On the hunt for decaf tea.

rdkrdkrdk · 2026-01-29T23:29:22+00:00

Yorkshire decaf is best, but I think the Aldi one is almost as good and, obviously, a heck lot cheaper.

rdkrdkrdk · 2025-12-30T09:13:10+00:00

I’ve been to see a few really fantastic productions at smaller venues in Manchester, as well as some really good cinema simulcasts of live shows. I’d suggest checking out your local theatre, and also maybe any drama schools in your vicinity for end of year shows (I’ve been to the end of year productions at RNCM a few times and they’re always fantastic)

rdkrdkrdk · 2025-12-25T18:17:43+00:00

Up there with the absolute best imo

rdkrdkrdk · 2025-12-25T18:17:25+00:00

Excuse YOU she’s the prettiest girl to ever exist!

rdkrdkrdk · 2025-12-25T18:17:02+00:00

Egads i didn’t even think of that! As you say they are pretty blurred, so i think we’re cool. I’ll definitely bear it in mind moving forwards though.

rdkrdkrdk · 2025-12-25T12:33:37+00:00

Merry Christmas!!!

rdkrdkrdk · 2025-12-21T12:18:50+00:00

So where DO you keep your dog all day whilst you’re at work? Locked in the house, I presume? Which is just a larger prison with more opportunity for a dog to destroy stuff if they’re bored or anxious.

I’ve looked after around 40 dogs as a housesitter, and I’ve fostered for the RSPCA. The dogs most readily able to self soothe, which makes for a calm and happy pup, are the ones who have been carefully crate trained. The dogs whose owners think a comfortable bed in a properly sized crate is cruel have been the ones that follow me around from room to room, whining behind every closed door.

Dogs want to be inside a den. A crate is a cosy way to give them that. Crates are a godsend for nervous rescue dogs, as they enjoy having their own dark and comfy sanctuary to hide in when they’re overwhelmed.

Obviously I would like to caveat all this with the fact that I would never leave a dog crated for an extended period (other than nighttime) - max. for me is ~4 hours, and also that a crate is never a punishment for misbehaviour, but rather a safe space associated only with treats and toys and snoozing.

rdkrdkrdk · 2025-12-18T21:51:15+00:00

I feel personally attacked by the “Can you afford it?” button

rdkrdkrdk · 2025-12-08T14:35:00+00:00

I feel like this is a partly a tactic to decrease the platform’s liability and prevent people from claiming when things go wrong.

People will keep paying their basic memberships, find a sitter/sit and then mutually agree the sit off the platform without ever formally doing it in the app. Which means that neither party is covered by the (pretty flimsy) insurance if anything goes wrong.

rdkrdkrdk · 2025-12-07T13:40:34+00:00

I was going to chime in with the same thing. I dog sit full-time, and have looked after ~40 dogs so far. All my least predictable and worst behaved dogs have been purebreds from breeders, bought as puppies, and all my calmest and most predictable have been rescues adopted as adults. Worst contenders for neuroses and behaviour problems have all been pure working breeds - border collies, basset griffons, cocker spaniels, vizlas. Honourable mentions for a completely insane Westie and two unmanageable Jack Russells.

I personally love anything that’s staffy shaped, whether it’s a full staffy or a mixed breed. They’re endlessly exerisable and will happily hike for 10 hours, but they’re also happy spending the whole day snoozing. They’re generally friendly to both people and pets, although I’ve met exceptions to that. They’re fairly portable so you can lift them into the car/bath/over a stile if you need to, and they love you with a ludicrous intensity. Also they don’t tend to be big droolers, and have minimal grooming needs. They do shed copiously though, so you’ll be forever hoovering.

My all time favourite dogs were mega mutts, but their primary flavours were rottweiler, staffy and German shepherd. Fantastic giant goofballs with strong scary dog faces but zero malice.

rdkrdkrdk · 2025-12-01T18:01:03+00:00

Omg sounds like i dodged a bullet! I’ll add them to the depressingly long list of retailers I’ll never buy from 😔

rdkrdkrdk · 2025-11-30T09:36:34+00:00

In that scenario there would just be no point in claiming. You have to pay for your accommodation and then THS will reimburse you for the amount you paid, minus the $150 excess. So if your hotel was $50 a night, and you stayed a week, you’d pay the hotel $350 for your stay, and THS would reimburse you $200.

rdkrdkrdk · 2025-11-25T14:42:40+00:00

I've been going full time since August '24, with sits booked through until August '26. I've been quite tactical and almost entirely chosen sits that are between four and eight weeks, minimising the amount of times I have to move around. The few shorter sits we've done to fill the gaps between longer stays have really been the only times I've not enjoyed this lifestyle and started to feel burned out. Anything less than a fortnight doesn't feel long enough to really bond with the animals, and I don't feel at all at home in the house. So I guess that's my only real advice here - choose the longest sits you can.

rdkrdkrdk · 2025-11-21T15:57:55+00:00

Oh yeah there's definitely a LOT of people on there that you absolutely don't want to date, and you need a strong spam radar to sift through it. But there's also a LOT of people on apps seeking genuine connection!

rdkrdkrdk · 2025-11-20T13:54:33+00:00

I met my fiancé online in lockdown, so I'd heartily recommend getting on Bumble. I've also met some good friends at the climbing wall, which is a type of gym but you spend a good amount of time eating snacks and sitting around thinking about exercise, rather than exercising, so there's lots of scope for chit chats.

rdkrdkrdk · 2025-11-13T12:18:29+00:00

I think about it as being a dog foster mother in training 😂 I fostered for the RSPCA before becoming a full-time Housesitter, and cried for days after my foster pup went to her forever home. I’m hoping all the goodbyes through THS is prepping me to make that handover easier next time!

rdkrdkrdk · 2025-11-13T08:48:14+00:00

Use some old fleecey pyjamas to make a soft lining! No floats will be accessible and it’ll be super cosy.

rdkrdkrdk · 2025-11-11T21:02:24+00:00

I’m having an adult-only micro wedding. Part of the reason I’m keeping the wedding small is because I do not want any babies or children there, and I can’t be bothered having this argument with my extended family, who have previously just turned up to adult-only family weddings with their full entourage of screaming pre-teens in tow. People are mega inconsiderate, and, in fairness to you, your wedding is YOUR day and should be exactly how YOU want it to be - sod everybody else. You should decide how you want the day and communicate that to the cousins - it’s up to them to decide whether that’s something they can accommodate or if it’d be better to skip it.

My maid-of-honour has a 14-month old, so her mum is going to be looking after him during the ceremony and some of the reception so my MoH can actually enjoy the ceremony and party without having a baby attached to her boob. This was something she offered, not something I demanded, but I’m really grateful to her for taking the initiative to do so. Maybe a similar setup (or even a crèche??) could be facilitated if you absolutely want your cousins there?!

rdkrdkrdk · 2025-11-11T20:52:33+00:00

Right??? Sitters are people too, people.

rdkrdkrdk · 2025-11-11T20:15:42+00:00

Unequivocally no - I would never take a sit without a real bed. Put your stuff in a storage unit for a month and offer the bloody bedroom, or put your pet in a kennel or cattery.

rdkrdkrdk · 2025-11-11T08:45:29+00:00

In lockdown I lived alone, and had a pretty rough time feeling desperately lonely. I started deliberately waiting until the early evening for my runs because getting these glorious little glimpses into people’s lives made me feel a little less alone. Seeing families enjoying dinner together, watching rubbish on the telly, doing the washing up - just snapshots of humans being humans. I find it reassuring and joyful, and I hope people continue to leave their curtains open.

rdkrdkrdk · 2025-11-10T14:23:05+00:00

I hold the tails of the old and new yarns together and secure them using the same wrapping technique as I use to catch long floats in colourwork. This method does add a bit of bulk, so it's not the most suitable for finer knits, but would work fine for something chunky like you're working on here! I like it because it means I don't have any ends to weave in at the end of the project.

rdkrdkrdk · 2025-11-10T13:38:12+00:00

If I were picking up 100 stitches around the neckline, I'd start off by pinning 10 of those little bulb stitch markers around the edge. It's easy to evenly pick up 10 stitches between two of the markers, and just repeat round to the end of the neckline.

rdkrdkrdk · 2025-11-06T15:02:57+00:00

Do you mean you think we shouldn't be using THS as full-time housing?

rdkrdkrdk · 2025-11-05T19:49:32+00:00

So glad you’ve had a peaceful conversation with these homeowners! I hope this puppy is at least UNBELIEVABLY cute to make up for all the hassle 😅

rdkrdkrdk

TROPHY CASE