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Post by 3piggles on Jul 7, 2014 22:08:31 GMT
Oh geesh! It doesn't just bring out the worst in people. It brings out the worst people If those roads are wide enough for those idiots to interfere, it's wide enough for guards to keep the idiots off the road
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Post by Bean on Jul 8, 2014 8:09:13 GMT
Good point! It was in London yesterday - did your friend manage to go along? The teams went over to France last night - hopefully they weren't travelling by Eurostar as some power problem caused massive disruption to the services yesterday.
We ended up watching most of a documentary about Lance Armstrong the other night - hadn't planned to but it was pretty compelling viewing seeing how brazenly he lied about not cheating when he was all along, and how he manipulated and intimidated everyone around him to keep his secrets. An unsettling character, for sure!
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Post by 3piggles on Jul 8, 2014 19:57:29 GMT
She was actually in your neck of the woods, as she's in the group that gets all the riders registered, kitted, etc. She posted some great photos on Facebook showing some of the riders at the opening ceremonies, etc. She headed off to Belgium/France after that, though not sure what her role is in those places. I'm hoping she will post more photos, as whatever she does, she's right in the middle of the action.
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Post by Bean on Jul 9, 2014 9:18:10 GMT
Oooh how exciting, must be a thrill to be so involved when you love the sport so much!
I have just planted out my second round of veg seedlings (first round - Slugs 1: Bean 0). Am keeping a close eye on them, they're a bit more mature than the last ones and the weather is perfect for them growing quickly (warm and lots of sun but also lots of rain) so I am hopeful they will establish themselves quickly!
I like the idea of using hair clippings around the bases of plants to keep the slugs off. Doesn't get washed away by the rain like other wildlife friendly methods and doesn't endanger other insects like the beer traps etc do. But apparently it can be a bit grim if it's windy - don't want to end up with bits of hair on my runner beans?!
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Post by 3piggles on Jul 9, 2014 18:21:55 GMT
We used can collars. My mother thoroughly washed different sized cans, cut off each end with a can opener, then cut the can in half to make two collars. I used plastic drink bottles, but we didn't have those when she was gardening. She put saucers of beer I think, around the garden, and between the two things, never had a problem with slugs or cut worms.
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Post by glittze2001 on Jul 10, 2014 8:05:22 GMT
I was told cutting a circular of sand paper out and cutting a slit in it and putting it around the plants can help. The slugs don't like the rough texture . I have seen it work really well as well
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Post by Bean on Jul 10, 2014 8:37:46 GMT
Oh I read about that and it sounded very promising - I meant to have a root around in the shed but forgot, might do that today. So far my plants have been left alone so I'm pleased about that!
I've tried beer traps and although they worked, there were some other casualties like beetles (and I put a stick up for them to be able to climb out) so I feel bad using them.
Striking teachers here so the kids are home - it's a nice sunny day too which is great.
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Post by 3piggles on Jul 10, 2014 16:15:13 GMT
Why are the teachers striking?
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Post by jolovespiggies on Jul 10, 2014 18:08:20 GMT
Oh bless you Bean, I love beetles but I know many do not. Thank you so much for thinking about them.
Hugs Jo xx
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Post by Bean on Jul 11, 2014 8:17:05 GMT
Aww beetles are great - and don't they also eat little slugs so we definitely want them around!
The teachers (not all, but many) were striking over pay, pensions and general government cuts that are making doing their jobs much harder. It's not just teachers either but many public sector workers - firefighters, binmen, civil service staff, court workers, street cleaners etc. Pay rises have been frozen at 1% for a few years, during which time the cost of living has gone up massively, so they're all a lot worse off than they were a few years ago. Plus being asked to pay more towards pensions and work for longer. In some respects as we are all living much longer, it's clear something has to change with the pensions system. But in combination with a lot of other factors, many people are royally cheesed off at how they're being treated.
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Post by 3piggles on Jul 11, 2014 11:54:32 GMT
Our teachers have the same problems and for the same reasons. The major problem is that except for that top 1% of wealthiest people, no ones earnings are keeping up with the cost of living. Few taxpayers have sympathy for government workers they see as having gotten something for nothing all along. Public sector workers had their health insurance paid by the taxpayers for decades. Now they have to pay for their own as we've all had to, and they're not happy. Not much sympathy on that issue, though.
I think teachers have been misunderstood for a long time. Taxpayers see the bad teachers because they stand out. Daughters 5th grade teacher should not have been paid to teach, but she had a contract, so years of endless parent complaints were dismissed. Doesn't make parents want to pay more for these teachers when contract renewal comes around.
We desperately need to change our whole education system, but no one can afford the changes needed, so we stick endless bandages on the problems, but don't resolve anything. That frustrates and angers everyone fir a variety of reasons.
I don't exactly like bugs, but I definitely respect their place and do my best to accommodate them.
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Post by Bean on Jul 13, 2014 18:20:27 GMT
I don't think there's a major resentment here for teachers' wages (along with nurses, firefighters etc) - there seems to be an understanding that to attract the best people to educate the kids of our future, we need it to be an attractive profession to enter. Although saying that, loads of people think they have it easy because of the cushy hours and holidays (working 9-3, a few months of holidays a year), not appreciating that most good teachers spend evenings, weekends and school holidays working.
We went along to an open day at our vets yesterday - it was a birthday party for the surgery and also a fundraiser for the charities they support (one of which is the rescue we foster buns for - oh and on that topic, we got new ones yesterday as Sophie and Percy have headed off to their lovely new home). It was good fun. They had some interesting animals to meet - the kids loved the rats and had several climbing over them. They were lovely, friendly rats - I was a bit distracted by how enormous their testicles are, but there's no need for me to go on about that, is there?! They also had an gigantic (much bigger than the rats' testicles!) and very sociable reticulated python. He was stunning and has half a garage converted in to a good environment for him with a pond and some trees. Really nice to see people who are totally potty about animals and giving them the best care.
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Post by 3piggles on Jul 13, 2014 23:09:52 GMT
I'm glad he has such a great habitat, but I would have totally freaked out. I have a truly irrational fear of them, even in books, and on TV. There's one ad in Guinea Pig Magazine that has one among other animals. Hubby covers it with painters tape before I read the magazine. Sigh, not fun.
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Post by Bean on Jul 15, 2014 9:24:47 GMT
No fun at all. My neighbour was just telling me she's petrified of birds - knows they can't cause her any harm and thinks they're pretty to look at, but the flapping really scares her.
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Post by 3piggles on Jul 15, 2014 13:33:58 GMT
It is totally irrational. Every spring I would start telling myself to expect them and be prepared. Then I'd see one and totally lose it. No amount of prep helps. I feel for your neighbor, because birds are everywhere.
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Post by SiLamb on Jul 16, 2014 14:36:20 GMT
So I bet you all thought I'd fallen off of the face of the earth...what really happened is that I got sick, and then had to prepare for a vacation, then go on the vacation, then play catch-up after the vacation and now here we are.
Hubby and I had a fantastic trip for a lovely wedding.
I hope this post finds you all doing well.
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Post by jolovespiggies on Jul 16, 2014 18:34:29 GMT
Oh I am so pleased love, I am glad you had such a wonderful time.
Hugs JO xx
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Post by Bean on Jul 16, 2014 18:52:56 GMT
Welcome back - wondered where you were! Sorry you were poorly but glad the trip was such good fun - hope everything is back in order after all the chaos!
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Post by 3piggles on Jul 16, 2014 19:05:15 GMT
I was wondering where you'd gotten to Glad to see you back. Also glad you enjoyed the trip. I hope you are all better, now
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Post by SiLamb on Jul 16, 2014 20:06:17 GMT
Thank you all for the warm welcome back! I'm feeling much better now. I was having migraines for over a week...miserable time.
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