E-Bay

I'm a keen fan of on-line auctions; in fact, auctions in general.

Recently I've bought a few items off e-bay, and I thought I'd share one experience with you.

My new van is racked out. The back of the van sports lots of lovely shiney shelving. To help stop all my various bits and pieces getting thrown around, I thought I'd invest in some plastic boxes.

Off to the bay we go. I found just what I was looking for, and bidded away like you do. I wasn't lucky enough to win the items as I was 'sniped' (another pet hate of mine), but after the sale, I was given a 'second chance' (which makes me wonder if it was the seller bidding on his own goods to 'boost' the price). I dutifully paid there and then, and wondered if I was being sensible spending so much money.

Two weeks went by, and despite the fact that I paid the seller straight away, there was no sign of the boxes.

I contacted the seller, who kindly gave me the details of the courier, and told me that they had 'carded' the delivery twice (which was not true). Why he couldn't contact the courier and sort it out for himself is beyond me - in my opinion, it's the responsibility of the seller to ensure the goods get delivered.

Anyway, I contacted the courier on Wednesday, who told me the same lie that delivery had been attempted. When I told them that they were wrong, they suggested that they may have been trying the wrong address, so I gave them an alternative delivery address. "You'll get a delivery on Thursday" they said.

Thursday came and went, and by Friday afternoon I was getting a little cheesed off, so rang them again.

"our fault" they said. "It's still here because the driver forgot it".......

Anyway, to be fair to the courier, they sent the package via Parcel Force (I bet that hurt their pride) for saturday delivery, and at 9am on Saturday it was here.

This whole process took 20 days.

Now comes the rant.....

Whenever you buy anything off e-bay, you have to leave 'feedback'. Options are 'positive', 'neutral' or 'negative'.

Given the fact that I'd had to wait for the delivery for 20 days, and chase the sellers courier myself, I left 'neutral' feedback.

I've just had a message from the seller;

"Hi. Generally they are OK and this is the third different carrier we've used as they all seem to have problems. We're very disappointed you've left neutral feedback as our conduct has never been the problem so it seems somewhat unfair. At least you've eventually got the goods and that should finalise things. It would seem best for all concerned we have no further dealings"


Is it me?

What did they expect?

Little Chef

I've just watched the on-going story of the conversion of Little Chef back into a profitable, and reasonable restaurant by Heston Blumenthal.

I've fond memories of Little Chef back in the good days. You could always rely on them for a decent, reasonable priced meal or just a quick cup of tea. My more recent memories are of a place where quality was non-existent, both in terms of the food, and the service. Worst of all, they pumped the prices up to make the whole experience unpleasant and expensive.

Where did it all go wrong?

Like many people, I've seen dozens of what were popular sites close. The Little Chef estate is a shadow of it's former self.

What's this all got to do with rats? Well, as I just told the Little Chef website; my last visit to the Popham site (which seems to have been transformed since then) was about a year ago. I sat in the car park finishing a phone conversation, and watched, horrified, as a family of rats ran to and from an overflowing bin.

It's not the first time I've seen this; the last time was at Reading services on the M4 motorway. That day, I got some great photos of the rats.

The problem with these companies is that they put all their pest control out to contract, and the over-riding factor when making the decision to award a contract is price. The result is a scramble by national pest control companies to see who can offer the lowest price in the hope of being able to make some money by 'upselling' other services (bait stations, fly control units, bird proofing etc). I've seen contracts worth as little as £6 per routine visit! What sort of service would you get for that price? Very poor.

Pest control technicians also hate these contracts. They are not allowed to spend too long on site, and the site staff tend to treat them with contempt.

So why does it happen?

Because we let it.

Proper Pubs...........

As anyone who knows me can confirm, I like a drink once in a while.

I also like pubs - proper pubs that is. When we first came here to live, we had a lovely pub in the village. In fact, it was one of the reasons we bought the house; not because of the building, or the beer, but because of the atmosphere, and the fact that when we viewed the house we called in for a drink and found a bar full of friendly locals who openly welcomed us to the village and offered help.

These days, our pub has been turned into a wine bar type eatery. It's just not my scene - all champagnes by the glass and roasted broad beans in little bags.

One of my neighbours works away from home most of the time, and when he comes home for a weekend, likes to have a beer or ten. We've got into a bit of a habit of going off to a different pub each time and having a few jars....

On friday night, we decided to pop down to Witham Friary and have some cider. When I say cider, I mean proper cider, not the fizzy cold crap you get in most pubs.

The Seymour Arms is something quite special. Untouched for the best part of a century, it is a time warp. The landlord serves drinks via a hatchway, and has nothing on keg. The prices are from a different era too!

So, if anyone finds themselves in Somerset, and wants a decent pint, for a decent price, served in a proper pub, head for Witham Friary........

Deliveries - why does life have to be so hard.....

I'll start this little rant at the beginning.

I've just taken on a new contract at the local abattoir (glamorous life ain't it?), and when I tried to service their ancient fly control units found that two out of three were not working. I picked up the phone and ordered two replacements for the customer.

Now to the uninitiated, one fly unit is much the same as another. Not to the pro. I will only sell the best quality units I can, and decided to look up an old supplier who made what I've always considered to be the best units money can buy.

There begins the problem. The company in question has recently been bought out buy another (less good) manufacturer. Always willing to give folks the benefit of the doubt, I thought I'd give them the order anyway.

I rang on Wednesday, ordered the units I needed, and paid for them and 24 hour carriage with a flexible friend. Thursday comes, and no sign of a delivery. I phoned them up, to be told that they hadn't been dispatched because my order came in too late (2pm). "Why didn't someone ring me and tell me that?" I asked. "They tried but there was no answer". That was a blatant LIE. How do I know? Simple; I have something called call diversion on the phone, which means that the calls go through to my mobile. At no point on Wednesday was I not contactable.

I let rip a bit, and was told that my order would be dispatched free of charge that day, for delivery before 10am on Friday.

It's now 1pm as I write this, and guess what? No deliveries.

I phoned them at 10.30am, "We'll find out and call you back" the chap says.

I phoned them again at 11.30am "We are waiting for the depot to get back to us" he says.

Now I have a problem. When the MHS vet arrives on Monday, he'll read my report which clearly states that the fly control units are not working, and they will not be allowed to work. That leaves me looking pretty silly.

So, for anyone else who has suffered at the hands of City Link, I sympathise.

Long time no read.......

Well, to those of you who bother to read this nonsense, I owe you an apology.

I've not posted for a while, and that's something I'm going to put right. Before I do, I'd just like to tell the reader why I bother with this.

The original concept was just to be able to have a rant once in a while. I also thought it might be nice to give the reader a little idea what goes on in what some folks think is my 'strange' lifestyle.

I'll address what I've been up to soon, but before then I need a good rant............

Some people.......................

can't take a hint, can they?

After their results last night, on top of all the other problems during the last week, you'd think Gordon Brown would be at the Job centre by now, wouldn't you?

Not likely. He'll hang on until the bitter end. The problem is that labour politicians are notoriously ball-less, and are too frightened of loosing their seats to risk anything.

I think we all know who the biggest supporter of the PM is......... David Cameron. Without Gordon, the Conservatives are likely to win the next election. With Gordon, it's certain.

We've all lived through history today. In years to come, people will talk of the disastrous elections of June 09..........

A new dawn.....

Well, like a fool, I stayed up until 3am to watch the Euro election results.

My jubilation at the dismal failure of the Labour party to achieve any real success was tempered by the shameful results of both the Northwest and Northeast of England, where for the first time in British history, fascists have won seats in national elections.

Nick Griffin managed to get a slot on the Today programme this morning, and I found myself listening to someone who put across some credible opinions on race and integration. In my half dazed state, I had to pinch myself to remember what these people really are. If I can be conned that easily, how easy is it to fool the electorate? After all, the Labour party convinced people that they were socialists back in 1997.

The country is in chaos.

We have a man leading Britain today who was put into office by his peers, and has never had the balls to stand up to the electorate as a prime minister. He's now run out of MPs to employ in the cabinet, and has had to resort to giving life peerages to his pals so that they can then sit in cabinet.

"We need to sort out the expenses" they keep saying. How can we trust them to do that, when it was them that put the system in place that allowed they to rip us all off.

LDV is due to go into administration today. More manufacturing jobs gone for ever. In my home town of Barnstaple, one of the biggest employers who manufacture doors has just laid the majority of the workforce off. I wonder how much money would have saved these companies, and how that compares to the billions poured into the banks?

We need a general election, and fast. Lets sweep parliament clean, and have a fresh start.

Any minute now, frightened labour politicians will start claiming that now is not the time due to the rise of the fascists........

D Day ~ 65 years on

Today is D-Day.

In 1944, Allied forces landed on the Normandy coast, and began the liberation of Europe. It was a time for innovation, skill, bravery and hope. It also marked the start of a campaign that would eventually lead to the end of Nazism.

Watching the commemorations on the television was very moving. Old soldiers, still proud, stood in the rain to pay tribute to the friends and allies they left in France. As the cameras panned around to the beach, you could see the remains of the 'Mulberry' harbours still lying in the surf.

A Lancaster and two Spitfires flew past, and that enchanting noise of the Merlin engines gave me the same feeling as when I see an old steam engine moving off.

Whilst happy that those people risked, and often gave their lives to give us all freedom, I wondered what the people of that era would think of the resurgence of the Nationalist movement in the UK today.

Britain is in a sad state now...

Sorry I've not been around.......

I'm sure a few people are wondering why I've not posted on here lately.

Well, there are two reasons. Firstly, I blame our (dis)honourable members of parliament. Like most of the nation, I've been pretty disgusted at some of the recent news, and thought it was safer not to post while I was in such a foul mood.

The second reason is much more straightforward. It's haymaking time and I've been working crazy hours for the last couple of weeks. More of that later...........

I'll put together a couple of posts over the next few days. I may even have a rant or three...........................

One of the frequent questions....

I'm often asked:

"How did you end up doing pest control?"

Well here goes.

At the age of six, we had a minor rat problem in the garden. The Local Authority was called in, and when the 'ratman' arrived, I watched him carefully, fascinated by what he was doing.

When he left, I told my mum: "I want to be a ratcatcher".

Honestly. The age of six!

Anyway, I learnt to trap and snare as a child, and loved every minute of it. Each morning, before setting off for the one and a half mile walk to the school bus, I'd be off with the dog to check my trapline. I became quite proficient at catching squirrels and moles, but I really enjoyed ferretting rats for my terrier.

When the time came to leave school, I was aware that proper pest control wasn't available to me. I plumped for what I thought was the next best thing; gamekeeping.

At seventeen, I left my keepering job (under a bit of a cloud) and decided to become self employed. Pest control was what I really wanted to do, but I really needed money as well, so I went labouring for a builder while I built up the pest control work.

I struck lucky fairly quickly. Because of my shooting connections, I was asked to clear up some rats on the (big) local shoot. I did a good job, and as a result, I was offered the chance to take on the whole estate. I did all the farms for rats, poisoned the moles on a thousand acres of cutting grass and controlled rabbits and squirrels in the forestry.

As the years progressed, the business grew and we also took on 90 acres of farmland on a share farming deal. The two businesses were too much, even for a workaholic, and we left the farm. At the same time, my part time technician came into some money, so we also parted company with the pest control business.

I was then working for MAFF on the wildlife unit. At the end of Foot and Mouth in 2001, I parted company with the government and started looking for something else. Pest control seemed to flow through my veins, so I took a job as a 'Wildlife Technician' with a national pest control company.

A rapid rise through the ranks ended up with my resigning as Regional Manager, in favour of a 'promotion' to General Manager for another much smaller pest control company.

We parted company in February of this year, and the rest, as they say, is history.....

Westcountry Environmental Services was born!

Have Strimmer will travel.........

It's been a busy couple of days for me, as I promised to strim the grounds of our village hall earlier this week.

Unlike many larger villages, we've still got our original hall which was built before WW1, and used as a hospital during the first world war. Although I'm impressed by some of the newer village halls, it is nice to still have the original in our little village.

Around the back of the hall wild garlic is everywhere, with the result that I now smell like a french onion seller!

My old strimmer is back in full working order after a good service; although I was a bit shocked at the £65 bill at first, it's not been serviced for several years, so I suppose it's about right. The old girl is now running like a dream.

The machine itself is quite old. When I was approaching my twenty-first birthday, my old mum asked me what I'd like as a present. "A brushcutter please" was my characteristic reply, and the machine was obtained secondhand. I'm not sure of it's vintage, but it's at least twenty years old, and owes me nothing.

As I stimmed away at the hall, I thought of times past, and wondered how jobs like that were done in the pre-strimmer days. I guess some poor old sod had to hack away with a hook - not a job to be relished. Aren't we lucky to have the machines and gadgets we have now?

Are you a mad hand washer?

Doing the job that I do, I'm a bit keen on clean hands.

In fact, it has become a bit of an obsession over the years. Every time I finish a job, I stand there, at the back of the van, washing. My paranoia is so bad now, that I don't even consider sitting in the driving compartment without first washing. The problem now is that I've started to wash TWICE!

Let me explain. I do my stuff, then pop the gear back into the van and wash. I then sit in the drivers seat, and do the paperwork. Next job is to put the paperwork into the site folder, and discuss the report with the site contact. Simple? Not for me. I then feel the need to wash again, before I set off.

Am I going mad?

My washing system consists of a 25 litre (5 gallons to the non-french) container of cold water. Being inherently mean, I cannot justify the expense of one of those snazzy hot water devices like the AA use. It's cold water and liquid soap for me...

So there we have it. Matt has finally gone mad, and is so paranoid that he is constantly washing his hands.....

The problem is that this is now spreading into home life as well. I load the dirty stuff into the dishwasher, and yes, you've guessed, I'm there at the sink, washing my hands!

Anyone else?

Snooker and other TV

Last night found me watching a bit of telly.

I've always enjoyed snooker, and had some of that on for a bit. Is it me, or are the audiences getting noisier? Not very fair when there are two tables playing.....

I pressed the red button at one stage, and watched a couple of 'classic frames'. The 147 break by Cliff Thorburn in 1983 was a bit of an eye opener. Nice quiet audience, with the occasional ripple of applause and a standing ovation when the break was over.

Switching over, I watched the remake of Reggie Perrin. Clunes is excellent, but why, oh why do we need the laughter track? Come on auntie beeb, I don't need prompting when to laugh. Humour is a personal thing, and I object strongly to being told when I should be laughing.

Rant over.

Moles

I love moles.

Since going self-employed, one of the most rewarding things I've done to pass the time and earn an honest crust is to trap the little velvet fellows.

It's good, easy work for me. Unlike the normal 'run of the mill' pest control work, you get to show off your results. The farmers I've done work for seem to be pleased with my results, and the money is more forthcoming than with rats.

Charging a per mole fee is nice and straightforward. Unlike some of my contemporaries, I haven't bothered with travelling charges, or minimum fees, it's just a straight x per mole caught.

Even the garden jobs have been a pleasure. I was delighted to catch a mole right underneath a sonic/solar powered/vibrating/crappy mole 'chaser' the other day. The customer was understandably miffed that he'd wasted money on the things.......

Why Blog?

Well, here we go.

I've joined the blogging trend. Why? Well, I'm a ratman (a pest controller really..), and I like to rant.

Being a member of a large number of internet forums, I'm well known for having strong opinions. Perhaps I will express a few of them here in future.

Having more time on my hands now that I'm self-employed means that I can spend some time on this, and hopefully amuse and annoy a few people along the way.