Woman gripes she often takes in a parcel for a neighbour who never comes for it, despite getting a card. Exile will take a parcel in, but never takes it round; they must come here. Refusing to accept them, inconveniences the poor delivery guy, but if that's what it takes with a regular offender😞...

I mentioned that many Americans seemingly need to have 'suet' and 'suet puddings' explained to them. Now I'm shocked to learn that the same apparently applies to 'imam'! I mocked the 'wokism gone mad' that pixelated the holy fam's faces to include all races; but doesn't the US have imams?🤔😢Gagh!

Amusingly, many Americans need suet/suet crust pastry explained: '...made by steaming... pastry casing made from suet (a hard white animal fat often taken from beef). Clearly steak&kidney pudding isn't; but American vegetarians need to know that many British steamed dessert puds aren't OK for them.

Oh sorry, I forgot about these:

In a wtf piece about the Brit seaside, those ketchuppy crisps recur as 'hot chips with vinegar'; LIQUORICE ALLSORTS are 'Rock candy with the town name running through it'; '2p coin machines in the arcade' captions a pic of US paper currency; and a kite becomes a flapping WINDBREAK. Biscuit is taken!

What a brilliant image to illustrate 'Things you're most likely to forget'. Love it, hehe!

'My child’s 12pm nativity is proof schools don’t care about working parents' - I'm sure they do care, but can't always schedule such activities outside school hours. Teachers don't just relax when lessons finish, and nor do many stay-at-home parents. A problem with no obvious solution, sadly.

'I’m 65, recently married and my wife’s pension is tiny – it’ll ruin my retirement,' some bloke grumbles to an agony uncle. Key to his problem is one of his smallest words: the repeated 'my' rather than 'our'. Despite his assurances, does he fully acknowledge their respective remarriages? Hmm...

Spotted in a piece about British quirks: 'While other countries prefer... airy bars or sun-drenched terraces, Brits prefer huddling in darkened, groggy boozers.' Huh? Good luck with 'sun-drenched' anything. They've already mentioned the changeable weather, which might have something to do with it!

Typical headline: "'Total gridlock' at Greater Manchester John Lewis as shoppers stuck for hours." Britain's urban roads can't accommodate the size of today's cars and the volume of traffic. They weren't built for nearly every household having even 1 vehicle, let alone multiple - simple as that.

No words - other than 'Wigan Hospital'. (Other hospitals in Gtr. Manc are likely better, but some probably not by much.) www.msn.com/en-gb/health...

A Brussels artist has made a nativity scene in which the faces are pixelated 'to represent all skin tones'. Um, weren't they Palestinians, according to the Bible? Belgian critics are up in arms, even decapitating baby Jesus! I'm an atheist, and strong supporter of inclusivity, but this is bonkers.😀😃

People are clogging up A&Es with complaints such as ingrowing toenails and, ffs, hiccups! For the former, try a chiropodist: 'Oh but they'll charge!' Sorry, you should have trimmed nails correctly, and/ or not worn badly fitting shoes. Hiccups, hold your breath. Maybe forever!

Answer to the question, where has the 'magic' of Xmas gone? is, imo, simple; lack of belief. Even quite young children, once they can read, go online and lose any real belief in Santa; few are taught by parents to believe in the Nativity story. It's just a time for extra greed and acquisitiveness.

Wrt neighbours 'at war' over Xmas decor, esp. when to put up and take down, and times of day to switch lights on and off. I reckon outdoor ones can go up on 1/12, & down by end of Jan. Wrt switching on & off, on at dusk, off by 10pm. Inside own home, do whatever you like! www.msn.com/en-gb/entert...

Sorry Vita Molyneux, but your weird-shaped patty-tin Yorkshires don't function as wee gravy-cups, and nor do they have the soft, fluffy portion with risen, crunchy edge, of a rectangular slice cut from a pudding made the traditional way, in a large roasting pan.

And: 'Passwords that don’t work even though you swear it’s right... There is no fury quite like typing in your password, being told it’s wrong, resetting it, and then being told your new password can’t match your old one.' Round in circles it sends you, and then you're locked out forever! Maddening.

What Brits grumble about most, nowadays: Being left on hold, forever. Calling cust. service, NHS etc. and hearing awful hold music for ages. By the time a human answers you’ve forgotten why you called. It is not the waiting that annoys us most, it's knowing the system is designed to make us give up!

Caption: Do you rinse your beans before heating them? Um, no, who would? There are pleny of canned legumes in water, brine, or vinaigrette available - why would anybody buy beans in tomato sauce and RINSE them?? A barmy idea, if ever there was one!😀😃

...and what's this ffs, supposedly illustrating British chippies?? It appears to be American 'chips' (ie. crisps), drizzled with ketchup, on a magazine page lining a plastic basket. An abomination provided by someone who barely speaks English, let alone Brit cultural norms.

'Town’s Christmas lights ridiculed for looking like pants.' Tbf, Tiverton, they do look like underpants/knickers. They were intended to look like Christmas puddings - HOW?😀😃

Another mistake, in a thing featuring Brits' weird-sounding food combos: 'Custard creams dunked in tea.' But clearly the pic is of malted milk biscuits, beside a mug of some sadly weak liquid...

Seems tourists are amazed at the British penchant for orderly queuing, with no pushing in. What do people do where they live, then? Just all rush up to the front, bar, counter etc. and shove one another out of the way - strongest wins, 'devil take the hindmost'? Pretty disgusting, if so!

Seems 'backdoor browsing' is now the term for peering at somebody else's screen, on public transport etc. Same thing really as back when a person would read another's newspaper or book, from behind or the adjacent seat. Times change, but human behaviour doesn't!😀

Now I get a phone call from nurse at GP, about my getting flu jab. Confused, I told her I'm s'posed to have a home visit booked for 10/12. She was flummoxed, eventually looking up my computer records and finding it. Might she have done that first, before phoning me, twice? Age of communication, eh!😀

In an item about unfair GP rules: 'repeat scrips need 48 hrs notice (after receiving GP approval electronically), despite pharmacies being open all weekend.' Huh? Our pharmacy states 3 days notice, minimum - - and is in any case CLOSED all weekend. Some folks don't know how lucky they are!

Manc Evening News've started where you've to pay a sub (fiver a month I think) to read some of their articles online. I suppose it's fair enough; their 10th-rate journos will be freelance, but they and admin staff do need paying. Not by me though, as I can live without their goss and tittle-tattle.

Btw, Brit chips are not, as I just saw them described, merely 'large French fries'. There's no comparison between 'fries' and our crispy-coated, fluffy-centred chunks of deep-fried spud, a butty of which is a meal in itself. At least the mushy peas shown are a believable colour!😀😆

An excellent article - the truth, the awful truth. 1, 2, 4, 9 & 10 stand out, but the others are horribly true also. Read it and weep, fellow-Brits! '10 Signs Britain Just Isn’t Working the Way It Used To.' www.msn.com/en-gb/money/...

In an item about 'old school UK sandwiches': cheese & pickled onion. Yet the pic is clearly of a cheese & PICKLE (eg Branston) sarnie - a different thing entirely. Shows how much the writer knows! 'Sweet Pickle with Mixed Vegetables and Spices.'

This made me laff: 'Brussels sprouts shortage: Brits face huge prices for Christmas dinner essential.' It's a standing joke that sprouts are hated by many, and give the few aficionados wind. There's plenty of other veg to choose, after all; but now, for the sake of a story, they're 'essential'. Bah!

Ayla Clulee (popular cook?) recommends her air-fryer fish'n'chips. Sorry Ayla, but your fish looks like an ultra-processed shop-bought product, and those burnt twice-cooked chips would have been better once-cooked. A meal from a good chippy may have a little more fat, but surely would be nicer!

'Households urged to stockpile toilet roll on Friday.' Why? Only because there are so-called Black Friday deals on 'everyday essentials', that are more genuine than those advertised on a lot of tech. But many now read only the headline, and will dash out to panic-buy. 'Ere we go again!<sigh>.

Among Xmas trads GenZ are 'quietly' stopping, according to Daily Dish: 'Sending Out Xmas Pudding To Every Relative.' Eh? New one on me, especially as those who still want one can buy it at any supermarket. GenZ now save the price of cards/stamps by sending e-cards. Sending puds would be ridiculous!

Happy Thanksgiving to all who celebrate it!☺️

'Pret axes self-service coffee machines after plunging to £525m loss.' 😀😆Sorry Pret, but I reckon most Brits have had enough dire experience of hot drinks vending machines, that your name on one isn't enough to convince. Changing the name on the robotic dispenser to L'Or, likely won't help much.

In a list of 'retro sandwiches "we" don't want to see again', most do indeed look/sound horrible. But Sandwich Spread (chopped veg in salad cream) and tongue (pork or ox) are still available at Tesco. I was never a fan of tongue, but a tongue sarnie with Sandwich Spread added, might be quite nice.

Dear youngsters today: we boomers know it needs 2 good salaries to buy even a modest home, there's no free uni, child care's expensive, NHS is on its knees, etc. Not our fault; but we do see your struggles, and sympathise. We're not all miserable old right-wingers whose only joy is laughing at you!

'Paul Doyle sobs as he pleads guilty to Liverpool FC parade crash charges.' He deliberately drove into a happy crowd, including babies. Only now the coward realises there will be nasty consequences, does he sob. What has changed? Bet it's not remorse. Might be fear of prison with Liverpool fans!

Able has taken some cash, shopping at our local Tesco. Will he find a checkout that isn't DIY, card-only, or only for buyers of tobacco and expensive alcohol? I'll let you know...

Another one that doesn't affect me - but quite rightly imo. Arguably, a pub is no place for kids anyway; but surely it's not too much to ask that parents ensure they behave? For us elders, being a nuisance as youngsters in public, wasn't an option. Bring that back! uk.yahoo.com/news/not-pla...

Here's another weird one. Many young people now don't wear a watch; they use their phone to see the time, but also think wearing a watch is asking to get mugged. Yet they walk along the street with phone loosely clasped in hands, in full view; distracted, unaware of any risk...

Sorry, but I'm not gonna waste any sympathy on Cameron, the man who engineered the biggest mistake/disaster in British history. Then after reportedly making a quick phone call to BJ (?!), likely blaming the latter, he fvcks off to put his feet up in the South of France. Git!

'Drivers' fury amid calls to change major driving rules ahead of Christmas period.' Up in arms over plans to halve the alcohol limit. Tbf, what real difference will it make, to drivers or to pubs' ability to function. If drivers want to socialise, why not buy soft drinks. www.msn.com/en-gb/health...

In a US list of 'interesting' historical sandwiches that should be brought back: the 'cannibal' sandwich, of RAW minced beef. Um, no! Minced beef MUST be cooked right through, to avoid nasties found on animal hides and ground into the meat. Surely, suggesting that people eat this, should be banned?

Did I post yet about Mexico's axolotl bank notes, that Mexicans like so much, they're keeping, rather than spending, them? No wonder! They're lovely.

In a piece headed 'What Breakfast Looks Like in 10 Different Countries', this is the UK one. While this is certainly named 'the Full English' on eatery menus, and may occasionally be made in homes, especially as a weekend hangover cure, I can assure you it's very rarely a weekday thing!

In a list of things you can do in US but not UK: 'Decline Voting Without Facing Fines or Consequences.' Eh? Obviously there are no fines, and despite a paragraph trying to justify the statement, and candidates' efforts to persuade, voting is entirely optional here in Britain, and many don't bother.

Just found out about Beef Wellington crisps, a new - perhaps Christmas Special? - flavour by Walkers. Tesco have them; I've put them on my next order. Looking forward to trying them (so long as they're not out of stock!).

Here's a difference in UK vs. US meanings I didn't know until recently: tailgating. Here it's the dangerous, vile practice of driving too close to the vehicle in front. There, it's some sort of jolly social event held in car parks before sports games!