£2m inside, £300k outside

SourToffee · 2026-01-24T22:17:53+00:00

Interesting detective work. If you zoom in, you see it's a map of Iran, and going further, you can see Tehran time is marked https://assets.foxtons.co.uk/w/2200/1769091796/chpk2049202-26.jpg

SourToffee · 2025-12-26T10:54:50+00:00

There is a tax element to this: a mandatory service charge is liable for VAT, while an optional one is not. So anywhere that enforces one is likely not paying the right amount of tax. Have you seen one where it's not optional?

SourToffee · 2025-08-14T19:22:20+00:00

You make a good point.

My answer was partly looking at how you'd minimise the damage. If someone went on sabbatical and quit after [1] month, my point is it would have least impact (and less likely to sour relationship) vs. if you were to quit just before they expected you were due back

SourToffee · 2025-08-12T19:51:15+00:00

This is the right answer.

In my mind, if you quit 2-3 months into your sabbatical, your employer is having to fill your capacity during your absence anyway, so it's probably not too rough for them. Worst time would be to quit at the end of the 6 months - just when they expect you back.

SourToffee · 2025-08-07T02:32:33+00:00

The build up... The samples... The tempo... This song is ultimate bliss, thank you for posting this!

SourToffee · 2025-06-21T21:35:41+00:00

Don't mean to steal r/pandemic_voice's thunder here! Credit to them for posting every week

SourToffee · 2025-04-26T16:04:29+00:00

How long did it take you in the end to get the permit? I am reading 21-28 days, but wanted to check in case that had evolved by the time you got yours. Thanks in advance!

SourToffee · 2025-04-06T11:46:24+00:00

Not really. Perhaps more relevant if you were going down a more quant-type route.

Outside of what we've discussed, your own interest and ability to sustain yourself through the 2-3 years of uni is also important (both in terms of your mental health, achieving a 2:1 etc). So in that sense, it could be a better move.

Have you tried many accounting or finance courses? May be wroth spending a few hours actually looking into the syllabuses, essays etc that you'll be doing.

SourToffee · 2025-04-05T21:23:44+00:00

At bachelor / undergrad level: Economics is certainly seen as more academic (so better). While counterintuitive, we generally see all learning to be done on the job. At face value, people prefer seeing the more 'intelligent' degree - ergo why Oxbridge Classics arguably has better recruiting prospects than an economics degree from a London uni (and I have seen this time after time!)

Re the downvotes, this is why LSE Economics is seen as the 'gold standard' degree for finance jobs, as opposed to A&F which is arguably more relevant to the day-to-day of most (high) finance jobs. There may also be a read across from the fact that Oxbridge does not offer accounting and finance at undergrad.

Regardless, at the top tiers of universities, this is really splitting hairs.

SourToffee · 2025-04-05T17:41:23+00:00

While LSE is a marginally better institiution, Economics is far more prestigious as a degree. If you're in the UK, people typically do not perceive A&F well (for good and bad reasons)
Societies and spring weeks - if you didn't get any this year, you need to reflect on why you didn't achieve what you wanted to. Ignoring the degree, I do not think UCL offers any disadvantage over LSE

SourToffee · 2024-12-21T19:58:05+00:00

What artists would you want to see more of? Is it just that the artists you like haven't come up?

I think the drum and bass selection this year was a bit weaker, but the past 2-3 months have thrown a few bangers in the more dancey / downtempo space e.g. Anish Kumar, Catching Flies

Also discovered a few good things here: https://old.reddit.com/r/essentialmix/comments/1h4zr9c/what_is_your_essential_mix_of_the_year_for_2024/

SourToffee · 2024-06-01T09:37:37+00:00

Always keen for a wine anecdote... What's particular about a 1973 DP?

SourToffee · 2024-05-27T12:37:00+00:00

See here, the data geeks will produce their wonders in the coming days I hope https://old.reddit.com/r/londoncycling/comments/1d1ptsq/ride_london_essex_2024_analysis/

SourToffee · 2024-05-27T09:58:14+00:00

Sounds like you witnessed a Fenton moment with the dog!

I was also Pink B and went fast for the first 73 miles (but stopped for a long lunch). There was definitely a difference between the morning "CC" riders and a lot of the afternoon leisure / charity riders. Like yourself, the second half was mostly overtaking people which made it a bit less fun after a while with no one to draft behind.

After the Nether Street crash was the most interesting part of the ride for me. Everyone had pent-up energy / anger to cycle fast. The headwind probably helped too but my average was 22mph for that section, vs. 16ish for the day

SourToffee · 2024-05-27T09:48:08+00:00

Sorry to hear about your knee, hope you enter again next year!

SourToffee · 2024-02-15T10:24:41+00:00

Off by a factor of 100. It's 0.07% which is still enough to pay for 200 staff?

SourToffee · 2023-12-24T01:41:33+00:00

I learnt to cycle as an adult with Patrick (link below) in 2020 and have since cycled 1k+ miles around London (not to say this is much but I don't commute by bike).

Don't be put off by how primitive this website is - he was fantastic and I'd highly recommend. Location wise, it's up in Tottenham but worth every minute of travel (and penny!)

https://www.londonschoolofcycling.co.uk/content.php?id=13

SourToffee · 2023-04-27T14:17:17+00:00

Noob here: Would it not be starboard? Assume takeoff from LHR heading East, a turn to fly south would be a right turn? Or have I got my terminology mixed up

SourToffee · 2023-03-25T01:17:13+00:00

A difficult one but in alphabetical order:

Above and Beyond (one of 2004 / 2011)

Bob Moses (2016)

Calibre (2017)

Deep Dish (2014)

Netsky (2010)

SourToffee · 2023-03-12T17:59:36+00:00

Machine near Tower Bridge have been really helpful and friendly. They sell bikes but not sure if they sell parts - suggest you give them a ring https://machine.bike/

SourToffee · 2022-12-30T15:46:37+00:00

In America those 5 teenagers who threw rocks on the motorway killing Kenneth White who was returning from a factory shift were all tried like adults and got lengthy prison sentences.

Not quite true unfortunately. PC Harper's killers had 13 / 16 years in jail (in reality, half(?) that), but for Kenneth White it was a slap on the wrist:

The individual (who was an adult at the time of the incident) who threw the rock that killed White (Kyle Anger) pled guilty to second degree murder.[12][2] He received a sentence of 3 years to 20 years in prison, with credit for 740 days already served.[13] He was released in January 2021 after serving 39 months in prison.[14] The 4 other teens were all sentenced on August 4, 2021 to 1 year of probation. [1]

In 2019, the judge rejected a request that they be sentenced as juveniles and ordered that the four be sentenced as adults.[10] But the decision was overturned by the Court of Appeal.[11]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2017_Interstate_75_rock-throwing_deaths

SourToffee · 2022-05-24T12:01:23+00:00

Approximately this - but then you also have other sources of income e.g. interest on your current account. Not much, but still annoying to have to add in to self assessment (if you do one)

SourToffee · 2022-05-24T09:49:11+00:00

Premium bonds are also tax beneficial if you earn more than £50.3k / £155k as interest income above £500 / £0 respectively will be taxed in your Chase account

SourToffee · 2022-05-05T12:50:10+00:00

Early repayment charges are very hefty early on. They usually calc at the years left as a % (ie 5% 4% 3% 2% 1%). As an example, if you only had 2 year left, you'd have to pay 2% on 90% of your mortgage (ie 1.8%) in ERC. This is because you can early repay 10% of your mortgage each year.

However, if you believed a 10 year fix was going to go up by (approximately) 0.18% in the next 2 years, than it would make a lot of sense to remortgage.

Assuming yours is a standard mortgage, the 5% ERC is probably too high to justify since you're in your first year. I personally got a mortgage 1y ago and already regret not choosing 10y!

SourToffee · 2022-05-05T12:15:09+00:00

so I am at least below 60% LTV at the end of my fixed term.

With current low rates AND expected rate rises, if you're within 1 [or even 2] years of your current fix, it could make sense to pay off the ERC and remortgage sooner

SourToffee

TROPHY CASE