gushgush99

Where the history or back story of an item adds value? For example a writing desk will have value but if someone of significance wrote something historically important on it value would be added.

Thank you.

Can anyone advice, I’ve never really tried any of these weight gain, protein and what ever else is out their powders and supplements and am curious to try them if appropriate. It may well be the case they just aren’t for me.

I’ve put considerable work in to loosing weight as the waste line had expanded over the years and I’m pretty happy with there I’m at. 6ft tall, 33” waste and about 182kg. I wouldn’t mind building a bit of muscle in my arms and chest but still have a bit of flab around the stomach, it might just be lose skin, hard to tell really but I could do with being a bit leaner but want to put on a bit of muscle too.

I’m not really a gym type but commute by bicycle everyday to keep active and don’t mind to a bit of basic home work out with the likes of push ups.

Could anyone give me a basic breakdown of the common supplements and their pros and cons? I really don’t want to get huge, and as I said could be leaners so I don’t think a weight gain is appropriate, would protein or something help me bulk and define the muscles a bit without making me fat with moderate exercise or are these really just used if you’re dedicated to the gym?

Many thanks.

Really hoping for some help, think I’ve done something in the settings and forgotten what it was. I’m doing beginner classes and need to capture movement for me home work, essentially trying to demonstrate a practical use of a slow shutter speed in the TV mode. I was trying to take some picture of a football team warming up with a 4 second shutter in the early evening sun but it is coming out white, I have tried the ISO on both the lowest setting and auto so am assuming there is something else I have forget, please help, got to do my homework. The model is a Canon EOS 650D, many thanks.

Hi Guys and Girls,

Hoping for some good suggestions on what to do to in the evening for a nice day off I’ve taken from work to spend with the Mrs. It’s a week day in a couple of weeks and by all accounts should be a warmer, clear and sunny day, bring that on!

In the morning we’ll possibly take in an exhibition, simply enjoy a walk around or I was thinking the Wetland centre in Barnes.

Lunch is booked for Le Gavroche, Michel Roux’s place in Mayfair so really looking forward to that.

I have now just booked The View from The Shard from 4pm so am looking for something special to finish the day off such as a good show. My first choice was Cirque du Soleil at the Albert Hall but it isn’t currently on so I’m looking for something similar, any ideas?

When I say something similar I don’t necessarily mean La Clique or something camp, more something in a nice venue but we’re not really in to opera. Cirque would’ve been perfect to be honest, good fun, not too taxing to watch, a real spectacle and in a lovely venue. I was thinking perhaps the Royal Opera House, stunning venue but as I said we’re not really in to opera! Although they do do ballet too, she’d like that am I’m happy if she is…

Any suggestions?

I’m hoping you can give me some ideas and inspiration for a venue for a 30th birthday in London. The capacity will need to be for around 40-100 guests. We could just hire a room in a bar but really looking for something a bit better than that, unless you have some really good specific ideas. We’re really not in to cheesy places around Leicester Square so something like Tiger Tiger is our idea of hell. Would also like to avoid the kind of places footballers fall out of.

There are so many cool places but they come at huge cost so would rather somewhere with minimum spend so the cost is shared rather than having to pay £2k for a venue. We’ve looked at a few members clubs, art spaces and even places like the Natural history Museum, Kensington Roof Gardens and Kew Gardens do amazing venue hire but are more geared up to weddings and conferences with sit down meals at huge cost.

We want somewhere that feels like a suitably plush venue for an occasion but somewhere people can get a little raucous and have a good time. Suggestions welcome! Thanks.

Hello,

I am looking for some advice on which lens to purchase. I am a photography beginner and have recently purchased a Canon 650d which comes with a stock 18-55 lens, it is fine but I am looking for something that offers a bit more flexibility. I am interested in taking various types of pictures but the 18-55 doesn’t really give me the reach I need to take wildlife pictures for example.

The two lens I am considering from Canon both have Image Stabilisation, one is 18-135mm and the other is 55-250mm. I’m hoping that if I bought either of these the 18-55 would become mostly redundant and I wouldn’t need to change lenses much (unless I got in to some more specific photography such as micro or wide-angle down the line).

There does seem to be another lens which covers a wide range of 18-300mm but this is much more expensive, so between the two I mention which do you think would be a good one for me, would like to choice quite soon as I’m going to India in a few weeks and want something good for wildlife, landscapes and portraits as well as just taking some nice pictures of my family.

Many thanks.

Ladies (or well trained men) can you recommend a good jewellers to purchase a ring for my other half please? I want something good but that won’t break the back, around the £300-£400 would be reasonable. This isn’t an engagement ring but it is still to represent commitment and love, silver or white gold possibly with diamond if I can find something appropriate within budget. I like the idea of diamond as it represents a lifetime but that said it isn’t a prerequisite at the expense of quality elsewhere.

I just don’t know which jewellers are considered good though as I’m not much of a jewellery shopper…

I am based in London, many of the independent shops are lovely but way out of my budget so high street seems the safest option, but many seem a bit naff. Tiffany seems like an option but slightly clique, I’ll have a look for sure as they have some nice looking rings at my budget but want more options. I’ve looked at the Samuels website and the designs look pretty tacky to me, looks like I’m flicking through an Argos catalogue with better materials! I know there are a lot of tat jewellers about so which ones to avoid?

I just want a decent range of classic and contemporary designs to choose from, made from decent metals are a reasonable price.

Thanks you for your suggestions.

Ok so here’s one for you…I had my biked stolen from my garden some months ago by some scumbag, stupidly I didn’t ever get it register it. I did report it stolen and given I bought it from new can prove I am the owner of that particular make, model and year but of course I would struggle to prove an individual bikes is mine.

Supposing I spot someone riding my bike or a spot it locked up, what’s the best course of action? Call the police or just take it back? I can’t prove beyond doubt that the bikes is mine but I would know, I rode the bike every day and knew every scratch on it, from where I came off once and scuffed the seat, to where I shortened the handle bars and to wear my lock chipped the paint, if I saw my bike I’d no straight away.

I can see a few scenarios; I see my bike, I call the police and they tell me there’s nothing they can do as it’s not resisted. I see someone riding my bike, my blood boils and I give them a clip round the ear and take my bikes back. It may well be my bike but some poor person innocently paid for a second hand bike which unknown to them was stolen, they are out of pocket and have been given a slap for no reason from their point of view. Or lastly I see my bike locked up, get some bolt cutters then get done for theft.

So what is the best course of action in this instance? (Not that it’s likely to occur mind.)

Can someone please advice on where to go in the Canary Islands which isn’t tacky? My girlfriend and I want to go away in March for a week to relax a bit. We’re on a budget and obviously this time of year finding sun on a budget can be tricky so thought The Canary Islands could be an option.

I am also aware of how many tacky resorts they have on these Islands so really looking for advice on where to go to avoid this? I really don’t want somewhere with strips of bars with drunk Brits and all over the place. Even a hint of anything Club 18-30 is a really no, no for us.

Somewhere not overly developed but where we can still find a well facilitated hotel, natural beauty and quiet.

Many thanks.

I'm never quite sure on this and was looking for some help! I know many modern machines have hand wash settings but alas mine isn't a very modern or feature laden machine. It does however have one setting called 'silk / curtains' which washes at 30.

My problem is all my favourite jumpers are hand wash only which invariably take me a while to get round to, I have one merino wool, one lambs wool and cashmere blend and one pure cashmere, can I put these in the machine on the silk setting risk free?

Advice greatly appreciated.

Thanks : )

Really hoping someone can help with this! So here’s the situation, I need to insure a piece of sculpture in what is effectively a public space. The plot is technically on private land outside a central London charity which has no barrier from the public; as far as the public are concerned it’s on the pavement.

The sculpture is yet to be determined but insuring for up to £25k isn’t out of the question, although I think about half that is more likely. The sculpture will of course be installed in the most professional manner but with the rise of theft of public art either for art of scrap metal nothing can be guaranteed.

Any advice on this particular type of insurance?

Many thanks for any help.

Hello,

I am hoping someone can help me with this annoying issue. I first noticed I had an email sent to my email account from my secondary email account, this was a Spam email and also included many people on the mail such as friends, family and ex-girlfriends, as you can imagine this is not something I want. The contents of the email is below:

'Hey, hey don't let anyone tell you that economic fortune isn't possible http://konanusj.web.fc2.com/profile/63AlanDoyle/ see you later.'

I don't believe anyone has my password, I can still access my account, the pass word is the same. I've since changed it but don't think it will do much good. I'm not really up on my computer tech but suspect someone is 'bouncing' these emails through my account. When I log in I see plenty of email failed alerts so I can only imagine these emails are going out on quite a scale.

I'd really not have to delete this account so any ideas on how to protect myself and stop this happening? It's a Yahoo email by the way.

Many thanks for any help.

I've got an ipod Touch which is a few years old and want to use the SkyGo app on it but can't download it. It says 'This application requires the iPhone 4.2 Software update', I synced my ipod on itunes and went to software update but says I have the latest version, 3.1.3.

Any ideas? Will this app just not work on old ipod Touch's and only iphones?

I am a Sky customer by the way.

Thanks for any help.

All the TV's stolen on Clapham High Street whilst literally next door Waterstones the book shop is left completely untouched. Tells you all you need to know about these animals really.

Thanks for looking at my question. I rent a small studio with my partner in a reasonably expensive part of London. We are both very settled in the area and don't want to move. One bedroom flats typically start at £270,000 which is completely out of the question for us currently.

Studio flats such as the one we currently rent on the private market rarely come up on the sales market but our landlord wants to sell the house our studio is in and after initially only wanting to consider selling the house as one now said he would be prepared to sell as individual flats.

So having thought buying was nothing more than a distant dream I can't help think this could be an opportunity to buy the flat my self and my girlfriend currently rent. As far as I know the property isn't on the books of any agents but has just been show to other private landlords via word of mouth. But given we're I hope protected by some current tenancy laws and many other costs and hassles could be saved given we;re the current tenants I thought I should at least try and buy this small place we call home.

The flat would be obtainable for around £165,000 (and in this area that is a uniquely low price point), but I only earn just over 20k, my partner is currently on short term contracts in the Arts sector so not exactly stable but would be prepared (and could easily get) a job as a nanny for about 25k for the sake of getting a mortgage. With the help of family a deposit of around 15k is possible.

Going by joint earrings of 45k and 3.5 X salary that would be £157,500 + £15,000 = £172,500

Or more conservatively joint earnings of 40k and 3 X salary that would be £120,000 + £15,000 = £135,000

So if we could get somewhere between the two then great.

So on paper by my limited mortgage knowledge it is just about possible however there are two problems; first as I mentioned my partner is currently unemployed with the exception of contract work in the sector biggest hit by the recession and as such permanent employed and stable jobs are not easy to come by. A stable job as a nanny although not ideal could go some way to appease this, however how much would it matter if one has only been in a job for say six months or less before applying for a mortgage?

The second issue is that of my poor credit score. I'm in my late twenties but irresponsible credit use as an over eager 18 year old with a credit card really effected my score. For years I wasn't able to get any sort of credit and as such there was little I could do to improve things. I have just recently got my self a 'poor credit' credit card and am trying to use it as often as possible but in as responsible manner as possible to try and fast track my credit back to something approaching normal.

Given my set of circumstances does anybody have any advise? I understand my best bet would be to go through a broker, any particular ones? They seem to be able to get the best deals and also seem to be more likely to get your approved. Also I've heard if you apply though them and get rejected it won't put a black mark on your credit rating as it will do if you go through a bank.

Thanks so reading this far : )

First off this isn't a stolen iphone, I genuinely found it on the floor by the Heathrow Express train on Saturday. Even tried to hand it in at lost property and was told to come back on Monday! (didn't tell them what it was, didn't trust them as they weren't customer service but a private company primarily there for people to pay and leave bags and they were quite young).

The phone was actually out of battery so I thought the best way to actually get it back to it's owner was to take it home and charge it up for some contact info. I did this but as I suspected this belonged to someone foreign and leaving the country, all contact info was Australian so can't get it back to them without incurring high postage costs and since it's a 3G I guess they can't be that far from the end of their contract.

Since I can't return it I thought I may as well use it if I can, there's no password but I imagine the owner barred the phone and sim. It said there was no sim when there was, I checked and there is an Ozzy sim called 'yes' OPTUS.

How can I use this with my SIM? Do I need to unlock or jailbreak or something? Not really well versed in this area. Do I have to take it to one of those shady little phone stalls or can I do it myself?

Thanks very much.

Where can I buy the Tiger Blood drink Charlie Sheen is associated with in the U.K and I can't seem to find an official website for it either. Any ideas? I know it's an energy drink but know where I can buy it?

I'm thinking of going to Skiathos with my girlfriend at the end of August, would you recommend it and which is the best part of the island to stay and any tips while we're there?

I'm 28 and she's a few years older than me but really we like places that most young people don't like going to. I'm a bit of an old man at heart! We would like somewhere charming which is unspoilt, with natural beauty and a bit of culture but mainly we want a beach holiday with the odd excursion. Being a bit lazy in the sea and by the pool and some nice quite restaurants to enjoy some good food and wine in the evenings.

I really hate chavvy or tacky places and certainly hate places that have strips of bars with neon lights and cafe with English breakfasts.

Our only real experience of Greece so far is Kefalonia where we had a really great time. Other than Greece we enjoyed Sardinia and Porto Santo just off Madeira to give the idea of the kind of places we like.

Any tips would be most welcome.

Thanks.

Hello, I need to replace a fried HDD for my laptop which is a farley basic Dell Inspiron, specifically the 1545 if memory serves me correctly. All I know is that I need a SATA HDD, 2.5" with a height of 9.5mm. Other than capacity I don't really know what other specs I should be looking out for. Is there anything that has a bearing on processing speed etc? I just don't know. Brands with reliable reputations and those to avoid?

Apart from the obvious reliability and compatibility I am looking for good value and a capacity of at least 500gb and anything above would be an added bonus. Could you please help to educate me on what I should be looking for and if you could perhaps link me to specific models you'd recommend available from Amazon UK that would be great. I use the majority of the capacity so I can use my laptop and a music server if that makes any difference. Also for general use.

I have been recommended this one, is this any good and can better be had? http://www.scan.co.uk/products/640gb-samsung-hm641... Seems a decent price and capacity but I'm just not too computer savvy.

Thanks very much in advance for any help.

Not always but often enough to know without doubt there is a link, it's happened for a few years now. Quite bizaar. Any ideas why?!