My amazing life

Vesterberg

just back from dubai blah blah blah blah blah blah blah bought 'the wife' a new runaround blah blah blah blah blah blah working on a filmset blah blah blah blah blah blah dropped a V8 lump in a Porsche blah blah blah blah blah blah blah my cellar is massive blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah jetting off to Monaco blah blah blah blah blah.................

YAWN

MattC59

Cleat Eastwood

The town also has a dynamic cultural life, including the ’Maxi-Rires’ Comedy Festival and a wide range of musical events.



Parents are being secretly judged on their views on race and diversity while in hospital with their newborn babies under the SNP Government’s latest assault on family life.

In a further twist, the same health board is asking children – some of them still at nursery school – to rate their parents or carers on a scale of 1-10.

The project is part of the sinister Big Brother-style system of state meddling called Getting It Right For Every Child (GIRFEC) which is being quietly rolled out across Scotland. Last week, this newspaper exposed the “scary” plans for all children to be given a state guardian – or Named Person – who will have the legal right to tell parents how to raise their offspring.'



According the Trussell Trust, the UK's single biggest organiser of food banks, in 2011-12, the number of people who received at least three days' emergency food was around 130,000. Their own informational material says that in 2012-13, "food banks fed 346,992 people nationwide", and of those who received help, "126,889 were children".







“Life is more or less a lie, but then again, that's exactly the way we want it to be.”
― Bob Dylan



And now ladies and gentlemen

team47b

Where you been?

missed reading your posts.

you excelled this time

VTech

I wasn't going to reply here but seriously, WOW, it seems we have a mirrored life !

Like you, Ive been to Dubai, recently got the wife a new runaround, ive never actually worked on a filmset myself or dropped a V8 into a porka but I do have a fecking great big cellar and garage and occasionaly "jet" off to Monaco !

The funny thing is, why some people find it funny to mock others, I prefer the "just get on with life and do what you can" approach rather than the "im jealous so ill try and attack" method.
Then, if people are lucky, like me and you, they can get to places like Dubai in style, putting their feet up like this:



Whilst sitting in comfort like this:



Arrive at the airport and collect this:



Whilst staying at this:



With views like this:



Be able to transport this:



So you can ride this:

http://app.strava.com/activities/56894353

Followed by a personal tour of this:



Being able to view this:



And get this opened so that you and a couple of friends can have a quick tour:




Of course, in reality though, all this is meaningless, because whilst working abroad you miss your family holiday with the wife and kids, she is upset, the kids feel let down and the whole time your working your really thinking that you made a mistake and should of gone with the wife and kids as you promised them nothing would get in the way this time and that you wont bail out at the last minute but of course as always, you did.

Possessions, items values etc mean nothing at the end of the day, when the kids give a hug and the wife a wink, thats what counts. Having nice things is nice when you can share.
The difference is, you can mock me when you dont know if im a "grab grab" guy or a philanthropist who helps all he can, so mocking is actually a moronic type of behaviour, quite disturbing when you look at it for what it really is.

seanoconn

I can sympathise with VTech to a certain extent. I too am massively wealthy, the only difference being is that my massive wealth is in my trousers, I have a massive c@ck (nobody edit that!) Proud and rightly smug as I am, I'm not so insecure that I feel the need to insert my massive c@ck into every other post, because quite frankly ramming my massive c@ck down people's throats at every given opportunity lacks class.

pinno

Just bought my 9th collectable Breitling Moon-o-matic correct to ten to the power of n5 and waterproof to the depth of the bottom of the Mariana trench this morning, I was over the moon - a pure snip at £383,981.51p. Don't you just hate it when your watch is delayed at the jewellers when in for a polish?
However, this was preceded by a quick dip in my triple olympic size underground swimming pool where I keep my yaught. I was mighty upset - the water tempertaure was 0.5 deg c below what it was. Damn swimming pool elements - so sodding pernickety. The kids were away thank god on an educational trip to Disneyland Florida and that gave me a chance to catch up by skype to me chums developing some winter ski thingy in Sochi. Rapid Ronnie looked slightly pixilated - don't you just hate it when skype is'nt working properly?
The Ferrari is however at the valeters for the umpteenth time this week. I am so fed up with the weather. Drove it out after a 36 hour clean straight into a puddle. I mean the bloody council should fix the roads shouldn't they? So annoying. You can tell it is a recession, my private jet was parked 25 yards from the terminal. It so bloody annoying when you're delayed by such a long walk. Do you think I should change my cabin crew?
Must go, Its been a terrible week - lost 0.043p per share off my global stock of everybloodytaxavoidingsearchengine.com, wiped 3bn off the value of my 489bn shareholding. I am going to have to go to work at least 2 days next month.
Oh, well. Back to the grind fellow sufferers - keep you chin up, we must soldier on.

VTech

seanoconn wrote:

I can sympathise with VTech to a certain extent. I too am massively wealthy, the only difference being is that my massive wealth is in my trousers, I have a massive c@ck (nobody edit that!) Proud and rightly smug as I am, I'm not so insecure that I feel the need to insert my massive c@ck into every other post, because quite frankly ramming my massive c@ck down people's throats at every given opportunity lacks class.

I too can understand that, but the fact that I work abroad, have posted on a thread about some building work and offered some things to people who may want them more than me shouldnt equate to ramming said penis down gullet of said poster. !

EKIMIKE

VTech wrote:

The difference is, you can mock me when you dont know if im a "grab grab" guy or a philanthropist who helps all he can, so mocking is actually a moronic type of behaviour, quite disturbing when you look at it for what it really is.

Oh no you didn't!

The philanthropy card. As played by gentlemen such as Ingvar Kamprad, Jimmy Savile and Lance Armstrong - to name just a few. It's a major bugbear.

Frankly, philanthropy is cheap moral currency. Given its modern meaning 'philanthropy' is essentially something which the wealthy literally buy. With it they get the 'philanthropist' title. It's utterly hollow so stop patting yourself on the back.

I've organised and ridden bike rides for charitable causes and worked voluntarily on an event which has benefited my local community and had charitable by-products. But you can be sure I don't go round implying I'm a f**king philanthropist, let alone use it as a justification for people having to suck up my unrelenting, odious spew of BS.

Excuse me, I need to go and get a bucket and mop to clean up this vomit.

VTech

You say you dont but you just did.
Also, I could be the other type who is "grab grab" you dont know which I am !!!

You cycle and do work for charity whilst others may not have the time or ability and so give money or goods, neither is wrong and certainly neither is better than the other.

If someone rich doesnt give, people moan that they should share, if they share people like you say they do it to pat themselves on the back.

Your typically asking me to be sorry for who I am but I like me, I am loyal, friendly, never go out of my way to hurt anyone, am truly dependable, have the love of a woman and my kids and am generally quite happy so why would I want to change to suit the likes of Mr EKIMIKE ?

You then use people like the ones above and instead of making people hate me which was your intention, they actually think your a to55er, they may not say that of course but thats what they think.
Ive spoke to and met loads of people like you, full of anger and hate and I used to get upset by it but over the years I have really come to terms with it, after all, you must have hateful people to balance the norm.
If your ever local let me know, ill show you around and we can have a beer, my life has no room for bitterness.

EKIMIKE

Wow, you've dreamt up an entire narrative and inserted its words firmly in my mouth.

Please, keep your imagination to yourself. All I took issue with is the inference that you were some kind of virtuous philanthropist. If a signed Red Bull jacket is all it takes, then that says everything about the hollowness of the label 'philanthropist'. Of course that's me making a huge presumption. But frankly I can't see you emerging as a bona-fide Bill Gates-type philanthropist...

The other part of my point was that we all do good, somewhere, sometime, for someone. It's human nature. It's called empathy. It's as common as taking a dump. But hey, did I mention? My turds are incredible.

And Dubai? A place of hollow dreams: dreamt up lifestyles lived out in a dreamt up environment full of dreamt up stories and dreamt up culture. The shoe fits - and it suits you darling. The only problem? Your outfit stands out like a sore thumb.

team47b

The shift that occurred when the notion of 'Noblesse oblige' passed down the classes without the understanding has a lot to answer for, like most gestures they become, well gestures of rhetorical discourse.

I'm also not 'avin a go, just interested in social economic anthropology.

EKIMIKE

I guess everyone thinks they are great now, right? Particularly my generation - the 'millenials'.

Ultimately, if you're posting on generic biking forum, as we are, then you're doubtless nothing more than a common scrote - much like myself.

Cleat Eastwood

EKIMIKE wrote:

Wow, you've dreamt up an entire narrative and inserted its words firmly in my mouth.

Please, keep your imagination to yourself. All I took issue with is the inference that you were some kind of virtuous philanthropist. If a signed Red Bull jacket is all it takes, then that says everything about the hollowness of the label 'philanthropist'. Of course that's me making a huge presumption. But frankly I can't see you emerging as a bona-fide Bill Gates-type philanthropist...

The other part of my point was that we all do good, somewhere, sometime, for someone. It's human nature. It's called empathy. It's as common as taking a dump. But hey, did I mention? My turds are incredible.

And Dubai? A place of hollow dreams: dreamt up lifestyles lived out in a dreamt up environment full of dreamt up stories and dreamt up culture. The shoe fits - and it suits you darling. The only problem? Your outfit stands out like a sore thumb.

There is an awful lot of rage around for what is a beautiful Saturday - I've smelt my first barbecue today

Well as much I dislike commenting of lovers tiffs - you see whether you organise charity rides or VTech offers items from a film set, the overriding, and naturally beautiful, principal is abundance. You both give because you are able to, your gifts don't reflect you, you are neither a bike ride, nor VTech fast and furious (I know I've seen his strava times) but you are both reflecting an inner generosity.

Vesterbegs original post is all what is troubling him -it is not about Vtech at all- the blah, the everyday - the tiresome detail - that is what troubles him, the small peaks on which he project this troubled state is 'dubai', 'v8' 'porsche', 'filmset'. But if you remove the 'blah' from his post you are left with experiences Vesterberg has, presumably, had already, a holiday, a car, a job a relationship - so why the amusing anger - possibly because he has not experienced those variations of Vtechs life. POssibly because if he were to remove his cynicism his experiences would appear 'insignificant' against others'.

Totally untrue of course but I think that is a common feature in posts with VTech - others seem to take his generosity as a reminder of what they lack, as though their hardships have not been recognised or the have not sufficiently recompensed for their good, and often silent?, deeds.

Also, as in all of Vesterbergs posts, they are often quite pointed and amusing - perhaps his gift he shares is to allow us not to take life too seriously, it is offered as all intuitive gifts are from a point of great energy, love and compassion, just like your rides you've organised or done, or Vtechs offers of F1 jackets and film stuff - all are sourced from kindness.

All come from a state of generosity and abundance - you are closer to Vtech than you imagine - and you are closer to the source of universal love that you dare dream.

Do post the things you've organised or the rides you've done - if for nothing else it will help alter perceptions, publicly, of the essential kindness of man*

And look how quickly angers flared in what is essentially a jokey post :shock:

*except Pinarello001, he's a tw@t

sungod

let's stop being nasty to each other and move this thread onto a sound lifestyle choices basis

why emirates? or is it the orders of corporate travel dictators?

aside from the newer emirates terminal at dxb and their look down/ahead cameras on the entertainment system, i much prefer virgin for flights to dubai, the virgin burger in the clubhouse at lhr is scrumptious, the crew are more fun, and in upper class with the bar, the bubbly, the chocolate and the chili snacks, i'm in heaven, then they bring round the cake stand and it gets even better

EKIMIKE

Hmm maybe the way I write sounds angry or hateful? My apologies. Serious, yes. Angry or hateful, no. If VTech (or anyone else as he suggests) wishes to think of me as a 'to55er'... meh, so be it. Couldn't care less.

I am very bored though. And would rather be out in the sunshine. But things need to be done. Those things are indoors things today. Time for a short ride tomorrow morning so here's hoping the sunshine holds out!

By the way I think it's pretty clear I wasn't bragging about certain charitable things I may have done. The point was that we can all list charitable things we've because we invariably all do charitable things. That in itself is great. And well done VTech for being a good bloke in that respect. But those things are what they are - a simple part of everyone's life (like taking a dump). So lets not get delusions of grandeur!

VTech

EKIMIKE wrote:

By the way I think it's pretty clear I wasn't bragging about certain charitable things I may have done. The point was that we can all list charitable things we've because we invariably all do charitable things. That in itself is great. And well done VTech for being a good bloke in that respect. But those things are what they are - a simple part of everyone's life (like taking a dump). So lets not get delusions of grandeur!

The thing is, I never mentioned what I have done other than the initial offer, ive never posted here about what I have or havent done for other forum members and wouldnt dream of doing that, its between me and them.
My comment earlier about being a grab grab guy or philanthropist wasnt aimed at me being either end of the scale, it was simply made out to be that you dont really know what I do or dont do.

Philanthropist - no, grab grab - no, try to be decent - yes.

Offering a jacket that I have not paid for, or bits from a movie (that I didnt work on the set but did some contract work for) as gifts simply because I either dont want them or already have them and they are spare is nothing more than trying to stop waste, trying to offer other people things that they dont have but I do.
Similar to the advice people like smidsey, cleat, philwint and many others have given me, thats their gift, given freely and without want of return.

I cant help the fact that I wanted to dig a bl00dy hole in the garden, the real issue is that I shouldnt have to watch what I say through fear of upsetting people. Its like me struggling to do a 50k ride when others post endlessly about knocking out a 150k ride with ease on a sunday afternoon, I take their comments as they are meant and nothing more.

Believe it or not, I have no animosity towards EKIMIKE or MattC59, I smile often at their comments and my earlier offer of a beer is genuine, ive met plenty of people offline who id only previously spoke too via the net and my opinions almost always have changed. The net rarely does anyone favours on a personality stake.

@sungod, the flights were paid for by corporate, I usually fly virgin to the USA and almost always emirates when flying east. I rarely get a choice. As with most corporates, I tend to have the 4 hour rule on flight levels.

k-dog

I don't get Dubai at all. If I was going to spend that much money (which I won't be doing!) on a trip there are many nicer places I would choose.

pinno

Thanks Cleat, love n stuff. xx

BTW - I don't think for a moment having an expensive lifestyle or a highly paid job is anything to be jelous of and it also seems to be the subject of envy. It just bores me when there is a thread about expensive watches or crap like that.
I am lucky in a way - I faced my own mortality at a young age for a long time, in the prime of life and this makes material goods meaningless
My two girls, my OH and my increasingly ill mother are what are important and nothing else apart from close friends and family.

I do think that Dubai is a contrived place and I have met many who go out there or have worked there and you can have it - doesn't interest me in the slightest. Some come back brain dead although well paid.

VTech

k-dog wrote:

I don't get Dubai at all. If I was going to spend that much money (which I won't be doing!) on a trip there are many nicer places I would choose.

That's the thing, perception is that Dubai is expensive, its in fact one of the cheapest places around.
Economy tickets on Emirates from Birmingham, £340 return (emirates economy is very good).
Decent hotel in financial district £350/week. Food, clothes, electrical goods etc are all much cheaper than the UK (MacBook Pro £750, iPad mini 32gb £180)

Its a great place, car hire is cheap at around £12/day and a refill of a tank around £11 so a trip to Abu Dhabi can be done for around £6, Hardly spending like a Sheikh

Like Vegas, Dubai is what you make of it, if you want to spend thousands you can and with ease, likewise if you want to have a great time and do it on a budget you can, and at far cheaper prices than the UK (or spain as the wife keeps telling me) she is in Tenerife right now and has spent a fortune on cr4p, the prices are ridiculous which ive heard a lot lately.

Ive had a flight from Birmingham too New York for £240 before with Delta and can regularly get a return at less than £350 so again, long distance really doesn't mean costly.

EKIMIKE

I don't think it would be the cost (or cheapness as VTech had demonstrated) that would bother me about Dubai. It's more the cheapness of the place itself. Contrived is the perfect, in fact most accurate word!

Petro-economies need diversification to avoid 'dutch disease' - the sheikh's of Dubai chose tourism as their second sector. Et voila! The contrived 'tourists dream' is brought to life.

Anyway if you're out there on business then there can be no complaints! But if it was a matter of choice Dubai would quite literally be near the bottom of my list.

Mikey23

Aah, got it now...

VTech

EKIMIKE wrote:

I don't think it would be the cost (or cheapness as VTech had demonstrated) that would bother me about Dubai. It's more the cheapness of the place itself. Contrived is the perfect, in fact most accurate word!

Petro-economies need diversification to avoid 'dutch disease' - the sheikh's of Dubai chose tourism as their second sector. Et voila! The contrived 'tourists dream' is brought to life.

Anyway if you're out there on business then there can be no complaints! But if it was a matter of choice Dubai would quite literally be near the bottom of my list.

The biggest weath in Dubai is the business sector, it's a global hub that should be a lesson to the world.
Sheikh Mohamed is a modern day genius who has put his people and country first in every respect building a world leading business empire within the UAE.
If only we had the same backbone from our leaders we wouldn't be in the mess we are now.

team47b

"If only we had the same backbone from our leaders we wouldn't be in the mess we are now."

...and the same drugs, maybe we could win too

fast as fupp

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/fe ... ce-custody

this sort of backbone?

Bozman

It's nice to see some folk enjoying life and doing well for themselves.

I've just been to the TT on a sh*t slow cramped ferry, walked to a field, sat there on the grass, had some sarnies for lunch and watched a few bikes fly down the road......... how the other half live. Good craic though!

EKIMIKE

VTech wrote:

The biggest weath in Dubai is the business sector, it's a global hub that should be a lesson to the world.
Sheikh Mohamed is a modern day genius who has put his people and country first in every respect building a world leading business empire within the UAE.
If only we had the same backbone from our leaders we wouldn't be in the mess we are now.

That's a good point! Although you cannot deny that the biggest wealth creator in Dubai is/has been oil.

I was thinking from an 'oil revenues invested' perspective and that would certainly be tourism. There's also an element of business tourism. It's worked fantastically well for them when you compare with other petro-economies. Being services orientated is a tough ball to keep rolling though... The debt crisis shows that. They've done the right thing though, which is to keep investing in crazy projects so that it remains flavour of the month in business circles/a circus that tourists want to visit.

I wouldn't buy the 'Sheikh Mohamed' is a genius thing though. Diversification is natural resources 101. The reason most fail is greed and corruption. What they have done in Dubai though is execute a plan very well and not strayed from the objectives. Admirable, but not genius. But it's easy to appear greater and more virtuous than you are when you have lots of money and flashy things, right?

proto

EKIMIKE wrote:

Frankly, philanthropy is cheap moral currency. Given its modern meaning 'philanthropy' is essentially something which the wealthy literally buy. With it they get the 'philanthropist' title. It's utterly hollow so stop patting yourself on the back.

Or as Jay Leno put it:

In America, we like everyone to know about the good work we're doing anonymously.

VTech

@fast as fupp, dont think for one minute that similar doesnt happen in every country in the world.

@EKIMIKE, im told that there is hardly any revenue from oil now in Dubai with the massive majority coming from business, followed by tourism. I have to say that in our sector business is booming in the middle east and on a tourism level, the place is a mecca for visitors offering everything you could ever want. Pleasant, honest people who offer what is wanted.
Ive been going 2-4 times a year for 4 years and when I first went the place was full of half built properties but now there is work being done everywhere, buildings that were once left are now complete and the place is literally booming.

Sheikh Mohamed is rightly labeled as being a genius in that he has simply turned around the state of Dubai into a cultural leader, a business empire for global companies and installed tourism to rival countries that have lived from that industry for much longer than the emirates.
There are not many countries where the leader can drive to the city, get out of his car and walk to the cafe for a coffee without being bothered or hindered, likewise there are not many places where leaders are loved by their people on a unanimous scale. Maybe thats because in most places lining the pocket comes before the people, who knows ?

proto

You might want to read this:

http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/com ... 64368.html

VTech

proto wrote:

You might want to read this:

http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/com ... 64368.html

This is exactly what I posted above, 4 years ago things had stopped but instead of letting things go to pot, the rulers, including Sheikh Mohamed, Kalifa etc invested their own money to get the ball rolling and to fabulous effect, the half finished buildings are finished and new ones being built so again, another example of hoe the rulers have done the right thing for the country and the people.