General Chat

Morning all from a milder Newcastle over te pond where the snow has all melted ,and i have a two day window to get in the garden and start tidying up before the snow returns.
I need to buy myself a pair of wellies to get the roses cut back ,and do a bit of bucket clearing,and start getting the tatties out of the bins.
Had an email from a cousin in aus; this morning,it seems that i have a new cousin many times removed ,born Australia day,named Michael ,over 9 pounds born and quite a big lad.possibly a future rugby union player by the sound of things,lol
Hi to Edith,i reckon i will be doing fewer tom;s in the greenhouse this year but more bush variety in some of the buckets,the amount of tomatoes you can grow from one of these buckets is amazing.
The extra space in the greenhouse will be used to grow herbs and chillie peppers and the like ,anything eatable ,lol
Hi Mary .you see ,your chalet is already getting busy already with plenty of room for the time being.
The door curtain arrived yesterday ,and got hung straight up.and i noticed when i came down this morning ,the hall was a lot warmer ,result.all i need now is new draught proofing round the front door frame to finish it off.
We will see very shortly how we fared this last two months with the heating bills over this very cold snap we had the gas .electricity meter reader yesterday,who turned out to be a snotty nosed little waster,fresh from college who thought he knew it all.
Very abrupt and rude to say the least who said i was breaking the law ,having no vents in the doors for fumes from the boiler.
I pointed out that vents in doors were not legally required for condenser boilers which had the vents built in to tjhe outside wall ,and that he goes back to college and took a refresher course,by now i wasn't impressed and decided to keep an eye on him as he read the meters ,which is just as well since he couldn't read them properly,and i landed up giving HIM the right readings.
The cheeky sod then asked me how i knew how to do that ,and i told him it was from reading gas ,petrol,diesel ,electric meters in powerhouses in the forces long before he was even born,i do hope i never see him at my door again because i will chase him,and british gas will be getting a flea in the ear ,lol
Glad you enjoyed your company Mary,but i'm suprised you never got an offer to do a little cooking for you ,cor put me up for a fortnight and i will do ALL the cooking for you he he.
The corned beef is going down well thanks ,and now i have found a site on the net who sell the salt ,plus the impliments for making sausages at home ,i will be having a bash at that as well sitting in a rocking chair Edith ,i should co co.lol.that day i will be either dead ,or in an old persons home,and not before ,i have too much to do ,and lovin; every minute he he ,i flogged my guts out all my life working for the state ,and now i'm retired ,this is MY time.
Time to go peeps ,shopping has to be done today and the snow has started two days early ,i'm off while i can get out of the drive ,he he ,catch you later all,Fred.

Hello Mary, Christine Fred and Les
At last some entries on our site. Your weather should be changing soon
Mary as we will be starting into Spring soon. Groundhog day tomorrow
and we will see what the critter says. Hee hee
We are bound to have 6 weeks of winter yet ,even if Mr. Groundhog says different.Christine Having fun with pics is great. I enjoy taking outdoor shots and then cropping etc. for effect.
Les, Oliver is georgous,love the color and he does have a regal look about him. God forbid he and Bella don't get along.Hee hee
Fred. busy as usual.I see. Much better than spending your days in a rocking chair!!!. Hope your weather clears up and you get to have a nice holiday. Have been drooling over the seed catalogue for this coming year
and will try some climbing toms and cucumbers as they don't need loads of room.
Jumping has started again so will say bye for now . Edith XXXX

Hi everyone.. Been busy with visitors from Kiwi Land and then a big family bash so I am now buttered and ready for a rest..With John not able to do much it is up to me to entertain the visitors and do all the cooking etc.. So by the time they go I need a rest to recover..still it is lovely to see them and they are favourite cousins who have bought a big caravan and are going to spend 12 months touring OZ..what a life...

The weather here has been extremely humid and I hate humidity and heat so have had to sleep with the fan on most of the night..Am quite looking forward to winter...Thank goodness its not like your winters..

John has not been to good but today he improved a lot so here's hoping he will stay that way..

Fred Where is that place you mentioned you were going on holidays,,Is it the same place as you went last time with you caravan,,near the beach,,did your son buy another van,,gosh I am getting forgetful,,
How is the corned beef going..not sick of it yet..

Edith.. How are you ,, hope you are well...

Les.. Lovely pics of Ollie.. very regal looking cat..

Christine,, so pleased you complained and got some recompense..blooming well should have..good for you...

Hope all are well and keeping warm..will try and get back more often now I am back to normal...hee hee hee..whats normal..LOL..

Love Mary xxxxx

Hi Edith ,the joke was a corker he he,bet the cop had the mickey taken out of him something rotten when his mates saw it .
Yes ,i too have been wondering if anybody is still at home or wether they are all on an early holiday.
I reckon my weighbours have all hibernated overnight ,lol,i went out to clear the bit of snow we had overnight ,and noticed that there were no tyre tracks on the road at all ,this is snow ,no more than an inch high ,and everyone is cowering indoors .
I have no reason to go out but cleared the drive in case the wife needs to go to the hospital,never needed to do it yet ,but it's no good leaving the snow on the ramp inside the gates because the car can't get up without it being cleared.
The sun is out now though and the snow will melt pretty quickly once the temperature reaches 3 c,with any luck it will be gone by tonight.
Our first weeks holiday is booked ,at least we have the first week organized ,we are off to Carla Gran again on the 23 rd of April,so with any luck it will be quite warm by then,we may even get a bit of an extension to it ,once the sister in law sees her boss and makes sure the caravan is ready and well away from the centre of the park ,away from all the noise.
It will be a nice easy tea tonight i have made a nice chilli Mediteranean tomato sauce mix,shredded some chicken strips ,and will put the mix in some wraps with some spicy wedges on the side.
I reckon i will get a little corned beef oiut for tomorrow ,with some lamb cutlets ,along with some home made stuffing and roast veggieswith semolina tossed potatos and parsnip.
That sun is lovely through the glass of the patio door ,i fancy a bit of a snooze now ,after clearing the snow away lol.yeah ,can't resist pulling my chair nearer the window and closing my eyes ,he he ,catch you later peeps,Fred.

Morning Has everyone left town?????

Where are you all.??

Edith

Hi Diane.i am so sorry to hear this news ,as a vet from the first conflict in Aden,And the gulf in the late 1960s ,and having lost mates there for the same reasons ,plus having a grandson in that theatre only two years ago,i know too well how it feels,my heartfelt condolancies go out to you and the family members concered..
Still plenty of rain here Edith ,but ,thankfully a little warmer,at the moment.
Old Fred has his haggis in ,ready for the supper tonight ,made by Halls of Scotland this one has no animal meat ,or fat in at all ,so there you go all you veggie Scots out there ,no reason to let Rabbie Burns down anymore ,lol.
All i have to do this after noon is bring some tatties in from the garden ,and a neep and i'm ready to go.
Have to go and put the big sack of unused clothing out to be collected ,but i will be back later Fred.

Hi everyone, Our weather here remains on the warm side. They say it's El Nino, but who knows for sure.? Enjoying it anyway !!!
See Fred is busy as usual and harvesting veg in his garden.!! How lucky can you get ??
Has your rain and cold gone Fred?
Been watching the events in Haiti and can't fathom the amount of damage and devastation. Good to see the many countries who have moved in to help. I know we have Docs from Canada who are there with Drs.Without Borders as well as soldiers and nurses on site.
Time to get on with my chores for to-day. Stay well all. Edith XXXXX

Hi Diane,

I am so sorry to hear your news. My prayers and thoughts go out to all concerned.

Teresa

Diane, what dreadful news, I am so upset to hear that...too many of our young men lost in that senslessness. I don't know what you can say I guess just be there, supportive and loving.
Thoughts are with you.
Lesley

Hello Everyone, just a quick pop in to see if everyone is ok.

Unfortunately I have had some awful news over the weekend. I found my cousin after 25 years of not being in touch and over the last few months we have become very close again, seeing each other at least 1s a week, well the poor lad found out on Saturday Morning that his son had been killed in Afghanistan. Lee (his son) was only 30 years old, he has 2 girls and another baby on the way, its dreadful. I feel so inadequate, what an earth can I say? .......

Morning, You weather sounds similar to ours Fred. It has warmed up but
now we have ice on the roads. Driving is a challenge just to stay on the road heehee. Watching people slide through stop signs is becoming a hobby. Don't know how many seed catalogues you have (we have 4)but it is so much fun to dream of the garden to come. I wish I had more room but wil have to live with the balcony for now.!!!!
Hope the heat stays away for you Mary. Les, are the aprons still keeping you busy?? Have a good week-end everyone. See you soon EdithXXX

Good morning all from a chilly ,very wet ,but snow free Newcastle [yippee] where Fred will be going out back very shortly to get some veggies out ,before the snow returns.
The house is now ,nice and snug again and my only complaint is ,all the backed up housework [groan] but that's what you get for going away for the week,he he.
Glad to hear that your weather is about normal again Mary,but at this time of the year ,like us ,i wouldn't hold your breath,he he ,you just don't know what's round the corner do you?
Going to get on now ,and come back later ,take care all ,and have a nice weekend,Fred.

Hi people... We have now a few showers and a lovely mild day..The heat has gone and life is back to normal..The extremes dont last to long,,usually around 2 to 3 days on average..in the worst places..I didnt mind it to much as we have a pool and A/C which got a good thrashing..lol...
Fred Hope you got Sean sorted ..cant have the poor boy going hungry...lol.. that will be the day with you around...lol...

Les WElcome to Ollie ,,am sure that he and Bella will sort out the place..and come to some agreement,,,LOL..hope the basement dosent flood..

Edith.. I am getting like you and preferring the cold to the hot..might be a age thing..hee hee heee....

Christine That lace jacket sound lovely.. so glad they dinny ruin it in the delivery..

Well the OH wants some lunch so better go and sort out something to feed him...Have a lovely day..

Mary xxxx

Morning all What weather we are having in this world. Mary you have all my sympathy. I do not tolerate the heat at all well. The cold is much easier to handle.
Fred, we have those drivers here as well. In some areas of the country 1 inch of snow will stop them all. The only real problem we have in our area is the "black ice". You can't see it on the road until you start skidding into either the snowbanks or another vehicle. Again driving with caution will keep you safe.
Les, hope Bella and Ollie get on as time goes by. We have a great time watching Erin's pugs with her 2 cats. Can get to be real funny if they are racing through the house at warp speed.Do you have a "Peggy Henson in your group?. I do and she is in Oz. Who knows HeeHee?????
Time to go the site is jumping again. Edith XXXX
wish they would fix that !!!!

Good morning everyone,Glad you have managed to keep your chin up Mary ,it must be worse for you than us ,we can warm ourselves by putting on extra clothes to go outside or turn the heating up ,but how in heck does a body cool down unless you get into a pool or the water,or run expensive air conditioning all day and night .despite me complaining ,i know which i would rather have ,lol
We should be heading home tomorrow morning so long as the lads fridge freezer comes this morning as promised,so that i can take him to Wotton Basset and iceland to get his supplies in as far as £50 will go.
We nagged him to do all the important things first ,like sort out his energy supplier and get his new phoneline and tele package ,t v license and the like so there are no nasties coming through the letter box.
This has left him a bit short seeing as he is paid at the end of the monthso i doneted to his food stash till that time comes ,lol
When he starts work at the end of the month he will officially be promoted to nco [cpl] and his pay will go up with a heck of a bang.
He deserves it too ,he will then be well involved with the repatriation of the fallen men and women who come home from Iraq and afghanistan,not a job i would fancy,i know how i felt when i lost buddies in the gulf,not nice at all ,and very upsetting for all.
Blast it ,it has now started snowing again ,so i may just have to leave the lad the money to do iceland himself ,it also depends on the company delivering his fridge freezer,i couldn't believe early in the week when his washing machine was two days late because of a 1" fall of snow ,these drivers could do with a driving course up in the wilds of Northumberland six inches quite normal ,and the drivers still do deliveries and get to work and back.
Have to go now and let the missus lose for a while or i will get some stick ,in more ways than one ,take care all you peeps over both ponds ,and stay safe ,Fred.

Hi Everyone,
I have been immersed in my Henson family and have finally updated my Hensons on GR. Its funny how when you go back after a year or so and have another go, how new stuff appears.
My news....on Jan 2 I went to the SPCA and got my rescue cat. He is a large ginger tom with a white tummy and paws. I have named him Oliver and call him Ollie most of the time. He and Bella have a "looking" relationship!!! Any little noise seems to frighten Ollie but I am sure as the weeks go by he will be OK.
The weather here is very wet, flooding downtown,....we watch our basement carefully!!!!
Can you believe that is it!! Keep well you lot.
Lesxx

Hi all you frozen Popsicles up north..We have been getting a first hand showing on our tv of the lovely ice and snow you are all getting...and we down south here are getting VERY HOT weather...into the 40c + and total fire bans everywhere..just waiting for some idiot that loves to light fires to come out of the woodwork, and start one..so far so good ,,only small fires that are quickly controlled and put out..
Been leading a very quiet life here and have made a promise to myself to visit my daughters more often this year,,Just for the weekend so John should manage on his own ok,,My Grand/D is turning 21 on the 1 March and we are supposed to be going to that so we will see how things pan out.. I get my annual holiday weekend next month at the Wattle Meet and am so looking forward to it..getting very tired..

Hope all are well ..

Love Mary xxx

Hi Edith ,still here Lass ,but down in Lyneham helping the grandson with his new house not far from Salsbury Plain.
The trip down was a pain ,he he ,the washer bottle froze as we left Newcastle ,but luckily i had learned about that from my driving wagons life and had put a gallon of cold water in the car boot,so it was a case of stop at each service station ,throw some water over the screen ,and off on the road again.
The whole trip was a nightmare,snow ,snow ,and more snow ,freezing as soon as it hit the road,most drivers clueless as to how to drive in it ,driving too fast and causing grief to themselves ,and others.
By the time i hit Oxfordshire it was dark and freezing hard minus 10 and dropping fast ,so cold shortly after that the headlights started to fade because the battery wasn't coping and was i think starting to freeze up .
Got here in the finish utterly tired out,taking us 7 hours door to door.
We hired a van the next afternoon,[yesterday] and went on to the airfield to collect his six [heavy boxes from the Hercules aircraft they arrived in ,he he ,back in the old days i was ,undoing the net from off the pallet and finding Seans boxes ,and lugging them off the loader onto the van ,in a freezing cold hanger,which was colder inside than it was out,lol.and then the real fun.
Taking the boxes off the van and lugging them over the grass to the door of the house,i was knackered by the time we were done doing that.
It was 7 pm by this time ,the van to take back yet ,and still no warm meal.so ,after we picked his car back up ,we came home via a chinese takaway and got a meal for all..
Then it was off to bed.
Will update you all this afternoon when we have most of the boxes unpacked ,connected the new washing machine ,and have had dinner. Fred.

Hello everyone!
We spent Christmas day at our grand daughters. Lots of fun with three great grand daughters around. One present I got I really don’t like – a doozy of a cold!
Grand daughter has a Wii and treated themselves for Xmas to a “Wii Fit plus”! Hilarious fun for all the family. The darn thing rates you for weight and fitness. OH was spot on for his age – 80 - and also for weight. Me – I was rated at 71 for age (79 really) so that ticked him off! Only problem is I am over weight so have to do something about that. We bought ourselves a Wii and I’m waiting for the Fitness plus gizmo I ordered to start on a weight loss program for the New Year. Nice to feel like kids again! Great Grand daughters were tickled pink when Grandma “flew like a chicken”. All these new fangled things…..
I feel sorry for all my friends in England – what a horrendous mess and at least another week of bad weather to go. We talked to brother in law and another friend and I am so glad we came to Canada so long ago and SO glad we moved to the Okanagan. It’s just balmy here. The lowest it’s been here is -10 and the mountains all around look so beautiful but the little snow we have is no problem – far less than at our old haunts in Alberta. Hope everyone is enjoying life as much as we are and hope you all have a fantastic New Year.

Helloooo Where are you all.??? I know it has been cold but thought you were inside by the fire and playing on the computer.
We still have cold nights but the days are sunny so tolerable. Fred Where are you???Surely not out in all the snow?
I'll bet Hissy does not like it heehee. How about J.A. Mary, Les, Teresa and the others. Let's hear from you.
Off to get something to eat and then finish a very good book.
Edith XXX