General Chat

Hi everyone... We are having some lovely cool weather..lovely sleeping temp..one blanket only at the moment.
Everyone welcome here Fred.. more the merrier..
Got some good news for a change..There was a worry that OH might have lung cancer, but after having a scan he is all clear..we are a tad happy about that..he has a diaphram that is bulging up into his chest and squashing his lung and making him breathless..Nothing to worry about according to the doc but he is having a nerve in his chest investigated as it might be causing a problem that might be able to be fixed..so we all breath freely again..It has been a worrying time these past few weeks.
Edith That motor home you had sounds so luxurious and I bet you missed it when you had to part with it..I know I still miss my caravan..they were some of the happiest days of my life touring in that van..OZ is so big and there is so much to see...
Les How is the house going,,got a sale yet or even some interested party..I found it a pain having to keep ours tidy all the time in case someone wanted to see over it..GGGRRR I was never a one for housework..LOL...

I hope you all have a Happy and Holy Easter. and find the time to relax and smell the roses..

Love Mary xxxx

Morning our Edith ,garden ,? me ?,dont know what you mean [sniggers under breathe] he he ,am i that transparent ? lol.
Yep that's where old Fred was alright suntan lotion slapped on the arms and legs .shorts on ,knelt on the matt pulling weeds out front.
I got the long border finished ,the rockery border done ,seeds put in the greenhouse,started off ,and a bit of feeding of the hedges.
Nearly killed the fir hedging last year by using the wrong fertalizer,but i think i found out and switched before it was too late,the hedging is an ugly brown colour ,but i notice there are a few small specks of green in among it ,thank goodness.
I have ordered my Nectarine tree on line ,and went to find a large pot for the planting of ,but had no luck the 17 inch diameter by 15 inch deep one i needed has gone up from £4-50 to £20 ,disgusting ,no doubt the excuse will be ,the price of oil ,plastic being a derivitive ,so when i go up to Cramlington today to deliver the hedge trimmer to the daughter ,i will call at Wilkinsons to see if they have one in there.
I need the daay off anyway ,i have overdone it a tad ,and am still sore from yesterday ,lol,but ,no worries ,not much more to see to now ,and it's beggining to look good.
May i introduce a newbie to the boards peeps ? her name is Sally who hails from the Liverpool area [told her we all have our cross to bare he he ],but i know she will be made welcome.
I warned her About that Tony too ,lol,saying he was making everyone jealous with the descriptions of Phuket and his wonderful holidays ,but said too ,he was a whiz with his finding info on lost peeps over the pond ,as is our Mary.
There is a heck of a heat haze out side this morning ,looks like being a good'un [sorry Edith] he he, so i am off to water the seedlings and tender plants before the sun hits them,catch you all later ,Fred .xxx

Hello, O.K. Fred get out of the garden and have a cup of tea. How lucky you are to be able to dig in the earth. I am "green" with envy. hee hee. The snow is leaving slowly as the temps are staying in the minus range. No help at all from Mother Nature, fickle woman.
Went to a volunteer appreciation do last night and folks brought (old) articles for show and tell. Younger members had no idea what a chamber pot was for, one stated a soup tureen !!!!!Had several things that were 100 yrs. old and enjoyed a lot of laughs over different hosehold utensils. They wondered how we managed to live with the restrictions we had. Seems to me we were a very happy lot when I grew up. Even during the war we did not have a lot but were happy to give what little we did have to those who didn't.
Think greed is one reason for a lot of our troubles to-day. Off soap box.
Les,
Have you found that motor home yet?? If you can get a new one the re-sale price is always very good. Something to think on'???
Glad you enjoyed Fred's call Mary. I know when I called there I too was surprised with no accent. Hope things are looking better for John soon.
Time for lunch so bye for now. Edith

Morning all, What a week-end we had. Starting early Sat. morning the snow started and did not stop until last nite. We have a white world again uuuugggghhhhhh over 6 inches of the stuff. The temps are supposed to climb up now but we have already lost a lot of growing time. !!!!!!
It's not often the weather stops activites here but not very much moved over the last 2 days. Just too wet and sloppy.
Yes, Mary you can travel with animals in a motor home, we had a St Bernard and he loved to go. The boys would sit outside eating ice cream cones and he had to have one as well. Many folks stopped and had a laugh watching the 4 of them. When we were putting the food etc. in for a trip, he would sit by the door and guard it to make sure he was not left behind.
We had a 28 ft. with sleeping room for 8 so had lots of room. In fact it had more storage room in the kitchen than I had in my house at the time.
Full bathroom, dishwasher, garberator, fridge and freezer,dual power(, gas and electric) Did a lot of travelling in those days and made good use of the vehicle. Finally sold it at no loss after the boys left home. Just too big for 2, but had a many a good trip over the years.
Time for me to move so bye for now. Edith XXXXXXX

Hi all Have you all thawed out yet..Saw London on the tv this morning and they all had short sleeves on, so it must be getting warmer somewhere,,,LOL..or is it wishful thinking on their part..LOL
Our days are lovely ,,around 20c and our nights are down to around 11c.. just lovely..
Les... What ya gonna do when you sell the house,,Travel in the motor home or buy another on the mainland,,wander what its like to have a dog and a cat in a motor home..hee hee hee...get something nearer the family..have you don't the bridal apron yet..let us see it when you have finished it..
Edith..Time to get the bikini out..its nearly summer...have you planted your vegs yet..
Fred. Are you able to sit outside and drink your cuppa..or is it cold again..

Well off to take John to the docs again..they are working out the next step to take.seeing as how the specialist cant see him till June,,ggggrrr...

Love Mary xxx

Fred, I think that most of the radiation will dissipate before it reaches us, at least this what they say altho locally the best question is "is nuked salmon precooked"!! Very droll!!
The for sale sign is up on our house. I wonder where this will lead us. Dau was very happy about that last night when I chatted to her...we'll see! Meanwhile yesterday we went and looked at a 27 foot motor home. Much too big for us, I don't think I would be brave enough to drive it. Anyway, like the ones on the weekend, it had some pretty bad roof leaks and in one cupboard I could see moisture dripping. Makes me wonder why people don't do a little preventative maintenance every spring so that this never happens??
Busy day today setting up for the artist's walk. I was hoping to get the front grass cut but it is just too wet. We had a little more snow yesterday. It didn't stick but this morning I had ice on my windshield.....blurry cold as Mary would say.
More later. Lesxx

Sorry about the mistake Les' ,i checked back and Dorothy was talking about a friend up north ,not Vancouver[smacks wrist].
Bit of a bummer about the shortage of wood,but don't forget ,it isnt just old Britain who have had a severe winter ,but over the ponds too ,including the states,and it will probably be a little milder this coming winter ,and you can always allow some extra ,just in case,though that dosn't help you much at the minute.
I havn't heard of raised radiation levels over here yet ,but no doubt it won't be long now,heck ,Wales isn't back to normal after Chernoble yet and now the sheep meat will be unusable yet again,my welsh bretheren will NOT be amused.even more so if the sheep start to glow in the dark.
I note that people in the states are complaining about 6 year old children being frisked at airports ,maybe they think that pushers won't conceal drugs on children because they respect children and won't use them for these purposes ,HELLO, smell the coffee people ,these scum bags will use anything to get contraband through customs,stop the customs people from searching minors ,? i think not.
Hope the raised radiation levels don't mean possibly ruined fishing in your lakes Les,what a shame that will be ,and all those people with fish farms unable to earn a living.
I have always said that we should never have stopped coal mining and kept all the coal fired generators to make electricity,it's much better now ,with proper filters on top of the chimneys ,and far safer on the environment,and think of all the extra jobs it would create,thousands of miners jobs ,railway jobs ,and other jobs connected to both industries,ban nuclear power ,and save the planet.[off the soap box now] lol.
The wife has just this minute sorted us a mid week stay in Carla gran,For under £200 for a four night stay,beutiful, and already a chance to try my portable B B Q out he he.
Might just try this Irish clan thingy on genes to see what it's all about ,but ,anyway it's time i was away for now ,catch you all later,Fred.xxx

Dunno where she is in Vancouver, Fred, but there has not been any snow on the ground for a couple of months except that it did snow yesterday. And I am not sure where the frozen lakes are either??? a bit odd unless she is way up in the mountains. All our surrounding mountains here are white today altho it only rained in town, in fact it did more than rain. It was like a monsoon and blurry cold!!
The temperatures are lower again today and so Norm has gone off to find some wood. We had already used up everything we had and thought we would be OK because it was spring and all that....wrong!!
Now the latest story is that at Simon Fraser Uni, on Burnaby mountain, Lower Mainland Vancouver, they are testing for radioactivity and yesterday said that the rain water at the moment is well above the safe level. Now I have no idea what that means but if that is true then here in Alberni we must be swimming in iodine given the amount of rain that fell yesterday!!
Edith I sometimes have chronic insomnia and it is not helped by a large orange furry thing that likes to sleep on my pillow with me. He gets quite miffed if I don't welcome him with open arms and he doesn't care if it is 2 or 3 in the morning!!
House cleaning today....grr!
Keep well everyone. Lesxx
PS. have to ammend this....Norm says it was snowing here this morning when he got up at about 6.45....yuk!!

Hi Peeps ,just back from the doctors ,yeah ,i promised the wife that i would take her like it or not if she didn't make an appointment herself ,and won another round ,she phoned this morning at 8 am ,and we were at the surgery by 9 -40 .
The missus got a right roasting from the doctor who said she had left it far too long again ,and she should listen to me more ,because for some reason ,i have a better idea as to when the usual antibiotics are not workingand she needs stronger med's.
I was talking to Brenda's sister this morning ,the one who lives in Vancouver [Dorothy] and she says that at last the snow is melting there and trhe ice on the big lake is melting so i hope that means that you other canucks are getting nearer decent weather too.
Yes ,getting a caravan ,or R V isn't as simple as a lot of people think,Les' and Paying out good money means being very picky as to what you buy,too many sharks around for my liking,and roofs are a Bu***r to mend properly ,i remember it well ,he he.
The new phone works well,and i have plenty of talk time a month ,£5 for 120 minutes to Canada and £5 for 60 minutes to Australia ,as well as unlimited texts to anywhere,full internet ,and roaming access.
We found a nice little B B Q this morning for £10,metal.six inches deep by 18 inches square ,which has folding legs and a folding lid ,ideal for the holidays for easy carriage in the car boot,and a nice two seat ,table in the middle patio set made of hardwood ,ideal for out the back ,to go with the seats and round table we already have,this completes the garden furniture for when we have company.
Have to go back to Asda tomorrow morning to pick up the 12 spare buckets for next year ,free, to pick up and will go into the shed until needed.
Have a nice soup for tea out of the freezer,nice ,quick and easy ,just the thing to go with my short French stick,yum.
Off for now ,for a lay down seeing as i was up at two again this morning ,He He ,catch you later all ,Fred.xxx

I am sewing Fred, not looking this week. We did see two 24 foot motor homes on Sunday but both of them had ceiling leaks and we don't want to be bothered trying to put in new ceilings etc.....so nada at the mo.
Yesterday I made a bride's apron, all bridal lace and satin, bit of a pig to sew but it is rather fabulous. I spent the moring sewing pearls onto the bodice, Ollie was quite keen to help and we had lace and pearls all over the place. I finally shut him out of the room....he was not happy!!
Today is class two in my current genealogy course. I could see last week my students were on overload so will have to over view what I told them.
I wrote a letter to the mayor and council about the lack of tsunami/evacuation plans for our city. At the council meeting the fire chief agreed with me and so yesterday I was interviewed by the local paper and am in there this morning. I think that city hall will not be lest pleased with what I had to say....but, hey!, if it gets the job done, well then its good, right?
OK off to sew. More later.
Lesxx

Morning Edith and Mary,nice to see you again ,even if it was because you couldn't sleep [welcome to the club i joined at birth, he he] i sometimes sleep in the spare room when i am restless ,because i get a tongue lashing off she who must be obeyed ,lol,because i keep waking her up,no joke i supposed when it could be up to 8 times a night.
Blast ,i have been sussed,he he coming from a middle class family brought up in and around London,i never got to sound like either set of grandparents ,scot's or Irish ,and even after over 40 years up north ,don't sound like a geordie[how dare you Mary ,Yorkshire indeed humph] actually i have trouble making myself understood up here in Newcastle ,and down south too ,all very confusing to me ,he he.
I have taken four oven bottom muffins out for the dinner,they make lovely buns for burgers when toasted,or ,as i am doing today ,turn them into mini pizzas ,cutting them up the middle ,toasting the insides lightly ,spreading tomato purree on them ,and covering them with caramallised ,chopped onion.finely chopped ham grated cheese ,more ham and them more cheese,before banging them under a grill for 60 seconds.
Don't know yet what i am doing for tea because the missus hasn't made up her mind [as usual] but what ever it is ,part of the veggies will be buttered /steamed Asparagus it now being producing ,yum
Been out front this morning with a hoe ,watering can ,and fork,i had a darned good session in and under the ground cover rose hedging ,removing an unwanted crop of those 'orrible things called Dandilions and grass clumps ,which are now in the compost bin ,and then planted the two perrenial bushes ,where the tattie bin was ,and ,oh ,tore out a present left by my friend ,the resident Blackbird ,lol,two blackberry seeds that had rooted ,one thing i DON'T need in the front hedging.
I put the first of the Cabbage seeds in pots in the greenhouse yesterday ,and put those replacement tomato seeds in ,just in case ,if i don't need them,,i will give them to the son ,in Howdon,now he has the back yard fence repaired and the yard cleaned out,he has room for a few tomatoes in buckets ,and a long trough for herbs when the missus has grown them ,they are her part of the gardening ,and i touch those at my peril. he he ,i lift and fill the heavy pots for her ,and that's it.
Sorry to hear that John isn't too good again old friend ,and i can't help but wonder if his immune system is faulty leaving him open to all and everything going around.
Hopefully the doc's will stumble onto something that will help him,and in the meantime i'm sure people besides me and liz will be praying for him,at least for the pain not to be so severe.
Off to do the dinner now ,take care all.Fred.
P/s Hope Les is okay ,or is she busy looking for Two new homes ,one being mobile ,hope she finds both soon so they can get resettled.

Morning all. Mary I wish it would warm up for good.Two days ago we had pouring rain and it was washing the snow away, well guess what??
Now the weather guy says "more snow". Another arctic front coming at us so off we go again uuggghh.
Gonna build me an igloo and stay there!!!
Supposed to go on a bus trip after Easter so sure hope it clears up by then. Don't really care to travel in snow any more.
Glad you and Fred enjoyed Chloe's pic, she is a very "regal" cat and let's you know it. She races up and down the long hallway in the apt. building and then sits and looks around as much as to say "were you watching???
Can't sleep tonite so here I is at 4 in the morning, hoping to get tired enough to head back to bed. Maybe have some toast and get breakfast out of the way too hee hee.
Be back soon, Edith XXXXXXXXX

Hi everyone... Well did I get a surprise..phone rang and a VERY refined voice said,,Hullo its Fred here...I was completely bamboozled as to who this Fred was with this refined English voice..then the penny dropped and I was so glad to hear Freds voice after all these years..he didn't sound at all like I imagined he would ...thought he would have a strong accent like a Yorkshire man but a little different from coming from a different county. But it was a lovely surprise and I appreciate it..Now I have chatted to Les .Edith. and now Fred..aren't I a lucky bunny..
Sorry couldn't chat for long though as I was in the middle of cooking dinner(tea) and John has not been at all good lately..had to take him to the docs yesterday and more tests to come.
Glad you are getting the garden sorted Fred and hope all you Canucks are getting some warm weather at last..
Take care and will try and get back soon..

Love Mary xxx

Afternoon all ,Here again,garden done for the day due to the weather slipping back and letting in rain showers,B ***er ,lol.not to worry though ,i got my phone sorted in the town this morning ,and now have 120 minutes a month for Australasia/New Zealand,& Canada /america,so i am now set up.
I got my first mid season cabbage seed this so i have now enough sowing to do to keep me busy for a few days ,rain or no rain.
Hey ,glad to hear you have gotten Coast Edith we enjoyed it very much ,and now have the two series ,and are watching series 3 on the goggle box now .
I will be phoning Mary in the morning around 8 am ,which means it will be the afternoon over there ,i have to watch the times until i get used to the time difference ,he he ,i don't want to be phoning while she is counting Joey's jumping fences ,lol.
Tea tonight is a salad with a jacket tattie on the side ,and tomorrows dinner is alreaady sorted ,it comprising ,steak mince ,home grown red onions ,and the first of our barrel tatties ,which by the way are very tasty.
Hissy is feeling the spring weather rather a lot ,charging up and down the garden ,jumping out on me ,and swiping at my legs from hiding ,little bu***r ,bless her she is a real joy,and does a great job of keeping the cabbage butterflies away ,as well as the flying rats [pigeons] .
Off to prepare tea now ,but will be around most of the day tomorrow ,as we have the new phones coming ,half way through the contract freebies,but okay for spares,lol.
Catch you all tomorrow ,Fredxxxx

Evening everyone,Very late today ,but i have had a very busy weekend ,making hay while the sun shined ,he he.
I now have 6 of 9 Asparugus plants through and am looking forward to the first meal of the year off them within two years.
The first barrel of tatties is now out,and the compost is in three large bags awaiting moving across to the other barrel behind the shed next to the concrete base,where it will be easier to service them in wet weather.
This of course means i have two biggish gaps in the garden,needing 2 dwarf trees or bushes to fill them,ideas anyone?.
The Broad Beans are in ,the Cucumber in the Greenhouse have been planted,and the Courgettes are in their buckets under the kitchen window.
No sign of the tomatoes as yet ,but if they don't show within the next week ,i will replant them ,just in case.
The new phone i got with the dongle contract is one of these android ones ,all touch screen ,beutiful ,and phones throughout the uk with no trouble,but try as i might ,i cannot get into Oz despite the phone card for that country,so ,i am going to go to the Metro centre tomorrow for a like card for Canada and while i am there ,they can configure it for me,weeeell,he he ,that's what they get paid for [evil chuckle],so Mary ,i havn't forgotten you ,i will get there in the end.
Time to go and get my tea ,be back tomorrow,Fred.xxxx P/s good luck with the hunt for the R/V Les and the downsizing .back nearer the kids seems a good idea..xxx

Good Sunday morning to you all,
At last we have rain and it is making the snow disappear quickly.!!!
Can't wait to get out and start my balcony garden. Tried all the types of greenhouses Fred but none are allowed according to the housing manager. Would love to plant poisin ivy where he could walk through it.
Will make the best of it and do as much as I can indoors or go to the next town and get the plants. There is a great nursery there and the prices are not too steep.
Made a pot of beef barley soup yesterday and will make a few deliveries to-day. Turned out very tasty too.
Time to got busy so bye for now. Edith XXXXXXXX

Have my new glasses and I am almost as blind as a bat when I sit and look at my computer screen. Tomorrow I shall have to go back and get this looked at I guess.
Today I am going briefly to a memorial for a husband of a friend of mine from my working days. Then Normie and I are going to look at a couple of class C motor homes. Both of them are older but I think we will be able to toot around in them OK. We are planning on selling the house and downsizing so that we will be free to travel a bit while we still can. The kids want us to live closer and dau says that even if we were back in Nanaimo it would be better, so we shall see. So to plant a garden or not?? Haven't figured that out yet.
Raining today. Last night I was awake most of the night listening to a loud drip,drip, I even dreamt about it. So Normie went out thinking it was our downspout but no! of all things next door they have a leak from their gutter and it was dripping on a coke can...grr!! All that noise from a lowly coke can!!
More later.
Lesxx

Monday night we went to Nanaimo to see Herman's Hermits....what a memory rush. He was very good, great music..but somehow as he strutted back and forth across the stage he reminded me of Ken Dodd!!! LOL
We had a few flakes of snow here yesterday - yuk! Today they are calling for sun but who would know. In any event it is still far too cold this year to do anything in the garden.
I taught my first genealogy class of the spring last night. First time we have run thiscourse at night time and I had 9 folks there so quite pleased. They seem to be a good bunch, certainly more interested and lively than the last lot.
Made a butter chicken tuesday night and did the unthinkable thing of putting onions, peppers and tomatoes in it. It was really good and the veggies cooked in the sauce were amazing...might do that again altho it is quite high in fat much more so than making a tikka masala.
Another earthquake in Japan and a larger one in Mexico...what is this world doing. Protesting the abuse by us lot probably.
Off to cut and sew today plus get my new glasses...busy day.
More later. Lesxx

Evening Mary.if by loooong pots he he ,you mean troughs [5 inches by 2 feet ,by six inches deep] there is plenty you can grow in them,such as double rows ,one Pak Choi [chinese cabbage] in one row ,and stump rooted carrot in the other.
We use four of these troughs,with a six week wait between sowings,and the cabbage grows so fast ,you can replant three times while the carrots mature,running two troughs in tandom ,you have veggies over a longish period ,taking up very little space.
The other two troughs you can use for things like herbs ,and perpetual onions.even welsh onions which grow over the full year.
My little patch is well away ,i have the brussel and beetroot in ,and have the other compost on standby for the rest of the season.
Our Mint in the little green trough has survived over the severe winter,and is shooting well already,as has the chives that i put in between the fence and greenhouse for the winter.
Our plum tree is covered in blossom ,so i have high hopes for this year,Fred can already smell the plum ,rhubarb,and apple crumbles ,lol,even the rhubarb confined in it's bucket is doing very well,and the Asparugus is showing through ,yum.
The missus has been told off ,forgetting her glasses wjhile out shopping is one thing ,he he ,but buying cjhicken steaks instead of breasts is another.grrrrr.
There i was intent on making stuffed breasts with chive philly in bacon blankets,to go with lovely new potatoes tossed in butter ,cabbage,asparugus spears and diced carrot,who has had to join the steaks together with cocktail sticks so that i could get the cheese in,and who has had to struggle to get the blankets round the breasts without spearing me fingers ,huh ,women [tuts] he he.
The pak choi Mary steam well ,go in stir fry and can be cooked ai a saucepan as boiled cabbage ,and grow big enough to do two of you for meal.
Well,i has done well today ,my housework done ,an hour in the chalet,and the tea cooked as well as a good hour being lazy in the sun,time now for a drink ,and then the washing up before watering the chalet seedlings ,and Asparugus shoots.
Catch you later peeps ,Fred.xxx,P/s still toying with the idea of two dwarf peach trees instead of lemon yum yum.

Hi everyone.. Hope you are all well or on the improve if not..Especially Fred and Liz..
Our weather has been lovely and cool and we have had some lovely showers so my pots are all doing well and look really good..my basil is going mad. and my lemon tree is shooting so am very happy about that..Got lots of chillies in the freezer and love to put them in my hamburgers when making them..gives them a right zing..LOL
Glad you had a nice holiday Fred and got home safe and sound..despite the colds and sniffles..Les you must get out there and get those veg in the garden,,Go easy on poor Normie as we don't want to do damage to him..LOL..Edith you are really spoiling those foxes..not only feed them but give them something to play with also. Hope the car is ok when it looses its coat,,is it hard to start after being buried in snow for so long..
Fred,,What is a good veg to plant in autumn, for a winter veg crop..do carrots do well in winter..or leeks perhaps,,have to have something that produces more in a small space..cabbages are to big..want to go and buy some long pots to go against the wall and grow something I can eat in them..LOL...then I will plant tommys in the spring..
Well better go and do some of the dreaded as my housekeeping fairy has gone on strike,,,PMSL,,

Love Mary xxx