General Chat

Hi all what lovely weather we are now having..rain,rain,glorious rain...and more to come,,Wish we could send it down south to the bushfire areas but cant do anything about that..It will stop the crazies up here deciding to light fires though so at least we are now fairly free of them,,for a while anyway.. There is talk here now,don't know id it is true or not,,that the large power lines were swinging in the very high winds and touched and in arcing dropped Sparks to the ground,,I have actually seen this happen so it is very possible,,There was another alert last night near a national park close to Melb. but they got it contained before midnight,,Looks like some idiot started this one..Lets hope some good rain comes soon..

Fred.. I tried your google thingy and found you ok but was not allowed to see anyone in Canada..they don't like us ...boo hoo..It said your house was about 5 houses along the road ,not where I thought it should be,,Was yours the one with the caravan out the front and close to the corner,,???,or practically right on the corner..

Edith Leeks are very expensive here to and I don't buy them because of that..pity as I rather like them,,I love lentils also and often make pea and ham soup with them instead of dried peas...my favourite winter soup..Glad your weather is improving,,keep warm..

Les.. Our maid of the Mountains..back to the sewing and keep warm..

Well better go and get some brekky so have a nice day all and back later

Love Mary xxxx

Yes, I saw you Fred, Edith you are just a dot. I checked myself and it was also disappointing. I am V9Y 4S2
Ah! Dorothy, Canmore. Such a nice little community. I can understand why they would like to live there BUT also living in a small town an hour away from good shopping I can tell you that sometimes I do get cabin fever. Now our local Walmart, the only store in town that does sewing notions, has made a company decision not to do them any more. So if I need seam binding or buttons or what ever....I have to drive over the mountain to Nanaimo an hour away...now that actually sucks!! Hope your sister considers such things.
Sunny here today after a foggy start...few more weeks and it will be garden time...oh! joy!!
Sewing today...keep well you lot.
Lesxx

hi well fred I have tried that google map and it is great fun my postal code is L4N-5A3 for those of you in calgary I think my sister may be on the move again they returned from the caymans recently and she has now decided that she would like to live in canmore permantly rather than have two places one in calgary and one in canmore, a 2 bedroom plus den is available in the condo in canmore so they are looking into selling the two they have and buying that one I really can't keep up with them, mackenzie town in calgary I thought was very nice but canmore well the mountains etc just take your breath away so I shall see what happens I have lost track of all the places they have lived in 19 yrs of marriage (she married at 41) I thought this move to calagary was the last but here we go again bye for now dorothy

Morning everyone, Finally we are getting "normal" weather. A few snow

flurries,soft fluffy stuff and -5 to -10 temps. Good for us.

I was thinking of you Fred when I went to buy a leek yesterday. 1 med size

leek was $2.49. I put it back and made lentil soup instead. Would you

bring an extra one in and send it on please?????

Sounds like things are settling down in Australia, thank goodness

Apparently they have also caught one of the madmen who set the fires

here's hoping he goes away for life!!!

How are the rest of you???Friday the 13th to-day and it is usually lucky for

me, so maybe, just maybe the lotto will come my way ha ha ha .

My postal code is P8T 1H7 Fred, don't think they would map us here in

the boonies but you can give it a try.

Stay well all enjoy Valentines tomorrow. See you soon, Edith XXXX

Weeeell,what a carry on ,lol,after the report on the lovely morning weather ,it darkened by ten oclock ,and by half past the hour ,it was snowing like hell.
The poor cat decided she had had enough of the white stuff and came to the patio window and asked to be let in.
Fred opens the door ,in comes Hissy at a great rate of knots,skids on the wooden floor,hits the carpet gripper ,stops abruptly and rolls under the kitchen table in a heap.
Couldn't help it ,i burst out laughing ,whereupon i got such a dirty look off her that i laughed even more.
Now ,she has stalked off upstairs in high dudgion ,ignoring my advances,even refusing the milk i offered in apology ,he he.what a funny animal she is,but very very entertaining to both me and the missus.
The thirteenth today is it?hmmmmm.i think we will both bide indoors to be on the safe side ,a bit like my old boss from 10 years back ,lol,he wouldn't even get out of bed.all day because he was so accident prone.
The wife has decided that seeing as we arn't going out,she is going to take the blinds down out of the two main bedrooms and wash them,Huh,i smell the onset of spring cleaning coming on,ooooops ,time to slide off out back into the greenhouse he he.
Just been on multimap to have a look at the new website ,flippin' 'eck ,it's sooooo good i can zoom in so close i can see my car ,and van in the drive,and if i had been in the greenhouse at the time the sattelite came overhead,i could have seen myself through the glass.
Away you lot ,lets have your post codes ,and we can all see each others houses to get a better idea as to exactly what all our houses look like,and even the surrounding areas.
Anyone interested ,then i will kick off[ Ne5 2ay burwell avenue] go on ,have a shotty lol.
See ya later peeps.Fred.

Morning peeps,another mildish morning here in the frozen north [lol],and it looks like another nice day.
Thanks Mary i feel a little better knowing that all the family are safe,and well.
I had heard on the net that the Oz peeps were pulling together,and the money was pouring in,at least then those that have lost all their belongings will find things a tad easier because of the generosity of other communities that escaped the fires and floods.
I have heard also from cousin Lynn so know that her family are okay,And t'other cousin in Brisbane ,Maureen was well out of the way in Brisbane,so all is okay in Freds little world.
I have some rather large mushrooms in the fridge,and i am going to stuff them with cos-cos and a few other bits and bobs for the tea,but i fancy some beans on toast for dinner,using the last of the home made bread up.
I will def' be making more of that next week,havn't enjoyed a baking session for a long time,lol,the missus thinks i'm daft when you can buy it in the shop so cheaply ,but when i make it ,there is only half the recommended salt in,no sugar,and i use olive oil instead of lard and butter,and it comes out very well,i even use alisons dried yeast that you stir into the pastry dry,doing away with the need for sugar to start the fermentation.
Have to scoot off now ,to take the missus her cuppa up,huh ,this wife of mine lives the life of Riley,ruddy good job i love her he he .Fred.

hi mary well this cannuk is getting some not so bad temperatures in my corner of the land (barrie ont) the temperature is 10 degree's to-day a new record and it is raining so some of the snow is melting if you recieved fred's e-amil re the snow in orillia that is just up the road from me about a 20min drive. hoping that the news from australia will improve soon and that they catch the people that started the fires, though that can't replace peoples lives so manyfamilies hurt bye for now dorothy

Hi all.. Well our weather is now lovely and mild and in the low 20c's so I am a happy chappy..We have even had a little rain..not much but enough to dampen things a bit..

Cousin Fred...All our mobs family and friends are safe and out of harms way,,some have lost their homes but at least they are still alive,,and as Marie said the generosity of the Aussies has been fantastic. and still more pouring in..good to see others care about their fellow man..The floods up north have subsided and if the dull damp weather in Victoria hangs out things should look a lot better soon..That is if some silly idiot doesn't think it is time to light another fire..

Life here is rather slow and quiet.. John said today we might get to New Zealand for a cousins wedding in Nov. but I am not raising my hopes as they have been dashed so many times before I take one day at a time..he might be feeling good today but tomorrow he might be bad so I don't raise my hopes..

Hope all the Canucks are keeping warm and don't go out in that ice and snow..bunker down in your basements and keep warm...

Well might head off to bed so be good all and have a nice day/night..

Love Mary xxx

Morning all,yes,i too have been watching the devestation in Oz,not only due to the fires,but also because of the flooding which has also cost many lives.
So much horror for all the people involved,and ,on top of it all,the loss of crops and livestock is going to cause shortages and increased prices at a time when peeps are stuggling to come to terms with the disasters.
One can only hope that the Oz fortitude that has served them so well in the past will come to the fore yet again .
Thank the good lord that the people have a good government infrastructure where all parties will pull together,something that i don't think our goverment is capable of.
.I have been busy over the past few days researching my family history yet again,and have found something to distress our Mary,he he.
I was looking at the Rowan family i found in Scotland in Ayr cira 1700,when i came a Gilbert Baird,who married one Mary Mccaull so it looks likea connection to both sides of her family both Mccall,and Patterson[sorry old chum ,lol],you are stuck with me.
I'm getting quite spoiled with this lappy and chair,sitting here like lord muck,with the external mouse,and cup of coffee in a nice comfy seat he he.
What i hear you say,let the missus use it,?nooooooo way lol,this is Freds new set up,she has the old one and that's that.
We have a lovely morning here ,the sun is shining,and the last of our snow is rapidly melting yippee,is spring round the corner at last.
Have to go now peeps ,off to the docs for my diabetic review,the next thing is to persuade them to let us go back to cyprus for those 6 weeks ,AND supply us with all the tablets required in two sealed containers for the trip,,just in case we are asked any questions.
Take care all,be back later.Fred.

All of you have already been in my prayers, Marie. Mary sent me the www.smh.com.au link and I have been watching that each day. It's hard to believe that anyone would do this deliberately....what are their minds like...scary for sure.

Keep safe you guys in OZ. Like Edith we are having rain, hail and snow today and if I could send it to you...I would.

Maybe someone could post on this thread and let us know that all of our friends are OK??? would be appreciated.
Lesxx

Hi to all the Canucks also everyone on this site
The news is bad from Aust. So many lives lost and at last count 750 Homes .
The fires are still rageing and they are very worried that 3 of the fires will converge and there are several towns possibly in the path of the fires. I live in NSW and there are fires but nowhere near us.

We are all in shock at the devastation and loss of life, especially as most of the fires where deliberatly lit, the police say that they are closing in on the person or persons responsible for these terrible acts.
All of aust. are rallying round with help, over a million dollars has already been donated and much more will come. Our Govt, has pledged to rebuild the many towns that have been wiped out and cash will be given to all for their neccessitys, nothing can replace the lives lost. The terror of seeing their homes and many of their friends missing will live with them forever.
Our wonderful volunteers who risk their lives for others from fire fighters to the local womens groups who give their time to help feed and clothe the familys the Red Cross the Salvation Army and hundreds of others are all there giving support even the people giving blood to the blood bank for the burns victims. This is the face of Aust,.always ready to help one another, this generosity also includes the flood victims in north Qld.
What we need from all our friends is many Prayers for rain especially in Victoria NSW and South Australia .

I do hope your weather warms up soon.
Lots of Prayers Pleaseeeeeeeee.
Kindest regards to you all
Marie from OZ.

Hi all. Just watching the B B C news about Australia. All the poor souls

who have lost everything as well as lost lives. We have bush fires here

but they don't jump like those gum trees etc. Here's hoping all our friends

stay out of danger.

Our weather is changing again, we are now under a freezing rain

warning and the temps are rising. So it slushville for a while until the

streets dry up a bit more.

Stay well everyone, bye for now, Edith XXXXXXXXX

Hi All

Just been reading the Daily Mail newspaper on line and saw the report of the dreadful bushfire that is raging in part of Australia. So many killed it is shocking.

Give everyone you have near you a special hug today.

Veronica

goodmorning from barrie ont quite balmy to-day only -3 and rain in the forecast but the snow is too return to-morrow, for those of you who like a good mystery I found an english author about 18months ago called neil white he lived for a time in ramsbottom nr bury where I come from he has written fallen idols, lost souls, and has a new one coming out on 4th of may 'last rites' 'they are only in paper back and for us over here (canada) you have to order them through amazon uk. neil is a senior crown prosecutor with the crown prosecution service and lives in preston lancs. he does reply to e-mails and yesterday I recieved one back from him in which he says he is not sure when his books may be able in canada but they are available in other countries anyway they are a good read so thought I would pass this info on. my sister is back in calgary after 2 weeks in the caymans they had a good time and enjoyed the warm weather bye for now dorothy

Morning our Mary,and anyone who happens to drop in.
We can only get pumpkins for a couple of weeks a year Mary,so have never made it.
As to the shortage of snow in London,thats an easy one lol,the politicians and many of the londoners spend soooo much time spouting rubbish ,and hot air ,the snow melts before it can settle , he he.
Talking of snow,we have a covering again this morning ,so ,if we get more during the day ,Liz and i won't be seeing the grandies this evening.It looks as though old faithful [my big puter] is getting a little frail,so it may be time to put the vista tower back into it's slot ready to boot up,but when that goes home i will go onto laptops altogether,they take up far less room,and are soooo handy to cart around.
I found a programme on the net to enable the laptop to show dvd films whilst travelling ,so that will be handy for when we fly again,much better than the in flight films the companies show.
I may book our flights within the next couple of weeks,as one company covered by the flight insurance ,is offering the flight for two,each way,with meals thrown in for £275plus the extra leg room ,not at all bad.
My son bought me a packet of haluomi cheese last evening,the cheese i had on my salads in Cyprus,which is a pretty hard variety of cypriot goat cheese,very tasty too ,so guess who is having salad and cod for dinner.
I have to try getting the sugar content down a little because i am due my review in a couple of weeks,mind,i am happy with the level,the middle of normal range ,but my diabetic nurse is a bit funny ,and will tell me she wants the level down to 5.3 again grrrrrr ,lol.
Poor Liz is having to buy the veggies in at the moment,the ground is soooo hard i can't get a fork into it to get the cabbage out,and believe it or not,when i tried to pull a few sprouts off the day before yesterday ,i skinned my knuckles on the brussels below,oooooo [sniffle] it was sore .
he he..
Next time i am at computer orbit ,i must ask how much their expansion cards are,to increase the storage capacity on my lappy,nopw i'm getting right into it instead of my tower model,i am starting to get a little short of hard drive space,and a big storage card is a lot handier than lugging my verbatim external drive every where..
My son has also found an old pda map of Cyprus for me,so i can borrow his pda when i go back over and save having to buy an sd card to slot in my Garmin sat nav,thats an extra weeks spending money saved [yippee],as it will help to hire costs for the car.
Well,time to go,too much house work to do this morning ,AND i have to priese the missus out of bed yet [now,where's that ruddy crow bar he he],can't blame her though ,it looks sooooo cold out there,thank the lord we have the heating this winter,cor ,had we had all this snow last year ,with no heating it would have been veeeeery uncomfortable.
Catch you all later ,Fred.

Hi all We have HOT again today..Going up to around 31c they say..no relief till next week so cant wait..

We had the funeral of my son in laws father yesterday and the grandies were so upset,,They needed a lot of cuddles..Daughter Terry and her hubby came up from Canberra for the funeral and kindly drove us so I didnt have to get the car out..It was such a change and nice to be driven again..It was lovely to see my girls but sad it was at a funeral..We hope to get to Canberra one day in the not to distant future to visit Terry but have to wait till her hubby has a free weekend, as most of them he is away with the army..and he wants to be there when we visit..I think he likes us.hee hee hee....

Fred Make Leek and potato soup.. one of my favourite soups after pumpkin soup,,which is my very favourite soup..Have you ever made it..We saw all the snow in London,,Couldn'T believe that London doesn't get snow that often..How come other places do and they don't,,Does it stop at borders, or skip a county and do the next one, hee hee hee...

Les When are you moving back to the mainland,,,surely the weather would not be so bad there,,and guess you would be close to a little 3yo,,and visit more often..lol..how are the aprons going..are you saving up for a trip to OZ yet...

Sylvia So glad to hear that you had such a nice day visiting Kate for her birthday, bet she is growing fast..

Well better go and do some washing as have to change the sheets as my brother Graham is due on monday for a family lunch..

Love to all

Mary xxxx

Good morning peeps,cor ,it's pretty chilly here in the north east this fornoon,but the threatened snow went to Wales instead ,and they are welcome to it he he,but i ain't saying any more just yey 'cause the sky is that funny light grey colour and i'm hoping it's just my eyes.lol.
Nice to see you again Sylvia,yes ,i agree whole heartidly,your grandkids will now keep you going as they should he he ,mine certainly keep the old bear on the hop a few times each week,but i dote on them all ,and would have it no other way..
I have another new sat nav' Mary,the garmin is pretty basic really ,but it works okay ,and i know for sure that i can get the sd card ready loaded with the Cypruss mapping from a shop in Limassol when i go next [yippee] no restrictions now [well happy at that].
I happened to be [polite cough] in Halfords in Cramlington yesterday when i noticed a becker z 101 model sat'nav ,usual price £350 reduced to £99 with full lane guidence,maps of the whole of greece and east/west europe,camera locations with free updatesfor two years ,so ,i bought one lol,both sat nav's costing less than the Tom Tom i returned to the store.
Something to be said for the recession he he.
Gotta find something to make for the dinner,i have three huge leeks here ,a gift from an old chum who still has his leek trench up the gardens where i used to have my two gardens [any suggestions please [polite ones that is] he he.
One,i think i can make calgannon with ,but i may just get the missus to make a leek pudding with one of the remaining,and i can check the cookbook for a new recipe if i get sent no suggestions,bearing in mind that these are show leeks ,and a heck of a size.
Time for a sneaky look around now to see what other peeps are doing,stay well all ,and stay SAFE.
Fred.

Good Morning Everyone from a slightly cooler Perth.WA.
I had a nice day yesterday, I went to see the Grandchildren and it was Kate's 3rd Birthday so I stayed later than usual. I could have stayed the night but I had to get back for the cat. I took some photos of Kate but don't know how to send them to you except by Email, so I might do that for those who I have Email addresses for and Lesley, I would like to see a photo of your 3 year old granddaughter.
I am feeling a bit better this week, so far, but haven't got round to sorting Norman's clothes to send to the Op shop yet. Debbie says she will help when I am ready.
A friend in England sent me some photos of the snow which fell on Monday and, although it looks lovely, I'm glad I'm not there.
I hope you are all well.
Love from Sylvia XX

HI Everyone,
We went over to the Mainland on the weekend and managed to have 4 xmas visits in 2 days. It was lots of fun but came home exhausted. Drive home wasn't helped by the snow storm we ran into on our back into Port Alberni. Anyway we exhanged pressies with everyone...it was pretty neat really. Spent all of Saturday with the granddaughter....what a little baggage she is. She was late talking but now you cannot shut her up and everything is a why, or what, or how....questions, questions. She will be three on march 6 so pretty close to your Kate, Sylvia.
We took Bella with us and she was a lamb as always when she is travelling. Its not because she is a good dog always but she hates the car so that cools her "ardor"!!!! LOL We took her and Rhian for a walk to the park. Rhian went on the slides, first time since the snow came and Bella just barked her head off. Then we walked and drooled over some of the lovely houses for sale in Kitsilano. Norm and I have once again come full circle and would like to live over there somewhere. Tough call because the house prices are still thru the roof. Oh well!!
Today I am going to make patterns and then we are off to the Council meeting....so much excitement....I can hardly contain myself.....another LOL!!
They shot the bear that had been in the garbage...too sad really and nowhere to complain to...or at least nowhere that listens.
Good to read everyone's news.
Sylvia it is lovely to see you on here often. You chat away to us...if we can help...then I know we all will.
Edith did you get any of that snow storm?? I had an email from my cousin who lives just south and west of London and their roads are impassable. How about you Fred, Diane, Christine and the rest....did you get lots of snow??? And Mary, JA, Sylvia, Tony, Ian etc. in Oz....wow!! talk about hot. We often get the occasional day in the summer that goes up to 40/41 but not days and days. I don't like the cold but that is too hot for me. Stay in and stay cool!!
That's me for now. Lesxx

Hello all, Can't believe all I'm hearing about the snow in England.
I heard one fellow say they had just returned from Canada and we had cleared the snow away very quickly !!! I guess so. We have about 4 to 5
"months" of the stuff so are well prepared to handle it. My friend in London says this is the first heavy snow in 18 years, no wonder they don't clean it up as fast as we do. !!!!!
It will very likely disappear very quickly as ours is here to stay until late March.. Enjoy it while you can. Sliding and snow angels are "fun"
Good to hear from Diane and Marie. Drop by any time.
Fred, Thanks so much for the pics. Nice church to be married in.
Sorry but I feel the same about Haggis. I tried it several years ago. Made
by the Grandma of a scottish family who lived in town. They used to hold a Robbie Burns nite. Lots of lovely food except for the haggis, after they tol;d me it was in a sheeps stomach that ended it for me. Then again I know a lot of folk who think moose meat is yuk, whereas we love it.
Must get my soup stock in and get the veg into it as every one has been asking for some on our cold nite. Stay well and hope the snow is soon
gone and you can get back to normal. Edith XXXX