General Chat

hi one and all went out yesteday in all the rain took a neighbour shopping and then we had lunch at the english shop treated myself to 2 jars of lemon curd, then I noticed that my favourite pickle were in but got a shock they have gone up to 7 dollars and 29 cents a jar thats about 5 pounds a jar I do love them but not at that price I guess imported goods have shot up, noticed they had some bramble jam in as well and that was almost 6 dollars a jar and the jar was not very big, also the easter eggs were in stock and I shall not be buying mine there 3 eggs for the three grandkids would cost me about 45 dollars total plus tax so round it out to 50 dollars around 38 pounds if my math is correct I do like the store but wow have the prices ever gone up I spoke to the owner a very nice lady and she said she is aware that people are shopping less and she is concerned re staying in business. it was about 4 above when we came home then I looked outside around 8pm it was blowing a blizzard and the snow kept on coming down overnight as well, so picture this 2pairs of heavy socks pair of slacks snow pants over them two sweaters heavy snow jacket warm hat and gloves and knee high winter boots and that is just to waddle out to clear off the car exhausted before I start , that is what is needed so I have decided the car can wait till to-morrow in the faint hope that the wind will blow some of it off talk about being lazy, so I shall make breakfast and open the lemon curd, anne makes great lemong curd but I have lost the reciepe that she gave me I shall have to ask her for it again so I can make some more myself butoh I did fancy the bramble jam it is the first time I have seen it over here, no wonder I have so much overwieght luggage when I come home but haywards pickle have now priced themselves out of my budget, I do seem to have food on the mind bye for now dorothy

Morning Brenda,Dorothy ,Edith.old uncle don cobblly and all ,he he.
Yep Brenda ,there is something i can't do .lol.namely making a decent spotty dick ,the last one i made was soooo heavy i could have used it to lay bricks with.
all i did on the moving house for the son ,was borrow the big truck from my ex boss to shift all the furniture [two trips]my H G V being still useable.
I'm afraid the humping out of the house ,and humping in the other end was down to all the rellies that turned up to help ,thank goodness. the other sort of you know what i havn't managed in years he he ,it taking me all my time to amble around the garden.
I think the trick is in knowing your limitations ,but i am only human,finding out the following morning after the hedge trimming that lifting the arms above shoulder hight is getting more and more of a chore ,lol, owwwww ,my arms are still stiff ,and sore ,Thank the lord it will onely need doing another four or five times before the autumn.
\we awoke to a medium frost this morning ,but the sun is out and it looks like being sa nice day ,so i may go out front when it warms up a little ,and see if i can get the gate bolts loosened yet ,if the oil i put on two days ago has penetrated,if not i will spray again with W D 40 and try again mid week.i need to get the bottom hinge repaired ,as in change the bottom bolt ,and put a new bracket in there ,lol,the postman is getting tired of having to lift the gate to close it ,He He.
Gonn'a have to go for a while ,pusser cat is nudging my leg with her paw[claws in thank goodness] and is looking at the patio ,and then back at me ,these females are very demanding ,lol,she wants me out on the patio with my cuppa ,so ,back later ,Fred

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goodmorning fred I hope that your arms are feeling better you are right you have to learn to pace yourself a little better glad the sun is shining for you it seems to have come over here as well but it is very cold -20 and lower withthe wind chill of the lake, it was great for your son that so many people turned up to help with the move. nothing much planned for this week but one never knows what the week may bring.may sit down and plan some meals for when isobelle visits next week take care bye for now dorothy

hi ended up back in bed for the day yesterday came down with chills and tummy upset feel great to-day so hope to go out and clean off the car and do a few errands, must give anne a call as well its her doggies birthday to-morrow amber will be 9 how time goes by, heard from my sister she is so enjoying the warm weather and exploring the area, they had found a church on line before they left tht they hoped to attend seeing they are staying for a month. hope you all are well bye for now dorothy

Afternoon all.its a lovelly sunny but bitterly cold dayhere.John has been out golfing as he could not go yesterday ,He was pleased with his game so thats good.Have been making a couple of pans of soup a squash one and celery one ,but that looks a bit insiped.!!! Also made a weight watchers spagettei dish for tea ,looks good!!
Was going to make a leek ,mushroom and cheese dish for lunch but had a ww ready meal from the freezer as it needs defrosting.Will do the mushrrom dish on Thursday as I am out tomorrow.
Sorry you have not been well Dorothy ,hope you are continuing to feel better.Wish we could send you some jam and pickles but the postage and import duties would probably make it just as dear.
Fred ,John managed a few hours in the garden when he got back from golf,he put some bulbs in some of the tubs ,and had abit of a tidy up.Will have to tell David to stop putting food out for the birds now as they are leaving their calling cards at the bottom of the garden ,and I do not want that when I can hang the washing out again,which I hope will be very soon.
Not sure if I will have time tomorrow as I am out and about ,.But I will be back tomorrow night or Thusday.
Take care Brenda

hi tuesday evening glad you had a good day with the soups brenda and that john was able to golf, anne said she had her gardiners in to cut all the lawns to-day I said how great that you can see the lawns I can't. this week-end we put the clocks ahead so for a couple of weeks we will be 6hrs ahead of youwe used to be the same when changing then our power that be decided to follow the yanks!!!! I did go out to-day as the weather bucked up a bit I went to the book shop and used up a couple of gift cards I had been saving went for a mystery and the new jilly cooper a bit of trash I know but once in a while its ok. welltime for a bedtime coffee (de caf) and a bit of telle bye for now dorothy

Hi All,its been really windy here today had to tie my scarf on really tight today!!
went to town to meet friends and had a nice walk round,saw a couple of new shops that will need looking at more closly next time.had a risotto at an italianplace was very good.not sure its good for the diet.
Was going to look at a 50% off sale at M&S but we shat chatting over a glass of wine instead.
John made the tea for us ,and it was very good.He is watching football upstairs i am watching NCIS on channel 5,down stairs, its one I have not seen before but they are supposed to be repeats.
My car is in for its MOT tomorrow so I will be grounded for the day .I will still go for my Spanish class and if they phone while I am away John will take the message and we will go when I am home.
Friday I am off to Bury on the tram to meet my friend who comes from Stockport ,she is on a few days holiday and loves the market so we are meeting there.
Hope Fred iand Liz are ok and he is not over doing it .
Enjoy your books Dorothy,have managed to get a copy of Gone by Mo Hyder,but have to finish the library book first.
Take care,Brenda

Morning all,its still really windy here but the sun keeps trying to peep througth!!!Car has gone in for the MOT ,just hope all is ok with no work to be done.
Might get chance to put a colour on my hair tonight as its looking really tatty at the minute.!!
Have a few emails to reply to,and some ironing to do so better get going ,hope you are all ok and keeping happy.take care brenda

hi brenda it sounds like you had a good day out and the lunch sounds great have fun on friday when you meet your friend in bury (green with envy) stayed in yesterday (wed) as it snowed all day and then to-day it is pouring rain but it will clean up some of the old snow, Bryan saw the specialist again yesterday and has to have a m.i.r he suspects that there may be a tear in either the m.c.l or the p.c.l so we shall wait and see he still has a brace on and his crutches both mom and dad take turns driving him to and from school to avoid any more falls on the ice and snow, if it ends up being something that will heal on its own over time he will be using another kind of brace a bit pricey this 1380 dollars about 700 pounds good job andrew has good health insurance as it will cover some of the cost and the rest he can claim on his income tax next year, he has to fly down east for a couple of days around the 21st as his company is closing a dept, so about 6 people will be let go but as he said most are near retirement age and the package is good along with a good pension he is not involved with this dept but for some reason they are asking him to pass on the bad news I told him it is never easy I remember having to give the news to 200 yes 200 people in all depts at the hospital when the govenment made changes in health care and it did not go well I had police protection at a couple of the meetings I had with men who made awful threats, no wonder I ended up with high blood pressure. as for hair colour brenda every now and then Ian asks me are you ever going to put that stuff back on your hair grandma I take it my white hair is not a hit with him ever the diplomat he does follow that up by saying I like your haircut . so one out of two is not bad bye for now dorothy

Morning troops,and what a jolly morning [not],wet a little breezy ,but at least we are snow free up here ,and the gales have gone.
Looks like us peeps over this side of the big pond are the lucky ones,quakes in Japan,China,Volcanoes in other areas near America ,all in the golden triangle ,it looks as though someone ,or something has really upset mother nature big style.
Bad weather stops play here ,but the garden is well under way ,so i ain't doin' too badly,i even got my cuppa out back early yesterday ,with puddy tat sat under my chair looking smug after she coerced me to sit outside with her.
She had a nice piece of fish for tea last night ,best cod at that ,and it showed ,her having one of her mad half hours as i drew the curtains for the night,mock attacks on the boss around the curtains as i walked past the window sill,followed by thundering up and down the stairs ,tail up and ears laid back,am i glad she was just playing ,i reckon she could do a fair amount of damage to my arms if she got riled up.
We are having a couple of slices of streaky bacon with an egg ,and bubble and squeek for dinner ,more squeek than bubble but that way ,i can listen to it cooking .lol.plenty of soups for tea soa lazy day for cooking,lol.
hope every one is having a good weekend,catch you all later Fred

hi fred bubble and squeek sounds good even if its only 9am here snowed all morning yesterday and then rained the afternoon and evening, yes mother nature is mad at the world I think the pictures from japan are shocking and so sad but to-day we are to have a break no snow in the morning to start again in the late afternoon so I shall rush out to the library 5 books in for me and do a bit of shopping and then straight back home, bryan has his m.i.r sunday evening around 11-30 pm he lucked into a cancallation so we are all happy about that the tennis is not on the tele till thursday though it was supposed to be televised from the 10th on so not pleased about that, to-night I have to remember to put the clocks one hour ahead glad to see that your garden is not hit by snow bye for now dorothy

Evening all,Hope your grandson is ok with the MIR tomorrow \Dorothy.Must be worrying when medical things are so dear,as bad as it it sometimes the NHS is still ok.
My friend text me on Friday morning as cancel going to Bury,She had a leak from hertank in the Airing cupboard. And had phoned a plumber so was waiting for hime to turn up between 10am and 12pm I went to the Lowry instead to return something to M&S which I had bought last week and was wrong size.
Went to Bury today with John ,had a little walk round but did not get much just some meat and chicken from the fish market.Had a look at the cheese stall,and saw a cheese with Guinness in it !!It did not look very good and I was not even tempted.!!!
Saw a handbag I liked ,so might go back next week to get that.!!as we have a wedding next month.Also saw some great bedding ,but we are ok for duvet covers ,.
Glad you are getting your garden sorted Fred,and that you are keeping your furry friend happy!!Hope the weather stays ok for you .and you get to enjoy more cuppas in the garden.
I did enjoy the meal out the other day but they play havoc with my diet,so will have to watch what i have ,
By the way the car passed the mot.but I was told a few jobs need doing in the next month or so,not sure if I have told you that before.
The news from Japan is not good at all,what and where will be next !!
Going for my fruit now see you tomorrow and hope you all enjoy your weekend.Brenda
Since we decorated,we have been having a move round with some furniture,but ended up back as we started!! long story to explain but we now have a new bookcase/display cabinet coming on Wednesday,for the living room.

good sunday morning sorry your friend had to cancel brenda but you and john sound like you had a nice time, that cheese is actually quite good but I only find it over here at christmas time for some reason, great that the car passed its m.o.t. my lience has to be renewed in may but this year I don't need the emissions test once every 2 yrs for that, still strange weather it wanders between snow and rain, went out last evening for a while for a meal with lindy and laura(just the females) the boys and andrew went to toronto he had tickets for the hockey game toronto needed a win to stay in the chase for a play off position and they did win a few more games to go to cinch the deal I am sure the boys were pleased. sleepy this am the hour ahead does make a bit of a differance but will be ok to=-morrowtake care bye dorothy

Evening all,had a lazy day really just cooked ,breakfast and lunch and having sandwiches and freshfruit salad for tea.should have done a bit of house work but felt really tired for some reason.Glad you enjoyed your girls night Dorothy.
See you all tomorrow.Take care ,Brenda

afternoon all,well Fred has had his first real sit in the garden with the sidekick ,lol,two whole hours sitting in the sun ,warmth on the face and arms,beutiful ,the cat was going mad because the patio door was open for the first time since last October.
Did a little shopping this morning,and got another weeks supplies in,no special cheese, but i did find a nice tea of chicken sweet and sour ,and chicken in black bean sauce,with four spring rolls ,egg fried rice ,and prawn crackers ,complete with two Naan breads,for £4.88,our treat for the week.
specials too on most veggies so we have enough stuff now to do a couple of other soups,for east teas.
Glad to hear that the car passed it's examination okay Dorothy ,you must have been well pleased over that ,no more worries for another year for you as regards transport.
The situation gets worse by the hour in Japan,and now the reactors seem to be an ace from going out of control,,time they were shut down all over the world ,coal is so clean and plentiful ,a far cry from what it was thirty years ago,and just think of the jobs that would be available ,miners ,power plant operators construction workers,and railway jobs ,enough to do away with all the people in dole queues ,and no radiation to worry about,and a far less reliance on oil,makes sense dosn't it ? .what with wind power ,wave power and solar energy we don't need nuclear power at all.
Hope everyone s going to have a nice week,and you take it easy Brenda ,he he ,you may be retired but you are still doing too much leg work as you shop and do house/garden work, time to slow down and smell more coffee ,or tea,Know what i mean 'arry..?
Catch you all later ,Fred.

Hi everyone,had a lovelly day weatherwise and got some jobs done in the house,was going out with my friend but we changed our plans as she had to wait in for someone coming about her leak.So had another lazy afternoon,and smelt the coffe Fred.Havibgan easy tea oven fish from Aldi and new potatos and sweetcorn.See you all tomorrow.Brenda

hi its monday evening glad you all seem to be having some nice weather isobelle phoned me to-day to say at long last one of tesco's bulbs ie the snowdrops she suggled a few years ago has raised its head through the snow she is very pleased . but the others areas till buried, 0h yes yesterday I found the tennis on from indian wells at about 4-15 it was not advertised anywhere but it was still on at 11-45 so I had a good evening of viewing to-day the sun was shining and it was a titch warmer I had all the windows open and it smelt so good, things in japan seem to go from bad to worse one can only hope they do not get hit again bye for now dorothy

hi its monday evening glad you all seem to be having some nice weather isobelle phoned me to-day to say at long last one of tesco's bulbs ie the snowdrops she suggled a few years ago has raised its head through the snow she is very pleased . but the others areas till buried, 0h yes yesterday I found the tennis on from indian wells at about 4-15 it was not advertised anywhere but it was still on at 11-45 so I had a good evening of viewing to-day the sun was shining and it was a titch warmer I had all the windows open and it smelt so good, things in japan seem to go from bad to worse one can only hope they do not get hit again bye for now dorothy

Morning all ,,the virus warning you passed on Brenda ,i have now checked on ,and can say it is yet another spoof ,but as you said ,better safe than sorry,and i did pass it on just in case it was real.
What a complete reversal here this morning he he ,damp ,misty ,drizzling,and completely yuk, lol. def' a stay indoors morning.
I have just taken two large pieces of cod loin out of the freezer for the dinner [or maybe tea] which i will cook up in a home made Parsley sauce ,a tad of pepper,and a few peas ,put in a dish ,to top with creamed mash potato before shoving in the mice ,and nuked for thirty minutes .
I thought that something simple and fat free was in order after yesterdays repast ,which was lovely none the less.
After seeing Brenda's mention of fish yesterday ,Fred makes a mental note to add some sweetcorn to the mix,can't be bad that ,peas and sweetcorn go together nicely. yum.
The lonely snowdrop sounds about right Dorothy i put loads in last September,along with dozens of mixed crocus,and only one snowdrop has come up,and all the crocus are blue , grrrrr,still they do look nice ,and my dwarf daffs are coming out too,and ,at last i have bluebell coming up ,which i thought i had lost again,so things are looking up.
Not very keen on the tennis this early in the year ,but i will be watching a good bit of the rugby later today our local team getting revenge on the Harlequins after three years he he ,must remember to send a note to Strump to rub it in ,he he,but i bet we will get OUR butts kicked again ,next time the teams meet later on in the season.
Off to do some work now ,this housework is never ending this time of year with this plurry pusser cat leaving paw prints all over the floor.but she takes no ruddy notice when i tell her to wipe her paws ,sigh.
Catch you later all,Fred.

Afternoon all,its been a great day here today ,got some errands done and some housework ,then had a cup of coffee and finished my library book.
Glad you found the tennis Dorothy and enjoyed it.
I have never had much luck with snowdrops they just dia pear in our garden ,even in tubs ,we do have some crocus coming up.
Well Fred not much longer now till your holidays!!looking forward to seeing you both
better get tea finished now Brenda