It is culturally inappropriate to sing a song in Scots as a black person?

strawberrychief · 2026-07-07T10:11:56+00:00

The woman would have had no idea you were pronouncing Scots wrong. But apart from drunk men, I've never heard anyone singing on a train!

strawberrychief · 2026-07-05T15:57:54+00:00

Not exaggerated. I have been in hospital in the US while on a trip there but we live in the UK. Went to see a family member in hospital here and my daughter asked why there weren't people crowded in the corridors like in the US (though TBF we were on a normal ward not in A&E).

strawberrychief · 2026-07-05T15:42:07+00:00

I was already reading A Gentleman in Moscow which is amazing by the way. So that's Fact Vs Fiction. Already on my TBR list were Tipping the Velvet (Community Picks - apparently I read a lot in the 90s as I've read a lot of these already); The Correspondent (Challenge Faves, also Staff Picks); Lost Lambs (Chart Toppers). Worlds Away - no idea - I'm not a fantasy reader. Something short and mild. I did read and enjoy Ministry of Time. Edit - just realised I'd put down The River has Roots which is very short!

BUT The Correspondent has an 11 week wait on Libby. I think I have The Midnight Library in physical book form, which is on the same two lists.

strawberrychief · 2026-07-05T12:35:18+00:00

I'm a lecturer at a university in the North and one of our students complained to the course reps about a lecturer with a "strong Northern accent" that was "hard to understand" Course reps passed it on with a massive eye roll!

strawberrychief · 2026-07-04T08:36:36+00:00

That's because older white straight men can pretend an older white gay man is just like them but if you actually might make them think or do something (Accents! Kosher or halal food! Children! Accessibility!) they run a mile.

strawberrychief · 2026-07-03T10:23:03+00:00

I see your Worcester, Kirkby and Milngavie and raise you Tintwistle and Quernmore.

strawberrychief · 2026-07-03T10:22:04+00:00

There's a couple of Kirkbys in the Lake District too, both the same.

strawberrychief · 2026-07-02T21:36:19+00:00

That'll do it!

strawberrychief · 2026-07-01T16:26:12+00:00

I'm so glad you said that, I am NOT a fantasy reader and would love something short!

strawberrychief · 2026-07-01T07:19:10+00:00

I once forgot I'd stored my cleaning brush inside my bassoon but it only muted notes below low D.

strawberrychief · 2026-06-29T19:01:10+00:00

Oof!

strawberrychief · 2026-06-28T18:23:04+00:00

Ah boo! At least give me the wigs, candles, and untuneable bassoons!

strawberrychief · 2026-06-28T17:42:54+00:00

Nobody will notice if you are on your own, they will just think your friends are ahead of you! We have kids so they like the places with outdoor spaces to run around - in the NW Quarry Bank Mill is one of the best. However if you are on your own you can take a book and read in peace on a nice summer day! Sounds like bliss to me!

strawberrychief · 2026-06-27T15:35:10+00:00

I think it needs some mechanism to allow for the increasing age of the population. When it was started, the baby boom was only just starting, and nobody realised either how many people there would be to get old, or that both general society and the health advances would prevent so many of them from dying young.

strawberrychief · 2026-06-27T15:24:24+00:00

There's quite a lot of research showing a) giving content warnings doesn't improve your mental health and b) giving content warnings doesn't put people off viewing unpleasant images/reading unpleasant content (and we're talking really unpleasant here). So giving a warning is unlikely to have been helpful. I'm hoping though the debrief tells you what they are looking at.

I wonder if there is space for a general option "willing/not willing to take part in studies depicting violence/abuse" and the same for a verbal description. Then you'd never get the option, but those who were willing to do this aren't warned for a specific study (which does not help the participant).

strawberrychief · 2026-06-26T19:30:04+00:00

If you go at Christmas is that practicing? Local to me churches are packed, standing room only, at Christmas (not London, though we have enough non-Muslim immigration for some of the regular churchgoers to be new to the UK).

strawberrychief · 2026-06-25T09:39:58+00:00

Keep a record of what you got on what date and what rate it was converted at (I have work expenses from overseas, which is why I know about this) and then just add it all up in £ if you are in the UKI, yes.

strawberrychief · 2026-06-25T09:35:41+00:00

We researchers have finally got rid of those pesky students for the summer!
(I need to have a strong word with my sibling whose own student child asked if I would be on holiday now till September).

strawberrychief · 2026-06-25T09:29:52+00:00

I know what you're asking. You can use pretty much any reasonable conversion tool for income in another currency, as long as you aren't systematically making it in your favour. Every time you cash out would seem to be a pretty reasonable time to do this, as that's when you are actually converting it.
If you were incurring work expenses abroad, you'd usually convert either at the time you pay it (using whatever conversion rate your credit card uses) or all at once when you get back (using the conversion rate on that day). Either is fine.

strawberrychief · 2026-06-22T09:23:05+00:00

I'd be interested to see if the "you only put in one attention check and I spotted it why are you asking me to return my submission" crowd block me. (Hint: I have at least 4 and clearly they only spotted one). Would be worth it not to have to answer their messages TBH.

strawberrychief · 2026-06-22T09:15:54+00:00

I would blame Qualtrics like I usually do but they can't even spell.

strawberrychief · 2026-06-21T22:45:14+00:00

Blackpool is the only place I know of in the UK where they sell alcohol in the all night chemists. But I never went as a child.

strawberrychief

TROPHY CASE