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Why do the security in my local stores always follow me around?
I live in a neighbourhood called Archway in North London.
I don't have a bag, wear gigantic coats, or look at staff members, or do anything suspicious. I wear a blue bomber jacket and black je… Title
I live in a neighbourhood called Archway in North London.
I don't have a bag, wear gigantic coats, or look at staff members, or do anything suspicious. I wear a blue bomber jacket and black jeans.
Around 2022, I actually had a scenario in the Aldi where the guy was making it so obvious, I started to laugh. The man was turning sharply turning corners so much that I even ran into him (and he turned back lmfao). The ones that do it the most are the co-op and the Iceland.
Even though many people in my life think I'm on the spectrum (I'm not diagnosed), I'm definitely not making things up in my head. Some of these shops I've been going to for 12+ years
It happens so much, that I don't feel bad when they do it, and then the front entrance alarms start bleeping as a shoplifter leaves, because they'd rather follow me than guard the door. It's not my job at risk.
honestly it might be the bomber jacket, i've noticed security in archway gets weird about certain looks. the co-op on junction road is notorious for this, the staff there are just jumpy in general. iceland too, but that one's more about them having had actual issues with teens in the past. if you want to test it, try wearing a different jacket for a week and see if it changes anything. the aldi story is funny though, that guy must have been embarassed
Probably just coincidence. London's busy, they're likely checking on multiple things at once. Or maybe you just have that "I'm about to steal something" vibe going on. 😉
What are some innovative ways to anonymously compare rental prices in a city?
SpareRoom's "rooms wanted" ads are underrated for this. people post what they're currently paying alongside what they want next, so you can scrape a rough sense of going rates by postcode without anyone knowing you looked. it skews young and flatshare heavy tho, so not much use if you're after 2-beds in zone 2.
Another one is just the depozit or tenancy deposit scheme data. not public-facing, but your council's housing officer can tell you median rents from deposit registrations if you email them under FOI. takes weeks, but its proper anon and nobody clocks u.
Rightmove and Zoopla only show asking rents, which are often 10 to 15 percent above what a place actually goes for, so they're a poor benchmark. The trick I've used is the ONS Price Index of Private Rents, which breaks things down to borough level and is genuinely anonymous since it's aggregate data, no listing or account needed. For something more granular, the London Renters Union runs a rent reporting tool where you submit what you're paying with your postcode and it maps it against others nearby, though the coverage is patchy outside the inner boroughs.
the openrent "rent check" thing is decent for zones 3-4 where the unions tool barely reaches. also worth checking the london.gov.uk planning portal for new build applications, they list "affordable" and market rent figures per unit in the viability assessments, which is basically the developer telling the council what they expect to charge. bit of a faff to dig through but its public, anonymous & nobody knows ur looking
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