OneGuyFromBarlick

It can't possibly be two years Sue......
I shall be drilling challenging holes.

Travelling by train to Scotland and trying to not worry about leaving Col in charge of the ponies! Funeral tomorrow, but loads of catching up with old friends.

Don't worry about any of your wee boys, Wendy. They will survive...including Colin.
Enjoy the scenery..

It certainly is Stanley and what a chatterbox. A very healthy chubby little two year old with a cheeky grin and just as self willed as her Mum

I wonder where she gets it from?
Wendy, If I was rich and had a limousine and a chauffeur I'd be taking you up there. I keep thinking I'd like to see the West Coast again at least once before I die! (Dream on Kid.....) I hope it all goes well.... Col will survive.

I don't know what you mean Stanley

Single minded I know but I shall continue to pursue quiet progress on the engines.....

Art today, followed by a long leisurely lunch

Trying to get my head round the notice of coding I received from HMRC yesterday. As I read it I have four different ones and I don't know why. They have given me two for LCC, (I have a monthly pension from them and have just started casual employment with them again). They have given me a further two different codes for Standard Life, I think these are regarding a couple of annuities that have matured and are now providing a minor income stream. I have one personal allowance but why four different tax codes?

I have re read it numerous times along with the notes and still can't make head nor tail of it so I'm going to bite the bullet and ring them up. If you hear screams from the Croft you will know why.

Ian, when you reach pension age they stop bothering you...... Bliss!
Communications from the Pendle Benefit Section are even worse.... I don't understand any of them, I just file them.......

Stanley wrote:I wonder where she gets it from?
Wendy, If I was rich and had a limousine and a chauffeur I'd be taking you up there. I keep thinking I'd like to see the West Coast again at least once before I die! (Dream on Kid.....) I hope it all goes well.... Col will survive.

Thank you for the offer of a lift in your limousine Stanley!
I enjoyed my train trip but I was sitting looking backwards on both up & down journeys which I don't really like. Not the West Coast this time though, just West Lothian.
The funeral was for my farming neighbour in Harburn, Robert Rennie, he was 82 and had retired years ago but there was a huge turnout, probably about 120 at the church and nearly that amount for the "afternoon tea" afterwards. The Rennie brothers farmed around West Calder and when we talked about it a few years ago all remembered the Drinkall lorry at Lanark.
I'm glad I went, Robert was the first person I met when we moved in and always had time to stand and pass the time of day. I was often called out to "kep" for him when sheep and cattle were being moved along the road....the main aim being to keep them out of the magnificent garden belonging to a retired Colonel next door to me. They had no gates, and every beast was drawn towards the delicious looking lawns.
Lots of memories stirred.
All OK at home, and today I shall be mainly gardening.

Stanley wrote:Ian, when you reach pension age they stop bothering you...... Bliss!

Until then you still have to talk to them from time to time. I rang yesterday and it would seem they have introduced a change in procedure for telephone contact. My call was answered after three rings with a woman asking for my NI number, she turned out to be an automated voice recognition prompter. She harvested NI number, D.O.B, postcode and full name, each response followed by "is this correct, yes or no". This is actually a much better option than the former plethora of menus and options followed by button presses that used to greet you which usually ended in complete frustration. After gleaning the basic information she then asks you to describe in as few words as possible what you are calling for. The voice system pick up on any key words that you speak and then asks further questions to refine her responses finally presenting you with a statement, mine was, "you are calling with a query about a notice of coding you have received, is this correct, yes or no". I confirmed and was then told that I would be passed to appropriate department for my query.

Time for the merry go round of soothing but repetitive "lift music". My caller display ticked 15 minutes or so away with about 6 repeats of the two bits of music on offer. Finally the music stopped and I heard two rings and then a gent answered greeting me by name. "Hello Mr Lambert I believe you have problem with the notice of coding we sent you?" What a refreshing change, it would seem the system works! He already had all my details on his screen and after asking me to confirm my date of birth and postcode we entered into conversation about my query. Five minutes later we were sorted, he explained why I had four different codes, one for each revenue stream but after I pointed out that three of them were fixed amounts each month he did agree that I didn't need all of the codes I had been issued. I pointed out that if you added all my monthly income up and subtracted it from my personal allowance the resultant tax code for the remainder came to exactly the same as what they stated was my previous code at the top of the sheet. He offered to change it and we parted company.

All fairly painless apart from the torture music in the middle and the 36 minutes of my life shown on the caller display.

All in all it's a better system apart from the delay in the middle, (probably an under staffing issue). Voice recognition interrogation works well and it does insure that you are fed to the right department who already have your details. The gent I was passed to was English, perfectly coherent and seemed willing to sort my problem. Suitably impressed although they could probably do with more staff or a better explanation of the why's on their paperwork, well done for progress made HMRC.

Glad you got sorted Ian but sorry it cost you 15 minutes of your life.
"all remembered the Drinkall lorry at Lanark" That's nice Wendy, Lanark drew in customers from a wide area and I think I remember one called John Rennie.....
Doing very little, I have a back storm.....

Stanley wrote:Ian, when you reach pension age they stop bothering you...... Bliss!....

Don't you believe it! I'm retired and 6000 miles away and they still bother me. For the first 11 years here they never got my coding right, and every year I had to write to them and get things sorted. Last year after I pointed out that I am not a dishonest person, they finally took it on board that I'm living in China and I don't get any State pension increases that they assume I do and thus deduct the wrong amount from my personal allowance. They've marked my file accordingly. I did write to them >10 years ago to inform them that I was living in China and not ordinarily resident in UK. I've got to say that they are always nice people to deal with and problems are quickly resolved.

Nursing a nagging back. Single Malt consumption has risen. Doesn't do the back any good but it makes me feel better!

Ouch Stanley I sympathise. After a day doing some sewing followed by some gardening I too have a nagging back. Hope it is ok for my big event tomorrow at Earby local history society.

I hope you will be OK for tomorrow Sue!

I am ok Wendy, it has eased considerably during the day. I think I must have set during the night. I have been for a swim and dove my Pilates class tonight. All set for tomorrow. How many people do you get at the meetings normally.

Somewhere between 20 & 30 Sue, not a very big group.... unless the talk about railways!

Oh it will be just like being in front of a class again I believe my cousin from Burnley is coming with her partner. ( actually my Dads cousin) I have only met her at my Dads funeral but we both are keen genealogists. She is not related to my convicts but is interested in the story.. The first time I gave the talk there were over 150 people , last week there were about 40.

Bob is in to the history of our local French railway line, long since disappeared.

Sue, trouble with backs is that nobody can see the trouble you're in! I'll be doing very little today..... They wear you down don't they.

Exactly Stanley. Sorry about yours. Mine seems to have recovered after its exercising yesterday. I really think the swim helped. I also went to an aqua exercise class. I didn't manage everything but one thing we do is to dangle in the depend. It really allows the body to relax in a vertical position and is e cel lent for back problems.

I've just been in the garden and pruned my Ladslove which was all bending down. Funny thing is that that causes me no problem at all, I'm fine when I'm stood up and moving round. I shall go in the shed and potter!

Going for a walk down the hill and back...4 miles at a brisk pace with my youthful & fit neighbour, then I hope to finish off washing the polytunnel walls before preparing for the history society meeting tonight.
Sue is going to tell us about her Convict Ancestors...7.30pm New Road Community Centre, Earby. All welcome!!