How to Get Through The Tough Times The Old Style Way.

ChocClare

kitschy wrote: »

I have been pricing up lights and a more comfortable saddle for my bike. Now that the worst of the cold is gone (hopefully) I think this might be the next step for me. It's only 3.5 miles, and there are two days a week I won't be able to do it. It'll be good for me too

I wish I could still cycle to work, kitschy. I used to come out of my front door, down the zig zag path down the cliff, along the seafront for about five miles, then up the zig zag path the other end to my work. I tended to WALK up the cliff for the last bit, LOL.

There were days when I flew to work with the wind at my back and then had to cycle home behind the beach huts because the wind was so strong I stayed still otherwise, but even in the depths of winter, it was a numinous and uplifting experience to cycle to work with sunlight glinting off the sea - or even with huge waves crashing everywhere.

More to the point, I was two stone lighter :eek:

Since we moved three years ago, it is now out of the question for me to cycle - I have to take DD to school for a start (she used to walk or cycle herself) and it is 10 miles along narrow but nevertheless trafficky lanes.

I used to cycle in London so it's not the traffic that bothers me so much - more the fact that no-one has room to overtake me.

Anyway, if petrol prices carry on going through the roof I'm kind of hoping we'll see a drop in cars on the road which might make cycling - both for me and for DD - more of a possibility again.

Of course, I'll have to heave my bloated carcass onto the bike to start with, but from memory the weight comes off quite quickly :rotfl:

kitschy

bertiebots wrote: »

If I thought I could come out of work to find a whole bike I would be cycling to work too ....but round here it would definitely have no wheels after 10 mins:eek: so will have to rely on my little legs. It would take a lot longer than 10 mins to walk home carrying the remains of a bike:rotfl::rotfl:

Believe me, I will be storing it in the comms room, and NOT in the car park!

ifonlyitwaseasier wrote: »

evening all

shame i missed all the trolling, i like a good bicker some days ....

tho this evening we got some bad news (won't go into details) and it's really knocked us all sideways, expected news but awful none the less.

i had been thinking of things i wanted to chat about but now i'm just going to go watch some trash telly to try and calm myself.


ioiwe x

:grouphug:

[Deleted User]

re the increase in biking. Make very sure that you use a top quality lock, one of those stiff ones. Three weeks ago dd had her new bike stolen from a town centre outside work, chained to a bike rack. She bought it to go to work. These thieves are such lowlife scum. She had a good chain too

bertiebots

:grouphug:ioiwe Hope you're ok.

squeaky

Good evening everyone.

Can I remind you of the Forum Rule:-

Please be nice to other Money Savers.

kitschy

ChocClare wrote: »

I wish I could still cycle to work, kitschy. I used to come out of my front door, down the zig zag path down the cliff, along the seafront for about five miles, then up the zig zag path the other end to my work. I tended to WALK up the cliff for the last bit, LOL.

There were days when I flew to work with the wind at my back and then had to cycle home behind the beach huts because the wind was so strong I stayed still otherwise, but even in the depths of winter, it was a numinous and uplifting experience to cycle to work with sunlight glinting off the sea - or even with huge waves crashing everywhere.

More to the point, I was two stone lighter :eek:

I hope to be swapping my suburbian commute for something along those lines very soon - moving to the IOW to be with OH If and when a small person comes along I will have to take the car to school as the nearest is about the same distance away through little lanes with blind corners and no pavements.

ceridwen

mummysaver wrote: »

Evening all!

Hoping someone can point me in the right direction, or knows the answer to this! Friend was handed a pretty scratty letter at work last night, saying that as from Monday hours and pay will be cut by 50%. He has a contract, has worked there for 2yrs, and is required to give 4 weeks notice if he decided to leave. CAB was closed at lunchtime when he tried to visit! Can anyone tell me if this is legal, or suggest where to look please?

Just seems incredibly unfair, he isn't the only one, it has happened to all the employees!

Many thanks for any info though!

He needs to post on the Employment Board on MSE - and then peeps who are more au fait with this will come on and give what advice they can on this.

It DOES seem to be quite a trend at the moment for employers to try removing "part" of a job from someone - rather than the standard position as was of either someone HAS the job or they get made redundant from the job:mad:

My suspicion is that he needs to get a grievance letter in pretty quickly - stating officially that he doesnt agree to this. But - send him to that Employment Board on here and he can work out better what the position is.

The very first considerations would appear to be:
- how long does the employer propose to remove part of his job for?
- the fact that redundancy pay (if it comes to it) is based on the last few weeks worth of salary (think its the last 12 weeks????) and employers cutting pay for a while before a redundancy is a strategy that is sometimes used to cut the amount of redundancy pay payable
- how much notice should he have been given of this?
- is he in a Union and did they agree to this?

polka_purpura

Hi,

I had a more productive day than usual today.

Went to doctor to try and progress a future operation and appontment with a counseller. (I'm astounded how long it takes to see a counseller.)

Did a fair bit of job hunting though I am limited in what i can do at the moment and rely on public transport and am waiting for an operation. Nevertheless I managed to get four applications sent off.

Visited the local library to try and cut my book spends even though I buy in charity shops and the local second hand bookshop. It might sound a bit negative but I am reading up the great depression and the home front at the moment so had the librarian running around their nobody-reads-these-much-anymore storage cupboard.

I saw the mysterious yellow orb that sent me spring clean vibes and cracked on with cleaning the south facing windows and the overflowing food cupboards. The doctor said I should be taking things easy but easier said than done at times. I really need to pull the fridge out but this will have to wait. Doing stuff is good for the mind but not so good for the body. These things are in conflict at the moment but not too long now I hope.

Just seeing other people's posts and I realise my circumstances are good in comparison. All credit to those able to rise above their circumstances.

polka purpura

stiltwalker

Evening all, we've had the odd springlike weather here too and it's really lifted my mood. OH hoping to get a bike in the summer so he can cycle to work 3 or 4 days a week. Not so much the fuel with us as we're still noticing that the new car is more efficient than the old one and so we're putting less in but the bus is SO expensive and with DD and bump due at the beginning of May I've not been able to manage it since before Christmas now anyway. It's an old bus with a pole up the middle of the door and you have to fold the pushchair up to get on and try and squeeze past the pole with DD under one arm and pushchair and bags under the other! and heaven forbid the bus driver should offer to help, it's usually left to the little old lady who gets the bus into town every day even though she's 94 to offer and I think she might collapse under the weight of the bags let alone DD who is nearly 2 but not walking yet. So I just have to wait for OH to get back from work or every fortnight or so my mum comes down for the day and we go out, otherwise I'm stuck in and beginning to go a bit stir crazy. Not sure I'll be able to manage at all with 2 little ones hence OH forcibly getting fit riding to work whether he likes it or not!

Having late tea tonight after bath night, we're having sausage and potato pie, good and hearty and filling and dead cheap, only used half a pack of sausages and made 3 lovely individual pies. DD already had hers before her bath and declared it yummy, mine and OH's in the oven now.

Take care all.

jackieglasgow

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Please feel free to join me under the line that's been drawn under the unpleasantness and let's get on with it. Neither side will agree so let's all agree to disagree and leave it at that, this makes uncomfortable reading for us all.