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BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman?
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Subject: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: billybob Date: 02 Dec 05 - 11:48 AM I hate developers!A well known building company got planning permission to build 49 houses in the field behind my house.Building has commenced, 3 months of pile drilling 50 feet, constant noise like the dentist drill(all windows shut) now we have "boys with Tonka toys" moving earth from one place to another at great speed.Bad enough they start at 7.o am -so my lie in on my only day off is impossible, but tonight they are still working in the dark with floodlights!We live in the country, used to get pheasants, frogs etc in the garden and on my days at home I could sit in the garden, read a book and listen to the birds. Now ,over the constant din,I a being educated in the builders vocabulary which has to be shouted! Any ideas on keeping my sanity? |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: Paul Burke Date: 02 Dec 05 - 11:50 AM wait till they've all gone home, then break in and squirt expanding polyurethane foam into all the machines' exhausts. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: jacqui.c Date: 02 Dec 05 - 11:52 AM Sounds like they don't go home though Paul. Good idea though. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: John MacKenzie Date: 02 Dec 05 - 11:56 AM Your local environmental health officer will determine whether the noise they make is excessive. If he agrees with you he will issue them with a noise abatement order. Don't forget to mention the language used. Contact him/her. G. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: TheBigPinkLad Date: 02 Dec 05 - 12:03 PM Bake lots of cookies. You'll need to be prepared to greet your 168 new neighbours (@ 4.2 average per family). If you're lucky they'll be ethnically interesting so you could get samosas or perogies in return. If you're unlucky they might be a religious community whose deity demands bhodrans & bagpies from sunset to dawn. Stay young ;o) |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: billybob Date: 02 Dec 05 - 12:07 PM Hi John, thanks, but we tried that with the drilling and the EHO arrived the day before the drilling finished!Took weeks before he left his desk!I will report the colourfull language though,just noticed they have cut a foot into my hedge over my fence, I thought the hawthorn looked thinner! |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: Janie Date: 02 Dec 05 - 12:09 PM Time to sell? Janie |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: ranger1 Date: 02 Dec 05 - 01:33 PM Read The Monkey Wrench Gang by Edward Abbey. Won't help with the actual problem, but does give some wonderful material for vengeful daydreams. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: gnu Date: 02 Dec 05 - 01:37 PM Alas, you can't stop progress. You'll just have to put up with the noise. What a shame that the wildlife will be curtailed. Make friends with the new neighbours as soon as possible, though. You wouldn't want to miss out on any parties. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: CarolC Date: 02 Dec 05 - 01:56 PM The good news is that the new developments have probably increased the resale value of your own property. If you sell, you might be able to buy another property in a more remote location, with a larger acreage. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: billybob Date: 02 Dec 05 - 02:05 PM thanks for your thoughts, I would hate to sell, love this house and garden,Wonder what the new neighbours will think of our parties,always lots of folk music in the summer at our bar b q's,hope they like bagpipes! |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: Bill D Date: 02 Dec 05 - 02:12 PM "You can't win.... "You can't break even.... "You can't even quit the game... as long as the damned economy is BASED on the idea that growth is constant and forever, people will have your problem. I know two people who have had essentially the same experience in the last couple years......and for every few thousand new houses, they a new strip mall. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: LilyFestre Date: 02 Dec 05 - 02:19 PM My aunt had the same kind of trouble. She owns a few acres out in the country....about 30 minutes past suburbia. The old farmer down the road died and his family sold off his land. There are now many new HUGE houses...all of which have to have X amount of land and each house has to be of at least a certain size and be worth a minimum (I'm thinking $450,000.00). Those monstrosities certainly look odd plopped down there in the middle of a field. Of course, those folks don't have any land to speak of, so my aunt feels pretty rich indeed. I wish I knew what to tell you about the noise. The mountain top and surround area has been bought up by a bunch of us so that (hopefully) we won't ever have the problem you are running into. I can't wait to hear about your summer parties and new neighbors...who knows, maybe you'll make some friends who will come join you! Michelle |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: pdq Date: 02 Dec 05 - 02:21 PM It's best to accept reality and work with it. Here is a plan. Mortgage your current house 'to the max' and use the money to buy another house. Just a bit large, maybe a larger lot, say about five miles farther out toward the country. Move into the newer one and rent the present home. Many contractors are from out-of-town and may be interested in renting rather than buying. Anyway, wait one or two years until the developement is finished and stable and the landscaping is starting to take shape. Sell then and use the money to pay-off the loan. Maybe there will be enough 'profit' to buy a small rental home for retirement income. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: Donuel Date: 02 Dec 05 - 02:27 PM pdq that is always a good plan. Get a house, freshen it up, sell it and move up. If you are married, flipping houses within 2 years allows for a tax free profit of up to $500,000 ! |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: Bill D Date: 02 Dec 05 - 03:04 PM the very PROCESS of moving...much less the tedious paperwork...would keep me from going thru that unless I were very desparate. (My house is FULL...including a workshop. arrrrggghhh) |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: freda underhill Date: 02 Dec 05 - 04:03 PM Plan what you will do with the money when the developers approach you to buy you out. I have a friend in this position. She owned a modest little house in Arnecliffe, Sydney. Developers built on either side. They kept offering her more and more, eventually they bought her house for 4 times its value, and she used the proceeds to buy a new house in a very trendy spot (and has an open air spa in the back yard). In the meantime, buy earplugs. Or, take one of their pamphlets, put it in a plastic bag and put it in your freezer. maybe all their developments will be delayed by legal action. good luck! freda |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: kendall Date: 02 Dec 05 - 04:08 PM Jacqui and I just moved. I for the 14th time, and the next time I move I'll be wearing a toe tag. I was walking my dog yesterday and one of the neighbors allowed his/her Alsatian, and a mongrel loose. They came charging at Seamus and me with fangs bared, but a good solid whack with my Irish Blackthorn walking stick changed their minds. I want to be a good neighbor, but I will not put up with that crap. Under Maine law, I would have a legal right to kill any loose dog that attacks me or my leashed dog. There is no way I would do that unless the dog bit me or Seamus. I sent the owner a note saying I hope we can resolve this without further problems. I hate moving. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: GUEST Date: 02 Dec 05 - 05:39 PM Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? Yes you are. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: Rapparee Date: 02 Dec 05 - 05:42 PM Epoxy in the ignition keyholes. Epoxy around the rim of the gasoline filler cap. Epoxy is your friend! (So is Gorilla Glue.) I'd certainly file a complaint about the language and the hedge. And the answer is, as I'm sure you know, 42. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: Don Firth Date: 02 Dec 05 - 05:51 PM Well, billybob, it seems to be the way the world is going. On our refrigerator, my wife has a small population graph. It shows an exponential curve with an arrow pointing to 2005, population 6 billion, saying "You are here." There's another arrow pointing to 2050, population 12 billion, saying "You don't want to be here." We live in an older section of Seattle (Capitol Hill, a couple of blocks south of Volunteer Park) in an apartment building that was built in 1910. Beautiful old building. Around us are similar buildings and old houses. Right across the street is a beautiful craftsman house and two small apartment buildings. A developer has bought all three properties (did a pretty sly deal, masquerading as someone else, because he knew that the sellers would never sell to him if they knew what he planned to do), and is going to wipe out these three old buildings and put up a monster condominium. It will cut off everyone's view, change the nature of the whole neighborhood, and among other things, make parking, which is already very tight in this area, downright impossible. We're battling with City Hall, Dept. of Planning and Development, now. Don (pretty damned grouchy myself) Firth |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: billybob Date: 02 Dec 05 - 07:22 PM Well I blame John Prescott he wants to build anywhere in the south of England, ok I cannot do anything about it now, but I bet he has lots more peaceful time than I do on his day off!I am sure the new neighbours will be grand and hope they enjoy our parties but that was not why I moved here 12 years ago for the peace and quiet. Hey Michelle why not come over next summer for a party? |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: Bobert Date: 02 Dec 05 - 07:31 PM Developers don't go to Hell, thay build it right here on Earth... |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: billybob Date: 02 Dec 05 - 07:40 PM I forgot to say that husband Billy is more cross than me.For 12 years in the spring he has to prepare our pool, and ,as you do, has to " Hoover to waste" the waste pipe always went through the hedge and ditch( old English farming term for boundery)so will we have a problem do you think? I don't think I can stop Billy from cleaning the swimming pool !I really want to make friends with the folks at the end of our garden!! |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: Kaleea Date: 02 Dec 05 - 07:46 PM You might call 1-555-4curses & get a witch doctor or a voodoo princess to put a stop to it. Maybe an experienced bit of voodoo could permanently disable the machinery, or cause some pieces of ancient ruins to pop up so it could be declared off limits. Then there's the old hide-the-raw-shrimp-in-the-walls-as-they-build-it trick! That should deter most potential buyers. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: The Fooles Troupe Date: 02 Dec 05 - 07:47 PM Sounds like a good time to empty the pool at night, right now... |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: Tannywheeler Date: 02 Dec 05 - 08:03 PM Aw, Billybob--bagpipes!!! Uillean or Highland?? I'd never leave your yard, either way. (Highland would be better for what may be your purposes.) Your problem is not(obviously) anywhere near MY neck of the woods. Have those parties. Especially when the real estate folks are showing prospective buyers around the places. Nil carborundum illegitimi... I don't remember it all. A latin phrase that means "Don't let the Bastards grind you down." Hang in there, Tiger. Tw |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: billybob Date: 02 Dec 05 - 08:03 PM I did wonder if I could put a greater crestred newt in there somewhere?Anyone got one? |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: The Fooles Troupe Date: 02 Dec 05 - 08:09 PM If you keep up the bagpipes while prospective owners are being shown around for long enough you will finally get an irresistible offer for your property if the vendors are nice people, or a horse's head in your bed... |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: Deckman Date: 02 Dec 05 - 08:53 PM Kendall, Don Firth: My brother's pretty hungry these days. He'll blow anyone's knee out for $50. For $25, he'll notch an ear. Might work? Bob |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: kendall Date: 02 Dec 05 - 10:32 PM Always be prepared to shoot your own dog. Farming it out just makes it worse" ( Lasarus Long) I can handle it. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: GUEST,Ingrid Frances Stark Date: 03 Dec 05 - 02:26 AM Tannywheeler, My father always said "illigitimate' non tu carborundum'. Its good advice, anyway you say it. Ingrid |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: JennyO Date: 03 Dec 05 - 06:45 AM take one of their pamphlets, put it in a plastic bag and put it in your freezer. maybe all their developments will be delayed by legal action. Heh heh - I like the way you think - nothing like a bit of witchcraft! Worked very well for me when the house I had been renting for 12 years was suddenly being sold out from under me. I just needed more time but the owner seemed to be very anxious to sell it soon. After it was passed in at auction, the vendor said to the agent "Oh well, I'm not really in much of a hurry!" and it was put on the market at an unrealistically high price. The agent said to me "I can't understand it. I thought she was keen to sell quickly!", but I knew ;-) The house took another 4 months to sell, which gave me plenty of time to get rid of/pack up a lot of stuff, and find a nice house and a friend who had just decided she wanted to share. Unfortunately the same method doesn't seem to have worked so well on little johnnie howard ;-( |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: *daylia* Date: 03 Dec 05 - 07:55 AM When I was a kid there was an abandoned gravel pit behind my house. Not the prettiest sight in the world, but we filled many glorious summer days riding the banks on our dirtbikes, chasing frogs, watching water birds, swimming in the big crystal clear pond there. The place was affectionately known as "The Pit" by all the local kids, for many many years ... till developers got their hands on it, boarded up the pond, put up "No Swimming" nad "No Trepassing" signs and built a hundred or so absolutely lovely estate homes around it. You know, the kind that cost about $80,000 to build, and sell for about half a million. Well, the best way to cope with the disappointment and frustration of losing one of our favourite places ever turned out to be it's nickname. Old handles die hard! There was nothing like watching the expression of a well-heeled newcomer when they'd tell you oh so proud "We live on XXX street" and you'd blurt out, without thinking, "Oh yes, that's one of those new places down in "The Pit", right?" |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: dianavan Date: 03 Dec 05 - 08:43 PM Turn your grouchiness into action. Use Carborundum. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: autolycus Date: 04 Dec 05 - 05:22 AM Don't think 'grumpy old woman' is the right phrase. How about 'I'm- not- going- to- put-up-with -this-shit-and-do-nothing-young-at-heart-woman' |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: gnomad Date: 04 Dec 05 - 07:17 AM What if you are becoming a G.O.W? With the state of this world to become a G.O.W. (or a G.O.M.) is merely the sign of advancing understanding of how the world works, and the odds that it will improve. As for your developers - Go for 'em. You may get nowhere, but hatching evil plots beats crossword puzles as a way of keeping mentally active. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: kendall Date: 04 Dec 05 - 07:37 AM There are certain realities we all must face. In this case, they own the land, you don't. This is a free country, they can do what they like, just as you can. (Within reason) Too bad that you and your neighbors didn't buy that land and prevent this rape and pillage you describe. Find a way to live with it; otherwise it will eat your lunch. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: freda underhill Date: 04 Dec 05 - 08:00 AM and.. Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? YES. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: GUEST,leeneia Date: 04 Dec 05 - 02:48 PM This is a serious suggestion. sometimes you can blanket distant noise such as the equipment with the white noise of a fan in the same room with you. This helps me when neighbors are playing music and I don't feel justified (for various reasons I needn't go into right now) in asking them to turn it down. Everybody should ignore all the foolishness like "put urethane foam in their exhaust pipes." You could hurt somebody and get yourself in big trouble by doing any such thing. Then you have to decide whether you want to go on living where you are once the new neighbors are in. How much do you miss the newts and pheasants, when all is said and done? If it's any help, in my experience, once those fancy houses are built, there's never anyone around them. No outdoor parties, no children playing. Someone must mow the lawns, of course. Otherwise, they seem to be uninhabited. Why don't you see if this seems to be the case in your region as well? Once the work is done, you might never know those people are there. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: John MacKenzie Date: 04 Dec 05 - 02:57 PM It's due to that there Magna Charta, As was signed by them Barons of old, That in England today, we can do what we like, AS LONG AS WE DO WHAT WE'RE TOLD. G. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: Peace Date: 04 Dec 05 - 03:34 PM BAH, HUMBUG! |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: Richard Bridge Date: 04 Dec 05 - 05:27 PM Irish sessions. Sing a range of rebel songs. Tell people about your new problem. Maybe some of your new friends will do you a favour.... More seriously, take tape and video recordings, and send them to the Environment Protection Officer at the council. More seriously still, how did they get planning permission. Did you not object? Our last house (with pool) we saw off all neighbours development plans by concerted letter writing with local environment groups. As for your backwash water, you really ought to backwash to your own soakaway or waste, and pumping chlorine into neighbouring fields is not nice (been there, done that). |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: Tootler Date: 04 Dec 05 - 05:41 PM Don't forget to have a very large piano accordion play along with your bagpipes. Preferably one that is tuned ever so slightly out relative to the pipes so that you get some wonderfully excruciating dissonances. OTOH, if your new neighbours musical tastes run true to form, they would not notice the dissonance - too subtle for them :-) |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: Kaleea Date: 05 Dec 05 - 12:05 AM & along with the pipes & accordian, be certain to have the tin whistle, bodhran, & banjo players (it's easy to tune a banjo & bodhran in the key of Bb, & You can even get a Bb whistle-I have one!). |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: JennyO Date: 05 Dec 05 - 08:15 AM I have the answer! |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: wysiwyg Date: 05 Dec 05 - 08:56 AM Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? Not unless you've woken up to find two baggy, sock-shaped appendages hanging from your chest to your knees. ~S~ |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: billybob Date: 06 Dec 05 - 08:02 PM Richard, we did object, in fact got to know neighbours that in 12 years had never met, and are now on our party invite list, as we all got together!All the local councillers on planning voted the scheme down until the fourth application when the planning officer said that the next step was the developer appealing to dear Mr Prescott who would say yes, the local council would lose and the legal fees would be paid by the local rate payers! Out of 26 on the planning committee 6 voted for and all the others abstained.Democracy rules? I was joking about the swimming pool,husband has always been careful to hoover to the drains and we never empty it completly.Mind you he is having a sense of humour failure so who knows. Latest news, on digging up the pavement to put in elecricity supply they fractured the gas mains! |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: Tannywheeler Date: 07 Dec 05 - 11:53 AM Grump away, billybob. It's good practice. If unsuccessful this time your may learn some tips, make some connections, which will insure effectiveness for your next foray into establishing some control over your own living circumstances...... Tw |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: Moses Date: 08 Dec 05 - 07:55 AM I have lived in the same house for over 30 years. Last year the house in the road at right-angles to us was sold and planning permission was granted to build a two storey extension to the property. So far, so good. The (large) garden of the house runs along the back of my and 7 other neighbours. Two weeks ago deep (4' 6") footings were dug at the end of my garden for what would appear to be a massive development. No planning permission needed aparently as they are allowed to build a construction so long as it is no higher than 4 metres (if it has a pitched roof) or 3 metres (if it has a flat or single-pitch roof) and takes up no more than half the area of the existing garden. It is to be a gym they say for the use of the residents of the house. My arse it is. There is nothing I can do until they put in plumbing or are seen to be living in it. The current residents, I have discovered, are DSS tenants (social housing - for those not used to UK terminology) I'm feeling pretty pissed off too! Another grumpy old woman |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: billybob Date: 08 Dec 05 - 05:52 PM So sorry Moses! How can they not need permission, when where we are you need it to build a conservatory? Lets start a GOW society?Or Women against Builders?( ooh I bet I can guess where that one is going to go) |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: Peace Date: 08 Dec 05 - 05:57 PM "Not unless you've woken up to find two baggy, sock-shaped appendages hanging from your chest to your knees." That happened to me once at a New Year's party that lasted for seven weeks (it's a long story). To this day I have NO flippin' idea where the hip waders came from. It was winter in Quebec fer gawd's sake. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: Peace Date: 08 Dec 05 - 07:25 PM Or the swim flippers. |
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Subject: RE: BS: Am I becoming a grumpy old woman? From: Peace Date: 09 Dec 05 - 10:10 AM I think it's the damned flippers that puzzle me most of all. |
