General Chat

I did drive to Stu's yesterday evening and the roads were ok but I had a job clearing the frost off the car windscreen and where have you put the defroster spray when you need it? In the end I put my hand on the screen to melt the frost which worked. Then I had to squeegy the inside of the sreen and I put the wipers on and they just scraped across the frozen hail which had slid down the screen so I expect that I shall need new ones of those now. When I left Martin Stu's friend saw me back so I could drive out. There are lways so many cars parked at his with his work and family. Both the twins were out last night so it was jus tthe 4 of us.

Emailed you.

Missed you there Mel by the time I posted! Your meal last night sounded good and isn't it nice to not have to cook yourself sometimes. I have never had men willing to learn to cook, but at least they would always prepare a lot of the veg except onions! I have some chicken breasts in the fridge so think I will put the slow cooker on and add one of those chicken tonight sauces and some veg to have later.

I envy you your view of snowy scenery, but I'd be staying in like you and keeping warm. We have weak sunshine here now, so hopefully it will defrost the cars!

Morning All,

Well it's freezing cold here, still minus 3 degrees so the heating has been on. Thank goodness the new boiler wasn't being fitted today! I was up early this morning as the doorman is due today to look at the lock on the front door again which seems to move in and out a lot where the key fits. I hate this 'any time between 8.00am and 5.00pm' and surely they could say either morning or afternoon. I wonder if it will be grumpy again that comes. :-S My first job is to repack the camera ready to post. OH is having a lie in as he had to get up in the night to take tablets for his aching side and head pain. He has to have more blood tests now and an x-ray. He is out in the sticks tonight at a meeting so I hope it's less frosty.

AnnG I expect you are right about GR as the service has gone down over time eg whatever happened to the 'matches' we used to get? I expect we should be thankful for what there is, although I am still annoyed they upped my subs after I signed for a free trial once. Our feet are a nuisance aren't they and I remember having a big toenail growing out twice as thick when my thyroid meds were too high after losing weight and it and other nails lifting and tender. Those problems went once my meds were reduced, but they tend to be quite brittle now. I can see me needing a chiropodist eventually. I still need to empty a few things out of the pots, but not today while it's so cold. I marvel at old Albert up the road who's got to be in his mid 90s as the four corner flower beds in his front garden is all cleared, weeded and dug over ready for Spring bedding.

Vera I have just the same trouble with following racing speech that isn't clear, you can barely follow what's meant which isn't good when it's important. They must be happy things are stable and I hope you don't have to wait too long for the cataract to be done. I know there wasn't a long list here, but that was over a year ago and things vary in different places, but it would be good to get it done over the winter. OH always has to have the strong drops and wear sunglasses too! He complains that the sun is always shining when he has eye tests. As for your speaker, some just don't fit what they want to say into the time available do they or keep a note of the times to move to the next thing in front of them.

I had a copy of the invioce that was paid for my new car key come yesterday. Fancy one new car key costing £246 !! It's getting on for what the winter fuel allowance is that most have lost.

Well I'd better get this parcel wrapped now. The tap in the kitchen is dripping again, so the new washer the boiler man fitted with no charge hasn't fixed it. He did say it would mean a new tap if it didn't, so I'd better phone him.

A yes Mel I saw on the forecast the paces south of Glos were in for snow this morning. Pleased it is not here at the moment anyway. Glad to hear you had a nice evening. did you drive in the end?

orning all,

I have woken to a winter wonderland today a comp-lete white out. Its 2 degrees and pc says light rain or snow. They're wrong.......

Thank you for asking Ann and yes I did go to Stu's last night. He cooked his chicken dish with leeks, potatoes, sweet pots, carrots and a nice BBQ sauce he makes up so a bit different each time. Some of the carrots were a bit hard which I hade to leaves and I think what he'd done is put extra in a bit later when he knew how many e coming. He had his friend from Plymouth staying as Stu was doing his car and Marie his sort of girl friend.

I must say its so nice to be able to get on here in the morning now they seem to have fixed the error. As you can imagine I shan't be going anywhere today but staying in with the heating on.

Good morning all, I slept well last night but was awake at 0630 and couldn’t get back to sleep. I had had seven and a half hours sleep so obviously enough.

It was minus one degree just now but has gone up to 0 now, frost on the roofs but, at least no more snow. Nothing planned for today so maybe I will get a big chunk of the two outstanding jobs (wrapping and car writing) done.
I had better for back and re-read yesterday’s posts as I think there may be a lot to answer. I don’t think the ones in customer service know what the problem was Ann, not sure they communicate with the techies, But I pay so little a year and wouldn’t want to rock the boat as it wouldn’t take much for GR to be cancelled so I will live with the inconvenience of the past couple of days. Actually we have been quite lucky for a long time now with no hiccups.

Re the chiropodist. No he just cuts and files and checks there is nothing wrong with my feet/toes. I don’t put varnish on my toe nails anyway as the surface is rough with them having been filed to keep them flat and the toe nails on smaller toes tend to curve now. Many years ago I had athletes foot and it permanently affected my toe nails. They tend to thicken and need filing every 8 week to keep them comfortable. I wouldn’t like his job as I hate feet. And yes I have a problem reaching my toes.
Vera, I am not sure what is worse, non stop rain or snow. I suppose it depends if you need to go out, I was pleased when the snow disappeared yesterday when I had to go out. I don’t have to go anywhere today so am not affected by whatever it does. Just hope we are not in for a bad winter of snow as I don’t want to not be able to get up to daughter’s. And, yes, it was very cold out yesterday.

I still give cards to all and sundry and neighbours here do exchange cards well most of them anyway. It is nice to have a lot of cards to put up, brightens up the winter. I suppose it is all part of my hobby of card making and I save up stamps by buying them through the year.

That meeting sounds as if the talk would have been excellent if she had precede it a bit. Your talks are normally the same length as ours and that is long enough for most people our sort of age to sit in one position.

Yes it was sad to have to pull the begonias up (and, boy, weren’t my hands cold doing it). A pity that I now have some empty tubs, but they will be filled next spring when I start planting stuff again.

Although you were unable to understand what the lady doctor said (Oh how I empathise with that), I would think there was nothing to worry about. It would be helpful to know how long the wait for cataract removal is though.

Strange how the restaurants in different Dobbies differ. Our one in Gloucester, which is closing after Christmas, has a really good restaurant on the side that you sit if eating a meal as it is table service. The coffee side and cakes has always a long queue as the coffee machines are slow. The restaurant at one up near daughters is so slow that food is cold by the time you eat it, that is counter service,

I think I have answered all the outstanding posts. I have done this in word in case something happens as it is so long. I am following Vera’s example. Have a good day all if you are planning on doing anything,

Mel did you get to Stuarts yesterday in the end.
Mandy hope it is not snowy or icy for your hair cuts today.

Finally, a post for today.

In some ways it has been a beautiful day, blue skies and sunshine all day but it has been cold with a really bitter feel to the wind. At least our spirits were lifted by seeing the sun after all the gloomy days we have had.

It sounds very chilly in that school hall Gwyn. I would have needed a hot water bottle tied round my middle.

Shame your begonias had to come up AnnG but they have done well to keep going this long. I’m still hanging on to 2 tubs of Argyranthemum by the front door but I’ve stopped deadheading them now as I’m sure they won’t be throwing more blooms.

Annx, I do hope your back and crampy, sore legs are feeling easier now. What are we all like? I don’t think we’ve got one good back between us! Yes, I saw that about it being cheaper to pay to fly to 6 different countries, and buy stamps to post 100 Christmas cards. Of course there was nothing about the time it would take but it certainly makes you realise how expensive our postage is. What a shame you didn’t get the camera you ordered and why can’t they do a straight exchange for the correct one instead of faffing about with refunds and reordering?

Well, we went off to the hospital this morning and, as predicted, the car parks were bursting so OH dropped me at the door of the eye treatment centre which is a separate building behind the hospital and went to find a parking spot. He was ages and just got to the waiting room with me as I was called in. I went through all the usual vision tests, pressure tests and scans with everything being explained to me in words of one syllable. I know they have to cover themselves but I’ve done it all so many times now that it gets irritating, but I just smile sweetly even when inside I’m screaming “just get on with it”. Then it’s always a wait for a doctor and the waiting area is in a corridor where today the tiles had been taken off the ceiling and all the pipes above it exposed as there was apparently some work being done there. There was half a gale blowing through this open area and I had left my coat with OH in the waiting room so I froze. Eventually I got called in to the doctor and my heart sank. I was seeing the same lady as last time. Don’t get me wrong – she has a lovely personality and I am sure she is a very good doctor but I can’t understand a word she says. She is not from this country and talks quickly with such a strong accent that I only recognize the odd word. I did glean that she now wants to refer me for cataract removal in the bad eye and I have agreed to that. I think that means the eye is still stable. I have no idea how long I will have to wait for that or whether I will need another check up while I am waiting so I shall have to wait for a letter.

OH suggested as we were near Dobbies we went there for lunch. What a disaster that was. I found a table while OH joined a long queue to order fish & chips for him and ham, egg and chips for me. The system is terrible, just one person to serve up scones, cakes, drinks etc., take meal orders and man the till so the queue moves at snail’s pace. OH eventually got to the front when I heard him yell across the restaurant that there was no more ham, egg and chips so what would I have instead. I shouted back the same as you so he ordered 2 portions of f & c. There was only 1 piece of fish left. Rather than shout across the room again he ordered something else for himself and let me have the fish. I’m not keen on fried fish usually because so often the batter is thick and greasy but credit where it’s due, it was the best batter I’ve ever had; light, dry and crisp. I ate it all. They were obviously understaffed and I think someone may have complained that tables weren’t being cleared as a man suddenly appeared and started stacking crockery and taking it away. As my eyes were still blurry from all the drops and as light was hurting them I was wearing dark glasses and getting some strange looks so lunch wasn’t much fun.

Here I am, rambling on again and I meant this to be short. I’d better leave you in peace. Have a good night everyone and keep warm and cosy.

Now for yesterday's 2nd post:

Carrying on from where I left off: we went to a club meeting last night. A lady was going to talk about the Burren in Ireland. What we hadn’t been told was that she was a bit of an amateur expert on botany and the talk was mostly about the flora of the region. The presentation was superb and the slides (taken by her husband) were so clear and bright. She spoke fluently without any notes and was really knowledgeable and interesting. I reckon she would have been speaker of the year for us except for one thing – she just went on for far too long. Normally, speakers start around 7.30 pm and talk till maybe 8.15 or a bit longer if we have questions for them. Then a break for coffee and biscuits, then we have the raffle and any club notices or business is discussed before we finish about 9.30 pm.

The speaker had done this particular trip with a group of about 14 botany enthusiasts and I thought she had said it was a trip of a fortnight. Coming up to 9 pm she had got to the end of Day 2 and I was wondering if we would be home before Christmas. One of the committee members had to politely tell her we only had the room till 9.30 pm. Actually we have it till 10 pm but we have to leave a bit of time for clearing away chairs and tables and putting on coats and people still chatting a bit. In fact I had misheard her and her trip was four nights, not a fortnight. Even so she was only half way through and had to rush through Days 3 and 4. We then gulped our drinks down at breakneck speed and rushed back to the room for the raffle to be drawn. Things improved at that point as I won a bottle of wine, quite a nice Sauvignon, so I came home happy.

Today has been a day of not doing anything very much, just fiddling around with silly little jobs. Tomorrow I have to go to the hospital for a check on my eye so I’m hoping the snow and ice will hold off a bit here. My appointment is 11.30 which is when all the clinics are at their busiest and the car parks are choc-a-bloc. I am hoping the doctor might discharge me now everything seems to be more stable.

I don’t know when this will get posted but stay warm and dry everyone and sleep well.

Good evening

I'm pleased to see we are up and running again. I'll send you the 2 posts I did yesterday that didn't get sent and then do a short one for today so you'll have the doubtful please of 3 posts from me in succession. Here's number 1 from yesterday morning:

No snow here but there was non-stop rain from about 5 pm yesterday to about 11 am today. It is windy and very cold. One weather app is telling me that it is 4 degrees but feels like -6 because of the wind. I think that might be a bit exaggerated but it is definitely very brrr.

It's a shame your trip out was cancelled AnnG. I agree with you about Mandy's card delivery system. It's ideal but no good for families who are scattered all round the country like mine. I stopped giving cards out to all and sundry at the clubs we belong to some years ago though most other people do. We always make a charitable donation anyway around Christmas time so our local and club friends all get a printed slip of paper wishing them a happy Christmas and telling them what charity has received our donation that year. In spite of that I still send around 60 cards to people all round the country. Overseas friends get a free e-card these days apart from 2 cousins in Australia who are both in their late 80s and don't use technology much, so I post them a card each.

Annx, I did a bit of googling and you can use a mouse with a tablet but, depending on whether it's an iPad or an Android tablet and how old it is, you might need to buy a new mouse. OH should try it without a mouse first because it is so easy to use. I use a mouse with a laptop but have never needed it with my iPad.

Mel, I think you mentioned a little while ago that BT wanted you to move to EE. We were the same and originally said no but yesterday OH decided to go for it as BT gave us the impression it will soon be compulsory anyway as they are going to concentrate on business customers. Resist it for as long as you can!! Not only is it going to cost us more per month because we will no longer get various BT discounts, even though EE is part of the BT group, but it has been a real kerfuffle for OH to get it up and running. I don't think I would have managed it. It was mainly the landline he had problems with and eventually got someone on the phone at EE who was helpful and talked him through it. Now we're just waiting for new sim cards for our mobiles. At least you don't have to change your phone number these days and we can keep our email address as well.

All I seem to have done this morning is write 10 cards as my hands aren't too shaky today. Now it's lunchtime and I've still got lots of jobs I want to get done.

I'll bore you a bit more this afternoon as I haven't yet told you of last night's club meeting.

Hello Strangers! lol.

They haven't said what the problem was, but we are owed an extra day or two aren't we!

The rooftops and cars were covered with snow here, but the roads were hardly affected. I woke at 5.00am yesterday and my back was playing up and a horrid threat of cramp behind both knees and down into my calves that just went on and on however I moved till I got up before 8.00am and found standing was a bit better. I even slapped on a heat pad, but I think they are out of date as they didn't get very warm. Although it was before the weekend I think it was crouching over to reach the adjuster on my car seat and jerk it forwards with quite a few attempts that must be the cause. I'm just thankful it iod a lot better today and that I slept like a log last night.

So your toes are twinkle toes now AnnG and feel nice and comfy. Do they varnish them too, or just if you ask? I have more trouble reaching mine now, especially to put nail polish on, so I just put the clear stuff on so it won't show any mistakes!

Mandy thanks for that about the ipad. I had a google since and I think a mouse with a USB plug in may work as well. I think OH will have to check what holes it has when he gets it! Yes, my neck feels the cold too after a haircut. I made a big mistake one by wearing a fleece and it took ages to get the bits of hair out of it. Now I put a thin, smooth scarf on next to my neck first. We haven't had any snow today.

I saw it said today that the cost of flying to Bulgaria and posting 100 Christmas Cards there is less than posting 100 Christmas Cards in the UK'

I hope you have a good journey to your hospital appointment and good news Vera.

I keep meaning to ask you Gwyn whether you have to sit on the children's little seats at the school like OH does?

My camera came today, but when I opened it it was a silver one instead of black that I ordered and says on the box. I decided to return it, but am not keen on the Amazon process. All I wanted to do was swap it when I'd returned it but I had to go through a refund process. Then, even though I'd explained it was the suppliers error, the postage label I printed suggested I have to pay the tracked postage! More messages and now they will refund the postage too. Leaves me back to square one without a camera again.

Nearly burnt my soup luinch time but got there just in time. Full up now and am going to do more hoovering and dusting.

Yes hope everything went ok with the eye appointment Vera and its still stable.

Its so good to be able to post and they actually go through.

After I got in from town I walked round the garden, the sun was /is out and the sky was a brilliant blue. Sadly I had to pull up my dozen or so bedding begonias in tubs as the two cold, frost nights had finished then off. However they have done really well I will grow them next year. Going to wrap a few more presents now and write some more cards later.

Oh were back .

Got the shopping all done ,had to scrape the windows on the car but the roads were fine , Lovely sunshine all the time we were out but by the time we got in put the things away in the freezer and cupboards it had clouded over and while we sat having a coffee the snow started ,huge flakes and then fine stuff so it began to lay now its eased up and the snows just about gone .

Vera hope it's a good report for you from the hospital and you don't have the snow showers .

So your walking on air now Anng after having your feet done ,its haircut day for us tomorrow so we'll feel chilly round the neck even though my hair doesn't cover my neck it still feels chilly after a cut .

I had replied to Vera as I had just got in from town and not bothered to check. Then I got an email from support (thanks Nicole for that good to know there is somebody there). And we are back.

Its so good to be back and I have rung Stu to see if he is coming tonight but he has a friend over so has asked me there. Its not far but if its icy I am not happy driving the car. I may ring him and see if he will pick me up and drop me home as he has a range Rover.

I tried to ring the library this morning and can't get through on either the land line or my mobile.

Safe journeys all if you're going anywhere. The suns out here but still snow where it dos'nt reach.

O I think we are back on.

Heeellllllooooooo

Mandy you are lucky with your card system. That will only work when all the family live relatively close. wouldn't work in my case.

It is still snowing here but it is very wet and, although snow is still on the roofs and looks pretty it is not laying on the roads. Sadly our organiser chickened out and cancelled our trip to the garden centre. goodness knows why the roads are fine, just wet. and the temp is above freezing. disappointing as I was looking forward to it.

Morning all,

We have snow ,there was quite a covering when we went to bed last night ,this morning there's still some on the hedges and cars but the road is wet.

Ann you asked about using a mouse with the ipad ,I never use it with mine but I think with some you can if it has blue tooth.

Gwyn it sounds as if you had a good meet up with your family at the weekend but tinged with sadness too .
What a price for stamps , I don't post many cards now, lots are passed round the family by hand and we've done this for years so family know where to leave cards and where to collect them from ,we all find this works well.