General Chat

Good morning all. and just like that!!!! The house is silent again. I hate these first hours when the holiday is over and they have gone home. I will recover. and the washing is in and there is a house to put back tidy.

I do miss T's Michaelmas daisies, we had loads but they got thrown when I had the first gravel done. Maybe I will get some more and put in pots for next year.

I too have had the blank screne and the instruction to log on to google. I usually just shut the PC down and open it up again.

Evening All,

I was going to post in the morning as late posts don't always get read, but I don't feel tired so here I am! It does seem weird to not be connected now we have the internet and must be more so living where you do Mel

I lost my pink Michaelmas daisies a few years ago Mel, but my dark purple ones are beginning to flower now. It was so dry in the summer and we didn't water much, mostly just enough to get the bedding plants established, so they are shorter than usual and have less flowers. I hope to divide them in the spring and plant them where they aren't shaded by a shrub to see if they will do better. I'd like to have more clumps of other colours and not double ones like this purple one as the single ones attract the butterflies. It's good your PC is back in action now. Mine did something strange today. It's happened once before where it just came up with a screen I couldn't close that said I needed to go into my google account to get an ID Key number. Ctrl + Alt+ delete didn't shut it down, so I had to do a long press on the on/off key to close it. Started it up again and it's fine again. I can just imagine Little Red allowing for the cart and keeping away from the kerb as they don't forget once they learn something. In my teens I knew a chap who was aged 84 and he told me that he worked on a farm years ago. He said after the war they had one of the horses that had been used to pull the guns/gun carrier. He told me when they first tried to use the horse for ploughing it knew two things which were to run flat out when they told it to go and to stop dead when they told it to 'whoa'.

Every time we drive out of the close now we see Squirrels collecting the acorns off the road near the end of the close. When I went to the shop the trees by the brook were really getting autumn colour. I took a photo of the leaves on one tree through the car window and will send it to see if anyone can identify what the tree is as I don't recognise it.

I see some more of you have been jabbed today. We usually book for both of us, one following the other and one year the Nurse came out and fetched us in together. This time we had appointments a few minutes apart, but went in one first then the next. I suspect with having the screens in the waiting rooms that beep and come up with your name and which room to go to, it probably hasn't been designed to take two names at once, which is why the nurse had to come and call us both the time we went in together. It could be you will get the covid one because you had pneumonia and the chest infection Mandy. Gosh you've nearly done another blanket!!

Well I've finished the food order for tomorrow, so I'm off to bed now to watch Strictly I recorded and speed through all the shrieking and suspense building!

Where's our Annx??

Don't feel like cooking so I am goingt to have beans on toast followed by something with custard..

As the sun went down there was a glow over all the garden to the east and I took the camera out but it did'nt catch the lovely warm light. It was truely magical.

Annx I have been thinking of you over the last couple of days as my pink Asters ( Michaelms daisys) are out and I wondered if yours were?

Nice to see you Gwyn and hope you and your daughter stay away from those nasty bugs now you've both had the flu jab. Not heard anything about mine yet.

Hows the blanket coming along Mandy we want to see the colours of the new one please? Any news on the acorns???

Our agapanthus don't even get fleece!
They thrive on neglect and always have managed in the spot where they are and are multiplying into several plants now from an original tiny seedling brought home from a bed and breakfast stay in Herefordshire. The owner had brought on several, so gave us one. It sits in a pot next to our neighbour's house wall, so is sheltered from any cold easterly winds.

I also had my Covid vaccine today. There was rather a queue of traffic going into town, where the surgery is, so I was glad we'd allowed plenty of time. In fact I was a bit early for my appointment, but the chap taking names at the door said it would be OK and by the time I was actually shown into a room to see a nurse, it was only a minute or two before my appointment time.
Last week, with my flu jab, I was in and out of the building within about 2 minutes.
My daughter did an e- consult to ask whether or not she qualified for the flu jab, as she lives with me and they decided she did, so she had one mid-week too, so we are all set for the winter bugs now ;-)

You went to some interesting places, AnnG. I have been to Dartmouth, Dartmouth Castle and then we took a small boat back along the river to the town. We visited Brixham too on the same holiday- very steep streets in places, if I remember right.
Although not great weather, you seemed to make good use of your time.
Aren't the mornings dark now? Today it has been gloomy all day and no sign of the sun. Without the cold wind though, it hasn't seemed too cold and it was mostly dry, but with dampness in the air a couple of times. Not enough use and it was more like light mist than rain, so no good for the southern reservoirs that are very low level, so much that parts of Sussex have called a drought this week.

I love my Agapanthus Mel but I never put them inside in the winter. I just put some fleece over them and leave them to get on with it. I wouldn't have room to bring them in anyway.

Just remembered the name, Agapanthus.

Oh and I always had ours together I would have thought you both could too Mandy.

Hoovered up more leaves off the top decking today and dead headed thingson the patio then I went down the shop and got some bits. When I parked opposit theres a huge tree stump in a garden and on it was themost amazing fairy muchroom city. I took a pic on my phone but don't know how to download pics from my phone so shall have to wait till BIL comes again or take my camera down there and take more pics.

The suns out here now and its really lovely but there is a very chilly slight breezy wind. I think I am going to go back out and do something in the garden. I need to get some room in the shed so I can put my drumstic flowers in there for the winter. Can't think of the name of them, Vera has some in pots they are blue.

Just back from getting our flu jabs ,we were early and walked up to the desk and booked in my appointment was 7 minutes past two and Colins was 10 past rwo and just as I was asking about my covid jab she called us in it was only two oclock so we never even sat down apparently the person before us never turned up ,anyway on the way out I went back to the desk and it seems when they checked I was down to have the covid jab ,they said just ask when I go in a fortnight and they could tell me why I could have it I wonder if its because i had pneumonia a few years ago and chest infection last Christmas.
.

We’re all jabbed now, flu and Covid for both of us. Hope your flu jab went OK Mandy. It was quite pleasant walking up to the surgery and getting a bit of fresh air. The skies are still grey but it’s dry and not cold at all. It’s only just over half a mile each way so not far.

Not sure what I’m doing for the rest of the day. Once I’d showered and dried my hair, had some breakfast and tidied up a bit it was time to go to the surgery and I know I won’t feel like doing much after lunch. It might be a blob around sort of day today :-D

Morning all,

Very grey here too and I'm not sure about hanging the washing out as there's not a breath of wind .
We have our flu jabs today and I must ask about my covid jabs as there was a bit on the television the other day saying lots of people weren't eligible for the jab this year .

Anng enjoy your lunch out today.

Morning girls,

Its very grey here today too and its 10 degrees but pc says temps to plumet by Thursday.

Do enjoy your lunch out today Anng.

I have the shop to do and BIL may come over some time this wekend as he has the batteries for the mowers to deal with. He's getting them ready for the winter and they are both going up the top in Em's dad sheds as they are better than the old workshop which is drafty and damp.

Morning Ann, morning all

2 different weather apps are telling me that it is bright sunshine. My eyes are telling me it’s very grey and getting darker by the minute. Think I’ll rely on my eyes when we go out later. We’ve got our jabs this morning, one in each arm, at our local surgery so we can walk there.

Have a nice day ladies and enjoy your lunch AnnG

good morning all, very grey here 9 degrees and dry. Going to the local pub for lunch today, just a short walk up the road.

Well until Jake lifts the butt up I can’t tell if it has split so have to wait and see.

Glad you had a good journey home Anng and the traffic was'nt too bad. Shame about the water butt but I am sure your lovely Jake will sort something for you when he comes.

Annx when I had Little Red at the age of three he was only broken to pull a cart. After breaking him in to me riding him when we went out on the roads he would always walk 3' from the curb allowing for the cart. We would start off next to the curb and then I would look down and we were 3' out again.

My man would never read instructuions either it must be a male thing but having said that I hate instructions too and read one bit go on to the next bit and have forgotten the first bit!!

So Mandy a nice clean chimney to start of the cold season. It so good when a man can do lots of little jobs around the house. I like the colours Chelsea chose too. Always liked grey and pink together.

Well I better start getting myself something to eat as I am quite hungry tonight.

Not read the posts yet but BIL has got me back on the pc.

He mowed the grass today and then came and looked at the pc did loads of looking and said he could'nt find out why it was'nt connecting and then went into the antivirus and clicked on default settings or something and we are now back in but how long for I don't know.

I have done both pond filters today but my special hose in the filter shed is broken and leaking all over the floor so I had to l;ug the garden hose round there and use that.

I am so pleased to be back in contact with you lotand thank you all so much for being my friends. xxxx :-D :-D :-D :-D

I'm glad you had a good journey home without holdups AnnG. That week seems to have flown by! Shame about your water butt stand, but as you say I bet Jake will fix something for you. At least the water butt didn't split or crack.

Oh Vera there's no hope then as you've already tried detailed instructions for your OH and even hung them where the garden tools are. Still my first and 2nd OHs never bothered with instructions for anything unless they had to!

Your GD is quite intrepid isn't she. I wouldn't fancy driving something so big to the vet's with a horse in either. It's a good idea to lead a young horse out with older, sensible ones they will watch, copy and learn from. I had one mare and she lived up to the reputation some mares have of being a bit moody and fickle! She certainly would let me know she didn't like her girth done up no matter how slowly and gently I did it. I had a foal straight from the Welsh Mountain annual sales at age 16 and he hadn't been touched, so was a real handful at first. I vowed if I ever had a bigger horse I would have someone else to break it to riding. My word you must have been surprised your OH had his appointment for his scan come through so quickly! :-)

Mandy you sounded like me when I put our old sheets with brown stains on we used as dust sheets out to dry on the fence out of sight, so I thought, and then the windowcleaner came and walked right past them. :-( I think it's nice how you and your son and family chip in and help each other. You've reminded me the remote on my car seems sluggish opening the boot. It probably needs a new battery as it's still using the original that's ten years old.

It’s a nothing sort of day today, no sun, no wind, not much of anything but cloud. I washed another big duvet cover and hung it on the line but when I brought it in a little while ago it had hardly dried at all so it’s now in the tumble dryer. I might just as well have put it in the dryer in the first place.

Mel, do you have a computer company nearby or just a local man who deals with computers? If you have I would contact them and ask them to look at your pc. You might get it done more quickly than waiting on friends or neighbours to help you. I know this sounds silly but I assume you have checked that everything is plugged in properly. A friend of mine had a nice young man on the phone for ages trying to help her work out why something wasn’t operating properly on her pc. At one point he told her to look at the back of the hub for something and that’s when she discovered that she must have knocked something out of place when dusting. She felt very silly telling him but he was charming about it.

I hope you are safely home now AnnG. Is your daughter and sil staying with you for the weekend?

Your son is a good handyman Mandy. He seems to be very practical and able to turn his hand to most things. He must be a real asset to the school. By the time you have finished all the blankets you’ll be all “squared out”. I like the sound of the colours Chelsea has chosen.

I hope OH doesn’t have to wait too long for the appointment to find out the results of his scan Annx. My OH had a phone call from the memory specialist nurse this morning to say the consultant wanted him to have a brain scan and he would get an appointment in due course. Blow me, at lunchtime the post came and there was his appointment for 31st October but I did laugh at the instructions which told him not to wear an underwired bra! I don’t think he had any plans to do that, lol. As for making a plan of the garden, been there, done that, got the T-shirt and it didn’t work. When we first laid out our garden there was a plan but I also drew up a table which showed the name of every plant, where it was, when it flowered, when it had to be pruned or cut back or split up etc. It went onto several pages but it was split into sections so easy to find things. I hung it on a cupboard containing a lot of the gardening tools. I don’t think he looked at it once.

I had a long chat via WhatsApp texting with granddaughter last night. Her horse was sent away for some proper professional training as gd had taken her on completely unbroken. She is generally very good but apparently can be a bit of a diva. However, she is still a young horse. As to the cancer, she had sarcoids and had chemotherapy for them. Gd has driven a car for about 3 years but to get her horse to and from the vet she had to learn to drive a 3.5 ton truck with an animal inside. I wouldn’t fancy that.

It's clearly my week for receiving videos and photos. Gd in Hong Kong today sent me various photos and a short video of her singing on stage so I just need the youngest of son’s 3 girls to send me something now and I’ll have the full set.

Dinner is all prepared and won’t take long to cook. I fancy a cup of tea right now so I’m off to boil the kettle. I might even treat myself to a ginger crunch cream biscuit or two. Enjoy the evening and sleep well tonight everyone.

mel. maybe BiL doesn't feel he is capable of fixing the PC as it seems to keep having problems. Is it old, maybe a new one would be a good idea.

I can't understand why you keep losing posts on the Ipad though. I was using my Ipad all week when away and it didn't keep losing posts.

Journey home was fine. Traffic was not too bad until after Brdgewater when it thickened up and was them fairly heavy until we left the M5 nearly home. No hold ups though.

While I was away the contraption holding up my water butt collapsed and the butt is now empty and on its side so that is something to ask Jake if they can fix it.