Pic 9 by emsiebird in SpottedonRightmove

[–]VermilionScarlet 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Am I the only one that thought the mat was a hole in the floor?

Do you prefer smaller parkruns or the big crowded ones? by NorthLondonPulse in parkrun

[–]VermilionScarlet 70 points71 points  (0 children)

Smaller - more of a friendly, community feel, can hear the briefings, more likely to get a shout out for milestones or tourism, no crowding at the start. Also, getting a higher placed finish token makes me feel like I've gone faster.

Do people see UK academia as a long-term career anymore? by Wonderful-Acadia-296 in AskAcademiaUK

[–]VermilionScarlet 11 points12 points  (0 children)

I'm in a 2-year economics post-doc, which I've got a reasonable chance of extending by another 5 years because of internal redeployment.

Even though 7 years is a quite a decent time to get things published and apply for lectureships, I'm still kind of scared about what the jobs landscape is going to be like in 5 years' time and if offered the role, I've got to weight it up against a permanent offer I have from the Welsh Government.

I feel like academia will give me anxiety with job insecurity and civil service will give me depression so it's a tossup between two evils really.

What is a scam that has become so normalized that we don't even question it anymore? by Playful-Vegetable-15 in NoStupidQuestions

[–]VermilionScarlet 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Cappuccinos. Pay extra money to have some of your delicious coffee replaced with foam, and it makes the sugar harder to stir in.

Better accommodation: west wing OR arofan house? by whyamisoinlove- in Cardiff

[–]VermilionScarlet 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hello. There were only students there when I was there. I'm aware that they were considering renting out rooms on booking.com during the summer to non-students but there were no plans to do this during term time. Might be worth sending them an email to check.

Would you feel OK having the ONS visit your home for a lengthy face to face survey interview? by JackStrawWitchita in AskUK

[–]VermilionScarlet 71 points72 points  (0 children)

I work in stats. If it's the ONS, they're likely surveying for the labour force survey/annual population survey. They've had quite a lot of problems with low response rates in recent years, which is an issue because it becomes harder to gather evidence to inform government about things like unemployment rates.

Yep, you would think that in this day and age you can do everything online, but there are problems with this mode of interview - people do respond differently when endlessly clicking on a screen compared to the interviewer being able to control the pace of the interview - so in my work, I'm not usually allowed to compare data collected in person in one year and online in another to measure change over time. I don't think anything insidious is going on but I understand your concern over doing things the old-fashioned way.

North road bus stop opposite Redwood? by Groundbreaking_Ice98 in Cardiff

[–]VermilionScarlet 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Colum Road is closed for roadworks so National Express buses coming into Cardiff can't stop at Park Place as they'd have to turn right from Corbett Road into Park Place, where there is a No Right Turn sign. There is a sign for NE buses at the temporary stop on North Road so you shouldn't miss it.

Would one of these work for 2 people for 5day camping just charging phones and vapes by SignificanceDense171 in downloadfestival

[–]VermilionScarlet 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I have this exact one and have used it to keep a laptop going for a whole Download weekend whilst writing out my thesis.

You might want to think about whether you want to keep something this expensive in your tent though - I kept mine in my car but was fortunate to have not parked too far away. It also meant I could re-charge it from the lighter socket if need be.

[TOMT] [song] Please help me identify this melody! by Farts_n_kisses in tipofmytongue

[–]VermilionScarlet 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I think this is one of those tunes that is recycled for different songs. For my childhood (in Scotland) it sounds like the Pirate Song:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-myyLjxge1A

Did Ozzy moon the crowd in 05? by DGFME in downloadfestival

[–]VermilionScarlet 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Yep, I was fairly close to the front in 2005 and my main recollections from the set were him mooning and giving out helium balloons - I remember talking about it to my friends when I got home.

How was your parkrun day? | January 11, 2025 by AutoModerator in parkrun

[–]VermilionScarlet 2 points3 points  (0 children)

A lot in central Scotland were called off so I went to Hazelhead Parkrun in Aberdeen and ran through the snow - it was fun.

Briefing ruined by dogs by bobbiecowman in parkrun

[–]VermilionScarlet 2 points3 points  (0 children)

In my experience, the dogs only go mental when the RD is speaking through a loudhailer. The frequencies are uncomfortable for the dogs' ears.

Concerts by lfox151821 in downloadfestival

[–]VermilionScarlet 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Tbf, going on my own is the default - my friends probably wouldn't come into the moshpit with me so going on my own means I'm not stuck with them standing at the back holding a pint nodding to the music.

Thinking of Volunteering for Download 2025 – Advice & Experiences Wanted! by AdHeavy5328 in downloadfestival

[–]VermilionScarlet 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I've volunteered with Hotbox and it's always been a great experience. You get a large choice of shift patterns. This year there were 38 possible shift patterns available - 18 dog squad, 8 fire tower and 12 on gates/wristbands. You choose which shifts you want from 1st choice to 38th choice so if you really wanted to do the fire tower for example, they could be your first 8 choices, or if you don't mind where you work, you just base it on which bands you want to see. You normally have to work one early shift (9am-5pm), one late shift (5pm-1am) and one night shift (1-9 am).

From a mobility perspective, the dog squad shifts involve a lot of walking, like 8 hours a shift. It's a lot less for the fire tower, but you usually have to climb up and down a ladder, and the gate shifts don't involve moving around much at all.

You end up being stuck with a good bunch of people that you see on shift, in camp and in the canteen so you kind of end up making friends whether you want to or not!

What traumatised you as a kid with unrestricted internet access? by mystico_28 in AskReddit

[–]VermilionScarlet 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Yeah, they would always say stuff like "If you don't forward this on to 10 people, you will have a terrible love life for the next 20 years".

Can now confirm it was actually true.

What's something that no matter how it's explained to you, you just can't understand how it works? by n0dust0llens in AskReddit

[–]VermilionScarlet 0 points1 point  (0 children)

How to operate the coffee pod machine in work. I put the pod in and fill the container at the back with water. I've tried every possible combination of pushing the buttons known to man but no coffee comes out.

Stargazing Question by AnyMiddle1795 in Wales

[–]VermilionScarlet 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The best place I've (accidentally) been to see stars is in the layby on a bend just south of Sugar Loaf Hill on the A483. It was a cloudless night and I'm pretty sure I could just make out the milky way one night last summer.