Dude, Wheres my car?!

Sorry to rip off a movie title…

On Saturday I took another trip to Birmingham Dogs Home. I can’t help it, I love dogs and they love the attention!

After an hour an a half of falling in love with various dogs and wishing I could take them (number 66, I love you!) we went back to my smart new car. Last week, my best friend’s brother gave us his old N reg Toyota Starlet!

However, when we got to the parking area there was no car to be found. Maybe we had parked further up? Nope. Did we walk past it, perhaps…no, it definately wasn’t there.

Panic ensued. My lovely new car had vanished! We assumed it had been stolen, so we went to find a police station. After several calls, we were told that it had been “lifted”. A recovery company had stolen my car. They’d come along with a crane, picked it up and driven off without even leaving a note.

Turns out we had recieved a parking ticket, despite being in a pay and display area and having paid and displayed. For some bizarre reason, the traffic warden saw fit to have my car removed. It cost us £140 and a £10 taxi journey to get it back!

Despite protesting our innocence (there was 2 hours left on the ticket at the time it was lifted) we were told that the only option was to pay up there and then or the fees would increase about £150 per day. Grudgingly, we paid up and drove away feeling cheated and shocked.

However, I know we were parked legally so I have appealed and will keep appealing until we get our money back! £140 is a lot of money to us at the moment!

Here is the letter I sent:

To whom it may concern,

On Saturday 17th July, my Blue Toyota Starlet (reg: N*** **T) was lifted from the Allison Street pay and display area and taken to Mansfield Recovery after the issue of a parking ticket.

It is my belief that my car was parked legally. I purchased a car parking ticket at the machine at 12:16 (expiring 15:16, PCN issued at 13:15), abiding by the signs stating that the area was “Pay and Display”. This ticket was displayed clearly on the dashboard.

My car was parked on a single yellow line in this area. A single yellow line outside a controlled zone requires an accompanying sign detailing the hours of restriction. There is no such sign in this location, hence this restriction does not comply with the Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions 2002. It is therefore unenforceable and I trust the PCN and recovery fees totalling £140 will be promptly refunded.

Regards,

Now you big bullies, give us our money back and leave us alone!

Mad Man in the ring, Lalalala-Laa!

Well, I can say with utmost certainty:

I’m glad I don’t live in Northumberland.

There is a killer on the loose. Even worse, a killer who wants to go out with a bang. Having already murdered his ex girlfriend’s partner shortly after his release from jail and shot a policeman and said ex, this man is obviously determined to cause more chaos.

Raoul Moat... lost the plot

Raoul Moat left a letter with a friend (why didn’t the friend try and keep him busy whilst calling the police?!) to give to the police and media. Initially we were told he was just targeting the police.

In a twisted way, I have a certain level of sympathy as far as this is concerned. The guy felt like he had lost everything and being human wanted to blame someone else. The police were an easy target considering his time spent in prison and his girlfriend lieing that her new partner was a police officer. Not that I condone him going on a murderous rampage or anything, but when someone feels like they have nothing left its not suprising they go a bit mental.

What concerns me now, is the scant information regarding the threats he has apparently made against the public. Police are now guarding schools in the area. In the area. Who the hell says he hasn’t fled to Scotland, or down South? He’d be an idiot to stay “in the area”. I know the police can’t guard every school in the country, but I certainly hope that all schools have been warned to be vigilant. We don’t want another Dunblane on top of this.

If he hasn’t already done so, the best thing to happen now is for him to pull the trigger on himself. It would be useful if he could do it somewhere he is easily found too, so everyone can breathe a sigh of relief. Oh, and perhaps he could be found with another letter emphasisng the importance of psychiatric evaluations before release from jail..

Yet despite all this, I can’t help but keep singing “Brown Girl in the Ring” in my head. Idiot.

Birmingham Dogs Home

I make no secret of the fact that I want a dog. Now Buster is missing, I want the companionship dogs can provide more than ever *stamps feet* However, because I have no money I have to make do with being the weirdo who visits dog homes and borrows my mother’s dog!

Borrowed dog!

Last week me and Ty visited Birmingham Dogs Home. I was pleased with myself for driving into Birmingham city center, but even more pleased to park up in a rather suspect “car park” (patch of stones) and resume use of my feet. The dogs home has a fairly inconspicuous presence on a run down street, given away only by the distant rumble of many vocal dogs. The kennels were spread over two floors accessible to the public, with lots of viewing “blocks” housing what felt like hundreds of stray and abandoned canines.

There were some stunning dogs there. Two adorable black lab puppies (they’d found a new home!) who played “catch the hand” with their oversized paws underneath the bars were especially sweet. Then there was the gentle sandy coloured greyhound who slid his slender leg through the bars to allow his paws to be stroked. And of course, “Number 91″,  the tiny shaggy mixed breed with no bark and an enthusiastic tail wag… whom I would have taken there and then if I was on my own!

However, what really struck us was the number of Staffordshire Bull Terriers/SBT crosses that were patiently waiting for their new homes. I’d say more than half of the available dogs were Staffies. Why? Fair enough, a few were snarling or barking, or hiding in the corner. But the majority of Staffies were so loving! All they wanted was to give and receive attention.

The more intelligent ones had whichever part of their body pushed up against the bars as far as they could, so a willing visitor could fit a finger through to give them a scratch. One was so smart that when Ty tapped on higher bars the Staffie understood to put his paws up and hold himself upright so that his belly could be accessed for a good tickle! The more soppy Staffs rolled straight onto their backs at the sight of a visitor in the hope of a belly rub, whilst the mental ones were so excited to see you that they were just licking at the bars hoping to catch even the smallest bit of skin.

Most of all, the thing that most of these Staffs had in common were silly, friendly faces and intelligent eyes. Why so many of these lovely dogs ended up in a home is beyond me. It really annoys me to see people breeding Staffies and selling pups when there are so many in rescues desperate for homes, many less than a year old. Many more healthy dogs are put to sleep in pounds because rescues are full to the brim, especially with staffies.

So many people buy these dogs as status symbols, and their close physical resemblance to dangerous breeds such as the American Pit Bull Terrier gives them a lot of bad press. Before meeting so many staffies, I must admit I was always a little wary of them. But it is the people who give SBTs a bad name. A well socialised, trained Staffy can be just as loving  and family friendly as a Golden Retriever.

Anyway, rant over. If anyone happens to read this and knows anyone thinking of getting a dog, please encourage them to adopt! As the saying goes,

” Don’t Breed or Buy while Rescues Die! “

Missing Buster, my beloved house rabbit

My house rabbit, Buster, went missing just under a month ago. I miss him terribly; he was like a little dog, and very much a big part of my life.

When we first got him, my partner and I actually wanted a dog. Unable to afford potentially expensive vet bills, my Mum suggested we get a house rabbit. I did lots of research and we decided he would be the ideal pet for us!

We got him the day before Easter Sunday 2008. I liked his wild colourings, and at the time he had one loppy ear and one up! He was also so inquisitive in the viewing pen, standing on his back legs to say hello when all the other rabbits ignored us. We bought all his gear including a puppy pen for his home, a litter tray and a dog basket.

The moment we took him out of his carrier and set him down he hopped off to explore. I thought he was limping: “Oh my god whats wrong with his legs?!” I exclaimed. After all my research on rabbit behaviour and training, I had no idea what they looked like when hopping around! When my partner told me thats just how rabbits move I felt incredibly silly.

He settled in quickly. We were told to leave him alone for 48 hours apart from to feed him, but within 20 minutes of getting him home he’d figured out how to open his puppy pen and was jumping up on the sofa to say hello!

Two years later we had a well trained, sociable happy bunny. Perfectly litter trained and very affectionate towards everyone. He was naughty sometimes, but thats what you get with a house rabbit and adds to the fun. He knew certain commands, but like most rabbits often chose to ignore them if he wasn’t in the mood! He adored my Mum’s Labrador bitch, Ebony; he loved to follow her around grooming her tail and stealing her treats

I still hold out some hope that someone might find him and see our posters.

If not, I’m very lucky to have had the little guy in my life and will never forget him.

A saucy new job..

The results of my “working from home” research shocked me, but I guess it shouldn’t have…I just never imagined that talking dirty whilst doing the ironing was a common money-spinner!

My conclusions:

The usual Scams

Envelope stuffing, certain data entry etc…often charge you to get started and then reject your work on the slightest technicality. They get your registration fee, and some work done for free and don’t pay you a penny.

Avon

Over saturated “territories” , people ordering the same goods online instead, relies on pushing family and friends for orders. You have to buy the catalogues yourself and pay start up costs. It can be profitable, but a lot of anecdotal evidence suggests that unless you know a lot of people in your local area to get you started, you will be lucky to make a small profit.

Kleeneze

Start up costs are £75, and you must also buy the catalogues. If you don’t pass their credit checks, your £75 is not refunded. They won’t tell you if there is already a round in your area, so you could be trying to poach the same customers as someone else or have the other distributor stealing your catalogues. Its possible to make some reasonable earnings if you recruit others to sell as you get a percentage of  their sales and registration fees but so many people are involved now it is essentially a pyramid scheme.
Betterware

Beats Kleeneze and Avon hands down. No start up costs, catalogues are free and there is no pressure to recruit others. They also give you your own round, so you are the only distributor for the area. You get about 20% of sales commission. As Betterware seem to be so popular due to generous commission and no start up costs, finding a vacant round is very rare – but if you can find one in your area then give it a go!

and finally…

The Sex Industry

Check out this thread on the MoneySavingExpert.com forum, all 235 pages of it! There are lots of people out there providing adult services through companies such as Excel Telemedia and Text 121.

These ladies get paid for a number of services including texting,  taking calls and webcam. They can pick and choose what they are willing to do. From the thread it seems that webcam is the most profitable – I guess its only for the very brave! With Excel, Webcam pays 25p per minute, texting pays 8p per SMS message and calls start at 10p per minute. Further details, including things like how to get started and exact pay can be found here.

It seems to be an easy way of making money (although you probably have to build up a list of “regulars”) and you don’t have to pay a penny. The flexible hours are ideal for everyone.

However; the money and convenience comes at a price. Morals, self respect for yourself and partner, shame, anyone? I would imagine it takes a very strong person to be able to see it as “just a job” and detatch themselves from it without it affecting their personal lives.

Each to their own on this one!

Hello world?

“Welcome to WordPress.com. This is your first post. Edit or delete it and start blogging!”

Um, thanks for that WordPress…but I must say I do wonder whether starting this blog will go anywhere. Is the internet already full of self-obsessed, rambling idiots? Yes. Is there space for one more? Just about. Will anyone ever stumble across it? Unlikely.

But will I enjoy writing it? Hopefully Definitely!

Today I will be looking online at ideas for work from home jobs. Due to health problems I’m stuck at home bored and would be very happy for some extra money and something to do. If anything comes up that others may  find useful I’ll post it here!