Whoops. We will be making an appointment; we don’t currently have one. And I forgot that this Monday was a bank holiday. Jeez.

I used to commute to Edinburgh every week for work (from Cardiff!), and loved it then. I had visited many times as a tourist, but having a flat there (yes, even though it was Leith), was brilliant.

My daughter lives there now. She moved up for uni, but it looking like she’s going to stay, and although I would rather have her close to us, I can’t say I’m surprised or disappointed. Edinburgh is pretty darn nice.

I agree with @RustyNissanPrairie. I am now driving a 20 year-old XC90, and it is faultless. Before it, I had two petrol 740GLEs in a row, and only got something else because there was no Volvo estate big enough for my family.

Now that I don’t have as many kids at home, I have been able to return to Volvo, and have no regrets.

1 x hiking boots

1 x approach shoes

1 x Adidas trail shoes (desperately need replacing!)

1 x Palladium hi-tops

1 x Puma trainers

1 x Loakes boots

1 x wellies

TOTAL = 7 pairs

Do I win? Or lose?

I was standing in line at my graduation many years ago, waiting to be called forward. My surname starts with ‘S’, so I had to wait a long time. I therefore began singing the alphabet song in my head, when suddenly it hit me: in English and French, at least, we sing the alphabet song to the tune of Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star, and that both were actually just Mozart’s ‘Ah! vous dirai-je, maman’.

It was a revelation!

Considering my recent thread on undersleeping, a 5am club is my idea of hell.

I honestly don’t think I could do it, even if I was somehow able to migrate my time awake to different points on the clock. Something about 5am would just break my brain. I can do that sort of thing as a one-off, say, if I have to get to the airport or similar. But more than once or twice? Not at all.

The OP’s description of being knackered for 48 hours subsequent to doing it on Wednesdays, is deeply resonant.

Nuclear war

Losing a brother or cousin to child abduction (it was quite the industry in 1970s North America)

Sharks in swimming pools, because… Jaws

Funny enough, after I posted this thread and a response, I fell asleep in my chair and was awakened by one of my sons two hours later. I guess I just don’t have the stamina anymore.

“Why would you do this? I’ve got three kids and need so much energy this concept is alien and stupid to me!”

Well, because I was working a 9-5 job at the time, I wrote most of my doctoral thesis between 23:00 and 03:00. It was, quite literally, the only window I had in which to write. I just function better in the silence of the night.

I’ve always been like this. I’m 52 now.

Just a dry tea towel? Would it help if it was slightly damp?

“Finnish has the same letters, but is just different in so many ways.”

I hate to be that guy (I don’t, actually), but Finnish isn’t Scandinavian. Scandinavian languages are all north Germanic languages, whereas Finnish is Urgic (like Estonian and Hungarian). In other words, Finnish is not part of the Indo-European language family.

Those are super helpful suggestions. Thanks all!

Just a note: a few people, above, have commented that this topic has been done to death. I can only apologise. I hadn’t ever noticed when such threads came up. I’ve only been interested lately because Mrs SR especially, but also I, have been doing more outdoor stuff on foot, and quite a bit of camping.

The whole Saxon family will be watching!

I don’t know if I have posted on this thread before, and haven’t taken the time to go through each page to see if I did, so forgive me. But…

I have owned two Volvo estates (a 1988 740 GLE and a 1990 740 GLE) and now drive a 2004 XC90. The 1988 I had when I was living in Northern Canada.

I used to do all the work on it, as there were few mechanics around that would ‘work on a European car’, so I had to learn very quickly what I was doing, and it soon became a real hobby. I loved that thing, and spent much time on a forum called ‘brickboard’ that helped me navigate whatever jobs I was doing.

In any case, I used to browse one company’s website all the time, drooling over everything on it, and if you other Volvo estate afficianados don’t know about it yet, please pass my apologies on to your partner.

There are few sites in the world as fun for the Volvo lovers as this one. Unfortunately it’s USA-based, but it still has much inspiration to proffer.

I might have mentioned that when I attended school in Canada, we had annual science fairs, of the sort you might see on The Simpsons or other American shows.

One year, a classmate of mine did her project on electricity, and had, as her demonstration, a grapefruit and a bulb with wires attached. She plunged the wires into the grapefruit and we marvelled as the bulb lit up. I still don’t understand it.

What I do understand, though, is what happened when I thought no one else was about. I had a tin of ‘Orange Crush’ which, according to the labelling, contained 10% real juice. So I thought, ‘why not? I’ll just give it a try.’

I picked up the girl’s light bulb, and plugged the wires into my tin. I then learnt that aluminium can actually burn, that lightbulbs can explode, and that I was an idiot.

“I think that represents a bit of a class divide though.”

Normally I would agree, but remember: our primary school is a ‘local’ in a very mixed-ethnicity and mixed-economy neighbourhood. My youngest’s best friends are recent immigrants from China and Nigeria respectively, and the school is running at between 40 and 50% kids from a background other than ‘British’.

By contrast, the primary my older kids started at in a socially-deprived area of Manchester was entirely white British, and a tragically nasty place, with many parents smoking in the schoolyard, and having period reminders that they were not to arrive to pick their children up while in possession of open alcohol.

I regret not sending my kids to Welsh language school when we moved to Wales, but I have to say that I have always been happy with the way parents act in the schoolyard of the place all of mine have gone, and where my youngest still does.

There is genuine warmth on the part of the parents towards their kids, and plenty of smiling little ones that emerge from the school doors each day.

But yeah, I have seen what you mean OP at a different school, and it’s just awful.

I don’t know what ‘Accelerated Free Fall’ is, but it took me a good few readings not to see ‘Accelerated Free Will’, and thought STW might be dealing with a new Reformation doctrine.

Anecdote sent

Can I strongly suggest a complete out-of-left-field idea? A rough or a smooth collie.

I had one growing up, then another just before we left Canada. Both were of the ‘rough’ variety, and tri-colour as opposed to blue or sable. If I got one now, I would probably get a smooth. They are exactly the same dog, only with different coats.

They are thought of as Scottish, but are reputed to have been brought here by the Romans. They’re stunning dogs, with a perfect temperament. Apparently, the allies tried to train them as guard dogs during WW2, and while they would bark, they wouldn’t bite, so they proved useless. In other words, they are perfect with children and families.

As shepherds, they can run forever, but are just as happy to lie around in the house.

Finally, they are now fairly rare, so having one would put you in exclusive company! (Unfortunately, they are actually an endangered breed.)

I promise you won’t be disappointed.

Essentially, she has money my dad left her in Canada, and wants advice on whether or not to bring it over, and if so, what the best way might be. She is really struggling with the question, and hasn’t been able to get consistent/coherent advice. And I don’t know the best sort of professional to advise her.

“Tim Hortons was surprisingly poor I thought.”

Heretic!

To be honest, I prefer McD’s to Costa, and it is half the price. But I would only ever drink it when travelling. Otherwise, I just prefer my own. Almost nothing tastes as good as the stuff I make myself at home. Except the coffee at the NLC in London. That’s good stuff, that is.

It is. It can be found here.

Thanks for writing that all out, Drac. I sympathise deeply with your situation, and thank you for all you have done over the years. As someone who is alive and well today because of first responders, I am unspeakably grateful for the work you–and others–have done/continue to do.

My son was a police officer with the Met, and two close friends were/are RCMP officers in Canada, and the stuff they have all seen is enough to traumatise even the strongest of people. Indeed, about fifteen years ago I was present when a man died on the pavement here in Cardiff and watched as the ambulance attendants did their best to revive him. One of them was a ‘hard’-looking woman, who gave the impression that she was entirely objective and just did her job without thinking too much about the people she was helping. Then, six months later, when I myself had to be taken to hospital in an ambulance, I recognised her as one of my attendants. In my delirium, I asked her if she remembered the event, and she welled up. She said, ‘of course I remember. You can’t forget the people you lose.’

It’s a lot to carry. Best wishes.

Food (I have zero understanding of ‘foodies’, although I respect where food comes from, and the artistry that goes into making nice food. I just can’t get my head around spending hours to create fancy stuff that will be gone in 15 to 20 minutes. Chicken, rice, and some greens is just fine by me.)

Gigs (I have seen many, many bands play live, but would rather just listen in my living room. Gigs take way too much extroverted energy for me.)

Watching cycling when I am no longer a cyclist (When I rode, I was obsessed. All I watched for a good few years was GCN, and every minute of every Tour I could manage. Not now, though. It’s like, if I can’t do it, there is no point in watching it.)

Breaking Bad (For all people sing its praises, I have never seen a stupider show. Unbelievably fast transition from nerdy, goofy-looking chemistry teacher to dissolving people in acid and making meth on an industrial scale.)

Don’t poke pin holes in the eyes of your Wayne Gretzky rookie card.

The definitive answer, as given by a practicing field archaeologist who specialises in Roman Britain (that is: my son), is:

There genuinely is no answer! No-one actually knows what they are, but there are a few of them knocking about – I think 20 of varying sizes in Britain?

There are quite a few suggestions, like loom weight and such, but I’ve no idea…

As a former Vito owner, I would never, ever recommend one.

Despite having been told that mine was of a post-rust generation (2013), it rusted all over.

Plus, it had transmission problems, and that damned foot-operated parking brake was not only a PIA, it also snapped regularly. The ol’ Vito was in the shop regularly, and I can’t say that about my two T4s, or even my Peugeot Boxer!

Does The Matrix count? I’m not a huge sci-fi guy, but I love that film.

I have one between leather and synthetic for many years, but really prefer synthetic even if they don’t last as long. I have worn different brands and really liked a pair of Salomons I had back in around 2008, but picked up a pair from Decathlon about six years ago and have been amazed. I had low expectations, but after many fairly hard miles on them, am only now thinking of replacing them. Their sole has remained firm and comfortable, and the boot with the right combination of support and flex.

I know you can’t really conclude much from this, except maybe that synthetic boots definitely have a comfort advantage, and that you can get find some incredibly good ones for less than you expect.

I am not a very funny guy, but you can tell your friend this true story:

I was 13 and, together with my family, was visiting friends of my parents in Fairford one year. The man had lost an arm and a leg in WWII. Of course, I decided I wanted to entertain everyone at the table and started telling the following jokes:

What do you call a man with no arms and no legs on your doorstep? Matt

What do call a man with no arms and no legs in your swimming pool? Bob

Etc., etc.

Not once did it dawn on me who my audience was. Then my brother kicked me under the table.

I wanted to die on the spot.

I’d love to watch the Mont Saint-Anne race. I used to ski there!

I forgot about Cliffhanger! It’s a personal favourite as I saw it in the cinema the day after my stag ‘do’, and then signed up for a climbing course. A real inspiration, that one…

I just watched the new Roadhouse last night, and sort of enjoyed it. But yeah, MacGregor is awful.

As for Tom Cruise, I’m actually forever surprised at his ability to project emotion. It only comes out once in awhile, but when it does, it’s actually good.

“When I first started riding my bike regularly at night on my own I used to be scared of the vampires and werewolves lurking in the dark at my sides.”

‘Dog Soldiers’ did me in on this front. Every crack of a branch had me peddling my heart out.

“It seems to me that a large part of the problem with education, like health care, is well meaning but uninformed people thinking that they know better than the professionals.”

I don’t know if this is directed at me, but I was both a teacher and an assistant principal in a sixth form college for 15 years. That definitely doesn’t make me an expert, but it does give me a slightly more informed view of the educational landscape than a simple ‘person with opinions’. And alas, I don’t think that any single professional – or body of professionals, for that matter – can necessarily see the forest for the trees, unless perhaps they were there when the trees were first planted. And as far as the UK is concerned, the trees that were planted were mixed in a less-than-ideal arrangement of private and state schools, ‘faith’ schools, and schools established with a view to instilling just enough education to keep the prolls working in the mills and mines. [Okay, that last point may be a bit harsh… ;-) ]

@joshvegas, in global university rankings, the UK consistently places second only to the US , while Canada places fourth.

In the PISA rankings, which measure school outcomes in reading, maths, and science, Canada has outperformed the UK significantly in all three categories since at least I first became aware of PISA. To the extent where Canada has placed in the top ten, while the UK hasn’t even made the top twenty.

Teachers shouldn’t need radically different training to teach ‘all that’ than what they get now, should they? Although I would love to take credit for it, what I have outlined is just a normal Canadian curriculum. So clearly there is scope for doing it!

EDIT: Sorry, this comment was meant as a reply to @squirrelking

That helps, @Kramer.

If I said that I felt like getting a “Mexican”, that could mean a whole number of things, but clearly most people would think of tacos, or burritos, or whatever. I doubt that most people – in the UK at least – would think of chicken mole on rice with a corn tortilla base, for example. Nothing wrong with that; I would just expect there to be simpler ‘staples’ when it comes to takeaways.

As I suggested, in 20+ years here, I’ve never gone to an Indian takeaway, and so don’t know what people would commonly order. Then, someone mentioned ‘an Indian’ on the recent ‘Glasgow on a Friday night’ thread, and I wondered what that might entail, food-wise. Hence the question.

EDIT: “Does that help the OP??”

Yep.