General Chat

hello Susan, if you want to know anything about Bon Jovi - just ask me :-D

I've been growing old disgracefully for some time now ...... ;-)

I'm also an eldest child and I too was often told "look after your little sister". I think it shapes us to the point that because we are given responsibility from a young age we do grow up to become very responsible adults. The die was cast ..... and all dat jazz.

My sister and I are Chalk and Cheese. Just like my own offspring are. Genetics is a strange thing eh?

am sitting here waiting for Mr JBJ to appear on the One Show. I should be doing other things .....

Enjoy your long weekend and I hope its a cooler one for you :-)

Morning Ladies and peeps,

well, tis morning here :-).

Oh dear, I couldn't tell you what songs Bon Jovi sing..... Once upon a time I would know all the artists, names of songs etc. Must be getting older :-D, though I have a pact with myself to grow old 'disgracefully'.... I wonder how easy that will be, having been a goody two shoes all my life :-P.

As the eldest, I was always told "look after your brother and sisters", luckily for my parents, I was a good girl.. I wonder if being the eldest helps shape who you are ? Though I firmly believe your personality is formed at conception.. When I look at my siblings, we all come from the same stock but are very different. :-) :-) :-).

How very deep and heavy for a Friday morning.
We are away tomorrow for a long weekend. Hope we have plenty of sunshine.

Have a lovely weekend,

Susan

hi Teresa; nope - Bon Jovi have never had a number one single. They once did a Christmas single which I think got into the Top 10. But, their albums sell exceedingly well !! And they have a Facebook page :-D

They're not really bothered about the singles market, as they are a live act and they focus on selling albums mostly. I guess there is more money to be made out of album sales.

is it me, or is it getting colder again ....... I had better check the heating system as I feel quite icy. *shivers*

Afternoon Ladies


Mr Bon Jovie seems to be everywhere all the time just like Claire Balding ;-)

Fact for today. mr Bon Jon Jovie and his beat combo have never had a number one single in the British charts. How strange I would have though they would have.

Back later or sooner in the next couple of days :-D


Teresa

Petunia dear lady what is the matter? Has someone been ruffling your feathers? Who is that ungrateful person? Did I say how much I love the very useful Grape Peeler you gave me for my birthday? It's so vintage, its almost an antique. I should imagine they sell for pots of money on Hee Bay. Thank you again dear for the most thoughtful gift.
*thinks ...... has she turned into a mind reader because I didnt say anything to anyone*

It warmed up a bit where I am today, enough for me to get the car off the drive and run some errands locally - once I uncovered the roof of the car which was several inches thick with the white stuff, I ended up using my walking stick to knock the snow off cos I couldnt stretch my arms across. Fortunately I was able to move around without slip-slidin' away on the ice, as there was enough thawed sidewalk for me to slither along on. I will comment, tho, that today my feet hadnt felt this cold outside, since 1963.

I have had a nasty shock - the building society are changing the rules of my current account which means unless I can find two direct debits to set up, to be outgoing each month, I lose my Bonus Payment. Its only £60 a year, but on a state pension I cannot afford to lose £60 a year. I shall be reviewing my finances soonest but how can I conjure up two direct debits I dont have. *Sighs*. MFH put a Peseta (smaller than an old Half Pence piece) in my copper coin box; that wont go very far.

Yes it is the schools being scared of Health and Safety and possible compensation claims from parents should Little Johnny be hit by a snowball thrown by Little Class Thug. MFH keeps praying for snow so he can get days off work while still getting paid. I remember the bad snowy winters of days of yore, when we bundled up and turned up, even if we did get chilblains. These days, the kiddie winkies want counselling if they see one snowflake.

Jon Bon Jovi on the One show? *faints*
He's not likely to say anything amiss, because he doesnt like answering questions on his business dealings and seems to like controlling the chats. I know what he's like ..... he doesnt take one step across the stage or wiggle his buns without rehearsing it carefully first, but it doesnt blind me to the fact they put on a damn good show. But I do remember him being in a bad temper on Top Of The Pops years ago, he thought they were gonna sing Live but after they set up to play they were told they'd have to mime to their current hit. The look in his eyes ....... was enough to turn the air blue.

H'Good Hevening ladies, and dear readers. I have just returned from an Hevening Hout. We had an Anniversary Dinner at a carvery. The meal was finished off with a free dairy ice cream. Oooooh my cholesterol levels ..... We took MIL with us, to thank her for all the laundry she's been doing for us. And it ainnot over yet.

Susan it will probably be a week before the MD who was given a hot point from us, will get to read that letter. If it reaches him. Many MDs, as you know, have super-zealous personal assistants to redirect all mail ...... some might call it delegation, but its also known as Passing the Buck.

The same company have, ironically, written to us saying that our dishwasher might be a fire risk, because they've identified a fault with a module in it, and they are offering to replace the module for free. Go figure - they can get modules but not drums. I reckon that they are prevaricating re the drum because they know if the machine isnt repaired within 21 days the warrantee people are obliged to give us a new machine. Ergo - why bother fixing it. Grrrrrrrr.

Well, we have decided that if push comes to shove we will accept the new machine, but will cancel the warrantee on the dishwasher, and whichever appliance breaks down first ....... will result in us purchasing two Miele appliances toot sweet and never mind any unexpired warrantee. We've had enough of this company.

We had a stinker in the house just now but it wasnt the heat outside - its cold and dark and trying to snow some more. No. The stinker was the cat, who hadnt long come in from a couple of hours outside so she'd had plenty of time "to go".

My Oldest Child once went for an interview at a certain furniture store, where the interviewing manager said that toilet breaks were not encouraged during shifts, and in fact a young man had been out for a curry the night before and had started work at 8 am and it was coming up to lunchtime and he hadnt taken a toilet break in all that time. My Dear Child replied "more fool him, then" and stood up and walked out of the interview.

I couldnt possibly name the company concerned, but they are known to be a Dodgy Furniture Store !!! :-D :-D :-D :-D

Aaaah skating! I can remember when the Thames used to freeze over, I used to strap my skates on, and orft I would jolly well go.

There was a rather interesting documentary a few years ago, on the Thames. They kept a record of all the bodies that were fished out of the river. Some very sad cases, young gels that had obviously just had babbies. Tragedy was all around.

As you know dear Upsidedown Susan, I have seen you dear. And your gamine cut suits you very well. You have a lovely little face, and it frames it beautifully.

I have had a haircut since we last met, but not as short as you. I do not think that length suits me. I need a bit of length.

I am a Scorpio dear, very passionate with a sting in my tail. So watch out people!!!

The thaw is predicted dear, with a notice of flooding. It never rains.......................

Auntie Petunia

Good upside down morning,

I do not skate to work, in fact it so many years since I put on skates, I fear I am way past skating now.... I did use to enjoy roller skating, as a teenager, friends and I used to hang out at the local rink - which is no more...
Petunia, I fear my daughter is not likely to take on any advice, she certainly knows her own mind, in fact, always has done. We are the same star sign, the Ram!!!. I think you can read between the lines ;-).

And yes, please be very careful on that ice. We certainly don't want you lying about in Horse Piddle :-D..... I so hope your weather improves very soon.
You could always fly down under for a wee holiday :-D. Plenty of beds here you know.

A grape peeler, well I never... CC, aren't you the lucky one ;-). Another useles, err new fangled gadget to put at the back of a drawer.. I said drawer, not your drawers ...

I am orf to be shorn this morning, at last, I can't abide any length on my hair... I do not own a brush or comb, no need :-D. Late to work again... Luckily the boss likes me ;-).

I am going to try my hand at a Massaman curry tonight :-), hopefully we will still be smiling in the morning.

Have a pleasant evening.

Susan

Sniffs, some people are soooo ungrateful!!!! Just think yourself lucky I did not buy the other present I looked at in Boots the Chemist. It would have done your back a power of good, so relaxing.

This snow may soon be heading away from us, it is going to get warmer by a degree or two on Saturday, so hopefully the rotten stuff will melt away.

I am a martyr to the ice on the corner, I shuffle over it, like a penguin. I am terrified on falling over. One hears about broken hips in the snow and ice. And I do not fancy spending a few weeks in the local Horses Piddle.

I have noticed an abundance of children around, so possibly the schools are closed here too. Whatever happened to bundling them up in clothes, and just sending them? Health and Safety I presume.

Ah Mr Bon Jovi is on the One Show tomorrow. He of the pretty hair, superman tattoo and earring. No doubt Matt will be looking nervously at his floor manager in case dear Johnnie says something amiss.

Dear Upsidedown Susan, they used to say rubbing a dogs nose in its wee patch cured it, but I am not so sure.

The dress fittings mean that time marches on dear. Another day nearer, how jolly exciting. I hope you are giving your dear daughter lots of advice, like how to boil eggs etc.

Do you really skate to work dear?

Auntie Petunia

CC, I am guessing the recipient of your MFH's letter will be sorting your 'prob;em' toute suite :-D. What a cheek to make you wait so long in the first place.

We recently had repairs to our Bosch dishwasher after seeing a notice in a newspaper about a potential fire risk fault.... The fault has been repaired but I seem to remember that we have paid for the same repair previoulsy. Certainly didn't think to query the fault at the time, even though there was smoke pouring out fo the dishwasher one morning :-D. Luckily I was home at the time. Must say, I love my dishwasher, super quiet.

I am off with my fruit today, another fitting for her and 'the' dress. :-). Lordy, hope she is happy with it... I shall go to work and then absent myself for a bit. Sometimes there are perks in being self employed.

I shouldn't say it, but I will, yesterday was a stinker, I went for a walk in the afternoon and nearly wilted. I couldn't face doing any gardening - so I didn't....
I have sprayed one area of grass with roundup :-D. It is dying off before my eyes. We need to replant and are seriously considering ready lawn. How to trian pup not to wee on fancy grass?. Any answers most welcome ;-).

Better get my skates on and actually get to work before I need to leave again :-S

Toodle

Susan

Teresa I presume that last message was aimed at me????? :-D

*fans self furiously at the thought of .....*

Alas I shall probably be asleep by 9 PM, I seem to nod off over the TV shows I am watching (trying to watch) between 8 and 10 pm, then wake up after midnight to do my bedtime ablutions. S'no good me trying to watch anything on the internet - I fall asleep over the keyboard if there is nothing on TV to fall asleep over !!

I wonder ................ I could use a video tape to record the show off cable radio and listen to it on Friday while doing the housework :-) Sound if not vision.

We still have no working washing machine. I have just printed off a letter addressed to the MD of the manufacturer concerned, for MFH to sign and send. I wont say who it is, but I hope the MD gets the hot point we are making .... ;-)

Mr Bon Jovie is to be on BBC2 radio 9pm this Thursday :-D :-( :-D


Can be watched in concert on the Internet :-D :-D :-D


Teresa

Good afternoon Ladies, I feel the nights are drawing out a little or is that the glare of the snow :-S

Thankfully the fruits are back at school today. They had a mass snowball fight on the way home. I did not ask where ;-)

FTE went through the Panama Canal, does that mean she has earned a Panama hat :-D

I do hope you are warm and toasty :-D


Teresa

hoho Teresa, if I'd had a bunch of someone else's sprogs gathering too close to my front window, never mind the neighbors cars parked on the street, I would also have given them a rendition of Shovel Off.


Susan we are still frozen in. MFH had to turn out for his paid work of course. His pension pays the household bills and his part time employment generates the wherewithal to feed us. My pension is mine :-D. So, two really can live as cheaply as one. Especially while I am staying in Petunia's wonderful home, as her privileged guest. ;-)


Ah there you are, Petunia dear, I once went wishing with MFH, many many years ago. He had the rods. I had the boredom. I ended up watching an ant carry something bigger than itself, which was far more interesting. And he didnt catch anything either, so that was a waste of a day's make up.

your mention of dogs and cushions, reminds me. I will never forget the time I caught our old dog Ben "attacking" a huge orange draught excluder in the shape of a snake. He apparently thought the draught excluder was a ... *censored* ..., and I could never use it again.

Do you suppose we should chop down another tree? only its getting a tad chilly in here again, and you know the coalman will never return, not since Pat rish aaaah frightened him. I was really surprised she could have that kind of effect on a man. As we dont seem to need the Ark after all, perhaps we could chop that up for firewood next.

Bless my soul. A grape peeler. I have been so used to Beulah peeling my grapes I didnt know what a real grape peeler looked like. Thank you so much dear. Such a thoughtful gift.
*thinks* where is the nearest charity shop ...... before the grape peeler gives me the pip.

#whispers...............all this talk of Charlie will get Trickey Woo to attach the cushions again, but I will pass on the messages in doggy language!#

All this snow is horrid. I have had to abandon my high button boots in favour of gum boots, and they are nasty, rubbery and jolly cold!

I nearly had my bonnet knocked off by a snowball today. So I amazed them all and lobbed one back. Direct hit. I wasnt bought up in India for nought! Cricket was very popular over there, and even if I say so myself, I can bowl a fair old googly!!!!!

Now Cherry, surely you can see what I have bought you. It is purple, has a good grip, and it serves its purpose. The juice can be poured from the spout. Surely you have seen a grape peeler before. Tallulah can have the day orf? You could have had a green one, but green grapes are not so sweet. The seeds, should you buy the seeded variety, can be stored in the bottom, and emptied at a later date. Smiles serenely.

Teresa, I shall be sending a bar of carbolic down the cyber hatch. Tutty tut.

Ah fishing dear Upsidedown Susan, I used to go many years ago with a young man. I thought it would be romantic, but I could not speak all day, because the fish can hear apparently. Likewise the radio, that could not be played either. I sat and fed the rats!

Hey ho
Auntie Petunia

Morning Ladies and peeps,

Charlie, I do beg your pardon. I fawt you was a boy :-D. I do know a dear little lass called Charlie, such a cute name. *** throws Charlie( the dog) a doggy treat ***.

LOL, Teresa, boys will be boys.... Your snow fall must be very heavy to have closed the schools?. Every kids dream, no school !!

CC, sorry you didn't get your drive out on Sunday, take a 'rain check' :-S. Has the weather improved any in your neck of the woods.? I hope your afternoon soiree went well., sorry I didn't pop in. I can't do afternoon tea in the middle of our night ;-).
Time the repairman fronted if he knows what is good for him me thinks. Drip dry will take an age to dry won't it?

~~~~~ to Lesley, hope you are safe and warm and not snowed in. Isn't winter a drag :-P. I have heard that Mrs Browns Boys is taking a live show to Australia next year :-).. I might just have to talk OH into taking me along... He loves the show as much as I do. ;-)

We have a long weekend coming up (Auckland Anniversary Day on Monday). We have been invited to stay with friends at their beach house. Yippeeee. Hope the sunshine holds up. Tis a long drive but worth it, a beautiful spot. Our friends love to go fishing so I have high hopes of some lovely fresh fish for dinner. Nothing nicer.

I had to take the car ( not the old car) in to get a new windscreen, our trip to Wellington a few weekends ago resulted in a huge crack in the screen. I remember hearing the clunk of a stone but didn't see the stone hit. Thankfully the insurance has paid in full. :-).

Time to get on with my day -

Toodle pip and a big woof to Charlie :-)

Susan

Coooeeee just rushing in and out, love all the puppy and doggy photos. I'm afraid the spirit of the docker popped up today. All the schools are closed in the local area for miles around :-| :-| :-| a pile of Fruits came by to collect FTY to go out. They didn't go very far but were throwing snowballs out the front near the houses and cars. I spied this activity from the front window whilst watching Father Brown. The spirit of the docker hollered out of the front door to the Fruits and told them to clear orff round the field nearby. How common! :-0


Teresa

oh golly gosh. One does so appreciate the most generous birthday gift you bought for one, Petunia. It is absolutely spiffingly wonderful.

What is it, and what does it do? and where should I put it?? :-D

Sits gracefully down on a straight backed chair, and smooths skirt.

Oooooh thank you dear, I do like a cucumber sandwich. Especially when the rind and the crusts are cut orf. Are you not supposed to slice it downwards rather then across? I think that a french stick is such a novel idear, especially with the long lengths of cucumber used. Of course the gels will be delighted when they come winging their way through the cyber hatch. The horsies doovers are wonderful too dear. Who would have thought a Ritz cracker, with cream cheese on top, adorned with a mini gherkin could look so, so erm, original. Well done dear, someone has some sense of humour.

Sherry too dear, I only partake of a sweet sherry, Cyprus out of choice. There is a tag line for one. A day without #~+*&% sherry, is a day without sunshine. How lovely, we could do with a bit of sunshine here. It has been snowing all day, and laying. We managed to acquire some industrial salt, so will be sprinkling it along the drive, so that the milkman, paperboy and the breadman can deliver our rations.

I hope you will not be sitting underneath the dripping washing dear. A cold show is no good to anyone. Good luck with the Whimsies. How very kind of dear Lesley to share them with you.

Dear Upsidedown Susan, the Charlie dog is a she. Ones family members who named her had a sense of humour!!!!
!!

Wishing you well with the empty babyfood jars dear. One knows of a Mama who spent an hour or ten filling gift boxes with sweeties, keyrings, bubbles, streamers, blowers, chocolates, and lots of glittery confettiti. The Papa had the job of printing all the names of the guests, in pencil, on the underside of the boxes, as his handwriting was neater!! What fun!

Helping dear Cherry to cut the cake, wrapping in a napkin and sending them down the hatch gels.

Pip Pip
Auntie Petunia

Hello Susan, and thank you for the birthday wishes. Well, you sure are going to be gainfully occupied putting all the baby food containers to good use. If you do decide to turn the air blue, please send some of that hot air this way. Its been snowing all day since daylight, and I am a prisoner of the white stuff. Needless to say, my trip to Sawbridgeworth is well and truly scuppered. I need a little Thaw now, with fingers X the meltwater doesnt make the already-soggy land worse.

The cat asked to go out of the back bedroom window, as is her wont. She sat on the window sill visibly shivering for a while, and I opened the window again to see if she wanted to come in, but then she walked along the extension roof to the garage roof, shaking her paws as she went; then she turned and looked at me. The expression in her eyes was "I cant stand this any more", and she walked back to the window and came inside. She went out of the back door later on fortunately, so we didnt have the unpleasant chore of cleaning litter trays. Do stop telling me that is what they are for ...... :-S

My daughter phoned and we chatted for a while. She too is marooned in a sea of snow, plus she may be harbouring Germs because her OH caught a cold at work. Some (not so) clever clogs decided to cough and sneeze all over him. What goes around ... sigh.

I indulged myself this morning by going back to bed with a DVD - guess which one. Yes, it was Phantom of the Opera, 25th anniversary show. I never tire of watching that. The ending, the way its performed, really wrings the emotions. I dont think Petunia heard it, although I had the volume up full blast. Someone in the north of Scotland complained though ;-)

I've had to do a pile of handwashing, which is now dripping over the bathtub, and still no sign of the repairman with the spare parts. I told the GOG next time he speaks to the warrantee people, to remind them our contract is with them and they shouldnt fob us off with a transfer to Hotpoint Service. As I understand the legalities of Extended Warrantees - the fact that Hotpoint have to supply the spare parts does not negate the contractual responsibilities of the warrantee firm - they're the ones who took our money upfront in advance.

Well the cucumber sarnies and the horsies doovers are laid out on the table, the sherry is waiting to be poured, the cake is ready to be sliced. Do please dive in ladies. Anything left over will be sent to the Old Seamen's Mission in Lavinia's memory.