General Chat

Late Afternoon from me
I seem to have been all over the place today and with this road closure it seems to take for ever to get to where I need and then home again. I stood for ages in the Surgery to see when it was possible to speak to a particular GP about one of the tablets I take. It turned out he was on phone calls this afternoon so i was put on his list of calls. I only just got home in time before he rang !!. Great service.

I see our 2 Anns are enjoying their holidays :-D. AnnG do you come home after this stay or are you off to anywhere else? Ann, fancy forgetting your Beading back with your leads ,chargers and Binoculars :-S I am going to sit down tomorrow and make a list of all the important things i need to pack ready for Friday. I think these next couple of days are going to fly by so I must get my act together.I just dont seem to have the normal excitement about going away which is understandable . Thaomas is being a pain today as I havent seen him since 2.30 am . He better not start doing his disappearing act now as I have to get him to the Cattery on Thursday afternoon.

Vera I hope you and OH are ok and your backs will ease.

Gill,I wish your Mum all the best for when she gets moved to Liverpool <3

Mel ,what a blooming performance on the phone regarding your water leak. Fingers crossed they do turn up tomorrow and get the job done.

Mandy how old will Jake be? I think you have already said but being a bit fuzzy brained at the moment I just cant remember. Is it 14? I am glad your new cooker is fine.You should see the state of the bottom oven of mine !!!!!. That big dish I did yesterday bubbled over the top of the pan. What a flipping mess. Chris said he would have a go at it tomorrow as I have trouble getting down so low with this hip (an honest excuse ;-) :-D ).

Frank, have a wonderful time in Spain and dont frighten LOLA. I am sure she get to love you :-D. I am not sure if I will be taking my laptop or not yet . I probably will so as long as there is a good Wifi I can keep in touch.

Mel ,I thought Gentleman Jack was excellent and cant wait for the next episode. I watched The Virtues on my laptop just now when I was cooking .I think it is on for the next few nights .It was good. Suranne Jones as Gentleman Jack is a brilliant part for her ,I cant think of a better actress to play the part.

200 hundred books Frank!! :-D That will keep you out of mischief :-D. I keep downloading books on my kindle now ready for my week away. Mostly all Pychological Thrillers :-D.I dont think we are going to be getting sun when we are away ,I just hope it will be dry and not too cold.

I was going to ask the other day if your leak had been done yet Mel , they are so long winded getting things done .

Jake is hard to buy for so giving money is the best thing then he can buy what he wants .

It's been a lovely sunny afternoon and really warm so we got a few jobs done outside and sat out and had our cuppa .
I did look at the ironing pile again but there was nothing we needed so i think it can wait until tomorrow .

You will be well on the way tomorrow at this time Frank ,how long a flight is it ?

I was trying to get up the border this afternoon but I have had to ring the water board up again about this leak. They refered me to someone else at the Leak Dept. who in turn refered me to another department. I was on the phoe for 31 minuets odd. They are supposed to be coming tomorrow to fix it. We will see............

I hope mum gets on ok at Liverpool hosp Gill and she will soon be put to rights. She will love her new room and furniture when she comes out. It must be awful driving in Liverpool if oh is not keen to go there.

Oh has been fixing the old mower and had to change the mowing decks over which is a lot of bending and lying on the ground. He has the two mowers so he dos'nt have to do this operation so uses the the good mower for doing the stripes on the front lawns and the old mower for the front field and orchard where he dos'nt have to pick the cuttings up as that deck is a mulching mower. He always gets a bad back now and then after doing some jobs and the hip has been getting worse over time. His weight dos'nt help but he enjoys his food and if I try to cut him down he asks for a sweet which is something we don't often have. I can't win really.

Mandy boys of Jake's age are hard to buy for but I am sure he will enjoy spending the money on something he wants. Wish I was 14 again..............

Frank you said you would try to take your laptop with you so we can hear from you while you're away.

Wonder where AnnG and co are today but I expect we will hear from AnnG tonight and let us know.

Afternoon all,

The sun has just popped it's head out ,it's been quite a cloudy morning but not cold.

Yes the cooker is working much better than the last one so it must have been the oven thermostat that was causing the problem .

Glad to see you had a good drive down to Cornwall Ann what a shame you left your bits and bobs behind at home ,you'll feel lost with out some beading to fill the time between going out and about so i hope you manage to find some thing at the bead shop today .

Frank have a good holiday and safe flight and behave yourself :-D we'll be looking forward to hearing all about it when you get back .I

I can imagine it would have been a very emotional time for you all Jane as it's the first time you've all been together since the news ,but i'm sure you all supported each other over he weekend .
It's going to take a long time to come to terms with and October will be hard too ..
I like that Orzo Pasta i use that in a recipe with Meat Balls .
We don't bother with the song contest any more ,i usually just have a look on the news to see where we came and it's usually near the bottom .

It's Jake's birthday on Wednesday so we nipped out to get a few bits this morning but we will give him some money as he's now of an age that i have no idea what to buy him.

Mel sorry to hear your OH is getting so much pain in his hip ,is it because he's been
trying to get the mower working and he's been bending about working on it ,hopefully he can rest up a bit to help ease the pain.

Gill i hope every things goes well for your mum in Liverpool ,she will have a nice decorated living room to come home to, it's a good idea to do it while she's away .

Afternoon all

Lovely and sunny here, next door has the gardeners in so there's lots of noise again, one man is trying to break up a very long concrete path with a sledge hammer, I don't envy him, why they didn't have it taken out when the digger was here is anyone's guess. The other fella is cutting the hedge so I've switched our water feature off for now incase some of it comes over the top, the last thing we need is hedge clippings going near the pump, I can fish any bits out once he's finished and turn the water feature back on. The hedge is very tall at the bottom and also very near to my tall Red Robin so I hope he's not to happy with the cutting blade or I might end up with a few branches missing on our plant by the end of the day.

Yes, Earth from Space is very good you'll enjoy it Frank, it's well worth watching. If you like Space and the planets there is another programme starting on 28th May called The Planets which also looks good. I think you're thinking of Cheryl Baker in Bucks Fizz, I liked that song it was just the right type of song for the Eurovision. It sounds like you're ready for the off now, have a safe journey and remember the puppies have to stay in Spain lol ;-) ;-) The journey to Liverpool hospital is around a 20 miles round trip and will take about an hour there and back, she's only going to be in one or two days and will be knocked out if she has the op, she sleeps all the time then so we'll see her when she gets home as OH isn't keen on driving in Liverpool, he says they are all idiots and cut you up on the roads, so it's not safe. My sister is the same and finds it quite frightening to drive there, so we'll all see her when she's home.

Sorry to hear your OH is is pain Mel, I hope it eases for him soon.

Valeris B has been round this morning Ros has given her the flowers she bought the other day, still got plenty of life in them. She has taken some Rhubarb and Ros gave some to Val next door.

She has just popped down to Carolyns with some bits, from the fridge. We still have some Jersey's in the veg basket, so I will give those to Tony.

We will go out later this afternoon to eat. Ros has some packets of porridge for tomorrows Breckie, and I have a couple of crumpets. We will be off around 1.30 tomorrow to go to Harvey's. Conrad and Jan will be on the other side to meet us and take us to his NEW VILLIA, and LOLA and the pups. I just hope she is friendly towards me, and lets me near her pups.

I am going to Email Conrad, to make sure he has some COLD BEERS in the fridge, for when I arrive. I will go and get a bottle of GIN, Tonics and lemons when we go shopping. I will be set up then. ;-) ;-) ;-) Just looked at my TABLET I have over TWO HUNDRED books on it. So won't run out of reading material.

I promise Mel, I won't get into any mischief, while I am away. I will be the perfect house guest. :-D :-D :-D

I tripped over the other morning, and fell into the door jamb. I wondered what the bruise was on my upper arm this morning, when I got out of the shower. That must have been it. !!!!

I will try to get on here tomorrow before we go.But if I don't, please stay safe and look after yourselves. I hope Mum is alright Gill. and your OHs back Mel, what has he done to be in this amount of pain.?? I see Vera hasn't been too good either. What am I going to do with you LOT. ;-) ;-) ;-) xxxx

I hav'nt seen the Euro contest for years either. It always seems to go on and on and I get fed up.

Frank you have it all planned out nicely for your trip over to Spain. Do have a good time and relax and don't do anything silly........

Morning all,

We have another bright morning with blue sky and puffs of white cloud here and there. All the trees are wearing their spring green and it makes you glad to be alive.

Slept well again but poor oh has been up and dowon during the night with the pain in his hip.

I enjoyed Gentleman Jack last night and I think it could turn out to be quite good, not sure yet.

Nothing planned as yet for today but I think I will do my pasta dish tonight for dinner. Just pasta (tri colour) in a cheese sauce with leek, toms, mushrooms and that turkey ham sliced up, with garlic bread. Dos'nt take long to make and its tasty.

Good morning to you all, wherever you may be . ;-) ;-) ;-)


No gill as yet I haven't watched those programmes, but if I remember rightly I recorded them. I hope your Mum gets on O.K. at the Liverpool Hospital, how far will you have to travel to see her now.??

Jane I can just imagine the TENSION the family must have been under. Not wanting to say the wrong thing. I do hope you enjoy your break and G &H enjoy theirs. Is it SUFFOLK they are going. or has my brain got confused again.

Pam, Denis and Tracy have set off, for the new forest. to a few days break, they will be staying in a "LOG CABIN" and will be back Friday. She has a key, and we will put Ros's plants in the kitchen, she said she will pop in to water them. I think I have everything covered now. BARRY will come this week, and in two weeks time, and again just after we get home.

I have put the anniversary card and a diamond bracelet in my case, there is another bracelet that I bought, but can't remember where I put it for safe keeping. I expect it will show up sometime in the future. !!!



Yesterday, just as we got in the car, the heavens opened. The road out of the village was flooding in parts. Still with The conditions, there were idiots screaming along without lights on. How stupid can you get. By the time we got to the Carvery it had stopped and there was a disabled parking space right outside the door. Our table was ready for us, and the meal as usual was first class. How they know to cater for everyone, I do not know. The place was so busy and still there were people flooding in. We did have a good laugh at the table close to us. It was TWO LADS, Lewis's age. Their plates looked like MOUNT EVEREST.I said to Ros. I can just see Lewis and his mates doing that. lol lol

Glad you had a safe journey down to Cornwall Annx. It sounds like the weather could be better down there, than up here. Anyway have lovely time, and relax.

I can't remember the last time we watched the Euro song contest. Was that group you mentioned had Cherril Someone in it. I remember the skirts being pull away from the girls. :-P :-P :-P

Lots of white clouds around this morning, but the sun is trying it's best to show through. I haven't been out yet but it looks warm. With just a slight breeze.

Lewis rang last night. When he got home from work, his Mum and Dad had gone out for s meal. He usually eats at work, so just needs a snack of bits when he comes home. Him, Julia and Harvey will all be there when we go down tomorrow. So one of them will take us to the airport. Our flight is at 4.55 pm so we will need to be there around 3.00 pm. We have airpot assistance, which is very good. Theses are booked in for us, and we are taken in Wheelchairs to the plane, and lifted in a hoist type cabin into the rear of the plane. We are flying into the NEW AIRPORT in Murcia. It's about 30 minutes from where Conrad lives.

Well I think I have waffled on long enough this morning. So I will push off and try to pop back later in the day. xxxx

Pleased to see you arrived okay Ann and that the journey was a quiet one. It sounds like you're having a good time already, pity about forgetting your bag with all your bits and bobs in, I can imagine how frustrating that must of been, lucky for you though your OH took his laptop and you could buy the chargers you needed from Curry's.
OH has finished the gloss painting and all the emulsion painting to, so there's just the two alcoves for me to wallpaper when mum is away in a few weeks. I would of done it today but didn't find out until later in the day that she is going to Liverpool for an angiogram and we're not sure how long she's going to be there for as they may do the stent if it's needed while she's there, if not then she could be home on Tuesday and OH is out tomorrow so I won't have time to move all the furniture out and do the job, so it's better I leave it until she's away when I'll have more time.
Yes Earth from Space was a brilliant programme and well worth watching, I'm sure you'll enjoy it. There is also another programme coming on 28th May called The Planet, about all the planets in space. I love anything to do with space so I'm really looking forward to it. I watched the Chelsea Flower Show before and the gardens are really really good, so I'm looking forward to watching the rest of those to.

I see you've been busy again in the garden Mel, I hope the weather stays nice so you can carry on with anymore jobs that might need doing. I need to tidy up our borders in the back garden but with all my pot plants you can't really see the leaves and the few weeds that are there, so there's no rush.

Just watching Britain's Got Talent with Sandra and OH then I might take another quick look at OH's tree until bed time as there are one or two people I'm having problems finding birth records for, so I'd like to have another go at trying to find them. I don't think they were born in the same area's as their wives so they're proving quite difficult to find. I do have a birthday for one of them now, so finding that one might be a bit easier than the other one. Time will tell though.

We have haad a lovely sunny day here all day and no rain at all. I was up the border all afternoon and still you can't see what I have done. Its been mainly cutting back last years dead stuff as I had'nt done it in the spring with it being so cold. I like to leave it on in the winter for protection. Iv'e had one little peony in the border for about three years and this year it is going to flower as it has some nice buds on it so I shall at last see what colour it is and if I took it off the one down here by the back patio steps. Iv'e got a vole under that one and its not doing very well.

I took three barrow loads over to where oh has a bonfire outside the wall. Cut back all the old growth on my nice Penstemon. The clematis support fell on top of it in that wind we had earlier in the year and I did'nt notice. When I cut it back it had made a mess of the new sage I had planted up there to replace the one that died. That is one thing the deer don't eat and I need a tri colour on and a varigated one and a bronze one to replace them all.

I had bread and strawberry jam for tea and it was lovely. I had been fancying that and then we had fruit in jelly and icecream.

I am now going in the shower to relax before watching Gentleman Jack.

Gosh you've all been busy posting and I have been up the garden and only just come down. I still have posts to read but must get oh something to eat.

Evening All from Sunny Cornwall!

We had a really quiet journey down here avoiding the M6 where there are roadworks. It rained a little on the way, but not much and was soon dry again. I gave Mel a little wave in Devon! lol. It was overcast this morning when we went for the carvery at The Norway Inn, but had improved by the time we came out and is lovely and sunny with mostly blue sky just now.

I've managed to forget my beading bag (it's the second time I've done this!) I was so cross as I had knitting, my binoculars and the chargers for my mobile and cameras, the lead and mouse for my laptop in the bag too. So this afternoon we went to Curry's at Truro and I got a charging lead for my main camera and a mouse for my laptop. OH (most unusually) has brought his laptop, so I can use his lead to charge mine. Tomorrow we are going to the bead shop at Hayle as I want some more beads like I got there last year. I might get a kit to make something as well

We went up to the north coast near Portreath after and parked up by the clifftop path and went for a short walk, then sat and read our papers. OH had a migraine so we came back then, but it has gone now.

I see you are still having back trouble Vera and now your hubby too. I hope you are both much improved again and enjoyed your coffee morning. Oh to be young again and whizz through these jobs without paying for it!

Yes, I was wondering how your new cooker was now Mandy. I still don't feel confident about timings with mine.

Gill we have Earth from Space recorded and will be watching it too. I hope your mum is ok and that your OH has done the gloss painting now. Glad you got some good sleep, it's as good as medicine!

Mel it's good you are getting more eggs now. I am looking forward to seeing the journal you are making too. It sounds interesting with what you have done. That twitch grass is a nightmare to get rid of. We had to empty where it was in one of our borders and repeatedly weedkill it that year. Not possible in your big borders though! I hope your OH's hip is a bit better now. It's horrid when it hurts to walk. Thanks for letting us know Anne is ok.

Jane, it was good H & G made it to the christening although it must have been quite hard for them for them so soon after their own sad course of events. We are watching the same programme at 9.00pm too!

It sounds like you have had a nice day and weather AnnG. The walk You have reminded me about seeing the the Oystercatchers. I remember being surprised how big they are.

It was the Earth from Space programme Frank, we've just finished watching the 4 of them and boy was it good. You said you watched the first one when you went down south and was going to watch the rest of them when you returned home. If you didn't see them then you might be able to get them up on catch up, it's well worth watching, it was a fascinating programme. It sounds like you and Ros have been busy in the garden. OH is just going to cut our lawns before it goes dark.

I got a phone call off mum earlier Jane they are moving her to Liverpool next week so she can have the angiogram, we'll know more then, I should imagine if she needs another stent doing they'll do it while she's there. I hope they do as she is going away in the middle of June so having another funny turn away would be awful. I can imagine how emotional it must of been for everyone when H&G arrived, it's going to take a while for everyone to come to terms with what's happened. I'm pleased you all had a lovely lunch and it's not far away for you to go again. Sorry about tonight's meal did you not get the pizza's out you had on standby? Pity it's raining it would of been nice to sit outside.

Yes I watched the Eurovision song contest Jane, some of the things Graham Norton was coming out with was hilarious especially when Australia came on, they were on very tall poles and they swayed from side to side at the end Graham said "That's was windscreen wipers would sound like if they could sing" Well, you should of heard me laugh. Some of the songs were good through the rubbish ones and our lad, I thought was great, apparently it was his dream. I did feel sorry for him though coming last and only getting 3 points from the public vote, he must of been gutted, but at least he can say he's done it now and fulfilled his dream. I'm recording Gentleman Jack as it's not Sandra's and OH's type of thing. I'll watch it in the morning as OH is out and Sandra always sleeps in, so I can watch it in peace then.

I see the weather is holding out for you AnnG, the places you've been to sound lovely. I'm looking forward to seeing some photo's if you take some.

Going to watch the Chelsea Flower Show now, I recorded it with watching Earth from Space. Sandra want to watch Britain's Got Talent I recorded for her after I've watched my programme. So that's our evening all mapped out. I never got around to doing any of OH's family tree in the end, the programme was so good we just kept watching them one after the other until we'd seen all 4.

Good evening all

Hope you have all had a good day. It sounds as though you have all been quite busy. We haven't had any sun today but it has been dry and reasonably warm.

I am glad the weather has been kind to you so far AnninG. It sounds a nice place that you are staying.

Gill, I hope your mum is feeling OK and that the hospital can sort her problems out. I expect your sister was worried when she heard the news after the wedding but hopefully you have all had your minds set at rest a bit now. Has Sandra been upset by her grandma being in hospital?

I am glad to hear that Anne is OK.

Frank, I had a good laugh at your lawyer and 12 children email. I've been thinking that your garden must be lovely with all the work that Ros does in it and all your watering. It's good that there is someone to do a bit of watering for you while you are away. I am worried what will happen in our garden when we go to Austria in June as I don't really have anyone who can do any watering for us. Our next door neighbour has been very good in the past but he moves house on Friday so won't be around and I don't feel I can ask any of the other neighbours as they all have their health problems. I'm rather hoping that there will be some rain here while we are away though I don't want to wish bad weather on anyone.

Mel, I love Agapanthus and you are right, they do like to have their roots confined. I have got 6 large pots of them which I have had for years and they make a stunning display when they are in flower. Some of mine are quite old now and I know they need dividing but don't want to do it as it might set them back a bit. I saw a beautiful dark purple one recently and forgot to make a note of the name of it. Sorry to hear your OH's hip has been painful and hope it is a bit easier today.

Jane, I have never made risotto though I often have it if we eat out. Prezzo's used to do a very nice one with chicken and asparagus and various green beans but our local Prezzo's closed. As for Eurovision - I haven't watched it for donkey's years. I think the last one I saw was when our entry was a group of 2 boys and 2 girls (was it Brotherhood of Man?). At the end of the song the boys whipped the girls' skirts off.

I am relieved to say that my coffee morning was a success. When I got up at 7 am it had rained and everything was soaking wet but thankfully it dried up and was warm enough to sit outside. We had a quick shower at about 12.30 and everyone dashed indoors for a while but it didn't last long. We made £120 which will pay for a speaker or two and I won a bottle of wine in the raffle which I am now going to go and open.

Have a good night everyone.

It has been a glorious day here today. Sunny all day, a chilly sea breeze but warm when sheltered. We drove a short distance to a pretty small bay and had a coffee then drove back and sat outside for an hour or so on the lawn in fro t of the bungalow that looks out over the beach to the harbour. This afternoon we walked two miles around the harbour, sat i. A few different places, had an ice cream then walked a little way by a pretty river before coming back to sit in the garden again. The tide was out and we saw Ohstdr catchers among the rocks. We dkn’t Spend much time in our room so the lack of view is fine. And we ate in the local pub last night and it was very good. We are hoping the weather is going to hold out for us as the forecast was not too bad.

H&G have just gone. The Risotto was not a Risotto as I used the wrong thing. I thought it was Risotto Rice but it was Orzo Pasta (that looks like Risotto Rice). It was a bit soupy but the taste was good :-D We were just about ready to eat outside but it suddenly poured with rain and it is still raining :-S So we are stuck indoors now.

Did anyone watch Eurovision Contest last night ? What a load of rubbish. I went to bed after our contestant . It did make me laugh though as James and Gareth stayed up to watch it right through to the end!!! Hannah gave up even before me.Chris gave up even before Hannah LOL Tonight is Gentleman Jack. I am looking forward to this.

Still sunny here and I hope its a bit nicer in Cornwall for A & G as they usualy have nicer weather there than here. When we had the nursary and we went to Cornwall to buy plants they would have much sunnier weather there than when we got home.

Yes I meant to ask if Mandy was getting on ok with her new cooker the other day and forgot all about it. Have the children asked you to make anything else for them Mandy?

I potted up the two big pots of ???????? I have forgotten their name!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! What am I like. They are tall stemmed plants with a mass of blue flowers on the top. Also come in white. They have been up the border for years and I think they only flowered once. They like to be pot bound so thats why I dug them up and now both lots are in clay pots.

O just remembered the name, agapanthus.

Jane I don't like risotto much but yours sounds nice with lots of onion, garlic leeks and chorizo. We don't have pizza much just now and then.

After my lunch has gone down a bit more I shall be back up the border for a while. I really want to do some craft but this has to be done first. Whether I finish it or not then I shall go back to my crafty things. If I can just get some of the old stuff cut down it will look tidyer and then cut the edge. It won't all be done today though.

Forgot all about the jellys I made yesterday for sweet after our steak so will have them tonight.

Afternoon All

Have a lovely meal Frank. I see there is no cooking for you to do now until you go on Tuesday :-D :-D. Do you cook at all when you are there or is it eating out most of the time? I refuse to cook when we self cater other than maybe a pasta dish or a Bacon,Egg,Mushroom and Tomato meal.I do enough cooking at home . Chris would never expect me to cook anything at all really when we are away.I think actually where we are staying we could if we wanted to order a meal in from the Farmhouse .The cottage is in the grounds of a farm and they do B&B and Evening Meals .

That was a real good sleep you had Mel :-D. You will have all cylinders firing now :-D

I hope Mum is ok today Gill. It will be a relief for you knowing she is in hospital and in the right place for now.

AnnG,it must seem odd not having the sea view now,but at least it is a nice place you are in . Might you have a few F&C dinners ? :-D :-D,if there are not too many places to eat.

We all had a really lovely lunch yestrerday down at the Red Lion. But the portions are far to big.Ther food is very good there now after many years of it being a failing Pub. Every table was taken . I just hope it continues to be a success as it is only 5 minutes (if that in the car from here)

H&G have been to the Christening this morning and are still not back. I think they were so brave going . Friday evening when they got here was so emotional . Dinner was awash with tears so most food ended up in the bin. James had to leave the table at one point :-(

I am doing a Risotto now and the place reeks of Leeks,Chorizo ,Garlic and Onions!!!!. I reek too . No sure how it is going to turn out .But if it is a disaster then I have a couple of Pizzas in hte fridge :-D

Mandy how is your new cooker? Hopefully no problems with this one. I am so behind in so many posts you will all have ot forgive me.

Hope Ann is enjoying Cornwall .I expect they are out and about now and Ann taking some good pics :-D

Well I'm back as promised.

Ros has been busy again in the garden. She's potted up some more pots, done some weeding. I have done all the watering of the beds, greenhouse, and VEG patch. I think by the time we get back, I will be able to prick out a lot of the plants. I must tell either Carolyn or Val B. to cut themselves some Rhubarb, as it's growing like mad.

What programmes did you mean Gill. ??? I forget things so quickly, but ask me about what happened 60 years ago, and I can tell you. lol lol

I am off for a shower and shave, and get dressed. Ros can come in about 1.30 to get her shower and get ready for going out.

See you all later. xxxx