Seemingly trivial things that annoy you

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  • briantrumpet
    briantrumpet Posts: 20,710
    me-109 said:

    briantrumpet said:

    me-109 said:

    No different to the paywall used by many media businesses to access content.


    Except that the type of quality media that can afford restrict access yet still get new subscribers is different from Twitter, in that Twitter relies on people contributing at no cost to Twitter, and on mass contribution and distribution, in order to get advertising reach. Users know it's 99% shït, but you tolerate (and learn to filter) it for the useful stuff. People are only willing to pay a subsciption if the quality-to-shït ratio is high, and even then it's quite a tough sell. Twitter is nowhere near that.
    OK, as a means to block content from the plebs it's the same as a paywall, but obviously there is no charged subscription. You are supposed to be interested enough to want to sign up to the platform completely free, as they want to monetise your data. There is quite bit of online content that is fully restricted in the same way or, like Roadcc mentioned somewhere above in this thread, has a limited viewing to entice you, either letting you get so far through the article or giving you X views per month.

    But that only works if people trying out the restricted free articles assess that it's worth unlocking the hidden stuff. Twitter is all surface: there's nothing behind the shop window display... that's really its USP, and why it succeeded in its bite-size-chunk delivery.
    https://www.facebook.com/unanglaisendiois
  • me-109
    me-109 Posts: 1,915
    I've never been interested / interesting enough to register. :)
  • briantrumpet
    briantrumpet Posts: 20,710
    me-109 said:

    I've never been interested / interesting enough to register. :)


    I initially registered so I could use it to get responses to complaints, but for more into it during the Trump era as a way of getting more unfiltered reactions to what was going on there.
    https://www.facebook.com/unanglaisendiois
  • Pross
    Pross Posts: 43,593
    Half-hearted thunderstorms. If you have one you want the full blown thunder, lightning and downpour then a nice fresh clear sky when it passes.
  • Pross
    Pross Posts: 43,593
    People trying to plan an anniversary for our running club. Someone suggested hog roast, cue a vegetarian complaining and a response that there’ll be a vegetarian option as well. Not good enough as the vegetarian cannot bear to be in the same room as a hog roast so that’s been scrapped.
  • webboo
    webboo Posts: 6,087
    Pross said:

    People trying to plan an anniversary for our running club. Someone suggested hog roast, cue a vegetarian complaining and a response that there’ll be a vegetarian option as well. Not good enough as the vegetarian cannot bear to be in the same room as a hog roast so that’s been scrapped.

    I have been veggie for over 40 years and when I hear things like this it makes my p!ss boil. You don’t change things by p!ssing off your mates.
  • pblakeney
    pblakeney Posts: 27,486
    Hold two events and count the number of attendees at the veggie event for future reference. 😂
    The above may be fact, or fiction, I may be serious, I may be jesting.
    I am not sure. You have no chance.
    Veronese68 wrote:
    PB is the most sensible person on here.
  • Stevo_666
    Stevo_666 Posts: 61,808
    edited July 2023
    Pross said:

    People trying to plan an anniversary for our running club. Someone suggested hog roast, cue a vegetarian complaining and a response that there’ll be a vegetarian option as well. Not good enough as the vegetarian cannot bear to be in the same room as a hog roast so that’s been scrapped.

    Have the hog roast outside or tell the whiner to decline the invite if they want, as everyone else is fine with it. They can always arrange their own vegetarian hog roast :smile:
    "I spent most of my money on birds, booze and fast cars: the rest of it I just squandered." [George Best]
  • TheBigBean
    TheBigBean Posts: 22,025
    TheBigBean said:

    Being vomited on, again. Seems like a specialist skill of mine.

    This one again.
  • rick_chasey
    rick_chasey Posts: 75,660
    Pross said:

    People trying to plan an anniversary for our running club. Someone suggested hog roast, cue a vegetarian complaining and a response that there’ll be a vegetarian option as well. Not good enough as the vegetarian cannot bear to be in the same room as a hog roast so that’s been scrapped.


    _
  • rjsterry
    rjsterry Posts: 29,811
    TheBigBean said:

    TheBigBean said:

    Being vomited on, again. Seems like a specialist skill of mine.

    This one again.
    One of your own or random stranger?
    1985 Mercian King of Mercia - work in progress (Hah! Who am I kidding?)
    Pinnacle Monzonite

    Part of the anti-growth coalition
  • TheBigBean
    TheBigBean Posts: 22,025
    rjsterry said:

    TheBigBean said:

    TheBigBean said:

    Being vomited on, again. Seems like a specialist skill of mine.

    This one again.
    One of your own or random stranger?
    Always my own.
  • Munsford0
    Munsford0 Posts: 680
    Pross said:

    People trying to plan an anniversary for our running club. Someone suggested hog roast, cue a vegetarian complaining and a response that there’ll be a vegetarian option as well. Not good enough as the vegetarian cannot bear to be in the same room as a hog roast so that’s been scrapped.

    Or as Frankie Boyle put it: "There is a vegetarian option - you can f@ck off!"
  • pinno
    pinno Posts: 52,497
    I think it's discriminating against the vegan who has to be in the same room as the cheese on a cocktail stick.
    seanoconn - gruagach craic!
  • Stevo_666
    Stevo_666 Posts: 61,808
    Munsford0 said:

    Pross said:

    People trying to plan an anniversary for our running club. Someone suggested hog roast, cue a vegetarian complaining and a response that there’ll be a vegetarian option as well. Not good enough as the vegetarian cannot bear to be in the same room as a hog roast so that’s been scrapped.

    Or as Frankie Boyle put it: "There is a vegetarian option - you can f@ck off!"
    :D
    "I spent most of my money on birds, booze and fast cars: the rest of it I just squandered." [George Best]
  • rick_chasey
    rick_chasey Posts: 75,660
    I am trivially annoyed that no-one in the Pross / hog / vegetarian scenario didn't spot it is the entire plot of a Simpsons episode; indeed, one of the all time classics.
    _
  • briantrumpet
    briantrumpet Posts: 20,710
    I recall a scenario years ago when I was helping organise a youth music tour, and we had an enquiry from a parent whose child's extreme nut allergy meant that a single nut on a coach would (supposedly) have been enough to trigger a severe allergic reaction. It would have been really tricky (if not impossible) to sort out 100%, but thankfully the child in question decided not to come in the end.
    https://www.facebook.com/unanglaisendiois
  • briantrumpet
    briantrumpet Posts: 20,710
    Dear clever people, I've got a friend who's 66, and is trying to work out if it's worth topping up her state pension contributions as she's got a gap... she's trying to find out by phone, but...

    I've tried numerous times trying to get through to the Future Pensions Team to ask if it is worthwhile topping up... But they ways cut you off.. Doing this for months. If you phone DWP they say they don't deal with this!


    Is there a reasonably simple online way to work it out and do it, if it does make sense for her to do so?

    TIA
    https://www.facebook.com/unanglaisendiois
  • Munsford0
    Munsford0 Posts: 680
    Had one of those announcements on a flight once. Passenger with and extreme and potentially fatal nut allergy. No nuts being given out, passengers asked not to open / eat anything of their own in case it contained traces of nuts. General paranoia about the smallest of particles getting into the aircon system.

    Of course it turned out I was sitting next to said individual. Spent the entire flight nervously glancing to my left and wondering if I'd need to put my epipen training to the test
  • Stevo_666
    Stevo_666 Posts: 61,808
    briantrumpet said:

    Dear clever people, I've got a friend who's 66, and is trying to work out if it's worth topping up her state pension contributions as she's got a gap... she's trying to find out by phone, but...

    I've tried numerous times trying to get through to the Future Pensions Team to ask if it is worthwhile topping up... But they ways cut you off.. Doing this for months. If you phone DWP they say they don't deal with this!


    Is there a reasonably simple online way to work it out and do it, if it does make sense for her to do so?

    TIA
    Have a look here Brian:
    https://gov.uk/check-state-pension?step-by-step-nav=c0ff9296-e91e-40d1-97bd-008026e90426

    My OH had a 4 year gap in her contributions and when we did the maths it was a no-brainer: something like a 3-4 year payback on the investment, so unless you're worried about croaking soon its a good investment.

    IIRC we had to create an online account to get an accurate picture of what she had to pay and what difference it made to her state pension payment.
    "I spent most of my money on birds, booze and fast cars: the rest of it I just squandered." [George Best]
  • briantrumpet
    briantrumpet Posts: 20,710
    Munsford0 said:

    Had one of those announcements on a flight once. Passenger with and extreme and potentially fatal nut allergy. No nuts being given out, passengers asked not to open / eat anything of their own in case it contained traces of nuts. General paranoia about the smallest of particles getting into the aircon system.

    Of course it turned out I was sitting next to said individual. Spent the entire flight nervously glancing to my left and wondering if I'd need to put my epipen training to the test


    Yes, I had one of those announcements on an Easyjet flight too. But rather easier to control on a single flight than a week of children jumping on and off coaches and public transport and in public venues.
    https://www.facebook.com/unanglaisendiois
  • surrey_commuter
    surrey_commuter Posts: 18,867
    briantrumpet said:

    Dear clever people, I've got a friend who's 66, and is trying to work out if it's worth topping up her state pension contributions as she's got a gap... she's trying to find out by phone, but...

    I've tried numerous times trying to get through to the Future Pensions Team to ask if it is worthwhile topping up... But they ways cut you off.. Doing this for months. If you phone DWP they say they don't deal with this!


    Is there a reasonably simple online way to work it out and do it, if it does make sense for her to do so?

    TIA
    The simple answer is to do it as it is buying money (unless she has a life shortening illness) as it only takes about 3 years to break even

    longer answer is that she may have maxed out so she needs to go on the website which will tell her the gaps and what she needs to max out
  • briantrumpet
    briantrumpet Posts: 20,710
    surrey_commuter said:

    briantrumpet said:

    Dear clever people, I've got a friend who's 66, and is trying to work out if it's worth topping up her state pension contributions as she's got a gap... she's trying to find out by phone, but...

    I've tried numerous times trying to get through to the Future Pensions Team to ask if it is worthwhile topping up... But they ways cut you off.. Doing this for months. If you phone DWP they say they don't deal with this!


    Is there a reasonably simple online way to work it out and do it, if it does make sense for her to do so?

    TIA
    The simple answer is to do it as it is buying money (unless she has a life shortening illness) as it only takes about 3 years to break even

    longer answer is that she may have maxed out so she needs to go on the website which will tell her the gaps and what she needs to max out

    Thanks SC - I'll pass that on.
    https://www.facebook.com/unanglaisendiois
  • TheBigBean
    TheBigBean Posts: 22,025
    The main issue is that deciding whether to do it is considerably easier than buying the actual years as you have to phone them to do it.
  • Stevo_666
    Stevo_666 Posts: 61,808
    surrey_commuter said:

    briantrumpet said:

    Dear clever people, I've got a friend who's 66, and is trying to work out if it's worth topping up her state pension contributions as she's got a gap... she's trying to find out by phone, but...

    I've tried numerous times trying to get through to the Future Pensions Team to ask if it is worthwhile topping up... But they ways cut you off.. Doing this for months. If you phone DWP they say they don't deal with this!


    Is there a reasonably simple online way to work it out and do it, if it does make sense for her to do so?

    TIA
    The simple answer is to do it as it is buying money (unless she has a life shortening illness) as it only takes about 3 years to break even

    longer answer is that she may have maxed out so she needs to go on the website which will tell her the gaps and what she needs to max out
    Glad you agree with my break even estimate SC.
    "I spent most of my money on birds, booze and fast cars: the rest of it I just squandered." [George Best]
  • First.Aspect
    First.Aspect Posts: 17,379
    Website tells me I will max out if I carry on paying in.

    I assume there's no point if you are just over educated and started contributions late, like me?
  • Stevo_666
    Stevo_666 Posts: 61,808
    First.Aspect said:

    Website tells me I will max out if I carry on paying in.

    I assume there's no point if you are just over educated and started contributions late, like me?

    Probably not, provided you're comfortable that you will eventually hit the 35 qualifying years required to max out on the state pension.
    "I spent most of my money on birds, booze and fast cars: the rest of it I just squandered." [George Best]
  • briantrumpet
    briantrumpet Posts: 20,710
    TheBigBean said:

    The main issue is that deciding whether to do it is considerably easier than buying the actual years as you have to phone them to do it.


    Ah, that's probably the bit she's getting stuck on. The only way of contacting them is by post or phoning them. It's almost like they don't want to be contacted.

    I remember that when DVLC were explaining why, during covid, that there was such a delay, they said that they receive 15,000 items of post per day... just why, in in the 2020s?
    https://www.facebook.com/unanglaisendiois
  • TheBigBean
    TheBigBean Posts: 22,025
    briantrumpet said:

    TheBigBean said:

    The main issue is that deciding whether to do it is considerably easier than buying the actual years as you have to phone them to do it.


    Ah, that's probably the bit she's getting stuck on. The only way of contacting them is by post or phoning them. It's almost like they don't want to be contacted.

    I remember that when DVLC were explaining why, during covid, that there was such a delay, they said that they receive 15,000 items of post per day... just why, in in the 2020s?
    They've extended the deadline, so there is still plenty of time to do it. Although I like the idea of writing.
  • surrey_commuter
    surrey_commuter Posts: 18,867
    Stevo_666 said:

    First.Aspect said:

    Website tells me I will max out if I carry on paying in.

    I assume there's no point if you are just over educated and started contributions late, like me?

    Probably not, provided you're comfortable that you will eventually hit the 35 qualifying years required to max out on the state pension.
    Plus, the further you are away from retirement the greater the chance the rules will change.

    I think they count full time education as a qualifying year

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