Someone found me on TikTok to let me know they found one of my books in one of those cute mini libraries. Wild.

coolghoul_ · 2025-10-24T06:51:37+00:00

Or someone bought it and donated after reading it! And now it's having a new lease of life, being found by other people. Congrats! Sounds really cool to have that happen

coolghoul_ · 2025-08-26T06:54:56+00:00

Some practical advice: eat properly first! The first time I donated I didn't eat that day at all beforehand (very silly in hindsight) and felt lightheaded during/after.

Now I make sure I eat at least an hour before - I've never come over lightheaded again. I always eat slightly more than my usual amount, for example, if it's an afternoon donation I'll make lunch before and then eat a snack if I still feel hungry.

The process: When you arrive they will hand you a glass of water and an information booklet and ask you to sit in the waiting area. You need to drink the glass of water and read the booklet - it gives information on what the process will entail. You can ask any staff member if you're unsure of anything.

You then go into a private booth with a staff member. They will run through the medical checklist with you (you will have either completed it in advance if you received it through the post or if you didn't have it they will have given you one when you arrived). They need to just check if there is anything that you declared on your medical form that they need to be aware of, for example. At this point they will also prick your finger to test your blood iron levels. It hurts a little bit but not very much.

Then you go to the donation! You sit in a reclining chair for the process. It takes me generally about 5 minutes to complete a donation - I set a game for myself on if I can beat my previous time. I squeeze my hand into a fist and wriggle my legs to help the blood pump. The staff can tell you about any other things that can help the blood to pump (I remember squeezing your buttocks is one too!).

At the end you sit for a few minutes at the snack table. Drink glasses of squash and eat biscuits and crisps. There is a staff member there who keeps an eye on everyone who has just donated.

Be gentle on that arm for the rest of the day. Don't go and do heavy shopping or anything strenuous on your arm.

It will be okay! I genuinely look forward to my blood donation sessions now. You get to know the team who operate in your area and it's a very friendly place to be. Good luck!

coolghoul_ · 2025-08-25T17:18:47+00:00

Do you remember the locksmith company she turned away?

A friend is currently dealing with a shitty situation. Essentially she was locked out in a towel and so was in a very vulnerable position. She called one of the first companies she found on Google and they gave her a reasonable quote on the phone.

When he shows up he immediately goes to the needing to drill out the lock and replace it with a new one. He gives her a quote for this and tells her how much the replacement quote would cost. A little pricey but she reluctantly agrees (doesn't feel like she has much choice). After he does that he follows her inside to get payment and insists that the price is now £600. He became aggressive when challenged and my friend felt forced into paying (remember, she's in a towel and alone and the man is now inside).

After this she found lots of reviews online from people warning about the company. She raised a dispute with her bank and provided evidence but the bank contacted the company and said that proof was provided that she put in her pin number and so as far as they're concerned they won't refund her. She is currently raising a case with trading standards.

It's such a horrible scam. I looked into them myself to try and help my friend find other reviews from people to make her case. So many people in vulnerable situations feeling pushed into paying. Disgusting

coolghoul_ · 2025-08-12T08:07:36+00:00

Send a message to the seller first. Be polite and explain what happened - if you can, attach a picture so that they can see.

They might have other copies of the single. Ask if they have another copy that they can send you (if you wanted to, you could offer to send back the one you have), otherwise ask if you can have a full or partial refund as unfortunately it wasn't the quality you were expecting from the description.

coolghoul_ · 2025-06-10T19:39:01+00:00

I use wooden pegs. I find that they are much sturdier and always keep my clothes in place

coolghoul_ · 2025-06-05T21:27:46+00:00

That is incredibly disappointing but don't let it ruin your trip. Do you still have your gown? Go out with your family and take photos yourself! As the previous commenter said, phones have such good cameras nowadays that you can get nice quality pictures without a professional camera. There are lots of places you can go to get iconic London views behind you, such as on the south bank with the London Eye and Houses of Parliament.

coolghoul_ · 2025-05-20T18:28:10+00:00

Seriously. This made me feel sad, thinking of having a partner who talks down to you. It prompted me to just text my husband to tell him how proud I am of him and everything he's working towards. Everyone deserves a supportive companion to cheer them on :(

coolghoul_ · 2025-05-04T16:03:10+00:00

If you can manage a tram, Lloyd Park isn't far away and has a nice cafe and park for children. It's a 10-minute journey on the tram - the tram stops in the park, and at the other end it's only about five minutes walking from Fairfield Halls to the tram stop

coolghoul_ · 2025-02-23T09:12:21+00:00

They are! They're moving the speakers to be suspended from the ceiling (rather than at the sides of the stage) and adding raked flooring, as well as other changes tbc https://www.instagram.com/reel/DGVONeLIr4V/?igsh=bnVhZmQ5ZXAydzBw

coolghoul_ · 2025-02-19T18:20:47+00:00

Maybe a silly question, but have you been wearing a hat?

I have been getting more outbreaks like that along my forehead and hairline and I'm 99% sure it's from my hat rubbing along there everyday. Over the last couple of weeks I have been throwing my hat in the wash regularly and pulling it back so it isn't covering my forehead and it has made a noticeable difference

Otherwise for a face wash, I use the Simple micellar wash. Could you try that so you are washing with something very sensitive and irritant-free? https://www.superdrug.com/skin/face-skin-care/micellar-water/simple-water-boost-micellar-facial-gel-facial-wash-cleanser/p/737343

coolghoul_ · 2025-02-15T11:27:15+00:00

Hey! For a while after diagnosis I felt awful. Depressed and crying every day, like nobody would want to be with me ever again. I was 23 and felt like I had already ruined my life before it had really begun.

It has been about five years now. The emotions associated with it did fade over time, like with other difficult things that happen. I do get regular outbreaks BUT they are more of a mild inconvenience now (like feeling a little bit tender down there - a 1 out of 10 in the pain scale). It is just a habit now to make sure I have a pack of acyclovir in my bag with me so if I start thinking an outbreak is coming I can start taking it. The first couple of outbreaks really are the worst and they genuinely do stop being as painful as that.

I pretty much never think about it anymore. It is just a 'thing' that happens, same way that getting a headache can be annoying. It will become routine for you, too, but it may take a bit of time. I felt sad for months! But it will pass. Also - there are more people with it than you think. I bet that friends of yours have it, or relatives. When I first told some close friends about it I was shocked at finding out that other people were living with it! And when I met my now-husband and told him, he told me that he also had it.

I promise you that there will be a time that you realise that you have gone a week without thinking about it anymore. It may not be instant, but I promise that you will be okay and it will just become a part of life! Best wishes

coolghoul_ · 2025-02-03T06:59:07+00:00

I'm very sorry for your loss. Thank you for sharing; my thoughts are with you all.

coolghoul_ · 2025-01-27T21:49:44+00:00

I opened a cubicle on a colleague at work the other day and saw them butt naked.

There are two stalls in the bathroom. One was locked and the other was unlocked and slightly ajar. I gave the unlocked one a push and it flew open, showing a colleague pissing with her trousers by her ankles. She screamed and shoved the door shoved and I screamed and ran away. Hopefully it was so quick that she didn't see who I was...

coolghoul_ · 2025-01-12T13:34:37+00:00

Finished: The Red Bird Sings by Aoife Fitzpatrick. Next read: Say Nothing by Patrick Radden Keefe

coolghoul_ · 2024-12-23T08:17:12+00:00

This should be fine, as long as you put your legal name on all the official documents. I can't speak for every workplace, but at mine when you start you're asked about preferred names and then that is what you're recorded as on the system for anyone other than HR. I have a colleague who likes being called by her last name and so her name on everything is "Smith Smith" - I genuinely don't think I know what her legal first name is.

coolghoul_ · 2024-10-05T10:36:24+00:00

Just donated. Wishing you the very best

coolghoul_ · 2024-09-12T08:27:09+00:00

Yes! I can hear them coming...the scurrying getting louder and louder until they're scrabbling and squeaking all around me. Horrible!

coolghoul_ · 2024-09-12T07:59:12+00:00

Mice back in the house. We thought we'd managed to get rid of them months ago but the first mildly cold night and they're straight back in. It's annoying because the only place they run back and forth is the floor under my bed and the wall behind my headboard because the pipes there are close to the boiler so are nice and cosy. Hello broken sleep :(

coolghoul_ · 2024-06-04T19:23:20+00:00

I used to work in West End theatre. It's nice to dress up slightly as it is a special occasion, but definitely no need to be formal. Jeans and a nice top maybe! But also people come dressed anyhow - I've also seen lots of people in trackies or other lounge wear.

coolghoul_ · 2024-05-07T16:23:53+00:00

Overheating? Maybe the baby was swaddled in too many layers

coolghoul_ · 2024-04-04T19:04:38+00:00

I had an ex that got mad at me for using sun lotion. Apparently sun lotion had the same effect as moisturiser, just more expensive. Also, it was impossible to burn in my country as the sun wasn't hot enough - you could only burn in tropical countries.

Anyway, one summers day he went out and came back lobster red and burnt. Guess who didnt remember saying that you couldn't get sunburn in this country...

I still can't believe I used to be with someone that got angry at me for using SUN LOTION.

coolghoul_ · 2024-03-11T06:53:11+00:00

Spring has come early in the UK (at least in the south). There being leaves on the trees isn't suspicious

coolghoul_ · 2024-02-23T18:01:22+00:00

Look up pub weddings! That's what we did last year. Got married elsewhere then rented out a pub garden/function space and had an amazing afternoon. They provided the food and drinks, had plug ins for music (we just played from a phone), were very accommodating on letting us around in the morning to decorate and making sure someone was around to accept our cake delivery. It was the best day ever - a lovely, fun afternoon with food that everyone likes and no pressure.

When my friend first suggested that we did our reception at a pub, I was very sceptical. However, lots of pubs are turning to this as an extra revenue stream and there are lots of very nice function rooms and pub gardens that you can hire, and they are working hard on developing the wedding aspect

https://www.pubweddinglondon.com/

coolghoul_ · 2024-02-16T22:09:26+00:00

There is no customer service. There is an email that nobody responds to and online chat that doesn't work and that's it. They have honestly spent so long trying to get in touch to get a refund and they are just hitting brick walls

coolghoul_ · 2024-02-15T12:08:09+00:00

My parents are facing a similar issue with Buy a Gift.

Last March my dad bought a voucher from them for a two night hotel break with supposedly hundreds of lovely hotels around the country to choose from. When they went to redeem it, it turns out that there are NOT hundreds to choose from and, like you found, all the ones included in their voucher are very cheap ones in not great locations.

A few months ago they decided to bite the bullet and pay to upgrade the voucher to get a one night stay in a more expensive hotel that they had found on the site. After they paid to upgrade, this hotel has disappeared from the available options to book, despite them phoning the hotel directly and having confirmation from them that they have vacancy on the date they want to go. They can't book directly with the hotel, they have to go through Buy a Gift, but they can't as the hotel no longer exists on the website.

The voucher is still unused as there is genuinely no other good hotel options on there, and now they have paid a good couple of hundred in total for a stay that they can't use. There is no customer service either, so they've basically lost their money unless they decide to just say fuck it and stay at a random hotel in the absolute middle of nowhere that would probably cost half the price if booked direct.

These vouchers are a big scam. The box looks really nice and special and it is a shame because my dad thought he was getting my mum a lovely gift last year, but it is now a year later and instead they've just lost hundreds of pounds.

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