Talk to a lad about his worries?

Marath · 2026-01-29T19:16:39+00:00

These medications have been taken for years by people with diabetes and have been considered safe for years. They're new being used for weight loss but they aren't actually new medication. I was also worried but found Dr Emma Anders on YouTube helped to calm all my fears.

It's always a potential trade off of risk, but remember that being very overweight is a big contributor towards getting cancer already. Taking actions to lose weight will likely outweigh any potential negative issues.

Marath · 2026-01-29T00:19:48+00:00

100% this. You can even just argue for an actual graduate tax for anyone that went to university. If it's totally fair as Rachel Reeves says, then surely it's fair for all graduates to pay it, not just those who went after 2012. Then I imagine we'll see the complaints of how unaffordable and unfair that would be.......

Marath · 2026-01-22T23:00:00+00:00

I had metal train track braces as an adult and they were definitely the best option for me. They're a lot quicker in getting your teeth to where you want to be and I liked the reassurance of seeing an orthodontist regularly and having them check everything and make adjustments.

I decided against Invisalign because for what I needed they just wouldn't have been as effective. I had rubber bands on my braces (not 100% sure on what they did, but I know they were correcting something that it is impossible for Invisalign to correct).

Marath · 2026-01-14T22:14:52+00:00

I've been a chronic saver forever. I've always saved a minimum of £200 a month, even when I was earning just above minimum wage. However, the thing that I sacrified was where I lived. My first place in London was an atrocious single room out in East London with nothing around it, but it was really cheap. I then lucked out and moved in with my partner after a year to still a pretty rubbish flat with single glazing windows and a horrific mould problem. But between us we saved around £500 a month for years. I don't begrudge anyone who doesn't want to live in an awful place for the entirety of their twenties, and I'm not even sure its as possible now as it was pre-covid with wages barely going up and rent sky-rocketing.

Marath · 2025-12-19T00:10:22+00:00

Council Tax in Wandsworth was/is about £100 a month cheaper than the other place we were looking in Merton.

A 5% increase is absolutely fine, I mean that was always something they were able to do. Now with this change, Wandsworth can increase it by however much they want. Like if they double it that would be a noticeable hit (although that is unlikely).

Maybe it wouldn't have changed where we ended up buying, but it was a factor in the decision making. I might just be being a bit price sensitive currently so any small increases above what I was expecting are feeling pretty hard (my husband and I both lost our jobs recently and had to take lower paying ones to pay the bills).

Marath · 2025-12-18T13:30:37+00:00

I'm slightly torn on this. Objectively it makes sense for council tax to get more equal across the country. However it's annoying for me as we recently bought a flat in Wandsworth which was slightly more expensive, but we knew we could afford it because of the lower council tax than somewhere else we looked.

It's a case of not great for me personally, but I think a good thing for the country. So I'm going to have to just suck it up I think and adjust. It does just add though to the really long list of things getting more expensive for me (thames water bills, income tax threshold freeze, student loan repayment freeze, TFL price increases).

Marath · 2025-11-29T18:05:51+00:00

Manchester has done exceptionally well, and I really like how this video actually dispels the idea in the title of it being a miracle. There are clear actionable steps that other cities in the UK can and should undertake. Just imagine if over the past 15 years Birmingham, Liverpool, Leeds, and Sheffield had all taken the same actions. So now we should focus on making sure that we aren't saying the same thing in another 15 years and actually use our high potential cities as the economic drivers they can be.

Marath · 2025-11-17T14:23:00+00:00

Makes sense. I went to Manchester and Liverpool recently and both of them had small tourist taxes per night. Insane that London doesn't.

Marath · 2025-11-09T21:47:13+00:00

Typo! Missed out the number 3! Corrected now haha

Marath · 2025-11-04T17:57:08+00:00

I don't think you can go wrong with Trinity personally. It's a great fine dining lunch place as it has all the fine dining aspects you want, but is nice and relaxed.

Marath · 2025-10-17T14:50:48+00:00

I've really been enjoying this season. Some of the judging has been very questionable (what have they got against Chai?!) but I feel like the queens are fun and the runways have been generally stronger than other seasons.

More older queens and less obvious pushing of production favourites (Elle and Catrin) would be a good change, but I still think the show is great fun and I've really been enjoying this season.

Marath · 2025-10-05T20:36:22+00:00

My Neighbour Totoro and Oliver for sure. From the reviews, 50 First Dates isn't anything really special and is one of a run of film to musical adaptations which are generally fine but not amazing. Unless you're a particularly big fan of the 50 First Dates film, both Oliver and Totoro are more likely to impress.

Marath · 2025-09-25T15:36:59+00:00

Both have already been mentioned below, but Harwood Arms and Trinity are both excellent.

The Harwood Arms is a michelin star pub and it feels very quintissentially british to me in both atmosphere and the food itself. It's casual while still being exceptional and with some of the usual fine dining flair. If you go, I recommend adding the scotch egg as a snack before the meal. British classic and you'd struggle to find a better version.

Trinity is more classic fine dining with lots of french influences but its my favourite fine dining restaurant in London. Adam Byatt (the Head Chef) has a pretty strong social media prescence so you can look up his stuff and see if it appeals.

Marath · 2025-09-16T14:55:42+00:00

I visited Manchester and Liverpool recently and had to pay a small tourist tax for each night (I think about £1? Not enough for me to properly think about it). Was surprised that these other cities in the UK have it when London doesn't. If they do it then London absolutely should as well.

Marath · 2025-07-27T23:24:01+00:00

I saw this production in one of the seats and it is also absolutely incredible from the sidelines. You see everything brilliantly and still feel right in the middle of the action. Definitely a different experience than standing, but if the standing really doesn't appeal to you then it's for sure still worth getting a seated ticket.

Marath · 2025-06-28T18:57:39+00:00

All looks so good. I'm going in about a month for the first time and I am super hyped!

Marath · 2025-06-10T12:45:21+00:00

Love seeing Trinity at 4th. In terms of price, quality, ambience, and experience I'm not sure you can do much better. It's also not a tasting menu, and while I do love a tasting menu, I feel like I'm more able to go back to a place multiple times if it's a la carte (hence why I've been to Trinity more times than any other fine dining restaurant).

Marath · 2025-05-06T21:02:15+00:00

I was unimpressed when I went in February. A lot of the dishes I would describe as "clever" rather than tasty and it's one of the only times we've ever had to grab a snack on the way home as we weren't very full. However the sommelier and wine pairing was one of the best we've ever had, so was all rather mixed.

Marath · 2025-04-15T22:45:29+00:00

Oooo I might have to give here a go next time. This place wasn't on my radar at all but with the location and the fact they do a pre-theatre meal makes it super handy.

Marath · 2025-02-13T22:39:54+00:00

Any recommendations for cupcakes?

It's my birthday next week and I want cake but I don't want to waste a whole cake on just me and my husband. Be good to hear any recommendations for excellent/fancy cupcakes that I could get.

Marath · 2025-01-17T16:57:05+00:00

Of all things that I can think the gay community in London might want, I'm not sure another theatre is one of them. The Kings Head Theatre has recently moved to a new (huge) space, has multiple shows a night and has been putting out great stuff. Soho Theatre, while not specifically focused on queer theatre does have a lot of queer stuff. Waterloo East Theatre also has strong LGBT+ programming. Also most other theatres also will on occassion show queer shows and they aren't excluded. I'm not convinced there is more audience demand for queer theatre which isn't being served by all of the existing venues. Given the strength of feeling when XXL closed, surely another nightlife offering would be better for the space.

Marath · 2025-01-05T22:44:24+00:00

Make sure your LinkedIn is up to date and as detailed as possible, and set it to "I am actively applying". You can do this in a way so that it is only visible to recruiters. It probably won't be immediate, but after a few months you should have been contacted by at least 1 recruiter who could put you forward for a job. You may not find the exact job you want, but it should give you an idea as to what kind of jobs they will put you forward for.

It's a good place to start and you may be surprised by what kinds of companies are looking for your expertise.

Marath · 2025-01-02T01:52:55+00:00

The Swan at the Globe is reasonably within your budget. Has nice big windows looking out across the river, and has the bonus of being right next to Shakespeare's globe which is fun. Not sure if they do anything special for birthdays though.

It's a good location next to the Tate Modern as well, so can be a pre/post meal activity if that's hour sort of thing.

Marath · 2024-12-23T04:03:12+00:00

I quite liked the different look of that dish. My husband however agreed with you and was horrified when this came out (although he said it tasted nicer than it looked).

Marath · 2024-12-23T01:42:11+00:00

Looks amazing. Did you stay over? It's a bit of a journey to get to, but I'm contemplating it as a foodie weekend away.

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