Life outside Ambridge
Not a lot of butterflies here, just this one white joining the bees
Life in Ambridge
Starter kit for Ed & Emma
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Life in Ambridge
Following todays news
Life in Ambridge
Nothing to do with the current story-line but rather cute
ArcherphileJuly 31, 2022 at 11:16 AM
ReplyDeleteSorry, CC, the above comment was in reply to your previous post!
And yes, we were only sitting outside yesterday in our garden full of buddleias and saying how few butterflies there were in comparison with a few years ago. A couple of Brimstones, a single large white and a single comma.
Mr A does a butterfly count for the Amateur Entomologists Society of which he is a member and the returns are devastatingly low this year.
The only compensation seems to be an increase in moths like the Elephant Hawkeye.
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ArcherphileJuly 31, 2022 at 11:19 AM
Sorry that should have been Hummingbird Hawk moth, of which we have seen several so far.
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Cheshire CheeseJuly 31, 2022 at 12:36 PM
That reminds me. When we visited my daughter near Bath recently they put the moth trap out and there was no shortage in the trap as well as under the eaves and on the window around the trap. So not all bad news then.
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SarniaJuly 31, 2022 at 11:40 AM
First on the scene is usually a solitary brimstone, and I have the usual speckled woods and gatekeepers, although these seemed a bit late this year. The red admirals are on the buddleia. It's bees I've been short of this year, despite a garden full of nectar rich flowers. My campanula was silent to the point of being unnerving.
As for those 'pops' of colour, as I have large areas of green, I'm all ears.
REPLYDELETE
Strange Sarnia, we have few butterflies but masses of bees! They are very attracted to the pinks I have in tubs and also the lavender. Perhaps we could arrange a swop! 🐝🐝🐝
ReplyDeleteI saw a small blue this morning. ( might have been a chalk blue )
ReplyDeleteIn my previous home I was just a couple of hundred yards from Rodborough Common, reputedly having the one of the greatest number of butterflies in the UK due to the hundreds of years of natural summer grazing and wild flowers.
And Yes I did notice fewer butterflies on the common and in my garden just below.
I think I might have seen more here in Minehead since being here, but again, not many.
I don’t seem to mind ‘pop’ - it is very descriptive and does what it says on the tin.
ReplyDeleteI suppose it is a shortening of ‘ a pop of colour ‘ and from that point of view yes I suppose it is a lazy use of language.
It is also an Onomatopoeia therefore acceptable I think.
ReplyDeleteThe word "pop" has reminded me of a childhood memory. This was the Corona Pop Man, who came round every week, delivering and collecting the empties. I was always envious of my best friend, who had 5 bottles of pop a week. We were not allowed this, as it was too sweet and fizzy and also costly. We had to make do with lemon or orange squash. Mum made her own lemonade though, which was very sharp and tangy, a mixing bowl of which, once diluted lasted ages.
ReplyDeleteI have the football on, but I am finding it quite nerve wracking!
I did smile when I read about the word "common""
ReplyDeleteI probably have mentioned this before but according to my mum it was "common" to have chip butties .
(Jam butties were permitted.)
She was very angry when I admitted to having been given a chip butty when I visited a friend's auntie and was given one - white bread and margarine full of chips and covered with vinegar.
Perfection.
I am not sure whether it was as bad as wearing a sleeveless dress inside Church or ever hanging washing outside on a Sunday.
Top of the list would have been red nails and red lipstick, which I seem to remember from the glamour girls on the 'Craven A' calendars in the company garage, were the height of fashion in the 1950s
ReplyDeleteCongratulations to the Lionesses.
ReplyDeleteI did watch some of the football because England men did so badly in the cricket.
Well done, LanJan, and it sounds as if it didn't hurt a bit!
ReplyDeletePersonally I don't see the point of anyone running about after a ball, irrespective of gender, but then again, I enjoy so many things that other people don't see the point of (of which other people don't see the point).
Nota great football fan myself, but it is good to see women’s sport attracting as much attention & excitement as the men’s games
ReplyDeleteIt took women to bring it home!!!!
ReplyDelete🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉
I did listen to The Archers, whilst keeping an eye on the TV. It was a strange mix to say the least, esp as I was eating my meal at the same time.
ReplyDeleteThank goodness I had finished eating when the winning goal was scored, otherwise there would have been chicken and gravy everywhere, when I jumped up!
Red nails Sarnia ?
ReplyDeleteWe were frequently out and about as a family.
We had been to some event or other at Olympia, and we all filed into a café opposite (restaurants hardly existed in the forties) to have a cup of tea, and whatever else might have been on offer.
The waitress brought us a menu.
She had red nails.
We were all marched out again, my father OUTRAGED !
He wasn’t going to be served by a woman with that muck on her hands.
I’ve never forgotten the shame I felt, and could point out the establishment to this day, having sat in many a bus between Ken High and Hammersmith when it stopped at the bus stop outside.
Ah, the good old days, Mrs P.
ReplyDeleteThese recent comments on past prejudices & snobberies, all within most of our lifetimes are fascinating. Many are certainly remembered by me !
ReplyDeleteMakes me reflect that whilst it's tempting to think we're more enlightened & tolerant nowadays, that's not actually true; it's just that we have a different set of prejudices & snobberies.
A sily & trivial example : red nail varnish is ok now; socks worn with sandals isn't😉
I agree with you Carolyn we (society) have moved the goalposts.
DeleteSocks / sandals- except in Stroud Carolyn
In fact there is a FB group titled NUFS - not unusual for Stroud
Mrs P, 😄😄😄 Always happy to hear about those who go against the stream, whether I agree with them or not !
DeleteI can remember a young lady walking down our street with high heeled red shoes and the comment which was made, ” She’s no better than she should be!” I never did buy red shoes myself with that echoing in my head!! What is it about the colour red? I do wear socks with sandals sometimes!!
ReplyDeleteI wear a lot of red and have had several pairs of red shoes over the years. Not sure what that says about me!
DeleteThat was just the opinion of the bigoted, CC! I’m sure you’re a very respectable lady!!😊
DeleteMe too CC - always a touch of red about me. But not nails or lipstick.
DeleteNot full red clothes now, but still accessories.
For me it’s about being an Aries !
There are downsides to living in the country, I have had to shut my windows as I don't
ReplyDelete'wish to eat my lunch with the aroma of slurry permeating everything, its bad enough when I'm gardening.
They are currently spreading several fields away , but the wind is in the right direction, or should I say wrong !!
Having mentioned the lack of butterflies I have just spent the last 10 minutes rescuing a comma from the conservatory. We love our conservatory but the downside is the number of insects and spiders that get trapped inside, I rescue what I can but quite a few don't survive sadly.
ReplyDeleteWhat's a comma, when it's not a punctuation mark, CC ? Maybe I'm being dim here....
DeleteI’ll answer that one if CC doesn’t mind. a Comma is a small tawny butterfly with ragged edges which is dark underneath with a distinct white ‘comma’ shaped mark on the underwing. Very easy to,identify by the comma!
DeleteIt's a butterfly, Carolyn, a type of fritillary.
ReplyDeleteThanks !
DeleteSorry, should have said that it's a butterfly!
ReplyDeleteNot at all, CC - I expect everyone else knew !
DeleteThanks for your detailed description, AP - I'll look out for them.
Don’t know whether coincidence or design, but I am taking the opportunity to watch Bernard Cribbins in this week of his death and watching The Railway Children, on IPlayer.
ReplyDeleteCharming ! Charming !
( I still know every line by heart and I’m crying as I always did )
I've been listening to 'Folk Song' - ...and all the while the rain it was a-raining.....
ReplyDeleteReading about colours one wears ......
ReplyDeleteHave any of you heard of "Colour me beautiful"?
The colours one looks best in are divided into the 4 seasons .
I look best in Autumn colours .
Love browns beiges rust ,yellow some greens.
Don't like blue ,bright pink ,red black.white.
Something to do with skin tone and hair and eye colour as to which colours suit and which don't.
Periwinkle blue and duck egg green are good for all
Re The Railway children .
I took my boys to see it when it first came out .
When the children were on the railway line my 4year old son stood up in the Cinema and shouted at them to get off the railway line.
Ah "daddy my daddy"
He is now a volunteer signalman on a heritage railway.
Loves it.
How dare Jacqueline Wilson steal a story and remake it setting it at a different age.
I won't be going to watch THAT film.
Gosh, also had a colour chart done, many years ago ! The opposite in colour terms: Winter. I look drained in your colours, Lanjan, & even with green, we differ, as mine are the blue greens, not the yellow.
DeleteCorrect about duck egg green & that blue, which didn't come into the original chart but I have since found work very well.
Oddly, perhaps, The Railway Children completely passed me by, only seeing clips on occasion, so maybe I will see the recent film, if only to see how the the future of those characters pans out, & how Jenny Agutter comes across.
I had my colours done years ago and am also Winter so happily went on wearing my beloved red and black.
DeleteQuite !
DeleteMe too Carolyn and CC. Definitely Winter with a hint of Summer. Look best in navy, bright pinks, purples, jade, anything with a blueish tone. Simply cannot wear anything Yellowish, brown, rust, olive green etc. In my case it’s definitely skin tone that counts and I have always had to choose blueish toned lipsticks, not that I bother these days. I think Covid masks ended my lipstick wearing days!
DeleteI remember “The Railway Children” as a serial on BBC television in the 1950’s. At the time there was a children’s hour and several books were serialised. It is all a bit vague now but memorably “The Silver Sword” and “Strangers on the Shore” which had Acker Bilk playing the signature tune. It is a pity that children’s hour went and such serials are no longer made. It did encourage delving into books and not always contemporary ones. I also recall “Little Women” which I then read followed by Jo’s Boys and so on. Beth recovered from her illness in the serial but died in the book! Children were shielded more from tragedy in those days!
ReplyDeleteSwallows and Amazons was one of my favourites.
DeleteOh those books bring back memories. A foster son wouldnt let me read to him until he heard my sister read to her then 14 year old daughter, I was then allowed to read but only Roal Dahl. I got fed up of reading the same books and bought one of the Swallows and Amazon series, he was hooked, I literally had to read to him for hours on end. The sad thing is today these books are not considered exciting enough. If I remember correctly they did quite recently do a couple of remakes but did add to make them more exciting. I find it quite sad that children need constant excitement. I have just bought my great niece Goodbye Mr Tom, I shall be interested to see what she makes of it.
DeleteWe're off to Edinburgh this morning to help out with childcare for the rest of the week. Our son in law is going to play with the massed pipes at the Tattoo and has got rehearsals all week. Then will celebrate granddaughter's second birthday before returning home at the weekend. In a moment of madness I said that I would make her a birthday cake so will be taking a box full of everything that I need for it.
ReplyDeleteMy mum had a lifetimes wish to go to the Edinburgh Tattoo.
DeleteAs a struggling single parent there was little that I could give my mum in return for her support, but did manage a short three day trip by coach which included the Tattoo. She was thrilled to be able to see it in her seventies.
As a bonus I managed three hours by myself to explore Edinburgh.
I still retain hope that I might manage a short holiday in that city one day.
Enjoy CC
Ev, that's the version I remember, with Sandra Michaels as Phyllis. As my own father had just died, an event which had been very badly handled, the 'Daddy, my daddy', scene was excruciatingly painful and at such a young age I was so angry that her father came back and mine wouldn't ever
ReplyDeleteEven at my advanced age I studiously avoid exposure to that scene ...just in case.
Have a great time CC, what sort of cake? Chocolate hedgehog a la Jill Archer for Rosie?
ReplyDeleteMum last opera trip for the summer, Glyndebourne this afternoon Alcina, a not often produced Handel with a very convoluted plot. So another picnic to assemble.
We are going to a tea and cakes social afternoon at Mr A’s Cardiac Rehab Group on Friday. Been asked to take a cake but realised I just don’t have any cake making ingredients in the house these days. I used to bake, cake and biscuit-make every week some years ago but Diabetes (him ) and weight problems (me) have put a stop to all that.
DeleteRealised that whereas I used to buy flour, butter, sugar, dried fruit, nuts, syrup etc etc every week, I never buy those things these days.
Guess I’ll have to buy a cake….oh, the shame!
I am quite envious KP, have a good time hope the weather holds up. I havent been for years, When I lived in London I regularly went to Covent Garden.
DeleteHope the weather's good KP.
DeleteIt's going to be a purple and pink rabbit cake (her two favourite colours).
Glyndebourne was enjoyable, the gardens are beautiful, it was cooler than my weather app had led me to believe so I had to borrow Mr Nuts jacket during supper. The costumes & music were great, the plot was bonkers & I wasn’t alone in being mildly confused if the comments I overheard were anything to go by.
ReplyDeleteSomeone near us is having a bonfire by the looks of it , surely unwise when everything is so dry. I am seriously wondering if I should report it.
ReplyDeleteFalse alarm on my part I think, just mist & some unfamiliar smells following a spot of rain
DeleteI cannot believe my lawns. I mowed them last Thursday, just to neaten them up. They badly need doing again already, as these have grown so much and are lush and green again. This is due to the rain, sometimes torrential, over the last 5 days.
ReplyDeleteI was watching the Commonwealth Games yesterday, where it was bright sunshine, whilst I had rain pouring down outside. Still it was warm rain..
You are lucky to have rain, Miriam! We are parched here and the lawns are yellow. I only have Astro turf so am happy but the shrubs are looking sad even my well established rosemary is showing yellow leaves. We have a hosepipe ban from Friday. I have ordered some watering funnels from Mr Fothergill to sink in round my tomatoes and runner beans. They give off water gradually to the roots. I see that Sussex and Kent have a hosepipe ban from a week on Friday so guess it might spread.
DeleteMine is beginning to bear an uncanny resemblance to parts of the Serengeti. I keep wondering when the meerkats will arrive .. ...
ReplyDeleteI proudly said last week, that my garden was weed-free. Famous last words - as these are back with a vengance! Oh well it was good at the time.
DeleteI have also, a strong westerly wind blowing nearly every day at the moment.
Bonnie has been outside for the first time today. I left the door open when out in the garden. She ventured out, then immediatly shot back in. Her curiosity prevailed and she has been fine She has a hiding place which I cannot find and I looked hard for it. On calling her and going back inside, she suddenly appeared in the kitchen.
ReplyDeleteI least I know she comes when I call her, well for know.
So glad Bonnie is settling in well Miriam she sounds a delight 🐈⬛⭐️
DeleteI’m sure you know the drill Miriam if she does wander beyond the garden for any length of time.
DeleteHer used litter tray outside and apparently ( knew to me ) an item of your clothing.
She is settling well and now ready to venture out.
I hope you have many many years together.
We have a neighbouring little black cat called Coco, now about 10 months old. One morning I opened the back door to find that my green potting tray had come alive and was upside down on the ground, leaping about all over the place!
ReplyDeleteAt first I thought there must be a rat underneath, although it would have had to be a very big one. Then one end tipped up and a terrified little black face looked up at me.
Coco sprinted for home so fast her feet seemed not to touch the ground! Every time I see her I thought bk of Bonnie.
That would be 'think of'. Who needs a phone with initiative!
ReplyDeleteAll the best to P btY tomorrow.
ReplyDeleteHope it will be third time lucky for her and that there won't be a last minute cancellation meaning that the operation on her eye won't take place.
Fingers crossed for you PbtY. Hope all goes well. My daughter is driving our neighbour-with- the-chickens husband to Truro Hospital tomorrow for an operation on one of his eyes that has been affected by diabetes. He has to be there by 12 but they can't tell him what time it will be done, or even if it will be done if others take longer than expected. He has to have an anaesthetic and can go home after the procedure, but my daughter has no idea how long she will be waiting. His wife can't drive, and just didn't feel safe when she did attempt to learn, but it is a handicap in a rural area. She helps us by looking after our two cats if we ever go away for a few days. So we are keeping our fingers crossed for him as well.
ReplyDeleteDiabetics are normally top of the list Janice. Will be interested to hear if this is so for your neighbour 🤞🏼
DeleteYes you are right Lady R. He didn't realise that would be so but when they checked his notes they told him that because of his diabetes and the fact he had already lost a leg (below the knee) he would be done first and he was very pleased not to have the stress of having to wait a long time. My daughter slept for a couple of hours in the car ( it is the busiest season at the holiday park) and had a look in some nearby shops, so she had to wait several hours but that was, I think, mainly because they wouldn't let him out until fully recovered from the anaesthetic. He is glad it is over with. It is such a shame because if the diabetes had been diagnosed and treated much earlier he would probably not have had these problems. Once they did find out his wife got on the case 🤣 and with her help he lost over 5 stone and has had a radical change of diet, not necessarily easy when you are a long distance food delivery driver.
DeleteYes, keeping fingers tightly crossed for PtbY. If they try to cancel again, just you refuse to move from your bed, have a sit-in (or lie-in) until they agree to do the procedure!!
ReplyDeleteAnd Miriam, next time it rains, could you please collect a couple of plastic bottles full and send then down here. We have not had a drop since beginning of July and, like Ev, have a yellow lawn and dying shrubs. I really envy KP that drop of rain she mentioned 😥
They must 'do' you this time, PtbY ! I like to think they wouldn't DARE turn you away again😡
ReplyDeleteAll the very best.
🤞PtbY
ReplyDeleteFrom me too Ptby 👁 🙏🏼
DeleteAll done. Bit of a job to get a bed but got one eventually.
ReplyDeleteGlad to hear it PTBY, I hope your recovery is smooth.
ReplyDelete👏 Pleased for you that it's done at last. 💐
ReplyDeleteI look like I’ve gone 10 rounds with Muhammad Ali.
ReplyDeleteHome later today. Definitely on bed rest for a good week….or 2 if I can stretch it out.
I hope you win on points! Well done.
ReplyDeleteThat should be 'won'.
ReplyDeleteGreat news PtbY. Hope you recover well, and quickly. ❤️
ReplyDeleteAt last PtbY! Hope your recovery goes to plan. ☺
DeleteGreat news ptby, you can be sure all your blog friends will be keeping an 👁 on you - pun intended 🙃 and yes string it out for the 2 weeks!
ReplyDeleteGood to hear that you’ve had your operation at last PtbY.
ReplyDeleteTake as long in the bed rest department in the first week as you can, then in the second week have a long lie in then an afternoon bed nap 💤
Brilliant, Ptby! Take care and have a really good rest period!😊
ReplyDeleteI have the shoe to myself for a few days - wahey!
ReplyDeleteEnjoy !
DeleteSo glad to hear it happened at last, PtbY ! What a relief, eh.
ReplyDeleteAll the best during the recovery & rest stage. I guess it'll be tedious, but you'll get there !
At last PtbY. Do take care and do exactly as told to do.
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely day in the garden, some work and some on the lounger, with my nose in a book.
Last year I bought a pair of prescription sunglasses which has lenses to my readers prescription.
They are brilliant and made a change from trying to wear two pairs at the same time.
Off to watch the Commonwealth Games, which I am really enjoying. I was hooked on a game of bowls this morning, which for a slow game, was so nail biting.
What I have appreciated is that the para games are interspersed, so disability sport is having a really good viewing, in front of the same large crowds in the sane arenas..
A good day all round then Miriam 🤗
DeleteWas enjoying a quiet afternoon in the garden like you Miriam but was disturbed by a very worrying phone call. A friend of ours ( from the gliding club) aged about mid seventies, has been going rapidly downhill with Alzheimer’s. She recently had to enter a care home as her husband cannot be with her every minute of the day and she cannot be left on her own.
ReplyDeleteShe hates the care home and he heard she had to be transferred to Portsmouth Hospital yesterday after an ‘accident’. He sent a photo - horrifying injuries to her face, two blackened and closed eyes, and cuts & bruises all over. Apparently ‘a filing cabinet fell on her’.
It looks to us as if she has been well and truly beaten up. Not known if she will survive.
She is/was a very talented artist before the disease struck. It is a cruel and terrifying illness.
Oh Archerphile how tragic such horrid news for you both and of course your friends husband. Sending thoughts 🌻
DeleteThat’s just dreadful Archerphile. How the hell does a filing cabinet fall on you? Sounds like an iffy care home to me. Maybe it would be kinder for her if she didn’t survive. Such a dreadful disease.
ReplyDeleteThat is appalling, a dreadful thing to happen to your friend, Archerphile. Suspicious circumstances, as PtbY says, & yet another indictment against a care home.
ReplyDeleteIt does sound like a cover up and presumably there will be a full investigation. Maybe another inmate attacked her which indicates poor supervision. So sorry for all concerned.
DeleteThank you a all. Yes, we are hoping the hospital social services team will be investigating. She is to have an MRI scan and a brain scan today to try to assess the damage and what can be done for her (if anything)
DeleteI’ve been doing a maryellen and sticking to reading one blog.
ReplyDeleteAP, sound like a lame excuse more like doing 10 rounds with Tyson Fury.
Unfortunately sounds like poor supervision of clients/patients who do sometimes duff each other violently. Having Alzheimer’s doesn’t necessarily make a person physically weak. I know of a 6ft+ ex police officer who had to held by four carers when being changed, he was a danger to others. We know that carers are working in very difficult circumstances, however that’s no excuse.
PtBY. Great news on the operation, will you eventually dispose of the glasses?
No. Will still have glasses. Been wearing them since the age of 11. I feel naked without them.
DeleteI wonder what size the filing cabinet was? A two drawer can be freestanding but a taller one has to be fastened to a wall or similar, to keep them stable and safe.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds an awful situation.
Archerphile. you or your friend can submit a report on the incident directly to CQC, who have a duty to investigate concerns. I would not rely on hospital social workers, too few with heavy case-loads.
ReplyDeleteYour poor friend Archerphile.
ReplyDeleteI hope things improve for her very quickly.
Why was she anywhere near a filing cabinet in a nursing home?
Enjoy a week or longer being waited on P tbY .
Read,doze,listen to the radio ,watch TV.
Binge Watch those Housewives of Wigan and Scunthorpe programmes that seem to be on TV.!
The main thing is -just don't do anything that sounds like work for at least a fortnight.
Talking of which........
Do you know that most Canadians have never heard the word fortnight .
Not a lot of people know that .
Nor of course do they need to.
I don’t think Americans know it either!
DeleteI have just awarded the England Hockey team 10/10.
ReplyDeleteThis had nothing to do with winning the Gold, but that they sang "Jersusalem" in unison and in its entirty.
It is the first time I have seen any English gold nedallist sing it!
Silly I know but it pleased me.
It was the womens team.
DeleteAs it's so quiet here today, I'll now disappear until tomorrow.
ReplyDeleteI hope all have enjoyed this lovely warm, sunny day.
I'm 'off' Jerusalem, Miriam, have been for a long time. People keep requesting it for weddings and then the guests either don't know it or are too self-conscious to sing it.
ReplyDeleteI've lost count of the times I've thundered away on the organ to a churchful of complete silence. That's unnerving!
Strange choice for weddings! It is very inspiring though and the English need their own anthem like other UK countries!
DeleteEven we have our own.
DeleteI've never liked 'Jerusalem'!
DeleteOne Christmas our college choir was singing after the (pre-)Christmas dinner. For some reason someone decided we should sing the wretched song. I walked out.
I had GP telephone consultation booked for 9.00am today, the call finally came through at 10.30am. The excuse was computer problems! While I was very happy with the consultation it did mess up my plans for the morning.
ReplyDeleteYes it’s difficult CC when expecting a call at a particular time.
ReplyDeleteReasonable to put half an hour aside to allow some flexibility, but when it comes to the elastic stretching beyond an hour it does become annoying.
For you, more so I can imagine.
My telephone consultation recently was honoured within ten minutes of the beginning of the expected time frame.
We don’t even get a time frame as such. It’s either morning or afternoon….which means basically any time til about 6.30pm.
ReplyDeleteI once waited all afternoon until 7pm and still hadn't had the call.
ReplyDeleteOur GP's telephone consultation system usually works pretty well. My preferred doctor is very good and very popular, so pre-Covid you'd be lucky to get an appointment with him within three weeks. Now you phone up and make an phone appointment for the same day. If the doc thinks a face to face consultation is necessary they'll book you in. So now all I need to do is remember to ring on a day I know my GP is on duty.
ReplyDeleteAs I said, usually works well. I tried to make a non-urgent appointment for Smallest Person in a Shoe and gave up after waiting 40 minutes to reach the top of the phone queue. Fortunately eConsult was working (they intermittently turn it off for some reason) so we were able to get answers ans a prescription fairly quickly.
Our doctors have just started this system. Haven’t had to use it yet but I reckon it’ll be useless. It was bad enough ringing for an appointment before now everyone will be ringing at the same time.
ReplyDeleteFor me, Jerusalem, means two things.
ReplyDelete1) School prize giving day, it was always sung at the end of proceedings and my poor Mum was too embarrassed to join In the singing because she considered it a Christian hymn.
2) WI Meetings, where it was always sung at the beginning of the meeting, usually accompanied by some poor volunteer pianist who didn’t know the notes and mad a right hash of it!
It’s based on the supposition that Jesus came here with Joseph of Arimathera - very doubtful as UK is so very far away from Israel. No high speed travel in those days!
ReplyDeleteThis morning we went to the Garlic farm for breakfast and took a walk round their lovely surrounding area first. Dudley was very excited as it was a new walk and Buddy was in his element! They were very good sitting under the table while we had our breakfast. We want to get them used to being taken out after the constraints of lockdown. Like children they need to learn to behave well in public. Buddy was a bit put out as in spite of his cuteness all those people around weren’t making a fuss of him! Later in the shop though he was overcome as two young shop assistants did make a fuss of him! On the way out we just managed in time to stop him helping himself to a toy from a low down basket! He has done this before and of course we then have to buy it! Not so bad from a charity shop but it can be a bit expensive and he already has a toy box full! We bought some garlic ice cream to try. On the way back we had a slow journey due to traffic lights at road works but the ice cream was soft but not melted and I have to say was delicious! 😊🐶🐾🐾🐶
.
Re Jerusalem.
ReplyDeleteI love it .
It mentions "England's green and pleasant land ."
(Well some of it very green and pleasant but not where I live .at the moment.
It is beige and unpleasant)
What is there not to like about it?
They have someone sing it it at start of play when England play another Country at cricket .
I know at Old Trafford we have had some famous folk doing the singing.
Very moving.
What else could they have apart from I vow to thee my Country perhaps.
Don't the6 sing that at Rugby matches?
Today I wanted to clean the soles of my Birkenstock sandals as they looked dirty.
ReplyDeleteI put them outside to dry face upwards.
When I came to retrieve them I found that the soles had come away from the upper part as the glue had melted!
Gosh that made me gasp LJ - it really is HOT
DeleteWill you be complaining ?
To whom could Lanjan complain ? The wild weather gods, maybe 😉
DeleteI will be having to do something much earlier than expected - teach Bonnie how to use the cat flap.
ReplyDeleteI was told that as she had no knowledge of the outside, she needed to be introduced to it very gradually. What rubbish!
She is in and out all the time and yesterday evening, she was running around and playing out the front after mastering getting over a 6ft high, locked gate.
She does this all the time now, but comes back quite happily. She knows her home, so I don't think that there will be a problem. 🤞
She has certainly settled in well hasn’t she Miriam.
DeleteAny ‘ presents ‘ yet ? Dead or alive !
I’m looking forward to tomorrow. I’ve been dragging myself around for well over a week and yesterday was back in bed by 11.30:am and slept until five despite 12 hours the night before.
Tomorrow my B12 injection.
Your injection will make a big difference and you will be hop, skipping and jumping again in no time.
DeleteFunny you should ask about "presents".
This morning Bonnie shot in with a live pigeon in her mouth, which she let go. Feathers were everywhere, pigeon escaped closely followed by the streak of a black cat. I don't think she got it though. Now the fun begins 🙀
Snap Miriam !
DeleteBobby Brewster our first cat when my partner and I moved into our first proper home, brought his first present- a pigeon, but already dead, wrestling it through the cat flap. The following day he brought the nest !
Bobby B was the most delightful and entertaining cat.
We didn’t know it until we were interviewed for a second cat, that he was a Main Coon. He talked all the time and had a special trill when coming through his cat flap. We often wondered whether he was talking to us, or the dog, or later the second cat Burlington Bertie who was a British Blue.
Now that I have another Main Coon cross who also talks even more so than BB, I know that he is talking to me.
I have over the years refined my cat speak to the point where I can have quite a conversation going with Puss in Boots.
Just coming up to 5.20pm and the temperature on my dining room deck is 44*.
ReplyDeleteGlad I don't have shoes like yours, LanJan.
Been to the surgery for my injection but couldn’t hold the steering wheel it was so hot. Had to grab some paper tissues to protect my hands for safety reasons.
DeleteYes, the temperatures have soared steadily, & unbearably throughout the day here. Out to meet some friends in a pub tonight - just hope it cools down a little...
DeleteBirkenstocks are a good make, I love them in the summer. However, we just aren't used to these levels of heat, so whilst putting them out to dry is a good idea normally, even the sturdiest soles would be challenged ! Thanks for the warning, Lanjan !
DeleteI would love to find my Birkenstocks.
DeleteHaven't been seen since I left London in 2014.
Still packed in one of those dratted boxes I imagine.
Ouch! .Mrs P!
ReplyDeleteOver two years ago I bought an awning for my deck. It's still in the box because I can't find anyone to put it up for me!
Now I know why you asked if Solomon was Main Coon. Alas, no, just a rather spectacular and articulate tabby.
That’s how we would have described Bobby Sarnia, a spectacular and articulate Tabby.
DeleteAnd large, very large, until we were told that he was a Main Coon.
When we first brought him home from Battersea, he would sit at the bedroom window on the first floor watching the world go by. On the second night he disappeared, and it became clear that he had jumped out of said window. Fortunately he didn’t wander far and we had him back within twenty four hours. I always felt that he had been an indoor cat somewhere in London and probably in a high rise. Sitting at the window so intently was the clue. When we discovered that he was a Main Coon, it made sense that he had been an indoor cat, too precious to let out, but had probably escaped somehow.
Rescuing- rehoming, animals leads to a great deal of speculation in my experience !
My son owns a Main Coon identical to the one in the Purina cat food ad, with the same name even though they didn't know about it. Solomon didn't look a bit like her.
ReplyDeleteLanJan: while musing on the fate of your sandals it suddenly came to me that until such times as somebody finally gets round to installing an outside socket, I have an extension cable draped along the wall that registers 44* on a regular basis!
ReplyDeleteBy climbing on things I probably shouldn't and employing my hospital grabber I've managed to get it down and run it along the ground.
Thanks for the warning.
A short update on our friend with Alzheimer’s.
ReplyDeleteShe is recovering very slowly but still covered in bruises, black eyes and it’s too painful for her to move but the consensus is that she will recover from the trauma, physically. Her medication is being completely reassessed as it’s thought the side effects were causing too many problems.
The police have been contacted, visited her in hospital, taken photographs of the injuries and interviewed her & her husband (as far as she was able) and the hospital staff. The police officer said it looked to him like a case of Grievous Bodily Harm! They are now going to interview staff at the ‘care’ home and report to the Quality Care Commission. It could well be that charges may be brought.
When she is well enough to leave hospital she will be taken to a different care home, known to the hospital as a good place and hopefully will be able to settle in without further problems.
That all sounds very promising. Was it the hospital who contacted the police?
DeleteHopefully they will be able to get to the bottom of what went on.
DeleteI am glad it is being investigated, and that she will be going to a different home.
DeleteThank goodness, AP. That sounds like a properly thorough investigation for once.
ReplyDeleteThe main thing is that she is taken to another Care Home and that tge new Care Home knows why she is there so that they will be more careful with the way they treat the people in their care.
DeleteI came across a short poem the other day, which others might like:-
ReplyDeleteDust if You Must by Rose Milligan.
I found it quite meaningful.
'Dusting', I've heard of that concept ...
DeleteToday we had a trip to the farm from which we get our veg box. They have set up a field kitchen open two days a week where one can book a meal. It's a 5 course set menu based on what's growing in the fields around you. It's a new venture which we will go to again as the food was delicious and it was lovely to meet the people who are so passionate about growing lovely vegetables.
ReplyDeleteWe had a similar set up by a local social enterprise in Stroud CC -
DeleteMany more such enterprises growing throughout the UK.
Some things in this world and life today do get better I think, despite those things which definitely do not.
Lady is playing up.
I expected that I would have to return to re training her for her separation anxiety, but it has not been necessary. She has let me leave the flat without any fuss.
However she has for the second time, today stolen the cats food.
In the cottage the cats feeding station was on a high windowsill in the upstairs hall. Here the best I can do at the moment ( due to boxes stacked everywhere) is on the deep windowsill in the bedroom. A blind covers one end and stacked boxes up to and slightly beyond the height of the sill the other end with enough space between for Puss to jump up.
Now, twice, Lady has scrabbled up and along to get at the cats feeder and dragged it to the ground. Today she has consumed two days worth of cat biscuits in the hour that I was out.
I’m pretty sure this behaviour is punishment for me.
HELP!
ReplyDeleteIs there a Cat Whisperer around ?
Last Saturday morning I had a suspicion that a small fox might have entered the house through the cat flap.
The following night at about 3am I heard a crash in the house.
I got up (forgetting to take my grandfather's truncheon which hangs on my bed) and realised that the young fox I saw running away had been in the house and the big bag of stuff I planned to throw away(not rubbish exactly or foodstuff) had been scattered round the sitting room.
The cats sat and watched me and then I stayed up until 5am in case it came back .It didn't
Then Sunday and Monday nights I covered up the cat flap and piled stuff behind it so the fox couldn't get in but of course the cats couldn't get out and kept waking me up .
Tuesday I asked the plumber to come and fix a new sure flap cat flap which only allows your micro chipped cat in but neither cat will go through it.
I did try coaxing them both with treats but it has not worked.
They are both in now so I plan to go to bed very shortly so I will get a bit of sleep.
I have plastered the walls with something called scoot .
Supposed to put foxes off.
Pricey.
I know the best thing is male pee -pardon the expression- but I am not going to ask a male neighbour to perform outside my back door.
I did pour lots of vinegar outside on Saturday but the fox wasn't bothered
What with all that plus the weather I am at my wits end.
I think I have tried everything.
I have introduced a litter tray into the utility room but am not sure that Percy wants to use it.
Do I let him out during the night and let him take his chance with the fox who must be a young one or it couldn't get through the flap .?
Please don't tell me any tales about foxes killing cats or babies.
I feel bad enough as it is .
Any advice please.
I want to go to bed now but if I leave food out and the wretched fox does get in he will scoff it (not sure if he can since he won't be microchipped but then I have been fiddling with the ruddy cat flap for so long that maybe anything can get in)
Actually I don't think the fox can enter unless I take the batteries out .
ReplyDeleteI wish I could have some advice for you Lanjan what an awful situation to be in. I do hope someone can advise you either on here or RSPCA?
ReplyDeleteArcherphile I can hardly bear to think about your friend having been abused in a care home. My dear mum was so well looked after for 11yrs in hers. Even though we were around virtually everyday the staff were as genuinely caring as one always hopes for. I wish your dear friend love and good care when she does arrive at her new home 🙏🏼
Oh dear LanJan I am sorry I’m afraid I don’t have any advice and I can’t help.
ReplyDeleteFoxes aren’t interested in cats that’s number one.
You have fixed a new cat flap so you have done what you can.
To be blunt…. The cats will have to learn !
If they can’t get out over night they will use the tray or they will ‘ cork it ‘
Puss rarely uses his tray, presumably by choice, since he does use it very occasionally when he needs to. Most cats are naturally very clean. You might find that instead of the tray Percy might use the kitchen sink or the bathroom basin. Perhaps if your bathroom door is usually closed you could leave it open for him to have access.
London foxes are a bloody nuisance, but it is what it is !
I do hope you get some sleep tonight.
A battery powered fox, Lanjan?
ReplyDeleteA few years ago people at toddler group started complaining the hall smelled of cat, but we could find no feline. After a couple of weeks, the church warden and cleaner were checking the cupboard where we keep our toys.
'I think it's a fox,' said the cleaner
'How do you know?'
'Because it's sitting on top of that shelf looking at me'.
The local fox expert was summoned, she took the creature away to be nursed back to health, but, apparently, she was obliged to return it to us once it was well. As far as I recall, we were permitted to evict it from the hall and require it to find a new home outside : )
We also had foxes under the Scout hut who used to make a nuisance of themselves in our garden. I finally filled their front door with large stones. I'm sure they had other exits but at least they stopped bothering us.
Now we just have thir delightful seranades at night!
None of which helps you, Lanjan. What if you put your cats' favourite food next to the cat flap whilst they are outside? Would they be tempted in? Failing that, can you train them to use a Nerf gun against Fantastic Mr Fox?
The cats aren't really the problem though, are they. Perhaps what's really needed is a fox-whisperer - one that tells it to make itself scarce!
ReplyDeleteLanjan, no doubt the cats will adapt to the new cat flap. As with our dogs, you just need them to work it out for themselves! You certainly don’t want a fox in the house so you have done the right thing! The trouble is that foxes have migrated to people settlements maybe because their own territory has declined in size and lack of their natural prey. We just have to be thankful they are not tigers as I was reading that in Nepal they are drifting into settlements where people have been badly injured or killed. I hope your situation resolves itself soon! Take care!
ReplyDeleteAnother fox story -
ReplyDeleteDaughter had a lair in her London garden which was at the end of the terrace.
Daughter instructed builders to construct a concrete shelf which was then covered with timber to create a large garden seat.
It seemed to me that her ‘ arrangement ‘ to eliminate the fox home had in fact provided them with an hotel……. And so it proved !
Sorry, don’t know much about foxes, especially urban foxes.
ReplyDeleteAll I know is they can be a disaster if you keep chickens, having lost many hens to the critters in the past!
On another subject we have had a huge fire near here, could see the smoke and can still smell the fumes. A huge pile of 2000 straw bales went up overnight, the farms entire harvest for this year.
Firefighters were there all night trying to stop it spreading to neighbouring fields and the farmer was ploughing firebreaks around the blaze. It was very close to the primary school so could have been disastrous. I just want to know what started it….a carelessly discarded glass bottle perhaps?
My niece in Suffolk has sent a photo of a large field in flames behind their propery. Luckily it was put out before it got too close, They were scared enough to hurridly packed overnight bags for them all plus food and water fir the dog.
DeleteI have just seen an article about a resevoir in Yorkshire. Like many others, it has revealed a village which was submerged and the pictures are interesting. The last time this happened was in 1989, when a grizzly find was found, a skeleton with a bullet hole in it. Thus was identifued through DNA but the murder was never solved
ReplyDeleteIt becamethe basis if a book by Peter Robinson (Insp Banks) but in true crime fiction fashion, the murder was solved and justice prevailed.
Interesting that the level of the nearby river has been rising, be it only just, for the past few days.
This is the source of my water supply and to my knowledge there has never been a hosepipe ban here, not that I have one!
I feel for you all with potential water shortages and its consequences.
Have spent most of today on the patio under the awning doing 66 pelargonium cuttings, one job I could do in the heat!
ReplyDeleteWhile listening to Radio 4 at lunchtime I heard the weather forecaster say that there was a heat warning from the South of England to the Pennines. Given that the Pennines run from the Peak District to the Tyne gap that's quite a wide margin, one would have thought that an East to West line would have been more accurate.
I'm just out of the heat warning area, but it is still "el scorchio", but have a warning for storms for Monday.
DeleteThanks for your comments ladies.
ReplyDeleteThe weather is so hot and humid that Poppy is happy to stay in and lies in the bathroom.
She is very good with the litter tray even though neither cat has needed to use one before.
Because Percy joined our family (Poppy invited him) and because he seemed to be used to coming and going that is what we let him do.
Poppy's whole world is our garden .
Last night Poppy stayed in during but Percy chose to go out .
He seems not to mind going out through the flap but he refuses to come back because of the click it makes .
He is scared of any noise.
I put treats on the shelf thing on the cat flap which he took but the idea was that he should lean in and then continue to come back in but he didn't
He is on the mat outside now.
At least he won't be cold.
It is 9pm .
I think I will go to bed!
Perhaps you could try to gently help him through, which might help him associate the click with coming in.
DeleteI don't know exactly how a microchip cat flap works but can you prop it open so Percy can get in, in one movement so the "click" doesn't xause him to stop?
DeletePerhaps the fox will come and show him how to get through the new entrance. Or maybe they will have fun in the night together.
DeleteI knew a cat, a neighbours, not mine, who played out at night with the local fox. It was fascinating to watch.
Mrs P
ReplyDeleteYour comment did not make me feel any better.
Lanjan I can only offer my experience of having two rescue cats who wouldn’t use the cat flap.
DeleteWe tried treats, useless.
Keeping the flap open, useless.
In the end we resorted to having one person on either side of the door and as Miriam said gently pushed them in and out. It was essential that the big one went out as she won’t use a tray.
Maybe a friend could help with the routine.
It took time but this procedure did work.
Very much feel for you, Lanjan, it's clearly a worry, & every cat has its individual idiosyncrasies & they are stubborn - many times over the years with various loved felines , I've wanted to grab the tail hard & shout, 'I'm only trying to protect you!'( wouldn't have had any effect, of course, other than to make them squeal & flounce off!)
ReplyDeleteUnless the fox is a real urban terrorist, I believe your cats are safe. We've had experience of that in our garden in recent years, before the hens came, & all that happened was a stare between cat & fox, followed by a studied indifference.
Don't expect to convince you by saying that, but I suspect we live in similar kind of territory : residential, yes, but surrounded by a countryside - not truly urban.
So how did the night pan out LanJan ?
ReplyDeleteDid Percy come in through the cat flap or did you get up several times in the night to check on what was happening ?
Sorry if my comment was amiss. It was meant to show you that cat and fox can coexist in the same urban territory. Carolyn has expressed it better.
My experience of London foxes and cats sharing space is positive. My previous cat Simba would sit at the front door, on guard, with the fox just a few feet away clearly wanting to enter the house. When Mr Fox came too near Simba would leap out and chase him off.
I realise that you are trying to do your best for the cats, as well as not wanting the fox to come into the house. If it is a young’un I suppose it is a matter of it being curious, but the cats will find there own way of dealing with the situation, and if you are worried about the fox being a danger to the cats, please be assured that it is most unlikely that your fox is after your cats.
I have seen a remedy for detering foxes. This is:-
ReplyDeleteBoil chilli/cayenne pepper and garlic with some water. Mix in a blender. Spray in the areas don't want fox to go.
No quatities were given nor how long to boil it.
Apparantly these are scents foxes hate...
....no idea how cats react!
DeleteLast night Poppy stayed in -she has decided that the bathroom floor is the place to be .
ReplyDeleteShe won't go out through it
Percy went out through the cat flap and when I got up just before 6am Percy was on the mat outside .
He came in through the sitting room door earlier but has gone outside again through the flap .
It doesn't make a noise when they exit because all cats can do that .
Tried the pushing him through business earlier but he wouldn't budge and his claws are sharp.
Anyway I have one cat inside now and one outside
Thank s again.
I have had conflicting suggestions about the taping of the flap Stasia .
The woman at Sure pet care said to try it for two days ..
I may - but only if I am around .
Looking forward to some less humid weather.
I sat outside this evening until it began to get dark .
It was much fresher and cooler than inside where I have a fan .
Fan is on all night too in bedroom .
Will get some cayenne pepper on Monday.
I had saved all my wild garlic bulbs to put on my plants to stop the slugs but then in a mad tidying up moment I decided to pout them in the Council garden waste bin..
I did get some "Scoot" though.
I have a minor sense of achievement. When my son was here (briefly!) last week I saw that he had a torch on his phone and realised that I must have one as well.
ReplyDeleteHe never got round to showing me how to access it, but this evening I had a brainwave: I asked the phone how to do it and it obliged by giving me instructions.
Now it goes on and off like anything!
Sounds like you’ve entered the 21c Sarnia.
ReplyDeleteWell done !
I’m not complaining, I accept it for what it is, but, I don’t enjoy this weather.
However…… I am enjoying tramping across Exmoor ( apparently it’s only Bossington Hill ) seeing the Welsh coastline opposite, the deep ravines and the sea below me and the glorious sun streaked sky as dusk falls.
Lady is intent on following rabbit trails but so far has caught none.
So pleased that you seem to be enjoying your new home MrsP
DeleteSounds idyllic Mrs P. dusk and onwards the best time of the day in this awful awful weather (and I am complaining) 🤣
DeleteI must be the only one enjoying the heat - but then, I don't have to drive a bus, empty dustbins or re-tile a roof... ...
DeleteI am also cat flap training. It is propped open (a jar of sweet/sour sauce with a tin of kidney beans on top) and after putting Bonnie's head through it, she realised this was outside. With a gentle push she went out, and since I kept the door closed, bobbed in and out quite happily. Next phase is to close it and show her how to push it open. I don't think it will take her long to master this 🤞
ReplyDeletePS As mentioned, she supposedly had no knowledge of the outside, which I don't believe. This is substantiated by the fact that, since she has had access outside, she has not used the litter tray.
DeletePleased for you Miriam, that Bonnie is doing all the right things.
DeleteAgree about the use of the tray. I find the same with Puss.
So glad to see you in such a positive frame of mind, Mrs P. The extra light in your new home must make a lot of difference. Has the more marked contrast between day and night had any influence on your sleep pattern (or rather, lack of it)?
ReplyDeleteThank you Sarnia.
DeletePerhaps I never mentioned that some months ago my doctor prescribed me anatrypteline. I’ve slept within a short time of getting into bed every night since.
Utter bliss !
Strange that you should mention that now, as twice this week I’ve returned to tossing and turning until well into the small hours. I don’t know why and I don’t think it is the weather.
I am wondering if this medication has now turned against me, so last night did not take it.
I went to sleep quickly and slept for twelve hours.
Mrs P please check if you can just stop these pills as and when. Recently Mr R was asked to try and slowly come off Clonazepam for nighttime restless legs, prescribed years ago and worked well. He misheard and stopped completely for a few days until I realised. Spoke with Dr and new regime agreed but even then he had the most appalling time more than I will go into detail here but the bottom line is too late for him to remain off this pill which we now know is an addictive drug. At his “great” age agreed best to remain on the dose and he is now more or less back to normal but it was an extremely distressing time.
DeleteSo sorry to hear that Lady R. It must have been awful for him, and for you trying cope with his distress.
DeleteThere are many drugs that should only be stopped gradually to avoid side effects. I am on 2 completely different ones myself and was very worried recently when my pharmacy couldn’t provide one of them with my bi-monthly repeat prescription. I had to wait nearly a week for them to get stocks in and was already starting to get tremors and feel strangely disoriented. Apparently many pharmacies are having difficulty sourcing certain drugs recently.
Thank you AP for your concern. Yes the availability of some prescription drugs is concerning.
DeleteA double dose Covid jab coming, I may well get that as I have not had my 4th yet as not in the right age group of 75yrs until October 💉
Anyone watch ‘marriage’ tonight?
ReplyDeleteRead in the paper about it. A couple arguing over a jacket potato. Thought the writer must have been stalking Mr PtbY and myself so I’d watch it.
I thought it was very slow and was disappointed. Will watch the second episode to see if it improves.
The Times gave it ***** but I felt like you did P tbY and thought several characters need explaining about.
DeleteWould watch anything with Sean Bean in.
Lady Chatterlerly and I have something in common.
Ptby. no, but I like Nicola Walker so will catch up with it later.
ReplyDeleteI went to see Prima Facie with Jodie Comer this evening, via National Theatre live streaming to the cinema, it/she was fantastic.
I would normally watch anything with Nicola Walker in. Loved her in Last Tango and Unforgotten but, having read advance details about this new series, I really didn’t fancy it.
DeleteWe tried “Marriage” but after 20mins Mr R not enjoying it (or me really) but I do like Nicola Walker so I finished the first episode later in the evening. I too am trying to make it out very slow and somewhat confusing so far but will give second episode a go. Binge watchable but the second will have to be really good to entice me.
DeleteReading about Bonnie I rather think she is a kitten or at least a young cat and not a Wiley old boy like Percy who chose to live here because he had three dogs in his then household.
ReplyDeleteI couldn't encourage Percy to go through the flap.
I have tried putting treats on the lip but instead of putting his head in to eat them he paws them out.
I am trying two or three days of taking up the flap ,no batteries ,so that he can get in if he chooses.and Poppy can go out.
Night time batteries put back though.
Poppy will stay in.
Percy will go out.
He came running when I called him this morning
I have 3weeks before my 4day Break away from home so I am hoping things will improve by then.
Mrs P if you are taking other pills perhaps they are interacting against each other.
ReplyDeleteI think I would go back to the doctor.
Now this next bit is not about anyone like you ,Mrs P!!!
I read an article in the newspaper a while ago about a frail elderly woman with diabetes,heart disease and dementia who would just sit for ages doing nothing.
Her diabetes is under control so everyone is pleased but a new doctor thought it was being too tightly controlled .
He gave her a finger tip blood test which revealed her diabetes medication was too strong.
He reduced the medication and the "dementia" has all but disappeared.
.
She was given tablets to stop the need for her to get up!
Apparently some people are on more than 20 pills a day .
How on earth do they cope?
Ignore last bit please .
ReplyDeleteI was going to add another story but d decided not to but obviously not all of it got deleted.
Mrs P I was prescribed Amitriptyline for nerve pain seven years ago, it certainly helped me fall asleep but the pain still woke me up during the night so I stopped, reducing the dose over a week or so, I’d only been on it a few months, but even so I had a couple of nights feeling really “wired” & unable to sleep, I did this when I was off work for a week! Surgery provided the solution to my pain. It’s quite an old drug with significant side effects for a lot of people I wouldn’t choose to go back on it but everyone is different.
ReplyDeleteI have just read something, which totally astounds and disgusts me.
ReplyDeleteA hot tub is exempt from a hosepipe ban, so it can be filled or topped up yet a childs paddling pool can't.
Has the world gone mad?
It seems so Miriam 😱
DeleteVery strangely we don’t have a hosepipe ban in our corner of Hampshire because our water is supplied by South East Water rather than Southern.
DeleteSouth East are restricting areas of Kent and Sussex but not here. Doesn’t make sense really. My only concern (have given up on grass and plants) is whether I can top up our fish pond to preserve the fish and all the other wildlife that inhabits it (frogs, snails, newts, water boatmen, pond skaters etc)
Well I’m blowed we did not realise this AP we assumed that as we are in Hampshire we were included in the Hampshire & IOW ban - not that we have or need a hosepipe anyway but had not clocked that we are indeed with South East water 🙃
DeleteAP, there's a thunderstorm heading purposefully in the Winchester direction even as I write, so you shouldn't have to wait long for natural watering.
ReplyDeleteI'm a bit peeved about that- it could at least have shed some of its bounty on my garden before heading north. Lugging heavy cans about is wearing me out!
We had lots of thunder near Winchester but only about 4 drops of rain ☹️ however the road outside my house is very wet as there is a water leak that appeared last week about three days after they repaired a leak in the same spot. At the time the workmen said the whole pipe was rotten, but repaired rather than replaced…….. oh well, more disruption & waste.
ReplyDeleteWe’ve had some right old thunder and lightening……and a good downpour too.
ReplyDelete3 water butts and 2 watering cans filled. Another 2 water butts to fill but there seems to be something wrong with the connector to the drain pipe. Still got water going down drain and just a trickle into butt. Will put a new connector in tomoz. Just decided I can get another butt as well cos I forgot about the fall pipe off the garage roof. I love a water butt. 😍
I would love a water butt, but I have no downpipes, they are all on my neighbours property.
DeleteI've only had light showers and it is still so warm and humid.
My water butts are nearly empty now and garden very dry, have managed to keep the veg going so far. No rain here yet.
DeleteCC If I get any rain here, I'll send it across the Cheshire Plain to you...
DeleteI picked my first runner beans tonight, which were delicious esp. with the parsley sauce and smoked cod. I'm going to have a bumper crop.
ReplyDeleteI had an appt. for some blood tests this week, which are already 2 weeks overdue. This appt. has been cancelled due to sickness, and I was offered another one in September. I pointed out that this was unacceptable, so I am getting a form to go the hospital instead. It is just a bit inconvenient, not that the hospital is far away but the parking is dreadful and costly.
Although it is disappointing for you ,Miriam I think in view of the fact that the NHS is struggling at the moment with recruiting staff and that any sickness is going to compound the situation, it is something we have to accept nowadays.
DeleteAs you say ,you are able to drive to the hospital so I think you should just grin and bear it.
Janice, I read of heavy storms and flooding in Devon and Cornwall. Are you affected by this?
ReplyDeleteRe Marriage.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed it. Very struck by their synchronicuty in the kitchen, I could totally believe they were in a long-term relationship. However, I was really shocked by the state of James Bolam, had to check the credits to make sure it was really him. I still remember him as the young fellow from 'When the Boat Comes In' about 45 years ago. I feel ancient now,
Loved When the Boat Comes in, and The Likely Lads with James Bolam. Frankly, I’m surprised to hear he is still working.
DeleteHad Sean Bean not been in "Marriage " I would have given up after the first episode or even before that.
ReplyDeleteI think the writer is over egging the pudding.
He is making a point and then keeps pushing it in case we don't understand what is going on.
I plan to watch episode three though.!
The Times gave it ***** after the first episode so I am probably in the minority.
Like you, KP, we had a teaspoonful of rain and a distant rumble of thunder from the Winchester direction. That’s all. My daughter rang from Whitchurch saying the same and complaining that her grass was still brown!! Perhaps today will bring some relief. 🌧
ReplyDelete