bob2005

Presumably this is cabin baggage, never heard of only one bag they take and you collect at the other end. I think they should weigh the passenger as well as the baggage, why should a little old lady with 45 kgms baggage pay extra when the guy behind her doesn't even if he weighs 130 kgms and has 25 kgms baggage. Do check-in staff estimate each passenger's weight so the pilot knows how much fuel he needs?

The winner of the first series of TV 'wire octagon arena' fight contests I saw, 3-4 years ago, was a slimly-built tallish Judo (or Jujitsu) guy, not the thickset muscle-bound types. He often won by getting a leg-grip round the other guy's waist and squeezing him into submission. Skill not brawn, but there are a lot of moves ruled out by these contests which might be used in street fighting and make the difference. I'd put money on the All Black or South African packs against any other 8-man group.

So send the money to London until you've found the place you want. I am imagining a lot of BMs shaking their heads and seeing you heading for a fall. Slow down. Rent for a while on the interest you get on your capital.

Brown will tax anything he can think of - travel, pension funds, etc. How anyone can consider this pirate for Prime Minister is beyond me. Yes. But some airlines, eg RyanAir, want it a day or more before you fly. It's actually a tax on airlines and some are passing it on to passengers, a few are not. Some info here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/6317131.stm

Some very over-sensitive flowers around. Do you never say 'Thai'?

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/cor.../250767/1/.html Southeast Asia's first low-cost long-haul airline, called AirAsia X, was launched on Friday. Malaysian leaders say the new local carrier is expected to turn the country into a global budget aviation hub. Imagine a return flight from Kuala Lumpur to London at just US$140 - inclusive of all taxes, insurance and surcharges. Malaysia's newly-launched long haul budget carrier - AirAsia X - is set to kick off its first low-cost flights to China and Europe this July. Speaking to Channel NewsAsia, AirAsia CEO Tony Fernandes, who has a 50 percent share in the new carrier, said AirAsia X's business model will revolutionise the region's aviation industry. He said: "There'll be a lot of fares at 500 ringgit to the UK return, if that's not revolutionary I don't know what is. It will be cheaper to fly to London than to Singapore." By keeping costs low at 1.9 US cents per passenger kilometre, Mr Fernandes is confident the no-frills operation will be profitable. Passengers will have assigned seats for the flights and in-flight entertainment, food and beverages are add-ons that can be purchased beforehand. In July, three Airbus 330s or Boeing 777s - each with a maximum capacity of 400 - will commence daily flights from the Malaysian capital to Tianjin or Hangzhou in China.

The actual word was 'represent' not 'will represent'. But what the heck!

Very happy.

IMF (2005): World 44,433,002 Million US$ Brazil 792,683 Russia 766,180 India 775,410 China 2,224,811 BRIC total about 4,400,000 ie 10% of world economy.

Etihad business is way better than Thai business, own cubicle etc. Nice break halfway too. Connection was just over an hour each way (Heathrow).

There's a lot of bargirls who might surprise you down that area...

If you start work at 20 (+- 2 years depending on uni/college) and retire at 65 then halfway is 20+22 = 42. Of course if you're any good at your job you get promoted a few times and the last 22 years gives much more money than the first 22.

You can get a pension forecast by calling the State Pension Forecasting Team on 0845 3000 168 (textphone 0845 3000 169). Lines are open 8.00 am to 8.00 pm Monday to Friday, and 9.00 am to 1.00 pm on Saturdays. They might try to send you a form but just say you'd heard they can take the info over the phone, which is true. But I don't think you can take it before 65. Have a look at your basic position (cash flow possibly topped up by some capital) before considering investing in Transylvania.

Thanks for trying. I'll talk to them to get a different format.

I'm only seeing the 'HTML Client' message but I have 'Forwarded' it to you, don't know if you will get anything. Cheers.