General Chat

Janice and Larry have been and gone. It was so nice ot see them even if it was just a flying visit :-D They have gone home with a big bag of Broad beans and some Cucumbers .
Their new little dog arrives on Saturday . Poor thing has to travel from North Spain ,down through France over the Channel to wherever the drop off point is. There is a truck load of dogs all coming to new homes. If only they knew they are coming to have a better life :-D.

Ann, is this the first time you will be having a go at Tie Dying? Rubber Gloves sound a really good idea :-D

I had a long sleep on the settee again this afternoon so have managed ot miss a lot of the Tennis. It is quite dark here and the air is so still.I keep finding those horrible little thunder flies tickling my skin :-S :-S Irritating little blighters.

Frank, I showed Janice the pics of the Kittens. She just loved them :-D They have just one more week before having the Grandchildren for 5 weeks during the days.I think the only week day they will have none is Tuesdays.
I need to stand up and move around a bit as it feels like I am sitting on a brick(right buttock) :-S I also need to do my standing up exercises .

Hi all, Still no change in the weather. Dull and grey, they did say we might get rain later.

Carolyn finally came for Ros at 12.45. She bought with her another BIG BAG of Broad Beans. |So I have podded a load for Ros. I have also done a lot of peas and carrots. I had forgot I had peas in the bottom draw. We all know the old saying "like two peas in a pod" Well I podded three on the trot, and all three only had two peas in them ;-) ;-) ;-) I have peeled the Potato's, and put some mint in the peas and carrots, I have put parsley in her B.B I might do some cabbage when Ros gets home. She has told me to leave the pie, as she would do it. I have got all the meat and kidney into a dish with the funnel in the middle, The pastry is on the board, ready for madam.

Yes Annx, the old aches and pains certainly catch up on you when you try doing things. I know it gets more difficult for both of us, I keep telling Ros to get some help around the bungalow, with a bit of cleaning and ironing. Oh NO. I don't want anyone poking around, especially if you don't really know them. !!!

How are you feeling this afternoon Jane, comfortable I hope. <3 <3 Has Janice been and gone. ?? That's a long way to come just for a couple of hours. Bless her. She certainly cares for you. xx How's Fitz coming along. A little better I hope.

I see one of out little eateries has 30% off their main meals this week, so that might be a trip out, one late afternoon.

Being up since 4.45 this morning, I am wondering why I feel so tired. I don't want to doze now, or I won't sleep tonight.

Back to my book for a while, then I might do a bit of watering.

A little question for you all. When you are typing a word, does the spell thingy decide to finish the word, but not the word you are typing. Mine does it all the time. !!!!

That CRAB is repeating on me, So I thing I will dig out the gaviston.

Some big changes for Tony then Frank. At least she will be better looked after there I would think. If she doesn't come out and has been discharged there from hospital he might get help with funding. I wonder how often he will visit her?

I suppose you must start to think you are old when your children are getting older. Having not had children I think old age has snuck up on me as I've always seemed the same age (to me!) without having children around to watch grow up. The aches and pains have made me realise it more lately though. lol.

Morning All,

Sunny and less humid today which is nice.

I see now about the window Mel and the risk of glass going in the pond. :-)

I went with OH to see the doc about his blood test results this morning and the inflammation has gone down so it looks like it was to do with the bug he had. He has to provide a second sample and send it off this time, just to be sure, as she said his tummy is still sore when she pressed it and he still has a bloated tummy. The doctor made my day, as she said she thought she'd met me before and asked where I worked!! I never thought I'd be asked that when I was over 70!! lol

I called in the chemist next door to collect my prescription and it was one thing short so it was a good job I checked while I was there. Another trip back there on Thursday to collect it. :-S To think years ago I was hardly ever at the doctors or chemist!

AnnG it sounds like you have another nice day planned with your friends, good weather for it too.

I must pack my bag for the tie dyeing session tomorrow. I'm putting rubber gloves in too, in case she doesn't have any for us, as some sites on the internet say to use them or your hands will be all colours for a few days.

Between us we have watered all the pots and the beans and greenhouse so now we are having a carvery at the old manor. No idea what we'll do after!

Good morning to you all,

AnnG so sorry for not sending you the photo's :-( :-( :-( I must put you in my contacts Emails. Glad everyone liked the kittens. We will be having them when Harvey goes to France. We don't want last years experience again. When HENRY got run over. !!!

Oh what a night it was. lol lol. Got out 4.15 for the loo, got back into bed, but just couldn't drop off, so I got up and read until Ros came out at 9.00.

I had got a tray of Steak and one of Kidney out of the freezer before 5.30. am put it in a bowl of water to thaw. By 8.00 I had it all chopped up and on the gas. When it's cooled down I will make a S & K pie for dinner tonight. I might not be able to do the VEG.,as I think the fridge is empty, after having the TWO GANETS up on Sunday. lol

Yes Jane, I can just imagine you trying to have a bath or shower at the moment, Just a few more days, and you can shower to your hearts content. <3 <3 <3.

Those Tea rooms sounded like you COULD spend a day walking around seeing all the old memories. I would be in second heaven, being let loose in a place like that.

Aren't you the lucky one Mel, ?? We haven't got any sunshine, just a DULL old day. I don't think the forecast is good for us anyway. Yes Florence is the smaller of the two. Winston is twice her size, and cleans her dish if she leaves any. Right little piggy.

We had the Blue and Green bins emptied today. What a mess there was in the bottoms of both. Plus the green bin had grass cuttings stuck all inside. I hosed the green bin first and poured the lot down the road drain outside. The blue bin, I put water in to dislodge all the bits of paper stuck on the bottom. Scrubbed it with the stiff broom, and emptied that on the drive. I was then able to pick up all the rubbish, and hose down the area. So all TICKERTY BOO now. lol

Ros has popped out to get Simon a Birthday Present for the 19th. I can't believe he will be 54. I think I must be getting old ;-) ;-) ;-) Well slightly xxx She is going out later with Carolyn, as she has some jobs to do for JOHN this morning, why he can't do his own, I don't know. LAZY or what ??

Ros spoke to Tony last night and VAL is in a CARE HOME until she is able to look after herself at home. That is something, I doubt she will ever be able to do. So TONY is going to have to pull his socks up, and start doing more.

We spoke with Conrad this morning to wish him a HAPPY BIRTHDAY. FIFTY today. He has Jan, Jo, Ella and ella's friend this week. Jo will take Ella's friend back with her, and leave Ella with Conrad and Jan, she will stay until she gets fed up being there without friends OR Jan has had enough of her. Then she will bring her home. !!!

Going to get a coffee ,and a CRAB sandwich as I haven't had breakfast again.

Have a good day all. xxx

Morning All

Have a lovely day out AnnG. Mel you are going to feel exhausted later after a bad night and then your big shop. Maybe a nice restful afternoon should be on the cards :-D

I actually slept much better last night. Not all night but I got a good few hours in.
Just waiting for Janice and Larry now . They should be here very soon :-D
James is home today as he has taken the day off to apply for a couple of jobs and to also search for more. He has said he will cook dinner tonight so that will give Chris a night off :-D :-D.

No sun today .It is just all cloudy but at least it is warm enough to sit out. Back later .

Thanks for photos Mel, those kittens are gorgeous.

We are off to Croome today a NT house and gardens where we have not been before, Just over the border in Wircestershire. Meeting our friends there.

Mornig all,

Sun is shining and the sky is blue as far as theeye can see.

I had a dreadful night last night and just could'nt get comfy or fall asleep. Oh kept getting up for one thing and another as he dos'nt sleep well anyway. I tossed and turned but must have dropped off in the end.

Shopping day again.......and I have to go into the building society about my bond. Now what shall I take for identity?????????

The strawberries were delish with icecream tonight and a little vanilla sugar.

Sounds very interesting the Abbey Tea Rooms with all the old stuff about. We once talked about those tops on this thread. It seems most of us had one at some point in our young lives. I can remember pumping the handle to make it spin.

Ann the windows inthe filter shed are wood and not glass. He did'nt want light in there as he can see with the light that comes through the door when its open and glass would havve been dangerous if it was broken and went in the pond so he put tongued and groved in the glass space.

Thats not good about your mammogram being canceled and it puts you all out.

The swallows definately have chicks in there as they are in and out all day and nattering away. I did get a pick of one of them on the nest but I can't hang around too long as they go through the doorway like little bullets.

I thought I was going to have a migraine this evening as I had twinkleing lights at the side of my right eye sso oh made me go and lie down for half an hour. I fell asleep and he woke me at 10.30pm and I got up then as I had'nt fed the hogs.

Jane I hope you enjoy yor time with Janice tomorrow and don't get so tired as you did with your friend today. Hot nights don't help either with sleeping do they? I hope you get a better nights sleep tonight.

Off now so see you all inthe morning.

Glad you liked the pics and I forwarded the kittens to you AnnG.

It sounds like you had a lovely day AnnG. I would have enjoyed spotting all those relics from olden times too. How nice to be able to hear the pianist rehearsing too.

Jane you were right when you said sleeping on your back would be difficult weren't you. I'm sure I would forget if I wasn't tied down!!! :-0 Chatting to visitors can be tiring too so it's nice Janice understands and will just pop in for a shortish visit this time. Maybe with being tired you will sleep better tonight. :-)

Well after patting myself on the back for remembering to book my mammogram yesterday, they phoned me today to cancel it. Apparently it is to do with extending the automatic recalls to age 73 instead of age 70 and they have been writing to surgeries and need to wait till they write to mine and get replies before they can send me an appointment, which they say could be in 6 weeks time. I'm not very happy about it as it means my appointment will be overdue by 6 weeks and as my last mammogram resulted in a biopsy and worry I could particularly do without any delay this time.

I was glad to see they will continue GJ too and was also pleased to see Poldark is back soon as Gill said.

Mel I'm wanting strawberries now! :-)

I am glad the Salerno was good for your friends AnnG . I will tell Janice tomorrow when she is here. I think she has been to the Abbey Tea Room many a time :-D

I am just about ready for my bed but dinner is still in the oven. I feel just about past eating really but will make an effort as Chef Chris has cooked :-D. I might just manage a few mouthfuls.

Oh poor Jane nothing worse than not sleeping. Hopefullyeventually you will manage enough sleep to feel better.
By the way the Salerno went down very well. Tell Janice thank you and also tell her how much we enjoyed the Abbey tea room today.

Evening All
Not a great day for me today.I am just so tired with not sleeping well and I have been quite uncomfortable too with having to lie and sit on my very bruised hip all the time.
My friend came for coffee which was nice and she brought photos of her Grandaughters wedding for me to see. I was quite glad she didnt stay too long as I just wasn't feeling up to too long a visit. Janice and larry are coming tomorrow but just for coffee .She made me promise Chris would not do any lunch for them. I think they just want to come and see how I am . They will just stay a couple of hours and then stop of for lunch somewhere on the way back ot Tewkesbury .

I m glad both of you(Vera and AnnG) had a nice time yesterday. An intersting visit to the Abbey I see today Ann :-D. My Neice lives in one of the 3 storey terraced Victorian houses opposite the Abbey.

Oh my word those Kittens !!!!. They are just gorgeous :-D :-D

Mel how lovely to get pics of the Dragon flies emerging :-D and your pond pics look so good.You have made a lovely job there. :-D

A mini bath ...I would kill for one Gill :-D. I am having to make do with flannels and stripped washes :-S I am just keeping my fingers crossed that when my staples come out on Thursday that I will be able to at least shower again. Chris changed my dressing this morning as it was looking a bit gungy. He says the wound looks clean and it is just leaking serum ,but I think until it is completely dry a shower will still not be allowed.
I am thinking Fitz may be a little slower on the walking than me as he has Arthritis in his lower back,plus he had that big op on his back a couple of years ago. Plus he is 7 years older than me.

I see there is to be another series of Gentleman Jack :-D :-D I am so glad ,just hope we don't have to wait too long :-D

My brain doesn't seem to be functioning LOL I keep forgetting what I want to say.
I just want to sleep :-D

Mel please send the kitten photos.to me.

We had a lovely afternoon. Met up with the group in the Wetherspoons where they are staying. Sat out in the garden with soft drinks for half an hour chatting then walked over to the Abbey. Tewkesbury Abbey is a very interesting building and is not ruins but a large church (like a cathedral) George Dule of Clarence and his wife Isabella are in the vault below the abbey. He is the one supposedly put to death in the Tower by drowning in Malmsey (wine). Isabella died after childbirth.

While we were looking round they had cleared all the chairs and were getting ready for a classical music concert this evening (sold out). And we were really lucky as the pianist was practising. Goodness she could play. She was about 18/19, I think it must be something put on by students as part of the Tewkesbury music festival. We sat and listened to her for about 45 minutes, it was beautiful. After a while we left and went over the road to the Abbey Tea rooms. Never been in there before but what an interesting place. The whole restaurant is covered in artifacts, so many you couldn't see them all at once pure nostalgia like under the glass on our table a sheet of green shield stamps next to an old pound note and an old ten shilling note and old newspaper cuttings. Hung from the ceiling to name a few things were a child's top (the sort you pumped and it hummed while ir spun, an old roller skate, a kaleidescope, soldier skittles, a green shield stamp book, so much more that I can't remember. round the walls were all sorts as well including a nylon stocking, old funny post cards, autographed photos of celebrities (I saw Cilla Black and Dean Martin. I didn't go out into the garden but we could see on the wall there were old tools, an old garden sieve the top of a sweep's brush. You could spend all day there and not see it all. OH and I had a scone with clotted cream and jam and 3 strawberries which was delicious. plus a cup of tea for £5,95. The scones were fresh and home made.
Frank although he played golf he was home really early so we were back in Tewkesbury by 1pm.

Afternoon All,

Sunny but a bit humid today. Frank those kittens are so adorable, OH loved them too. :-) I expect with each other to play with they aren't wanting to be held so much yet. It was nice that Lewis managed to come for a meal as well and it sounds like he still has a good appetite. The lamb you had has been making my mouth water so I think that will be on the agenda here soon.

AnnG your group is very active for their ages and I would never have guessed you are the age you say! It is a shame though when people get struck down with things and I know myself that being less mobile limits what you can do. That's the best attitude though to keep up with what you can.

Mel that is unusual to see a dragonfly emerge and I love your pond. The Koi are enormous aren't they and you have some good Hostas there with NO HOLES in the leaves! The Clematis is pretty with large flowers too. The window puzzled me though as it looks as if there is wood instead of glass in the bottom panes. It must be a trick of the light. Your unusual green moth the other day seems to be a an Emerald moth. I'd never seen one.

I managed to get a bigger T shirt at Primark this morning but the traffic queue was most unexpected for a Monday and we had just about given up on finding parking when we got a space right outside the store. We went to Curry's on a quieter part of the retail park then and got a new answerphone with 3 handsets. It will be better for OH to take his work calls where he sits or in the garden. It didn't cost anything as we exchanged the points we had earned on our credit cards :-) We had a jacket potato at a garden centre then and I stopped on the way back to take some pics of some ducks and Moorhen babies in the brook at the next village.

Gill I had to smile at your efforts for your OH to have a MINI BATH! It must have been bliss for him to get more water round him to have a little soak and have you wash and rinse his back. A flannel wash does a reasonable job but isn't the same! We haven't used flannels for years with having showers, but I know I had to buy one when I had a hysterectomy as I couldn't shower the first 2 days because of wetting the dressing. He's going to hog the bath on Wednesday isn't he!

I must get on with sorting a good deal on my car insurance now. It soon comes around. :-S

Just love those little kittens Frank. Is that Florence with her chin on the comb and wallet?

Picked another 14 ozs of Strawberries before lunch.

afternoon to you all, Pleasant sort of day here. Sun is trying to get out, and it's very warm. Doors and windows open.

When Harvey rang to say he was leaving, I said don't forget a plate for Lewis. He said better than that. HE IS COMMING WITH ME. He finished early at work, so was able to come up, which was so nice, plus H bought the kittens. What beautiful little things they are. Not very friendly, and loved getting up higher than the floor as you can see in the photo's. If I missed anyone, let me know.

The Leg of Lamb was an absolute delight. I carved nearly all of it, and apart from the little Ros and I had, the BOYS ATE THE LOT. There were hardly any vegetables left either. They then cleared a Rhubarb Crumble and a Lemon meringue tart. I think I would prefer to feed them for a day, rather than a week. ;-) ;-) ;-) ;-)

They sat with us until just after Nine o/clock. Harvey was at work by 7.30 this morning, Lewis is off work until Wednesday, so might do a bit of work with his Dad.

Did I mention, Ros bought a TUB of CONCRETE MIX, instead of MORTAR MIX. So I have decided to get "RINGO" who lives across the road, to come and reset the front step, as well as the ones from the conservatory to the patio. I noticed the front ones started to "RATTLE" this morning, when I went out the front.

Glad everybody seems to be making progress in making a full recovery. That was a bit naughty your OH wanting to practice his GOLF rather than goo out with You, Ann.

AnnG that group sounds just my COT. Nice people to meet and chat to. I must admit,I am getting very unsociable, not going out anywhere, and if and when I do it's only with Ros. I must start to make an effort to go down the pub now and then, and even get up to the Football club. (All talk and no ACTION) ;-) ;-) ;-)

Ros has ironed all the bedding that she washed and dried yesterday, she is now sitting knitting those "TWIDDLE MUFFS" for Sally. I didn't realise that some of her patients she collects, are violent, and have to be handcuffed. She hopes that putting their cuffed hands in a TWIDDLE MUFF might help to make them more relaxed.

It's Conrad's FIFTIETH BIRTHDAY tomorrow. Everyone or almost everyone are giving him MONEY towards a very expensive Camera, that he want. It will enable him to take, more detailed photo's of the villa's interior and fittings. So it's not really pleasure, but work. !!!

Ros has just made a coffee, so I will see you all later.xxxx

Love the photo's Mel, yes it's something to don't see very often, you were lucky to get the pic.

Sandra and I love the photo's of Winston and Florence Frank........talk about cute <3

I decided to do another load of washing while the weather is nice, there wasn't much, so that's on the line now.

It sounds like you had a lovely time Vera. Ringing your OH would of put your mind at rest so you could enjoy time with your friends without worrying.

Enjoy your time with your friends later AnnG. I see you have the sun so it should be a peasant afternoon for you all.

Particularly liked the dragonfly Mel.