Random Irritations

HeftyHacker

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100%. We just use the current "free" hours for the girls , some places wouldn't take them .. one said you need to pay 50 weeks a year, 7-7 so your "free" hours would cost you more than the free was worth

Luckily the nursery next year does the option for just "free hours "

Been wonderful for our girls

Either me or our parents do drop off / pick up

Until sept when they go to school and my wife works there so she will take them with her and back again

I didn't do drop-off this morning but according to the missus there was a really sombre atmosphere in the place. I really feel for the staff, they're absolutely fantastic with the kids and you can tell they really care about them.

As others have said, the free childcare is all well and good but when it effectively dictates the price to the nurseries, who are already struggling to get/retain staff and dealing with overheads that have sky rocketed it, just stinks of another half baked idea that sounds great in theory to the people that benefit (ie the voters) but in practice is completely unworkable.

My missus went into the office and sat with one of the back office staff to see if she could help with anything (she works in finance for the DfE).

Ultimately they need to charge more but can only do that on a voluntary basis and/or contract the parents to a set number of hours over and above the free ones.

For us personally, we'd be more than happy to pay more to keep the nursery open (at least until September when the school goers create more availability in the surrounding nurseries) as the alternative is both stressful and likely to cost more anyway. But it would need buy in from other parents who may not all be in a position to feel the same way.
 

PJ87

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I didn't do drop-off this morning but according to the missus there was a really sombre atmosphere in the place. I really feel for the staff, they're absolutely fantastic with the kids and you can tell they really care about them.

As others have said, the free childcare is all well and good but when it effectively dictates the price to the nurseries, who are already struggling to get/retain staff and dealing with overheads that have sky rocketed it, just stinks of another half baked idea that sounds great in theory to the people that benefit (ie the voters) but in practice is completely unworkable.

My missus went into the office and sat with one of the back office staff to see if she could help with anything (she works in finance for the DfE).

Ultimately they need to charge more but can only do that on a voluntary basis and/or contract the parents to a set number of hours over and above the free ones.

For us personally, we'd be more than happy to pay more to keep the nursery open (at least until September when the school goers create more availability in the surrounding nurseries) as the alternative is both stressful and likely to cost more anyway. But it would need buy in from other parents who may not all be in a position to feel the same way.

I was on the verge of losing my childcare this year so I asked how much it would cost. £10 per hour. So losing 15 hours per kid (twins) was going to suddenly cost me £300 per week for something we had been getting for "free" luckily it never happened.

They are a godsend the twins have gained so much social skills from nursery and come on in a short time so much.

If it wasn't free we are lucky our parents would continue to have them like last year but this way worked well. They got those social skills before school, you can tell the kids who go nursery before school they adapt quicker.

Ofc having them in now we wouldn't want to cut their hours or days so would have been an added cost for sure.

Childcare is so important for kids. Let's hope it's addressed in the coming years.
 

cliveb

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Just had an email from eBay to say they're putting up their selling fees by another 0.35%
Apparently this is "to address rising costs".
Obviously eBay must be struggling to make money.

In the year to end of Sept 2023, their revenue was $10.06 billion, and gross profit was $7.256 billion.
So the poor dears are having to survive on a meagre 72% profit margin.
My heart bleeds.
 

PJ87

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Just had an email from eBay to say they're putting up their selling fees by another 0.35%
Apparently this is "to address rising costs".
Obviously eBay must be struggling to make money.

In the year to end of Sept 2023, their revenue was $10.06 billion, and gross profit was $7.256 billion.
So the poor dears are having to survive on a meagre 72% profit margin.
My heart bleeds.

eBay can take a running jump. How on earth can they justify any increase . They literally just host sales. Taking money of every single sale. They are just another tax.
 

Oddsocks

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Just had an email from eBay to say they're putting up their selling fees by another 0.35%
Apparently this is "to address rising costs".
Obviously eBay must be struggling to make money.

In the year to end of Sept 2023, their revenue was $10.06 billion, and gross profit was $7.256 billion.
So the poor dears are having to survive on a meagre 72% profit margin.
My heart bleeds.

It’s turning into a waste of space anyway. A friend recent sold his tsr driver, buyer claimed it was fake and raised a dispute. Friend provided proof of order with titleist as he was fitted by our pro and the pro shop receipt, eBay rules in favour of buyer. WTAF!!!!!
 

Pin-seeker

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The attuide of some cyclists (not all)

Crossing road with 4 kids in Central London

Cyclist goes through red and round the kids forcing us to stop

I was like come on mate it's a crossing

"I went round you"

You broke the law. There is no excuse
Yeah but they were probably vegan & don’t wear deodorant so the laws don’t apply to them.
 

ColchesterFC

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Being tracked by devices in our homes. Hear me out as I might be about to fall into conspiracy theory territory here.

I've been looking at getting our radiators replaced and saw the thread in OOB regarding vertical radiators. I clicked on the link to Trade Radiators on my laptop and had a look through their products. I then had a conversation with Mrs Colch about radiators and getting them replaced. Since that conversation she's had two separate adverts pop up on her Facebook feed, on her phone, for radiators. We've got no linked accounts between my laptop and her IPhone so why is her phone showing her ads for radiators? Is it because the Alexa in the room we were talking in is linked to her her phone and Alexa has heard our conversation?

This is why I don't like technology. I'm an analogue kind of guy living in a digital world and I don't understand it.
 

HeftyHacker

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Being tracked by devices in our homes. Hear me out as I might be about to fall into conspiracy theory territory here.

I've been looking at getting our radiators replaced and saw the thread in OOB regarding vertical radiators. I clicked on the link to Trade Radiators on my laptop and had a look through their products. I then had a conversation with Mrs Colch about radiators and getting them replaced. Since that conversation she's had two separate adverts pop up on her Facebook feed, on her phone, for radiators. We've got no linked accounts between my laptop and her IPhone so why is her phone showing her ads for radiators? Is it because the Alexa in the room we were talking in is linked to her her phone and Alexa has heard our conversation?

This is why I don't like technology. I'm an analogue kind of guy living in a digital world and I don't understand it.

Well the other day I was setting a timer on alexa and discovered she knows my voice as she replied "Good evening [Hefty]..."

So yeah I'm pretty sure they do listen.
 

ColchesterFC

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Well the other day I was setting a timer on alexa and discovered she knows my voice as she replied "Good evening [Hefty]..."

So yeah I'm pretty sure they do listen.

Mrs Colch and the kids always take the pee because I always say please and thank you to Alexa. I told them that I'm not taking any chances and that when the machines take over the world I want them to remember that I was always nice to them.
 
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Being tracked by devices in our homes. Hear me out as I might be about to fall into conspiracy theory territory here.

I've been looking at getting our radiators replaced and saw the thread in OOB regarding vertical radiators. I clicked on the link to Trade Radiators on my laptop and had a look through their products. I then had a conversation with Mrs Colch about radiators and getting them replaced. Since that conversation she's had two separate adverts pop up on her Facebook feed, on her phone, for radiators. We've got no linked accounts between my laptop and her IPhone so why is her phone showing her ads for radiators? Is it because the Alexa in the room we were talking in is linked to her her phone and Alexa has heard our conversation?

This is why I don't like technology. I'm an analogue kind of guy living in a digital world and I don't understand it.

I presume you have her as a contact in WhatsApp and on social media?
 

ColchesterFC

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I presume you have her as a contact in WhatsApp and on social media?

Yes to WhatsApp, but haven't got that on my laptop, only on my phone which was in another room. Have got her as a Facebook friend (which is where the ads popped up) which is on both my laptop and her phone. Not connected on any other social media.
 

PJ87

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So what is it that is listening to me and knows what we're talking about and is then able to put the ads onto Mrs Colch's Facebook feed?

Really interested to know the answer to this so I can get ads for divorce lawyers to pop up on her feed (please my post at 8:36pm yesterday for further details).

A combination of Alexa and your phone. Cookies report back your likes to Taylor ads to you
 
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