Profile for mhoulden:
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- a member for 13 years, 5 months and 12 days
- has posted 4 messages on the main board
- (of which 1 have appeared on the front page)
- has posted 0 messages on the talk board
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- has posted 6 stories and 3 replies on question of the week
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» Little Victories
Zap
Is it 5 years I've been lurking here, or more?
Anyway, for my first post, my dad died just before xmas. While we were sorting through his things we found an unpaid utility bill. I sent a grumpy letter to the power company to explain the situation and quoted their customer charter back at them. A week or so later they replied and said that they were going to write off the bill, and also that they weren't previously aware that my dad's last two addresses were part of sheltered housing accommodation complexes. They are now. Power companies are required by law to make special provision for vulnerable customers, such as older people who may only have small pensions to live off. This was too late for my dad but hopefully it'll make a difference to the 40 - 50 other people living there.
(Sun 13th Feb 2011, 3:21, More)
Zap
Is it 5 years I've been lurking here, or more?
Anyway, for my first post, my dad died just before xmas. While we were sorting through his things we found an unpaid utility bill. I sent a grumpy letter to the power company to explain the situation and quoted their customer charter back at them. A week or so later they replied and said that they were going to write off the bill, and also that they weren't previously aware that my dad's last two addresses were part of sheltered housing accommodation complexes. They are now. Power companies are required by law to make special provision for vulnerable customers, such as older people who may only have small pensions to live off. This was too late for my dad but hopefully it'll make a difference to the 40 - 50 other people living there.
(Sun 13th Feb 2011, 3:21, More)
» School Naughtiness
Teachers' birthdays generally aren't publicised to their kids, and for good reason. However one time a couple of lads in my form found out when our form tutor's birthday was and decided to give him a surprise present. During the lunch break they got a load of silly string, toilet roll, tin cans and the like and decorated his car with them. When it came to afternoon registration our tutor took us all up to the staff car park and showed us what they'd done so we could have a good laugh. It was only then that he pointed out they'd got the wrong car.
(Sun 11th Sep 2011, 0:29, More)
Teachers' birthdays generally aren't publicised to their kids, and for good reason. However one time a couple of lads in my form found out when our form tutor's birthday was and decided to give him a surprise present. During the lunch break they got a load of silly string, toilet roll, tin cans and the like and decorated his car with them. When it came to afternoon registration our tutor took us all up to the staff car park and showed us what they'd done so we could have a good laugh. It was only then that he pointed out they'd got the wrong car.
(Sun 11th Sep 2011, 0:29, More)
» Little Victories
On the bike
One time I was cycling down a hill when a carload of chavs drove past and blasted an air horn at me to try and scare me. Afterwards they sped off, and were flashed by the speed camera just round the corner.
(Wed 16th Feb 2011, 22:33, More)
On the bike
One time I was cycling down a hill when a carload of chavs drove past and blasted an air horn at me to try and scare me. Afterwards they sped off, and were flashed by the speed camera just round the corner.
(Wed 16th Feb 2011, 22:33, More)
» Awesome teachers
UMIST, 1998
Pay as you go mobile phones were just becoming popular in the late 1990s (I got my first one in 1999) and the phenomenon of people having their phones ring during lectures was also just coming in. During one lecture in the biggest lecture theatre on campus (R/C16, if it means anything to anyone here) it happened and the lecturer walked over, grabbed the phone, asked who it was, and said "He'd rather be with me than with you. Goodbye." The phone owner was quickly taught not to answer calls from his girlfriend during lectures again.
This lecturer was quite a sound bloke with a decent sense of humour and could be supportive if you needed advice. His research interests were in assistive technology for the blind, and he developed the screen reader in Windows 2000.
(Fri 18th Mar 2011, 22:53, More)
UMIST, 1998
Pay as you go mobile phones were just becoming popular in the late 1990s (I got my first one in 1999) and the phenomenon of people having their phones ring during lectures was also just coming in. During one lecture in the biggest lecture theatre on campus (R/C16, if it means anything to anyone here) it happened and the lecturer walked over, grabbed the phone, asked who it was, and said "He'd rather be with me than with you. Goodbye." The phone owner was quickly taught not to answer calls from his girlfriend during lectures again.
This lecturer was quite a sound bloke with a decent sense of humour and could be supportive if you needed advice. His research interests were in assistive technology for the blind, and he developed the screen reader in Windows 2000.
(Fri 18th Mar 2011, 22:53, More)
» Terrified!
PIFs
I'm sure we've all got our own stories about these, but for me it was being left in front of the TV when I was about 3 or 4 when one came on about fire safety. I can't remember much about it apart from animated flames, but I was terrified of fire for a good few years after that. Didn't help that the house across the road caught fire about the same time so I got to see it for real.
(Thu 5th Apr 2012, 17:16, More)
PIFs
I'm sure we've all got our own stories about these, but for me it was being left in front of the TV when I was about 3 or 4 when one came on about fire safety. I can't remember much about it apart from animated flames, but I was terrified of fire for a good few years after that. Didn't help that the house across the road caught fire about the same time so I got to see it for real.
(Thu 5th Apr 2012, 17:16, More)