Nelson end of an era

[cuthound]

13 minutes ago, Naughty Cal said:

Sydney has come to expect a share of tge pork scratchings nowadays!

 

Nah, he has succeeded in training you to give him some! ?

[mayalld]

13 minutes ago, Naughty Cal said:

If the pub is good enough people will go to it despite the drive to get to it.

 

One of our favourite pubs to visit when we are at home is The Strines Inn. It is miles and miles away from any civilisation. You have to drive to get there. Yet we went on Wednesday evening after work and the place was packed. The Strines is also a good example of how good food does not have to be expensive. 

 

Now, there's a thing!

 

I have been known to take the family to the Strines Inn.

 

I shall have to wear a false beard in case you spot me!!

[Ray T]

 

2 hours ago, ditchcrawler said:

I find it strange a pub chain buy a pub when lots are unloading them

Unless of course they are buying it to fail, then build a few houses on the site............................?

 

Just now, mayalld said:

Now, there's a thing!

 

I have been known to take the family to the Strines Inn.

 

I shall have to wear a false beard in case you spot me!!

I asked my late wife to marry me at Strines Inn.

Edited November 2, 2018 by Ray T

[Naughty Cal]

6 minutes ago, mayalld said:

Now, there's a thing!

 

I have been known to take the family to the Strines Inn.

 

I shall have to wear a false beard in case you spot me!!

It is a regular haunt of ours during the week when we are not at the boat.

 

Been twice this week!

 

Having the boat out of the water for three months just after Christmas so I guess we will be there some weekends as well over the winter.

 

It's only a 15 minute drive from our house

 

Bit far to walk though. Although we have been tempted to stay in one of the rooms on several occasions. 

[Athy]

23 minutes ago, Sea Dog said:

I don't want to diss your Grandad, but he obviously never tried a pint of Star Light in Plymouth in the 70s!

 

 

Watney's again!

Just to check, I entered "Starlight beer" on Google, and the first article which appeared on the list was called "The Five Worst Beers". I rest my case.

[mrsmelly]

25 minutes ago, Sea Dog said:

I don't want to diss your Grandad, but he obviously never tried a pint of Star Light in Plymouth in the 70s!

 

 

Blimey now that brings back memories. I had forgotten about that stuff. I think that was why I went on to guinness ?

[Athy]

6 minutes ago, mrsmelly said:

Blimey now that brings back memories. I had forgotten about that stuff. I think that was why I went on to Guinness ?

My trusty standby when in Spain, especially in a bar whose draught beer is either the fairly unappealing San Mig' or the utterly appalling Mahou. If there's Cruzcampo I'll drink that, as it's less sweet than most lagers, otherwise it's a Guinness for me.

 

This reminds me: can anyone explain why Doombar, bland to the point of being devoid of flavour, seems so popular?

[MtB]

3 hours ago, dmr said:

Just arrived and tied up (yet again) opposite the Golden Lion in Todmorden. This pub was renovated/poshed up a while ago but that failed so was then taken over by a local Thai lady who had a Thai restaurant. She un-poshed the pub in a nicely Thai/bohemian sort of way and runs it a combined pub/Thai restaurant and music venue. A superb Thai meal can be had for about £7, there are 4 real ales starting at £3 (but sometimes £2 mid week) and the place is busy busy busy. Maybe a few other pubs could learn from this.

 

............Dave

 

Is it making any money though? 

 

At those prices I can't imagine it makes very much profit after all the fixed overheads are paid. How long has she been trading for?

 

There is a saying in business it is easy to be a busy fool. By this they mean its dead easy to sell stuff at zero profit margin. Some businesses however succeed using the 'pile in high, sell it cheap' model, relying on wafer thin profit margins balanced by huge turnover. Weatherspoons are a good example in the same trade so hopefully this Thai lady is succeeding too, as that nice Mr Tim has shown it can be done. 

 

 

Edited November 2, 2018 by Mike the Boilerman

[mrsmelly]

1 minute ago, Athy said:

My trusty standby when in Spain, especially in a bar whose draught beer is either the fairly unappealing San Mig' or the utterly appalling Mahou. If there's Cruzcampo I'll drink that, as it's less sweet than most lagers, otherwise it's a Guinness for me.

 

This reminds me: can anyone explain why Doombar, bland to the point of being devoid of flavour, seems so popular?

You are so right. Guinness though keg of course is nearly always a safe bet whereas beer is so variable. Doombar is absolute crap but quite cheap to purchase against better stuff so has a better GP.

[Machpoint005]

41 minutes ago, Sea Dog said:

I don't want to diss your Grandad, but he obviously never tried a pint of Star Light in Plymouth in the 70s!

 

 

I am certain he didn't! He wasn't keen on "slaip" Greene King Abbott either, but then only beers brewed in Burton on Trent, or further north, were worthy of the name.

He never tried a pint of Doom Bar anywhere, either.

[David Schweizer]

40 minutes ago, mrsmelly said:

The pub manager does double the hours and often their other half is included in that salary number. They dont go home at 5 each afternoon after they have worked all that day they simply do another seven hours on top of it. They dont say I arnt working weekends and if a key member of staff doesnt turn in cos little Johny is sick they simply forgo their day off and work on through not to mention christmas day etc etc. I fully understand both cushy easy hours jobs as I was a police ossifer who only worked part time, it was around 41 hours a week and later on went into the pub trade and understood very quickly that a 41 hour week is very very much part time. I then realy found out what long hours were when I went self employed in the pub game lol!!  The beauty of the pub game though in fairness is generaly speaking you meet people who are enjoying their selves and if you prefer there is no poxy commuting though we deliberately did that.

Do you actually know any teachers? and if you do how many of them don't work long hours at School. Most will set off for work before 7am and few will get home until 7pm, then there will often be extra marking and preparation work in the evenings and weekends. If teaching was such a "cushy" job, as you suggest, why did you not consider it when you left the Police Force?  Perhaps the requirement to a possess a good level of intelligence, have good pre-entry qualifications, and complete three or four years academic study was a deterrent.

[Athy]

1 minute ago, David Schweizer said:

Do you actually know any teachers? and if you do how many of them don't work long hours at School. Most will set off for work before 7am

Eh? The only time I did that was on the one day a week that I was on getting up and breakfast duty with the boarders, which fortunately was on a Monday, so I got it over with. Otherwise a quarter to eight was fine for me. My Dad, in many years of teaching, never set off as early as that either as far as I remember. 

[mrsmelly]

4 minutes ago, David Schweizer said:

Do you actually know any teachers? and if you do how many of them don't work long hours at School. Most will set off for work before 7am and few will get home until 7pm, then there will often be extra marking and preparation work in the evenings and weekends. If teaching was such a "cushy" job, as you suggest, why did you not consider it when you left the Police Force?  Perhaps the requirement to a possess a good level of intelligence, have good pre-entry qualifications, and complete three or four years academic study was a deterrent.

oooh getting a bit personal and touchy there David. I assure you I could have walked the academic side of it but it in no way appealed working with kids. My bro in law is a head teacher of a large comprehensive or whatever they are called today not that we ever talk about work. Did you get out of bed the wrong side this morning or are you always grumpy?

[Machpoint005]

4 minutes ago, Athy said:

Eh? The only time I did that was on the one day a week that I was on getting up and breakfast duty with the boarders, which fortunately was on a Monday, so I got it over with. Otherwise a quarter to eight was fine for me. My Dad, in many years of teaching, never set off as early as that either as far as I remember. 

I don't think you can really compare your public school experience with the reality of life in a comprehensive, Mike. My daughter teaches in one such and David's account is all too familiar.

No insult intended to your abilities, but the good state school teachers work very long hours in very stressful conditions.

[Athy]

6 minutes ago, Machpoint005 said:

I don't think you can really compare your public school experience with the reality of life in a comprehensive, Mike. My daughter teaches in one such and David's account is all too familiar.

No insult intended to your abilities, but the good state school teachers work very long hours in very stressful conditions.

I have never taught in a public school. I have taught in state schools, both in France and in England, and in prep schools.

If your daughter taught in a prep school (and perhaps in a public school, I don't know), she would find that the hours of CONTACT time were much longer - often including Saturday mornings, and sometimes afternoons, for example, and prep. supervision until 6 p.m. or later. Preparation and marking times are a different matter, of course.

 

Is there necessarily a correlation between the number of hours worked and the quality of the work done? I ask this in general terms, not with reference to your daughter, you understand.

[bizzard]

Quelchy about to cane Bunter.   Yaroooooooooooooooooooh.

Edited November 2, 2018 by bizzard

[David Schweizer]

1 hour ago, mrsmelly said:

oooh getting a bit personal and touchy there David. I assure you I could have walked the academic side of it but it in no way appealed working with kids. My bro in law is a head teacher of a large comprehensive or whatever they are called today not that we ever talk about work. Did you get out of bed the wrong side this morning or are you always grumpy?

As demonstrated by your intellectually demanding response ?

??

Edited November 2, 2018 by David Schweizer

[mrsmelly]

2 minutes ago, David Schweizer said:

As demonstrated by your intellectually demanding response ?

??

[Nightwatch]

I don't want to get too involved in this 'discussion' 

 

My parents were publicans, running a number of pubs and Working Men's clubs and British Legions. Worked many hours and probably, possibly drove themselves into an early grave crematorium. They always had a roof over theirs and my head(s).

 

On the the other hand, my youngest sons fiancé is a junior school teacher. Leaves home at 0700 and gets home at about 1700. She then has to mark the days works, do a report and other, in my view, unnecessary tasks. The 'homework' takes up to two hours. Marking is colour coded hitch adds to the workload and brain draining tasks. Okay, half term and summer holidays are welcome to her and my lad, but there's times when she has to plan next terms work in the classroom. Earns less than £30,000. Edited to add that she has a mortgage to pay for.

 

So, even though a comparison is being attempted here, I don't think in this instance it's at all possible.

Edited November 2, 2018 by Nightwatch

[MtB]

 

In addition to money, politics and religion, how hard (or not) teachers work is another subject I've found well worth avoiding at dinner parties. 

 

 

[Nightwatch]

4 minutes ago, Mike the Boilerman said:

 

In addition to money, politics and religion, how hard (or not) teachers work is another subject I've found well worth avoiding at dinner parties. 

 

 

You go to (get invited to) dinner parties?? You forgot to mention the big no go conversational subject.................Football.

[rusty69]

Just now, Nightwatch said:

You go to (get invited to) dinner parties?? You forgot to mention the big no go conversational subject.................Football.

If its a boaters dinner party, discussion will be bogs and eco fans, batteries and bitumen.

[MtB]

1 minute ago, Nightwatch said:

You go to (get invited to) dinner parties?? You forgot to mention the big no go conversational subject.................Football.

 

Yep, loads. I'm still waiting for an invitation to one of yours!! 

 

Another subject that gets people well aerated is whether or not to put vaseline on battery terminals. And no, that's not a euphemism  ... the subject just cropped up in another thread and last time it was discussed, it got VERY heated.

 

 

3 minutes ago, rusty69 said:

If its a boaters dinner party, discussion will be bogs and eco fans, batteries and bitumen.

 

And which is better, engine in engine room or hidden away under the back deck! 

[rusty69]

4 minutes ago, Mike the Boilerman said:

 

Yep, loads. I'm still waiting for an invitation to one of yours!! 

 

Another subject that gets people well aerated is whether or not to put vaseline on battery terminals. And no, that's not a euphemism  ... the subject just cropped up in another thread and last time it was discussed, it got VERY heated.

 

 

 

And which is better, engine in engine room or hidden away under the back deck! 

I don't get invited to dinner parties, so will have to live in ignorance!

[MtB]

11 minutes ago, rusty69 said:

I don't get invited to dinner parties, so will have to live in ignorance!

 

I'll et you into a secret. I was making it up. 

 

I don't know what a dinner party is. No-one's EVER invited me to one....

 

?