General Chat

Well, I'm sat here watching the wind blow next door's empty bird feeders around, and wondering which way they'll fall. Hopefully not towards my window!

I was due to take my (work) laptop into HQ today - I was due to start a new job (from home) yesterday, but laptop said 'no'!
Apparently IT forgot to do something.
Fortunately, it started half working, so I've put off starting work until Monday, so I travel in their time, not mine.
I've also just heard that all buses in Winchester are suspended until 3 pm - so just as well didn't go in.

One bird feeder has just flown into my garden.

Stay safe Maggie - perhaps put a little distance between you and your windows. :-S

We put our bird feeders in the greenhouse/shed but this morning I scattered some seeds on the concrete near the greenhouse and it was not cold or breezy. I think it is working its way to us though so perhaps just when schools are coming out this arvo. :-0

Good to hear that you have more work lined up, Maggie, but nothing seems straight forward with you, work/ workmen and technology does it?

There are a lot of country roads around Winchester so no doubt 'they' are worried about trees down and possible blocked roads.
I believe your schools are still open this week, so they will want to get everyone home at the end of the day.
It has been half term here this past week, so less traffic at peak times.

Wind is getting much stronger here now and really whistling.
Bright sunshine though !

Stay safe.

Many schools are closed around here.
As for workmen and technology - well!
IT forgot to do something, the Council 'forgot' to follow their own procedures for asbestos, as for the 'workman' who splattered my belongings and walls with cement - apparently he was a 'good' workman :-.
Living room's done now - surveyor now has to survey the rest of the house - and I have a list.

.I've brought a litter tray in for Betty - she doesn't like using it, but she'd get blown away if she went outside. I bet, though, she'll find a corner somewhere, inside :-|

Like Gwyn says, you haven't had much luck with jobs, workman and technology. Thank goodness you are capable and articulate. When these things happen I often wonder how someone less able copes.

I took our bird feeders down first thing this morning. Now I'm hoping the trees they were hanging on are going to stay up! I thought the worst of the gales weren't supposed to reach us till this afternoon but it's been blowing a real hooley since about 10 am. We've already had a large, heavy terracotta pot containing a guava bush blow over, and that was already pushed against a low wall for support.

Just this week we've had quite a few daffodils bloom. I now know what Wordsworth meant when he saw them "tossing their heads in sprightly dance" :-)

Vera - British Gas were the icing on the cake!
Transpires they were only crediting one energy bill - this varies, one say Electricity, the other gas. When I was trying to get some sense on their 'chat' line, the girl said she would set up a direct debit - I said no - then we were cut off - I hung on got reconnected, then 'disconnected again. Sent in a complaint, got a load of whaffling texts - even though I'd asked to be contacted by email - then the conversation was ended.
I phoned on Tuesday. Got a bit more sense. Apparently a direct debit had been set up I asked for the date to be changed, and it seems it was set up to someone else's account! :-S

The road to the village here is blocked by 3 fallen trees, and people are losing power

so sad, i live on outskirts of london and the tree across the road just starting to blossom has fsllen, also taken out a wall
feel so sorry for those in less sheltered areas

Up here we are used to strong winds, although it's not usually as bad as the current lot! A few years ago there was a really bad spell and several trees/branches came down and a lot of roads were blocked. We live on a peninsula so if the road is closed there is no alternative route.

After that lot the Council went round during the summer and cut down all branches overhanging the road and lopped any tree leaning at an angle towards the road. Since then we have had hardly any trees blocking roads and if there is a problem it usually gets sorted during the night before people start going to work.

My power was off from 1pm to 830pm.
A lot of next door's fence has come apart, and ended up in my back garden. :-(

I went round to my other neighbour with a thermos of hot water.
Having a gas cooker has it's advantages!

Oh yes - and when the electricity came back on, I found 3 missed calls, and 6 messages on my mobile, from work :-0
It appears it wasn't just the electricity that was affected.

Hey Maggie, glad you survived! The worst thing when the mobile signal has gone along with the power is always the constant"ding.ding.ding" of loads of messages coming through once power is on..

There is a website and also a mobile app called SSE Power Track map. It shows where the power outages are all over the uk at anytime. Its useful if you have power but a family member say further away might not, then you can look at map and see and saves having to phone 105 for info.

Florence in the hebrides

I had another 'disaster' :-D

Once the power came back on, I looked at my phone, the front was blank.
I looked at my family's 'whatsapp', only to find a few messages - which should have shown up on the front.
Then I looked at the calls - 3 texts, 3 missed calls, and 6 voicemails - all from my potential job, all sent on Friday morning. :-S
I looked at the settings - for some reason, everything was on silent/don't notify - I hadn't touched the settings.
I sent work a quick text apologising, and blaming the storm.

Have to admit, when I lived in Shetland, high winded storms were a regular 'feature', but we didn't rely on technology, and there were very few trees to come down :-D :-D
Also, in a couple of places, the main lighting was gas, or nothing!