Snobbery and greed in hobbies.

[Bertie McBoatface]

1 hour ago, jenko said:

This thread reminds me of the old John Cleese,  Ronnie Barker and Ronnie Corbett  sketch on "That was the week that was". (If I'm  wrong here please put me right.)

3 people looking up or down on each other depending on their status  in life.

 

Dick       who knows his place😇

 

Pull up a sandbag and get comfy and I'll tell you about a IX Sqn party held in the summer of 1978, or maybe '79. 76? The hall that was hired had a stage and that prompted the preparation and presentation of a Squadron Review. There were singers and other musicians of course, dancers, magicians, stand up comics - IX were a talented bunch, top to bottom. On the bottom of the heap, as far as rank and pay was concerned, were the dozen or so Flight Line Mechanics.

 

These poor chaps were recruited to do the donkey work around the squadrons on the promise, seldom realised, of a Fitter's Course. They were trained to top up empty things and lift heavy weights. Amazingly, they were generally the most cheerful of all the chappies and always the most cheeky - nothing to lose, I suppose.

 

The Flight Line Mechs' (FLMs pronounced phlegm) contribution to the review were a series of comic sketches. One that stands out in my ailing memory all these years later was based on the Cleese, Barker and Corbett routine. The posh gent became the officer pilot, the middle class wallah became the crew chief and the grubby little working class Herbert became, you guessed it, a phlegm.

 

"I'm a phlegm so I look up to both of them. When I sign the RAF Form 700, I use the biro I knicked from the bookies shop at the weekend."

 

"I'm a crew chief so I look down on him, but I look up to him. When I sign the RAF Form 700, I use my trusty Parker pen."

 

"I'm a pilot so I look down on both of them. When I sign the RAF Form 700, I use... I use... (patting pockets) I say Chiefy, can I borrow a pen?"

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

"I'm a pilot and when I go to the Officer's Mess in the evening I sometimes take my lady"

 

I'm a crew chief and when I go to the Sergeant's Mess at night, sometimes my wife comes with me."

 

I'm a phlegm and when I sneak into the NAAFI at suppertime, I'm always looking for a woman."

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

It went downhill from there and must not be repeated here 😆

[Bertie McBoatface]

10 minutes ago, Troy Smith said:

.

 

Bravo!

[One 48]

Well ... Mr Kipling makes exceedingly good cakes ... and that's all I have to say on this 😎

[Moggy]

2 hours ago, One 48 said:

Well ... Mr Kipling makes exceedingly good cakes ... and that's all I have to say on this 😎

 

So Mr. Kipling was not only a poet and author - but a baker as well?

 

Cheers, Moggy of Empire

[Mike]

I had a feeling things would go south from there.  Fortunately, the Antipodean contingent of the Mod team was on point to mop up.  Nice one @Greg B

 

BTW - thanks for all the reports, it's heartening to see everyone using the system to calm this sort of thing down, rather than jumping in and risking getting caught in the blast

[One 48]

31 minutes ago, Moggy said:

 

So Mr. Kipling was not only a poet and author - but a baker as well?

 

Cheers, Moggy of Empire

Also the tin foil cake cups make great paint mixing thinning trays Its embarrassing how many I have !

[Mike]

7 minutes ago, One 48 said:

Also the tin foil cake cups make great paint mixing thinning trays Its embarrassing how many I have !

I'm the same with Pringles lids.  I don't eat them any more though (the lids or the crisps, both of which have a similar nutritional value), but I still have a carrier bag full

[Black Knight]

If you're going on the snobbishness of foods.

I had an elderly aunt, lived close to me. Sometimes asked me to help her unload her monthly big shop

The whole process was very odd - we'd unload the grocery bags on to the ground behind the car. Wait a bit, then carry them onto the pavement, all of 4 feet. Wait a bit. Then my aunt would see a nosey neighbour 'hello, Mrs Jones, I'm just back from my shopping' A quick exchange between the two then I was allowed to take the bags into house.

As I'm not a snob I didn't recognise what was going on. 

My aunt bought the shop-own goods in Asda, Tesco and Lidl, but the bags were Sainsburys, Marks & Spencer et cetera.

My aunt was trying to impress her neighbours

[Bertie McBoatface]

31 minutes ago, Mike said:

I'm the same with Pringles lids.  I don't eat them any more though (the lids or the crisps, both of which have a similar nutritional value), but I still have a carrier bag full

 

Nutella comes in little tumblers sealed with white plastic lids. The tumblers are pleasantly proportioned drinking glasses and the lids fit on a standard sized tin - handy if you only want half a tin of beans today. I have quite a collection now. 

 

I don't like Nutella very much though...

 

[Moggy]

Just now, One 48 said:

Also the tin foil cake cups make great paint mixing thinning trays Its embarrassing how many I have !

 

Hmmm... I have to try this.

Living east of the Kattegat I have no idea where to buy this Imperial cakes 😜

 

I suppose I'll have to be satisfied with Mr. Kiplings literary creations 😇

 

Cheers, Moggy (cakeless)

[Mike]

46 minutes ago, Bertie Psmith said:

I don't like Nutella very much though...

Me neither.  There's something about chocolate and hazelnuts that puts me off.  I saw a pot the other day, and there was a sticker on the lid announcing that there were 80 calories in a single teaspoon! I'd be flippin' immense if I liked that stuff, so it's as well I don't

[MrB17]

3 minutes ago, Mike said:

There's something about chocolate and hazelnuts that puts me off.

Agreed! However, my granddaughter has recently come up with Nutella (she pronounces it notella haha) and peanut butter sandwiches. When I make it for her, she takes her teaspoon and eats the 80 calories and then the sandwich! At least she can burn it off, I would require a hydraulic lift to get me around!

Cheers

Jeff

[Mike]

4 minutes ago, MrB17 said:

At least she can burn it off, I would require a hydraulic lift to get me around!

That's the trouble, isn't it?  I actually thought I was seeing thinks when I first saw the label, but I went back for another look, and sho'nuff, there it was.  I told my SO, and her eyebrows almost merged with her hairline

[Troy Smith]

18 minutes ago, Moggy said:

I suppose I'll have to be satisfied with Mr. Kiplings literary creations

I don't know that cakes were all that really...  just those of certain age have these literary creations lodged in collective unconscious... which you can share as well.  

 

 

 

 

[MrB17]

2 minutes ago, Troy Smith said:

I don't know that cakes were all that really...  just those of certain age have these literary creations lodged in collective unconscious... which you can share as well.

I have never seen those before, however after watching the video I was somewhat astonished at how similar they look to the kirsch tarts made by Victoria’s most famous “Dutch Bakery”! I only indulge a few times a year 😉

 

Cheers

Jeff

[Moggy]

I love Nutella! 😜

During the early '80 I studied at a boarding school (on scholarship) on the north Adriatic coast - more exactly the Gulf of Trieste. The coast there is a series of high cliffs 20-50 meters high

 

This place (Duino) lies 60 km south of the original home of Nutella! If you've said you didn't like Nutella there you've probably been thrown off a cliff - a northern Tarpeian rock as it were. 😎

 

Unfortunately Nutella doesn't agree with me; diabetes and overweight are the wages of sin Nutella. 😇

So I haven't eaten Nutella for the last six years 🤣

 

Cheers, Moggy the Nutella-less

[jenko]

16 minutes ago, MrB17 said:

Agreed! However, my granddaughter has recently come up with Nutella (she pronounces it notella haha) and peanut butter sandwiches. When I make it for her, she takes her teaspoon and eats the 80 calories and then the sandwich! At least she can burn it off, I would require a hydraulic lift to get me around!

Cheers

Jeff

Be very careful. Some time back I had teaspoon of peanut  butter  and it coated the back of my throat to the point I could  not breath. I had to use my fingers to stop me from choking. Be aware.

 

Dick 

[Black Knight]

 I was just thinking about the 'greed' side of our hobby

I remember back, maybe about 2014 - 2016, Airfix had some clear-out sales

They sold certain kits at very, very cheap prices

There were people who bought up the supply of cheap kits then put them up for sale on ebay at the RRP

[jenko]

6 minutes ago, Black Knight said:

 I was just thinking about the 'greed' side of our hobby

I remember back, maybe about 2014 - 2016, Airfix had some clear-out sales

They sold certain kits at very, very cheap prices

There were people who bought up the supply of cheap kits then put them up for sale on ebay at the RRP

True  I used to got to their sails at Hornby. The number  of traders was silly. Especially  regarding  diecast and railways.  Did pick up some bargains 😁

[Bertie McBoatface]

3 hours ago, Black Knight said:

 I was just thinking about the 'greed' side of our hobby

I remember back, maybe about 2014 - 2016, Airfix had some clear-out sales

They sold certain kits at very, very cheap prices

There were people who bought up the supply of cheap kits then put them up for sale on ebay at the RRP

 

Is that greed or exploiting an opportunity? Airfix could have sold them on eBay too but they declined to do the listing, waiting around, answering questions etc. So when a Del Boy is prepared to do the leg work shouldn't he be able to make a few quid? I don't actually know. Would it make a difference if he was short of money and spending the profits on food for the kiddies? I've sold built models on the site myself and been delighted to get a good price for them, or anything in fact 😁. Greed? Or business? It's a surprisingly complicated thing to talk about, isn't it?

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

I've met many modellers who have bought far more kits than they would ever be able to build this side of the grave. In fact I sometimes get the impression that it's a majority of us. I personally hesitate to say that that amounts to being greedy (it's such a loaded word I'd rarely use it about anyone) but I know what my sainted and outspoken Mum would have said about it. 😁

 

 She was unnaturally frugal in her possessions and once she had enough of anything, preferred to give the rest away! She grew up desperately poor, in the 1920s but made a lot of money later, eventually giving most of it away. Consequently I grew up very comfortable (Thanks Mum), but selfish as an oyster. (Or was that shellfish...) Maybe I thought she'd give all MY stuff away. 😲

 

 

 

 

[Beardie]

'Greed' versus 'taking advantage of market forces to make a profit' is a tricky one. I have to admit that I am by no means a natural trader and I always feel quite guilty if I make a profit on selling something (because I need some cash), which I had bought because I wanted it for myself originally. I suppose that in real terms it's silly to not take advantage of such an opportunity, especially when you need the cash especially if the goods in question are 'toys' or 'luxuries' rather than the essentials of life, Somewhere along the line I guess it was instilled into my nature that 'profit' was a bad thing and was somehow cheating. Rather odd I suppose but then again that's me all over. Is it bad to take advantage of 'Supply and Demand' to make yourself a few bucks from desirable goods from those who can afford them if it means that those who can't afford an inflated price in the marketplace are priced out? Is it the fault of the manufacturer for not producing enough to satisfy the marketplace? Or is it simply the way things are and, if you can exploit it without breaking the law to make yourself some money it's up to yourself whether you choose to? My stepdaughters partner is like Del Boy except he is actually rather successful at buying things cheap and then selling them on for quite a bit more and I have to say that one of his things is buying up the latest kits from Lego and then selling them on for a killing once it's sold out. Is that somehow underhand or just an 'entrepreneur' at work? He happens to be a fan of Lego as well, something I just don't 'get', and has an ability to know which Lego sets will go crazy in the marketplace. 

[Bertie McBoatface]

4 hours ago, Beardie said:

Lego

Here’s a complicated example. 
 

I know a man who buys Warhammer armies when they are first issued. They cost a fortune but you get tons of figures, books and other paraphernalia. He then breaks the set down to individual items and sells them on a market stall. 
 

He makes a profit. But people who can’t afford the full set are able to buy enough stuff to participate in the hobby. 
 

‘Greed’ or ‘altruism’?

 

it gets worse, He is a retired bloke who runs his stall as a hobby for himself. He meets people that way, gets out from under his wife’s feet. 
 

He’s bought kits from me when I felt sickened by my overlarge stash. Gave me a quick and easy few quid and made a profit selling them, though it took months for him to shift them. His mark up was about double what he paid me. 

 

That’s the same margin as A high street bookstore that I used to work in. 

 

I think that to judge his operation on moral grounds is inappropriate. No one has to deal with him. He doesn’t cause shortages. He’s breaking up games workshop’s multipack offers but he pays full price for them in their shops so why should they worry?

 

The bloke is simply a small time capitalist. He is a tiny example of the way the world has operated since before money was invented. 
 

He’s not ‘good’ or ‘bad’. He just is. 
 

In my opinion. Other opinions are available. 😅
 

 

 

[Vince1159]

6 hours ago, Beardie said:

Is it bad to take advantage of 'Supply and Demand' to make yourself a few bucks

Only if you get caught,just ask Grandad...

 

[Bullbasket]

If we were talking about stocks and shares, we wouldn't be having this discussion. Certain shares on the stock market have fallen low, so somebody buys up a whole wodge cheap, hangs onto them for a few months until the price goes back up, and then they sell them at a profit. Is that greed, or someone just being shrewd?

 

John.

[Bertie McBoatface]

39 minutes ago, Bullbasket said:

If we were talking about stocks and shares, we wouldn't be having this discussion. Certain shares on the stock market have fallen low, so somebody buys up a whole wodge cheap, hangs onto them for a few months until the price goes back up, and then they sell them at a profit. Is that greed, or someone just being shrewd?

 

John.

 

That's exactly what happened to my kits when I sold them to my acquaintance. 

 

Also, the stock market finances the companies that are traded on it. Without the issue of shares there wouldn't be companies...jobs...wealth...food. Shrewd/greedy people make a fortune and I eat. Fair enough.