PeteB

Caz away early, surprise, surprise! I was away in time for the speed awareness clinic - now called Driver Awareness Clinic! Unfortunately, when you do upwards of 50k pa, you collect a few points etc so this is my five, I think.... I was stuck in traffic once some 5 miles away from one once and missed the start. I was invited to pay again and re-book, I argued the toss and got three points and £60 for my bother! Hey Ho, after all, I was caught speeding....58 in a 60, but I was towing so my limit is 50! The course wasn't as good as some I've been on, one presenter lacked the spark that a good presenter needed. A chap on my table insisted in voicing his opinion at every turn and some dickheads on the table behind get on cracking 'gags' to the rest of the table and they would laugh etc. Hey ho, re-aligned for a while..... The bank phoned, they seem to think that they will refund me my money for the lemon Q7 - the retailer will then have 60 days to convince them that I didn't deserve it. SWEET! The survey came through on the house that Caz put an offer on. The value was put at £0! Roof, chimney, guttering, external wood, some brickwork, new electrics, gas certificate, lead water pipes, floors, internal damp and knotweed! We both feel a little deflated and a little bit faithless in the process, I got to ring the Agents tomorrow, one question I will ask is 'how many other people had a survey?' If the previous attempt failed after a survey - I'll be asking the vendor for that cost back! Wine and tripe on the box! hurry up 6 Nations!

life

Caz away early and it took me a while to get back in to sleep mode - it seemed too quite but no snow had fallen.... Took the Ranger for its 40k service. The girl in there was surprised that according to Ford, that is the 4 year service and it is 7 months old! It needs new tyres as they have feathered the fronts and run over inflated on the back due to towing and the centre line is down to 2mm. Under £500 and away we go! Nice walk down from the garage to home to spend the day on the computer. Quite a lot done with some good enquiries sorted and a couple of issues sorted. Sweet! but still not enough done - every time I sit here, I tend to calls saying 'can you do this for me?', 'can you sort that for me?'. Things like a list issued of sales contacts seems to have missed a load of my folk that were on the list last year! Trade shows that we are at last year but not featured in the diary for this year etc. Tom came about, he has bother at Morrison's, they apparently have not paid him properly again and when he queried it, he was accused of calling his superior a liar. When he proved that he had worked (at their request) and not been paid for it and his boss had downgraded his hours, it proved that there was some lying going on! So, someone else told him that he had been re-deployed onto shelf stacking by the liar to get him out of admin! Time for him to get what he is owed and move on! There is a jobs fair at EMA this weekend but it isn't his environment and they have their issues too. Apparently, the ASO folk at Manchester get paid nearly £2 ph more than at EMA for the same work! And, are rebelling at their terms and conditions. Caz was saying that their pay offer wasn't accepted and that Management had decided a better off was on the lines of 'A better offer, that you are advised to accept, is to forget the benefits and we will forget that you turned us down!' syndrome.... Speed awareness clinic tomorrow. Should be able to teach them a thing or two - or not as I keep getting caught!

Discouraging

Caz away too early and is too tired, she works too hard! I was in the truck and away at 07:15 to go and see a customer in Barnoldswick, the motorway from North of Sheffield via Leeds and off at Bratford is lousy! The customer wants training on his two new machines and he has two others too. Good people who have latched on to some good work which pays well! Don't know specifically where they make their money, but they have plenty. Anyway, they ordered these two at the show in September and took delivery just before chrimble and needed me to sign them off as trained and able to pass on the training to their staff. One of these new machines had a few faults from poor design and execution so it has to come back which I find infuriating! After that, off to see a dealer in Burnley then home. While at the dealership, I have to collect some parts sent in error - another annoying occurance! Tom is at mine for tea, divorced Dad's Wednesday....Pip not bothered about coming over! Caz in bed by 21:00 as another 11.5 hours to be done!

Reaction

Another of those nights where I didn't sleep well after Caz went. Could have lobbed the alarm out the window! Spent the phoning people and trying to organise stuff but nowt seems to work right at the moment! One chap hasn't paid when he should have, an enquiry comes in and I'm passing with the right machine but no time, someone wanted me to do a delivery and is now away when it can be done, an open day to be done on a Friday which is awkward as I don't fancy a truck load of kelter at mine all weekends, a coat and fleece I asked for hasn't been offered, an easy warranty claim seems to be sticking in someone's inbox unnecessarily and Tom wants to bugger about with cars on my drive again! The bank rang, the paperwork they needed about my lemon Q7 doesn't appear to be complete, they need an independent report on the damaged suspension, despite me giving them the two bits of paper from an independent confirming everything! Then they find that and on we give! They say it will be yet another three weeks! I hope they find in my favour as going legal online seensxa nightmare! Oh well, such is life. Caz has a lie in until 03:30!

Up and away for 07:30 with an hours drive to collect the trailer and demo tracked machine for a customer based in Nottingham. I thought something was odd as I passed the A6 at Hathern with queues as fair as I could see heading south - later on, I went over the M1 and same again - massive traffic heading south and nowt going North. Turns out that there had been a fatac on the North bound involving four lorries and a pedestrian on the M1 north. Nasty.... My customer in Nottingham does tree work on the Nations railway as well as 'civils' (brickwork) on stations, cuttings, culverts and bridges. He charges £10k per week which costs him £5k in labour and associated costs for 4 men doing bricks! Nice work if you can maintain it! He tells that trees is a waste of money as breakages are too dear and labour not productive enough. He likes de-veg but wished it made more money for him - having said that, he has five x £33k machines off me as well as two rentals, each gets him £220 per shift, therefore a couple of shifts pays a months finance charges.... I then headed to the factory to get rid of the trailer, get my tacho downloaded and see to a few things there. By the time I got home, Caz was there and it was time to knock off. I did manage to contact my first appointment tomorrow up by Burnley. Good job I did as he changed his mind from tomorrow fo Wednesday. A day at home playing catch up then..... Caz in bed with the alarm going off soon after 01:30!

Effect

It was my Mother's 80th just recently, Mum and Dad live in a sweet spot in southern Devon and are both very active and fit. Us three kids decided to surprise her with a visit, spouses and grandchildren included if they could get! As it was a short notice thing, no pressure was made on those who had diarised events.... Caz was working and Pip was unable to get her shift swapped either. Tom and I drove down to meet Mum and Dad in Lyme Regis, meeting brother and his family and sister and her husband. Dad managed to suggest a walk along from The Cobb before dinner and we all met within a few minutes in the Pilot Boat pub! She was astounded at the gathering! Made her year! We all took what we wanted to drink in the evening and food to eat too. We all took our own bedding so that absolutely no preparations needed to be made and she didn't have to worry about any arrangements. Saturday evening was a tad boozy with a few large G&T's (Dad has a heavy hand), 4 bottles of Prosecco, 4 bottles of red and several tins of Lager between 7 drinkers! Sis brought along some board games which resulted in much laughing and bawdy humour. Although one game, Cards Against Humanity, while it was hilarious at times, it was a tad crude at times for my taste - especially with old folk an kids there! I never knew where the term cottaging came from but knew that it was to do with a bloke importuning another at a public convenience! Today was a slow start after the 2 0'clock finish and we had a fantastic sunday lunch - most people had the rare roast beef - at the Tuckers Arms in Dalwood. Fab place with good food and staff - get there if you are within striking distance of Axminster! Tom drove the Ranger there and back and did a good job of keeping to the speed limit and it was good to sit the other side and gawp out of the window for a change. He is away home now as he has to be in work at 04:00 - I think that job has come to an end - he was seriously underpaid at xmas, it seems that an untruth or too has resulted in him not being paid what they promised and the increase in hours has been pulled too. Caz will be here tomorrow afternoon but she has to be in bed early as she has an 03:00 start on tuesday morning, be good to see her.....

seed

Caz has an odd shift day today, ending at 21:00 then back in tomorrow at 03:30 - 15:30! Poor girl, nice to have her back here for a short while. My day started at 07:30 with a drive towing a full load of machinery to a dealer near to Driffield. Filled the car at the local garage and set out. With that amount on the hook, it got the consumption down to 17mpg! The dealer's customer was a wealthy private buyer with a large property near to Driffield, he brought a chipper to go on his tractor for his odd weekend use! Nice chap with a right good house! obviously doesn't sell machinery for a living!!! Then onward to my dealer in Tuxford to view a machine which needs valuing as a trade in - might have a decent buyer for that. I also got involved with another workshop issue - a three year old unit has had two major service jobs needed in recent years after the main rotor bearings have worn out and the shaft that the sit on needed replacement. To be honest, the unit shows every sign of being roughly treated and the routine maintenance skimped on! The pictures show a lot of wear from abrasive stuff and very blunt blades both of which cause premature failure. There is a 'step' in the shaft from the hammering action of blunt blades smashing into timber or stones. The 'wrap' which encloses the chipping chamber had a stress crack in it and a groove around the outside of the rotation which would tell me that a lot of gravel/stones/mud has gone through it! It may be that the operators are poorly trained, the daily maintenance although signed as complete, is not being done properly or that they are using it beyond it's design scope. All machinery becomes expensive then! I left the trailer and second woodchipper in the dealers shed as I would not have time to take into the next chap in Nottingham - he will be seen on Monday. Then home - via the local garage to fill it up again in readiness for tomorrows adventure!

nearby

I always seem to screw up my expenses, not in a big way, but still annoying! I try to keep all the receipts in one place and hopefully, nothing is missing! But there always is! Never mind, at least the girls in accounts realise that I'm too daft to try and rob them! Then away to the factory to drop off the other used machine that I brought in and sold. This one looks a bit rough but as long as it works pretty, I can manage that. Then load a couple of bits on a long trailer ready for tomorrows heavy schedule. One of the things that I need to do tomorrow is view a customers machine which has been expensive to live with due to some expensive repairs. The bother is that I trained them to look after this asset and they haven't. Rotor bearings have been ruined again and then filled with fresh grease! I was talking with someone else the other week about someone who worked there and they confirmed that this numpty took pride in trying to wreck stuff. The client needs to know that the chaps are working it beyond it's working parameters then blaming others for the shortfall, they are signing the maintenance log but not doing it. I also got a rogue rep who has given way too much discount on a new machine to someone in another territory so a terse phone call will be in order tomorrow - we all got to eat meat at the weekends and we are all capitalist! Keep your margin up and make some money! It is my Mother's 80th today and a quick phone call made her happy! She is a fit and able person who still plays pub skittles for the local team and loves getting Dad out for a walk (he would rather sit!) and is active in several local things and charities as the fear of getting old and defunct fills her with dread. All us kids are planning a surprise visit to their spot in Devon at the weekend, we are going to bump into Mum and Dad on The Cobb at Lyme Regis which will make their year! We are all taking some food etc and bedding so she doesn't have to do anything! Tom will come with me although Caz has to work as does Pip. One of my bro's kids is busy and my Sister's boys have a busy schedule etc....Still, be a good day. My Ranger has now done 37k and has the 'oil change needed' light on and the front tyres are degenerating so they'll get swapped to the back and a quick laser check on the geometry.

Perhaps this would be better placed in the A6 section of the forum. It would be a good idea if you added which engine it is and the mileage too. Good luck with this.

Yesterday was a whirlwind of catch up! Plus a video remake on the flagship machine and more voice over stuff. Several people got up my nose because they hadn't done their job and tried to avoid the repurcussions however mild. We all make mistakes and no one is perfect - own up to your mistakes and accept that you screwed up and try not to do it again is a thing which many people don't like to do! In my opinion, to own up and apologise gets brownie points with me. A newly serviced trailer which locks the brakes in reverse should have been tested before being signed off - a shrug and a blank look doesn't do it for me. A new decal which doesn't fit and is the wrong colour shouldn't be passed off with 'the next batch will be better'......right makes me gurn with annoyance! I had two lots of expenses to do, several emails etc before getting in a little trip to Stamford Bridge to collect a machine from a dealer/customer that I have sold elsewhere coincided with the news that I got the order for the two used units and the boss sold another £350k into my patch so a nice bonus incoming! Sweet. One story that came to light was that the brother in laws brother is in hospital with badly gouged legs after an accident. He brought a Princess 7 on ebay and drove with his mate from Darlington to Bristol to collect it. Once there, the BIL's bro argued with the seller as it was clearly not as good as described. They haggled and a new deal done. He walked up the trailer while the seller started it. With a roar it started and shot forwards - knocking the mate over and running BIL's bro down on the trailer. He shouts a handful of obscenities - the sellers gets reverse and with a roar, shoots backwards, running over the knocked over mate and into a van! What a to do!!! BIL's bro is still in hospital needing grafts to his legs and the mate is released very bruised!!!

carbuncle

Hi Folks, back again and due to circumstances, ie, busy and wifi issues, this is the first post since last Wednesday. Thursday. Got up and packed for this Oslo adventure - I've been to Norway before so knew what to expect, plus I travel light with the viewpoint that whatever has been forgotten, can be replaced there! Picked up Joe and Ez from Wood Lane and set out for Manchester Airport with more than plenty of time. Dropped the car off at 'Meet and Greet' and headed through to The Escape Lounge. Easy peasy! decent way to start, no hassle, no crowds, no trying to find a shettlered spot and a bit to eat....well worth the investment. Just as we went to board, we got took back upstairs as that aircraft was bust. The flight to Torp was uneventful and when we got there - !Removed! cold! Snow and lots of ice on every flat surface. Quick taxi ride to a smart hotel in Sandefjord for the night. Got the rooms sorted and Ez wanted to facetime her chap - so we headed for a couple of beers. Joe was amazed that the three of us had two beers each and it was close to £60.... Train to Oslo next morning was good, nice and easy way to see some countryside and get to the middle of Oslo City. Our hotel was a smart affair between the station and the new Opera building. Sweet! Norway is a smashing place with good people who get paid a lot more than us - so somethings seem really expensive, especially food and drink! Go with the knowledge that a simple meal can be £50 per head. We walked around loads, laughed, shopped, read and visited! Quizlings house is now a memorial to the Holocaust and the hundreds of Jews shipped out and killed - one fairly sobering thing from that memorial was three walls in a room that had names in alphabetical order, one after another, floor to ceiling, victims that of the regime. One complete row was one family name......sobering. The Fram museum was a fantastic museum with some interactivity, for the people/pioneers from Norway who explored the North Pole, South Pole and the Northern Sea routes. Why would you go to such a hardship?....amazed at what they did and how they lived and again, sobering seeing Lawrence's words 'I'm just going out, I may be some time'. and Shackleton's diary entry 'for god's sake, look after our people'. So, after a wonderful time and a heavy hit on the savings, we are back. Caz has a few days at home then back to the grindstone for her - her mortgage application is in, the house buying process initiated (another expensive period coming on!) and I got a busy diary and, to be honest, a tad fed up with people not meeting up with my expectations and commitment to the cause!

Trying, tiring day. Didn't sleep much after Caz left and headed out to Start Helens to do a demo. Got there to find that a misunderstanding had occurred and I had the wrong machine! Well, I had brought the machine the rep had requested but they wanted something else! A return visit us needed, they tried it two years ago, liked it, but no money.... The rest of the day was filled with driving, and talking. Upset people, broken machinery and deals not worth a jot to me! Emails not returned and colleagues who haven't done what they promised to do all made for a trying day. Even though I finished until Tuesday, I got an urgent part and a customer machine to move tomorrow before going to Manchester airport. Now settled with a wine box and the recent Luther program with a mega tired Caz!

work

Caz away early, again. I left home for Hull for a demonstration as planned. Nice people at the dealership and nice potential customer too. He already has one of ours and I vaguely remember that deal from 2002. He prefers ours to the competition machine which is good, although they have thrown a spanner in the works - they valued his PX unit at twice what it is worth! And even if we give him a price to swap, my man could be down a grand! Oh well, best do my best to get a better underwritten value! Anyone want to buy an old, battered, rusty chipper/shredder? I realistically run out of time to drive from Hull to Stratford on Avon and then back up to the NEC leaving a decent amount of time to run about the show so I never bothered. I got a fleet deal going off in my patch for a possible 14 machine sale with each one fetching some £40k. Just when the Boss decides to put me as Key Account Manager with a % of each deal! Sweet! A bit rude and presumptuous so I may have to let him keep it - he doesn't take a commission but i'lI get a % on my overall figures so I shall not be greedy as I done nowt for it! Caz had a good mortgage offer which includes a small set up fee but conveyancing and survey are FOC! They might well get the business....Poor girl is right tired from work and the stress of house buying etc....

Magnet

Dresser

Caz away early again! I had the anticipated sudden rush of activities and a couple of good sales in the bag! I need a better year than last but at least get some monetary return for handling used kit which which is different from last year and an anticipated return if this key accounts thing starts to get stuff sold too! When Caz got home, we shot into town to see a semi independent mortgage broker. Infuriating news, we had not been advised to start a "help to buy ISA". To be honest, we were both ignorant of this "free money", and felt that the person at Lloyds was not too interested in Caz getting a mortgage and didn't advice us properly. Their loss now. Caz has loads to do and I'll help where and when I can but it she us still a tad bewildered by it all! I'll tell the kids about the ISA but I doubt that they'll take advantage - even if I put up the initial dollop, non of them will want to commit to £200 per month going forward!!! I shot down to the factory, leaving Caz to sleep through the afternoon, to collect a chipper to demonstrate to a chap in Hull first thing. I want to get done early so that I can get back to the office to swap and get back up to the NEC for the LAMMA again machinery show but that may be a big ask! Tom's plans to rejuvenate his Subaru is getting closer, he confessed that he has looked at a couple of temporary replacement cars. He wouldn't tell me what he has viewed - so he thinks I will disapprove! It'll not be a mundane ride but something with a little urge! Why he won't settle for a shed for a few months is beyond me!

lanes