General Chat

Oh dear Mel, you do sound battered and bruised. You must take it easy for a day or two and give your poor hip time to settle down. Please be very careful. A friend of ours had a hip replacement about 3 months ago and has been doing really well. We heard today that she took a tumble on Sunday and has broken both arms and her new hip.

AnnG, have you heard from your tree surgeon yet? It’s so annoying when people don’t turn up at the right time. I dread to think how bedraggled our garden is going to look when we get back but I hope I can get some time to tidy things up when we get back.

Ann, I have been overwintering geraniums for years and never do anything special with them. I don’t water them very much at all until they start growing again in the spring. In fact I know someone who used to just lift the plants, cut them back a bit and then tie them to the rafters in her garage. In the spring she’d replant them and water well and they always seemed to survive. I’ll have to decide what to do with mine when I get back.

We haven’t seen the sun today but it’s been dry and about 18 degrees so not unpleasant. We went to Louth which is a small town of narrow streets and it was very busy. It turned out to be market day and I think everyone for miles around had come in to do their shopping. We had a look round the very large parish church and in one corner they had a fascinating little exhibition about universal suffrage coming in 1918 except it wasn’t universal. I already knew a lot of the information but I learnt some new things like conscientious objectors were disqualified from voting for 5 years. They also had the life sized suffragette figure known as Hope, that was built from Lego in 2018 to mark 100 years sine the 1918 electoral reform.

We also spent an hour in the little local museum which is all about the history of Louth and was very well done. I found the perfect birthday present for a friend in the market. The problem is her birthday isn’t till February and by then I’ll probably have forgotten where I put it ;-)

There was a visitor information book in our cottage and it listed a few places to eat. One in particular sounded good so OH rang them and booked a table. It was about 4 miles from here and it was so good we’ve booked again for tomorrow. It was not cheap but we felt we’d had value for money. We had a starter and a main course and they were all really tasty and beautifully presented. Tomorrow I will have a main course and a dessert as they looked good as well. All the staff were wearing masks and disposable gloves and there was sanitizer on every table as well as at the entrance.

Not sure yet what we are doing tomorrow but we’re thinking we might go to Mablethorpe and see what that’s like. I know there is a seal sanctuary there so that might be worth a visit. We’ve been to the one at Gweek in Cornwall a couple of times but it can be good seeing the seals and pups and learning about their rescue and release back to the sea.

At the moment a large glass of wine and a good meal have made me very sleepy so I’m going to bed before I wake up again. Poor OH is being careful while he’s on this particular medication and was driving anyway so he only had a pint............of orange squash :-D

Hope you all sleep well. Night, night

Went up for our F & C's tonight and the van was'nt there so I had to come home and cook!!!!!!!!!!!!! Very disappointed. Wehn I looked on their website it said van not there due to unforseen circumstances. They did the Sheb fest a couple of weeks ago so I hope someone has'nt got corvid.

Its been a lovely day here today and I hav'nt really sone anything. I did clear so pots off the decking so oh can wash it but not all of them yet as some are a bit big for me to move at the moment with this sore side and arm.

Garden looks a lot better for the sun after the rain might think about cutting the lawn tomorrow if it stays dry. I wish the spiders would stop being so active out there I am for ever walking into webs ugh!.
I did sit out for half an hour this evening with a G&T it was warm in the sun but I did put a light jacket on.

Afternoon All,

Done it again and lost a post just as I was finishing it. My laptop is raised up a bit for doing painting and I think that's why I am catching keys on the edge. I slept well last night after a couple of bad nights and feeling a bit 'off', but I feel much better today.

Oh Mel that was a nasty fall to leave you so bruised, wrenched and battered! I would take it easy today. I'm glad Kim managed to contact you. She's a lovely lady who lives in Australia and she was on our thread for years. She put up a pic of her granddaughter with their daughter's family dog today. He is a lovely rottweiler who has lost a lot of weight, can't be cured and is sadly being put to sleep this afternoon. The little girl is going to miss him badly.

Speaking of emptying baskets I must start potting up any geraniums I want to keep. Some have almost stopped flowering now. I've tried overwintering them before without much success, so any tips are welcome! I seem to either not water them enough or too much through winter. My pebble plants in their bigger pot seem to be doing really well and are ready to flower any day now.

Apart from the pots and veg tubs we are mostly evergreen and gravel here so it never seems to get very bedraggled and keeps tidy and green throughout the winter. We want to tackle and cut down the quick growing Acer which isn't evergreen though before leaf fall. We are also making a start of dismantling some of the old exercise bike, so bits of it can go in the ordinary bin! It's a bit heavy for OH to get into the skips at the tip on his own, so stripping some bits off will make it easier to handle and lift. The people who advertise for shredded paper have started advertising again so OH can drop some of our bags into their roadside bins next time he goes to Hinckley.

Hubby was saying today that parents of a child feeling unwell felt sorry for them to miss a school trip, so allowed them to go. It turned out to be covid and every other child on the trip caught it, plus a teacher who is quite poorly. :-S

I hope Vera has the nice sunny weather we have today and has found somewhere nice to go.

I hope Frank is enjoying his Spanish break too.

Now to tackle the pile of magazines in here that need sorting or chucking out. :-S

Yes the garden is a bit like me today. run out of steam!!!

Take it easy Mel <3

Anng I know what you mean by bedraggled, I'm stripping the runner beans today so the raised bed will be bare on one side.

Its 18 degrees here now and I am going to do something outside before I get the lunch.

It is sunny here Mel and 17 degrees, I had a long sleeved top on and walked to the post box, had to change into short sleeves when I got back as I was hot.

I spent half an hour emptying my Petunia baskets which is always a sad job. Two baskets with 'Million Bells in are still ok but the petunias had gone over. The older I get the more I dislike this time of year when the garden is slowly giving up its summer coat and beginning to look bedraggled. I keep cramming things into the brown bin there soon will be no more room.

I suppose I ought to make the most of the sun and get back out there but the spirit being willing doesn't necessary mean the flesh is not weak. :-D

Anng her board name was megirl.

Fed the chickens and oh is out mowing although the grass is very wet.

I am about to give the kitchen area a little hoover with the cordless to tidy it up from the crumbs and leaves brought in.

Up to 16 degrees here now and the sun is trying to put in an appearance.

Right Mel, no heavy jobs today. Just rest and hopefully the pains will ease.

Was Kim only on this thread or did she go on the general boards? What was her board name do you know? I think I ought to know her being on GR since 2003 myself. It is a shame we have lost most of the people from other countries.

Morning Anng and all,

I have heard from our Kim in Oz this morning. I don't suppose many of you on here remember her as she was back in the old times on the thread. She had tried to contact me and Ann let me know because I don't do facebook.

14 degrees here this morning and computer says FOG. Cloudy sky and very still.

I have a beautiful black bruise on my left hip where I fell on the watering can and bucket on the decking yesterday and my hip hurt a lot too and I have a pain in the shoulder blade. Apart from that I am ok!!

good morning all A brighter morning but only 13 degrees. Been up an hour reading the mail on line but better get dressed now. Looks like we should be getting boosters and flu jabs soon but no mention so far of either here.

Tree surgeon didn't turn up yesterday which is annoying. so many of these workers are good at their jobs but awful at the admin surrounding them. I now have to wait and see what is going to happen.

Evening all,

What a dreary old day it's been ,its rained nearly all day and still going one good thing we don't need to water .

Oh goodness Mel that was a nasty fall I hope your not to sore and bruised tomorrow .

Oh I give up when that happens Ann ,I think my thumb on my left hand just touches the corner of the page where there's a little cross and whoosh it's all gone .

Yesterday we had a good day in lovely sun shine in the garden emptied 6 hanging baskets and took rubbish to the tip, I picked a few runners which I think will be the last so they will be the next thing to takedown.

Oh Vera what a shame you didn't enjoy your meal ,sawdust sausages don't sound very appetising,hope you can find some to have a nice meal .

Gill I think its going to take you a while to get all that glue off so have a go now and again as that will make your neck painful.
Hope you can get an electrician to come soon who would have thought it would be so hard to find someone .

Ann thats good your MOT is sorted all done now for another year .
We filled up with the new E 10 petrol last week so I hope the car likes it .

We had some nice smoked haddock tonight boy it was tasty ,it was some frozen fish i bought from Iceland ,also got some Basa but haven't tried that yet.

Drat! I just did an Island and brushed my thumb pad over a key on the left and whooosh.....everything vanished!

Gunby Hall sounded quite good Vera, especially the gardens. They should have alerted folk to the fact only 3 rooms were open really as it would be annoying if you pay and then find it's the case. I expect it's hard to tell what difficulties some businesses have had. The bannisters would be a high touch area needing cleaning after each group as there is still some risk with hard surfaces albeit small. I had to smile (sorry!) at your disappointing sawdust sausages, and would love to have seen your face when presented with the potato mash mountain, No doubt you will find somewhere better next hopefully. We have stumbled into some disappointing places on holiday ourselves when we haven't known the area.

That's good your friend liked the 'rooms' in your garden AnnG. It sounds like she enjoyed her visit if she was so talkative. Fancy you both having working in the same place all that time. Mind you it was the same where I worked and I rarely ventured upstairs. When one of our longstanding managers did, he was 'challenged' by a member of staff who did not recognise him and thought he was a stranger who had got inside the office somehow!! Once they see me again after all this time I think my friends will be seeing a few more whrinkles!! :-S

Apart from taking photos of OH's car to upload and getting lunch, putting things back in my car boot I haven't done much this afternoon :-S

After Boris' announcement I wonder if we will get ou booster with our flu jab next week our later and which vaccines we will get.

I think he's got on my mums old net curtains!

I think Lewis Hamilton has copied Mandy's scarecrow! :-D

Met Gala 2021

Vera look on it as a rest day. Anywhere planned for tomorrow.
They could get round that by having hand spray top and bottom of stairs and a notice. And surely I read they didn’t think there was a problem with surfaces. And what about buses, shops with stairs and escalators Etc?I think it is an excuse.

I am not sure they lost that much. Most of the visitors always appear to be members and we paid even though they were closed so they had their money and probably furloughed paid staff. So not as much expense. And probably lower utility bills as well.

We asked about the upstairs rooms being closed and were told it is because of the problem of keeping the stair banisters clean. I understand to a degree but it seems to be mainly the NT that is finding it a problem.

Still raining quite hard here and according to the forecast won’t stop till late tonight. OH has read and dozed and watched a very bad Western on the box and I’ve read a bit, fiddled about on the iPlayer a bit and got a bit bored. It’s like the Marie Celeste here - everywhere is deserted. Never mind, tomorrow’s another day and, as long as it’s a bit drier, we’ll be out and about again.

Anng They are probably only opening downstairs rooms as they have t have a very good clean up once everybody has gone. If they opened upstairs as well they would have a real job to get everything up to standard because of corvid. These places all need to get some money in after complete lockdown last year. Just think of their overheads.

We have had a big yellow helicopter flying around at lunch time and now it has just hovered over the Gardens and its an Electricity one so must be checking the leccy wires and poles for the tree growth as they come and cut our trees down out the front every so often. Hope they do as I will ask them to leave the shredding oput the front so I can use them as a mulch for the border.

no sune here Mel, still drizzling and 16 degrees. :-( :-(