General Chat

Evening all,

It's been sunny so Colin has been pressure washing the slabs they do look a lot better ,they were getting a bit green in places .

Ann you missed a night's sleep so no wonder you had a better sleep last night you must have been so tired .
Nice to get your hair cut but don't you feel chilly round the neck after .

Oh dear Mel its annoying when you can't find what you want and you know you have one somewhere in the house as Anng said it will come to light once you've got the new one .

Anng hope all goes well tomorrow at the dentist ,will you set an alarm as its an early appointment .

Hope you managed to get to your club today Vera and that it wasn't to crowded ,I should think the talk about Romania was interesting so hope you enjoyed it .

Katie called in after school so she took her gloves home they fitted her a treat she said she'll wear them when she goes to school tomorrow.

It sounds as though your hairdresser is very well organised Ann. I have a hair appointment tomorrow as well. You have done well in your garden today. I keep looking at ours and thinking we must tidy it up but at the moment I don’t want to risk setting my back off again, not now it is finally getting better.

I can’t guess what it is you are making Mel but I bet you are going to keep us on tenterhooks till it’s finished.

It is nice to have a younger member at the club AnnG. She also goes to the social club we belong to. I know she has tried to get friends and mothers from the school her son attends to come along but with no luck. The local garden club has closed because they have lost a lot of older members and younger people aren’t interested in joining.

The talk was really interesting. She’s never done anything like this before and had put a lot of work into it. She brought along blouses, pottery and even food she had prepared and talked about the history and politics, the culture and traditions and everything in between. I found it fascinating hearing how it had been a monarchy and then a republic and what life was like under the dictatorship of Ceausescu. He and his communist policies turned a reasonably prosperous country into a poverty stricken nightmare. Our speaker said that till she was 12 (she’s only in her early 40s now) she hadn’t seen an orange or banana. Electricity was only on from 7-10 pm and there was no hot water. She didn’t feel deprived as she had not known anything different but her parents had known a better life and found it very hard. Anyway you’ll have gathered it was a very interesting afternoon.

It was fine in the hall. Most people were wearing masks and windows and a door were open and I felt OK being there. I am careful but am beginning to see more people now. We have had an active social life with a big group of friends and it has been hard giving that up over the last 2 years.

Well, I’d better start cooking or OH will think I am starving him. Good luck at the dentist tomorrow AnnG and sleep well tonight everyone

Yes I have a dremel he bought me for Christmas. I did have a little 6 inch tenon saw which I leant him once but did'nt get it back. The other saw I was looking for is a mini circular saw thing that I bought for mum years ago. I did show him that when we were first together and he said it was too dangerous for me to use and it was put away. I can't remember where though.I have had the cupboards out in the uti room and made more mess and its not in there but there is one other double cupboard in there that I hav'nt looked in and a small cupboard in the corner that I hav'nt looked in but have a load of stuff for the charity shops in front so I can't get the door open. I had just started clearing things out when the pandemic hit us so the bags and boxes of stuff have stayed there in my way.

Still not finished all the wipe down as he came late today and then we had lunch so still some to do. I think I will do a salad tonight so not much cooking just a few new pots for a pot salad but all the cutting up which seems to take forever.

Sunny Afternoon All, :-D

I slept like a log last night and we were up early and showered ready for the alarm man to do a service and change the battery. He's a nice man and it's good when you find tradespeople that are good and that you can rely on. He always arrives exactly on time as well. He was saying about his Christmas and how they delivered presents on the doorstep and retreated without going inside. Christmas morning he got a call to say they couldn't go for Christmas Dinner as planned as the son of the house had tested positive. He said he and his wife had to stay at home and eat snacks for Christmas dinner instead!!! A friend of his delivered presents on the doorstep the same and didn't go inside, but did stay chatting at the door with just one of his relatives. He said the relative was a teacher so testing for covid every day and she tested positive the next day and so did he 2 days later.

I was the only one in the hairdressers (I try to have the first appointment in the morning) and they always put me on an island seat so I'm never near anyone else anyway. They are still wearing masks etc same as before. It's a small salon (one of 6 that Barry built up from his grandma saving money for him from when he started work) and it is inside a gym building. I did wonder whether it was a salon he might close first if he had to because of the pandemic, but he has signed a 5 year lease which was good to hear as it is only a couple of miles away and his other salons are in the city or outlying towns like Ashby de la Zouche. They had just had new sunken emergency lighting put in and I was asked if I could see any fingerprints round them. My hairdresser said she needed to clean any off as Barry would be visiting on Friday and he would be bound to notice them. He keeps high standards of everywhere being immaculate.

After lunch, as it was mild and 13 degrees I went in the garden and filled the big humper 5 times with prunings from shrubs that had grown right over the rock edging. OH came out and emptied for me and did some tidying up himself. Then I took dead leaves of the geraniums. They are really dry but looked ok so I didn't water and am keeping my fingers crossed. ;-) ;-)

Good luck with your early visit tomorrow AnnG. At least with it being early it won't be on your mind for hours and the rest of the day will be yours. :-) I do miss the hikes I used to do, but even years ago it used to put me off joining a rambling group in case it was too hard to keep up, especially with tall men with long strides! My first OH was 6ft and I could never keep up with him.

The talk at your Ladies Club today sounds interesting Vera. I feel I know very little about places like Romania and was fascinated to see another place I knew nothing about, Croatia, on the David Attenborough programme. Good idea to sit near the door where you can discreetly nip out if it gets too crowded. I have a pile of art magazines for the husband of a friend I went to craft workshops with before the pandemic. I was going to leave them on her doorstep, but she has suggested we meet up outside somewhere and are socially distanced. I haven't met up with any friends for about 2 years now so might do that later this month now cases are dropping round here....... if I can think of somewhere we could go.

Mel, that is one thing I am looking forward to with having a clearout and sort out........that we will hopefully be able to find things more easily afterwards. Is it another circular saw you are getting or just the blade you can't find? My Dremel has little saws with it, but maybe you need something bigger.

Mel, the minute that saw arrives you will find the other one.
Vera, how nice that you have a much younger member to carry on the group, maybe she has some friends who would join. U3a does have younger members than me, some just over 50 but the majority are probably in their 70s, I wish it had started up here earlier than it did so we could have taken better advantage of it. In our 60s we would have loved the walking group but they just walked too far for us when they started 6 years ago.

Morning AnnG, Mel and all

It seems to have rained a bit overnight, now it’s just grey and a bit breezy. It seems quite mild.

I can’t believe it’s February already. Did I blink and miss January?

Ironing is the next job. I know how to have a good time :-D. There isn’t really very much as I iron the minimum possible.

This afternoon there is a meeting of the Ladies Club I go to. I didn’t go to the December meeting which was food, games and a Secret Santa as I felt it might be too crowded and I didn’t go to the January lunch for the same reason. I think it will be OK in our usual hall today but I’ll take a mask and sit near the door so I can slip out if I feel uncomfortable. Our “baby” member who is in her early 40s (mostly we’re 65 up) Is going to talk about Romania, her homeland. She lives here as she is married to an Englishman. It should be interesting.

Better get on. The jobs won’t do themselves.

Morning Anng and all,

Its dull and miserable here with a pale grey sky all over. Pinch and a punch for the first of the month always reminds me of my paternal grandad. It is also the start of the lunar new year. Its strange how saying and things can remind you of the past and certain people.

Big wipe down day today so no crafting this morning. Never mind its so dark I would have to have the lights on in the lounge.

Oh has ordered me a little saw I need to cut some wood up cos I can't find my tiny circular saw.

Good morning all, cloudy bright here PC says 8 degrees. Nothing planned except change the bed and wash bedding so a day of anticipating tomorrows early morning visit. If it was today I could just about get there in time. :-D

Thanks Ann that info is interesting. Amazing what they can deduce from these tests. Hope it all helps anyway.

When hormone release is normal, the foods shouldn't be a problem AnnG and some I had to avoid might be because they might distort/affect whatever they do the tests with. But, if your adrenaline levels are a bit too high anyway say, then too much chocolate or non decaf coffee could give you the shakes or a fast heart rate much quicker than if your levels were normal.

I haven't done much at all this afternoon,except watch Boris.........(will he last I wonder) and look at some cheap courses, but I noticed how the nights drawing out now. :-)
I think an early night to catch up with some sleep is what I need although I have to be up and showered before the alarm man comes at 8.30am.

Ah, I misunderstood that thought you were 'collecting' for 3 days :-D :-D
Interesting what they can tell from that Hope it is not the fact that those foods cause a problem and therefore you are unable to eat them.

AnnG the 3 days were the diet and drink ones before the 24 hour sample one. I would have needed a barrel too! lol. The 24 hour container was a half gallon size and the instructions with it said use a 2nd one if needs be only the surgery didn't have one! The tests on the sample will show if what they found is increasing the hormones produced by those glands after removing food and drink that will cause increases. My hospital appointment for April came today and says the building itself is 400m from the car park! Quite a way for me to walk, but OH will drop me off nearer. If I was on my own I think I would get a taxi.It makes you wonder how some manage.

That was good to get the dental receptionist with the clear voice and get fixed with an appointment to sort that tooth and with the dentist that knows your history. I know what you mean about the time and when you were at work. We say the same when we are out sometimes. It seems we waste so much time with getting up late now.

I've now had 2 COT Vera and a tomato with my pasta salad. ;-) The wind here last night came on so quickly and I know what you mean by 'disco' lights! It wasn't cats doing it last night was it. I bet the spiders are all busy building new webs!

I'd better get on with some more jobs now.

Ann I did wonder how they knew what size of container to provide for three days worth? How on earth can they estimate some 3 days I might need a barrel sized container, others a small bucket. :-D anyway enjoy the things you missed and I hope the effort has or will be worth it.

Vera yes I jumped in ahead of you. Although the remaining bit of tooth is not hurting it has made me re-think my menu for the next two days, can't easily eat anything that needs biting being a front or side/front tooth. so meal tonight will be scrambled egg with mushrooms, tomatoes and cheese and mashed potatoes (with carrots) maybe mashed in. And tomorrow probably savoury mince. ( sounds like I am practising for when I eventually lose all my teeth. The numbers are going down.

Just having a coffee now. The phone call was from the chap OH has been helping with his electricity and phone problems. He was panicking about another letter he has had from the phone people so OH has said he’ll go round this afternoon and see what it’s all about.

I hope you get a dental appointment quickly AnnG and that you managed to hear OK on the phone.

It seems to be blowing a real hooley out there though I think it’s dropped a bit from last night. It kept me awake a lot of the night and it kept bringing on the security lights from our house and our neighbours. They were shining into the bedroom so it was a bit like trying to sleep in a disco.

I’ve just finished my coffee so I’d better go and see if the next lot of washing is ready to go out. Hope everyone is fit and well this morning and I hope you all have some sun.

EDIT: I see you have got your appointment AnnG. Enjoy you tea and tomatoes Ann.

Morning All,

I never slept a wink last night as the 24 hour urine test container was too small and it said I had to save every drop! I managed to sort it with phone calls and a visit to the surgery and the nurses chatting to a doctor. Any old container wouldn't do as it has to have an amount of hydrochloric acid in it. At least I didn't have to wait for them to get replacement as it took a week and a half to get this one. Now I can have tea and tomatoes and lots of other foods again and don't have to start all over again hopefully. :-)

We then went to the farm shop which had no customers inside and the trolley sanitiser and wipes were still in place. Then we called at Sainsbury's garage to fill my car up. We noticed their recycling bins had been removed or were elsewhere so we dropped off a bag of clothes at the bin at the Co-op.

We swapped our cars on the drive so the alarm man can pull up behind OH's car in the morning and mine is free to drive off to the hairdresser just after he arrives.

The sun is shining but it feels chilly and we had wind and rain last night.

Washer on next I think and get our easy pasta salad lunch with 'extras'.

Phoned the dentist and had the very clear voiced receptionist. I was not too bothered about asking for an emergency appointment as it is a nuisance at the moment rather than painful. I could have had an appointment with a different dentist this morning but I have only just got used to the 'new' dentist last year and he knows the problem so I have an appointment at 9.15 Wednesday, Not overjoyed at the time, I usually have not even had breakfast then. Just hope it is not icy, I will have to leave here at 9. (that would have been the middle of the morning to me when I worked0. But as it is likely to lead to several more appointments it was better to go with my own dentist.

Morning everyone

It’s bright and sunny this morning but very windy. BBC weather says it’s 6 degrees but only feels like 1. I just went to hang a couple of bits of washing out and the wind is biting and it certainly only felt like 1 degree.

Phone ringing.bbl

Morning Anng and all,

Nice bright morning here with sunshine and blue sky with just a little cloud here and there. pc says 7 degrees amd mostly sunny so it would be nice if we could have the sun all day instead of just the morning as seems to have been happening lately.

I hope you get in touch with the dentist all right Anng and can hear them on the phone. Best to get it done and over with as soon as possible.

In the time I have been posting there are big white clouds come over and I forgot to say its very windy.

Well that the first month of the new year over and only 10 months to Christmas and I will leave you with that happy thought........

Good morning all. cloudy bright here so far 6 degrees apparently. My job today is to contact the dentist. Not a job I undertake lightly. Might try phoning, might be lucky if it is the receptionist with the loud voice.

I'm pleased you've at least heard from Frank Mel. I wonder why he is having trouble getting on. Has anyone seen EOS on any posts lately? I have been wondering about her as well. I hope she is OK.

That's a shame about your tooth AnnG. Maybe the dentist will be able to build it up again, you might be lucky. You've been good doing even a little bit in the garden. I had a quick wander around and noticed all the things that need doing but that was as far as I got. It was sunny but really cold, even with a jacket on. Writing this has just reminded me that I meant to give some argyranthemum cuttings a drop of water. They are in the conservatory in small pots. I have only watered them once since I took the cuttings in September but I noticed today that the compost has dried so much that it has shrunk right away from the stems and they are barely being held upright.

The owl gloves are great Mandy. Are they for you or for one of the girls? Somewhere I've got a pattern for mittens where you can flip the top part back if you want the use of your fingers and I remember making them for a few people years ago. I must have a look and see if I can find the pattern.

I ought to sort through some coats as well Ann. I know I have two quality raincoats, one a grey trench coat style that I loved and the other a dark green caped raincoat that I wasn't so keen on. I also have a very nice Windsmoor coat that was always kept for "best" so hasn't been worn much. The trouble is it is warm and heavy and calf length and not very good for wearing in the car so I tend to wear anoraks or similar for everyday and I have a short coat for when I need something a bit more dressy - not often these days.

We had our dinner just after 2 today and I still feel as though I've eaten far too much. We had pot roasted beef with a good slurp of OH's red wine in the gravy with roast potatoes and lots of veg, followed by apple crumble. I think a cup of tea and a biscuit might be all I want tonight.

Right, I am now going to water my cuttings before I forget again.