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Confessions of a Cycle Commuter

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  1. Arellcat
    Moderator

    Think the House of Commons ruled they were Cakes (just making this up). There is some better tax deal if they are cakes (again - source = made up).

    Here are the conclusions of that debate:

    https://www.gov.uk/hmrc-internal-manuals/vat-food/vfood6260

    There were rumblings a year prior, and it was also cited in a 1994 trademark dispute.

    We had a branch of The Jaffa Cake Appreciation Society at university.

    Posted 5 years ago #
  2. sallyhinch
    Member

    Everything seems to have a helpline number - even our rotary dryer. I've often wondered who rings them. Now I know it's Gembo

    Posted 5 years ago #
  3. I were right about that saddle
    Member

    There was a wonderful artwork at Visual Arts Scotland one year. The artist wrote letters to twenty four companies praising various mundane items from her life; biscuits, carpets, toothpaste, socks and then exhibited the letters and the responses.

    Many of them were very funny, but the best response was one promising to discipline the staff responsible for the excellent functioning of a ballpoint pen.

    I like the idea that the helplines for all products are answered by the same wildly empathetic individual.

    Posted 5 years ago #
  4. dougal
    Member

    "number was on the side of the boxes told me that they weren't really a helpline, just a bit of fun"

    Were you able to establish how much fun?

    Posted 5 years ago #
  5. acsimpson
    Member

    "...Jaffa cakes go hard when they mature..."

    I sometimes ponder exactly how many Jaffa cakes were in the laboratory when the scientific proof of this was concluded.

    Posted 5 years ago #
  6. gembo
    Member

    @dougal, we had a lorra,lorra fun phoning them particularly as they had as sally says NEVER been phoned despite the advert on the packet. and also as they thought I was being serious. Was a slow fun day.

    @acsimpson - 12 as once they had opened the packet the others would have gone hard though 11 were infact eaten by scientists. Yum

    Posted 5 years ago #
  7. gembo
    Member

    see also DC Thomson writing to Jacob Rees Mogg asking him to cease and desist looking like Dennis The Menace's victim (Mr Wilson's son is it George?)

    no response yet from that particular Rees Mogg Gammon Replicant

    Posted 5 years ago #
  8. unhurt
    Member

    The character formerly known as Walter the Softy?

    I like the idea that the helplines for all products are answered by the same wildly empathetic individual.

    I want to make an amusing-to-me comment here but it wouldn't be empathetic.

    Posted 5 years ago #
  9. gembo
    Member

    Walter the Not Hard (one colleague suggests this is worse)

    Posted 5 years ago #
  10. HankChief
    Member

    I had a useful reminder of the limits of my cornering ability this morning. I now know that a wet manhole cover needed more care than I gave it.

    Whilst I was lying on the ground, I made no rush to get back up and because I fell left off the road and onto the pavement, the first 6 car drivers made no effort to come to my aid :(

    I was helpfully patched up by one driver and her first aid kit and could continue on my way. It will add to the scar collection on my elbow...

    Before you ask, the bike is fine. The bar end took the brunt of impact and has lost some paint, but that will just add to the character of the big bike. And don't worry , the kids had been dropped off by this point.

    Posted 5 years ago #
  11. gembo
    Member

    @hankchief, that is alright then, carry on

    Posted 5 years ago #
  12. unhurt
    Member

    Ouch ouch. Glad someone eventually stuck you back together.

    Posted 5 years ago #
  13. HankChief
    Member

    @gembo Aye. After it had happened I was still faster than @stickman in a car on St John's Road, so all is right with the world.

    Posted 5 years ago #
  14. I were right about that saddle
    Member

    @HankChief

    Heroic. Glad you are but scarred.

    I was musing on the slipiness of stuff this morning (the Meadows tactile paving in my case).

    Posted 5 years ago #
  15. Cyclingmollie
    Member

    @gembo There was a book called, I think, The War Diaries of W Morgan Petty that was mainly replies to daft letters to important people. The author improved the response rate by always including a £1 donation.

    Posted 5 years ago #
  16. wingpig
    Member

    I think I read Robert Popper's The Timewaster Letters but it lacked the hilarity of Look Around You series 1.

    Posted 5 years ago #
  17. paddyirish
    Member

    I'd thought of the letters of Henry Root who wrote offering advice in the late 70s and early 80s to the great and the good e.g, the Queen Maggie T, Prince Charles and Brian Clough being two of the more memorable. the one pound donation was part of his repertoire

    Rather appropriately for this week, one letter was to a prominent Conservative commending their views on immigration and giving a £1 donation "to help get the darkies out".

    Posted 5 years ago #
  18. acsimpson
    Member

    @hankchief, glad your ok(ish). I'm sure it was a previous fall of yours which introduced me to the rules*. I hope your cornering confidence hasn't fallen too sharply this time.

    *I can't find the specific post though.

    Posted 5 years ago #
  19. gembo
    Member

    @hankchief, hope you are not too sore this morning

    Posted 5 years ago #
  20. amir
    Member

    Ouch @hankchief

    Posted 5 years ago #
  21. HankChief
    Member

    Thanks all. A bit stiff this morning and elbow starting to heal up but nothing too serious.

    Posted 5 years ago #
  22. biketrain
    Member

    @Hankchief. Was your balance upset by yesterday morning's High 15? You may recall we executed this Port side to Port side. Rather that the usual Starboard to Starboard.

    Posted 5 years ago #
  23. dougal
    Member

    @biketrain What is a High 15? Is this a tandem-to-tandem multi-high-5 event? I suppose that would be 3-on-1 or 2-on-2 with a missed interaction.

    Posted 5 years ago #
  24. wingpig
    Member

    Q1 (20 minutes; 4 points): What combinations of fingers amongst the participants would be possible to achieve the High-15 with two participants in each direction?

    Posted 5 years ago #
  25. I were right about that saddle
    Member

    Emptied the mucus from my right nostril onto the front wheel of the bicycle that was just coming past me from behind on the Meadows. Said nothing, looked ahead etc.

    Posted 5 years ago #
  26. wingpig
    Member

    @IWRATS "Hoy! Come back with that; that's mine etc."

    Posted 5 years ago #
  27. Snowy
    Member

    @IWRATS Chuckled at that because I did the same thing to someone who'd snuck up on me on Etape Caley a few years ago...got him on the leg. He was remarkably laid back about it. (Probably had toddlers...)

    Posted 5 years ago #
  28. gembo
    Member

    Had ha flat feeling last night. Garage this morn tyre way Down. Took pub bike to work. No brakes. Went to Cycle Service. New brakes, also asked for grip shifter to be changed to 1-2-3 flicker. Was about to say also making fun noise when Hannah pointed out the back wheel was not attached to the bike.

    Posted 5 years ago #
  29. biketrain
    Member

    @Dougal

    Obviously a High 5 is when two people raise one hand each and bounce their respective palms of each other hands.

    In my world a high 15 is executed when I ride solo passed Hankchief on the big bike with his two stokers. With arms outreached I am able to make palm contact with all 3 'Chiefs. As 3 high 5s take place we call it a high 15.

    We have managed this on many occasions when moving in opposite directions on bikes. Two years ago we managed a high 30, when I met Hankchief with both stokers whilst I was carrying minibiketrain on my crossbar seat.

    I am sure there are more combinations to master.

    Posted 5 years ago #
  30. unhurt
    Member

    Confession: I might not quite have the bikepacking style nailed down:

    Posted 5 years ago #

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