General Chat

BIL is here mowing the grass again.

You really have to check your Tesco orders now. Just went in to add something and realised that my order was showing less than £40 (which it was not before). Checked through the list and two items had been removed and no mention of them doing that either. taken it back up over £40 now but will have to check again On Saturday.

Thats nice its surprising what a bit of paint will do.

yes I know Mel, my thoughts exactly I shall develop OCD, I usually do go back and check the bathroom taps, ever since 1994 when I flooded the bathroom. Luckily I rarely put the stopper in the sink in the cloakroom.

Andy is busy painting, already my black Wrought iron table looks like new.

Morning Anng and all,

We have a bright sunny morning here but pc says mostly cloudy and 16 degrees, the one for where I live says 18 degrees and cloudy with rain.

Went to bed at 11.38 and was up for the loo while it ws still dark and then woke again and got up at 8.24am. I must have needed that sleep.

Silly girl with the tap you must be more careful in future and go back and check like I have to sometimes.

Good morning all, dry although rain overnight. 15 degrees and very grey. Up early as usually Andy gets here early. One of the joys of living alone. I went into the cloakroom just now and the hot tap had not been turned fully off so had been trickling hot water for at least 24 hours. that is the second time I have done that. So that is water and energy wasted, very annoying but only me to blame.

Well I managed to muck up the asda order today. I was trying to change it to my name and mobile number but it kept coming up for the 13th instead of the 6th. I rang a friend and he came over and sorted it out for me so now I have my own account and the right date of the 6th.

By the time he went I had'nt had anything to eat for lunch and only a rice crispy bar thing in the morning with my tea so I was just about to get something at 3.20pm when the phone rang and it was Aunty Joy so of course talked for another half an hour or so. Finerly got a sandwich at about 4pm and took my pills.

Been out in the garden and got the brimble out of my pond and cut down a few dock fed the chickens their corn and thats about it for today so far. The friend went home in oh's leather coat and he looked good in it and he was very pleased at least I knw he will appreciate it as he works outside with his horses.

Now whats for dinner tonight? can't be bothered to cook much now so I think it will be egg furters and beans.

I did not realise that I only posted once yesterday for some reason I have had to push myself to do things since getting back from Portsmouth, always extra washing to do with being away and then having an extra bed to change and bedding to wash. Yesterday I was out until 1pm with my friend we went to a garden centre and I bought another couple of Sedums and some pansies being sold off 6 for £1. Today I have potted up the sedums that makes five I have now, they do look attractive in pots on the gravel.
Yesterday also my friend took me down to the surgery to make my annual blood test appointment. There was only one date before October available and that is a date that neither Cynth nor my other friend can take me so, either I will be on the bus with a long wait or I will have to try and find somebody else.

Hope lunch went ok Ann.

Vera slowly does it with the packing then. You mention towels, they are bulky to pack. Fortunately both the self catering house we went to in Dorset and the one we are going to in Cornwall supplied towels.

Gwyn It tool quite a while for me to focus my eyes on the castle because it blended in so well with its surroundings.

Mel, you will have days when you simply drift and do nothing, then you will have days when you are energised and get lots done so go with the flow.

Island. I remember seeing Bendy buses somewhere but I think it was Germany somewhere many years ago. And somewhere I have been on a 'double' bus but I can't think where.

Good day everyone

It’s a bright, sunny day and about 22 degrees but there’s a stiff breeze from the north east so a bit of a nip in the air. I had a good night but as soon as I was up at 7.30 I started yawning again and haven’t stopped since. I feel so tired. I think the back pain is pulling me down and reading, writing, computer work is tiring because of the problem with my eyes. I hope I get an appointment soon.

I’ve been trying to get some bits ready for our week away. We are self catering and I refuse to spend a holiday shopping and cooking so I try to take all the basics with me plus enough stuff for our breakfasts and for our dinner on the day we arrive. So I have got that ready though some will stay in the fridge till we’re about to go. I’ve also sorted out our washing gear and toiletries, towels and various sundries. Our tomatoes which didn’t seem to be doing anything suddenly all ripened at once. I haven’t got the time or energy to turn them into sauces but I have frozen 2 bagfuls that can be put into bolognese or into stir fries. So a fairly productive morning but I am now resting again.

Yesterday seemed to be family catch up time. Son rang and we chatted for an hour and he gave me all the news of his family, then one of his girls texted and we had a long text “conversation”, then my daughter rang and that was another long chat. Mel, my daughter is at a secondary school. She’s in school today running some staff training sessions but there are no pupils, tomorrow the sixth form and the new year 7 pupils go in, then the rest of the school start back on Monday.

How did the lunch with Fitz go Ann?

Island, the London bendy buses were withdrawn. I believe they were found to be too cumbersome for London’s narrow streets and there was too much fare dodging.

I hope AnnG is OK. She usually posts first thing in the morning and sometimes during the day as well but we haven’t seen her since yesterday’s early post. Hopefully she is just busy.

Better get off the bed and think about some lunch I suppose. Not sure what it will be. Today and tomorrow are days for using up oddments in the fridge.

EDIT. You all popped in while I was typing and talking to OH. Glad to see you are OK AnnG

We have a bamboo mattress cover which we bought this year.

I can't seem to get into anything much today. I have shortened a chain for one of my solar light that hangs on the lean to roof and have brought the other one in to do but not got a ring or hook to hang it on where its in the sun.

Slow typist here. Afternoon Ann :-D

Afternoon :-D :-D

I'm having a couple of garden days Mel as rain is forecast for a week from the weekend. :-0 Might be a bit feeble though (the rain that is)

Gwyn I say the '60s has a lot to answer to for modern day textile waste. Fast fashion started then as did the production of synthetic dress fabrics. The 'drip dry' shirt and nylon bed sheets (ugh) might have saved on laundry time but I bet a lot of them are still festering somewhere, refusing to decompose.
I wear cotton as much as possible but am waiting for some bamboo socks to arrive. Has anyone tried bamboo textiles?

Good afternoon all, forgot to post this morning but seem to have been occupied by various things to organise on line. It is the garden visits meeting next week so have been sorting out who will be here so I have enough chairs.
Also trying to organise a lift to the surgery late September for annual blood test. Not lucky so far but there is always the bus. trouble is it doesn't fit in very well with the appointment times. OK if it is not raining as I can walk. Hopefully something will turn up. Now I am going to plant up the plants I bought yesterday.

Good morning everyone.

Mel, our local primary school starts back today. I don't know about secondary schools.

Vera, I hope you've had a better night and have managed to get some rest. I can understand how you want to get on with things and have that sense of achievement, but it's judging the fine line of keeping mobile and yet resting enough so that your back recovers some strength that is so difficult :-S
I hope your pain eases, so that you are able to enjoy your mini-break.

Lovely to see Ann's pictures of the Spinnaker and views from the top.... an area I know well. I could just make out the castle walls surrounding the church where we married... but only because I knew where to look ;-)

What a lot of work went into the yarn bomb!
What a lovely 'gift' to the area and what a shame that not everyone respects that.
I've seen some examples around the country, but nothing on that scale.
Thank you for sharing.

Can imagine that Mandy's son and grandchildren are all ready for the new term. It can be an expensive time too. I saw a feature on a TV programme earlier about some mums having set up uniform swap shops in their area to help families and stop clothes going to landfill.
I'm amazed just how much people throw in the bin. I would much rather give it to charity or donate for recycling.
Thinking back, all our clothes were made of natural fibres and would pass down the family and perhaps eventually end up as cleaning cloths, when it was beyond wearing.

Morning all,

Cloudy here this mroning and pc says mostly sunny and 16 degrees The other local thing says its 18 degrees and has a cloud with rain drops on it.

Forgot to get Sheila some apples yesterday so I may pick some today and ring her as I am not sure where in the village she lives. Then I suppose its back to sorting.

So what are you lot up to today? and when do the children go back to school? it must be soon now.

Vera, double decker trains are a bit out of my zone but I wonder if they still have bendy buses in the west end?

Mel, the first time I saw a baby swallow I thought it was a tiny fluffy toy someone might have put on the rafter as a joke. Dear little thing just sat very still on its own - first to venture out of the nest.

Did I mention I spotted a little frog hopping on the garden path last night? The pond's been dry for a while now so I'm pleased that at least one little hoppity has survived to feast on any slugs.

Sent the pics can someone forward them to Anng please?

Thanks for the cyber smiles Vera.

I have had Sheila here this afternoon for tea and biscuits, yes I made the Anzac biscuits this morning and they are just as good as Em's.

Then Chris turned up and we sorted the hymnes and other bits that was needed and I chose his bin bag. Standing joke! They have only been gone about half an hour and then I went to feed my fish then had a look in the filter shed to be greeted by three tiny beaks in the swallow nest. Came back to the house and got my camera and looked up the orchard and the fox is sunning itself up there again. Went and tried to get pics of the swallow chicks and four heads came up. Took lots of pics but not sure if I have the four of them but I will send them once downloaded and they may be a bit blurred but there are a couple of clear ones. They usually leave in September but I don't think these new chicks will be ready by then but I do hope so.

Oh, the days of being able to take the pace. - staying up half the night, stumbling out of bed early in the morning, catching the train by the skin of my teeth and just about getting to work on time. Then doing it all again the next day :-D

That brought back another memory. People don’t usually believe me when I say that from when I started work in London in 1960 till I married in 1963 I often travelled on a double decker train. I mostly travelled on the Dartford Loop line and never saw these trains on any other line. I remember the upper deck was very confined and airless. I did google once and was told we couldn’t have such trains in the UK because of the loading gauge and thought I must be going mad as I distinctly remembered them. I’ve just had another look online and there were 2 trains running on the Charing Cross to Dartford line from 1949 till 1971. They were an experiment and weren’t overly successful so they were withdrawn from service. Did any of you ever see them or travel on them? I feel quite honoured to be “one of the few”.

Thank you for your sympathy Island. Last time my back was very bad, worse than now in fact, I saw both a doctor and a physio and they were able to rule out spinal injury. The doctor said muscle weakness with severe muscle spasms and the physio put me on a set of exercises, some to just generally keep the back loosened up and some more specific to my particular pain. It took a long while to recover but it doesn’t seem as bad this time so I am groaning my way through the exercises and optimistic that it will improve quickly. I can’t take anti inflammatory meds like ibuprofen, naproxen, diclofenac (in Voltarol) etc because they don’t mix well with other pills that are more essential.

That’s more than enough about my back. You all have your problems and pains as well and I hope you are all having an ache free day. It’s always good to end with a laugh but I can’t think of a funny joke to tell you so I’ll send you all a cyber smile instead :-D :-D :-D :-D

Mel, it must be a throwback to dim and distant 9-5 days when I could take the pace. Stayed up late so not to miss out on anything then a scramble for the tube to get to work for 9 (more like 9.30 lol) Then came the freelance days when any thought of routine went out the window.

Poor you Vera, I feel for you having been a back sufferer in the past. Do you need to see a professional? My dad swore by Volterol.

Thanks for forwarding the yarnbombing kind person. It's come a long way since it's stealthy origins. There's some wonderful work there, worthy of exhibition status.