Today I've mostly bin...

[Bunnylump]

Wow! What a lovely few things to be worn out from though!

[LAT]

... celebrating. Last Sunday my God-daughter got married. This Sunday my nephew was christened. I'm worn out!!!

Sounds good though! Lots of lovely family gatherings.

[Bunnylump]

Just been to see Before I Go To Sleep. I'd rate it as "OK but wouldn't rave." I didn't guess IMMEDIATELY what was going on. I must say, I hadn't noticed before what cold eyes Colin Firth has.

Still, better than sitting in front of the telly for another evening.

[gill216]

Never had such a laugh as I've just had in a long time. My friend, who it has to be said is dafter than a box of frogs, sent me a text to ask if I'd babysit for her while she's away for a few days. I was expecting the canary.
No. The canary goes with them. Perhaps would I go and see to her doves? ( I actually saw her walking the street looking to see if she could see them the first time she let them out- they've got wings for goodness sake they could have been anywhere!)

No. Its her reborn baby doll!!!!! Fair enough, she saw a suspicious character around and she can't recreate the doll if it was to go missing. It is absolutely beautiful and she made it herself and it cost her a lot but when she asked if I'd put it in the bedroom if I lit a fire so she didn't smell of smoke I just absolutely fell apart.

[Bunnylump]

You're babysitting a DOLL??? Crikey, I think I have heard it all now!

I'm seriously wondering why I am doing the job I'm doing. I got home today having worked non-stop, flat out, all day. I've dealt with interview candidates, bolshy parents, staff training, breaking up a fight, a range of kids from an autistic 11 year old going into meltdown to an 18 year old potential Oxbridge candidate. worked in subjects as diverse as Geography, Sociology, English, science and Food Technology. I've come home feeling like I have been hit with a sledgehammer.

Yeah, that's us. " JUST" Teaching Assistants.

[LAT]

Gill, surely she's having you on? Why on earth would someone be able to take a canary away with them but not a doll?
I can actually understand she might not want it to smell of smoke but I can't understand why she would need you to look after it in the first place.

[SparkOut]

Apart from usual work, been feeling very happy for Pumpkin who passed her driving test this morning

[giraffe]

Well done Pumpkin!

[Bunnylump]

Apart from usual work, been feeling very happy for Pumpkin who passed her driving test this morning

Yay!! Tell her congratulations!

[LAT]

Well done to Pumpkin!
Does that turn her into a coach?

[Scurra]

But presumably she's also got to be home before midnight...

[Bunnylump]

...Being irritated with insurance companies and the like. Can anyone explain to me why Direct Line (who I have been with for years) sent my renewal notice with a ridiculously high quote, but then when I phoned up and said that I was going to change to another company, could MIRACULOUSLY, and with no changes to the benefits of the policy, manage to drop the price by nearly £50? The same happened with the AA* - but it took them so long to get back to us with a revised quote (which was nearly £100 cheaper!) that we'd already got fed up and gone with another company.

So, folks - never accept a renewal quote at face value!

*Automobile Association, not Alcoholics Anonymous - although that might be the next step!

P.S. Scurra, can't wait for the next issue! I need something to distract me from life's irritations, you know, something which will irritate me and drive me nuts in a more pleasurable, masochistic sort of way instead. Thank you in advance for all your hard work once again. x

[giraffe]

Our quote for one of the cars came through last year and I checked online if I could get it cheaper elsewhere. I could with Elephant, so I looked up who they were and they are a subsidiary of Admiral, who we were with. When I phoned up and queried it I was told it was because they were appealing to different customers! Admiral honoured Elephant's quote though.

[LAT]

Oh I've had similar with the AA in the past and for two or three years they were able to drop the price considerably when I phoned to query the renewal cost. But last time they couldn't match a quote Nigel had found online so I went with the cheaper quote. It's definitely worth using one of the comparison sites and looking for good deals online before renewing insurances like this.

[gill216]

Gill, surely she's having you on? Why on earth would someone be able to take a canary away with them but not a doll?
I can actually understand she might not want it to smell of smoke but I can't understand why she would need you to look after it in the first place.

Nope, thats what I thought but she was deadly serious. She has a fold up caravan thingy and space is at a premium so the canary fits in his cage because the cage is a regular shape but "jessica" doesn't. It lives in a portable car seat and takes up quite a bit of irregular space. It has been lodged in my spare room. I must take a picture of this doll. It's so lifelike it's frightening. Showed it to my neighbour and she wanted to take the darned thing for a walk! That was after she stopped laughing.

Congrats to pumpkin. One more thing to worry about.

Re car insurance. On principle I refused to renew with the company who could miraculously match a lower quote. Having moved I'm down to £304 for 2 cars. Both fully comp and both any driver.

[LAT]

Can't the doll be taken out of it's car seat? I'm sorry but this sounds really bizarre to me! Are you expected to do anything for the doll or is it just shut away until your friend returns?

And concerning car insurance another thing I have discovered is that it is often cheaper for fully comp than for 3rd party and also to insure two people for the car instead of just the normal driver. The first is, I think, because those who want fully comp tend to be safer drivers and the second is in the belief that you will share the driving on a long trip. I was quite surprised the first time I found this out but I can see the logic. So now my car is insured for me and N even though he never drives it. And I am insured on his although I very rarely drive that, even on long trips. He is also a named driver on K's car too.

[gill216]

Can't the doll be taken out of it's car seat? I'm sorry but this sounds really bizarre to me! Are you expected to do anything for the doll or is it just shut away until your friend returns?

It doesn't just sound bizarre to me, it flippin well is bizarre. And yes, I've shut it away . I'll bring it out again early Wednesday for her return. No, I don't have to do anything for it- wouldn't have anyway

[Bunnylump]

There's nowt so queer as folk, is there? It's weird how obsessive people get about the strangest things. When the Beanie Baby craze was in full flood when my children were young, one of my friends got so obsessed with getting the latest Beanie Baby for her daughter the day it came out that she was prepared to take an afternoon off work to go and get it and to beg a lift from a neighbour to go and get it!

Although my friends think I'm barking mad spending days on end trying to solve mysterious puzzles...

[LAT]

Although my friends think I'm barking mad spending days on end trying to solve mysterious puzzles...

You actually tell your friends?

[clvrlad]

Although my friends think I'm barking mad

Do we?