So getting a year older is not usually regarded as such a good thing, but in my case it means I can draw down a load of early pension, which I plan to spunk gratuitously on motorbikes. Yeehah! The others can do the gardening and jigsaws. I'm going to blow it all on BRAAAAP and VRMMMM.
So the fun begins today. Just put a deposit down on this little beauty:
A 2020 Beta 390RR, with just 50 hrs on the clock. A huge upgrade from my heavily campaigned carb-ed 450RR. I will now have FI, a map-switch, lithium battery, fantastic suspension and a thousand other upgrades. Even a quick test ride shows just how massive 8 years of development feels in the world of enduro bikes. Really looking forward to the first proper outing in the dirt and no doubt the christening crash...
Every Cloud has a Silver Lining...
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Re: Every Cloud has a Silver Lining...
Nice, enjoy the traction ........ getting old does have a few benefits.
Open your eyes and you see what is in front of you, open your mind and you see a bigger picture but open your heart and you see a whole new World.
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Re: Every Cloud has a Silver Lining...
Not sure how long it'll stay that way! Poor thing doesn't know what's in store for it...
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Re: Every Cloud has a Silver Lining...
Yep, one of those pension pots dates back to a job I only held for 9 months back in 1996. I barely even remember signing the paperwork, but at 55 yrs old Prudential just spat out 8 grand for me. Total surprise. I guess I'm supposed to go on an awful Saga cruise, full of people waiting to die - or something like that. But I'm going to throw up roosters instead.
Chacun a son gout, as they say here in France....
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Re: Every Cloud has a Silver Lining...
Ha ha. Not in that case. That was a proper job with an employment contract etc. Actually I can genuinely say, hand on heart, that I never exploited the public sector as a consultant. In fact I deliberately had a much lower day rate for local government consultancy than private sector, and I much preferred working with the public sector. There are some contractors with ethics, Simon. Maybe not so much these days, but there used to be.
I'm very lucky that I also worked as a salaried employee for London Borough of Ealing and for Surrey County Council, at a time when your pension was calculated on your final salary, with generous employer contributions. Those days are long gone for local government workers now, who have had their pay frozen or cut (in real terms) for many years now and their pension rights severely diminished.
So many of us 50-plus year olds moan about things, but if you look at how the drawbridge has been pulled up for the generation who are working now, perhaps we should reflect on how good things were for many whose careers spanned the 90s/2000s.
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Re: Every Cloud has a Silver Lining...
So I've got the new bike home.
She is now called Rita the Beta and here she is next to her older brother.
Her brother is a bit of a fighter and he has scars and bruises from years of brawls and scraps. He's also psychologically damaged and sometimes punches trees.
On the other hand young Rita has had a spoiled upbringing, fed and looked after by experts since birth. So big brother will be having some plastic surgery and some time in a spa before he is offered to a new family for adoption, while Rita is going to get all the protection she needs to withstand the hard knocks of life.
She is now called Rita the Beta and here she is next to her older brother.
Her brother is a bit of a fighter and he has scars and bruises from years of brawls and scraps. He's also psychologically damaged and sometimes punches trees.
On the other hand young Rita has had a spoiled upbringing, fed and looked after by experts since birth. So big brother will be having some plastic surgery and some time in a spa before he is offered to a new family for adoption, while Rita is going to get all the protection she needs to withstand the hard knocks of life.