First-World Problems.

[Pingu]

It's a depiction of leveling up in the Northern Powerhouse.

[geraldc]

Amazon are now in the credit industry as well, as everytime I buy something expensive, they ask me would I like to spread the payments for 3 or 5 months at 0 interest  I'm pretty sure it's not official credit that would affect my credit report, as I don't sign anything if I take them up on their offer.

[Cudzoziemiec]

I’ve started reading up on 2mm finescale, please send help.

I visited the Model Railway Club's Copenhagen Fields layout at their HQ near Kings Cross a few months ago.

There's a new YouTube feature about it, Google youtube copenhagen fields model

I thought this was something to do with typography! Shoulda known better.

[citoyen]

Amazon are now in the credit industry as well, as everytime I buy something expensive, they ask me would I like to spread the payments for 3 or 5 months at 0 interest  I'm pretty sure it's not official credit that would affect my credit report, as I don't sign anything if I take them up on their offer.

You say you don’t sign anything but you can guarantee there’s something in the t&cs that you blithely clicked ‘accept’ to…

The deferred payment thing makes sense from Amazon‘s point of view - good way of convincing people they can afford to buy things they can’t really afford to buy. And they can afford to give the credit away for free to lure people in.

[citoyen]

They have an Amazon credit card, which is Mastercard?

I couldn’t remember if it was Mastercard or Visa, but given the recent news, I would have guessed not Visa.

Still a third-party thing though. The long term aim surely has to be running their own finances.

[ian]

Amazon are now in the credit industry as well, as everytime I buy something expensive, they ask me would I like to spread the payments for 3 or 5 months at 0 interest  I'm pretty sure it's not official credit that would affect my credit report, as I don't sign anything if I take them up on their offer.

You say you don’t sign anything but you can guarantee there’s something in the t&cs that you blithely clicked ‘accept’ to…

The deferred payment thing makes sense from Amazon‘s point of view - good way of convincing people they can afford to buy things they can’t really afford to buy. And they can afford to give the credit away for free to lure people in.

Their card is provided by Newday Credit, not Amazon. They provide credit too, and presumable underwrite those schemes.

Let's be fair though, the product for the credit industry is people spending more money than they have. The pretence is that they can pay it back later with interest, though these days it's more of a carousel of balance transfers, grab some interest and pass them along to the next. All retailers simply ride the tails of that.

[The Family Cyclist]

I don't use amazon so don't really care about the visa card but wondering does amazon accept PayPal and can you just link your visa credit card to your PayPal?

[TimC]

I’ve started reading up on 2mm finescale, please send help.

I visited the Model Railway Club's Copenhagen Fields layout at their HQ near Kings Cross a few months ago.

There's a new YouTube feature about it, Google youtube copenhagen fields model

Blimey. I’m sure Copenhagen Fields is at least 30 years old.

[Beardy]

This feel like it’s got more to do with timely importation isssues a la Brexit, but it really is a first world problem.

I am oft moved to purchase cut flowers for Dr Beardy (Mrs) because, well deep down, I’m a bit of a soppy old romantic. It can be difficult balancing the frequency of purchases between making it a routine thing and avoiding neglect, but mostly I think I manage that.

Of late though, there seems to be a distinct lack of choice in what is available, I mean over and above the seasonal variations. Roses are readily available and are usually well received, but I like to be a little more creative and put more thought¹ into it.

Has anyone else noticed this or am I making it up?

1. Spray carnations were also on offer but… when we were first married, funds were tighter and spray carnations and spray chrysanthemums offered much bloom per buck. It wasn’t until we’d been married for 15 years or so that Dr Beardy (Mrs) admitted that she didn’t like spray chrysanthemums and hated carnations of all kinds 

[De Sisti]

,,,,,, importation isssues a la Brexit,

I commissioned a (school) friend of mine, who now lives in France, to paint a picture for me.
She sent it via the French postal system and declared it's value at £675. UK border force and
HM Customs have asked me to pay £146 to have it released from their possession and posted
to me.

I have declined, and will collect it from Pamela when I visit France next year. I'll be (hopefully)
be travelling by Eurotunnel (to take part in the Semaine Federale). Pamela lives in the region
where the event is taking place.

[citoyen]

,,,,,, importation isssues a la Brexit,

I commissioned a (school) friend of mine, who now lives in France, to paint a picture for me.
She sent it via the French postal system and declared it's value at £675. UK border force and
HM Customs have asked me to pay £146 to have it released from their possession and posted
to me.

I have declined, and will collect it from Pamela when I visit France next year. I'll be (hopefully)
be travelling by Eurotunnel (to take part in the Semaine Federale). Pamela lives in the region
where the event is taking place.

I don't know if I understand the rules correctly, but I think the threshold for importing any goods, including those for personal use, is £390.

You're still liable to pay the duty if you bring it back in your personal luggage (assuming you declare it  ).

How do you objectively value something like that anyway? If she'd declared the value as £385, you wouldn't have got the hit.

[rafletcher]

This feel like it’s got more to do with timely importation isssues a la Brexit, but it really is a first world problem.

I am oft moved to purchase cut flowers for Dr Beardy (Mrs) because, well deep down, I’m a bit of a soppy old romantic. It can be difficult balancing the frequency of purchases between making it a routine thing and avoiding neglect, but mostly I think I manage that.

Of late though, there seems to be a distinct lack of choice in what is available, I mean over and above the seasonal variations. Roses are readily available and are usually well received, but I like to be a little more creative and put more thought¹ into it.

Has anyone else noticed this or am I making it up?

1. Spray carnations were also on offer but… when we were first married, funds were tighter and spray carnations and spray chrysanthemums offered much bloom per buck. It wasn’t until we’d been married for 15 years or so that Dr Beardy (Mrs) admitted that she didn’t like spray chrysanthemums and hated carnations of all kinds 

Cant comment on the supply issues, if I'm buying blloms I usually relay on our very good, local, independent florists. For in-between stuff I go to https://www.scillyflowers.co.uk/, and have alreday placed an order for pre-christmas delivery. The narcissi are wonderfully scented.

[Tim Hall]

For flowers I go to flowersfromthefarm.co.uk and find the nearest home grown grower.  None of those pesky airmiles.  Mind you getting any this time of year is somewhat of a challenge.

(Declaration of interest: My Grate Frends Nic & Zoe have a flower farm in deepest Sussex, which is part of the Flowers From the Farm thing)

[Mrs Pingu]

 

[De Sisti]

When I've travelled by Eurotunnel I've never been stopped, or even seen customs officials. It was just like driving on and off a ferry.

[Mr Larrington]

I got a fairly thorough going over at the tunnel back in 1996, but that was when leaving BRITAIN.  That I was driving an obviously hired Transit probably helped.  I think they were disappointed to find it completely empty.  On the way back it was stuffed to the roof with Miss von Brandenburg's possessions and we sailed straight through.

[citoyen]

When I've travelled by Eurotunnel I've never been stopped, or even seen customs officials. It was just like driving on and off a ferry.

Yeah, but you just know the one time you do try to bring stuff through that exceeds your allowance...

We got stopped once, for no other reason than I guess ours was the 'every Xth' vehicle, and it was bloody inconvenient because the car was fully loaded for a camping holiday. Took so long we nearly missed the sodding train.

[rafletcher]

When I've travelled by Eurotunnel I've never been stopped, or even seen customs officials. It was just like driving on and off a ferry.

I got stopped, and had the car handles swabbed for explosives.

[Pickled Onion]

Unless it looks like a Rembrandt or a Banksy, the responses "my mate painted it" and "no, she didn't charge me for it" are unlikely to raise any suspicions or calls to Sotherby's for a valuation.

[Beardy]

I got stopped on more than one occasion on my way out to the Netherlands on the Sunday night boat when I was working in Amsterdam. Admittedly I was driving an elderly ovlov estate and then a very decrepit Cavilier SRI saloon (which the beardlings referred to as the drug barons car!) and travelling every Sunday night for a while. I even had a sniffer dog all over the DBC on one occasion. No one EVER bothered me at the Hoek thoguH.

[Kim]

Isn't smuggling drugs from BRITAIN to Amsterdam a bit coals-to-Newcastle?

[Beardy]

I’ll admit I was surprised by the stops, especially as I only ever got stopped on the way out.

[De Sisti]

Unless it looks like a Rembrandt or a Banksy, the responses "my mate painted it" and "no, she didn't charge me for it" are unlikely to raise any suspicions or calls to Sotherby's for a valuation.

[Cudzoziemiec]

I’ll admit I was surprised by the stops, especially as I only ever got stopped on the way out.

Presumably they could be looking for traces of drugs (how sensitive are those sniffer dogs?) which if detected, they would then let you go and mark you for a search on return. Or they were looking for things like suspicious amounts of cash. Or illicit mid-Channel fishing equipment.

[Beardy]

Accompanying Dr Beardy (Mrs) on a Christmas shopping trip to the cathedral of expensive tat that is as ape Maltings. Yea.