Little Things that Irk You: Episode V

[Dogg Thang]

Every house I lived in as a child had the sofa backed up against the wall, I thought that was just the norm.

Sofas in the middle of the room is for Nintendo Wii adverts.

Mine is backed up against the wall. My kids still find ways in behind it.

[randombs]

Our living room has the sofa in the middle because the kitchen area is behind it. I thought it was weird, too, but the dining table is behind the sofa so there's something to sort of stop it sliding about a bit. Still, it just feels wrong.

[Decider-VT]

No problem. I gave them a call and told them to cancel the whole thing because it's not your thing, okay?

I may not have been totally serious.

[QualityChimp]

Ha ha ha, neither was I! I couldn't get through!

[k0pp0]

Every house I lived in as a child had the sofa backed up against the wall, I thought that was just the norm.

Sofas in the middle of the room is for Nintendo Wii adverts.

I used to bury in behind the sofa when the Incredible Hulk was on, even though it was next to the wall.

[BaronSqwelch]

I'm about to enter the house buying fray...talking to the mortgage guy at the bank (who was about 12) was stressful enough. I'm 37 and still don't feel grown up enough to be doing it! He very was keen to get me to borrow more too. They've offered ?40000 more than II asked for...glad the banks are responsible these days

[Wools]

My only advice is to go for a house you can afford.

If the bank can offer you X amount for your wage, try to find a house you're happy with for a decent amount under that. That way you still have money for bills, basics & yourself. If you max what your bank offers, you can get a better house but at the expense of your spare money. Also, I recommend a fixed rate Mortgage (We got one for 5 years) where your repayments will be fixed rate for X amount of years so you won't have massive changes in rates of what you pay. And please don't go interest only!

Me & my Wife were offered around ?250k but found a house around ?30k under that, gives us a nice amount of breathing room!

Have you found a house you like yet?

[BaronSqwelch]

I only want a flat really so the cost is less...my part of Brum is pretty cheap too so everything I've liked is between 70k and 90k and I've got 15k saved. I gave them 80 to work with and it was ?350 a month on a 5yr fixed. ?50 more than my half of rent now.
Seen plenty I like online but didn't want to start seeing them in person until I knew where I stood with getting the cash!

Need to get a move on, got til January before I have to move out of my current place or it'll be back to Mums for a bit

[eastyy]

I dunno if this is just where i live or just bad luck....but has anyone ever been to a restaurant where the soup of the day is not vegetable ?

[charlesr]

I'm about to enter the house buying fray...talking to the mortgage guy at the bank (who was about 12) was stressful enough. I'm 37 and still don't feel grown up enough to be doing it! He very was keen to get me to borrow more too. They've offered ?40000 more than II asked for...glad the banks are responsible these days

I'd also add that interest rates are at rock bottom. You need to find out roughly what the interest bits will be each month and imagine if the interest rates increase / e.g. It's possible they could go to 10%. Would you still be able to afford the payments?

[endo]

I dunno if this is just where i live or just bad luck....but has anyone ever been to a restaurant where the soup of the day is not vegetable ?

It's the same everywhere. Soup of the day = whatever veg they've got a lot of left over from the previous day or which is about to go off.

[endo]

The moronic **** Parade up Brick Lane on Saturday and the even more moronic targeting of the cereal caf?. Yes, charging bowls of cereal for a few quid is a bit silly, but no one's forced to go there. More pertinently, it's the developers and estate agents who are really behind the gentrification of areas of London. The cereal place is just a symptom of that gentrification and, ultimately, the brothers that run it have at least got off their arses and created something, including jobs, from nothing. Targeting their caf? was pathetic and totally misguided.

Also, why do all lefty parades have to have jugglers and fire spinners, etc.? If you're into 'circus skills', whatever they might be, and you don't work in a circus, it's a good indicator you're probably a twat.

[Asura]

The moronic **** Parade up Brick Lane on Saturday and the even more moronic targeting of the cereal caf?.

Why, what's happened?

If people are protesting over gentrification in London, they might be 50 years too late.

[charlesr]

How is charging ?5 for a bowl of cereal that you can buy in the shops for 50p any different from charging ?8 for a pint that you can buy in shops for ?1.20? Every pub in central london has been doing this for years. They are selling a service - a place to hang out and chat, whilst NOT getting wasted on a frankly dangerous drug (alcohol). So it's a step up over a pub really. I wonder how many of the people in the parade had been drinking? Wasting money on booze that could have been given to the poor or the homeless. Disgusting. etc. etc.

edit: BTW, I do understand what anti-gentrification is about. I have no opinion on that though. Capitalism means it's pretty much inevitable.

[Dogg Thang]

^Yep, I agree. And I get when objection to gentrification is due to levelling locations with character and replacing them with cookie cutter buildings and bland global brands, which happens a lot. A cereal cafe does not fit that. Like it or not, that is character.

Must admit though, I was in London about two months ago and was stunned by the amount of old areas that are actually being levelled right now. The city seemed like a building site. So I get why people might be fed up with that. But I feel bad for the cereal cafe getting caught up in that. If anything, it seems that should be embraced, not rejected.