General Chat

Good morning all 7 degrees here but sooo dark and gloomy, stayed like it all day yesterday.

Nothing planned for today. a wash load in the machine. I do have some cards to make as my birthday stock is getting low.

Ann I think all the fields around here are soaked so more rain is going to just sit on top and there will be floods in vulnerable places. I hope this also means the reservoirs are filling up.

Mandy I used to have a ceramic slow cooker and have since had the metal ones. Much better as, if you want to you can put them on the hob to fry off meat etc.

Evening All,

Another gloomy day here and then rain just as the food delivery came. the usual fields were covered in flood water yesterday and the line of posts in a fence were only six inches above the water so it was quite deep near the river.

That's good to change your slow cooker Mandy. I think Mel got the same one as me and the metal bowl is so light as she says and simple to clean as it's non-stick. I avoided the porcelain bowls because of the weight once they are full of food. I can hardly carry my full pressure cooker and ought to get rid of it really as I don't seem to use it now.

Vera that was bad service from EWM with the jumper. I don't think I will be buying on line from them again. Disappointingly my parcel was lost by the courier yes, but it isn't customer service when, day after day you can't get anyone to speak to on the phone. Still a faff with the bus to the eye hospital but a bit better this time and good news about improvements that mean you should be able to drive again. I bet you are pleased about that so I hope you get an early test at the opticians. I am interested in getting another cordless vac so will be interested how you find your new one. My present one is an old Dyson.

Our local paper is delivered by a national service too and they seem to get earlier, but usually about 5-6.00 am so yours was very early!! They park in the rad outside my neighbour's and then run to our drive and letterbox, but leave the car engine running, but headlights off. I have wondered whether the running engine disturbs our neighbour as the bedrooms are on the front. They then reverse back and turn at the end of the original cul-de-sac and might have sweeping headlights then.

OH is callng, so night night everyone, sleep tight.

Done some painting and varnishing this afternoon. Was still a bit gloomy. 6 degrees now

I hope your new slow cooker is one with a metal pot and glass lid like mine. Its great for doing soups and stews and is easy to clean. I should use it more really and I need to clear a cupboard out so I can put thing away that are on the work surface.

Cleaned the girls nest box out so I shall have to go round tonight and shove them out because they sleep in it if they can and make a mess.

I told you I bought mysef a white loaf yesterday, well today I am going to have (Gipsey toast) bacon and beans.

Afternoon all,

We've had sunshine most of the morning but it was very foggy first thing .
I've ordered a new slow cooker this morning as the one I'm using has such a heavy ceramic lid with a tiny knob on the top thats a devil to get hold of with a cloth and the bowl is ceramic so its very heavy too, I have visions of me dropping it so the new ones coming tomorrow .

Think that's me done now as I had such a funny head yesterday just after I posted so I don't want to much screen time today.

snap vera I am having lamb shank as well but not until this evening.
I have cooked the veg so it just needs a couple of minutes in the microwave. I am also making mixed veg soup. Leek, carrot, potato and courgette. Not sure what it will taste like. Vera I know you have the same soup maker. do you find you have to have more than one go at setting the controls? I find mine seem to be very tempermental.

It is 7 degrees here and drizzly so not very pleasant at all. we seem to get dark and drizzle and sunny and nice on alternate days.

Morning Mel, AnnG and all

At the moment it’s blue skies and sunshine and 9 degrees though it feels a lot cooler. We’re not supposed to get any more rain until Wednesday but we shall see.

I didn’t have a good night. OH seemed to be coughing all night long and our newspaper was delivered at 3.30 am! There are no local newsagents delivering any more so ours is done through a national delivery service. They say the paper will come between 5 and 8 am but, in practice, it’s usually between 6 and 7. The trouble is that it comes by car which sets off everyone’s security lights and then swings round at the end of the Close between my house and the neighbours who face us so his car lights shine into her bedroom and OH’s. At 3.30 am that isn’t funny. I am expecting a complaint from my neighbour again.

My new vac is being delivered between 1 and 2 pm so I must look out for it. The drivers don’t ring the bell and they won’t leave it so if I don’t see them I have to pay a rebooking delivery fee.

Better go and sort the veg for Sunday lunch. We’re having lamb shanks today.

Yes 6 degrees here now and very damp, dull and dire. I have the bedding in the drier so that is the bed changed. One job done, showered and hair washed but nothing else done.

Morning all,

Dark here too and just not very nice out. Pc saysect 7ainy days ahead starting today and its 6 degrees.

Had a lie in this morning.

good morning all. very dark here this morning, so dark I didn't wake up until 0815 and have not even showered yrt. BBL

I like your long posts too Vera. You had a right old time getting to the hospital and home again on the bus. Good results though from the doctor. Could'nt you take an old pair of glasses to have the new lenses put in saving you more money incase you have to have the other eye done. You will be glad to be able to drive again.

My snowdrops are out and my pink Hellibore. Its so nice to see thing starting to bloom to tell you Spring is just around the corner. I wonder if we will have more snow before it really arrives?

Iv'e done some miniature painting today and varnishing.

Yesterday was a hectic day. We went down to Waitrose fairly early in the morning and I stocked up on fish, mostly salmon and smoked haddock, and got a load of salad stuff. When we got back we had a very quick snack and went off to get the bus to the hospital. Thankfully the driver knew just where he was going and fairly belted along between stops. Even so it took 75 minutes. According to the timetable it should take 65 minutes but I don’t think the company allow enough time for people getting on and off at the various stops. Luckily I still had 25 minutes before my appointment time as, after you get off outside the hospital, it is quite a trudge to the separate eye centre which is behind the hospital.

Anyway, I arrived and got checked in before my allotted time and got called within 5 minutes. I went through all the normal procedures, vision tests, pressure tests, scans and then had to wait to see the doctor. There is always a hold up at this point but eventually I was called in. The doctor was quite pleased. My distance vision has improved considerably and, after 10 weeks, the inflammation has at last cleared up so I can now get my eyes tested and get new glasses which means I should be able to drive again. I’m going to set up an eye test at the opticians and see if I can get the cheapest lens and frames possible as I think she may want to tackle the other eye before long and that will mean different glasses again.

The next problem was that I came out of the doctor’s room only 5 minutes before our bus home was due. There was no way I could collect OH from the waiting room, get into our coats and get to the bus stop in 5 minutes, even if we ran, and there was a 65 minute wait for the next bus. So rather than hang around in the cold we went from the eye centre to the rear door of the hospital and then trudged through all the corridors to the front where there is a café and we could sit in the warm with a nice cup of tea. We didn’t dare risk missing the next bus so were at the stop nearly 15 minutes before it came. Again the driver didn’t hang around but again it took 75 minutes to get back. We got in at 6 pm and felt shattered and I still had to cook dinner. Luckily I had got it all prepared before we went.

I won’t go into everything that’s happened today or I’ll be here all night. I’ll just say that I discovered I am supposed to be at a club meeting tomorrow afternoon so had to fiddle about changing my Tesco delivery to Tuesday afternoon and I had to reorder my cordless vac. I don’t know what OH did but he seems to have managed to cancel the order he made. I found the same one at the same price on AO.com and it’s being delivered tomorrow.

I should think you’ve all dozed off by now so I’ll leave you in peace and go and sort out our dinner for tonight. Now, do I fancy a cup of tea or a nice glass of wine? Decisions, decisions……...

oh we do like your long posts Vera!!!

That was naughty about EWM and the frayed sleeves. I have not bought from them on line but do like to buy things from their shop inside one of out garden centres.

It is ten past four and the sun is only just setting. Spring is on the way. I don't often order thigs on line unless via amazon as I don'y like sharing my details with different places. However I have been reading some donated copies of Graden answers which I have been impressed with so I have just sent for a 6 months subscription.

Ann OH should not be too cold today although standing still it is difficult to keep warm I suppose. He is faithful to his sport.

All three Sainsbury's lost their cafes a couple of years back. I think one has some sort of coffee place in it but as that is in Gloucester by the canal it is not one I would get to so not sure.

What changeable weather we seem to be having. One day it’s like a freezing winter and the next it’s like spring and it seems even worse at night. I’m either reaching for another blanket or I’m throwing all the bedding off because I’m too hot.

Mandy, I’ll be interested to see what you make with your new wool. Your labels are fun and will add a little something to your knitted goods. They will be particularly good for anything you put out for sale.

It’s annoying that EWM are unable to replace the goods you ordered Annx, but at least you have been refunded. I had trouble with them last January. We had told daughter not to bother about getting us all Christmas presents but she sat at her partners bedside in the hospice and ordered things online for us. She got a really nice jumper from EWM for OH but when it came it hadn’t been finished off properly and both sleeves were unravelling at the wrist end. I contacted EWM, explained that S had just died and it wasn’t an appropriate time to ask my daughter to deal with returns or ask her to produce receipts but I sent them photos of the delivery note and the damaged product. They showed no sympathy at all and wouldn’t even consider exchanging the jumper or even giving a partial refund. We didn’t want daughter to be upset by this so never told her. I just repaired it myself. I hope your OH’s eyes are OK. Many years ago I had “retinal tug” when the retina was pulling away and I was getting flashes of light in my eyes. I was given instruction to go straight to hospital if this or that happened but, thankfully, it cleared up on its own. Hopefully your OH’s problem will do the same.

AnnG, I do a bit of ironing but as little as possible. There’s not much in winter though OH has some summer shirts which don’t go in the dryer and definitely need ironing, even though I pull them into shape and dry them on hangers. You’re right about it making the leg and back ache. I always say it’s the worst thing for my back, though I don’t have to worry about my legs. You bought a couple of nice bits in Sainsbury’s. I don’t think many Sainsbury stores have coffee shops now but our local store has a Starbucks upstairs. It’s where our Thursday morning group meet for coffee, though we haven’t done that for 4 or 5 weeks.

I can see this is beginning to get a bit long so I think I’ll post this and then start again on another post.

Afternoon All,

It was sunny earlier but looking a bit dull now. OH has gone to a footie match where I played a school hockey match many years ago.On his walk he saw two bunnies in the field behind us which is a first since they started putting cattle in the field.

Mandy the kettle lid didn't open wide enough to fill it easily and the spout was short and I thought pouring would mean dribbles down the side. Our water is very hard and dribbles mean limescale often needing removing. Even Sainsbury's had none on show to look at. They were all in sealed boxes. Asda is a stone's throw from Sainsbury's so I might pop in there first and see what they have. including the Smeg ones. I hope you manage to do the rabbit. Is it one of those with knitted clothes? I'm wondering if you have anything planned for the double knit, but it's a shame you couldn't get any for your hat. I think those little labels are a really nice touch. Thanks for the prog mention and I'll check whether oH has recorded it for me. He hasn't said though.

Same here AnnG. I showed OH how to iron when he had his own house and once he got the hang of it he did mine as well. It was a bigger job then as he wore a clean shirt for work every day. After we retired, we didn't wear suits with trousers and skirts that needed pressing daily either, so there's rarely any to do now. T shirts, shirts and most tops dry on hangers without creasing.

You have read quite a few books! OH is still on War and Peace but mixing it with A Life and Death in Tudor England Thomas More at the moment. He usually flits between books to suit his mood! I must see if the Snowdrops are showing. I think they are one of my favourite flowers.

Nipping out on an errand now to see if my efforts on the car windscreen have worked.

I think I have said before that I rarely need to do any ironing, which is why I prefer to tumble dry rather than line dry. This tumble drier is not as good as the previous one but most things don't need ironing thank goodness. T always from when he retired, did the ironing so I was pleased to discover I didn't need to do it, I fins it makes my back and my legs ache when I do have to.

I did walk down to Irene's with nine books read since the middle of December. Not small booke either. I realised recently that all books these days (paper backs) are really thick, very few smaller ones. It is a lovely sunny day and no wind so my only problem was with the glare when walking into the sun. I have varifocal glasses that go dark in the sun but I find when walking into the sun I can't see the path clearly. Not good when our paths are in such a terrible state of mismatched patches of tarmac. so I find I can see better to walk if I take my glasses off.

when I got back I had my coffee, then went out in the garden for 30 minutes pottering up near the house removing a lot of the old Hellebore leaves and doing a bit of weeding and general tidying. It was really warm in the sun up near the house, very spring like and I noticed lots of bulbs just showinf, snowdrops and miniature daffs in particular, but some larger daffs as well and a pot showing Iris Riticulata bulbs.

Iv'e got some ironing to do too. I don't know where it all comes from, do you?

Its lovely to have labels to put on your makes Mandy. I have some with Fairy Acorn on them I put in with my miniatures. NOw do that rabbit today and you will be pleased with yourself for getting it out of the way.

I do hope Vera and hubby got on well yesterday. <3

Good morning all, 6 degrees here, no frost but a bit gloomy. As I didn't get to Irene's yesterday to take the books back. (as I went to Sainsbury's instead), I might think about gong today if it doesn't rain.

Are you going to make a stripey DK hat mandy?

Morning Mel , you popped in just before I posted

Morning all,

6 degrees here and very cloudy and dull should get up to 10 degrees so a lot milder ,just a little sun would be nice makes you feel like doing a bit more .

Ann I keep meaning to say there's a new series of Our Yorkshire Farm Nest Door on More 4 nine o'clock.
Didn't you like the kettle or was there a problem with it .
Seems a funny thing to get but we had a kettle for Christmas from son and family , I've always wanted a Smeg kettle so that's what they bought us , it's a but heavier than a normal kettle but they are nice and pour lovely.

Got some ironing to do and a piece of gammon to cook this morning then this afternoon I'm going to sit and get this blooming rabbit sewn up its been hanging about for ages .
I looked at the wool in Aldi but didn't see any that would do a hat ,I wanted a chunky but they had super chunky which I thought would be to thick, I did get four balls of double knit , a nice dark green a paler green a dark red and a yellow, .
My little labels came at last so I can add those to things I knit ,they have a ball of wool with needles poked throughout them and say handmade by mandy .

Hope Vera got to the hospital yesterday and her appointment went OK