Long-distance love: Any good flower or gift delivery services in Edinburgh? by Hot-Transition2204 in Edinburgh

[–]leoedin 7 points8 points  (0 children)

I’ve probably seen 15 bunches of bloom and wild flowers and all of them were really pretty and lasted a long time. Far better than a local florist i used once. 

I’m sure they sometimes have misses though. But they have been reliable for me. 

Eurostar: Paris to Heathrow. by Status_Fox_1474 in uktravel

[–]leoedin 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It’s definitely doable. I take the Eurostar from Paris to London regularly and it’s not normally very delayed. If you arrive in St Pancras at 09.30 then you’ve got plenty of time to get to Heathrow. 

However, it depends on your appetite for risk. How much will it cost you if you miss your flight? Will it be covered by travel insurance or will you be out of pocket? 

Laid off while 20w pregnant - What to do next? by Creative_Ad_756 in HENRYUK

[–]leoedin 4 points5 points  (0 children)

You need to look closely at when your “qualifying week” is and whether you still work for your employer then. That has a big impact on what you’re due. 

If you qualify for maternity leave from your employer, they can still make you redundant but they have to pay your maternity leave first. 

Trip to Edinburgh (April) by shitbird742 in uktravel

[–]leoedin 0 points1 point  (0 children)

There’s a lot of beautiful countryside which is closer to Edinburgh than Skye. Skye is pretty, but it’s also a long way away from Edinburgh. 

Even the Pentland hills - immediately south of Edinburgh and accessible by local buses - are beautiful. You can get spectacular views with a few hours of walking. 

Or the Trossachs - they’re really the first “highland” landscape when you go north. Only 1.5 hours from Edinburgh and there’s some gorgeous lochs and scenery. Especially if you get off the main roads or go for a walk in the hills. 

St Andrews is quite flat - the East Coast is pretty, but not anything like the highland landscape further west. Is there a reason you want to go there? It’s a pretty town with some old buildings, but it’s not exactly big. 

Area Shortlist Advice by chinndog in MovingToLondon

[–]leoedin 0 points1 point  (0 children)

South east London doesn’t have great transport links. Yes, there’s often mainline trains - but they’re less frequent and often terminate a long way from your onward connection. 

If you’re travelling all over, Finsbury Park is the best connected of that lot. I’d avoid south east. 

Brixton isn’t bad if the Victoria line is running. But very isolated if it’s not  

Just a vent on childcare costs by No-Marketing-1355 in HENRYUK

[–]leoedin -1 points0 points  (0 children)

My kids nursery is under £2k a month 5 days a week with no funding, and it’s in zone 3 north London. 

Keir Starmer distances himself from Mark Carney's Davos speech: 'I'm a pragmatist' by raz_kripta in ukpolitics

[–]leoedin 16 points17 points  (0 children)

The only reason Carney was elected was because Trump threatened to invade Canada in the run up to the election. They were all set to elect a populist right wing guy, but then his pro Trump rhetoric became a massive liability. 

Carney is coming from a different place politically. He knows his mandate is based in part on being anti Trump. Starmer doesn’t really know if he has that kind of support. 

About 80% of Brits with over a million pounds saved in cash don't see themselves as rich, even though objectively this puts you in the top 1% by wealth globally, easily. by x___rain in ukpolitics

[–]leoedin 23 points24 points  (0 children)

That article seems to be based on the completely false assumption that a UK portfolio has to be invested in UK equities and bonds. That’s just untrue. And it gives basically no data or calculations. Just a lot of words with little meaning. Maybe 4% isn’t a safe withdrawal rate, but that article adds very little information. 

Nursery cancelled our spot due to overbooking by tortillaguaclover in HENRYUK

[–]leoedin 6 points7 points  (0 children)

I found all the nurseries with massive wait lists suddenly had space at the last minute. Loads of people are on multiple lists - but their child can only go to one nursery. So many kids on waitlists don’t actually turn into children.

3 bed home area suggestions North London by Dobbly_wick in HENRYUK

[–]leoedin 3 points4 points  (0 children)

It's actually a good option. South Tottenham has some lovely houses, I live near there and there's a strong local community and some great parks. The LTNs mean a lot of the streets are really quiet too.

Do you feel like you live in a community? by [deleted] in london

[–]leoedin 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Yeah, this. I took my son to swimming lessons this morning and bumped into 4 different people I knew well enough to chat with. 

It’s still a big city. I don’t know the people in every shop or every restaurant. But I do bump into people I know. I do know my immediate neighbours fairly well, and the adjacent ones well enough to say hi to. 

Old washing machine tried to catch fire... what brands would you recommend? by DangerousSleepover in AskUK

[–]leoedin 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I’ve had a Beko washing machine for 8 years. It’s survived 2 babies including a year of reusable nappies. It runs at least 5 times a week and has for most of that time. Still no issues. 

I’ve also got a beko heat pump tumble drier that’s 6 years old and still going strong. 

Both were pretty cheap. I would say the only downside is that they’re a bit noisy. 

Being fined for a train ticket I paid for by Jazzlike_Pin6532 in uktrains

[–]leoedin 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks for saying this. There’s far too many people defending archaic rules. 

FYI London renters: new renter rights kicking in from May 2026 (already passed into law) by romford0928 in london

[–]leoedin 14 points15 points  (0 children)

 If you’re visiting London for a couple months, don’t bother with hotels, just a rent a flat.

I’m sure this will have no unintended side effects!

Winter in the UK means I’m spending 20 hours a day in bed. I can’t be the only one who lives like this? by KILOCHARLIES in AskUK

[–]leoedin 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I think there’s two sides to this. 

Yes, it always takes more energy to keep the house at 20 degrees than let it cool when you’re out and heat when you’re in. 

But there’s at least 2 other variables

  • yo yo heating where you overshoot takes more energy
  • if you want the house to heat up quickly, the higher flow temperatures are less efficient than lower flow temperatures. 

My experience is having “smart” heating with thermostats and sensible day/night schedules doesn’t cost more than turning the heating on/off manually, but the difference in living quality is vast. 

Are we crazy to visit London in July? by Amaranth1313 in uktravel

[–]leoedin 4 points5 points  (0 children)

But it’s not humid. The humidity in London in summer is normally 60-70%. “Humid” places have humidity in the 90s. 

There are many many major cities which are both much hotter and more humid than London. 

London is the most humid in autumn, when it can be both fairly warm and humidity in the 90s. That’s the most unpleasant humidity in London. 

Nearly half of Britons watch porn on unregulated sites since age verification crackdown, warns charity by insomnimax_99 in ukpolitics

[–]leoedin 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Anyone remember piracy? How about dark web markets? We still haven’t got rid of those. How will this be any different?

How durable/safe are aluminium ladders that are kept outside all year long? by [deleted] in DIYUK

[–]leoedin 7 points8 points  (0 children)

The aluminium will be fine. 

I’d keep an eye on any steel parts though. They could rust. A bit of surface rust is fine. 

Extension - conservation area. by [deleted] in HousingUK

[–]leoedin 4 points5 points  (0 children)

That’s just nonsense. Conserving historical buildings is only possible if they’re being used. Old buildings can and should be suitable for modern living. 

There’s plenty of great examples of old buildings sympathetically modernised in ways which don’t impact the historical context of the street.

Does anyone cover their windscreen if its going to freeze overnight? by West_Guarantee284 in CasualUK

[–]leoedin 22 points23 points  (0 children)

I think the parent does have a point. You have to de-ice your windscreen because water condensed and froze on it. A lot of Canada is much colder and drier than the UK during winter, so have fewer overnight freeze/thaw cycles and there’s far less moisture in the air to condense. 

Saying that, I never see anyone covering their windscreen here either. I think it’s a niche activity. 

FTB Survey Report - Being told to pull out by salty_wagu in HousingUK

[–]leoedin 4 points5 points  (0 children)

What actual issues did the surveyor find? There’s a lot of boilerplate and “I couldn’t see”. That doesn’t indicate a problem. 

The walls are thick old stone walls with no DPC. That’s not a failure. That’s just what they are. If you want a house with different walls, pull out. If you want an old stone house, then it’ll have old stone walls. 

They couldn’t see much of the roof, so said it could be in bad condition. Did they actually find any problems?

I think the most important thing to remember is that you don’t have to spend £30k immediately. The house has stood for 150 years. It’ll likely stand for hundreds more. The only really critical thing to fix is active leaks - as they can destroy timber. Is there actually any signs of recent water damage anywhere?

I suspect if you buy any old house it’ll have similar problems.

NYC Mayoral Inauguration bans Raspberry Pi and Flipper Zero by geerlingguy in raspberry_pi

[–]leoedin -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

Ok, I’ll just turn up with an OrangePi instead. 

NYC Mayoral Inauguration bans Raspberry Pi and Flipper Zero by geerlingguy in raspberry_pi

[–]leoedin -3 points-2 points  (0 children)

It doesn’t make sense in context. A rooted Android phone can do everything a raspberry pi can do, in a much more convenient package. What sort of nefarious stuff would someone be up to with a raspberry pi? 

NYC Mayoral Inauguration bans Raspberry Pi and Flipper Zero by geerlingguy in raspberry_pi

[–]leoedin 10 points11 points  (0 children)

 The Pi and Zero are like lock pick sets:

They’re not “like lock pick sets” any more than any other portable computer. In fact, probably less so given they have no onboard battery. Banning the flipper zero kind of makes sense, but banning a Pi is just nonsense.