Rant of the day.

[bud]

She sounds like a real idiot. Don't let it wind you up if you can help it. It's people like this that get off on causing a problem. And getting people's backs up.

[bonio]

I used to get so wound up about stuff like this at work @Fozzie. I've seen far worse too. In the end, I realised that the best place to be was on the bottom rung of the ladder, where people actually did the work, and that there at least they paid me the same whether they listened to me or not, whether I was in favour or out.

In my experience jobs are 95% about politics, 4% ability and 1% actual data and facts. I may have overestimated the ability bit. In this case, she's got more political clout than your managers, and they know what you don't know, which is that in a head to head they will come off worse. The facts can't help them.  

[billysugger]

We all say "it's a job," but it's the job that pays the bills and puts food on the table.

A few years back I had a boss with no man management skills whatsoever, (he was  sideways promoted from an inspection role to be a supervisor, after they decided to "retire" our former boss).

Anyway, we had a few arguments over how I did things,because they didn't meet his interpretation of procedure.

Amongst the worse, I ended up in the office because a job I was doing I did right handed, yet to him it was the wrong way, because he showed me how he wanted it done, left handed, which I am not.

The managers response? " you know what he's like, just put up with him". I'm sorry, but no, I won't just put up with it, he's an ar*ehole.

After a couple of more incidents I actually hit him.it was one punch, with the palm of the hand rather than a fist, and knocked him flying. End result, voluntarily leave or face charges for assault, I chose to leave.

Nobody has the right to treat me like a bit of dirt on their shoe, and @Fozzie doesn't deserve the  crap he's getting  either 

 

Edited April 9 by billysugger
Bloody predictive text

[Mississippi Bullfrog]

There are three roads from our village that connect with the town where our sailing club is. Today the genius planners who co-ordinate roadworks managed to close all three roads simultaneously.  

[Fiddlesticks]

2 hours ago, Mississippi Bullfrog said:

There are three roads from our village that connect with the town where our sailing club is. Today the genius planners who co-ordinate roadworks managed to close all three roads simultaneously.  

Didn't this happen once before?

[Fozzie]

22 hours ago, billysugger said:

We all say "it's a job," but it's the job that pays the bills and puts food on the table.

A few years back I had a boss with no man management skills whatsoever, (he was  sideways promoted from an inspection role to be a supervisor, after they decided to "retire" our former boss).

Anyway, we had a few arguments over how I did things,because they didn't meet his interpretation of procedure.

Amongst the worse, I ended up in the office because a job I was doing I did right handed, yet to him it was the wrong way, because he showed me how he wanted it done, left handed, which I am not.

The managers response? " you know what he's like, just put up with him". I'm sorry, but no, I won't just put up with it, he's an ar*ehole.

After a couple of more incidents I actually hit him.it was one punch, with the palm of the hand rather than a fist, and knocked him flying. End result, voluntarily leave or face charges for assault, I chose to leave.

Nobody has the right to treat me like a bit of dirt on their shoe, and @Fozzie doesn't deserve the  crap he's getting  either 

 

 

I think both you and Rennie are right respectively. It is just a job in that there are others I could walk into and no one job is worth your health. But equally you're right in that we shouldn't be treated like crap just because we have bills to pay. I'm going to have to work to find some kind of balance.

 

I've actually got a story where I nearly punched a manager nearly 10 years back. Bully type with a HR record to match. After 18 months of a weird cat and mouse game where I avoided him, he got me to crack on something and hold my ground. I remained calm through his rant and kept things professional, but the moment he laid hands on me to force me back from my desk, it instantly changed the situation. I thought I would be getting sacked, so chose to make my full feelings clear to the overall manager in a heated 2 hour exchange. I was moved to a different department, then promoted 3 months later (to a role the last manager had been dangling in front of me like a carrot). 

 

I've had very few dramas since then. I know I'm not very compatible with office politics, as I'm also bad with social politics. So I abstain from it as much as I can. 

[billysugger]

I also had a near miss, several years back at the tender age of 21. I was learning machine setting on auto lathes, but the company closed down, leaving about 700 out of work. I was lucky in the fact I had seen it coming so had sourced a replacement job for a very small engineering firm, where I was supposed to be continuing my training. Well, I ended up with a right nobhead for a instructor. Now, no-one expects to start at the top in a job, but neither do you expect to be a lackey, which is exactly what I became. Instead of learning the machines, (which, incidentally I was quite capable of setting on my own) I was reduced to sweeping up, correcting  his mistakes or fetching him a bacon roll from a local cafe, when he turned up late to work. After one incident where he told me to sweep up before I left work, another colleague had cottoned on to what was going on, told me to go home and he would sort it. Next morning, true to form nob turns up late, then starts ranting the place is a tip, until the colleague said that he did the cleaning last night and if he's got anything to say  to say it to him. Oh the look on nobs face was a picture, but it only made matters worse. I reported him to the two owners, and requested they do something about the situation. We both got called to their office, where I gave my account of what was happening, in front of nobhead so he knew what was going on. After I'd finished I was asked to wait outside, and I could hear most of the conversation. The upshot, he's yelling if you do anything he will quit, and they would be in the shit without him, etc. They called me back in and gave their lame excuses as to nothing was going to happen to him so  told them both to grow a pair, and I was not going to stay and accept the status quo, so I  walked out

Edited April 9 by billysugger
Bloody predictive text

[Mississippi Bullfrog]

8 hours ago, Fiddlesticks said:

Didn't this happen once before?

Last time they closed two roads and held a traffic survey on the third. When I filtered to the front and told the police officer that the other two roads were closed so the traffic survey was A) causing chaos, and B) completely unrepresentative of usual traffic he called itnoff. 

[onesea]

Ok I sold my trophy, insurance tax on 2 bike policy? 

Insurance premium went up by £57 and £40 charge. 

How the hell did that work. 

 

Sell the 1200cc 136mph bike keep the 411cc 70mph bike and your premium goes up?

 

Legalized money laundering I tell you.

[Mississippi Bullfrog]

9 hours ago, onesea said:

Ok I sold my trophy, insurance tax on 2 bike policy? 

Insurance premium went up by £57 and £40 charge. 

How the hell did that work. 

 

Sell the 1200cc 136mph bike keep the 411cc 70mph bike and your premium goes up?

 

Legalized money laundering I tell you.

That's not good. I am planning to retire next year and was going to sell my CBF. I have two bikes on a multi bike policy. But if the insurance is going to rise then it's cheaper to keep it. The road tax would be cheaper than the insurance increase. 

[husoi]

1 hour ago, Mississippi Bullfrog said:

That's not good. I am planning to retire next year and was going to sell my CBF. I have two bikes on a multi bike policy. But if the insurance is going to rise then it's cheaper to keep it. The road tax would be cheaper than the insurance increase. 

I don't understand how I never had to pay any fees for cancelling the insurance due to selling the bike or car.

True I never got a good deal in multi vehicle insurance so I never had to do it. But every time I have cancelled a policy I only had to call them. Say the vehicle was sold and even got refunds for the remaining time in the policy that I didn't use.

 

Are you guys sure you're doing it the right way?

[Mississippi Bullfrog]

2 hours ago, husoi said:

I don't understand how I never had to pay any fees for cancelling the insurance due to selling the bike or car.

True I never got a good deal in multi vehicle insurance so I never had to do it. But every time I have cancelled a policy I only had to call them. Say the vehicle was sold and even got refunds for the remaining time in the policy that I didn't use.

 

Are you guys sure you're doing it the right way?

I suspect the refund amount already had the charge deducted for making a change to the policy mid term. 

 

With insurance companies cutting corners it's now standard that any change during the period of cover incurs a charge. It's a rip off considering all they need to do is press a few buttons, but nearly all of them do it.

 

The only one I've found which doesn't is LV. I had to change my mother's insurance and they were brilliant.  

[onesea]

2 hours ago, husoi said:

I don't understand how I never had to pay any fees for cancelling the insurance due to selling the bike or car.

True I never got a good deal in multi vehicle insurance so I never had to do it. But every time I have cancelled a policy I only had to call them. Say the vehicle was sold and even got refunds for the remaining time in the policy that I didn't use.

 

Are you guys sure you're doing it the right way?

8 years of multi bike insurance I probably saved more than I have lost

[husoi]

Then you have countries like Indonesia where insurance is optional.

Same as highway code 

traffic lights 

parking 

helmets 

Headlights

Rear lights....

 

[S-Westerly]

7 hours ago, husoi said:

Then you have countries like Indonesia where insurance is optional.

Same as highway code 

traffic lights 

parking 

helmets 

Headlights

Rear lights....

 

Also death in an RTA which may not be optional if you are the unlucky one. If it's anything like Malaysia the number of passengers a bike can carry is entirely optional too. 

[bonio]

13 hours ago, husoi said:

Then you have countries like Indonesia where insurance is optional.

Same as highway code 

traffic lights 

parking 

helmets 

Headlights

Rear lights....

 

Same in Egypt. Friends of mine were once in a taxi in Cairo, when the driver took a left turn in the dark (no-one in Cairo actually turns their car lights on unless they think they're about to hit someone) and so they ended up driving along the tram lines. Problem was, the tramway at this point was bollarded off from the rest of the road and was laid as a proper railway line. At first, while they were just bumpty-bumping over the sleepers, it wasn't so bad, but when they heard the horn of the oncoming tram in the dark, they decided enough was enough and opened the doors of the moving car and jumped for their lives. As it happened, the tram stopped in time. However, no-one could persuade the taxi driver to leave his car. And of course the tram wasn't going anywhere, either.

Edited April 24 by bonio

[S-Westerly]

9 hours ago, bonio said:

Same in Egypt. Friends of mine were once in a taxi in Cairo, when the driver took a left turn in the dark (no-one in Cairo actually turns their car lights on unless they think they're about to hit someone) and so they ended up driving along the tram lines. Problem was, the tramway at this point was bollarded off from the rest of the road and was laid as a proper railway line. At first, while they were just bumpty-bumping over the sleepers, it wasn't so bad, but when they heard the horn of the oncoming tram in the dark, they decided enough was enough and opened the doors of the moving car and jumped for their lives. As it happened, the tram stopped in time. However, no-one could persuade the taxi driver to leave his car. And of course the tram wasn't going anywhere, either.

Joined a ship once in Suez and the night time drive from Cairo was one of the more terrifying events in my life. High speed driving in the dark with no f**king lights! Why??? Bloody great trucks looming out of the dark - no lights of course - sudden swerve out and desperately hoping there's not another insane bast*rd coming the other way. 

[onesea]

2 hours ago, S-Westerly said:

Joined a ship once in Suez and the night time drive from Cairo was one of the more terrifying events in my life. High speed driving in the dark with no f**king lights! Why??? Bloody great trucks looming out of the dark - no lights of course - sudden swerve out and desperately hoping there's not another insane bast*rd coming the other way. 

Yeah Egypt is scary, it was one place we where put in a hotel and not allowed to travel to our base of a night. 

I did a 4 hour journey multiple times over afew years. 

 

I didn't ever do that journey without seeing significant fresh blood on the road.

[JRH]

On 23/04/2025 at 09:22, husoi said:

I don't understand how I never had to pay any fees for cancelling the insurance due to selling the bike or car.

True I never got a good deal in multi vehicle insurance so I never had to do it. But every time I have cancelled a policy I only had to call them. Say the vehicle was sold and even got refunds for the remaining time in the policy that I didn't use.

 

Are you guys sure you're doing it the right way?

Sold my caravan and phoned to cancel insurance, £20 admin fee.

[S-Westerly]

Now that's a  rip off. 

[onesea]

Not mine this time but I liked the sentiments 

[bud]

1 hour ago, onesea said:

Not mine this time but I liked the sentiments 

The reply says it all.

I know not all disabilities are physical. But partaking in a disabled bay is just wrong.

[Fiddlesticks]

We had a guy at work who was 150% disabled - he got points for various different ailments that added up to more than 100. He used to complain about people jumping in the disabled parking, to which his colleague gave the old, "well, not all disabilities are visible".

 

His response: "No. But the best ones are." 

[S-Westerly]

The large container ship who when a squall came through last night at 0200 (of course) failed to realise she was dragging her anchor and setting down on to me until my 2/O called him and told him. Cue panic and pandemonium. We were looking at having to slip our own anchor to keep away from him when he managed to get himself under control and bugger off. 350m might sound quite a lot but not when you are 360 m long. That's how close he was. Idiot. Hopefully the OOW on there got a severe bollocking. 

[Fiddlesticks]

6 minutes ago, S-Westerly said:

350m might sound quite a lot

No, it sounds crazy close!

Glad you got an answer on the radio. It doesn't seem guaranteed these days.