in. 

A lot cannot afford private work. I can't see that there would be enough private work to keep them all going.

[Dyslexic Viking]

Meatballs should have been square

[horriblemercedes]

1 minute ago, Dyslexic Viking said:

Meatballs should have been square

Meatcubes?

[Dan29]

On 09/03/2024 at 14:29, artdjones said:

It was refreshing to be in Portugal recently, where no-one seems to expect a tip, although we did tip 10% as service was always really good. Before we left my wife looked up suitable tipping for cleaning staff at hotels and it's considered nice to leave €1 per day you stayed, which we improved on a bit. But it wasn't taken for granted, and we were thanked, not in a servile way, just a thank you from one person to another.

I could live in Portugal.

Yeah I love it, I think it's the perfect country to live in, my best mate is hopefully moving there in the next couple of years so I'm planning to be visiting a lot 🙂

[Dan29]

14 minutes ago, Dyslexic Viking said:

Meatballs should have been square

Mini Meatloaf?

[sierraman]

57 minutes ago, Bren said:

A lot cannot afford private work. I can't see that there would be enough private work to keep them all going.

Oh there is! Plenty out there will be a few thousand quid to get it sorted, I can see why they do it, the NHS wants them rammed back to back constantly, of course they’re gonna look to private work. No help to you or me though! 

[Zelandeth]

Give me strength...

Just had another letter from the Council.  Apparently they're under the impression that I have started operating a vehicle restoration or repair business out of my property, in contravention with the local planning regulations.  They are investigating the matter and invite me to provide evidence to prove that I am not in fact operating said business.  Um, how exactly am I supposed to provide evidence of NOT doing something?

Guess that's going to be a fun hour sitting on hold tomorrow trying to get through to speak to an actual person.

This is in addition to the planning enforcement notice received from them a few weeks ago about us having apparently built a fence on their land - despite every single set of plans I've had sight of (including from the land registry) clearly showing our boundary to butt up right against the footpath.  Still waiting for them to confirm the details on that one, though at least they have acknowledged they've received my initial response.

[Mr Pastry]

25 minutes ago, Zelandeth said:

Just had another letter from the Council.  Apparently they're under the impression that I have started operating a vehicle restoration or repair business out of my property, in contravention with the local planning regulations.  They are investigating the matter and invite me to provide evidence to prove that I am not in fact operating said business.  Um, how exactly am I supposed to provide evidence of NOT doing something?

Guess that's going to be a fun hour sitting on hold tomorrow trying to get through to speak to an actual person.

That sounds as though you have been "reported" by a busybody neighbour who has nothing better to do.  There's always one.   Do you know who it is?   Best not to respond, imo.  Engaging with the council is likely to make things worse.  They can easily check that all your vehicles are registered to you, so clearly you are not repairing them for others.  Let them work it out for themselves.  

[sierraman]

I’ve grossly misunderstood the justice system yet again, you are supposed to be innocent until proven guilty not the other way round. It’s up to them to demonstrate you are trading. 

[Pieman]

41 minutes ago, Zelandeth said:

Give me strength...

Just had another letter from the Council.  Apparently they're under the impression that I have started operating a vehicle restoration or repair business out of my property, in contravention with the local planning regulations.  They are investigating the matter and invite me to provide evidence to prove that I am not in fact operating said business.  Um, how exactly am I supposed to provide evidence of NOT doing something?

Guess that's going to be a fun hour sitting on hold tomorrow trying to get through to speak to an actual person.

This is in addition to the planning enforcement notice received from them a few weeks ago about us having apparently built a fence on their land - despite every single set of plans I've had sight of (including from the land registry) clearly showing our boundary to butt up right against the footpath.  Still waiting for them to confirm the details on that one, though at least they have acknowledged they've received my initial response.

Write back and say "It is quite obvious that you and everyone else just plain don't want me living here, so please find me an alternative and pay for it."

[andy18s]

18 hours ago, sierraman said:

Oh there is! Plenty out there will be a few thousand quid to get it sorted, I can see why they do it, the NHS wants them rammed back to back constantly, of course they’re gonna look to private work. No help to you or me though! 

The Mrs had an emergency wisdom tooth extraction last month.

Phoned the dentist to arrange it asap.

She got an appointment to go for a panoramic x-ray at 9am,with the actual procedure an hour later.

All sorted within 48hrs of the 1st call.

200 lev/ £95 was the total cost including her 1st lot of painkillers to follow on with. 

One of the benefits of Bulgarian life.

No ID card needed so you could fly over to Varna or Burgas for a week,get work done then fly back.

Sofia would be possible but more expensive all round.

[horriblemercedes]

I must be lucky with my dentist - it seems easy to get an appointment (NHS) quickly. I phoned for a check up and got offered one next day. I couldn't make it to that though so I took one within the same week

[rattlecan]

24 minutes ago, Mr Pastry said:

That sounds as though you have been "reported" by a busybody neighbour who has nothing better to do.  There's always one.   Do you know who it is?   Best not to respond, imo.  Engaging with the council is likely to make things worse.  They can easily check that all your vehicles are registered to you, so clearly you are not repairing them for others.  Let them work it out for themselves.  

Exactly this, just ignore them, until someone turns up & then talk to them face to face. It will be pretty obvious 

[Rocket88]

15 minutes ago, rattlecan said:

Exactly this, just ignore them, until someone turns up & then talk to them face to face. It will be pretty obvious 

A letter to the effect…

” I would be delighted to show you my sprawling business empire at your earliest convenience, please send at least 18 of your staff, clad in bespoke hi-viz, hard hats, and multitudinous clip boards.

I can supply refreshments from my staff canteen, and we have ample parking.
You will need ID passes, which I can provide, if you would kindly furnish me with the names of the 18 highly esteemed staff

[Yoss]

26 minutes ago, Rocket88 said:

 

I can supply refreshments from my staff canteen, and we have ample parking.
 

Unless you turn up at school kicking out time. Although if they did turn up then you might be able to show them one of your other problems.

[BorniteIdentity]

1 hour ago, Mr Pastry said:

That sounds as though you have been "reported" by a busybody neighbour who has nothing better to do.  There's always one.   Do you know who it is?   Best not to respond, imo.  Engaging with the council is likely to make things worse.  They can easily check that all your vehicles are registered to you, so clearly you are not repairing them for others.  Let them work it out for themselves.  

Hmm. I don't know if the City Council CAN do vehicle look ups.  Maybe they're hooked up to the 'Special Tool' but I imagine they would have to write to DVLA and pay, which they won't want to do.

It's tricky territory, and we had it with that Fiat chap on here a few years ago who had a millionty cars all in a row.  The council didn't just say "Mmmkay" and disappear. @For Fiats Sake I think it was.

I'd absolutely be engaging with the council and trying to help and reassure them that you're simply a vehicle enthusiast and they're all taxed/sorned and in your name.  There should be no conflation between the two (completely separate) issues of the planning and the boundary.

My recommendation to anyone dealing with a local authority is be polite, be transparent, do everything in writing (don't accept any calls - ask them to write to you) and be helpful.  Try to remember: this isn't personal; they are just investigating something and are on a fact finding mission.

 

 

EDIT - found the thread, and @rantingYoof's excellent appraisal.  

 

[Zelandeth]

1 hour ago, Mr Pastry said:

That sounds as though you have been "reported" by a busybody neighbour who has nothing better to do.  There's always one.   Do you know who it is?   Best not to respond, imo.  Engaging with the council is likely to make things worse.  They can easily check that all your vehicles are registered to you, so clearly you are not repairing them for others.  Let them work it out for themselves.  

They've clearly indicated that I have 21 days to provide them with the evidence or it will be escalated (in red print even) to their enforcement team and that I may then be liable for any legal charges from that point, so ignoring it and hoping it will go away isn't going to be viable.

I will be responding to the email address listed and copying by post, I'd just like to speak to someone to confirm if there's anything specific that would be useful for me to provide.  In the absence of any other feedback they'll get copies of the documentation proving all vehicles to be in my name (except Chris' company car anyway which we see no paperwork for save for the rental agreement) and a covering letter explaining that I'm simply a hobbyist.

I worked for a local council for eight years up north, which is one of the reasons that this lot being so damned difficult to communicate with is so frustrating.

The only neighbours who can actually see our frontage are the folks across the road, who are the only neighbours we ever really communicate with, and get along quite well with.  The others either keep to themselves or are rental tenants who change what feels like about every six months.

[Sunny Jim]

@Zelandeth could your thread be used as evidence? It documents that the vehicles are all yours and when and what work you've done on them. Even if you don't show it to the council you could copy and paste the relevant bits into a diary.

Hope you manage to get it sorted without too much hassle.

[Zelandeth]

I'm sure it won't be too hard to sort in the end.  It's just a bit of a headache from a stress perspective having them breathing down my neck from two different angles within a couple of weeks. 

[artdjones]

1 hour ago, andy18s said:

The Mrs had an emergency wisdom tooth extraction last month.

Phoned the dentist to arrange it asap.

She got an appointment to go for a panoramic x-ray at 9am,with the actual procedure an hour later.

All sorted within 48hrs of the 1st call.

200 lev/ £45 was the total cost including her 1st lot of painkillers to follow on with. 

One of the benefits of Bulgarian life.

No ID card needed so you could fly over to Varna or Burgas for a week,get work done then fly back.

Sofia would be possible but more expensive all round.

My wife paid €750 per tooth for two last year and the year before in Ireland.

[BorniteIdentity]

21 hours ago, Sunny Jim said:

@Zelandeth could your thread be used as evidence?

Zel - please be the first person in the history of the British judicial system to present evidence from 'popular automotive-subculture discussion board autoshite dot com' in a sitting court.  

[rattlecan]

12 minutes ago, Zelandeth said:

I'm sure it won't be too hard to sort in the end.  It's just a bit of a headache from a stress perspective having them breathing down my neck from two different angles within a couple of weeks. 

And that my friends is why every council is skint. 

[Mr Pastry]

23 minutes ago, Zelandeth said:

They've clearly indicated that I have 21 days to provide them with the evidence or it will be escalated (in red print even) to their enforcement team and that I may then be liable for any legal charges from that point, so ignoring it and hoping it will go away isn't going to be viable.

Don't let them bully you. 

[LightBulbFun]

2 hours ago, Zelandeth said:

Give me strength...

Just had another letter from the Council.  Apparently they're under the impression that I have started operating a vehicle restoration or repair business out of my property, in contravention with the local planning regulations.  They are investigating the matter and invite me to provide evidence to prove that I am not in fact operating said business.  Um, how exactly am I supposed to provide evidence of NOT doing something?

Guess that's going to be a fun hour sitting on hold tomorrow trying to get through to speak to an actual person.

This is in addition to the planning enforcement notice received from them a few weeks ago about us having apparently built a fence on their land - despite every single set of plans I've had sight of (including from the land registry) clearly showing our boundary to butt up right against the footpath.  Still waiting for them to confirm the details on that one, though at least they have acknowledged they've received my initial response.

Jesus fucking Christ! the amount of shit that you cop, is just not fucking fair

 

you are a seriously decent bloke, and it enrages me just how much crap you cop, I know sadly that this is just the tip of the ice burg, for example I remember the time you got a word from a copper in a police car for "anti social behaviour" because you happened to be downshifting in the camper van on approach to a roundabout, you know as anyone would do when slowing down for a hazard!

and then when the same police for example have no interest, in doing anything about the abuse that I know you have had from the general population around there

it just fucking pisses me off

 

it frustrates me also, because I wish I could do something for you, somehow make it better, magically get you out of there

 

you know how they move entire buildings? can we just move your house to the FoD? 

 

I think @Six-cylinder would be greatful to have you onsite 247!  (or @Saabnut's back yard!)