"Last minute" meeting around the UK?

[Puffer 258]

1 hour ago, Shyheels said:

BA is a dreadful airline

'BA' = 'Bloody Awful'?   Lots of claims for compendsation: £150m+ it would seem.

[FastFreddy2 282]

Keeping up with the "mainframe" theme, flying and computer "glitch" ....

Almost certainly, BA will be run on a mainframe because of the number of consoles (keyboard and screen to you) that would be needed throughout the world to access real-time booking information. Lots of other mundane stuff would be done in the background too I expect. Location of aircraft/crew/ground staff. Zillions of payment transactions .... Planning, costings, invoice payments, cash-flow management ...

Most people would likely be thinking: Just turn it off and on again.... Thing is, restoring the last backup copy of the computer record status takes time, and there would need to be a rebuild of the updated transactions since the backup. (Basically, rebuilding the database up to the last known "good" position, then adding every transaction since that point.) Even if every transaction was backed up on-the-fly as it took place (mirrored), rebuilding the original from a mirror image ain't a 5 minute job even on a PC. I've been involved in some large IT projects, but I really wouldn't want to own the data managers job at BA this week. Assuming of course he's still there to get his arse kicked all around the company....

[FastFreddy2 282]

So went to London on Sunday, and got there much earlier than usual. Rain was expected during the afternoon, so the plan was to get there and get back early.

We arrived at 12.30pm and almost straight to the coffee shop for refreshment. It was warm, and humid. I wore my usual heels, the ALDO's in my avatar. "Peculiar" shoes, but stable and fairly quiet. As I'm not out in heels much it takes 15 minutes or so for me to get into my stride, and look less like I've just left hospital with two new hips ...

We did the big stores in a more relaxed way than usual, getting there early had an obvious benefit. Finding a space for the car was quick too. Neither of us wanted anything in particular, and I'd already spent my money this month on a second bike, and car insurance. Mrs Freddy was looking for some last minute holiday bits, nothing else. A pair of heeled open toe shoes from Office at £15 down from £60 was too tempting. A jacket from Zara at £60 was bought under the auspices of their 4 week return policy, though Mrs F almost never takes anything back. (Including a £150 pair of leather leggings bought for £50, to try on again at home. Probably, still in the shop bag, now 4 or so months later.) 

With the weather closing in, (sky getting darker) we went the other side of Regent Street to Topshop, which happens to be opposite a Costa I'm fairly familiar with, and 120 yards from an M+S Mrs Freddy wanted to visit. Just as we arrived, we could feel a few spits of rain. Having reached our first waypoint, we went in rather than immediately making our way back to the car. Inside the store, the air was close, and uncomfortable. We didn't stay long, and when we got to the exit to leave, the rain had set in. Not heavy, but rain.

After waiting for a brief interlude, we made it back to the canopies of the stores the other side of Regent Street only experiencing the rain crossing roads. While walking, my remark to Mrs F hours earlier kept coming back to me: "No, leave your pac-a-mac in the car, you won't need it." Wrong!

The car was parked some 300 yards from the stores, we made use of doorways for respites, enough so we got back to the car fairly dry. 30 minutes later we walked into M+S at Brent Cross, and bought the items Mrs Freddy wanted.

I never complain about any discomfort I experience when wearing a heel. It would be a contradiction given the pleasure I have wearing them, and I seldom have anything to complain about anyway. Today ... 5 hours walking around in a 5 inch heel and a change in humidity I'm not used to, sometimes trying to run (ha ha) across roads to avoid rain, frequently using pavement that resembled the texture of a ploughed field...  By the time we had reached Brent Cross, the afternoons adventure was taking it's toll. After visiting M+S, we bought a weeks worth of milk, (4 x 2L bottles) and walked back to the car, all the stores having closed at 6pm. I carried the milk in two bags, one half of the load in each hand. The additional pressure on the balls of my feet was significant. The (eventual) relief of unloading the milk into the car was enormous with me thinking I might not make the last 30 or 40 yards without help with the additional weight.

We left at 6.10pm, arriving home some 40 minutes later with torrential rain greeting us. British Summer?  

 

[Shyheels 183]

Sounds like you had quite an adventure. How you - or indeed anyone - manages all that in five inch heels is a bit of a mystery to me. Most impressive. Chapeau!

[FastFreddy2 282]

5 hours ago, Shyheels said:

How you - or indeed anyone - manages all that in five inch heels is a bit of a mystery to me. Most impressive.

I haven't got numb feet, but they seldom complain about anything. If at all, it's wearing trainers in warm weather, even moderate weather sometimes. I suspect they complain because I've got fairly warm feet. Mrs Freddy appreciates them in winter, as I sometimes appreciate her cold legs to cool them down. I'm hoping this is a sign of good circulation?

My ankles don't complain either, but they don't have the strength or flexibility of 30 years ago. It doesn't take much to push my ankle sideways, to induce what appears to be a 'trip'. Several times during the afternoon Mrs Freddy felt the need to help me stay upright, while traversing the alpine profiles of the Oxford Street pavements. Those of you familiar with the territory will know most dropped kerbs are preceded by 'lumpy' (shaped) tiles we believe are there for the benefit of the blind. (Warning of a kerb.)

 

The texture does nothing for the traction requirements or anyone in a chair needing to stop, and hurts the feet of anyone wearing thin soled shoes, typically women in sandals... In some places these tiles are broken, or have been disrupted by years of HGV's crossing them. Even in flat shoes, some of the pavement takes some work to stay upright. One of the occasions I nearly tumbled, was while taking a photo of someone wearing OTK boots in (at the time) bright warm sunshine.

    The picture that nearly had me on my knees.

 

As it turns out, her choice of footwear may not have been as unsuitable as I thought at the time.... As long as you keep your eyes on the pavement, an upright posture is completely possible. Maybe that's why my shoes don't get noticed so much there?  Most people too busy looking at the pavement to worry about my antics.

 

Quote

Chapeau!

Thank you. I had to use Google to find out what that meant (I don't have to feign ignorance).  

It only takes a little practice. (Practice, practice, practice.) Sadly, as I age, opportunities become less and less frequent. I don't feel quite ready for my box yet though, so I plan to do what I can while I can. Given the weather on Sunday (humid with potential for rain) I was tempted to wear flat shoes. Luckily I chose not to. 

 

 

Edited May 30, 2017 by FastFreddy2
Pictures added.

[Tacchi Alti 39]

Certainly not my favourite airline! No queues here fortunately, and Security was a breeze. I think the guy manning the belt was intrigued by my wedges I had to put in a tray... I'm sure several people have noticed them, especially as a couple of times the hems have caught under my heel, but I really couldn't care less! They're preventing backache. I know I'd rather have a few stares than suffer all the time I'm standing and walking around.

[Shyheels 183]

To be honest I doubt the guy at security gave your wedges even a moment's thought. They see hundreds of people daily for a few seconds at a time and I suspect they all become a bit of a blur. If you had been wearing pink patent thigh boots with six inch stiletto heels he might have recalled you later, but anything short of that would have been quickly forgotten, assuming he noticed at all in the first place.

Edited May 31, 2017 by Shyheels

[FastFreddy2 282]

2 hours ago, Shyheels said:

To be honest I doubt the guy at security gave your wedges even a moment's thought. 

Unless he wondered where you bought them, and did they come in his size?  

Yes unlikely, but not impossible. 

[Shyheels 183]

Mainly they are just making sure things are properly in the plastic trays - they wouldn't necessarily even know whose tray goes with who, and wouldn't take the time to try matching up which jacket or shoes or laptop goes with which passenger. We are all just so many sheep being pushed through a race...utterly anonymous and without souls

Edited May 31, 2017 by Shyheels

[FastFreddy2 282]

Was supposed to be going to London today. I'm still keen, but Mrs Freddy is less so.

If I'm on here again before 8pm (which if I'm honest is quite likely), it means I stayed home. 

[Shyheels 183]

I'm guessing you braved the new world and ventured into The Big Smoke

[FastFreddy2 282]

3 hours ago, Shyheels said:

I'm guessing you braved the new world and ventured into The Big Smoke

Disappointingly, not.

One of our party was resistant enough to going (later denied) that I left town alone, and did some paid work elsewhere. I hope to go later in the week though. I'm pretty annoyed I didn't go today, and it takes quite a lot for me to get like that about anything. 

I would be the last to deny Mrs Freddy has quite a challenge on her hands with me, but my life isn't a bed of roses either. During the past week I've had some events occur that have had me looking at my life, and wondering if I need to make some changes. I'm aware I'm not getting any younger, and many people around me are finding infirmity -in one guise or another- is limiting what they can do. At the moment I enjoy a fair level of physical fitness, and it's being wasted. Wearing high heels aside (or any other facets of my life that make me -ahemm- unique) my conclusion is; I think I could have a better life, even if it meant losing a (very) good friend. Maybe there's a compromise situation I haven't yet thought of.... This isn't the first time I've found myself at these crossroads, and an impending sense of loss stopped me previously. I don't know I've got enough years left, to do anything other than begin a search for someone with more energy, and more enthusiasm for life in general. Heels, would of course be a bonus, but not currently a deal breaker.

Whole situation is making me quite sad. 

 

[Shyheels 183]

Sounds rather depressing. As you say, none of us is getting any younger and one does reach a stage - forks in the road - where one has to make some wrenching and potentially life-changing decisions. I hope you find a clear path for yours.  

[Puffer 258]

I'm with Shyheels; 'difficult' and potentially critical or conflicting situations appear to arise with almost monotonous regularity as one's body-clock speeds up.   World uncertainties, and those closer to home (including the election, regardless of the outcome, Brexit, terrorism ...) do little to inspire confidence in the future and thereby can undermine one's personal stability.

Working in my elder son's garden on Saturday whilst my 10-month-old granddaughter sat and crawled in the sun gave me some renewed hope, however - as it should.   She responds to any mention of 'grandad' with a big smile and I hope to enjoy her company for many years to come.   And she might even inherit something worthwhile in due course if a future government does not confiscate or squander it all.

Edited June 5, 2017 by Puffer
minor typo

[FastFreddy2 282]

10 hours ago, Shyheels said:

 I hope you find a clear path for yours.  

Thank you. There seems very little clarity at the moment though. There is only one real issue, and my interest in heels doesn't help of course, though you wouldn't know it. I'm always having my hand or arm held in public, despite my footwear. Mrs Freddy is extremely tolerant of this, and most of the other less attractive aspects of my personality. (Mostly associated with physical appearance as I get older.)

The "problem" is I'm told, is largely of my own making, due to her good self living in what passes for a building site. Thing is, we are so far down this impasse, I don't see a reasonable/practical solution - in any form. Even if the building site was to close....   

[Shyheels 183]

Sell up? Buy a flat? Put the DIY tools on EBay? 

[FastFreddy2 282]

Just now, Shyheels said:

Sell up? Buy a flat? Put the DIY tools on EBay? 

Nothing that rash is likely under the recent auspices, though two of the three is already lined up under a mutually agreed plan to give me some working capital. I will need the third to convert a smaller project into something producing a profit.

[Shyheels 183]

Well, it sounds like you are making concrete plans, with a vision in mind. That's a big plus right there. 

[Puffer 258]

8 hours ago, FastFreddy2 said:

...

The "problem" is I'm told, is largely of my own making, due to her good self living in what passes for a building site. Thing is, we are so far down this impasse, I don't see a reasonable/practical solution - in any form. Even if the building site was to close....   

If it helps, I have been in much the same position for the 17 years I have lived with my wife (and her three sons, until they moved on) in our current house.   The (Victorian) house is large and has required significant refurbishment and improvement throughout - it was structurally sound but cosmetically run-down and in many respects 'bodge-repaired'.   It is only about 18 months since I completed work on the last room to be dealt with, and since then (you've guessed it!) work has started all over again on freshening-up my original work, starting with a repaint of the front door and surround and an improvement to one of the showers.

There is no garage or outbuilding available but I have one basement room as a workshop and store, although it cannot and does not contain everything and all sorts of materials for every building trade lurk in odd corners, inside and out.   Not exactly a tip or Steptoe's yard but not (I freely admit) a totally tidy and family-friendly arrangement.   My wife nags constantly about this - and about my alleged inability to carry out work swiftly, tidily and completely - but fails to give credit for the huge range of tasks that have been effectively dealt with by me, almost single-handed, continuously during that 17 year period.   And, in addition during that period, I have done much similar work on a seaside flat that we own (a four-year project, starting with a derelict shell) and on at least seven other properties in the extended family!   I am, in effect, a full-time tradesman with no paying customers!

If I was to stop my activity and dispose of all but a very basic selection of tools and materials, the wife would be delighted.   But, when anything needed attention in the house (and there is always something), we would have to 'get a man in' - with the certainty of significantly increased costs and the probability of a much lower overall standard of work.   I am not proposing to go down that route; disposing of the wife would be easier!

7 hours ago, Shyheels said:

Well, it sounds like you are making concrete plans, with a vision in mind. That's a big plus right there. 

Maybe so, but the pile of aggregate and the bags of cement in the kitchen may cause minor annoyance meanwhile.   

[Shyheels 183]

From what I am reading here, DIY does not sound like the road to happiness. I shall continue to leave plumbing and aggregate and wiring and all that other business to the experts. 

[Puffer 258]

1 hour ago, Shyheels said:

From what I am reading here, DIY does not sound like the road to happiness. I shall continue to leave plumbing and aggregate and wiring and all that other business to the experts. 

That may be the common female view, which usually fails entirely to recognise the downside of the alternatives in terms of their cost, uncertainty, quality, inflexibility and disruption.   If you really lack any DIY skills and have the cash and the temperament, then get a man in - but don't expect him to be truly an 'expert' unless you are very lucky (or rich).  

For the record, my wife is herself skilled in 'making things' - mainly in fabric (clothing and furnishing) - and can readily turn her hand to wallpapering, decorating and gardening.   She has 'done her bit' around the house (e.g. superb curtains) and does not decry my complementary skills.    But she expresses herself forcibly about the disruption and mess in what is, necessarily, a worksite almost permanently.   This despite her own endearing habit of thinking that 'tidying-up' merely involves opening the nearest convenient door and shoving everything into the room or cupboard concerned - ideally my workshop or office which she (rather than I) treats as a dumping ground.   Together, we achieve a lot for ourselves - to our fairly demanding specification and standards - and for the family too.   But I can't pretend the journey is without friction - which is surely also the case in most facets of a marriage?   (And, unlike Freddy, I am married to a woman with no appreciation at all of my interest in heels (whether as observer or wearer) - regarded by her as a perversion, and potentially a more explosive marriage-breaker than any DIY misconduct.)

[Shyheels 183]

Mine is quite non-judgemental on the matter of heels - or rather she would be if I was actually into wearing heels; she doesn't mind my otk boots, and as far as one pair goes - chocolate brown suede - I think she's even a bit envious.  

I daresay though, she wishes at times I had more highly developed DIY skills.   

[FastFreddy2 282]

In a perfect world, us husbands/partners would not need "DIY" skills. We'd contact reputable tradesmen who would do a quality job at reasonable cost, and everyone would be happy. That's not how it works.

My first experience with "Trades" while a tenant started thus:

In the early 80's after waiting 7 years on a council list, I got offered a flat. I accepted, since I was approaching my thirties and my girlfriend was keen for us to live together (though I didn't know that at the time). The place wasn't very nice, but it had potential. By the time I left, the place had been completely refurbished to a high decorative standard, not all done by me. I had a decorator mate who sorted out the ceiling (with paper) after I had dislodged the last of the polystyrene tiles from EVERY ceiling in the house.

During the course of the initial repairs, I'd asked the council for money toward the cost of all the gap filling in the plasterwork. I felt it unreasonable to have to do all these repairs (due to warm air central heating) as much of the plasterwork had blown. They offer to send around a "plasterer" instead, which I accepted.

A week before he arrived, I had bought a brand new cooker. At the time, it was a tad more than a weeks wages. Basic gas oven with four hobs and waist level grill. The plasterer filled holes with bonding to the surface. As Puffer will know, this stuff is a filler, used to produce the right position for a top coat of fine powder "finish" that can be polished to produce the nice smooth wall people paint. It was a bodge. Worse, the useless twat with a trowel, dropped something on my new cooker, and knocked a penny sized chip out of the enamel on my new cooker. When I found it, I reported it to the council seeking restitution. The twat denied involvement claiming it was there already. I didn't get a penny.

When I sold the cooker some years later, it didn't look much like it had been used. The buyers couldn't believe the condition, given it's age. (Not much has changed. Our new cooker of 6½ years, still sits in the house unwrapped.)

That was my very first encounter with 'trades', and experience has taught me, not much changes.

I regularly see stuff, fully trained (apprenticed) trades have bodged, or left unfinished. While this doesn't mean everyone, I would say 90% of trades do only what they are paid for, as easily to them and as quickly to them as possible. No more, and if possible, they do less. ie. Someone local to me had a leaking gutter. Young fella "guaranteed" work, "fixed" the gutter leak using some roof repair mastic. A bit like black sand filled rubber. Except it didn't stick or at least didn't stay stuck. £90. It was never more than a £20 job, and even at £30, the expensive stuff that should have been used - if properly applied - should have ensured there were no further leaks. Some plumber who visited the same house since, has fitted some taps. One leaks. I think the homeowner is waiting for him to return to fix it.

Less recently I painted a garage conversion. Two trades failed to correctly fill a plasterboard join, meaning I was left a crack in a newly plastered wall to correct. Both of these trades paid significantly more than me. The joiner did not fill the board gap, the plasterer plastered over the gap. Gaps allow movement, movement creates cracks. I had to dig out out plaster, fill gap, tape over joint (again) and create a smooth surface for me to paint. While my work remains intact, I hear other cracks have appeared since. And this is for a "regular" customer of the tradesmen who gets them work with other people. 

Two years ago I spotted a bricklayer doing some work across the road from me. Looked like a good job. (It turns out it was for his brother.) I got him to do some work for me. He turned up in the dark ..... Broke bricks I offered to cut (neatly) for him ..... Next day in daylight, I could see what a mess he had left. Last brick sits proud, and his broken bricks barely had enough material left to hold the brick above. I supplied the bricks, cost me £50 for a bad job. Did he get any more work from me? Take a guess. I spent nearly 3 hours filling the gaps he had left in the mortar. Bodger. We used to call then "chancers". The building game is full of them.

I suppose, what people don't know, won't hurt them. But when you know the difference between a good job and a bad one, it hurts to see the work of people who do know better. But to womenfolk in particular, they just want stuff fixed, and quickly.

My walking friend got a bedroom redecorated recently. She got fed up waiting for me to do two other small rooms (that had years of bodging to resolve before I could start putting paint on walls) so she got "a friend" in. He did the job quickly, in some ways. 4½ days at £100 per day - cash. The (supplied) blind he fitted, never worked and he should have known that when he fitted it. (Same fault with the replacement - which resulted in a refund for the blind.) The skirting board he painted has so much muck in it, feels like sandpaper. The papered edges around the window have come a little unglued. These were not cut off or re-glued, just painted. The uPVC sill (cill) that overlays the old tiles, not cut wide enough and excessive filler used to make up the gap. When it came to refitting the replacement blind (that was subsequently found to be faulty as was the first) he wanted half a days money for fettling work necessary on the replacement. Fettling that would not be necessary if he had removed the lump of plaster making the window rebate gap 3mm too short on width. On balance, she now knows she 'caught a cold' on hiring this fella.

 

Of course women all know a "wonderful bloke" who did great work at a friends. I pointed one at a job once ... I still get earache about it, 4 years later.

I don't do "DIY" in the normal sense of it, nor does Puffer. We are amateur builders, or property developers. Some of my tools are the best on the market. Some of them get a lot of use. Today I will be drilling over 100 4 inch deep holes repairing cracked walls built 40+ years ago. Usually these would be skimmed over by a plasterer, and in need of repair again in 2 years. I doubt my repairs will need re-doing while I still live. I fill the gaps in bickwork and mortar joins to ensure they can't move again. Takes time, makes a mess, but means it gets done once. 

 

Edited June 6, 2017 by FastFreddy2
Typo. x2 (Thank you Puffer.)

[Puffer 258]

7 hours ago, FastFreddy2 said:

In a perfect world, us husbands/partners would not need "DIY" skills. We'd contact reputable tradesmen who would do a quality job at reasonable cost, and everyone would be happy. That's not how it works.   Quite so, as your examples amply demonstrate.

...

Less recently I painted a garage conversation.   Be careful, Freddy - walls have ears!

...

I don't do "DIY" in the normal sense of it, nor does Puffer. We are amateur builders, or property developers.   I don't think you do yourself justice, Freddy - you do work for money and therefore, by definition, are a professional, not an amateur.   And, in terms of skill and ability, we both strive to give a professional service to our 'customers', whether as favours for friends and family or for real money .   If asked, I usually say that I am a 'professional DIY-er'; it has been close to being a full-time activity for me for several years!

...

One big advantage of being a 'jack-of-all-trades' (and, one hopes, master of most), is that there is little loss of time or momentum on a major job which involves at least some work from a variety of trades, e.g. the plumbing, electrics, plastering, tiling and carpentry etc that would all typically be required when refitting a kitchen.   I can, and often do, change hats several times during a day and my 'customer' does not need to engage, and wait around for, a whole series of tradesmen who, however skilled, will never all turn up when booked and inevitably both disrupt the programme and potentially cause problems for each other by either leaving something vital not done or jumping the gun instead of waiting for another task to be completed first.   Unfortunately, wives and sweethearts usually fail to appreciate that efficient multi-tasking also requires a multiplicity of tools and materials to be on site simultaneously ...

[FastFreddy2 282]

9 hours ago, FastFreddy2 said:

I Today I will be drilling over 100 4 inch deep holes repairing cracked walls built 40+ years ago.

 

So far, 160 holes, only 1 inch deep. 

And typo (second one - as advised) now corrected.