Your boss is perhaps a master of delegation if he isn’t feeling the pressure.

I’ll always remember an article I read in my older girlfriend’s copy of Cosmo (inserts blushing emoticon) at the tender age of 19… It dealt with just this subject, way back in ’94. The advice was to tell demanding people that you’d get back to them with a decision within two days. You set the expectations, even if it’s a 20 word email or a 30 second conversation.

If you use Outlook, use the flag system to prioritise replies. I do this and half of the demanding people disappear into the background. The important emails are replied to within a couple of days, the rest fade into obscurity.

Christ. 🙁 I know they’re kids, but someone needs to tell them. I was in loads of bands at that age and we were probably awful, but not in that league!! As is often the case, the drummers are the only halfway competent members of the band (I am not a drummer).

Sounds OK to me – once he’s come round and paid (in cash at the doorstep, or previously with paypal), just end the auction.

Thanks very much – loads of useful info. TJ – I thought the axle-mounted ones existed, but wasn’t sure – will go have a look.

Rusty Mac – pretty sure a seatpost mounted rack could easily cope with the weight of a Laptop – I’ve seen bivvy-bikers carrying much more weight than that on these racks.

Duck with Ho

iSins

sauce?

What d’ya reckon it’s worth cynic-al (or anyone else)? I’m pretty sure the asking price is about right, but would be interested to hear opinions…

Good shout – that might be the way forward. Bit of experimentation coming up I reckon. Getting a bit ahead of myself though – got to buy the bike first!

Sorry – cross posting going on there – thanks for the blackburn link – looks spot on, linked with Aidy’s seatpost clamp thing. Might need to buy a bloody tall rack though for it to fit! Or just use P-clips up top I guess.

EDIT; I test rode the bike a couple of days ago and it feels amazing – haven’t had a road bike for about six years! Can’t possibly justify the purchase to Mrs Removed, so it’ll be a buy-first-answer-questions-later kind of a buy 😀

Cynic-al, just had a quick Google for that mount which sounds like a good idea, but no joy. Did it have a particular name do you know?

I tour light, so hopefully won’t snap the bike – I’m only 11.5 stone too, which probably helps 🙂

Cheers fo the links Aidy, much appreciated – this is the bike;

So yes, the seat stays do taper slightly but I can give it a shot and if it doesn’t work, I’d just go for a seatpost mounted rack.

cynic-al – Member
Maybe you should enroll in cynic-al’s Big Hitter Academy?

Dude. You can’t learn that shit. Either you got it, or you don’t got it.

38 here and feeling pretty good, thankyouverymuch.

I also soak my mechs in the stuff as part of my post ride ritual, then work it in before wiping most of it back off again…

Chain gets Finish Line Winter lube all year round ‘cos i have a couple of huge bottles I bought in a sale and it seems to work just fine 🙂

Yup – hacksaw method worked for me on a second hand Kona Lavadome, waaaaay back in the day. Just wrapped the blade in rags rather than actually doing it porperly and making a tool though 🙂

That really is crap news – sorry to hear it. Best of British if you decide to go for the robocop bits – truly hope it works out for you.

Cheers guys – had completely forgotten I’d asked this! Albanach, I reckon any Volvo badge would fit, so if you happen to be passing a scrappie, I’d be grateful if you had a root round.

Too scared to ask a dealership – I’m thinking £60 for the part 🙁

Harry, will go have a look at that site, ta!

My Lurcher / Terrier cross goes a bit sideways when he’s on fast-trot mode – his back legs seem to be trying to overtake his front legs and he’s almost sideways sometimes….

No – my eyes are sore already 🙁

Very funny!

It’ll be harder than usual, given that you already have the goods and that (crucially) he already has your money… I would definitely be in favour of turning up at his house first (in a non-confrontational way) and pointing out that he’s obviously got mixed up and given you completely the wrong item.

If that fails, then maybe escelate it, but don’t hold out much hope.

Have had this twice now (different cars, front wheel both times). The first time it was very obvious – the alloy wheel was red hot, smelt like the end of the world and the binding affected acceleration.

The local garage had it apart twice, cleaned the whole lot out and declared it was fine. Another garage fitted new pads and declared it good to go. Eventually took it to a Mr Clutch type place who reckoned the caliper needed replacing so I bit the bullet, had the work done and problem solved.

Just had the same thing on my Volvo but nowhere near as severe – just burny smell,wheels warm to touch and other symptoms as above ^^^OP^^^. Didn’t want to fanny around wasting cash this time so after the first garage cleaned it all and the problem remained, I told them to just replace the caliper which they did for (IIRC) somewhere around £140. Sorted!

The amazing sights that go pasteurise whilst driving (the oldies are the best)!

nuke – Member

….I’d call the police for him not stopping at scene of accident and he fortunately changed his tune. Turned out he owned a gargae and he had a brand new wing mirror colour matched up and fitted for me in less than a week.

Aye, but just wait until the tin of tuna hidden in the depths of your engine starts to rot…

Good going; capitals, swear filter avoidance, derogatory sexist language, but impact lessened by the apology at the end.

FWIW, blokes do this too – coming out of a narrow culdesac with Mrs Removed driving last week, a guy coming the other way tried to squeeze through a non-existent gap where a van was parked with two wheels on the pavement (his side of the road).

Mrs Removed managed to get two wheels onto the kerb and he just missed us. He screeched to a halt and began waving his arms around but he must have seen the colour of my face (a fetching balckish / red my wife tells me) as he roared off quick-smart…

I do wonder where we’d be if she’d borked the suspension going up on the kerb though – £££s worth off I imagine.

Robbo – hope you heal fast. But really, I reckon you’re just letting your pain receptors rumble here. People keeping appointments is a VERY-GOOD-THING. The timewasting b’stads are those who fail to keep appointments, time after time, wasting the practitioners’ time and depriving other patients of slots.

My wife is an NHS practitioner and gets at least two or three no-shows every single day…

CaptainFlashheart – Member
Can someone please put a flat cap on it. Perhaps give it a book and a pint?

Please?

Your wish is my command (but only cos I’m waiting for me tatties to boil)

Sorry, forgot the book. And apologies also to the poor guy who was grtting lambasted the other night for sitting in a pub reading. Flashy MADE me do it 🙁

Can’t help I’m afraid but also interested as I’ve been looking for one for portrait viewing sessions. Sounds like it’s rubbish for photo viewing at least…

*sends kids round to SamC’s house to enjoy themselves wiping bogies on the rims of his coffee cups* They do so love that game 🙂

Oh biggity-bell-ends. Can’t really bring myself to take this thread seriously anymore, but; this doesn’t sound to me like a cute six year old picking “the odd flower” to take home for her cute cot-side table. It sounds like a couple of brats (“9 and 10 year old”) senselessly ruining a nice patch of daffodils whilst their mum tells anyone who’ll listen to F off.

Never mind the whole lightfooted-in-nature ethos; something which was pleasant to look at is now gone – not hard to get yer head round really…

One point not yet raised is that by allowing ones’ little darlings to pick huge armfulls of pretty flowers, you are giving them carte blanche to help themselves to other, perhaps much rarer plants in the future.

I kind of thought it was accepted wisdom (amongst those with half a civilised brain) not to go around picking wild flowers, and most especially not to rip up massive, greedy armfulls, so I’m saddened and perplexed by a good many of the responses 🙁 By the sounds of the lady in the OP, I very much doubt she was taking the kids round any hospitals or old folks homes…

All those things ^^^ annoy me hugely. But I reserve a special kind of black hatred for the stupidly over-cautious, timid drivers on narrow rural roads (esp west coast of Scotland) who do 20 whenever the road is a bit windy (90%of the time) and immediately put their foot down the second the road straightens up enough to allow an overtake. I seem to get stuck behind tourists like this all the time. It’s almost as if they know they’re holding everyone up, so try to make up for it on the straights 🙁

Was scrolling down thinking, Brian Eno. Brian Eno. Brian Eno? BRIAN ENO! Then Sputnik said it 🙂

Dobbo for Prime Minister Global Ruler 😀 (with Mrs Toast as left hand lady, obviously).

Similar to above ^^ I tend to just wrap my D300 and 17-55mm lens in a fleece / jacket and dump it at the top of my rucksack. Sometimes use a cheapy holster thing to give a bit of extra padding and leave it unzipped in my pack.

Occasionally I try just going out with a prime lens, but almost always end up frustrated at some point – I do like my zooms!

I fully understand why folk don’t like the guy / don’t like to buy his products but I must admit I still do anyway. The sintered brake pads are brilliant – I’ve been lucky I guess. Bought a huge pile of them when they had an offer on, but still have the same pair in (been over a year now).

Also have a pair of Nano pedals. Their first trip out was Glen Sligichan, out and back. I struck so many rocks, I fully expected them to be done for but well over a year later and they’re still going strong – bit of play in the bearings, but still working.

I do feel a bit dirty any time I buy SS stuff though…

I’ve experienced this before (during an emergency bike shop stop) and even the bike shop owner couldn’t get the pump to work. Ended up putting in a little bit of air with a mini pump, then the floor pump worked fine.

stavro – you sure about that? Sounds and smells like BS to me. Perhaps if it was a very hot summer day and you left the kids in a locked car with all the windows rolled up whilst you did the weekly shop at Asda…

I’d happily leave kids in the car when paying for fuel (if I had any) and see parents doing this every day.

This thread just keeps getting better 🙂 Want to go skiing now though…

Couple of work ones from a few weddings ago in January..

The residents of the Isle of Skye are desperate for Tescos / Sainsburys / Walmart to set up shop. The only supermarket in the whole place is an overpriced Co-op in Portree, who spend their whole time running out of stock.

The town centre is very busy with lots of independent shops despite the Co-op but this is mainly down to the tourists I suspect…

andywill – Member
The town has a good feel to it, but It does not have a tourist trade to buffer the local trades people against a large supermarket as competition.

Yeah that’s a large part of why I like them so much. They never fail catastrophically; rather they gently fade away! A good trait in shoes you’re likely to be wearing in the middle of nowhere!

I hardly wear any other shoes! I have a couple of pairs of their ‘soft’ goretex walking boots too, which are plenty comfy for all day use – like slippers 🙂

EDIT – yup, slippers ^^^

I came to uni late – 26 year old mature student and didn’t ask for, or expect any help from my parents. Although I went to an English uni, I’m Scottish, so my fees were covered which freed up my student loan for rent.

I got a P/T job (20 – 25 hours a week) no problem and managed to keep up a semi-decent social life.

Had to apply for a hardship grant in second year but that was only £120 so not much in the grand scheme of things…

I guess being a bit older and wiser helped – I didn’t run out of the bank with my first loan installment and drop wads of cash on clothes / CDs / electric guitars / getting hammered*

*Actually, maybe I did, but just the once 😳