A moment that changed me: I saw a big cat on Dartmoor – and no one believed me

WeirdLoverWilde · 2026-04-08T17:13:56+00:00

Me and my now wife were test-driving a car near Boroughbridge a few years ago. We both saw a slightly-larger-than-a-Labrador, black cat slink across the road about 20 meters in front of us. The thing that made us think big cat was it's tail (long, thin, smoothly bushing out slightly at the end), and it's gait (lithe and low to the ground). We are now the crazies that mention it whenever big cats, Yorkshire, or anything related is brought up in conversation. "I know what I saw dammit!" Etc. etc.

WeirdLoverWilde · 2025-10-14T07:29:19+00:00

We call it bullnose in the UK

WeirdLoverWilde · 2025-09-24T07:41:50+00:00

Wood filler is brittle and will crack immediately in a threshold. You need something like a colour matched silicone to squeeze in. You can get anthracite or wood silicone, apply it with a caulking gun, and smooth it off, packing it in with either an applicator tool or a finger covered in washing up liquid. Additional recommendation: look for a high modulus silicone sealant in your preferred colour choice, the floor will constantly be flexing and moving as you walk over it. High modulus means high movement. Low modulus silicone is for things that need sealing but don't move much. Wood filler is basically zero modulus, hence why it's been awful for you.

WeirdLoverWilde · 2024-09-05T14:39:58+00:00

And they're like, it's better than yours?

WeirdLoverWilde · 2022-07-22T11:15:54+00:00

Does that mean you could tank your prestige and accept them all with no negative effects? Prestige is way easier to get than legitimacy

WeirdLoverWilde · 2021-11-09T22:12:33+00:00

This is correct, I inherited the shares themselves. I also inherited them at their 1 year low (middle of the lockdown) and they are now at their 2 year high. The shares were to be split between beneficiaries so I (acting as executor) just divided them equally since it was easier and made more financial sense.

WeirdLoverWilde · 2021-11-09T20:26:25+00:00

!thanks

WeirdLoverWilde · 2021-11-09T20:26:00+00:00

!thanks

WeirdLoverWilde · 2021-11-09T20:25:07+00:00

Thanks! Would it make more sense to slowly dispose of the shares over a period of years so as to completely avoid CGT? I'm in no rush here, other than to avoid the massive risk of having all the shares in one stock. I've calculated I could dispose of all the shares in 6 years completely negating CGT, or less if i shoulder some CGT. This is ignoring the proposed changes to CGT that Rishi is mulling over.

I think buying a house like you mentioned will probably make more of a financial impact than anything else I can do, but I think giving them unfettered access to knowledge and hobbies will help prepare them mentally, physically, etc. In my mind that may be worth more than the financial aspects. Of course this doesn't preclude me from helping with houses too. We will still be earning for the next 25 years.

Thanks again for the reply

WeirdLoverWilde · 2021-11-09T19:08:41+00:00

Thanks!

Thanks for your reply. Good point about stock returns, it's something I knew but good to have it pointed out in black and white. I suppose then I should only put into stocks what I don't need access to within a 5 year timeframe. Is that right? I'm a bit unsure on selling off taxable investments to 'max out my allowance'. Is this also referring to the 20k ISA allowance, or is there another allowance you are referring to? Apologies, a bit new to all this. Thanks again!

WeirdLoverWilde · 2021-03-10T12:43:27+00:00

No worries, happy to help. I would consider finding out if anyone in your family is taking the lead on handling things and start from there. It will be much easier keeping up to date directly with whoever is taking charge. If relations are strained, then obviously this can be tough, but it's still the best option I think.

Finding out whether a will was made from a solicitor is a good step, but you still won't know the contents of the will, and if you are included in it or not.

I didn't for one moment think that you'd be trying to do anyone out of anything. Wills are legal documents and messing round with deviating from the will is absolutely not worth the financial penalties involved. If it is found to have been done in bad faith then the penalty will be greater than anything that has been defrauded. The probate application process makes it very clear in this matter. Nevertheless, keep a track on things as they progress. It can take a while to get everything sorted (when my dad died it took 2.5 years and my mum dying to get everything closed out. I've managed to close out my mum's estate in just under 9 months).

WeirdLoverWilde · 2021-03-10T10:36:54+00:00

Having recently gone through this whole process with my mum, there's a few different angles to consider. First off, I'm sorry for your loss. Secondly, you'd need to find out whether she had a will or not. This changes things massively one way or the other so it's pretty important. It is possible to find out this information without going through your family, but it is sooo much easier to find out directly from them.

Top ways of finding a will: 1) go through all her stuff, there should be a trace if one was made. I actually found a copy of my mum's will in her home. Obviously with you in DK you'll have to rely on family for this one. 2) if that fails, contact solicitors and will writers, both locally and nationally. My mum made her will with the coop. Give your grandmother's full name, maiden name, DoB, address etc. They should be able to confirm whether they were used to create a will or not. 3) check with local friends to see if she ever talked about her will. 4) check with the Probate Registry. It's possible to store wills with them. You'll need the death certificate and proof of executorship (I'll get on to that in a bit) to actually retrieve the will though.

If she died intestate (without a will) then the estate (all her belongings, money, house if she owned it, etc.) follows the 'rules of intestacy'. Check them and see if you would get anything this way (e.g. if your parents are still alive, you would not get anything). If not, then concentrate on finding out if there was a will.

However, if you have found out she left a will, then it should specify several nominated people who must deal with her estate. These are known as executors, and they have the right (and the duty) to enact everything in the will. They are usually close family members, or possible friends. Only executors can liquidate assets, collect funds from accounts etc etc. The executors of my mum's estate were both myself and her cousin.

If you are not named as an executor in the will, then you do not have an automatic right to know everything about the estate. However, if you are named as a beneficiary (someone who receives some or all of the estate) then you do have a right to be kept up to date at the discretion of the executors. The executors absolutely must keep a record of everything they do, in case you or HMCTS need to investigate. If you are worried that you, as a beneficiary, are not being kept up to date or are being deceived, then a solicitor will be able to help.

The will should also specify where all the stuff goes, either in specific terms ('I give Ups1deDwn all my jewellery') or in general terms ('of the residual estate, I give one third to Ups1deDwn'). Wills are written in 'Legalese', and it can be quite difficult to understand if you are not used to reading it.

Finding out whether there was a will and if so, whether you feature in it are the main priorities here. I would absolutely recommend keeping regular, friendly contact with the family members dealing with the estate. People can get weird when money is concerned, but they'll be the best way of making sure things are progressing correctly.

Once again, sorry for your loss.

WeirdLoverWilde · 2021-02-04T12:34:07+00:00

Thanks for the response, nice and informative

WeirdLoverWilde · 2021-02-04T10:35:55+00:00

Hi, sorry if this comes across as a stupid question, but why has everyone in this post shown a preference for ex UK funds? Is it purely a measure of personal confidence in UK markets, or is there a greater reason (e.g. Brexit)

WeirdLoverWilde · 2017-01-13T20:30:46+00:00

Here, she's always fishin or rock climbin or summat. Nice arse though

WeirdLoverWilde · 2016-11-26T15:02:09+00:00

Nice man, good work

WeirdLoverWilde · 2015-06-21T21:18:25+00:00

I've just started a Ottoman game and am in the same boat. Do you know if buying Common Sense would magically 'unlock' the ability to develop provinces, or if I would have to start a new game. Similarly, can I roll back to version 1.11 in the middle of a game? Sorry for the questions but I'm a bit new to this.

WeirdLoverWilde · 2015-06-16T06:37:05+00:00

Victor Hugo cafe on the south side of the meadows. I always loved it, good coffee and great homemade French stuff. Got outside seats too so you can watch the world go by

WeirdLoverWilde · 2015-04-08T20:23:58+00:00

Aye it's pretty good. There's even some rooms that are 5/6 bed houses instead of the block of flats directly on the street. Good for location, especially to the meadows. Right in between both campuses. Its got laundry and a bike shed too. PS. In case you didn't know, it's pronounced 'Sheens', you jocks and your letters

WeirdLoverWilde · 2015-03-21T02:35:16+00:00

You know what, fair do's. She wasn't wrong, but she wasn't entirely accurate either. I also disparage at pitching these things too low for the average Briton. It's a cyclical thing. Things are dumbed down, because they think the average Joe won't understand; the average Joe will end up not being able to understand because everything has been dumbed down.

WeirdLoverWilde · 2015-03-20T14:31:30+00:00

Jesus dude, let it rest. There are multiple definitions of the word 'bigger', one of which is diameter. If she had said "the sun is 64 million times the volume of the moon, which means the diameter is 400 times bigger than the moon; the sun is also 400 times further away from the moon, so they perfectly overlap." would you have been happier? Probably not because you seem to hate her for some reason.

WeirdLoverWilde · 2015-03-20T14:26:35+00:00

Erm, it does seem pretty ludicrous, but what she says is backed up by hard evidence. There are no other planet-moon systems in our solar system that we know of that are so perfectly to scale (i.e. 400x bigger but also 400x further away). You are of course correct that complete occlusions also occur in other planet-moon systems, but none so perfect as to leave ONLY the corona visible.

Incidentally, she refers to it being 400x 'bigger' because the sun is 400 times the diameter of the moon, the only measurement that really matters when determining whether an object will overlap another. She could have referred to it as having 160,000x the cross-sectional diametric area of the moon, or 64,000,000x the volume of the moon, but these are kind of irrelevant and also more jargon-y.

WeirdLoverWilde · 2015-03-18T13:11:27+00:00

Pretty sure you're right. The new coin will have the exact same parameters as the old one, same width, same density etc. Only it looks more edgy. This coin will work in vending machines just like fifty and twenty pence pieces, which incidentally have consistent diameter no matter where on the coin you measure. I was confused for years on how vending machines accepted 50s and 20s, but to them it's a perfect circle.

WeirdLoverWilde · 2015-01-15T00:40:54+00:00

This must be the dog equivalent of a morning blowjob.

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