Of course, a white Christmas in London is defined as a single snowflake falling on the roof of the London Weather Centre in the 24 hours of 25 December. At least, that's how the bookies define it. The capital has only seen snow on 13% of Christmas days since 1950, but that doesn't stop thousands of people from putting a 'flutter' on it.
Two weeks ago -- before the earliest snow fell in England for 29 years -- the odds of a white Christmas were 6/1, meaning a £100 bet would pay £700. Today that bet would only return £450. Today's forecast is for another artic blast, and so the odds will probably drop even further.
You can also bet on the number one song for Christmas. That is usually the X Factor winner (the equivalent of American Idol), although in the last few years people have conspired against them, buying Leonard Cohen's 'Hallelujah' and Rage Against the Machine. Unfortunately, this year the conspirators have selected a song of silence -- seriously, a four minute track of musicians in the studio not playing. While I think that is very English, I also think it doesn't have a snowball's chance of winning.
And if you're a little more adventurous, you can bet that the lowest recorded temperature in England will be beaten, the Thames will freeze over, or that Big Ben will fail to chime due to being frozen solid. The odds of the latter is 100/1 but, worringly, the odds that the temperature will drop below -26.1C (-15F) are just 16/1.
Monday, December 13, 2010
Saturday, December 11, 2010
Friday, December 10, 2010
Tomas the builder
Even though we haven't bought it yet, Jess and I had an appointment at the new house with a builder (contractor to you).
Ostensibly, we just wanted a quote on a few items the surveyor (inspector to you) had highlighted, including the entire electrical system. In reality, though, it was an excuse to start talking about a house extension.
As I mentioned before, the house is a bog standard 1930's semi-detached with a tiny, dated kitchen. It originally had a small living room and dining room, but the owners had removed the dividing wall and made it one long room, although the dining area was quite dark. Our idea was to add a few feet to the back of the house, put in a lot of glass to lighten it up, and open the wall between the kitchen and dining room.
Of course, the first thing the builder pointed out was that everything we wanted to move was structural.
Fortunately, although I never heard of this in the States, it's quite common here to insert a 'reinforced steel joist' and remove the supporting wall. Of course, it's not cheap. And we are talking about three of them.
So now we're waiting for the builder to come back with a quote. Of course, we'll completely change our plans -- I've already changed them twice today -- but it's quite exciting to be looking at photos and talking about what we want to do.
When the quote comes back and we have to deal with the reality of compromising to meet our budget, that probably won't be as much fun.
Ostensibly, we just wanted a quote on a few items the surveyor (inspector to you) had highlighted, including the entire electrical system. In reality, though, it was an excuse to start talking about a house extension.
As I mentioned before, the house is a bog standard 1930's semi-detached with a tiny, dated kitchen. It originally had a small living room and dining room, but the owners had removed the dividing wall and made it one long room, although the dining area was quite dark. Our idea was to add a few feet to the back of the house, put in a lot of glass to lighten it up, and open the wall between the kitchen and dining room.
Of course, the first thing the builder pointed out was that everything we wanted to move was structural.
Fortunately, although I never heard of this in the States, it's quite common here to insert a 'reinforced steel joist' and remove the supporting wall. Of course, it's not cheap. And we are talking about three of them.
So now we're waiting for the builder to come back with a quote. Of course, we'll completely change our plans -- I've already changed them twice today -- but it's quite exciting to be looking at photos and talking about what we want to do.
When the quote comes back and we have to deal with the reality of compromising to meet our budget, that probably won't be as much fun.
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Entitlement culture
The UK (and indeed, all of Europe) has a much worse entitlement culture than the US, although for the life of me I can't figure out why. Is it pent up frustrations from the middle ages? Or perhaps a competitive environment where politicians tried to 'outpromise' other countries? Whatever the reason, every day there is a front-page article talking about why the government should, is, or will be gifting money to some obscure group, and how upset people are that the government isn't giving more. A few of the results from the past week:
- A recent survey of 10 UK secondary schools (grades 7-12, approximately) found that 337 students said they had carried out some level of "personal care" of someone in their home "some of the time" over the previous month. Extrapolating from that, the survey concluded over 700,000 children in the UK are caring for their parents. Children's Minister for England said it was "shocking" that child carers did not get the support they needed or the recognition they deserved."The Care Services minister (I didn't even realize there was such a position) then announced the government would make £400m available for carers' breaks over the next four years, and the
- I read a heart-rending article about a father who, after his daughter was diagnosed with cancer, successfully campaigned for students to receive "employment support allowance" (ie unemployment benefits) if illness forced them to suspend their courses. It seemed perfectly reasonable...until I found the issue hinged on the word 'suspend' -- since benefits are based on income, and a student loan is considered income, if the student quits school she is entitled to disability benefits, but if she only 'suspends' her studies then she still has access to the student loan, and therefore was denied additional benefits. Suddenly this seemed quite silly.
- Students have been protesting increases to school fees for about a month. Two weeks ago, about 2,000 (out of 50,000) protesters split from the march to surround the Conservative Party HQ, smashing windows and lighting fires. 58 people were arrested and 14 people hurt during the four-hour stand-off. What could cause such chaos? The UK government is proposing raising the tuition cap from £3,290 to £9,000 a year. That's still less than a public college in the States, and the government will pay the entire amount as an interest-free loan which would not have to be repaid until the student had graduated and was earning £21,000 per year. (A graduate earning the median £31,323 per year would repay £77/month.)
- Workers on the London Underground have organised four strikes over the past two months, crippling public transportation, to protest cuts of up to 800 jobs, claiming the cuts would seriously impact safety. Management notes the 800 jobs are for cashiers which have been replaced with automated ticket machines, and they aren't even firing anyone, just not replacing them.
But that still pales next to France, where labor unions have organized six nationwide strikes over the past two months, with between 1 and 3 million demonstrators. This has cost that country nearly US $500 million per day; public transportation has been reduced, motorways have been blocked, refineries have been disrupted, leading to a national fuel shortage, and students have built barracades around 400 high schools. And what is the social injustice that has caused such an uproar? The government has raised the retirement age from 60 to 62.
- A recent survey of 10 UK secondary schools (grades 7-12, approximately) found that 337 students said they had carried out some level of "personal care" of someone in their home "some of the time" over the previous month. Extrapolating from that, the survey concluded over 700,000 children in the UK are caring for their parents. Children's Minister for England said it was "shocking" that child carers did not get the support they needed or the recognition they deserved."The Care Services minister (I didn't even realize there was such a position) then announced the government would make £400m available for carers' breaks over the next four years, and the
- I read a heart-rending article about a father who, after his daughter was diagnosed with cancer, successfully campaigned for students to receive "employment support allowance" (ie unemployment benefits) if illness forced them to suspend their courses. It seemed perfectly reasonable...until I found the issue hinged on the word 'suspend' -- since benefits are based on income, and a student loan is considered income, if the student quits school she is entitled to disability benefits, but if she only 'suspends' her studies then she still has access to the student loan, and therefore was denied additional benefits. Suddenly this seemed quite silly.
- Students have been protesting increases to school fees for about a month. Two weeks ago, about 2,000 (out of 50,000) protesters split from the march to surround the Conservative Party HQ, smashing windows and lighting fires. 58 people were arrested and 14 people hurt during the four-hour stand-off. What could cause such chaos? The UK government is proposing raising the tuition cap from £3,290 to £9,000 a year. That's still less than a public college in the States, and the government will pay the entire amount as an interest-free loan which would not have to be repaid until the student had graduated and was earning £21,000 per year. (A graduate earning the median £31,323 per year would repay £77/month.)
- Workers on the London Underground have organised four strikes over the past two months, crippling public transportation, to protest cuts of up to 800 jobs, claiming the cuts would seriously impact safety. Management notes the 800 jobs are for cashiers which have been replaced with automated ticket machines, and they aren't even firing anyone, just not replacing them.
But that still pales next to France, where labor unions have organized six nationwide strikes over the past two months, with between 1 and 3 million demonstrators. This has cost that country nearly US $500 million per day; public transportation has been reduced, motorways have been blocked, refineries have been disrupted, leading to a national fuel shortage, and students have built barracades around 400 high schools. And what is the social injustice that has caused such an uproar? The government has raised the retirement age from 60 to 62.
London is beautiful
The snow, which has shut down most of the UK over the past 4 days, finally came to London. Of course, I'm watching it on TV -- I'm not crazy enough to actually go outside! The thermometer is not expected to go much above freezing for the rest of the week.
But even through the window, the city really comes into its own, with large gossamer flakes blowing lazily about, giving the city a clean, white sheen. I know at some point I will have to venture out, but I will be prepared--thermal underwear, multiple layers, a warm coat and scarf, possibly even a hat. Fortunately, the Indian takeaway is just a block away.
Winter in England is not like New England -- snow is usually fairly mild, it rarely gets below freezing, and when there is heavy snow, most people have the good sense to stay home. Last year, the heavy snow caught the local councils off guard, and they did not have enough salt to grit the roads. This year, they assure us that won't be a problem, but it is a worying start to winter--snow hasn't fallen in November in 29 years.
The Met Office has predicted a 'dry and mild winter' -- but then again, they said the same thing last year, which turned out to be one of the coldest winters on record.
Winter officially starts tomorrow.
But even through the window, the city really comes into its own, with large gossamer flakes blowing lazily about, giving the city a clean, white sheen. I know at some point I will have to venture out, but I will be prepared--thermal underwear, multiple layers, a warm coat and scarf, possibly even a hat. Fortunately, the Indian takeaway is just a block away.
Winter in England is not like New England -- snow is usually fairly mild, it rarely gets below freezing, and when there is heavy snow, most people have the good sense to stay home. Last year, the heavy snow caught the local councils off guard, and they did not have enough salt to grit the roads. This year, they assure us that won't be a problem, but it is a worying start to winter--snow hasn't fallen in November in 29 years.
The Met Office has predicted a 'dry and mild winter' -- but then again, they said the same thing last year, which turned out to be one of the coldest winters on record.
Winter officially starts tomorrow.
Friday, November 26, 2010
News of the day
Here is today's headline:
How about the rest of the article?
Other headlines today:
- Despite announcing record cuts to most services, the UK government announced it was giving £8 billion (about US $12 billion) to the railways, despite record levels of dissatisfaction, delays, overcrowding, and safety records. Yesterday, Network Rail announced theThameslink project was going to be 2 years later than expected, but by 2018 they should be able to ease the overcrowding.
- The government also announced it was spending £2 million to define a 'happiness index,' something the last government also looked into but abandoned as 'too flaky.'
- London police were called to task yesterday for being 'too aggressive' in response to student protests. Two weeks ago, London police were called to task for being 'too lenient' in response to student protests.
- The weather report is calling for snow this weekend, the earliest snowfall in 17 years. They expect freezing temperatures for a fortnight. (That's two weeks.)
- A comprehensive health report indicates doctors in the South-west are three times more likely to amputate diabetics' limbs than doctors in the South-east. Nobody knows why.
And, of course, endless articles on the upcoming royal nuptials. The only information I deemed relevant was that since April 29 -- which has already been declared a national holiday in England -- is between the 4-day Easter weekend and the 3-day Spring bank holiday weekend, I can take an 11-day holiday with only 3 days off work. Unfortunately, I suspect a lot of other people are making similar plans...
Ashes: Siddle hat-trick shocks England at Gabba
Any idea what they are talking about? Does the byline help?Peter Siddle took a hat-trick on his 26th birthday and a Test-best 6-54 as England's batting was dismantled on the opening day of the first Ashes Test.
How about the rest of the article?
England had reached 197-4 before Siddle had Alastair Cook caught at slip for 67, and then removed Matt Prior and Stuart Broad with his next two balls.
Ian Bell hit out, making a fine 76, but England were all out for a modest 260.
Shane Watson and Simon Katich safely negotiated six overs as Australia replied with 25-0 in Brisbane.
Australia, by contrast, went into the match on the back of three straight Test defeats - but the Gabba has long been a fortress and England made poor use of winning an important toss.
Captain Andrew Strauss lasted just three balls, Jonathan Trott (29) fell when threatening a major innings, and it was a similar case with Kevin Pietersen (43).
Cook, who put on 76 with Pietersen and 72 with Bell, played his part but it was his wicket that triggered the Siddle-inspired collapse that left Australia firmly on top.
I find cricket fascinating only because it so obtuse. They could be writing about anything. They could be writing in another language, it would be just as impenetrable.Other headlines today:
- Despite announcing record cuts to most services, the UK government announced it was giving £8 billion (about US $12 billion) to the railways, despite record levels of dissatisfaction, delays, overcrowding, and safety records. Yesterday, Network Rail announced theThameslink project was going to be 2 years later than expected, but by 2018 they should be able to ease the overcrowding.
- The government also announced it was spending £2 million to define a 'happiness index,' something the last government also looked into but abandoned as 'too flaky.'
- London police were called to task yesterday for being 'too aggressive' in response to student protests. Two weeks ago, London police were called to task for being 'too lenient' in response to student protests.
- The weather report is calling for snow this weekend, the earliest snowfall in 17 years. They expect freezing temperatures for a fortnight. (That's two weeks.)
- A comprehensive health report indicates doctors in the South-west are three times more likely to amputate diabetics' limbs than doctors in the South-east. Nobody knows why.
And, of course, endless articles on the upcoming royal nuptials. The only information I deemed relevant was that since April 29 -- which has already been declared a national holiday in England -- is between the 4-day Easter weekend and the 3-day Spring bank holiday weekend, I can take an 11-day holiday with only 3 days off work. Unfortunately, I suspect a lot of other people are making similar plans...
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Royal wedding bun throw in doubt
As I'm sure everyone in the world has heard, there's going to be a Royal Wedding. However, in one of those stories you couldn't possibly make up, officials in Abingdon County (in Oxfordshire, about 60 miles west of London) are concerned because building works on the County Hall Museum may prevent its tradition of hurling cakes from the top of the building into the crowd below.
According to the BBC, It is thought the custom started in 1760 with the coronation of George III, and is a way to reward the public on special occasions.
Officials are hopeful, however, that once the wedding date is announced, they will be able to schedule the work so civic leaders can get on the roof on that day.
According to the BBC, It is thought the custom started in 1760 with the coronation of George III, and is a way to reward the public on special occasions.
Officials are hopeful, however, that once the wedding date is announced, they will be able to schedule the work so civic leaders can get on the roof on that day.
Only in England...
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Funding
The funding finally seems to be in place, although it has been a ridiculous week.
Originally, we were just taking out a simple mortgage on the new property, but a chance conversation changed all that. Unlike the States, interest on your primary home is not tax-deductible here. However, we found out interest on a rental property is. Since we're planning on renting out Jessica's flat, a back-of-the-envelope calculation showed that by shifting equity from the flat to the house could save us £15,000/year!
So we told the mortgage advisor (who probably should have told us about this in the first place) to rip up the first mortgage application and start over. Last Saturday, we went to sign the final paperwork, and everything fell apart.
All I did was ask if the bank would waive the £699 fee. The mortgage advisor called Monday to say they wouldn't waive the fee...and the interest rate was significantly higher than expected...and they wouldn't loan us as much as we we needed! Jess and I were already quite annoyed with her, and this was the last straw. She had taken nearly three weeks to get the new loan, she obviously hadn't talked to the bank, and she was now costing me money. Two weeks ago I had to argue with her about basic math (she got confused between deposit and loan amount), and we'd both had to sit through endless hours of unrelated paperwork and 'options' (i.e. add-ons). It was too much, and with a few choice words, I told her we'd go direct to the bank.
And we did. In fact, I was at work until 8pm that night filling out a mortgage application over the phone. When I got home, however, I checked online and found a much better rate with another bank...but it was good for one week only, and the bank only worked through mortgage consultants!
So I had to call the advsior back and eat some crow. It was already Tuesday, the application had to be in by the end of the week, she was off on Thursday, and we were out of town Friday! We met on Wednesday to sign the paperwork, and she promised to come in on her day off to ensure there weren't any problems. On Friday -- just as we got on the motorway -- she called to say she'd lost the paperwork.
Fortunately, we had time to stop at our hotel, and they had a fax machine so we were able to get it back on track. The surveyor (appraisor, to you) will be coming tomorrow, so I presume it is all taken care of. At least I hope so, because the rate has gone from 4.25% to 4.8%, which equates to over £1,000/year!
Originally, we were just taking out a simple mortgage on the new property, but a chance conversation changed all that. Unlike the States, interest on your primary home is not tax-deductible here. However, we found out interest on a rental property is. Since we're planning on renting out Jessica's flat, a back-of-the-envelope calculation showed that by shifting equity from the flat to the house could save us £15,000/year!
So we told the mortgage advisor (who probably should have told us about this in the first place) to rip up the first mortgage application and start over. Last Saturday, we went to sign the final paperwork, and everything fell apart.
All I did was ask if the bank would waive the £699 fee. The mortgage advisor called Monday to say they wouldn't waive the fee...and the interest rate was significantly higher than expected...and they wouldn't loan us as much as we we needed! Jess and I were already quite annoyed with her, and this was the last straw. She had taken nearly three weeks to get the new loan, she obviously hadn't talked to the bank, and she was now costing me money. Two weeks ago I had to argue with her about basic math (she got confused between deposit and loan amount), and we'd both had to sit through endless hours of unrelated paperwork and 'options' (i.e. add-ons). It was too much, and with a few choice words, I told her we'd go direct to the bank.
And we did. In fact, I was at work until 8pm that night filling out a mortgage application over the phone. When I got home, however, I checked online and found a much better rate with another bank...but it was good for one week only, and the bank only worked through mortgage consultants!
So I had to call the advsior back and eat some crow. It was already Tuesday, the application had to be in by the end of the week, she was off on Thursday, and we were out of town Friday! We met on Wednesday to sign the paperwork, and she promised to come in on her day off to ensure there weren't any problems. On Friday -- just as we got on the motorway -- she called to say she'd lost the paperwork.
Fortunately, we had time to stop at our hotel, and they had a fax machine so we were able to get it back on track. The surveyor (appraisor, to you) will be coming tomorrow, so I presume it is all taken care of. At least I hope so, because the rate has gone from 4.25% to 4.8%, which equates to over £1,000/year!
Sunday, October 31, 2010
Saturday, October 30, 2010
We bought a house!
Even though we've been searching since June, and have seen at least 50 homes and driven past 150 more, you'd be hard-pressed to understand why we like this house. It's ugly, it needs a lot of work, it's on a crowded street, there is no parking, it feels like its a million miles away from London, and the garden is north-facing, so it won't get much sun in winter.
Yet, we actually quite like it. The rooms are larger than usual except for the kitchen, and we plan to expand the house slightly to fix that. The yard is private, the street is a dead-end, we're surrounded by parks and fields, there's a nice supermarket nearby, it is walking distance to the tube station so it is easy to get into the city, and it has easy access to the M25 so it is easy to get out of the city.
In short, it was a good house in a good area, and we think we got a good deal, so we're happy to do the improvements ourselves.
In addition, most of the residents seem to be older, having raised their families here, so we expect there to be a lot of turnover as they retire to smaller houses, and young families move in. (There is an excellent primary school just three-quarters of a mile away.)
The owners are retiring to Cyprus, so if all goes smoothly we could be in there by the end of November. However, we plan on doing the improvements first, so move-in will more likely be the end of January.
Here is a link to the property and the "before" photos -- I hope to have "after" photos soon!
Yet, we actually quite like it. The rooms are larger than usual except for the kitchen, and we plan to expand the house slightly to fix that. The yard is private, the street is a dead-end, we're surrounded by parks and fields, there's a nice supermarket nearby, it is walking distance to the tube station so it is easy to get into the city, and it has easy access to the M25 so it is easy to get out of the city.
In short, it was a good house in a good area, and we think we got a good deal, so we're happy to do the improvements ourselves.
In addition, most of the residents seem to be older, having raised their families here, so we expect there to be a lot of turnover as they retire to smaller houses, and young families move in. (There is an excellent primary school just three-quarters of a mile away.)
The owners are retiring to Cyprus, so if all goes smoothly we could be in there by the end of November. However, we plan on doing the improvements first, so move-in will more likely be the end of January.
Here is a link to the property and the "before" photos -- I hope to have "after" photos soon!
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