General Chat

Yes of course it was Fleur in the dance off AnnG! What was I thinking!! Mel it was clear to me before the dance off that Ellie would lose so I shan't bother to rewatch it now, but it's useful to remember that although just the main dances are on youtube, the dance offs aren't and I hadn't thought of the iplayer.

Vera what a palaver it is when the water's switched off with all the collecting it to use. I would miss our caravan big water carrier now. I hope they did switch off and get the work done while you were out.

Yes calm reading of instructions that aren't clear anyway with a loud alarm ringing in your ears isn't easy is it! Ours are so sketchy (2 sides of an A5 sheet where they only tell you about setting it and setting different zones and switching it off when you get home which doesn't work in a power cut if it triggers it!. Yes it's odd only ours went off, especially as others nearby have gone off in previous power cuts but not ours!

It's sad to see how places are changing now isn't it and how the small individual shops are closing yet eateries are thriving, but downgrading their menus and cafes are springing up everywhere. I was just looking at the menu of one of the best carveries we used to go to as we are thinking of going there after my hair appointment in the morning. They have never resumed the daily carvery since the pandemic and now it seems to be mostly burgers, curries, things with chilli in, none of which I like and chips with everything. Even a lamb dish was an african curry. I will probably end up with the fish finger sandwith with coleslaw and salad.

It's sad the long lost relatives you found are now slipping away. When I see how recently some I have traced have passed away I wish I'd found them sooner so we could perhaps have met.

Well the new e bikes and charging stations they set up in one area of the city are being removed. A lot of us said they'd be vandalised where they were putting them and so they have been and 8 of the bikes have been stolen and the charging docks vandalised with sustained attacks.

I certainly would'nt know Colchester now either as I hav'nt been there for over 30 years. I used to like to go into Colchester on a day just looking through the shops. Shame Vera and I never met when I lived in Suffolk not far from her.

Vera, that was a shame you had a quite disappointing lunch. Strange that shellfish was in a lot of the dishes as quite a few people are allergic or intolerant to it. I am sure that I would not recognise Colchester now, it must have been late sixties I was last there.

You seemed to get quite a lot done. I would have liked the new M&S.

You could always watch the dance of on Iplay Ann.

I hope you haven't had any more power cuts Ann. I wonder why it was just your burglar alarm that kept going off. I'm terrified of that happening at our neighbour's house when they are away as we have their doorkey and instructions for the burglar alarm. When it did keep going off once we got in a terrible muddle with the instructions which weren't very clear. I ended up having to ring the company that fitted the alarm and they talked us through it. Horrid for your OH to have 2 deep fillings but at least someone has done something at last. I hope they don't ache too badly.

I woke at 6 again this morning and just lay there till 7 am but then I got up, made tea, washed, cleaned teeth. Then OH filled buckets for loo flushing and I filled kettles and pans with water for our use, ready for the water to go off at 9 am. Well, it was still on when we went out at 10 am and was on when we got back just before 4 pm so I don't know if they dealt with it more quickly than they expected or if the water didn't go off at all.

We went to Colchester, first to the big new M & S outside town. It is enormous and on a retail site with a few shops including a big B & Q and what looked like a very big Aldi, although we didn't go in there. I'm not a great fan of M & S for me but I did get some presents for other people there. Then we went into the town which has changed a lot since we were last there several years ago. So many of the nice shops have closed and even the eating places we used to go to have become burger outlets or fancy wine bars. We tried one of the nicer pubs only to be told it didn't open for food till 3.30 pm. That seemed silly to me as it was too late to open for lunches but a bit early for the evening dinner trade. In the end we went into a hotel restaurant where OH had a very nice main course but I ended up with what was basically a cheese and ham toastie. Well over half the mains contained shellfish in some form or another which I can't have. A couple of things I just don't like and I was pretty much left with steak. It was very expensive and I knew I wouldn't manage to eat more than half of it as I'm not a big meat eater. So toastie it was.

After lunch we picked up a present for granddaughter that I had ordered online to collect from a shop and then we drove home via the Farmfoods shop in our town where I picked up a few bits and pieces.

When I got home and was checking emails I found a sad one. Many years ago when my brother and I were researching the family we had contact with 4 others also researching the same family. We were all distantly related and became a group of "cousins" who shared research and family stories. One lost interest and just dropped out, then my brother died in 2020 and this email was from the son of one of the others to say his mum had died on Saturday. We never met but I feel as though I have lost a family member. Our original 6 are down to 3 now and we tend to only exchange Christmas emails these days.

I'd better respond to the son's email now and then I think I'll have an easy evening.

Pleased all is well with the teeth Ann.
I think you meant Fleur in the dance off with Ellie. But yes she was definitely better than Ellie.
Pleased the trees are nice and the air frier is suitable. What make us it?

I just asked him thank you AnnG and he said his teeth feel fine now, so it sounds as if he's better than the dentist was expecting him to be. I suppose all the numbness may not have all gone yet though. I think these white fillings they do now do seem to 'cure' quicker than the old metal ones. I only seem to have a couple of teeth with metal fillings now, the rest I had have been taken out over the years. :-S

Well I unpacked the 2 little Christmas trees and tested the lights and they will be just be great for what I want. I tried to get some last year but they weren't very good quality and I had to send them back. I unpacked the air fryer next and both of us decided it will be big enough for what we want, certainly for now. I'm sure I could get a chicken crown in it or even a small chicken with the drumsticks off if needs be. It's more compact than I expected so will actually take up less room than the slow cooker.

Some of my recording of Strictly Results failed, so I missed the dance off!! I would have guessed the result though as Mollie's Samba was better. She doesn't seem to have had an easy time of it with the public though, despite being a lovely dancer and a nice person.

ah yes Mel I was forgetting it was a bungalow and had not realised it was a flat roof. Our garage has a flat roof on the bit that sticks out from the house. Half is under the front office. If you remember a year ago in August I had a leak in that and Charles came and redid the edging which was where it was leaking. He did it in less than an hour.

Ann Has OH had pain in the teeth that the dentist filled? Glad they have been done and hope they soon settle down. Things change very quickly with dental technology and I suppose the filling material is different and the anaesthetic too.

I still have Fiona's old address Mel. I didn't know she'd moved and I have destroyed the envelope from her christmas card now that probably had it on the back! I'll have to message her on FB.

The roof is quite a job to do then Mel. At least full scaffolding isn't needed with a bungalow which saves some cost. That will be a saving too if BIL gets you some boards if they are needed.

Well OH ended up with 2 fillings in the end and a warning that they may ache for a few days as they were deep ones. He was told not to eat for just an hour AnnG, much less time than it used to be once, so he has had some parsnip soup he likes and now he's sitting quietly and doing some of his work. :-) Sadly it seems the combined Post Office/Pharmacy is closing down the Post Office side due to lack of business! It was ideal having the two in the same premises and you could park right outside. We have 2 Post Offices that are nearer to us, but parking is awful, with parking charges at one so we were happy to travel that bit further and have less hassle.

I've just unpacked 2 nice tops I sent for from an online clearance store. Next I will unpack the christmas trees and air fryer! Then I must get on with the sketches I need to do for the course.

No not a day for the scaffolding as I think think they have a tower if not I have one but they have to take the old felt roof off and they boil up tar stuff to tick the felt down . It is a felted flat roof but seems to be leaking where it joins the tiled roof. I expect after all this time with the water comking through I shall need a couple of new boards at £85 each. My BIL who is a roofer said those boards cost him £42 each.

I have been up the poost van again this morning and posted my cousins card to the USA.

Does anyone have fiona's new address please, if you do can you please send me it by pm. Thamks. I have waterside gdns. but I think they moved.

Depend what time you eat Ann but I would have thought two hours his mouth should be fine.

I think I could just about get a small chicken in my air drier Ann although I haven't tried. I have cooked three chicken thigh fillets in it though, It would possible have taken four. But two drawers are useful if you want to cook several things like a chicken and roast potatoes.

I expect one of his three days could be to get the scaffolding up mel.

Morning All,

Quite misty here and only 6 degrees. OH is at the dentist having a filling which his dentist finally agreed to do but still not the extractions.

That is just the same quandry I had AnnG about 2 drawers or 1 in the air fryer! The 2 drawer ones are bigger to go on my worktops and I hoped I might fit a small chicken in a single drawer one so that's what I have. I need to unpack it today as I've had it 2 days now and once I see the size of the drawer I can decide whether to keep it or get the bigger 2 drawer one. That is a great idea of your daughter's to put them in the utility. If I could find a new home for the laundry basket and extra pandemic food stores in there I could do the same. Thankfully no more power cuts since the 3rd one, but we were thinking the same as you suggest and I am going to ring the service engineer we use and see if our alarm needs adjusting or something. It's serviced regularly and has a new battery each time, but he might throw some light on it and be able to make it less sensitive. We could have been away for the week when it happened which wouldn't have gone down well with the neighbours!

Is it a felted roof or tiled Mel as 3 days sounds like a long time to just fix tiles and flashing. I suppose there might be more to do though once he finds the source of the leak and if it's caused other damage.

Better get ready to call at the chemist for our meds as OH should be back soon. At least no cooking today with his frozen mouth as I think he will have soup.

Morning Anng and all,

Quite bright here this morning but pc says rain coming and its 9 degrees.

Need to pop up the post van this morning with a little parcel and then the rest of the day is mine.

Still not sure about getting an air fryer but may have another look. I still hav'nt used the slow cooker yet.

I woke up just after 9am this morning and I had'nt been up in the night that as first for a while.

I do wish it would stop raining long enough for the man to do the roof. He only heeds three days.

good morning all, late for me I laid awake for ages around 0430 then didn't really wake until 0830. the trouble these days is, if I wake and it is still dark I just turn over and go back to sleep. still it is not a problem I have nothing planned.

Ann goodness all those power cuts, I wonder why your alarm was going off and nobody else's? Does it need a check up?

Vera I had my air dryer in 2019 but didn't use it a lot until a few months ago when I decided it was a waste not to use it. Now I wish I had bought one with more than one compartment, even for me on my own. My daughter is lucky, she has a very convenient utility room next to her kitchen/diner and has turned the worktop out there almost into a second kitchen with a Nintendo air frier and another sort of grill thing, both cheaper to use and she rarely uses the oven now. Her air frier cooks a whole roast meal for two. Still I do quite well with the air frier and the microwave. I can cook roast potatoes in mine. Part boil, toss in oil then air fry. I did use the oven yesterday though as I had roast chicken, carrots and potatoes and steamed veg. Now have to work out a couple more chicken meals with the cooked meat.

It's been wet and miserable all day again today and so dark that the lights have been on nearly all day. It's still raining now.

It sounds as though you had a good evening out yesterday AnnG. I expect you enjoyed your friend coming for coffee as well. It does break the day up when people drop in.

You had a nice little lie in this morning Mel. I wish I could go back to sleep for an hour or two sometimes. I had a good night last night and slept from about midnight to about 6 am but couldn't get back to sleep after that.

I see a couple of you are looking at buying an air fryer. A few of our friends bought them when they found their fuel bills were going to go sky high and they all seem pleased with them. I considered it but I really don't want more stuff on my work surface and we seem to be managing fine with mostly using the slow cooker and microwave. As you know when I do use the oven I make sure the whole meal goes in. Today we had loin of pork, roast potatoes, lots of other veg roasted, some stuffing and an apple and raisin oaty crumble. The only thing that didn't go in was a bit of broccoli but that just needed 5 minutes in the microwave. OH is beginning to get a taste for roasted veg.

It's been quite a busy day. I did a couple of loads of washing this morning as the water is going to be off tomorrow and I didn't want to leave it any longer. I prepared and cooked all our dinner and had a long phone call with my daughter. This afternoon I've filled out my Tesco order for delivery on Tuesday. It's a big order as I now do about 3 weeks at a time and I've included some Christmas stuff in this as well. I've done some banking and filing and been online to order an accessory for my daughter's Bosch cooker as it is what she wants for Christmas.

I haven't managed to write any more cards today and my eyes are getting too tired and blurry now. I think it will have to be an easy evening. Enjoy the rest of your day and sleep well tonight everyone.

Evening All,

I slept in this morning so was late taking my tablets which I never do. It's been a sunny day here which is nice.

It sounds like you had a great time AnnG and we love a buffet where you can pick what you fancy. A chance to join in with the singing too. OH most years says he fancies going to a carol concert, but I never show enthusiasm as he sings very loud and out of tune.....and doesn't care!!! lol. I see people's heads turning to see who it is at funerals we've been to! :-D Cravendale and Bob milk seem to keep better than some others so you may be able to use it all. A few more friends round for coffee?

We had a nice lamb shank meal at lunch time cooked in the convection option in the microwave, even squeezing a few parsnip and potatoes cut small to roast around it.

Then just as it was getting dark this afternoon, we had a power cut and it set off our burglar alarm! Just ours and it's never been triggered by a power cut before. So it was a scramble to find torches and candles and some antiquated instructions for the alarm that are not for our model and some advice I had scribbled down from the alarm engineer. It was a bit worrying that one thing I had written said if a power cut triggered it we would not be able to stop it ourselves!! I remember our neighbour having to call someone out once so we weren't hopeful. We managed to stop the screeching noise, but it was still flashing so we expected it to start again after a while. Then the power came on again and the screeching started up. At least we were able to reset it with the power back on and peace reigned again and the flashing went as well. We'd just settled down with a nice COT when we had another power cut and just our alarm triggered again!! :-S Since then we've had a 3rd power cut and the same performance. We are going to bed tonight armed with torches and have left the screwdriver etc handy. I hope this isn't the start of the power outs they've been warning us about. :-0

Friend just e mailed to ask me for coffee but she is coming here instead as I have to wait for Tesco.

Morning Anng and all,

I did'nt have any subs this week from Asda which surprised me.

Dull morning here and its 11 degrees here and cloudy and pc says rain 95 kl away. I do wish we could have a weeks nice dry weather so I can get the roof done and then my mind will be at rest.

Sounds llike you had a great time yesterday Anng its alway nice when with friends at this time of the year.

I woke up at 7.22am and went back to bed for half an hour and then woke up at 9.22am. I wanted to get up early today so should have stayed up the first time I woke.

good morning all slept very well, didn't go to bed until later as I watched the dancing bits of strictly when I got in. Had a lovely evening. One plus was that when we got to Nature in Art where the concert was, we were told that before the buffet we could walk round and see the exhibits (normally £6 to go in. so we did that. The buffet was simple nibbly bit but very nice and plenty of it with a glass of mulled wine. The choir was about 100 strong, really big and they sang beautifully. It was The Gloucester area Christian choir. They (and we) sang for about an hour and a half.

Tesco today. One sub would you believe no 2 pint skimmed milk so sub is one large Cravendale skimmed I'll take that! And one item 2 pastries not available. No problem with that.