General Chat

Is it the Yorkshire Provender Roast chicken and Vegetable one in a polythene tub Mel? I know I've mentioned that one on here before as I love it? I don't think I've tried the ones in the cartons yet so they may be worth me trying as well.

I'm still awake so have come on here for a bit and been watching a video someone has made about the Roman Road across the back of the field at the back of us and how it's to be ruined with the warehouses. He belongs to the Archealogical Society I think.

More and more of the drivers here don't seem to ring the bell or knock Mel. I am usually in the study which is small and I sit about 9 feet from the front door so always hear the doorbell if they ring it. I think you are right about this driver. I think he must have tiptoed past the window quietly so he couldn't be heard and be away before he got asked about the damage. The feedback email Amazon sent only asks whether the delivery was good and things like if the parcel was damaged, nothing about how it was delivered or left. You are right that those who do ring the bell often don't wait for you to answer the door and are driving off as quickly as they can by the time you get to the door.

Yes he does live in Barnstaple which Ithi9nk is 25 miles from here. Anyway when he got back he gave me two cartons of the Co-op chicken and veg soup which is very nice. One for lunch and one for another day. I can highly recommend it if anyone has'nt tried it and theres plenty for two if you don't eat it all yourself. I had a buttered crust of my wholemeal bread with mine and was'nt hungry again till 8.30pm.

Glad you sorted your Wifi Anng its surprising what we can do when we have to do these things ourselves. It may have been a flash of lightning that knocked the thing out or a surge in the leccy on a switch over.

I did'nt get on very well today but I did do some admin while BIL was here as I did it on the pc and he watched to make sure I did it right.

These delivery drivers leave your parcels by the door and take a picture of them so they can say they were delivered. Sometimes mine are left and photographed before I can get to the door. Its a nuisance when you're on your own to get caught in the loo or shower or even in the garden and don't hear them come. I bet as the parcel was damaged he did'nt want to get a mouthful from you so rushed off but its a bit much when things can be damaged inside too.

Evening All,

My third attempt to post as I have kept losing them with interruptions to do other things.

Bright and chilly but not windy this morning then quite a lot of rain this afternoon. We called for an egg cob and coffee this morning, then OH went for his walk and got some photos of the packhorse bridge for me about a quarter of a mile away.

A bit difficult with emails winging to and fro, but I finally got the second site visit booked for the bedroom cupboards, paid the deposit and the fitter even phoned me back with an installation date in November so that job should get done by Christmas now. By sending photos of our roof front and back I now have a quote for clearing the gutters and will let the man know tomorrow whether to go ahead. There only seems to be an issue over the front door where some grass has taken root and the chap was concerned whether the mesh we have to stop leaves could be removed. I have no idea whether it is expensive at £147 with today's prices, but with having a pointed roof there is a lot of guttering all around the bungalow and built in garage. It's annoying this getting older business as either one of us could have easily had a look at them ourselves with tall steps with it being a bungalow, but not anymore.

Yesterday when I got home I asked OH to pass me the garage door remote to save me taking my shoes off to go inside as I needed something out of the freezer. Instead of passing it to me he opened the garage door himself, so I went and fetched what I wanted and came inside. That evening when it was dark, OH poked his head out of the front door to see how cold it was and noticed the garage door was wide open! We had 'words' then as I had assumed with him having kept the remote that he would close the garage door as well and he said he'd left the remote where I put my keys for me to do it and didn't I see it? Obviously not! If he'd just passed me the remote like I asked it wouldn't have happened, but we are both paranoid about checking it tonight as someone could have raided a lot in there.

Well done sorting the wi fi issue AnnG. I bet you were chuffed you worked out the problem and solved it. I hope you had a good meeting and what was the subject this time?

Vera I thought the same when Mel said BIL had to go back for what he'd forgotten. I thought he lived at Barnstaple which is a long way away. You have had a busy day getting more done in the garden then your walk to see the clinic pharmacist. I hope they sort a suitable balance with your meds and I'm sure my risk must be high with my father being 58 when he had his first heart attack and me being overweight. I've no idea when my cholesterol was last checked and when I asked about a check recently at reception I was told they only do one if you are having symptoms they are concerned about. So much for preventing things I thought. I hope you get on ok with the Chia seeds.

I hope your washing dried quickly Mandy. I've worn my thick fleece jacket a few times recently too.

My new duvet was delivered at teatime. No ring of the doorbell by the Amazon driver who dumped it next to the door with the box top half open and in full view for anyone to see. It's a good job it wasn't raining and that we had looked outside as we didn't hear him.

Your bil does a bit of going backwards and forwards to you, doesn't he Mel. Does he live fairly close to you? I had a feeling he lives quite a distance away. I hope he got back with the plans and has the grass box sorted out now.

Well done AnnG on sorting out your electrics. I hope you have enjoyed your photography meeting this afternoon.

If it weren't for this cold wind which is still blowing it would be a lovely day. For once we have sunshine and blue skies but it feels sooo cold outside. OH has been working outside most of the day and must be frozen. I've just made him a hot coffee. I managed about an hour out there but, on top of walking to the surgery and back, that was more than enough for me. The temperature is supposed to drop very low tomorrow night so I've brought in my little rescued fuchsia as I don't know how hardy it is. I've put it in the conservatory which is unheated but will protect it from any frost.

I got on OK with the nurse this morning. Apparently the clinical pharmacist was concerned about the fluctuations in my bp so she took it another 3 times. She has to send the results and her comments about the conversation we have had and the pharmacist will decide what to do next. She thinks he may want to increase the dosage of my bp pills but this comes with other problems and risks. While all the blood tests I had were nearly all in the normal range one of them showed I had a more than 30% chance of a heart attack in the next 10 years. At my advanced age I don't think I am going to start worrying about the next 10 years. This particular test is to do with cholesterol but the results can be affected by bp medication. The nurse discussed my whole diet with me and apparently I am doing everything right and the only thing she could suggest was that I have flax seeds or chia seeds on my cereal or yoghurt. This contradicts the diet sheet I have for my bowel problems that says no nuts or seeds. However I did read in the paper recently that new research suggests that advice is unnecessary so I've said I'll try chia seeds for a little while and just have a small teaspoonful at a time. If they seem to upset my innards I'll stop them. The nurse was very helpful and prepared to give me time and discuss things properly with me. I'll now wait to see if I get a phone call at any time from the clinical pharmacist with a change of medication If I don't hear it will mean he is leaving things as they are for the time being.

Now I had better go and sort out our dinner which is oily fish (salmon) with lots of fresh veg, followed by a handful of grapes. How healthy is that ;-)

BIL was here he forgot some plans for fitting the net on the new grass box and has gone back home to get them!!

Morning girls,

Its nice and bright this morning but pc says expect light rain about 3pm and its only 9 degrees so a bit on the chilly side.

I need to do a bit of H/W today and go up the shop to post a little parcel. Not sure if BIL will comem today or not and as you know he never lets me know.

Yes Vera wrap up well when you go to the surgery as Mandy says

Good morning all sunny here but only 7 degrees and that has only just gone up from 5.

My brain is axhausted now! What there is of it. Last night, just before I switched off for bed, the mic on my Virgin TV kept saying that Wfi was disconnected. I couldn't work that out as I don't access Wifi through the TV. (the mic is used to access various parts of the TV -subtitles, recordings etc which canbe accessed manually as well) I couldn't sort it so just switched off and went up to bed.
This morning I got up, went in to my desk top and switched on. No Wifi, checked Ipad and phone ditto.
noticed that the modem light was off so that was confirmation something was amiss.
Crawled under the desk in the front office (Tony's) where there is a huge mass of wires to goodness know what (PCs, Printers etc etc). switched off what I worked out was the modem and switched on again. No miracle happened there so gave up, got dressed and went down for breakfast, Got bread out of freezer, put in microwave, it didn't work, then tried various other things, kettle, toaster, all not working ('sigh). Shoes on went out to garage, pressed to open door, (no surprise here) not working, back indoors, get emergency key and push the rather large heavy door up manually. Check trips, one id down. push it up, go back indoors and all working again, I have no idea why it tripped out last night . Just feel quite proud that I managed to sort it out. But I think I have used 90% of my brain power for today.

Photography this afternoon.

Morning Vera, morning all,

Sunny and bright here too and the wind is quite blustery ,I've just hung some washing out so hopefully with the wind it won't take long to dry .
I've been wearing my fleece jacket to go out and about but with this wind making it feel colder I will have to get my winter coat out .
Vera wrap up well for your walk to the doctors you'll definitely need your gloves and maybe a scarf .
Oh poor Terry he's missing cuddling up to Buster for warmth.

No plans for today just see how the day goes ,since I got up I keep thinking it's Saturday, we alter the clicks tomorrow night .

Good morning

It’s sunny and bright but very cold today and still quite windy. I’ve got an appointment with a nurse at the surgery today for yet another blood pressure review. Not sure why I need another review. It’s at the local surgery so I can walk up there but I’ll be wearing a warm jacket and gloves. Otherwise I have no plans for the day - depends on how much energy I can muster.

nd chips cooked.

Just lost a huge post so I am now giving up.

We had heavy rain and wind right through the night and up to around 1 pm today. The rain eased up then but it was still windy. That seems to be easing up now as well, thank goodness.

Getting a new tap is probably the right decision AnnG. The washer on that should keep you drip free for a long while.

I've got AO on my list of cooker sites to look at Mandy. I don't know anyone who has used them and wondered if they were any good so I'm pleased to hear that you were satisfied with them. You are right about our animals becoming part of the family. Son said that even Terry the tortoise seems to be looking for Buster. Terry lives indoors. He has his own corner with a lamp for him to get under when he feels his blood needs warming up but he was frequently found curled up against Buster.

I hope OH's back is a bit easier now Annx. I had some of those Iris Reticulata in a bowl for years. It stayed in the garden and I would just bring it indoors for a few days when they were in bloom. Mine were just the standard blue. I got rid of them last year as I think they had reached the end of their natural life. The leaves were starting to grow very tall but there were no blooms. Granddaughter is very much enjoying her time in HK. Her fiance is also about to audition for Disney but none of us are holding our breath as they are auditioning around the world and hundreds turn up to each venue to try for just a few positions. Son and dil are going out there at the end of this month to spend 3 days in HK to see F., then going on to Phuket in Thailand for a week's relaxation which they both sorely need. They have a one night stopover in India and you wouldn't believe the form they each had to fill in to get a visa to stay 1 night. I kept getting phone calls from son with questions like "Where was Dad born and where were you born?".

I'm going to stop before I bore you rigid. As you know I can witter on for ever given half a chance. Enjoy your evening and stay warm and dry everyone.

Iv'e got hailstones now just after I got back from corning the chickens.

When Oliver came he looked at the tap and we discussed new washers, then I thought it is about ten years old. After having a new washer how long would the tap last? So I have decides on a new tap which Oliver will do for me in a couple of weeks time.

Afternoon All,

I slept well last night and struggled to get up this morning. It rained a lot overnight but I heard a noise outside and on the roof, so looked out of the window and two, then another bedraggled Magpie followed the first two from under OH's car. Their heads were dry and fluffy so I suspect they'd had their heads tucked under their wings during the worst rain. I'm sure they are the fledgelings from the nest as they spend so much time in our garden, usually looking for food. Today they were trying to remove the birdproof netting in the gutters! We didn't have any of the wind and it's been dry since late morning. Other than pop to the shop when yet another person with a little Jack Russel this time using one of those extending leads lost control as it ran into the road. That's three times it's happened to me now with a different dog each time.

We rarely see Co-op staff serving now and often have to look for someone to serve us. As there are so few of them they are always unloading deliveries or stacking shelves. Both yesterday and today I noticed they had jammed wide open all the doors on the glass fronted chill cabinets the full length of the walkways on both sides. I expect it makes it easier for them to stock the shelves, but they never used to do it and I'm not sure letting all the cold air out means the food is kept at the right temperature. :-S

I've made a few phone calls, got lunch and that's all today, but OH wants his hair cutting! It's next weekend they put the clocks back I think, so I'll be glad of the extra hour in bed!

I hope Mel has caught up with her tail now. :-) The apple strudel things sounded nice.

Hopefully your leaky tap is mended now AnnG. Another job to tick off the list.

It does sound like it might be a better idea to have another range cooker Vera and save the expense of altering your kitchen. I prefer dual fuel too in case of power cuts for one thing and gas is also much cheaper. Having had a self cleaning cooker though I wouldn't want one that doesn't now as it's spoiled me, but I wish it did the wire racks as well. :-D What a shame your brother's dog has died. He sounds like he was a lovely character and they will miss him being around so much. Is your grand daughter enjoying her time in Hong Kong and performing in the show? I would have enjoyed your meal you had yesterday. As for those little Irises, I watched Monty Don plant a bowlful last night and think I am going to do the same. They don't last long as I have a few in the garden, but what an uplifting splash of colour when we need it early in the year! :-D

Afternoon all,

Suns been out here after a wet morning but the wind hasn't been as bad as they said, I stripped the bed this morning and remade that then did a little bit of ironing and got a sausage casserole in the slow cooker .

Oh Vera that's sad about your sons dog, it's so hard when you loose them they become part of the family .
Have you looked at AO for a cooker ,we had a washing machine fro them and that has been OK.

Mel you must have been surprised when you found your miniture a case of hiding in plain sight .

Ann hope OH's back is easier now ,I expect the bending over sorting the programmes out didn't help ,he needs a little stool to sit on ,Colin keeps an old chair in the shed to sit on if he doing a job down there .

Anng hope the plumber has mended your dripping tap ,it's surprising how much water you can loose with it dripping .

It was that quick now its sunny with blue sky and thi8n white clouds and its stopped raining.

I have high winds lashing rain and sunshine out the back with a huge rainbow to the north and pc is saying light rain and 9 degrees.

Morning Anng and all you lovely ladies,

Iv'e got a moderate rain warning and its 10 degrees it was bright and sunny but now its clouded over and the skies grey out the front.

Overslept this morning so I shall be chasing my tail all day now but at least I don't have to cook tonight unless I here otherwise from Stu.

I did myself a cheater mini roast yesterday and cooked an apple strudle type thing and with the left over pastry I did a few cheese straws.

good morning all, a bit damp out there not raining at the moment though. 8 degreesfairly bright.

Plumber coming this afternoon to check a leak from the kitchen tap. So, of course, I now need to go and clean the kitchen.

Good evening all

Thank you for the Hidcote pictures AnnG. They are beautiful and the colours are glorious; you have a good eye for taking photos. I was puzzled by Mel’s Vita comment as well. The only Vita I could think of was Vita Sackville-West and I don’t think she was associated with Hidcote, was she? We need you to put us out of our misery Mel and tell us who Vita is or was.

Mel, it’s good you found the little creamer you made. It’s funny how things seem to disappear and then reappear in the very place we’ve been looking. Thanks for confirming which dog is Benjy. I’d been peering at the dogs trying to see the colour of their collars. It didn’t occur to me to look underneath the dog for the obvious sign of maleness. Doh!

Sorry to hear your OH has a bad back today Annx. He must treat himself very gently for a few days to give it time to mend. You look after your knees as well. You said that I might be ahead of you in the garden but I don’t think I am any more. Today the weather has been really lovely for the time of year and I should have worked outside but we decided to go out instead so nothing got done. The forecast for tomorrow is for heavy rain and wind and there looks to be plenty of rain coming in the following days so gardening will be put on the back burner again.

Today we went to Curry’s and Hughes, next door to each other on a retail park outside Colchester, to look for a new cooker. I’ve been dithering for a long while about whether to get a new one. Our current cooker came with the house but the previous owners hadn’t looked after it and a couple of times recently I’ve thought the thermostat on the oven was a bit dodgy. It’s a large range cooker and I don’t really need one that big anymore as I don’t entertain or cook nearly as much as I used to so I have considered getting a smaller cooker. Having thought it through I’ve decided to look for another range cooker as, in the end, it will work out cheaper than rehashing the kitchen to accommodate one of a different size. Cutting a long story short there was just one in Hughes and one in Curry’s that would do but both were all electric and I’d really like a dual fuel one like I have now. So I’m going to have a think about them and also have another look online and then make a decision.

Coming back and feeling grumpy at another wasted morning I suddenly remembered there was a garden centre hidden away at the end of a long lane that turned out of the road we were on so I suggested to OH that we had a pootle up there. We got there about 11.45 and went straight to the restaurant to see if there was a chance of getting a table for lunch as they get very booked up. They said they could fit us in at 12.30 so we had a good look around at everything in the store till then. I bought a Christmas decoration that I thought would look fine on the front windowsill in the lounge or would make a good table decoration, and I got some bulbs for a friend who will be 80 on Monday. The bulbs are the short Iris Reticulata called Rejoice and they look as though they are a deep purple with some white patterning and a yellow stripe on the lower petal. I have already got my friend a garden gift voucher but thought these would just be a little extra.

Lunch was delicious. We had to wait a while for it to come but I think that was because most of the food was fresh cooked. I had a round tart with salmon, ricotta cheese and sun-dried tomatoes and it came with baby potatoes covered in herbs and a salad. OH had fish and chips with crushed, minted peas and tartare sauce and he said it was lovely.

On the way back we called in to our local garden centre. This had been a small Wyevale which closed and was then taken over by Perrywoods. They have been operating out of the original Wyevale store but always planned to rebuild the whole thing on land next to it. The new build opened this week so we had a good look around. It is lovely there with a 200 seat restaurant but it’s all waiting to be seated and table service only so everything will take longer. There will be no popping in for a quick coffee as you could with the old little café.

We got in about 4 pm and I hadn’t even taken my jacket off before son rang and we chatted for about an hour. He had some sad news. Buster, their old dog, died a couple of days ago. AnnG might remember talk of Buster when we used to post on various threads on the hobbies boards. He was an English bull mastiff, a real gentle giant. Everyone loved him. He was a real old boy, having lived beyond the usual age for that breed so it wasn’t unexpected and he had a good life with son, dil and the family but it still takes time to get over these things.

Look at the length of this post! I think someone wound me up and set me going and I don’t stop till the clockwork runs out. I think I’d better stop before I think of something else to say. Goodnight everyone, sleep well.