General Chat

A damp start here with perhaps more heavy showers to come ?

Ann, I do hope you find your bracelet.
Could it have got caught up when you were tidying and now accidently be in with the garden waste?

good morning all 11 degrees here so a bit cooler start to the day, quite bright and dry though.
Hairdresser later and hopefully collect my prescription.

Also got to search round the garden as I have lost a silver bracelet, not very expensive but given to me by daughter.

Mel, I'm sure Em will appreciate a home-made cauliflower cheese. I like that too, although haven't made one for ages.
Isn't it strange how certain foods become linked with certain occasions.? Apparently, after grandson came home from hospital, when a youngster, we bought egg custard tarts for him as a light treat. ( I had quite forgotten this, but he hasn't ) Consequently they have become a sign of recovery and recuperation. When out with daughter in M & S recently, I asked if she'd like me to buy some egg custard tarts, but she replied 'Thank you, but I feel quite well at the moment ', so they stayed in the shop.

Plenty to do in the garden towards making everything tidier before the colder wet days are here. Our soil is very poor and we will then go from the extremes of deep cracks in sun-baked earth to water-holding unpleasant working conditions........... I'll just have to get cracking in the gap between the two.

Lovely mild morning here today, but not so sunny. I went into school and listened to children reading. It was great to see them all again. It's a lovely little school, so I am happy to help out if they need me.

I never know what to get for dinner. Its just a case of what I fancy and when.

Popped over to Em's with some eggs for her and took her one of the cauli cheeses so I only had to get one in the freezer.

I like custard tarts and eclairs :-D :-D but rarely have either, Had cauli cheese on Friday so bought another today for later in the week. I think it's going to be fridge surprise tonight - there's plenty in there, I just haven't decided.

I like custard tarts better than eclairs Mel. I like cauliflower cheese as well and I’ve got half a large cauli in the fridge so we’ll be having that tomorrow. I’ll probably add some leeks as well and do some bacon or a gammon steak with it. Tonight we’ve got salmon for dinner.

You are getting on with tidying up your garden AnnG. I ought to get out there but can’t seem to get myself motivated.

I had an chiropody appointment this morning. She has looked before at one or two toe nails that have got bruised but they are getting worse so I now have orthotic inserts for my shoes (and my pocket is a bit lighter!). They are fine in outdoor walking shoes but finding something to wear indoors is a pain. I usually walk around in socks or mules. Eventually I dug out a proper pair of slippers from the back of the cupboard and the inserts fit in them OK. So what with bits of my inner works giving problems, my migraines, my eyes and now my feet I think I’m slowly falling to bits. Good job my brain is still intact - no rude comments please.

When I got back I did all the ironing and OH hoovered round a bit but that’s more or less been it for today. No, I remember I did some paperwork and paid some bills while OH fell asleep reading War and Peace. I think that’s enough to send anyone to sleep. Perhaps I should try reading it at bedtime, lol.

No rain here so I did an hour in the garden tidying up a border. No sig of the aircraft so I assume it is back at the base

I shall thiink of you when eating my cauli cheese tonight Island.

Been raining here most of the day so I did'nt bother to put the washing machine on.

Cor thats a bit frightening Anng. Suppose it comes down!!!!

I have had Sheila here for an hour and a half so not done any sorting today again.

I agree Island I think you are right.

Just read on line a comforting thought (not) apparently an American B52 bomber is cicling constantly over a wide area including our village to lose fuel having sent out an emergency call (they think ) because an engine has failed. BBL I hope.

I think these 'menus' are ridiculous, given that someone will eventually answer whichever number is selected, it would be better and show some respect to customers if they just had extension numbers on their websites.

I don't press any numbers, I just keep saying 'I wish to speak to a person' with the emphasis on 'person'. Before too long a person picks up. I think these menus are designed to keep us hanging on, pushing up the cost on these often charged for numbers and who gets that money? hmmm...

I love a cauli cheese Mel :-D

I certainly failed with BT.

Just done the cauli cheese and have three lots as it was so big. I shall have one tonight with furters or bacon and some peas. One I will give to Em and the other one will go in the freezer.

While all these options may save the companies money it costs the customers more while they search and wait or fail to get to the right people.

Its really raining now so no washing done today.

I have one sub today and its custard tarts instead of choc eclairs and I don't like custard tarts so they will be going back. The good news is that I have my frankfurters this week.

Morning all,

Very grey here this morning and we seem to have that very fine rain as I can see it dripping off the roof over the patio. 17 degrees on the local one and raining now on the other one and 16 degrees for Taunton.

Shopping comes today and my driver is Dan so I hope its the right Dan as there are two of them.

Vra my call was to BT I listened to about 4 options and then ressed 1 this happened three times si I tried 7 which promptly told me to press one for so and so and I pressed it three more ttimes and it just seemed to be going around in circles so I hung up in disgust.That call was 17 minuets long.

good morning all, a bit grey here but dry so far although rain forecast 13 degrees/ Yesterday it was very humid.
Mel yes very annoying. I can just about cope with a phone call (prefer text or email) but once faced with all the options my hearing is not quick enough to keep up with them.

Hope you all slept ok I didn't do too badly but woke up with a jolt when I twisted my arm awkwardly. I have had a problem with my left arm around the top near my shoulder and arm muscle. I don't know what the problem is and I remember having the same problem about 2 years ago in my right arm. It is a very 'deep' pain when I raise the arm or move it awkwardly and is a violent pain enough to make me feel sick. then it just goes not hurting now while typing. Very strange. Last time it went away on its own. Maybe something to do with the muscle??

That was a frustrating time Vera, sometimes it is the admin offices that cause frustrations just through incompetence. I had two letters asking me to book an appointment to have my annual check up (for my pills). Both letters arrived the same day. The first just said book the appointment with a nurse, the second said the same but added to take my BP at home or visit the pharmacy. when I went to book the appointment at the surgery the receptionist asked me if I had taken BP, I said, yes I had done it for a couple of days and noted it on paper then said 'have you completed the form? what form? Ah the form requesting BP taken twice a day for 7 days. Nope! and anyway no appointments until the end of September. so why was the form not sent with the letter?

And the booking service for appointments for hearing clinic used to be awful until I got hold of the email address. Then they did away with most visits to the clinic in Covid and now you just can't make an appointment and they have got the services of a private company to deal with hearing aid maintenance which would take two bus journeys to get there.

It’s frustrating and annoying Mel and I know just how you feel. You have my sympathy as I’ve been having trouble myself today. When I got back on Saturday there was an NHS letter saying that I had been referred to the Opthalmology General Triage Service at our hospital and I would be contacted by them or the private clinic they use. If I hadn’t heard by 1st September I should phone the Triage Service, and they gave the phone number and various reference numbers and codes I would need.

To start with the letter can’t have arrived till at least 5th September as the post was here when we left on 3rd and 4th was a Sunday so no delivery. Anyway as it is now 12th, I rang the number given. It turned out to be the hospital Outpatients Appointments number and it was a MACHINE which told me I had to pick one of eight options to get through to the right dept. Each option covered 3 or 4 different departments but not one mentioned ophthalmology, or optical section or eye clinic or anything similar. There was no option to speak to an operator but sometimes if you hold on a human will come on line. All I could get was the machine telling me to “Please choose an option so that we can put you through to the right department”. I kept thinking I must have missed hearing “Opthalmology” so I rang the dratted number three times and listened to the options each time.

Eventually, after a lot of googling I found a different phone number for Opthalmology Outpatient Reception and rang that and got through to a human being. but I am not convinced the girl I spoke to understood what I was telling her. She didn’t seem to know about the reference numbers the letter said I would need. All she kept saying is that they were a bit behind with appointments and I would hear soon and should just wait to be contacted. I’ve made a note on the calendar to get in touch again if I haven’t heard within 2 weeks. What should have been a 5 minute phone call took me about 3 hours and I still don’t know if I got the right department.

That’s enough about my frustrations. The day hasn’t been all bad. After a murky start it brightened up and has been warm and dry all day. OH decided to help by changing the bedding. I’m grateful for his help but hadn’t planned to change it today and ended up with a big pile of bedding to wash. I could have left it for another day but it might be raining tomorrow and at least today it all dried quickly. Tesco came early and there were just 2 subs and I was happy with both. I also got all sorts of small jobs done and the window cleaners came so everything looks a bit cleaner.

It sounds as if you had a lovely day in Canterbury Gwyn and I imagine it was quite moving too.

I’m sorry to hear some of your family have had a bug Mandy. I hope they are feeling better now and the other children manage to avoid it.

I think it’s gong to be a muggy night here. I hope it’s a bit cooler overnight where you are and that you all sleep well.

Evening all,

Nice and sunny first thing and we sat out and had our coffee but then this afternoon we had quite a heavy shower .
I got a pile of ironing done and had a good hoover through.

Mel hope your iffy tummy is better today, son and dil had a sickness bug over the weekend I think they got it from Lacey as she was away from school on Friday because she was sick.

I noticed fit didn't record some things that had changed over to bbc2 ,I think corrie is on tonight .
I want to see Gardeners world on Friday as Monty has a new dog ,a golden retriever, a boy I think and we should see him and hear his name on Friday.

Frustrating isn't it Mel! :-(

That may be why then AnnG. OH fiddles about with my recordings at times as well. I forget some are also in HD and he switches them over and I think he has sometimes lost them!

Still raining here.

wHY IS EVERYTHING YOU WANT TO GET IN TOUCH WITH ALL AUTOMATED NOW????????????????????????????????????