Add your miscellaneous photos or stories here

Rather than going off topic on other threads,  thought it may be better to create a general "miscellaneous" thread where you can add your stories or pics that are either memorable to you or pics you want to share with forum members;   they don't have to relate specifically to wildlife (as on Odds & Sods thread)  as Tea Rooms is for general chat/pics as long as you follow community acceptable guidelines !    

To start it off I'll transfer over a few pics I put up for Wendy..............

@ Wendy,   I wasn't into photography back in my Aussie days and can't find the happy snappy pics except for these.....

For Mick...…...a pic of Glen McGrath

Pre-match preparations  !    and junk food  lol 

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Regards, Hazel 

  • Oh dear a traumatic day indeed Hazel, hopefully the lavender will help you relax and sleep, tomorrow is another day and you may get a bit further with the flat pack storage box and maybe get a seat on the kitchen stools, when they arrive, as for the energy switch, nahhh!

    Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

  • Mmm Gaynor, looks as though you may be in need of some handy men!!

    Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

  • Seems so wrong to click "like" on a tale of frustration and time wasting which unfortunately seems to be par for the course these days with so many companies failing to provide acceptable levels of customer service.. With far too many still hiding behind Covid as their excuse for failures.
    I've spent so much time over the past few months trying to get refunds from Ryans**t and BA for flights in March & April that they cancelled. Finally got our money back end of July.
    Trust you found that glass of wine.
  • Tony T said:
    I've spent so much time over the past few months trying to get refunds from Ryans**t and BA for flights in March & April that they cancelled. Finally got our money back end of July.

    Glad you got recompensed Tony,  it's such a struggle during these difficult times of the pandemic to get anything done (as you say, some just using it as an excuse for poor service).  It's taking a lot more effort to get refunds or to order items in the hope of getting them before Christmas !    Like everyone else, taking one day at a time and hoping we can eventually get in that trip to Australia to see my brother and family although it seems a long way off at the moment so we chat by telephone instead.     Hope you get in your trip to Aussie next year.

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    Regards, Hazel 

  • Oh dear, what a day. Who would have thought moving into a brand new apartment would cause such hassle. I've no idea what being "de-energised" means- never heard the term before

    Unknown said:
    For anyone contemplating moving - take my advice ....DON'T DO IT !!

    I'm taking your advice and staying put. I'll go straight from here into the care home.Fearful

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    Tony

    My Flickr Photostream 

  • lol Tony,  we had never heard of the term "de-energised" either ...............  means it is not on the national database as the meters were under commercial tariff and it's a struggle getting them registered, meanwhile we are paying a couple of the bills where we have sent in meter readings the the current supplier to the development although not convinced about them being correct !!   we have to ask builder for readings as we are not allowed access to meter cupboards !     

    As for going straight to a care home ...... no no, we can't have that ...........  I'll make up the spare room for you as you'll be easier to look after than Mike    ha ha  !!    

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    Regards, Hazel 

  • Unknown said:
    As for going straight to a care home ...... no no, we can't have that ...........  I'll make up the spare room for you as you'll be easier to look after than Mike    ha ha  !! 

    Be careful what you wish for, Hazel. I can't believe Mike is any bother to look after. LOL

    I'm surprised you can't see the meters which monitor your energy consumption. After many years of resisting having a smart meter installed I finally gave in when the latest versions were available. I have to say I'm quite impressed with the technology. I have a little monitor in the kitchen which shows both gas and electricity consumption on a daily basis. This works on Bluetooth from the meters which are in the garage. Whether I will reduce my consumption in the long term remains to be seen but it's quite good to see the effect when you switch on appliances.

    The test will be if it continues to work if I switched suppliers

    I don't know whether this technology would work in your situation where I imagine the meters are quite distant from your apartment. You'd think in a new development like yours someone would have thought of this, 

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    Tony

    My Flickr Photostream 

  • Really interesting thought Tony whether this would work in our apartment; electric and gas meters are 3 and 4 floors below our level and in separate areas one floor apart ! water meter is on our floor; they are all supposedly smart meters but its such early days even the developer customer care don't understand them so we're trying to remain patient whilst they investigate and sort out the "de-energise" situation. I wonder how we know the actual meter for ours is correct as I've no faith these days ! - if we could have access to meters I could whack the central heating on and see if the gas consumption increases rapidly and then do the same for electrics by switching on the two ovens, etc., stuck between a rock and a hard place at the moment - oh the joys of moving LOL Don't forget, I'm willing to adopt you instantly and neither Mike or I would need to think about it ;)

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    Regards, Hazel 

  • Unknown said:
    Ever had one of those days when nothing goes right from morning till night ? !!

    We took a trip into Edinburgh yesterday to visit a couple of DIY shops, (ongoing work inside the house.)

    At the first shop we got most of what we needed, wood, wallpaper, paint, bits and pieces of this and that. The weather was terrible with heavy rain, so back in the car park it was on with the waterproof jacket and a good ten minutes to secure the wood and things to the roof bars on the car. So far so good.!!

    Off to the next shop around ten minutes away to get a specialist tool that I needed to continue with the work in the house. Still pouring with rain, but a check in my pockets discovered that my wallet was missing.

    Panic sets in, so we search through the car, jackets, pockets etc. It’s gone, no wallet. First thing is to call the bank to cancel my cards. They answered very quickly and had it sorted out in no time, cards cancelled and new ones on their way in the next few days. Still feeling very down though, there was around £150 cash in the wallet too.

    Mrs A had her purse with her, so it’s a quick two minute run into the shop, get the specialist tool and back into the car for the ten minute drive back to the first shop. No wallets handed in, no sign of it anywhere. They took my name and number anyway, but we never heard anything back from them. :-(

    We had no choice but to head back home feeling pretty down. Another thorough search at the house confirmed that the wallet was indeed lost.

    I took a walk around my local site this morning (where I see all the Stonechats) in very dull weather and was rewarded with several large flocks of Golden Plover flying over (very high), a first for me in this area. This lifted my spirits somewhat, but after a few hours it was back home to continue with the ongoing work in the house

    Spent the rest of the day working and stopped around eight o’clock this evening.

    Then my phone rings. It’s a guy who asks if I’m Paul? He tells me has my wallet, his wife found it lying soaked in the rain at the DIY shop car park. It turns out he lives around ten minutes away. So we took a drive down there and he returned my wallet with all contents intact. I offered a reward which he refused, but I insisted, and he eventually relented and he said he would give it to his wee girl. :-)

    He’d gotten my phone number from a business card in my wallet. My friend and I visit care homes (at least we did, before lockdown) and play guitars and sing Scottish folk music for the elderly residents, and luckily I always keep a few spare cards in my wallet.

    So, my faith in humanity has been somewhat restored today. There are still decent, honest folks out there, perhaps not a huge percentage, but they are there.!! :-)

    My bird photos HERE

  • Oh dear Paul, what an awful sinking feeling that must have been discovering your wallet missing and everything that it subsequently entailed with security, phone calls to the bank, etc.,     All's well that ends well thank goodness but a horrible thing to go through.    

    Paul A said:
    There are still decent, honest folks out there, perhaps not a huge percentage, but they are there.!! :-)

    how very true,   I'm one of them  LOL  !!      I remember finding a wallet on the floor of a cafe under a table that had just been vacated next to ours and having remembered the 4 elderly occupants having left about ten minutes earlier so no good trying to search for them as even on Zimmer-frames they would have been long gone up the high street.  Instead of just leaving the wallet behind the counter I left message with the cafe staff to say I would take it to the local police station and I walked just short of half a mile to place the wallet safely in their keeping.    The policeman found a health card inside the wallet and cash, also an address so I was happy the wallet would eventually find its way home.    I didn't leave my name or address as I knew the wallet would find its way back to the person who lost it (ironically according to the police constable, he lived in Scotland)  but happy in the knowledge their upset would eventually turn to cheer.   

    Hope the DIY is starting well and you are making Mrs A plenty of cups of tea and sandwiches   LOL             

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    Regards, Hazel