tog_in_sox

Concur with DB,lb and sb. In these enlightened times, don't be leading him on by making him pay. Some other things to consider at all times: 1) If he chooses the venue then expect him to pay BUT if during the date you don't think it's going to work out then offer to go dutch. 2) If you know/establish that he's not flush with cash then be prepared to go Dutch. BUT if he tries to stick you with the bill then you'd better fancy him rotten to stop you from walking right then, just make sure you fancy him for the right reasons. 3) If you'd like to go on another date with him then before the bill arrives say how lovely a time you've had and it'll be your treat next time. That way he'll be encouraged to pay and hope to see you again. 4) If you had the courage to ask him out and choose the venue then expect to pay but don't insist if he offers to pay or go Dutch. 5) If it's just rounds in a bar then go Dutch so no expectations are encouraged as the fog of drunkenness descends (that's if you let yourself get in a state). It troubles me that your lady friends were all pushing the "no respect" thing. Can only assume they've all dated some complete b@$tards. Any modern, well-mannered gent would only respect you more for offering to pay. It sets up a partnership dynamic of sharing rather than a dependency one. When it comes down to it go with how you appear to have been raised, if you want to be respected as an individual who's capable of making her own way in the World then behave like you can. The "If he wants... ...he should pay" thing is even worse. I pity the girl who sincerely believes that because she's making herself nothing more than a mercenary and perhaps worse. There's nothing wrong with making him work for your affections in other ways but if it's all down to the amount of moolah he lays down he'd be better off taking a number from a card in a phone box than yours. I wish you fun, luck and future happiness back in the dating game. Just stick up for what you know is right for you. Happy hunting and Tally-Ho!

Thanks again Steve

Anything lovely in linen K? White Stuff were having a sale last weekend, if it's still on perhaps something might work for you?

Thanks All. Steve, any schematics on how to remove the bell wire? I'm using a bandwidth monitoring tool and the total flow is only 500kbps not kBps. May finally have to consider moving a few doors over. The sooner ISPs are forced to sell minimum consistent speed rated products the sooner the rip-off ends.

Past week or so I've been lucky to get above 500kbps in the evenings. And today it's the same during the daytime. Called my ISP and as usual they've said to run some speed tests over 24hrs to send back to their techs. Feckin' load of good that's ever done. I'm on BT connection and circuits apparently (Brixton exchange) Is BT faffing with their traffic management again?

Sadly, not much opportunity for that kind of encounter given today's commercial retreat behind "Customer Service" phone lines. Besides, given the equalisation of opportunity I'd more likely be confronted by a clueless, pretty boy straight from a Kouros advert. Adding further to my cause for complaint. Jeremy Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Narnia Wrote: > -------------------------------------------------- > ----- > > 'I dress for myself' is a statement that I find > hard to get my head around. > > I think it's about feeling confident... some > people feel confident and good about themselves if > they're well dressed. You're not necessarily > trying to impress people.

Hey GG, smashing post. I'm curious, so far all this mention of high neck vis-a-vis scooped or v-neck hasn't mentioned patterned, textured or adorned fabrics. Don't these all help with the whole wall of chest thing? I was just getting the sense that everyone was talking block colours and cotton. I certainly wouldn't attribute fault as a consequence of the reactions of others, it is as you say a matter of acknowledging the effect one's appearance has on others.

So, like, if you're a place then you're neither gender so not a girl or a boy ? Santa traded in his Grotto about 5 years ago, now a lovely 5 bed place in the Cotswolds with a babbling brook and ducks in their own little hut. (I'm a seasonal worker for when he needs the wrapping done). Has the op given up on us singletons then?

Welcome, Hopefully you've found the various threads about the forum drinks that take place regularly. Otherwise there're the various pub quizzes that forumites go to. If you're not so much a drinker then I'm sure there are some of the Mums who gather for coffees, cakes and teas would be welcoming. That's if you're around during the weekdays. Heck I'm about next week on leave so I'm planning on propping up the icecream counter until the ambulance comes to take me to King's A&E, you're welcome to come enjoy some brain freeze too. Cheers

OTE, The more you power down Windows abnormally the more ragged it will get. Have you done any remedial work using the Windows utilities? Uninstalling unwanted programs often leaves traces that clutter your system's control files and can cause all kinds of slowdowns and hiccups. IF you're feeling bold then you could try installing CCleaner which is pretty good at flushing out most trash. After that it's worth doing a defrag of your drives. If this all means something to you then great otherwise PM me or any of the IT pros named on the site and I'm sure one of us can help you out. TBH I'd recommend a complete refresh of your system but that'd be complicated by how much personal stuff you'd need to backup before starting over. Regards Sean

Hey Mogs, if there's still space on Monday eve then I'd like to try out also.

Def what Karie and Rosie said. Provided management approach this as a re-iteration of general dress code rather than singling out any individual for a quiet word then hopefully no-one should take any further offence. As it happens my director has just reiterated the dress code for the entire IT function. Looks like he finally took except to the Hawaiians, flip flops, shredded jeans and sweat, faded T's the developers were wearing. Alas the ladies here are more robust of stature and clothing than the beauteous K and R so we've not had distracting excesses :( I really should go back and work in fashion... all that lovely tanned...whuh..oh yes, micro-minis and gussets on show, that's bad, so. Bad! Dammit! Shower! GG were you deliberately leave that hanging statement for the leery to exploit?

Hi Sue, I hear your frustration with Internet services but before you abandon the Devil you know be very sure what a name change will give you. Personally I've found/heard that most of the major suppliers have equally poor Helplines. Given that the majority are reselling bandwidth on BT cables means that changing the provider won't likely improve the stability of your connection. You might get better speeds because their traffic shaping policy is more in line with your pattern of usage but then it might also be a worse fit. Be sure to read and understand their "fair usage" clause(s) and details around their traffic shaping. Of course how good they are now is no indication of how they will continue to be as the industry continues to consolidate. If you're after much better speeds then your best bet is probably a move to cable if you're not within a mile of connection, not as the crow flies, of your Exchange. If you stay with a phone-based provider then be sure that you know what equipment they have in your exchange to support their service and indeed whether they or a third party look after that kit. If you move to cable it's likely that Virgin will be the candidate and again be sure you're fully aware of their traffic shaping schedule as it currently has 2 slowdown periods during the day and evening. If like most of us you're on a budget then you may find the cost and commitment required by some of these "best" providers is prohibitive. It used to be that you could continue to run your mailbox via a webmail interface, a la Hotmail etc, but whether you could continue to download email from their mail servers to your PC client (Outlook, etc) is another matter. You may loose priviledge services and exclusion from adverts as well as a reduced capacity. If you want to chat further then drop me a line and I'd be happy to chat things over. Good luck in your hunt. I'm still humming'n'hawing about whether to leave F2S now that it's been taken over by Tiscali (ptui!)

Odyssey, I hope your seniors successfully manage to make it clear that all should adhere to a sensible dress code that exhibits professional decorum rather than decorous flesh in a "professional" manner. Perhaps a consult for all staff from a stylist might be a less conspicuous way of addressing the matter. I sympathise with your predicament. Equally crop tops, see-thru tops, low riders, and hipsters should also be judged for suitability. ---- Claims that this exposure is to control ones temperature, comfort from constraint and degree of visible sweat staining cannot be held to be singular solutions to this over-abundance of flesh. By equal measure large bellies, arses, thighs, arms, backs should also be exposed BUT by and large they aren't. Presuming that people so challenged have no desire to display these features they usually find other ways of dressing and use various toiletry products (or don't!) to mitigate matters. Choose the colour and material of your clothing and the construction of your support more wisely and you should not "have" to reveal more than others. Professional advice should be sought since we're so often given to believe by the media that the majority of women still don't wear the correct bra for their size and shape.

With a name like Narnia I can only congratulate the lady for expressing a preference for moobs. That said the idea of all that hair and sweaty folds leads me to think her second answer is decidely kinky. *answers: middle but very much of the mind of Commercial Union;m

With a week to go why be so concerned? If it's open knowledge that you've been screwed on all the commitment you've shown I don't think there's much that could be held against you. Has your contract been terminated or is it due to expire? Guess the only thing you need worry about is a reference but if you're so hacked off with them, would you want one from them? When I first saw the subject, I thought "why would anyone not want to be seen to" then the gutter flooded and I realised you might be a respectable lady. Having other offices across London to meet colleagues/clients at is always a good one to use. Who knows how long your chosen mode of transport might be delayed. Of course you won't use cabs in deference to cost cutting conscientiousness.

Cynical me thinks this thread is a bit of marketing. Will they have the modified version that doesn't drop calls when you hold it naturally in your left hand? How about that new fangled tech they call video calling, will it work with all your contacts who don't have i-phone 4s and wi-fi access at the time you call? With any luck those who find themselves vid calling will walk under buses as they wander around trying to find their free wifi. As the data caps cut in there will perhaps be a revival of wardriving. Let's see what Job's mob call that then when they "invent" it. Perhaps that's why Google collected all that unlocked Wifi data... Conspiracy? shhhh....

Hi Mogs, Saw this too late but would be interested in making up the numbers in the future. What're the costs? I'm looking for some fun intermediates who make a bit of effort to get fit out of it too. Would need a lift from Dog Kennel Hill area if possible. Currently looking at a Weds session with the Civil Service in Pimlico if others are interested and eligible. Cheers Sean

Here's something to consider, would you rather have ... ...the chance at PR which once every 5 yrs gave you the "best" representation of the electorate's preference for whomsoever has charmed, bribed, hoodwinked and deceived the most convincingly OR ... an ongoing opportunity to affect the decisions made big and small across the country and in the local communities to improve the quality of services and value for money throughout the Government's lifetime? Even if it's only limited it's likely more influence than we've ever been offered/exercised. IF it turns out to be substantial then we will be measured by the quality of our decisions in government. Yes the Devil is in the detail but given an inch perhaps we can steal a yard or two from the politicians desperate to maintain favour against the backdrop of all the pain they will have to oversee. If the Government is sincerely cowed by the mess they've got to deal with and the electorate's response then we have the chance to leverage that concern to our advantage. The key is to get involved. I work for a public body and it frustrates the cr@p outta me that so much money is being p!ssed away on doing nothing (or the wrong thing), shirking responsibility, muddled thinking and egotistical indulgence. I'm going to stay on though (if I'm not cut), take the pay cuts/freezes as they happen and hopefully exert some influence on the quality of decisions and actions so that we do get better value for money because it's my/our/their money they're squandering to the detriment of our customers; the inhabitants and visitors of London. I'll give Dave and Nick the benefit of the doubt for the moment as they've yet to reveal their true colours in action. Civil Servants and Experts don't have all the answers and certainly don't often have much common sense so any chance for other decent thinking people to be involved the better. With a more engaged public and a more responsible Press raising incisive questions rather than idle gossip we just might have a hope of emerging from this mess with a better democratic process, higher quality public services, a more responsible private sector and a decent foundation from which all can prosper sustainably.

Had a look at the Dell Adamo in Waitrose at Canary Wharf. It is very slim and out does the Macbook Air BUT I'm not convinced by the way the hingeing is used to turn part of the upper case into astanding edge. There are some pretty looking Dell home PCs of small form factor which look like they'd fit alongside some high-end stylised audio kit in the living room, they're not expensive either. Sony and HP are also offering all-in-one PCs with touchscreens that compete with the larger MACs. The only issue with all these pretty computers, MACs included, is that if you're after a computer that you don't intend to upgrade and enhance yourself then they'll all be fine, however if you like to upgrade components or add more disk then there's not alot of scope for that. That's when you are driven back to choosing horrendous looking box units. Am sure you'll find something pretty without an Apple on it. Worse comes to worst you could get a MAC and then install a different OS.

Well yay for no Clause 43 but the rest of the bill was passed by this fiasco. Here's the response I got from Tessa; a stock reply from the corporate henchman Will be writing back to her to ellicit a more directed response

Liked Matt Smith's performance very much. Not convinced about Amy although Amelia was quite winning. For those of you feeling pangs for the kissagram I'll let you know if she's any more convincing in person 'coz I know where she lives! Mwahahahahahaaaaaa! WeeeOooooo duh-na-na-naa duh-na-na-naa...

Thx Sean, did you make the call? I put this up to express the urgency as it's going to the floor at 15:30 today. I'm not on Flickr so all those of you who are make sure that the groups there enlist a groundswell as all their content could be in the balance.

Dear All, Not sure if you're aware of Clause 43 of the DEB which is so poorly worded that it looks like any of your photos could be exploited without your consent. The Government could even benefit financially without your knowledge. Please have a look at http://www.stop43.org.uk/pages/read_more.html and call Tessa on 0207 219 3000 Please spread the word and let's make one final push to get this Bill properly written and debated.

Not one Labour policy, now that must be telling somehow. Shockingly BNP got in there, guess I'll be testing their non-Anglo-caucasian policy after all... Heh! But before that all I'll be dusting off my Maggie mask. Saving grace? Went with the Green Party on Environment.