Meenzer

It's a darn good thing we sold Ralf Keidel.

Is there a legible version of that article kicking about anywhere? Would be interested to read it and it doesn't seem to be on their website.

Now at least books are one area where I know you're out of your depth.

Short-sighted, irresponsible lending predicated on infinite and neverending house price growth, leaving the banks in question hugely vulnerable to changes in the markets they relied on? I never had you down as a fan of Brownian theory.

...such as packages of no-deposit mortgages.

The above is the landscape that caused the recession!

Indeed. Lost his seat at the last election, straight on to HIGNFY the next day. Boris would be proud. Although I did just check, and unfortunately you have to be an MP to be LD party leader. Would have paved the way for some truly left-field nominations otherwise.

Hughes? Peter Tatchell would self-publicise himself to death... http://petertatchell.net/politics/Liberal-dirty-tricks-Bermondsey-by-election-30th-anniversary.htm

Oh, there's fuck all choice really, short of a truly left-field appointment (and no I don't mean Danny Alexander ). Cable would probably make the most sense, as he still enjoys a bit of residual respect (for a Lib Dem anyway) and could play a transitional role since he could hardly be seen to have any long-term ambitions. Farron I suspect is most likely, but he could easily come across as more of the same after Clegg. And of course there's the risk of picking someone who isn't one of the 15 LD MPs left after the next election...

All part of the Lib Dem plan to get rid of him before the next election. Watch this space...

I'd forgotten about this (from THE thread, of course):

I got this one from Amazon, was a couple of quid cheaper when I bought it mind. Can't judge its long-term quality but it feels quite sturdy and the reviews seemed mostly decent.

@mattgemmell: Unclosed H3 tags accidentally lead to an accelerating surrealist nightmare http://www.sewingandembroiderywarehouse.com/embtrb.htm

Christ, that's some heavy stuff, both of you. Hope all works out well.

Productive and successful weekend, so a shepherd's pie has just gone into the oven as a reward. First run-out for the new potato ricer, which might already be challenging for the title of "favourite kitchen implement" (I keep a detailed top 10, natch.)

Happy birthday m'dear, here's to the year ahead.

Good man.

CT strives for the heights of informed debate...

If she can't work that out....

Purely force of habit, I think, but it also feels a bit more grown-up and quieter than Tenerife (which I went to a couple of times as a kid) and Gran Canaria (which I've never been to, but I know a few annoying gays who swear by it, so that's enough to put me off). Puerto del Carmen is certainly a bit clubby/karaoke-y in places, especially in season, but if you go to Costa Teguise or Playa Blanca then I reckon it's the best of both worlds, quiet enough to have a good family break without the loudest end of the Brit contingent - and upmarket enough if you want to spend a few quid and make it nicer than just plain "nice", accommodation-wise - but still not actually outright posh or anything.

Depends what you're after really. If you're happy with grilled lamb and veg off a skewer and fresh bread, you'll be fine wherever you end up. If the lads on your trip need chips and peas and all the trappings, well...

You can't go too wrong with the Canaries really - good solid holiday fare, decent temperatures, bit of a different environment & plenty of weird volcanic landscapes nearby if you want to imagine you're not really on a standard package trip. I'd happily up sticks and winter in Lanzarote every year (even at the risk of hating myself for using "winter" as a verb) at my still tender age.

I know a blogger (my former landlord) who raves about the food in Istanbul and posted numerous times about specific foodgasms he'd had over there. Looking at his blog now, all I can find is reviews of..... mosques.

The fella's away at Easter and I didn't want to spend the whole weekend sitting around the house scratching my balls (a couple of days will suffice), so I've just booked an overnighter in Eastbourne. Sounds like a pensioner's paradise, I know, but there's some cracking walks around there (Beachy Head and co.) and even just sitting on an adequately warm beach all day with a good book is a novelty when you live in the middle of the big bad city. Plus it was £40 for trains and a hotel for the night.