Free Flowers?

Via Twitter I've just come across www.freeplant.net - a website that claims it will deliver a free bouquet of flowers to anyone anywhere. Weird. I've put in an order, so we'll see!

eBay madness

When are eBay going to undo their stupid zero-postage policy on book lots? How are sellers supposed to get the books to the buyers if they can't charge for postage? I don't know about other people, but it's a massive disincentive for me to list any books on the site.

AND I notice that many sellers are circumventing this stupid policy by (a) listing their books in categories that allow postage to be added or (b) just adding postage anyway. If eBay want to continue with this stupid policy they need to stop ALL these breaches, but I don't see them doing it. Ergo: scrap this stupid policy.

Idiots.

Improved :(

We had Aldi's frozen lamb shanks for tea tonight. A good product, but somehow not as good as I remembered it. Putting the box into the recycling bin, I spotted the words "Improved Recipe" and I understood. In the shopping context, eight times out of ten "improved" means exactly the opposite. People who buy products buy them because they like them, not because they nearly like them. About the only decent Johnsons baby product was their baby-bath but then they went and changed it and we had to go back to Infacare.

My wife gets more upset about this than I do: she really resents it when her favourite household and toiletry products are suddenly changed. If only there'd been a warning, we could've bought in a couple of years' supply of the original product...

Tunnocks

Back in the nineties, when I first discovered Tunnocks Caramel Wafers, I was won over instantly. The thinness of the chocolate was made up for by the glorious chewiness of the wafer. Then later I found there was a sibling: the intriguing Caramel Log with its roasted coconut coating.

Today, for the first time in ages, I thought I'd treat myself to a pack of wafers, and I can't hide my disappointment: they taste like bleach.

Every Little Helps

I was somewhat gobsmacked when I walked into Tesco in Aston this afternoon. Almost the first thing you see when you walk in is this Darussalam book display. I wasn't sure whether to get my daughter "I Can Wear Hijab Anywhere!" or "Thank You O Allah!"

It was certainly a surprise in the wake of the recent "Please Don't Label Me" billboard campaign. Maybe the billboards should've said "Please Don't Marinade Me".

You can even buy an amazing "laptob" (sic) - a "specious gift for children" (sic again), "very useful for incarcerated persons" (sic!) - trapped in the prison of their tiny minds, no doubt.

No "Hell: Pits of Punishment" though :-( "Full of faith-building information ... A wonderful introduction for impressionable young minds." Maybe if I asked the store manager he could get some in?

I wonder how many UK schools have books like these in their libraries or, god forbid, in their classrooms?

DIY checkouts

Over on the BBC website, a surprisingly long article about such a banal subject. How many words can it take to say "You either like them or you don't"?

I found them a bit tricky to use at first, but I think I've mastered them now!

Christmas at Aldi

☼ Lots of nice Christmassy things at Aldi, including their mini-stollens and Baklava selection (both £1.99). Of course I'd prefer my baklava fresh out of a baking tray, but, as you can see, the Aldi version is popular enough!