Squaredy

Well said. Sadly we do need some level of government. But we need to see the truth that most things governments manage are run badly. Why would governments be great at running education, health, defence, transport, infrastructure, etc, etc, etc? Who can name a government run service in the UK which is run really well? I don't think I can...

I am sure you are right the pay rises in the last 15 years have not been what some doctors would have liked. Nevertheless, year one earnings for a wet-behind-the-ears doctor average £41,300. And they only go up year on year. It is not a badly paid profession!

I don’t use eBay much any more, though I used to sell loads through the site. Surely eBay don’t stop you looking at an item you are considering buying do they? After all, some of the items listed are worth many thousands, and surely only a fool parts with that sort of money without checking the item exists and what condition it is in?

Are you just giving away the dehumidifier? I don’t see a kiln in the pictures.

Not sure. I am just hoovering up now, then I am going for a dip in the jacuzzi, and maybe will throw my frisbee a while; finally if I get a chance I will google it.....!

The word hoover without a capital letter means vacuum cleaner as a noun, and as a verb meaning to clean with a vacuum cleaner.

He doesn't make Hoovers. But he does make hoovers.

I ask in all seriousness; and personally I always like reading views that conflict with my own. But after the promise not to raise taxes and then Wednesday's £40 billion tax raising budget, is there anyone who actually supports them still? I hope this doesn't simply become a silly name calling thread. Maybe someone will raise some good points.

It is probably worth a reminder that he also employees 3500 people in the UK in research and development etc; mainly at his Wiltshire academy, which has a very good reputation for it's apprenticeship scheme which has a starting salary of something like £23,000. I am proud that I employ one and a half people in my business...

I don’t have a DCPU, but is this now saying that they will attract the same Benefit In Kind tax treatment as cars? If so that will be a blow for a lot of people.

I am sure most of us would acknowledge that house prices (and therefore rental costs) have gone off the scale in many parts of the UK. I was brought up in a nice part of Surrey, and by the time I started work at age 17 (in 1987) I knew I had zero hope of buying a nice little starter house (in a reasonable area this would have been maybe ten times my yearly income). So when my parents said they were moving back to Wales I moved with them, and easily bought a house near Ebbw Vale. That was a long time ago. And since then this problem has become a huge issue in many areas. My brother lives in a crowded part of Bristol in a smallish two bedroom terraced house - worth around £400,000. How does a worker (even with a fairly decent wage) hope to get a house unless they inherit at these prices? Because of Bristol prices my area (Newport South Wales) is now becoming silly as well. And what about the youngsters being brought up in Devon and Cornwall, where they feel at home, but know they will have to move away or live with their parents? The system is broken, and there would be an outcry (from many property owners) if house prices started dropping. So I am afraid it is what we are stuck with. I guess the best we can hope for is huge wage inflation over the coming years without correspondingly huge house price increases. But the result of large wage rises would of course be huge inflation, so no-one really wins. It should never have been allowed to get this far, but every colour of government in recent decades has failed to tackle this problem.

Ah no, that is my site!

I would say about half. Just as well I sell the final timber by volume, not weight!

I realised we have a thread all about what we are currently milling, but not one about logs we have managed to get. So I have started one with my delivery today of coastal redwood from the Forest of Dean. Fair play they are great logs - just twelve of them to make up a full lorry load - over 24 tons. No plans yet about milling, but some will be kept at their full 4.8m length and some will be cut in half to a more manageable 2.4m. Most will fit on my woodmizer, but a couple will have to go on the chainsaw mill as they are so wide. I am a big fan of sequoia. Beautiful, durable and strong. I see it as a great alternative to oak for people who fancy a wooden structure but want an easy life when it comes to movement, shrinkage, drying etc. I am trying to find out the planting date. It looks like it was either 1945 or 1957, but yet to be confirmed. And by the way, these are second and third lengths. The first lengths went to carvers apparently. So I guess this whole load was just four trees. That is some serious growth. IMG_1491.MP4

I love following the test matches on the wireless. I took a wrong turn this morning in my van and had to join a half hour queue to get back on the right road….but I didn’t mind too much as Root and Brook kept me entertained.