General Chat

I was told ducks actually eat duckweed so you could get a pair of ducks Frank!! The best way I found to control blanket weed is with a rough stick. Just jab it into it then twirl the stick round and round and it winds onto the stick. Then you can push it down and off the stick into a bucket and do it again. Our little water feature mini pond gets blanket weed, but I leave some for the newts to hide in.

I called in a village shop on my way home and sat and ate an icecream in the car after. Some young boys had been in the shop, leaving their bikes and micro scooters all over the path in everyone's way. When they came out they had bought sweets, fizzy drinks and crisps and proceeded to eat/drink them all sitting on their bikes making lots of noise with plenty of 'f' words. When they had finished they started to cycle across the road slinging their rubbish and empty cans as they went, ignoring the litter bin behind them outside the shop. :-S It isn't always that there isn't a bin is it! I don't know if I already said, but I followed a woman along a country lane the other day and she kept throwing her rubbish out of the car as we went along and wasn't the slightest bit bothered that there was someone following her that could see what she was doing. At the time I was wishing I had a dash cam filming her. ;-)

Well I have a little pile of birthday cards building up ready for my huge birthday next week! lol.

I was going to take the fan out of the bedroom this morning, but seeing the temperature expected for tomorrow decided to leave it!! I think we should be getting storms and hopefully some rain as well.

I saw our village primary school was in the national papers the other day as it is closing on Fridays at 1.00pm to save costs!!

The tomatoes and cue are growing like mad in this warm weather and both are taller than me now. I may have to put some brackets on the greenhouse roof bars and string them along there.

We've had flying ants here today. I wound the car windows down when I was parked and in they came! The windows soon went back up.

Frank--you sound like a bloke after me own heart...I lived in London all through the blitz...Your memories of shrapnel collecting ..The best bit my friends and I ever found was the whole fin off a bomb and we also found 2 unexploded incendery bombs..My dad was senior ARP warden in our area and when he found out what we'd got he went ballistic..The police, and the soldiers from the ack-ack battery down the road took everything we had..When the sound of a "Doodle-bug" came we'd get our bikes out to try and follow it to see where it was coming down,,in the hope we might get something off it...Before the end of the war most of us had started smoking..Usually "Nosegay" because they were cheapest.. Cough--splutter--cough...It was good fun though...I'd better close...I could go on all day..I have done 2 talks at local schools on my war in London...
Bye for now....Bedtime nearly...Best find me cat first...Love to all....LES...

Hi Les
Welcome to the thread. Great to to hear of your memories .More would be great :-D
I too have to find my cat now .They are never in when you want to go to bed :-S

Welcome Les and we'd love to hear more of your stories please. I am sure Frank would enjoy your chat too.

My grandad used to tell me about the things they did as youngster like knock down ginger and sticking a penny to the pavement. Someone stuck a pound coin on the pathway in Bude and it was great watching people trying to pick it up.

I am off for my shower now so see you all in the morning for Jane's birthday!!!!!

Morning All,

:-D <3 <3HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO JANE <3 <3 :-D
:-D <3 <3HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO JANE <3 <3 :-D

:-) :-) :-)HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO JA----ANE :-) :-)
:-D :-D :-DHAPPY BIRTHDAY TO JANE!! :-D :-D :-D

Hope you have a lovely day and enjoy your meal. It's nice and sunny here again, but I need to go and water things as I didn't do it last night. The pots dry out so fast!

Nice to hear from you Les. More of your memories please!

Happy Birthday Jane, I hope my e-card has arrived and that you have a lovely day.
I have replied to your pm Mel.
Lovely morning here, we've nothing planned for today, so no doubt we shall just pickle about in the garden and make macaroni cheese for supper!
Is anyone else besieged by flies? We've put flypen on all our windows, so have lots of corpses to clear up! YUK!!!
Have washed bathroom mats this morning so had better get them on the line!

<3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3

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<3 <3 <3 HAPPY BIRTHDAY OUR JANE <3 <3 <3

Morning all,

What a beautiful morning this sunshine is really spoiling us.

Jane look out for something in the post or a delivery van.

I am all behind (not literaly) this morning cos I got up late. Oh is out in the blazing sun laying blocks. I am about to fill all the bird feeders up.

Liz I have replied to your pm.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU, HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR JANE, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU "Have a good lunch out, is it just you and Chris. ??

While watering last night, a nest of flying ants decided to come out from under the edging of the path. I had the full jet on, and blasted the ones as they came out. THEN I left the spray on full JET and pointed it into the nest area. I think I was able to drown them all, as I didn't see any around later on. Dis I hear somewhere that yesterday, was FLYING ANTS hatching day ??

Les, I assume you are a man, and not Leslie a woman. LOL. I was born in Woodford Bridge, Essex. about seven miles from the east end and dockland area. I always classed myself as a Londoner, and will always do so. I am coming up to 79. and have so many memories of the war. The Anderson shelter in the Garden. The Morrison shelter in the back room, where we all slept on two mattress's every night. Watching the doodle-bugs going over with that terrible drone, and the flame out of the back, when that went out, you knew someone was going to get it !!! I have written two books (if you can call them books) of my life from when I can remember. At the moment I am having trouble with sending and receiving Emails. When I get it sorted, I will pm you for you Email address and send them to you, for a read.

Very humid sort of day here,I expect we will get the storms that have been promised. They say some of them will be very noisy.

Ann, doesn't it make you want to grab hold of these children and make them put their rubbish in the bin, or take it home with them. Our village is perfectly placed for youngsters in their cars who buy Mc Donald's in Northampton and discard the RUBBISH on the roadside as they entry the village. It's everywhere, Box's cartons, tins, and bags.

That's the trouble Lix, when you have doors and windows open, fly's, bees in fact any flying insect seems to find the open window. We have fly screens on the door to the back garden.But often it blows open, or doesn't close with the magnets.

Chicken Casserole for tonight. I have prepared all the veg. and put it in the casserole pot with the chicken and grasvy. That can go on about 3,30 pm for 6.00 pm dinner. Spuds all done, in water, ready to go on.5.30 ish

First spots of rain just started, so I wonder if we are going to get a STORM.

Morning all,

<3 <3Happy Birthday Jane <3 <3

Enjoy your lunch out today .

Right better get all this shopping put away and then it will be lunch time .

BBL

<3 <3 <3HAPPY BIRTHDAY JANE <3 <3 <3.

Have an enjoyable lunch with Chris

Ros is back from Stitchery do. She went over to LINUS this morning to take THREE BIG BAGS of finished Children's blankets. She has bought back another dozen kits to do.

No sign of the road men. They have marked out the road they are going to PATCH. but that is as far as they have got.

I think it's as warm now as it was yesterday. I bet we had a cupful of rain this morning. !!!! I suppose it will mean doing the watering again this evening.

There is a rumour going round the village that an old chap has died. I have heard today that he is ALIVE AND KICKING. Whoever starts these things off ??

We have white clouds come over now so it has cooled down quite a bit.

Lamb chops for dinner tonight with brocc, carrots, cauli sugar snap peas and new pots.

Wonder what Jane has had for lunch??

It's still boiling here and we were burning ourselves touching anything when we got in the car to go out. The car said it was 37 degrees till it cooled down a little after we set off. We went to a place we knew had aircon for lunch and found a notice up to say the restaurant was closed this week while they refurbished the kitchen! :-S So we went to where the fused glass workshops are held as it is nice and shady in there and had the somerset pork from the '2 mains for £12' menu. Then we came home instead of going to the bank as we were to hot and just had a lie down and 40 winks.

I despair with all this littering Frank and think with all the council cuts there are how many more old folk that need help dressing, meals on wheels etc could be helped with money saved on wages for litter picking, clearing up all this mess. I have even heard cocky youngsters stupidly say that it gives someone a job!! They must be brought up thinking the money pot paying for services is bottomless.

Liz we had many fly free years here when the field at the back was a hay meadow. Now we have cows in the field and as soon as they arrive (there's only about half a dozen of them) so do the flies!!! Loads of them. One even flew out of the fridge the other day which put me off the food in there!! :-S

There's not a breath of air here now and I wish we could have a storm that they say we should get.

We've had thunder and lightning this afternoon and just enough rain to wet the ground ,it's so muggy here though ,we've cleaned the pool out and i've done some watering the rest will be done later tonight ,we like to sit out now in the evening and cool down ,we were watching the swifts last night ,they go up so high and travel like the wind .

We get a few flies in even though we have a curtain up the door they still get in the bedroom windows and come down the stairs ,Max was after one yesterday ,i try to stop him as i don't want him to go after a wasp and get stung .

The little ones were lucky as they had their sports day yesterday and it was just right weather wise ,if it had been today i expect they would have cancelled it with the thunder going on .

I bet they enjoyed their sports day Mandy. I was never really interested in sports and hated playing netball.

Oh has been out mowing as with this hot wether the grass is growing before your eyes.

I have cleaned out the little hog and am going to keep him one more night and let it go tomorrow once its dark. Its put on another ounce and now weighs 7 oz.

Oh he's doing well Mel and gaining weight ,will the big ones have a go at him ? or will you let him go away from where the big ones roam ?

No i never liked sports either ,i hated Hockey !! my poor ankles always got a bashing .

Evening All

Thank you all so much for all the lovely cards and wishes today. Liz, I am afraid your ecard has not appeared. I know before when you have sent one there has been a problem.I don't know this happens. But thank you anyway ,Please don't worry about it,your birthday wishes are enough :-D

Well what a hot and sticky day it is .No rain yet but we may well get the stormy stuff later.
We went to the Pheasant and had a lovely starter of Guineafowl and bacon Terrine. The main course we chose was Chargrilled Medallions of Beef,with Fondant Potato and various veg. BUT neither of us couldl cut through the Beef (even with steak knives !!!! ) so it all went back and we chose a different menu. I had a lovely Pea and Courgette Risotto and Chris went for the Fish and Chips which he said was delicious.
I have never had to send anything back there before. No desert as we were both full up.

Then I had a hair appointment at 4.30. I had to drag myself off the settee to go lol . Chris took me and then picked me up as I had had a couple of glasses at lunch.

MEL ???? . Now is what I was looking out for in the post a mug? There was nothing to say who it was from and I thought it was Hannah but she said no, nor Gareth ,or Chris or James LOL . The picture on the mug of Hannah and I looks great. So thankyou so much (if it was you :-D :-D ) a lovely gift :-D :-D

Evening all

<3 <3 <3 HAPPY BIRTHDAY JANE <3 <3 <3

Sorry to hear your meal didn't start off very good, it sounds as though the second meal was much better.

Boy, has it been hot here today, I've been in the garden all day re-potting a few plants as they have out grown the smaller pots. OH nipped out to buy more larger pots and some compost, he managed to get hold of some pots but couldn't get the compost we wanted as they had sold out, so we'll have to wait until Saturday. He's going to buy four bags just incase they run out again. As for the pots he bought the last of them and has been told they aren't getting anymore now with it going into to autumn. Good job the one's I've got should do us for now, the rest can wait until next year.

OH heard an advert about Cancer while he was out on the radio in the car which upset him. I gave him a big hug when he got back, but he still looks upset. I feel a bit useless as there's nothing I can do or say to make him feel better, other than hugs and being there for him.

I haven't caught up with the posts yet, so hope everyone is okay.

Sounds like you had a lovely birthday Jane. I think my fillings would come out if I had to chew tough meat! It must be an 'off' day for chefs as we had to send our somerset pork back today. The medallions were fine one side and black the other!! :-S They did completely fresh meals for us.

The little hog is growing well then Mel. It must be old enough to look after itself if it is putting on weight. Your OH is tougher than us if he has been out laying the blocks in this heat. OH soon decided he wasn't tackling the lowering of the rest of the path today.

Mandy, we often sit outside to cool down just before we go to bed . It's nice sitting out then isn't it. I bet the children are glad it wasn't sports day today.

I enjoyed some school sports. You were expected to attend all the Hockey practices if you wanted to be chosen to play in Hockey matches, but I never did and was still asked to play in matches! I lived outside the city and parents didn't run children about like now, well mine didn't, but the teacher still wanted me to play in matches so made an exception. I even travelled on the back of her scooter to a match once. I played right wing which meant a lot of running about. You did get whacked on the ankles Mandy, I'd forgotten that. Some girls did it on purpose I think. I hated netball too......too short and got elbowed in the face too much. I hated Tennis as I spent all my time chasing after the ball! They were short of entrants in the school swimming gala one year and the teacher asked who could swim well. I kept quiet, as I was very shy then and didn't like any attention to be on me, but the rest of the class said my name so I was entered into 2 events.....and won them, much to my surprise. A thing I just couldn't get on with in the gym was the vaulting horse!! Especially the one with handles. I seem to remember a few crash landings! lol. :-S

Gill, I felt much the same last year with OH and his parents. I think it helps them to have someone to talk to and hugs always help too. His mind must be all of a whirr with thoughts and no-one knows quite how things will be, so you just have to cope and help as best you can.

Gill, a hug is often better than words. I hope OH is ok again now. <3

We sat out last night until about 10.30 watching the Bats flying around.I think there were 2. But they came so low. I was trying to get a pic but no luck.
Oh sports at school !!!!. Not my cup of tea really. But I loved Netball . I was Goal Shooter even being so short. Hockey was a nightmare as like you Mandy I hated getting bashed ankles. I did enjoy tennis. The worst sport was Cross Country :-S.Hated it with a passion.Swimming I loved . We had an outdoor pool and would have a swimming gala each summer. I think these days a game of table tennis would be more up my street :-D

Fancy you having to send your meals back too Ann today. Maybe the heat of the day got too mch for the chefs LOL