What made you happy today?

125Spotter · 7 Jul 2026

Railwaycat said:
Don't like adding to Jeff Bezos's fortune (said fan was way more expensive elsewhere), but have to admit that is the way for a business to handle complaints.

I agree with you on principle, but also on the effectiveness of Amazon’s customer service and returns policy. It knocks their competitors - whoever they are - out of the park, and the flexibility almost certainly drives repeat custom back that could go elsewhere.

Although we did recently have a small retailer offer us a “returnless refund”, which I think is a really sensible policy for items of small value (and, again, means we are more likely to go back to them) but it is something that to date I’ve only ever seen Amazon do.

RailUK Forums

Forty29 · 7 Jul 2026

You can buy a pallet of returned goods from Amazon at a knocked down price. You never know what you're going to get but if only a few things are useful you would still save. Give the rest away as presents or have a boot sale!

Back on what made me happy today, woke up and heard a flapping noise outside the door, turns out a swift had come through the window and flown in the hallway and resting on the shoe rack. It laid still whilst I picked it up in a towel and returned back to the wild out of the window. It flew off seemingly none the worst for it. It's a beautiful bird.

Mr. SW · 15 Jul 2026

What made me happy today?
This! In my Google News feed this morning.
Where did they find this image?
1990s Reading.
(Probably a copyright free stock image before you ask)

Acey · 16 Jul 2026

Seeing grapes for the first time on the vine I planted a few years ago

Harpo · 16 Jul 2026

Eating my first wild blackberry of the summer.

martin butler · 18 Jul 2026

What made me happy, a flashback to my teenage years, i found an old cassette tape in an old player, i had just thrown into a box, years ago, and i played it, ELP Tarkus, not heard that in years,

on the other side, was a collection of songs, some good, some made me think,why did i record that!! then a very funny record, that had me in stitches, took me right back, My brothers and i laughing our heads off, Mum, looking at us like we had gone mad, My sister saying, thats not funny, Dad trying not to smile,

the song, the b side of Jasper carrots Funky Moped, Except, we didnt buy it for the A side, guess the song ?

Strat-tastic · 18 Jul 2026

Oh, I don't know, 'Commas are going out of fashion'?

Forty29 · 18 Jul 2026

Mr. SW said:
What made me happy today?
This! In my Google News feed this morning.
Where did they find this image?
1990s Reading.
(Probably a copyright free stock image before you ask)

Photo On post#843

That's a very good 'painting' mentions Vincent van Gogh by the picture.
Made me happy to see it good view at Reading.

Trackman · 18 Jul 2026

A trackman relative had problems with Universal Credit regarding earnings, basically they worked a few months over the Christmas period and when they claimed UC their last pay was deducted from the first payment as it was within the 'assessment period' and got zero.
I asked them to send a message to the case manager, and they replied something on the lines 'HRMC reported the pay on such and such a date so you will not receive anything'
I did some digging about, HMRC can only change the pay date within seven days and this has to be done by the employer - which was too late.
More investigation with said relative and saw wage slip and bank statement which showed they hadnt been paid in the assessment period.

I asked them to appeal, which they did.

Anyway, about seven months later and after uploading documents, DWP have admitted the mistake and coughed up. Proper result.

martin butler · 18 Jul 2026

Strat-tastic said:
Oh, I don't know, 'Commas are going out of fashion'?

OK, very Funny, you should be on the stage, the stops outside the door marked exit

Actually it was Jasper carrott's Magic Roundabout, not for those of a prudish disposition, it was I believed banned by the BBC

, A radio show accidently played the B side in error (so they said at the time) and the record took off after that, no one i knew bought it for the A side, and we found it very funny, even if some didn't.

londonbridge · 18 Jul 2026

What made me happy? Josh Kerr fulfilling his promise to break the mile world record. Me? I’m not quite that fast these days as I’ll be sixty next month but I’m still running eight minute miles, clocked 7:57 in a Run Through race at the Olympic Park on Thursday. My official record for a mile in a timed race is 6:40.

SuspectUsual · 18 Jul 2026

londonbridge said:
What made me happy? Josh Kerr fulfilling his promise to break the mile world record. Me? I’m not quite that fast these days as I’ll be sixty next month but I’m still running eight minute miles, clocked 7:57 in a Run Through race at the Olympic Park on Thursday. My official record for a mile in a timed race is 6:40.

It was a remarkable run and it made me very happy to watch it (Kerr not you, although I’m pleased for you!). I was in the crumbling Heysel Stadium for the Ivo Van Damme meeting in 1981 and saw Coe run his 3:47.33 to break the mile record.

(I don’t think I’ve ever done a timed one mile, but my 1500m PB is 4:19 from when I was at school)

alex397 · 19 Jul 2026

I went on the longest continuous cycle ride I’ve ever been on, around Gent, one of the best cities I’ve been to for cycling. I was very impressed with the segregated bike paths, which includes their own bridges, underpasses and roundabouts. I was nervous about using sections that include on-road cycling and tram tracks, but it was all fine. Cyclists also seem to have absolute priority over vehicles - cars were stopping well in advance of me approaching bike zebra crossings.
It was also great to see the different culture they have there - lots of different people using bikes - commuters, shoppers, young and old, parents with young children, people with dogs, disabled people with adapted bikes.
I never cycle in the UK* due to our rubbish infrastructure, so it was a great insight into what life could be like if the UK wasn’t so regressive.

*apart from promenade bike rides as a kid, a disastrous time on a Santander bike in London, and a recent hire of a Bolt bike in Nottingham along the Trent

londonbridge · 19 Jul 2026

@SuspectUsual thank you……no doubt I’ve most likely run a mile faster than 6:40 in the past but that’s my best known performance that I have official timing and scoring for.

Forty29 · 21 Jul 2026

My daughter gave me a lovely granddaughter.

Camberman · 22 Jul 2026

Forty29 said:
My daughter gave me a lovely granddaughter.

Grandchildren are such a wonderful blessing.

Ken X · 22 Jul 2026

Camberman said:
Grandchildren are such a wonderful blessing.

And best of all, you can hand them back. :lol:

Camberman · 23 Jul 2026

Ken X said:
And best of all, you can hand them back.

Very true!

Harpo · 24 Jul 2026

I rewatched ‘Workhorse’ on BBC IPlayer. A touching documentary about the relationship between a lady and her heavy horses in her forestry business.

trainswitheddy · 25 Jul 2026

Seeing this thread popping off again makes me happy!

Strat-tastic said:
Oh, I don't know, 'Commas are going out of fashion'?

This did get a little chuckle out of me :lol:

Forty29 · 27 Jul 2026

Ken X said:
And best of all, you can hand them back.

Though you never want to especially newborn!

Camberman · 27 Jul 2026

On Saturday I went to Brentford. It has changed vastly since I was last there - most of the old almost derelict buildings have gone and there are modern apartments and shops in their place. However, what pleased me the most and made me happy was seeing that the Magpie & Crown pub in the High Street was still there. I popped in for a quick drink and the place remains much as I recall it from 20 years ago when the funeral wake for my younger brother was held there and CAMRA members from miles around attended. It made me happy to recall good times with my brother.

trainswitheddy · 29 Jul 2026

Camberman said:
On Saturday I went to Brentford. It has changed vastly since I was last there - most of the old almost derelict buildings have gone and there are modern apartments and shops in their place. However, what pleased me the most and made me happy was seeing that the Magpie & Crown pub in the High Street was still there. I popped in for a quick drink and the place remains much as I recall it from 20 years ago when the funeral wake for my younger brother was held there and CAMRA members from miles around attended. It made me happy to recall good times with my brother.

That's made me smile too, glad you had a good time. Need to visit a few pubs myself on my travels...

johntea · 30 Jul 2026

I wanted to see the new Spider Man movie today whilst in London for the week, predictably all the major chains were pretty much full but then I just so happened to come across a independent cinema 10 minutes walk from my hotel!

What an excellent little venue it turned out to be, none of this 3D Laser 4DX nonsense just a big screen and some comfy seating with room for about 50 people so a lovely intimate way to watch the film, even some decent local beers at the bar too which I was more than happy to purchase...to help support the cinema of course

Jealous of the locals I have to go home in a couple of days now!

Castle Sidcup - Independent Community Cinema Based on Sidcup High Street

We are an independent, three screen community cinema in Sidcup.

www.castlesidcup.com

jb108822 · 30 Jul 2026

Slightly delayed, but I got my new car back on Monday (only bought it a week or so prior) after it had to go back to the dealership because of a faulty sensor. All seems to be fine now, though, which is the key thing.

Also, last week, I received my OU degree results, having studied for a BSc in Mathematics. I've been awarded a 2:1, which I'm really happy about. It's been a long six years of part-time study alongside work (a good chunk of that work being full-time as well), and it's not been easy for a whole host of reasons, so to come out of it with that mark is very good.

johntea · 30 Jul 2026

Just been for a swim at Tooting Bec Lido…another hidden London gem I’ll miss when I head home tomorrow! (Well at least in the summer I guess

)

Plenty of space for everyone as the pool is 90m long (although the online booking system is a bit of a pain!) and even the satisfying rumble as a Underground train passes by every so often

Jimini · 30 Jul 2026

johntea said:
Just been for a swim at Tooting Bec Lido…another hidden London gem I’ll miss when I head home tomorrow! (Well at least in the summer I guess )

Plenty of space for everyone as the pool is 90m long (although the online booking system is a bit of a pain!) and even the satisfying rumble as a Underground train passes by every so often

Ah yes, that's a beaut. When I lived in Tooting I'd swim there with the South London Swimming Club. The Christmas morning races was such a cracking way to kick off Christmas Day!

johntea · 31 Jul 2026

Nothing better than getting back to your own bed after an exhausting week away in the Big Smoke

I decided to treat myself to some Lego, not quite thinking how big the box was going to be! Was certainly fun trying to carry that down Tottenham Court Road, thankfully there was a bus stop nearby to King's Cross so I didn't have the further complication of navigating the Underground! (good job I left picking it up until half an hour before my train as I did consider picking up earlier in the day/week at one point!)

Camberman · 1 Aug 2026

jb108822 said:
Slightly delayed, but I got my new car back on Monday (only bought it a week or so prior) after it had to go back to the dealership because of a faulty sensor. All seems to be fine now, though, which is the key thing.

Also, last week, I received my OU degree results, having studied for a BSc in Mathematics. I've been awarded a 2:1, which I'm really happy about. It's been a long six years of part-time study alongside work (a good chunk of that work being full-time as well), and it's not been easy for a whole host of reasons, so to come out of it with that mark is very good.

Congratulations! especially in view of the challenges and time pressures you must have faced.

RichJF · 3 Aug 2026

Welcomed our first child into the world on Sunday night; a little baby boy.

Now comes the real struggle

What made you happy today?

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