Room 101

[LinMM]

Driving in Cornwall recently the lane was so narrow that a whole line of cars had to reverse about a quarter of a mile downhill because at the front was a double decker bus( yes on its normal route) which could not get past a MASSIVE lorry with a crane on....which wanted to come down the hill. It took a good 15-20 mins for this procedure.

I just hope this lorry HAD to be in this lane for some reason and not taking some short cut grrrr

[alison]

Melody, you've obviously become so naturalised that you've forgotten that to the British "Asian" refers to people originating from the area covered by Pakistan/India/Sri Lanka/Bengal/Bangladesh and possibly a few other countries   I'm not sure what term is currently preferred for Japan/China/Korea etc.: it used to be "Oriental", but I suspect that is probably vanishing under pressure from the US.  "Far Eastern"?  Means the same thing

[MAB]

I have a Chinese friend who went ballistic when referred to as Asian, she's fine with oriental but I understand that word is now considered politically incorrect in many quarters.

[taxi4ballet]

Can you tell I live in a rural area Jacqueline?!!

 

A few more country hazards:

 

Potholes (councils tend to forget piddling little roads) and filled with water they are invisible

Bunches of lycra-clad cyclists competing in a road race (at least they are brightly-coloured!!)

No road markings, no cats' eyes, no kerbs and in bad weather you can't see the edge of the road and the whole lot is covered in mud anyway

Adverse cambers

Gravel washed out of driveways & fields - a lethal skid risk on a bend, especially for motorbikes

Water-filled ditches that will drown you if you crash into them

Blind bends and summits

Galloping escaped horses

Roads that turn into single-track lanes with no warning

Hump-back bridges

People who drive right up behind you at night and dazzle you with their extra-bright lights

Concealed driveways

Horse boxes

Reckless people driving SUV's and 4x4's who think they are rally drivers

Miscellaneous wildlife

[taxi4ballet]

Forgot one - all those idiot drivers who think that just because they are unrestricted roads, it is safe to drive at 60mph (and the rest)

[Piccolo]

Taxi, my father, from your neck of the woods, (I seem to remember you mentioning it recently) visits the area to see his sisters sometimes. He comes back with some incredulous stories, often road related. Isn't this all (well maybe not all) NFN? ;-)

[Anon2]

Taxi, don't forget no road signs so motorists drive like lunatics up to a junction then sit there bewildered. Another is truck drivers following their sat navs and finding they can't turn at some junctions or can't pass other traffic as road too narrow. This is common on a hedged hill near us, suddenly you can't move because two trucks going in opposite directions are having a stand off about who needs to reverse out of the hedged area so one can drive onto verge so they can manoeuvre past each other. They are obviously heading towards Felixstowe container port and think they can take a short cut.

You obviously don't have the same road races we have. The organisers of our local ones take it upon themselves to spray paint around every pot hole and if area particularly bad they write a warning too. Roads look pitted but now a variety of coloured rings every where.

Regarding loose live stock I'm reminded of an incident when I was returning home with son and as we turned onto our road we could see a car parked in the distance and a man with a horse. There are horses in a small field at this point that have got loose on other occasions. We walked up to see what was happening and were meet by a real old country boy who whilst taking his wife shopping but had found a horse on the bend. He didn't want to leave it but was stuck as couldn't call for help and without a bridle couldn't control it. The horses in the field behind the hedge were neighing and the loose one was getting excited and responding. Another villager arrived with a bridle having seen what was happening and between us we eventually got the horse into the field with his friends. It took us about an hour with plenty of stamped on feet and scratches from barbed wire. We all felt pleased with ourselves that we had adverted a problem. Later that day as I walked to library van the owner of the horses in field drove past. I waved him down and told him that yet again one of his horses was free and he was lucky it hadn't caused an accident, that the loose horse and the two in the field were all very distressed by the incident. He then informed me he only owned two horses and had no idea where third was from. The police women I spoke to when I relayed the incident incase someone had reported a missing horse had a really good laugh. I've no idea what happened but assume someone claimed him as he wasn't there next time I passed field but he must have travelled a few miles alone that morning as no one knew him.

[taxi4ballet]

Taxi, my father, from your neck of the woods, (I seem to remember you mentioning it recently) visits the area to see his sisters sometimes. He comes back with some incredulous stories, often road related. Isn't this all (well maybe not all) NFN? ;-)

Ah, I was on a recent jaunt, so no, not NFN - it's more BPC round here!

(that's Brussel-Picking Cousins by the way)

[2dancersmum]

And adding to the country roads hazards:

 

farm machinery on narrow roads that occupy both sides of the road

dips in roads prone to flooding

no streetlights

people parking in such a way that the bus cannot get through a village (or fire engines, emergency services etc)

[LinMM]

Love that horse story Jane and after all that trouble. I'd loved to have watched the horses in the field after that to see how the all got on!

 

Could have led to all sorts of shenanigans!!

[taxi4ballet]

I know someone who bought a Shetland pony and discovered a second one in the field with her a few days later - she'd been heavily in-foal when they bought her but since Shetlands are pretty rotund anyway, neither they nor the sellers had realised! They said it was a buy-one-get-one-free

[Anon2]

Lin after we struggled to get the loose horse through the barbed wire, dodgy electric fence and then an old wooden door instead of a gate into the field all 3 of them charged round and round the field very foal like. I'm not a horsey person but after this incident was told they are very sociable towards each other and that would explain why they were neighing to each other either side of hedge. The best reaction was from the police women. Loose animals are not unusual around here but me relaying the tale had her in stitches.

[LinMM]

I bet!!

[Pixiewoo]

Can you tell I live in a rural area Jacqueline?!!

 

A few more country hazards:

 

Potholes (councils tend to forget piddling little roads) and filled with water they are invisible

Bunches of lycra-clad cyclists competing in a road race (at least they are brightly-coloured!!)

No road markings, no cats' eyes, no kerbs and in bad weather you can't see the edge of the road and the whole lot is covered in mud anyway

Adverse cambers

Gravel washed out of driveways & fields - a lethal skid risk on a bend, especially for motorbikes

Water-filled ditches that will drown you if you crash into them

Blind bends and summits

Galloping escaped horses

Roads that turn into single-track lanes with no warning

Hump-back bridges

People who drive right up behind you at night and dazzle you with their extra-bright lights

Concealed driveways

Horse boxes

Reckless people driving SUV's and 4x4's who think they are rally drivers

Miscellaneous wildlife

 

You must live near me! I particuarly like groups of cyclists several abreast when going up or down hills on a bend, with hedges either side!

 

And yes, random lorries on country lanes, or a particular joy in spring is the tourist who stops their car in the middle of the narrow road, to take photographs of the lambs on or by the road, then zooming off, just missing said lambs by mm :0(

[taxi4ballet]

And finally...

 

The total absence of signs to warn 'Oncoming Vehicles in the Middle of the Road' which are deemed unnecessary, because all of them are!

[porthesia]

You must live near me! I particuarly like groups of cyclists several abreast when going up or down hills on a bend, with hedges either side!

 

And yes, random lorries on country lanes, or a particular joy in spring is the tourist who stops their car in the middle of the narrow road, to take photographs of the lambs on or by the road, then zooming off, just missing said lambs by mm :0(

 

And it's the glare from the cyclists as they approach four abreast round a bend with hedges either side.  Obviously I just do not have the right to use the road because they have exclusivity!

 

And I must live near you all as the hazards you've detailed all apply to where I live.

[Melody]

We're in the middle of yet another heatwave, temps in the mid-80s at 9 pm - I just went outside to put the rubbish bins out for tomorrow's collection, and nearly fell over a snake sitting in the middle of the driveway soaking up the heat.

 

I'll be so glad when winter finally gets here.

[Pixiewoo]

People who think that because i live in a 'tourist' area, it is ok to park across my driveway even though my car is on the drive AND there is a lowered curb all the way down the road!

 

Or yesterday, the people parking with such inconsideration down the road ... rather than parking all on one side, they chose to park on alternate sides, so you have to zigzag down the road, and heaven help a fire engine or ambulance needing to get anywhere. I did smile at one of the constant tractors that also use the road squuezing past with a bit of muck from the trailer falling out onto a car. Lucky the tractor didn't bump into the cars, as I've seen that before!

 

Oh, and a farmer friend who has just been asked if he could stop combining (harvest) as it was spoiling the picnickers view and was rather noisy. He politely asked them to get out of his field and private land to find somewhere else to picnic! ... yes, they'd set up IN the wheatfield !!!

[Anon2]

Couples who think it is ok to walk along narrow pavements holding hands and don't stop when someone else trying to walk in opposite direction. What are those approaching supposed to do? Levitate or step into road.

 

And flies this year. We always suffer because of location and someone suggested worse this year because not as many wasps around to keep them under check.

[taxi4ballet]

Computers.

 

Especially those which think their memory is full when it patently isn't. 70mb of files does not = 13gig. I don't care what you say, You are wrong.

 

If you don't start playing ball I will take a hammer to you and beat you into a pulp get your memory wiped and reinstall everything. Ha! Get out of that one, you swine!

[Anna C]

Computers.

 

Especially those which think their memory is full when it patently isn't. 70mb of files does not = 13gig. I don't care what you say, You are wrong.

 

If you don't start playing ball I will take a hammer to you and beat you into a pulp get your memory wiped and reinstall everything. Ha! Get out of that one, you swine!

I thought I was the only one driven to uncharacteristic rage by IT, taxi! Very reassuring.

[taxi4ballet]

It wouldn't be so bad, but it's the one with all dd's coursework on it and she hasn't been able to take it back to vocational school with her.

 

Two earnest and very helpful young men in PC World spent over two hours trying to sort it out today and were completely stumped by it as well, and so it is going to their workshop to have its bumps felt.

[Harwel]

One idiotic social service worker who rang me first thing yesterday and left a message in my phone wanting discuss my father. My poor old dad is in a special hospital for dementia care and been there since May - every time they think they may be able to place him in residential care he has a downturn and they have to try and stabilise him all over again. I was left panicking thinking that he'd died, I couldn't get hold of my mother, I couldn't get him to pick up when I returned his call - when I finally got through to him, he wanted to discuss whether I thought my mother could cope with him at home! He is in the hospital because no residential care home has the facility to look after him as he is so bad, they accept he needs 24 hour care and have to have 3 people to get him up in the day and need a hoist to get him in a wheel chair, he spits out any food apart from jelly and ice cream and they seriously asked me if my mother can have him at home. A lady of 77 who lives on her own with heart problems and an autoimmune disease - bloody crazy!!

[Anon2]

Unbelievable Harwel.

[Jan McNulty]

Oh Harwel that is just awful.  I don't think these people do anything like read case notes before they contact us; we are just a tick in the box.

 

My Mum fell and broke her hip and just could not seem to recover.  I was told she would never be fit enough to come home and that I would not be able to look after her on my own as she would always need 2 people to be able to get her out of bed.  The social worker at the hospital was very supportive.  I had a lovely nursing home just 5 minutes walk away but unfortunately Mum just faded away and didn't make it there (despite the wonderful care she was receiving in the hospital).  The social worker sent me a sympathy card.  They are not all bad.

[Harwel]

You are so right Janet, I do feel it is a tick box sort of thing. Shame they don't look up notes first. The care he is getting in the hospital is outstanding, it's just a heart breaking situation.

 

Sorry to hear about your mums condition, losing a parent is so painful.

[LinMM]

The like Harwel is to,agree with you ....not the situation you are in. Though I know some social workers just have too big a work load like most people today!

 

My dad died a few years ago now and was only at the very beginning stages of dementia and still living at home ......though when he died was looking for a home for him as things were deteriorating .....anyway the point is that I was very concerned that he wasn't eating properly so had spent months trying to persuade him to try "meals on wheels"

I had just got him to agree to this for three days a week and told the lady whatever you do DONT phone him or he may not remember the previous conversation and say he didn't want them!!

Well on the very first day what did they do....phoned him....and what happened.....he said he didn't know anything about any meals on wheels and dint want them to come that day!!!

Grrrr back to square one!! But I was cross as I had suspected this might happen and I had a hunch that if he started them he would be okay about it......just fear of something new.

Eventually I was incredibly lucky as I managed to arrange for a brilliant neighbour to just call over at lunch times and check he was eating lunches previously prepared for him etc.

But why don't people who DONT know your relatives very well not listen to YOU who do!!

 

I still miss both my parents Jan. I try not to think too much about the ends of their lives as both were painful for very different reasons when I dream about them they are always in full health thank goodness!!

[Harwel]

I still miss both my parents Jan. I try not to think too much about the ends of their lives as both were painful for very different reasons when I dream about them they are always in full health thank goodness!!

That is a blessing, I have a wonderful photo of my dad with my 2 boys taken in the summer holidays and it has pride of place in the living room, as that is how I want to remember him - even though he was in a dark place we went on a very lucky day where he was responsive and happy.

[alison]

Flippin' weather!  Guess who had to go up to Milton Keynes on the train today?   Train delayed by maybe 75 minutes, and was late for my course.

[Fiz]

Let's put dementia/Alzheimer's in Room 101. I know many of us here have parents either enduring this wretched illness or who have suffered from it.

[Anon2]

I agree Fiz, all dementias and progressive degenerative diseases.

 

My morning was made though seeing the video clip of Ted McDermott and his son singing in the car on this morning's news. As an ex performer the family find he can remember songs if not them. From their YouTube clips of Ted singing they have raised money for the Alzheimer's charity and have gone on to get a record deal that will raise more money. Ted looked so happy singing it brightened my morning.

[FLOSS]

Just to say that with the push in the name of ever greater efficiency to do more and more with fewer and fewer staff the staff who you think of merely ticking boxes may not actually have time to read the case notes. Sorry but good staff are really feeling the strain.They have to find places for those suffering from dementia  when in fact such places don't exist in anything like sufficient numbers because they have not not been funded by central government.

 

We have inadequate health and social care funding because one group of politicians don't believe it is the duty of the state to take action in this area,they are the ones with a childish faith in the market's ability to solve virtually every problem on earth, while those who believe in state action are not brave enough to say that you can't have Scandinavian style services if you are only prepared to pay US style taxes.

.

[Quintus]

Knees can go in Room 101.  Poorly designed and wear out far too soon.  I just popped off the treadmill to get a drink, hopped back on and pow, stabbing pain in my right knee. Can now go upstairs on it but not downstairs.