General Chat

Morning All,

Slept quite well and it's 5 degrees here and has rained quite heavily all morning so I'm glad I managed a 2 lap walk again yesterday now. I must have gone a bit quicker too as my back and knees are just a bit twingey today. OH has gone on 2 errands so I have got the lunch veg ready and put a wash on. I keep trying to find someone to come and sort the bathroom fan, but am having the same trouble as Gill with them not getting back to me. I think the next step is to put a request on mybuilder.com. I've used them before and they only use people they have vetted.

You had a good shop yesterday then AnnG and will be having a potting on weekend. I must sort out and order any seeds I want as time is marching on isn't it.

Your F&C did sound delicious Mel! We were going to the italian restaurant we went to 2 years ago for OH's birthday, but we think we might get F&C instead now from one of the village chippies. I still can't fathom what you are making, but it seems to involve quite a bit of painting!

The blinds are going to be fitted at the end of this month which is sooner than I expected. There are lots of jobs we want to get done this year so it's good to have made a start.

Another of the big drawers to sort in the kitchen next! I won't want to do these jobs once we have lovely spring days with sunshine.

Good morning all, quite bright outside but chilly, only 5 degrees. Trying to make my mind up to go into town to sort out my Pandora gift card that daughter gave me for Christmas. Had a really bad night last night bed just after 10,30, woke at 12.15, back to bed, woke again at 4ish then couldn't get back to sleep at all really, just dozed so feel really tired this morning.

Mel you had a good crafty day yesterday then, well done and glad you enjoyed the F&C. Yes plenty of potting on to do so hope the weekend is dry.

And it was delicous this week too nice soft hot chips and crispy batter on the fish.

Done a bit of fiddley painting this morning then did lunch and went back in the work room and fiddled once again. Now I have to do the wahsing upand go round to Em's with her birthday present as she was'nt in this morning when I rang.

You had a nice time at the garden centre then Anng and more plugs to pot on. You will be way ahead of all of us at this rate. I have lost my tom seeds Sungold which I like to grow each year and wanted one plant of Gardeners Delight as the last pack of seeds I had were small cherry gd's. I love to slice them thinly and put them on toast and pop back under the grill.

Had a good run out to 3 Shires at Newent . Really well stocked with plugs etc, more selection than Dobbies had. (Although Dobbies actually had the plugs I wanted) So bought some more plugs and a couple of tomatoes to get an early start, and now have 20 to pot on over the weekend.

It was dry while we were walking round outside but was raining hard when we drove home although stopped once we got to Churchdown. didn't have lunch out but did share a large piece of coffee & walnut cake.

And..... I got my pepper grinder that I wanted to replace one that broke and which matches the salt grinder, and.... it was reduced from £14.99 to £9,99.

Hope you had a good walk Ann.

Mel that F&C was certainly fast food then.

very dull and drizzly here now

Morning All,

Slept well and we were up early and to the docs for my bloods. I mentioned about the blood sugar test as well and the nurse said they had included it in January's tests the doctor had asked for, so she printed the result off for me. I was chuffed the level has dropped a fraction again and although the the upper level of the 'normal range' standard has been lowered since last year I am still within it.

Enjoy your tea out of your posh china today Vera. I bet M & V are looking forward to it as well.

I hope you find some more nice things at the garden centre AnnG.

I seem to brush against keys that then delete stuff as well Mel. The keys seem too sensitive and you often can't undo things like like we used to be able to.

We've just had poached eggs on toast and rain is forecast here today. It hasn't arrived yet so I am doing another walk like before next and will hopefully stay dry! It's nicer walking round the park listening to the birds rather than along the busy roads round here. OH has urgent work to do so will be doing that before his evening meeting.

Morniing Vera Anng and all,

It happens when I have typed a lot not just a line or two. This keyboard is very small after my last one but it did happen on that one too.

I was saying that oh had been looking at toppers for the bed but did'nt know what I wanted so I would have to go and have a look at them myself.

I got on well with my craft yesterday and was even doing it in the evening although it was chilly in the lounge.

We had F & C's yesterday and I wnet early to go to the hsop first for our scripts as they were,nt there on Tuesday. they were on the counter when I wnet in so picked them up and went onto the van. No one in front of me and she said Melanie I said yes and she put chips in a bag and two boxes off the fryer and I was away and home by 6pm the time it was ordered for. It only took me a quarter of an hour in all.

Glad you slept well Vera and enjoy your afternoon tea with your friends. It will make it nice for them with the best china.

Anng I hope you don't get caught in rain at the garden center and have a good mooch.

I am posting now incase it disappears again.

Good morning all 7 degrees and dry so far but going to a large garden centre instead of Croome which is a bit of a wide open space in which to get caught in a heavy shower.

Yes Vera I was thinking something like that with Mel. Sometime with my keyboard on the main computer I knock my wrist on something so must activate a key, not sure which one but one of the two lower rows on the right. When I look up to check what I have written a bit later, it is blank and I can't work out what I do. which is why I type into word if I want to type a long piece, or check after every sentence. But Mel at what stage does it disappear? After you have typed and are ready to post? Or mid typing the post?

Good morning

It looks as though it’s going to be a bit warmer and dryer today, a combination of sun and cloud.

I had a fairly good night but was awake very early. I’ve not got much to do this morning, just shower and tidy up a bit and lay the table nicely for our afternoon tea.

I wonder what is happening with your posts Mel. The way it disappears mid-sentence it looks as though your cursor is in the middle and you somehow press one of the delete buttons so everything one side of the cursor goes. It’s very odd and very frustrating for you.

nd he said he looked but did'nt know what I wanted.

Got on well with my craft this afternoon
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOI give up........................

Vera ??that does contour up several picture sequences. Maybe he said ‘give me a hint when I am getting warm’. Can’t really see how he could know where to massage.
I can)t be too high or too low on a pillow. If I am too flat I get reflux. Too high a stiff neck. Holiday places are always difficult.
Yes I feel very pleased that I got things done and I actually began to feel like 'me' again, the independent me that I was before T died and Covid and I lost confidence in myself

Me too with a new pillow AnnG! It's the same with pillows when I'm on holiday as well. I swapped for a thicker one as my top one had got thin and I couldn't watch tv in bed easily. I might change back though or just remove the third thin one. I have to have mine on a slope too with the bottom ones a bit further forward. To think in my 30s I slept without any pillow. OH gets bad necks if his pillows aren't just right. I recall many years ago him at the side of me in bed and him muttering and complaining and pummeling his pillow...........until I told him I'd had enough of his 'pillow talk' which made him laugh. :-)

I see you braved the rain too Mandy and did some shopping and an errand. I smiled too about the blind man as it reminded me of a joke OH told me years ago about a nun having a bath when someone told her a blind man wanted to speak to her. She thought it would be ok and said 'tell him to come in' and when he did he said 'right, is this where you want the blind fitting?'. :-) That old doctor reached a good age at 100 didn't she. It sounds as if she was good and you could trust her.

Vera you made me chuckle about the blind masseur! lol. Perhaps your dad had to guide his hands to the right spot to start........the mind boggles!! It isn't surprising you have been so down, but your tasty sounding meal for M & V tomorrow has perked you up. Just don't do too much too soon will you.

Just half a mile away towards the south they are to build 50 new houses on the only patch of green between us and the next village in that direction. It doesn't seem suitable to me, At the bottom is Narborough Bogs next to the river......they don't call it that for nothing.

Remember how pre pandemic some of us joined a craft course where we did tie dying etc ? Well ithe same people who ran it started a craft club at the same place a few months ago and a few of the same friends have started going. One of them didn't feel very well there last Monday and tested positive for covid when she got home. She thinks she may have got it from family who she had over the weekend. Of course now the friend who told me is having to keep testing!!

OH's meeting at the school today was fine as they have kept all the precautions including windows open, spacing etc.

Nobody will blame you for being down Vera, back pain is very lowering but well done for pulling yourself back up today. Maybe try and see your agap and see if they can offer anything other than physio.

I suddenly felt really tired but have no idea why as I have done very little today to make me tired. Just some admin jobs on the p c like ordering ink for the printer, sorting my ISA which reaches maturity this month, washed my hair. Did have a short chat to Cynth as I got her to get me a £1 bunch of daffy when she went to Tesco.

Going to a different garden centre with Anne tomorrow instead of Croome as the weather is not looking good.

I know I’m not the only one with aches and pains so I hope you are all taking good care of yourselves.

OH, bless him, has cleaned the two most difficult kitchen cupboards for me. They are big, corner floor cupboards. As you open them baskets swing out so you can get to the foodstuffs but it is so difficult to reach right inside to wash the back and the floor area. Of course he took everything out, cleaned the cupboards and put everything back without checking dates etc but a lot of it is tinned stuff anyway so should be fine.

You are sounding very springlike AnnG with talk of baskets and plug plants I bet your baskets will look lovely in the summer. I need to have a think about what to put in my pots when daffs and tulips are finished. Maybe I ought to be thinking about some plugs.

Mel, it sounds as though the chickens have got into egg laying mode now. You are getting a fair few. It’s always lovely to have new laid eggs. Sadly mine all come from the supermarket these days though I do insist on only having free range. We’re still all waiting to see what you are making.

I’m looking forward to seeing Lewis’s hat as well. I hope you are going to send us a picture Mandy, if possible it would be good to see Lewis wearing his titfer.

As for pillows OH and I both prefer just one for sleeping. I find if my head is too high or too far out of alignment with my spine I can wake with a terrible headache.

Like Mandy, I had a smile at your blind man measuring up Ann. I not only pictured him with a white stick but in this modern age I wondered if he had a talking tape to tell him the measurements :-D. It reminded me of my Dad talking about his very first job at age 14. He was employed to collect a blind masseur from his home each morning and lead him around to his different appointments in people’s homes. I never said anything to Dad but I often wondered how the chap knew where to put his hands when he started massaging.

Tomorrow is the diamond wedding of our friends M & V. They are having a buffet do for family and friends in a local hotel on Sunday but were doing nothing on the day itself so we have asked them to join us for afternoon tea here. We had a voucher at Christmas for tea for 4 to be delivered to our home so I ordered that. The company said they use couriers and they deliver anytime up until 6 pm and very occasionally it might be the next day, so they suggest you order for the day before if you want it for a special occasion. Therefore I ordered a delivery for today and it arrived about 2 pm. It was superbly packed and with instructions on how to keep the food overnight and refresh some of it in the oven just before you want it. No sandwiches obviously but 4 each of mini-quiches, scotch eggs and large pastry rolls, like long sausage rolls but filled with cheese and pickle. Then there were 4 large scones each with a pot of jam and carton of cream and eight yummy looking cakes. The cakes are all large rectangles and would easily cut into 16 squares. Finally there were some “posh” tea bags. I am very impressed. I shall lay the table with the best china and linen napkins and try to make it look lovely and we’ve bought a bottle of fizz to toast the diamond couple.

As usual I have nattered on and it’s time I stopped resting and did something active again so that I don’t seize up. Have a good evening and a restful night everyone.

It’s a horrible, wet chilly day here which doesn’t do much to lift the spirits. I think my dressing gown day yesterday helped me more mentally than physically. I just kept getting up for an hour, then back to bed for an hour all day long and I was very down. Apart from the occasional better day it’s been going on for 11 weeks now and I thought I might never see an end to it.

Today I gave myself a good talking to and determined to be more positive, keep active when I can and get back to a more normal life. The pain is still bad but psychologically I feel happier. I managed most of the ironing by walking about between each item, I’ve prepared tonight’s meal, placed an order with Sainsbury for delivery in a week’s time and paid some bills. I was going to try a very short walk but the rain put me off so I’ve done a few more exercises. I am resting at the moment but will get up soon and do another job.

As I’m doing this straight on to Genes rather than typing it elsewhere and doing a c&p and I don’t want to lose it I’ll post this bit now and then carry on.

Ann I find it very difficult to adjust to a new pillow. I have two pillows but they had to add up to a certain height. the bottom pillow is fairly thin and the top one medium, any thicker and I get a stiff neck and shoulder. So I am convinced that pillows must affect your back and neck. so Mel have you also changed a pillow?

Mel you are doing well with eggs now and how nice of your BiL to bring you wine!

Mandy You were out and about in the rain I see, I think covid and lock downs have made the rest of us soft. Still I plead the lack of a car it is not so easy to pop to the shop in the rain when you have to walk.

Afternoon all,

It's been a light steady rain here all day and chilly too, we had to go and get some wood Colin wanted and then I went and got my shopping by the time I hit it all away it was lunch time .

Mel there's a new series starting which is a spin off of Father Brown ,it about a moped riding nun set in the sixties she's a bit like father brown sloving murders , she has been in one of the Father Brown episodes.
It's on Drama on Friday 11th It's called Sister Boniface Mysteries.

Vera I hope your back is a little easier today .

Ann I hope you had a better night's sleep last night , I had to smile reading your post about the blind man coming to measure up I had an image of him coming in with his white stick :-D

Anng your getting your plants sorted out for your baskets I see ,I must get ordering the seeds we want we're now into March and it won't be long before the little greenhouse can go up again .

I see in the deaths in our local paper that one of our old doctors has died she was 100 she was a straight talker no nonsense doctor but people loved her .

Afternoon All,

Slept quite well, but woke about 6.00am. We were up early anyway to go to the farm shop as it's the only morning this week something else wasn't happening. It's rained most of the day here, so no walk, although my back is still a bit achey so it's perhaps as well.

I haven't been able to get on with anything I wanted to do today either! When we got back from the farm shop I did a small salad to go with the lasagna I had frozen which we had with garlic bread today. No sooner had I sat down when OH said he couldn't print with his new laptop. That took a while to sort out, then next thing he was interrupting me again saying the black printer ink had run out! He's watched me change it a few times now, but guess who was left to sort it out while he was able to get on with his work!!! :-( Still, at least he washes up what doesn't go in the dishwasher and will drop me off at the surgery in the morning for routine blood test, so I don't have to try and find a space to park 'big doors'.

Mel I haven't opened any of my clay yet so fingers crossed it won't have dried out much. I'm sure on that session I did online the teacher gave tips for softening it or storing it in the fridge? I will see if I made a note and check my clay when I find it?? I hadn't thought about it changing like that so thanks for mentioning it. That was nice BIL came bearing gifts. You are making me wonder now if a thicker pillow I've been using is affecting my back. I see your food at least gets put into your boxes you leave out. It sounds like your hens are doing you proud with eggs now.

AnnG you are so right about having to be 'in the mood' for some tasks, even pleasurable ones and things do go wrong if you try to force yourself, either that or they take much longer than they would if you were 'in the mood'. :-D

OH will be out at a meeting soon, so I'll be able to sort some things out. With the possible Luton Hoo visit on the horizon, I thought I might make some new jewellery to go with a top. I really need to wait till nearer the time though and see how the weather is to know what I will wear.

I wonder how Lewis' easter hat is shaping up for Mandy and whether the bed rest has helped Vera's back.

It has not stopped raining all day here. no gardening today.

BIL turned up so nothings been done this morning but I have fed the chickens and wild birds. We are now two bottles of wine up and he brought me a big bag of suet pellets for the birds.

Morning Anng and all,

Yes you,re dead right there Anng its funny how it happens like that but if the suns shines I get on really well. It rained most of the day yesterday but its dry this morning at the moment.As I don't have to cook tonight I am hoping to get on well today I have a little painting to do and then maybe I can get on.

Hope you all had a good night with enough sleep to be able to get on today.

I woke up with neck ache and back ache again and I am sure its the new mattress. Hope you all feel a bit better this morning.