Nice people thread part 7 - a thread in its prime

Generali

chewmylegoff wrote: »

OH's parents live between Brisbane and Ipswich. The house is fine but the winds ripped the cover off the pool pump and destroyed it apparently. Still, better than the roof being torn off the house which happened to a couple of people they know.

I hope they're ok. A lot of people are doing it tough up there.

It's very expensive to buy insurance which includes storm damage so many Queenslanders don't bother and get the cheap stuff with exclusions. My mate does reinsurance on a lot of those policies and makes the insurance companies write, "This policy does not cover flood damage" in big letters on every page of the PDS. After the 2011 floods he got dragged into a meeting with some Government bod to try to get him to pay out. He politely declined.

Spirit_2

Generali wrote: »

Isn't mint tea just green tea and mint leaves? I couldn't imagine mint tea getting better than being made with a handful of fresh mint leaves.

Green tea is best from the Chinese supermarket IMHO.

Mint tea is dried mint. It is best if it is pure and of a good concentration (imo). The best I have had is from TWG - they have stores in Singapore and Dubai, then Fortnums, then Tea Pigs tea temples. We stayed at teh Atlanic Hotel in Jersey last summer and as well as fabulous service (and a Michelin * restaurant) it had the loveliest mint tea made form fresh mint. I can never do this at home as it runs the risk of having had the dog wee on it.

Since having had giardia:eek: I cannot tolerate tea with milk, so earl grey tea with milk reduced to eg tea with lemon, then next step was fresh lemon & hot water, then worried for the enamel on my tea switched to mint tea and now it is the only tea Mr S and I drink.

Not keen on Morrocan blends of Mint Tea as they are very sweet.

Spirit_2

Generali wrote: »

I hope they're ok. A lot of people are doing it tough up there.

It's very expensive to buy insurance which includes storm damage so many Queenslanders don't bother and get the cheap stuff with exclusions. My mate does reinsurance on a lot of those policies and makes the insurance companies write, "This policy does not cover flood damage" in big letters on every page of the PDS. After the 2011 floods he got dragged into a meeting with some Government bod to try to get him to pay out. He politely declined.

Generali - How do people cope with repeated high cost damage and uninsurable risks? How do those areas stay populated?

vivatifosi

lostinrates wrote: »

A lot of mint teas are very 'muddy'.

I agree. I like mint tea too, so will definitely try the Fortnums one. I tend to make my own using fresh leaves. Yummmmmmmmm....

GDB2222

PasturesNew wrote: »

I made a packed lunch for tomorrow (pitta + egg, salad cream, cheese, tomatoes).... I've already eaten it.

Sounds yummy. I'd do the same.

vivatifosi

So sad to hear of the destruction of ancient documents in the library at Timbuktu following the withdrawal of the jihadists. Hopefully there will have been a project to digitise at least some of them, so that the history is not lost forever.

vivatifosi

chewmylegoff wrote: »

OH's parents live between Brisbane and Ipswich. The house is fine but the winds ripped the cover off the pool pump and destroyed it apparently. Still, better than the roof being torn off the house which happened to a couple of people they know.

This storm sucks, it really does. Were they also hit a year or so ago too?

Generali

Spirit wrote: »

Generali - How do people cope with repeated high cost damage and uninsurable risks? How do those areas stay populated?

You build your house on stilts and plant native plants in your garden, that way it's a clean up job only. That's how people in Northern Queensland have lived for generations. Now the storms seem to be getting worse in the south, their way of living will have to change.

That needn't mean building a new house. Any house that is already on blocks can simply be lifted and have taller stilts put under it. Anything built on a slab (UK-style) would need to be knocked down and rebuilt. That isn't cheap but may have to happen regardless.

You can get flood insurance on houses in Southern Queensland it's just expensive. As is often the case, people want to pay for the cheap stuff and get the expensive stuff.

vivatifosi

Spirit wrote: »

Generali - How do people cope with repeated high cost damage and uninsurable risks? How do those areas stay populated?

Maryborough is quite a cheap place to buy a house and providing you don't buy one by the river, you're unlikely to be flooded. Here's a pretty typical house in terms of price: $188k aus.
http://www.realestate.com.au/property-house-qld-maryborough-112665011

In Hervey Bay you can get a property just behind the beach for $289k (though I'd have to change the decor):
http://www.realestate.com.au/property-townhouse-qld-scarness-112099799

You get a lot of house for your money. Most of the time you get to live somewhere quite beautiful and unique (well in HB anyway). You just have to roll with the punches when it gets a bit hairy. My relatives who stayed in Vic would never move to Qld (too boring, too hot, fewer job opportunities, not their choice of lifestyle).. The ones that have could never go back (too cold, too crowded, too much rat race).

Unfortunately they've had a once in 50-60 year event twice in the past two years, so they are going to have to rethink things a bit. I can remember my Dad doing some repairs on the tin roof when we were kids. It seemed quite straightforward, you got a sheet of corrugated and bolted it into the space. Bl**dy noisy in a storm, but a lot easier to deal with than tiles.

If you're willing to take the risk that a couple of times in your life you may need to put all your possessions in a ute and get the hell out of dodge, then it's not a bad lifestyle. I suppose another question is whether people think it is just weird weather and therefore unlikely to happen again in a hurry, or climate change and the shape of things to come.

michaels

vivatifosi wrote: »

So sad to hear of the destruction of ancient documents in the library at Timbuktu following the withdrawal of the jihadists. Hopefully there will have been a project to digitise at least some of them, so that the history is not lost forever.

I have to admit that although the whole thing is tragic it is somehow romantic to have 'Timbuktu' mentioned on the news, somehow it sounds like somewhere magically remote and exotic. Other places the same are Ulan Bator and Manuchu Pinchu. Talking of which lets hope NDG is OK.

DW likes very weak peppermint tea, the tea bags are £1.40 for 40 at Sains and she likes it so weak that each bag lasts for all the bags all day