General Chat

Nobody Island.

The peas should be ok in the pods if the pods are mildewy. Sorry the cough is still bothering you did you try the warm honey and lemon drink to sip?

Morning all
grey here too but forecast looks good for next week LOL That'll change.

Up at 6am as I couldn't stop coughing and still going strong.
Outside chance but I was in among the peas the other day and they are very mildewed so did a google...... :-( I was planning to pull them up anyway and harvest the peas but they will have to be dumped too, It's a good job we have plenty of masks

It's nice to get an update from Gill, it sounds as if things are coming together.

Mel, I wouldn't take a job where I was tacked either especially after 5 minutes! Not that I'm a slacker being self employed but I have seen skivers when I've worked in an office - nice to get paid for spending time putting the slap on for an after work drink and gossiping too long by the photo copier - do they still exist?

Anng, enjoy the afternoon with your friend, I'm sure you will. Poor lady having balance problems, not nice.

I wonder who's popped in ahead of me.... :-D

Morning Anng and all,

Its another grey day here too but its dry which is the main thing if we want to get on in the garden.

Oh seems to have cured the old mower and has been using it again on the outside of the wall. I must send some pics of the zero turn mower he did up as it now looks like new in fact when we had a delivery of sosmething two weeks ago the driver thought the driver thought it was a new mower and was talking to oh about it and his firm rang him to find out why he had stopped for five mins. It seems they track their drivers and know exactly where they are all the time. I don't think I owuld like that.

Gill its good you now have some work surfaces to work on in the kitchen. Good luck with the electrician and your plasterer. YOu'll soon be straighter and start to enjoy your new kitchen and bathroom. You've done marvels in the garden and now you have all those bulbs to replant, good luck.

Good morning all, no change in the grey weather here, so depressing when it stays dark all day.

Good to see you gill, pity you can't find that electrician you need. Good that you now have somewhere to work on in the kitchen. and certainly sounds like you have been busy in the garden.

Vera, yes I had a good day spending a bit of money yesterday, not easy to get excited over a garden fork and shears though.

I had better get going, this afternoon I have a friend coming, this is the young lady who helped with my dressings on my back. She has had a cochlear implant and needs to walk to build up her balance that the op messed up. she is getting there and is much stronger so will be fit for the 'switch on' of the implant in a couple of weeks. At the moment her balance is 'off' because she only has hearing in one ear.

Hi all

We've been busy again, OH built me a frame to put a couple of worktops on in our kitchen that Sandra gave us so now I finally have some workspace which is a godsend. They're only lightweight so I might use them up in the loft when it's been boarded and the new ladder goes up and the new kitchen goes in.

I've cleared all the plants in the front garden so I just need to dig up all the roots as OH can't do it at the moment with his sore shoulder. He went to the doctors today and was told he has tendonitis so has to see a specialist. He's back at work but only on light duties.

I still haven't got hold of an electrician to move the electrics in the new bathroom so will have to make some more phone calls to see if anyone can do the job, then we'll need a plasterer to plaster the bathroom and hall before we can have our new bathroom and shower installed. We still have a few jobs to do so we're doubtful they'll all be done this year, but at least we're getting there in the garden as I've cleared a very overgrown boarder in the back garden and found around 1000 bulbs and moved almost 30 sandstone rocks. I still have another boarder to do and some plants to cut down. OH cut the lawns the other day and ended up filling a tonne bag of grass. I got an email today to say the garden bin is only being emptied once a month now as they haven't got the drivers so it's going to take a while to get rid of all the grass, but hopefully it'll all be gone before the winter. We're going to dig the grass up and level the ground, well I am as OH can't do it, so it looks like I'm going to be very busy for some time yet.

I hope everyone is okay and keeping well. I'll try and get on here more often if I can. I lost my Internet but think it was a tree in the front garden, we cut that down and my Internet has improved, so hopefully it'll stay that way.

Going to bed now, hope you all have a good nights sleep.

I’ve now managed to read back over yesterday’s posts. Who mentioned the C word? Slapped wrist for you. I refuse to think about Christmas till much, much later. The year is rushing away as it is without thinking that far ahead. As for February, which was also mentioned, I hate it and often get a bit depressed even though my birthday is in February. It’s often a miserable month weather wise but also several people close to me died in February. There was my mum, my dad, a favourite aunt and this year we also had my brother’s funeral. Sometimes I feel I would like to go to sleep at the end of January and wake up on 1st March.

I knew those knitted faces reminded me of something Ann but couldn’t think what until you mentioned the Easter Island figures. That’s spot on. Aren’t Island’s dinky cameras fun as well?

I love your little blue and white boats too Mel. You all have such clever ideas. Enjoy your blackberry and apple crumble. Can I come to tea please?

I did various tidying up jobs, did the ironing, prepared the veg for tonight’s meal and had a shower, all before 9 am. Maybe I should get up by 6.30 every day. We’re usually up pretty early anyway but if OH is up I don’t seem to get nearly so much done. I managed to get in a short walk and later did an hour in the garden. We don’t have anything like brambles or roses in the garden but I do try and take care as I know there is a lot of stuff out there just waiting to do you harm. A couple of years ago OH got Euphorbia sap in his eye and could have lost his sight and a friend had a very badly infected leg from an insect bite.

It sounds as though you had a nice trip out AnnG

Next year I’ll be pulling up walnut seedlings everywhere as there has been a squirrel around for the last couple of days. He goes across our garden and up our hawthorn tree from where he leaps into next door’s garden. I am not sure where he goes from there but each time he comes back he has a couple of walnuts and I know there isn’t a walnut tree next door. He’s stashed some in our garden and also in some of the pots.

The pain from OH’s possible arthritis is so much better that he is talking about not taking the tablets any longer. I’ve suggested he just cuts out the afternoon dose for now and see how that goes. He is still having problems with his “works” though he’s not in pain with that. The hospital rang about 1.30 and said they can do his CT scan on Friday morning and one of the docs from our surgery rang to say they haven’t got the blood test results yet but they will be in touch when they know those results and the results of the scan. He has had good service from both our GP surgery and the hospital.

Quite how I am going to be ready for the two men arriving Friday for 2 nights and the other couple arriving Sunday morning for 1 night I do not know, particularly as we are out all day tomorrow. We are venturing on a coach for the first time in a couple of years. It will only be half full to allow for spacing and they are all people we know and we will certainly have masks. We are going to Lowestoft which includes a visit to the transport museum there. I’m not that interested in the transport but I expect OH will enjoy it. I shall just enjoy seeing the sea for the first time in a long while. I hope it isn’t too chilly – I know from experience what it feels like when that wind blows in from the North Sea. Brrr!

That’s quite enough from me. Time for the afternoon CoT I think.

Thank you all for your comments on my little sailing boats with their mooring bouys.

It is not just blackberry brambles Mel it is roses as well, that is for whatever it was that the lady had that caused the infection, Sepsis can be caused by any infection but the swelling of her fingers without any sign of a thorn was something different which is why I put the piece up to be read.

Ann I do have adblocker and it does prevent me accessing some things as I refuse to turn it off.

Just back from a trip out with my neighbour. today we have been into Wales to a garden centre that T and I used to go to to meet our friend from Essex and her sister who lives in Chepstow. It seemed strange to be somewhere that still says Masks must be warn in this shop.
I bought myself some new shears and a garden fork, but a light weight smaller one than T used which is too heavy for me. I also got a few bits towards Christmas presents. But no plants today.

Just been checking that my car can run on E10 petrol. Luckily it can.

Sent an email Last pics not too good.

I have had a lovely morning picking blackberries and walked right up the top to see if the bramley up there had any apples I could reach and picked about seven nice big ones. Saw Val (Em's mum) and went and had a natter over the hedge, its only about two and a half foot high so comfortable to talk over. Walked back across the front of the potting sheds and found more big blackberries so I exspect its B & A crumble for tonights sweet.

I was very careful not to scratch myself on the Brimles Anng.

Time for a pill before I get the lunch.

Afternoon All,

Very dull here and might even rain. I had a reasonable night, but shouldn't have taken a COT to bed as I had to get up twice! I never learn.

Adblocker has been a lifesaver for us! I don't know if it was to do with the data breach at talktalk a few years ago, or if it's because of looking at some adverts that popped up that led to more, but OH in particular, reached a point with so many adverts piling in when he switched his laptop on, his emails couldn't load!! We both have an adblocker loaded now. DM is annoying though as they won't let you access to even put your numbers in to get points for vouchers. I haven't had DM since the pandemic started, when they never sent me free delivery vouchers they promised, despite me emailing a reminder and them supposedly sending more that I never got. I have lost the value of all the points I already had because of it too. :-S

Mel we can't believe how quickly this year has gone either!! We seemed to get more done the previous year, but lost the wherewithal this year. :-S

I just read the local planning applications and again they are knocking perfectly good bungalows down to build yet more houses, this time in the next village. Two nice bungalows to be replaced by 3 houses for families with playrooms for children etc. What happens when these families are older themselves? Will they want to live in blocks of flats if they can't manage stairs? Even bungalows that remain are often having lofts converted to turn them into houses. :-S

Oh OH's online meeting has ended so I better get lunch!

Morning Vera, Anng and all,

Grey morning here too and chilly with it and a pinch and a punch and all that silly stuff.

Once again don't know where August went. The months seem to have whizzed by for me this year.

Someone has started banging next door. I think they are putting new fence poles up.

S;ept quite well but could'nt really go back to sleep after getting up for the loo and then oh came back to bed and turned the telly on with no sound but I could see sort of changing lights which I hate.

Good morning Vera and everyone. Yes grey cloud all over this morning so far, no surprise cloud was forecast. 12 degrees but dry so far. wouldn't mind a shower, we have had no rain for well over a week, which sounds good except we have had very little sun as well. The apples (which this year are many) are just dropping off the tree and still very small, I have to keep picking them up off the lawn. Still thinking of places like New Orleans it could be very much worse.

Good morning

Another grey, slightly chilly day. Yesterday was a bit hectic so I haven’t read through all the posts yet but will do that later. I had a reasonable night but was awake well before 6 am and now I am tiptoeing around so that I don’t wake OH..

I think it will be a day of doing a bit of this and a bit of that. I hope you all have a good day. Bbl

Island, It was any scratch or wound in the garden that could get infected but the thing about brambles was that the woman got a bramble scratch and doctors didn't think about the likelihood of sepsis, it was the hospital that jumped as soon as they saw that not only the injured finger had swollen up nut the finger next to it. the bramble had apparently had some dort of fungus on it which would have spread and not only caused sepsis but also the infection itself would have spread to her whole hand and she could have lost the hand. As it was she had to have the tip of a finger plus the nail removed :-( :-( to save the hand by the infection being cleaned out.

I do hate it when you get that Adblocker request. Strangely (and I am not complaining, I have not had any ads at all on my Mail on line for ages, not sure why. I didn't think I had given any permition for anything to do with the ads on there, I can only think it is luck.

I didn't see you there Island. I find honey and lemon juice are good for stopping the tickle and loosening a cough, but I can't have cough mixture anyway. I mix a small glass to take to bed with me and sip as needed if I get one. Yes, some plain yoghurt would do the trick as you say, but I'm thinking Cherry or Blueberry flavour that is all I have at the moment wouldn't! lol. :-S The courgette and cucumber leaves and stems do that to me as well. Also conifer hedge clippings.

When did Mandy say the scarecrow competition is? Was it over the Bank Holiday?

Sorry AnnG, I didn't comment as I knew the risk. I was surprised the woman left it so long and that the doctor didn't act more quickly.

Got my car booked in for a service and MOT. I'd read that there is a backlog of MOTs due to the extensions given to MOT's last year so there could be a lot of MOTs due soon. I mentioned the new wiper blades it needs and the warning light about the tyre pressures not going out, despite the pressures being ok. I hadn't realised that any warning lights are now included in the MOT. I don't know, the more gadgetry they put on cars the more they can make you put your hand in your pocket. A car with a faulty warning light for low tyre pressure is no different to a car with no warning light for it after all. I'm hoping with the limited driving that the wheel discs haven't corroded and need replacing, as deep pockets would be needed for those to be replaced! Still a car needs to be safe and it should be good for winter afterwards.

I'm glad the new series of Vera has started and I enjoyed the first one.

Evening all

Anng, I tried looking at the link but a big 'we see you're using an ad blocker' window covered it so couldn't read. Was it just about bramble thorns? Ours are thorn-less but I do wear gloves when handling courgette and cucumber leaves as the make my skin itch like crazy.

Annx, would generous blob of plain yoghurt calm your spicy curry?
I picked green toms from four plants today as the stems were looking a bit blighty and pulled up the plants. I'll cook them up tomorrow.

The climbing French beans have slowed down to just the right amount for two every few days. They're top of the list for next year, I've also spotted climbing haricot and borlotti beans which will be on my order too. Less runners though as the pods haven't been good.

Mel, I used to like it when the decs came down as it always looked like we'd had a spring clean LOL We just put the cards up now and some lights. We gave our tree and a load of 'pretties' to a young family to enjoy.

I'm not enjoying my cough and croak, it's a bit dry and tight so tips for loosening would be good please.

I read that Ann. Thank you for posting.

It is quite worrying how quickly the situation worsened, especially as the scratch seemed insignificant.
Most years I go blackberry picking, so will be extra careful in future.

Any break in the skin makes us open to infection, so I am quick to clean and cover any injury.

I put a link up earlier, nobody has commented I thought it was important enough for anyone working in the garden to check out. Maybe not?