General Chat

I have kept meaning to say since yesterday that there are 5 eggs in a nest in the filter shed so the Swallows have taken over the second nest they build the other year and not bothered with the first nest that Jenny Wren's hubby had built in there. I wonder if they knew??? I had removed it giving the Swallows the chance to build that one up.

Not going in there much now I know there are eggs and she flies out when BIL went in yesterday.

Good news on the sweet pea front they survived the night.

Sounds like you've got a good routine going with your packing Anng.

I have just strimmed along the back field and round by the fuel tank because the oil comes tomorrow. Battery needs charging now and so do I I think. Not eaten yet only had a coffee and a glass of water with a pill.

Well I had to put my tomatoes out and so far they have been OK. Lost two but they were really causalties of being left in the conservatory when I went out and the sun came out and they overheated.

Yes, chasing my tail here. It is not really the clothes, it is all the bits and pieces I like to have with me, plus first aid stuff, pills etc and 'just in case' items. I like to be independent not having to bother daughter for her stuff. I have a small case for clothes and a seperate bag for shampoo, shower gell, sun cream, books was kit, makeup bag. and then a small rucsac for electronic stuff. And a carrier bag for shoes.

clothes will be done tomorrow.

Afternoon All,

It's cooler here and only 14 degrees at the moment but the sun is breaking through now. I got up late and OH had already been for a walk. He's finding footpaths across the back of the school and even the one where they found the poor young girl that Cplon Pitchfork murdered now he's not using the Fosse Way path and the field where the cows are. The farmer's brought another three cows to the field now so there are thirteen. When I used to do a three mile walk most days, being a woman on my own I didn't feel safe using the footpaths, which are quite hidden in parts , so would do a circuit around the village instead.

It sounds like tyou are going to be busy tmaking a start on preparations AnnG.

I think am having a fairly lazy day like Mandy, having decided to leave the garden centre visit till tomorrow. I need to check a medicine cabinet will fit where I want in the ensuite first.

OH got a taxt yesterday fom SKY apologising for the issues Mandy, but no explanation what was wrong.

I hope your daughter enjoys the walk Vera. It is good she is doing it to help the Hospice too. Yes good luck with finding some nice Fuschias at the garden centre.

I hope your sweet peas were ok Mel. I've taken a bit of a chance with planting up the pots the other day.

Suns out but it's still not very warm , when the sun goes behind the clouds its quite chilly in the wind I did sit out but not for long and I now have a cardi on .

Morning girls,

Its another beautiful day here and its 19 degrees at the mo but it was very starry and cold last night and I had put my sweet peas seedlings out on the strawberry barrow and forgot to take them back in the shed last night. Not been out yet as when I have a hard day in the garden doing things I very wake early and then go back to sleep for a while and that while turns into hours.

Hope you find your fuchsias at the garden centred Vera. Good idea to try Roys if Mandy got soem there.

Right I need to get my bedding in the wash now like Anng.

Morning all,

Cloudy here but bright not sure if its a bit warmer out as I haven't been out yet but I think we should see a little sun later .

Vera I bought a couple of Hardy fuschias from Roys they had a lot of different ones in there .

Not doing much today after a busy week ,hope the sun shines so we can sit in the garden .

Good morning all

It’s not cold today but it is cloudy. It’s the same where daughter is which I am pleased about as she is doing a walk in aid of the hospice that was so good to her late partner and the whole family. The cloudier conditions are better for walking than bright sunshine.

I slept quite well last night though I still woke up with the pain over one half of my head. It seems to be a permanent feature now. I’m not complaining as the rest of me feels OK today. A few hours sleep makes such a big difference.

We don’t have any plans for today. We might go to the local garden centre to see what they have in the way of fuchsias. We want 2 for a strip beside our garage as we took out a green plant that was on its last legs and a pretty white fuchsia was moved round to the garden to replace a plant that had died. We can’t see this strip but the neighbours and anyone coming up the Close can so we try to keep it looking nice.

Have a good day whatever you are doing.

Good morning all. Finally got on here at 0735. I guess somebody important doesn't start work until this time :-D :-D :-D
A nice sunny morning 7 degrees and a clear pale blue sky. Bedding in the wash so a good early start to the day. Slept okish. Lots of pre holiday jobs to do. Daughter is coming here on Tuesday so got to get all the pre pack stuff out of their room by then.

Evening all,

It's been a better day ,a bit more sun but still very chilly in the shade when the wind blows .

You don't seem to be having much luck with the trades people Vera I hope this one can get your job done and that your OH doesn't hurt his back if he has to help him .
You managed a bit of a lie in with the well I was going to extra sleep but it wasn't extra really as you didn't get a good sleep in before that but every little helps .

Mel we've put the other sideboard in the shed it has two drawers and a nice size cupboard so will be good storage no doubt for more things we'll keep just in case we need them and then can't find them .
I had a good weed out the front and cut the grass as the brown bin goes out tomorrow for emptying on Monday.
I had a full line of washing which got nice and dry so thats all put away .

Ann I read there was problems with sky the other day and that they were telling people to switch off the box and leave it for thirty seconds and try again but a lot of people said it took ages to come back on properly so maybe that was why yours played up .

Nothing much on the television tonight , Eurovision on so no Casualty so we'll probably watch something we've recorded .

Gwyn hope the antibiotics are now kicking in and your feeling a little better .

Evening All,

It was freezing when I popped to the shop this morning and I was wishing I'd put my coat on but it turned sunny and warm later. A friend let me know last night that there were outages at our Sainsbury's including the garage and a lady I chatted to in the shop carpark said it was still the same there today. She said she'd tried 2 other ways to get to the shop where we were and both had roads closed!

Well done and thank you for finding what the little alpine plant was AnnG. I read that it's rare so it's not surprising I haven't seen another. I googled and have found the seeds for sale but not the plant. I should have split it when I had it and then one might have survived.

I finally sorted OH's best price for his car insurance and printed off all his docs this morning and managed to find where to turn off the 'autorenew' which the clearly don't want you to do! I contacted the wheel man as his email hadn't reached me, but he'd made a mistake so it's sorted now. I was chatting to him about the cause of the wheels getting corroded and he agreed with me that it is the car wash. Apparently some use brick acid to clean the black brake dust off the wheels so it isn't surprising! I must try another carwash after I get them done, but I'll wait till the window part arrives and that is fixed first.

I wonder how you managed to delete your Microsoft account Mel. I must admit I wouldn't have realised it would lose your internet. I avoid Microsoft unless I have to log into it. Did BIL realise what you had done? Is it a greenhouse like Mandy's that you are putting up? I quite fancy a plastic covered one, so when I find growing things too much effort I could take it down, but OH thinks I should just have a smaller metal one.

Mandy you got a bargain with your oak sideboard at that price didn't you! I imagine it would have cost at least 2-3 times what you paid.
You poor thing Gwyn. I had pneumonia twice as a child and OH had it a few years before he retired. OH's came on quickly with a fever that drenched his nightwear, but no cough or pain. It can make you feel tired for weeks and OH had to have a second x- ray a few weeks after to make sure it was clearing up. Just eat well and rest till you feel stronger.

Vera I agree with you about tradesmen as we had trouble with one of the recommended fitters and also the skip man. It makes it hard to organise anything when they don't get back to you. I can understand you being a bit concerned about the man. After the ensuite is done I want the bedroom decorating, but a new curtain rail needs fitting first and when I rang the chap he was out of action after an operation at the time, so not knowing what was wrong with him I've left contacting him, but need to soon. That made me chuckle about your OH 'seeing' better without his cataract. We have to take one of the spare keys we had cut for the front door back as it doesn't quite fit. We hide spare keys where they aren't noticeable in case someone breaks in, same with spare car keys. They've been in the same place for years, but even when OH went to get them and they were under his nose he couldn't see them and had to shout me!

I managed another few minutes weeding today and the bin is full ready for Tuesday's collection, but I expect we'll squeeze some more in before then.

It’s a much warmer day today though there is still quite a nip in the wind.

I didn’t sleep much and was up before 6 am but I made a cup of tea and took it up to the bedroom to drink and about 7 I must have fallen asleep again. I slept for 2 hours so by the time I was up, dressed and breakfasted half the morning had gone. I put the towels on to wash and we both did some gardening. I managed about an hour and a half so have cleared a lot of dead stuff away and weeded.

Last autumn we booked the painter to come and paint the outside of the house this spring but things have to keep being put off for one reason or another. There needs a bit of work done by the front door first and the first chap booked to do it changed his mind at the last minute. So we booked the chap who boarded our loft to do it on Monday. He has just rung to say he’s been out of action with heart trouble. The hospital say he can work again as long as he doesn’t handle anything heavy, so he is still coming Monday to do some measuring and will do the job on Friday. I feel sorry for him but I am concerned he’ll have a heart attack or similar while he’s here or OH will do the heavy lifting and put his back out. We don’t seem to have had much luck with workmen this year.

Now I had better go and hunt through the fridge and freezer for something for dinner tonight. I’ve got lots of odd bits of veg so I might do some sort of stir fry but I need something to go with it.

BIL is here and I need to go up the shop now before 2pm when they close. He is mowing the orchard and then we are going to put the greenhouse together.

AnnX just seen a post from you on FB. After trawling a bit I found Darwin's slipper plant. Try googling that to see if it is the correct one.

Morning Anng and all,

Nice this morning bright and sunny with hardly a cloud in the sky. Hope it warmer where Mandy and Vera are. Its 14 degrees here but Iv'e not been outside yet, in fact I hav'nt been up long at all. I hardly slept the night before and did'nt drop off till it was quite light so fell asleep the mo my head hit the pillow last night.

BIL is coming again today to cut the orchard and put the greenhouse together for me and anchor it down to the decking. Better get ready now as I'm not dressed yet.

Good morning all 10 degrees here but low cloud. Forecast said it would take a while for the cloud to clear so I guess here it will be afternoon before we see the sun. I have a letter to post so maybe I will take advantage of no sun and walk to the post box.

Thanks for logging on early Vera, it seems I could get past the error message earlier this morning somaybe I was not persistent enough before. doesn't explain why I am getting the error message at all really though.

Mel, I find it a bit confusing that not paying a microsoft bill stopped you getting your BY internet. But maybe it is the way you have things set up I suppose. The internet is one long puzzle for me :-D

Vera hope the ocular migrain has disappeared this morning

I slept well last night just need to wake up my brain this morning so maybe slept too well. :-D

Welcome back on board Mel. I don't know what arrangement you have with your internet provider but, if it's a regular bill you are paying, would it make sense to set up a direct debit? We don't want to lose you again.

You really have been poorly Gwyn and I wish you a very speedy recovery. Keep resting and don't be tempted to try and do too much too soon. Baby steps for a little while until you are fully recovered.

You are right Mandy, it is flipping cold. As you know, when we put our underfloor heating on around October time it stays on until we turn it off again around May. We turned it off a week or so ago and we've been fine till now but we've both already put thick jumpers on tonight and I am thinking of getting an electric fan heater out of the cupboard to at least take the chill off the lounge as OH is unlikely to go to bed before about 11.30 pm

It sounds as if you have had one of those days Annx with the garage not noting down the change of booking and the air con not working and OH needing yet more plasters. These men! I haven't known whether to laugh at my dearly beloved or throttle him today. I opted for laughing in the end. He keeps telling me how well he can see now his cataract has gone. However, his sight wasn't good enough for him to see the bacon in the freezer or the screw driver in the drawer or the fly spray right in front of his nose. I expect he'll manage to not see anything twice as much when his other cataract is done.

I did rouse the energy to do a bit of gardening this afternoon and I ironed OH's new shirts that I'd rinsed through this morning. No Mel, I am not going to do your ironing for you! It's a job I hate and I do as little as possible. OH's warmer, check winter shirts never need ironing if I hang them carefully to dry nor do my thicker shirts and jumpers. I seem to do far more ironing in summer with lighter weight and cotton things.

After that I had another ocular migraine so lay on the bed with my eyes closed for about 45 minutes till it passed. Thankfully it only left me with a slightIy niggly headache but I think I am now going to prepare myself some overnight oats for my breakfast, have a bit of a wash and brush up and try for an early night

I fixed it by paying my microsoft bill!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I had deleted it by mistake. Silly old fool.

Sounds like you got a great bargain there Mandy. Would the old one go back to the foundation?

Oh Gwyn pneumonia can be nasty I had it several years ago now and had a night in hospital I came home with antibiotics too but if does take it out of you and you must rest and don't try to do to much to soon , I hope the antibiotics help you and your soon back to your old self again <3

Well we have just lit the fire its blooming cold here with lots of grey clouds that look like rain clouds ,no sunshine here today.

Nice to see you back Mel ,how did you fix it .

Good job you stocked up with the plasters Ann , it sounds as if its going to take a while to heal up ,he'll have to be very careful he doesn't keep catching it or it will take forever and a day .

I always look on the Benjamin foundation site at the second hand furniture and today I spotted a nice little side board ,cotswold oak just a bit smaller than the one we have here in the lounge which we paid quite a bit for ,this one will fit nicely in the conservatory and we can get rid of the older one we have in there that is a bit bigger ,this one was only 95 pound so we went and snapped it up .

Hope that recovery continues then Gwyn it must have been frightening. And has we wondering how I would cope if I had the same problem. One of the worries of living alone. Anyway keep getting better.

Ann, I went to A & E last Saturday afternoon, as I had central chest pains and when I went upstairs, I was really breathless, my heart was pounding and I had to sit down, when I got to the top.
The staff were all so lovely and very caring, even though they were so busy.

I had all sorts of tests, ECGs and a chest X- ray, but they couldn't define quite what was going on, so they found me a bed and on Monday morning, I was told it was an infection, - pneumonia, so I was allowed home with antibiotics.
I feel completely washed out and everything is an effort, but want to do more for myself, but I just have to accept it may take a while until I can walk round to the bus again.
I made myself a sandwich, at lunchtime, which I couldn't have done a couple of days ago, so it will be gradual steps of improvement.

School finished today for 2 weeks holiday and I'm hoping I feel a lot better and can join them, when they return early in June.