General Chat

Hello Bridget, apologies for not having been on here for a while. I hope that you have recovered from your throat problems. My OH is just about getting over a cough that he has had for 8 weeks. It was never bad enough to go to the doctors, just an aggravating tickle. Hope you enjoyed your time with the family and that the pool is in full working order now.

Good morning from sunny Spain.
We have had a lot of rain but it stopped on Thursday which was great as the men came to repair the pool. Unfortunately it was not quite as easy as we had hoped but it is essential that it works properly and does not loose water. I hate wasting water when there is so many people in the world who do not have enough.
My eldest son and his family are here for the bank holiday and gave mea good excuse to buy someeaster bunny rabbits made of chocolate...not for me or OH .

It is pleasent weather, the son is warming us,the birds have stooped twittering for a while and everywhere is quiet ....

My cold and throat infection is improving but not quite finished yet, I have had this for 3 weeks now....apparently it is rife acrossSpain and friends for northern Englandhave to.d suit is much the same there,

Have a peaceful and relaxing Easter, enjoy the chocolates,forget dieting for a day or so.

Happy Easter

Bridget

Well here in London the sun is shining - yesterday was the like a Scottish pop group Wet, Wet, Wet.

I have been busy with my family tree (It is surprising how little people know of their family - one of my contacts doesn't even know his mother's maiden name!) and preparing for Easter. On Passion Sunday at church it was my turn to play the part of Judas - well someone has to. I'm sorry to hear of illnesses and other mishaps - I will continue lighting a candle and saying the prayers

OH isn't feeling herself (she hates being ill - especially as we have a long weekend coming up - unlike most men I just soldier on!!)

My team lost on Saturday as I was reminded by Tess! This week is the crunch match against Manchester City if we win we will stay third if they lose they will be eight points behind the leaders.

My evening work is going fine thank good ness and I have had my first wage slip since forever.

Keep well, warm (cool) and safe and I will check in again soon

Gerard <3 <3 :-)

Finally had the stump of our sycamore done, the tap root was huge and some of it is till there, but enough has been removed to have the fence put up again, thank goodness...it has all cost a fortune. Weather here wet and cold, after having had some balmy weather, lots of days spent in the garden.. sorry to hear Bridget that you have been unwell...its horrid when you get something like that just as the weather starts to change....Been at my art class this morning, painting eyes...human ones are very difficult,, did better with the animal/bird ones...!!!

Finally had the stump of our sycamore done, the tap root was huge and some of it is till there, but enough has been removed to have the fence put up again, thank goodness...it has all cost a fortune. Weather here wet and cold, after having had some balmy weather, lots of days spent in the garden.. sorry to hear Bridget that you have been unwell...its horrid when you get something like that just as the weather starts to change....Been at my art class this morning, painting eyes...human ones are very difficult,, did better with the animal/bird ones...!!!

We had some snow and sleet earlier this morning. It has now stopped, but we are having some (heavy) rain showers and wind.

What a change from last week.

many areas of the country (England, Scotland and Wales) have got snow, some is a few inches deep. They have also got gale force winds.

Not worth putting washing out today!

School children are on Easter holiday, must be difficult for their carers, trying to keep them amused without taking them out!

Yesterday, went shopping with my son. We bought some shelving (self-assembley) to go in the garden shed and/or the attic.

Soon I am going to run out of excuses for my house to be untidy.

Might sort out some more stuff to go to the charity shop, while it is so miserable to go out, and before I put it all on my new shelves.

Anyone want some ornaments???



Hope that you are all well.

Tess.

Tess - April 1st is April Fool's Day here in Oz. However, I understand that it only applies up to noon, when all pranks stop.

I've heard of 'Indian Summer'. It's usually applied to unusual hot weather immediately following winter (early spring) when the temps are much higher than normal.

We have had a few days of really warm weather here in the UK. However, temps. have now dropped again (had to put the fire on yesterday). There is a threat of snow in the Scottish Highlands, over the next few days.

Managed to go shopping with the Ring & Ride yesterday, and remembered to take my Debit = Credit cards.
Have even found a 9Greadres) note bokk, yesterday. Of course it had been in full sigth all the time! I had spent rather a long time, over a few days looking for it.


Berona, pleased that you have not been affested by fires or floods. Hope that you have a late summer. (we call it an Indian Summer here, I don't know why.).

Bridget, hope that you are soon on top form again. Hope that the work on your pool goes well.
Are you still plannibg on coming back to the UK? if so, what area of the country.

It seems that all out football teams had a day they would rather forget, yesterday,
Arsnal, West Bromwich Albion and West Ham, all lost! (the teams of Gerarl, myself and Bridget's O.H.)
Other of my family members support, Stoke City, Aston Villa and Wolverhampton Wanderers, they all lost too!
Still I suppose that all the opposition fans went away happy.

Although cold her, it is dry and sunny, so have got washing on the line.
Was listening to bird song, while pegging the washing out. I feel quite ashamed that I can't recognise a bird by its song. But sounded good anyway.


Hope that everyone has a good day.


By the way, is April 1st a "special day" in other parts of the world?

Only honest answers wanted!

Tess

Hello all, nice sunny morning here but quite cool. Good gardening weather and a load of washing about to go out on the line. Hope my Mum isn't watching 'Washing on a Sunday!!!'.

Some of the spring flowers are fading now, Daffodils etc, theyw ere so early but it is lovely to see the magnolia trees in glorious blossom. so it is half past seveni in the evening with you Berona? Strange wprld we live in isn't it where one third is way ahead and one way behind. I thin the internet brings that to the fore more than newspapers ever did.

Hope you can shake that chest infesction Bridget, it does sound nasty and these things get harder to shake as we get older. Well, just cleaned the kitchen, now I had better go and hang the washing out. :-) :-)

Hello and good morning from Spain.
Apologies for not being on here for some days but have a nasty chest infection, which the lady next door has told me that her doctor told her that there are many people in the area with the same infection, including her. I have been on antibiotics for a few days and the coughing is slowly easing off but I am sleepy all the time and hot one moment and shivering the next...felt better yesterday so went for a walk with OH and meet a few friends on the way. I am not a good "patient" a typical ex nurse I can hear you say......

Have sent my passport for renewal only to hear on the news that there is likely to be strikes across Spain re the financial crisis and the 28 % unemployment........I hope my passport is not caught up in this!!

Today the sun is shining and in the last few days all the summer insects have been seen, wasps, bees etc.

The trees have had there annual cut the beds have had new stones added and after Easter the Pool people will be repairing the one light which is not working, replace six of the small tiles on the floor and give the pool a spring clean. We have had the Pool for nearly nine years so it is time for a professional to do these tasks and then OH will be delighted to have his job back.....he really does keep it looking very good.
Time to go now so wishing you all a good day

Bridget

Where is everyone? Just popped in to bring the thread forward!
Hope you are all well. Perhaps too busy to post at the moment?

Warm with occasional showers here. More like Autumn. We still don't know what happened to Summer. Oh well, at least we didn't have any devastating bush fires on the eastern side of the country this year. Had a few floods, though, in the country areas. The cities are rarely affected by floods - and never by fire. To-day we start back on standard time, so with UK now on daylight savings, we are 9 hours ahead of them, here in the east. I won't go into the time-changes for the rest of our country - a bit too confusing.

Tess ......if you are of a certain age you can get a discount card for B & Q 10% off on a Wednesday. We paid 12.95 for our rolls of wallpaper, got more than we needed, but you have 28 days to take back which is handy, and I can thoroughly recommend their emulsion, cheaper and very good...so try them ...I have to say my decorator, who only did the living room with wallpaper (we live in an old house with "crap" walls so need paper, reckons that B & Q's own paper, is far superior to the expensive sort.

Hope thats a help Jan

Just popping in to say hi

Hope you are all enjoying this nice sunny weather. Still very chilly in the mornings tho. But looks like its getting colder for Easter which is a pity.

Hope this goes on as been having prolems like most getting in and on threads.

Well just off to put washing out front on clothes horse. Dont get any sun front or back, but it comes in smelling nice.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~to everyone

Hazelx

All that decorating makes me envious, Tess. Here in Oz, wallpaper is not as popular as it was a few years ago. I had it in my previous home, but the current trend is more for painted walls and polished floors - with carpet only in bedrooms, if that. I still like carpet but now that I'm in a villa, I have it only in the bedrooms and ceramic tiles in every other room - so I have big rugs in the lounge and dining rooms.

Another warm and sunny day in West Midlands UK. It is almost t-shirt weather.

Went into town to the College again today. Had my hair cut and finished for only £1 :-D

I was very lucky again, as I was booking the appointment anyway, even before I knew there was another (extra)special offer.

Need to sort some paperwork, write some letters (snail-mail and e-mail) tomorrow.

By the way, have all the UK people heard that First Class Post is going up to 60 pence a letter?

Jan, great to hear that you have done all the decorating. I am still hesitant about what colours to use. Have even thought about using wallpaper.
Popped into a "Decorating" shop last Wednesday, just to have a quick look at Wallpaper available. Leafed through two books (big mistake), saw quite a few I loved!! All 25% off. But they still cost around £29.


Think that I may have to stick to paint after all.

Then just have to get "a man who can" (decorate) Then chose carpet
Might get some new paint colour test tins in the next few days.

Off to make some phone calls.

Hope that everyone is well.


P.S. Gerard, I like the sound of those cheesey biscuits :-)

Hello All,

Been off line for a week and only just catching up ! router went kaput....
Can't possibly make comments about everybody's entrys, but it made interesting reading.....what would we do without e mail, having just found out I didn't like it at all, felt like my right arm had been cut off !!


Decorating finished...hooray, house back to normal, still clearing up dust, but it all looks nice, OH now staining outside windows, as the weather has been phenomenal here in very sunny Norfolk, and extraordinarily mild. Whilst decorator here the garden was given some welly ! and the ground elder ugh, the same treatment......it is all beginning to look very smart. My Hellebores are the best they have ever been this year

Anyway will sign off now,

Regards to all Jan

Thanks Bridget for your words of encouragement.

Had my (free) body massage yesterday, it was wonderful. Left me feeling relaxed.

This morining got up early to go shopping with the Ring & Ride. Was rather foggy in the West Midlands.

Bus en=ventually arrived, as I was the last passenger to be picked up, we were soon at the shopping centre.

Trundled round with my trolley, looking for special offers (I found a few!) Then got into a (very short) queue at the checkout. Unloaded shopping while the previous customer was being served, then found that I didn't have my credit or debit cards!! :-( :-0

Luckily I did have £15 cash, so was able to buy some things. Chose the ones that needed to go in the fridge. (Inc the special offers) and then had the rest put back in the trolley for collection later.

Boy, was my face red!
Son finished work at 3pm (having worker overnight) and the lovely lad collected (and paid for) the rest of the shopping for me!

We seem to have gained some cheese (which won't go to waste) and a jar of curry sauce has somehow been opened (I will have to throw it away). But all-in-all, I am lucky that things turned out so well.

These days I just can't manage to carry shopping on a regular bus.So with out help from my son and co-operation of the surermarket, I would have "lost" a lot of shopping.

I hope that the rest of you are well.

Tess

Good morning to you allfrom Peniscola in Spain....the sun is up, the trees are still, no noise apart from the twitter of the birds and and the occasional bark of a dog...Jet and Joe are still asleep.

We found a good buy yesterday, we needed a reasonable looking chest of Draws for the second bed room,to god on oneside of the bed, now we did not want to buy anything. Dry expensive but nevertheless les something that would not break easily.
Weren't to Lidle as usual justtoseewhatwas new...sometimes we find great dealsandothertimex "nada"
We found a doit yourself chest of draws for just under 50euros...brought it home and OH put it together without any hitches and it is very sturdy....it must be those newtoolsi bought him. Looks good and I shall start using it from today.then the man came tool okay our pool as theatre is leaking away but stops just an couple of tiles lower than the lights. We had been concerned as to how much it would cost...the chap stayed for about30 minutes and then told us it would not be a problem to get the pool.clean,repair the lights, regrout where necessary and would not be more than 3 hundred euros in total!

The palm tree will be looked after next weekl, cutting off the dying bits , removing all the spores etc and then the garden should look good again....once this is finished the Estate Agent will come to view the house and I await with bated breath to see if we can afford to sell it....no mortgage thank goodness!

Today we will just "chill out)" no visitors, no shopping required etc.....soi may just get another group of photos on to the comp and then download them all..
After that I shall share them with my children and not yet decided who should have the very old documents going back to the early 1800s and old Army records going back to the mid 1800s

Tess,I have read your reply twice and I simply want today that you writing is excellent your grammar, choice of words etc put shame on me as I am always rushing together everything written down. I am most certainly not a linguist, but my children are linguistic so must get that from their father!
I do enjoy writing but am always rushing ahead so have to check quite carefully...

Well,time to go and have a coffee or two and start my work on my photos.

Sorry to take a few days to get back here.

Funeral went well yesterday. It was very well attended. Stan was alovely man, doing workfor charity, active in the community and his church, as well as a popular member of a choir. He also liked a laugh, so was very good company.


Bridget, although I was bought up Catholic, I no longer have a belief in God.

We travelled a lot when I was a child, as Dad was in the army. Most of the scholls I went to were Cathloic. However, I didn't pass the eleven plus. So dodn't go to a Grammar School.
The only language taught in my R.C. Sec. Mod. School was English.

I am by no means a linguist (though I wish I were), so probably didn't really miss out on anything.

I picked up some Malay, the second time I lived there. (Malaya).

If I thought that I had the aptitude, I would have looked into the possibility of learning Latin. Especially as it had an influence on so many other European languages.

Off for a body massage tomorrow, and hope that it may lighten my mood. I am getting this free, as part of a special package of having my hair cut a few weeks ago! I was very lucky, as I didn't know about the special offer, was having my hair done anyway, and the hair-cut was half-price.

Gerard, I think that we were all touched by what was happened to Fabrice Muamba. More so thise of us that are footbal supporters and especially those who have seen him play.

He seems to be making remarkable improvements, long may it continue.

It is wonderful making new contacts. I ahve been really lucky in that regard. Have actually met some "cousins" and am in contact with a few others.
Trouble is that I am now pulled in all sorts of directions re which branch of the family to concentrate on next!
But it is all good fun.

It was quite warm and sunny here again now, has been for a few days. Central heating is off. Only need a little blast of electric or gas fire, once in a while. Skies are blue. Washing has been drying on the line again.
I should be giving thanks for all these blessings!


So "Thank you World!"

Good morning all cyber friends, I hope that you are all well. Going out in a few minutes but will be back this afternoon.

Bridget