Moos

Alicia I think the posters to date have given you a clear view of how your warning to East Dulwich has come across. I won't add to it, except to say that the kindest conclusion one can draw is that you are rather ignorant and have a tendency to jump to conclusions. I hope that your children will grow up happily and safely in the country, and that they will perhaps investigate the city on their own terms at the right time, and discover its wonders and joys. You've gone very quiet since this afternoon, may I ask what purpose you had in mind when you sent your original post? Since you are moving out of East Dulwich, you have nothing to fear from the youth offending team yourself, and since this is (you say) a done deal, we could do nothing about it if we wanted to. Do you enjoy trying to frighten people? and have you a particular grudge against the readers of the Forum? I am curious to know - the spleen in your note suggests more to the story than we have seen so far. Come on, have a little courage - tell us what you really mean.

Hmm, Dulwichmum, I was wondering why we hadn't seen the kingfisher for a few weeks.... has it been turned into a lovely new stole?

Or we could just give him a double G&T and guarantee a peaceful morning..::o

Hello all Thanks very much for the kind and friendly welcome yesterday - really enjoyed meeting you all, and putting faces to the Forum characters! The briefly-orphaned Moosling even let us sleep in till 6.30 this morning, yippee. Looking forward to next month.

Yep, that's my Friday nights these days - sensible. (goes off muttering wistfully about her yoof....)

Sean (and everyone!) I haven't been before, and I'm coming along. Only without the, er, knobbing, if that's all right.

Lovely area, our small family has been very happy here. As you'll see from the posts Ted Max linked in, there are strong opinions both for and against, but largely for. The area is friendly, diverse and well-supplied with good shops, caf?s, eateries etc. and you're nicely placed for both ED and PR stations, as well as the 3 local high streets: Lordship Lane, Bellenden Road and the Rye Lane.

sorry Keef, didn't see your post arrive while I was writing mine.

Besides which, mothers are quite perceptive enough to be able to tell the difference between a last-minute nasty card and expensive but dull present and something thoughtful designed for them - or better still some time spent with them. I think Keef is right, and that apprentices and servants were given the day off to visit their families, and possibly bring a cake that they had baked with them (e.g. a Simnel cake) - this developed from people being expected to visit their 'mother' church or nearest large church at least once a year, rather than their local 'daughter' church.

OK, this is a little off topic, sorry - but a point for debate: Do we all drift to the right (regardless of where we started out) as we get older? I don't mean in a party political, but in the sense of becoming more generally conservative?

Are we never to find out what EDE is? Or is it an insider secret, the Forum equivalent of the Masonic handshake? (retires in a great big pouty sulk)

Jackangel, wonderfully poetic - it's an unusual parent who can write lightly (but seriously) of the idea of your toddler in conversation with the dubious. But if you're having a picnic in what seems to be a safe place without leering strangers or flying swings, isn't it nice to be able to let the toddler roam without worrying he's going to nip into the road? Anyway, whatever. Diminishing returns on this point, I think.

(note: post to be read with something of a tongue in cheek) Snorky and Quids - pish and piffle. Is Olivia to be denied a conscience or a point of view because (if) she is white and middle class? Or would you have preferred her to be attending Hunt balls, and sharpening her boot heels better to grind the faces of the poor? If you're going to play the silly points, I shall have to go one further and accuse you both of being misogynists for attacking her. Please let's not go down that overtrodden route.

Thank you, Snorky. Blimey. What sheep we all are - if I had been fined I should certainly have paid up meekly (not of course in my particular baby-wielding and righteous instance). That said, I think your 2 required points (the acceptance of contract and the driver of the car) don't sound very hard to prove. Absolutely agree with you (and Macroban) about d and c for others - of course, parent-and-child spaces are a nice to have (or to look at it differently, the privilege of the preferred customer) but disabled spaces are a different situation. I wish I could now remember how much our putative fine would have been, but I hope less than a parking-in-a-disabled-bay fine. P.S. Afraid I am quite scummy. But thank you for the vote of confidence.

Actually, apologies for my poor memory - have just checked with the other half and in fact what we were issued with was a do-it-again-and-we'll-fine-or-clamp-you warning. But that sounds to me as though they could indeed fine us. I guess it's their space, their rules?

Hmm, I'm wondering whether I too live on the same road as Jackangel and PGC! Howdy, neighbours. Anyway, the parking spaces at Sainsbury's are definitely monitored - we were once fined for parking in one of the parent-and-child spaces, because we had taken the Moosling into the shop in his car seat, so we looked as though we weren't bona fide tot-toters. The fine was removed when we produced the baby as evidence, but if they can police the parent spaces, they can surely check disabled spaces.

Apparently the freesheets have affected the number of books that the average Londoner reads per year - i.e. people used to take a book onto the train but don't bother now. I guess the non-news is pretty unchallenging to a tired morning brain.

I can't speak with authority on this myself, but are there any parents of young children who could comment on the fence? Just wondered if families might be nervous picnicking on the Green / playing footie without a fence to prevent the kids from going into the road.

Oh dear, that doesn't sound good. Hopefully the sunshine is something of a distraction also...

Or maybe you are a sort of prophet, and your dreams could be interpreted to understand the (no doubt very clean) future of East Dulwich...

cut

Weird dreams? Were they weird describable dreams? I am stuck in the house waiting for (late) Sainsb order, and desperately in need of entertainment....

Hi Ryan and Clare Where in the Warehouse is your stall? Hope to see you soon.

Very true, but I don't take kindly to one very small boy waking me up at 5 by howling... bleugh.

Gerry No Country was pretty violent, but although I am normally quite chicken about that, I found the story just carried you along with it. It seemed to be intrinsic to the film rather than gratuitous or voyeuristic. Not sure if that makes sense, but give it a try.