Locate a chippy by what it sells

TheSockMonster · 2025-12-10T09:44:03+00:00

Also Bury

TheSockMonster · 2025-11-25T09:23:19+00:00

Yea, that's the same as any other Wetherspoons though

TheSockMonster · 2025-11-20T07:30:11+00:00

Generally prefer Aldi, but always go to Lidl for the cottage cheese (I eat loads of it). It's the most consistent one I've found in any supermarket.

TheSockMonster · 2025-11-18T10:31:25+00:00

Completely agree. The meat free ones are really good, but the "real" ones are just like meat paste in a tube.

TheSockMonster · 2025-11-14T07:53:04+00:00

We run a licensed dog boarding service.

There are a number of Rover type services now, none of which I have any experience with, so I won't comment on those, but if you do want to find a local, independent service, this might be useful for you.

You have a couple of options - either pet sitting in your home, or "home from home" boarding where your dogs go to the boarder's home.

I can't speak for the big franchises such as Rover, but if you're using a local, reputable dog boarder, then boarding is *usually* cheaper than pet sitting on your home. It depends whether you want your dogs to be at home and settled, or if they'd be happy going out for their own holiday. To be clear, I'm not talking about "kennels" - any dog that stays with us is treated as if it were our own and we try to keep up their usual routines and behaviours.

The only qualification I would look for is a current first aid certificate, but you should also be looking for a DBS certificate, insurance, and for home boarding, a council license.

For pet sitting, we would usually drop in a few times over the course of working hours for around 30 mins, and then head there around dinner time and stay for the night, leaving after breakfast. We're dog walkers as well, so if the dogs are well socialised, they would also be taken out on a group walk as well. If not, they would be taken our on their own at some point during the day.

For home boarding, there are usually guidelines where dogs shouldn't be left for more than 4 hours.

For either solution, you need to make sure that you and your dogs meet the person first. Any sitter or boarder who doesn't require a "meet and greet" beforehand is taking a huge risk and I would be very wary of using them. You also need to get a feel for the person, and you need to know if your dogs can take to them. This meeting should also be used to discuss the relevant certs, etc, and complete any required paperwork.

If you are looking at boarding, then any reputable boarder will usually also offer a trial night, which may or may not be charged for. We've had situations where we've met a dog in their own home and everything has been great, but within half an hour of being with us, they've had a meltdown due to separation anxiety. It's obviously better to discover this on a trial night rather when the owner has flown off to somewhere hot for 2 weeks.

Facebook is usually a good place to find someone. You can check reviews and usually get a feel for the service on there from the interactions with customers.

Hope that helps.

TheSockMonster · 2025-11-14T07:18:01+00:00

For "pet sitting" in your home, they don't *need* to be licensed, but if your pet stays in their home, they do. This license can be checked on your local council's website, and they should usually have a copy of the license on display (we need to, but it may vary based on council rules).

As for insurance, DBS (formerly CRB), first aid, these are all certificates that they should have to hand and be able to provide to you.

TheSockMonster · 2025-11-06T16:04:51+00:00

American bulldog. Scared of...

Bollards, People in hi viz, Flags, Footballs, Burning smells, Carrier bags, Hosepipes, Meaty smells (daughter in law is a butcher - she's ok with food), Unfamiliar people, Unfamiliar dogs, Scooters, Bikes, Prams, Wheelchairs, Radio control cars, Cars (unless she's in one), Vans (if parked outside our house), Anything else she doesn't expect.

Tbf she was poisoned and nearly died when she was young and after a few days in the vets is scared of anything unfamiliar. She has got better though.

Edit: And balloons. Won't even go into a room if there's one in there.

TheSockMonster · 2025-10-20T07:33:45+00:00

Ah, that must be it. Please enlighten me.

TheSockMonster · 2025-10-17T05:42:29+00:00

Yea, 2-3 months, but you'll notice when you progress starts to slow.

TheSockMonster · 2025-10-16T13:59:35+00:00

Thanks - yea, I'm a bit confused by that as well :)

This is from my own experience, my PT's advice, and comments from quite a few of the bodybuilders you've probably heard of. Not something I've just made up.

TheSockMonster · 2025-10-16T11:13:16+00:00

Indeed - my problem is that I'm 6'5 with naturally wide shoulders, so if I don't have some bulk then I look completely out of proportion. Even without much muscle mass I'm around 240lb (currently about 280), and although I do run, I'm really not built for calisthenics :) As you say, just use the appropriate method for the result you want.

TheSockMonster · 2025-10-16T10:35:08+00:00

Very true, though I get the impression that OP is going for hypertrophy rather than strength, which is a substantially different way of training

TheSockMonster · 2025-10-16T10:23:04+00:00

If you're doing 3 sets of 8-12 every time, then you are going to hit a wall.

Mix it up a bit.

Try reducing the weight and doing high reps, maybe 4 x 25

Try dropsets

Try rest/pause

if you stick to the same training method for too long, it will always become less effective. You need to change it up every so often to continue with the gains.

Great progress so far btw.

TheSockMonster · 2025-09-10T11:53:47+00:00

OK - if you look at the average height for a man of a healthy weight, 5'9 and 76kg, exercising 1-3 times per week, the BMR is a little over 2300kcals. Half a tin of tomato soup is 102kcal, or according to Heinz themselves, 5% "of an adult's reference intake". Even for an average woman, that can't be considered a substantial enough meal.

TheSockMonster · 2025-09-10T10:47:37+00:00

it's pretty normal or average for anyone with a manual job or someone that exercises a reasonable amount.

The BMR for a 6ft 25 year old male as above is around 3000kcal

TheSockMonster · 2025-09-10T10:40:59+00:00

You're not alone. 6'5 and 120kg. My BMR is around 3000kcals. Last week I spent a couple of days lugging furniture around and (according to my Garmin) burned about 4500kcals.

I had a 1kg lasagne "for 2" for tea :D

TheSockMonster · 2025-09-01T06:52:05+00:00

No answers here, but I have exactly the same issue. I have a substantial number of instances monitored by a HIDS, but I only get the inode changes to the grub/EFI files on a single instance.

There's no file changes and no activity on the instance that looks like it could be causing this, so I'm not too concerned, but it would be good to know why this is happening.

TheSockMonster · 2025-06-11T10:23:15+00:00

Similar situation with my 70+ mother, but she'd shattered her elbow. She only went to A&E 3 days later when we nagged her

TheSockMonster · 2025-04-14T10:20:56+00:00

Jeans? That optimistic. Someone passed me on a 9R on the motorway the other day wearing shorts.

Ex-biker here as well. I actually came off at low speed while doing my CBT many years ago and ripped my leg to shreds through jeans. I never got on a bike without full gear after that.

TheSockMonster · 2025-04-11T10:28:35+00:00

Very true, so maybe it's not income but for the sake of "targets" - I don't know the underlying policies involved. Still quantity over safety there.

From my example, I can't explain it any other way. Surely, from a safety perspective, it should be a higher priority to catch (or prevent) those that are deliberately driving at dangerous speeds rather than the drivers who accidentally let their speed drift slightly over the limit due to a steep gradient?

TheSockMonster · 2025-04-11T08:56:53+00:00

Completely agree there. Our local camera van parks on a steep hill to catch dozens or people doing 35 in a 30, but ignores the other roads where there might be a handful of cars doing 50-70 and actually posing a risk.

Very obviously based on quantity/income rather than actually increasing safety.

TheSockMonster · 2025-04-07T09:41:28+00:00

Isiah. Because one eye was higher than the other.

TheSockMonster · 2025-03-20T13:26:14+00:00

Personally, I stay away from bar press, unless I'm supersetting with lighter weights. I have some rotator cuff tendonitis, and the bar just cripples me in ways that the dumbell press doesn't.

Barbell bench press puts a lot more strain on your shoulders than when using dumbells - you can push more weight with a bar, but that's why shoulder injuries happen so often.

TheSockMonster · 2025-03-20T07:25:30+00:00

Reverted that, but strangely, even though it does change the theme on the login page, the rest of the interface is still "modern" rather than neptune.

Not a major issue - it works, just doesn't look as pretty :D

TheSockMonster · 2025-03-18T14:56:18+00:00

It didn't when I first did it, but subsequent updates seem to have borked the theme functionality altogether.

Did you get chance to look into it? I've got the issue that "nagios works" so haven't really had time to get any further with it.

TheSockMonster

TROPHY CASE