General Chat

It’s quite a pleasant day out there at the moment as the sun is now shining after a cloudy morning and it has been quite warm. Unfortunately, the wind is now getting quite blustery and the computer is telling me that it is going to rain in 42 minutes. How can the forecasters be so exact?

I had a better night last night, sleeping from midnight to 5 am and then dozing on and off till 7. I’m still yawning and still headachy but at least I have got a bit more energy today.

We went to Perrywoods, our local garden centre this morning. It sure is easy to spend money there. I just wanted a few more Bizzie Lizzies to fill another trough or two as they grow quickly, keep blooming and are colourful. I ended up getting 3 packs of 6 and then we bought 6 good-sized coleus to fill 2 large pots. It would have been about £45 but everything I chose was discounted for customers with one of their loyalty cards so the bill came down to £36. OH is planting everything up now though I made sure in advance that I put the relevant plant by the pots or troughs where they should go, lol.

I am sure your electrical man appreciated the lager Mel. OH has at times done odd jobs for an elderly spinster lady of our acquaintance and, of course, won’t take payment from her so she usually buys him some beer. Unfortunately, she always gets a citrus flavoured one that he isn’t keen on at all but he hasn’t got the heart to tell her so he just thanks her and accepts it. Mind you, he was very touched when she unexpectedly bought him a very nice bottle of red wine for his birthday.

We have a ladies’ club meeting tonight. It is a chap talking about music hall and he sings a few songs but I saw him years ago at another club we belong to and he wasn’t all that good. I will go as I think if you join clubs you should support them if you can but I’m not particularly looking forward to it. Maybe he will have improved since the last time I saw him.

I hope everyone is free of aches and pains or they are at least improving. I’m now going to get the vacuum cleaner out and hoover around upstairs as I haven’t done any h/w for the last few days. I can’t say I’m very enthusiastic about h/w but needs must so here goes.

raining here now. friend called in earlier so that put paid to my planting of the stuff I bought yesterday and now she has gone and it has just started to rain. At least if there is enough I won't have to water the plants already in pots.

Morning all from a grey morning with slight rain.

Its 15 degrees and pc says heavier rain soon. Not nice after the lovely weather we have had recently. I may have wasted a gardening day yesterday doing the bathroom but I am pleased its done and will just need a quick once over daily now. I only use the bathrrom for showering and the loo in the night otherwise I use the little loo. I forgot to say to Nick yesterday that the bathroom heater has packed up too, he could have tested that while he was here and told me if I needed a new one or not. He would'nt take payment but I gave him 4 cans of lager which he accepted.

good morning all, I am awake early and couldn't get back to sleep so I thought it would be better if I got up. Rather than lying there thinking about whether I am ever going to get this hospital appointment sorted.
Very grey out there but 13 degrees already. If it stays dry I can hopefully get the new plants in. I know it seems that I have spent a lot over the past few days but really it is no more than I would have usually spent as I didn't buy plants early on tp bring on in the conservatory and greenhouse. I decided to do it a different way as it was a 3 week break and Cynth next door was away for one of those weeks. It just means that I am late starting. By now my baskets etc would always be well on the way
Hope that you were able to sleep better last night Vera. I woke once for the loo but otherwise slept onish.

It’s been quite a pleasant day today but it is still 17 degrees and a bit muggy now. I think it’s going to be a warm night again. Like Annx, I got quite hot last night. In fact I had an appalling night yesterday, hardly sleeping at all so I was very sluggish this morning and am drooping again now. I haven’t been a good sleeper since my twenties but I am definitely getting worse.

Once I managed to get myself going today I did get quite a lot done. I changed the beds and did 4 loads of washing which all dried well so I could bring it in by about 4 pm. I had a walk round the garden really looking at what we need to do to improve the look of it and decided that a large fern will have to come out by next spring and various other plants reduced in size. We have 2 large clumps of day lilies that were a sensible size when we put them in a few years ago, now they are threatening to take over so they will have to come up and a couple of smaller bits put back and so on. I am trying to think what I did after lunch. I know I kept busy so you’d think I’d remember what I did but I think it was a bit of this and a bit of that.

You all seem to be doing well with your gardens. I’m amazed at how much you manage to do Mel. I’m exhausted just thinking about all your work. Your new plants sound good AnnG. I am sure your garden will look a picture.

That’s good you’ve got your bathroom lights sorted Mel. As you say, at least you will be able to shower after dark now. My OH isn’t too bad round the rest of the house but he always puts all the lights in the living room on and sometimes it’s like Blackpool illuminations in there.

I hope you found your charcoal and that you enjoy the drawing course Annx. We’re all looking forward to seeing some of your work again. Yes, granddaughter loved her earings. Even if she hadn’t she would have thanked us and said they were lovely but we have had two very happy texts from her saying how much she loved them, that they were stunning and “timeless” and she will be wearing them forever. I am very relieved as I wasn’t sure if they would be to her taste. You asked if she knows what work she wants to do. She will definitely be going to uni. Her A-Level subjects give her a couple of options but she is most likely going to opt to read astrophysics. She has got offers from several unis conditional upon her A-Level results and the entry requirements are high. Her first choice wants 2 As and an A*. As an insurance she has also applied for a slightly easier course that doesn’t have quite such a high entry requirement. She is a bright girl and deserves to do well as she really puts in the hours and works very hard.

Right, I think I am going to get myself ready for bed and hope for a better night. Sleep well folks.

Well we both had an energy slump after lunch, but I did plant up the pot and also another one for the other side of the arbour. I pulled up a few more weeds and so did OH so the full garden bin is on the front now ready for tomorrow's collection. We got out the weedkiller to both to make a start on the gravel at the front, but I hadn't realised it was the sort you spray so we'll get a sprayer tomorrow morning while we are out. OH insists on getting a 5 litre one, although I found a smaller 3 litre one on online that would be easier for me to handle. I suppose I could just half fill it if I use it. He's keen to keep the gravel and drive weedfree now he's seen what hard work it is after things have been let go, but I'll have to watch he's not waving the spray over the plants and not looking what he's doing. He will get the big areas of gravel and the drive done much quicker than I would though and I have to say that doing short stints every day is having some impact now and not putting us out of action for days afterwards.

We were surprised to see that Mrs O's side border on the front that she created a few years ago has now been planted with three berried shrubs and covered with light coloured gravel. It had no plants last year. Her OH came across to OH while he was on the front and said she had been asking him to do it for ages. It looks like we are all trying to reduce some of the work and watering since the heatwaves!

I still haven't found my charcoal yet but suspect I must have been banished to a top cupboard in the study, so will look there tomorrow. I don't know how this teacher will do things, but I might need it if we have to use it during the class. With the last teacher, if we wanted we could listen and watch and then do what we were taught after the class.

Is that the thumb that was hurting Mel? You need a finger stall or a finger cut off a rubber glove, but I suppose with tiny things to paint it would be a bit clumsy if it is your painting hand!

It's interesting what you say about plants doing well when they are happy where they are Vera. We have a huge patch of lily of the valley, but not planted by me, who has tried to grow them in the past and failed! No these have decided they prefer our garden position to our neighbour's garden and come under the gravel boards to catch our south westerly sunshine. They've been neglected, the soil isn't good there as it's behind where the raised beds were with the soil trampled down. OH even chopped them off with some of the soil with a spade last year to try and reduce the spread but they have come back as strong as can be! You have got a lot done and watering for your neighbour too.

You have bought some nice plants while you were out with your friend AnnG. I have to admit that I bought the smaller compost bags last time for the same reason as you. Now you will be busy planting tomorrow.

He's done it for me and now I can shower when its dark if I want to. I told him that it worked ok when the tree bulbs had gone so he disconnected three of the ceiling lights and now it work ok. It was always too bright in there when all the lights were working but that was oh as he needed a lot of light he said. I am so very pleased I can use the lights again now before the winter arrives with the early darkness. I have been without them since a year February last.

Got all the bathroom done in the end so that a good job out of the way and now its too late to do anything else so I shall cook my dinner and relax for the evening.

I don't know if any of you knew but Dick and Angel have another program on about their travels around France. I know M<andy used to watch them .

May have been misread as the 1st !!! My knees are letting me know they are there after yesterdays garden work. I am nearly through the bathroom just the shower doors to do which I hate and the handbasin all the rest is done and scrubbed and it won't be getting again for at least two apart from the loo. I bet when he comes he will turn it on and it will be ok.

My thumb has decided to skin itself and the palm of my hand. Jane's used to do the same all around the thumb nail. I have some cream to put on it but if I am casting in plaster I can't put it on as if I get a little tiny bit on the plaster before painting the paint won't go on.

Hope you find your charcoal Ann.

More money on the garden Anng hope you enjoyed your retail therapy. YOur warmer than me today as its only 16 degrees here and still cloudy but bright if you know what I mean.

Right onwards and upwards and get the blimmin bathroom finished.

Friend came round and we went back to Norton, our local garden centre and I spent another £40 on more plants and a small bag of compost. about a third the normal sized bag so an expensive way to but it but at least I can lift it. I will mix it with some of my own compost.
The sun is shining now, it has been cloudy all day. It is 20 degrees and 'muggy'.

I bought two packs bedding begonias, marigolds, an Ostiospernum , a small verbena to go with two I already have in a large pot, four bedding geraniums, parsley and celery leaf. So I know what I will probably be doing tomorrow.

Hope the course is good tomorrow Ann, strange those eggs were reduced. Maybe they realised they had too many or maybe it was a mistake, a happy one for you.

Afternoon All,

It's dull and 16 degrees here. I woke up hot in the night and had to push the duvet down. Slept well though and when OH suggested we leave going to the farm shop early this morning we both went back to sleep. We popped to the Co-op shop and I got some of their organic eggs on the reduced shelf. They were best before 10th June so they seemed to have reduced the price a bit soon on those. They made us nice sliced mushroom and grated cheese filled omelettes with gammon and baked beans for lunch.

It sounds like you have one of those coughs that linger a while AnnG. Good idea to sleep propped up a bit higher. At least your leg wasn't too bad so maybe that is getting better now.

I hope your granddaughter liked your birthday gift Vera. Does she have any idea what kind of work she would like to do eventually?

My knees are complaining this morning after my short stint in the garden yesterday Mel. I don't know how you manage to keep going for hours like you do. Does your leccy get easily overloaded only it seems to go off a lot? Ours only goes off if there's a power cut.

Well, after getting one of my pots ready for planting I'd better go and put the plants in next. Then I need to hunt out my charcoal that I may need for tomorrow's drawing class. I haven't used charcoal since school and hate the mess it makes. Maybe I was less careful then though.

Morning all our skies are a bit grey today its 16 degrees and pc says mostly cloudy so we'll see how the day pans out.

I have the electrican coming tonight about 6.30pm if he remembers to take alook at the bathroom light switch which knockls all the leccy out whenever I turn it on. There is also supposed to be another pull cord switch in there which has never been put in.

Knees are a ittle sore today but I am not surprised as I got so much done in the garden yesterday.

good morning all. sunny and pale blue sky so far and 13 degrees, hopefully another nice day today but I didn't like the forecast for later in the week with a blast of cold winds from the arctic. We just may have had our summer by then.

Belated happy 18th to your Granddaughter Vera.

I slept really well last night and couldn't believe it was gone 0600 and I had not got up for the loo in the night. My leg was not too bad either. Still sleeping on 3 pillows (one is fairly thin) because of the cough.

One or two outstanding jobs to do in the garden and hopefully my friend is coming to see me this afternoon.

Evening everyone

It really has been a lovely day though it has been almost too hot this afternoon. My head is still not good but I got the garden tools out and a kneeler and planted up a trough with dwarf antirrhinums I had grown from seed and did plenty of deadheading, particularly of my patch of pink scabious which bloom like mad for months on end if you keep deadheading. Our garden is so overgrown. A few things don’t like our soil but once a plant decides it’s happy here it just takes off and cutting them down just makes them put on a growth spurt.

OH cleaned another cupboard and some shelves for me and I went through all the stuff on the shelves and managed to get rid of 3 recipe books. I also cooked the full roast dinner that OH likes and made a plum crumble. I thought I’d better spoil him as he is helping me with the cupboard cleaning. After we’d eaten I went and watered my neighbours’ pots and tomato plants as they are away, then washed out a load of our pots. Now I feel shattered.

It sounds as though you’ve all been busy in your gardens as well and getting lots done.

Well done to your son Mandy. It’s great to see that all his efforts are being recognised. The school authorities are lucky to have such a good worker.

Today is youngest granddaughter’s 18th birthday. We’ve had lovely texts from her thanking us for her card and the money we transferred to her bank account. I don’t think she’s got the jewellery I sent yet, she should be getting that tonight. I know she won’t see this but Happy Birthday to our lovely E-R.

I have just come in from the garden since my last post I had a sandwich (bacon and egg) and a glass of orange juice and went back out there hoping to sweep the dead leaves off the decking by my pond. I ended up clearing the filter shed out to get the pond vac in there and the decking at the back is all rotton where oh put lots of thing on there like tubs of fish food that had got wet, the pond vac, his filter lide and masses of pond pipe and I found the rake I had been looking for for ages. So far I have had two barrow loads of old decking the builder had left up there and ivy I pulled off the fence and leaves and the second barrow load is all leaves from under the chairs and behind planters and Iv'e still to move one of them and then the Hostas in the long soak tray and arrange them better.

I may see if I can get the long pipe from the pond vac back up of the decking and put the planters in front of it with the hostas in and see what it looks like. At the mo they are on the edge of my pond. They have all orchids in them and it looks like they are flowering with purple flowers.

I had to come in for a drink and have a little sit while I read your posts and now I am ready to go back out there and see if I can finish off.

Looking back at the post I noticed I had said it was 8 degrees this morning that should have read 18 degrees. Its been a really beautiful day here today and Iv'e been out there in just a long sleeved cotton top and joggers.

The bathroom cleaning went out of the window..................once I had got in the garden.

I have just come in from the garden (although I did also break for lunch at 1.30. It is very hot out there now 22 degrees and I have run out of steam. I have planted up all but two small plants I bought on Thursday plus 7 tomatoes (two of those may not survive).
So those developers are getting away with having to provide amenities then ann, that is not good enough.

Yes, leg is taking longer than I would like. Not really helped by noy knowing what is causing it. It still hurts but, most of the time in the garden it eased off, probably because I was not moving around as much. I am sure the best idea would be to rest it but that is not easy when on your own.
I still have the cough but it is more annoying than anything, just an irritating tickly one.

Afternoon All,

Sunny here as well and the washing dried overnight so is all put away now. OH was working on the drive border, clearing the overgrown plants I shan't keep early this morning (dare I look in the garden bin later to see if anything needs to be rescued?), but it's too hot now and he was sweltering so has come in and surprised me by hoovering the lounge rugs. Lunch was what I grabbed and was the first thing I saw in the freezer to defrost yesterday which was chicken breasts wrapped in pancetta with a cheesy crumb. We had them with cauli, broc, green beans, carrots and leeks.

Your son is really doing well Mandy and I was telling OH about him as he meets people doing the same job as your son at his 15 schools. He said there is one who sounds like your son as he mends things and makes things for the school and they call him 'priceless' . He has been made a site manager recently and looks after several schools now. OH says he is so friendly and greets him like a long lost friend and tells him 'you know where the tea is' when he arrives. It sounds as if it is a pleasure to do the work for your son as well and really suits him so it's good he is getting opportunities to spread his work ethic elsewhere.

I've just been looking at the plans for 800 more houses on the old hospital site where the old chapel is. The delvelopers say they will increase biodiversity with bat boxes. It's laughable as building 800 houses and chopping the trees down will remove the habitat and food supply for nature and will drive it away and the number of cats from 800 houses will kill the rest. They say there are ample shops and local amenities, but there's nowhere to park at them at the two nearest villages.

Mel it's good you have saved some of the free pots for your friend, they are a good size and wouldn't be cheap to buy. Handy too if Lorna's OH may be able to cut the trees down for you and take the wood away. Do you get loads of blackberries to use from all of the brambles?

It sounds like your leg is going to take a while to get better AnnG as some muscle injuries do. It is annoying when things stop you getting off to sleep though as I know too well. How is the cough now, is that getting better. You are doing well with the garden and putting me to shame again!

Vera we do the same with tinned food, ignore the dates and put the tins back, but like you there comes a time when the dates get longer that they have to go as neither of us fancy the contents anymore!! lol. I need to get cracking going through my clothes or there won't be room for any new ones.

The schools here are back tomorrow so we can perhaps have lunch out. During the school break, one of our local pubs was providing a free 3 course meal for a child when bought with an adult meal. That won't help all the obese schoolchildren we read about.

I agree with Anng as he works so hard doing al they ask him to do. He is a good worker and has been recognised for it. I hope it means more money for him too.

Anng I have to clean the bathroom as I have an electrician comeing tomorrow evening to see if he can sort out my bathroom light which keeps knocking the leccy out since the plumber changed the switch for me for a new one I had but it was no better than the old one.

I hhave cobwebs everyywhere and I only went around last week they seem to appear overnight.

I have sprayed some weeds in the garden as there is not any wind as such just a verry lighht breeze now and then. Its 8 degrees here now so I think I better go anndd find something to shade the chickens with as the suns coming around and they are all in tthee tiny bit of shade by thhe house.

B;llasted Jackdaws I only put food out a little while ago as I hav'nt been putting it out where they can see it just in the bird table. There's loads of them. Tthey nest in nextdoors roof as she has a carved facsher bord on the end gable. They have done for years.
Better get on so I can get out in the garden.

gosh Mel don't mention the dreaded H?W this early on a sunday :-D

Mandy, that sounds good for your son, well done him, he does seem to have a great work ethic and also he seems to really enjoy his job with the school and goes over and above.... He deserves the recognition he gets.

Morning all,

Nice sunny morning with a few clouds, hoping it's going to be a bit warmer this week so we can get a few more jobs done in the garden ,don't think we're doing much today I could feel my back had enough yesterday so will have a bit of a rest today ,we're off to sons later we haven't seen them this week even though it was half term but son had to go in as they were having new windows put in at the school .
He has been given another school to sort out on top of this one the head chap said that out of the forty caretakers they have he's the best one they have ever had ,this school he's been given has had no checks for a few years so how they have kept open I don't know they were on nought percent blow me I've forgotten the word now compliance thats it but he got them on to forty-one percent in the short time he was there .
He might be given another school before Christmas if he takes that on he will be made site manager.

Morning Anng and all,

Beutiful morning here and like you pale blue sky and plenty of the yellow stuff and pc says 16 degrees and mostly sunny.

I have friends calling in today for some pots I picked up for them. They are the bigger 1 and a half and 2 litre pots which a neighbour was clearing out and had them outside for free. Lorna does plants outside her house at the crossroads on the way into Shebear.

Slept really well and now I must have a hoover before they come. Her hubby may cut some of the trees down in the top garden for me in the winter. He has a good neighbour who has all the gear apparently as they are going to need a lot of gear to get in there with all the brimbles but he want the wood sop lets hope this time someone will come and do it just for the wood.