General Chat

Well we've had a busy day! OH went on his own his morning, while I stripped the bed, turned the mattress, did two loads of washing, bathroom mats etc, all of which dried a treat and have been folded and put away! Did some h.work, and pulled some weeds!! After OH got back we had lunch, and then went shopping at Sainsbury's so as not to have to go tomorrow as it'll probably be raining!! we're now home and although it's VERY hot, it's also very cloudy and looks a bit ominous, so OH has got Merlin in, and I shall take Cas round the field for a run! She doesn't seem even faintly bothered by the heat and is as lively and busy (!) as ever!! mind you she does love that bath and hops in and out of it when she feels like it!!
I bought one of those TEN's clicker pens Frank! Not sure that it did much good, maybe a bit!! You do have to persevere for about a week, and get it spot on the poorly muscle! See how you go as it certainly can't hurt and may well do some good!
Fish for supper cooked by OH!! Best get on and take Cas as she is hassling!! :-|

Think we've just had a mini tornado ,wind like I've never known ,leaves eveywhere in the house and one ridge tile blown off .

Oh Lord Mandy!! It's windy here but not quite like that! Yet!!! After racing round the field and having a bath, Cas is at last stretched out on the veranda puffing away to herself! Don't think we'll have any more action out of her tonight!!
Must get the cushions in as its almost certain to rain!

It's raining :-D :-D and thunder :-S The heavens have opened now.
That was10 minutes ago now. Just a mini storm . I stood in the rain which was so refreshing but it has played havoc with my hair :-S It's gone all curly :-S :-S Good job I am not going out :-D

Still none here, but it can't be long!!!

Wow Jane what a smashing picture to have caught. I love it.

Not long now to the off to put my little bits in the show.

O Mandy are you all ok? Thats not what you want in summer is it? It will have torn all the leaves and smashed plants down.

Yes we're ok Mel, we were just sitting outside listening to the thunder when all of a sudden the trees began to really sway and then it sounded like a train coming twigs and leaves were blowing every where and because the doors and windows were open upstairs and down the curtains all got sucked out the windows and the leaves and lots of bits all blew in ,the beds and carpets were covered in those little seeds and leaves off the Sycamore tree .
I was holding on to the gazebo and the cover was sucked off the BBQ .
Neighbours down the road had their Gazebo broken ,their childrens Paddling pool went flying also the Trampoline ,fence panels came down and some lost their shed roofs , i saw a video of wheelie bins flying down the road , it only lasted about two minutes but it did so much damage .
We lost the ridge tile and it has broken another tile on the front of the house and they laid in the font garden but thank goodness it didn't come down at the back where i was standing !!!!!

Still no rain and no more thunder but we should have some later in the night i think, i just hope we don't get the wind like that again .

It sounds quite frightening to be out in the garden when it happened.

Took my stuff down but don't think I stand a chance with some of the things one lady put out. There was a lovely doorstop with chickens all around it all sewn on and over and the top was blue with white clouds on it. It was made over one of those wooden knife holders and had a big corded handle on the top. All braided and very fancy.

Morning all,

Phew still warm here , we had quite a storm during the evening ,thunder lightning and so much rain it laid on the top of the gazebo and has buckled one of the poles so we have that to sort out ,my poor plants have also taken a battering, one good thing though at least it has filled the water butts.

Mel don't be disheartened they don't always pick the things that are over the top ,you put some lovely entries in so fingers crossed for you.

Good morning lazy bones, Where are you.??

Would you believe my LUCK, I stayed up until 11.00 last night, and got to sleep very quickly. I didn't feel Ros come in. THEN about 2.00 am she was snoring like a herd of Elephants . I nudged her here of four times and she turned over. Within 10 minutes it was all go again, so I got up and made COT and read until 4.30. I feel absolutely drained.

You certainly had the weather last night Mandy, Nothing here. This morning we have very strong winds, but no sign of rain. I must say it's a lot cooler, but I still have ll the doors and windows open. Will Colin be able to refit the ridge tiles, and check for any other loose ones ??

I didn't realise the wedding was at Barton Hall, What a lovely venue, with views towards Wicksteads and the river. You certainly had a house full last night. Now you have the job of feeding them breakfast, for those who want it. As you say there is no way of saving water here either, I had THREE SHOWERS yesterday, and no doubt will do he same today. Who would we be without showers ?? Can't think we would have had THREE BATHS a day. ;-) ;-) ;-)

When will you know the results of your entries Mel, I would imagine you will get a very good attendance if the weather is fine.

Ros is meeting Martine at 11.00 his morning as she has a hair appointment. Then of course sh is off to the cinema with Carolyn for 2.30/ Sh can't complain with not going out.

Liz how does Mrlin cope with his hot weather ?? Does he have cover he can go under when the sun gets too hot. I feel so sorry for all the live stock, trying to find shelter and moist grass to eat. I would think the most farmers have water throuths (sp) with a supply of water somewhere in the fields.

Ros is just going in the shower to get ready to go out. I suppose we should be sharing a shower to save water. I can just imagine it. The mind BOGGLES and I doubt the shower would be big enough :-0 :-0 :-0 :-0

I am experimenting with the "TENS" pen, I would a nerve in my hand last night that sent my arm dancing all over the place. At the moment I am unable o find one for my shoulder. I will preserve while siting down in the evenings. I will take it with me when I go to the Doctors, to see what he has to say about it. As he can do cortisone injections , he will properly know about these pens.

I hope you are all more comfortable with this weather, Speak later. xxx

Morning all,

We had very welcome rain last night and it was quite heavy at times. This is the first time I have seen the earth in the chicken run wet for ages and ages so perhaps they will get some grass growing inthere now. What is in there, and its not much, is growoing very close to the ground as if its trying to hide. Not even the thistle have grown in there this year as the moment they poke thier heads above ground they are eaten off. The chickens do like their greens. They had a cabbage yesterday which kept them quiet for quite a while. I did'nt put it in their hanging basket feeder thing I made but just threw it on the ground and they chased it around the run till it was no more than a stump where the stalk was.

I shan't know till after 2pm what the results are and the prize giving is at 4.30pm and you can't take your things away till after that. There are so many cups its going to take ages to give them all out. I shall take my camera and see if I can get some pics.

All the fruit, flowers and veg is in the big village hall and the other stuff is in the school which is sort of next door.

Much cooler here today and windy!! plenty of rain in the night so no watering here today - hooray!! Good luck with your exhibits Mel and thanks for the pics!
Merlin has a field shelter Frank, (an open barn) for him to go into when he feels like it! Also there are overhanging beech trees at the other end of his field that he can get under if he wants to. He comes back down to the yard/stable at night so he's well catered for whatever the weather! His water trough fills automatically as does the one in his stable, like the cistern on the loo!! so there is no risk of his trough running dry! As we have our own bore hole (160 ft deep) and are not on the mains for water we don't have the worry of restrictions either, which is good!
Not sure what we're doing today - nothing much I expect! Taking Cas now so she'll be happy!
L has just rung and they'll be over this afternoon !! So now I do know what we're doing!!:-D

Home alone Peace and quiet.

Yes Liz, I assumed Merlin has a water trough at his disposal. How nice to have your own BORE HOLE. What's the water pressure like. Do you have an electric pump to bring it up, from way down ??

Still no Rain here. I spoke to my sister this morning, they had rain all night with thunder and lightning. She's in greater London. That I still call ESSEX.!!! I SPOKE TO SOON It's raining NOW. and very dark overhead.

Mary, my sister, has the doctor calling to see her later his morning. Her SUGAR levels are very high also her BP. It looks very likely that she will be admitted to hospital later today, I will ring this afternoon to see if she is still there. If not, I will ring Paul her Son for a progress report.

Theres no chance of me walking to he pub later, unless this rain stops. which to be honest, I would like the rain to continue through the day, as we need it so badly. I can always have a beer at home if I want one, but it's nice to get out and see other HUMANS lol lol. The wind is getting very strong now, and the sun is trying to come out. I wish it would make up it's mind.

Good luck with your entries Mel, they do look nice in the photo.

Ros will bring in Rolls and prawn filling for lunch, before going off to the cinema. Not sure what we will eat tonight. Either a takeaway or Steak with the trimmings.

That reminds me Frank I must get our steak out for tonight, thanks as I had forgotten.

Its really windy here too so sounds like we all have it and its trying to rain a little.

Yes we've got an electric pump for the water Frank it fills a tank, then come on when the water gets below a certain level. The pressure is very good and fine for everything we need. The people who dug the bore hole for us provided the pump so any problems they would come out immediately. So far it's been problem free!!! There is mains down here, but it was in conjunction with the farm down the road, all a bit complicated, so we opted for our own supply!!
I've been sitting outside while it was sunny. Our bungalow faces East so is sheltered from a West wind but the wind is so noisy in the trees it's quite annoying so I've come in!!

Afternoon All
I have just been taxi ing again. H&G have gone to a BBQ at Sarahs parents.I said not to eat much as I have dinner for everyone later. First I took them to little Sainburys as they wanted to take a bottle of Prosecco and some Beer.Then a big hold up at the roadworks on Barton Rd.Coming back there had been an accident or some kind of situation on Rockingham Road so I had to do a turn around and come a different way. It took me flipping ages. Now I seem to be the only one here. I think Chris and James might be having a sleep.
It is coming over very dark now with big looking rain clouds .Not want is needed when there is a BBQ.

Liz I hadn't realised either that you have your own water supply .

I wonder how the show is going and if Mel has won anything. Fingers crossed Mel.

I am going to put my feet up for a little while before I start the potatoes and Veg.But first I need to fill the bird feeder on the window as it is totally empty !!

Mandy you really had it rough didnt you :-0 :-0. It must have been quite frightening .
We have got away very lightly again

That pic I sent of the clouds I just love. I have never seen so many kinds of clouds like that all around the same place.I found it quite mesmerising just lying in the chair looking up at them. Right feet up now :-D

Good afternoon all

Liz having your own water supply is ideal with the weather being so hot and no high water bills to worry about, it's good that Merlin is well catered for as well.

At long last we have had some rain and a bit of thunder in the distance. The temperature was well over 35 degrees at one point. I haven't felt at all well over the past few days so as I'm feeling more normal now I guess it must have been the weather .

The weather you had Mandy sounded really scary thankfully no one was hurt,

Your entries for the competition Mel were lovely and well deserve a prize.

That cloud formation photo Jane was so unusual it looked as if someone had drawn it.

You and your OH have been busy bees Liz I haven't done much while it's been so hot but it has been a lot cooler today but very windy. I hope it stays dry this evening for Richard and his friends as they are going to South Hill Park to see an open air version of a MidSummer Nights Dream, If it turns out wet they will have it in the recital room.

Just had a phone call from Jean one of my SIL [Michael's wife] to say her mother had passed away yesterday, It was expected as she hadn't been well for some time and the nursing home had rang her saying she hadn't got long she was in her late nighties. She lived in Hastings and Jean and Michael now live in Ashford, Kent so they were unable to get down there in time.

Thats a shame Anne they did'nt make it in time.


I put 6 things in the show and came home with three seconds and a third. It cost me 60p to put the entries in, a £1 to get in the village hall, a £1 for raffle tickets and my prize money was £1.80 but I really enjoyed it and had a good natter with the people I knew but don't see much of. I shall do it again next year I think as there were a lot of classes I could have put things into and they even had an egg class this year. When I did the show before many years ago they did'nt have an egg class then. I could have done a bookmark and a card. I did think about putting your card in Jane but I did'nt want it to be spoiled. The card that won it had a big crease right across the top of the framing card.

Oh ye of little faith ,see Mel we knew you could do it , well done <3 you must feel really chuffed .
You'll know now what sort things you can put in the show and do some bits through out the year .

What a shame they didn't make it in time Anne ,she had lived to a great age though.
It does sound as if it was the heat that made you feel under the weather ,you'll be glad of the cooler days .

It was a bit scary Jane ,i was holding on to the Gazebo for dear life ,i don't know how long i would have held on to it if it had gone on for a long time ,the rubbish that blew in you wouldn't believe and here was me worrying about not dusting lately :-0 :-D
I meant to say your cloud photo was lovely it looked like there was a hole in the sky ,i love laying back looking up at the clouds it's so relaxing ,also shutting my eyes when it windy and listening to the wind rustling the leaves on the tree ,it sounds just like the sea .