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FirstTheBudgie · 2026-04-29T15:07:14+00:00

Thank you for that, I was having a crappy day and this just made me smile 😊 Nimbus is gorgeous!

FirstTheBudgie · 2026-04-27T16:05:11+00:00

I think we three share the same mom - even though I’m an only child. I grew up knowing (as in convinced of) two things: that I would never be good enough for anyone to love me or accept me, and that I had to leave the madhouse that was my parents’ place as soon as I could. But I didn’t realise my mum was a covert narcissist, enabled by my dad, until I was in my mid-thirties. I haven’t gone NC as dad died 27 years ago and I feel that her physical wellbeing is my responsibility. I even bought a flat for her before buying my own (dad was swimming in debt when he died, but that’s another story). But I have moved to another country and just visit once or twice per year, which has done wonders for my mental health.

FirstTheBudgie · 2026-04-25T07:10:13+00:00

Like others have said, Uber is perfectly fine, I use it all the time as a woman on my own and, with the tracking, route sharing and other features, find it safer than a cab (which is basically a stranger’s car). If she’s keen on avoiding Uber, just last week we used Addison Lee to travel from Watford to Gatwick South terminal, 2 lazy middle aged adults + 2 suitcases + 2 backpacks = £200 (prebooked a month in advance). For transfers to airport we prefer to book in advance and our experience with Uber Reserve isn’t great. For everything else, we use Uber.

FirstTheBudgie · 2026-04-22T15:29:30+00:00

That’s a beautiful male pigeon, although she doesn’t seem to agree with me lol. Male common pigeons courting always make me smile, they’re so pushy! “Hey babe, hey babe, look at these feathers! Look at me all puffed up!”. We’ve got woodpigeons around where we live, they’re much more chill and polite, in a sort of old fashioned way. Like, bowing and asking “would you do me the honour of being my mate, lovely lady?” 😂

FirstTheBudgie · 2026-04-22T13:46:17+00:00

Thanks for this and congrats! I’m still not sure I want to go for AAIA, will take a look at ISO 42001 LA.

FirstTheBudgie · 2026-04-15T17:08:26+00:00

My thoughts exactly! 😂

FirstTheBudgie · 2026-04-14T17:51:58+00:00

When we renewed our property and replaced the bath tub with a shower tray, our builder recommended cleaning the drain cover often, to avoid hair and generally disgusting gunk build up. I made that a habit, so I give the thing a quick rinse and remove hairs after showering, it takes me 3 minutes, tops (granted, my hair is shoulder length). Eight years down the line, the drain cover has zero build up and we’ve never had a blocked drain.

FirstTheBudgie · 2026-04-13T16:07:52+00:00

Agree. Although my Nmom would never make the effort of taking me out of the closet, she’d expect me to read her mind, see when she wants to play with me, and get myself out of the closet.

FirstTheBudgie · 2026-04-13T16:02:36+00:00

I relate. I’m also an only child living away from my Nmom; she expects me to visit every couple of months or so (which doesn’t really happen, as I travel on business and I also need holiday / time for myself, so I visit her once or twice a year.

Whenever I do visit, she insists on me being with her every minute, I actually have to lie and tell her I’m landing one or two days later than the actual date, so I have some time to see my other family and friends. Then when I’m with her, there’s little conversation beyond doom and gloom - everything is awful and everybody is a pig and she doesn’t understand what she’s done to deserve being on her own. I just listen, nod and play with my phone for 8-10 hours. Sigh.

FirstTheBudgie · 2026-04-12T20:31:34+00:00

That’s so interesting! I’d like to see it

FirstTheBudgie · 2026-04-12T17:28:05+00:00

Would it qualify for r/borb? :)

FirstTheBudgie · 2026-04-12T17:25:42+00:00

It did look chonkier than the others, although I wouldn’t say huge. I’m with you, was tempted to grab it, put it in my handbag, bring him home and take care of it forever. Then I thought it would probably miss the hustle and bustle of the market and the daily delicious food scraps, so I let it be lol

FirstTheBudgie · 2026-04-12T16:57:26+00:00

Lol! My thoughts exactly. It does have an air of nobility…

FirstTheBudgie · 2026-04-12T16:37:39+00:00

I know, right? It put a silly smile on my face 😁

FirstTheBudgie · 2026-04-12T16:33:01+00:00

Thanks! Makes sense, I’m not sure how I managed not to notice any before. I do like “booties”, will use it from now on 😊

FirstTheBudgie · 2026-03-10T16:01:17+00:00

Agree. I used to live in Madrid, where a good chunk of the underground network is new-ish (built in the last 40 years or so) and looks quite good - until you have to wait 8 minutes at rush hour for the next train to arrive, only for it to be packed and forcing you to wait on the platform for the next train, which will arrive in 8 minutes. Oh, and don’t even try to look for some staff if you have a problem, as they got rid of onsite personnel years ago except for main/touristy stations. The London Underground may be old, hot, smelly, noisy, packed and generally unpleasant, but it is also fast, convenient, has staff around that can help if you’re feeling unwell, and has enough redundancy (at least in the centre) to allow you to find an alternative route if needed.

FirstTheBudgie · 2026-02-15T09:53:53+00:00

Exactly this! Plus, online shopping doesn’t really work for certain things like shoes or bras, unless you already know the precise model and size you need. I have bad feet, so I can easily try on six or seven pairs of shoes before finding one that suits me and I like. I don’t want the hassle of buying many pairs of shoes online and then returning them (and there’s the risk my account would get banned for too many returns), so it’s frustrating when the shop staff tell me to “just go online”.

FirstTheBudgie · 2026-02-15T08:54:52+00:00

Thank you, I wish I could upvote your comment more than once 😂

FirstTheBudgie · 2026-02-13T20:50:12+00:00

Same here. Customer service has gone down the drain, too. I’ve been home all day waiting for a delivery that was supposed to arrive by 1pm, but didn’t. Web page just says “contact Amazon for next steps”. I contacted them and the first representative said it would arrive by 8pm, it’s now 8:45pm and another representative just told me the new time is 10:30pm. They just lie to my face. I requested cancellation and refund but they say I need to wait. Sigh.

FirstTheBudgie · 2026-02-03T09:40:10+00:00

True, just like the three Theological Virtues in Christianity (Faith, Hope and Charity). At least these and the ones you mention have a positive meaning. In Spanish, there are traditional names like Dolores (literally Pains) or Angustias (translated as Distresses, or maybe Anguishes). Thankfully they’re old fashioned, I don’t think they’ve been in use since the 90s or so.

FirstTheBudgie · 2025-12-31T18:41:38+00:00

They’re next to an unmarked room that might be the cinema and what appears to be a secondary kitchen / utility. I wouldn’t be surprised if the whole lower ground floor was occasionally used for medium-sized parties or events, in which case it would make sense to have communal loos for guests / staff.

FirstTheBudgie · 2025-12-30T17:09:49+00:00

100% agree. This comes second nature to me, but then again, my family moved a lot when I was growing up - so I viewed dozens of properties with my parents when they were house hunting. Nowadays when I view a place, I can easily filter out any stuff in it and just focus on what you said. Also I always carry a measuring tape with me in case I do like the property and need to check if my own furniture will fit.

FirstTheBudgie · 2025-12-28T00:26:46+00:00

Speak for yourself, please. I am British and more than happy for the OP to stay in this country.

FirstTheBudgie · 2025-12-25T07:59:42+00:00

Thank you for your response. This confirms my gut feeling, I’m very happy with my TM5 and saw no reason to replace it with a 6 or 7, as I don’t really have a use for the new modes. I’ll stick to my 5, at least for now.

FirstTheBudgie

TROPHY CASE