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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.
Much envy PtbY! Enjoy NY....
ReplyDeleteKPnuts - you said on the previous blog that you went on an astronomy cruise last year - this may interest you. We're going to a talk tonight by the head of the Vatican Observatory. He will be talking about the weird and bizarre theories that people used to use to explain the cosmos and also looking at all the latest cutting edge thoughts about our universe. Should be most interesting!
ReplyDeleteSounds great Gary. I would be interested in feedback afterwards about the latest ideas.
ReplyDeleteThe fettuccini sounded lovely PtbY.
I shall be making pumpkin soup today and hoping I get it right as my daughter who is in the Pyrenhees usually makes it. So far my son and daughter in law have carved 2 pumpkins - a Shaun the sheep and a traditional one so I can make soup ahead of this evening. Then we have to find another 2 extra pumpkins as the two friends coming to carve them this evening have now expanded to 4. Our nice neighbour-with-the-chickens does really intricate designs so we are trying to up our game this year. Apparently in the Philippines individual loaves with a hard crust are hollowed out and the soup poured in and eaten by dipping in the removed bread, so I am hoping to find some really crusty loaves or we could have soup dripping everywhere.😉
I suppose Halloween and its various customs were part of Man's way of trying to understand the Universe.
DeleteI have been out logging today and much to my disgust after a few weeks of relative inactivity am shockingly out of condition, must stop being so lazy.
ReplyDeleteEnjoy your evening Gary
I love pumpkin soup.
ReplyDeleteI don’t carve pumpkins but because I am a cheapskate I buy one if I see one reduced after 31st October.
I have got a container with Haribo sweets ready for any callers this evening and I have a friend with small granddaughters who will be given any I have over.
Revolting things-the sweets not the little girls
Ha...Gary......your Niagara is much better than my pics.
ReplyDeleteI do write a full travel blog for a couple of mates but couldn’t put em in here. 1, everyone would be bored by it and 2, they would be a bit too sweary in places!!!
Just a comedy note for all......Mr PtbY went beer tasting yesterday aft on his own. Went to put his jumper on forgetting his glasses were on his head. Needless to say he broke them. He has his prescription sunglasses that HE chose with him. Unfortunately they make him look like a 1970’s American pimp!!!
He’ll be doing a lot more walking about on his own!!!!🤦♀️
Oh dear! Poor Mr PtbY! 😎
DeletePtby Mr R and myself thank you for a good laugh at Mr Ptby expense 😂 keep ‘em coming!
ReplyDeleteQuick reply to Lady R’s kind enquiry - knee and calf muscle have been extremely painful but am spending most of day with leg up , swathed in ice packs. Shall not attempt shopping this week and am determined to be fit for cruise. At least co-codamol help at Night, thank goodness.
ReplyDeleteAm sure Carolyn and Spicy have been suffering far more than me and I’m wishing them both well - and anyone else with health problems at the moment!
You are doing the right thing Archerphile so 🤞 🤗 thanks for update.
DeletePtbY - loving it! Keep it coming.. 😂
ReplyDeleteLove pumpkin soup - I always roast it off 1st & add lardons fumés-delish !! Will be locking the door to all comers tonight. 😖
ReplyDeleteHave been thinking about you, Archerphile, hoping you're getting enough pain control to make the cruise a pleasure, NOT an endurance test ! Sounds promising from what you say, & a great thing that you are sleeping - sleep deprivation making everything else so much more difficult.
ReplyDeleteFor me, there's a gradual improvement, though an unbroken sleep has yet to be achieved. Had some good advice today, though....
Also hope Spicycushion is seeing a brighter light at the end of the tunnel.
Meantime, PtbY, thanks for your lively travelogue ! A title pops in : Mr & Mrs PtbY take to the Falls ( thinking of your different experiences of Niagara, & the fatal fall suffered by the glasses..) Now that you don't want to be walking around with his current persona(😎) , I guess you'll continue to savour the delights of NY in very individual ways !!
All curtains closed and lights low tonight.
ReplyDeleteDid Halloween for the local children when in London.
Bah humbug now !
Oh yes Mrs P, it’s Bah Humbug here too. Never have liked this Americanised holiday, never sent my children trick or treating (actually, don’t think it was a thing, back then) and fortunate that living where we do, no children bother to walk all the way to our house!
DeleteIt's a Celtic celebration - we in Scotland have been dressing up since at least the 1800's & marking the day for 100's of years before that! 🎃🎃🎃
DeleteGG. You don't look a day older.
DeleteAnd may I add it was carved turnips that we used as lanterns.
DeleteDelightfully grotesque 👹👹👺👺
Used to dress up in my mum's old clothes clattering up the street in a pair of old high heels
We also Had to do a turn to get a little sweet. Nowadays the kids just hold out their bags and expect them to be filled without doing anything.
Sending positive vibes to all those suffering at the moment.. ❤️😘😘
ReplyDeleteMade a concession to hallow'en tday : bought some sweeties, to avoid 'trick'. Also like seeing some if the graveyard displays in some of the front gardens in our road - sound, gruesome fun !
ReplyDeleteOh, dear, the above is very garbled. Sorry. The keyboard just does its own thing.
DeleteI dashed out this morning, to buy some "treats" just in case.
ReplyDeleteI bought the supermarkets own equivalent of penguin bars. If not used tonight, these will be suitable for the kids in my family, and I also like them!
Thèy are long dated, so will be eventually eaten, and it's often useful to have a few extras stashed away. 🎃🎃
PS I am re-knitting the 2 fronts of a cardi, for my latest grand-niece due in January. I knitted the original ones, in the wrong size!
DeleteYour new blog is fairing much better already GG 🤗
ReplyDeleteIt might only be Halloween, but loads of fireworks going off tonight, by me.
ReplyDeletePuss-cat is huddled under the duvet, normally a no-no, but she is excused tonight. 🙀🙀
Coming to the end of our stay in Dorset. Weather has not been great but we have enjoyed walks and seeing my step daughter and family. Freddy who is two had a bat costume today. He is very cheeky like my husband, his great grandad and is a very loveable little chap. We are going home to a new laminate floor in the hallway but it has meant all the doors being shaved as the floor is now higher! Also the lock on the front door has broken and a new one would cost £100. I wasthinking of replacing the door and this will cost over £1000 so have been forced to review timeline and will indeed replace door! The perils of being a homeowner!
ReplyDeleteKnow what you feel. I had to finally give in and replace my front door this year. To get what I wanted, it was £1750. Expensive (and still on a 0% credit card) but the difference is amazing. My little home now heats up so very quickly and keeps the warmth. It is so much cosier, on these horrible, dark and cold evenings. I don't regret the expense at all.
DeletePS It also looks fantastic!
DeleteThank you for the encouragement, Miriam! Still getting used to making these decisions on my own!
DeleteTRICK OR TREAT........For us it was trick.
ReplyDeleteOur train from Niagara was cancelled so have spent the las 7 hours on a bus. Just got onto a train at Albany which they held for us. Still another 2 1/2 hours to go. 😩
Ptby 😱😱😱😱 indeed!
ReplyDeleteSounds a total nightmare be thinking of you 🌻
On the plus side.....I now know that I will never do a coach trip holiday.
Delete🤣
Don’t blame you PtbY!
DeleteI hate coach trips.
Never enough leg room, seats often very narrow, steep steps to get on and off the vehicle, always seem to be stuck next to a division between windows so don’t get a clear view! And Mr A, being 6’4 “ always has to sit in an aisle seat with his legs sticking out, grumbling constantly.
Definitely not my favourite mode of travel! 7 hours sounds like purgatory to me! 😫
My worst experience of coach travel was during our Baltic Cruise, when we had booked a day trip along the coast from St Petersburg to Finland. A very pretty drive, but completely ruined for me. There was a damaged water pipe immediately above my seat which drenched me as the water ran down to the back of the coach every time we went around a tight bend or up a hill! As the coach was completely full, there was no other seat I could move to. The Russian driver just shrugged his shoulders when shown what was happening and didn’t try to fix the problem with the pipe. I tried to dry off a bit in the ladies at a little restaurant on the beach where we stopped for lunch, but got soaked again on the way back (couldn’t really expect anyone to swop seats!)
I eventually arrived back at the ship like a drowned rat and complained to the tours manager. He said they’d take it up with the coach company but I didn’t even get a partial refund on the fare. However, they very kindly offered to dry my wet clothes in the ship’s laundry!
Hi Gary, I hope last nights lecture was as interesting as it sounded. I have always been fascinated by the ways humans have explained the world around them, a very fundamental need.
ReplyDeleteMany thanks for best wishes from all. I haven't posted much 'outside' as nothing much has happened, in fact nothing really. I am absolutely sure that no-one is interested in my daily routine,.Why would they be? It's of no consequence to anyone.
ReplyDeleteI haven't been able to do anything in the garden since July so it an overgrown, wet,wilderness with brambles coming from the school field. Hardly picked any strawberries and raspberries. Runner beans didn't grow as unable to water every day. Same with tomatoes.
I manage a couple of hours 'activity' a day so I have to timetable my week carefully.
So it's Cubs Monday evening, lesson Tuesday, lesson Wednesday, nothing in particular so 'housework' Thursday and shopping Friday. Weekends depends whether son is at home or not.
I'm down to 40mgs predisonole a day but side effects are definitely increasing. I'm very bad tempered (☹) and very clumsy, not a good combination! Still weak physically and easily out of breath and given to trembling hands. On the plus side skin lesions are less painful, but still purple patches on forearms and legs, however fading slowly. Still waiting for results of biopsies and recall to the consultant.
So Rugby final Saturday and on Sunday moving more 'equipment' from my office/study from second floor to ground floor now son has built two new bookcases. Then spare bedroom will become just that and not the box room where everything was dumped! As youngest painted his room purple I will have to find the Magnolia paint though to finish the transformation! 😄
In the meantime please excuse and ignore any harsh or bad tempered comments. I may press 'publish' before really considering what I have said!
Dear Spicy - please feel perfectly free to grumble and make whatever comments you like on here.
DeleteIf it provides a release valve for your difficulties I’m sure we are all happy to take whatever you feel like throwing! This could be your ‘safe place’ for letting out all the frustrations of you current situation and hopefully, make you feel a little better.
Go for it!
✓✓✓ AP(9.30am,) Oh, Spicy, wish we had a magic wand, but they're in short supply these days.
ReplyDeleteWho could not understand your utter weariness & frustration after all this time. To think at one point, being an optimistic person, you imagined you'd be able to come to the Barbican meeting back in early Sept. & today is Nov.1st.
It's pretty stunning to me that you manage some of your regular activities, but it must be miserable looking out at your uncustomarily neglected garden.
I hope you see the consultant soon, & that the improved skin leads to a complete healing sooner rather than later. Meantime, any time, echo Archerphile, off load whatever you want here. You know we're all rooting for you.
I think that sometimes hearing about someone else's problems can be quite comforting, either because it makes you feel how lucky you are to be comparatively problem free or because it feels companionable to know someone else is facing similar to yourself. I know exactly how you feel about your garden getting overgrown! Better times will come Spicy, just hang on in there.
ReplyDeleteSpicycushion. You certainly sound in the doldrums and it’s not surprising. Trying to sound cheerful when you are experiencing the horrors would challenge the most individuals, and I think you have been very brave. However it is understandable that you feel temperamental so don’t apologise to us, we can take it as I’m sure most of us have been through difficult periods in our lives. We can’t put right (although I would like to help) the garden or paint the box room but we can offer comfort.
ReplyDeleteThese things are tasks that can be rectified, the most important thing is you get well.
💐🌸🌼
Lovely to hear from you Spicey, Keep reporting ! We are all with you in spirit and hoping your ordeal comes to an end soon.
ReplyDeleteWhilst the garden may not look its pristine self, it will benefit from a rest period. I remember reading a book about a couple in Wales (cant remember the title ) who had had to leave their garden all summer, when they came home it was overgrown with weeds, but they had the best vegetable crop ever. If your garden is anything like mine its too wet to do anything anyway.
spicycushion - more power to you and your indomitable spirit!!
ReplyDelete........anyway (continued from Archers blog), Iread an article yesterday about the scariest books of all time. Salems Lot by Stephen King came up very high. I mention this because I remember they made a tv mini series starring hunky David Soul of Starskey and Hutch fame. I think in the 80s. Anyway I've never seen my dad get such a fright at one scene..he nearly jumped out his chair.
ReplyDeleteI remember that film Autumnleaves. It was the first and last Horror film I 'watched! I must admit though most of the time I had my hands over my eyes and husband telling me when it was safe to view again.
DeleteAt the time I was working as a night-time shelf filler and it was before I could drive. So three times a week I worked at a supermarket 8pm -12.00 a mile away and I cycled to and from work! After that film I soon made arrangements for fellow workers to give me a lift!
I cannot now watch a 'dead' body in a film/play without thinking "Anytime now those eyes are going to open!" and I do not have 'open' curtains at night in case a face appears at a first or second floor window! Both stem from Salem's Lot!
I distinctly remember my little sister and I screaming at that exact point when the floating boy appears at the window in "Salem's Lot" - it was terrifying! There was a scene when someone sat upright in a freshly dug-up coffin as well and we almost wet ourselves with fear....
DeleteYup they are the two scenes Gary.
DeleteExciting news just in - I have been invited to give a presentation at the "Academic Archers Fifth Annual Conference"! It's being held at the University of Reading on the 28th Feb to 1st March 2020.
ReplyDeleteI am sooooooo looking forward to it. They have asked me to do a 10 minute "Quick Pitch" with an accompanying poster. It's going to be so much fun! There's an opening reception at the Museum of English Rural Life on the Friday evening with loads of Archers related exhibits, a buffet and a tour. Then the conference itself gets under way on the Saturday morning through to lunchtime Sunday, and there's a formal(ish) dinner on the Saturday night. (With a "special guest" apparently!)
#academicarchers
www.academicarchers.net
And one of the best parts for me is that for the first time in our 11 year relationship, MrGG will be the person at an academic event as the "plus one"!
Congratulations Gary. Sooooo exciting🎉🎉🎉🎉
ReplyDeleteDitto GG 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
DeleteThat is absolutely brilliant, Gary, congratulations ! It'll be enormous fun ( have noted the dates....some forward planning...)
ReplyDeleteAgree totally with Archerphile Spicy 🌻
ReplyDeleteGary Gilday....... you will be the star at The Archers Academic Conference, and I hope you will feel that you are representing all of us on here, at least a little bit.
ReplyDeleteWhat a fantastic opportunity.
Do they know about 'us' and the part you play in ' our ' community, and that we were previously with the BBC ?
I'm sure you will have a wonderful time, and most especially because you will be 'the Academic ' in your relationship for the first time.
You deserve all happiness in this event.
Spiceycushion - you have been so brave and managed to stay so optimistic in your horrible condition, that you must feel as entitled as you need to be in complaining about it.
No need for any apologies.
It will be over one day, and we must hope for you that it is before Christmas.
Your garden will be asleep until well after the turn of the year and with renewed vigour from you will recover in the spring.
GG It was never in doubt that you would be called !
ReplyDeleteSo pleased for you. We will expect a full report of course in time.
Especially thrilled for you that for once in the world of academia Mr GG will have to take second place.
This is news to light up an otherwise dismal day here.
Spicy - support from afar... ❤️
ReplyDeleteGG - great news!
Well Gary that is fantastic news and I am absolutely determined to get a ticket and be present!!!!
ReplyDeleteI didn't realise it was a whole weekend do, so are you Saturday or Sunday?
Just checked Google and tickets seem to be on sale already!
At the moment I am scheduled on the Saturday afternoon at around 16.30, but this is just a draft programme I believe. Hopefully it will remain that way because mornings are none of my business....
DeleteThanks everyone for your encouraging words!
Gary - FANTASTIC! So pleased for you, what an honour and what an opportunity!
ReplyDeleteAlso, how satisfying that Mr GG can be your plus one and watch you give your presentation with admiration and pride.
Looking forward to more details nearer the time and hope very much to be around over the Conference weekend. 👏👏👏👏👏
Well done GG, I was wondering earlier today if you had heard. I’m thrilled for you, is it the topic as you outlined in London?
ReplyDeleteReading is pretty easy from here, I’ll be looking into getting tickets.
Brilliant Gary.👨🎓👨🎓😁
ReplyDeleteCongratulations Gary.
ReplyDeleteDelighted to hear the news.
You will be the star of the Show I have no doubt.
GG Congratulations. 🍾🎉🎈🎊🏆
ReplyDeleteYou will be magnificant. It is amazing what can be said in 10mins
We, and I incude so many others (if I may), are so pleased and proud.
You and Mr GG. will remember it always.
Again - Well Done. 😃
GG I have a query,
ReplyDeleteIf I use my android phone to post + read on this site, my battery power diminishes drastically and very quickly.
Is there a solution to this? - apart from not using my phone?
Does anyone have the same problem, or is it just me?
Not sure on this one Miriam, I’m Apple and when I use my phone it seems ok. Brightness uses battery do you have it up to max? Hopefully others will be able to help you more 🤞
DeleteI had a quick Google of your symptoms Miriam & I'm afraid I can't find any similar complaints on-line... Could it be other apps that you have inadvertently left open?
DeleteUpdate to earlier in the week and irregular pulse. Attended for ECG today and the saw Dr. “Ectopic Heartbeat” this apparently is an extra beat followed by a pause, common in older people and ok 🤗
ReplyDeleteLovely young lady Dr have not been 100% recently for various reasons and she talked these through offered suggestions re took BP etc and booked an appointment for me there and then on her screen for 2 weeks time so it is in place if I feel I need it or to ring sooner if required- hopefully not.
I was with her for 20 mins and left feeling more positive than when I had arrived.
I now plan to (finally) have 2 restful days this weekend 🤞and recharge my batteries 🙃
Take care all others with current health issues 🥰
What wonderful care and attention you have had, what with a 20 mins consultation.
DeleteIt shows that the NHS is still providing a good service.
🤞🤞all goes well. 😍
I had similar re my 2nd cataract op. I had no date, but when I saw a lovely female cosultant in a clinic, for my eye pressures, she then organised things and it was done 4 weeks later. I am so grateful for that.
DeleteIt's history now, but the NHS did me well.
Indeed Miriam and I feel we all appreciate that care so so much ⭐️
DeleteLady R: if it's any comfort I also have an irregular heartbeat which was picked up in my 30s, so it's possible I was born with it. Apparently it's fairly common and has been described to me as being 'abnormal within normal parameters'! No one gets excited about it and I've had several major operations under anaesthetic with no ill-effects.
DeleteIn case it helps my mum had rheumatic fever when a child and had an irregular heartbeat but she still lived until almost 94.
DeleteGreat news Janice- 🤗
DeleteSarnia thanks also for your info. Nothing like the friendly support and smiles one receives from this blog 💕
DeleteIt IS a friendly place Lady R, and long may it continue to be so! 😁
DeletePleased to hear your news,Lady R.
ReplyDeletePlease do take your own advice about taking things easy.
Recently I felt ill and after dialling 111 and being rather patronised by someone who kept calling me “Dearie” because of my advanced age (I said nothing about it ) we decided to take her advice and off Dearie went to A and E.
I saw a lovely doctor who told me that the problem was that I was trying to do too much and I had to do less.
I know what he meant.
Today I have been to London to the dentist and decided whilst there I would go to the Marble Arch branch of M and S and then pop into the large Boots for a few items.
Of course I had to stand on the tube and there is a lot of walking and climbing of stairs.
involved too
I am not complaining but what I am saying is that there comes a time -(in my case only last year really ) -when it isn’t quite so easy doing the things one could do without any trouble not so long ago.
Lady R - so relived that your news is not as bad as you had feared. It sounds as though you have a very good GP there who will look after you really well. I’m very relieved for you and hope you enjoy your relaxing weekend - make sure it IS relaxing, won’t you!
ReplyDeleteSo many kind wishes thank you all they mean a lot 🤗
ReplyDeleteLanjan I’m sure many of us on here understand your comments only too well, I may (?) be a year or two younger but my concern is to keep myself in good shape for Mr R who needs some support.
On a different subject.....
ReplyDeleteI watched “The Apprentice “ on Catch. Up last night.
The contestants were stumped because they neither knew how long the Second World War lasted nor when it began or ended.
Some of them did not realise that if one has to buy a book which was printed before WW2 it does not mean that the copy can be a modern one as long as the book was written before that date .
I no longer watch The Apprentice. I, Iike you, got so frustrated with the participants lack of, what I call, basic knowledge of general life and modern history. It appears, this hasn't changed.
DeleteEarly night for me.
ReplyDeleteI need to be up and bright + breezy, breakfast eaten, a pot of coffee to hand along with choc. bisciuts, ready for the 9.00am kick-off tomorrow. 🏈
🤞🤞🏈🏈🇫🇴
We are back from Dorset and very happy not to have stairs to climb to bed! We had to carry Gypsy up and down as although we encourage her to climb up steps these in the cottage were very deep. Buddy leapt up and down but Dudley lost his nerve and had to be carried down. Once he had started to hurtle down he couldn’t stop and was worried he might career into the wall at the bottom! The infuriating thing was that a few times having carried him down he hurtled back up then wanting to come down after a few minutes! Oh, the relief at being back in the bungalow!!
ReplyDeleteReminds of looking after my late father's cat, when he 1st went into hosp (where he was for 10weeks). I put the cat into my spare bedroom, with her bed + a litter tray, to be her own domain and away from my own puss-cat. I left the door open, so she could do her own thing. Two days later, I heard frantic yowling, she was sitting on the top of the stairs wanting to come down. She had lived all her life (15yrs at this time) in a bungalow, and had no idea what stairs were!!
DeleteShe soon learnt, with a bit of coaxing.
Hope you all had a great time Ev - I was actually talking about Dorset earlier and saying that it's somewhere I would like to visit.
DeleteFantastic news Gary. Will look into tickets etc when I get back.
ReplyDeleteOther good news is.......wait for it........Mr PtbY has now broken his pimp sun glasses, without even wearing them. 🎉🎉🎉🎉🤣🤣
... He broke them????
DeleteYou seem (suspiciously?} pleased about that 😎🤣
😉
DeleteHmmm.. 😉
DeleteGary, congratulations on being chosen to present at the conference.
ReplyDeleteI may look into getting a ticket for the weekend.
No probs being up in time for the 🏉🏉🏴🏴!!
ReplyDeleteMr P 's daily visit from the nurse at 8:45..
heure française..😉
DeleteWe're looking forward to the rugby tomorrow as well, then we are off to Ross Priory (where we got married!) to stay for a couple of days and watch their annual fireworks display. Lots of lounging by a roaring fire & lots of food & booze, interspersed with walks along the shores of Loch Lomond. Utter bliss....🏉🎇🔥🍁🍲🍷
ReplyDeletesounds wonderful 😊
DeleteGG perhaps you could test Joes hang over recipe !
DeleteEnjoy your weekend.
Good one cowgirl 😂 🍷 😂 🍷 👏🏻
DeleteOh dear... woeful editing of Annalise Lamola's rendition of SA anthem, unlistenable to....
ReplyDeleteShe kept going flat and off key. Had to look up who she was though! Awful singing.
DeleteGary at 10.28 Yes, Dorset is lovely, very green with gently rolling hills but here on the island we have better beaches, sandy and the one I know best has lovely views over to Portsmouth and the Spinnaker. We also have places of interest like Osborne House and Carisbrooke Castle. Hope you can visit here one day!
ReplyDeleteWe did have a good time in spite of the weather! The local Spar was run by a Scot from Paisley so we had a good chinwag! He knew of Springburn where my Dad’s family came from. Grandpa was a cabinet maker and worked on the interiors of railway carriages. It was a decent enough area in it’s time but has now deteriorated. My Paisley friend reckoned that the council had concentrated the dross of society in some areas including this one to contain the problem. Apologies for unPC language but the fact is there that there are undesirable elements around us.
Dorset is a lovely county and unspoilt by touristy things! The part I know best is around Bridport and West Bay where Broadchurch was filmed. We went there one day and had the best chips, cheesy chips and jumbo sausage most of which the dogs devoured! There are several little kiosks which serve food and you can also get warm doughnuts! The beaches along this coast are pebbly and shelve quite deeply so not always easy walking. On previous visits we have been to Lyme Regis which is well worth a look. This time we walked from Chideock to Seatown where there is a good pub and Katy found part of a fossil on the beach. All in all a good change of scene and for us a chance to catch up with our family there!
The dogs devoured the sausage not the chips! We did get to eat those!
ReplyDeleteHere we go...
ReplyDeleteEv : 8.17 am
ReplyDeleteTotally agree about Dorset, such beautiful countryside and pretty villages. However, I think one of the best things about it is the peace and quiet, and the fact that there is not a single motorway in the County!
The drawback of no motorway or decent dual carriageway is that all the traffic funnels through lovely villages such as Chideock! The cottage shuddered every time a lorry passed through! You really can’t win, Archerfile!
DeleteI don’t understand Rugby but even I know this ain’t looking good ☹️
ReplyDeleteComprehensively outmuscled & outplayed. Well done SA.
ReplyDeleteMy village is situated 1000 metres above sea level and for the last 3 days we have been blanketed in fog or as the locals call it " low cloud". So we've lit the wood burning stove and I'm ready to snuggle up on the couch and listen to one of the M.R. James stories. There's just the right atmosphere. ..and I'm not leaving the house until Monday morning!!!!
ReplyDeleteI shall be ironing in front of Plaza Suite!
ReplyDeleteOh..won't it be a bit cold? I hear its only 52 degrees in N.Y.
DeleteSo late to respond, but may I add my good wishes, Lady R ? Sorry you had a worrying time earlier in the week, but the explanation sounded both clear & reassuring. Like others, I hope you really do chill out this week, &, more, as Lanjan says, pace yourself more kindly in the future. Indeed, most of us should heed that advice !
ReplyDeleteThank you Carolyn 💕
DeleteAlso love Dorset, parents retired there, a lovely county, so much to see, super coastline, if pebbly & Lyme is fascinating. I remember my son did very serious fossil hunting there on an earlier holiday when he was about 8 or 9 !! Interesting villages, Dorchester & lots of Thomas Hardy places. Ah, makes me think I should revisit next year....
ReplyDeleteGary, what a great few days ahead, on the shores of Loch Lomond, fireworks, convivial company, lots of food & drink !😀😋
Ev: 12.43
ReplyDeleteOh, I hadn’t thought of that! One of the problems for small villages, such as ours, is that articulated lorry drivers use sat.navs which show them that the quickest way from A to B is through a village. Even if there is a handy motorway nearby they still prefer to cut off a corner by coming through a really narrow village street.
We have constant problems with really huge lorries trying to squeeze along the narrow lane past the village school. At home time It is already choked up with parents cars parked outside the school and yet the enormous lorries insist on trying to plough through - which is not only dangerous but is doing a lot of damage to garden walls, verges etc.
I know of several places where ancient bridges are being badly damaged by big lorries and foundations of old houses are being rocked because of blind adherence to wretched satnavs.
So even if Dorset had motorways, or even good by-passes, I expect that villages such as the one you mention would still be plagued by traffic.
A fair assessment, Archerfile! You really, really can’t win!
DeleteThe Rugby........
ReplyDeleteWe didn’t deserve to win.
We played badly.
My younger son is out there and watched the Game
He got to see the brilliant semi against NZ and the quarter finals and was briefly Welsh when they played SA and NZ and so isn’t complaining.
He said the whole experience was great .
Gary, congratulations on getting your paper accepted - it was a given of course 👨🎓
ReplyDeleteSpicy, hope you can hang on in there - you’re so strong and have had such a lot to cope with.
Lady R, that sounds like a great relief. Hope you continue well.
Carolyn, really hope you are continuing to improve in health as well.
Archerphile, also hope you are coping and looking forward to reasonable health for your trip.
PtbY, your trip is nothing if not eventful - an unexpected coach trip is my worst nightmare. Hope Mr PtbY enjoys the rest of it if a little blurry eyed 😵
Lady R.
ReplyDeleteRelax and enjoy life is the motto. Also best wishes from me.✌️
Lady R - I sent you a message last night, but now see that it has not published.
ReplyDeleteJust to say that I hope you can now feel less worried since being given the results.
Just remember, the heart is a muscle that needs to be exercised sensibly and will be strong or weak in relation to how much exercise it gets.
I have a congenital heart murmur and have never had any problems. The beat just sounds a bit different but has never affected my life.
Seasider, stasia & Mrs P thank you all for your messages of warmth and support which I appreciate so much!
ReplyDeleteLady R, hope you're benefiting from your restful weekend?
DeleteA few aches still but lots of reading and some naps 🤗
DeleteThank you for your thoughts parsley 🌻
He’s mended his bloody pimp glasses! 😩
ReplyDelete😎😱
Delete🤣🤣🤣
DeleteI think you should arrange another little accident for them PtbY!
DeletePtbY. Can’t he just buy an off the peg pair? 👀👨🏻🏫👓
Delete........but I bet he looks very handsome wearing them P tbY.
DeleteOne of the Blues Brothers..get him a hat to match
DeleteOne thing I've learned after 37 years with Mr. 🍁🍁🍁 is ..if you can't beat it..make the most of it!!
DeleteReminds me of our holiday in Egypt. Some of our party went on a balloon flight and one of them, a man, leaned over to look at the view and his specs fell off! He didn’t have a spare pair and goodness knows how he got back home!
ReplyDeleteI trust GG has enjoyed his time on the bonnie banks, hopefully the weather has been better than Hampshire, here we’ve had a couple of bright moments today, but yesterday lots of rain and wind.
ReplyDeleteI hope all those with health issues are looking after themselves and making progress.
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
ReplyDeleteThat was for Ev.
DeleteI was amazed, when looking "on-line" this morning, the severe weather the SE had yesterday. It looked awful. I was lucky, just a calm day, with just a few rain showers. I woke up this morning to a very heavy mist, which as it cleared, showed wonderful cobwebs in the garden.
ReplyDeleteAfter a sunny day, I realise, just how much my windows need cleaning.
To add, toadstalls have sprung up overnight in lawn!
DeleteOff to the opticians in the morning. This is for an extra eye test and to sort out prescription reading and also prescription sunglasses, after 2nd cataract op. (now 7 weeks ago) and to genarally check vision.
👀 be sure to look after your glasses when you receive them Miriam - unlike poor Mr ptby😂
DeleteYes our weather was pretty grim yesterday and windows only recently cleaned too 🙄
Katy took the boys, Bud & Dud, for a walk this morning only to find our usual walk down to the Creek blocked by a fallen tree. We took the three dogs to Quarr Abbey after that and this afternoon she’s taken the two via the Main Street. Yesterday saw high winds here, over 100 mph at the Needles. We are more sheltered here but even so the garden table moved across the decking quite a bit but thankfully didn’t take off! Strangely it has been sunny and quite still today.
ReplyDeleteGosh, I feel rather sorry for Mr PtbY, with his multiple specs disasters ! Surely Stasia has the answer - an all purpose shop pair so at least he doesn't have to stumble around the glories of NY, not seeing much at all !
ReplyDeleteMaybe he should purchase a chain for them too Carolyn so they stay safely around his neck 👏🏻
DeleteI bet the man in Ev’s ballon wished he had! ( At least he did not loose his teeth that has been known free falling from a plane I have seen this on u tube - how awful.)
Thé only problem with having one of those chains to secure Mr PtbY’s glasses is that it would make him look like Jenni Murray!! 🤓 😂
DeleteArcherphile. Such sacrilege about the revered DAME Jenny. 👸🦸♀️🤡
DeleteI don't like her at all - that unctious, syrupy voice & patronising attitude !
ReplyDeletePtbY, better by far that Mr PtbY saunters around NY as a 70s pimp, than some kind of male incarnation of J.Murray ! 😎
All that said, do hope you are both having a great time on your trip, despite mishaps !
I went right off the Dame of whom you speak when she stated her name on Celebrity University Challenge by preceding her name with the word Dame..
ReplyDeleteWhy she has to wear a curtain over her shoulder all the time beats me .
Stasia I don’t think she is a Jenny..
She has to be different and is Jenni.
Whilst on the subject of BBC female Presenters, doesn’t your heart bleed for them?
ReplyDeleteClaire Balding for example is only on £1056 per HOUR.
Some of the minor “Celebrities” are on less than £400 per hour
How on earth do they exist?
Lanjan: 1.14
ReplyDeleteI have always wondered about JMs ever-present length of fabric she wears over one shoulder too.
I want to know how she manages to keep it in place - I once tried to wear a scarf like that and it just slid off down my arm all the time!
Weather was lovely at Loch Lomond - didn't quite need sunglasses, but dry and not a breath of wind for the fireworks. A very nice time was had...
ReplyDeleteBut it's chucking it down right now! Hope it clears up later as we are going to the huge light display at the Glasgow Botanic Gardens later this evening. 9 different themed zones and apparently there's food & drink to be had too. Would be rude not to, don't you think?
By the way, the thing I'm going to tonight is called "GlasGLOW" - how awfully clever is that? ☺
DeleteThat sounds wonderful GG.
ReplyDeleteHope that awful rain goes away in time and the displays are fanstatic.
A lovely, cold, dry + bright day here in Cheshire, yet again. No sun but a proper Autumn day, with fabulous leaf colours on so many trees.
These colours seem so much more vivid + fibrant this year, but then my vision is so much clearer, than last year.
To link into my last post.
ReplyDeleteI had a wonderful opticians visit today. She was amazed with the final result as to my vision, after both cataract ops. As she said to me - it is could not have worked out better (due to my short-sighted eyes) and said it is a real success story + outcome.
I have new far distant lenses, to go into existing frames, plus prescription "readers + sunglasses" on order. I chose what I liked and suited me, only then did I look at the cost.
It turned out expensive - I must be a true "fur coat + no knickers" person! It's worth it though.
Ah, Gary (4.08pm), the Scots are wordsmiths, almost as good as the English (don't hit me...).
ReplyDeleteI know we mustn't get political, but permit me just these fervent hopes, please : that the Scots don't. go all out for independence, that Plaid Cymru doesn't win in the general election & take Wales down that path, that the Irish don't flounce over Brexit, SO that we all stay united, & remain a United Kingdom !
Won't be tooooo hurt if you delete...
✔️🙏🏼✔️🙏🏼✔️United Kingdom -agree Carolyn!
DeleteI wonder if federalism would satisfy those who wanted greater independence, and at the same time retain a United Kingdom. Just pondering
DeleteJanice (9.57pm last night), agree, worth pondering, a great ideal, but many fault lines & clashes can & do emerge, between central & individual units of governance.
DeleteGary - that sounds a wonderful evening you are going too. Do hope the rain keeps off so you can enjoy the spectacle without umbrellas.
ReplyDeleteCarolyn 5:38 pm
ReplyDeleteTotally agree
✔️✔️✔️✔️✔️
United we stand, ..........
DeleteCarolyn.5.38pm
ReplyDeleteThe partition of Ireland is, in historical terms a recent phenomenon. The Treaty separating one part from the other was signed in 1921. Up to that point the Island of Ireland was one country with the capital in Dublin. The 26 counties became the Republic in 1947 and the monetary system finally separated in 1979. So it is only since 1979 that the 6 counties and the other 26 went their distinct ways financially. The political problems in N Ireland will only ever be resolved when the Island is reunited.
carolyn - November 4, 2019 at 5:38 PM
ReplyDeleteI really am loathed to delete comments on this blog - I refer the Honourable Lady to my previous statement. (October 20, 2019 at 12:31 AM)
"I am of the firm opinion that we are all intelligent adults on this site and we all know how to conduct ourselves accordingly - but sometimes, just very occasionally, there are some subjects that could be raised that I think we all instinctively just know could cause passions to be inflamed - and not in a good way! I like to think that these blogs are a happy "safe" place - there are more than enough other places on-line for heated debate.... (I feel it is) for the best not to facilitate a discussion that anyone tempted to take part in (including me!) may regret afterwards. We all know how easily it can happen on other sites, and it NEVER ends well for anyone involved..."
(And in a not so subtle attempt to change the subject...)
ReplyDeleteThis morning I have been re-potting orchids for the first time in my life. Been trawling YouTube for expert advice. I love what I have become!
Hope you used special Orchid compost Gary, not just any old stuff, and a special Orchid fertiliser, not BabyBio!
DeleteMr A is an Orchidophile (or whatever the term is) and treats his collection like babies - even brings rainwater in from the rain butt and warms it in the microwave before using it to soak the pots in for a specified number of minutes!
Those plants are better looked after than me. 🤨
Ha! I did use all the "special" stuff Archerphile and they better bloody well appreciate it!
DeleteApparently orchids grow naturally really well in the Philippines. One of my daughter in laws brothers has a smallholding on Ticao and makes some extra money by growing them in baskets fixed all the way up the supports of a wooden structure. I have seen photos and they look lovely.
DeleteI also love orchids and nearly always have one in the lounge. My latest has been in situ for 12 weeks now, but sadly the flowers are now drooping. I will do what I always do, cut the stems down and place on kitchen window sill. I always get new shoots + roots appearing, followed by a 2nd flowering. It's the steam from the HW tap and kettle which get's it going again.
ReplyDeleteGood Luck GG.
To add. I buy my orchids from a well known supermarket beginning with a T. They are cheap, but good quality. I know what to look for when buying, and have never been disappointed.
DeleteYes, Miriam, it’s amazing how long they go on flowering isn’t it. We have several different types of Orchid. Paphelopedium and Cymbidium and several others, but they all require different conditions regarding light, humidity etc. Mr A won’t put them on a sunny windowsill as he says they don’t like the intense sun but insists on keeping them all indoors over the winter as he says our unheated greenhouse isn’t warm enough. It seems you can’t win!
DeleteI can’t say I like orchids much when they are not in flower though, all miserable looking with long roots reaching out of the pots and dejected leaves ! Give me a nice Spider plant or tradescantia any day .... and what’s happened to African Violets? I used to love those but can’t find them anywhere these days.
Stasia ( 9.27am), I realize I was unclear, having meant only to be referring to Northern Ireland, as it is nowadays, not addressing the separation from the South at all. Sorry.
ReplyDeleteSorry, also, Gary, for causing you to repeat what you've very clearly written before. I think because I wasn't actually being political, more just wistfully hopeful, it did not generate any of the stuff none of us want here.
Back to orchids, then ! I'm always impressed, as a plant/garden ignoramous, at how much knowledge & skill is expressed here.
I had a dendronium orchid last year, which was a gorgeous purple colour. I have nutured it for a year, as it grew new stems, leaves etc. Last week flower buds appeared on the new stems, and excited. Within 24 hours, (a frosty night) all the leaves turned yellow and fell off. It was not in direct sinlight, nor in a cold spot. It was so disappointing.
ReplyDeleteAfrican Violets are still around, but perhaps not as popular as they once were.
carolyn. No need to apologise. I would love to engage in political discussion, but Gary is right this blog is not the right forum. A meeting over a few drinks at The Bull and we could solve all the problems of the 🌎 world.
ReplyDeleteLike you, I am also an ignoramous when it come to growing flowers/plants. But, I am a reasonably good vegetable 🍅 grower. This year I grew several varieties of potato, tomato, cabbage and onions along with other veg and salads. Cavolo Nero is my favourite.
Archerphile. There was a discussion on the decline in growing African Violets on Gardner’s Question Time last week.
I've been locked out from my IPad today and have spent a large chunk of the day getting back in, and still haven't managed all of it yet. Not only this site, but BBC Sounds which I am currently relying on for my radio, and also although I am not ' on' Facebook I do contribute to several Facebook groups and I've been locked out of them too.
ReplyDeleteAll very irritating.
Archerphile , I'm with you about orchids and love my spider plants.
House plants discussed on GQT last week and the same question re African Violets asked by the team. They do seem to have disappeared. My mum was very good with her African Violets and had many over the years.
Aha ! Have just read that Stasia mentioned this too in her post above.
My favourites are Peace Lillies.
I will be so glad when firework time is over! We are now on our fourth night. Gypsy and Buddy have never bothered but Dudley has a massive reaction which then rubs off on Buddy. Gypsy just sleeps through it all. It is distressing for nervous animals though and would not be sad if fireworks were banned altogether!
ReplyDeleteMrs P: 7.41, and Stasia, earlier
ReplyDeleteHow strange that African violets were mentioned on GQT!
So I’m not the only one who is missing them.
The ‘in’ plant at the moment, in our local nurseries seems to be the little cyclamen for planting under trees. I have seen dozens of them in all sorts of colours.
I’d quite like to try a few but guess the rabbit population would eat them, just like they have single every crocus I have ever planted. Fortunately they leave daffodils alone, I think they are poisonous to rabbits.
Decades ago In a previous incarnation as a primary school teacher I used to grow them in my classroom with a slit leaf in water.
ReplyDeleteAfrican violets, that is...
ReplyDeleteI remember doing that too Sarnia (not at school though). You just took a leaf off an existing plant, made a cut in the underside of the leaf and popped it in a saucer of water.
DeleteNot always very successful in my case, more often than not the leaf just went mouldy!
Ev ,9:22 pm re firework night.
ReplyDeleteYears ago it was called a Bonfire Night and only happened where I lived on 5th November.
There was a large bonfire at the Vicarage
We ate potatoes in their jackets and treacle toffee and there were a few fireworks like Catherine Wheels,rockets, sparklers and those awful jumping jacks.
I do not mind the fireworks it is the loud bangs I hate -as does Percy cat.
One of my cats was terrified last night, the other didn’t even twitch an ear. I’m looking forward to having a bonfire 🔥 on the allotment to burn all the stuff accumulated from the summer. Unfortunately it’s been too wet, so will have to wait.
ReplyDeleteBonfires where I grew up are an indication of hate and division, with every area trying to outdo each other in size. We used to put potatoes in the embers, and with filthy hands eat them, delicious.
I remember potatoes baked in foil, they needed a lot of butter to compensate for the charcoal.
ReplyDeleteWhen Iwas a small girl we had neither butter (rationed) nor foil.
ReplyDeleteWe put potatoes in the bonfire, dug them out with sticks and ate them with more than a pinch of salt
Just occurred to me that we didn’t hear any fireworks at all last night. Usually I can sit at our bedroom window and watch all the firework displays down in the village and at the pub with a grandstand view. But nothing last night, it fact I forgot it was bonfire night altogether!
ReplyDeleteThere were no fireworks near me either, last night. One of our family traditions was to have toffee apples and parkin - both made by Mum, who afterwards then stood over us, to ensure proper teeth cleaning.
ReplyDeleteIf any-one listens to the Omnibus "live" on a Sunday morning, this is an early reminder, in that it starts at 9.15am this week.
I have just been to see a brilliant serious film 🎥 called Official Secrets, and it was gripping from the beginning to the end. More cerebral than the animated frivolity of Farmageddon, although I enjoyed that at a different level.
ReplyDeleteDebbie Aldridge had a brief part playing a very important person.