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The perfect Mother

The perfect Mother

Old Dec 5th 2011, 7:15 pm
  #166  
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Default Re: The perfect Mother

Originally Posted by jackytoo
gawd, what a load of crap. Don't any of you know any normal people Do you all live or have lived on only sinkhole estates?
I have never lived in a sinkhole estate.
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Old Dec 5th 2011, 7:21 pm
  #167  
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Default Re: The perfect Mother

It is some of the other posts I was thinking about, lot of different agendas on here
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Old Dec 5th 2011, 7:24 pm
  #168  
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Default Re: The perfect Mother

Originally Posted by JLFS
I have never lived in a sinkhole estate.
One person's sinkhole estate is another person's golden mile
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Old Dec 5th 2011, 7:27 pm
  #169  
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Default Re: The perfect Mother

Originally Posted by cricketman
One person's sinkhole estate is another person's golden mile
You could be right......................
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Old Dec 5th 2011, 7:51 pm
  #170  
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Default Re: The perfect Mother

Originally Posted by jackytoo
It is some of the other posts I was thinking about, lot of different agendas on here
It might be mine

Actually, apart from one at the beginning when I still didn't know what I was getting into, I have been lucky enough as to live in what are considered good places, but generally not so lucky about where I have been working. In a couple of jobs I had the joy to visit real sinkholes and also to deal with their inhabitants in too many occasions.

Unfortunately my vision is only too close to reality. If you don't think so, then you are very lucky not to know real life.

From my first place in London... just to give you an idea about the place and how things work... my white British neighbors (blonde and blue eyed for more information ) had a third baby simply to be moved to a bigger house (theirs was a 2 beds, and as they previously had a boy and a girl they claimed they couldn't share the room). None of them worked and were on house and child benefit; he had only left the prison after staying there for 4 years (drugs). They got a 4 beds house, much nicer than ours and in a better street.

In one of my first jobs, working with unemployed people in a learning place, I gave one of the students I knew (black British this time) an ad for a job paying 20K. He actually said that he got more money considering benefits and housing. I got extremely mad, I was being paid less than that at the time and even less after taxes.

You do indeed have a social problem, but blame your own system.
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Old Dec 5th 2011, 8:01 pm
  #171  
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Default Re: The perfect Mother

If it is all that bad in the UK why didn't you move back to Spain when there was a boom on Nothing like calling a place when you are earning a living there, is it that you could not hack it in Spain re. wages etc?

Last edited by jackytoo; Dec 5th 2011 at 8:04 pm.
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Old Dec 5th 2011, 8:22 pm
  #172  
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Default Re: The perfect Mother

Originally Posted by jackytoo
If it is all that bad in the UK why didn't you move back to Spain when there was a boom on Nothing like calling a place when you are earning a living there, is it that you could not hack it in Spain re. wages etc?
As I said in other posts, being patriotic doesn't mean to close one's eyes to one's country problems. Please don't be offended if a foreigner says some truths. Not everything is rose in Spain, not everything is rose in the UK, you cannot wear rose-coloured glasses.

In my personal circumstances, I had finished my practice of a couple of years and it came the moment to decide whether to take my own clients in my own place or to continue in another office. To make a break I went to London to practice my English, thinking in maybe a 3 months break. Fortunately or unfortunately, I met my now British husband and decided to stay in order to give the relationship a chance. That was almost 11 years ago.

So no, I wasn't even considering living in the UK, and it was a very hard decision, especially because I lost all my work contacts and had to start from scratch.
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Old Dec 5th 2011, 8:54 pm
  #173  
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Default Re: The perfect Mother

Originally Posted by evamar
To make a break I went to London to practice my English, thinking in maybe a 3 months break. Fortunately or unfortunately, I met my now British husband and decided to stay in order to give the relationship a chance. That was almost 11 years ago.
An excellent go-getters story. I know a couple of others which impressed me no end from friends of mine...

1. A guy in his 20s in Madrid with a good degree and a steady professional job, but got passed for promotion twice. So quit and went to learn English in London. Worked in McDs for a year and a year later got the same job he had in Madrid but now in the London office. Now firmly in middle management
2. A girl in her early 20s, didnt go to uni or speak English. Went to learn it in England at a language school, 5 years later was running the place! Another 10 years later now has a language school in Spain

Heartening stories from Spaniards I met in London. Unfortunately I havent come across any from Brits in Spain. Anyone got any to share?
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Old Dec 5th 2011, 9:13 pm
  #174  
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Default Re: The perfect Mother

Originally Posted by cricketman
An excellent go-getters story. I know a couple of others which impressed me no end from friends of mine...

1. A guy in his 20s in Madrid with a good degree and a steady professional job, but got passed for promotion twice. So quit and went to learn English in London. Worked in McDs for a year and a year later got the same job he had in Madrid but now in the London office. Now firmly in middle management
2. A girl in her early 20s, didnt go to uni or speak English. Went to learn it in England at a language school, 5 years later was running the place! Another 10 years later now has a language school in Spain

Heartening stories from Spaniards I met in London. Unfortunately I havent come across any from Brits in Spain. Anyone got any to share?
There are a lot of successful British business owners in Spain, but Iwould like to make an observation.

The cases you have given have something in common with each other.

Both of them seemed to have started at the bottom, they both had to work for someone else, so they had a hunger to make things work, if you know what I mean.

OK, a lot of the Brits who have busineses in Spaincame with quite a large sum of money to start their enterprise with, and seemed to go for the usual BAR/CAFE/RESTAURANT bussines, which in many cases was a whole new profession for them, having had other types of jobs in the UK.

They had no experience and quite often saw waht they wanted to see, when they bought or set up their business, they were in fact blinded by the sun.

With a financial cushion behind them and little experience in the field, many did not see how badly their business was doing, untill it is too late in many cases.
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Old Dec 6th 2011, 7:27 am
  #175  
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Default Re: The perfect Mother

I think each story is different. In my own case, I actually had to go down and renounce to a quite comfortable situation in order to live in the UK. I had my own flat in my mid 20's, good education, excellent job contacts and references and a very interesting CV. I left at 30, and without contacts in the UK it was like going back 10 years in my career. Would I have done the same today? I love my husband, but I don't think so; my area of work was quite safe and with 10 more years experience I would be very secure. I would have looked for a holiday relationship, nothing else. Hopefully I will be able to revive some contacts when I'm back.

Please don't think that all immigrants in the UK are happier there than they were in their own countries; in many cases they are living there for personal issues, not professional. And don't get offended if they point out some real issues. I have been happy in the UK and don't regret my move, but I definitely wouldn't like to die there and I know that I will be even happier in my own country. Of course I won't cut my strings with the UK, expect to visit often and receive friends, as well as meeting some integrated British. In the meanwhile my husband is learning Spanish at full speed and I keep a vigilant whip to make sure he improves.

With such stupid social system in the UK it's not real surprise that too many foreigners and natives choose to live a dependant unproductive life sucking off society. As I said, that is a real problem, but it mainly comes from the system. We are beginning to get those social problems here, but we don't tend to maintain parasites so much.

I have been educated in a "work hard, earn your own means and enjoy life but don't spend what you don't have" way. Also to take responsibilities for my actions, just as JLFS's Spanish family taught him.
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Old Dec 6th 2011, 8:29 am
  #176  
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Default Re: The perfect Mother

Originally Posted by jackytoo
Don't any of you know any normal people
What is your view of normal?
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Old Dec 6th 2011, 10:21 am
  #177  
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Default Re: The perfect Mother

Originally Posted by evamar

With such stupid social system in the UK it's not real surprise that too many foreigners and natives choose to live a dependant unproductive life sucking off society. As I said, that is a real problem, but it mainly comes from the system. We are beginning to get those social problems here, but we don't tend to maintain parasites so much.

I have been educated in a "work hard, earn your own means and enjoy life but don't spend what you don't have" way. Also to take responsibilities for my actions, just as JLFS's Spanish family taught him.
Would you prefer the UK to have the same "social system" like Spain with no benefits at all. No Spain doesn't "maintain social parasites" but it doesn't look after the genuine either!

In todays news there are 10 evictions each DAY in málaga area

http://www.diariosur.es/v/20111206/m...#disqus_thread
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Old Dec 6th 2011, 11:10 am
  #178  
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Default Re: The perfect Mother

Originally Posted by jackytoo
Would you prefer the UK to have the same "social system" like Spain with no benefits at all. No Spain doesn't "maintain social parasites" but it doesn't look after the genuine either!

In todays news there are 10 evictions each DAY in málaga area

http://www.diariosur.es/v/20111206/m...#disqus_thread
To start with, I was once on the dole in the UK a couple years ago. Precisely because I have no kids, I was given only 64 quid per week. I needed it for 3 months, and was shocked about wasting time and money having to go every couple of weeks to take part in a stupid interview to sign and see the amount of people needed to keep an eye on the unemployed... they assume that they are not looking for jobs! Do they have a reason to think that??? In Spain I would have had 400 euros per month for 2 years with interviews every 3 months... and it was extended because of the crisis when people couldn't find a job within 2 years, with or without kids. So yes, I think that much of the Spanish system is better. Not all, just as not all the UK system is better.

There are plenty of evictions in the UK too. And unfortunately here and there many are due to the owners trying to stay in their houses for as long as possible and make a benefit rather than selling for what they actually need to break free or at a slight loss instead of a huge debt. If I were about to lose my 250K house still owing 125K, I wouldn't expect to sell it at market price, just enough to cover all my debts and costs and start free somewhere looking for a worse place.

Now in Valencia city you can find lots of 3 beds houses with lift (important, the lift!) for under 40K€, in bad areas I have seen them from 25K€. These sell quickly and if I were not able to pay my mortgage, I would try to get them whatever the area while situation stays this bad. I would aso also make sure to get information about the houses sold in 3rd auction and fight with the vultures... at least the owners would get a bit more money this way. The non public auction system is horrible for the owners.

Last edited by evamar; Dec 6th 2011 at 11:12 am.
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Old Dec 6th 2011, 11:28 am
  #179  
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Default Re: The perfect Mother

Originally Posted by evamar
Now in Valencia city you can find lots of 3 beds houses with lift (important, the lift!) for under 40K€, in bad areas I have seen them from 25K€.
Are you sure. Within the past 15 years?

I went house hunting in Valencia city last year when I was offered a job there. A very basic 3 bed flat was more like 300k euros
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Old Dec 6th 2011, 11:30 am
  #180  
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Default Re: The perfect Mother

Originally Posted by evamar
To start with, I was once on the dole in the UK a couple years ago. Precisely because I have no kids, I was given only 64 quid per week. I needed it for 3 months, and was shocked about wasting time and money having to go every couple of weeks to take part in a stupid interview to sign and see the amount of people needed to keep an eye on the unemployed... they assume that they are not looking for jobs! Do they have a reason to think that??? In Spain I would have had 400 euros per month for 2 years with interviews every 3 months... and it was extended because of the crisis when people couldn't find a job within 2 years, with or without kids. So yes, I think that much of the Spanish system is better. Not all, just as not all the UK system is better.
Please dont exaggerate.............

Paro in Spain is decided on length of time worked and is not 400 a month for 2 years for everyone.

In Spain there is no housing benefit and no council tax benefit.

Add housing benefit and council tax benefit to unemployment benefit in the UK and you will find it is more than what you quote for Spain.

I dont know if there is additional benefit money to help feed children of the unemployed in Spain.......... somehow I think not.
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