General Chat

Good Morning Roll Callers :-) :-) :-) <3

It's still WHETHER WEATHER here in South West Wales!
It can't make it's mind up. It's hazy and overcast, it's rained and now it looks though it may clear up! But my washing is now on the radiators! :-| :-| :-D :-D

Wishing you all a good day :-) :-) :-)

Love Jem <3

Hello All

Nights are definitely drawing in and its feeling chilly. What's happened to Summer??

Have been clearing a bookcase and now have several books to take to the village charity shop. Only hope I don't come back with more books as I don't have much spare time for reading just now.

Our niece and husband called show us scan pictures of a new baby, expected in February next year. All very exciting and such happy news to share for a change.
Might have to get the knitting needles clicking away again soon.

Jem, I have no idea of the rules of your rugby matches but I love the Welsh National Anthem and we usually have the volume on LOUD to hear Land of my Fathers' and all players and supporters singing their hearts out. I get goosebumps!

Pat, you are sure to be out and about. Can I have some of your energy please lol.

Any more info from your DNA results as yet?

Bedtime now for us. I hope everyone who looks in sleeps well tonight.

Evening all :-)

Quiet day doing a little housework and some research on my maternal line. It was 38 C today. it's 00.37 and 27 C off to have cool shower in a moment and go to bed. Just had a quick salad this evening no very hungry.

I decided, after we got our initial results, to go to our daughter's paternal line. We ladies don't have a paternal line unless our father's or brother's line is there. We females are xx and men are xy, y being the male line. I put my husband's name in and low and behold 24 hrs later the wording was changed on her paternal line to accept OH as her father and he was placed next to her on her DNA relatives list and showed she had inherited half her chromosomes from him. A P for paternal then started to appear on some of our daughter's DNA relatives so we know who are his, the rest are my links.

On our daughter's site (she's been completed) there's a section where when you've linked with someone to share genomes you can see which chromosome part you have in common.1 guy who is one of my links is adopted and his link is my maternal side as our link is part of mine and daughter's x chromosome. I've tracked back to 1800 with my maternal side with as many female sibling and daughters of female relatives along the line as I could and sent the list to him. He is a 3rd to distant cousin so I'm hoping that today amongst the names there is at least a great whatever grandmother. They were all born in Staffordshire and most in Walsall so he'll have an area now to get to know - he's American.

Haven't got that much energy Kandj, housework is negligible, I've swept through downstairs and mopped today. Done 2 lots of washing and that dries almost as you put it out. Don't iron too much, well as little as I can get away with. My cotton T shirts and cut off trousers need ironing but most skirts and dresses don't, some of my tops don't either. A lot of OH's tops just get neatly folded and they are fine. Cotton bedding needs ironing and that's washed every other day. I iron between 15 - 30 mins each day. When you put it together if I've done about 90 mins housework that's all in about 15 hours. :-D

It's a lot of outside living in summer. :-D

I'm part Welsh and Irish as well as English so I get to shout for lots of rugby teams, gets tricky when they play each other. :-S

Kandj I'll tell you tomorrow about my diet and why I'm on it. Had a very frightening experience but it meant we had the answers to a couple of problems. It's too late to go into now.

Jem hope you're enjoying yourself with the grandchildren.

I'm off to bed, night and bless. :-) <3

Evening all :-)

Lost another one I enjoyed seeing - George Cole. Played the cheeky chappy to a tee from St Trinian's to Minder. :-D

Cooler day today only 31 C. Have been watching the test match. It's at Trent Bridge and we've been having a good day.

Kandj you asked about my diet it's quite a long story so I'll shorten it as much as I can and hope you follow it.

I had been slowly putting on weight for years even when I thought I'd been eating all the right things,and no one would listen to me when I wanted to know why. Size 18 when you are 4 ft 11 ins is not a good look. Out here in 2008 BP shot up so was put in hospital for a check up, lots of tests including 1 on cholesterol and to the doc's horror I had low bad cholesterol. What they did find was a tumour in my thyroid, nothing to do with my weight but the blighter was full of nasty cells that are a time bomb, they can turn cancerous at anytime and cause bone/lung cancer. Had thyroid out which means tablets and see docs regularly and what did I get - could I do something about weight. NO! NO! NO! You tell me why it's happening - no answers just more thyroid tablets.

We are now in May 2013, I woke up to explosions going off and to my horror realise the noise I'm hearing is my heart beat racing and then it started wobbling about (only way to describe it) OH rushed me to hospital. Doc's said I'd had a severe angina attack and had ECGs to prove it but I said I hadn't. My father had angina I knew what an attack was like. Cardiologist called in and he wouldn't even put me on a heart stress machine as he believed my heart was so blocked it would be dangerous. I was sent across Limassol to another hospital for a camera in the heart and to put stents in where required. Came back bewildered as they put in the camera and all they said was no stenosis. Got back and got onto my laptop - surprised I was allowed it in the hospital. Looked up stenosis and laughed, means no blockages and it turns out I have very little plaque in the heart because of all the years of eating correctly and never smoked.

4 days of tests and we eventually get things sorted. I had sleep apnoea due to fat around my neck (went to a sleep clinic to confirm it). I had stopped breathing and my brain forced my heart to push oxygen to it. There was a problem though as I was born with an aorta only half the size it should be. My brain made my heart beat faster and faster, as oxygen was not getting to it quickly enough. My heart was getting out of control mimicking an angina attack hence the ECG results. It was also found that I am intolerant of carbohydrates. My body is unable to break down carbs properly so stores it as sugar and fat. I was told to avoid all high carb foods such as bread, rice, pasta and potatoes and flour containing products. Even some veg and fruit I have to watch. Cream's ok has very little carb ;-) can't have the scone or jam with it though. :-(

Result is I'm sitting here in a T shirt size 8 - 10 and size 10 trousers and I've lost nearly 5 stone. I dropped 2 dress sizes in 2 months. I've had to have a complete new wardrobe :-D. The doc said I must eat at least 4 times a day and so I'm actually eating more now than before so am never hungry. :-) My BP this morning 108/63. No more sleep apnoea as fat round neck has gone so has snoring. I just needed the correct diet.

As you know I eat out a lot so am able to sort out meals to have in the places we go to. Chinese buffets I'm careful which dishes I have and have stir fried veg with them. Curries have cauliflower instead of rice. Can have meat and veg or salad almost anywhere. Can have chilli if I put in mushrooms instead of kidney beans - beans and peas are seeds so need to be high in carbs to grow. I have cauliflower with the chilli. It sounds complicated but all I do is check how many carbs are in what I want to eat so I soon knew the ones to avoid. I have also found forums with low carb recipes as with the chilli which helps.

Although the experience was frightening I didn't come to any harm and I had my answer re my weight problem. I have a restricted diet but feel better than I have for years mainly because I sleep so much better and I now get to wear lots of new clothes, so don't feel sorry for me as I don't. The diet isn't much different to what I was eating just a little alteration for the high carbs. For the sleep problems I was told no alcohol so I can't have my occasional shandy so you'll realise how I miss that. ;-)

Decided to stay in tonight, it's a Chinese tomorrow :-)

Jem was about earlier on, hope all well with you :-)

Kandj hope you and your OH are well. :-)

All have a good evening and peaceful night :-) <3

Hello all

A cool cloudy beginning and then it perked up and became warmer. Off to water the gardens soon as it's so dry and I don't want to lose the flowers I planted from seeds. I thought it was going to rain earlier but the dark clouds just disappeared.

No more clearing clutter today and I didn't buy any books when I dropped mine off at the village charity shop........ how good was that?

There is a new card shop that has opened up in the village and I called in to browse and bought a few general birthday/blank cards to have in stock should I need them.

Our neighbour across the road has been in Florida for the last two weeks with her family. I have been checking all is safe with her bungalow and watering her flowers. They are all due back tomorrow, so that will be one job less for me to do.

Pat, I also try to keep housework to a minimum but I do usually like to be tidy too.
No excuse not to be really, as there is only my husband and I here now. Neither of us would like high temperatures you have, but I suppose you will be used to them.

No need to explain about only eating certain foods Pat. I'm really not being nosy.

Sorry to read about George Cole. We used to love watching him in Minder.

Jem, loving your new Avatar. How did you first become interested in Rugby, or is it part of your Welsh culture? We will shout for Wales, and sing anthem LOUDLY too.

I hope your hospital operation date won't clash with all the rugby matches though.

Has grandson 2 had his little birthday party yet? It's such a lovely age I think.

I'll end now, but I hope everyone has had a happy day today. Take care now.

Good Morning Roll Callers :-) :-) <3

I had a very busy day yesterday.
Son-in-Law turned up to mow our lawns while I was in the middle of giving the house a good clean.
I had scheduled the cleaning spree already, but it had added importance when Grandson 1 announced the night before that his girlfriend was coming to visit for the first time! Panic! ;-) :-D :-D :-D

Then, I had to post the Rugby News about Ireland's Team Selection.

Then it was shower, and a glam up attempt ;-) for The Pub Quiz! :-D :-D
This time we took GS's girlfriend too.
We came 2nd this time out of about 15 teams. The usual winner beating us by 1 point.


I have the dentist early afternoon today. He (my usually lovely Scottish lady dentist is not yet back from Maternity Leave) has to check my crowns are not loose before my op and to see if any general work is needed. I know I need a clean up with the hygienist, but she is on holiday.



One of my Certificates came back yesterday. The Death Certificate of my Grandparents first baby, Margaret Ann, who died in 1915.
She was 5 MINUTES OLD :-(
She died of "INANATION" which is according to the internet a severe malnourishment.
I'm thinking that maybe the placenta had come away and she wasn't getting fed in the womb. :-(



I have had another £1 Month's Subscription!
This time for Find My Past WORLD Subscription thanks to a code posted on Genealogy Chat.
It's my 5th £1 FMP Month's Sub in 9 months, 2 of which have been World.

The offer ends tonight.

If you are already a lapsed / free member, you can just press the "SUBSCRIBE" button and type the code into the box that says...
Got a discount code?
If you have a discount code enter it here:

The code you put in is

TNA1939


If you have never been a member, you could try registering for free, and then pressing the subscribe button. When the page of which subs you want comes up, DON'T click on any of the option buttons...... just type in the CODE and click on the "APPLY" button. and see what happens.

If you have been successful, it will tell you. You will just need to have your bank card ready. It's a secure site.

https://www.findmypast.co.uk/account/register


Our Grandson 2 still has not had his tea party. He has HAND FOOT AND MOUTH DISEASE :-0 :-0
http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/hand-foot-and-mouth-disease/Pages/Introduction.aspx


:-)KANDJ
Well done on your sort out of your books. I find clearing out things very difficult!

How very exciting to see the scan photo of your new little Great Niece / Nephew :-)

Thankyou, I like to put up a Wales Rugby Avatar during the Rugby Internationals :-)
How Fantastic that you and OH are able to sing the Welsh Anthem !!! I'm amazed! :-)

If you are watching on Saturday, with your laptop nearby, pop in and join us on the Rugby Thread if you are able to :-)

I was brought up in a village that was very Rugby Orientated. My brother played Rugby for the village team and also at different times other local teams including the team of the town we went to Secondary School in.

When he lived in a different village, he actually played in the same team as a really big name.. the then very young JONATHAN DAVIES, who went on to International Stardom. He is now a very prominent commentator and also chat show host.
I have a photo of my brother and Jonathan playing :-D :-D :-D

When we were teenagers, my friend and I used to go to watch the boys playing. Her parents had the pub that was the Rugby Team's head quarters, and used to do hot dinners for them after the match.

I didn't follow it so avidly later on, but the last 5 years or so, I have been following the internationals again.

Yes, I'm thinking that my op will be schedule smack in the middle of the world cup. The surgeon's Secretary said she thought it would be before October.!!!:-( :-(

:-)PAT
How fascinating all the DNA stuff is! It's great that you have been able to help a cousin who was adopted to learn about his possible roots too :-)

That experience must have been very frightening for you Pat!
It's good that you found out exactly what was wrong, and now it's under control!
I bet you look great now too! :-)

Yes, another favourite, George Cole, has gone!
We loved Minder, and I too remember him in St Trinians :-)


The sun is shining here now!
Hope you both have a good day :-)

Love Jem <3

Hello to All Roll Callers

I opened the blinds this morning to a bright day with blue sky and no clouds at all.
Began to think that Summer had arrived at last, didn't last long as it soon clouded over and became cool again. We aren't grumbling really because we wouldn't feel comfortable at all with very high temperatures.

Have been to the village bank this afternoon and then on to churchyard to tidy up our family graves. After a little chat, I left all looking as nice and cared for as possible. Silk arrangements only now as the squirrels and rabbits eat the fresh flowers leaving only stalks and stems which are not a very pretty look at all.

Jem, hubby and I don't actually sing the Welsh national anthem words, just join in with lots of tra la la la la's. Both my parents, grandparents and gt grandparents were born in South Wales. Research shows that my paternal ancestors actually originated in Somerset, a complete surprise as I had only ever known of Welsh origin. Dad used to tell us tales of watching rugby at the Cardiff Arms Park ground.
Fingers crossed that your operation date will be for after the rugby has ended.

All spick and span at yours then for Grandson 1 girl friends first visit. I thought that they were the ones who were supposed to panic on meeting boyfriends family ha ha
Hope all went well and that you won't need to have a big clean up next time around.

Sorry that Grandson 2 hasn't been well enough for his little tea party bless him.
Toddlers soon bounce back, so I hope its not too long before he is better again.

Pat, that is a scarey story and must have been very worrying while it was going on.
All's well that end's well and a huge relief for you and your family now that you can work around the high carb foods and keep yourself well. Your weight loss and need to buy new clothes is a bonus for your commitment to eating what is right for you. It's no wonder that you were so ill when you were eating foods that didn't agree with you. Thank goodness you have the knowledge to eat sensibly now. Well Done Pat!

Such sad news of Cilla and now George Cole has also died. Both gave good family entertainment on TV on Saturday nights. Life seemed very much simpler back then.

Hope everyone will enjoy tonight and have a good day tomorrow.

Hi KandJ and Pat and anyone looking in :-) :-) :-) <3

The Dentist visit went well.

A very nice lady relief dentist checked my bridge ready for my op.

It's a super-bridge in two parts.The left hand part has come out about 3 times over an 8 year period, and there has been a slight movement again lately.
She said that although there is a slight movement (she also took an X-Ray) it was better for her not to try and force it out, as it would do more damage. They will just have to be a bit careful, she said.

Nothing else needed doing, except a scaling which can wait until after my op. :-)


I have posted some disappointing news on the Rugby Thread.
I am very worried and a little embarrassed.

The Wales v Ireland match appears to be only televised on BBC1 Wales :-( :-( :-(
If you have SKY you can get BBC1 WALES in the Regional BBC Section starting from Channel 951 onwards.

Possibly it can be accessed if you have a BT TV package or Virgin TV package.


Kandj, I have posted the Welsh National Anthem in English phonetics on the Rugby Thread! :-D :-D :-D

Where in South Wales were your family from?

Pat, I'm hoping that you are able to see the match, as you are Head Cheerleader! :-(


Love Jem
<3

Hello All

Another pleasant day. 22degress with a little breeze which is fine for us two today.

Bedding on the line and garden watered early, as I would hate to lose the flowers I planted from seeds and giving us a colourful display to enjoy.

Our neighbour has a few HUGE sunflowers that look really cheerful. They must be about 4' tall. I have only two sunflowers and they are only about a foot tall but just coming into flower. I obviously bought the wrong seeds ha ha.

Pat, if you are still entertaining friends I hope you will have a good day and I hope your hubbies back pain isnt causing too many problems for him now.

Jem, thanks for the English phonetics to the Welsh National Anthem. I had a look on your Rugby thread and it looks like Double Dutch but I'll give it a go ha ha.
We have BT Sports package and hubby is looking forward to watching the premier footy game between Man U and Tottenham Hotspurs this afternoon.
Good Luck to Wales....... I hope they will win over Ireland today.
My Dad was born in Tirphil, Mid Glamorgan and Mum in Aberdare, Glamorgan.

Glad that your dental appointment wasn't too painful. I don't like visiting there.

I hope everyone will have a good day and enjoy some sunshine. A good tonic!

Good Afternoon Roll Callers :-) :-) <3

HI PAT <3 & KANDJ <3
Thank you both for your contributions to our Rugby Thread. :-) <3
Sometimes I feel a bit silly, as I think I'm posting to myself! :-D :-D :-D

However, a few people have told me on the boards and in PMs that they do read and enjoy it. I know that Rugby is not everyone's cup of tea though :-D :-D

I do not always reply straight away to posts on the thread. This is because I have noticed the viewing numbers go up when it's someone else's name on it's last post, rather than my own!!!!! So I have left your name up for now Kandj!!!
;-) ;-) ;-) :-D :-D :-D :-D

I do enjoy it though, particularly when there's banter on there. But I also like it as a keepsake of tournaments, to look back on like a diary.

I will probably have to reduce "commentating" though, to just cheering on the team and highlights, as I am not good at typing, and miss quite a bit of the match! :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D


Well, it's another Whether Weather day here! It had rained earlier this morning. It's hazily overcast now, windy and regularly picking to rain.
So the jeans are on the line, and the rest are on the radiators again! :-|



:-)KANDJ
I see you have been busy in the garden again!
Your neighbours sunflowers must look quite striking!
You've got another 3 weeks to learn the anthem before the return match in Dublin! :-D :-D :-D :-D

Kandj, Your parents were only a short way away from the wonderful Brecon Beacons <3

You do realise Kandj, that that makes you MORE WELSH THAN ME :-0.. by parentage anyway! My mother was from Kent! :-D :-D :-D

A lot of people moved to the valleys around that area, for work in the mines, especially from my father's native Pembrokeshire.
My Aunt and Uncle lived in the Rhondda, not far away from there.


:-)PAT
I bet you are in need of a good rest today, after all the pompom shaking, baton twirling, etc :-D :-D :-D
I hope you have a lovely evening if you are planning to go out tonight :-)
Hope, too, that your OH's back is not too sore today :-)

Have a good day Everyone :-) :-) :-)

~~~~~~~~~~ to anyone looking in :-) :-) :-)

PRICKLES <3

Love Jem <3

Hello All

Muggy and humid today and it still is, even now. Not at all comfortable to be honest.

I have spotted several flying ants in the kitchen floor. No idea where they are coming from. I have sprayed around the skirting board and doors so I hope that will stop them Feeling all itchy now, horrible things.

Our next door neighbour is 80 years young today. His wife tied balloons to the drive gates and had put Happy Birthday banners in the windows. We watched as his children and grandchildren have visited and there has been lots happy smiles all day
We have good neighbours and have all grown old together over the years. We help one another when we can, and consider that we are lucky that it is this way.

Pat I hope you are not too tired after all you hard work for the rugby match?
If you are out and about tonight then I hope you have left your pom poms behind.
Any more details about your DNA profiles and researches yet.

Jem, You must type very fast to keep up with such a good commentary throughout the game. Sorry that Wales didn't win. Do you get grumpy when this happens?
I don't think you are talking to yourself. I'm sure others will look in without posting.

Has your Grandson 2 got over the hand foot and mouth illness. Such a shame for the little one to be so unwell and miss out on having a little party with his friends.

When is the next pub quiz? Are you swotting up so that you will win next time?

It is forecast to rain tomorrow so it will save me a job having to water the gardens.
Our neighbours sunflowers really are a good sight. He is an elderly widower, living on the corner of the street. He has about 6 huge sunflowers and I have to be careful not to have an accident when I am driving around the corner. Very striking!

Bed time now for us so I will say Goodnight and sweet dreams to all reading this.

.

Good Morning Everyone :-) :-) <3

It's raining here AGAIN!

It has rained so much this last few weeks, that even though we have had the odd hot day here and there, it doesn't stay dry enough, for long enough, for me to be able to take the electric shears to my privet hedge.

It had got out of control over the last few years (since I delegated to OH), reaching about 12 foot high. An added problem is that each Spring, we have nesting birds in the hedge, so it cannot be cut until they've gone. Last summer, my nephew cut it down to about 6 foot, but it is already gaining ground! :-D :-D


Hi Kandj <3
Everyone seems to be complaining about the Flying Ants! So far this year I haven't seen any here. We do usually get them at this time for a short while.

It sounds like your elderly neighbour had a lovely 80th!
It's great that you have a community spirit where you live :-)
It's something I miss about not living in a village now.


My typing skills have improved since being on the boards, but I have the same problem with typing as playing the piano. I need to look at the keys.
That means by the time I look at the screen, I very often have to go back and correct everything.

Also, I cannot multi-task.
With the rugby that means I have to 1/ watch the game, 2/ listen to the commentator, 3/ and also OH when he is also trying to say something about the game, 4/ type, and 5/ look at what I've typed! 6/ Correct any mistakes:-0 :-0 :-D :-D :-D
IT'S HARD SOMETIMES! :-D :-D :-D


I'm disappointed when Wales don't win :-( but I'd like to hope that I'm a good sport, and fair and truthful in what I say and feel about the match. :-)

The next quiz is Thursday, if we go.
OH doesn't really want to go, so we don't always if he's not too good.
But as I point out to him, he has his club night out every Saturday night, and I don't get a night out otherwise :-| :-D


~~~~~~~~ to PAT <3
I hope you and OH are ok Pat, and that you are having some relaxation now your many visitors have gone home. Or have more descended on you? The joys of being popular! ;-) :-)

Wishing you all a good day :-) :-) :-)

Love Jem <3

Hello All

Sunshine and heavy showers today. I keep bobbing in and out of the garden and have managed to do more tidying up in the borders. I like to do a little each day so I can keep on top of it....... that's if anyone ever does keep on top of gardening. Always a job (or two) to be done.

I treated myself to some flowers at the supermarket and left them in the car all night.
I had to find a pretty vase and put the flowers in water, thankfully they revived........ "Senior Moment" methinks ha ha.

Pat, I hope all is good in sunny Cyprus with you and your OH today?

Jem, I wouldn't like to tackle such a high privet hedge. Don't fall off the ladders.

You do very well to give such an in-depth rugby commentary. I think you would be exhausted at the end of the match and glad for the referee to blow the whistle for time. You work as hard as the players for the whole time. Am I right in thinking that a rugby game is less than the average 90 minutes of a football match?

I hope that your OH will be well enough for the Quiz Night. Keep swotting as you might just win again if you manage to go along this week.

Still a few hours left, so I hope everyone will have a happy relaxing evening.

Evening all :-)

Well back on my laptop, it's had a fit of pique. Took ages to do a scan then got stuck for hours on 99% done. OH has sorted it now. Scan will take place midnight on Fridays now so it's when the laptop is not in use. I could only put 2 letters in and I'd get a circle for 5 mins. Very frustrating.

OH's back has been playing up again, he doesn't know what he did this time. It's improved over the last 24 hrs. We will be out tomorrow night as we've stayed in the last few days to help his back. I've caught up with lot's of things.

Jem we have a hedge of Hibiscus, lovely big red blooms, the size of a side plate. It's not allowed to get too big, it's above my head but that's easy to do. :-) Don't envy you sorting out a hedge that big.

Never been so popular now we live here, just can't put my finger on why.

Made a lovely curry last night, we'll have the rest of it on Wednesday, I always make enough for two meals when I do curry. Had boiled cauliflower with it. I didn't grate it though, you can grate raw cauli so it looks like rice.

Kandj the DNA results should be here by the end of the week as they said 1 - 2 weeks and 2 weeks are up on Friday.

I had been working on my tree until my laptop took a sabbatical. Trying to find out about OH's maternal line. In OH's paternal line I found the haberdashers who had the freedom of the city of London in his maternal line I find the Worshipful Company of Butchers and they have the freedom of the city as well. Another family that at the turn of the 1700s into the 1800s were wealthy but where did it all go?

Temperature was 31 C and now at 23.15 it's 27 C. We could go to October before we see rain here. It's been very windy here again.

Hope all your families are well and that you all have a peaceful night. Night and bless. :-) <3

oooooooooooooooooooooooooo have I worked hard today!

There isn't a part of me that isn't killing me!

I have blitzed the garden!
Single-handedly I've given the privet hedge the thrashing of it's life! :-D
I've shaved it right back and taken about 3-3 and a half feet off the top, so it's about 6 foot high now. At the moment I like it being high as I like my privacy (privet-privacy ;-) ;-)) but in a year or two, I think it will need to be taken down to about 4 foot.

I have also thrashed a flowering tree, that was about 10 foot and is now about 8 foot and again cut right back. That was slightly easier, as it is by the partition wall between me and my non-joined on next-door neighbour. That house is higher up (we are on a hill) and so by standing on a step-ladder in their drive I was able to manage.
Then some weeding and it's now done.

I'm hoping my Son-in-Law will be able to get rid of the huge amount of garden waste for me.

Thankfully after a bit of rain this morning early on, it cleared right up and was hot and sunny. OH tested the hedge and said it felt dry, so I risked the electric shears. I used to do it all with hand shears (I still used these on the tree) but I couldn't do that now!


~~~~~~~~ Thank you Kandj <3
for your kind words re my Rugby Commentary.
Yes, a rugby match is just 80 minutes, 40 each way. Also, unlike footy, the clock is stopped for injuries etc, so you know exactly where you are- no waiting and wondering about extra time added on at the end.

I love flowers in a vase. They cheer the place up! :-)
It's nice to treat yourself sometimes isn't it? :-) :-) :-) :-)

I hope Pat and her OH are ok. :-)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ and sending love over to Cyprus :-) <3

I'm off to a much needed shower in a minute! :-D

Love Jem <3

Hello All

Well Jem, What can I say? I certainly can't compete with your efforts in the garden. I am still managing to keep our gardens tidy by going out there "little and often". I hope you haven't got too many aches and pains after your marathon garden task yesterday!!

Pat, So you still have temperatures in 30's during the day. Far too hot for us we just wouldn't want to do anything as high temps take away what little bit of energy we have.

Your hibiscus hedge sounds so pretty. A lot better than our boring evergreen here.

Would you believe that I have just had a flying ant land on this laptop keyboard.... now where has that come from?? I'd better go and spray around yet again!

Goodnight to all looking in..... sleep well.

Good Morning Roll Call :-) :-) <3

PAT, I am so sorry!
Only this morning did I notice your last post.
It took me so long to type, you had posted and I had only read Kandj's post!
I was a little worried cos I'd not seen you, hence my bit about hoping you and OH were ok!

I'm sorry that you have had problems with your laptop. It's good that your OH is able to sort out the problems :-)
I'm sorry to hear his back has been playing up again. I hope it has eased a little.
I hope you had a pleasant night out last night. :-)

Talking about our family trees, here's a joke I found online this morning....
.....“I looked up my family tree and found out I was the sap.” :-D


:-)KANDJ
Little and often is the right and sensible way to go about it Kandj. :-)
I have left it go, hence the splurge, before I am physically unable to deal with it!
I have never been so sore. I could hardly move! :-(




Well, another busy day yesterday.
I cleaned the house from top to bottom, changed the beds, washed and ironed!
I want to get on top of things before I go in to hospital.


Very late last night OH, Grandson 1 and myself did our usual trip out to watch the Perseids Meteor Shower in the car park of a local beauty spot.
Unlike 2 years ago, the Police didn't turn up demanding to know what we were up to!
:-0 :-0 :-D :-D

I dressed in loads and loads of layers and wore OH's old parka, and took blankets because we have been very cold, in the past.
I packed us a picnic and flask of tea, and we sat in deckchairs looking up at the sky!
:-D :-D
We saw quite a few, but not the spectacular display we've seen before. I think we were a little too early this time. We got there around 11.40pm.

So we were very late going to bed last night :-| :-D


~~~~~~~~~~ to Everyone looking in on Dizzi's Roll Call <3

Love Jem <3

Good Afternoon Roll Call

Cool, dry and pleasant today although hubby says that hail, thunderstorms and gales are forecast for the next two days?!! That shouldn't be allowed in Summer.

I have been clearing the few small weeds that come up between the block paving of our driveway this morning. It's surprising just where things will grow on their own. It looks a lot tidier. I have been meaning to get rid of them for a few weeks, so I'm pleased that it's something that I can now cross off my "jobs to do" list.

I bought two packets of different varieties of Welsh Poppy seeds. I have purple/red/orange/pink poppies adding colour to the back and front gardens, and so I decided yellow Welsh poppies would be good to add more colour and variety amongst others

Now it can't be that difficult to grow poppies (or can it?). I haven't had any trouble in past years but this year I have had failures with both types of Welsh Poppy Seeds.
I contacted the sellers and both kindly sent two more packets of seeds free of charge. I have set these and have nothing in one tray and just 2 out of 50 in another tray, perhaps I should learn the Welsh language and talk to them in Welsh?

Pat, I hope your computer is still up and running, it's irritating when it won't work.
Good Luck with your OH ancestors. My in-laws were much easier to research than my own as they lived for many years in the same area. My Welsh descendents tended to move Counties..... not helpful at all for my own family history researches.

Jem, We didn't bother trying to see the perseilds meteor shower last night as it was all clouds, and a very dark sky. We will see if it's any clearer tonight as we would love to see the shooting stars. Hope you will have better luck tonight too.

You sound all tidy again after all your cleaning, so is Grandson1 girl friend coming to visit again today? Is it the pub quiz night? Good luck to you if it is.

We are having a lazy afternoon catching up with programmes recorded weeks ago.

I hope everybody who looks in will enjoy whatever is planned for the rest of today.

Evening all,

Well some DNA results in, I've 903 cousins on the database. The closest is a second cousin. Found 1 I'm related to and contacted her, she said she thought it could be my paternal line so I gave her a few names. NE UK and miners rang bells. Gave her my gt gt gt grandparents as related to all those who went from the Black Country to Durham area. I couldn't find her on Ancestry (not in her name and she didn't tell me that), she couldn't find mine. Today she sent her e-mail address as we are related through at least my gt gt gt grandparents they are in her tree. She then tells me her daughter has the tree on Ancestry. Guess who's been in contact - her daughter I have had several e-mails discussing our families. :-D Well at least it confirms it and shows I do have some of my dad's chromosomes. :-D

It's going to be a struggle with some, but I'll try to track the link. No medical stuff yet.

Been out shopping today, I hate shopping. We go mid afternoon to the supermarket in the next but 1 village. Not many people about so we can do it quickly.

Lovely meal last night. May go out tomorrow.

Kandj the laptop is fine, will just have to be careful Friday night and leave it on so a scan can be done whilst I'm asleep. We've had a couple of power cuts so that might of upset it. It sometimes upsets my e-mails.

I used to spray my paths every spring and autumn to keep the weeds away in UK.
The Hibiscus hedge has recently been trimmed so there's no flowers on it. When they return I'll get a picture in my keepsake for you to see. The orange tree is full of green oranges, looks beautiful at Christmas, orange baubles everywhere.

Jem, you are like a whirlwind doing everything. Don't hurt yourself trying to do too much. There's always a few jobs that can be left as they aren't important.

Was 31 C today again and a strong breeze again. Don't like strong wind it hurts my ear. :-(

Hope you all have a peaceful evening and night. :-) <3

Hello All

The rain and gale, thundering and lightening didn't happen here. Perhaps it will rain heavily through the night or maybe the storm will come tomorrow....... we shall see.

I have been doing a "Jem" today and have cleared about a third of the front border.
Nothing as hard as cutting a high hedge, as this is all low level ground cover which has grown out of control. The green dustbin was emptied only yesterday of garden rubbish. It is now half-filled and won't be emptied again for two weeks . I feel tired but happy to have made a big effort (and had the energy) it now looks much tidier.

Hubby and I were hoping to see the meteor shower last night but again it was too cloudy so there was no chance of seeing any shooting stars, disappointing really.

Pat, how lovely to have been in touch with another relative to share family details.

You still have temps in the 30's then. Not surprising your all very relaxed in Cyprus.

Pat, I also use the sachets diluted in water to keep the driveway and patio clear of weeds. It works very well usually. I have a new toy bought on Amaz*n. It is a garden wire head brush and is really good for getting in between paving slabs and block paving to clear the weeds. A long handle too so no bending and no bad back

Jem, are you resting after all your hard work in the garden. Or perhaps you are busy keeping your eye on the Welsh Rugby Team? I hope you are well today.

Goodnight to all looking in. Have a restful sleep.