General Chat

Hello all Canadians.

Just want to reply to Mary and say you should try the gourmet kangaroo mince at Woolworths. It is really nice and is cheaper than beef mince and you can mix it with other mince for starters. Sometimes you have to ask for it though.

I had some a few weekends ago and also a spaghetti dish last night and find it scrumptious.

Know what you mean about restaurants though - I had kangaroo steak once - blue!! it was awful. I asked for the cook to at least cook it rare and he refused!

Hi Fred.

~~~~~~~~~~ Vonny

Hi all..We have lovely weather and hope you all on the other side of the world are not to cold..We will look after the nice weather until it returns to the north..lol

Having a lovely quiet day and relaxing. Had a busy week last week but this week is not to bad..

Edith.. Are you getting any Moose meat this year..It must save you a lot of money on meat..We have kangaroo meat in the meat dept. in the supermarket but I don't buy it as I don't know how to cook it,, It is very healthy meat with little fat, but if you cook it to long it goes tough ..so they say..I have had it in restaurants but it is always cooked rare, and in a sort of stew..Not a great favourite of most people..Hope the bears are not making a mess. but at least they are lowering the rubbish pile...lol
Glad your eye is improving.. So glad you can now see out it..Must have been a butter not able to...big hugs..

Fred.. Hope you and LIz are ok,, Is the freezer stuffed full of vegs from the garden yet..
Don'T forget to send me anything you would like me to look up on Ancestry for you..Brother had a Tom Tom (Sat, Nav) in his car when we went out with him last weekend,,It was good to see how it worked..It was good to see how it reset itself when we went left when it said go right..lol Had a good time trying to confuse it..lol,,It was great fun..

Les.. Bet you are sitting here reading this when you should be sewing...get to it girl...no slouching..ppppp Hope Emily has got her arms back..lol..glad you didn't meet that bear.. Bet Bella would have made right for home..hee hee hee...

Hope all are well and having a nice weekend..

Love Mary xxxxx

Gooooood Morning one and all,from a very mild Newcestle ,weather wise,and getting ready to delve into my family history again.
It's a small world isn't it? i have been in touch with a lady on genes who is connected through a few family names with my tree,and we hopefully be swapping info with each other.
I also find out that said lady was working at a furniture firm called parker Knoll in wycombe at the same time as my sister,he he ,maybe they even worked in the same office ,ooooer,i hope my sis' hasn't been telling tales about me round the office lol,thank goodness i was working at E Gomme at that time ,which was at the other end of town .
My better half has informed me that the decorationg season is round the corner ,with the dining room and the second big bedroom to do prior to the arrivel of Sean and bride in January,so ,if i,m not round too much for a couple of weeks you will know why.
Catch you later ,Fred.

HI Everyone,

I have been keeping out of mischief and sewing, and sewing, and sewing!! The local Sally Ann store sold me two racks yesterday so that was one chore off the list. I still have many aprons to make plus a couple of special orders that have been hanging around for ever....soon!!!

Our Emily had a bit of a problem with her right arm...it fell off!! Anyway the guy who Norm bought it from took her to his garage and worked on her like she was his prize Jag!!! Yesterday he brought her home, looking good altho she does have a small grey patch of her back where he cut her open. Now all she needs is a nice black dress and a wig and we'll be off to the fair!!

Bella and I have been walking on the quiet side this week altho yesterday I could see where Mr Bear had gone for a dip in the dyke, shook himself and wandered off. His tracks were still wet!!!! It was funny that Bella did not get overly excited about that....good thing!!!

I sent everyone the chocky cake in a mug about a week or so ago. If you want it, pm me and I will send it along. I did think I would cut down on the oill content just to make it a little more "guilt-free"!! On the weekend we used our Kitchen Aid for the first time. We ground up a sirloin roast to make shepherd's pie and then even did the mashed spuds with it....too tasy...we all over-ate!!!

Good to see you back Fred.

Glad that you are OK Edith I was a bit worried about that strep thing also.

'Lo to the rest of you. Keep out of mischief....off to the dreaded "machine"!! Think I will get Normie to print me a pic of Mike Baldwin to put on the walll...that will keep me going!!! LOL

Later Lesxx

Hee hee Fred I thought now is puss a he or she and took a stab well I had a 50 50 chance of being right lol.
I think I have seen that chocky pudd somewhere but cant remember now, is that the one you make in a mug? If so yes please for the recipe, incase I dont find elsewhere.

Mmmm 8.5 bsl in morning before food :-( oh well you have to treat yourself every now and then, my ex, who has poor control was/is alway getting readings over 10, most are up in high teens, but then he eats what he shouldnt so cant expect much else.

Nearly bedtime here and as I have set myself a new record, 2 messages on here within 24 hours hee hee. I will leave it at that and catch you next time. Night all.

Morning all ,and Hi Tass,lol.
No, i couldn't take Hissy [her] on holiday with us,we went into a private van with loads of trinkets,vases ,whatever,and the cat would have smashed the lot he he.
She is still keeping a weather eye on me all the time ,and even follows me round the garden,to make sure i don't beetle off and leave her again.
Poor little beggar,when we get the car out to go shopping ,she is up on the window sill as we pull away,and is still there when we come back,and as soon as she sees us she goes ballistic .
Poor old Mary ,i bet she is in hiding under the covers what with the return of winter ,just as it was starting to warm up nicely,no wonder you lot have the flu bug rife at the moment,never the same from one day to the next.
Our temperatures are funny too ,rthis morning i havn't even had the heater turn itself on,the temperature being 17c already,most unusual for october.
Well,i think the missus and i have got away with it this year,four days down the line after the flu jabs ,and no sniffles,looking good.
I bought home a couple of good recipes which i will make available to anyone who want's them,one ,a chocolate pudding to die for taking literally five minutes to mix and put in the mic' about eight minutes from start to finish ,and boy,does it taste good.
I hear you Mary,and i may need some help from you if you don't mind,i hve a family member back in the 1800s,i found them okay ,but couldn't bring them up on the 1881 cencusat all,a bummer as i wanted that cencus to find out where they were and the state of the family size lol,i will check again later today to see if i can bring it up now,if not ,heeeeeeelp ,lol
We had a real treat for tea last night jafrezy beef ,with pelau rice,popadoms and chips[oven ones],i really enjoyed it as did the missus ,but i nearly had a fit this morning when i did my blood sugar,cor ,eck,8.5 first thing in the morning BEFORE breakfast not good,i love my indians and chinese meals ,but i am going to have to make it a once a month thing in future .
have to go now and get the dusting done,but if this gale comes up as they reckon ,i will be back as there isn't much else to do today .
Have fun all,and get yourself geared up for the weekend,and for those of you who have your bairns off on holiday next week ,commiserations ,and the best of luck ,your gonna' need it he he .fred.

Hi all

Well its been a while since I popped in here, seems like I am repeating myself on the threads, but then I guess there are different peeps on each one, apart from Mary, we must get tired of hearing the same news from each other/ nah that wouldnt happen :-)

Teresa glad there are good results for hubby. Must put you mind at rest, hope you news stays positive for a long time.

Diane, hope you are feeling better soon, nothing wrong with a coffee and biscuit especially the coffee, I cant do with out my coffee.

Lesley gee that was a close call with you getting lost in the forest, I can understand hubby getting worried, just shows you are very much loved, have to be like a girl scout and leave a bit of ribbon or something next time you go wandering unfamiliar areas, at least that way you will know what way you need to go to return to your start spot.

Fred sounds like you have had a great time away with lots of good sites to see and food to eat :-) Poor puss you didnt take him on holidays too ???

Edith great news on your eye treatment too. Our weather has been a mixed bag too, last week I was getting to wonder how hot our summer woudl be as we was getting temps that was a lot warmer than we usually get it at this time of year, but now we are back to about 1-3 overnight and low teens during the day.

Have not had a lot going on lately, Daughter got her license and now is owner of her first car, she is very happy with it. She is now busily trying to organise a surprise 18th birthday party for her boyfriend with help from his Mum and us of course.

Well wishing everyone good health and will drop in again soon. Have a nice day :-) Cheers Sue

Hello everyone. Finally finished flying about to medical appts. The specialists are always in the big city aren't they?
Can't complain as I can again see out of my right eye.The laser treatment cleared it up almost as fast as I opened and closed the eye.
Good to see you back Fred and that you and Liz had a good time.
Happy for you and family Teresa. Would love to visit the shop especially at Christmas. Went into the shop at the Forks in Winnipeg on Monday and the new lights they have this year are really neat.
Also saw some ornaments from Switzerland that were fabulous.!!!
Yes, Mary, turkey 2 times in a row. My family would have it weekly if allowed. It's the pies that are too much for me.Plus whipped cream or ice cream.!!!!!!!!
Our bears are also confused by the weather,there are several out at the local dump(trash)They love all the fish etc. that get thrown away as the moose meat takes all the room in the freezers.
Our weather has been the same as other areas.Cold and wet seem to be the passwords this year wherever you live.
All the local holiday bazaars and sales are coming up so have a busy 2 months to look forward to.
Seems they all need baking or crafts or "money" in lieu of.
Harvest dinner on Sat.for which I will bake 8 doz.dinner rolls. Then pig out at the buffet.
Must get downstairs and finish the laundry and then out for tea. See you all soon. Stay well. Edith XXXX

Morning All!! Hope you are all well. I've never tried Haggis Fred, but I love black pudding, we aren't supposed to like that sort of thing are we? Cholesterol and all that!!!! But a little bit of what you fancy does you good, or so they say!! Its a little chilly here today, so won't be venturing very far from home I don't think.. Bye for now....

HI Fred.. Good to have you back,, and glad you had a nice holiday..
Don'T like the sound of the meal you did,,all that black pudding a haggis,,yuck,,ya can have it..not my type of food.. Bet the cat was glad to see you home..She will be wandering when you will be going again and is keeping close by just in case.

Went to see my brother and sil who had the car accident and they are getting there slowly.. Brother is recovering from his bypass operation and has lost a lot of weight,,Hope he puts some on again..,,and sil is now walking on her ankle but is still in the brace for her back..They are both going to rehab so are improving slowly..

Nothing much happening here,,Just the usual..
Have you noticed that Ancestry have the INCOMING PASSENGER LISTS for the uk..Found myself on it..pmsl..must be getting old when I find myself on a genealogy site,,,ppppppmsl...

Hope all are well


Love Mary xxxxx

Goooood morning all,Fred and Liz are back ,after a fantastic holiday over in the west country.
In two weeks ,we had three days of bad rain,but we still went out and enjoyed ourselves.
We walked from Fleetwood to the south Pier at Blackpool over three days ,with many rests on the way,but what the hell,there are seats every few hundred yards along the part of the lancaster way that we walked.
We paid a visit to a hamlet hard to the Lancaster canal, called Guys Village all old buildings and thatched roofs where ,in days of old ,barges would ply their trade betwen bolton and the west coast ,stopping at this hamlet to off load to the railway for shipping to the towns and villages inland.
The station buildings and yard are still there ,being used as workshops and stores ,but ,of course the tracks are long gone,but it has all been kept in order as a tourist attraction,and is well worth a visit.
Blackpool golden mile is full of partygoers and not our scene,but the streets behind are great ,tons of shops ,and little cafe's ,we had a real good time .
We went ou with the sis' in law and hubby twice,once to a carvery for a meal and once to a proper posh place ,where there was an offer of the dearest meal to pay,the second meal free,not bad eeh?
I had a proper mixed grill,rare steak a bacon fillet chop.cumberland sausages,devilled kidney,,a nice slice of liver,two eggs ,onion rings ,and chips,Cost?£12-50-p.the wife then had gammon steak ,eggs pineapple,onion rings ,and new potatoes and roast potatoes ,so ,we did well.
I found a shop called B&M which sells all sorts of stuff from clothing ,electrical gear ,to food.
I was on a scouting mission at the time for a meal at the sis' in laws ,and came across grants Haggis [tinned] grants black pudding [also tinned] and noticed they even sell white pudding .
I bought a tin of haggis and blackpudding took them back to the house ,and we had a burns supper,with neeps ,and mashed ,creamed potatoes.
The black pudding i put into the the freezer for an hour ,finding that upon decanting from the tin it cut fine,the haggis was cooked in the micro wave in a plastic conainer,and was fine,every bit as good as fresh Grants haggis ,which to my mind is better than Halls by a mile.
I suppose Grants are looking after their overseas costomers by tinning their products for export to countries where ,because of the heat,it is impossible to get fresh,so ,get looking you scotties ,lol.there is a tin of haggis ,and black pudding in the offing,even if your local butchers don't know how to make it.
I got a nice load of piccies of the towns and surrounding areas,the trams [some covered in lights].
the illuminations and fun fair
It's nice to be back again and the cat keeps following us around in case we bog off again lol
Have to go and get on with the chores ,but will be back later.Fred.

Hi all..was getting worried about our Sylvia so emailed her and received a reply..She is ok but has had the flue for 5 weeks,, poor think,,it really was a bad one this year..
Then when she tried to post she found out that her membership had lapsed so she is trying to renew as fast as she can..lol

She should be back soon,,we hope..

Got the all clear from my ENT doctor today and now feel a lot more settled, as there was one thing on the MRI that I didn't understand but after having my throat anaesthetised and a telescope pushed down it he was satisfied that I was fine..just a bit crinkled..lol,,,,,so pleased ,, just one more visit to my doc next week and I hope I don't have to see another for the rest of the year.had enough for a while...

Got my brother and sil for the weekend and then up to other brothers house for lunch on Monday..we are all going together and we enjoy each others company so am pleased they are coming..

Beautiful weather here today..sunny and around 25c,,just my sort of weather,,

Hope you are not all working to hard..

Love Mary xxxx

Hi Janey,

There is always a story isn't there. I was chatting to friend in Calgary last nite and he told that the man in front of him had apparently tried to vote twice and was prepared to get quite hostile. We didn't have anyone nasty at all at Glenwood and I think we had 18 polls there. This would expalin why the scrutes were placed at the end of the hall. It would have been overcrowded otherwise. Anyway, another day as they say!!

'Lo everyone else. All in hiding again are we??? When does that lovely Fred get back??? Does anyone in Oz have Sylvia's phone number and could give her a call??? OK I am off to sew.
More later
Lesxx

Heh, Lesley. I just had a PM at another site from someone who was a Central Poll Supervisor in a polling station in a riding with a very very tight and high-profile NDP-Liberal race. Apparently one of his Liberal scrutineers spent the entire day challenging the ID of just about every voter who wandered in, until, after trying everything else (gentle instruction, a quiet word with a more senior scrutineer ... who kept wearing his Liberal button ...), he blew up and told him exactly what was going to happen (he would call the @#$% police) if he didn't sit down and shut up right that minute. ;)

My favourite was a few years ago when the very pleasant Liberal scrutineer in my poll challenged about three dozen ballots for being improperly marked ... three dozen ballots for his own candidate ... . I'd challenged one or two myself, then at the end suggested I'd withdraw my challenge (we were obviously going to win the riding) and maybe he'd like to as well. Made life a lot easier for the poll clerk!

Your scrutineer might have been an old timer? Until about two elections ago, the scrutineers sat at the same table as the staff, or at least at a table adjoining. After all, we're supposed to be scrutinizing, which is hard to do from across the room! It did make for more pleasant relations over the day and evening usually, too. A scrutineer actually gets less in the way from close up. Oh well, the good old days.

Janey, I can chat. At about 6 pm we had a very aggressive lady come to my poll station. She pulled up a chair and prepared to settle in...I said I'm sorry (not!!) but you cannot sit there. She said I'm allowed, I said no and where is your form. Then I made her swear an oath to me and somebody shuffled her off to the "scrutineer" spot. Anyway at 7 she arrived, plonked herself down ready to do battle. By then I had already been told that each of our polls had an NDF "scrute". So I was nice to this gal, told her that Lisa and I were anal and would take our time, hoped she was OK with that. At the end of it all she was pleasant and she shook our hands and said thanks....so all was well. I, like you, was not happy with the result especially as Zeni, our local NDP candidate did not get in...and she is a great lady!!

Nuff for you Missy Janey????

Now we have our local municiple election coming up and here will be another battle. We have a useless mayor and there is no-one of any worth running against him. Norm said I should have run...er yes!!! the woman who gets lost in the woods...I would make a FINE mayor...LOL!!!!

No sewing today, Mary, I am just exhausted probably more from working a 14 hour day yesterday than tromping in the forest for three hours!! But I must get at it. I have to set up on the 31st.

Thanks for the call Edith, glad you were successful in that family search. I will chat later after the big sewing effort!!!

Sorry I missed you Teresa, another time.
Where is Sylvia, I am truly worried about her???
Luv Lesxx

Gosh the Canadian Elections sound just like ours..Our state parliament got re-elected again and boy we are now paying for it..The state is so short of money our hospitals in the country are out of medical supplies and the doctors are having to by bandages off the town vet..out of their own pocket money..We have just had a shakeup and the state premier had to resign and many of the prominent politicians resigned also..We now have a chap who has been in politics 5 minutes and is in charge..don't get me started.........

Went to the blood sucker this morning.. Thank goodness they left me with a little to keep me going...lol..

Les.. Didn'T Bella show you the way home..Can imagine Normie getting a bit cross..pmsl...Dont do it again please..don't want to lose you..get back to the sewing machine..luv ya...xx

Looks like our Fred is still away..lucky butter...hope the weather is nice for him and Liz..

Well back to the dreaded HW so have a nice day all..

Love Mary xxxx

First election in a very, very long time I did nothing at all, not even inside or outside scrutineer on E-day. I think I sat out a municipal election a while back. Other than that, a steady stream of campaigning for 40 years ... ever since Trudeaumania. (I did see the error of those ways before the by-election in my riding the next year.)

Couldn't commit time this year, what with being out of town with the cancer twins (mum and sister).

So here's the Canadian thread, and no Canadian election talk??

Well, I'll just have to cry on my own shoulder. And hope that whoever voted to put these b***s back in power gets exactly what they deserve.

At least my own fine decent NDP MP got handily re-elected!

Yes, yesterday was a long day but I did manage to have fun. My partner, poll clerk, was a girl of 34 with a wicked sense of hunour. We laughed and snorted thru much of the day....but I was exhausted when finally we got home at 8.30.

This morning I took off on a usual walk and along the way there is a nice path thru the forest. I have always wanted to try it but never been brave enough but I thought I'll give this a go. So I set off and at some point met a a woman and her dog that I see occasionally. I told her that I was trying to get to Redford Road, she gave me instructions, cross over the bridge etc. Well I got to the creek and there was no bridge, by now I am lost and so spent 2 hours wandering around in circles....thankfully there were no bears!!!! I finally was able to retrace my early steps and made it out of the forest and home. Norm was out driving around looking for me. I called him on his cell phone and he was up at Emergency....worried to death. I was gone over three hours....and no cell phone....what a twit!!! Now Norm is very cross with me so I am in disgrace!!! Shan't try that again. BTW Bella had a great time, off leash, jumping and sniffing.

Now I am going to have a long soak and a rest!!!
More later
Lesxxx

Hi everyone, all this talk of food is just not good enough!! Lovey jams, fruits, turkey, puddings and here I am with a cup of tea and a biscuit..!!!
Lovely to hear some good new from Tereasa about your husband, poorly myself at the minute and its nice to hear when things are positve for people. Lesley hope your voting day wasn't too hard for you, no doubt you will have had a little fun along the way. My Canadian family search is still going strong, just sent a letter off to a prospective 2nd cousin in Alberta, so fingers crossed. Take care all...

Hi everyone.. We are all busy by the looks of things..
Les are you opening up a shop with all that jam..and frozen fruit..I suppose in winter you have to hibernate like the bears so need to get in as much as you can so that you don't have to go out in that dreadful weather and snow to shop..hee hee hee..I don't know how you Canucks live in that cold..Give me the lovely mild weather we have in Sydney ...not even a frost in winter..lol

Fred.. Away gallivanting and holidaying again..That couple lead a good life..lucky butters...hee hee..

Teresa So glad that Bobs blood tests are so good..and Angela is a bit nearer to you than OZ..but it would be a lovely place to holiday so give some thought to going with here if she comes out again... Don'T work to hard and look after yourselves..

Edith.. Do you have turkey at thanksgiving as well as Christmas..crikey I would be spending the year dieting to get over one meal and it would be into another one..do you have plum pudding as well...lol..have the bears gone to bed yet..??

Well must off to bed so have a nice day all on the other side of the world..and stay warm...

Love Mary xxxx