General Chat

Hello all, Edith comes in from the balcony at last. I replaced all the carpet and got all the plants lined up. Have been out there all week getting everything done. Got 3 kinds of Toms this year as well as a new variety of basil. All the Herb plants look real healthy so if the weather will co-operate should be a good year. Yes, Fred I have the pots with the false bottom and they do work well, no water seepage, even tho' there is a rubber bladder under the decking. When it rains it all runs down a pipe to the ground below.
Put some hanging baskets together to-day so that is it. Now maybe I can sit and watch all the stuff grow. !!!!
Oue weather has been sunny but still have a cold wind, no more frost forecast but I will not hold my breath.
Nice to see Michael back. Stay well.
Mary, think you should come up with a real nasty name and demand G.R
use it. Saw some bears at the dump site last week but before I could take a pic they ran away uuughh.
Time for my dinner so will get to it. See you soon. Edith XXXXXX

Hey Michael....what a treat to see you!!
Mary what is with the name thing...it is a bit weird isn't it. Tell GR to get the other person to change so that you can keep yours...bloody cheek.
Fred, got my plants yesterday, toms, peppers, cukes and various squash. They are in the greenhouse waiting to be planted. We went yard-sale-ing this morning and it was so cold you could see your breath, and its almost June!! We bought Monopoly as I quite fancy playing that again after all these years. So tonight I am going to make spagbol and Norm and I will eat and play (Monopoly of course!!)
Meanwhile I am about to complete my 2011 census online and then cover some boards with velvet so I can start to pin all the jewellery on...chore!!
Nothing else too new.
Lesxx :-)

WOW Michael... How lovely to see you again..we have missed you..hope you are not working to hard and enjoying that lovely garden of yours..
Yes that is me finding a nugget a few years ago..down in the victorian golden triangle.Since they had the floods down there the fossickers have come out in droves and are probably having some good finds.

Yes I have been having a few words with GR about my board name.. About 5 emails all told.. What I think has happened is when I had to leave GR they still had my board name on record..So that when I returned they now say someone else has my name and I cant have it..The same thing happened when I left and tried to rejoin GR photo site..It kept telling me my email addy and board name was invalid as someone else had it..they were right it was ME. but they made me use a alternative for both. The only way to get my names I am researching under my posts was to change my board name AGAIN..LOL..Ah well as I say,,Whats in a name,,,You all know who I am so that is the main thing..might play around with it for a bit till I get one I like ..?????
Fred So glad to see you have invested in a good Aussie invention..LOL..you must concrete it in the ground otherwise it wont last..hope you got the one that folds down like a umbrella..saves a lot of space. and keep the mechanism well oiled..heeheehee hows that from a bossy Aussie..LOL...
Edith What ya planting now,,

Well better go and get some of the dreaded done..My maid has the day off,, well she never really had the day on..just dreaming..Have a lovely weekend all ..

Love Mary xxxx
Aka Mary in Sydney...LOL..

No mistakin' you blee'n gold-diggers, Mare! A rare visit from Michael, in Dundas. Nothin' new with me in the last few years, the numbers just get bigger, and less significant... still working and gardening. I need to get a life!
I just keep my eye on what's going on... but this is a true EMERGENCY. Mary, aka Eliza, what IS going on??? GR.. love it and hate it, right???
love to all
Michael

Morning our Mary ,you should get in touch with the powers that be ,and tell them to sort your board name out for you,you know ,i know ,and most others on genes know that you are the one and only Mary from Sydney,hell ,we have been talking to you for years ,and know who you are ,and so do they ,taking your subs since 2004.
We can always get the Wattlers together and give them some stick for you ,WE ,are the heart of Genes ,not the few idiots in their office. :-(
Anywaay ,we are sorted ,the roof is finished ,the chimney repointed ,and all we have left for them to do ,is place a waterproof coating over the bricks ,and that's it,so ,for the next ten years,any roofing problems such as split tiles ,and it's up to the firm to fix it.wahey :-).
To make my day ,the diseased Nectarine ,with loads of T L C is showing signs of recovery ,he he ,i may now ,land up with two.
While shopping yesterday ,my dear wife spotted one of these new rotary washing lines ,[you know] one of these ones with four arms ,not three ,giving you more drying space over the same area,so i get one to keep her quiet,asking her if she is sure it's the sort she wants,,we get it home and ,disaster ,the pole is the wrong width and won't go into the hole ,grrrrrrr :-,women ,what part of [are you sure it's the right sort], don't you understand, he he,so there's the grandson and me ,in the belting rain ,putting a new line up,for her ,grrrrrr again. :P
If it dosn't prove to be a go ,i will have to find a new metal spike ,dig out a square of turf ,sink a square hole,concrete the spike well in ,and fill in the hole ,replacing the turf to level it off,soooo peeps ,when you see the next pic of the garden ,and think ,hey ,the clothes line has moved ,yep ,you are right ,women ,who will have 'em ,he he.
Any way ,you Aussies are to blame ,seeing as one of you ,invented the perishing thing in the first place :P .
The grandson Sean and wife are here for a couple of weeks,so i will be a tad busy showing them around town ,it having changed so much in 6 years ,they wo'nt know it..have to toddle off for now ,but will be back later,nearly the holiday weekend here ,and rain forecast for the whole three days =I , sounds about right don't it .lol Fred. :D xxxx

Well GR tell me I cant use Mary in Sydney as someone else has it..I have had it since 2004, and have never seen anyone other than me with it..I was advised to find another name..I think it went into the to hard basket..
So now I am Aussiegirl...ggggrrrr......it was the only way to get the names I am researching added to my posts..It wouldnt add any other way.
Ah well whats in a name...

A bit cool tonight ,, might snuggle down under the doona..nearly time for bed..xxxx

Love Mary xxx

Hi everyone Am I having trouble with this site..Yesterday I wrote a long post and lots it to cyberspace..Then when I tried to get in again I couldnt get the GR to come up but got the error message all the time..So today when I got that error message again I entered the site address manually and it came up..Whats with this site..????also I am having trouble with my board name as in my account it says its invalid,,Because someone else has that name,,,I have had that name for 6 years and never seen anyone else with it,,I have got Gr trying to sort it out for me..
Getting a bit colder here and good sleeping weather,,went down to 8c the other night..COLD..LOL

This site is still playing up so might try and post this before it to goes off into cyberspace..just got logged off and came back and thank goodness I didnt lose my post..
Hope all are well and if I dont get back have a lovely weeknd,,dont get blown away Fred and Edith and Les,,get out to that garden and those pots..LOL

Love Mary xxxxx

morning all,yep ,i though that was what you were at Edith,sounds as though you are well organised as usual. :-).
We are still waiting for these severe gales to die down ,so that the roofers can come back,replace all the damaged tiles,repoint the chimney and then put these two sealant coatings on.
I was really lucky yesterday ,the gales picked up to just on storm force ,and a lot of people round the area suffered damage to buildings ,and gardens :O,but i only lost my windmills [easy enough to replace] and a couple of plants,of which oi have spares left in the greenhouse ;-).
I took the sons Tomato plants down to his house yesterday,clearing a space ready for the leek plants ,which i got from Howden nursery on the way home.
I have taken to using this place ,because you not only get well grown plants and herbs ,but the Nursery employes only disabled people ,which gives a few a permanent job,and buyng plants from there ,we are helping to support them. ;-)
I have just got the Brussels to tie to the support canes ,and then i can get the ground manured ,dusted ,ready to put the leeks in,and that's the garden finished.
Have to go now ,we have the grandson Sean and his wife coming up from Brize for 2 weeks,so i have shopping to do ,and housework to see too ,,a mans work is never done ,lol :D,Fred.xxx

Morning, Yes, Fred I have been digging ,pulling weeds,moving bushes etc.
My balcony plants are not all in yet so I have been helping the "Girl" next door.
She and I planted a small bed on the grounds below us. We had put in 3 globe cedars about 2 yrs, ago. Last winter with all the snow, the snow plow pushed one of them into the earth. We have spent the last day and a half digging out all the roots. Then we had to restore the bed, get all the weeds out and replant some perenials.
Did get my herbs in bigger pots so they are all set to grow, the basil is loving this hot weather and the 5 plants are really getting big. Lots of pesto for next winter !!!!! Didn't plant the purple basil this year as I never did take to the licorice flavor and as yet have not found a good recipe using it. The thyme is already the size of a small bush which is great as I do use a lot of it. If you have a firm fish Fred try rolling it in thyme and lemon juice and grilling it. That is a real treat.
We have a 3 day holiday as it is Victoria day on Monday so will keep busy with the gardening etc. For me that is right next to Heaven on earth.
Enjoy the rest of the week-end. Edith dons her gloves, grabs a trowel and away she goes. Edith XXXXXXX

Morning all ,wow ,pretty wet and wild here today,and i am sat here ,while the rain waters my plants ,spot on .
I brought 2 new square urns for my new Nectarine tree,said urns designed to be for patio use ,having a false inner bottom that holds water to save the roots from becoming waterlogged,and saves wasting water too,the tap roots ,taking up water as the plant needs it.
Edith can even have a dwarf tree on her patio ,without soaking the building ,lol,great for a goosgog bush or a couple of climbing plants,he he :-).
The roofers i contracted to do my whole roof have been rained off ,but will be back when the weather improves ,they are replacing a lot of tiles,and then coating the roof with waterproof membrane [2 coats] which will stop any damage to the roof as regards high winds ,and water damage.
The roof will be insured for 10 years ,after which ,if it needs done again ,it will be up to the bairns ,who will be the house owners by then,i thought having it done would be cheaper [lots] than a new roof at £ 7.500 ,at todays prices.
Where is our Edith,hmmmmmm, wonder if she has come out of that market garden yet he he,with ooodles of plants ,herbs ,and whatever ;-).
.Hope everyone is having a nice weekend.Fred.xxxx. :D

Morning all,, We are having some lovely weather and its now my sort of cool...9c up to 19c..some days are going up to 20c this week..but the lows stay around 7c to 12c during winter..How nice is that..
Cleaned out all my chillies and stored them in the freezer..Some of the herbs are on their last legs so might go down to the nursery and see what is worth growing..in this weather..

Les You must be the jewellery queen..LOL hope you get lots for it..Any nibbles on the house yet.

Edith...Looks like its time to get the bikini out..20c heatwave..LOL..thats our present winters day...lol..what are you going to grow this year..quite looking forward to spring so that I can get more pots and grow some more things..Toms and beans might be my choice ,plus more chillies and herbs.

Fred.. Wow those rolls sounded lovely and make my mouth water...we mostly have a bread roll and a nice filling for our lunch..

Do any of you watch the tv programme "3 in a Bed" about England's B&Bs..3 B&Bs visit each other and compare it to each of the others and pay what they think the stay is worth..some really funny situations and it gives me a chance to see how B&Bs in the UK have changed since we used them 25years ago..At that time we paid around 14 to 17 pounds now they are around 75 to 120 pounds..Good price rise..in fact one charged 250pounds a night.Didn't like it and wouldn't stay there..

Well better go and get some lunch so have a lovely weekend all..

Love Mary xx

Well,this is the second go to reply to Les ,he he ,my own fault [again] =I,a nice long missive and as usual ,hit the wrong button grrrrrr :S.
You sure the pencil wasn't You? Les,worrying about this huge sale of yours,and up ,walking in your sleep ,chewing as you wander about ,lol [here Les runs to a mirror and pokes out her tongue to see if there are any black marks ] he he.
Saw a nice 16 foot R v up the road this morning Les',3 years old ,immaculate condition,with built in water tank,,side roll away awning,,all mod cons ,and built on a diesel ,fiat chassis,all for £27.000,and fiat have the kevlar one piece moulded roofs ,so no leaks..
Wouldn't worry about the two furry bosses Les ,they will eat far worse than that out in the garden,pencil lead is part carbon ,part graphite ,and veeeery little lead,the graphite and carbon part of the dark doggy biscuits you get in Spillers bags,they should be fine,honest.
The wife and i went down town to the bank today to get the pennies out to pay for the roof,and upon coming out with my ill gotten gains ,we went into the market for dinner having two buns ,one ,mine,sausage, onion ,and bacon ,with tom' sauce,the wife having plain sausage with sauce ,and very nice they were too :-).
We started to walk up to the town centre and the metro station and noticed to our right over towards Byker ,a huge cloud of oily black smoke,
Even after we got off at Kingston park to pick up the car it was still billowing upwards ,and as expected ,when we got in and turned on the news ,we found out that it was Shepperds scrap yard ,yet again.Grrrrrrr,6 engines out there to fight the fire all paid for by the ratepayers while a millionaire has a clean up ,another of many free of charge ,it's about time the council woke up ,and charged the man for all this work ,and for the damage to the environment.
Well ,time for me to start the tea, nothing special today,some nice looking Jersey Royal Potatoes and some lovely pigs liver that we brought in the market,so tonight we have liver and onion in a nice ,thick gravy ,with Jersey new potatoes ,and nice cabbage .
Hope everyone is having a nice week,Fred. :Dxxxxx

Here I am. I have been sorting thru all the jewellery and stuff I collected while working and am going to have a huge sale...not a yard sale where everything can be had for a quarter but a proper sale. Norm is calling it Lesley's Antique Road Show. Can you believe that I had amassed over 30 watches, most of them never worn, just used as demos...crazy!! Anyway that is my "job" at the mo.
I have done nothing in the garden. In the paper, the local "growers" are advising about not planting on the May long weekend as the soil is still not warm enough and the nights still often close to freezing. It went down to 2 last night...pretty damn close I would say!! However I think I will get my tom plants this weekend and set them up in the greenhouse. Think they should be OK.
Found a half a chewed pencil on the floor this morning. Not sure who chewed it up but I am hoping to find the rest of it around the house otherwise I may have a very sick dog or cat!!! cannot imagine why either of them would do that??
Anyway I am off to the silver polish and get on with my 'antiques'....lol
Take care. Lesxx

hi There Edith ,glad the sun has reached you at last,and eased your itching feet ,and purse he he,i will join the rush on Friday by going for my leek plants and mid sized urn for my new Nectarine tree ,ready for when it arrives.
I notice that my climbing french bean have started to move ,at last ,so shortly ,i expect they will catch up to the runners ,which are already fixing themselves to the canes.
With the sever winter we had ,i decided to bite the proverbial bullet and brought in the roofing guys ,for a complete renovation,loads of tiles to replace ,a pressure wash down ,repointing on the ridge tiles,and two coats of a preservative to seal all the tiles against the worst that the weather can throw at them.
Not exactly cheap but there again ,a lot cheaper ,and quicker than a complete re roofing job.
The process takes four days ,and will last ten years ,by which time the house will be in the bairns hands ,and it's down to them,i will be in that great garden in the sky [ i hope ] he he ,not stoking boilers for a living ,lol.
The first half of the job is done anyway ,the jet wash ,replacement tiles in place ,and all needed re pointing done ,so they [weather permitting] come back to spray on the coatings on Friday. :-).
Fancy a treat for tea today ,so i am doing myself Scampi ,Beans ,and Peppered wedges for tea,while i do the wife ,sort of ditto ,but fish cakes ,she only eats fish once in a blue moon,when she has a bit of Icelandic cod or Fred caught local stuff,and i have been too busy to get out with a rod lately.=I.
Hope everyone is having a better week ,take care all ,Fred. :-) xxx

Morning, At long last the heat has arrived. It was a lovely 20+ yesterday and the next few are to be the same. My balcony will be the place to be as I get the pots and plants going.
Have 5 really nice basil plants ready for a big pot. They will fit nicely around the bottom of a large tomato plant. Putting in the climbing beans and cucumbers again. They did so well last year and the trellis has come through the winter o.k.
Everyone is enjoying these hot days, didn't take long for the shorts to come out of hiding heehee. Once the ice left the lake it warmed up quickly.
Now will have to try and keep up to Fred with all the reports on how well the garden grows!!!!
Off to the greenhouse to see whats new this year and buy too much as usual. Oh, what a happy day she sings as she heads for the car with a bag of money and dreams, dreams , dreams.
See you soon. Edith XXXXXX

Morning peeps,cor ,what a mornin' here ,no rain yet ,but promising to lash down anytime ,the wind is really fresh ,and looking like gale force later ,not a day for being in the garden ,lol =I.
Not so bad otherwise ,with only two runs of cabbage to put out and i am done,for the season as regards planting.
Loads of herbs for use this year,Edith would be proud of me he he,i have even managed to start many of them from seed this year,but this is because i used heating in the greenhouse for a couple of weeks.
The holiday was okay mary ,the change of air being most welcome ,but the weather ,cor ,more like Autumn ,if you know what i mean,high winds and lashing rain most of the time ,lol. :S.
Sometime this week i have to go to the local market garden to pick up my leek plants,i don't grow my own any more ,the days of cheap heating ,and being able to fire up the greenhouse in December to start them has gone for ever, boo hoo ,but i can still grow most stuff in a cold greenhouse ,so i am lucky ,not like Edith and others who have to buy most of their plants.
My eldest son came over Wednesday last and cut the big privet hedge for me so i didn't have that to come home to bless him,just as well he did all of it ,not just the inside ,as i wrenched my left shoulder ,while climbing over a gate ,on ,Clevelies sea front,rather than go round the corner ,he he ,serves me right for being lazy. :-)
The drive home was interesting ,with me wincing with the pain every time i had to change gear but ,that will teach me to use the proper entrances and exits in future.
Managed to get a few pics while down there anyway ,and will be downloading them shortly and the missus got a few as well ,so i will see what we did get that's of any use ,;lol.
Time to go anyway ,i still need to water the greenhouse and see to the herbs and tomatoes.
Catch you later everyone ,Fred.xxx ;-)

Well its a lovely day here,,sunny and cool..yyyaaayyyy

Fred Enjoy your visit to the west coast,,I think that is where you are..LOL.Hope the weather holds out for you..
Les Go easy in that Mall,,dont bend the plastic to much..LOL
Edith.. Hope the greenhouse opens soon so that you can get those toms started..Time for the snow and ice to melt..we had snow here in OZ yesterday..My daughter in Orange 300km west of us got snow and the roads were closed..that only happens about 2 or 3 times a year..but they love it and it is always in the news when it happens.The ski season is loving the early snow falls and are hoping for a bumper years..
Had a lovely weekend with my daughter and then on monday my brother and sil came for a couple of day..was so good to see them..must admit I was a bit tired when everyone went home but it is nice to see them and if they didnt come here I wouldnt see tham at all...do miss my little trips to visit my girls..
Having a few quiet days now and relaxing to get things back to normal..
Hope you are all well and enjoying what you are doing..Les if you find a RV send me a pic of it..

Love Mary xxx

Hi Edith,back from the sea front at Blackpool where i took my new camera hoping for some good piccies,no such luck ,the rain started as we got off the bus,and when i turned the corner and saw the Tower i was devistated =,the road is totally shut ,so you can't even get on to the sand or even reach the pier,and all the shop fronts are boarded up while they rip out the insides and rebuild.The town all along the front looks like a war zone [and iv'e seen a couple in my time]
Take pics ,i couldn't wait until the bus came to take us to Fleetwood,and sanity.
If you are thinking Blackpool this year folks ,forget it ,they reckon early July for finishing ,but there is more chance of making a sandwich with frozen bread and,and jam straight from the freezer :P
At least ,i did find my phone protector for my L G touch screen phone,and now just need to find a screen protector for the face.
Really chilling out now,and enjoying ourselves,and have decided to visit the Thatched Village tomorrow,a 18th century coal village built on the canal bank,giving access to the whole county from the mine,to the railway ,and to the narrow boats that deliver the coal to the villages ,and cities.
The whole village seems suspended in time as it were ,and the canal is still in use today,river transport beginning to become economical yet again,so ,weather permitting ,i may get some nice pics there ,if nowhere else.
Catch you later all whereverou are ,he he :D,Fred xxx

Morning all, Rain Rain and more Rain. Instead of snow I guess. The prairies are flooding and we are getting more water than we need but not flooding. The Canadian Army has been called out in Quebec and now in Manitoba to keep the rivers at bay.
The ice is finally gone from the lakes so perhaps it will warm up at last.
An unusual year for sure.
Still haven't started the balcony garden as the greenhouses are not open yet. As soon as they do I will be there.!!!!
Time to get on with my day so bye for now. A big wave to Liz and Fred at the seaside. Edith XXXXX

Enjoy the shopping Les',and Let bella enjoy time with Nicky,sounds good to me .
Looking for a new r V may take a while ,but good things are well worth waiting for ,no doubt Bella will sniff out the new one for you if you take her along for the viewings,and will soon sort out her new corner to sleep in ,he he.
cooo.curry ,[Fred Sniffs the air] lol.time to get the bombay Potato out of the freezer ,and make a nice home made curry to go withit,soulds good to me :-)
Hope your weather is heading the right way Edith,you do seem to be having a rather late spring ,hmmmmm,maybe a heater on your patio to start your seedlings off ,lol. not flipping likely says Edith ,you seen the price of Electricity over here .he he :P.
Gonn'a give you a buzz next week when we are ensconced in our caravan in Fleetwood,wahey ,not long now ,lol,i can smell all that sea air ,loooooverly :D
The son [the youngest ,is now settled in his new house down near the Tyne Basin,so i have mynew base where i can go Cod fishing in the winter ,and have a base where i can go afterwards to warm up again.
I need to go fishing again anyway ,my last Rainbow trout went on the coals at the B B Q and i could do with a few more,from Lancashire,to keep me going until the autumn when we go back to Cornwall.
Hope things are better with you Mary,now that your weather is on the downturn , you are lucky lady ,no need to protect your trees from frost,but i have concerns over my Nectarine tree ,which i am veeeeery unhappy about ,and i think i will be pushing for a replacement,most certain that the one sent me is diseased and dying ,or even dead,grrrrrr ,Bakker are NOT my flavour of the month :-(
Well time to go and find something for the the dinner,but i will have to kick the grandson out of bed before them ,most unusual,as he normally beats me downstairs in the morning.
Catch you all later,Fred xxx :-)