General Chat

O Mandy thats not what you needed first thing in the morning a hard bump on the botty and hurting your wrist and ankle as well. I hope you don't ache too much in the morning wehn the bruising come out more. Mind how you come down those stairs tomorrow morning.

In between doing the chickens and lunch I hoovered the kitchen and did a bit outside. Repotted 4 violas and another plant and a achillia I bought last year. Its a red one and Ithought the bees will like it. After lunch I cut all the dead out of the rose bush at the end of the decking where the little plastic greenhouse is and tie in the bit that could have blown against the plastic and cut the end off as it was across the gap to the oil tank.

Put anything that can blow about away as we are forcast high winds tomorrow. Its bin day and oh said it would'nt stand a chance up the top so he took it over to the bonfire and lit it.

I keep looking at my big ash tree and I think I am going to have to pay to have it down. It is badly affected by the fungus and is'nt showing any signs of leaf yet. It alsoo has that spindley growth up the big branches. Its going to cost me a lot of money I think. Oh could'nt do it now. He's just not good on ladders anymore. When I think how he used to go up the ladder and do all sorts of jobs and he has been onthe top of one of the highest firefighters ladders there is.

Love the fat rain Island I shall have to remember that one. You should see the surface of oh's pond when it comes down like that its like a torrent with all fat bubbles on the top.

So well into The Pact last night I watched the next one on Iplayer so now I have seen four!!!

Well oh has gone to bed after a shower and I think I may just go in the shower now too and then watch a bit of telly before bed.

Poor you Mandy. What a good job you didn't fall right down the stairs. I hope your wrist and ankle aren't too sore. My back has improved quite a bit, thank you, but I still can't lay down very easily so am trying to sleep half sitting up on pillows.

I think you're being a bit optimistic if you think there's any hope of a rain-free day Island. If you find one, can you send it over here please. When it first started raining I kept saying silly things like "It's doing the garden good". Huh! There's now been so much of it that it's ruining the garden.

That's a pity about your clematis and blackberry AnnG. Is there anyone locally who could help you fix the netting? You really ought to be careful of your back and not be hammering and stretching more than absolutely necessary.

Well, we got out this afternoon. The road closure was supposed to be along a stretch of the A134. As we were approaching the area I could see various covered up boards which looked to me like diversion signs and then we saw the closure notice. Well, the chap who told us about it was half right. The road is closed for the whole week till Saturday, but only overnight from 8 pm to 6 am so we shouldn't have any problems taking our friend to and from hospital.

OH said he thought we would go back home through Long Melford so I suggested that we stop at the garden centre there. It's not my favourite but I was happy to go there. To my surprise he OFFERED to drive on to Bury St Edmunds and go to Dobbies there.

Of course the sun was shining on the way and as we arrived it started raining so we wandered round the outside plant area getting decidedly damp. They didn't have much that I wanted but I got a couple of pretty nemesias and a nice birthday card for dil. As we started back the sun came out again and I got another shock, which was OH actually suggesting that we stopped off at the Long Melford garden centre as well. Guess what.....as we arrived, so did the rain. So we had another wet wander around and found some pots of million bells on offer. I had been looking for something to put in two pots that already each contain a yellow argyranthemum. I thought there was too much earth and stem of the yellow plant showing so wanted something to cover it a bit. They only had two colours of the million bells, purple and sky blue, which appears to be a fractionally lighter shade of purple :-S Anyway I bought 6 pots of the "sky blue" one so I came home a happy bunny.

The postman had come while we were out and I was even happier when I saw a letter he had brought me. It was from my consultant at the hospital who said that my scan last week hadn't shown up "any abnormalities of concern". He is still phoning me in June to discuss a "plan for treatment going forward". Not sure I like the sound of that but overall it's good news.

We've had our dinner, a chicken and veg stir fry with noodles, so I'd better go and do a bit of clearing up in the kitchen. I hope you all have a good night.

Evening all,

Mel i like the Dragons eggs :-D they look good in the nest.

What a day it started off with me nearly falling down the stairs I always bring down the two mugs we have our first cuppa in and my glass that i have for my water so I had them in my left hand and i hold on to the rail with my right ,I was holding on but some how my foot went one way and down i went luckily as I went down I sat down if you know what I mean still holding on and still holding the mugs but I scrapped my ankle and pulled my wrist .

We have sorted out the other blind so thats good and we've got the garden table out and put that in place and I've planted up three more hanging baskets.
We had F&C today at lunch time so nice and easy.

Oh my goodness Gill it must have scared you when you smelt the burning smell ,you've done the right thing taping over the switch until you can get it checked out .

AnnG thats a shame the rain and wind have brought the Clematis down have you got any twist ties they might hold it up i use them a lot in the garden to hold things to the trelis I've got some that can be opened up and used again.

Vera did you get to a garden centre after your diversion trip that was a good idea to check out the route and see how long it would take to get there and it was a little ride out .
How is your side where you pulled the muscle, hope its a bit easier now.

Island i like the 'fat rain ' :-D i take it was extra large drops of rain.

Well I'm liking the dragons nest Mel :-D

All I've done outside today is check the seedlings in the shed and they're coming along nicely. I potted on the runners yesterday, now I need a torrential rain-free spell to harden them off. I might have to build a little canopy for them.
and a look at the taddies feasting on cucumber slices in the pond with their waggie little tails. We'll have to keep a look out for little legs.

Island I fed the chickens and went over the side to throw away three broken eggs and noticed the branches oh cut off the evergreen tree laying in a perfect cup shape so I could'nt resist putting the dragon eggs I made in it and taking a pic. He he he...

Oh is working on the vast mower deck and I have had STRICT instructions not to go round there as its balanced and may fall. I went to try and tie my sweet peas up as we are going to get winds in the next couple of days and he told me I was too near it!!!

This morning I have at last split my varigated grass. It had'nt looked too good on one side and its been in this pot for years. Ann has one can't remember its name but I think it starts with an H. I cut it into three bits and potted them up and picking up the last weedy bit toput ina small pot to give it a chance I looked at the compost and found two vine weevils which did a quick exit to the bantams run. I hope there's no more in the other bits.

Enjoy your diversion trip Vera and hope you got into the garden centre (or two).


Strange weather here, really brilliant sun one minute heavy shower the next, the rain has been so heavy this week with wind as well that it has brought down a large clematis and blackberry which were attached to the fence. Luckily the fence stayed up. I think it should have been cut back and pruned but I have not been able to get out there to do it after having the minor op on my back and told not to lift or stretch. Well I have cut it back now and filled the garden bin. Lucky it happened today. No doubt I have killed the clematis, although fingers crossed it will survive, it is a bit of a thug. Just have to work out how to re-attach the plastic netting stuff to the fence. It is quite heavy weight stuff and I think T had not used strong enough attachments.

Dragons nest Mel?
Care to
elucidate? :-D

Lovely photos of a very happy baby. What joy he would have brought to Jane.
Thanks for those Mel.

Crikey Mandy and Gill! Top of the night time fears - smell of burning and fire lam going off, each without the other. I hope you both get sorted before nightfall today.

After a sunny start we've just had heavy fat rain. I'm glad I didn't put the beans out for the day.

Your email made me smile Mel. Have just replied to it. It is very sad that you are estranged from your son. I have been really surprised at the number of people on these boards who seem to be in a similar position and I feel for you all. Like AnnG I can't imagine what it would be like not to be on good terms with family members.

Gosh Gill, that was a scary moment for you last night. Tube lights do hum and buzz when they are failing so I expect it was just the tube reaching the end of its life. It's good that Sandra has got her flat at last. 8 months is a long time for the paperwork to be processed. Still, she is there at last and getting all her bits and pieces together. It's an exciting time for her.

It's strange that you had a fire scare the same night Mandy. Why do these things always happen at night?

We woke up to rain again this morning. It's dry at the moment but very grey looking. OH has just told me that we are going for a drive this afternoon. It's not really for our benefit but he has just heard that part of a road near here is closed for road repairs. He wants to check out the best way round it as we are taking a friend to hospital for a procedure on Friday and don't want her panicking about being late if we are diverted all round the houses. So he wants to find the best route round the roadworks and work out how much extra time we should leave.

I think I might go and get a bit of lunch ready so we can get out early this afternoon. Then, once he has sorted out which way to go to the hospital, I might be able to persuade OH into a garden centre visit.

Its so good you have nice neighbours to water your things while you are away.

Have just sent a picture of what I found in the garden this morning when feeding the chickens. We also had two deer over the back when I arose this morning. Hav'nt seen one for a few days. I know they have been in as I have hoof prints inthe border.

Oh Mel, I can't bear the thought of not speaking to my son. Sad for you.

B right here but rain clouds around. got neighbour coming in for acoffee and to check where watering things are, next door are away the same time as me.

Morning anng gill and all,

I think oh must have been using my pc as my keyboard is in the wrong place. I keep pressing wrong keys and funny things come u p.

Not a bad morning here with some sun and blue sky with large fluffy white and grey clouds.

My sons 52nd birthday today so Happy Birthday to you even though we don't speak.

Good morning all, slept ok but woke early, which seems to be the norm these days.

Gill, that was a bit scary wasn't it? If it is a strip light (with a florescent tube) in your kitchen, they do tend to buzz before they give up the ghost. so next time the switch is operated it may well not come on. I have two short tubes over my work top and one stopped working some time back and that buzzed before it stopped working. which reminds me I should be looking for a replacement. I suppose it could be a coincidence that it happened after the plastering was done. If the tube was there when you moved in you won't know how old it is so you need to get a new one now I expect. But you may be right and the damp affected it.

Oh Mandy, how frightening that must of been hearing your smoke alarm at that time in the morning, did you find out what caused it to go off, does the battery need replacing? It's no wonder you couldn't get off to sleep again.

I've just had a similar experience, which is why I'm still awake. I was going to make myself a drink but when I switched the kitchen light on it buzzed and flickered so I switched it straight back off again, but could smell burning. I was terrified a fire had started in the loft and OH is in work, so after about 10 minutes with the smell getting worse I rang him at work and he came home and checked the loft, luckily he couldn't see anything and once he opened the back door the smell has died down a bit now. We think it got damp with the wet plaster on the ceiling, but I'm going to ring the electrician tomorrow who did our re-wire to ask why it didn't trip out, it's the second time something has happened and the electrics haven't tripped so I think we need to get him back to take a look. We may also need a new kitchen light. I'm not going to turn the light on again so might put some sticky tape over the switch to remind me, but I know how you must of felt as I'm a bit nervous to go to sleep myself now as OH has gone back to work and I'm on my own. OH has put a plant pot outside our bedroom window and I've put a small stool on the inside incase there is a fire and I can't get to the front door. The kitchen door is right next to our bedroom door so if the worse was to happen at least I can get out of our bedroom window if needs be. With the burning smell dying off now I might not need to climb out of the window but it doesn't do any harm to have it ready just in case. I hope your smoke alarm doesn't go off again and it's something simple to fix. I hope your son can fix your blind, it's surprising how such a small amount can make all the difference between the blind going up or not.

I'm going to watch another programme off my planner before taking my night time meds as they knock me out and I want to make sure it's safe to sleep before I take it. I'll be glad when OH is home in the morning though as I'm a bit nervous at the moment. Apart from that happening I'm very pleased now the chimney's out of the kitchen, the room looks massive, it's about four times bigger than our last kitchen so I'll have somewhere to put a table and chairs as we've lost a dining room now we've downsized.

OH's put some more rubbish into the garden bin and I can finally see the pile getting smaller and smaller, so hopefully it won't be to long before it's all gone. I didn't fancy shredding it as it's gets really windy and I didn't want it blowing all over the garden, so OH is going to carry on taking some down the tip and putting some in the garden bin until it's all gone.

We're hoping to have all the jobs finished by Christmas and hopefully have a nice cosy home to live in. I came across a countdown to Christmas website earlier and it's only 219 days to the big day lol :-D :-D :-D We didn't have a Christmas last year as we had packing boxes everywhere so couldn't put the tree up or any decorations so I'm looking forward to this year's Christmas. I think Sandra will be looking forward to her first Christmas with her boyfriend in her new place too.

Going to watch my programme now as I don't feel as tired as I did before the light went funny on me. I think the shock woke me up. I hope everyone else has a good nights sleep.

poor you. hope its better soon. x

Her remark was 'I am not squeamish! It would have been deep as they have to get it all out for the biopsy but I think he was a bit over cautious.

YOur place must look so much bigger with the chimney breast out Gill. I hope Sandra will be happy in her new flat now she has eventualy moved in. She must be so excited chosing all her things.

Nearly dark now and oh has just taken himself off so I can now watch my programs. I watched the first of both new serise last night and they are on again tonight and so is Our Yorkshire Farm so loads to interest me tonight if I can manage to stay awake. Probably watch some tomorrow too.

Ann cut do heal from the inside out so it must have been pretty deep the insition in the first place. Good that daughter can manage to change the dressing for you. She's a good girl.

Gill that is great that Sandra now has her flat. I hope she will be very happy there and that she will manage ok on her own

Mandy daughter has said she will do the dressing ok I don’t think there is much, if any infection there, it is just that there is a space that needs to heal, as far as I can make out, from the inside out so a ‘hole’ is not sealed inside the wound. But nurse today was one of the bossy ones not prepared to chat or explain. I think on Thursday the one I am seeing is the nice one.

Hope you manage to get the blinds finished.

Evening all,

Oh Mel thanks for sending the photos of little George its so lovely to see him ,I can see a bit of Chris in him and James too, he looks a dear little boy if only dear Jane could have had one cuddle with him .

Well we had an early morning call ,2.20 this morning the smoke alarm at the bottom of the stairs went off we both shot down stairs but we checked all round we couldn't smell any smoke ,so off to bed we went but I then couldn't sleep so it was getting light before I dropped off ,we sat having breakfast and the blooming thing went off again so we took it down and took the battery out I need to get another battery for it ,we have another alarm at the top of the stairs too but that didn't go off ,I think it will be an early night for us tonight.

AnnG I hope your daughter will be able to do your dressing ,they didn't give you any more antibiotics to help the Infection? It will be a nuisance having to find a surgery to do it while away but you need to have it done so it doesn't get any worse.

When I spoke to my sister she was telling me her daughter has a bad ulcerated leg it taking long time to heal she caught her leg on the car door , she has had to give up her job as a career as she can't walk very far.

Gill that great the chimney is all sorted you must be pleased ,I was going to say couldn't you hire a shredder, if you have a Jewsons near you they hire things out ,it would soon clear your rubbish ,you'd probably do it all in a day.
Oh I bet Sandra's excited her first home of her own I hope she will be very happy there .

We have been getting some of the new blinds up today, got two up but the third has been a devil its just a mm too long so needs to have the bracket cut into the plaster, we'll let son have a go he will do it quicker than us ,what we would do without him I do know.

No Mel, it's the top floor flat with another one underneath her. She's really enjoying herself buying everything she needs, her gas cooker is being connected tomorrow but for now she's using her microwave. Yes, we were thinking of hiring a shredder but it's so windy here we didn't want all the chipping blowing everywhere. OH's managed to get quite a bit of it in the wheelie bin so the pile is going down slowly.

Going to get something to eat now, I'm quite tired today so I think I'll be having an early night tonight. I haven't slept very well lately so I think it's all caught up with me.

It sounds to me as though it would have been cheaper for you to buy a good shredder and shred the hedge yourself Gill You could use that as a mulch for the garden. I am pleased Sandra now has finaly got her flat. YOu mentioned a loft so is it the top of a house?