I don't have a principle here, to be honest. If there are readies sloshing around in my pocket and I can easily spare them and the person asking seems to need them more than I do I'm happy to hand them over. It's hard for me to refrain from doing an unconscious plausibility test though, especially since I saw a mendicant gentleman in the avenue Mozart in Paris who had one arm when he was on duty and two again as soon as his shift finished. There was also a lady du troisième âge in the Métro who used to hold out her hand at passers-by and bark « S'IL VOUS PLAÎT ! » - I'm afraid my readies remained pocketed.

And I've seen a couple of accordionists who had clearly picked up the instrument for the first time not too long before. They would have had more luck if they'd just asked me for the price of a beer.

For once the posters are correct-the guys after 40p want to call their dealers for more credit, and anyone after any unspecified amount is trying to pay them off. The beggars in Elephant and Castle tube are an enterprise syndicate evidently and do very well out of it-of course some of them may have slipped through the statutory net and are in some murderous squat somewhere.
Onwards and upwards, hearken ye if youre passing to the looped (not lopped)pop classics in Vauxhall and Brixton tube lobbies-designed to stop yoof loitering , but with oldies has the opposite effect (on nothing more addictive than stuff from the pie stall)there's a cracking Francs-Juges overture on the tape, which has particular resonance adjacent to the MI5 building. Berlioz/davis/LSO tonight, but alack my salary is two days tardy. OK for Friday though.

I tend to give money to buskers but not beggars.

Among the joys of Scotland are the Irn Bru TV adverts, which only occasionally make it south of the border. (For those not aware, it's Scotland's national soft drink, fill of sugar and reputedly a brilliant hangover cure.) Every commercial is a little classic, with no expense spared, and I've been thrilled to see that last year's Christmas episode is being given a second run. Acquaintance with a certain animated seasonal classic and Scottish landmarks an advantage for this one, I think you'll find: enjoy....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xfiqrkV_ZqI

Thanks for that Ron, we haven't seen that one south of Nuneaton. In fact the last one I saw was 'made from girders' a long  long time ago. In Adsa here you can only buy Irn-Bru in cans - I see the lad in the video had a can.

John W

Good News Re An ISP Shock Horror

My broadband receive speed seems to have suddenly increased from c1Mb/s to almost 1.9Mb/s!

I've got Rokario Bandwidth Monitor installed so I've just done a couple of downloads and used it to check the speed - it said c 1.8 Mb/s max.

I'm with Tiscali on a 1Mb package and, since they do 2Mb for the same price, I did check a few days ago to see if I could get the increased speed and was told I couldn't (I'm a long way from the exchange because I'm on the "wrong" exchange for where I live). I've just looked to see if they've emailed me to tell me the good news but can't find anything.

I just hope it lasts.

Edit: just checked my account and I'm still on the "up to 1Mb" package and "up to 2Mb" now costs £2 more.

  Need sunglasses for that, Lord B!

Found this rather nice ukulele playing (makes a change from GF!) whilst searching for info on ukuleles (might make good Christmas pressies for the kids):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=puSkP3uym5k

Does she realise this yet?