General Chat

I’ve had a look too. Much too big or much too small And very expensive.
When I use it I find a rucksack takes the weight a Ross the back and shoulders whereas that doesn’t look so evenly spread.
Weren’t they first designed because kids always carry their back packs on one shoulder?

Well each to their own.
I am very happy with my ergonomically designed bags , they have served me well over the years and I don’t suffer from the pain in my shoulder which I do when I use an ordinary bag, so to me they are worth it.

After a lovely morning, it became cloudy and much colder this afternoon. While it was nice, I changed the two hanging baskets on the front of the house from the ones with pansies in, to the summer ones which I have had in the greenhouse. There are two large tubs in the front and two chimney pots with plants in the top of them. They still need changing to summer bedding, but the pansies in them are still fine at the moment. I have also put three haybtrough type baskets on the garage wall in the back garden. They look nice and break up the expanse of brick

Florence, I noticed! Yes 20 packs for £7.99 is very good, 40 pence a pack instead of £2 each or thereabouts.

I've had one of those healthy bags for at least 15 years, bought from the American company L L Bean. It's large, black leather, and has several pockets. I bought it because 2 close friends said how good they were.

But we all found that there were problems with them. Mine is too large, and I've only used it a couple of times because it just was not really comfortable or convenient to use. It's just hanging in the closet waiting for something to happen!

My friend Pat relegated hers to using only when they went on trips. It was medium size, and she would wear it across her front so that tickets, boarding passes, passports, etc were all handy and safe.

Janet just gave up on hers after a couple of years!

I've found that the combination of a very small or small crossbody bag combined with a day time back pack that can be used as a handbag-substitute is the best for me.

Money, cards etc go in the cross-body, and the back pack is just about large enough to carry a book, phone, water bottle, and other extras.

I have several larger cross-body bags that I also use.

We're in a spell of cooler weather here, temps down around 12C daytime and 9 or 10 at night!

We do carry so much stuff don’t we? Being usually on my own out and about I have devised a few ways of carrying stuff. I have a couple of large cross body bags, about 12 inches across and maybe 8 inches deep without measuring. They are made of fabric that is sort of plasticised so the bag alone is not heavy. It has two large zipped compartments one with a. Inner zip pocket. Then one zipped pocket on the outside on one side of the bag and another on the other side and also a Velcro Ed flap pocket. As long as I stick to the same compartments for things it is fine. I do have smaller smart cross body bags as well. But, in the winter months I have a coat that I wear that has a zipped pocket each side at the top front. One will just about take me phone and one my purse with bus pass. In the summer months I wear cargo trousers and phone and purse go in the lower leg pockets.
On holiday I have a very useful bum bag that takes, camera, phone and purse.

Good Morning, though there's nothing good about it.
It's very drab, again, it's misty again at the moment & really dim so much so I have had to put the living room light on., not for the first time these past few days I have had to have it on.

Because of the dismal weather I haven't been able to get into the garden for several days, it's not cold but I need "day light" to work outside safely & I really don't want to be outsdie when the air is damp with mist .
I haven't been able to finish painting the potting shed which is annoying.

re handbags, I use a handbag but it's by no means a large one, just need it to hold my purse, some tissues, my house keys & a spare fold away shopping bag,
I don't have a mobile phone, I don't drive & don't use make-up so I don't require a big.bag.

I have settled on having a curry for tea today, just a shop bought one but I have some extra chicken to add to it, the one I buy is a nice mild one & I like it but there's not enough chicken in it, lol.

Well I best get on with some household tasks, I'm not really in te mood for HW but I need to show willing.

Joan.

Afternoon all.

Well for now its bright and sunny but with a keen chilly wind. However its good for drying so the washing is heavily pegged on the line.

I have just spent the best part of an hour trying to pack some gifts in a box for my cousin's 60th birthday but he lives in Sydney Australia. I couldn't find a box of the right size so had to cut up a larger box and mend and make do as they say.

Finally padded with bubble wrap and extra cardboard for support and then wrapped in a heavy duty bin bag, its now ready for posting. I printed out the address labels , mine and his and stuck them on the front.

Written a list of the contents for the PO so there's no confusion like the last time!!

I'm guessing as it weighs 3.5kg, it will be pricey but we only do gifts for special birthdays.

Had a bit of a situation at my brother's house this morning. He was out with the wee one but SIL was at home. Knock at the door and 2 European people were on the doorstep, the new owners of mums flat! they demanded to get a copy of the Gas safety cert done back in Dec which both sols and Estate Agents had. SIl told them to contact their sol and that they cannot just turn up at their house anytime they have a problem.

She messaged me and I have an email with the cert attached to send first thing tom morning to the Estate Agents asking them to contact the buyers and invite them in for a chat. I've asked them to explain that they cannot turn up for anything else to my brothers house and instead should contact their sol if there is a problem.

Lucky my brother was out as he would have hit the roof and sent them packing but SIL was calmer about it. What next?// They couldn't come to me as I'm too far away!

Joan, good to see you posting. Yep we have had so much fog here too, so depressing and for me being asthmatic, its not good when its damp weather.

When i make a curry, I buy chicken breasts(frozen) and cook them, adding onions, peppers, mushrooms etc plus the sauce. Even if the sauce has veg, I always add extra. I'm thinking now, mmmn curry would be good tonight lol Thanks Joan for putting that idea in me head.

Hope the sunshine and warmer weather returns soon so we can all get outside and feel the benefit of it.

Florence in the hebrides

What a nerve!
It should have been passed on.
Anyway, if they were that concerned they should had the gas checked themselves.

When late BIL’s house was sold OH passsed on the number of the key safe to the estate agents. 3 weeks later same agents were asking for the number. :-|

Afternoon.
Raining and foggy here...what's new!

Just been busy with usual chores and a huge basket of ironing but all done now and i'm sitting resting my legs.

At least I don't have to water all the plants later.

I emailed the estate Agents first thing and now realised they are probably closed as BH grrr. I'm sure they will contact me tomorrow.

Br Gas sent me an email confirming the balance is at zero and said they would keep my account open in case I need them in the future after I asked them to close it!! So another tel call to deal with tomorrow and so it goes on and on.

What's everyone up to today and anyone got the sun please?

Florence in the hebrides

Keep your account open. I don’t like the sound of that - what if the new owners don’t register a new account?

Exactly. I shall ring them 1st thing tomorrow. I shall say, i dont live in England, I live in another country lol Now get this account blooming closed pronto lol

Hi to everyone.
Florence we have sunshine, at long last after several, very dismal, damp & misty days we have a really nice day, I have been outside & done some errdkilling here & there through the gravelled areas.

I have Roses in bud,& the 4 new Clematus are coming on a treat, I have tied the stems on to the canes & after that they are free to climb & scranble anywhere they like, they are up against a long stone wall, about 25 foot long & about 3 to 4 foot high, so plenty of space to go whereever they want.

I can see the wall from the living room window so when the flowers appear it should give a nice show.

I haven't been able to continue to cut down the rest of the Rugosa hedging,I think there are birds in what's left so I am leaving it for the time being, the half that I did manage to cut back has put on some new growth, I'm ok with that but i don't want it to get back to the height it used to be, once I can tackle the rest of it I will just make sure I can keep it at a more managable height.

All the best to everyone.

Joan.

I just went on the GRO to download something online and it says, maintenance going on and so you cant order anything grrr.

Better go and vacuum or dust as cant seem to get anywhere on here today!

Oh yes - bother!
Can't even look anything up. Maintenance going on until 7.00am tomorrow.

A cloudy day here, with intermittent rain and a few short sightings of the sun. Not a day for gardening - everything's wet and midgy.
In any case, I have to be near the phone, as my GP is going to phone this afternoon with results of tests on blood and urine samples from my routine annual review appointment last week.
Fingers crossed everything's OK!

ArgyllGran, hope you get good results.

Midgy day here too. I opened bathroom window after my shower and I'm sure the blighters came in as my neck is itching me!

Daughter had to get emergency dentist appointment so waiting on her to ring. Appointment was at 2,30 lol yes really it was and she was in pain.. She has a wisdom tooth that only came through a bit but the gum is red and not much room for it to fully emerge. They may give her antibiotics and a referral to the dentist hospital within the hospital as I think they will need to cut the gum to remove it.

But i did tell her, there will be a waiting list so shall have to be patient.

She is a very impatient patient but she has learning difficulties and isnt good at processing info or timescales. So hoping it wont take long to sort. Toothache is just the worse pain on earth so i do sympathise with her but I don't have a magic wand sadly.

It is a cloudy day here and keeps spitting with rain. I managed to get out into the garden and plant more plants into the rockery. There is quite a large rockery sloping down into the back garden.
When we moved in, it was the only place with any plants in it at all. I have been adding more in since we moved, so it is quite full now.

OH is still busy with the bathrooms. We got a mirrored bathroom cabinet as part of the deal on the showroom bathroom. He tried to put it up this morning, but it is far too heavy. The wall it needs to go on is an interior plasterboard wall, so there is no brick or breeze block to drill into. He has given up and we will just use the mirror which was already there. We don’t need the storage as I bought a unit with canvas drawers for that bathroom
I have advertised it on the local for sale sites, but I doubt there will be any takers. Of course when I put it on the free site, I will be inundated.
Before my daughter moved, they had no furniture, so they bought a beautiful John Lewis sofa from our next door neighbours. It was almost brand new and very expensive when new My daughter got it because they thought that they would have to wait three months for the huge U shaped sofa they were going to order. As it turned out by a miracle someone had ordered the exact same sofa , but when it came, they couldn’t fit it in their house ,so they were able to get it straight away. They used the John Lewis sofa in another room for a couple months until they bought a different sofa for that room. They tried to sell the sofa for a very low price, but there were no takers at all. In the end, they put it on the free site and of course people were fighting over it.

Afternoon all

Hope you and hubby are both feeling better now Linda.

Dry but overcast day with a good breeze but no sun! Daughter elsewhere until Thursday so very quiet here.

Got a reply from the Estate Agents earlier about my email i sent them. They said they couldn't believe they went round to my brothers!! But they said, they just told them to contact their sol.

Waited in the queue for EDF and after 45 minutes, I gave up so sent them a long email telling them to make sure account is closed and not to send any further correspondence.

Got through to Br Gas and the lady insisted my account was closed. I said strange that as I have just logged in!! I told her to remove my email and my details from their system as I do not intend to use them as I don't live in England! I received an email within 5 minutes confirming account has now been removed but I shall check tomorrow just to make sure.

Just the C Tax dept to refund me and close that down and we are all completed now.

Going to sort out the headstone very soon when brother is back from his holidays. We left money in a slush fund to pay for it.

Hope everyone looking in is well and ok today.

Florence in the hebrides

Dealing with utility companies is a nightmare Florence, I feel for you.

I took Esme to Lightwater Valley today. We only went on two rides because it was raining for a lot of the day, but there were lots of shows and indoor things to do, so she had a good time. Her parents were working today, so it got her out of the way. My back is really aching tonight as I was pushing her small wheelchair around all day.

Tomorrow she is staying home, so her mum will have to cope with her while she is working. I am going to take Eve out for some of the day. We are going to do archery for an hour. I really don’t want to do that as my shoulder will ache, but the minimum booking is for two. I am then going to find somewhere for lunch, then go to a small wildlife park.

Evening all.
was out for a day out today with my good friend i use to work with.

Went round all the shops and I bought a few nice things including 2 new handbags. One teal and one black. The black one was gorgeous and had a price tag of £105 but when I got to the till, she said, noooo its actually £34.95 that's just the RRP. so that ws a cracker of a bargain.

Had lunch in a hotel and was delicious. Quite empty as was early and that suited us well. Then off to the garden centre where i bought some bedding plants, Lobelia, bizzy lizzies and some others. I bought a rose too as couldn't resist and bought one for my friend as a thankyou for all her help.

Last stop was the coop and only needed a few things. Got a message then from daughter who was back at the dentist...(long story) and asked us to wait for her so she could get a lift home!

Finally back home after 4pm and I'm so tired but it was a lovely day for us in between the heavy showers lol

if its fine tomorrow, I shall be planting up the planters etc and finishing off the tubs.

Hope everyone else is well and ok

Florence in the hebrides

Morning all,
Been quite chilly here the last few days. I haven't been out in the garden much so OH has been looking after the plants. My hands have been painful and quite stiff as well which is down to the damp and chilly weather I think.

Lovely that you had a good day out Florence, it makes such a difference to how we feel getting out and about even for a day.

Linda hope your shoulder won't be too sore after the Archery .

Joan hope you are doing ok, has your weather improved enough for some gardening?

Enjoy the weekend everyone and hope you have some nice sunny weather.

Ginnie.