Hi Penny
 the cartoon about light bulbs reminds me of buying a house over 35 years ago. We hired a van and my parents helped us to move in. Once the van was empty we all needed food. Off my Dad went to the chippy and Mum and I set about finding plates etc. It went dark so we switched on the lights  but of course they didn't work. No bulbs. Candlelit fish and chips - so romantic! This was an additional surprise as we had also assumed that the people had a wall unit with a back to  it but what we inherited was a VERY dark brown (large) alcove. I can't remember how many coats of the then fashionable "tinted whites" we had to use to cover that up!! We were only young but it taught me a lesson about buying a new home.

Jack      are you listening!!

Sadly people are still taking light bulbs with them when they move even though here in the UK we now have to list what we are leaving and what we are taking with us. The next door neighbour to where we now live moved out about 4 years ago and also took bulbs but they also took the padlock from the outside  store under the house and the poor single lady who had purchased the house found a dosser installed in the undercroft when she moved in!!

I am sure the Australian public have better taste and manners than these people had so no need to worry Jack!

I also meant to say that the smell I associate with 70's aftershave is Denim. The ad was good (early stirrings of feeling men may be better than boys) but then I got a job between school and Uni on a production line and the  first line I worked on was for Denim aftershave. Trying to put the little plastic splasher things in was not a skill I mastered and I splashed gallons of the stuff over me and got some funny looks on the bus home!

I like a bit of meat on my men! James also likes his cars and his dogs. We went to a show a few years ago where he cooked a bit and talked about his other interests. It was very entertaining.
Do you want to be the ref then Linda? I may need to borrow the Chanel handbag Penny as mine are of more lowly status!

Penny! Hands off James Martin!!! Nuff said.

Devastated! No Guiness and Leek sausages! The car park was very full so it was no surprise to see quite a few gaps on the shelves.

I went into M n S Kendal last week and raided the yellow label  sale area. One jumper at 79p and 3 more at £1.79 each !!! Oh yes and I get 20% staff discount as my hubby works there! Sorry girls. Oh I love a bargain and my thrifty Yorkshire heritage seems to smell them out!

It is indeed nice to be back at work. In the current job I am lucky enough to work with lovely folk and the vast vast majority of the customers are really lovely so going back was even easier than I thought it would be. Looking forward to the hairdresser opening next month and then getting lunch in a cafe. Then having our holiday in Devon cancelled will seem less disappointing. Here's to the new normal!

Before selling houses I spent on and off over ten years selling cars. The small Vauxhall dealership (Holden) that I worked at was often quiet on a Sunday . In the UK the service departments of dealerships are closed on Sundays but we got used to worried customers pulling in to say that the engine check light was on. The most worried ones were the Zafira (a people carrier) drivers as when the light went on the car went into auto safety mode and would only drive at a very low speed.Some of them had spent hours getting to the dealership! Having said that I think my time selling Vauxhalls was one of the most pleasant as buyers were usually sensible and polite folk who wanted a sensible and reliable car so I can see why you have stuck to Holdens. I am sure the Subaru will be just fine and equally good for dogs when you eventually succumb to the patter of paws.
 A bit different when I sold Citroens as the customers could often be a bit eccentric and the cars often had dashboards either  lit up like Xmas trees or black  as night. I had one Citroen Xm model (elderly ,high mileage and I loved her to bits) which require 24 new bulbs fitting in the dash as I couldn't even read the speedo at night!.That car was white and due to the styling I always called her Concorde. One of the said eccentric customers eventually did a private deal with me to buy Concorde. He paid me about 3 or 4 times her value (which frankly was not much above zero!) and set off to France for a long holiday. I got a phone call on his return thanking me for selling him the best car he had ever owned so Concorde had another loving owner for her final years.

Hi.I think that you may have accidentally clicked on the "caps" icon. It is under the game alongside the drag, counts and define icons. Been there and done that a few times!

Hi Penny. We didn't use coffee or baking bread on new housing sites. They just use millions of those plug in air fresheners. I was never on my own site as I was used as cover for holiday and sickness but my first job on any site was to switch off all the smellies in the office as they make me sneeze and my eyes go red.The usual sales lady then had to switch them all back on when she returned. Coffee brewing however would probably have me signing up for any house I viewed  as I am addicted to the stuff!