Grumble Thread

[oddoneout]

RE: 685 and 686. Could they have gone to junk folders? I have had that happen, as did a friend recently, even though in both cases emails had been to and fro previously. I've also found ones that previously were OK diverted as spam as the system claimed there was a suspicious term contained in the message or it was similar to something which had been identified as suspicious.

[Joseph K]

Extra protein - insects are the future!

I'm afraid I'm a vegetarian.

[Serial_Apologist]

I'm afraid I'm a vegetarian.

I have been noticing, of late, the profusion of green bottle flies - they are very persistent in insisting themselves on ones ears, mouth and other exposed areas, particularly when strolling through woodland, (me that is, not them!) and one is aware of their prevalence around faeces and dead animal matter, which makes them potential disease carriers, much though one respects them as part of life's natural disposal systems. Detritivores - I love that word.

[Dave2002]

RE: 685 and 686. Could they have gone to junk folders? I have had that happen, as did a friend recently, even though in both cases emails had been to and fro previously. I've also found ones that previously were OK diverted as spam as the system claimed there was a suspicious term contained in the message or it was similar to something which had been identified as suspicious.

Allegedly people living in a Lincolnshire town often have their email filtered.

[oddoneout]

I have been noticing, of late, the profusion of green bottle flies - they are very persistent in insisting themselves on ones ears, mouth and other exposed areas, particularly when strolling through woodland, (me that is, not them!) and one is aware of their prevalence around faeces and dead animal matter, which makes them potential disease carriers, much though one respects them as part of life's natural disposal systems. Detritivores - I love that word.

An essential, if sometimes troublesome, part of compost heaps. The likes of fruit flies can lead to folk spraying flykiller, not understanding that that will have an effect on more than just the flies they can see.
I suspect that the exceedingly dry conditions make flies more inclined to go after moist human parts - so to speak. Remember the ladybirds of '76? It can also alter the behaviour of other animals - there was a mole rootling above ground at work the other day - again memories of '76.

[oddoneout]

I'm afraid I'm a vegetarian.

Ah yes - they haven't quite cracked the insect as dairy replacement yet I think - milking grubs is a tad fiddly.

[Serial_Apologist]

An essential, if sometimes troublesome, part of compost heaps. The likes of fruit flies can lead to folk spraying flykiller, not understanding that that will have an effect on more than just the flies they can see.
I suspect that the exceedingly dry conditions make flies more inclined to go after moist human parts - so to speak. Remember the ladybirds of '76? It can also alter the behaviour of other animals - there was a mole rootling above ground at work the other day - again memories of '76.

I've always understood that insects are attracted to sweat for the salt!

[Joseph K]

Feeling somewhat disappointed that an email I sent to the formidable guitarist Rosie Bennet, following my first and hopefully not only lesson with her, has gone unanswered for a week now. I guess it's possible she's on holiday and I'm simply being impatient.

Pictures on her Instagram have confirmed that she is indeed on holiday.

[Old Grumpy]

Pictures on her Instagram have confirmed that she is indeed on holiday.

Why do people post their holidays on Instagram - this is a demonstrated security risk!

[Nick Armstrong]

I can’t bloomin’ stand Franck’s D minor symphony

Caught 3 minutes of the last movement at the prom earlier by mistake - can’t get the damn thing out of my head now

[oddoneout]

I can’t bloomin’ stand Franck’s D minor symphony

Caught 3 minutes of the last movement at the prom earlier by mistake - can’t get the damn thing out of my head now

The minutes with the couple of bars of "Rhapsody in Blue", repeated from earlier in the movement? That's what I've now got clattering lopsidedly round my head.

[Nick Armstrong]

The minutes with the couple of bars of "Rhapsody in Blue", repeated from earlier in the movement? That's what I've now got clattering lopsidedly round my head.

Hadn’t spotted a RiB similarity but probably, yes!

[edashtav]

I can’t bloomin’ stand Franck’s D minor symphony

Caught 3 minutes of the last movement at the prom earlier by mistake - can’t get the damn thing out of my head now

Spot on!

[johncorrigan]

Mrs C and I headed for a day out yesterday. She had a bit of work to do in Dundee and after that we headed to an 'Exhibition Closing' in Pittenweem, a lovely East Neuk village. Very nice with free cake and coffee and I met an old acquaintance I hadn't seen in ages to add to the fun. Then we headed east along the coast to Kingsbarns, which has a fine beach and is decent for going for a dip and was not too bad yesterday, bar the jellyfish. Fish and chips seemed the order of the day so we headed to St Andrews and started to queue with the other tourists until we saw the carry-out menu and Fish Supper - £12.10. That was ten minutes queuing we'll never get back - no way we were paying that. We headed back to the motor and drove to Dundee and got a fine wee fish and chips for £8 and went up the Dundee Law, admired the spectacular view and fought off the gulls. It was a lovely day out but £12.10...that's just an outrage. We were imagining the days gone by when the kids were still around just how much it would have cost us. Rip-off Britain, I say.

[LHC]

Mrs C and I headed for a day out yesterday. She had a bit of work to do in Dundee and after that we headed to an 'Exhibition Closing' in Pittenweem, a lovely East Neuk village. Very nice with free cake and coffee and I met an old acquaintance I hadn't seen in ages to add to the fun. Then we headed east along the coast to Kingsbarns, which has a fine beach and is decent for going for a dip and was not too bad yesterday, bar the jellyfish. Fish and chips seemed the order of the day so we headed to St Andrews and started to queue with the other tourists until we saw the carry-out menu and Fish Supper - £12.10. That was ten minutes queuing we'll never get back - no way we were paying that. We headed back to the motor and drove to Dundee and got a fine wee fish and chips for £8 and went up the Dundee Law, admired the spectacular view and fought off the gulls. It was a lovely day out but £12.10...that's just an outrage. We were imagining the days gone by when the kids were still around just how much it would have cost us. Rip-off Britain, I say.

I have seen several warnings recently about the increased costs affecting chippies recently (although £12.10 does seem excessive for somewhere outside of London). It seems most chippies around the country are trying hard not to exceed £10 for a portion of fish and chips.

“The National Federation of Fish Friers (HFFF) warned that that customers must eventually pay more for their chippy tea or up to a third of our chippies could go bust. The price of cod - the nation's favourite battered fish - has leapt by 75% since October, and even the price of mushy peas has more than doubled, making a price increase inevitable., according to the HFFF.”

“In just a year, prices for Britain's favourite fish - cod and haddock - are up 75%, sunflower oil is up 60%, and flour is up 40%, Company Debt said”

https://www.reuters.com/world/uk/end-fish-chips-rising-prices-threaten-british-tradition-2022-05-26/