Joe likes dinner

Damn those businesses making money... providing jobs, paying tax, fueling the economy, keeping the wind and rain at bay, allowing light to pass through a structural panel which was once made of brick... This saying, I'm no ardent capitalist, but if you've managed to do all your shopping, banking, insurance and the like through non-profiteering, solely altruistic organisations then hats-off... But then what do we say about all the shops and bars that give ED its soul and soft furnishings and make a healthy living in doing so? oh these modern times...

dear jockey, you say i watch too much tv and all that i write of is about nothing but ''some dirt-town in Glasgow''. I say to you to browse away from property.com and have a quick read of what you intend to write about... indeed, by watching too much tv and never going anywhere near clapham i soon learned that many of the people in a Glasgow dirt town are ''30-something city folk with porsches, not much taste, loud obnoxious voices which jabber on about their prep school days and being cads. To them, they live in Claaaam, or Chelsea South. These folk wear pink cashmere jumpers over their shoulders no matter what the social event.'' Your fine self, however, through not watching TV has evidently not become obsessed by making money from the property market and the self-serving money making which therein lies, which, last time i tuned into the old box, was pretty much all that was being talked of. No doubt you can use some of your profits to buy a lovely high-collared pullover from White Stuff - treat yourself, you deserve it ;)

i don't like this notion of ''claphamisation'' that people keep harking on about. If people mean 'developing' or attracting more people with full time jobs and what, despite cafe nero, are prosperous independent businesses, then fair enough. Time to make a few destinctions, and some sweeping cynical generalisations. Apologies to any modern claphamites, if you are reading this, you should now be in East Dulwich and thus above all of that, you have seen the error of your ways and are now moving you life forwards, I salute you. Clapham nowadays is: Enhabited by 3 types of people - 30-something city folk with porsches, not much taste, loud obnoxious voices which jabber on about their prep school days and being cads. To them, they live in Claaaam, or Chelsea South. These folk wear pink cashmere jumpers over their shoulders no matter what the social event. 20-somethings with no imagination, style or substance with their first job in london probably having moved from a red-brickesque university town, now working in a recruitment consultancy, estate agency, or media sales. They mainly drink in samey-club-bar type places like HA!HA! and get slaughtered in the armpit of civilisation, otherwise known as Infernos! Simply ask the new graduate in your office and they will fill in the details, for those who know not of Infernos. These folk have think, wavy quiffed hair, crumpled shirts with buttons open and collars up. They wear brown boatie shoes with no socks. Australians - aged 17-35, they live one-per-square-foot in order to pay the extortionate rental prices. They man the bars of said generic bars and clubs, can be seen on the common in shorts all year having ''a f*cking crazy, we're so cool with frizbee and hackey sack type time'' before they head to the nearest balcony / rooftop / carpark to barbeque the life out of some tesco metro sausages complaining they aren't made of beef. They wear boardie shorts and flip flops or we call 'em thongs mayte''! The fourth type, otherwise known as the native working classes don't technically live in Clapham, but made-up areas such as 'Brixton West' 'South stockwell' and 'Streatham north, north, west and along a bit' this is because they aren't middle class and do things like trade in drugs and express themselves by the wrong type of violence. (Dunken toff violence is fine.) Therefore they don't count. East dulwich is: please insert your own thoughts on what ED really is and about. I'll start - Now full of pricey real estate, obvious Home to only one public antipodean, who we hear is doing well from said housing boom and not understood to work in the hospitality industry. In comparison, not too bad.

12 years spent searching for the perfect remedy to hole in wall overlooking the garden only to return to find the only people who you thought could solve the problem that plagued you for a decade was no longer? I'd be pretty pissed off.

Indeed, food is certainly better than many areas, but i feel that this is because there is a reasonably broad choice... Many of the ED eateries do have it rather soft with the nice captive audience and could do with a firm-to-reasonable poking in the ribs in terms of service, imagination and value.

2nd on the motion for a record shop - the Saturday CD stall on North Cross Road has its own place, but ED should be able to sustain a good music retailer. question is whether an independent music store could afford the rent or whether it need wait for the growth of the NC market?

On the public transport note, lest we forget that a 10 minute bus ride, or a 20 minute uphill 'stroll' away is Denmark Hill, which has regular trains to Victoria , Blackfriars and London Bridge all of which take about 10-14 minutes. As soon as you get used to it, you will forget what it was like to depend on tube and transport no longer seems like an issue. This is coming from someone who lived in Waterloo, Bethnal Green, Ladbrooke Grove and then off to the darkest parts of outer Streatham. There may be no tube, but don't forget ED is still only in zone 2! All you need now is a feeling of moral superiority over folk who live in Clapham and you are set for life!

Reluctant runner, Unlike Tuesday mornings, I am up for this - having sold my soul and chaffed the nipples to the point of destinction in the last 2 years' Nike 'run london' corporate jog-a-brand-a-?30forashittyt-shirt-a-buyanipodandourtrainersplease-a-thon, this is certainly welcome news. Run for your dinner and run like a winner! cheers, joe

Team, i hang my head in shame - following some marathon 5-a-side on monday i fell apart like a rich tea in a cup of earl grey and stayed in bed like biscuity sediment in the bottom of your gran's royal doulton. See you thursday ***slaps self around face in front of mirror - GRRR you're jogger - you cheat nobody but yourself*** one step at a time, one course at a time.

jamie, mattc, I am up for a run on tuesday morning if anyone fancies, if not, will see you at roy brooks on thursday, more running more dinner, joe

or how about an iron guantanamo style detention cage filled with the signs and slogans of the many inorganic chain establishments who would by no means be welcomed on the lane, with a flashing sign reading ''all chains end hear - you have been warned'' we could dress up a few tramps as FBI snipers and have them patrol the roundabout, just to jazz things up a bit!

good call on the swap / recylce idea - I joined freecylce and only seem to get offered old television stands and collections of various floppy disks! Saying this, come the summer i will have a few tonnes of premium dulwich soil to pass on to anyone who asks nicely. Watch this space garden fans!

Dearest Dog, The meeting was a triumph, hats off to the powers of the forum and cpt SimonC for getting us all together! To date, we are pretty much set for a team name, slogans and mottos are still in discussion but we have a ball, some goalie gloves and even some bibs, so pretty much done! Do send myself or Simon a PM and the next steps to glory can be made!

Spook studio, are you by any chance part of a chain on local information websites with other sites including Fulham, Putney, Battersea, Clapham and Stoke Newington? Just checking, Answer wisely..

team - am up for this, do see your PMs. As for my personal running ambitions - i nearly once did a complete a figure of 8 around dulwich common, then down barry road and around the rye and back to the library. When i say nearly, simply omit the ''then down barry road and around the rye'' section of the route. I died and it still hurts.

Can extra pressure also be put on the manager / landlord of HSBC to sort out their drains which, even on the dryest of days covers both the pavement and my soon-to-be high-collared pink, White Stuff cotton pullover in stinksome rooftop effluent! I have been sure to make a point of it every time I go in, but seems to be of little avail! Has anyone else had any response / joy in getting this matter seen to?

Once local, organic, independently owned shop created, said movement could seek revenge against other London locales in the cruelest way possible.... ....The creation of an unholy and faceless retails chain which would begin in ED and then callously invade areas such as Fulham, Putney, Clapham, Islington, Shepherd's bush, Hampstead, Cricklewood with the promise of stealing and sullying the 'souls' of such communities with replicated retail experiences, carbon-friendly business practices and fair-trade titillation, sparking uproar in local online discussion and news forums......

Whilst i am as equally in favour of seeing the GBK subside as I am of trees, a note of warning to all ED tree-lovers. Back in the day when the fine streets of ED, were nothing but patterns on a developers map, the trees chosen were done so on their fine ability to suck up the muck and pollution of the industrial age. Bravo. However, they also came with a caveat stating they required regular pollarding to maintain leaf span, but reduce branch and root length. Thus avoiding the risk of subsidence. I can't remember if that particular tree was pollarded or not, if it was, it may not have got to the point where it needed to be removed and having the earth re-filled. For anyone with trees in their gardens or at the front of their houses, I suggest taking the advice of the Royal Horticultural Society. Pollarded trees may not look as magnificent, but it is often the best way of preserving nature and making sure your house doesn't topple over. Without being a kill-joy, big trees are the sort of things that give town planners and landlords hernias so they are best managed properly! Myself, I'm all for window boxes and roof gardens and against improper tree management. On an environmental note, if anybody has any knowledge of the most eco-efficient plants around, I am keen to hear - there must have been a pull-out guide in the Guardian to 'eco-max' your life or something like that, but alas, I only ever read the free glossy posters - woohoo! Woodland Mammals! Birds of Antarctica!

Mark, Having read the number of recommendations for ''that place on X street'' or ''near goose green'', I am thinking that a taggable Google map of East dulwich / surrounding area would be really useful, and i believe not so hard to set up. This way we can have dedicated maps for each subject, eg, eating, drinking, shopping, DIY, sites of historical relevance, routes to walk-off dinner, where the tags link through to relevant posts from the forum. If anyone wants to see what it looks like, just go to http://maps.google.co.uk/maps and type in ''Bars SE22''.

I'm with bob on this one, Hands up, Dulwich Tandoori is the one spot I've not been too, and the Surma deserves a mention for the free bottle of Cobra they brought with one particularly large order!! On the point of the strength of the Indian / Pakistani food in the Tooting area / ''English Curry'' selections in ED - the fact that these places are all endorsed by Indians thems elves say something and that the menus show the difference between Indian / Pakistani / Cashmeri cooking. Also, I'd check out some of the places in Norbury / Streatham - they may not be the prettiest parts of town, but the food will certainly open your eyes and your taste buds.

The one on the corner of Lordship Lane and Crystal Palace Road, is definitely worth a try - taking a walk in Dulwich Park or taking a trip to the Library are both geographically apt excuses for a sly visit! It is incredibly popular during the 'builders breakfast hour', 6-7 am, so if you are after a sneaky bacon sarnie before you head to work, you'll need to be leaving the home at least 10 minutes earlier.

The pubs all seem to be charging quite a lot for entry on NYE, i was looking into the Palmeston but they want ?50 per person for a set menu which doesnt look great, you also need tickets for the Herne i think.

great idea, who is going to start it?!