What's the etiquette for these people you desert your kids with Mon-Fri 9-5?

Xmas presents and key workers who leave?

My wife and I, along with our 9 year old child, are traveling to the UK from about June 10th to July 4th. We'll spend roughly a week near London visiting some extended family, and then we're planning to head north to....somewhere that's TBD.

We'll be celebrating our 20th wedding anniversary and so we intend to spend a good bit of the time in Scotland, where we celebrated our Honeymoon back in 2005 (in Edinburgh and Inverness, and other spots in between). But our agenda is pretty open. Our vague intention at this point is to take the train north from London, possibly as far as Inverness, and then rent a car and spend a couple weeks slowly meandering our way back down to London. We'll generally lean more towards "nature and small villages" than "big cities like Edinburgh, etc". But, again, we are just beginning to sketch out an itinerary.

I'm reaching out here to see if there's things that we should already be considering for a mid-to-late June trip around Scotland and perhaps the Lake District. Are there things that we need to book soon (for example, in the United States, certain National Park entry passes open 6 months before the date)? Are there major festivals happening in some places that will congregate huge crowds and make travel logistics more difficult? Are there special things we should do that only happen around that time?

Of course, if you have any suggestions at all of the things we should or shouldn't do, I'm all ears...or all eyes, since I'll be eagerly reading any response. Thanks in advance for any insight that is shared!

My friends and I were having a discussion about how food in the UK is far healthier than here in the US because of the laws banning so many additives that US food companies get away with. But then one of them made the comment "Well they still have McDonald's and that's unhealthy wherever you go". A few people laughed and then the conversation turned to McDonald's specifically and all of the videos they've seen about big macs being left for months and not looking any different than when purchased.

So that begs the question...

If if anyone here has experienced McDonald's in both countries, is there an obvious taste difference? Does anyone even know if the food there is different than the food here? Because with the laws in place, you would think so, right? And what of price? Is it more expensive (bc of the supposed "healthier" version)?

I dunno. Just a shower thought. But feel free to discuss because now my autistic ass is INTERESTED. I'm fascinated by the way things work and I guess today, the theme is food additives in UK vs USA lol.

I can't wait to hear your responses!!

Pretty much as the title implies.

I’ve moved company to upskill myself but one of the cons is that they don’t have sick pay.

I am an electrician, mid to low 20’s for context and I do train martial arts most days, joints can often get damaged.

It got me thinking if I were to injure myself I could be really screwed.

Does anyone have any recommendations or additional info on what policies/providers would be a good route to investigate or if it’s even worth it at all?

Thanks all.

The best part of eating at a pizza hut restaurant or a harvester, for me, is the touchscreen fizzy drinks machine, because of the strawberry pepsi max. I love it.

So, does anyone know how I can get my hands on the strawberry syrup stuff they use so I can always have strawberry pepsi max?

My partner’s aunt lives in Nottingham and we live in Sheffield. She was estranged from my partner’s family for almost 20 years and only reunited with them these two years. She expects us to pick her up every time she visits Sheffield and drives her everywhere (even to run errands) as we both have a car. There were times we had to cancel all our plans and go out of our way to accommodate her. Last Christmas she asked for a lift from us as trains don’t run on Christmas Day and we drove all the way from Sheffield to Nottingham to pick her up as she wanted to spend Christmas with us in Sheffield. On Boxing Day there were still no trains so we drove her back to Nottingham as she had work on 27 December.

This year she expects us to do the same again- pick her up on Christmas Day and drive her back. I’m very frustrated with the situation as I feel like she’s expecting too much from us. Don’t get me wrong she’s nice but I get the feeling she’s taking advantage of us as we both drive. I don’t have it in me to say it to her out right that it’s too much for us to do a return trip TWICE in TWO days. What would you do in this situation?

So I'm from the north east and we say areet or alreet for the greeting (for non brits here we say alright for a normal greeting ) . But does any of the uk have another way of saying alright or another word used But it's only one or 2 words

Looking for reccomendations of games to play with family and friends that I can be watching out for in charity shops. Doesn't have to be family-friendly, or even board/card games, just games, traditional or not, that you genuinely enjoy playing. TIA!

I'm attempting to be romantic for my partner but am at a bit of a loss, I am looking for a short getaway that is out of the box and very beautiful. If anyone knows of anywhere that might meet that description then please leave a comment! :) Mainly my partner loves to relax and appreciates a modern bathroom, thats about it really.

I quite enjoy Snowman by Sia. Also, what happened to carols? Surely just playing some nice, wintery carols would be less annoying than the overplayed pop rubbish.

My teeth are misaligned and it's caused one set of teeth to wear away the other set from the back.

I've been told I can't have braces as my teeth are so thin they'll snap, and so been advised to have Invisiline.

It's going to cost around £5k, but hear of people getting teeth sorted on the NHS, but all I can see is about braces at a cost for adults.

Anyone have any advice or know who I could speak to for advice, or am I knackered and have a £5k bill in the near future?

Thanks.

We’re hosting Christmas twice this year and need to get some ice cream to accompany desserts. We don’t normally have it in the house so I thought I’d buy some in advance to try and got a tub of Mackie’s and it tastes of nothing.

I’m looking for standard vanilla / clotted cream rather than anything too flavoured. I’m near a Waitrose, M&S and a Tesco, none of them particularly big. There’s a Sainsbury’s a bit further out but don’t have Aldi, Asda, Lidl or Morison’s nearby.

Is there any choice other than. Haagen Daz or Ben & Jerry’s?

I can remember a government style interview/advert in which a young man depicted a real person who got a job but then it turned out he was just an actor and his Instagram was found? A few of his pictures showed him playing various roles on different filming sets. Help me find the advert please.

He was a white guy and I'm sure he got a job in which he needed a high vis jacket or something. One of his Instagram posts I'm sure there was a fire engine

As someone who walks their dogs in the evening, I personally enjoy all the Christmas lights up at this time of year. I have however noticed that they get bigger and brighter each year, which has me asking, who is it for?? I imagine you can't see your outdoor lights from inside your house, so is it possibly a status thing?

Probably going to come across as a coward here but just wanted some advice.

Fell victim to scam builders today who i asked to do a job for me after seeing thier glossy social media profiles showcasing lovely work they had supposedly completed. I was quoted 2.5k which would have been around what i expected for this job and the work quoted.

To cut a long story short, I asked them to leave half way through the day when it was clear that substand materials were being used (i.e.not those mentioned in the quote) and just incredibly poor workmanship. Everything seemed terribly amatuer and unprofessional, to emphasise this point they asked me if I had a saw they could use (the job involved lots of cutting of wood and i'd have expected the use of a circular saw at the very least to achieve a professional finish).

Lots of arguing outside the house ensued, claiming they had spent hundreds of pounds on materials. I'm sure they did to be fair but the figures being mentioned were obviously hugely exaggerated. I had given them 1k already which I'm happy to chalk off as an expensive lesson. That will surely cover the materials they brought (everything brought was the cheapest / lowest quality possible of its type) and thier time. They wanted more of course, saying they were out of pocket.

Anyway, I've had numerous messages via text, WhatsApp, my partner's Facebook account (they even sent messages to her mother) making threats about revenge being best served cold and there being one way to skin a cat in order to get thier money etc.

What does one do with things like this? Ive undergone some serious medical threatment recently so I'd feel quite vulnerable physically if they were to return. I had thought about reporting it to the Police (more in the hope it might warrant a quicker response were they to return) but I'm not sure how well this would be received?

Any thoughts welcomed. Terrible situation when it involves angry people who know where you live.

Christmas is randomly approaching us and that means all the primary school kids will be doing their nativity plays in the upcoming weeks! I spoke to my sister and she just informed us that my 4yr old nephew just landed the role of Mary, what a win!

I just asked my mum and apparently I was a shepherd, not too shabby. I’ve seen a tiktok where some young lad was ‘door holder number 3’.

Anyone get any class roles like Mary or Joseph or did you get something completely irrelevant such as a needle in a haystack or a tree?

I recently took a full time permanant job with a employer. During induction, they mentioned that there is no sick pay during probation ( 6 monhs) . Never came across such things with previous employers and a quick google search says I have the right to take them. Am I missing a legal loop hole?

I do have 25 days annual leave, hybrid work though which is pretty standard.

Im not sure how many people on here even remember it, but I seem to remember it being a really big thing at the time.

Im pretty sure January 2010 was when it was at its worst but the internet says it was worse in December 2009

Going by what the weather / climate has been like over the last 8 years or so, Im not sure I could imagine something like this EVER happening again... and if it did, it would feel so weird.

I personally would love another big freeze lol, Im much more of a cold weather person.

What do people think? are we just destined to 40C summers and unseasonably mild winters from now on?

Please help …. I love the comfy look of baggy jumper and leggings but want something cover my derrière

I have no idea what subreddit to post this on but its so loud it i can hear it in every room and it makes the pipes shake. It happens like once a day but never when my housemates are in for some reason.

I've read this thread, some of the answers to which are highly informative. To summarise: the advice is that in many or even most circumstances, if the police invite you to come voluntarily to a PACE interview and you attend, you should answer "no comment" to all questions. (PACE is the Police and Criminal Evidence Act, and a PACE interview is also known as a "voluntary interview under caution".)

Let's say you do intend to do that - namely to attend and politely to answer "no comment" to all questions. Then what's the point of attending in the first place? If later you get charged, why would the difference between not attending and attending and giving a no comment interview matter to the defence?

The only thing I can think of is the line "I attended because I thought the questions would be different ones, which I would have been willing to answer, but when I got there I was asked some other questions which I chose not to answer". But seriously I can't see that kind of line would be much help.

I don't mean a pull on the old love muscle. I mean what do you do to keep your own mental health in check?

Just read the average UK Engineer is making £65k a year which seems a little high from the people I know. https://www.theengineer.co.uk/content/news/salary-survey-the-average-uk-engineering-salary-increases-to-65k/

What are the more lucrative Engineer roles and how much do they pay? keen to know ages and salaries

I left my previous employer, a local council, in December 2023. My pay was paid into a joint account which I don’t monitor.

They wrote to me in May 2024 claiming they’d over paid me by over £2446 in error. With no evidence of how, but demanding immediate repayment. Since then they’ve sent further letters demanding payment or threatening to take me to Court.

To rub salt into the wound, I worked for this employer for around 2 years and was treated appallingly. I put in countless hours of unpaid overtime, trying to meet the impossible workload demands placed upon me by management.

In addition, I made countless car journeys and paid for other expenses which i was unable to claim back, partly because I didn’t have the time, and partly because I had no idea how to do so, because I was never given a proper induction or any training on how to use the employee portal.

I was genuinely not aware of any overpayment until I received the first letter in May. I still have not checked the account it was paid into, as it’s a joint account with my wife and I don’t have the details to check the statements. We’ve been under a lot of strain, and I’m worried that if I tell my wife, the stress will make things worse.

I can’t afford to pay this back. I’m also confident that the amount they in fact owe me in unclaimed expenses would amount to much more than the overpayment.

They’ve sent countless letters since , all of which I’ve had ignored. They’ve sent a further letter today, offering a payment plan, or take me to court. What can I do?

So i am selling my home. First time buyers all buttoned up. My side.

I am buying a house of a single woman who now has to move because her daughter is 18 and in the divorce she was able to stay in the house till then and sell and split the money i guess. She is down sizing and has found somewhere and her offer has been accepted.

I got the memorandum of sale over four weeks ago now and since this we’ve had no contact with the sellers solicitor and our solicitor cant do anything till this is done.

Is there a normal timeline for this. The company ie. Solicitors she is using advertise to be exchanged in 5-6 weeks..

Im getting feed up waiting.

Hi everyone, does anybody know where I would start if I wanted to find information about myself from when I lived in the UK , specifically a childrens home in I think Croydon.

I don't live in the UK now or it might be easier if I did so I hope it's ok to post here.

The real Christmas trees I mean. The 170-200 cm tall, pre cut Christmas trees.

December 1st I check multiple shops, like Tesco and Aldi which advertised their cut, real Christmas trees, and they are all sold out. I check again today at multiple Aldi's and Tescos; same problem again.

Either they are fully sold out or there is a mythical delivery that may or may not bring more. Where have they all gone and who is buying real live trees so early?

If you go in store, can u use cash, it worked once, but I don’t know if I can still use it. If not, do you know any clothes shops that u can use cash

Off the back of the ‘What true crime shocked you?’ thread, I thought I’d ask this in a similar vein.

So what major or minor event shocked you? Whether it be a disaster or scandal?

For me it has to be the Westminster bridge attack, has to be the first terrorist attack I can recall witnessing in real time.

Bought a product and received a confirmation email but they dont seem to send a vat receipt which is needed for warranty purposes. Their customer support is useless as well.