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"longer off topic comments" - Episode 20 Life Outside Ambridge
"longer off topic comments" - Episode 20 Life Outside Ambridge
Life outside Ambridge
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Life in Ambridge
THIS POST IS CLOSED "longer off topic comments" - Episode 14 Life Outside Ambridge Have a seat and let's chat.
Good morning. Did I get it correct? Would love to be sitting on one of these right now.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Ruthy, especially as you're busy with a conference. Absolutely right ! Brighton pier ? Deckchairs aren't that comfortable, though.
ReplyDeleteI guess they are nostalgic, similar idea to the Adirondack chairs. I think that is Brighten Pier. Early morning here carching up on reading the news on my iPad. Will get up to get in a short work out and cup of tea. Plans are boat tour this morning then a baseball game this afternoon. Beautiful weather here in Chicago.
DeleteConference starts tomorrow.
Thanks for these lovely deck chairs Ruthy. Your schedule has made me feel tired, and that's your relaxation....enjoy your conference.
DeleteThanks Ruthy. Agree both sets of chairs lovely to look at, not so good to sit in. Baseball game - playing or watching? My only knowledge of this is the Peanuts cartoon🙂
DeleteYes that’s Brighton pier. First time I visited I didn’t get on with the stony beach. Miles of golden sand where I come from (and a cold northerly wind off the sea).
DeleteWell done Ruthy. Yet another lovely photo. How do you find them all the time.
DeleteI agree with Fallon's campaign, to try and reduce plastic waste, so preventing it being put into the landfill.
ReplyDeleteI am now using preservative-free eye-drops. These are in plastic vials and I use one every night. I contacted the manufacturer, to find out, that as they have contained medication, these cannot be re-cycled. I hate that these will now have to go into the land-fill. Sadly I have no choice.
PS I saw a photo today, of a swan, who built her nest out of nearby materials, which were plastic.She then laid her eggs.in it.
DeleteOh no! The dreaded deckchairs that can slice your fingers off. (If the crossbar is not firmly fixed in the notches at the back). Well done Ruthy for finding this photo, even if it does conjure up nightmares for me! 😱
ReplyDeleteNice picture Ruthy. I have happy memories of a day out at Brighton with afternoon tea on the pier and wandering around The Lanes - lovely shops.
ReplyDeleteA - sorry these chairs bring up bad memories! I will try to find more comfy chairs for the next episode of chat.
ReplyDeleteDon’t worry Ruthy, I was just half joking. These deck chairs are a real British classic, found in their thousands at seaside resorts all around the country. They fold flat so can be stacked up on the promenade ready to hire out to day trippers. But they are difficult to get into (without holding onto the sides, which is where the danger lies) and get up from too. And they are not actually very comfortable to sit in!
DeleteForgot to mention that my Mum and Dad spent their honeymoon at Brighton back in April 1920. Good grief - just realised that is almost 100 years ago!!!
DeleteI still have Mum’s souvenirs including the bill for the guest house, a programme from the show on the pier (there were two piers in Brighton back then) including a black and white minstrel group, very non pc these days. There is also a ticket from a ‘speak your weight’ machine (charge 1d) showing she weighed 7stones and numerous postcards. Very noticeable in the postcards is the fact that every single person, male or female, walking along the promenade is wearing a hat!
Many moons ago I lived and worked in Brighton. A wonderful eclectic place and I loved it. The best part, however, was when most of the tourists departed and (us) the residents had the place to ourselves! Sorry peeps! 🙂
DeleteI don't see the need for an apology BB.
DeleteIt's a fact of life. Tourists and visitors are often the main economy but their absence is a relief for most people.
Most seaside or touristy places feel better for the residents when the ' grockles'
have returned home. ( grockles was my mother in laws name for the visitors. Is it an IOW term, or is it used elsewhere ? )
They were called grockles when we lived in Cornwall. Other parts, Devon I think call them Emmets. We lived in Dartmouth for a time and it was a relief when they went home! You had wto go shopping before 9.30 or it was impossible to get round the shops. The downside there was that the whole town seemed to shut down in the winter. The family room in one of the pubs shut and we were refused admission, our daughter was only 10, and we just went for Saturday Pre lunch drinks so my husband told them they had lost our custom and we never went back even though we had been regular customers over the summer. We get lots of visitors here on t.he island but they are not concentrated on one area and certainly not on small towns like Dartmouth so we don’t notice their presence so much. They do bring money in and contrary to what many people think this is a poor area although to my mind not as bad as Cornwall. Of course there are the better off but it is interesting that million pound mansions are hard to sell!
DeleteAh, happy days when there were crowds of people on the High Street and every shop was open for business. Every seaside town would like to return to that time. Our council leader was in last week's paper saying the town had too many shops.
DeleteYears ago deckchair seats were made of canvas.
ReplyDeleteThey were to be found at County Cricket Grounds and Outgrounds like Hove and Southport .
Lovely if one fancied having a doze after lunch.
Then the seats were made of plastic.
Dreadful.
I think now that they may have more or less vanished altogether.
Ruthy - you must understand, the deck chair ( and your choice of picture is perfect ) is iconic here in the U.K. BUT our hatred of them is also universal, and so much part of our British culture.
ReplyDeleteSo, please do not feel that you have worried or offended by including them.
We told you about them and you have responded with a perfect representation.
So ....... Thank You !
It's not deckchair weather now. Brrr! Gales forecast for next few days.
DeleteSeaside - we went to Wrigley Field to watch a baseball game. Wrigley Field is Home to the Chicago Cubs, they have only won the World Seies once in 2016. WF is one of those very few baseball stadiums that have not been demolished and replaced with a more modern one. I am a casual baseball fan and if I have the chance will go see a baseball game in a city that I am visiting. WF is only a 15 minutes ride on the “L” (it’s was they call the transit line) from the hotel. So was very convenient. The boat ride on the Chicago River was a fine experience. We had to crane our necks to see all the high rise buildings of towntown Chicago. The weather was perfect for this ride, sunny without a cloud in the sky.
ReplyDeleteHello again! Apart from a one liner on TA blog last week I have been absent. Late evening on 5/9 Mr R admitted to Hospital, got up and had a funny turn we spent the night in A&E a cubicle and then a room. Everyone really great 😇 Long story short in 8 days many examinations and scans and BP checks galore as it went low. In himself Mr R as always kept bright and was in a bay with some really nice chaps. Kept his appetite too!
ReplyDeleteA CT scan of kidney and bladder area showed a couple of cysts on kidney but nothing untoward 👍 will be kept an eye on. Tablets reviewed too and to see his Dr in a couple of weeks time. He is now enjoying The Singapore Grand Prix! (I am exhausted 😂)
Archerphile I was there on your check up day I kept an eye out for a lady in purple but to no avail, how did you get on? I read you are on sticks now and see that you are quite often posting early am...
Nice to be back amongst you all 😁
So sorry to hear about Mr R’s admission to hospital, must have been very worrying for you. Spending time in A&E is very frustrating, not knowing what to expect but how wonderful it was not too serious. Glad to hear he is back home and glued to the Grand Prix - as is Mr A!
ReplyDeleteI did actually wear a purple skirt on my check up day but was I mainly on D floor so you would have missed me!
Only three and a half weeks since the operation and I am getting around the house on my own two legs without sticks at all! And I can go up and downstairs upright, without sticks, which is fantastic. But I do need them outside as I cannot walk very far completely unsupported and it is very tiring consciously trying not to limp. I have been sleeping badly still and often read these blogs and post in the early hours which is a great comfort.
My biggest success was yesterday spending a hour in the greenhouse potting up tubs of pansies and violas for the Spring. Mr A had to lift the pots and fill them with compost for me, but it was very uplifting to have my hands back in soil, planting things! 🌷
It sounds like you are doing amazingly well Archerfile. I was told I had to use my crutches for 6 weeks after the operation until I went for my check up when I was allowed to ditch them.
DeleteWell done Archerphile and very good news about the stairs.
DeleteI am still not that confident on stairs myself, though the rest of your very good progress sounds similar to mine.
Cheshire Cheese, I do think we are often given pessimistic objectives for recovery by the surgical team, but I think we should be encouraged to listen to our bodies and take notice of our own progress.
And if that means ditching the mobility aids, then ditch em !
Welcome back, Lady R ! Sorry you've had such a worrying & tedious time. Not great for Mr R ( shouldn't he be 'Lord'R BTW ?!), but he sounds very stoical, & a naturally cheerful chap, which makes everything better for both of you, I guess. Good outcome, though, after very thorough & extensive examinations. All good wishes.
ReplyDeleteYou're coming on in leaps & bounds, Archerphile ! ( well, perhaps not quite literally...) Especially good to be stick free.
Good news about Mr R , Lady R .
ReplyDeleteI am really pleased.
I like stoical blokes.
I have one here
However , like Carolyn I wonder why he is not Lord R?
This makes me think that you are possibly the daughter of Royalty .
Had Princess Anne not said that she wanted her daughter not to have a title,Zara would have been Lady Zara but her husband would have been still Mr Tindall.
Don't worry Lady R your secret is safe with me!
I am pleased he is watching and enjoying the Singapore Grand Prix.
Do you know that is something we never watch.
It is Everton V West Ham on TV at the moment
Yesterday cricket and football.
Quite exhausting!
Home Front listeners
ReplyDeletePlease can you help?
I have started to listen again from the beginning.
I have just heard the first week's episodes.
Is there any way I can get the following day's episode without having to scroll down 4years of programmes please after each episode?
When it is on the radio I usually listen to the Monday broadcast and it continues for the rest of the week without my having to do anything.
Thank you.
I've just tried it. I chose 1914 August and an episode "Victor Lumley". When it ended I clicked on the return to website icon near the bottom of screen. It took me back to the same episode on the website. You can then click on the next episode, same as "The Archers ". I used to listen to HF and TA on their websites. Lately when I press play a new screen has opened. I've been catching up on missed episodes of "Tommies" and I did a bit of jiggling about with that. I hadn't noticed it was on autoplay until it started again. Hope this explains. Scrolling through 500 episodes is off-putting.
DeleteJiggling about reminds me of "conjugglin", the Folkstone theatre owner's husband's interpretation of conjugal rights. Either there was no conjugglin' at all or so much that he was exhausted.
Thank you Hedgehog at Hollowtree.
DeleteI am now on week 3 .
Listen whilst ai am ironing.
Thank you all for your good wishes and kind thoughts. (We both appreciate them.) Yes Mr R is very stoical and I have always admired him for it especially throughout his 2014 Sepsis trauma.
ReplyDeleteLord R! 😂 ! Some of you may remember from the BBC blog how I became known as Lady R but no wish to dissolution Lanjan yet again...
From what I read on here many of you are more deserving of the Lady title than me - but it is all a bit of fun. When chosen for the BBC I never anticipated being part of such an intimate blog.
Archerphile you are progressing brilliantly, glad you are back in your garden a real physiological lift for you. Basingstoke follow up so much don’t they? After the first year a questionnaire is sent out yearly and X-ray taken every 5 yrs? And occasional follow ups at Alton Community Hospital too.
Such Good News, to both Archerphile + Lord R.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThought of you tonight Lanjan when I was watching “Dragons Den”. There was a covered cat dish that opened when the cat approached it via a flat ramp and it closed again after. It could also be filled underneath I think with ice to keep the food fresh and as covered no flies getting in the food. Just what you’re adopted cats could have done with in the Summer! Did you’re neighbour ever return from hospital? - cannot remember.
ReplyDeleteI bought a covered dish that a cat was supposed to open itself but even my brightest cat couldn't get the hang of it and instead either pushed the still covered dish around or ignored it. There was also an automatic one with a timer.
DeleteGood to hear the largely positive health news of various bloggers and associates. I hope everything continues to go well.
ReplyDeleteSo sorry to hear Lady Rs news of Misters trip to hospital, but very pleased to hear of positive return to home.
ReplyDeleteI have been absent throughout last week, away for four days in Charmouth in a caravan and without internet connection.
Able to listen to the omnibus today and able to catch up with missed episodes.
I also spent a long time yesterday catching up with our blogs.
Hope you had an enjoyable time Mrs P, despite no Archers. The Dorset coast, in fact the whole County, is beautiful and often reminds me of what England used to be like about 50 years ago. Perhaps it is the absence of Motorways in the County that make it seem calmer and slower paced than elsewhere. (Shropshire has a similar ‘olden days’ feel to me as well with all the small fields and hedgerows).
DeleteI lived for a season on the Isle of Purbeck and loved that coastline and walking it with my dog, Archerphile. And like you I find it a lovely county.
DeleteThis time I did the Golden Cap walk, about three miles I think, and very pleased with myself. I puffed a bit, but my knee held up brilliantly.
The other knee, now not needing to compensate, is strengthening up too.
I also made it to Exeter to the Devon County Archives for further research into a mystery in my childhood and although I left without a result, which I had no expectation of on this occasion, I did come away with a number of leads to follow up. So it was a good day.
👍 😀 ☀️
DeleteRe Lanjan September 16, 2018 at 5:20 PM
Delete"Had Princess Anne not said that she wanted her daughter not to have a title,Zara would have been Lady Zara but her husband would have been still Mr Tindall."
If princess Anne’s daughter, Zara, would have had the title “Lady”, does anyone know why Prince Andrew’s daughters are Princesses?
I should have ended my comment with "and not Ladies".
DeleteI looked this up the other week. The children of the monarch's sons are Prince or Princess by right. Those of the monarch's daughters are not, although the monarch can opt to give them honourary titles if so desired. I gather Princess Anne turned down this option for her children.
DeleteThis article (http://royalcentral.co.uk/uk/wessexes/why-prince-edwards-children-are-not-titled-prince-and-princess-103666) explains the details, including why Prince Edward's children are 'Lady' and 'Viscount', not Princess and Princess. Edward was made an Earl, not a Duke, when he married because it is intended that he will one day be Duke of Edinburgh (a title that is currently still in use ...). 'Lady' and 'Viscount' are the proper terms for the children of an earl.
I also learnt that historically, only George should be 'Prince'. The rules were changed when succession was changed so that males didn't take precedence over females. (If Charlotte had been born first she would have remained 3rd in line to the Throne even if subsequent brothers had arrived.) By rights, you'd think this would merit a change for the monarch's daughter's children but I'm not sure it has yet.
All very interesting stuff, although for most of us the only material difference is that the information may one day prove useful in a pub quiz (or 'Who Wants to be a Millionaire?') ; )
Ah, thanks for that, OW, thought it it might be sexist. Not that it matters in the bigger picture, as you say.
DeleteI am probably incorrect ,Patricia about the title Zara Phillips might have had.
DeletePerhaps she too might have been a Princess
I don't think Princess Margaret's daughter was a Princess though and she would have been in a similar position to Princess Anne ie the second child of the Monach
Goodness only knows why the daughters of the Duke of York are Princesses.
I trust Eugenie will become Mrs Whoever when she gets married and that her husband will be able to look after her instead of having a personal detective.
It is very odd, Patricia, makes no sense to me
ReplyDeleteGlad you enjoyed your Charmouth trip, Mrs P ( remember son, goggles on, digging for fossils there, amonites & other things in '80, I think. Also my parents lived near Sherborne, post retirement)
Congratulations on your 3 mile walk, what a triumph, AND your interesting sounding sleuthing...
Archerphile, Lord + Lady R.
ReplyDeleteWhat wonderful positive posts.
You need to bottle this positivity and outlook on life, then sell it on. You will earn a fortune!
I am so glad to hear how well things have progressed.
Miriam. 😀😀
Ruthy, thanks for the interesting account of the baseball and Chicago. Glad you enjoyed the game and the boat trip. Good that it is not all work whilst you are away.
ReplyDeleteI recently discovered relatives on my father’s side in Michigan - thought that was near Chicago until I looked it up. Not so close - it’s actually Detroit they say I should fly in to if I ever manage to visit. They have a farm beside Lake Michigan.
Mrs P I was in Lyme earlier this year - we love it there. Wonderful view of Golden Cap from our holiday chalet especially at sunrise. That’s a great achievement to walk up it for anyone never mind post surgery.
Lady R hope all is progressing well for you both.
Going back to the Royals... Zara’s father Mark Phillips, did not receive a title when he married Princess Anne. I think he was offered one but they decided not to use grace & favour titles and this was why Zara and her brother Peter did not have them either. Anne and Mark wanted their children to have a more normal childhood without the trappings of royalty.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, Prince Andrew has always had a more elevated sense of his position and insisted his girls were made full princesses and has tried, over the years, to get them fully involved with royal protocol and advantages. I believe it was Prince Charles who decided, a few years back, that the royal family and their perks and privileges should be pared down to a small group of immediate family and the ‘hangers on’ ( eg Prince Michael of Kent and ‘Princess Pushy’) should have to pay for themselves in future.
P. Andrew is always trying to get Beatrice & Eugénie into the limelight but in fact they fulfil no royal duties at all apart from attending weddings and occasionally standing on a balcony.
Which is why I am horrified that Eugénie is turning her wedding into an occasion to rival Harry and Meghans and has insisted on a carriage drive around Windsor after the ceremony at a public cost of around £2,000,000 for security arrangements .
As you can tell, I don’t have much time for the Yorks who do so much less than Princess Anne or the Wessex clan for their country. 🤨
Too busy marching up and down hills ; )
DeleteHear hear Archerphile-10.37pm post.
DeleteIf all the Royals had stuck to the policy of having 2.4 children it would have been much better.
As Mr LJ says ,they don't know what to do with them.
At one point Prince William was going to do farming.
😂👍
DeleteI didn’t know another royal wedding had been announced.
Sorry the laughter was for OW’s post but I took too long to press go.
DeleteOh yes Seasider! Princess Eugénie is getting married to her business man fiancé (sorry can’t remember his name) at the same venue as Harry and Meghan this Autumn. Apparently it is to be a two day affair with several different post-wedding celebrations, one hosted by the Queen at Windsor Castle and others paid for by P. Andrew at his (and Sarah Ferguson’s) house in the grounds of the Castle.
DeleteEugénie has requested a carriage ride around Windsor after the ceremony, just like Harry’s, costing a fortune for security. The flowers are going to be ‘spectacular’ and the firm of party planners who arranged David Beckham’s marriage to Victoria at an Irish Castle have been engaged to plan all the parties afterwards, including a funfair!
Who does this girl think she is?
Or rather, who do Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson think they are?
Goodness only knows what is planned for Beatrice, if she ever marries!!
Sorry, as you can tell, I am disgusted by all this show for a minor royal who does nothing to earn her place in society. Others may have an entirely different opinion and be looking forward to another royal event this year, to rival the first.
My question is Archerphile ,who on earth wants to go to stand on the street in Windsor to see a carriage go by with a very minor Royal in it?
DeleteOn the other hand Joe Public has been invited to apply for tickets to view the Spectacle from inside the Grounds of the castle and I suppose there are those who like to watch a wedding taking place to see what the women are wearing.
When Prince Charles married Diana on 29thJuly 1981, it was the first day of Lancashire's County Cricket match at Southport .
People said that people wouldn't come because of the wedding.
It was a full house.
(I think some women arrived a bit later because they wanted to see the dress which as Diana climbed out of the carriage looked creased but because it was silk the creases dropped out)
Katy and I enjoyed Harry’s wedding at home with prosecco and M & S small eats wearing tiaras ( made in China!). However, agree with comments about Eugenie’s wedding and have little interest. I should think the crowds or lack of them during her parade around Windsor will be very disappointing for her!
DeleteOn Prince Charles's first wedding day I cycled from Cheltenham to Chepstow with a bunch of friends. Two people got the train from Cheltenham to Stonehouse and joined us there. I've never known whether they were using watching the wedding as an excuse for avoiding the hilliest part of the ride, or the other way round.
DeleteWhilst I don't want this to become a Royal blog I wonder what anybody thinks of my long held idea.
ReplyDeleteHad the Queen abdicated or retired at 65 like the Dutch Queen Beatrice did and Prince Charles had done the same,we would have had William as King now.
The Ueen would be a much loved Queen Grandmother and would not have to take on the onerous duties a woman of her age should not be doing.
She and Prince Phillip could live permanently at Sandringham and Prince Charles at Highgrove.
I agree with you Archerphile about the paring down of the Royal family.
Most people I think like Prince Harry but as far as I am concerned he and his wife and any children they may have should be on their own now.
They have had a pretty good start in life financially and he may inherit a bob or two.
Let him go off to Africa and do his good works if that is what he wants to do.
Agree wholeheartedly Lanjan. There are once or two members of the family who work really hard at their public duties and take their position to do good seriously ( most notably the Princess Royal). Then there are others (who I’d best not name) who I think of as ‘hangers on’ who want to expoilt their royal credentials to the full, do little or no work and expect to be kept in a life of luxury and deference.
DeleteI also would have preferred the Queen to follow the continental royal ‘fashion’ of retiring at a certain age and handing the crown down to the next generation, whilst that generation is still young enough to be effective and popular leaders. Prince Charles could well be in his 80s before he gets the chance to reign and, hopefully modernise royalty.
I think the Queen feels that once anointed she has to carry on until the end of her life. She has stopped travelling to far flung places and has delegated some duties to younger members of her family. She is marvellous for her age and has a depth of knowledge which is invaluable. I was 4 when she came to the throne and will be devastated when she dies.
DeleteAgree Ev I was 5 yrs (coming up to 6yrs in the October) of the Queens Coronation year.
DeleteThe next Royal Wedding will be on my birthday. I think it is a shame the couple are in the main replicating Harry and Meghan’s wedding which by its very nature was unique for a Royal!
Mrs P, Miriam, Seasider and others once again a thank you from Mr /Lord 😂 R and myself for your messages. All still well here and Archerphile is progressing apace which is lovely too. I love this blog Ruthy it brings support friendship and smiles.
ReplyDeleteMe too, thanks for all the support and friendship. It has made recent events much easier to cope with. And special thanks to whoever suggested sitting on a high chair to iron (think it may have been Sarnia?). I have just manage to iron all the flat things in this week’s wash by sitting on my adjustable-height bathroom stool with the ironing board a bit lower than usual, next to the kitchen worktop where I stack the ironed items.
DeleteGave me a lovely glow of having achieved another small step in recovery.
(Leaving all the shirts and bedding to Mr A though! 😉)
Me too!😕
DeleteHands up ! 😗
DeleteI gave up ironing sheets once they became 'super-king' size fitted ones. At first I was a bit afraid that my mother might come back and smack me, but by that time she was far too long gone!
DeleteAnd yes, I'm the one with the high chair.
I wasn't going to say anything but now realise I'm not the only one who doesn't iron bedding.
DeleteI have always ironed bedding ladies!
DeleteWe have a king sized bed and all my linen is pure Egyptian cotton.
I can’t bear the look of crumpled sheets and duvet cover and would hate to put my face on unironed pillow cases - so I just get on and do it (except for today)
I must admit that ironing a king size fitted sheet with extra deep sides is not easy and the duvet cover takes ages to do both sides, but the finished result is well worth it - to me!
I only iron the top side of the pillowcases and fold the duvet cover ironing both sides then fold it again ironing the wrinkled bit,! My daughter doesn’t care so don’t iron hers!
DeleteHands up here too, I'm a cheerful ironer, love it and earned my pensioners pocket money for the last decade before moving by ironing somebody else's bed linen and shirts.
DeleteAnd if I could find the same job again, I would.
Ironing! What's that?😉
DeleteArcherphile, what are "the flat things" which you had just managed to iron before you posted? I laid flat items on the ironing-board beneath items which were not flat and ironed both at once. Note past tense.
DeleteI ironed bedding when I was staying with someone who kept a B&B.
TA thought - will Russ or Lily iron the Egyptian cotton sheets?
It was custom for servants to iron newspapers. Gabriel on "Home Front" complained his morning newspaper was creased when the few remaining servants had time for only essential duties.
“Flat things” = Tea Towels (yes, I know, nobody else irons tea towels, just me!), Mr A’s red spotty hankies he insists on using, my tee shirts, linen napkins (yes, I do use one every day, I’m a messy eater), pillow cases, my nightie. All the complicated men’s shirts and polo shirts and the fitted sheet/duvet cover were left to my apprentice!
DeleteFunnily enough, though I don't iron bed linen, I do iron tea towels. No deep psychology there, tea towels quick, sheets etc.slow, life sapping.
DeleteWe iron everything going -sheets,towels,tea towels,hankies and undies
DeleteI don't wear man made fibre and have quite a lot of linen which creases easily.
I love getting into a bed made with cotton sheets which smell lovely as they have been hanging outside on the line and which have been ironed.
Mr LJ irons better than I do .
I can always tell when he has done the ironing.
At the moment I am doing the ironing listening to Homefront 1914 week 3
I also iron everything. It sterilises the tea towels I reckon. We have super king size bedding. Started using a top sheet when we got it soo didn’t have to wash the duvet cover every time. I don’t iron socks or my underwear , that’s it.
DeleteI even iron the dog towels!😇
I used to have an ironing mountain. Sadly, it became an ironing avalanche some time ago.
DeleteMrs P, if I promise to iron the spare-room sheets would you like to come and visit my shoe? Just to be ultra-convenient for you, the avalanche and ironing board live in the spare room ...
Lanjan, surely ironing towels makes them flat instead of fluffy and is therefore self-defeating as well as being a waste of time and electricity.
DeletePtB Ironing dog towels? You're having a laugh!
I assume you all got your Brownies or Guides housewife badges.
HatH.......not having a laugh. I certainly haven’t got any badges, was never a brownie or guide. Simply a matter that they stack better in a box if ironed and folded nicely. Doesn’t take long to iron a towel.
DeletePtB The towels stack better because they are flatter after ironing. If your dog could express an opinion it would prefer them un-ironed and fluffy. Although towels inherited by my animals had lost their fluffiness long since.
DeleteI find the heat from the iron makes them nice and soft after they've been drying in the sun : )
DeleteI fluff mine up by giving them a quick whirl in the tumble dryer!
DeleteWell the "beeb" weather forecast was so wrong. I have had 2 days of wonderful, warm, balmy weather, high winds today, but not too bad.
ReplyDeleteI am having torrential rain now, but the garden is loving it, and my lawns are now green again.
My runner bean crop is sadly no more, but it has served me well.
Back to royals & Lanjan's question : British monarchs don't retire, they abdicate, get usurped, beheaded, but, far more often, die ( sometimes in battle, such as R111). That's the tradition, but most don't last into their nineties, but tradition is not some moral absolute, so it's stubborn & inflexible to cling on. Time for Charles to have a go, before he's too old to give a damn. Not fair to skip to William, still only in his thirties with a young family. Not that it matters very much.
ReplyDeleteYo, Queen! As long as you can!
DeleteHear! Hear! Bootgums!
DeleteI now turn the light out every night and say, ' please don't die tonight Mam '.
DeleteWe have a George 6th Coronation oak growing in our orchard from acorns given out in 1937 from Windsor Great Park. The plaque that came with it was gradually being overgrown by the trunk so I levered it out and still have it. I wish the royal family well when I look at the oak, and I look forward to Princess Eugenie's wedding.
DeleteThe community group to which I belong planted an oak for the Diamond Jubilee. I give it a tidy up at start of June each year. It's protected by other trees from storms, like the one which has started tonight. A 6 year old girl helped to plant the tree. I hope she remembers and returns to visit the tree in later life. 2 other young oaks, planted as tiny ones more than a decade ago are doing well. One has acorns.
DeleteSorry ,I still think the Queen should have abdicated.
DeleteShe could have carried on doing the things she wanted to and been seen on the balcony on State Occasions.
She is being unfair to Charles.
I remember reading that the Queen Mother hated it when her daughter became Queen because she was not the most important female in the Country.
Perhaps Her Majesty doesn't like the idea of Camilla being more important that she is.
Many people I would suggest are not too keen on Charles but he hasn't been given a chance to show what he can do .
Who knows what he might have been like had he been Monach in his twenties as his mother was?
As for Eugenie-I am amazed that anyone is at all interested in her wedding and I can't see how she can have insisted on having the parade round Windsor..
What a terrible waste of public money.
People often overlook Charles’ considerable input to the Prince’s Trust. It has given many opportunities to young people helping many to set up in their own business. He hasn’t been idle through the years. I stand by my opinion that the Queen honours her anointing as the monarch for life and not standing aside has nothing to do with others usurping her position as First Lady!
DeleteWith you 100% Ev.
DeleteI'll third that Ev.
DeleteVive la Revolution. They should get a proper job. Shaking hands with thousands of people is not a job. It is certainly not intellectually stimulating. T. May looked like a twit when she shown curtsying to William. Sorry folks, I am a bah humbug Republician.
ReplyDeleteAs for ironing, life is too short to spend it holding a hot iron. Back ache comes to mind. I am, however meticulous about folding.
Oh no.
DeleteI say keep the Royals but only the immediate Royal family.
The others can fend for themselves or earn a crust by opening new hospitals,attending functions etc.
According to my mother we are descended (probably half of the population of Scotland is) from Charles the second (wrong side of the blanket )
She reckoned her mother was the granddaughter of the youngest son of the Duke of B....
However when I tried to check it up and got to the mid 1700s I came to a dead end when I reached a John Scott.
Now how many of those are there in Scotland?
Well that Charles spent several months kicking his heels in Scotland when he was 20 while he was waiting for an army to lead into England with the intention of defeating Oliver Cromwell and regaining his throne. He needed a bit of relaxation. The Kirk elders gave him a hard time. A large part of the English aristocracy is also descended from him. Sarah Ferguson is a descendant. Diana's royal ancestor was King James 2nd, brother of Charles. An earlier King James of Scotland was a bit of a lad too. He used to travel incognito to find out what was really happening rather than relying on what courtiers told him.
DeleteStasia, a perfectly valid view, if not one I share, though hardly an avid monarchist either. Heads of State have their uses being loyal representatives of their country, not political, spreading goodwill, the, hopefully, civilized face from one nation to another. Historically, the monarchy is interesting, &, because of the ritual, more glamorous than other kinds of representatives ! But agree about the excessive cost, especially that afforded to the hangers on, & also find the bowing & scraping distasteful, so redundant.
ReplyDeleteAdmit to enjoying a royal wedding - like thumbing through a mag. at the hairdresser's, only live, on the telly ! Clothes! Hats ! Ceremony ! Behaviour ! ( Always watch out for famously unsmiling Victoria Beckham, for instance..)
Stasia. 9.13 a.m.
DeleteYes, I agree completely.
Your first para says it for me too Carolyn.
DeleteNot too bothered to watch the wedding (s) part.
Don't like weddings.
Re Duke of Yorks girlies. What a flutter bug pair.
However since the family home is I believe in or very near to Windsor Great Park, I think she is entitled to have her drive around.
Do not think however that the taxpayer should be shelling out for it.
It's a posher version of Nic & Will Grundy being driven around Ambridge in Bartleby's trap.
DeleteHaH 1.21 a.m.
Delete:) :) :)
Lan Jan.
ReplyDeleteThere was no secret to growing my sweet peas. They are planted on a trellis, affixed to a fence which gets the sun all day. The big pot with the runner beans in, is nearby which I watered every night and "fed" once a week. The sweet peas had the same treatment at the same time, it was just luck. I bought very young plants, rather than growing them from seed, so they were already established, with a good root system.
LanJan re' your question on the other blog. I think my sweet peas are more luck than any thing else. I have let my gardening lapse quite badly for a few years as tied up with other things, but, touch wood and whisper, I should have more free time now. I grew some runner beans, a few potatoes and sweet peas this year, and planted some old varieties of apple trees. The sweet peas I just planted in a plastic dustbin with drainage holes made in the bottom, but, and this may be the reason, I do have access to wonderfully composted farmyard manure. My Dad as he got older gradually gave up growing things but continued to grow sweet peas as that was my mother's favourite flower, and runner beans as that was her favourite vegetable.
ReplyDeleteA garden centre not far away has been selling off pallets for a pound each, so I couldn't resist, and my son who is home from abroad at present has been helping ferry some home, and I have begun making raised borders ( about waist high) with them. No more bending to dig or weed for me!! Wonderful! 💃
Wow, Janice, I love the idea of your waist high raised beds. What a brilliant idea - and it could work for me too. I have a very large garden (includes my late husband's monster veg garden which I have let go to grass and have planted some fruit trees down there - starting to produce some fruit at last). I also have several flower beds close to the house, and in the last few years I have been finding it increasingly difficult to keep up with weeding them (not just hand weeding but something more radical due to perpetually invasive bindweed and couch grass!) because of all the bending involved - can't kneel any more. So, why don't I investigate the possiblity of raising the beds up to a sensible height for me? They are quite large beds, but it shouldn't be impossible. Thanks so much for that clever idea - I'll let you know how it goes, although it will probably take some time because, I have to find someone to do it for me as cheaply as possible before I can start!
DeleteI envy you the raised beds Janice.
DeleteWe get our well rotted manure from a Riding Stables.
The owner has to pay hundreds of pounds to get the huge mound taken away.
If we were about 50 years younger we say we would buy an old van and bag up the manure and make a fortune .
It is lovely stuff and smells great.
The other thing I would have liked to have done is House Clearance.
rre : OldWomanInAShoeSeptember 17, 2018 at 4:25 PM
ReplyDeleteThanks for the info OWINAS - sorry for the delay in acknowledging, but it's my first time back on the blog since Wednesday.
As far as ironing is concerned, I don’t usually iron anything which can’t be seen and not too many shirts since MrC retired. My mum ironed just about everything, including dusters, using a flat iron heated on the Yorkist range (I think she had two irons on the go, one in use and one heating up) and she was still washing using a peggy tub, posser and mangle, having boiled the water in a copper which had a fire underneath it. This was in the early fifties before we had electric installed – the house, a miner’s cottage in a very long row of houses, had gas lighting until then. I’m never forgetful of how easy my own life has been compared to hers. I don’t think my story is too unusual and I’m sure many of you will have similar memories.
I remember my grandmother ironing with flat irons that were heated on the iron range in the kitchen, and my mum doing the washing in a copper in an outhouse and then running it through the mangle, when I was a little girl. Loved watching the water gush out as it was squeezed out by the mangle rollers. Once upon a time I ironed sheets, but no longer. I find they come out nicely smoothed by being given a good shake and then folded very tightly. Still iron pillow cases though, and hankies and linen tea towels - mainly for the enjoyment of using them when clean and crisp. However I was amazed to see that my mother-in-law used to iron absolutely everything - even socks! - until I found out that she had lived in Africa where everything was ironed to kill off the eggs of a fly that could burrow into skin and form a nasty boil containing the fly grub - yuk!
DeleteIndeed OW & Suz memories indeed! My mum had a big green mangle - I remember banging my shin on it when running away from a “banger” firework. When my mum was young her index finger got caught in a mangle and as a result the nail grew like a bird claw, many lost the tip of a finger altogether.
DeleteFrom when I was very young I can remember coal fires, outdoor loo, tin bath, non electric iron (just) I’m starting to sound like a Catherine Cookson novel now 😂
Ironing - I’m a mix and match of the comments already made l always fold very precisely when I take from machine and also as I remove from washing line if hung out. When I do iron I like to do so listening to the radio be it a discussion / play etc.
I have my Granny’s flat iron. Grandad worked in an iron foundry in the Black Country and he made it. Nowadays it sits on a stand I bought in a jumble sale while I dash away with my (electric )smoothing iron!!
DeleteOf course, ironing is only half the story. If no-one bothers to collect their clothes and put them away they eventually get knocked off the bed and back on to the avalanche. Or is that just my badly shoe-trained shoe-dwellers?
DeleteSeveral years ago a friend let me have a cutting from en everlasting sweet pea, which was dormant the first year but has been quite prolific ever since. It's planted in front of a cotoneaster which is a good support for it and every July I look forward to the first sighting of it through my kitchen window, it being about 6 feet tall by this stage. I have learned by experience to keep it well pruned as it is now too big a job to cut it all back when it's finished flowering.
ReplyDeleteI planted one beneath a camellia bush, so that later after the camellia's flowers are gone there is summer colour from the sweet pea.
DeleteRe sweet peas.
ReplyDeleteWhen I lived"up north" they were great.
Now in the sunny south they haven't done as well.
I always start them off by sowing seed because I like the large flowered ,single coloured highly scented ones.
I think they are called Simply Janet or some such name.
I have tried sowing before Christmas and then in early spring.
I am sent a packet each year from a friend on my birthday in October
I have sorted out a new bed for them for next year.
Sheltered and facing east.
I got some everlasting sweet pea seeds from Hounslow Heath years ago.
Each year a clump appears in totally the wrong place but try as I might I can't get them to grow anywhere else.
We've had the ironing/ washing/folding conversation before when on the official blog.
ReplyDeleteSweet peas subject is new.
I think the everlasting Schiaparelli pink, my favourite, grow where they feel comfortable.
One of the happier memories of my childhood, was a friends dad's allotment where he grew rows of sweet peas. We would go after school to pick many little poses.
Her name was Shirley Palmer.
Any ex Shirley Palmers out there ?
The trick with sweet peas, is to keep picking the flowers. They are lovely in the lounge and the scent is subtle + nice. I have a little crystal stem vase, which is ideal for them.
ReplyDeleteYesterday morning, my hanging basket was still glorious. It was planted with highly scented, trailing, apricot coloured double begonias (variety - Fragrant Falls,peach).
After 48hours of high winds + rain, it is totally battered. I doubt it will survive, sadly.
They were described as peach but are apricot in colour as so vibrant.
My baskets of petunias are the same Miriam, battered that is.
DeleteYour weather is like mine, as we are not too far apart.
DeleteWhen I looked out my bedroom window the past few weeks I've seen a lot of pink flowers, mostly Japanese anemones and a bright pink loosestrife. Gone today, petals blown off and greenery damaged by wind. A big clump of yellow inula which last year remained bright and cheerful until November is looking brown & tatty after Storm Allie. Evening Primroses have prostrated themselves across a path.
DeleteI have already posted a while back, about the mangle Mum used in the '50's, and how we found the base, a few years back. This was in the garden, when my family had to clear, what was my parents home. As I said, at that time, my neice up-cycled it, for a base for her sewing machine table, so it is still being used to this day. We also found an old flat iron, which brought back memories from the '70's.
ReplyDeleteEvery summer, with ferries booked, the caravan was hooked up for 3 weeks touring in Europe, just going anywhere. There were M+D and 3 daughters, so washing had to be done. The flat iron was heated on the gas "hob" in the caravan, to do the ironing.
That flat iron was still being used, as a "door stop"! Aah - memories, some lovely, some sad.
Strangely, I never really noticed it was the flat iron which propped open the kitchen door into the dining area!
DeleteMiriam. I have never heard of an everlasting sweet peas, are the seeds easily available?
ReplyDeleteWith the growing season coming to an end I Have been making fires to clear the dead rubbish. I use two incinerators, or bins and had to be very careful today. Beneath my calm exterior lurks a pyromaniac, it's great fun.
Last week we were given a small polytunnel into which we planted some cauliflowers, and today we found cover and broken frame all tangled up and ripped to shreds. It now rests peacefully in the town dump. Wasn't strong enough to cope with the wind, which was gale force in Tewksbury.
I hope all you have aches and pains are feeling better, I send my best wishes.
.
'Everlasting' sweetpeas are only as good as the gardener who tends them. Mine very swiftly failed to live up to its name : (
DeleteI also managed to weed up the carrots I had recently planted.
In my defence, I was about ten at the time. And I did have more success with pansies, thyme and lemon mint.
We now have a gardener who can do more in 2 hours than I can manage in two weeks. So I can enjoy my garden without needing a pith helmet and a machette to get to the flowerbeds : )
You can buy everlasting sweet pea plants from Garden Centres,Stadia
ReplyDeleteIf you see them in the wild you can just collect the pods as I do.
Mine have no scent but are very pretty.
Pink in colour but smaller than the cultivated sweet pea.
There are some little bushes on the grass verge on our local station platform.
I once decided to throw some poppy seeds there in February(best time) .
They were doing splendidly until someone decided to use a grass cutter in the area.
Some did survive at the end of the platform though.
I have a small shrubby flowering pea. It has lived in a stone tub for several years. It blooms early Spring, once during snow which was a surprise. Unscented flowers. The container isn't far from the back-door so I poured waste water on it every day this summer to keep it alive. I bought it at an open gardens day at the garden owned by a man who used to run the town parks.
DeleteI wonder if Ruthy, our wonderful instigator of this blog, is familier with sweet-peas? It is interesting to learn the differences between the USA + UK, with topics such as gardening and the plants which we all try to grow + nuture.
ReplyDeleteI am delighted to say that the BBC have decided not to spend the money they saved by doing away with our Archers blog on broadcasting the wedding of Prince Andrew's younger daughter.
ReplyDeleteHooray for that LanJan!
DeleteSweet peas don’t stand a chance in my garden as I have the national collection of snails who have munched every dahlia, lupin, clematis and even the odd rose when all else has gone.
ReplyDeleteMy mother has her mother’s flat iron as a kitchen door stop and I bought one from an antique shop when we moved here to serve the same purpose.
Woolly -bear caterpillars used to eat all mine, along with columbines, clematis and much else. I haven't seen a woolly-bear caterpillar for years.
DeleteIs that the name for those lovely brown furry caterpillars I used to collect in matchboxes when a child HH ?
DeleteI have not seen one for years either.
I loved them, and realise right now, that that particular warm brown furriness has been with me throughout my life in many different forms.
There are several varieties of furry caterpillars. Most British ones become moths. Hairs of some species cause skin irritation. The brown ones in my garden may have been Garden Tiger moths which have declined seriously or they might have been another moth species. 20 years ago many could be seen crawling around on the ground. Most plants in my garden had completely bare stems after woolly bears found them. I've not seen a woolly bear caterpillar for years. Other interesting moths live in or visit my garden. There was a humming-bird hawk-moth last year. Some large moths in my garden may be other hawk-moth species.
DeleteMy two flat irons are book ends
ReplyDeleteMy lovely 13yr old cat, had her vaccs. + annual check up today. She is still 100% healthy, and her weight was identical to a year ago. What a relief. She is doing better than me!!! 😀😀
ReplyDeleteLanjan - how are your cats, and those you are concerned about?
I cannot believe, the photo which I saw on-line today - a waterfall in Cumbria, which due to 80mph winds, was blown and so "flowed" upwards! I don't think it was faked, but....
Pleased to say Gypsy was 9.3 kg when we first had her in May and is now 8.3 kg. I think she has another kg to go but didn’t she do well? A combination of walks, some rather reluctant on her part and controlling her diet whilst allowing some treats as like me she is an old lady! We are going to foster a pup, a cross between a Yorker and a tzih tsu for a week and if he gels with Gyp and doesn’t exhaust us too much we may adopt him. She does need a companion but he may prove to be too young and boisterous. His name is Thunder unbelievably but if we have him we plan to call him Buddy. He is only 4 months so should adjust to a different name we hope! Pleased to hear about your cat, Miriam!
DeleteThat should read a cross between a Yorkie......
DeleteCongratulations to you & Gypsy ! A kg is a lot for a small dog, or average cat. I hope it works out with Buddy - do dogs have a jealousy gene ? Cats have, alongside territorial issues, but maybe dogs are more cool.
DeleteAlso, glad your cat got the thumbs up today, Miriam - down to good genetics & a great home ! ( that reminds me to check dates for our 2, must be soon....)
My daughter has done some research and if you have two dogs it is a good idea to have one of each sex. Bitches in particular can be troublesome together. We don’t know how Gyp will react but we do know she gets on or at least tolerates other animals. As we only foster her being an older dog with some health issues, the charity looks after her when we are away. She went to Janet, a foster carer when we went on the cruise and although she took her own bed, she curled up with the cat overnight! We have seen pictures of Buddy. He is very cute!
DeleteWe have an anxious cat on our hands this week as the neighbours are away again. Someone is coming round to feed him but I think he is sleeping on top of our shed and comes down into the garden regularly during the day to tell us he is on his own and hang around us. I give him fuss and attention when I see him.
ReplyDeleteI was visited by the cat from across the street last week, so assume owners are away. He visited for 2 consecutive days in the summer when his people were away. He left his previous home in the neighbourhood when he was young and hung around my street for a while before my neighbour took him in. He doesn't need food, he just comes to announce that he's lonely. My last cat used to chase him.
DeleteI am delighted to report that my neighbours (whose old cat got run over when we were looking after him last year) have put their two new pedigree cats into a cattery each time they have gone away this year There are off on their third holiday in two months tomorrow (that makes 5 so far this year) and the cats are again going to the cattery and we have not been asked to look after them.
DeleteI think they have finally got the message that we do not want the responsibility of caring for their pets several times year nor is it fair to expect us to do so. I sometimes wonder why they insist on keeping cats when they are away so much - they’ll need a season ticket for that cattery!
Archerphile I am really pleased to hear that. Well done for dealing with it diplomatically. I know those situations are tricky and can cause anxiety. Not what you needed at the moment.
DeleteWell done to everyone who gives a cat a bit of company. It's not true that cats are only attached to their location.
DeleteMaybe your neighbour is a blog contributor 😮 Archerphile and read of your dilemma!
DeleteEither way you are sorted 😄
I am downstairs but can hear the radio upstairs.
ReplyDeleteThere is at the moment on the late night comedy slot, (R4) a comedian using the Archers as his ' comedy' stooge.
Some comments re Brian A and some Joe type voices, and general comments re TA.
And the rain at the moment seems to be making up for the lack of it over the summer.
It's p.....ing down.
Pelting down.
DeleteIt was Nick Revell. "... reveals that what Vladimir Putin and Angela Merkel have in common turns out to be more than a shared interest in The Archers." Now I'm really worried. Which one of you is Vlad?
DeletePelting down. Oh yeah, I was wondering how to fill in the blanks . . .😀
DeleteEv, so glad to hear about your progress with Gypsy. I do hope all goes well with the new pup, might just lift her energy levels with a youngster.
ReplyDeleteI collected my new dog yesterday, via a charitable org. She had been living in a loving home but had been fighting with another female in the home and it was getting quite serious.She is a Dachshund born with only 3 legs. It is very hard for her as yesterday she knew something was up as her Mum was crying and along I come a total stranger and take her away.She ate her tea last night, but hasn't eaten her breakfast, but has managed some toast and butter, a treat she liked in her last home,
.I have ordered her a dog stroller so we can go and enjoy the beach together as she isn't able to walk to far.So different from my last dogs, which was the point and my niece will be able to have her if any thing happens to me, as I was originally looking for a much older dog, she is only 3 but....
Cowgirl. Your new dog companion has certainly landed on her paws. All three of them. She is very lucky.
DeleteWhat is a dog stroller, is it a type of pram for dogs? 🐩🐕
I'm interested to hear of your little tripod dachsie, CowGirl, and I'm sure she will soon settle down happily with you in her new home - especially if she gets buttered toast treats! I have a big ten year old lurcher that had to have his hind leg amputated earlier this year due to bone cancer, and I was worried about how he would manage on only three spindly legs, but needn't have worried, as he can run just as fast as ever he could - running is his main joy in life of course. He does tire slightly more quickly than he used to, but he can still manage a couple of kilometers without keeling over. Dachshunds are such tough little dogs. I had one many years ago, and he could out walk his much larger companion - he even made it to the top of one of the Lakeland fells with me - so I hope that your little chap has many happy walks on the beach with you.
DeleteSorry, should said "she", not "he"!
DeleteYes Stasia it is a dog pram. The good beaches are a longish walk and the postbox too far for her, so she will have the best of both worlds.
DeleteSuz, sorry about your lurcher, hope there is no repercussions from the cancer.
Misty has her front leg missing, she certainly enjoyed running in the garden this morning on the lead though as my garden isn't secure, am just waiting to have the fencing done.
Penty of rabbits here for your lurcher, well there was, a few have been found dead, I think someone said there was a new disease, so perhaps that is it. Sorry for the rabbits but glad not to have them running riot in my garden
Lovely to hear all the good news stories of Ruthy's blog animals .All the best Cow Girl with your new little dachshund.
DeleteEv,pleased to hear that it is good to have dogs of different sexes if a new one is being introduced.
My son has a lovely old Labrador -male-and have just introduced a new little sister to him .
Apparently she curls up by him and he allows it but he is used to the two cats-thin cat and fat cat doing that Anyway.
As regards the cats across the road Miriam,they are still being fed by the "carer"
I have been told not to feed them so ai haven't.
Our cat Poppy had a sore which would not clear up in spite of having antibiotics,cream etc.
After several visits to the vet she was given a collar to wear because (and I hadn't realised this) a cat's tongue is rough and
when she licked herself it made the sore worse.
However the collar wasn't that good because she could get her back leg under it to scratch the sore.
Now I have made her a longer soft padded collar and hopefully things will get better.
Ha ha, yes, Harry LOVES rabbits! And squirrels! Get's very fed up with hedgehogs because they refuse to run for him, and just curl up in a spikey ball. Makes him soooo cross that he picks them up and tears around the garden with them, and refuses to drop them again for ages - while I patiently wait to catch them from his jaws and pop them back outside again. Never harms them, but just holds them by their prickles. Hopefully, no repercussions from the cancer - yet. He was given a couple of months to live back in June 2017, and when, by Christmas he was still hale and hearty, I asked for a biopsy to be taken. Turned out that it was a rare form of bone cancer which wouldn't necessarily spread to the rest of his body, so we left him to carry on until the tumour became so big that he couldn't cope with it easily, he had the amputation done in early April this year. I was so afraid for him, as it's much harder for tall dogs to balance with only three legs, but he has coped very well, repositioning his remaining hind leg to form a triangle when he walks and runs. Up-side is that he's no longer having to take three Tramadol a day for the pain that the tumour caused, but down side for me is the worry about him tearing through the the forest undergrowth when we go for walks. Sadly, nowhere near a nice open beach for him to run on. I took him on holiday to Cornwall last year so that he could enjoy beaches, and he took full advantage, although he was rather disappointed that a lot of the dogs he met on them weren't interested in running races with him, but were only fixated on chasing and returning boring rubber balls! 😄
DeleteBless him, I hope you have many more happy years together.
Deletere. OldWomanInAShoe September 19, 2018 at 10:35 PM “ Everlasting' sweetpeas are only as good as the gardener who tends them. Mine very swiftly failed to live up to its name “
ReplyDeleteMy everlasting sweetpeas seems to thrive on neglect and I agree with MrsP that they must grow where they feel most comfortable.
Pleased to report anothe small step on the road to recovery - managed my first drive today since the operation. Just to Sainsbury’s and back with a short walk (just one stick) around the
ReplyDeleteSupermarket to buy a few groceries and accompanied by Mr A. Felt really good to get behind the wheel
again after 4 weeks and choose my own shopping instead of relying on an online delivery.
Lucky you Archerphile , it's six weeks with knee surgery and then on top of that, when I got my car back it was due for its service two days later, then had to wait another three weeks for a part to get it through the mot.
ReplyDeleteSo in the end it was ten weeks of being unable to get out.
So very pleased for you that you were able to get your own shopping.
In charge again !
Wow great news Archerphile (as it can be 6 was for hip too Mrs P. )
ReplyDeleteIs your car an automatic AP I have heard one often drives sooner if so but can depend on which hip maybe - and individual progress. I remember feeling for you Mrs P 10 weeks! More than a small step though AP
Weeks of course (not was)
DeleteNo, not automatic, Lady R, just my beloved little 18 year old Micra - but it was right hip so I had to use accelerator and brake with that leg of course. No problem or pain at all when driving but it was a bit tricky actually getting in and out of the car and the wind was gale force in the car park and kept blowing the door back on me which didn’t help!
DeleteBut I was so pleased to get there again I hoped for a banner outside the shop saying “Welcome back M......”. Sadly, Sainsburys let me down. 😂😂😂
So sorry it took you long long to get mobile again Mrs P. You must have been going stir-crazy being cooped up for so long. Reading your account makes me realise how incredibly luck I have been.
Yep.
DeleteStir crazy.
Cabin fever.
But it's all SO GOOD now !
And you still have your Micra Archerphile at 18 years.
I had mine for twenty, but sadly had to let it go the the knackers yard.
I would have preferred to keep it going for ever, despite the cost of replacements.
I still miss it after over two years.
Re' gardening comments earlier and plant munchers, I went to the gardening club this evening and the speaker who was talking about container planting said he puts broken up polystyrene in the bottom of his outdoor pots as that helps maintain the earth at a slightly higher temperature, but also he sprinkles some slug pellets among the polystyrene as slugs often go to shelter in the bottom of pots. This cuts down on the slug population, and keeps the pellets and dead slugs from doing harm to any birds or hedgehogs that might pick them up out in the open. He said to avoid the metaldehyde pellets though as that can be harmful to the plants.
ReplyDeleteI use nematodes every few months and it seems to work a treat! When we moved into our new home 3 years ago the garden was alive with slugs - haven't seen one for the longest time...
DeleteSo agree about nematodes GG. However, timing is everything! Warm earth for watering in (not a problem this summer). Keeping said large border wet for at least two weeks.........well, that was almost a deal breaker.....but no quite!!
DeleteThanks for that tip Janice.
DeleteI have experimented with polystyrene in containers, in particular I wanted an outdoor net curtain so planted up a long agricultural tank that I have with bamboo. I put chunks of polystyrene in the bottom as drainage and bulk to cut back on the heaviness of the compost.
It worked well and although no longer in my front the bamboo still grows in the container in the garden, and of course cannot get out of hand.
Next time I use this method I will add some slug pellets in with it.
My son really likes bamboo but I have been wary of planting it in case it spread a lot. Planting it in a tank sounds good.
DeleteJust had big news this week that I am getting my house in Yorkshire in two weeks 😯🏡. A lot to do which is exciting and quite scary. At least the garden will be pointing its nose towards winter as it is very large and sloping and will need some planning in the spring. As we won’t be moving lock stock and barrel it will take some organising but it will be great to see more of Mum, and Yorkshire.
ReplyDeleteGood news, despite the work & planning involved, but you won't be a full time Seasider then, will you ?
DeleteWhat wonderful news Seasider, how lovely to be moving to Yorkshire, such a beautiful County (God’s Own County, I believe?). Good luck with all you have to do and many happy years in your new home 🏡 🍀
DeleteAre you moving back to the coast Seasider?
DeleteIs it North Yorkshire?
Yes it is North Yorkshire, where I grew up and where my mother still lives. She is on the coast. My house, which belonged to my late father, is a few miles away between the coast and the moors. Mr S wants to keep his London home so we will try to split our time and I will probably have a bit more up north so I can help Mum when needed. He also has an older Mum in the Midlands so he will be popping in there more often as well. Busy days ahead.
DeleteSuch good news Seasider.
DeleteAnd lucky you, would have loved to go to the North East, but feared I would never see my family.
I hope once settled you will cope well with two homes and the necessary commuting. You will be happier seeing more of your mum and your other half will be able to see his mum and you in one trip, and you can also continue your London activities together.
A win win situation- as they say.
Welcome home Seasider, to, as Arcerphile so rightly puts it "Gods own country"
Delete👍😀 thank you!
DeleteArcherphile ,you are amazing .
ReplyDeleteYears ago when Mr LJ had a hip replacement he wasn't able to get behind a wheel for 3months.
Talking of cars...
You can all think me a miserable old biddy and I probably would agree but this morning the local shoppers' car park had several Driving Schools using the place for their customers to practice three point turns.
I had a quiet chunter to myself and made purposeful pointed glares at the Instructors.
I bet that scared them!
We have had three drivers bang into our car in car parks in the past few years so it really annoys me when these driving schools use them .
Safer for them than the roads I suppose and all drivers have had to start somewhere .
Also it was much easier to learn to drive 50 years ago than now.
Nothing like the traffic then.
Moan over.
Understand your exasperation LanJan in particular on a Saturday morning,
Deletebut I wonder if this is now part of the driving lessons, to navigate parking in a crowded car park.
Certainly not part of my driving lessons, and I still find it brings on anxiety in multi-storey or underground car parks.
I feel like autumn is well and truly here having potted up all my pelargonium cuttings and brought them into the conservatory for the winter today. The weather has changed as well, my toes got quite cold working in the potting shed.
ReplyDeleteI am cold tonight, but I am not sure whether, to put the gas fire on, re-programme the CH, or just grin + bear it!!
ReplyDeleteI live near to the "test centre" for drivers. They practise in a small car park, nearby, but do not cause a problem.
My problem is that, my local supermarket, does not have trolleys which need a coin to utilise + then return. I have damage on my car, as a trolley was "blown" against it, a few days ago in the high winds, causing a massive dent. To say I am angry, is an understatment!!!
I have a 'photo of the trolley against my car. I am not it will help an insurance claim.
How very annoying, frustrating and unfair Miriam. We have M&S / Sainsbury’s/ & Waitrose around town, none of which charge for their trolleys. In fact Waitrose trolleys cannot be taken off site - they lock if this is attempted although one could still roll into a car of course in their car park - also very occasionally trolleys are seen en route as customers have used them to take shopping home......!
ReplyDeleteHope you have a successful claim, not that you should be paying (excess) 😡
no comments for a while, but as always eavesdropping from my habitual lair in the wainscoting (...somewhat challenging physically....) : preparing for our trip Down Under which starts tomorrow.....!
ReplyDeleteHave a lovely time and enjoy the sun.
DeleteDo enjoy Parsley!
DeleteClosing this post.
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