Latest Moan From You and Me 2025

Just a Kellogg's fan then.

 

I had a similar experience in Lyme Regis this summer. We were walking past the RNLI station when a woman started asking us about a donation. I said I would stop by on the way back from our walk. I approached her with a fiver in my hand and asked where the collection box was. Her response was that they want people to sign up for regular donations. My response was that I don't do that, and asked again where the collection box was. "Over there" she said, pointing to the box hidden inside the door and turned her back on me. I still made my donation but I suspect many others wouldn't have done.

 

When you ring up you get all the options, main one being, are you thinking of leaving us, YES.
You get someone answer fairly quickly that way.

 

You have your car insurance with Which,? I didn't know they did insurance.

 

Insurance has become a nightmare these days - half the time they don't cover your needs Buildings Insurance is a complete joke IME . Even if you ever manage to make a successful claim for the first time ever, they immediately increase the next pemium. Hardly worth it. Just another money grabbing scheme in many instances.

 

Halloween. Last year we escaped as we had just moved in and knew nobody, but this year when we are on first name terms with local children there is a high risk of knockers. Must remember to buy some stupid Haribos.

The biggest fear is that Draft will come.

Draft is a serious, solemn girl of around five years old, who speaks in a manner that I just simply can't understand. Her younger sister is much clearer, but that might be just because her vocabulary is largely limited to "Hi" and "high five".

The first time we met I complemented the younger girl on her bear mask, and Draft came to the fence and solemnly told me she is a Draft.

OK, I smiled and nodded (what else is there to do in such a situation?). When I came back Draft was wearing a Giraffe mask which sort of explained the thing.

Anyways, Draft is nowadays focused in proofing that I must be totally mad, or a foreigner, or both. She deliberately trips me with her questions, last week she made me tell her that my Daughter doesn't exist.

(Draft asked me if I usually walk past here with my Dough, which I intepreted as "daughter" and agreed. Then she asked if I have a Dough, which I probably incorrectly translated as "dog"and denied having one, and was rewarded with that solemn, knowing look only a child can have when meeting a pink turnip doing a jig. )

Anyways, I hate playing the sweet old neighbour who opens the door and does the fake little scream when seeing the dressed up midgets begging for overpackaged Haribos and looking disappointed if they only get the bog standard ones.

Can we adapt some more fun foreign Halloween practise, picknicking on graveyards or similar?

 

Get fruit and veg for them @Selleri. They won't come back if all you're offering is carrots!
My younger daughter used to interpret for the neighbour's son. I've never known how she did it, but they played together a lot when they were little.
When I was out with my daughter around this time last year, the chap from the nearby Erskine Hospital [for war veterans] had a table set up on the way out of Morrisons. I donate every year for Remembrance Day, but like many people are saying, I couldn't just do a one off donation. I had to wriggle my way out of it, and I felt guilty, but I wonder if it's because so many people nowadays don't carry cash? When it gets nearer R. Day, there's always chaps in the supermarkets, or just outside, and they have a card machine. When I've used that method, rather than doing it online, I've never been coerced into a regular donation, but maybe that's changing too, or maybe it varies from place to place. The last time I did that, they didn't have a cash facility.
I took my Dad's lead one year with car insurance. I always look around, and I'd found a much better deal than the new quote, so I phoned them to cancel. The wumman wasn't taking no for an answer, and offered the same as the new one I'd found. 'If you can do that now' I said, 'why didn't I get that offer to start with?' She wasn't amused, or backing down, and it still took a while for me to cancel, but I told her it was poor service for a supposedly 'loyal customer'. She got the message eventually

 

Preferably unpeeled carrots with some mud still attached, @fairygirl.

 

Yeh - and wipe your nose on your sleeve just before you offer them @ViewAhead

 

I have a direct debit set up for the French equivalent of the RNLI after being invited, politely, to donate at a boat show. We don't get people waving cash boxes here and in Belgium they had to offer a badge or a biro or some such in return. We do get invited to round up to the nearest euro at the SM from time to time, usually for cancer or the homeless.

Rice can be full of arsenic and salmonella these days so needs careful soaking, rinsing and cooking and, if there are leftovers, swift refrigeration. In fact, rice that has spent some time in the fridge is better for you as it becomes resistant starch. In any case, I prefer the whole version and love Camargue rice which, at least, hasn't been shipped half way round the world. Having said that I do have lots of rice in my pantry - black Venetian, brown basmati, Thai jasmine, sushi, risotto, paella, pudding, "pink" Camargue and a 3 grain version for the chooks.

I rarely do a rice pud but, when I do, it's flavoured with a bay leaf or cardamom. The Belgians like a tarte au riz which is basically a set rice pud in a yeasty tart case which seems like double bland carb overload to me.

 

Maybe I'm just lucky with Building & Contents insurance. I've claimed on both over the years and never seen a hike in premiums. After the last building insurance claim my premium actually dropped a little on renewal. It's possible it would have dropped more if I hadn't claimed but I'll never know.