General Chat

Thankfully, it hasn’t been raining here. I took Eve out for lunch and to visit the local church which has a Christmas tree exhibition. Well that is what we told her mum. We actually went to the local retail park so that she could buy her Christmas presents for the family .i.e. mum, dad, Esme , two uncles and an aunt. Not that she pays for any of them of course :-( While we were there, I also bought presents for Esme to give to everyone as well. Eve can wrap her own, but I will have a secret wrapping session with Esme. This is the third year I have done this, they really enjoy being able to give the presents. We did go to the church, there were a huge number of community trees all with sparkling lights, it looked beautiful. We didn’t have time to look at them properly, so we will probably go back again on Saturday

We are having a day out tomorrow, O H and I are going to Harewood house, we will have lunch, then at 2pm we have a timed entry into the house to see their spectacular Christmas decorations. We have to get back to my daughters for 5 pm because we are all going to Harlow Carr Gardens to see “ Glow”, that is the gardens all lit up. That is the plan anyway, but Esme has been off school for two days with her gastric migraine. She didn’t end up in hospital this time which is good, normally she would be over it quickly, but she also seems to have a bad cold, so was still ill today. Eve is also complaining about having a sore throat, some hope they will be well enough to go tomorrow because the tickets were expensive.

Hi again Florence.
I have been watching a film this afternoon, nothing exciting, just a light hearted marital story, but it passed a couple of hours.

The rain here is not heavy but hasn't stopped all day & still on, it got dark much earlier today, almost an hour earlier than yesterday !

Joan.

Joan, if that's all you felt like doing then no matter. Maybe there's a film on this afternoon for you to watch with a cuppa and some cake?

I have finally finished in my bedroom and now sitting down with toast and coffee and the rain is beating hard against my living room window. So glad I'm indoors, best place to be in this weather.

A rubbish day here as well, it's been raining all day, a really drab dark.
Unlike you Florence I have not done anything at all today other than putting some washing on but that's all.

Joan.

Afternoon everyone looking in today

Not a great day here and wet and breezy with a heavy grey sky so very gloomy looking.

Decided to gut out all my makeup etc, creams lotions & potions as I have loads from more than a few years worth that are probably out of date. Then i dusted and polished all the surfaces. Still some clutter to get rid off and then another job off my list.

Hope everyone else is well today and keeping warm.

Think another storm heading our way on Sat/ Sun!

Take care all

Florence in the hebrides

Afternoon all looking in
Well its still windy but raining and now fog as well! So the postie had finished before 12 and no post yet again! i think the post being sent from the mainland to us is held up in the mainland sorting offices.

I'm still waiting on family parcels and they all think that sending them 1st class on the 21 dec is ok and will still get here???? Er hello no they will not.

!st class doesn't mean anything anymore. if you want to make sure a card or gift arrives in time, then you have to post in plenty of time. Of course, if you are waiting on things that have been ordered, then that will keep you back but if you have bought gifts weeks ago, then why don't people send them early!

I'm finding it chilly today and my feet are frozen as are my fingertips unless im holding a hot cup of coffee lol.

Who watched the variety show last night? have to say, wasn't up to much really and didn't really float my boat very much.

Back in the day, we had some really good entertainers but its not the same now.

Better get on

Florence in the hebrides

We have strong wind here as well Florence.
This weekend is the town Christmas market which was postponed from last weekend. We went yesterday, there were seventy stalls selling all sorts of over priced Xmas things. It was on again today and was finishing at 4.30 with a firework display over the river next to the viaduct. Because of the wind, they closed the stalls at 3 pm, so they could dismantle them safely, but the food stalls were still active. We met my daughter and the girls for the fireworks, we had a really good view and Esme really enjoyed it.
I took the wreath off the front door because the wind was so strong it was almost lifting it off. I don’t want the door surface to be damaged, so it can sty inside until the weather improves.

Hello Ann.
I am definately going to stay home on Christmas Day, it won't be easy as it's my birthday on that day as well, & I know the day will be different for me being my first Birthday without Jack.
I don't want to spoil the grandchildrens day by them seeing me feeling sad.

I intend to put a dinner together but it won't be the same.

I don't bother with tree or decorations, we haven't done that for some years, since the last of our children left home (2004)
I got my cards done this week, it didn't take long as so many of our families & friends have gone as well.

I have recieved 5 cards so far but not expecting many more, the card list has gone down a lot in recent times.

Some houses can look really pretty with lights around the eaves, but some outdoor decorations can be way over the top for my liking.

Joan.

I love to see houses lit with lights. My OH loved lights and always put them up across the front of the house and in the bush we had out there. Too much for me to do it but my little indoor tree has red lights on it.

Joan Christmas Day is just another day. If you feel that you will be better staying on your own and have got maybe some special treats in the freezer to eat, you will be fine. The year my Oh was in hospital before he died in the January, I stayed on my own. Had presents to open, treated myself to some bubbly and it was fine.

And if you want to chat to somebody there is often somebody on GR to chat to. <3

Gales, gales and more gales grrrrr

Nothing else to say about it!

Busy busy day doing sorting out stuff and wrapping a few joke presents for the buffet games after food! Yet more washing and tumbling as daughter stripped her bed.

Electric still on but its 62 mph just now so who knows if it will last as sounds awful outside!!

Hope everyone looking in is well and ok.

Linda, if you get a gale, there wont be any trees with lights opp you :-D :-D

Well, I have serious Christmas light envy. The house opposite has two trees in the front garden and they have lights in them which look very pretty. The house next to it just put theirs up yesterday. It is a detached house and they have the icicle type of hanging lights not only right across the front at roof level, but on each side of the house under the eaves. They also have another row of the icicles across the front at ground floor window height. There is also an artificial light up tree in the front garden. Totally over the top, the scariest thing is that he is in his seventies and he was up on a ladder putting them up. The top of the apex on the sides is incredibly high, what could possibly have gone wrong :-0

We haven’t got any outside lights because our last house was set well back from the road with large hedges around the front garden. The drive was to one side, so the front of the house wasn’t visible from the road. Here we are visible, but there is only a square of grass in the front which doesn’t have a single plant in it. That is our next project now the inside is finished , so by next year hopefully there will be a tree in the middle, so I may buy some tasteful lights for it, but I am definitely not going into competition with over the road

Joan glad you got your power back on, the afternoons are short enough with it getting dark so early. I put our living room light on at 3.30pm today as I was writing some notes and it had gone very dark . Although I am not in your situation if you feel that you will be more content at home on christmas day then you should do what you feel is right for you.

OH has been cleaning windows today and we put up the fresh nets. Just got a few Christmas ornaments out we don't have a tree now . When I think back to years past when there used to be sometimes 12 people here for the day I wonder how we all managed to fit in. lol. It's quieter now. lol.

Sounds like everyone has been busy as usual.
I have wrapped all the presents except one which is due to arrive Monday. Didn't take long to do, took longer to decide what to get everyone.

Well take care everyone.

Good Eveneing to those looking in.
So happy to say my power has beeen reinstated after going off at 4-00pm, it's been a very calm day & I got a shock when the telly etc went off.

After informing the electric folk it turned out it was just my house & 2 cottages in the distance, the engineer located the fault quite quckly, a fuse problem at the top of the electricity pole at the bottom of my house road.

LINDA.... My daughter who lives not far from me has asked me to go to hers for Christmas dinner but I would rather stay at home, I've gor some food stuff in the freezer to make a dinner, albeit a cheating one this time.
I just can't be bothered to dress up ! & leave the house, will be happier staying home & doing my own thing.

Joan.

Well, the Federal Labour Ministry has asked the Industrial Labour Relations Board (who knew we had one of those?!!) to order the posties back to work next week, and then set up an Industrial Inquiry Commission. They will be given until May 22 to see if it is possible to get the 2 sides to agree on a new contract.

In effect, the strike will be paused between some time next week and May 22nd, when the posties can go back on strike if they're still at odds with the Post Office offers.

Still doesn't do much for anyone, but especially small business who have been dependent on the PO for getting in their supplies and sending orders to customers.

We have turned to sending a lot of email letters at Christmas, as have many of our friends and relations, but there are still several people who send and like to receive cards. We have 6 young great nieces and nephews who we send cards plus a cheque for Christmas, and 2 of them are also missing birthday cards.

We long ago set up a joint account with our daughter so I can transfer birthday and Christmas money into that account and she can draw it out on her side of the country. It has made life much easier, and safer!

Your coffee table brought back memories AG, it sounds just like the one my mum had. She refused to get a new one even though it was quite worn on the edge. She had it right until the end, amazingly a charity shop took it when we emptied house.

It is good to see you posting Joan, it is a shame that someone can’t collect you just for Xmas dinner with the family, then bring you back afterwards for some quiet time.

That is a long time without post Sylvia. I wonder if the other firms will take a lot of their business away. They won’t be happy if some of them are made redundant because of lack of work.

I have been to Esme’s school twice today. The first time this morning was for the usual Friday morning bakery. Then this afternoon it was the Christmas Fayre. There wasn’t really much to buy, but they had a large tombola stall, so we spent a fortune on that. We won lots of things, mainly all tat which will be thrown away. Still I was just trying to to give the school money

So sorry Sylvia, didn't mean to ignore your post! Oh wow thats awful, no post for 4 weeks. That really shouldn't be allowed as its not just xmas cards etc but important deliveries/parcels.

If they did that here, the NHS wouldn't function as all appointments are sent out by post, so that doesn't bear thinking about Plus local shops etc get their goods by post sometimes.

I wonder why the Canadian government haven't intervened given the length of the strike.

I hope it gets sorted very quickly.

take care
Florence in the hebrides

Afternoon all
Lovely to see you posting Joan. I know you think maybe at your daughters house, it will be perhaps to noisy/busy but it would do you good to be amongst people even if its just for the xmas dinner. You could then come home mid afternoon before it gets dark?

As for the weather on xmas day, i just wait until tomorrow and see what comes. Today our spell of calm & dry weather has come to an end. Low cloud/mist plus rain and the wind has picked up so all change.

I have sorted out all my scraps of paper with family tree research out and then put all the rest and my research book away into the bottom drawer of my desk. That looks so much tidier now. New year brings a new start to writing up 2 tress that are complete but i hadn't got around to writing up and finishing off so that's top of my bucket list for 2025.

I decided to string up the cards now as several more came today, think we have about 21 mow. Family cards though get sent with the parcels and none have arrived yet.

Just to finish off my Tesco order which is coming tomorrow and then can finalise the last delivery on the 20th Dec.

So pretty organised here but.....always the wardrobes or chests of drawers to sort out!!

Hope everyone is well and keeping warm today

Florence in the hebrides

\\\\good morning to you all.
A chilly morning once again here in Aberdeenshire, a frosty start & a bit dull so likely the frost won't lift today.

Everyone seeems to be keeping very busy with one thing or another, painting, craft making, christmas things & helping out with the grandchildren, I'm not doing much at all,, mainly just keeping on top of the house work, lol.

I did write out my Christmas cars & included the usual yearly letters with most of them, not many cards to send now as many of our friends have gone.
I have put together some food items for my Christmas dinner but to be honest I'm not sure I want to be bothered.

Our daughter nearby asked me to have dinner with them ut I don't want to go, to much going on for me to deal with, not to mention a couple of labradors, I just want to be quiet & do my own thing (sleep, eat etc) in my own house ! also if the weather is not good it could effect what happens on the day.

Time for a fly cuppa before preparing my miday meal (dinner) so I will say cheerio for now, hoping everyone has a nice day, keep wrapped up & take care.

Joan.

Oh, Sylvia - what a long time without mail!
Especially just before Christmas.

Thank goodness for email and other methods of communication.
I'm glad I had already decided to email my cousin near Toronto instead of sending an actual Christmas card.

Fewer people send cards at Christmas nowadays because of the cost of postage - but I do like receiving cards!

We're not getting any Christmas mail at all ............ not any kind of mail!

The posties have been on strike for 4 weeks.

Can you believe it???? Businesses have not got their supplies, customers cannot get their orders if the company only uses the post. Many places of course have turned to "other carriers", but some just say "no orders will be sent out until the strike is over.

That means no mail will be going out of Canada either.