General Chat

I was looking this morning Huia, your house is in a beautiful position, and quite large by the looks of it. The photos of the dam are interesting.

Caz

I now have 4 blogspots! The one many of you have visited, one on building Hunua Dams, one on building our house, and now one of old NZ postcards. If anybody wants to see them just visit the usual site and then click on my profile. It names the 4 sites and you can click on each one in turn. Or I hope you can. That is what I do with Ann's blogs.

Huia off to bed now.

I didnt finish scrubbing the verandah. I got a bit fed up. I have done the worst bits and maybe one day next week I will just spray it with the special stuff.

I have put a few more photos on my blog, Jean.

Huia.

Hello to all my dear friends,
I do miss you and the chatter. I am pleased to see you are all well and so nice to hear that Jeff is doing so well, and that you Jean are in command of your vertigo.
I would love to see the blog with all the cards and pictures but I haven't been able to access the site and now I cant remember the address.
Mo I think I would feel a bit cranky too if I thought he was giving me the P---s.
Just get your wine out and have a large glass you will feel better.

Huia you are doing very well with your weight loss, a big cheer for Huia :-D
Hi to Ann ,Sallie Marilyn, Caz I hope you are well.

Dutch according to my Calendar it is your Birthday ??have I got it right anyway Happy Birthday we are allowed to have Xmas in July so you can have the extra Birthday Wish <3
Linda wishing you good health also.
We have had 5 beautiful day's of Sunshine but the weather forecast is for more rain and snow on the Higher peaks, DRAT DRAT, DRAT.
I must be off see you next time I manage to get into this site


<3To you all Marie ;-)

Good evening girls.

Caz, our verandah has a special finish: fibreglass which is then painted. I am not sure what salt would do to it. I might try a small corner of it. I do have a can of that wet-and-forget stuff but it is rather expensive. One consolation, I lost 800gms weight yesterday, scrubbing it. Only half done so far.

Jean, I will hunt out some pics to put on when I have finished the verandah!

Mo, it is plastic (probably melamine) plates they use as some of the residents drop them on the floor. I have just been wondering if I could get a large bowl for him to use. I will look around the shops some time. Perhaps one of the stainless steel dishes for dogs/cats!

Must finish looking at the boards then get scrubbing. I am an old scrubber!

Huia.

Hello there girls.
It's so good to hear from you Jean and Caz.

Jean I am getting used to be a loser at darts, but when you are faced by a great big fella, who makes you look like a doormat he has just walked over, it does cheese you off, just a tad. lol
It's good to hear that Jef is getting back to his good self again,even be it slowly, he has been through such an ordeal, and he is a big star in my eyes.
Thank the good lord that you are now feeling a little better now. Don't let the b*gger beat you, keep doing the excercises, and keep that cheeky grin on your face for me. mwah <3

Poor you Caz, having to endure the high temperartures in your flat. The air conditioner is a real bonus for you both.
Like you, we had rain yesterday, but it made no difference to the temperature in the house. We couldn't have the doors or windows open for obvious reasons. Still the plants loved it, but so did the weeds and they have grown like no-bodies business.

Huia, I think I would be tempted to have a word with the home,re the plates situation.
Do you get any donated to the hospice shop. If you did, would they then donate them to the home do you think.? It would be so nice if they would.

Has anyone got anything nice planned for the weekend. We may be going down to see baby Lilly, it depends on what her mum and dad have got planned as well.
Nothing more exciting than that i'm afraid.
Well girls take care of yourselves, love to you all. Mo xxx

Hi girls, Jean it's lovely to see you on here again, I had a look at your cards on Anns blog and they are lovely as usual. I will have to start on mine soon as I am so slow doing them these days.
How are you all coping with this weather? It has been horrendous up here on the top floor, over 80 every day in our flat, and I can't go out to escape it, thank goodness for our portable air conditioner. At least it has been a bit cooler today but we need a really good downpour, we had rain yesterday but it didn't last long or rain hard enough.
Huia have you tried wetting your patio and sprinkling salt on it, I used to do that when our patio got moss and slime on it, it killed it off and just brushed away.
I wonder where Marie has got to, hello to Mo and Sylvia and anyone else looking in, Sallie been looking at your cards as well and they are lovely, such good ideas.

Love Caz xx

Hello everyone, vertigo is doing as its told, still fights back, but I am the boss....lol...still managed to do my cards, it was when I went to bed and did too much staring at the laptop....Jeff has now started driving again, not very far but each day he is walking and doing little jobs like makeing my lunch....well he is better at it than me.....cant push the vac yet, but that will come I am sure....
Sallie your cards are lovely as usual, such good I deas, I have just made a lot of Christmas cards for the local hospice,and another outlet, they wanted them in early for a couple of summer fetes...but I am not grumbling like you I love doing them I sent some to Ann so maybe they will go on the blog....hope things are easier for you and that you are feeling better...

Mo you are very quiet these days, are you o.k. I hope you are not turning into a poor loser when you get beaten at darts.....no sulking .....big hugs for you ,((((((((((((((((((x ))))))))))))))))))))
Sylvia nice to see you back , hope you and yours are o.k.
Marie, love and hugs to you too...
Huia, keep looking at your blog but no new pics yet.... so keep snapping...
got to go district nurse is here see you all later....
love Jean xxx

Well, Mo, the home was trying to get some better plates, like the ones for infants, with high sides, but they need to be bigger. Unfortunately they dont seem to be available any more. They did have some in the past, but they are no longer fit to use. I dont know if the staff help him when I am not there. Possibly they do as they help to feed other residents, but because I was there it was left to me to do. I did comment to one helper who was passing that the plate was too flat. Perhaps I will talk to the woman in charge next time I go.

Huia.

Hello there Huia.
What the hells the matter with the home that Phil is in, not giving him a decent bowl and spoon for his food.
There has been a big stink caused in some the nursing homes, and hospitals over here, because the elderly are being ignored at meal times, and not helped to eat their food.
A lot of the elderly peoples families have complained about how imaciated, their kin are looking.
All this stems from there not being enough staff to cope.
What the powers that be fail to realise , is that they will also be elderly one day, and how will they like to be treated as some people are now. It's absolutely disgusting.
Stop let me off my soap box now.

I hope you manage to get rid off the slimy growth off the veranda. Didn't you have the same problem last year with the same thing, I seem to remember you telling us about it back then.
Don't you go overdoing it love.
Take care, love Mo xxx

Hello Mo. Yes, there are still a lot of problems with the site. My big complaint is the reduction in the size of the font. I think GR are not interested in oldies with eyesight problems. They only want to have young people on here. I have the print set on Largest (from the Page drop-down) but it is not as large as it used to be. I dont want to go to the % increase as that means scrolling back and forth to read each line.

Yesterday I went to a meeting at Phils home in the morning and afterwards went in to his lounge to see him. They brought his lunch to him, but he seemed to have problems knowing how to pick up his spoon. I soon got it into his hand and he started eating. Due to his lack of teeth he has pureed food, and the dinner plate does not have high sides on it, so each time he scooped up some food it tended to spill over the side of the plate, until I got a plastic teaspoon out of my handbag and used that to prevent most of the spills.

When I got home I started scrubbing the slimy growth off the verandah, as it is very slippery when wet. I havent finished so hope to do more today. If I ever get it finished I will then spray it with some stuff that is supposed to inhibit the growth of such things.

Huia.

Hello lonely little thread.
Where has everyone got to. I hope you are all well, and not suffering to much from heat exhaustion.

I couldn't believe it when I logged on here, I had messages for someone called Peter, and when I checked back there were a lot of other peoples names as well.
Obviously people had been contacting others, with requests to view their trees, and getting no responses.
No wonder some folk are getting up in arms about this site, and if they can't get things sorted out soon,they are going to lose a lot of members.

I hope you are all o.k, and hope to hear from you soon. Love Mo xxx

Hi everyone,

I'm having a problem with the internet, at first I thought that it was only with the GR site, but it's the internet itself.

I've tried throughout the day to send PMs to a few people, but with not much luck. So I would like to say thank you for the lovely surprise I had from some of our friends on here. As soon as the internet behaves itself, I'll send each of you a PM....just hope it won't be too long.


Hopefully, I'll speak to you all soon. Take care.



Love, Sallie.xxx

Good evening to all the up-toppers. And good whatever to Sylvia, probably tucked up in bed fast asleep.

I went down to Hamilton yesterday for a funeral, almost 2 hours drive away. Afterwards I went to their library to look at their old photos, as I have a lot of Hamilton from over a century ago, but they were not easy to look at, all on cards in drawers. Some time I must hunt out all of mine and take them down to see if they want to copy any. They would just be on loan to them. I have scanned them, but they prefer to scan them themselves, or photograph them to a high definition.

I slept well last night, so I really must avoid spending long hours on my computer and having daytime naps.

Huia.

I also think the advice they are given with first babies these days that there is nothing wrong with picking baby up when he/she cries.

Hi all
xxx


lovely sunny day today. It's also a Civic Holiday in most provinces (not in Quebec) ...... that means each province has set the date AND the reason for the holiday! Here, it's called BC Day. In Nova Scotia, it's Natal Day :-S


Mo .......... J&M are exactly the same with MJ, and have been since the day he was born

as you say, they've built a rod for their backs!

He knows that if he cries, mum and/or dad will appear and pick him up. They usually give him about 10 minutes if he starts to cry after putting him down. Usually he just chunners away to himself, and eventually falls asleep.

Actually, J is more likely than M just to check that he is comfortable, hasn't got his head or hand caught, etc, and then go away again. But even that has brought the attention.

M can't stand his son crying, has to soothe him.

I blame these baby monitors that everyone seems to sue these days!



Have a good day everyone



sylvia
xx

Hello girls.
Ahhh Sylvia, what a shame that MJ, didn't recognise you at first. But then his little brain has been collecting so much information since you last saw him, that he was bound to forget I suppose.
It such a pity that you are so far away from him.
How fortunate that you noticed that your woman friend was unwell. You all probably saved her life my friend, by noticing the difference in her. Sometimes it needs an outsider to notice the changes in a person, as when you are with someone 24/7 you take things for granted,and assume things are as they should be.
And how brave of your friends to continue their holiday, with nothing but the clothing on their backs. I'm afraid I would have just given up, and gone home.

Sallie, keep that chin up, and kick that depression into touch. Don't let it get to you love we are all here for you still.

Well, I will tell you about our night of baby sitting young Lilly, last saturday night.
When we arrived she was in fine form, full of smiles and laughter.
Roly took her mum and dad to the wedding reception they were going to, and I got stuck in to the job in hand.
I fed, winded, changed her bottom for her, and put her down for her sleep.
Only she decided she didn't want to sleep, so she screamed for one hour thirty minutes.
Whilst she was screaming, she would stop, and listen to see if she was going to be picked up, but NO, I was determined not to give in.
In the end she cried herself to sleep.
She is only like this because when she cries, her mum picks her up and cuddles her.
We told her she is making a rod for her own back, and for anyone who is baby sitting her.
Roly has got to the age where he cant stand the screaming anymore, but I find I tend to switch off to it. So if we are needed for sitting in the future, it looks like it will be just me doing it.
As far as I am concerned, if a baby is fed, winded and dry, then there is nothing wrong when the child cries, except for attention seeking.
Oooh I am a hard woman arn't I. LOL
I love Lilly and would not see any harm come to her, but temper tantrums dont work with me.

Well girls, I hope you are all enjoying this lovely warm weather. It is supposed to be even hotter tomorrow. So be sure to keep in the shade as much as possible, or use your sun protection.

Jean, I hope you are feeling a bit better today love. ((((((((((((((HUGS))))))))))

Bye for now my lovelies. Love Mo xxx

Hi all
xxx


Have now read back, and caught up on all your news

Do hope that things are improving, or at least comfortable, for those with pain



take care everyone



s
xx

Hi Sylvia,

It's lovely to see you back and hope the results from the biopsy will all be clear for you. I will be keeping my fingers crossed for you.

I'm so pleased that you and OH had a lovely holiday. I bet you were so thrilled to see MJ and to be able to give him some big hugs and kisses.
My mother always wished that she was living nearby and not down in S Wales so that she could have seen Richard and Jennie more often.


Hope that all will go well for your friend and that she will make a very good recovery.



Caz, how are things with you? I know that you have been suffering from depression quite a bit lately.....you have had and still have a lot to worry about, so it's no wonder you are so down. I hope Phil is feeling better now and that he has regained most of his strength after having pneumonia.
Have you been able to make any more cards lately? I haven't been able to do any over the last four or five days after the upset with Richard and Christie. I feel a bit better to what I have been feeling, but still not back on form. I just hope that the " dreaded depression " won't come back because of it.



Hope all our other friends on here are alright. Take care everyone.


Speak to you all again soon.



Love, Sallie.xxx

Hi all


Herewith the trip!


We got back on Wednesday. Then spent the day with OH unpacking the cases, and doing the washing! My back was very painful ........... I'd managed without too much trouble for most of the trip, but there was some quite dreadful rocking on the train on Tuesday which I think was the final straw. Plus the fact that I couldn't do one of my exercises, which was actually one of the most important ones (or so the physio told me on Thursday!).

We had a wonderful time

One week with J, M and MJ ................

MJ has really grown, is on the verge of walking and has 2 or 3 words. He takes his time to accept people .......... although I did get a smile on our first morning. It was another 3 days before he would sit on my knee! However, we went back to the house on the Thursday evening before leaving on the train, having been away since the Sunday (so, 4 days) .......... J stopped at the day care to pick up M ............. and he broke into a broad smile when he saw us in the car!

5 days at the conference, which turned out to be much more interesting that I had feared. Several of our good friends from across the country were there, so it was great to meet up with them.

There was one rather worrying time ............... one of our friends, a woman of around 50, was "not right", and got worse as the week progressed. She was hesitant, then gradually became more and more disoriented .............. by Wednesday, about 6 of us were very worried about her. She is in the middle of moving to a new job hundreds of miles away from where she currently lives, so we thought fatigue, dehydration, even medication not working properly.

Anyway, she eventually got home on Thursday, but slept in all day on Friday ............. her husband took her to emergency on Friday evening. Within an hour she had been transferred to a larger hospital in a nearby town. She was operated on on Sunday morning ......... the cause of the problem was a large tumour on the left side of her brain. The operation went well, but she is still in Intensive Care, and we are waiting anxiously to hear how she will be.

It seems that we in Halifax were the first to see any symptoms although the surgeons think the tumour had been growing for quite a long time. So the whole episode from showing symptoms to operation was 7 days!

Her husband thinks chemo and radiation will be in the cards ...... as well as rehabilitation etc.


Then we had the 6 days on the train ................ it was much busier than when we do it in the winter, but, as usual, we found a congenial group of people, and spent most of our time in one of the dome cars talking and laughing!

I went to physio on Thursday, and he tried to work out the kinks in my back.

Friday was the biopsy day. I had to lie on my side pinned into a mammogram machine. They had to find the site (or sites) of the calcifications, give me local anaesthetic, then get a sort of tiny knife in there through a tiny incision, and take very thin slices. They took about 5, then went away and examined them under ultra high power magnification. Luckily, everything went fast and they didn't have to do too many repeat "slices", so I was only pinned there for about 30 minutes.

I am now bruised and sore! Technicolor isn't in it!

I have already made an appointment with my Family Doctor for August 10, and hopefully, the results and radiologist's recommendation(s) will be there by then.

Although the radiologist did say that she might be recommending that another biopsy be done by a surgeon ................ just to make absolutely certain that whatever is there is benign.



One very interesting thing ....... we met up with our old friends from university days while we were in Halifax .

They were in Christchurch when the NZ earthquake hit last September.

They were staying in a small hotel in the cente of Christchurch, which was next door to a tall hotel (the Grand Chancellor) that started to collapse, but ended up leaning on the smaller building beside it.

Their belongings, including passports and money, are still in that room as no-one is allowed in until the Grand Chancellor is stabilised.

They decided to continue with their holiday to Australia and New Caledomia .............. even though they only had the clothes they stood up in, his wallet, and a small amount of money that she had taken with her (she'd left most of it in the hotel room).

He didn't buy himself any more clothes ........ he said he had a shirt that dried in an hour, he could wash out his underwear, and he washed his socks then attached them to the end of a hairdryer, turned it on and so dried them quickly!




sylvia
xxx