newjez

On 20/02/2022 at 09:07, Ausvisitor said:

I've still got 5 weeks to go then on price comparing if it stops at 6 weeks after arrival!

This BYO concept is new to me, back in the UK it's really rare, but here it seems pretty common

Byo is brilliant. There are a few places that do it in the UK, but not like Australia. Actually, on the south coast there are lots of tiny micro breweries that have popped up. They generally don't serve food, but are happy for you to bring local takeaways in and eat them with the beer. Seems to work really well.

23 hours ago, Ausvisitor said:

Picked up a bottle of ALDI preciois earth sauvignon blanc tonight, expected it to be a bit rough but it was actually really quite good as a drinking wine (rather than a posing wine)

All the better for it's 2.99 price tag (or 1.58 GBP)

I haven't been to aldi or Lidl since covid started. I always found their wine quite drinkable, but just a bit bland. It's almost like they sourced wine that wouldn't offend anyone. Their beer can be good too. They do a fantastic wheat beer.

These days I tend to look for wine which is on special. Something expensive which has been reduced, and buy a few bottles to stock up.

Although to be honest, since I started the home brewing I've been drinking mainly that.

6 hours ago, Drumbeat said:

I buy most of mine from Mountain Warehouse, a UK brand with an Australian website, very easy to return or exchange if needed and good prices. Otherwise I have a look at the Aldi snow sale, surprisingly good quality clothes. I used to buy from Katmandu but I really don't like their clothes any more.

Snow gear isn't always the best in heavy rain. Snow doesn't penetrate like rain 

Mountain warehouse is good, but whatever you buy you want at least 10000 mm and ideally 20000 mm, plus breathable.

You get what you pay for, but a good jacket can last ten years or more. You may need to redo the waterproofing at some stage. My mountain warehouse raincoat was 10000 mm when I bought it nearly ten years ago, and it will still keep me dry in most weather, but it did fail recently in a very heavy rainstorm. But it was ridiculously hard rain, and I wouldn't choose to go out in weather like that. I probably need to re water proof the seams. You can get sprays for that.

3 hours ago, Blue Flu said:

But at least the seriously weird afternoon closing has been scrapped. That was the situation when first went to UK to live. 

They used to have weird pub hours on a Sunday in the UK, but then the Sunday session in Perth never made sense. When we lived in Perth you could only buy wine on Sunday from a bottle shop. Not beer or spirit. Madness.

4 hours ago, MARYROSE02 said:

I don't drink at home.  I go to the pub.  If the pubs are closed as they were during lockdown,  I don't drink.

But if I did drink at home,  my local pub, 100 metres away,  has a bottle shop whereas the supermarkets are all 10 or 15 minutes walk away.

In the shopping malls there are often a bottle shop next to the supermarket and it's only a minor inconvenience to go from one to the other. 

I went to a bottle shop the other day to buy booze for a friend who was isolating.

If I'm eating out and the restaurant is BYO I usually don't drink but go the pub afterwards. 

I know a lot of people who only drink in the pub and never drink at home. I always assumed it was a British thing.

10 hours ago, Marisawright said:

Even if you declare it, it won’t affect first home buyers or exemption

Something I've always wondered. I've owned a property in Australia before, so I wouldn't get first time buyers. But my wife hasn't. If we bought the property in her name, could she get first home buyers?

7 hours ago, Cup Final 1973 said:

We’ve had no rain for weeks in South Yorkshire.  Overnight temperatures often down to zero so we have frost sparkling on the grass each morning but my memories of dark dismal winter days are not true.  I’ve been very surprised by how much blue sky and sun we’ve had throughout January.  Yes it’s cold, 9 degrees today …. 🥶 but my North-East genes are kicking in again!  

We haven't had much rain in the south for two weeks now. Cold, but lovely in the sun. Been walking most days.

Did have a bit of rain a few weeks back. But it seemed to rain mostly at night. Did make some of the footpaths impassable without wellies. But we have our winter walking paths which are fine. I don't do mud. 

One of the best winters we've had. But I am longing for warmer weather now Xmas is over.

4 hours ago, Rallyman said:

Change the record you were on about this the last time you were posting, there are far worse countries in the world than Australia to live . 
No restrictions now stoping you from leaving. 

 

 

Wasn't Australia the most "equal" country in the world to live, with the smallest difference between rich and poor in the world? Doesn't sound like much of a class system to me. In fact I don't ever think I've felt held back by "class" in Australia.

On 05/10/2021 at 01:32, Paul1Perth said:

My Sister is living with my niece and family in the UK. They have a huge house and she looks after the kids. My niece and hubby are both architects who have their own business, run from home, so it works pretty well for all of them.

Not that she needs to do it mind you. We still have my Mum and Dads house that's rented out and she has a house of her own, that she's never lived in, that's rented out. 

She doesn't like living on her own is her reason. She's a fit 62 year old who goes to the gym most days so it'll be a while yet till she needs "looking after".

My parents are 84, living in Perth, and they got a letter saying that someone was going to come round and assess their needs to see what help they need. My mum was a bit miffed because she said she didn't need any help and she didn't want some stranger in her house. My dad still does over 100km a week on his bike and certainly doesn't need any help.

MIL is 82, and she's not as independent as she used to be as the NHS buggered up her cataract appointments, and she had to go back on the waiting list. I told her to complain and make a fuss, but she's British. On top of that she has macular degeneration, and the combination made it very hard for her to see, and it's reduced her independence. She's had the cateracts done now, but once you lose that confidence it's hard to get it back.

It's good to see people having long fruitful retirements. Wife's father retired at 65 and died 6 months later of prostate cancer. I never met him, which will was a shame as he was a top bloke by all accounts.

You do need to check your children's residency status if they go to uni and you leave the UK. I have heard of cases where they will be reclassed as foreign students, and be exposed to full foreign student fees. This could have bad ramifications on them. 

5 hours ago, MARYROSE02 said:

Would you choose to live in Germany,  France or Italy over Belgium, The Netherlands or Spain because the republics have leaders who are more in touch with their people? More democratic? Better governed? Cheaper government?

That's a silly question because none of those countries is Australia.

When the queen dies they will ask the question again, and chances are it will pass. The only question will be is whether the head of state is an honorary position, or whether it has real power which would require a shift in government.

4 hours ago, MARYROSE02 said:

When I'm writing the few Xmas cards I still send (actually 1st Day of Issue post cards from Oz Post) I change "Merry" to "Happy" so it does not clash with "and a Happy New Covid" (sick) (sic).

The only people who are offended by "Christmas" are leftie wokes like Harry and Yoko (sic). People from other faiths have no such problems.

I saw some Pommie backpackers interviewed wearing Santa hats with their cozzies on Bondi Beach who were all naturally devastated that they were unable to go home for Christmas.

It's a massive strawman argument from the right. The yanks have always said happy holidays because their holidays span from Thanksgiving to new year. It's just the right trying to make an issue out of something that never was.

The only people I've ever met who object to Christmas are the atheists, and even most of those aren't bothered.

But I do object to being drawn in to defend the royals when we know that they are ALL a bunch of inbred out of touch nobody's, who have no relevance or connection to any of our lives, and the sooner Australia gets rid of them the better.

1 hour ago, Chortlepuss said:

I doubt that the OP is boring - just hasn’t found their tribe or relevant interests yet! Whilst we don’t know the OP’s Myers Briggs score, as an introvert I do struggle to relate to extroverts as I prefer people who are more quiet, contemplative and analytical who can talk about subjects in depth. The senior leaders and managers I most admire tend to be  introverts - I enjoy their confidence, inner strength and self reliance! I hate small talk and loud banal conversation for the sake of hearing your own voice. I have found there is a general suspicion of introverts in Australia - with many mistakenly labelled as ‘shy’ 

I'm guessing that was an autocorrect and parley meant to say 'if you are bored, '

1 hour ago, Parley said:

I can't believe Harry and Meghan. Their official Christmas card has the Happy Holidays greeting.

Some people are getting so PC they afraid to say Happy Christmas for fear of causing offence.

It is catching on here too for formal/corporate settings. I would never say it.

I agree that in UK it was more so Happy Christmas whereas in Aus it is Merry Christmas.

Also when I was a child it was always Father Christmas but in Australia at least everyone says Santa.

 

Happy holidays

25 minutes ago, Marisawright said:

You have a "screen door" as well as an ordinary door (a door made of flyscreen mesh).   Yes, it's going to bang annoyingly every time the kids run in and out, but if you don't have a screen door, you'll have a houseful of mosquitos, cockroaches and spiders.  I never thought about them keeping snakes out, since I've always lived in very urban areas where snakes are rare.  In fact the only time I've ever seen snakes are in country Victoria and Noosa.  

I'm living in Melbourne now and it's the first place I've lived in Australia where I don't have flyscreens on the windows and doors.  Luckily thanks to Melbourne's climate, it doesn't have as many bugs as the rest of the country.      

This is probably going to blow everyone's mind, but, we have a screen door in the UK.

4 hours ago, ByoDurbsUKAus said:

Hi Everyone,

I hope you can help. I'm a British Citizen and have lived 'Down Under' for nearly 11 years. One of my kids was born in England the other was born here. I have a valid Australian passport, but I will be renewing my British passport as soon as next week. My two children do not have passports as my ex-husband will not sign passport forms. That's another story.  I work in a skilled industry and will be losing my job due to 'mandates'. The doctors have been silenced and I cannot get an exemption even though I have existing and other health concerns under investigation. None meet the criteria for an exemption and due to the fear of being dismissed doctors will not attach their name to one. 

I feel things are tough in many countries now but, I'm not sure how much longer I can hang on for here.  With the looming job loss, my health, and the situation in Australia becoming unbearable, what chance do I have of getting out in terms of Border Force, flights (without injections) etc? I can sell everything I own, but I will run out of money quickly being out of work and I cannot access my superannuation unless I've been on welfare payments for 6 months. My salary is my only income. I am the primary carer for the children and meet all of their needs, medical, education etc.  My brother and sister live in England and my mum in North Wales. We have a beautiful dog that I would like to take to England too. I understand that I cannot leave the country without permission from my ex-husband. He is difficult to get hold of and it normally takes weeks to get a simple reply to an email. 

If you have already returned please reply about the job situation and availability of rentals. I've lived in London and Peterborough. Chester is great but I don't mind so much where we live as long as I can find employment. I like to and want to work. Thank you.

Please be kind =). 

You could just get a vaccine? Just saying?

6 hours ago, Parley said:

It doesn't really work like that or matter.

What is important is whether all the NI contributions of current workers in the UK this year is enough to fund all the State Pensions of pensioners this year.
Sometimes there is a surplus and they use the extra premiums to pay down government debt. If there isn't enough in any year the government tops it up.

It's not just pension, it's jobseekers, sickness, maternity etc. 

9 hours ago, MacGyver said:

The WA premier gave a late press conference yesterday and basically said what you’ve mentioned above. He said the WA chief health officer didn’t support 7 day home quarantine “at this time” and they had no plans to introduce it. Also Qantas’ recent statement about WA borders being closed until April at least, points to a very slow reopening over here.

From a selfish point of view I’m trying to remain supportive and understand we need to wait until everyone has had the opportunity to be vaccinated, but the lack of a plan or target to reopen is frustrating. Also the language being used worries me as Mr McGowan has made a number of comments recently indicating he would be happy to keep the borders closed long term with a Covid zero target. I fear we might be closed until Covid sneaks in and We have an outbreak, removing Covid zero as an option.

I feel myself drifting from supporting the premiers approach to being in opposition of it, given the increasing vaccination rates. I suspect I’m in the minority in WA though 

It wouldn't surprise me if there was an 'accidental' spread of covid to the covid free states over the next six months. It really wouldn't be hard for someone to do, either the 'government' or some anti lockdown nutters off their own back. Post a vial of virus to a willing recipient. Once delta is in and spreading, game over. No point staying closed.

4 minutes ago, Marisawright said:

My father did it a lot longer ago than 15 years ago.    I know what you mean about the offspring turfing the parent out though.   One of my husband's aunts (in Australia) sold her house to her daughter, on condition she could go on living with the daughter for the rest of her life.  It wasn't long before she was banished to an illegally-built, tiny granny flat in the garden.

I can go one better than that. After selling the house with the granny flat in the garden, she bought a new flat where there was no room for granny and sent granny back to England. She did give her original investment back, but only the nominal amount, which was pittance because of inflation.

My mother in law lives with us, but she's good value. 

I used to love watching the Australian series boney in the seventies. Never understood why no one did a remake. Or did they?

How does UK inheritance tax work if you are resident in Australia but have assets in the UK like a house?

17 hours ago, Parley said:

Retirement Villages are a very different thing to nursing homes which is what we were discussing.

Be careful about them as a lot of people get ripped off when trying to sell their unit in a retirement village.

They are a massive rip off.

19 hours ago, Parley said:

Imagine if you died with an estate of £3M built over a lifetime and the government trousered £1M in tax from your estate.

I'm surprised some of these rich oligarchs want to live in London.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.amoneythinghappened.com/post/if-i-win-the-lottery-how-much-can-i-give-to-my-family&ved=2ahUKEwiaoY-BhqXzAhUr_7sIHYwqAG0QFnoECDUQBQ&usg=AOvVaw3V-brzSwe2H8zKqLMY9z6l

11 hours ago, Paul1Perth said:

The swimming helped with the vertigo thing I have. First few strokes felt weird and it took me a few laps to bilateral breath without running into the lane rope.

Never learned to bilateral breathe (does it have an E?)

I do four strokes.

On 25/09/2021 at 22:24, Robert Dyson said:

Apparently they're priceless, because you can't find any.

Can you go on Sainsbury's or Tesco's website and place an order to do a comparison?