Non-motoring > Christmas woes.	Miscellaneous
Thread Author: Ted	Replies: 26

New Sat 8 Jan 22 14:26   Christmas woes. - Ted

Not wishing to add onto Zippy's post, our own problems hit us this Winter. A week or so before, microwave packed up. Had a spare in the workshop so banged that in to cope over the break. In the morning. SWM decided to clean oven, it's a self cleaning one, 'peripatetic or paralytic ' or summat like that. A few minutes in, the inner glass door exploded ! Rang shop who supplied, they are very good, however a new glass would be £160 plus fitting ." Next Wednesday ok ? If it don't not come we'll lend you an oven." Waited 'til Chrimbo over to look at microwaves, same shop. Our was fitted above the oven so size critical. I took the surround with me for size. Only one suitable but the flap door above wouldn't close by about 4mm. They suggested moving the hinges......no way, it's a quality kitchen and the holes for the hinges couldn't be moved 'cos they are machined. " Cut the bottom of the flap then " No, I don't think so, raw edge of chipboard above steamy cooker...not good. " Cut top of flap then " er, no, hinges would still be in same place. There is a small gap at top so I might be able to get a little adjustment on the hinges, which are at the top, of course ! Not tried yet. If that works, I shall have to try and lift the outer door of the fridge/freezer next to it to match the top line. After New Year I went down to the garage to get a loaf from no.3 freezer and it was soft, but still cold. Hurriedly emptied it into the other two and threw some stuff away, checked the fuse but there are no lights or anything on the freezer, Left a small jar of water in overnight and it was ice in the morning. It seemed to be ok so put a couple of coins on the ice and they're still on top. I'll leave it in after we've put the food back as it seems the only way to tell if it's working or not. What a kerfuffle, Glass door £160, Fitting £50 and microwave £230. At least we got away with the freezer, touch wood ! Oh, and the Combi is losing pressure, There's a drip under the boiler and I get 9 or 10 days between top-ups. Will be using my British Gas maintenance thingy now the holliers are over. It's all money, still, thanks to the attentions of a firm of Heir Hunters last Summer, we can more easily afford it now. but that's another story ! Ted Reply to this message | Report message

New Sat 8 Jan 22 14:53   Christmas woes. - smokie

"but that's another story" C'mon, out with it!!! You can't not tell us now!!! Sorry to hear about the other problems though... Reply to this message | Report message

New Sat 8 Jan 22 14:57   Christmas woes. - tyrednemotional

...yeah, spill the beans Lord Ted... Reply to this message | Report message

New Sat 8 Jan 22 21:28   Christmas woes. - VxFan

Is No.3 freezer in the garage suitable for use in cold locations? Some aren't and in cold weather won't work properly. Reply to this message | Report message

New Sat 8 Jan 22 22:14   Christmas woes. - legacylad

Ted....want to buy an almost new Focus Active Estate ? Lovely heated steering wheel for those chilly mornings, pano roof, head up display...even a B & O sound system. Embarrassingly frugal. You know it makes sense Reply to this message | Report message

New Sat 8 Jan 22 22:29   Christmas woes. - Ted

The garage is heated 'cos of the Jowett and the trains but it's a very old freezer, maybe 30yrs so it's a bit getting on, like me. Buy a Ford ?? OMG ! Quite happy with my 19 yr old RAV4 5 door 2 litre petrol auto. No turbo or cambelt to keep me awake at night ! Leather, satnav, 6 CD and tape. Tows 17ft van like it's got a pair ! I'll post about the Heir Hunters tomoz, It's an interesting process, anyone else been ' got ' ? Ted Reply to this message | Report message

New Sat 8 Jan 22 23:35   Christmas woes. - zippy

>>Cookers... Like all modern devices, your cooker and microwave have been fitted with a device that senses urgent business and fail just at the right time. In your case Xmas was coming up and they both knew. This phenomenon is even more prevalent in laptops, printers, cars etc. :-) >>£150 for a glass door. It always surprises me as to how expensive spares can be! Glad you got it all sorted Ted and look forward to your briefing on the Heir Hunters! What Jowett do you have? The Jupiter is a fine looking sports car. Reply to this message | Report message

New Sun 9 Jan 22 23:44   Christmas woes. - Ted

She's a black Javelin, Zippy, 70 yrs old this June and in my custody since 1972. Never fancied a Jupiter although now they make around £30K ! In 2019 I received a glossy brochure with a letter from a probate research company in London. Knowing that all my ancestors were dead now, I ignored it until some weeks later a letter came asking me if I would sign up and then I would find out the deal. Nothing to lose, I did so. Later I got a family tree from a barristers firm with details of the deceased and a tree of where I fitted in, together with a few other people, including cousins, My maternal Grandmother had a load of kids, she was born in 1879 and her kids came along from 1903 to 1919. Of course, I knew them as my Aunts and Uncles. All dead now. I knew, from Ancestry research that Gran had siblings, some had died in infancy, a couple never married and one or two never had offspring. The youngest was JW, who died in '51 but I couldn't find anything else about him really, he may have gone abroad. Our benefactor was his daughter AW, unmarried, no children, 1931 to 2017. Never heard of her but was my Mum's first cousin. Me ole Mum had never mentioned her. The barristers were working from offices in a very upmarket town on the Costa del Sol and AW had died intestate. It took just over 2 years to sort her estate out, she owned a flat in a very upmarket seaside village overlooking the marina, which was crammed with ocean going Yachts. There was jewellery, artwork and antiques, although I never saw any of this. I found the block of flats on Streetview but that was all, very Art Deco and posh ! It seems, as she had no issue, the estate went to her father JW but as he was long gone and, I presume his wife before him, then it had to be split between his siblings, who were all dead. It then filtered down to me and my cousins through my mother and her mother, his sister., all of whom were also gone My share dropped into my bank account in October last year. It was a humungous amount, The flat alone made over £2M or however may Euros that was. The whole amount was split between 6 beneficiaries, I didn't have time to kill the others ! I over-indulged myself and spent £59 on a new model railway locomotive ! I don't know whether to pay off the National Debt or my 3 kid's mortgages. As regards begging letters, I think I'll probably keep sending them out, even with a second class stamp at over 60p But wait, indulge me a little more, there's a bonus. My mother had a brother, Rob. He married in 1936, had a little girl, J, in 1938 and was killed in 1940 in the South Atlantic. His widow married again in '44 and moved away. She and the girl, our 1st cousin disappeared from the Family. It has been a topic in our family since the war, " What happened to J, is she alive, where is she ?" I knew the mother's new name but the trail ran out in Hertfordshire. When the family tree arrived, my mum's siblings were listed with me and my cousins listed below, but no names given. Under Rob's name was ' female beneficiary ' It could only be J and she was still alive. One of my cousins mailed the barristers to ask if they would pass his contact details to J, if it was her. Later he had an email from J, living in Canada and just widowed. We're now in touch regularly. She knew nothing of any of us or her Aunts and uncles or the previous generation as her mother had wiped us all off the family history. Finding J was the cherry on the cake ! Missing for 74 years ! Sorry if it's been a bit of a long post and probably of little interest but it shows how clever these investigators are finding people and addresses. Ted Reply to this message | Report message       9

New Mon 10 Jan 22 00:00   Christmas woes. - smokie

A happy story, makes a change from the tales of woe we usually get here :-) Very nice, thanks for your effort in typing it up!! Reply to this message | Report message

New Mon 10 Jan 22 00:30   Christmas woes. - zippy

Ditto. That has put a smile on my face and fantastic to hear of your good fortunes, especially in finding a long lost relation! Reply to this message | Report message

New Mon 10 Jan 22 09:47   Christmas woes. - Zero

2 Million? The Spanish Costas? a Widow? I'm thinking,, the Hatton Garden Job, Brinks Mat, Securitas............. Reply to this message | Report message

New Mon 10 Jan 22 09:51   Christmas woes. - R.P.

Or the local gas-works ! Reply to this message | Report message

New Mon 10 Jan 22 12:32   Christmas woes. - Fullchat

Congratulations on your good fortune Ted. Enjoy! I do however feel you were a bit rash on your first purchase. You need to reign it in a bit. We will. of course. now be expecting covered valet parking if we use Manchester Airport. :) Last edited by: Fullchat on Mon 10 Jan 22 at 12:33 Reply to this message | Report message

New Mon 10 Jan 22 20:56   Christmas woes. - John Boy

Nice story, Ted, heartwarming and funny too. Congratulations. Reply to this message | Report message

New Mon 10 Jan 22 22:13   Christmas woes. - Ted

>> We will. of course. now be expecting covered valet parking if we use Manchester Airport. >> :) > No chance of valet service or cover but anyone flying by Manchester is very welcome to park here, ( especially if your tyres are the same size as mine ) I have plenty of room and I'm 200 yds from a station on the airport tram line. Parking there is a real rip-off. Of course, a bottle of something duty free might be acceptable on return but not obligatory.> Ted Reply to this message | Report message

New Mon 10 Jan 22 22:15   Christmas woes. - Ted

Maybe a very high class hooker, Z ! Ted Reply to this message | Report message

New Mon 10 Jan 22 22:31   Christmas woes. - legacylad

That’s most kind of you Ted. I think the last time I flew out of MAN was with BMI to Chicago. At least 10 years ago before I came to my senses and began to use AMS as a hub airport. Leeds Bradford with Jet2 & Ryanair is now my go to. I’d hate to inconvenience you shuttling the new 911 around on your drive. Nice story ! Reply to this message | Report message

New Mon 10 Jan 22 22:44   Christmas woes. - Ted

Thanks. The tyres wouldn't suit SWM's Micra ! Ted Reply to this message | Report message

New Mon 10 Jan 22 22:48   Christmas woes. - Runfer D'Hills

Whoa whoa whoa LL…the what ?????? Reply to this message | Report message

New Mon 10 Jan 22 23:21   Christmas woes. - legacylad

Ted’s 911.....he’s hiding it under a bushel.....next to the Jowett. I’m still shuffling around in Henry. Good ole 3cyl Henry. Wanna buy it ? Reply to this message | Report message

New Tue 11 Jan 22 08:17   Christmas woes. - Runfer D'Hills

In truth LL, it is the sort of car I "should" buy. Good loadspace, affordable, economical, almost certainly reliable and pleasant enough to drive. Bit of extra ground clearance too without being too tall to put bikes on top of it. All round, it would probably suit me rather well. Reply to this message | Report message

New Tue 11 Jan 22 08:27   Christmas woes. - legacylad

Indeed it is. A lovely practical , fine handling car with every conceivable option...I particularly like the head up display and large opening pano roof, plus the heated steering wheel as I had previously on Barbie mobile. After 8 months ownership, the fact I still haven’t transferred the prat plate speaks volumes. I’m seriously considering an i30 Fastback N and compromising on the lack of a sunroof and some practicality....initial plans to take it to Spain changed after considering Ferry costs vs cheap flights and back to normal cheap rentals. Reply to this message | Report message

New Tue 11 Jan 22 09:31   Christmas woes. - Zero

>> All round, it would >> probably suit me rather well. Two short of a 6 pack is unfortunate, but three? Reply to this message | Report message

New Tue 11 Jan 22 10:19   Christmas woes. - Runfer D'Hills

Yeah fair point Z, fair point. Reply to this message | Report message

New Tue 11 Jan 22 08:53   Christmas woes. - tyrednemotional

>> Ted’s 911.... ...judging by the amount he's splashed out on buying a locomotive, that'll be the "Matchbox" version.... Reply to this message | Report message

New Tue 11 Jan 22 14:01   Christmas woes. - Ted

No Porsche for me, I drove most of them when I had my own business, which included delivering classics. I've always liked practical everyday stuff. I recall bringing a 911 North from Harwich on trade plates. On the A1, in the wee small hours, I was bimbling along at a leisurely 115 mph when a set of lights rushed up behind me, overtook and was gone in a flash ! B*gger me !.......it was a Rover SD1 ! I didn't try and catch it, it was probably unmarked Dibble on a shout ! Ted Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 12 Jan 22 21:08   Christmas woes. - Dave_

>> It's an interesting process, anyone else been ' got ' ? I'm halfway through something similar Ted; I was already party to the situation but it's fascinating to find out about the distant family members whose existence you only vaguely recall being told about decades ago. Reply to this message | Report message