General Chat

This is a very quick reply while I canuse the pc as its been going soooo slow the past few days.
Weather little warmer but not as much sunshine.
Hope you two ladies are feeling better than your were,and all the tests and new medicines work out well.Need to go back to bed now on work at 9amtomorrow,then only have ,Saturday ,Monday ,Tuesday and wednesday to work.
Take care Brenda

Good morning to Sylvia,Dorothy ,Brenda ,and John ,plus any more who happen by.
It would seem as though we are all in the wars at the minute ,there's poor Sylvia ,still having a hard time of it ,Dorothy ,who ,like me are being checked up on by our doc's keeping their eyes on with the ticker trouble ,and John ,although pretty much okay himself ,having problems over the wifes ,shoddy treatment by her doctors.
ME? i have to go to the surgery next week to have my heart checked out for function and other concerns ,and i will have to get something done with the arthritis as well this gettin' old ain't all it's cracked up to be ,lol
I was in Mary's chalet two days ago ,and somehow missed my footing ,landing up on the floor,and catching my back on the door frame,oooooh ,it did smart a bit he he,luckily the back garden is finished and ready to go ,so i have a few days in which to get myself fully mobile again.
The son is going to come down this morning and turn out the potato barrels for me ,so that once i can bend properly again ,i can start them off again ,and start the front garden starting with the pruning and lawns.
The high winds we had last week lifted a couple of tiles ,so the son came down and refitted them again,and now i have to get a roofer in to re -render the gable end damaged by the sever frosts over this past winter.this will re pin the tiles to the gable end for another few years hopefully.
I should be able to get the whole gable end done for £200 [hopefully]
We will be going to see Age Concern in the town later this morning.,to see about this stay warm duel fuel idea ,this enabling me to pay a set amount throughout the year ,and giving me the option of being able to turn the heating up when it gets really cold ,to keep Liz warm,and i will check while i am there too,in case there are other things i can get done through them as well.
What a lovely morning it is ,i think i will out with my walking stick and hobble round the garden till the stiff back eases a little ,lol,he he this could prove interesting when i go to the docs ,if i am still really sore,because i had trouble with the arthritis on the treadmill last time ,and if he asks me to go on it again this time ,i'm likely to tell him to bu***r off .Catch you all later ,Fred.

hi goodmorning all the walking wounded fred I hope that your back gets better soon and I have to agree with you the treadmill is something I dislike it is not fun, I spoke to anne in bury yesterday and she is joining the list of the walking wounded she has just found out she has to have bothe eyes done for cataracts they have just ripend very quickly she said she is going to go private to avoid a long waiting list as she can't drive at the moment and she hates that, her children are a big help but she hates asking for things is that something that our age group have in common or just that we value independance, brenda if I read it right you have 4shifts left how exciting your new chapter in your life is starting and I wish you every happiness, again it is a lovely day going to be about 60 and then it changes saturday a friend of mine her daughter in law's sister is getting wed a big wedding 500 guests it is a big italian wedding the bride and groom are both 38 never wed before and he is the only son it will be quite the bash. my family are sking to-day as the week off draws to a close still good ski-ing on the hills near me about a 20min drive to moonstone ski hill. bye for now dorothy

Good morning all from the frozen north [Newcastle] where it 'aint lol.
The weather is pretty mild,and things are going well out back ,where my lovely missus has played a blinder in the Chalet and garden ,all the stuff is in pots now ,veggies ,flowers ,and bulbs,all i have to do is plant on where needed,wahey ,this is more like it.The old back is still a little sore but never mind 'a ,it could have been much worse ,i might have broken something ,like plant pots or tubs he he.
I have the acer on line getting it ready for Blackpool .the updates it did in a few hours is astounding,but as soon as that is finished i will upload it to the verbatim hard drive in case i loose the settings.
The verbatim is idealf or travelling light ,and small enough to place in the puter case or even a pocket ,the best £40i ever spent for a cracking tool.
Yes Brenda is shortly going to join an ever growing club ,lol, she won't know herself ,not that she won't find things any easier ,but the difference is ,she can do what she want's and when she decides to do it,much more genteel .
hope Anne gets her op's done very quickly ,getting them removed is going to make all the difference ,and the healing is usually very quick.
The son is coming today to start the summer bedroom for us ,while we use 'tother, we are going to redo the paper with a white patterned sort that we can just emulsion in future.
The tatties in the first barrel where a disaster ,all soft and yucky, so the one Charlotte i put in as a control came out trumps yet again,so ,it's back to the best i ever tried in this barrel.
The barrel at the top of the garden i planted with Lincoln reds,so will see how they turn out,hopefully good because to my mind they are about the best all round main crop i ever tried.
Well,that's it for now,the son has arrived ,that's me busy for the rest of the morning,and the afternoon is shopping day in Cramlington and the filling station on the way home tofill up before the midnight deadline on the price increases,more than ever ,roll on june when we take delivery of the new car ,which is diesel and a lot cheaper top run.
Catch you all later ,Fred.

goodmorning from a rather nice morning in barrie the sun is shining and it is not too cold the children are all back at school to-day and lindy is not teaching to-day as she has been called for jury duty wether she will get picked or not remains to be seen , andrew was over yesterday trying to set my e-book gift that they gave me and will be back again at lunch time to finish it off ie. explaining all the ins and outs to me . to-morrow he will drive me to get the monitor put on. I will talk to anne later to-day to see how she is making out getting apts re her eyes hopefull things will move along fast. fred you talk about the summer bedroom do you have one for all seasons? hope the decorating goes along quickly for you, brenda not much longer then you will be a lady of leisure bye for now dorothy

Evening all,well only two shifts to do after tonight,this is my last 8pm finish!!! and I still can not beleive it,probably wont until I am sat at home wondering what I am doing!!!
Its been a miserable day weatherwise,even had some hail a coup,e of times.!! BUt its kept the borrowers out.only the computers are busy
Be back tomorrow from work as we are in the middle of swapping things over at home.
Take care <Brenda.

Morning all[ best Dixon of Dock Green voice] things look a little better here this morning so i think i will go out back very shortly and put the red onion sets in.
The summer bedroom as we call it ,is the one on the gable end of the house where there is a prevailing wind from the north, and this keeps the room cool and pleasant in summer ,but is a lot colder than the other main bedroom inwinter,so depending on the time of year ,we swap from one to the other ,lol,sounds posh anyway,Marys chalet is okay all the time, protected by the fences on three sides ,and the house on the other.[means i can kip there any time if the missus throws a wobbler and kicks me out ,he he.
Off out now to do a little work in the garden ,now that the garden waste bin has been emptied ,still have a load of pruning to do lol,catch you all later ,Fred.

Evening all,not sure how much like Dixon of Dock Green I can sound!!
Weather very mixed today ,but as we were in work we did not really mind the rainuntil I had to go out with some rubbish for the bin,
Only tomorrow to work now ,not sure how I feel,sorry in one way for leaving a great bunch of people and glad to be able to take my time and do my own thing.
Been doing my car tax and looking for house insurance ,there is such a big difference in prices and what cover you get!!
ER fred you do sound posh with the summer bedroom etc but I had a neighbour who changed sitting rooms in the summer she was in the front room and winter in the back as it was smaller and easier to keep warm,made sense really.
Better get back downstairs and ready to watch my CSI programme.
Take care
Brenda

hi fred I can now understand why you change bedrooms great idea brenda good luck on your last day at work so much fun and good times ahead of you, I am wired up at the moment the monitor comes off at 12-30 so it isnot 24hrs of wearing it has not been too bad, another sunny day up to 14 but to-morrow it changes again I believe you put the clocks ahead this sat eve so we will be back to 5hrs apart. the building is having another pot luck supper on sunday they do go over well, not sure yet what I am taking probably a desert. bye for now dorothy

Afternoon Brenda mwhat's the first thing you notice on the first day of retirement ,lol,bet you tried to roll over for a few more minutes in the warm only to find ,for the first time in many years ,you were wide awake ,he he ,it happens to us all i reckon.
Hope you get a few days to yourself over the next few days so thjat you can relax and recharge your batteries.
My ticker apointment went fine so i came home and pulled the paper off the door surrouind in the kitchen and applied a coat of damp seal to stop any moisture from the sink surround making the wall damp.
I will replaster that sunken area over the next two days ,recoat the repair with more paint,leave it for a week and then repaper,leaving the wall .and the rest of the kitchen walls ready for some new emulsion.
A nnice chicken curry for tea tonight ,with a few chips ,mmmmmmm,catch you all later ,Fred.

HAPPY RETIREMENT TO BRENDA MAY YOU HAVE MANY HAPPY DAYS AHEAD OF YOU. goodmorning one and all from a cold but sunny barrie big weather change -15 last night yesterday afternoon I missed a call from the cardiac doc so I will have to try and catch up with him to-day he left me a message re his whereabouts for to-day mon and tues nice guy. he has my test results for me, glad you had a good check up fred you will be fitting fit for all the garden work ahead of you, now brenda I can't help wondering if you will be wondering around bury market to-morrow (sat) if so have a good time bye for now dorothy

hello everyone,well so far so good,had a really lovelly day at work on wednesday,had loads of flowers, cards and presents,with banners and balloons decoarating the library.
Had friends and family calling round and phoning in the evning,David was out at the match,so John made us a lovelly tea with some steak he got half price at Morrisons,with some mushrooms and onions,we also had a bottle of wine!!
Had a bit of a lie in on Thursday so was a bit out of my routine when i got downstairs ,forgot to unset the alarm ,which went of as I opened the curtains,then when I was opening a new bag of dried cat food, the bag spilt ,all over the floor,just as the door bell went ,luckily it was my brother and sister in law!! so it was abit of a memorable first day of retirement.
I am hope fully going to Bury tomorrow ,,hope its dry,and then to get some compost and seed potatos as one of my gifts was two potato growing sacks!!
In the evening I am going out for a meal and a drink with the people from work and John,whic promises to be good.On Monday I am having my girlfriends round to lunch,making hot pot and sandwiches for them,with a cream cake each for afters !!!the cakes will be bought not made by me.
I am so pleased you both seem to be ok with your check ups.
Have to have one next month myself ,had a colonoscopy five years ago and now need a check up to see all is well,.
I am sat trying to type with one of the cats on my knee and he keeps moving round so I am getting fed up with having to correct myself.
Better go and have a warm drink then back to bed,See you all tomorrow or sunday after the clocks have gone forward,
Take care,Brenda

goodmorning glad to hear brenda that you were treated to a great goodbye from the libraryand that you have enjoyed the dinner out sounds like retirement is starting of well, if you went to bury hope that you had a good afternoon,I see that the duke of gloucester was there on friday opening the bury black pudding place I assuming they have moved to new premises? been a bit chilly here the last 2 days to-day we are having a pot luck supper in the building I am bringing a desert , tennis is on starting to-morrow last night I watched the blind side on the tele I really enjoyed it a bit of a 2 hankie movie in parts.hope you all had a good week-end bye for now dorothy

Hello all,I really thought I had put a message on the other day to say i was hoping to get to Bury on Saturday depending on the weather!!<well we got there bit chilly but dry,got a couple of cardigans on the indooor market,a bit dressy to wear instead of a jacket.Did not go all round the market and John did not fancy black pudding so we di not go near the stall.so do not know if its moved.
One of the presents I got for my retirement was a couple of potato sacks ,so we called at B&Q and got the compost etc on the way home they have been set up in the garden .Also was given strawberry bucket ,but have to set that up with a plastik frame just for now.
We had a brilliant night out on Saturday with my friends from the library,and my old friend came to lunch yesterday ,did a hot pot that went don really well,Hope your supper went well Dorothy. Might go to the cinema with my friend to see that film.,,,Have to do heaps of thank you letters etc and will be delivering a few boxes of biscuits to each of the libraries I worked at this week as a thank you for the collections they made and the lovelly presents I received.
See you all later ,Brenda

Good morning all ,from a rather chilly,wet Newcastle ,lol,back to a mini winter methinks .
If you havn't already got your seed potatoes Brenda ,i suggest going to any store ,and buying a bag of ordinary charlotte tatties ,and set some aside to chit [start shooting] before you bung them in.
Charlotte are pest resistant,rot resistant and if watered every week ,they will give you a heavy crop of good all round tatties,as in chippers ,roasties ,boilers whatever ,lol
Nice one with the strawberries too ,ours are in the huge tubs we have the apple an plum trees in ,and make nice eating,you could do a lot worse than growing a few odds and ends for yourself.
The wife and i love the black pudding slices as a treat with bacon ,egg,sausage ,beans ,which we have about once a month,it has even been known for us to go overboard and add a piece of sliced haggis.
Thank goodness the cat food was the dried sort ,or you would have had a right mess to clear up ,lol,know what you mean though ,i seem to be a bit accident prone at the minute.
I decided to get a builder in to do the gable end ,because the son is too busy to find the time ,but no matter ,i got a pal to see one of his chums ,who is used to roofs and brickwork.
The lads came early this morning to see what wanted doing,and gave me a price to strip off all the old cement off the edge ridges,and resettle the loose tiles and re point the lot,and they are going to reduce the chimney stack and re point that too ,replacing the pot and cowl.
The total cost is £300 and that is the whole house done,so i am well chuffed.
I made a big batch of pease pudding last night ,yum ,loads going in the freezer for my fish and chips and enough left in the pot for my fish supper tonight.
will have to take some down to the sis' in law ,in three weeks ,because she can't get it in Lancashire in either Manchester ,or Blackpool,disgusting i calls it ,he he ,loads of beutiful ham to be had ,and no pudding to go with it ,huuumph .
I see the government is interfearing with the media yet again ,i do think it's time for the public to stand as one and tell them we have had enough.
Now ,they want to do away with the fm am radio system and go digital,which means many more transmitters needed costing Billions which the tax payer will have to pay for ,and where pray ,are they going to find the extra land fill to dispose of all these old radios? anything but going green which is what they say is what we all have to do.
Digital radios and televisions use much more electricity too ,up to %10 more ,so much for reducing the carbon foot print,it's all a badly thought out ruse to screw the public for more money,bad crack Brown ,AND they wern't going to tell us until it was too late to stop it all.
Have to go now ,things to do ,catch you later Fred.

Hi all,been doing some more sorting out this time the cupbaords in the dining room and some of the drawers in the bedroom,had to put a lot of bits and peices in the rubbish bag and only a few in the charity bag,but havenearly a full drawer empty now and a full shelf in the cupboard.
Went to The Lowry center to day ,went with a friend who needs some new sandals for her sons wedding in two weeks!! but we did not have any joy.
She will go into Manchester for another look next week.
Fred we bought some seed potatoes at B&Q they were not dear,could not find the charlottes anywhere.John has done both the sacks and a tub,so we will see how they get on,have been looking at other things we might try .
weather back to winter like you said Fred,put my light weight mac on today but was a bit chilly.Might have to carry on with the old winter coat for some time yet.
Need to get to bed now ,eyes are starting to droop,
Take care ,Brenda

What amiserable week end it has been weatherwise,really cold and wet in places,spring has sprung yet !!
Had a good night at a party at my sisters last night great to see all the family together again,she had hoped it was going to be warmer so people could go into the garden ,but it wasn't as warm as she hoped ,people only went out to smoke and then came back in.But we all had a good time,
Meeting a friend tomorrow,hope we can get to the cinema but will make do with a coffee and a chat if we do not .
Better go and see about the washing as it was raining earlier and it was put into the dryer!!.
Hope you all enjoy what is left of the holiday ,
Brenda

Hi there Brenda,it would seem we are the only ones home ,lol,all the others are either hiding in bed where it's warm ,or they are away in warmer climbs for the Easter break ,either way ,they are the sensible ones ,he he.
Wet here too ,and cool. for the time of year,my stuff out in the veggie garden are on strike ,refusing to grow at all ,hmmmmm,the only stuff showing any movement is the gear in the chalet,and all that is growing in therre is the hardy stuff like the Brassica,my poor tomato seeds are still too sensible to show through the compost.
Both of us are stopping at home with really bad colds and don't want to pass them to the kids ,so ,no easter egg deliveries as yet.
Three weeks to go to our holiday in Blackpool and surrounding towns and beach ,so i hope that A the colds are well and trully gone by then,and B, the weather is a lot better by then ,i can't imagine an amble along the new coastal defences in this plurry weather ,he he.I have really cheated with the meals over this holiday ,using all pre cooked meat from the freezer ,just adding the veggies on the day ,fresh cooked ,well ,after all ,that's what freezers are for.
I did freeze one product that the sis in law will enjoy,some nice Peas pudding ,two containers will be going down for her when we start off.
we did well enough for poultry and meat ,a whole breast of turkey,sliced ,home cooked ham ,and a few slices of home cured ,cooked corned beef ,a rare treat as what there is in the freezer has to last until December when I press the chalet into service to cure the next batches [the kitchen being too small] for two five kilo slabs of Scot's beef. to sit in for 8 to 10 days.
A nice simple dinner ,or tea today ,a slice of Lorne sausage each with two rashers of bacon ,and an egg ,done with baked beans or tinned plum tomatoes and cooked new potatoes cut into wedges and fried lightly in oil
I am ,at the moment up dating the Acer ready for the holiday ,so i think i had better get on with it before i start dinner.
Hope everyone has had a nice break ,even if the weather has been naff ,lol
Fred

Good morning all - a lovely sunny morning thankfully.

Sorry I have not been around much for some time, I did try a couple of weeks ago but found sitting on this chair too uncomfortable to stay for more than a few minutes. Problem with sciatica - it's a bit painful. About 8 weeks ago woken up in the night with what felt like a mouthful of jumping teeth in my leg.
Sounds daft but it is the best description I can think of for the pain. 10 days later it was no better so I phoned for a Doctor's appointment and was able to see him the following Tuesday. Sent for X-rays, blood tests, urine tests etc.
Fortunately nothing too serious showed, just some wear on the hip, spine showed some weekness in the bones and arthritis in my neck, arms and legs. Treatment painkillers and calcium tablets. Getting older just isn't any fun - thankfully my brain still works!!!!
It is all getting a bit easier, Doctor said the sciatica would go (he didn't say when!!)
Hope you are enjoying your retirement Brenda, you seem to be able to find enough to do to fill your days - makes you wonder how you found time to go to work doesn't it?
Fred, thank you for the Easter Card - it was brilliant. I like the tip about buying Charlottes to use for planting out. I love Charlottes they last well and taste so good, versatile as well. Would still like your recipe for corning beef please.
Dorothy hope you enjoyed your "pot luck" supper, sounds such a great idea. Trust you and your family are all keeping well
Sylvia, trust you are feeling a little better now, hopefully the weather will improve - a little bit of sunshine makes a lot of difference. We have all had enough of the cold and wet weather.

Sorry, must stand up and take a walk around. Too much sitting is not good - walking is better now but I can't stand for too long. Mustn't complain - I have been pretty lucky so far to have got to my age without too many problems.

Take care everyone
Love to you all
Kathleen

Morning all,well just about,nice to hear from you Kathleen,sorry you havr had bother with the scatica,I am enjoying my retiremeny very wll ,just wish the weather was better.
Been trying to find a holiday for us ,but not had much luck ,we are getting a bit fussy as we get older!!
Will email you about your holiday and the possiblity of meeting up Fred.
Had a message from Dorothy who is not well at the moment awaitng some tests,so I wish her all the best.
Have to get to the post office before they close for lunch,forgot to go last week with a parcel to return!!.
Take care ,Brenda