General Chat

I don’t think any of us like winter much, do we? It wouldn't be so bad if we got cold but bright days; our winters always seem so grey and dreary.

So a new washing machine Mel. Is the damaged one very old?

Enjoy your sausages today Mandy. They’ll taste extra special as Jake made them. Like you I think of people’s jobs and never use the self service checkouts at the supermarket but I do make use of online banking. Most businesses I deal with, even the window cleaner, prefer it. I think it is cheaper for them. There’s also a time factor. I can check our statement, pay bills, send birthday money to the grandchildren, transfer money between our accounts and so on and nothing takes more than a couple of minutes. To go to the bank, do my business there and then wait for an infrequent bus back would take at least 2 hours.

I slept well last night. Today I’ve been catching up on lots of jobs that have been put aside for when I have time. I’ve done some mending and sorted out the freezer in the garage. I keep a notebook of what’s in the garage freezer but my record never seems to tally with what’s actually out there. I know OH takes stuff out and forgets to tell me and I sometimes buy something because it’s on offer, shove it in the freezer and forget to add it to my list..

I’ve also done a bit more in the garden and watered and tidied up the indoor plants, prepared tonight’s meal and done the veg for tomorrow’s roast dinner. Now I am going to take it easy until it’s time to start cooking.

After lunch OH went upstairs to scan a letter into the computer and send it as an attachment to an email. I haven’t seen him since so I think he’s either dozed off or is having trouble with the scanner. I don’t think it’s the scanner as I haven’t heard any shouting or swearing, lol. Maybe I had better go and investigate to check he’s OK.

I am not a lover of winter and hate it when the clocks go back.

I think they will do the shed in January February and will also source a shed for me and put it up.

Sorry Mel that was obviously finger trouble. But it is beautifully descriptive :-D

I nipped into town this morning although there was not a lot of nipping, more a bit of waiting around for buses that were not following their timetable. I can't work out why we should need fewer buses in the winter but that is what has happened, a change in the timetable and a reduction of buses.

Morning all,

Very dull here and it was foggy first thing but it has begun to clear a bit now .
We're having a lazy day as yesterday we had Lewis here so we were on the go most of the day ,we walked to town and saw Jake in the butchers ,bought some sausages he had made which we will have today .

So it looks like you need a new washing machine then Mel how old is this one ,more expense as Frank used to say .

Vera what a todo with the card glad it was all sorted in the end ,all these security checks are good but when you've had an account for so long it's a heck of a job to remember the passwords you used so long ago .
Son keeps saying mum you should do on line banking its so easy you can see instantly what's going in and out of your account but while I can get to the bank and sort things out over the counter that's better for me ,plus I hope it helps to keep the bank going if people are using it .

Anng I meant to say it sounds as if the chap and his father are good in helping in the garden doing the bigger jobs of cutting back ,I suppose the next job will be finding a new garden shed ,will you leave that until the spring .

I often wonder how Gill is and how she is doing with her garden .

Clock's go back tonight everyone ,don't like the darker afternoons and evenings.roll on the spring.

Morning all,

Once again we have bri9ght sunshine and I hope it lasts all day pc is saying Heavy rain later so we will see whose right I suppose.

Don't know if BIL is coming today or not but he may as he did'nt come yesterday. I expect he will be over Exmoor with his camera. He puts pictures online somewhere but I don't know where. I should find out. They will be under Robert Cowlard.

Sorry you're out of sunc this morning Anng.

good morning all. still quite dark here but looks dry if dull. Might just pop into town this morning. Tesco delivery is due 3-4pm but I need to post a card that is going to be late but going from the main post office won't be too bad. I was completely out of sunc with the dates.

At least you know now Mel.

He has just left and did'nt charge me anything as there is nothing he can do. It corosion on the back of the drum and he said it will still be ok for a while but |I shall have to keep draining it myself. I think I need to look at washing machines.

I was so busy laughing at Mel's typo that I didn't notice AnnGs chickle :-)

It was very foggy and damp this morning. Even after the fog lifted it was very grey and mizzly. The computer is telling me that it is 12 degrees and partly sunny. I don't know which part but it's not here.

I spent a couple of hours this morning on admin. type jobs. OH wanted me to do an email for him to send as it was very important that it was clearly understood and he is sometimes a bit too wordy and confuses people. It took me a little while to get it just right. The next thing was OH sorting out a credit card. This is a second card on my account and when using it in a machine recently OH pressed the wrong button and it was locked. He had a letter telling him to phone the company to get it unlocked which he did, but of course they had to speak to me as well as I am the main account holder. Well, the poor man on the end must have thought he was speaking to the village idiot. First I had to keep asking him to repeat things as I couldn't hear him very well. Then he asked me a couple of security questions and I was fine with those. Then as another check he asked the date we paid the last bill. I had no idea as it's paid by DD and just goes straight out of the bank account. He suggested I check the statement but we don't have a paper statement. I said he could wait while I turned the computer on, found the banking website, logged in and found the right transaction. At this point he said he'd try something else. Then he said he had sent a 6 figure code to my phone. That meant a hunt all over the house to find my phone. Eventually I found it on a sideboard that sits in our hall and he asked me for the 2nd and 3rd figure from this code. Then he said he had just one more security question - the name of my most memorable teacher. Well I set these security questions up 15 years ago and haven't needed them since so I hadn't got a clue who I had named at the time. I tentatively said that it might be Miss P. (my old Latin teacher). I still don't know if I was right or not but at that point he gave up and unlocked OH's card. I'm sure the poor man thought I was a dozy old dear who had no idea what she was doing and he was probably glad to get off the phone.

After all that kerfuffle I did some garden jobs. At the moment gardening is really hurting my back but we are way behind this year and it's got to be done if we want a nice garden next year. Apart from clearing beds I need to get lots of pots cleared and bulbs planted in them. I have so many bulbs now that I don't think they will all get planted but I do like to see all the pots of colour in the spring.

I have Tesco delivering between 7 and 8 tonight which is later than I usually have it but I was late booking a slot and couldn't get what I wanted. I'll need to have our dinner early and the kitchen cleared before he comes as I have a very big order this time and will want the surfaces clear to put everything on.

Time to make an afternoon cuppa now I think. Oh, put the flags out; I've just seen a gleam of sunshine.

EDIT They were strange dreams AnnG. I often wake and know I have been dreaming but not knowing what I have been dreaming about. Mel, has your washing machine man sorted out your grit problem yet?

Wshing mchine man has just rung to say he will be out shortly. Hooray!!!!!!! :-D

Just before I woke we had somehow moved to being in a car Daughter driving. She parked and got out. didn't put the break on it started to move I leaned over to steer as she ran to catch us and I woke up.

That is weird Anng. Did you wake before the meal came?

I have washed out bird feeders and chicken bowls and drinkers and the suns still shining and its12 degrees.

I had a really weird dream goodness knows where it came from. I was with daughter and SiL and on holiday at some sort of place like a down market Butlins. We were all sitting at a long table waiting for a meal that never came, there were lots of people there. daughter went to challenge the woman in charge and she said something like 'you just have to wait for it'. Weird.

Morning all,

Another bright and sunny morning here but pc says mostly cloudy and only 9 degrees.

Got up in the night for the loo and could'nt get back to sleep again. I must have dropped off eventually as I had a funny dream about the washing machine man coming and mum got out of the van!! Then the sun woke me up and the man with the chainsaw over the back who is thinning the trees. He's been at it for a couple of weeks now taking lower branches off and cutting some right out. He starts about 8am so its like an alarm clock for me and time to get up if I have overspept. I am very concious of not being dressed if the man comes.

As soon as I read my post Mel I realised what I had done, I am forever hitting either the O or the I in the opposite to the one I want. the trials of being a touch typist. Yes easily done and good to have a laugh.

Glad you had a lovely lunch Vera and afternoon as well, and glad that OH's was OK. It is always sad when a 'good' restaurant gets a new chef that is adequate but not brilliant. It just shows how much depends on the head chef.

I find these days, Vera, that even going out for lunch and a long chat can be exhausting. Our brains and bodies are just not used to it any more.

It looks grey out there again but it stayed dry yesterday so maybe it will today. I have the photography meeting to look forward to this afternoon.

Ha ha ha ha ha I have only just read it and it made me laugh too..... :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D

Glad you had a chickle Anng. See we can all do it.

Yes, I had a chuckle at that line of Mel's post too. I guess she meant willing but it did read funny.

The rain eventually stopped but it has been grey and cold all day and the app is telling me there is more rain on the way..

It's a good job I was nearly ready when I sent my last post as OH had been asked to give me a message and got it all back to front. Our friend J was picking up 3 of us and OH seemed to think I would be the last. In fact she was here at 11.30 as I was the first pick up. Luckily I only had to put on my shoes and coat.

It was a really nice lunch - just 6 of us today. I had Stifado which was very nice but not nearly as full of tomato as I have had before. The staff were very obliging and it was a good meal. Afterwards we went back to the birthday girl's house and had a cup of tea with more chat and the opening of cards and presents, and after about an hour we had yet more tea with lots of cakes. All in all it was a lovely afternoon.

OH and the other chap went to a pub we have always liked in the past. OH said the food was fine but it wasn't extra special the way it used to be. Apparently there has been a change of chef.

I have had an easy day but I feel really tired. I feel like snuggling up in bed with a hot water bottle but I know that would be silly because I will fall asleep and then be wide awake at 11 pm. so I'll try to keep going till at least 10 o'clock.

Mel, I have had a chickle at the first line of your last post, not quite sure what was on your mind when you wrote that!!! :-D :-D

That great Anng for you to have found such a helpful willing couple of chaps to do the heavy work for you.

Hope Vera has a nice lunch and chat and that the birthday girl likes her presents. Yes it is nice for men to have time together too. OH used to love having a chat with Phil on a friday when he was doing his garden and oh was mowing the field outside the front. Phil is Em's dad.

Suns still mostly out here but there are clouds passing over. Its 15 degrees.

hope you have a lovely time with your friends Vera and a nice lunch too. And hope your OH enjoys his too, such a good idea for the men to go out together as well.

Yes, Jake was a good find. Just by being on the local Next door site (which is rubbish a lot of the time but paid up here. Andy used to be good but he was a bit unreliable and didn't really know what he was doing, very willing but really quite bossy about what he 'knew' I wanted done. Jake listens, repeats what I say, then takes me to the spot and asks exactly what I need doing and then does it (at speed). He seems to work well with his father as well who is also a grafter and I had two of them working today. The big plus is that they take away all the cuttings.

It's wet, wet, wet. Again!!! The local paper has several pictures of the floods round here and we are supposed to be in the driest part of the country. It's pretty chilly this morning as well.

Your Jake sounds a treasure AnnG. We could do with someone like him.

I hope your washing machine man turns up soon Mel.

I am being picked up just before 12 to go to friend's birthday lunch. We usually just have a main course and then go back to the house for coffee and either desserts or cakes. OH is going to pick up the husband of one of the ladies and take him out to lunch somewhere. This chap has serious health problems and isn't allowed to drive and is reliant on his wife. He gets on very well with my OH so it's good for them to have "man time" together when we ladies are out.

I have showered but need to dress and tidy myself up so I had better go and do that now. I hope the weather stays dry for the rest of you.