General Chat

Morning you chatter box's, Evening Kim,

I often wonder how you have so much going on in your lives that you can post for hours !!! I lead a very dull life compared to you lot :-D :-D

Jane "EYE EYE" how you doing. ?? What a surprise to see an eye looking up at you. :-0 :-0 :-0. It's funny how a small thing brings back so many memories.

Join the CLAN again Mel, The Indian I had last night didn't settle even though I had it at 8.00 pm and didn't go to bed till after midnight. It played me up to the point I had to get up and get rid of it at about 4.00 am. I had to get out again at 7.00 but managed to drop off until 9.15 when Ros got up.

Gill I would have thought NAT GEO and EDAN would come into your Sk# package. I didn't know that came as a separate package.

Anne, how very civilized of your Son and ex DIL. I must admit, That when I found out about my ex's affair I walked out and have never clamped eyes on her since, not that I want too. !!!!

Ann I see Gordon is coming round to my way of thinking. All that trouble getting everything out and decorating for Christmas. As much as I love it (not having it as a child) I am finding putting lights around the bungalow a bit of a task, especially as the "STEPS" are involved. Ros loves to decorate her tree will everything she has bought over the years (some her Mother's as well) and she has made. Everything is in box's in the garage, so I expect they WILL COME OUT, regardless of what I say !!!

Ann, It's just a thought, but could you and Gordon not book somewhere to go for Christmas. ?? It would give you both a break from all the upsets you have had lately. I'm sure there are plenty of Hotels with vacancy's . GO ON GIVE YOURSELVES A TREAT <3 <3 <3

Did you all receive RUBY'S email of the children singing. I have sent it to some of you. But if anyone hasn't received it. Let me know and I will forward it on, that's is you want it.

Jane, I have taken your advice, and bought a large BEEF joint, Gawd help you if it's TOUGH. I got dinner all ready, Pudding made and cheese sauce. (It's the same as having Cauliflower cheese) ;-) ;-) ;-) Even ANNE makes it. So there :-P :-P

Where has the day gone, ?? Ros has been busy with housework and laying table for dinner, and has only just gone into the bathroom for a shower and to get dressed. She often does choirs in her dressing gown, or even just her nightie.

Damp miserable day here again. Has anyone got any sunshine ??

Yes it's a good little channel isn't it Mel and a free one at that. I do like to watch it throughout the year as I like true movies, but I didn't realise it had changed to a Christmas channel, so I guess we'll be watching it quite a lot with Sandra loving Christmas so much :-) :-)

I've had a look in my dream book Mel, it doesn't cover everything you mentioned but it does cover your chickens, the ducks, the colour green and death. chickens and hens warn against selfishness and ducks represent a bright future for the dreamer and his or her family. The colour green can symbolize new life and optimism and death means the end of a phase or event in the dreamer's life.

http://www.dreamforth.com/

I've just found this website which might be useful to all of you who have dreams and want to know what they mean. My book is pretty basic but after having a quick look at this site it goes into things deeper and might be better than the book I've got.

That's a good idea David to get it framed once you have filled in everyone you want. It would be something nice to keep.

I hope the boy doesn't get in touch with your granddaughter again Anne. Good job the school contacted the police. At least she can confide in you, which must be comforting to her, hope she is ok now. Enjoy your Sunday roast.

Sandra is cooking our roast again today, so I'd better go and keep an eye on her
BBL

Afternoon All

Oh yes please Harry.More tales and memories.I wonder what happened to Tom from the market? I must pass by very close to you when I got to Waitros* at Rushden.
Lots of lakes to fish in around Ringstead aren't there(if I am thinking of the right place).Wasn't there a lot of flooding there a few years ago ?Or it might hve been Denford.I seem to recall the kennels had to evacuate some of the dogs.I know nothing much about fishing.What kind do you do.My OH used to do fly fishing and spent hours and hours making flies.Trouble was we hated trout so when he caught any we gave them away.

Mel I bet your dream felt so real .Thank goodness it was just a dream :-D

Gill you must have needed a bit of a sleep in this morning.You seem to stay up quite late like Mel.I never manage to stay awake that long.So your new Chef is keen to do another Chicken.it Chicken on the menu today?

Anne ,I think it is lovely that your Son and ex have stayed on good terms and so nice that you all went to the wedding of DIL and new husband.Hopefully Abbie will soon get to like ehr Mum's new Husband.It must be hard for her having someone else there in place of her Dad.Hopefully in time she will be able to accept him.As you say her age is a difficult stage to go through at the best of times.It is good that she can open up to you.
I see you do Cauliflower Cheese with your Roast.Frank does too.I love C Cheese but it never seems right to me with a Roast Dinner.Maybe it is because we never had it when I was little.I have a nice big joint of Beef in the freezer so might do that in the week .Then freeze what ever is left over in some lovely juicy gravy.
I am doing Beef Stroganoff and rice tonight.Cheating a bit though as the meat ,mushrooms and sauce are already prepared (thanks to good old M&* :-D).So I just need to pop it all in the pan and then just do the rice and veg.I never know what time James will be home from Kent when he goes to see Jess so find it easier not to do a Roast on those days.

That was good of the school to ring the police about the ex boyfriend.Hopefully now he will see sense and not try to contact your GDaughter again...Oh dear teenagers !!!!
I remember once a friend of James(not his girlfriend) ran away from home and turned up here.I think there had been a big bust up at home and she said that her Dad was quite violent or something.Can't remember the details now or what happened in the end. I think we let her stay for the night but contacted the family to say she was safe with us .Her Father came to pick her up the next morning.
Many phone calls we had too from various parents asking if there child was with us.I think (like I did sometimes) was to tell my parents I was going to XYZ but really going off to a Party somewhere and not being able to get home.When I think back my poor Mum and Dad must have been worried sick...But teens can be very devious and not give a thought about how frightened parents must be when they don't know where their child is.It is all part of growing up though isn't it.Hey ho ! been there done that and got the T Shirt as the saying goes.

Mel,,I felt terribly embarassed about asking the man if he could see any light or shadows ..TWIT is certainly how I felt LOL ..But his eyes just looked so real .I just assumed he was blind.In fact thinking about it now even though I made that awful mistake it may have made him feel pleased that I actually thought his eyes were real :-D I like to think so :-)
Got many tales from nursing days ,but not appropriate for the thread LOL

Go on Jane we are all adults, and most of us can't or won't be shocked.

Henry, back in the sixties I was a member of the Irthlingborough and District A.C. FOUR BOB a year. We fished the Nene by the bridge where the Leather treatment was "CHOWNS MILL" I think it's still there. and the lakes in the field behind the river. How I remember walking through the mist in the early summer mornings to fish for Roach and Tench, in those lakes. I think it was turned into a CARP FISHERY. But I never fished for them in those days, I fished all my life until 2004 when I had a Stroke, and became frighten to go near water. So, all my tackle was passed onto my Son and Grandson. In the 70s I started a Deep Sea Angling club in Kettering. (Sorry I might have mentioned that (old age creeping in)!!!

All stories of the Market will be welcome, we all enjoy memories, and no doubt it will stir memories in all of us again. There was always a market along the Whitechapel Road, opposite the London Hospital which I used when visiting my DAD during 1956/7/8 Where he died at the age of 72. with the dreaded BIG "C"

I had better go and part boil the potato's and parsnips and put the meat on.

Hi Frank I remember it well spent many happy hour in that hospital and others when I was a kid. That market was really good it was locally know as the Jews market as many of them had stools there I work for one of the stool holders there for awhile then he moved back to Roman Road on a Saturday I could no longer work for him as I was working for Billy Brown on Saturday, shame he paid well. I used to go to Tubby Issacs on Sunday morning on my bike for hot salt beef sarnnies for my Dad.
Hi Jane I love trout fishing as well I go to lake Elinor and like you OH we don't like trout, so unless someone asks for one I throw them back. Sometimes I keep one smoke it and make smoked trout pate.
By for now H :-)

I wonder what happened to Tom too Harry.

No Frank, Sk* have lots of different packages. I did try to look at the channels you look at but it just said I would have to subscribe to receive it, so it looks like the subscription I've got isn't the same as yours.

Yes I go to bed around 1am, sometimes a bit later Jane, but I'm normally up before 8am every morning. Maybe sometimes I just need extra sleep to catch up on what I miss out on which is why I slept in so late today. I've never slept a lot not even as a child, but my mum said that about once a month I'd go to bed straight after dinner and sleep right through until morning, she said I must of been recharging my batteries LOL. I did go to bed earlier when I was so busy with this place but with that all finished now, I'm back to going to bed late again. I don't even sleep straight away and will watch a bit of TV in bed first.

Yes Sandra has cooked another chicken for us today, she had a bit of trouble with the gravy so I had to sort that out for her, but like I said a bit more practice and she'll be able to do that too, everything else was lovely and she used her new oven gloves which she said was much better. She's looking forward to her dad having a Sunday off so she can cook for all of us and is hoping she will be able to do the gravy then. I've explained where she went wrong so she should be able to do it next time.

Sandra and I have just tried to watch two Christmas films I recorded, but we have seen them both before so we're watching a normal film now.

I've just noticed the date........it's 25years since I passed my driving test today. How time fly's.

Yuk Harry I can't think of anything worse than Trout Pate :-S :-S.I always think Trout has a very strong kind of Earthy taste(if that makes sense).Haven't heard of Lake Elinor.
Are you looking forward to the big development at Rushden Lakes?.You aren't far from there.

LOL Frank .If I was to put some of my memories from Nursing, the thread would be WHOOSHED!! and never seen again .So I will keep schtum :-D

James is home and is unpacking lots of boxes that he has had delivered .He is going to be building himself a new computer !!!!.Way over my head.He says it will be about £300 cheaper than forking out for a new laptop ..I just hope he can do it .It all looks very technical to me.

Gill how is the Chicken coming along? Bet it is smelling good now :-D.Has Sandra attempted Roast Potatoes yet or is it just the Chicken so far? I think it is great that she is showing an interest in cooking now.You want to buy her one of the aprons with something like 'Head Chef' or something similar on lol

If at some indefinite dat I consider my tree to be "full" if I don't actually have it

framed I can have it correctly laid out as a desktop (?) or on a tree grid that

would be much tidier than my to date handiwork.

Also I'd be able to send a copy each to my brothers.

David you could have it framed for yourself and also have it on the computer so you could just forward it to your Brothers :-D

Gill how you do your gravy? I use the glass jar of Bist* usually the beef flavoured one.I use it with Beef ,Chicken ,Pork .I just like to add the meat juices to make it richer.
I have tried making my own gravy but have never been happy with it.I remember Dad making the gravy every sunday.I can see him now stirring the pan .He did great gravy :-D..I can't be doing with using cornflour and getting lumpy gravy.I just find the best (for me) taste wise is that Bist* Jar.

Come on Gill get back behind the driving seat :-D :-D..You know you can.
I think it was 1973 or 74 when I passed my test.

That'll be nice David and something for you and your brother's to keep.

Yes Jane the chicken was lovely and the roast potatoes she did too, which are much better than mine LOL. I dished it up for her because she said I'm a bit quicker and she wanted to watch the film. I also had to sort out the gravy for her too......she needs a bit more practice with gravy but she'll get there in the end.
The apron sounds like a good idea, I might get her one as a surprise.

Isn't your James clever making his own laptop? Don't we wish we could all do that, especially with the price of laptops nowadays?

I've been trying to think how I can put the Christmas village I made last year into the living room, now the welsh dresser has been moved to another room and I have thought about making a large box to put on top of the fireplace, I can then attach the lights to the box to light it up and it'll be close enough to the socket to plug in. It'll look very similar to last year as I put it in the void between the top and bottom of the dresser, although it won't be as deep, but should look okay ;-) ;-)

I wasn't going to put it up with having no where to put it, but Sandra said she wants to see it all lit up again, so hopefully my idea will work, then she can look at it throughout the Christmas holidays. I just need to make a box the right size and cover it in something white. I found a white scarf last year with threads of silver going through it, so hopefully it'll be the correct size to use this year. The lights reflected really well off the flecks of silver in the scarf.....It's only a thin scarf so really easy to manoeuvre......If it works I'll take a photo and send you all a picture.

Of course Jane, I just made myself chuckle, I could

put an arrow on it saying you are here :-D

We always had cauliflower cheese when I was young so did my OH, when we had dinner at my S.I.L. last week at Hastings she had cooked it as well. As I don't eat red meat it makes the meal more interesting for me, we have chicken in the week a lot so its always Lamb, Pork or Beef at weekends. I do eat shepherds pie and pasta dishes and cook Richard chops in the week.

Gill you are lucky that Sandra enjoys cooking maybe later she can extend her menus, I would have loved to have had a daughter but after 3 boys and Mark being so difficult we decided not to hope for a girl so I was so pleased to have granddaughters.

Paul & Sue were never married and there was no one else involved when they split up. The girls were very young at the time so really didn't know any different. She really was cruel the way it happened he had bought a house for them and one day when he had come home from work she had left and gone and moved in with her brother, her own parents and older sister wouldn't speak to her for a while after this.
Becky was only a baby and Abbie pre school age. I think because of her Mum & Dad we still got to see the girls, I think at the time Abbie must have had some recollection because we had given her a dolls house with a family to live in it and once when she was playing she had their toy car out Mum was in the driving seat with the 2 babies in the back and some of the dolls furniture put on top of the car but Daddy wasn't included. For a long time Sue would come on Sundays as well until she met Neil about 2 years ago. Life is too short to hold a grudge and Paul has a nice girl friend who he knew a long time ago.

I would love to hear more stories about the markets, Hastings never had one. Bracknell does but it isn't very large. We had a static caravan in the Peak district for about 10 years and Bakewell had a really good market, they sold just about every thing.

The girls have gone home now and no moans this week, Richard & Paul have gone to ice hockey as they support the local team.

Just going to feed the cats and get my self some tea, I hope you all had a good
weekend

:-D :-D :-D David

Gill I'm sure you will find somewhere to put your Christmas Village.I remember your pics from last year :-D..
I think James is brave taking on this job of building a computer.Watch this space lol
I see that he has taken over the desk in Hannahs room !!!!!.He better have it cleared by the end of November when she comes home for a night.

Just going to make a start on dinner now.I'm looking forward to the next instalment of From Darkness and Downton Abbey tonight.I think it will be watching Downton and doing Catchup on The Darkness as Chris doesn't watch that ,but does enjoy Downton.

Evening all,

Another dreary day,plenty of cloud and no sun , Son and DIL came with the family this morning ,they went about half eleven and then we went into the garden again to finish off the trellis and get the rest of the honeysuckle up ,what a job as it was all twisted together but we got it all sorted in the end ,
Then we took all the cuttings to the tip ,we emptied six tubs !!
Finally came in doors at about four o'clock .

We had Chicken today ,i got one of those chickens from Te*co that you roast in the bag ,it was nice and so easy ,we didn't have a roast we just had some potato wedges with it .
When i make my gravy i use the powdered Bi*to in the box to thicken the meat juices ,but i also use the jar one for easy gravy .

Jane son built his computer a couple of years ago ,he had lots of boxes of things too and i thought he'd never do it but he did and it's been working fine , mind you we paid for it ,we told him if he gave up smoking we would buy all the parts ,cost us a fortune nearly a thousand pound i think but it was worth it to see him give up .

That's a good idea to get Sandra an apron ,perhaps you could get one with her name on ,how is her reading ? would she manage a cookery book ? just a beginners cookery book ,i like the ones with step by step pictures so you can see what things should look like as you cook .

Her reading isn't very good Mandy, so we have to keep things simple. If there were only two or three words on the apron and we told her what it said she would probably remember that. I had one of those picture cook books when I was little, I think that's where my love of baking first started. I'll have a look and see if I can find one similar for Sandra.

I've just put the cream twigs with lights I bought the other day in my bedroom, with some lovely cream grasses with brown tips I bought years ago. It was to replace a flower arrangement I had in there, to try and make the room look a bit more modern. Sandra loves it, so I've said I'll put some lights in her room around a metal candle holder she has. It was the lights she liked more than anything else. I already have the lights somewhere in one of my wardrobes, so will have to dig them out in a few days time. We're out tomorrow shopping and I have a few other things to do, so it'll be Tuesday before I can do it for her......She's looking forward to it.

I think Sandra takes after me where cooking and baking is concerned Anne. I love it and it looks like she's going to be the same, so it's nice to have a daughter to share it with. I think that's where I got my thread name from "bakerGill" I thought why not, since I used to bake a lot years ago.
I used to make cakes for a living and had a small catering business back in the 90's.

I love a good market too Anne, we don't have one here which is disappointing, but there is one in Birkenhead and also a smaller one in Ellesmere Port, which we go to sometimes. There's also another one in Neston which isn't to far away from us, but that is mainly food and again not very big.

Strictly's just started with some 80's music so I'm going to watch it with Sandra before OH gets in from work.......I must remind him to put the bin out for the dustbin men in the morning. The car has to be moved to get the bin round to the front, so I leave it for him to do, as it's to much of a tight squeeze for me to move the car.

There just doing the results on Strictly so I'd better go and watch it
BBL

Sorry Jane just noticed your question. We have gravy granules that are added to the juices but she added to much and it went lumpy, so I just made it with boiling water in the end, it's not quite as rich but was still nice. Like I said she'll get there in the end....we all have to learn don't we ;-) ;-)

The only problem is she gets very upset if things don't go right, so I have to keep encouraging her and saying that after practice it will be better each time. I don't think she believes me at the moment but as soon as she gets it they'll be no stopping her. I might just start her off with making the gravy with boiling water to start with and then I can just tip the juices into it for her. I've never done it that way, so I'll be learning something too :-D :-D

I have been thinking of driving again Jane, but after the accident it's really knocked my confidence. There are so many crazy drivers out there and all those big lorries scare me :-( Maybe one day I'll do it, then I won't have to rely on OH to drive me everywhere. I have driven a couple of times since the accident, but only if I have to. The funny thing is I'm ok driving in Ellesmere Port, maybe because I know the area so well, but anywhere else scares me to death.

Evening All,

I think that is a great idea of Jane's to get Sandra a cook's apron for Christmas Gill..........especially in PINK I think!! I have some of those twigs, but in brown I put with some grasses in a tall vase. I put them away last year but I think I'll leave them in there this year as they do look cheerful.

We were at the house again this morning to finish going through the shed and to look in the loft. Well, what a palava getting into the loft!! Remember I said it had 2 trap doors on it..........well OH just couldn't manage to push the second door up at all. Half joking I said try sliding it and lo and behold it worked. FIL had put runners on it at some point to slide it back!!! The trouble is, as OH slid it back a load of muck fell down all over me, in my hair, eyes and mouth and down my top, inside and out. Yuk, yuk. :-S Then a groan from OH as he spotted a huge wooden trunk up there, but when he managed to cross the loft to it he found it was empty thank goodness!! There are big wooden trunks everywhere.....goodness knows where they all came from. The rest of the shed was as we'd come to expect now........4 blowlamps, 2 camping burners, an old arm off a gramophone, jars of unidentified liquids you can't get the tops off. What are you supposed to do with those when you are supposed to empty them? FGS, FIL has even saved dozens of plastic sticks from the plant labels from plant pots!! :-S Another cine projector and more reels of old film, all kinds of pipe, old guttering, old hoover pipes, washing lines, old bases for rotary lines.........it's a potted history from the 1940s!!! After packing the car with all the garden and other tools, we did a quick assess of what's to go and despite all the car loads we've taken away, we think we'll need at least 3 of the bigger domestic skips to shift everything. We can't fit the huge builders skips on the front and I think to fill one skip, have a day's break to recover, then fill another etc will be easier for us.

We have both had enough of it all. Our own garage is jampacked full now and there's still the tvs, tv stands, dvd players etc and lawnmower, wheelchair, walker, hoovers to find room for till we dispose of them. Our new car is absolutely filthy inside too now.

Frank, we have thought about going away before, but neither of us really fancy a lot of crowds and noise, and prefer our home comforts at Christmas!! Yes, I love cauliflower cheese with a roast too. Most of the carveries round here serve it with roasts too and some mix broccoli in with it as well.

Tom was really helpful wasn't he Harry. I bet he was cheerful too as people with Down's Syndrome usually are. Well, I just asked OH if he'd ever been to the Diamonds footie ground and he said, 'Rushden and Diamonds' and that he'd watched Hinckley AFC play there, then gave me a potted history about the club including it's downfall, not that I'll remember it. I'm in Leicestershire, so just a bit higher up the country than you so to speak. Yes, please tell us your memories, we love to hear them.

I used to use cornflour and oxo for gravy when I was first married in the 60s but use the Bisto Best granules in the jars too now. Roast chicken, Lamb or Pork flavour in the tin with the meat juices and vegetable water out of the steamer. They are so quick and easy. :-) I like fruit with meat like apples or apricots, but not cranberries when they are like jam or sultanas with red cabbage. :-S

Mandy, I remember what a job it was when we had to sort out a honeysuckle we had years ago. The stems snap so easily and there is so much dead wood to snip off as well. I bet it looks a lot tidier now.

My nephew builds his own computers and MP3 players, but he works in IT so it isn't surprising! I thought Mel's OH built his too, but I may be wrong? I know I wouldn't want to do it without someone who knew what they were doing helping me. That must have been a really powerful computer your son built at that price Mandy! Still, he did do it and it was a good motivation for him to give up smoking!

I was thinking of a PINK cooks apron for Sandra, I will have to see what I can find for her, then put it away as a surprise for Christmas.

I have some twigs in brown too Ann, I've put some grass's in with them as well and they are in the living room. When we've had viewings everyone has said how nice they are, which is why I decided to put some in the bedroom as well. I must admit I love lights in any form, so it's nice having some dotted around the place.

How awful for you to be covered in all that muck, I don't blame you and Gordon for having enough of it all now. Just remember each day of sorting is a day nearer to it all being finished. I wish I lived closer so I could help you, it must be so tiring and feel like it's never ending, but it will end one day. Once you see the skip you'll know you are close to the end <3 <3

OH said those wooden trunks are worth a lot of money if they're really old, maybe you could get someone to take a look at them, you might be able to sell them and who ever buys them can then take them out of the loft themselves. It would save you a job and the money may cover the cost of the skips. It might be worth looking into.

OH's falling asleep so we're just watching the last few minutes of the X Factor with Sandra then we'll be having an early night. I can watch a bit of TV in bed as I'm not tired yet.

See you all tomorrow
Night Night

Morning all

Another dull dreary day

I've decided to have a bit of a sort out today. We seem to have started stuffing things under beds and in cupboards and draws again.......such a bad habit. So I'm going to sort it out before it gets out of hand. It's stuff we want to keep so it'll go in the loft. I've changed a few things in the way of pictures and ornaments but never got around to putting the old ones away properly, so that's todays job. OH is just getting me some boxes and bubble wrap before he goes to his mates, then hopefully I'll have it all packed for when he gets back, so he can pop it in the loft for me. There isn't much just a couple of small boxes and it should be done.

I'm also going to make a start on wrapping up the Christmas presents I bought the other day, they are all on the spare bed in the front room, so if we get another viewing it doesn't look good. Then it's food shopping later this afternoon.

So that's my day sorted. What's everyone else up to today?

Morning all and evening Kim,

Yes my oh did build my first pc back in 2006. Mum bought the parts and he built it and at the tim eit cost about £600. He said it was'nt worth doing it this time though, or he did'nt want the bother of making two as we both had one for last Christmas.

Dull old day here again and I am about to put some washing on the line but don't know if it will dry. It's as still as a mill pond out there. If we had a little breeze it wouldstand a better chance of drying.