General Chat

Hello everyone,got back last night from a really good holiday.Plenty of sun and good food and rest etc.Been busy today meeting some friend,then came home to carry on with the washing from the holidays.Did get on a pc when away but had so many emails to delete or reply to my time was up before I knew what was what. so my apologies for not getting on here.
had a bit of pain with the knee but managed to do almosrt all we wanted to do.
sorry about you rgranson dorothy hop ehe is ok now.
Hope your gransons stuff arrived ok fred.
Better get to bed soon,did not realise I would have so many emails to sort out after sorting them out last week as well.
See you all tomorrow Brenda

Hi ALL,well Dorothy one day back from my holidays ,and we have had the first of the white stuff!!!
It was a bit like hail stones at fisrt then the flurries came down,luckily it has not stuck,but it is really really cold out there.
We have been busy in the early aftrenoon,but after tea its been very quite.
Mind you the stalwart computer people have been in as normal.
THe kids break up from school tomorrow and have been giddy at the homework club,still they have gone home now,its time to start the closing proceedure so I had better go
Fred hope the stuff from Cypress turns yo
Brenda.
Take care

So sorry not to have joined in recently, although I have managed to get a few minutes to read a few of the messages but then have been interrupted so not had time to post.

Not had time to read all that has been added since my last visit so not up-to-date on all that you nice people have been up to. Dorothy, hope your g.son does not suffer too much with his knee - he has been in the wars lately hasn't he?

Pleased you enjoyed your holiday Brenda, hope your time in the sun has set you up to face the cold weather you have come back to. It has been snowing here and is rather chilly. Have put out a lot of leftovers for the birds plus some bought seed and stuff - the word has got out it seems as my garden is now full of birds finishing off the bread pudding, suet pud and stale bread and pastry I have put out. Lots of blackbirds, wood pigeons, collared doves etc - and three little robins who wait for the crowd to thin out a bit before diving in.

Fred, hope Sean gets his stuff quickly. Hope your long drive goes ok - watch the weather though. I want to know how you do your corned beef, our butchers don't ever do it properly - I want the proper Irish recipe. That was one of my busband's favourite meals corned beef and cabbage.

My eldest son (Chris) thought he was off from his last shift until Boxing Day - he got a phone call this morning to say they had all made a mistake and he was supposed to be working this shift (2 days & 2 nights) and off the next so finishes Christmas Eve and goes back on 30th. There was me having a real moan to myself (quite loudly) about him still being in bed when there was work to be done that I needed help with. Went to wake him up - and he wasn't there.!!! Luckily he phoned me a few minutes later to let me know what had happened (he had left for work at 7 and I hadn't heard him go). He was a bit late getting in but they will pay him as it was their mistake. Means I am going to have to struggle with some things on my own as g.daughter is now working and won't be around to help.
After at least 100 applications Indira finally got an interview and was taken on immediately - not that she can remember actually applying for this particular job but she's not worried - it's work and pays a wage. Not at all what she wanted to do but all experience.

I can't believe that Christmas is only a week away - does it really come that quickly every year? Loads still to do, I had hoped to get some decorating done this year but have now had to give up on that as I won't be able to get it done by myself (poor old soul that I am - but at my age I'm not doing too badly). Just have to cover it all up with lots of tinsel and stuff and pretend I can't see the rest.

Hope you all stay well, I WILL be back in a day or two (maybe in the middle of the night - but Dorothy will be awake).

Meantime, take care
Love Kathleen

Evening all [best Dixon Of Dock Green voice] ,lol.
We came back home last night because Sean's boxes never arrived,but we did get a good look at his new abode,all newly decorated ,a new kitchen and new carpets ,very nice and comfy.
Anyway ,sean got his hire car which will do him until early new year ,when ,hopefully he will have his own.
The drive back was pretty bad ,blizzards ,roadworks for miles with 50 mph speed restrictions ,none of which seemed to have anyone working on them either,typical of the highways agency in this ruddy country.
Once the snow struck outside Oxford ,the panic started ,lol,hundreds of motorists panicking and slowing down to crawling pace ,which always makes the experienced drivers fume because they are being held up.
High time that all new drivers ,to get a licence had to go on a skid pan before they could drive on the roads,the roads would be so much safer.
it took 6 hours to drive home ,not bad considering all the hazzards ,but i was knackered by the time i reached the drive gates.
I was too tired to stand over a cooker last night ,so we had two pizzas and four wraps that we brought from M & S on our one and only stop on the way up £7 all in ,and well worth the money as it was all very tasty.
I Can get you the recipe for the beef Kathleen ,i have four [ALL] irish lol ,but i will give you the really tasty one which i use all the time,mind you ,you are right ,i have tried beef from a few places overseas ,and a lot of the recipes used are short ,with a lot of ingredients missing,which makes the dish taste pretty naff.
Nice to hear that the daughter has found work ,not easy to find these days ,and as you say ,it will do for now ,and will in the long run enable her to find something better..
Time for me to make tea now ,nothing special tonight ,steak ,liver and kidney braised in a rich gravy,dumplings,steamed new potatoes,cabbage ,carrots ,and green beans[time for the hearty stuff lol.
Catch you all later, Fred.

hello first of all I promise I did not redirect our snow over to you and yours, fred that sounded like a bit of a nightmare drive back for you and liz sort of what it is like on the big highway 400 at rush hour when we have the snow storms, kathleen good to see you back on line and also great that your grandaughter found a job here's to a brighter future for her, nothing much new over here at the moment it is cold but no dare I even say it no snow. to-day I went and got a haircut looking quite good but not going anywhere special this evening in fact I don't like going out at night anymore. dno further updates on my three grandchildren so no news is good news they finished school to-day for 2 weeks. brenda sorry that the snow arrived just as you returned fromholidays not fair is it bye for now dorothy

Hi everyone,well the white stuff certainly put a stop to a lot of things this weekend,it took us 3 and a half hours to do a 20 minute journey on Sunday and that was only locally!!! the roads were that bad and the traffic was virtually at a stand still.It was not actually snowing at 11.30 am when we went out but it was so dark at 2.45pm when we got near home it was like the middle of the night.
We live near North Manchester General Hospital and the avenue which leads to it from a road near us was impossible to get up,.it is up a very old steepish bendy lane, which is known as the back road as it is not the main entrance ,thank goodness,even the ambulances couldn't do it ,at least one tried and then and to back down ,sliding more than anything,the junction with the lane has trafffic lights and the road going passed it is steepish and was so icy it was really bad when the lights went red going up it was very hard to stay still and not slide back. I had to come that way again last night on my way home from work ,but it looks like they have been gritting a bit now,as it was a lot better.
At lunchtime on the way to work I had called at Sainsburys and the carpark was just a slush park really,should have rolled my pants up as they got wet and dirty from the slush ,they had only cleared teo aisles for the disabled cars and the cars with children!!
Kept my boots on when I got to work otherwise my ankles would have been wet througth as well.
Hope it keeps clear,but its supposed to be back tomorrow.
John is on the mend from the chest and throat infection that he picked up on holiday,most nights he does so much coughing when we go to bed ,its a waste of time really.Hope the antibiotics keep working as well as the hot toddies he has ben having.
Better go back and try and get some sleep,am on work at 9amand finish at 5pm till th 29th so thats a long weekend!!!
Havr the car drapped over my arm as I type this and he is getting heavy as well,but is like an hot water bottle.It seems like decades ago whenwe had that hot summer Kathleen and we could not sleep due to the heat!!!
Catch up with you all tomorrow,
take car e,Brenda

Well things have not improved much ,they have gotten worse if anything.
Its been snowing heavy again since we got in work and my car has a good couple of inches on it again.!!
We have the grit ready for home time in case we have to put it on the snow near the cars.
Not had many people in ,which is what we expected ,I finish tonight at 5pm til 10 am on Tuesday. (HURRAH)
Will be busy to hope fully delivering pressies and cards.
See you tomorrow,
Brenda

Goodmorning Xmas greetings to you all
Although its the longest day this week we dont seem to be getting the weather that produces long warm evenings and BBQs
But we arent having the snow etc that some of you have to contend with
A white christmas that would seem magical(prob the first time)
We will have the Traditional meal Turkey ham new potatoes peas carrots etc christmas pudding custard
Regards Margaret

Morning Brenda and Margaret,we in the Baird household are about ready too,just the traditional trip to the Newcastle market now which i have been doing every year since moving back up here many years ago.
A magical time for all youngsters ith all the farmers market stalls scattered the length of the street from Greys Monument to grainger street,south,and all the way over to the old Grainger Street Market.
Everything is on offer from toys to french ,italian cheeses ,meats ,and deli' products,furnishings ,hot meats and chestnuts ,and all the stalls covered in fairy lights.
As i did a factory restore on my H P laptop last night to nullify the problem with windows 7 and office 2007 ,i have ,of course lost all my onboard files and pic's,but.no matter ,i will yake my camere today and kick off the new files with Christmas pics.

time to go and get brekkie before i clear the car so that i can see out of the windscreen,he he ,the poor thing has been sat behind Seans hire car for three days ,lol,so it's gonna be coooold in there lol.
Be back later Fred.

hi everyone I have been folowing the weather news re the snow you are getting in the north I gather that people just don't have any idea on how to drive in the snow, about an hour from me they still have abour 6-8 feet, feet not inches we are lucky it is very cold but not that much snow about 3-5 inches which is nothing in the barrie area, we are supposed to get a storm on christmas day snow and maybe freezing rain as we are supposed to go to jane's in bolton I hope it passes us, I shall be going to the family sometime to-morrow they are going to come and pick me up so that we don't have three cars in the drive in case of the storm and I shall stay till boxing day, this morning I am loading up my car and popping over with the xmas gifts and to see how bryan is doing on his crutches he is not able to get out much with the snow and frozen ice underneath, his mom and siter and brother are off to the ski hills for the day they have been doing a lot of ski-ing since the holidays started, I would like to wish you all a wonderful christmas and a great 2010 I am not listing all the names on this site in case I forget any bye for now and take care as you travel in the weather brenda and fred bye for now dorothy

Morning all ,weeeeeeee,the busiest day of the year for me ,but seeing as i have already hovered the floors ,done the washingup ,and sliced the corned beef and put it in the fridge,i am now having a few minutes with a cuppa ,before i start making the stuffing for tomorrow and Boxing day,all the ingedients are mixed before i put it in the fridge but the sliced and ground onion ,which goes in at the last minute will go into an airtight container until the morning.
Sean and Sara are settled in and looking forward to the outings to different family members over Christmas,weather permitting they will be going down to Lyneham on New Years Day so that Sara can have a few days in her new family home before flying back to uni in Poland.
I feel a lot happier now .knowing that her family ,realising that she is determined to get her doctorship ,rather than quitting uni ,have now accepted Sean with open arms.
This is great because he now has a mum and dad in lAW ,PLUS TWO BRO'S AND THREE SIS'IN LAWS ,GOOD FOR HIM AS HE IS NOW LEARNING TO SPEAK THEIR LANGUAGE.
Time to go and get on with the work in hand .
Be back later .Fred.

first of all MERY CHRISTMAS everyone,have been busy the last few days and did not find time to get on here.my apologies
I was helpinh John get his shopping ,he had been ill with a chest infection since the holiday and always leaves his shopping tothe last minute!!
Fred so pleased all your preperation has helped ypu amdthat your grandsosn is settling in ok
Dorothy hope the white stuff stays away from you ,and you enjoy the time with the family.
We will be very quiete this year just the three of us,so there is not much to doreally but it just seems like it!!
Going for a nice cup of tea before the other two get upand it will be bacon muffins/barmcakes for breakfast then we will start the dinner !!
Don't think there is any more snow but have not looked out the window yet,but as we are not going anywhere or expecting anyone I am not to worried yet.
Speak to you all later

LOVE brenda

Hi Brenda,he he .looks like just the two of us for the moment ,lol
Hope John is lots better now and it didn't spoil his Christmas at all.
Sean and Sara are enjoying their first Christmas as man and wife,and have been very thoughtful,they are going back to Lyneham on the 30th of this month to house warm their new house and spend their first new year in it ,very fitting ,they will have no family with them because we are all in the north east of England ,but they have neighbours on camp who they knew from Cyprus so they won't need to be alone unless they wish it.
I have given them the address of my cousin who lives in Chipping Norton which isn't very far away ,so ,i hope they will pop over and introduce themselves,which will help cousin Shaz out as well having just lost her much loved dad,and i feel she is missing him a lot..
We are off to the daughters for dinner and tea ,so i had better go and get ready,be bach this evening i hope.
Have a great New Year all of you,in case i don't get back on until much later ,Fred & Liz Plus Hissy [who is enjoying her ChristmasSalmon lol,Andsays meow to all ]

hi everyone hope you all had a great christmas mine was very nice starting off on chriatmas eve we had a nice dinner then went to church and the church hall was packed I have never seen it that full the carols were wonderful and the weather was good we did not have any snow, christmas morning was a lot of fun opening the gifts then we went to jane's for dinner another wonderful meal, I came home on boxing day and spent the day dozing, the family went back to janes for the big boxing day gathering that has taken place for over a 100yrs started by one family member a great x3 grandmother of lindys, jane was expecting a total of 67 to be coming for drinks and then a buffet all hands on deck to help out. it was raining so not sure if all made it as it turned into icey rain later in the day. to-day I have planned my menu for next sunday when the family come I am looking at an old turnip and applesauce receipe I used to do years ago when andrew was small you can make it ahead a day or so. wll that is it for me take care bye for now dorothy and yes it was 67 not a misprint

Belated happy Christmas to all on Friend & Neighbours Worldwide v2 - my visits to GR has decreased over the past year. Friends says sites like GR and Facebook are time wasters and anti-social. Be it so it is a worthwhile link to friends around the globe. Rumour abounds that Facebook will eventually charge its members and should that occur their client base will greatly reduce. When I started on GR contacts were formed and over time they too have dropped off becoming a memory. Each Christmas is a time remember family members who are no longer with us and friends who likewise are no longer here.
Our son joined us for Christmas and we had family time together and later went to my Mum's for Christmas dinner with family who are still in New Zealand. On Sunday [27th] Craig and I visited two cemeteries to photograph the graves of my grandparents and great-great grandparents. Both graveyards have this sense of peaceful serenity. Til next time, bless you heaps, John

Hope everyone had a good Christmas. Lost my address book so lots of my cards could not be posted as I could not remember addresses - still can't find it, so annoying. Even more frustrating, my Jacquie Lawson subs ran out on 21st December, I tried to renew but there was a glitch in the system and it would not accept either of my debit cards. Couldn't even send e-cards, will try again later today as I haven't been able to get on the computer (son has kept it occupied either playing chess or doing updates, scans etc)

John, I agree both GR and FB are often called anti-social but as you say they are a link to people around the world. I have kept in touch with quite a few people who are no longer members of GR but it is not quite as regular or frequent as in the days when we were all members.

Dorothy, you are so right - drivers in this country just do not know how to drive in snow. In my opinion all L drivers should have to go on a skid-pan as part of the test because, in this country, we are more likely to have icy roads than snow-bound. The main problem is that we are just not used to heavy snowfalls and local authorities are, only too frequently, slow to respond to the warnings that snow is forecast. I live close by Heathrow, very busy roads and frequent heavy traffic, the gritters should have been out in force but not on our side of the airport. I cannot comment on the North side as I haven't been on those roads in the past week or so - and that comes under a different borough. Here the roads were a nightmare of packed snow and ice - not to mention the dreadful state of the roads generally. Full of pot-holes and a nightmare to use, they only repair in patches which causes more problems, one road is like riding a switchback and plays havoc with your suspension.
A lot of people don't even get their cars serviced for the winter weather - lack of foresight and just plain carelessness causes more accidents and breakdowns - how many people "forget" to top up their anti-freeze and don't even think about it in their screen washers. Off my soap box now!!!

67 is quite a gathering Dorothy - but great fun I'm sure, in my house it would mean everyone would be getting very, very close!!! I think we managed to squeeze in 50 for one of my son's 21st (a few years ago now)
We had to move all the furniture to the bedrooms and landing (stopped any of the youngsters "disappearing" lol). I hope all goes well with your family gathering next Sunday, hard work but great fun to have all your family together.

Fred, so pleased that Sean and Sara are able to have some time in their new home. Great that Sean has been welcomed into Sara's family. I wish them many, many years of happiness together.
Yes please, may I have the recipe for the corned beef?

Brenda, enjoy your break - not too long now until March and having a well deserved rest from working. I hope the antibiotics work and John soon shakes off that chest infection. What a thing to bring back from your holiday !! Hope your weather does not get any worse. It is freezing here at the moment but all the snow has gone now. Trouble is we have had several heavy downpours so the roads (where it has flooded) are still treacherous.

Indira's job did not last long - it was pretty awful anyway and she hated it.
Somebody did say to her "She (the GM) will get rid of you next week as the busy time is past" Sure enough she was told "I haven't done the shift roster yet, will ring you later" she did and said "Don't bother coming back, I think you will do what all the others have done and ring in to say you don't feel well and not come back again" Apparently she has started 20 people in 3 weeks and none have stayed. Indira would have carried on working as she wanted to earn some money - but sounds like a pretty naff place to work for. Anyway she has applied for more jobs and keeping positive about it all. Hopefully the New Year will be more promising.

Does anyone know how Sylvia and Johan are? I am not sure that I have the correct e-mail address for her, I think she changed it. Would really like to know how they are.

Wishing you all A VERY HAPPY NEW YEAR and may you all stay healthy (and wealthy would be good!).

God bless and love
Kathleen

hi how nice to read the updates from john and kathleen at the moment it is cold and the snow is blowing though we are only expected to recieve about 5-10 cm not much in this area but I don't have to go out till wednesday perhaps sylvia will pop on the site after the holidays I also hope that she is well, off to make a bit of supper bye for now dorothy

Good afternoon - on a cold, very wet and breezy day. I turned my tree lights on to brighten up the place and to shine outside so that people passing would see something pretty to look at as they go by. it is so dark and miserable looking out.
Hope you don't get too much snow Dorothy, I remember last year you had so much and it seemed to go on forever.
This year all of my boys have been lucky enough to book time off over all of the holiday period. Although I think Philip has to go in on one night - tonight.
Being shift workers it usually works out that they get only one of the days off so it has been good to have them all around this year for both Christmas and New Year.
Nothing much exciting happening now. We hope to go to Solihull to see my youngest daughter and her family for New Years Eve, fingers crossed the weather co-operates. It is always nice to be there, gets very noisy with lots of music as both my son in law and eldest grandson play guitar - thankfully nobody tries to sing as none of us can!!!! Then there is the sport "discussions" Football v Cricket. Man U v Chelsea all very friendly but usually quite loud. Thankfully theirs is a detached house so the neighbours don't get too disturbed.
Hope you are all having a nice rest now after the Christmas festivities - now 361 days to go to the next one.

Take care
Love
Kathleen

goodmorning well the promised snow storm blew by us we recieved a little snow but the wind was so strong it blew most of it away, though yeterday was very cold -25 it did warm up a lttle later in the day the olympic torch relay came through town last evening the family went out to see it go by I did not as it was too cold for me but andrew called to tell me all about it later I did watch it on the local new quite interesting. I am off to the british store this morning to buy a little haggis Ian the youngest has requested this with his turkey dinner on sunday, fred I have no idea how to make this so it will have to be from the store he liked it the last time we had breakfast there they have a little cafe attached to the store. hope you all are fine with the weather I shall phone anne this am and check on her bye for now dorothy