General Chat

Well this is Post number 2000 on this thread - My glorious Arsenal did win on Monday night 1-0 and the goal was scored by the returning hero.

Still no resolution to the Department of Work and Pensions problem, maybe today!

Talking of earache I do know just how that feels (especially at the moment) - when I was an infant I had a mastoidectomy, and my inner ear was removed and I have suffered in various degrees with earache ever since. The last three or four days have been exceptionally bad!.

It looks like my voluntary work is coming to an end the lack of funding and income is finally going to close the centre - sad :-(

OH has a bad cold - but insisted on going to work.

Let's hope for good news for the rest of the week - starting with the Lottery tonight!! haha!

Love to all - keep warm - keep safe
<3
Gerard

Gerard

WOW! Page 101 and entry 1000! congratulations to being the first person oon this special page.

Sorry to learn that you have not had much good news re income......I do find it strange that some people appear to have a lot of support, help etc but others just get pushed to one side. Have you considered meeting your local MP?
Another coincidence. I also had a mastoidectomy when I was three, in Colchester Hospital. I used to have dreadful earaches as a child.

Right now I have one of those colds which will just not go away. We eat healthely lots of fruit and veg so I am sure that it is not diet related.....throat
is rather sore so have lots of hot lemon.

Not sure what we shall be upto today, I have to send more info about my family tree to a family member. My mother being boran about 20 years after her eldest brother,I always got mixed up and thought that his son was my uncle and so on. So the person is twice removed!

Time to go, so wish everyone a very good day

Bridget :-D :-D :-D

Unfortunately cuts and income are affecting a lot of people including my new son in law...in our area Adult Education is more or less getting the boot...and that as a peripetetic teacher is the area in which he excels....it seems to me that councils need to cut back on their personal expenses and jollies to other countries, and listen to thosse in the job....they are not advertising adult education in the places it needs to be..Ugh......I could go on for hours. And dont get me on the subject of talk talk...it wont let me open any mail this morning and was like it last night...I could scream..............and probably will later if it still doesn't cooperate !!

Dear Cyber Friends,
Good morning to you all and I hope that you all have a pleasant day.

It is soooooo cold here today and the weather forecast is for very cold weather for the next 7 days. So we are going to get the wood in, the big rugs out in the sitting room and the place should keep nicely warm. We do have central heating which is controlled by oil, but the price of oil has gone up so we tend to use that if we have visitors. Also we do not heat the lower part of our house as in the winter we do not use it very often.
I enjoy just sitting watching the wood fire and keep some of my citrus fruits
peel throughout the year to put on the fire, so much nicer than any spray to keep the room smelling nice. This is for two reasons, one to use as just
mentioned and the other for cakes etc.

OH did not feel very well yesterday, I think he is having to much fruit each day which he has as smoothies....the only way he will eat fruit!! But true to most men he will not listen....... Sorry chaps :-( :-D :-D

Green fingers, has your son in law tried Private Tuition? There are still parents who will pay for their children to have tuition at home or at the home of the teacher. One of my sons did this some 20 years ago and still does some from time to time..

I do agree with you about the " Jollies" that teachers go on in the name of education.....seems to me that it is really not necessary. The best we ever had when I was at junior school in the 1950s was a trip to Epping Forest and when in High School a trip to museums.

I know that the teachers have to take work home...who doesn't, and that they believe that they do not earn enough...who does. But they also go on strike, which I will never support........what would happen if all Police, Firemen, Doctors etc did the sam !?

Oh dear, I think I have said enough,


Best wishes to you all

Bridget


:-) :-) :-)

How strange! Gerard and Bridget both having mastoid ops as children. Well - not to be outdone - so have I!! I had three ops - two on the left and one on the right ear. Spent my 4th birthday in hospital. I suppose that was before either of you were born - but we won't go into that!

Mine all started with measles, followed immediately by whooping cough and diphtheria - all of those things for which immunisation was still being 'talked about' at that time. It left me with a partial loss of hearing in the left ear, which discharged each time I caught a cold (and that was very often) but the perforation in the eardrum was never discovered until my obstetrician found it when syringing my ear after one of my checkups for my fourth pregnancy.

I have never had the perforation closed up. I just make sure that I don't allow a cold to develop far before getting help. I find that my yearly flu needle is a great help too. I don't get near the amount of colds that I had when I was younger.

These days, I use the partial loss of hearing to my advantage. If I can't go to sleep on my left side because I think I can hear strange 'noises', I just turn over and lie on my 'good' ear and I can't hear anything when I rely entirely on the left one! Sounds silly, I know - but it works for me.

Berona,
Strangely Gerard and I have a connection going back a few generations, so maybe that is the medical connection. Now we have a trio!!

I still suffered from earaches in the other ear and still do from time to time but antibiotics are seldom used. I think we should only use them when really necessary.

I am being very lazy today because OH wants to go to the English Bar tonight and there will be lots of singing reciting poems etc and is almost like a " hoolly" night out in Ireland. I have to remember NOT to get going in the Irish Dancing, my knees will not take it after there ops!!

Bridget

My daughter is a teacher, and went on strike twice last year, the hours that she works at home, trying to keep up with this governments changing policies is ridiculous. There have been several teachers at her school off with stress, including herself....they work crap hours and too much is expected of them. The children are a joy, but the changing goalposts regards work, and now the cut backs in pensions is too much. To get a full pension my daughter would have to work until she was 68...would you want you child to be taught by an older person. Likewise, the same pension probs hit nurses, physios etc , paramedics, you name it...and again age...my pysio that I had recently reckoned on getting at 65 a pension of £20 grand. what will that be worth on 20 years time when he becomes eligible ?

Right I'm off my soap box now, have a good weekend.Thanks Bridget, I will mention private tutoring, but I suspect given the field that he does, that would not be possible

Good morning to all my "Cyber Friends".

Green Fingers, I do understand what you have written about the length of time people are now expected to work before they can retire.....it really is appalling. Also it has the knock on effective of not releasing employment for the next generation. I fear that we are already on the road of people never actually working. What will the next generation do. For example my eldest grandchildren are 12 and nearly 15. The 15 year old wants to join the army and already is an army cadet and thoroughly enjoys it. He is an average boy but at least if the army is still recruiting he will have a number of years in employment, and will learn a trade.
My Granddaughter is 12 and quite bright but she is the one I worry about the most. She has no inkling of what she would like to do, is above average, but I do not know what Average means any more.....

I do not understand why people from across the world are still being allowed to take recidence in the UK and have benefit payments. Also I have read that there are more children in the UK schools who have English as a second language than English children....is this true???

I do hope that you son finds employment......could he provide " school at home" ? I will try some positive thoughts for him.

Finally had news from DWP in Glasgow - it seems that OH is working so that the government can save money, and we have no benefit whatsoever from her working,and perhaps we are ten pounds a week worse off because she has to pay fares etc. It is no wonder that people don't bother to work!

My desktop computer has given up the ghost so more expense there,at least OH has lent me her laptop
The biggest problem we have with employment or lack of is that everything is manufactured anywhere but in the UK. No cars or electricals all European or Japanese and lots of cheap stuff from China and India. And of course, the government forcing people to work for nothing at places like Poundland and Tesco means that they need to have less paid workers.

I was too sick to go to voluntary work yesterday (and that is sure to finish soon too)

Mind you lots of acquaintances are worse off than we are so I thank God for all I have.

Love to everyone
Gerard

Oh Gerard, trouble is foreigners (and I am not being racist) but watch the saints and sinners programme on BBC1 in the morning and all the people who get tons of help are either black or foreign. Its a terrible fact but they know how to use the system. Hope you get better news soon

Bridget....unfortunately what son in law teaches, art and photography is not what can be taught at home...so for the time being he is stuck.

Regards Jan

Jan

Just a quick reply

All of our advisers at the Jobcentre have either been black or foreign too!!

Gerard

Sorry I haven't been here earlier, the weather here is very mixed from bitterly cold to warm sunshine followed by high wind and more rain.
We went out today to buy a knew eiderdown, ours then OH said that he was going to buy an Electric Blanket !!!! I have never known him to want one of these before. We had to have a look at several shops as they have all been bought. We managed to buy the last one in the last shop we went to. It is a single and it works so may look out for another.
Then we met several friends and each one has been Ill.
Two people have been in Hospital, one for three weeks with pneumonia and one with a collapsed lung! The others have coughs, colds and feel very unwell.....we even wondered if Spanish Flu is back.

We enjoyed the quiz last night, came second from six groups and received
two bottles of wine.

I am going now to watch Pointless, I really enjoy this programme, I have a nice and comfortable new triangle cushion for my back which dear OH bought for me whilst we were out and it is so comfortable .....
Jet and Joe are snuggled on their own cushions and asleep, we have had our home cooked Fish and Chips so no more cooking today.

Have a pleasant evening, everyone

Bridget
:-)

YesPointless is good.....its really miserable here today, dim and damp

Have a good weekend


Jan

OH, the electric blanket is just so goooood. I was not cold once during the night and we both slept very well.
I forgot to say yesterday that we also bought a new Feather Eiderdown.....it is great and so light, I even went back to bed after my morning Coffee, too cold to go outside. We both still have our colds and coughs , good old Lemsip, at least OH will take this...running out now so will have to see what I can buy here.
I went onto my tree today..........what a change since last year, not very friendly to use but maybe I need to give it further attention....at the moment I am using the Other site...
Has anyone traced their relatives through the Millenium Records, I am not sure if GR has this.

Tried to speak to my sisters today but both are out so I will have to try again.
On the 23rd I will be thinking about my mother as it is her birthdate. I still miss her
Wishing you all a good day and pleasant evening.

Jan, I am still saying a little prayer for your son re finding a new job......

Bye bye

Bridget

The sun is shining now but still cold.

Nridget FRENADOL is the Spanish equivalent to Lemsips - my hubby takes this when he has a cold. Hope you will both be feeling better soon. Must admit hubby and I have had cold symptons return this week - must be due to the cold weather. Stay warm
Love Mary xx

Hi all

Bridget Hope you are feeling bit better. You are keeping warm

Its cloudy,damp and very cold here.Lucky heating is still working ok,hope it stays like it until bloke comes back Monday to see whats going on with it.

Teri my daughter said that she will try not to come over this weekend so i can have it to myself. But Caitlin has been crying for me all week. I have phoned her most nights,but as soon as she comes out of school ask for me.She knowns i am not due over there until next which she understands.So will see if it stays a free weekend for me

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~to everyone

Keep warm

Hazelx

Good morning to all my cyber friends.
The sun is shining but it is cold, even Jet and Joe do not want to go outside. They have been out but came back very quickly and both are snoring away again!
Oh has just woken, he had a fairly restless night and is still coughing away and feeling very tired. I cannot recall him being like this before. However he is improving so thankful for that. Mary, thanks for the Frenadol reply, when we are out I will buy some as I do not want to run out.

I must say that I do like having different seasons, not sure that I would enjoy living somewhere that did not have more than two types of weather...hot or cold.....what do you all think?

I have been trying to do some crochet but my fingers are so stiff and the arthritis is causing some of my fingers to twist quite a lot now....maybe I will have to buy the shawl I wanted to make ready for my next grandchild due in about 5 or 6 weeks.......

That is about all for today, thinking of you all and hoping that those seeking employment find some, those who are under the weather or unwell, start to feel better soon.

Best wishes

Bridget :-)

Oops
I meant to say, just for fun, " what does the word " idyllic mean to you"?

I will be back in a few hours to add what it means to me.

:-)

Corny as it sound Idyllic to me is a lovely English summer day, the sound of birds, a good book and the company in silence of my OH....we both love solitude, together if you catch my drift.

Have a good Sunday

Daughter in law in labour, in hospital, my son with her. Baby not due until mid to late February. If he is born tomorrow he will be born on my mothers 90th birthday, and she would be so proud.

Bridget, :-D <3 <3 :-D