General Chat

Been out there since my last post. Ceared some of the ivy off and hoovered up the dry leaves and underneath those was lovely leaf mold so I swept it up and sived it and I have a nice lot to add to the awful compost we are now getting. Had enough now and come in for a rest and to get some dinner.

Evening All,

Thank goodness there was a breeze today or it would have been very muggy here. We were hot in the night and I was pushing the duvet down. Vera I have found it can help to leave the bedroom door open a little when it's hot. It's worth a try with a hot room as it releases some of the heat.

OH did a longer walk for threequarters of an hour early this morning. I think he is enjoying finding the different footpaths. I never dared use them as a woman walking on my own. Especially the one he walked down today being Green lane, where Colin Pitchfork murdered the second schoolgirl! He got the big loppers out later and bit by bit has almost razed the the rest of two big shrubs we aren't keeping. Question is, do I trust him to take some height off the Holly and Camellias next? I planted out a tray of the French Marigolds and a couple of rock plants that have been waiting in plant pots since last year. I also transplanted some of the little Snapdragon seedlings out of the gravel.

It sounds like you had a nice day AnnG with some people watching at the Abbey and a nice meaL The Lodges sound nice and as if they are nearly new ones. We used to have a lot of trouble connecting to the wifi in Cornwall. The reception was poor there in the middle of nowhere, so there was often no signal which didn't help either!

I am so sick of having to swap browsers to do my Asda orders every time, I'm going to cjhange to another supermarket once my delivery pass runs out.It's so hard to understand them on the phone and they don't get anyone to ring you like they say they will. It's been about 7 weeks now despite chasing them up and I'm still blocked. There seem to be others in the same boat when I look online as well.

Hello EOS, I hope you have had a lovely day too!

We have ivy and virginia creeper all over the bottom of our fence from next door Mel. I'm going to spray it with vinegar after reading it suggested. It clings like the devil doesn't it. I was reading about Parrot's Feathers this morning and it was saying to get it out, bag it and bin it as it is so invasive. I remember planting a big stemmed ornamental variety of Mare's tail in our little bog pond years ago and it spread out of the pond into the gravel and took 2 years of a particular strong weedkiller to get rid of it.

The Magpies are still feeding their babies. I expect them to be gone every day as they've been feeding them for several weeks now.

Dear Lady Mel <3

Dear Lady Ann <3

Take gentle care
Love EOS
xx

Dear Lady Mel <3

Dear Lady Ann <3

Take gentle care
Love EOS
xx

Dear Lady Mel <3

Dear Lady Ann <3

Take gentle care
Love EOS
xx

Morning you lovely lot, Pinch and a punch and all that.

Dry this morning and brightish but not with any sunshine yet if you know what I mean. 15 degrees and a high pollen count today by the pc.

I have woken up with bites on my chin top of my left leg and waist, back of my hand and other various places that ar'nt itching at the mo but will be later on. O hair line on my forhead. I felt so dirty after yeserdays ivy pulling I went straight in the shower and then dressed for bed.

Not sure how much I will get done today as it should be our day of rest. Will see how I get on as I have sweet peas waiting to go in their tub and another lot of long beans I want in a tub on the decking because the deer have found them down the garden and ate the flowers and little beans off last year.

Morning Mel, morning all,

Suns shining but there's quite a strong wind which is making it a bit cooler.

Oh Mel you'll be itchy later with all those bites ,have you got anything to rub on them .

Not sure what we're doing today, the runners just need sorting out a bit as some are twisting themselves up the wrong canes ,I noticed yesterday there is some little red flowers now showing other than that I don't think we're going to do anything just have a day of rest .

Morning Mel, Mandy and All,

The sun's only just gone in here, but it's gone really cool outside and same as you Mel 15 degrees. OH did his walk and then weeded some of the gravel while I planted a few more more Marigolds and transplanted more Snapdragons. I've two more packs of Marigolds to plant, so hope there will be lots of butterflies this year as they like the single flowered ones. I saw a few Ladybird larvae while I was poking with my trowel. I'd had enough after 20 minutes so came in and did the veg for lunch. OH had already done the carrots and does anything that needs peeling.

I need to pay the house inurance online and pack the little medicine cabinet to post tomorrow and open the bigger mirrored cabinet to check it's not broken.

I hope to have a rest this afternoon, but will probably be looking online for a replacement cabinet. Even though it will be a smaller one it will be nice to have my tablets and creams and little things like insect repellent (you should get some Mel now the biting beasties are around!) all together.

Runners have a tendency to prefer climbing the poles that their neighbours have rather than the one in front of them don't they Mandy! Yours are growing well if flowers are appearing now.You have convinced me that this afternoon should be for recharging my batteries!

I can't believe it's June already. We'll soon be halfway through the year, so I'd better get cracking now.

I should take an antihystamin (sp?) but I don't think I get on so well if I take one. Perhaps its just me. its still 15 degrees here but the winds up now and its quite strong. Theres blue sky with huge white couds which block the sun sometimes.

Annx I can't have the marigolds as I have too many snails and slugs wherever I put them.

Toms are doing well in the new little greehouse. I have noticed that this one is more pointed than the old one so the suppoting canes don't fit so well. I have one cue seed up and some Ferrari short beans for a pot on the patio. Its nice to be growing a bit of veg again.

Must stop sitting around and get something done.

That's right Ann recharge your batteries lol mine seem to want charging more than ever :-D

Mel are your antihistamines the non drowsy ones ,I use to find they made me so sleepy but I changed to the non drowsy ones which was much better .

Well we sat out and had our coffee it was fine when the sun was out but with the wind when the sun went behind a cloud it felt quite chilly, we tied up the runners and that's all we've done ,oh I knitted a pair of shoes for the rabbit while we sat out .
No roast today we're having Sausage ,beans and mash.

Good morning all looks like we had heavy rain last night but dry so far this morning. I think showers are forecast though. Just me up at the moment.

I got distracted there and didn’t post. We have been to a small NT property, Riddlestone Hall. Fascinating little place and not far from here. Not a big mansion with flash furniture but more of a middle class house. Small and pretty gardens which we saw between showers, very heavy showers. Drove back to five minutes from here to have lunch in the car overlooking miles of countryside It continued with heavy showers with blue sky, sunny intervals.

I,m getting sidetracked from what I was supposed to be doing...........

I have dug out the ferns from the big pot I am going to put my long beans in and shoved them along the edge of the garage so the sunflowers pinted on it have a bit of interest underneath. I already have foxgloves there and another shubby thing and they is also an Aquilegia selff sown there that I think is called Mrs Popple it a double pink and white so I shall let that self sow if it will.

Good afternoon all

Yesterday was unbearably hot and it was hot overnight again so very little sleep yet again. I’ve also had a flare up of a long standing tummy issue which isn’t helped by the heat; but you don’t want to hear any more of my problems. Onwards and upwards….

Poor you Mel, all those bites must be uncomfortable. Do you spray yourself with anti-bite stuff before you start gardening? We used to find Jungle Formula very good. Is there an aquilegia called Mrs Popple? I couldn’t find it when I googled. I know there is a fuchsia of that name.

Lovely to see you popping in Elizabeth. I hope you are enjoying a peaceful Sunday.

I quite fancy your sausage and mash Mandy. OH does love his Sunday roast and so I am pot roasting brisket of beef. We usually eat at lunchtime on Sundays but time ran away with me this morning and so we’ll eat this evening.

Annx, I did take your advice and leave the bedroom door open last night, as well as the en-suite door and the skylight in there. I’m not sure if it made a difference or not. Last year we also opened the skylight on the landing but that is a problem if the weather changes in the night as it is over the top of the stairs and you have to lean over the stairs and use a pole to close it. It doesn’t feel very safe if it’s dark and you are half asleep. I do have a very good fan so I might have to start using that.

In all the years son and family lived in the area (Ilkley and then Otley) I haven’t come across Riddlestone Hall, AnnG, but I know Bolton Abbey well and we often went there. I had my most terrifying moments at Bolton Abbey. We were looking after son’s 3 girls while son and his then wife had a short break. Daughter and her husband and 2 children were staying not far away so we all met up at Bolton Abbey, 4 adults and 5 children aged between 1 and 9. We lost son’s middle daughter, then aged 5. I have never been so frightened in all my life. I kept thinking “What if she tries to use the stepping stones to get over the water”. All I could see in my mind’s eye was this little body being swept down the river. We left 1 adult with the 1 year old in a push chair at the point where we had last seen her and the rest of us went looking in different directions. I suddenly saw her walking hand in hand with a lady and chatting away quite unconcerned. I felt sick with relief. F. had apparently gone up to this lady and told her that she had lost her family. The lady had asked her who was in her family and what they were wearing. I don’t think she knew what hit her. She got a long description of each of us down to the little one in the push chair. F. was always full of words and 18 years on can still talk for England. I thanked the lady for looking after her and took her back to our meeting point where we had to wait for the others to join us. It was in the days before we all had mobile phones so I couldn’t let them know she was safe. Mention of Bolton Abbey brought that memory flooding back.

That 1 year old will be 19 tomorrow. How the years have flown! She is the youngest of my grandchildren.

I had better go and see what my pot roast is doing. Stay cool and sleep well tonight. “See” you tomorrow.

Riddlestone hall is at East Riddlestone Vera and about nine miles from Skipton. I wonder if NT has not had it a very long time. To be honest there was a lot of mystery about the place with guess work as to what some rooms were used for. Maybe it was not open when you lived in the area. Tomorrow I think we are just going to Skipton to visit the castle
Daughter is in the hot tub at the moment and the sun is shining and the wind is blowing. Although I brought my swimsuit we have decide it is not safe for me to go in as there is nothing for me to hold onto to get in and out. The proper hot tub here has gone wrong, it is a sun Ken one so would have been easier for me to get in and out.

I had a look online at Riddlestone Hall earlier AnnG and thought it looked quite a grand house and sounded interesting. I thought Bolton Abbey was probably near Bolton Castle as we used to stay near there at Redmire years ago, but it's over 50 miles away! Skipton Castle looks very impressive and I wouldn't mind going there. OH loves castles so we used to visit any nearby when we were away.

Sorry the open door didn't help Vera. Maybe it works better in a bungalow as the heat from downstairs in a house would rise? I was hot when I woke this morning. The sun rises at the front of the bungalow and soon heats the bedroom up when it's going to be hot. After his walk this morning OH opened windows in the bathroom, other front bedroom bedroom, conservatory and the patio doors. It was like going into a different climate when I opened the bedroom door. Oh my goodness, that would have been frightening to lose your little grandchild for a while. I bet she stayed close to you all after that scare.

Mandy's right about the antihistamines Mel. I only buy the ones with Loratadine in that don't make you drowsy. I think it's the ones with Certrazine in that do. That would be a lovely photo of the swan with all her cygnets if your BIL sends it. I love to see them cadging a lift on their parents' backs. Our neighbour came round at lunchtime to ask if we can water her runners over the fence while she's on holiday shortly. She told OH that the neighbour the other side is doing her pots, so I think she will be doing those over the fence too and that the neighbour's sidegste will be locked while she's away.

I've repacked the medicine cabinet to drop off at the post office tomorrow. What a faff with Amazon though. I put the reason I was returning it was that it wasn't as described and Amazon's reply was that I should contact the seller next! I scrolled back and changed the reason to the 'no reason' option and they have refunded me straightaway. I don't want to be faffing around with the seller and waiting for my refund and I think Amazon should do the faffing themselves if someone is not giving correct details on their site. I was only saying to OH when we were at the tip recently how everything gets pushed onto the customer these days. There we were making sure we were at the right bays to empty our rubbish while a group of 5 council employees stood chatting together and smoking and just checking we were obeying the rules. It was like we were the workers and they were our managers!. lol.

Well the big warehouses they are building near us are now going to be changed, so that two will be 15 feet lower and for another they will lower the ground where it is built so they will be less visible to nearby houses. Still big enough to be an eyesore though.

Morning all,

Bright and breezy here this morning, just hung one lot of washing out and have another lot in the machine .
Not sure what we're doing got a few outside jobs and I really need to clean a few windows ,then it's sure to rain .

Yes Ann's right Mel you need the antihistamines with Loratadine ,hope you've not had any more bites and the ones you have haven't been to itchy overnight, I find the bedding doesn't help as it rubs on them.

Vera hope you had a better night and your tummy is better now .

Anng what a shame you couldn't use the hot tub ,I use to love our little lazy spa it makes you feel really relaxed after you've had a good soak ,hope the weathers better for you today with not so many heavy showers .

Morning girls,

Nice bright morning again with plenty of blue sky with some wite clouds. Its 14 degrees with a high pollen count.

I may just go up the border and cut down more brimbles today at least I shall be in the sunshine up there and not under the hazel tree pulling up ivy in the shade. Probably still get bitten up there too. Got one on my index finger now on my right hand and I saw the little tiny midgey thing on the top of that wrist and felt it bite me so I killed it that made it sorry for doing it. It was just a little speck of a thing but so venomous.

My pink white double Aquilegia is called Nora Barlow. It came to me just as I was outside inthe garden.

BIL is here mowing the orchard cos he said its going to rain for two days.

Hello all a nice day today, some sun which is quite warm and a few clouds. We went to Skipton. Parked in a long stay and walked into town, it was one of their three market days. We struggled to find somewhere for coffe but managed eventually and, after a good look around the shops we found a nice place to have lunch. Called, I think the Terrace cafe it was upstairs inside a small shopping centre with lovely and expensive little shops . We were on a large balcony overlooking the downstairs shops. I had a. Dry nice cheese and onion omelette.. back to the car after lunch and we then drove to the castle which is very interesting.. it was a good day out and we got back about 3.30. Sun still shining so a cup of tea and a read.

I think it would be very easy for children to wander off at Bolton Abby, especially if there were other children around to distract them. I am sure it was frightening though.

Ann we usually visit castles and NT places wherever we go.

Mandy it doesn’t really bother me to not be able to get into the hot tub.

Afternoon all

It's a lovely day again; not quite so hot which is a bit of a relief. It seems to be getting breezier now so perhaps we are in for another windy spell.

All the boards are moving so slowly lately. It's not just this General Chat board. Not so long ago there would be lots of requests for help on the Find Ancestors boards but they seem to have tailed off lately. Maybe genealogy is going out of fashion a bit.

I haven't done a lot today. A week's worth of clothes and bedding have been washed and dried and I've done one small job in the garden but that's about it. I'm now fiddling about with a couple of minor jobs upstairs while OH steam cleans the floors in the uti, kitchen-diner and hall.

Youngest grandchild is 19 today. She finished her 1st year at uni a couple of weeks ago and doesn't go back till late September. The students seem to get less and less time at uni but their tuition and accommodation fees keep going up!

Thank you Mandy, my tum feels quite a bit better. I used to have regular ".....oscopies" and scans. The hospital would call me in every 2 years. The last time was during Covid and a week or so later my consultant phoned to discuss the results with me. He told me then that it had been decreed that the NHS would no longer do automatic appointments. He told me that if I felt things were getting worse I was to go to the GP and ask to be referred back to him (the consultant). But I can't see inside me to know what is happening. After my last scan I learnt that one bit of me had fused to another bit but I hadn't felt it happening. As far as I was aware everything was OK. OH is in the same position in that he was having regular MRI scans to keep a check on a pancreatic cyst but they are not being done now either.

Hope your bites aren't too sore and itchy Mel.

~~~~~~~~~~~~ waves to Gwyn. I hope you are starting to feel better. It can be frustrating when you can't do all you would like to but you've had a nasty bout of illness and it's bound to take time to get your energy back. Just take it slow and steady.

OH has just come to say the floors are dry and I can go downstairs now. I think that might be code for the worker wants a cuppa so I'd better go and make him one.