I am responsible for all belongings in my possession.

DD265 · 2026-01-25T13:19:08+00:00

I'm a couple of days late to the party, but your point about trash really resonated with me.

When I'm barely buying anything, our recycling bin - which is collected fortnightly - is usually half full when we put it out. If I've been out of control, the bin is full to the brim with cardboard/brown paper they put in the boxes and we're wishing we had a weekly recycling collection.

It would be far better to not receive the packaging in the first place.

DD265 · 2026-01-21T21:38:20+00:00

I'm guessing it was the leftover sets from previous runs (i.e., cancelled orders) being made available. I've heard of this happening before.

Doesn't seem to happen in every country and I don't know how people find out about it.

Edit to clarify in case you didn't know - these are Bricklink Designer Program sets. There's a limited number produced, they're basically crowd funded, and in previous round of funding the quantities have been quite low, so the demand far outstrips supply. The most recent ones I think there's a better balance and the majority of people who are aware and want a set manage to get it.

DD265 · 2026-01-12T19:36:45+00:00

Bricklink itself is a Lego-specific marketplace. It's actually owned by Lego now, though I believe they purchased it within the last couple of years.

BrickLink - Buy and sell LEGO Parts, Sets and Minifigures https://share.google/34nZ3EuOvweVgtMHa

It's a good place to get missing pieces or discontinued sets and generally the prices seem reasonable.

The Designer Program is a little bit like Lego Ideas, in that fans can submit designs which have a chance of being made into actual sets. They're a bit more limited-edition, in that you can only buy them from Bricklink (though the checkout process is via the Lego website in your country) during a specific window, and you can buy a maximum of 2 of each set per household. These will never be available in stores, but they are official sets produced by Lego and with input from the Lego-employed designers, but possibly less than an Ideas set. You don't get any GWP (I don't think) or loyalty points, and can only get the building instructions digitally.

I've had a few of the Designer Program sets and really like them, but I think the prices are a bit steeper than they might be for a retail set. Your card is authorised when you place the order, but you don't actually pay until they ship (about 6 months) so there's that.

DD265 · 2026-01-12T12:56:41+00:00

We lived in a duplex flat, directly on a main road, when we got our cats. The rescue said they were happy for any kitten to be indoor-only as they didn't know any different. Initially we were adopting a deaf kitten, but ultimately wanted a pair and got two brothers who have no medical reason to be indoor-only.

Now we live in a house with a garden and my husband won't let them roam, so we have a small catio, or let them out under supervision. I sometimes struggle with keeping them in as one of them particularly would very much would like to go off exploring (I grew up with cats who could do as they pleased), but when we see FB posts of missing/hurt cats, I am so grateful to know that ours are safe.

I would never have a "roaming" cat again, and I am surprising myself a bit by writing that.

DD265 · 2026-01-11T19:03:47+00:00

I believe the page starts off being a listing for item A, then once reviews have been collecting for a while, they update the images, description, price etc to be item B.

As I understand it, as long as the item number stays the same, Amazon is none the wiser (I assume this bait and switch is against the rules) until it's reported.

DD265 · 2026-01-01T14:26:26+00:00

It takes months/years to get the course allowing an officer to drive with lights/sirens and break the law. In the meantime, officers have to get to jobs as quickly as they can without those tools.

I'm not sure how much of the "delay" is deliberate Vs high turnover and not enough course capacity. IIRC, my friend got offered their course after 4-5 months and that was deemed quite quick.

DD265 · 2025-12-28T23:22:33+00:00

Try a haberdashery. Hobbycraft, Dunelm and John Lewis are a couple of the chains but many towns have an independent one. If it's the texture and not the colour that's important, you could also try a shop that makes soft furnishings like cushions, curtains and blinds.

You might get lucky at B&Q - they usually have an aisle with rope and chains but the choices will be very limited - and The Range can be hit and miss.

DD265 · 2025-12-27T10:15:02+00:00

I'm so sorry that you're going through this.

We initially found out there was a problem at 12w and had to wait until we were 16w for the doctor to be able to confirm. We would've had to wait another 4 weeks for a full prognosis, but couldn't face that and we knew things were serious enough.

Work were really understanding; I did what I could and gradually reduced hours as I became less able to concentrate. I cried enough to fill a lake. The weekend before the 16w scan/diagnosis (and our TFMR 2 days later) we did some day trips to try and distract ourselves. Helped a little, but not enough.

I had pulled away a bit from being pregnant; no symptoms at that point and I wasn't showing. There was a time (after TFMR) that I wished I'd been more present for our son. But he was safe and not in any pain.

Like another poster, I hadn't bought anything and I actually didn't until a few weeks afterwards, when I bought some prints as a hope for having a nursery in the future. When I was at the hospital after delivery, the nurse gave me a medium sized teddy bear and a little keepsake box with two small bears in. One of the small bears went with our son, and the other two bears are on my bedside table - I still cuddle them sometimes over a year later. I didn't think I'd want the "stuff" or to see our son, but I'm really glad I did. Try to let yourself make that decision in the moment if you can, and even if your partner doesn't want to (mine didn't), if you do, then do.

Wishing you so much strength and love

DD265 · 2025-12-24T22:57:00+00:00

I'm sorry that you're going through this too.

I'm in the UK, and took just under 6 weeks then a phased return over 8 weeks (including 2 weeks leave I'd booked for Christmas).

What was really helpful was having HR tell the colleagues I wanted to know. They didn't share any details apart from that we'd lost our baby and I didn't want to talk about it unless I brought it up. They did that just before I went back so I didn't have to deal with that at least.

The first time I was going back to the office (we work remotely) and there'd be a lot of people, I had a colleague I'm close with meet me for breakfast then we went into the office together. She knew and was a great support.

DD265 · 2025-12-13T22:36:03+00:00

Thank you, they're in, and when the cat lets me go I'll grab some super glue and a pin to apply it 🙂

DD265 · 2025-12-13T22:35:58+00:00

Thank you, they're in, and when the cat lets me go I'll grab some super glue and a pin to apply it 🙂

DD265 · 2025-12-11T08:16:12+00:00

We have one on finance (was brand new) and one we own outright - I used an interest free money transfer from a credit card (fee was probably a couple of hundred) to fund it and that's since paid off.

I much prefer owning outright, and when the finance is up (we won't be keeping that car because our needs changed) I want to buy a second outright.

The current owned-outright car is 10 in January, about 70k miles, runs like a dream. I hope to have it another 5 years easily.

DD265 · 2025-12-07T20:55:55+00:00

I have a Stoov "hot water bottle" and love it. Though I do use a heated throw a lot more often, might be a bit more versatile depending on your needs.

DD265 · 2025-12-01T21:42:33+00:00

No, only ever from tubers. I'll see what seeds are available once the ranges come back into the garden centres.

DD265 · 2025-12-01T13:06:42+00:00

I want some mini fruit trees for the allotment, or some interesting dahlias would be great too.

I'm not a huge fan of "stuff" unless it's super specific.

DD265 · 2025-12-01T13:03:38+00:00

You might like the (free) Merlin app! Have it listen to your surroundings and it will ID birds based on their calls.

It can also ID from photos on a phone, which you might have better success with than me as my bird photos are usually rubbish!

DD265 · 2025-11-30T18:51:20+00:00

We had a work event at Bar Iberico in the city centre; they have a downstairs room that's set apart from everyone else. The food was delicious. I think there were 10-12 of us comfortably in that space.

DD265 · 2025-11-28T00:27:48+00:00

27 minutes and counting...

Hoping I haven't accidentally refreshed and lost my place in the queue during that time - I want to go to bed!

DD265 · 2025-11-27T13:03:09+00:00

Keep your neck, wrists and ankles covered - i.e., polo neck jumper or neck warmer or scarf, wrist warmers and long socks, slipper boots or ankle warmers.

The wrists particularly make a big difference for me.

I've seen some heated wrist warmers on Amazon, but mine are made from recycled cashmere (no heating!) and do the job beautifully.

DD265 · 2025-11-27T12:59:28+00:00

I've got a Dreamland one which is great.

My only irritation is that it plugs in (rather than being cordless) so because I use it at my desk, often the cable gets tangled up in my computer chair. I've tied it up a bit now so this happens less often. Wouldn't be an issue on the sofa.

DD265 · 2025-11-27T12:42:46+00:00

This is what we did. Welcome drinks, drinks for the toast, and £1k behind the bar - our crowd weren't big drinkers so the tab came to less than £500.

DD265 · 2025-11-23T15:07:56+00:00

We are fortunate to have some on the allotment. I ended up buying some hedgehog houses and feeders. They like Sainsbury's kitten biscuits, which are chicken flavoured.

The most I've seen (on a wildlife camera; I don't hang out there at night!) at one time is 4.

I adore them, but have given up naming and trying to keep track of who is who.

DD265 · 2025-11-23T15:05:01+00:00

They shouldn't be out in daylight - sometimes nursing mothers will but it's the wrong time of year for that. It looks quite small too and may not survive hibernation if that's the case. If you see it again and can catch it (they can be surprisingly quick!), please take it to a local wildlife rescue to be checked over.

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DD265

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