General Chat

Evening All,

Another chilly day and I haven't even been outside today.

Do you think the slow cooker Christmas pud has worked ok Mandy? I don't make any now and just buy a tiny one for OH. He has a small Christmas cake just for him as well. Did you still get that nice smell in the kitchen?

I hope your foot has eased a bit now AnnG. I think I pulled a muscle in my shoulder last night lifting down some heavy box files. It ached like anything when I went to bed but I've been careful with it today and it's much better. Well thanks to you that little lady kitty has a good future ahead of her now and will be cared for instead of being on the streets! :-D

Vera it sounds like the trip and appointment went well, so I hope the results come through quickly and will be good. Your daughter's new little dogs must be looking smart now after the grooming session. I wonder if the female will get used to the clippers in time as she may never have seen them before. The boy sounds quite laid back. The garden centre we tried for lunch the other day was just as busy. I wonder if th Christmas Shoppers are starting sooner than usual!

Mel I bet you were surprised to find Stu asleep. He must get tired though with the kind o work he does. It was good you were able to collect the desk and it fitted in your car ok. I suppose you are getting more used to driving in the dark with driving to Stu's and it's getting you more used to the car as well.

OH had a work meeting at the usual coffee place at 8.00am this morning so was up early to shower. Lunchtime he had a dentist appointment. Nothing painful there except in the pocket! I was tearing my hair out with the 350+ pages of yet another new catalogue from the bathroom shop. Some doesn't make sense and eg they have toilets in there in about four different places that don't relate to what it says in the contents. I'd previously sorted which we wanted in the old catalogue but it isn't in the new catalogue so phoned them and they then phoned me back as they couldn't see it either. They went and checked and found they'd got four in the warehouse and have earmarked one for me now.

Time for my tablet and bed now so I hope we all sleep well.

Little kitty picked the right garden when she came to you AnnG. Now it looks as though she will have a good home for the future. I hope your leg and foot are feeling a bit better today. It sounds as though you may need a second course of antibiotics.

I bet you thought there would be no dinner when you found Stu asleep Mel, but you didn’t go hungry and you did them a good turn by driving to collect the desk

I hope the changeable temperatures with the wind and the rain are not affecting your chest Gwyn and you are nearly back to peak fitness again now.

We woke up this morning to a nice bright day but by 11 am we were getting quite a bit of rain. When we arrived at the hospital at around 12.10 the stuff was just falling out of the sky and we got pretty soaked just running across the car park into the hospital and it has been raining on and off ever since. I can’t get warm this afternoon although it is supposed to be 14 degrees and the heating is on downstairs anyway. I keep putting on another layer and look a bit like Michelin man now.

Daughter sent a photo of 2 smart little dogs. They had been to the groomer. Maggie didn’t like the clippers so she was done with scissors but Benji took it all in his stride. Daughter has been playing all week for a musical quite a way from home but it’s just been evenings and the dogs have been fine with a neighbour popping in to see them a couple of times. Tomorrow she has a matinee and evening performance and no time to get home between them. It’s not fair on the dogs or the neighbour to leave them for so long so they are going into kennels from Saturday morning to Sunday morning. Doggies were used to being at the RSPCA kennels and daughter always sent her old dogs to this particular one so has confidence in them. It will cost her about half of her fee for playing this week but she can relax knowing they are safe.

I think I’ve said before that it’s 19 or 20 miles to the hospital but it’s a good road and, all being well, it takes 30-35 minutes. We left home 55 minutes before the appointment time and there were no holdups and very little traffic so we sailed through and got there very early for the appointment. We had to wait for another 25 minutes beyond the appointment time and then OH was in and out in 5 minutes. I couldn’t believe how quick he was. We were actually in the hospital for 59 minutes which meant we just scraped paying for 1 hours parking instead of more.

Dobbies Garden Centre is only about a mile from the hospital so we decided to go there for lunch. That was a mistake; the world and his wife had the same idea and there wasn’t a table to be had and people were still queueing to place their orders. I wondered if they were going to eat standing up! Having wasted all this time we decided to go home. By now it was 2 pm. We do pass 2 pubs on the way back but we’ve had a couple of bad experiences in one so don’t go there anymore and the other one only serves between 12 and 2. We eventually got home about 2.45 and made a quick sandwich. Now neither of us feels ready to eat again yet but these days I don’t like eating too late or I am up half the night with heartburn.

A real wasted day today. I’ll start afresh tomorrow and hope to get on a bit better.

Oh bless her she's going to be one of the lucky ones ,coming into your garden has been a blessing or she might have not survived through the winter .

The estate opposite me used to be a huge council estate, always trouble there. Most of the houses and flats are now either privately owned or housing association etc. there are well known feckless families among them who don't have their cats chipped and don'r have them doctored, then when kittens are born they are just left to fend for themselves, homes not looked for, she will probably be one of those abandoned kittens. Luckily she has been resourceful and kept herself alive. Her phptp has been on facebook more than once in the past 4-5 weeks and nobody has claimed her.

Oh she's a young one ,perhaps she got out and then got lost ,someone might be wondering where she is but the vets would be your first port of call incase she was brought in i would have thought , nice to know she's now being fostered and then the lady will adopt her and good she'll get her done too when she's old enough.

Suns now trying to shine bit late in the day though but nice to see even for a few minutes as its been a dreary day.

We're having Cornish pasties tonight with baked beans and chips bit naughty but we haven't had them for ages .

Mandy Just heard that it is a female and a baby, apparently quite calm at the vets. A lady who used to live opposite and who always had loads of cats. (Husband and his son still live opposite but they live apart although are not separated) is picking her up today to foster her for a week while the vets try and trace anybody who owns her. If she is not claimed She will adopt her and start by having her 'done'.

That was an unexpected night drive Mel. would not want to traverse Devon country lanes at night, they were bad enough in daylight when we were there. :-D

Afternoon all,

Been a very grey morning ,had a little rain overnight and its just started again .

Anng thats good he / she has been caught and quite quickly too he /she must have been hungry ,you've nothing to feel guilty about as he/she will now be looked after and fed and watered and found a nice warm home for the winter .

Mel were you wondering if you might have to cook your own dinner last night when you found Stu asleep ,poor chap must have been tired .
So you had an unexpected trip out last night and that was good you managed to get the desk in the car .

Vera that was a nice afternoon tea treat you had yesterday ,I like the name Piglets Pantry .
Hope everything goes OK with OH's scan today .

Got the Christmas pud in the slow cooker ,I'm now thinking I will give it ten hours after looking at some other recipes ,I looked at one that was for 8 hours but there were a few others for 10

It worked within fifteen minutes of leaving it down the side of the house under shelter. It started to rain heavily and I guess the shelter and smell of food was too much for the poor little think. so trusting and I feel very guilty now as he was just starting to come to me. s/till he will be found a home. This lady belongs to the local cats lost and found group as do I now. But the lady in charge who would normally cover this area is laid up after an operation. Anyway Ann and husband have just carried him off in their car bless him (or her).

Hope it works Anng is she the only person around that does cat rescue?

Had my feet done and went to the shop after to post a parcel so that two good things out of the way for today. I think I will boil an egg for a fishing sandwich lunch time as I hav'nt had one for a while and still with my own tomatoes.

Well that is one end of summer job done. put all T shirts on the high wardobe shelf and the sweaters on the low shel and swopped some of the summer weight trousers for heavier ones.

Cat rap is now down the side of the house with food in it just got to hope he goes in to eat. I have my doubts, he is so canny he will probably manage to grab the food without triggering the trap.

I am pretty certain the infection has not spread and I have enough meds to take me through to tomorrow so they would not be likely to prescribe more before the current course is finished.

Lady is coming with a trap later this morning which will be left all day but of it doesn't work she is off on holiday so I will be left with the cat until she comes back.

Morning all,

Its quite bright here this morning but grey with it if you know what I mean. O the suns just popped out!! and its 12 degrees.

Hope you have better luck with kitty cat today Anng.

I went to Stu's last night and when I got there he was fast asleep on the settee so I sat on the sofa (its a huge L shaped one) and waited till he woke up. The telly was on and I just watched a dig program that was on there. When he woke he told me he had done his back in again, he said it just went suddenly when he was'nt doing anything. I think it the sacriliac (sp) on his right side. Anyway after eventually straightening up he went and took a pill and he had dinner all prepared so he put it in the oven and had to wait. It was Burgers and chips with a nice salad. Too many chips. There was just Stu his twins and I for dinner and Abi had seen a desk on Facebook locally that she thought would do for her little study and it was only £10 and a corner one that would fit just right. There was no way Stu could have driven her so I said it would probably go in my car so Abi and I went to Caute just a couple of miles down the road and the desk went in the car a treat. A leg came off on the way home but that did'nt matter. Of course it was pouring with rian and back roads that seemed to go on forever when her phone was saying turn left in 300 yards and turn left in a mile but we got there in the end with 4 left turns in all. On the way back she was on the phone again so I said if we did 4 left turns on the way there then its 4 right turns on the way home. She had'nt thought of that. It seemed forever getting there and the road was full of potholes and puddles and even grass growing in the middle of the lane which is known as a Devon dual caridgeway. We met two cars on the way there and had to pull in to let them pass. We got there in the end and the ladies hubby helped Abi get the desk in the car and we got back to the garage and Jame's friend helped get it out of the car and into the workshop where it could stay till today. It was too big to go through the front door so Abi said but they have patio doors round the back of the house. So that was my adventure last night after having dinner with Stu.

Got the foot doctor at 11. 30am so better get some bits done.

Sorry to read that your foot is sore, Ann. I do hope any infection has not spread.
If you think you might need more antibiotics, it would perhaps be an idea for someone to check your leg today, otherwise you would probably have to wait until at least Monday before you could be prescribed more.

Hope all goes well with Vera's OH'S appontment.

Good morning all 12 degrees here at the moment and was the same at 0100am. I can't see if it is raining now but it was in the night. Not such a good night last night and I really didn't want to wake when the alarm went off at 0615,

My foot is sore again now, probably because of walking yesterday but hoping the infection is not causing the soreness. It was painful in bed as the weight of the bedding sometimes seems to aggravate it.

I have 3 or four pills left to take but have a horrible feeling that I might need another session.

Mel there is not a lot of scruff of the neck to geab with the cat. No, she was not afraid of being scratched and she needs the blanket so that she can get him/her into the box without hurting him. she has done it many times before apparently. We will see what today brings.

We had on and off sunshine this morning but it’s been dull and dreary this afternoon. The temperatures seem so up and down at the moment, particularly at night. Last night it dropped down to 3 or 4, tonight it’s not supposed to drop below 10.

You’ve been busy with the cooking Mandy. I’m sure your puds will be delicious. I always used to make puds for all the family and my brother made a big cake but these days I just buy 1 pud and we don’t bother with a Christmas cake.

I’m glad your leg seems to be improving AnnG, though you could have done without an extra walk to the bus stop today. Cats are canny animals even when they are tiny and your little kitten seems to know just what’s going on. When we lived at our old house we found a little kitten hiding under a bushy shrub. We had lots of shrubs in our big garden in those days and it kept hiding under different ones. I tried to tempt it out with food but had no luck so I rang a small animal welfare centre and they lent us a humane trap. We put this under one of the shrubs at night with some food and water inside and next morning kitten was curled up inside and our neighbour took him to the animal welfare centre for us.

Enjoy your meal at Stu’s Mel and let us know what he gives you to eat.

That was a bit of a performance getting your parcel from the PO Annx. Why do we always get such conflicting advice? I am expecting a delivery from Evri soon. I bet it comes tomorrow while we are out. I’ve ordered a pair of shoes online. I’ve never done this before but they are identical in style to a pair I already have so I knew what size to get. I’m a bit desperate for shoes as I’ve thrown out several pairs recently so thought I would just get the same shoes in a different colour. My feet have flattened and widened a bit and changed shape. I had a look at the shoes I’ve got and they didn’t say what width they were. They would have been wide or extra wide so I’ve opted for extra wide. If they are no good I’ll have to pay to send them back.

We went for our usual Thursday coffee this morning. Today there were 3 couples and 2 single ladies and for a couple of hours we put the world to rights. We came back and had some chicken and salad for lunch but didn’t overeat as we have a filling meal shortly, though not a very healthy one. I had a BuyAGift afternoon tea voucher for my birthday and hadn’t used it so I ordered a tea from Piglets Pantry to be delivered yesterday for use today. We have had these before and they are very good though I did notice this time that some things are a little smaller than before. There are 2 little savoury tartlets (they used to be small quiches), 2 enormous sausage rolls and 2 large scotch eggs, 2 scones with jam and clotted cream and 4 loaf shaped cakes which would easily cut into two. I know it's a family run concern and I think everything is made on their premises. None of it looks bought in or mass produced which is why it’s all so nice. I don’t think it’s cheap though.

During the afternoon I managed to sort out a pot with 3 large geraniums. I only had to bend to pull them out of the pot then I could work on them at the bench in the garage. I managed to separate 1 of them into 2 bits with roots and I took just a couple of cuttings so I hope to get 6 plants from those 3. They are now in the conservatory. I would have liked to carry on in the garden but I’m still having to be very careful of my back so I sat in the study and sorted out a couple of files. Well, it was a good job I did as I found a £15 voucher for our local garden centre that I think was a birthday present to me in February and I had forgotten all about.

OH has his brain scan tomorrow and I shall go with him. He’s just reread his instructions and we had a good giggle as he was told that he mustn’t wear an underwired bra!! Of course, his appointment is at lunchtime and we’ll have to leave by 11.30 to allow for hold-ups etc so we either have to have lunch very, very early or, if we wait till afterwards, very very late. If he’s OK, perhaps we’ll just get a sandwich in the hospital café.

Right, I am now going to heat our savoury bits and pieces for our tea. Have a lovely evening and sleep well tonigh

Not doner much today again..... Did a little parcel up for delivery once they have paid me had a nice lunch of salmon and cuecumber sandwich with two tomatoes (still my own) and this afternoon I washed my hair which is always a good job out of the way.

Anng if you cna pick the little cat up again try and grab the scruff of its neck and you should be able to hang on to it by that even if its in mid air!! then the lady can get the blanket round it or pop it straight in the carrier. Good luck :-S

Mandy its always good when the shoppings done and put away.

We have had a very grey day all day and a blustery wind which was blowing the leaves off the big Beech tree at Prickerly Bottom like yellow and gold rain. Its so different now to when I took a pic yesterday or the day before. The camera never gets the actual colour you see though.

Hope Vera's back is a bit better today and she has managed to give it a bit of a rest and not been doing lots of h/w and gardening. It will still be there in a couple of days same as the dust...........

Afternoon all,

Very grey now but we did have sun most of the morning, went and got the shopping all done and I have just mixed a 2 lb christmas pudding ready for the morning ,I'm going to try doing it in the slow cooker this year ,I usually do the mix in two 1lb basins and steam them , I've never done them in the slow cooker but I was looking at another christmas pud recipe and that pud was in the slow cooker on high for 8 hours ,I can only try .

Mel hope you enjoy your meal at Stu's tonight ,wonder what it will be.
I thought of you with your chickens this morning as we have bird flu in this region and people with birds now have to keep them in again .

Ann , I see you've done a bit in the garden ,I've still got bits to do out there I suppose I'll get round to it sometime ,perhaps tomorrow if the weathers dry .

Anng ,that little cat seems quite happy in your garden ,perhaps the lady should forget the blanket and try to pick him up as you did ,I suppose she was frightened of getting scratched , maybe tempt him/her with a little fish .

Well that didn't work. He may be only a kitten but he is street wise. She had the box and a blanket, he actually for the first time ever, let me pick him up when I was down the gsrden with him but as soon as he spotted the lady with the blanket he managed to escape from me. So tomorrow is another day.

Went into town for the chiropodist. didn't start well as when I got to the top of the road there were road works and the bus stop was not in use, so a walk to the next bus stop, not really a long way but it is when trying to 'save' my leg. Anyway got there before the bus arrived and came home on the other route which is a fair walk a bit further than when I take books to Irene. Anyway a couple of small bits bought for the Christmas drawer.

Waiting now a) another half hour before I can eat post antiB meds and b) for lady to come and see if she can catch the cat. But I did tell her after 2pm so I could be eating when she arrives.

Afternoon Ladies,

Bright but colder here this morning. I had trouble with collecting a parcel from the post office for an ebay purchase. They said it was ready to collect on ebay but nothing had been sent to collect it with. I looked on the Evri site and it mentioned bringing ID so I had put my driving licence in my purse. This morning ebay had sent an email with a QR code so I took that as well. I asked the lady at the Post Office whether I needed just ID or a QR code for Evri deliveries in future and she told me it varied!! :-S

OH has been for a walk and is at a meeting in Oakham later so will be leaving at 4.00 pm. We've both been out and cut back more shrubs in the garden and I have taken up my geraniums except the two in the wall pots and weeded a lot of the gravel. The garden bin is half full now. Plenty more needs doing though and haven't the weeds grown since the rain.

Your social meeting sounds like it will be good AnnG and a good idea to get it all organised so everyone will know what to bring. It's good the the antib's seem to b starting to work and that you had a good sleep.

I wonder what Stu will cooktonight Mel? Speaking of which I'd better start the chickenand mushrooms for our stirfry. BBL.