General Chat

Yep Dorothy i issss,or was ou tin the garden until it started to get dark ,making hay ,as they say.
I did go to b & Q yesterday on a bit of a spending spree,i got a smoke bomb to fumigate the green house ,two new roses to replace two old ones that have never done too well,and the new staple ,/nail gun because the one i borrowed off the sun was about as useful as a pork chop in a jewish butchers shop.
So good is it that i had the first screen panel up in five minutes flat,so ,knowing that i could complete the job ,i broke off from that ,and mowed the lawn for the first time this year ,got the two boxes cleaned out and got ready for the parsnip.
One box left to do ,but it still has carrot in at the moment so i can get that one ready later ,it is going to be filled with red onion,which will be handy for salads and pizza making ,along with stir frys.
The wife got a bit of mickey taken out of her ,once i had rescued her that is.
I went indoors to put the kettle on and pay a visit ,and while i was indoors the wife decided to position and light the bomb for me ,she went in the greenhouse ,shut the door behind her so the wind wouldn't blow the match out ,and fired it up he he.
It went with a whoosh,and the missus couldn't see a thing within three seconds ,but luckily i came out of the house in time to open the door and get her out ,coughing and spluttering ,eyes streaming.
Once i knew she was okay i gave her a right telling off for being so daft ,and telling here that in setting a bomb,one NEVER shuts the greenhouse door until they come out.lol.
The greenhouse for a good four hours looked like a smokers club were having their annual meeting i have never seen anything like it ,if any bug survived that ,it should get the V C.
I will get the other two runs of screening up later this morning before we do the weekly shop ,and after i have had my coffee sat out back looking at the garden coming to life again ,the crocus are a picture ,and the front garden shows signs of the bluebell i transplanted last year coming through ,cor ,i do love this time of year.
Sounds as though you are getting out at the right time Brenda ,i wouldn't like the thought of being replaced by a machine albeit only for certain parts of the job ,it sounds degrading somehow.
Hope you get sorted with the car too ,once you are retired i see the sense in sharing one as well ,only half the running costs to start with,and i remember only too well ,the need to take a heavy lorry down the Manchunian way once a week to get my multidrops off ,he he ,i would rather go through the heart of London than Manchester any day ,
When i go there again ,as i may very well do in April.it will be by train and bus from Blackpool,the car staying on site he he.
Well ,that's it peoples ,the yellow thing up in the sky has come out again ,lol,now where's me gun ,i'm off Fred.

gosh fred I hope that liz has recovered from her escapade with the bomb in the greenhouse it must do a very good job, it was great to hear you talking about the blubells and the crocus and you have cut the lawn allready spring must be coming to your neck of the woods, it is getting a little warmer over here and we are seeing more of the sun and can open the windows for a while each day I still have snow around the car where I park it but it is starting to melt away, the long range forecast looks good but we can still get snow in april , brenda I have ordered the new elizabeth george book that is coming out you should have it in england before we do. anne's daughter e-mailed me this am looking for ideas for mothers day ie. some new books so I gave her a few ideas from amazon uk. hope you all have a good week-end and fred continue to enjoy the garden bye for now dorothy

afternoon all from a really nice spring like Manchester,still a bit chilly but its nice to see the sunshine and people walking about.
Dorothy,we have not got the Neil White book on order yet at the library,will have to check again before I finish and put it on reservation.I am trying not to buy any books as I am doing my best to down size in books,magazines, cds and dvds.Have given loads to the charity shop and my partners mother ,she them passes them on to the club house where they have a caravan.
Glad you are getting in the garden Fred and enjoying yourself,sorry Liz got bombed.Hope she is ok now.
Nearly time to start the closing uo proceedyre so I will finish my cuppa and get started,
Brenda

hi brenda I don't think neils new book comes out till may I think that was the date the last e-mail I recieved from him. glad the weather is improving also over here this week-end has been sunny cold when out of the sun but good for walking about. my sister is in canmore for a couple of weeks at their other condo they were going to banff last evening to a piano concert she said that the snow is melting on the mountains but they were able to spend time snow shoe-ing very into hiking and climbing those two dare I say it does not appeal to me, took one of the ladies shopping and to the library yesterday she had never been to the library and ahas lived here over 17yrs blew my mind she did enjoy the experiance and is going to get a library card after all it is free, sunday am we have a two and a half hours coronation street the banner of dev was shown you can see that we are quite behind, I have it on as I potter around from room to room , as it is so nice I am going to go for a short walk around the area so bye for now dorothy

Goooood morning all ,from the REAL north of England he he.where the sun is shining again ,and once the frost has melted ,both Fred & Liz will be out in the garden and greenhouse getting stuck into some work.
Liz is going to take her time changing all the soil in the tomato and cucumber pots,by putting all the old stuff into a big bin ready for filling up the buckets in the garden ,ready for the start of the season.
Liz has enough potting compost to start putting some flower and veggie seed in,so her season starts today ,mine on the other hand won't start for at least another week ,when i will kick off by putting in two tubs of parsnip seeds ,and two tubs of red onion sets.
There is a garden centre out towards Gosforth that sells good grade potting compost which is ideal tor the tomato plants and cucumber £12 for three,so i will go out come Friday this week and buy three ,and on seeing how far that goes ,get some more the next week.i also noticed some asparagus plants ,so i will be buying three more .
We went down to the sons for dinner yesterday to find he had brought the missus a compaque laptop for birthday ,and was trying to load touch screen in it.
He was not amused when i told him the puter was not capable of running that programme ,and that he either brought the model with touch screen on board which could cost him up to £300 extra,or buy a touch screen that he could put on the puter by adding two wires to the circuit board,which could cost him around £200,he he ,don't think he will bother ,lol
The new mouse is working a treat ,a little wireless model running on one AA battery ,with a little receiver that only sticks out of the usb port by 10 mm.and slips into the mouse for transport,so ,i will be taking it with the acer when i go away.
We have conformation that the car is on order,brilliant, we decided on the N-Tec which has the sun roof ,roof rails ,sat nav,and connect [for the phone to work through the radio] as well as a reversing camera which i reckon is even better than sensers enabling me to see exactly whats behind the car,dogs ,cats and kids ,lol.but i intend refitting the fresnel screen that is on the Note at the minute ,just to be extra safe.
Have to agree with dorothy ,Liz''s mountain hiking days are over ,but ,given all day ,she can still manage a good walk along the banks of the
Tyne river up towards Wylam and the son comes and picks us up when she is pakkered he he.
That's it for now you lot ,the sun ,a cuppa ,and the garden are calling meeeeeee,ta ta for the minute Fred.

Hello again from a sunny ,but slightly chilly Manchester,we had a really good weekend weather wise.Hope it continues and gets warmer.
Have been busy washing and things today as its my day off ,don't get many Mondays off and its thrown my rota ,what there is of one a bit out this week..
Will be working all week ,not all full days mind you,but of on saturday,when my son is treating me to lunch or tea out, for mothers day,it will be too busy on the day ,but he has said he will cook the sunday dinner!!!
Need to go and get some lunch now ,see you tomorrow I hope,Brenda

hi one and all it is another sunny day but still on the cold side but so pleasent goodness fred you and liz are going to be busy with all the work ahead of you in the garden but what wonderful end results you get, this week I am going to be helping out on thursday as the three children have different activities at different ends of town as andrew flew out last evening to new brunswick he only got home on friday from ottawa so it was a quick turn around for him he does not usually go out of town or province two weeks in a row but he has to do a couple of firings and hirings in new brunswick, I always know when he has to let someone go as I get a call and he explains to me why he has to do it I think it makes him feel better. he does run a tight ship but has a soft heart especially when people have families but he has to answer to the president of the company so I guess that is one of the down sides of business life. when I think back to his first job as a teenager collecting the buggies in the super market parking lot to what he does now my how time flies. I stayed up last night to watch the oscars quite a good show . I think that I will have a wander around the garden centre this afternoon and see all the spring flowers in the pots would love to buy some but the cats eat them so they have to go in the bathroom at night brenda enjoy your outing with your son on mothers day ours is not till may 10th bye for now dorothy

Hi all.well its stil ,dry and sunny and chilly again ,but that bit of sun cheers you up no end doesn't it?
Just waiting for the garage to tell me the car has passed its mot and service and I can go for it.They said 12 ,but you never know.told them I had to have it 3.30 at the lateset for work.,which I do, I am on 5-8pm but have a distance from the garage to where I am working.
Have been sorting out again and am really surprised by the junk I am keeping "just in case"after what we found sorting dads out ,I really do not want all that for some one to sort and clear out.
Going for a hot drink sitting here sorting and then checking emails is making me cold as I have not got the heating on.!!
See you all soon
Brenda

hi brenda you are so right the sun really makes you feel good hope the care was returned to you on time, mine has to be checked in may every 2yrs they do an emissions test and you have to pass it (or the car does) to obtain the sticker on your car always a worry wether it will pass or not. another great day weather wise but apparently the cold is to return at the end of the week along with rain and that white stuff but we have had a nice break. bye for now dorothy

Hi everybody,
Fred, how many names do you have. I get confused with Fred, Badger, and others.
It's been a lovely sunny day here today albeit with an icy wind. I may go into town tomorrow taking my scootmobile in a taxi. The only trouble is when I have to go to the loo and leave my scootmobile with shopping outside. There is so much petty theft these days.
If I go out I can leave Johan in peace to fill in our tax papers.
I heard today that I have a new bacteria in my bladder.
Will keep this short. Have a nice evening
Sylvia xxx

Hi Sylvia ,well,the name Fred is the family name ,passed down through the family going back to the 1860s ,Badger is just my genes name ,but it's still the same old grouchy git at the end of the day lol.
Nice to see you again too ,yes ,i know what you mean about the shopping too ,but i have an advantage ,having my missus to watch the shopping while i go to pay a visit ,and then she will go while i keep my eye on the stuff.
The few times i'm on my own ,i will take what i have to the parking bay and stuff it in the car boot.
While we were out at Morrisons two days ago they had on offer three Globe Fennel at 37 p,so the missus feeling pretty chirpy said,yes ,we will have some of those.
Getting home ,shr gets the soup book out and makes a beutiful rich soup that was sooooo tasty ,i said ,any time you fancy making that again go ahead love.
She used one globe of Fennel,,some sun dried tomato, leek ,and ,celery for it ,i can recommend it to anyone.
Yesterdays tea was a very nearly veggie stir fry ,using a couple of ounces of chopped chicken,and the last of the veg' from the garden ,cabbage ,carrot,leek ,parsnip and sweet potato [brought] and a potato ,
i added home made sauce made of fish sauce ,Hendersons Relish ,and a little coarse chopped chilli ,and ground black pepper.
The wife fancies stuffed jackets today ,so i will have a look and see what i can shove into the skins ,lol.plenty to choose from in my kitchen.
We got a coupon through the door yesterday advertising a new market garden at Cramlington ,offering 75litre bags of potting compost at buy one at £5 get one free,so cheeky git Fred goes next door to see if they had one too ,and ,did they want it,anyway Fred now has 2 coupons ,he he ,and will be off to Asda shortly ,calling at the market garden on the way home for 4 bags of potting compost ,just right for filling all the tomato ,and cucumber pots in the greenhouse ,a cheap season it looks like.
Hope the car is now fit for the next Year Brenda,at least though it passed okay.
Well ,time to go and make a cuppa before going out,take care everyone ,and hope you all enjoy your weekend Badger ,Fred, Denis for sylvia [he he].

very quick reply to all,as I am at work ,lovelly day today,VERY spring like!
Car passed MOT so ok for another year,Nothing needed on service so that was good.
Will be doing a lot more home made soups when I have finished work so will be looking for recipes Fred,
Betr go before I get queue.
Brenda

I was busy yesterday ,even with being my saturday off,hairdressers at 9am,then putting washing on etc,out to twon with David for lunch and shopping all very nice.Came home and did some house work and was really tired in th evening.
Having my breakfast and dinner cooked today !! part of my mothers day present from David.Going to the cemetary after breakfast and teh might go and look for a dress for a wedding we going to .
Weather bit grey ,but warmer.
Have a good weekend
Brenda

goodmorning it is a rainy week-end over here but the snow is pretty much gone around the area I live in but still lots on the ski hill, the family are off this week with spring break lindy and laura and Ian drove to ottawa on friday pm to see her sister, andrew arrived home from new brunswick and he and bryan have a few days of hockey tournements so it is male bonding for them I guess, I have decided that soon genes will be after me to renew my membership and I have decided that I am not going to, I have enjoyed it but now only use it to keep in touch with brenda and fred who I believe have my home e-mail address and I hope would keep in touch with me that way, I shall keep coming on the site till the membership runs out. I shall put the money to good use towards my subscriptons to the english magazines I recieve well I think that I shall go and think about what to have for supper a few hours from now I am leaning to-wards bangers and mash and a nice salad , we put the clocks forewards last night and happy mothering sunday to all the moms bye for now dorothy

Hi all, Seasons are changing! Its the third week of autumn and temperatures are up and down as summer lingers on. Rain forecasted toward the middle of last week which didn't eventuate. WOMAD was had over the weekend with acts from around the world performing. We didn't go but we did hear sounds carry through the night air until after 11pm.
Gayle's kidneys are not good and has an appointment with the surgeon in a fortnight so the second fistuala placement is getting closer - thank goodness. I noticed on logging that January was my last visit, I seem to spend more time on facebook that coming to GR and thats bad - really bad.
John

Morning all.just about to get ready to go to work,have this week and next left to work ,so its coming on rapid now!!
Have just booked a holiday for ,John a,myself and two friends for decmber booked it now as it was a good price,mind you they have changed all the flight times and the times we used to be able to choose from have now been scrapped!!
We are hoping to find a little holiday for May/June after I have finished,the cheap deals you see in the paper,or on the internet where you book and go within the week.a lot of my friends do that and seem to get good deals,you do not have to be particular on the desitnation thougth.
Nice to see you John,hope Gayle gets the treatment sorted with any delays this time.
Dorothy hope you do keep in touch ,me and Fred will have to keep this thread going ,but might need to join a bigger one as we do not come on everyday.I was nearly not renewing myself last year and if I do not get any hits with my hot matches by July when my renewal is due I might not renew myself.Mind you i do have a lot of family contacts on here.
My sister and her family are in France ski ing at the moment,hope they are enjoying them selves they have all been so busy renovating houses that her two daughters bought last year!!
Better go and get ready have to call at the supermarket for some fruit on the way to work..,we are all going to try and loose weight from today !!
Take care Brenda

Morning john,Dorothy ,Brenda ,and anyone else who drops by ,ere you lot ,what's goin' on 'ere.is the ship sinking or wot.there is dissent among the ranks,and everyone is threatening to leave the service he he ,old Fred is starting to be real vunerable ,lol.
We could all go over to the other main thread i use , i suppose ,the cannucks thread which i use a lot ,there being peeps from oz, through to canada,but i like this thread and intend to hang on as long as a few others stay on it too.
The garden is about ready and i will be going to Aldi later where they have bedding plants for the borders ,under £3 for 20,which will fill in a few gaps till the missus gets cracking with the flowers in the Chalet.
Think i have your addy Dorothy ,.if your surname begins with an L then i have it ,if it dosn't can you let me know please,'cause like Brenda ,i would like to stay in touch.
Ooooops .i think i had better get on to the son to drop by this morning before he goes out anywhere, i happened to glance up at the roof ,as i turned round from opening the chalet door because of the wind last night ,and notice that that same tile as last time has slipped well down the roof yet again,so if he can shove it up again before it rains ,i will get a builder out to fix the plurry thing so that it can't slide again,by wiring the thing to the latt before sealing the edge of the roof ,to the tiles with a cement render,trouble is ,that this corner site is exposed to the winds ,always the end tiles ,and always the lower end ,thankfully.
Keeping my fingers crossed for Gayle John,'tis about time the powers that be got her sorted out,it must be so annoying for you,all this delay seems silly to me.
Not long to go now Brenda ,and then you will be able to relax a bit ,lol, our departure day for Blackpool is the 23rd of April ,and we are there for a week,so ,i hope we can sort something out ,and hopefully will get some nice weather for it as well.
Time to go and get the bins in now ,so that i can start filling them up again.Fred.

hi from a warm 60 degree's barrie the weather is going a little crazy this week quite warm the last 2 days but by sunday it will be down to 5 and rain and snow but the children being off school this week will enjoy the warm weather the family are all back at home from the week-end trip to ottawa bryan has a hockey tournement to-day and Ian has some more iq. testing this afternoon for 2 hrs and again on thursday it is follow up testing just for the records needless to say he is not happy it is happening on school break, but it is aslo to make sure tht he gets the additional school work so he does not get bored with the regular class room schedule, the ski-hills are busy the one they go to expect about 20,000 by the end of the week it is the busy time for them and the roads around me are very busy all loaded down with ski stuff, andrew and lindy rent a locker at the ski place to keep all the stuff in for the season is saves taking every time they go, yes fred the last name starts with an L and I will keep in touch bye for now dorothy

Hi all,
Just a few lines to let you know I have not forgotten you but don't always feel like replying. I have been feeling so dizzy these last few days so will be pleased when they start me with my sleeping mask for my apneu. They will be coming next Tuesday to measure my head for the mask.
Today I woke up a bit later than usual - 8.30 and Johan had a cup of tea as usual waiting for me, and I then sit in front of the tv and have my painkilling tablets and anti-bacterial tablet in my nachtgown. Johan then went for a shower, and I fell asleep again. Johan woke me up 12.30 noon. I didn't know where I was. I then had my breakfast and took the rest of my tablets and finally a shower. Then decided I must do some shopping as tomorrow is our wedding anniversary - 54 years, and Johan will be 85 years on Monday next. I don't feel too bad at the moment.

Will keep this short as must write a letter while I feel ok.
Sylvia xxx

goodmorning wow sylvia 54 yrs best wished to you and johan that is quite something hopefully you will feel much better soon, another great morning the temp is to get up to 60 to-day amazing. I recieved a phone call from my heart specialist yesterday I had called to see about an appointment and as I normally only see him once every 2yrs he called to see what the problem was (nice service) anyway I am going to be wearing a holter monitor for 24hrs and if that does not show up these episodes then another one a bit different for 2 weeks, andrew will take me next tuesday to be kitted out as he does not think that his mother should be driving (big lecture) and please call when you want to go shopping and to the library as I told him I am not daft I would not get behind the wheel of a car if I was not well but anyway I guess the car and I are grounded for a while . so I shall be watching the tennis to-day it is coming from indian wells in the states andy won yesterday but roger lost last night, bye for now dorothy