General Chat

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

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

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 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

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

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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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

HI ALL hope you are enjoying the weekend.Been out and about doing a few errands today ,then came home and made a really great meat n potato pie,even if I say so myself,!!!
Called at the library and got my new book Karen Rose You belong to me,can't wait to start it,but havea couple of chapters in a Micheal Connelly book to finish,will get that done tonight.
Have a visit to the chiropodist tomorrow at 12 noon ,my feet have always been a problem,bunions ,corns etc and I get lots of hard skin under the ball of my foot,Going to a new one as my old one seems to have closed down .
Hope your grandson feels better soon Dorothy,and is ok for his camp job.Glad your sister is liking Arizona.
Gee fred you don't do things by half do you? moving house ,brewing tea,gardening is ther anything you can't do.
John has brewed us a cuppa ,so I had better get it drank,
See you tomorrow
take care Brenda

goodmorning good to see everyone is back on line sounds like you and your sister had a good time in bury brenda sounds like the trip to the garage was not fun for you and john, fred you seem to have your veggie garden well in hand I have to report that my areo garden is starting to sprout with the thyme ahead of the dill and basil this thing stays lite up for 17hrs then 7hrs of darkness but the water bubbles away all the time so far so good. the grandson is still having quite a bit of pain in the knee so a visit back to the sugeon is still on the cards for wednesday, he has been accepted for the whole summer at the camp the family go to so he will be a leader in training working with a qualified guy he willnot be paid this year but will accumalate hours to-wards his graduation from high school each pupil has to to put in hours of voluntary hours to recieve their diploma . so he will be away from the end of june to end of august . not sure if laura will be way for a monthe there but Ian will go for the usual 2 weeks. pouring down rain at the moment which will turn inot snow later, my sister phoned from arizona they arrived safely and to her delight the temperature is 78 degree's a big differance from the -32 they left behind in calgary, she is happy with the house they have rented it is in mesa phenix near scotsdale. bye for now dorothy

Aaaaaah,peace at last ,lol,the family move is complete at last ,and after a good nights zzzzzzzzzs ,i am fit [sort of ] and ready to go.
We had a small break in the weather yesterday morning ,so before going across to Wallsend ,i went out the front,trimmed the top of the hedge,and did the next doors side ,as far as i could ,i am not moving four bins to finish it ,or trying to overreach myself to do it either ,so ,until they move all the crap , i am finished.
I then went outback ,refilled the boxes ,put bonemeal in them ,followed by organic manure in 3 of them ,and chicken poo in the 4th one to act as a control to see if there is an advantage to either.
Having manured all of the boxes ,it is onion only ,two white two red ,next year it will be back to carrot and parsnip.
So The Fred veggie season has kicked off he he which is just as well ,the weather supposedly closing in again with the return of the cold and frost ,ho hum ,such is life.
With the winters getting worse year upon year Dorothy i think ,if possible ,you could do with that move so that you don't get locked in ,being nearer medical help looks to be the best way forward for your peace of mind.
The missus is going to need a hand now ,she is making some proper beef burgers ,using Angus Beef,quarter pounders which i will grill on the new G F health grill ,and will do poached eggs to go on top ,a whole meal in buns ,brown wholemeal yum,but first ,seeing as she is resident cook today ,i had better get her a cuppa first.
Catch you later all ,hope every one is having a good weekend no matter what,Fred.

Hi everyone,did not realise that I had not been on here for a few days,probably as i have been busy.
Went shopping with my sister to Bury on Wednesday,did not go on the market only the shops.Got most of what we wanted but not everything.
Johns car was booked into the dealership in Ashton for his MOT yesterday so its a drive up for us both so I can bring him back.Went up Ashton New Road and oh what a mess it is ,they are doing road works to get the tram lines in ready for thenew metro that is going from Piccadilly to ashton,It took us well ove 40 minusts to do a 15 min journey and that was in quiete traffic,We used the Old road to come back, its a longer route but was quicker as there was no road works.we went that way to pick it up and come home again.Glad it has not got to be done again for a while.John said he will look at neareer garages next year !!!
Hope your grandson is ok and soon off the crutches.Enjoy your visit to the book store ,keep seeing books I would like but have made a promise not to buy anymore till I have read some of the ones I have waiting.!!
We have had another sunny but chilly day,hope your white stuff doesn't stay long Dorothy.By the way the lamb casserole was ok ,but the meat didn;t half shrink!!!.Hope Fred and Liz are ok ,lucking forward to the 30th as well,will take my camera this time and send you a piccie.
Take care brenda

goodmorning everyone seems to be busy this week, yesterday was a horible day for people trying to get to there jobs in toronto from here a major white out occured causing a 60 car pile up luckily no one was killed visability was zero one minute sunny and the next the snow came with a vengance to-day it is very cold but sunny as they say what a differance a day makes, bryan saw the specalist and he now has a knee brace on the knee was too swollen to do much with it soback again next wednesday and if no better then a m.i.r his dad drove him to school to-day with his brace and crutches if your mom is a teacher you do not get to miss school and andrew will pick him up later he did not want him to go on the school bus in case he slipped getting off it, bryan is in good spirts he has a high pain tolerance I think that comes from all the hockey he plays not a soft sport and one I don't like I don't go and watch anymore I hate all the body checks that happen.just heard that tomato's are going to be few and very expensive due to the bad weather in many places but that will help the local farmesrs come summer someone paid 2 dollars for just one the other day and now all the fast food places ask you if you want tomato on your burget it is not just placed on it who would ever have thought so fred hope you get a bumper crop, the earlyist we can plant seeds is may 1st according to a garden show I watched this morning 8 weeks after the last frost again hope you all are well bye for now dorothy

goodmorning from a cold but sunny barrie glad you and john have a holiday booked but you did not say where you are going I shall think of you and fred and liz on the 30th getting to-gether in bury in fact I shall mark it on the calander, spoke to anne on the week-end and she had seven snowdrops up and some yellow showing on her daff's, I am going to plant some seeds in the aero garden I recieved at xmas and see what happens. on saturday andrew bryan and Ian and laura took some friends and went to mount st louis for some ski-ing and snow boarding had a good day except another snowboarder crashed into bryan and he was injured, he went to the doctors yesterday and has some torn ligaments not sure if it is the acl,or the mcl, in his knee so he see's the orthopedic surgeon on wednesday and will hopefully get an m.i.r. he is not able to weight bear so is on crutches they do have several pairs at the house what with one thing and another with 3 children luckily andrew was able to pull some favours in to get him seen by the orhopedic chap I spoke to bryan last night and he was in good spirts even though he is in pain, he had asked one of his friends to bring some school work home and he can go on line to the school as well, the joys of winter sports I guess.
+ my friend isobelle is coming up for a few days on the 16th of the month so I am looking foreward to that the tennis from indian wells will be on then her son will drive her up and then come back and take her home as I have mentioned before she is a good driver but can get lost easlly, she had her car in for an oil change the other day it is 10yrs old and the mechanics laugh as she has not yet reached the 40,000 kms as yet. the car is in very good shape .I may pop out to-day I need some birthday cards and I have some gift cards to spend at my favourite book store I can spend a couple of hours in that store they have nice easy chairs so you can buy a coffee and browse through some books that you might not other wise read oh yes the lamb casserole sounds good brenda bye for now dorothy

Hi All,lovelly sunny day here today but still really cold well freezing actually,John braved the cold to wash the cars,and I stayed indoors and washed the sofas!! well not really washed but gave them a good cleaning,they had got a few marks on them from drinks and things.
Hope its like this tomorrow when I go to Bury with my sister.
Making a lamb casserole for tea for me and David,with new potatoes and broccolli,John will have a leg of lamb chop,as there is not a lot of lamb casserole.and David will not eat chops.
Was getting some fish and chicken from the market ,but need to clear the chest freezer so will have to get it next time.Having a coffe now,hope you are all having a good day,Brenda

Hi All,lovelly sunny day here today but still really cold well freezing actually,John braved the cold to wash the cars,and I stayed indoors and washed the sofas!! well not really washed but gave them a good cleaning,they had got a few marks on them from drinks and things.
Hope its like this tomorrow when I go to Bury with my sister.
Making a lamb casserole for tea for me and David,with new potatoes and broccolli,John will have a leg of lamb chop,as there is not a lot of lamb casserole.and David will not eat chops.
Was getting some fish and chicken from the market ,but need to clear the chest freezer so will have to get it next time.

Hi everyone from a really cold and grey manchester ,suppose we should be glad its not raining as well.l
Was going out with mysister this morning but had a bad night witha niggly tooth ,hope its not the start of something nasty!!
Had only just got up when she called to see what time I was going!!will go after we have been to Bury on wednesday.
We have been looking for a holiday for April May time and finally booked one today ,we have a ten night selfcatering holiday booked for 17th May.Price was not bad and like john said its somethingto look forward to.
Have some ironing to do later so will have a cuppa now to keep me going ,had a treat of beans on toast for lunch ,do like them but they sometimes don't like me !! so as I am not going anywhere I thought I would treat myself.
Glad the pot luck supper went well Dorothy ,it would be good to go to sleep and wake up in your favourite place! Fred hope your lamb dish goes well and I have got the 30yh March down for seeing you and Liz in Bury .It will be in the morning I presumme as I have an appointment at the hairdressers in the afternoon..
Better get my cuppa and some ironing done .Be back tomorrow.Brenda

good sunday morning the pot luck supper was very good last evening as it was a saturday about 12 people showed up the menu was varied as it always a surprise, three salad dishess, broccili with red onions in a creamy dressing, coleslaw, and marinated sliced carrots in a very differant dressing I forgot to ask what it was, the main courses included shepherds pie, macaroni and cheese, a penne dish with sweet italian sausages and cheese on top, a lasagna, and chicken wings ina nice sauce, dessert was a fresh fruit tray , chocolate cake with a coconut topping, lemon merigune pie, coconut cream pie, so when you try a little of everything it sure does fill you up. to-day the sky is gray some snow on the way and freezing rain so I shall stay in to-day. brenda sorry to hear that your uncle is not doing so well , so fred you will soon be popping over to bury how envy you but I can see it all in my minds eye, I gather from the doctor that my flying days are over for the near future at least some days I wish I could go to sleep and wake up in anne's guest bedroom in bury and have a good natter with her in the garden weather permitting. I have taken out a couple of plump chicken breasts to cook at some point to-day one for this evening and one to-morrow bye for now dorothy

Morning peeps ,,specially our Sylvia ,you get well quickly old Friend,we are all missing you,and want you back as soon as possible.
Nice to know someone has had some luck with the family tree Dorothy,it is always nice when someone turns up unexpectedly and who fits in to a niche that you didn't even know was there.
Four weeks and counting Brenda,getting quite exited now what with ,hopefully a Wednesday return to the Bury market weather permitting.
Know what you mean with John,and wanting the job finished and things squared away asap.i have done it many times myself ,even these days ,and got a rollicking off the son's for my doing it he he,we old -uns won't change,will we?
Yep ,my veggie plot is now about ready too ,just waiting for the greenhouse pots to be filled ,and rarin' to go.
Thinking on Dorothy's family tree suddenly reminded me of mine kast week ,and a mystery soved with a couple of my rellies back in the mid 1800's,cor, ,some of these peeps didn't half get about job wise ,didn't they ,some of these modern peeps could well do in taking a leaf out of their book.
I found a Barnes rellie ,born in Bucks ,and being a humble brickie's labourer,went all the way to Wiltshire with his intended looking for work,finding it and settling there ,getting married ,and finally dying young .
His then wife ,came Back to Bucks ,got married again ,and had a son ,.
The new husband was from London ,and i even traced his father ,and went back to HIS father,and mother .
Yep ,it is exiting when things come together that way,so all i have to do now is try to trace the mothers family,as well.
Well ,it looks like my rest time is over for now,the housework done earlier i had an hour to myself ,but it's now time to do the dinner ,mince and dumplings yet again ,to please the grandson .lol.never mind ,i have some lovely sliced New zealand Lamb for mid week ,rolled up with sage and onion stuffing yum.
Hope everyone is having a good weekend,take care all and God Bless,Fred.

Hi everyone,hope you enjoy the pot luck supper Dorothy sounds very interesting.we have had a realy great day weatherwise it was sunny ,bit chilly but nice enougth to do a bit in the garden,did not have much time for it as i was trying ti straighten up after the decorating..Heard from my cousin today about my uncle seems he is still really bad but they hope to move him to a hospital nearer home soon.My other uncle has seen him and said.he is parlysed down the left side and can not talk and did not know him when he went to see him ,he was going again this weekend and hope he would know him.
Going to have a cuppa now and maybe a read of my book as there is nothing on tv,just send me the details when you have them Dorothy,
take care Brenda

hi brenda I may take you up on the offer re the 1911 census just have to have a look at some stuff first, snowed again to-daybut it didnot last long to-morrow(sat) is the pot luck supper so that should be fun nothing else new at the moment I have not checked hot matches for quite a while must have look have a good week-end bye for now dorothy