Strikes me as not being very accurate :) >20 vs 48. My estimated VO2 was 73 which is ludicrous really. I am pretty sure when I last tried a couple of years ago using one of the training bikes in the gym my VO2 was estimated at around 48. And not feeling very fit at the moment either….

Did you have a power cut by any chance when you were out?

So, you are worried about not being able to do Powerpoint presentations and then decide that you will stick with Android, that well known native platform for MS Office??

Is she really ready to ditch the laptop for a tablet? Can she live with the reduced disk space and the more than likely less powerful CPU? More limited on memory options? There are a few hybrid options out there at the moment that start off looking like a laptop but can separate out to a tablet. Or an ultra thin / light laptop? A few examples of the new devices is here.

The posts ^^ are probably what you need to be doing ie getting a proper evaluation of the solution you are aiming for. That is the most critical part of this. Yes, you could get a quick and cheap job done that involves custom coding and development work. But what about ongoing support? What about future changes that you suddenly decide may be desirable? Could the solution be provided through off the shelf software that may end up costing you a lot less in the long run? To a degree, the language doesn’t really matter that much provided you have the solution spec, workflow, outputs etc. Bottom line is that a good quality, custom developed solution is not cheap.

Probably a bit of a no brainer this one. Of the two cars, if someone was giving me one, it would be the BMW every time. However, the boot is probably not as generous as the Skoda and there will almost certainly be a sizeable difference in the company car tax (if it is being seen as a company car). If I was spending my own money I would probably be tempted by the Skoda though as it is a lot cheaper and therefore I wouldn’t need to spend so much money and I can live with the compromise. Of cars that size (if you have a wider choice) then don’t discount the Astra Estate or the Focus estate as both are also very good cars and will weigh in cheaper (in company car tax at least) than the BMW.

I don’t think you are being too weak or too much of a coward. These are, for most of us, huge decisions to make as they impact lives. Not just our own, but those of other people. And, as you pointed out, there is a significant financial and emotional implication if you do walk away. But you also need to weigh that up against what it is doing to you. I know I have not always been very fair to my missus and that has been a frustration to her at times but she has been faithful and understanding. She has also been through a lot of stuff that has required more patience and understanding from me than I thought I was capable of or interested in giving. We have managed to work our way through it although there have been a couple of times over the years where I have been tempted and ready to walk. Glad I didn’t (married 23 years btw).
If these things are really beginning to feel insurmountable and she really will not engage then perhaps you need to look at the next step which would be a temporary separation. That may help her to understand how deeply this is affecting you and that you really do feel you are at the last chance saloon with her. It would help if you have a close friend who can help you out with accommodation for the period. Maybe run through what you believe the costs will be if you do split and see what the impact is. For some, it has been truly liberating to make that break and despite the costs life has picked up for them. I think I have been conditioned to see marriage as a life long commitment and that while it can be rosy and glorious there are also times when the reality of two separate people living together as one is jarring and hard. With all of that said, it also needs both parties to be willing to work at it when the going gets tough and if that is not the case, and doesn’t look like changing, then I find myself increasingly believing that a break needs to happen. It can be devastating for the kids if they haven’t seen it coming or are too young to comprehend but maybe, in the long ruin, you are likely to be a better for them if you are happy and in a good place.

Hmmm. I imagine there will be a slew of posts shortly that all say “walk: Life is too short”. Whenever I see threads like this I am tempted to say the same thing but it is never that easy when you add up the time and energy you have invested into the relationship plus having kids. And the decision to walk will not be a cheap one either. Maybe it’s just me but it also seems unusual for it to be the bloke that struggles to engage the partner in conversation. Personally, anything longer than 5 minutes over an “issue” and I am losing the will to live – especially as we inevitably go round and round in circles.

Is this something that has always been the case with your relationship or is it something that developed as time went on / post kids arriving? Can you live with the “issues” – it’s just the failure to talk / deal with them that is affecting you?

If it is the issues that are the big problem and the fact that she is not willing to talk is exacerbating them then I guess it will come down to how much you love her. If you still love her to bits and cannot see life without her then to a degree you will have to suck it up. Try and find ways to talk about the stuff but perhaps try other avenues (maybe writing the issues down?) or give yourself a short time to discuss – say 10 minutes. Set an alarm for the time and agree that at the end you are prepared to stop and leave it for her to decide how she wants to conclude the discussion. If you are finding that love has long since left the building then in all probability it is time to leave or else you will end up with a situation that has 4 disaffected and screwed up lives.

There are too many to limit it to just 3 – too hard man! :) It’s probably hard enough to find the top 3 albums of his let alone songs.

Cadillac Ranch has always been one of my favourites. Strange because it is not anything “special” as a song but I loved it when I first got the River and have loved it ever since.

Racing in the streets – live, this summer at Wembley was a moment of musical magic

And pick anything from Jungeleland, Born to run, The River, Badlands, Shackled and drawn, Mary’s place, wrecking ball, glory days, backstreets, thunder road, factory, save my love, Sherry darling, two hearts, no surrender. And that’s just scratching the surface really.

Starting from scratch with the new stuff then Wrecking Ball is a great album to begin with.

A 920 here and I would say it is the best phone I have ever had. At first it seems a bit chunky but I found I quickly got used to that. I’m not a big app person so find the whole “there’s no apps for Win Phone” a bit of a pointless sideshow. I personally also find the Windows phone interface a lot more intuitive and consistent than Android. I wouldn’t say it is perfect but I would take it any day over Android. Overall a great phone and enjoyably quick when I get a 4G connection. :)

If they are anything like my Elixir 5s then yes, they will be pap. Worst disk brakes I have ever had.

And what size….

I suspect it’s because he is one of those people in life who just cannot help but come across as a complete tool. Not sure he is really trying to privatise the education system. He does have a very valid concern and passion that the current education system is failing a large number of our young people. However, he is going about it in the wrong way and doesn’t appear to want to listen to those who might just have a better idea.

Sorry – was there a tune in there? personally, for my tastes, the appearance of the word TOSH seemed quite appropriate. Didn’t watch it all so who knows, it may have suddenly morphed into some majestic, musical masterpiece in the last 2 minutes and I will be forever in the dark. :-)

I have Elixir 3s on my bike. Not impressed at all. 1 big ride in March and they were not happy. Took a fair bit of faffing around with them including a bleed before they were sorted. Still get a bit of judder with the fronts. Worst brakes I have ever experienced. Even the Giant MPH brakes on my last bike were way better than these. Change of brakes is likely to be the first major change on this bike and based on my experiences I will not be going anywhere near Avid.

Not sure how ?

Firstly they would earn less

As mentioned they are likely to pay less tax and that tax will only be at basic rate. A £60k earner will be paying a slice of higher rate tax.

Secondly, if they had kids, they would have to pay for child care on top of the already smaller take home pay.

Er, but wouldn’t that also apply to the £60k earners? If we are keeping all things equal. Also, the two £26k earners are still likely to qualify for some child benefit (assuming kids) which the £60k earner will not be entitled to.

A £60k per year salary is a reasonable one but I would say it is not one that qualifies you as rich. I say that in the context of the country we live in rather than in a global context. The other parts to the context are your location and dependents. As has been said several times, one person earning £60k sounds amazing to many people but if that is the only income in a family then it’s not that amazing. Two people earning around £26k each will almost certainly make the family better off than a single £60k earner.
Then you factor in what you decide to spend your money on. While I cannot back it up with hard facts the distinct impression I get is that a lot of people either live up to their means or live beyond them. That’s a choice. Not one that I would personally commend as a good one but we do at least live in a country where we can make that choice. The net result of that is what makes you feel well off or skint. Personally I find it difficult to have much sympathy for people that earn a good salary yet spend it all trying to keep up with the latest piece of German engineering in the driveway and big ass television, expensive foreign holidays etc etc while complaining about having no money.

Back to the original topic though – I would agree. A £60k salary is not something that makes you rich.

Many, many moons ago I was passed on the M4 by a car with the plate POR 928S. Ordinarily nothing distinctive except it was on a Porsche 928S.

And the second car I owned came with the number plate FAR 800T which I quite liked at the time. One way of reading it is with a Scottish accent. The other way was, apparently, more appropriate for me. 8O

I’m wondering if the naysayers saw the same film I saw? Personally I like the Lee Child books (it’s fiction – therefore it is entertainment and escapism) and the book it is loosely based on is, IMHO one of the best in the series. I was dreading seeing the film as, along with everyone else, TC is just about as far away from the character you can get. However, I parked that to one side and just went along to be entertained by the film. And I was. It was reasonably faithful to the book and I thought it was quite watchable. A lot less screen time spent watching TC running or riding a motorcycle or driving a car or posing and him at least attempting to be Reacher. Overall I thought it was a reasonable film and it was entertaining. Sure, it is not a classic or an Oscar winner but really? Utterly, utterly rubbish? Have you guys never seen a film before? There are plenty of films that are much worse than Reacher. The Expendables for one – picking an example from something that was on TV recently.

Probably not. But then again, I didn’t go to Uni after school in the first place. I did my degree much later in life (27 when I started) and did it part time while I was working. It was bloody hard work especially as my kids were born during the latter stages of the course. I missed out on the “fun” side of going away which is something I probably regret a bit. However, I was earning throughout so had no fees and it also meant that when I did the degree I knew what I wanted to do and the reason I wanted to do it.

I agree with other posters though – this country’s obsession with having a degree is rubbish. It seems like an incredibly lazy approach by recruiting departments of sifting applications that is just as likely to sift out the good candidates. I would say there are a lot of jobs that “require” a degree that simply do not. The push by the last government to guide 50% of school leavers into higher education was little more, IMHO, than a scheme to delay the flood of school leavers looking for a job. Soften the potential hit on the unemployment stats.

I also agree that the CBI and businesses need to get off their high horse of expecting the education system to provide staff already qualified to do the work they want. Foxtrot Oscar to that one. Businesses need to be prepared to invest in properly training and developing their staff. What the education system should be doing (certainly pre graduate level) is providing young adults with a good, rounded general education and a decent awareness of living. We don’t appear to be doing too well at that at the moment sadly, which also seems to flow through to a number of graduates who don’t really appear to have a clue about very much despite having a “degree”.

And Fuzzy, I suspect there may be a significant number of people who would suggest that someone who makes such a sweeping generalisation over attitude to fees is probably a bit too thick to understand the concerns over fees. While it is true that a lot of students will never pay off their loans for most of them they will spend a significant proportion of their adult life paying off their uni fees and as their income increases so will the repayments. Sure, they may not be big in the grand scheme of things but that is a monthly outgoing that affects your disposable income in a way that those of my generation who didn’t have fees to worry about did not have to experience or pay for.

My advice for my daughter is that I will happily support her if she believes in the degree she is doing, is fully committed to doing her very best and has the confidence of achieving at least a 2:1. If the answer to any of those is no then to be honest I don’t think it will be worth it.

In full, mine becomes a right mouthful: Lyndon B Johnson Burton Bradstock. However, with a bit of tweaking we could have:

Johnson Bradstock or
Lyndon B Bradstock

Whichever way you look at it – likely to be useless! :)

Seems like it isn’t just me then. :)

Have you tried using your brakes less?

I could hardly use them any less. I don’t even need to use the rears before they start squealing. It looks to me as though they are sticking when they get warm. Well, by warm, I mean me having ridden the bike for about a mile without even touching them. Useless. And they are not even that effective when the were working. Might be tempted to see if the shop will change them for Shimano’s although they haven’t done the most convincing job so far of fixing them. :(

On the whole it is pretty well sign posted although there are a couple of sections where, if you are new to the area, may feel like you have been abandoned. One is at lower star post where the direction seems a bit vague and you end up on what feels like an old grass / mud trail rather than the newly manicured trails but keep following it and you will be ok.

Overall I think they have done a great job with the trails with some bits that are good fun. It’s not the same “natural” experience that was available before but as a known ride I think it’s good fun.

/cheap lascivious comment

At a rough guess I would say this looks like she might be back “on the market” soon then. Hubba hubba. :-)

/ cheap lascivious comment

Not in any way meant to condone what happened as I agree with everyone else on here who has said it is not good behaviour from Saatchi. Unforgivable excuse which only makes things worse.

I do like the way he can do stuff that shows he doesn’t take himself so seriously. This also made me smile

As others have said – I would spunk more of the money on the bike itself. As it is a cycle to work scheme you will be paying it over the year so perhaps blow most / all of the money on the bike and buy the helmet and gloves etc separately. If you are stuck on a 29er then consider the Giant as well. I know they are a bit mainstream for some of the niche-ists but I have found them to be very good bikes. The Talon 29er 1 squeaks into your budget and that looks to have a reasonable spec of gear. But try the bikes out to make sure they feel right to you.

Is it a fair valuation based on mileage? From a car buying perspective that is a highish mileage car. As a base price why not try webuyanycar.com? That way you will have a base price from which to work. Or the other option is to go for a glasses or CAP valuation. I believe you can get a basic valuation off them for free.

If you have had no interest in the car so far that suggests it is either too highly priced for people, not a popular / in demand car or both. And the problem you have is you need a price for it that the market does not seem to be willing to pay

As most others have said already – it’s a matter of going out and trying a few guitars to see what you like the sound of. That’s massively important as the better it sounds to you the more likely you are to play it and enjoy playing it. I nearly bought a Simon and Patrick a few years ago but in the end it just sounded a tad harsh to me. Yamaha acoustics are indeed often very nice sounding. However the electro acoustics, especially the shallower body ones, tend to sound quite hard to me. I ended up getting a Seagull when in Canada. Loved it when I got it. Probably would change it now as I prefer a warmer and brighter sound. If I had the cash I would probably be tempted by a Taylor – but still need to go and listen to other guitars. Had a baby Ovation many years ago. That sounded very nice when amplified but was thin when only played acoustically.

What’s with all the fuss about missing a start button. You now have a massive, full screen sized start button. It really is not that hard to figure out. But then, judging by all the grief here, perhaps it is.

Agree with a couple of points ^^ that perhaps the “metro” style apps are not such a great experience on a desktop / laptop vs a touch screen tablet or phone but overall it’s reasonably responsive (at least as quick as 7) and I have found getting used to the Start screen doesn’t take very long.

And Cougar, I suspect it is because Server 2012 does not boot into the Start screen that you may not have seen much of it at the tech day. Starts up with the desktop and Server Manager.

I might be missing something here as I have only skimmed the thread but I am not sure how you think your wife was shafted over maternity. She was a band 5 and for the period of her maternity was elevated to band 6 which presumably means she will have been paid at a higher rate during maternity. At face value that looks like someone was looking after her. Expecting to keep the higher band when coming back sounds like someone being a bit greedy especially if it was explained at the start. Now if your wife starts to get a bit huffy about this I can understand why senior manager may not be seeing her in a favourable light and they may be seeing it as a sign of things to come, so best avoid it and not give her the new job. But as I said, I may be missing some important detail there.

If the new lass really is unqualified for the new role then I would expect her to be exposed fairly quickly and she will then be needing to find a way to get the answers she needs. That may then be the next choice your wife faces as she may be one of the people the young lass comes to for advice. Will she help her out or let her fend for herself? I agree with the other posters though. However unfair it may seem now I can’t see any benefit in kicking up a fuss over it. That will only end badly for her. Suck it up and decide what she wants to do longer term. If she likes the job she is doing then crack on with it and do it the best of her ability. Ask for more detailed feedback on her interview though and where she perhaps underperformed as she wants to use it as a learning experience so that she is better prepared for future opportunities. Sure, she may express that she is disappointed to have not got the role but realises that she may not have come across well enough in the interview and wants to improve. Then see where that takes her. No good being bitter about it though.

Personally I do not like the man at all but I do have a lot of respect for the way he has built some very successful teams over his 26 years at the club. It is a big job for whoever takes over after him. David Moyes would be an interesting choice who has proved pretty consistent at Everton where there is a not much budget at all. I don’t know that it is particularly relevant that he has not really won anything as a manager – not many managers have. What he has achieved at Everton and the way they can play is admirable. I am not sure that Jose is really a good fit for United though. I’m pretty sure that most fans would not like him (irrespective of the fact that he was manager at Chelsea) as his style of play is not what they are used to or want to see.

As mentioned ^^ I suspect the successor ha already been chosen and has known for a little while. Which could suggest it is Moyes. Or else Moyes suspected it ay happen and is waiting to see if Fergies successor comes from a big club that he can then move in on.

Will this not just come down to your own personal moral compass? What would you do if you were person A? What is your motivation? How quick do you feel you need to move? Sounds like you need to get a move on if after only 5 days you have two offers below the asking price and you are happy to accept the first person who (in someone else’s opinion) looks to be a more dependable buyer. Is it only a dilemma now because you think you can get more money?

Personally, although it looks as though you may be losing out (potentially) on some money I would stick with the offer I accepted from person A. And I would say to person B that while you are impressed by the increased offer you have so far given your word and agreed a deal with person A because, at the time, you were led to believe that person B’s offer was final. If the circumstances change and person A goes away then person B will be back in the frame if they are still interested.

If you don’t care about other people and what they think then do what you want which, on the basis of this thread, would appear to be ditch person A and chase the extra £5k that person B is offering.

Presumably the estate agent spoke to you about the offers that had been received and you were given the choice about whether to accept any of the offers? If so, not sure exactly what the issue is with them unless they couldn’t be bothered to try and push up the offers from the interested parties.

Still trying to work this one out but the ad I got over there —–> was for brillo pads! Now, I know the bowl has occasionally needed a quick once over with the toilet brush after a particularly heavy number but brillo pads??!! :-)

Having heard the trailers for it on the radio I can’t wait to see Mr “Effortless Superiority” working it out and wowing us, the humble and subservient public. :D

The other one that makes me smile are those drivers with the seat ratcheted all the way forward, white knuckles on the steering wheel from gripping it so tightly, face 3cm from the windscreen and eyes wide in terror / panic. That cannot be comfortable! :D

We seem to have had a skip full of stuff through the doors over the past few weeks. The vast majority of it from the LibDems and Conservatives. 1 leaflet from the Labour guy (probably wise as historically they have not done very well in this area – 4th last time round). Both sets of leaflets generally seem to say “what great people we are” and “This is what we have done” followed by “this is what the others wanted to do and we disagreed”. Very little about what the real plans are for the future nor any reasoning behind some of the decisions made over the past few years. And this is really the first bomb drop of information since the last elections. Underwhelmed and undecided at the moment.

And probably worth avoiding putting it on your lap. :D

What we don’t know is who the organisation is and how they got to this process. It may be that they have had a long time of “not convincing” illness from a disproportionately high percentage of the work force and decided on what, in this thread, seems an especially draconian policy. If the policy has been there from the start because they are, as an organisation, callous and uncaring then yes, not very good, consider escaping to somewhere less Dickensian. But if you are genuinely ill there should be nothing to fear and the return to work interview will clear it up perfectly well. Agree with the others though – do not take annual leave to cover it. That’s what sick leave is there to cover, so use it if you are sick / ill. The organisation won’t give you anything for being a martyr.

Woah! Go away for 5 minutes and there’s a stampede. :D

Good call on the middle laners overtaking you at barely 1mph faster than you are travelling but fail to move over to let you out. That one does get frustrating.

Not sure if some misread my original post but just to clarify, no, I don’t live in the middle lane. Left lane unless overtaking.

And Molgrips – yes, I know that 70-80 is not the most economical speed to travel at but I ain’t driving at 60ish on the motorway (unless conditions dictate) and it is slower than I used to drive. And that was less economical than my current speeds.

Yes, yes, yes, I know, I could drive faster. But for now I am happy bimbling along at 75-80 as it seems a reasonably economical speed to be driving at.

Maybe it’s just an M4 thing…..

So, where did you go and what was it like?