ecuk268

The current problem with annuities is that, due mainly to quantitative easing, the annuity rates have plummeted and are nearly half what they were 20 years ago. As someone who's going to have to make a decision regarding my pension pot in a year or so, I think a good independent financial adviser will be needed.

The biggest obstacle to waterfront access is ABP. When they say "jump" the Council asks "how high?". From Redbridge round to Northam Bridge there's not a lot of unused land and any of it within the docks is off limits as ABP don't want Joe Public wandering around on their land. If Red Funnel can be moved into the docks, the Mayflower Park / Royal Pier / Town Quay area has considerable potential to be re-developed into an attractive place to go.

Didn't Paul Weller base "A Town Called Malice" on Woking?

I'd throw Boardwalk Empire in there as well.

I'm still angry after Tranmere. 3-0 up at half-time. Bloody Paul Rideout....

Totally over the top but very entertaining.

Have I missed something? How many of our good young players have we sold since the we've been in the Premiership? As Mr Sanchez is so confident that these players are off in the summer, he should get down to Ladbrokes and do a nice accumulator.

Similar situation at Selhurst Park with a Sainsburys at one end.

The steward who wanders around the bit of the Chapel where I go has a job to get up the steps he's so fat. Wouldn't want to seem him with his top off.

"This is a hands-on role which will manage and implement strategy as well as manage all customer feedback and the administration of all outbound communication to supporters and clients."

The past is another country, Duncan, they do things differently there (apologies to L.P. Hartley). Those of us who grew up watching Saints before football became "corporate" have fond memories of when it appeared that the supporter had more of a connection with the club although I think that there's a touch of rose-tinted glasses here. The ticket office at The Dell always seemed to think that they were doing you a huge favour by selling you a ticket. We put up with the awful toilets and rubbish catering and getting soaked on the terraces because we didn't know any better. Football is now solely a business and the bottom line is what matters to the suits who run the clubs. So, I imaging that a couple of extra league places and the extra cash that brings in is more important than a cup run and a Europa League spot, neither of which generate much income. There's no doubt that the Sky money has brought much better stadia and facilities but at the expense of the connection, real or imagined, that we used to feel with the club. Personally, I regret the loss of red and white stripes and the replacement of the programme sellers with bimbos (no disrespect, ladies), but you pays your money and you takes your choice. One of the few benefits of growing old is experience and, having watched Saints since '58 (my dad used to lift me over the turnstile, couldn't get away with that now), I think that I prefer today.

As if the people of the Somerset Levels have not suffered enough, The Wurzels are going to hold a benefit concert. http://www.westernmorningnews.co.uk/Wurzels-announce-Somerset-flood-benefit-gig/story-20620400-detail/story.html

The basic problem is that water will only flow down hill so when you have land that is below or only slightly above sea level it's difficult to drain. Dredging the river bed will give a temporary respite but you need a gradient all the way to the estuary. Incoming tides deposit silt in the estuary so you have to maintain the dredging to keep this gradient. The Thames estuary is constantly dredged to maintain the shipping channel and there is regular dredging in Southampton Water and The Solent. A solution that has worked in other areas is to slow down the flow of water off the hills by increased tree planting.

The Transport Secretary has said that there's "no blank cheque" while Dave Cameron says that "money's no object". Good to see a clear policy from the Government.

http://www.thedailymash.co.uk/news/society/mail-demands-foreign-aid-to-be-spent-on-replacing-british-carpets-2014021183451

Don't confuse foreign aid with actually helping people in need. Foreign aid is about political influence.

Probably more Tory voters too.

My dad took me to Swindon on one back in the early 60's. The bonus for a young 10-year old was that the team travelled on the same train. We had to stand all the way there but we walked through the team coach and I was made up when Terry Paine said "hello nipper " to me.

Under-active thyroid can creep up on you over a couple of years. Your metabolism slows down so that your circulation suffers so things don't work as well as they should, also you feel the cold and put on weight. My GP said that I'd be amazed at the difference the thyroxine would make and he was right. Worth getting it checked. Just a simple blood test.

Done. The wife's got a friend in Kenilworth so when Saints were at Highfield Road, she'd visit her mate and me and the nipper would go to the game.

I believe that the law has recently changed in so far as, if the driver is not identified, the legal owner becomes liable. This applies to speed cameras as well as car parks. They may say in their letters that failing to pay will affect your credit rating. This is only true if they get a CCJ and you still don't pay.

That's odd. I logged in at 8.58 and was number 107. Got my usual ticket at about 9.10.

Arsene has been singing our praises: “They have done a remarkable job with their academy,” said Wenger. “If you look at the quality of the [players] they have produced in the last 10 years it is absolutely amazing “They are a club that have produced [Theo] Walcott, [Gareth] Bale, [Luke] Shaw and [Alex Oxlade-] Chamberlain. That explains why they have come up again. They have produced excellent results. There is also [James] Ward-Prowse and [Morgan] Schneiderlin — they have lots of young players. “They are more stable in their philosophy than you would think. They are above [where people] expected and the quality of their displays has been very good. “Everybody who goes today to Southampton knows that they will get a difficult game. “That’s why we want to focus on being at our best because Southampton is a game where you want to take the points but you know we need to fight to get them.”

The Dell was called The Dell because it was in a dell: ie a small wooded valley with a stream running through it. The stream was exposed when a bomb fell on the Milton Road goal area during the war. The stream runs from the Common parallel with Hill Lane and into Southampton Water.

A quiet, intelligent man, but probably too cautious. When he went, the word on the street was that we were getting Harry Redknapp from Bournemouth with Jimmy Case as player/coach. Unfortunately, we got Branfoot and Casey was shown the door. I think that, after the first few months, the majority of fans would have welcomed CN back.