General Chat

I had to hand-wash all my lacy smalls and delicates for example the silk blouses, and leave them to drip dry over the bath tub. Oh the ignomy of it. Talk about "going back in time". I tried hand washing my skirts and trousers too but they didnt drip dry at all so after two days they were bagged up and taken to Oldest Offspring to be put thru her machine on a Delicates program; after which they dried OK hanging over my bathtub. However, O.O. lives too far away for me to take my laundry there on a daily basis.

Since that night, MIL has been doing our sheets and towels, and OHs shirts and smalls. She has been quite happy to help out but really we should never have been left in such a situation that we have had to rely on others for laundry help.

Many years ago when I was a new bride, we lived in a first floor apartment. I worked full time in the City - very long hours with the commuting, as you can imagine. I didnt have a washing machine so every Saturday I had to tread the sheets and towelling in the bathtub, rinse and wring it out by hand, and lug it dripping wet down a flight of concrete steps to drip dry on the line outside. Then I inherited a small sum of money from a deceased aunt which enabled me to purchase my first washing machine - a twin tub, no less, which was the height of home-laundry technology at the time.

Auntie had died some years earlier, but her will stipulated that the four inheritors must reach 21 before the money could be paid. There was a delay in payment from her solicitors and I didnt get the money when I reached 21. I mentioned it to an uncle (auntie's brother). His daughter was one of The Four. He wrote to the solicitors and they tried to fob him off. So, he threatened them with the Law Society, after which I received my money; and my cousin got her money as soon as she reached 21, some eight years later.

But I digress ... Auntie's will also stipulated her husband could spend the money as he chose, and oh boy he sure did Spend Spend Spend, until he died. Between auntie dying, and me turning 21, auntie's husband went through her legacy with a vengeance, so by the time I turned 21 there wasnt much left to be split four ways, but it was enough for me to buy my twin tub.

Good evening Ladies,

Ooooh Cherry, one should never be without for any length of time, let alone since 6th January. I can imagine you with a dolly tub and a rubbing board, then getting out the mangle. Or is that just in this household?

Needless to say, I got wet again today. I was promenading down to the Town, when the heavens opened. Luckily I have a teeny tiny gamp which I keep in my dolly bag. So my coiffure was still in tact.

You naughty gel, I know of the leafy place you are talking about. Tis not as popular as it once was. I think the fairies have moved to a more upmarket area. They flap their wings, orft they jolly well go.

I am to hold the WI meeting tomorrow. We are having a knitathon in a few weeks time. We are asking everyone to bring in balls of wall, so that we may knit squares, sew them together, and make blankets for the needy. Which is practically every pensioner I know, now that the services have raised their prices!!!

Send your balls down the cyber hatch please. All donations gratefully received.

Pip Pip
Auntie Petunia

good evening ladies. It is one of those nights where we should all have some warming soup On The Go. *throws another log on the fire*

Petunia dear I'm aware of a group of residents in a certain leafy suburb of London who get fairies at the bottom of their gardens. I know this for a fact. I heard Ted Rogers tell Dusty Bin many years ago, so it must be true.

Having spent the day listening to the wind whistling out of tune, I have been gainfully occupied ripping up the old telephone directories to stuff in all the cracks and gaps around the old sash cord windows. Dont nobody light a match near the windows tonight .....

Do you think the Broadcaster General will really do anything to change the weather forecasts to your liking? Somehow, I think he's too busy passing the buck to his underlings, and dashing orf to play golf.

I have some good news!!!!! I came home this afternoon from this month's U3A meeting, to find a message on the answerphone - I think the MD of a certain appliance manufacturer got my letter with the hot point about poor customer service. They are sending an engineer with a new drum next Tuesday morning. It is about time - I have "been without" since the 6th January. We've gone over the 21 days of non-repair as per the insurance company, but I wont press for a new machine since the old machine is being fixed - unless there are any hitches. Yippee !! and about bloomin time!

Good evening dear gels.

Now Teresa, please sit down dear, I have something to tell you. No not that dear, a woman in your position should know all about that..............no, I am afraid I have to tell you that there is no such things as fairies. Not even at the bottom of your garden. Even those gels at the turn of the last century, were using paper dollies when they 'captured fairies at the bottom of the garden'. Please dear, do not cry!!!

No twas not me on Mr Selfridge. Nor on anyone else. Tutty tut!!!!

Cherry dear, please batten down the hatches again, as you know this is an old, old house, and has many crooks and nannies for the cold wind to blow. I have used newspapers to block up the cracks, and cardboard to stop the windows rattling.

I am going to write to the Broadcaster General, to complain about the weather forecasts dears. They keep saying it is getting warmer, but I am blowed if I have noticed it. Windy, yes. Rainy, yes again. But warm? I think not!!!!

As I may have mentioned the Ponsonby's are on their way. Motification is good for their soul, and they have decided to move on. Apparently they were only here to look for a new residence, and they have a stately pile that they cannot upkeep in the country. So I think they will be pitching a tent on the common very soon.

Oh dear, how very sad...............................never mind!!

Never one to gloat......................much.

Auntie Petunia

"blows in with Dorothy and Toto"

Teresa !!!!! your avatar is snowed in. Get some shovels and dig yourself out, at once !!! :-D

I've now got that radio show concert on DVD, to put in the DVD player to listen to but still havent had time to listen to it. When he was on the One show he said something about tickets being "affordable" - but I dont think he realises that ticket agencies ie legalised touts are buying up blocks of "affordable" tickets then reselling them on at highly inflated prices .... or he may know and simply ignores the fact. These agencies should be forcibly prevented from buying blocks of tickets, but I guess the relevant box office (for whichever venue) sees it as an expedient way of offloading the seats as so many people cannot get to box offices.

Oh dear you do seem to be having a spate. I hope your washing machine gets sorted asap. We are still waiting ..... its nearly four weeks now.

No it wasnt dear Petunia that you saw on the arm of Mr Selfridge. It was Mrs Keppel, having a break from Edward VIII. Apparently, when the king died, Queen Alexandra allegedly said to one of her attendants "oh well, I know where he is now". ;-)

Ladies have a look at Emma's thread(golden girl)

That will warm the cockles of you hearts ;-)



Teresa

Ooh Cherry Mr John Bon Jovie, wonder if the tickets will be the same price as Mick and co were charging a couple of months ago :-S

We are orff to see Mr J Kerr and his beat combo Simple minds in the spring. Also seeing Mr G Suggs :-D :-D sometime then as well.

Ladies I think the bad fairies are about. This week I have had two headlight bulbs replaced, a burn on the arm from the devils oven, the boiler is not working and I cannot get anyone in till tomorrow, the light bulb went in the living room and washing machine is on the blink :-(

Never mind, I'm getting the chimney swept this afternoon and will set a toasty fire
:-D

It's a little windy in these parts today. I have kept warm by doing unpaid toil with a vigorous hand. Just got to Hoover now and do the ironing and settle down to Sundays dancing on ice :-D

Did I see Auntie with Mr Selfridge on Sunday? A lady was in at
tendance with Miss Pavolva, was it you Auntie or a figment of my imagination ;-)

FTE is now in the land of the free :-D. Well she managed to get a new pair of sneakers which carry a heavy price tag in these shores for half the price. Also got a pair for FTY so all is well. FTE said it is very very cold in her parts. Well the FRuit has managed to chase the sun since the Autumn so I'm not surprised. Bet it's not as cold as this house at the moment :-|

Coeeeee to Susan and Lesley.


Orff now to generate a bit of heat whist finishing the chores


Teresa

hello Teresa it must be depressing to go to work and go home again in the dark, but thats the price we pay for working shifts. At least its not dark for 24 hours a day for weeks at a time, like the northern Scandinavians get.

I think these young gels in their skimpy clothes have the resilience of youth. When they reach my age, they'll really feel the cold.

Oh forget Fleetwood Mac, there is a better band ... teehee. I asked my DJ daughter to find out when Bon Jovi's new album is being released and the name of it so I know what to order. I have the information. And the UK tour this year is called "the Because We Can" tour. I've seen them twice, live - Manchester and Twickers. I never expected to see them once. I'll be buying the album but I dont expect to see them perform live a third time. As "they say" - memories can be made to last a lifetime! and fortunately I have a good one.

hello Susan, we had a bright full moon last night. I wondered if the cat would come home ...... but she did, so I guess its still too cold for her to sleep rough. She is a tinker for not coming home on the hot summer nights.

Yes the flooding in Australia is terrible, and coming right on top of the fires those poor people must be wondering whats coming next. My heart goes out to them. I got a glimpse of some newsreel footage of one person being rescued from floodwater but the clip finished before I could ascertain where in Aus this was.

I watched a fascinating documentary the other night about a very remarkable man in the outback who rescues joeys and raises them like their mother would.

I guess we'll have another full moon tonight but its wet and windy, with cloud cover, so there wont be anything to see. Some time ago - maybe last year, or maybe the year before that - the moon hung unbelievably low and large in the night sky and I had never seen it so clearly before and I rushed outside with my camera. Not doing that tonight .... too cold.

Hallo Susan
So sorry to hear of the poor people who lost their lives.
I too saw the moon this morning, it was very big bright and low in the sky at 6.30 am when I got to paid toil. Very unusual and a bit spooky. We have flooding here after the snow and ice. The nights are pulling out a bit now as well which is good. Feels a lot less like living in the twilight zone. I go to work in the dark and get home and its dark.

Ladies I am also the eldest child who had to look after my younger sister. FTE also looked after FTY when I was to and from paid toil. It's character building :-D

I think I saw Pat rish aaa heading towards Southend in her mini skirt last time we passed :-D :-D :-D these young gals do not feel the cold nowadays.

I feel Lesley may be snowed or flooded in :-D Tis a little inclement along the road.

Now Mr Mick Fleetwood is here there and everywhere. It's the re release of Rumours LP/CD/downloads etc. I like Fleetwood Mac :-D

Tootling orff now to remove FTY from the devils x box

Teresa :-D

Morning ladies,

Tell me, do you have a lovely bright moon tonight?. As fruit, pup and I went on our morning walk this morning, the moon was still very bright in the sky, the sun was on the up too, I wondered if you could see the moon as I could?..

Tis Tuesday here, after a long weekend it feels like a Monday, I shall be at sixes and sevens today..

We had a lovely weekend away, though the weather was better here than at the beach :-(. Never mind.

The weather down under is a mess, poor Queensland are flooding, people have lost their lives. Very sad. NSW are in for the end of the storm too. Hard to reconcile, floods and fire, extremes to say the least.'
We have had a few fires too, not on the scale Australia faces though. Driving home yesterday, we both noticed how brown the paddocks are in places. Poor animals have no grass to eat.
Just heard on the radio there could well be evacuations in parts of Sydney. Oh dear.

Hope you are all well and you get some better weather soon.

Susan

Petunia dear, do sit down and calm down, you will strain your joints leaping up and down like that and all this excitement is not good for you. Oh dear I do not like the way your hat is bobbing around on your head ....... your head will fall off your neck at this rate.

So, the kippers went into the organ eh? It doesnt take long for decomposing fish to pong. After such an embarrassment as that, I expect the Ponsonbys will be leaving town poste haste. Fancy blaming a poor innocent choirboy. Still, if the congregation saw the funny side of it, then there's no harm done, and the vicar should just acquire a sense of humour.

I didnt realise Pat rish aaaah was in her room with a chill, but all these short skirts worn in Essex are not de rigeur at this time of year. The gel will learn, one of these days. I remember my dear lady GrandMamma commenting on my cousins brief unmentionables in the 1960s, she said my cousin would get a severe chill in her nether areas. Whether or not my cousin did, I cannot say, but she left England for warmer climes and now resides in South Africa where she has a gardener and a daily maid, and a swimming pool in her back yard, and regular visits from meerkats.

Errrr Petunia dear - didnt you notice? The Ark is no longer in your back garden. No dear it didnt float away all on its own. I was forced to chop it up for firewood. Well dear I didnt think your neighbours would appreciate me chopping down their cherry trees to keep you supplied with logs for the fire on a cold winters night. If only you could persuade the coal man to come back with his bags of nutty slack, dear - Pat rish aaaah could be chained up during those visits surely?

I think I will pass on the curry thank you dear, I have some TV viewing planned and do not wish to spend the night being indisposed. That curry I ate in 1967 at that restaurant near St Pauls Cathedral put me off the stuff for life. Mrs Berry left some smoked salmon in the fridge, and there is a bottle of champers ready opened, so I shall shift for myself. Again. At least it makes me feel like one of the family, and very much "at home", not having to ask if I can fix myself some food.

The wind is howling out there, so strap yourself in, I think we are in for a bumpy ride t'night.

Jumps up and down excitedly and hops on one leg!! Tra la la la, they are going, they are going!!!!!

Coughs, and smooths down skirt and straightens hat. Her-hum! Did I tell you dears? The Ponsonbys are leaving town. Oh dear, how sad, never mind. Titters.

Well as good as her word, dear Beatrice managed to take a few pointers from me, and a few from dear Cherry re. the kippers.

Somehow, she managed to secrete two pairs within the organ, and left the heater underneath running. So far, so good. When old Ponsonby sat down on his organ on Sunday, he pumped the bellows, and let rip. And out came the most horrendous smell this side of Harrogate. I do believe I have never, ever smelt such a vile smell in all my life. The more he played, the more the odour wafted around the vaulted ceiling. The vicar far near choked himself, the choirboys got the giggles, and the congregation left sharpish. Nevertheless Mr Ponsonby kept on pumping, and the smell kept on wafting. Old Mother Ponsonby was up those backstairs like greased lightening to turn off the bellows. It turns out that he has no sense of smell, and could not be enriched with the odour like the rest of us.

Unfortunately one of the choirboys got the blame, but that is by the by. The Vicar who has no sense of humour at all, did not see the funny side of it. He was incandescent with rage, Ponsonby was mortified, his wife was humiliated, and the congregation got a good laugh. So all in all, it was a good result.

I shall coax the vicar to reinstate that poor choirboy, although he is the most awful little prig. Beatrice is to be organist. Nothing she likes better than sitting at the organ tinkling the ivories. I am now Head Flower Arranger, and all is right with the world.

Ooooh sorry dears................how are you all? Now that the snow is melting, we are in danger of floods. Ark at the ready.

Pat-trish-aaaaah is in bed dear Cherry, she has a cold in her btm. She will insist on going to Essex of a weekend, and wearing silly little skirts. Sighs.

Chuck another log on the fire Cherry dear. Tis still a little nippy out there.

Still more trouble in your corner of the world dear Upsidedown Susan. We hear of flooding down there too. How is the dress fitting going dear?

I hope that dear Teresa and Lesley are not too chilly on the east coast, they seem to be getting it worse than we.

I believe we are having curry tonight dears, aaaaah it takes me back to my childhood in India when we had PROPER curry, not the facsimile we are having tonight.

Keep warm dears.

Auntie Petunia

BTW - I wont be moving to Eastwick. I dont want to be accused of being a witch :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D

where is everybody? Petunia has gorn missing again, I expect she is kicking up a rucku ... errrrrr....... involved with church works and plotting against the Ponsonbys.

Pat rish aaaaah is missing. I suppose she went to the supermarket for a fresh frozen kipper and got lost coming home.

I shall sit here talking to myself. I'm very good at that. Its the best way to get an intelligent answer.

Today, I got my birthday drive to Sawbridgeworth, a week late but we were snowed in last week and better late than never. I found some delightful bargains including three cute G ..... l bunnies, all at a very reasonable price and cheaper than Hee Bay. Speaking of which - there was another auction, bidding for a particular Carlton ware plate which opened at 99p and the bidding ended today. Well, someone made an early bid. I bid a few pennies more and I do mean pennies, it came up to £1.04, and when that low bid was accepted I entered a maximum bid for a much higher figure. Of course I then had the stress of sitting there watching the minutes on the site clock counting down. Whoever the other bidder was, they didnt come back, and I got this plate for £1.04 plus postage, all told less than £5. I am very pleased, indeed, ecstatic - a very similar plate on Buy It Now is retailing for £50+ and no takers yet.

I'm now watching some other plates on Bid ...........

I saw some Carlton ware plates at Sawbridgeworth, various designs including Foxglove but I didnt buy any. What I want are the rare ones which are seling on E Bay at the moment.

I found a Bambi and a Trusty, both Wade Whimsies, so bought those - cheaper than E Bay. Also two pairs of Delft clogs, cheaper than E Bay. I found a delightful red brandy glass with barley twist stem for £5. A red spill vase. A white Chokin plate in a design I didnt have. A small white Chokin vase (to pair up with one I'd bought previously). And, the most beautiful green glass fawn, so delicate, I dont know who made it, but it goes very nicely in the display cabinet in the dinette which has green walls. Not a cheap day out, but very interesting none the less.

A few weeks ago I'd seen a blue fawn in the junk shop and thought I'd like a green fawn for the dinette. I may not be made by G ......l, but I'm one happy bunny tonight :-D

We went through Harlow to reach Sawbridgeworth, and where the river runs through, by the A414 at Eastwick, its running very high. There are two fields on that same bit of road, and both MFH and myself remember years back when sheep grazed there. For some years now its been very soggy with pooling water, enough for gulls to swim on. Today, between the rain and the meltwater, those two fields are not just a pond but a bloomin' lake.

Well ladies, when you do look in, I hope you all had a pleasant weekend :-)

the penny has just dropped - Petunia dear, it was YOU who went around with a spray can of white paint, highlighting all the potholes on the Queens highways. How thoughtful of you dear. Now the relevant local authorities will know where the repairs are needed. Just a pity you didnt have enough spray paint left to highlight the potholes on your driveway ......... ;-)

good morning ladies, the sun is shining on the righteous ..... and right into my eyes ;-) We seem to be experiencing a bit of a thaw here, and long may it last with fingers Xd that the meltwater doesnt create new problems.

Well as you can see Petunia, I have removed all the boxes that my Hee Bay purchases arrived in, and very shortly I will be stamping them flat to get them to the recycling dumpsters, along with the pear cider bottles and the mineral water polybottles, and all the old newspapers that YOU have finished with that are so out of date they are ancient history now. I never did work out why you insist on keeping old newspapers in the cloakroom, piled to the ceiling in that way. Perhaps I should re-baptise myself as Recycling Queen.

Of course I heard lots of cracking and breathy sounds but I thought the neighbourhood peeping tom was up to his tricks again. So it was you doing Pilates? You really must be more careful dear, if the draught blows in thru these old sash cord windows then you could stick like it.

Yes I was a bit concerned about Beatrice's wheeze, I thought she must have been a heavy smoker at one time. Has she tried sucking Zubes?

I have a better idea. Send Pat rish aaaah around with a "peace offering" cake. While she is in their house, she can ask to use the Facilities, and while she is in the Facilities she can deposit a fresh frozen kipper in the gap behind the basin pedestal, wedged firmly in. After a week, that kipper will be *Ripe*. The Ponsonbys will then think they have a drainage/sewerage problem, buy lots of Oust which of course wont work, and they will put the house up for sale and move away. :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D

Good evening dears, thank you Cherry dear, I am very calm, and do not need herbal hokum. I am very calm dear. I am doing my pilates. Stretching and bending, can you not hear my old joints cracking? Deep breathes...................in and out................and bend....................and in through the nose..................and out through the mouth........................huff, huff, and rest. There now, all is right in my mind again. So much so, that I shall personally throw those boxes downstairs if they are not moved from the landing on the first floor. Better still, I shall asign the box room to you for your china dear. Anything rather than have boxes of all shapes and sizes littering up the fire exits.

Now, here is the plan to get rid of the Ponsonbys. As you know they are not PLU, not at all. They are social climbers and all show. I think actually She Who Must Be Obeyed, was working for an airline at one time. And The Mouth of the North, has a certain charm to him, if you like that kind of thing. But................they will have to go.

Beatrice has a wheeze she may well put into action. As you know she is very familiar with organs, and knows her way around. Each organ has a bellow to pump the air through to the pipes. She knows of a way to slightly bring the bellow action into disarray. Thus making an awful racket. The dear vicar is a stickler for pure music, so this may well put a fly in the ointment. We shall see................I shall let you know.

We are expecting snow again tonight, so batten down girls. Then hopefully the temperature will rise a little over the weekend. I do hope so, I am getting bored with all this white stuff already.

Keep warm ladies. And for those north of the border.
Happy Burns Night

Auntie Petunia

oh my word. Look at the icicles hanging off the end of my nose. It never fails to amaze me how cold Motie Towers can be, when Pat rish aaaaah has retired to her suite of rooms, Mrs Berry has gorn home for the night, and dear Petunia hogs the log fire but dont tell her I said so. How much colder can this winter get?? Enough is enough - first thing in the morning, that Ark is going to be chopped up.

Ah there are you Petunia dear, you do look cosy. Is there room for little old me to perch in front of the warming flames? While you were off doing your various good works this afternoon, I spent a blissful couple of hours wandering in and out of the charity shops, finding bargains. I've come back with a HUGE piece of coral for £5, a Myth & Magic wizard for £5, a paperweight for £1.50. I also found a milk "jug" which is one of those blue glass dishes in a chrome setting which cost £3.50 ..... I already have a small collection of these but can squeeze in one more, and the charity shops have some moolah. Everybody's happy.

What do you mean dear, you're not happy? I assure you, I will keep all my charity shop bargains in my room so you dont trip over them -:D

Look, dear, it was only a couple of cardboard boxes and you really should mind where you're stepping in dark corners. Perhaps if the lightbulbs were a little brighter?????? My Hee Bay purchases must come in cardboard boxes or everything will be smashed in the post. Yes dear it makes a change from being lost in the post.

Let me bring you some camomile and honey tea, and we can talk about your proposed red streaks in the silver then .........

PAT RISH AAAAAH !!!!! your grandmother needs some Kalms ..... !! ;-)

There seems to be three camps who are hogging the television and radio these days dears.

1. Clare Balding - lovely gel but in danger of overkill.

2. Mr JBJ. He is giving a live concert tonight, one can access it via the Tinternet.

3. Madness. Messrs Suggs and Woody have been chatting constantly on all radio stations.

Where is Malcolm Roberts or Matt Monroe when you need them. I do so like to hear Matt Monroe, He has a silky voice. He was a bus driver on the No.27 bus doncha know.

Ah eldest children. I too was an eldest child over in India. Alas my little siblings succombed to Beri Beri and that was before immunisation. Very sad. So I only had little ones hanging on to my coat tails for a little whiles. And yes, I was Goody Two Shoes too. I am thinking of having red streaks put into my silver locks, what do you think? Patriotic or Puerile?

Keep warm dears, draw your chairs up to the fire, and we will chuck another tree onto it.

Pippity Pip
Auntie Petunia