General Chat

I have read all your posts so I'm up to date with what you have all been up to. Today has been hectic again. I hardly slept last night so got up feeling groggy. I then got an email saying a delivery was on the way so instead of getting out early I had to wait in for that. Then it was meeting our coffee group where we had a quick coffee and brief chat before getting away to do some shopping. It was then a quick lunch, a bit of h/w, a shower and hairwash and a sort out of what I am going to wear to our friend's funeral tomorrow. I also repotted and tidied up a couple of plants for daughter to take back with her tomorrow.

After cooking and eating our dinner I brought back into the conservatory all the cuttings and small plants that I put outside this morning. Unfortunately I had a tray of tiny seedlings that aren't ready for outside yet and while we were out the temperature got so high in the conservatory that they have completed scorched and withered.

Daughter is leaving home at 7.30 am tomorrow so should be here about 8.15-8.30 to pick us up. We just have to hope there are no traffic problems or hold ups on the way. We've left ourselves a little bit of leeway just in case. Not sure what time we'll be back, I guess late afternoon but we have to be out again before 7 pm. A couple of months ago I bought tickets for a performance at our local theatre and, of course, it is tomorrow night. It's called Masters of Swing and it's an evening of big band music and songs. I'm not sure we're really going to be in the mood for that, particularly if it's been an emotional day but we will see.

I'm just going to water some indoor plants and then I think I'll take one of my headache pills and go to bed. I probably won't be back now until Saturday so have a nice day tomorrow everyone.

Thanks for mentioning that about Timsons Mandy. I know the Sainsbury's opposite the retail park near here has a Timsons and there is a large Tesco not far away, so I'll ring them tomorrow and see if they can do a photo. Yes it's been hot here today and very still, a bit too hot for me to be honest, but it's supposed to be hotter still the next few days. I went to the garden centre in the sticks this afternoon and a lot of their plants in their greenhouse were wilted. It's a shame sowing the seed and nurturing them, to just let them die then for the sake of turning their hoses on.

Well I'm off to bed now. An early start in the morning to battle with the traffic to the next village! I hope you all get a good sleep.

Evening all,

Anng its a worry when you can't lock up but the chap soon came and sorted it for you and at a good price too .

Ann have you got a Tesco with one of those little Timpsons cabins outside as they do passport photos while you wait ,they did mine for my driving licence and if it doesn't look right after taking it they do another one , its better than a photo booth because if they don't turn out OK you have to pay again , what I can remember I think the price was the same as a photo booth .

Oh I wonder what you'll have to eat tonight Mel .

Shopping day today and I was hoping that Aldi would have some more plants in but they didn't and what they did have there were all just about dead, there was another lady looking and she said think I'll give them a miss ,I said yes I will too ,you'd think someone could have given them a little water .
I watered all my pots this afternoon as they were really dry ,also did a bit more weeding ,we sat out and had our cuppa and it was really hot in the sun we could have done with the canopy across but son hasn't put the new canopy up for us yet , think we'll have to get a garden parasol out of the shed .

Gosh Anng that was'nt bad for that work. You better keep his number.

I have done some fishing in the p[ond, fed the girls and put the chciken in the slow cooker but had a phone call from Stu to say that could he bring Bram round tonight or would I like to go to Bram's for dinner. I said yes I will go to Bram's so Stu is picking me up tonight. Not the foggiest what he will cook!! Hope its not too spicey.I was told thzzt Bram does gardening for £20 an hour.

Still lovely and sunny but o such a cold strong wind which makes it quite unpleasent out.

Done a wash and thats blowing on the line so that should dry.

Afternoon All,

Another glorious sunny day. I was due to go for my covid jab, a blood test and see the doc all this morning, but OH was dashing to the white friend in the night and I felt off colour, so I phoned and left messages to cancel at 7.00am so others could have my appointments. The schools seem to be suffering tummy bugs at the moment, but thankfully we both feel ok now. I also have another appointment in the morning anyway so can rebook the jab and blood test then.

I've been watching the robotic AI table tennis player beating an elite table tennis player on tv. It looks a bit crude at the moment but it shows that even some manual jobs may be under threat with AI.

Mel you don't want a stew with leaks in it or there won't be any left! The soup addition will make a nice sauce. I just add a drop of cold water or milk if drinks are too hot.

Your group meeting sounds like something I would enjoy AnnG with being at Nature in Art and with some cake I miss and coffee. That was great service from the locksmith. It's a worry, as I know when doors won't lock.

Mandy those boxes of Freesias must have smelt so nice! You must have looked forward to them coming from your nannies sister. It's good to get the logs delivered tomorrow while Jake is around to help your son and I see the wheelbarrow is ready for action now too.

I've had a letter and form to renew my driving licence and it needs a photo this time with so many rules about the size, lighting etc I might use a photo booth if I can remember where I've seen one. OH sent his application for his ages ago and had to chase them up a few weeks ago to get an extension on his old one as it had expired early in March. He's still waiting.

My patio door to the conservatory refused to lock this afternoon. I had to go out so locked the outside door. Left the radio o loud and went out. At &.30 when I got home I phoned a local person called affordable locks and fifteen minutes later he was here, a further fifteen and it was sorted and then he fixed the front door which had been sticky for a while.(apparently that door had dropped and screws had worked lose in the patio door and see jamming it underneath.

Fantastic service for £45.

Morning Anng and all,

Nice bright morning so hope it stays like this for your visit its 13 degrees and pc says tomorrows high may tie with 24th April.

Made my coffee too hot and hate that as I always like a few gulps to get me going.

Stu's to dinner tonight so I got a nice big pack of chicken thighs out and may do them in the slow cooker if I can work out how long to do them for. I shall do carrots, cerlery, leak and onion with them all in a can of soup, either chicken or chicken and mushroom. New pots or rice hav'nt decided yet.

good morning all, sunny and 7 degrees at the moment. Slept well last night and got up at 7am. Being picked up at 2.10pm this afternoon, a group coffee and cake meeting at Nature in Art not far from here.

I have a few admin jobs to do this morning. but will give the garden a miss I think to save my legs.

Oh Freesias they smell lovely ,my nannies sister lived in Guernsey and had the big greenhouses and they grew flowers , she always sent over a long box with Freesias in also big Carnations and Momosia , they were always sent over at Christmas as nannies birthday was on Christmas day .

We got all our big pots filled and in the greenhouse ,thanks Ann I hadn't thought of putting the watering cans in to warm the water ,I'll do that tomorrow .
We chopped some bits off a tilt as I thought it had been nibbled by something
but I think it was just that the tilt had got a bit brittle ,it was left out in the winter .
We pumped the tyre up on a wheel barrow ready for a log delivery on Friday, as Jake is on holiday we thought it was a good chance to get a load as he'll help son wheel it round .

Oh Ann all that time to get those injections ,and he's still waiting ,hope it's all sorted out soon and they start to help the pain .

Vera the pickle sounds interesting , I like onion but not keen on radish ,but pickled the radish could taste ok , you'll have to let us know what it's like .

Ooh I think I would like pickled red onion slices. That is really bad Ann 14 months for something that should have been immediate.

It seems nowhere is free of roadworks, everywhere we went in Buckinghamshire had road works traffic lights.

That talk sounded interesting Vera. I would have known the family favourites answer, used to love that programme and always listened to it.

I thought I remembered what you did with your Penstemon. I am putting it out in the morning and bringing it in at night. I will plant it out around the last week of May.

I missed you there Vera. The talk sounds very interesting and the cards did make it more entertaining. Here you are planting the lovely scented Lily of the Valley from your daughter while we are losing the battle here to control the invasion from nextdoor! I'm hoping when the soil mound from the old raised bed goes that the majority of it will go with it as it has spread thickly all up the sides of the mound now. I do like it and had a small patch at my previous house, but never seen it grow as vigourously as it does here. Radish and red onion pickle your daughter has made does sound interesting! You must let us know what it is like. I recently bought Asda's pickled red onion slices and that is nice.

Afternoon All,

I slept well again, just up for a visit to the loo in the early hours. It seems warmer here than yesterday and bright sunshine now. OH went to a study thing to do with dementia first thing. It is something he has volunteered to take part in. He had an online test to do a few days ago and went to a nurse appointment and blood test a few miles away this morning. One of the tests was to count back from 100 in sevens and the nurse had to keep telling him to stop as she couldn't keep up with writing down what numbers he said. She said she'd never tested anyone before who did it so fast!

OH managed at last to get through to rheumatology at the Royal Infirmary to leave a message yesterday instead of no answer or being cut off. They actually rang back today and the nurse said they had signed off the papers and sent them to the City General Hospital yesterday (coincidence that after he'd phoned and got through), which he means he doesn't have Lupus there was some concern about. That hospital needs to sign off the treatment next and will pass it to the pharmacist who will issue his treatment injections. The nurse said it should take 2-3 weeks. So from diagnosis that says early treatment is imperative it should be about 14 months to having any!

When I got out of my car in the shop carpark this morning a woman walked by smiling and called 'hello' so I said 'hello' as well and she then said 'how are you'. I answered 'fine thank you' and she walked on. I haven't a clue who she was and can't ever remember seeing her before. More new roadworks on the way home. They seem to be digging in the grass verges in a couple of places, but these days it means half the road coned off and traffic lights. There were more in the village where the pretty brook is as they are lopping off large amounts of the Willow trees, yet there is a partly fallen, large branch leaning dangerously over the road they haven't touched, despite having driven past it to get to the Willows.

Yes it's best to leave the ponds today Mel. Nothing strenuous either that will put your BP up. I've just learned of a friend of a friend having Muntjac deer in the garden. I hadn't realised they were in Devon too. I've never tried growing Freesias, but used to buy a bunch every week to have in the bedroom for the lovely scent when we first moved here.

Thanks for the link AnnG and I suppose a smaller version is possible, but would still need planting and clearing at ground level which I hadn't thought about. I did see some plants I didn't know on the link and others that are good in hot dry weather. One I liked is Zinnias and I think I saw some of those yesterday at the garden centre. Albert who lives up the close and is in his 90s has a simple, formal front garden. A curved quadrant in each corner and a raised planter in the middle and the rest a pale grey gravel. He plants a different annual flower in all four corners every year and it looks lovely. You've been busy in the garden planting your purchases from your break. I don't do well with sweet peas here either. Mine always get covered in that powdery mildew.

Mandy it's a good idea to warm the pots of soil as you say, also to stick a watering can of water to warm up as well. I wonder how many cues you will pick this year!!

It's another bright, sunny day but the wind cuts right through you. A while ago it looked as though it was snowing as the wind was blowing all the lovely white blossom off our crab apple and all over the garden. It's really been a fairly mild winter but I don't think I remember one that has been so constantly blowy.

I think most people love the smell of freesias. I've never tried growing them but occasionally buy a small bunch to put in a vase in the kitchen. I certainly wouldn't put penstemons out yet AnnG. With the ones that are in the ground all year round I cut the tall ones down by about half in the autumn and then leave all the rest of the growth there to help protect the plant from frosts and bad weather. Then I cut right down to the new growth at the bottom in late spring, maybe not till the end of May depending on the weather. The few cuttings I took have been inside all winter and I'm just putting them outside for a couple of hours each day to start to harden them off. Daughter is bringing me a pot of lily of the valley when we go to the funeral on Friday. They were my mum's favourite flowers. She's also bringing a jar of radish and red onion pickle that she has made. That sounds.........interesting.

It sounds as though your U3A talk was very good AnnG. The photos of all those places must have been beautiful. Our talk on Monday evening was excellent as well. Lots of photos of the area mostly in the 1960s and some from the 1970s. It has changed so much. Every so often the speaker would throw in a question and whoever came up with the answer was given a card, that he had produced. They are lovely mementoes as they are printed on thick glossy card in pastel colours and with a relevance to the area. I got 2. I have photographed them and will email them round but I am not sure how well they will show up as my phone is very old and the camera is not very sophisticated. Our speaker had been talking about the population of the town plus the area where I live which was then a separate village just outside town but with modern infill and new housing is now more like a suburb of the town. Apparently in the early 60s the population had dropped a bit to about 8000. He then asked what we thought it was now. People were calling out all sorts of figures and I said 25,000 which was near enough right so I got a card. Then he was talking about radio and TV programmes and mentioned Two Way Family Favourites. Remember that? He asked who presented it and I said Jean Metcalfe and her husband but I couldn't remember his name (it was Cliff Michelmore) so I got a second card. It was an informative and very entertaining evening.

Next job is to phone the eye hospital and find out why they haven't yet sent me a new appointment to replace the one they cancelled but I think I might leave that till the morning now. However I must go and get my lamb casserole in the oven if we are going to eat at a reasonable time tonight.

I love the smell of fresias. Have never managed to grow them.
I spent half an hour in the garden earlier on, stopped at 11 for coffee then went back out at half past eleven and came in just before 0ne. I think that is me done for today. I sieved a lot of my homemade compost, planted sweet peas (I am never successful with them but son bought some so I did as well. Then I planted three of the plants I bought in MK area. One in a pot and two in the ground that Jake cleared ( a Geum -Mai Tai pale apricot, and an Aquilegia, a purple/mauve one. In the pot is a Bunnera Jack Frost. Sweet peas in tubs One white and one pale mauve.

The last two plants I bought, a Penstemon and a Nepta Have to be left (On advice of the Nursery), for two weeks. They had not really started selling them and they were in the greenouse waiting but realising I was not able to return she suggested that instruction. I imagine the roots have not had time to make much growth.

I planted some fresia bulbs years ago in a big pot and they never came to anyhing. Bought in the Factory shop 2 packs so there were a lot in the pot. this year I was looking at the old pots to throw some away and spied that two flowers were coming up in that pot. Brought them up to the patio to keep my eye on them and they have produced two lovely yellow floers so I waited till the second flowers came out and I picked them. They are on my desk in a Boda mini vase and smell wonderful.

Gosh its turned so very windy here blowing all sorts of things around in the garden and dead branches off the big ash tree.

I hav'nt touched the ponds today Anng I'm being a good girl.

Just going round to see the girls are ok as they don't like wind and then go up the shop to post parcels.

Maybe do some gentle jobs Mel and leave the pond until tomorrow.

I have just done half an hour in the garden tidying up the old large Helebore leaves and pulling out that long strangly sticky weed that gets aeverywhere. spotted the snails have already found the new leaves of a hosta so (very naughty) put slug bait down.
12 degrees here but a very annoying strong wind.

Morning girls,

Glad Anng and Mandy had better nights so lets hope our Vera did too.

Its a nice sunny morning again and its 11 degrees so I am hoping to maybe get in the garden today after a few jobs.

Nose was ok in the night I was hoping it would be as I only changed the bed the other day. I did wonder if I should have put a towel over my pillow be was so tired I forgot. I shall take it easy if I do go in the garden today and try not to bend down or lean over. Not looked at the pond yet!!

Must get on as I have another parcel to do up today.

Morning all,

Sunny again but I haven't been out yet so don't know if it's as chilly as yesterday ,I'll see in a minute as I have to get the recycling bin in .
I had a much better night ,got out about half one for the loo , woke again to turn over and asleep again till quarter past six ,dozed off again till ten to eight .

This morning I need to fill the big pots ready for the cucumbers to go in in a day or two I need to put the filled pots in the greenhouse to warm the compost a bit ,the nights are still chilly so once in I think I will have to cover the plants over night .

Hope your nose has been OK over night Mel ,dil use to get a lot of bleeds but I haven't heard her say she's had ons lately , she had an afternoon off work Friday I think she had a sickness bug as there was others in school that had been off with it

Better have my cuppa then get on with a job .

good morning all. I did have a good night's sleep thanks Mel. Only got up twice and the second time it was because my nose was completely blocked (no idea why) and I neede to walk around and breath, Slept from 11pm until 0715 with two breaks of no more that 30 minutes altogether.

Ann thinking about what you said about reproducing the effect of the block colours in my photos. It could be done on a smaller scale. Some of the plants to use could be:- Pelargonums (bedding geraniums), Lantana, dwarf zinnias, bedding begonias, Alyssium, Coreopsis (dwarf), Scaevola.

and there are others. A good web site:
https://www.tinygardenhabit.com/annual-flowers-plant-april-summer-color/

You could do a small square or circle in your front garden.

Hope you have had no more nose bleeds Mael.

Vera, hope your toes are healing now, walking in shoes can't have helped so I guess you might still be suffering.

Our meeting went well last night. I have not been friends that long with the couple who gave the talk and film show 2/3 years maybe, but the fellow is the one who takes me to photography and most of the photos were his. wife, when she was younger, used to work for a travel agent. The photos were from an island north of Norway Svalbard/Spitsbergen:, China, South Africal, Vancouver and Canada all places they have travelled to from around 2005 to 2017. Beautiful photos and all very well done.