General Chat

I have been unwell since the beginning of the week and haven't left the house.

Feeling a lot brighter today, and with most of the main roads now clear of snow I decided to go to the local shopping mall to pick up some groceries.
I did wonder if delivery vans would get into Scotland because of the snow that has now fallen in the south?
The mall that I go to has an M&S food only, an Asda and a butcher.

The shelves in all are almost completely empty.

No fresh meats or poultry, no fruit or veg, no bread and absolutely no dairy anywhere!
I decided to try the freezers.
Nope!
Absolutely empty too.

I managed to cobble a few bits together, enough to make a family dinner for tomorrow and "found" some braising steak that I think someone tried to hide at the back of an otherwise empty chiller.

The last batch of store baked bread was just coming out of the oven.
By the time it was cool enough to be bagged, almost every customer in Asda was waiting for one.( there was never enough to go round but I got mine)

I came home and checked my own freezer.
Luckily, tomorrows family dinner is saved because I found a big bag of frozen mash, peas, corn and carrots in there.

I feel like a war time housewife eeking out the rations but, we won't starve.
There were a few old moaners in the shops who can't see the wood for the trees.

One man even told me that it was ridiculous situation because all our roads are now clear!

DOH!

I was going to go into town today, so 'listened out' for a bus (one an hour).
I could have walked, but pavements are usually worse than roads, and there are a lot of steep hills. However, the road looks fine.
Didn't hear a bus, so looked for information online - no buses in our area - though an almost 'normal' service for all the other outlying areas :-(
Online information isn't very useful to those who don't have a smartphone, or the internet.

About noon, a friend (who has neither smartphone nor internet) knocked on the door.
She'd waited for a bus, none came, (it's not unusual for buses not to bother turning up here) so decided to walk - the road was clear of both snow and ice - pavement slippery.
Coming back, she waited, with others, at the Broadway (a good couple of hundred yards from the bus station) for the bus home. No bus came, so she went to the office in the bus station - it was closed.
She went back to the bus stop, and asked a passing driver about the bus -
'No bus to your area until Tuesday' was his reply!
He may have been joking - but with the lack of buses, the number that just don't run, and the regular lateness of the buses - he was easily believed!! :-| :-|

Once when a bus didn't turn up, I went to the office - apparently there was no bus because there were too many parked cars!
I asked how they knew - the last bus was an hour ago - and could I assume no more buses would be running that way for the rest of the day - due to cars that had nothing to do with us bus users?
They grudgingly put on a bus - that dropped us off on the edge of the estate - thus ensuring anyone waiting on the estate for a bus wouldn't catch it.
However, this meant I had to follow the bus route through the estate home - guess what?
Fewer cars than normal!.

Well, you learn something new every day.

I didn't even know there was such a thing as frozen mash!

:-D

Oh Prickles !
I don't buy a lot of frozen food but mash?

You should try it and it's pretty cheap too! (Usually less than £1 a bag)
I discovered it a few years ago when my daughter told me about it and haven't mashed a spud since.
Simply bung them in the microwave ( comes frozen in little bullet shapes)

Some of the big name brands ( Aunt Bessie etc) are a bit too salty for me but, own brands are great.
Lidl is the best but they don't have it in very often. Morrisons is a close second

Times like this it's good to have a good cupboard full of assorted tinned vegetables and soups.
I'm fortunate, there's a nearby shop called Butti-licious does cooked meals and sarnies

Apart from the freezer, I have a stack of Fray Bentos Steak & Kidney pies.
Very handy for days when I just don't want to cook!

I always keep a cupboard full of tins and some pasta sauces so can make a meal if we don't get to the shops. Plus, of course a full freezer, always 2 or 3 loaves in the freezer. plus oven chips, frozen fish and fresh fish frozen.

sometimes, but not often S bury's have a bargain sale of pukka pies..(usually approaching expiry sell by date)

WHEN they do...I buy a couple of each flavour and bung em in the freezer..

You could live on fish and chips or pastas? they deliver ;-)

Dear GlasgowLass,

Hello

Hope you are feeling better and are recovering from the snow.


Take gentle care all
Best wishes
Elizabeth, EOS
xx

I feel a lot better Elizabeth, Thank You
That was a horrid virus that knocked me for six although I'm still coughing.

Saw this a few times on various Social Media and it made me laugh:

Winter Anthem

No Flour in Scotland!
When will we see,
Sliced breid again?
No Mother's Pride for,
Yer wee bit piece and jam
No Cheesey Toasties
(Fur Who?)
Wur Tartan Army
Just pictures of empty shelves,
Aye! Blink Again

Those days are past now,
But icy blasts, they may remain
But we will still drive
( how?)
Tae get tae Asda again
And stand in queues there
(Whit Fur?)
Wur milk, breid and whisky
And carry them homewards,
Tae drink again


( no bread or milk available yesterday or again today!)

ERM, Sorry but... David?

You know how I mentioned the guy in Asda who couldn't see the wood for the trees?

Well!.....
It's not just shops and supermarkets who have been affected.
All deliveries made by couriers/transporters who supply anything to any type of business have been disrupted due to adverse weather.
Everything is affected


Therefore:
The local Chippy has no Fish or Chips. It's closed
The local Deli next door to the Chippy has no food. It's also closed
Even the local McDonalds closed at 7pm last Friday and I don't think they have been open since.
:-D :-D :-D :-D :-D

My neighbour runs a small business ( small electrical components) from his house.
He gets deliveries of supplies every morning Mon-Fri from Royal Mail, UPS and DPD
They return every afternoon for parcel collection (completed orders)

They haven't been here since Tuesday either.
His entire business has also come to a complete halt !

Here's hoping all will be back to normal this week


Amazon managed a delivery to us today Woo Hoo ! ( it was non food)
For some strange reason, I can get bread and milk and groceries from Amazon Prime if I'm really desperate.

Right GlasgowLass, I stand corrected <3

<3 <3 <3 <3

Was out early this morning and embarked on a fresh challenge.
To find an ATM that had cash.
Found one on the 3rd attempt and the local shop that housed it even had a small batch of milk left over from a weekend delivery.
Result!

Thursday, Friday, weekend and today none of our local shops had been 'raided' - there was plenty of everything on the shelves at M and S, Sainsburys and the Co-op.

However, just before the heavy snow fell, I ordered some scented flowers to be delivered on Saturday to an injured friend and, as she has not rung to thank me (she always does) I am guessing they are wilting away at the Post Office Depot (delivery was by PO which has never failed me in the past).

I hope they are enjoying the delicious scent . :-D

There is no way I would blame them for late delivery which, I expect would be today as we have had a postal delivery. The majority of our side roads were impassable so the timing was my bad luck.

JoyLouise,
My son in law is a postman.

Even although his route was in a Red Warning Area, he was sent out in his van on Wednesday morning
His van got stuck in heavy snow soon after he set out.
He managed to get himself out of the snow drift, turned around and made his way back.

He has not been able to make any deliveries at all until this morning because the start of his delivery "walk" is a good 4-5 miles from the sorting office.
He simply can't carry that amount of mail and packages over that distance on foot.
Most other "walks" had the same issues.

Only mail destined within short walking distance of the sorting office has been delivered since Wednesday.

All sorting offices have been open to the public during the afternoons and with proof of ID, all mail could be collected.
Pity your friend or family didn't know that flowers were waiting there

On another note:
I've been to Sainsbury today.
The shelves were fully restocked last night
Woo Hoo.... Fresh fruit and veg is back on the menu

So sorry to hear you have been unwell GL. Hope you are feeling much better now :-)

Your version of the wonderful Scottish Anthem (I love it! and always sing it, even when they play against Wales in the Rugby :-D) is brilliant!<3 and has given me a good laugh! :-D :-D :-D

GlasgowL, the flowers were delivered before 3 o'clock this afternoon and were in tip top condition, according to my friend who was delighted with them. Neither of us has any idea whether they were at the PO or whether the company had delayed sending them after seeing weather warnings, however, it would have made no difference even if they were at the depot (about three miles from her) because there is no way she could have picked them up as she is recovering from a broken hip and is on crutches.

We had no postal deliveries for only a couple of days last week and it is the first time in my living memory that the postman had not got through. I think it would have been futile and foolish for the Post Office to have even attempted any deliveries in our area but well done to them for delivering even when side roads have not been cleared.

As a currently 'soft' sooth-mother, I ventured to the big Tesco today.
Not much milk left - but what WAS left was the unhomogenised 'proper' Jersey milk.
I couldn't believe it - normally there's very little left.
As it's what I use, and no-one else seemed interested - I bought 2 pints :-D

There was also very little bread - but a full tray of my favourite - Hovis Granary (small - or 'half loaf' to Glasgowlass)

I'm so glad no-one appears to like what I do :-D :-D :-D

Just when I thought it was all over.....

It's snowing, really heavily again.
Neighbours are out trying to clear the short, steep hill out of our street.