General Chat

Afternoon all
What an awful day! Daughter was being so organised first thing. She had hoovered, mopped floors etc and put out blue & green bins ready for tomrrow as it was a nice morning. Fast forward to an hour ago.

The wind is now picking up at 40mph and going up later even more so....Im on my own til tomorrow and decided the bins need to come back until the morning when the wind subsides. I donned waterproofs etc and battled with my stick to drag the bins back to their station. Oh my, I came in and was blooming soaked from the knees down.

Having said that, I'm dried off now and it's really hosing it down so am glad the bins are safe for tonight.The grass cutters came first thing and gave one last cut, was so lucky it was dry then.

JustGinnie, so sorry to hear your sad news. It's hard when you were only talking to them the day before just like my mum with the stroke.

Has your sister a property to sell? All you need to do is appoint a solicitor and they will apply for probate and deal with all that. The time consuming albeit easier stuff is sorting all the utility companies and the bills etc. Ive had to open accounts in my name until mum's flat is sold as you can't leave the accounts in the person who has passed open.

We have nearly emptied mums flat now so it will be ready for estate agent to value very soon. But emptying all her things takes ages. Did your sister have any of her own family?Children?

Anyway it will all work out in the end, you just need patience!

I did win on the lottery on Sat eve but the jackpot lol just £8 and a free ticket for wednesday, so sorry no party....yet :-D

Oh my the wind is getting worse, wouldnt be surprised if the electric went off, its dreadful.

Right off to make a cuppa and fill a flask just in case.

Hope everyone else is ok
take care

Florence in the hebrides

Hello all, hope you are all well.
We are still busy sorting out things re my sisters estate but we will get there . The thing is the rest of the family expect me to do it all as I am the youngest . I have told them I won't and have engaged a firm to do all the legal stuff and it will be paid for out of her estate so in effect out of their inheritance.
I received more bad news this week, my only maternal cousin died suddenly of heart attack . I had only posted her some info she wanted that same day and had been chatting on line to her the day before. Another shock for us. My family is getting smaller too quickly.

On a better note our weather is being good atm so not having to put the heating on yet and am still able to dry washing outside.

Take care all.

Afternoon all looking in.
Well, it's still pretty wild here and terrible heavy showers. Daughter & I managed out for 10 mins to secure and move some flowerpots as more gales forecast tomorrow.

Did a lot of tidying up today and also made a chicken curry for tea with naan bread, poppadom's, homemade tzatziki and coconut basmati rice... Its all ready ,except for naan and rice which only takes a few minutes. Can't wait and I'm starving today.

Bingo went well last night and was full to the brim with people so well attended. I won a prize in the children's raffle but on closer inspection it's really for a 3 yr. old so too young for my nephew. Never mind I shall give away to someone. I thoroughly enjoyed being out and I also saw & spoke to a few people too.

The clouds here are huge, those big, white clouds that look like giant cotton wool. I expect they are full of rain waiting to drop on us.

The lottery tonight is £20,000,000!! So, I bought a few tickets and fingers crossed. If I win big, I'll come down south somewhere and we can all meet for a huge party on me :-D :-D
Well it's nearly time for tea so off to put on the rice.

Hope everyone else safe and ok

Florence in the Hebrides

We have had a lot of rain, but not the storms.

Esme had a really large egg lump on the back of her head yesterday, it has gone down since yesterday, but still looks very sore. She hasn’t gone to school today as she has needed pain killers all day. There has been lots of “ Ow, my head hurts’.

Morning all.
Well, was well and truly woken today by the sound of severe gale force winds! Was hearing this banging noise and eventually had to get up & investigate. It was one of the bins that had broken free of its usual place and had been blown around a corner and landed outside my bedroom window. It was banging against the huge heating fan thing that provides the underfloor heating.

I summoned my daughter poor lassie and made her go outside to retrieve the bin before it did some damage. A few flowerpots had been blown too and 2 were cracked so lost those but was actually nothing growing. The rest were in shelter so all ok.
Wind was up at over 60mph but should come down later to about 35, so still breezy. No ferries again!

Hopefully still going out to the charity bingo later on fingers crossed.

Linda, poor Esme, hope her bump has gone down and she is feeling ok now.

Joan, Hope your bins are where they should be if you have this storm or maybe its heading towards you later on?

Not sure what to make today. something light as we are heading out at 5.15 so will have to be an early tea say 4.15PM.

Its still horrendous driving rain and stormy winds so def not going outside yet lol

Hope everyone else is safe and ok

Florence in the hebrides

I love them as well Ann, I can’t just have one, I keep picking at them.

My poor daughter was supposed to have a whole day of on line meetings today, but mid morning she got a call from Esme’s school to say that she had fallen and hit her head again. When she did the same thing a few months ago, she had a huge lump. They had to go to the hospital and were there until about 4 pm. Apparently it isn’t as bad as last time, but they gave her some ibuprofen and paracetamol on an empty stomach, so of course she threw up just before she was due to see the consultant.
Eventually they let her go and they have stopped at McDonalds on the way back and bought a new toy, so she can’t be that bad.

I too put the heating on low in the evenings now.

so the diet is going to suffer Linda with both girls cooking. I love chocolate brownies.

I used to make an All Bran fruit loaf which always turned out well. I haven’t done it for ages. Cakes are not allowed on my diet really, but Esme likes baking, so I end up eating them.
Eve has cooking lessons at school this year, she arrived home with chocolate brownies today.
It is very autumnal here, I have had the heating on on an evening for the last few days, the girls need to be kept warm.

Afternoon all
Oh, my what a horrid day here. Raining, damp and foggy all at once! It's chilly too.
Last night I put the heating on for 4 hours including the bathroom and bedrooms and those rooms haven't been heated since April just to give them some warmth as don't want any dampness to develop.

Well daughter came last night and went off again today for appointment or something elsewhere so not back until tomorrow.

Ironed my super Kingsize duvet plus Kingsize fitted valence sheet and crikey it took me ages. The backs of my knees were so sore. But all done now and chilling on here sitting down.

I'm so excited as on Friday early evening, I am going out with daughter and a neighbour to a charity bingo evening. I so can't wait to get dressed up and put on me lippy. I was at one before and it was a lovely evening and met some people too hadn't seen for yonks. The neighbour is taking and bringing us home so no taxi fayres in sight although, I want to give her £10 towards the petrol as think that's the least I can do for offering to be the driver.

As I looked round, I just got the fright of my life. neighbours' cat is sitting on my windowsill outside the lounge eeek! He thinks this is his house and had formed a friendship with me...bless him He's mewing away looking at me and wanting in as it's raining, aw <3

Watched a very interesting programme last night on BBC! Scotland about the CalMac ferries. It was suggested that the contract to Fergusons shipyard had been rigged! I did enjoy watching John Swinney (dept 1ist minister) squirming in his seat when the evidence was out to him lol We shall see what comes out of it.

Well feeling tired so not doing anything else this afternoon that requires using energy lo except making a coffee :-D

Hope everyone is ok

Florence in the hebrides

:-D :-D :-D Andy's mum, I only think in pints lol

I still have scales that have ounces and grammes but still work in Imperial measures!
But daughter doesn't understand my recipes as shes young and was trained at school in grammes. If the grammes were an exact conversion of ounces I wouldnt have a problem but they are not.

For a 1/2 pound of butter, where the markers were for 2oz, it was easy but the equivalent is 453 .59 g so divide that by 4 to get the 2 ounce equivalent is 113.39 grammes. What a palava!!

Florence in the hebrides

Our village shop sells Graham's milk and I have just looked at the label. It says it comes from farms all over Scotland to the dairy at Bridge of Allan, which is near Stirling. I don't buy it very often - there's nothing wrong with the milk but it comes in litre bottles, unlike the supermarkets which are mostly in pints. A litre is smaller than my usual 2 pint bottle, so it doesn't last as long as my brain thinks it should! :-(

Morning all
Still another wet & wild day here with no ferries again! I'm glad I'm still stocked up with last week's delivery.
Had a nice hot shower and washed hair so feeling all refreshed today and also slept through from 1am-8am! yes, I actually got a full night's sleep without waking up and that doesn't happen very often.

Linda, I hope you & hubby are feeling a bit better. I do remember my 2nd jag made me feel awful for a couple of days and then it passed.

Yes Joan, you can buy Grahams milk here in local shops. I think it's produced locally in Aberdeenshire somewhere so maybe not available down south? But glad for you the milk was ok. I actually think it was the shop and not you and they probably left it out of the chiller too long. By the time they sold it, it was on its way out, I'm sure.

Daughter coming home this afternoon and within 10 mins, her bags etc will be emptied and covering the floor plus the washing machine will no doubt be on full blast! However, I miss her company sometimes and it's actually good to share a meal with someone.

So glad it's not bin day today as I feel the gale is more severe just now!

Hope everyone looking in is ok

Florence in the Hebrides

I have never heard of that milk Joan, it must be a local one.

We are not feeling well today, we both had our Covid booster yesterday and feel achy and tired now.

Eve had hers on Saturday and she had a very high temperature for twenty four hours. She was well enough to go to school today, but she is tired, so after finishing her homework, she is snuggled up in bed with her water bottle and her iPad

I know I was making fun of the problem but there is a serious issue with the huge gaps that are being proposed.

What will happen if one misses the collection? Most of us will have done that at some time, holidays, hospital (hangovers ;-) ). The wait for the next collection would be nigh on impossible.

Florence yes the memories do usually make me smile, they are good memories/

Haha names :-D :-D :-D
Thankfully they came at 12 and goodness me if I had missed them, i would have not been happy as full of grass cuttings etc and a few slugs...eeeek

As I took in the bins, my lovely neighbour asked if I fancied company for an hour, so I put on the kettle, and we put the world to rights. Has brightened my day and also feel so much better just for having a visitor.

Ann love Brie & cranberry although not the bacon but good you were able to get out. I guess you will feel like that for a while to come going places where you and OH have been. But remember the memories of those times and it will make you smile -)

Joan, I don't know how you manage with your bins so far away. I would be panicking about where they have flown away to in windy weather. It's still wild here with hefty showers and many ferries disrupted so the shelves will be empty today in the supermarkets.

How is the milk today, Joan? Did it survive the weekend, or did it go off the same way as all the others?

Well better crack on as we sleeping so late, I'm way behind with the chores and daughter is coming back tomorrow, so typical as house has been spotless all week!

Florence in the hebrides

Good afternoon all. Had to go for the annual blood test today, she couldn't get it from my left arm but had not trouble with the right.

I then went, with the neighbour who took me, to the community centre cafe for lunch and had a rather nice panini (Bacon brie and cranberry) so that was a nice change. I had not been there since before Covid. a bit sad remembering as it was where my OH and I used to go quite a lot, but I get used to that, so many places we used to go are being re-visited.

It is breezy here but a weak sun, it rained overnight but not since and it is 13 degrees now.

Fingers crossed the bin men didn’t have an early start.

I’m trying not to imagine the chaos if one misses the bin day when your pickups change - twice a year wasn’t it ;-)

Good morning chit chatters
Well hardly slept for the wind & rain until after 5am so I woke with a start at 10.30 am!!! I was so tired, I obviously dropped off then and zonked.

Just realised too it is bin day, so donned a waterproof and scarf as its chilly and battled the wind to drag my 2 black bins from their standing to end of my lawn. The rain stopped but it is still blowing a hooley but at least the bins are full and so heavy they are not moving.

So, I'm keeping an eye out for the lorry so as soon as they empty, I need to drag them to "safety" otherwise they will end up who knows where, Isle of Skye maybe lol.

The postie just came and delivered a package to me. It was my charity xmas cards I ordered from a little-known charity called Quarriers. They are based in Scotland and help young people by fostering or helping them to live independently if they are disabled etc. They in return send me regular newsletters about things they have achieved. I tend to support smaller charities including the RNLI.

Bigger charities get money from the government, and I feel more to support smaller ones should be done.

Gosh bin lorry is late today, so wish they would hurry up so I can take off my jacket and scarf!

Linda, hope you are feeling ok today after your booster. I haven't had my 3rd yet as was late in starting them but I am due. I have to wait until Community Nurses can come to my house and give me the booster.

Joan, hope you and hubby are ok and everyone else looking in.

Take care
Florence in the hebrides

It hasn’t been a bad day here, a bit autumnal, but not too cold. OH and Imwent for our Covid booster jabs this afternoon. I hope we will be OK because Eve had hers yesterday afternoon and she was I’ll through the night and for most of today. She has had a high temperature, so she has had Calpol and Ibuprofen alternate two hours. She seems a lot better now, so hopefully will be fine for school tomorrow

It was chicken dinner this evening, Esme won’t have any other meat on Sunday. When they go away, it is nice to hav3 some beef or pork for a change