General Chat

Just caught up with your posts and been out in the garden repotting some more plants and I sowed some Pumpkin seeds, just 6 there are 4 more in the packet. Took more self sown orchids out of the pots I repotted too and a big fritilaria was in one plant I repotted with two orchids. When you think the orchids came with me from Suffolk in pond plants I brought down from the pet shop which is 35 years ago.

Hungry now so dive down the freezer or shall I have the lamb shank thats in there with broccoli and carrots and cabbage, or I could have mac cheese which is easier. yes II think mac cheese with tomatoes.

Well OH is a bit further ahead now and did keep the nurse appointment AnnG. I must admit I never thought, but you are right that they might ask a doctor's opinion. Anyway it was a knowledgable nurse he saw once before with an episode of his eye inflammation. She said it was a big help and was so pleased I took photos of how it evolved and said it was classic for a reaction to the injection and needed antihistamines at the biggest strength they can prescribe. They are big tablets and are 180mg which is a lot considering my hayfever tablets are only 10mg! She issued a prescription to our pharmacy there and then and said we could collect it on the way home which we did. He needs to take them for a month. He absolutely mustn't do the next injection until he has spoken to rhuematology and to chase them tomorrow if they haven't got back to him today. (they haven't yet!). He needs to wear factor 50 suncream every day anyway to protect his skin and to wear loose clothes so as not to rub and break the skin and risk infection. Since he lost weight most of his clothes are quite loose anyway. I'm not sure if the same will happen every time with the injections, but have read that there can be reactions for a few months. What I read said that some people may even get no reactions for months or even years, but then get them. There are added risks of things like cancer and pneumonia with lowering the immune system, so he needs to talk with the doctor about all the options really. I feel so sorry for him as much of his health problems could have been much less if the inflammation with his eyes had been picked up when it first happened in the 80s. Now he's less anxious as the rash is beginning to fade and he's much happier and been his jokey self making me chuckle at lunchtime.

The paper girl had delivered the wrong paper to us this morning, so he called in the paper shop on the way to the surgery. They don't speak much english so he picked up a copy of the paper they should have delivered from the sale rack and left the wrong one on the counter. When he got in the car he noticed our address was pencilled in at the top of the paper, so it was the copy the paper girl should have delivered!

I've never been to Chelsea, but always thought I would one day. I did go to Hampton Court Show with OH one year and I think he had a hernia and was limping a bit. I remember we looked around the house as well and it was a hot day and the kitchen had an enormous fireplace and fire blazing and it was too hot to get anywhere near it. We were surprised how small the show gardens were as they looked bigger on the tv. You are lucky to have been 3 times Mel and taxied there as well. The chairs sounded really comfy and did you see anyone famous at all?

I just showed OH the purse you made Mandy and he thought you were clever and that it was great too, especially after having done that nasty damage to your wrists a while ago. I love the fabric you used and the matching press stud.

Mel that must have a lovely day out but I bet it was cheaper than it is now ,I looked at the ticket prices and some were over a hundred pound :-0 the perfume from all the flowers must be amazing .

Thanks Ann they are actually quite easy to make and as I haven't done any sewing for a while I enjoyed making it .

Ann , I hope OH has had some advise on the rash and itching by now and if he should do the next injection on Wednesday.

The day has stayed dry but we have had some very black clouds at times ,no rain though so far ,and I got the washing all dry .

Ann do you think, as OH must be pretty desperate to have somebody look at it, if he had agreed to the appointment with the nurse, they might have called on a doctor to look at it as a second opinion? Anyway has he got any further forward with it now?

Thanks for the purse photos Mandy, a very pretty purse.

Sad to suddenly find a photo of Jane mel. No you can't throw it out.

Yes Mandy I have been three times. The first time I went with my grandfather and mum paid for us to have a taxi there and back and for us both to go in. Grandad could'nt get over the size of the Delphium flowers and how long the spikes of flowers were. Then the next time I went with mum and again she paid for a taxi and to go in. We both bought a garden chair and I still have thmem both but they had plastic straps across to lie on on the mattress and they all broke. They cost us £200 each, had padded matresses a sun shade and arms you could take off and raise and lower the back and foot bit. They were the most comfortable sunbeds I have ever lay on.

The third time I went was from Suffolk on a coach trip. I went with my best friends, Deirdre and Dylis and a couple of others from the village. We had beautiful weather on all occasions. Its a wonderful show to go to with lots of stalls where you can buy things too.

Poor oh Annx did you say these injections were fortnightly? and do you think the rash will happen every time or just till his body gets used to it? I do feel for him as itching is'nt a pleasent thing at any time and especially when it gets hot.

Morning All,

It is sunny here with blue sky with patches of white cloud and 10 degrees although it feels cooler than that.

OH rang the surgery, but the receptionist would only book an appointment with a nurse this morning, which is pretty useless, so he's now waiting for the hospital to triage him and phone him back. His rash has joined up on his back and front and his face and neck are a little less red, but it's a bit itchy now so he looks very pink! I can't go anywhere till I know whether they want to see him at the hospital as he will need me to drop him off as there will be long queues for the carpark.

Yes we were dreading going to A&E on a Saturday night Mandy. I hope Max is feeling more comfortable now he seems ok and managing to wee now. Silly me thinking the purse was knitted! My head is all over the place! I thought it would be difficult knitting one with compartments. I will look out for the pic you are sending.

That's annoying about the new alarm clock AnnG and having to set it up again. I hope it works ok when you have done it again. Yes, wild meadow flowers do look lovely, but I suppose a bit of clearing of thug weeds may be needed too.

We have some young cattle in the field at the back again now. I think it must be from the same farmer as there are brown and white Herefords, but brown ones too and a pretty blonde one. They are certainly enjoying the fresh, new grass.

Morning all,

Oh sorry we have lovely sunshine here ,blue sky and fluffy white clouds , but I think we should be in for rain later.

Max seems OK, never heard a peep from him over night ,not that we do anyway ,he went out first thing and had a good wee and did his busy as we always say to him from little go busy busy .
I slept quire well as I was so tired.

Ann I'm not surprised OH is not keen on doing the next injection if this is going to be the outcome each time ,perhaps you'll know more after speaking with the doctor and rheumatology department.
The purse the lady wanted was a sown one not knitted Ann , I'll send a photo as I
haven't given it to her yet .

Anng that a nuisance about the new alarm clock having to set up all again ,our clock in the bedroom flashes when the electric goes off and we have to go through all the rigmarole of resetting it again.

Washing is spinning, where does it all come from.

Looking forward to seeing the Chelsea flower show programmes, we watched one last night showing some gardens being completed, has anyone ever been ?

Morning Anng and all,

Horride grey day and its raining. Its 9 degrees and feels colder looking at the forcast I think we are in for rain all day, not a nice thought.

Nothing planned may go down the shed and do some potting.

Good morning all a bit showery this morning, dull and 7 degrees. Didn't really have a bad night but kept waking and then laying for a while. And feeling cross and frustrated as I tested the new alaarm and it didn't go off. So now I have to go all through the set up again. the time is fine that stayed set. I hate these alarm clocks.

Mandy Awe poor Max I hope he is soon better, Animals are like young children, can't tell you what is wrong.
I thought of you yesterday reading somebody had bought two crabs and when she looked in the bag when she got home, one of them was moving.

Ann hope the GP can help with OH's rash as that sounds nasty. Hope you both managed to get some sleep.

I am not sure how long I will leave that border as the weeds so far are not particularly pretty flowers and I don't want it to spread to other parts of the garden, I will see!!

Gosh that rash sounds dreadful Annx I hope he can get some answers before having to do the next injection on Wednesday.

O poor Max and you too Mandy. Its such a worry with animals when they are under the weather they have no way of telling you how they feel or whats wrong. Its a mother thing I think to notice somethings not right. I remember the photos of him as a pup with his big dark eyes. I hope he's better in the morning. Do you give him cooled boiled water? as I know there is a lot of stuff in the water in Suffolk and Norfolk etc kettle wise I was always cleaning the kettle of the white stuff. Its good to have something for if he fits again.

Sleep well all.

Evening All,

Mostly dull with showers today.

Vera you did have a few full days with one thing or another!

Oh Mandy that was a worry with poor Max. At least he is hopefully sorted out now and with meds if he has more fits. .How old is he now? I remember the lovely photos of him as a gorgeous puppy! That was nice the lady has asked for another purse. You are clever as I would never have thought you could knit a purse.

AnnG we have had some really heavy showers today as well and the sky has been mostly black clouds. Your wild border you plan sounds interesting. Our border on the front is trying to do that, but mostly with grass and thistles rather than nice meadow flowers.

Nice to have some baby Robins Mel. It would be nice if you could get a photo of them.

We didn't sleep much last night as OH kept waking and checking his rash. This morning all his chest, back and shoulders were covered in spots as well and his face was redder, except round his eyes. This afternoon the rash was down his thighs and lower arms too. The rash on his abdomen has merged together and is just pinky red and the jamjar lid sized red patch at the site of the injection has faded to pink now. There are so many warnings with this medication we are getting a GP appointment in the morning so they can see what they think and will then ring rheumatology and see if they answer so he can talk to them. He's not keen on doing the next injection on Wednesday at the moment and I don't blame him.

I hope we all get some good rest tonight and I'm off to bed now as it will be an early start in the morning.

Poor Max and poor you Mandy. He’s family so you are bound to worry about him but it sounds as though the Fakenham vet has been very helpful and hopefully Max will quickly be on the mend. Sending a hug to you and a pat to Max <3

Oh thats lovely having the baby Robins Mel ,I bet they are so tiny as mum and dad are small .

Well we haven't had our roast as I've been at the vets with Max most of the afternoon, I noticed at lunch time he was in and out trying to wee and wasn't doing anything ,I rang the vets and son and dil took us over to Fakenham vets which was the vets on call as ours was shut , just as we were about to go I took Max out in the garden and he managed a little wee.
The vet checked him over and one of the girls there took him outside to try and catch a wee sample from him ,they managed to get one and did all the tests on it and said there was remnants of crystals in it so perhaps he had a blockage and they'd moved after a while, he has some tablets to take for inflammation which should help if he has any more crystals but they could give him diarrhea or sickness so if they do i have to stop them and go back to our vets .
Also and I haven't said before but he has had three fits so I also have some medication for if he fits again , I had mentioned it to our vet but she didn't seem that bothered so it's good we now have something to help him .

I feel washed out as I do worry about things and I didn't have a very good night last night so hope I have a better sleep tonight .
So I came out if the vets just over three hundred pound lighter :-0 but he is so worth it .

So tomorrow we hope to have our roast.

We have just had torrential rain for about thirty minutes, patio was under a couple of inches in places but it has drained now. I did have some plants standing out there due to be potted up this coming week they are well watered now.

I am watching the recording of gardeners world somebody advocating leaving the garden to sort itself out. I am sort of doing that with a small border, it is mostly weeds (wild flowers) that are growing. I will leave it a while and see what really grows there.

Sky is black again.

I had better go and sort my pousson out for cooking, plus Aunt Bessie’s potatoes. Cauli, runner brand and asparagus (English).

How lovely to have robin babies Mel. We've sometimes seen a pair of robins in our garden and lately one has been flying in, taking a sunflower heart from the feeder and flying off into trees in another garden. He wouldn't be feeding the seeds to babies but I wondered if he is feeding wifey sitting on eggs.

I hope your OH had a comfortable night Annx and his rash wasn't itchy. I'm sorry you had a restless night, AnnG, and hope you'll sleep better tonight. I did have a better night. I've been surviving on about 3 hours a night split into 2 lots but I think I slept for about 5 hours last night and feel better for it.

It's nice that lady asked for another purse Mandy. It just shows how pleased she must have been with the first one you made her. I don't know if our friend with the fractured pelvis will agree to have an alarm. Her sons have suggested she thinks about moving into sheltered accommodation where she could have her own little flat or bungalow but there would be company around and help always to hand. Our neighbour who fell the other day is also a lady living alone. She does have an alarm on a wristband and she wasn't wearing it when she fell outside the house the other day. She didn't appear to be badly hurt but OH knew he wouldn't be able to lift her without hurting either her or himself so he had to go into her house and locate the alarm box and press the red button on that. Once the alarm people had checked with OH whether she needed immediate medical assistance they phoned her brother who lives fairly locally and he came and sorted her out.

I managed to do a bit more in the garden this morning so there is another pot cleared of daff bulbs and replanted with some geranium cuttings and some other cuttings sorted out. I'm trying to do little and often. Apart from that and a bit of general tidying up all I've done is cook a roast lamb dinner which we had at about 2 pm. Very tasty it was too.

It's been alternate sunshine and cloud today. We were promised some more showers but we haven't had any yet. It's bound to rain tomorrow as I've got lots of washing to do again and I prefer to hang it out when I can. Oh well, what will be, will be.

My Robin has at least two chicks as I see him feeding two of them. I'm hoping Mrs Redbreast is sitting again on more lovely Redbreast babies.

Hi to Mandy you popped in and I missed you too. Good the lady came back to you asking if you could make her another purse. Hope you find the pattern so you cando it. Purses are so expensive now remember to charge her a little bit more now.

And now the suns out.......................................

They were'nt far wrong its now rain steadily.

Morning Mel ,you popped in while I was typing.