Nice people thread part 7 - a thread in its prime

lostinrates

PasturesNew wrote: »

My one experience with parmesan was in the 1980s when I went to a Pizza Hut and they had this "sprinkling cheese" (parmesan) - it was ferkin' gross.... and made me stay well away from parmesan forever... but a few months ago I heard Jamie Oliver showing it being grated, as a fresh cheese - and I started to wonder if maybe the 1980s Pizza Hut version was minging by default and "real parmesan" was actually nice/r.

I always buy cheese at £5/Kg (mature cheddar for biggest taste). I just used MySupermarket to look up the price of Parmesan:

Sainsburys: £24.88/Kg
Asda: none showed up in the search
Tesco: £16/Kg

So it doesn't count as cheap as chips when you view it against £5/Kg

No, I wasn't tryingto say it was cheap. But on a flavour comparison it fairs well in £££ per use with a mature cheddar. In recepices like this you aren't using it like you would use cheese but as a sort of umami salty flavour. One oz for three people isn't a lot of cheese. A 'flavour' equivalent would be two iz each of cheddar. But the texture would be totally different.

It is different from the cheese you get per grated but makes me snigger when they say on tv shows that Italians don't know about this. They do. It's still considered awful, but they have it.

fc123

HAMISH_MCTAVISH wrote: »

Thanks guys.

It's not a dig at anyone in particular, more a sense of frustration that we have so many good posters on this thread that rarely if ever post on the main board any more.

QUOTE]

I personally find it a bit strange sometimes.

I do miss the type of 'blockbusters' has gone bust which means the whole of the UK is a short while from total bankruptcy and will be full of £10 houses.

lostinrates wrote: »

What do you mean by finished FC?

Nice builder has done a beautiful job, there is some very minor snagging to do, but it includes outside stuff. No point in him coming to do minor stuff in two trips rather than one, or two trips rather than three

We have a temporary kitchen in the new space. I guess we will get a 'finished' kitchen in a few years. I'm not in a rush.

We were going to paint over christmas but didn't. When my wrist is better I might start the hallway painting though.

Sounds sort of finished...I guess you have a renovated/rebuilt room, plastered, heated etc with some freestanding kitchen equip in it? Would that be right? It is a fab space.

PasturesNew wrote: »

If I had such a big place I'd not be seeing it as one space, I'd get it watertight, then have half of it made habitable, then do the rest... at least that way you get to live in it if you run out of dosh.

I'd have been developing it as flexible living accommodation that I could live in all or part of it, age/finances/whims depending.

Oh ... can they? Can they tell you if you had it? I think I had it 10 years ago, but never went and asked



It snowed here Friday, most gone by Saturday, all gone now. Outside it's now cool, but the car's not even 1% frosted at all.

If your periods have gone away then I reckon you have had it.

The Irish bloke didn't seem to be planning on moving in though....he made all those dark 'cave' like rooms which seemed like guest bedrooms. It was all a bit odd. Wonder if they'll do a re-visit.


Our front extension is nearly done. Just got to get the rendering sorted and bathroom fitted....oh and some floors still to be dug up as we have a slight foundation issue. We have a very good district surveyor who has been checking stuff and is really helpful.


The hardest bit is choosing things. Haven't had to buy stuff like doors/handles for 20 years. 1st house was a Viccy cottage so easy to do (as just bought salvage fireplaces etc) and this house we didn't do major things to it.
The choice out there is a bit overwhelming...in the olden days you had a couple of local places to buy from and that was it.

SingleSue

My problem with knowing is that I had a hysterectomy 11 years ago, so obviously periods stopped but as they left my ovaries, it wasn't instant menopause. Mind you, I still got ovulation pain every month, something which has been erratic over the last year, so it wouldn't surprise me.

Gawd, going through the change would make me feel really old!

fc123

SingleSue wrote: »

My problem with knowing is that I had a hysterectomy 11 years ago, so obviously periods stopped but as they left my ovaries, it wasn't instant menopause. Mind you, I still got ovulation pain every month, something which has been erratic over the last year, so it wouldn't surprise me.

Gawd, going through the change would make me feel really old!

I can't wait for mine to go but no sign as yet.

HAMISH_MCTAVISH

fc123 wrote: »

I personally find it a bit strange sometimes.

I think it's got a lot stranger lately.

There seems to be a small group of posters and their sock puppets trying desperately hard to shut down reasoned debate/get people banned with complaints and such to the abuse team.

And a real influx of political trolls and the racist element.

It used to be that we'd all have a bit of spirited debate and banter.

Now it's become much nastier in tone, some really vile bigoted attitudes, and a lot more personal attacks from "the gang". I'm happy to give as good as I get, and as most people know I'm thick skinned, but it's just getting daft.

As I'm here to debate, and endless mud slinging is pointless, I think I'll make an effort to post more elsewhere for a while and see if the trolls disappear.

I do miss the type of 'blockbusters' has gone bust which means the whole of the UK is a short while from total bankruptcy and will be full of £10 houses..

LOL

Comedy gold.:)

Spirit_2

lostinrates wrote: »

It was good.

It was really nice comfort food..

I love all of those ingredients and I am definitely a comfort food cook.

The recipe will need a bit of tweaking for the Spirit family as DD loves blue cheese in any form whilst my husband wil not eat cooked cheese. Mr S loves black pudding and our daughter will not touch it.

Thank you LiR.

Spirit_2

Generali wrote: »

We had to sack the au pair tonight. I feel very sorry for her: she's a very long way from home (Europe) and is 19 years old. It wasn't much fun for me either but let's not look at that: I've still got a house and a job, she has no job and is homeless in a week.

We asked for someone that can drive and cook and that is responsible. The last item on the list is qualitative but the first item is binary for certain and the second is close.

She can neither drive, although she has a license, nor cook.

Lying from someone looking after my kids. No way.

So waddya reckon, am I a complete AH or have I done what's right to protect my family?

Generali I think some of the characteristics in here are mutually exclusive in here. Being 19 and responsible? I would also say I do not think you an AH, you are looking out for her now but I think you were a tad niave recruiting her in the first place. 19 is not what it used to be. Young people being economical with the truth about their internet usage is normal.
What standard of cooking and experience of driving in foriegn (to her) countries were you expecting at 19?

At 19 my daughter would have been described by everyone as sensible and responsible however for your criteria I would have said was a nervous driver and as dyspraxic had a bit of an issue with road positioning as she has poor spatial awareness:eek:, she definitely spent more time doing internet social stuff than she let on, her cooking was intermittent although she baked good cakes, she had little experience of children and less interest in them. From about 22 onwards there was a less self centred approach, she had developed empathy and acquired an interest in children.

I agree with Silvercar who said you need to recruit someone a bit older. You also need to think how you will assure yourself of any skills you specifically need. I think the driving lessons you provided were an excellent idea - but she needed abit more experience to build on.

Not had an au pair, where I have seen them it all seems a bit hit and miss in terms of reliability and added value. A friend who was a SAHM with 4 children seemed to do best as she just needed an extra pair of hands around the house - sometimes.
Others had party animals/homesick teenagers and a revolving door of new faces ever 6 months.

When we had a live out nanny for DD we recruited first an Australian teacher who was on a gap year (who the did not start as she got a teaching job) and then a Montessori trained nanny who was 24 and newly wed. We provided a car and part of the recruitment process was to drive my husband around the local town. Their maturity and prior life experience along with the experience of children mattered.

It is not easy and you have my sympathy we had had a brief encounter with a local girl who had recently completed a child care course. We had reservations but she was recommended to us when someone heard our childminder was moving abroad - she had excellent references and was a confident driver, but we realised after the first couple of days she was very young and whilst safe was not really happy having sole charge.

What we spent on a good nanny along with school fees totally wiped out my earnings for a few years - we had to look on it as a long term thing and the best we could do for our child if one of us was not being a stay at home parent.

Generali

Hi Spirit. I take all your points but the thing is that we have had 5 Au pairs. 4 did a great job and one was sacked. The youngest Au pair we had ended up as our daughter's godmother.

Last Au pair really should know whether or not she can drive and cook, they are fundamental skills. All the Au pairs have had cooking disasters of the 'beginner in the kitchen' sort and that is expected and acceptable.

I think the fundamental problem is being lost: her story doesn't tally with what happened on Friday. That simply isn't acceptable. I can cook a stew for the Au pair to microwave but if I can't trust her she's out of the door.

misskool

No car today and trains not running. I have to get to work otherwise 2 weeks of work is wasted because of some snow

BertieUK

Generali wrote: »

Hi Spirit. I take all your points but the thing is that we have had 5 Au pairs. 4 did a great job and one was sacked. The youngest Au pair we had ended up as our daughter's godmother.

Last Au pair really should know whether or not she can drive and cook, they are fundamental skills. All the Au pairs have had cooking disasters of the 'beginner in the kitchen' sort and that is expected and acceptable.

I think the fundamental problem is being lost: her story doesn't tally with what happened on Friday. That simply isn't acceptable. I can cook a stew for the Au pair to microwave but if I can't trust her she's out of the door.

Just as a thought - I wonder where this young lady worked before you accepted her as an Au pair - we all have to begin somewhere in our chosen careers and you gave her a chance that she did not grasp. Makes me think that she may have just come out of college and had the theory but did not have the practice.