General Chat

Hi all ,I did read the messages yesterday and was sure I had writen s hort reply,I must be more tired thai thought!!!!!
Just got back from the cemetary its two years today since my lovely brave dad died,doesn;t seem like two days never mind years!!!! where does the time go???
We have had two more babies in the family and the wedding that was just five weeks before he died has disovled,the estate has now been wound up and life goes on,but I miss him even more now and if its possible!!!
Hope you have a good visit at your sons Dorothy,my sister phoned on friday really up set ,telling me she had had to have her cat put to sleep.She had not been well but got worse over the wednesday and Thursday so they took her to the vets Friday who said she was in pain and was bleeding intenally she wast 20 years of age so my sister did not want her in pain and she was put to sleep .
\\\\\she was the last of the animals my sister and her first husband had together all the others have died following her husband who died at 41.She has still got a dog ,but he was bought with her second husband.We have manged to find and book a holiday in sept.to tenerife its aplace we have ben before and enjoyed so we are looking forward to it now.Just need to get a bit of weight off,!!better go and start tea, see you all tomorrow,brenday

Morning all ,had a day off yesterday and got stuck into the gardens ,finishing off at 7 pm last night well satisfied with all i got done,i only have one border left to weed and i am back on track.
Good Grief Teneriefe Brenda,[hey ,that rhymes he he] Don't mind me Lass, what a great result for you finding a holiday at short notice ,and to a place you love to boot .
I wish i could get a return trip to Cyprus, but i can't afford that at the minute ,but i can't complain ,i do okay for my yearly breaks even if they are in the uk.
I have already started getting my seeds ready for next year ,finding a lot of seed at half price ,parsnip .onion.tomato's ,and the dwarf French climbers i was looking for.and of course i have seed which i collect myself ,that saves a packet,and is fun to do.
I never remember my dad Brenda ,he died shortly after i was born ,but my mum ,she died a long time ago ,and i still miss her a lot ,it's something you learn to live with isn't it ,and you must have wonderful memories to keep you going .
The wife tells me that one runner bean has started coming through the vent into the greenhouse and is flowering in there,lol,so i told her ," leave it be ,i can pick the beans in the rain without getting wet ",
Going to make the stuffed marrow [courgette] for tea something nice ,tasty ,and soft seeing as i will be minus a molar after the dentist's visit at 9-30 this morning ,lol.
any one down there having trouble with msn messenger these last few days or is it just me? i keep getting told that it's off line ,despite reloading the programme twice ,but at least i can still get into my e'mail inbox..
Have to go now ,work to do before i go out ,that sort of thing.
Catch you later on peeps ,have a nice day all. Fred.

evening all,had another good day ,sorted something at the bank and did some shopping.made a new meal for tea acourgette ,feta a nd new potatoe fratata,it was ok but think it needed some more herbs n spices,
will have another go in a few weeks,
have a few errands tomorrow and another visit to the library they have a book for me.Have tried a few of my summer tops on but i have put a lot of weight on recently.So I getting back on my diet.How are your teeth fred ,not too much discomfort i hope.
I would not mind holidays in UK fred but John says we can not trust the weather.!!
just got a cuppa,no biccies .see you tomorrow.brenda

Morning Brenda,look on the world weather channels he he ,can you tell me ONE country these days where you can trust the weather ,lol ,i think not.
Hey the toothie peg was no probs. lol ,the dentist used a new injection instead of novocaine ,so ,no numbing of the mouth ,or gum,no pain at all ,and done from start to finish in 3 minutes ,i was well chuffed.
I even spent two hours straight afterwards shopping with the missus ,with no after effects,not at all bad.
Can't get into the garden this morning because of the heavy rain ,which is just as well,as i went up for a lie down yesterday afternoon because the cat kept going to the bottom of the stairs ,looked ay me and complained [meow ] which i took to mean why are you not coming when i call ,lol.so anyway ,because of this i was asleep ,and missed the thunder storm,bu***r,lol.
The wife decided to save me a job while i was asleep,yeah ,right ,as if ,and reloaded the printer software because it was acting up,WITHOUT deleting the previous version first ,on top of which ,she thought the problem might have something to do with the wireless dongle ,so she connected the cable to the printer instead ,with out removing the software first,when i came downstairs it was to find her in tears ,trying to download the pictures i sent her over the net from my sons ,finding the images coming through as zip files ,and not jpeg,because the computer was so fouled up that the screen was jumping about like a demented flea.
Grrrrrr ,he he ,when i went into the files on the hard drive it had 20 hp printer files on it instead of six,and a right mix up of printer cables and wireless dongle files enough to keep me going for an hour just removing them all ,one by one to sort the puter out ,and Then,it took a further hour to defrag the drive ,before the puter was usable again.women huh ,mine at least dosn't know how to use a combi oven to toast and cook a jacket spud at the same time ,he he ,computers are to use only ,not to programme.
My Own fault i suppose ,i could have saved myself two hours work doing it myself to start with[smacks wrist ].
Well ,i have to buy a largish urn or pot now for my orange tree ,i isss so chuffed to find that the roots are at the bottom of the pot again and it needs repotting yet again,but i have to make sure i can get the pot in ther door of the greenhouse for the winter ,fleece on it's own for frost protection is not enough up this end of the country,and i would be devistated if i lost it now.
Just as well we are off to Cramm'y Later this morning ,there are at least three places top buy a new receptacle
My Courgette is so big it will be getting done as a stuffed marrow tomorrow ,just the job to give my mouth time to heal,it being nice and soft,i think a mix of spices veggie mince and rice will be just the ticket.
Last evening i did the eight mushroom s i had left after the stalks were chopped into a stir fry,the heads were stuffed with cous cous ,mixed with a little thia green pesto,topped with a breadcrumb ,cheese garnish.which went down a treat,again nice and soft ,but very very tasty
Well ,time for a shave ,wash ,and a veeery careful .tooth brushing he he,catch you later peeps,Fred.

Hi fred,hope Dorothy is ok staying at her sons,wish I had access to a big washer to do the duvets etc,
Glad the tooth did not create any problems.
Looks like I am in for another sleepless night ,went to bed at 11 ,read a while .went to sleep after about, a half hour.woke up at 3 went to the loo ,but could get back asleep so got up and came on here.
Going to Bury tomorrow,no market on but going a walk round the new shopping centre with my friend,we will probably have lunch or a sandwich and drink ,thurday is her day off so she can only go on market days when she is on holiday,but she wants to see the new shops!!!
Tried a new reciepe with some courgettes my other friend gave me at weekend ,it was a fratatta withcorgettes, potatos and feta cheese had to imprvise as you needed a frying pan that would go in the oven.which we have not got so got the bootom cooke din the pan the sort of slipped it into a shallow pyrex dish and baked it.Not bad really ,but might try a different cheese as the feta does not melt..Going for a look see at other sites now.Brendae

Sorry about the spellin in previous message my acrylic nails don't type very well.!

Morning Brenda yep ,it was a pleasure to take my morning diabetic tablets and asprin in cold wather without hitting the roof ,he he ,£62 well spent i reckon.
Try using some dutch gouda or emmental in your frattata, the cheese used normally in cheese melts and panninies, melts no problem and keeps for a long time if wrapped and put in the fridge.
Mind you ,i cook my frattata in a normal frying pan ,and finishing it off under the grill ,leaving the handle sticking out ,no prob's with the handle melting that way He He.
Enjoy the trip to Bury ,i am looking forward to having a mooch about round that market
I have tried a windows repair on Windows live ,to no avail ,so i am thinking of using msn for my e mail in future ,and stuff the rest,i will use the old ,reliable yahoo messenger in future ,even the email is simpler and quicker to send photos on .microsoft is a total waste ofs pace to my mind ,the quicker google bring out a full server and operating system the better,i for one will exit windows and opt for apple.
Got to go now ,i have some stuff to take to my sons and then i am off to the Out Door Centre in Westerhope to get my camping stove gas [Calor] which is cheaper from the store than going half a mile further and getting it from the Calor distribution Centre , crazy world for sure..
Catch you later all ,he he ,Fred.

evening all, had a good day in Bury yesterday apart from getting drenched in the downpours and having soar feet walikng about so much,Its a bit of a traipse from the tram station to the new shops and walking round the new shops I did not buy a thing just looked!!!
Tgodat I went to see my auntie with one of my brothers,she is 90 next March and hasn't been well..She was talking about my dad as a lad ,and how my brother is like him,which is true,
have a day to myself tomorrow was hoping for dry weather to clean the inside of the car ,cut do not think I will be somehow,So might just spend the day reading and surfing the web,as they say,
Have a good weekend
BrendaI

hi To all ,from a cold ,very wet Newcastle ,August 14 and Fred has had to turn the heating on to warm the house up ,ruddy crazy weather ,lol.
I walked into the greenhouse first thing this morning to a cry from my tomato plants "Hey ,shut that door ,it's ruddy freezin' in here ",lol
I can't get ovet the back of the garden to pick some of the lovely looking Broad Beans ,soi will have to go for cabbage and cauli' for the days dinner.
I finally got round to preparing the stuffed ,marrow for todays repast ,and tasted a tad of the filling i couldn't get in [ honest ] he he ,wow ,what a treat this is going to be ,smackes lips.
The wife got me 1/2 pound of pork mince out of the freezer last night ,so i put a skillet on the cooker this morning with a little olive oil ,and chopped up redpepper and onion,and sweated them down with black pepper and salt ,adding a little chillie flakes in the last minute of cooking.
At the same time i prepared one of those rice packets you buy [golden vegetables ] i used .then mixed the two together adding some Hendersons Relish,and a stock cube [chicken],then the mix went into the hollowed halves before i put them together and wrapped them in foil.
This i will put into the oven at the same time as my roast potato ,and sweet peppers,and a little sliced couirgette to roast off.
Along with some dutchess potato ,a bit of cabbage ,cauli ,and gravy ,a meal fit for anyone.
I found a lovely ceramic type ,grey bucket yesterday ,and this morning ,transferred the orange tree to a big plastic bucket i got from Asda, which sits in the ceramic one spot on ,so if the winter is too cold for the tree i can bring the whole thing indoors until spring.,and of course ,it can then sit on the patio when it warms up outside [yeah right ,as if ] lol.
I Gave up on windows Live because it is still full of bugs ,and have now removed everything except msn mail ,messenger i have deleted for good ,i now use Yahoo messenger ,far more reliable.
Had a lovely Manx style kipper for breakie this morning ,not as nice as the Craster ones ,but more in my price range,i enjoy a kipper once in a while ,but have to spray the kitchen despite cooking with the outside kitchen door open ,the wife hates the smell of kipper ,but she has a point ,the odour does linger a tad ,a bit like smelly socks ,only stronger he he.
Well ,like Brenda ,i am off to have a look round the w w web ,and then do the dusting upstairs and down.catch you later,Fred.

hi one and all it is saturday am and I came home yesteday after a few days at the son's and yes brenda I made good use of the big washer so all the duvet's etc are nice and clean I am sorry to see that you and fred have had bad weather, dare I mention that this past week it has been about 40-42 with the humidity supposed to break to-day.we are off to the camp to-day to pick up laura nad Ian laura was taken to the localhospital this past monday she was hit in the head by the sailboat boom but apart from a bad headache and throwing up to quote her she was ok I recieved a letter with all the details as only a dramatic 13yr old can write. the older boy will still be away for another 2 weeks he arrives at this camp on sunday so we won't get to see him his dad is a bit disappointed about not seeing him to-day. Lindy will meet us at the camp she has been at the family cottage for a few days with her mother and sister she will be picking up her 3. fred see that you have been cooking up some good meals and how great that your orange tree is doing so well. brenda anne can get a bus that drops her off at the back of the new marks and sparks well I should get showered and ready to go take care bye for now dorothy

Hallo everyone,
Thank you Brenda, Dorothy and Badger for your day to day happenings in your house. It's interesting to hear what your neighbour is doing. Me, as usual tied up with doctors, physiotherapists etc.etc.
I have been very sick this last week with a painful rash which I have picked up from using a spray can for the artritis pain. I bought this spray some years ago in Spain and have used it many times but no problems. However, this time I used it I came out in large red patches of rash which was painful, itching on my neck, chest, arms and back. My doctor gave me some anti allergic tablets. I already take an anti-allergic tablet every day so had to stop taking this whilst taking the new one. I have lost 9 kilos in weight in a week's time. I have felt very sick and still cannot enjoy a meal, bad headaches and dizzy. Johan and I have booked a cruise on the Rhine in Germany and we leave 7 September so hope I'll be better by then.
See you again when I feel like it. Syl xxx

Morning all,and Slaps Sylvia on the wrist straight away ,[but gently] tut tut old friend all medication goes toxic if it is kept too long,ditch the can lass ,and buy a new one ,that's what the problem will be,always read the instructions on cans and bottles ,they all give expiry dates[.End of lecture] ,lol,hope the rash goes away quickly.
Sounds as though this trip is just what you need Sylvia ,just the pick me up that will do you the world of good hmmmm ,you don't have room in your case for a stowaway do you ? he he.
Glad to hear that the daughter is okay after the clout round the head ,'specially after being sick ,a sure sign of concussion ,shock ,or even worse ,both ,cor i bet it was painful too, a bit like my altercation with a cricket ball a couple of years ago ,i know it didn't half smart he he.,still .all's well that ends well so they say.
New shopping centre now open in Bury as well as the market ,now that ensures that Fred will be in town all day ,he he.
Have fun all ,Fred is off to upload his new pics ,including one of the orange tree in it's new ,permanent home a nice ceramic pot with an Asda bucket liner, so that i can bring it indoors in a posh state if the winter gets too cold in the greenhouse,
Catch you all later ,Fred

Well now i am sure i am loosing my mind or something was really sure i had sent a reply after Dorothy left her last message!!! mind you have been really tired again so could have dreamt it i suppose.
My friend has gone home to Australia and hope fully i am going to see her either at the end of next year or early 2012.
We will have to do some sums and plans etc.
hope Sylvia is getting rid of her rash and feels better.
Enjoy your cruise.
Weather good over the weekend then rain again today ,never mind it could be worse I suppose.
Better get of to bed and get some sleep or at least try.
Would love to see your piccies Frd the orange tree sounds great.
Brenda

Good morning peoples,i'm glad i am not the only one who sometimes thinks they are dreaming when they wake up ,lol,i did think that this morning when my eyes opened to a nice sunny morning yessssss he he,better not say too much though ,it might go in again.
The Orange tree is very small Yet Brenda,but considering that it was a pip ,brought home from Cyprus ,i am rather chuffed with it ,piccies on the way when i remember which email addy is yours oooooops ,he he.
See Cameron is hitting the pensioners again ,breaking election pledges already ,hmmmmm, i think it's about time he hit the real cause of the crisis ,make the banks pay back all of the money they screwed out of the people in the big rescue ,and stopped said banks giving out big unearned bonuses, and cutting their own pensions [the mp's] their pensions are obscene in the present economic climate ,but that won't happen ,he hasn't the balls of a whippet ,never mind a so called prime minister,keep on hitting the poorest mr Prime minister ,while you sit there all comfy, living a life of luxury,sounds about right.
Wellll , i work all my life ,out of work for 6 months in 50 years of working ,on a poor wag ,but still paying my way with taxes ,a few pence over the top ,so,no benefits at all ,take my chances for years in the middle east in the forces,and now ,on a lousy pension ,and i am STILL struggling ,along with thousands of others while people come in ,having paid nowt into the coffers ,and getting the lot.
Why ,i ask myself ,did i go wrong.?
End of rant ,with apologies to all,but why oh why ,do the pensioners who have paid their way all their lives ,now have to suffer because of a system which hits the poorest while the scroungers get it all.
Fred is off into the garden to cool down a tad ,knew i should have emmigrated to Oz when i had the chance ,where hard workers can make a better life for themselves
Exits far left.

Afternoo peeps from a rather nice day in manchester only had a bit of a shower this morning and is nice enougth now to get some washing out to dry!!!.
had a phone call about an hour ago from Dorothy who is having problems getting her messages to us accepted on genes!! she can read ours but it will not let her send hers ,she will look at it at weekend in more depth, after she has seen(on Friday) the consultatant about her condition.
It was really good to have a chat with her again and I do hope its good news on friday.
Also got some pics from fred of his orange tree which he has every right to be proud of.
Hope my neices partner gets her at weekend to put in the new Hard drive and memory for me perhaps it will not take over ten mins to sign in to the internet.
take care Brenda

hello everyone,another goo dday weatherwise here today ,got some more washing dry again ,
just have time to say hi before I need to sort out the tea .Going to Bury market tomorrow if we get up early enougth ,the parking is a bit scarse til the new car park nis open.
Hope you are all ok, take care brenda

Morning Brenda,he he ,suppose by now ,you will be in Bury ,looking for a parking space lucky blighter ,lol,but it won't be long until the washing machine has finished ,and then i am taking the wife to the Metro Centre ,where we can get some gentle exercise in the dry [yeah ,raining again].
Hope our Dorothy is doing okay,and gets a good result from the hospital,and also hope her 'puter gets sorted quickly,we need her back on here soonest ,peeps are a tad thin on the ground at the moment.
Hissy is disgruntled this morning ,sitting under the table in the front room watching me with her beady eyes ,so that i don't leave the room without her seeing me get up,she is miffed because her breakfast was out of a pouch this morning ,because i gave her the last of the fresh fish for her tea last night,she is one spoilt puddy tat.
Got a lot of more beans to pick and freeze down out back ,and the tomato's are now coming thick and fast,the cabbages are now starting to heart up nicely ,and i pinched one a little early a couple of days ago to check the yaste [my excuse ,and i'm sticking with it].
The cucumber plant is going daft ,throwing young cucumbers onto each runner ,i am going to be innundated in a couple of weeks,and my red onions are ready ,so i'm liftting them one at a time as i need them.
By the time we get back from the Metro Centre ,it will be about dinner time ,so i have braved the weather and picked a bit of this and a bit of that ,and have prepared stuff for a sitr fry,always welcome in this house.
With the latest news on the winter fuel payments ,i have told the eldest son to look for that wood burner stove he was talking about,for the front room ,with two forests near here ,fuel is cheap and plentiful ,and i reckon it will be nice and cheerful on a cold winters night.i may even use a camping bet ,or even a longer and kip in the front room if it gets really chilly overnight.
Only problem i have now ,is who goes up on the roof to slide the chimney liner down for joining to the flu ,not me that's for sure ,lol.any takers ,He He.
Well ,sounds like the washing is done ,so ,i will away and get it hung up to dry [ i hope ,lol].
Catch you later Fred.

hi here I am hoping that this does not end up in cyber space it is abouy7-18 fri eve my time just after midnight early sat for you lot. well I saw the specialist this morning after being stuck on the highway for 35 minutes due toan oil spill did not put the son in a good mood but we had left in plenty of time, he was very pleasent asked all the right questions and explained things well, ie. I did have a stroke at the end of march not a bladder infection that idiot doc in ermerg said so many other things should have been done at that time, regarding the M.S at the moment I am symptom free but he said out of the two things the M.S would be the best to have as it burns itself out in our age group. have to have another enceplagram, also wear the holter monitor for 48 hrs . then go to st michaels hospital in toronto for a special brain test st. mike's is the only hospital that does it, lots of electrodes to the brain and different sounds and sensations to monitor the brain waves and activity plus the application of mild electric shocks not sure I like that bit. so that was my day on monday andrew has a meeting with the hospital patient advocat to be given a verbal report of the doctors response to our complaint, then it is on to the next step a meeting with the head of the hospital head of emerg the doctor the xxx up my diagnosis and the formal part of taking a complaint to the college of physcians and asking for the doctor to be disciplined etc I am well aware of how this goes in the long run it will not help me but it might help someone else not to be mis diagnosed. brenda have a good time in bury if you go yes it was good to speak to you and I see you got in touch with fred, fred as usual I love to read what you write and it does cheer me up so I am now going to see if I submit this what it may do if it won't take it I shall be on the phone to you brenda bye dorothy

Yaaaaay,Welcome back Dorothy ,you made it then in both senses of the word lol,and yes ,you are going down the right road as regards that prat of a doctor,they make soooo much money for the job they do ,they should not be making those sorts of mistakes that mess with peoples lives .
As you say ,maybe ,what you are pursuing will make sure he dosn't mess up someone els's life ,personally i think he should be punished ,being stuck off for 12 months and having to resit his ,or ,her's final exams.
Lovely morning this a/m ,Fred goes outside early on to water the garden ,looks up at a clear blue sky with all the cirrus clouds ,and awe struck ,sinks down into the chair ,forgetting all about feeding and watering.
I sat there with my drink ,a nice cup of oxo ,for a change,looking at the beutiful world up ,and out there ,no doubt about it folks ,God or Allah [both the same ] did a wonderful job of it's creation,such a pity that he made one mistake in putting man upon it who has spoilt everything .
Come the big day ,it will all be put right one way or another .
Getting back to the job ,he he,everything is looking rosy ,Asparagus fern now seeding ,and i am wondering if i can take some seed ,dry it ,and start some new ones next year ,worth a try ?
Noticed that some of the bean plants are starting to die off,and i am going to try an experiment ,cutting back the broad bean haulms to the ground ,but leaving them in to see if they come away again in the spring,it's worth a shot ,and i will be starting new plants anyway ,in case it dosn't work.
We need to slip out to the shops this morning to get some eggs,i often wish we had a bit more room in the back so that i could keep my own chickens thereby knowing that the eggs were fresh ,fresh ,and knowing just what they were fed on but ,hey ho ,we can't have everything we want .lol,but i am a little concerned at the trouble the Americans are having with their egg production,no doubt something to do with the food the chickens are fed ,the same as we had here a few years ago leading to a lot of people getting badly poisoned by poulterers greed in cheap food stuffs for their production methods.
I was getting my eggs from a mate up the road who had a bird farm ,but he died a few months ago,and so ,i am reduced to the shops for my eggs now ,bit of a bummer ,but ,that's life.
While i am at the shop i will be getting a few muffins ,some burgers ,and a packet of marinade for the chicken chunks we took from the freezer last night ,yes ,my favourite nosh for dinner today ,while the sun lasts.he he.oh ,and. i forgot to mention the sea bass which will be the last dish ,of the B B Q,cooked in foil ,and filled with parsley ,lemon ,and fresh rosemary sprigs off my bush.
Things to do ,so i am away to get on with it,have a nice weekend all ,Fred.

Evening all,
I was so glad things look good for you Dorothy,and agree the doc who gave the wrong diagnoses needs to be pulled up about it.!!! Hope you can start to drive again.
Had a good day today,finally got t o Bury ,did not go yesterday as John wanted to come with me,and as he had a golf match on with his mates.He asked me to wait and go together,so i did ,The weather has been reall y nice and we had a lovelly cup of coffee ,bumped into about a half dozen people that we know so the sunshine brought them all out!! The new car park is opennow Fred but we stuck to the one we know,which is nearer the market. Got some bits and peices including some chicken and steak ,gave the cheese stall a wide berth Dorothy as we are cutting down again..
Treated myself to a top for the holidays .telling myself it was lighter than the ones I have so will help with the allowence we have.
Not sure if I will have time to come on tomorrow as we have my neices and one fiance to dinner he will sorted my new external hard drive and memory and I have to see an old mate in the evening .
Be back soon take care brenda