So poor I can't even pay attention

Piquant_2

Skint_but_Optimistic wrote: »

Eeh thats shocking the poor man. Its tough all over isnt it? Why not grasp the nettle! (feel free to use that as a gardening services name haha) and begin empire building. As for the horsey set, just bluff it out.

I am going to use it 'grasp the nettle' thank you! Igamogam you don't mind do you? I've spend almost 24 hours thinking about it, more in my daily update....

walkers60 wrote: »

Hi Piq
I love it when you post as it is always something unusual, exciting, different, emotional, so funny I cry and laugh out loud at the same time, sometimes I cry with you, - but never DULL!
When you write you put up ideas and others add to them - just like SbO above suggested 'grasp the nettle' (brilliant) you could paint the name you choose on the broken-clay-pot-rim, take photos and put a postcard with photo and details in not just the post office, but the supermarket, local paper, freebie paper, 'cabinet notice board' outside village hall (I somehow imagine you live in a village), local church notice board - the list could be endless but I must go and do some of my own gardening now! Imagination - you have loads of it!

So pleased you are back posting - its my fix for the day!
Walkers

Dearest you need to get a life! If you want to see how things should be written, read robin's diary. Now that is a lady with real writing talent! I lurk there every day, but never have anything intelligent to say

I will use your idea on the plant pot photo, not that we have any sun due til next week for a decent shot

Skint_but_Optimistic wrote: »

Also, grasp the nettle can be the name for your Inspirational Tales.

get writing them up! I want to read The Captains Tail and Yarns of the Yard!

As Walkers said, your prose inspires. Big hugs.

Thank you. I was thinking about something I said back here, quite randomly. Now I'm wondering if it's actually a viable idea. I jokingly said to Mara that I should ask Spillers to sponsor the Captain, maybe if I offered the Captain's tails to them for their site, they would supply his feed??

Piquant_2

dorothy52 wrote: »

And here comes Dot, bringing up the rear as per usual lol. Well, I didn't half go off on one yesterday, didn't I girls? You will be pleased to hear that my anger whilst not completely disipated, has subsided somewhat. As usual you have had the most wonderful advice from our lovely, lovely mse friends - what a phenominal community we are.

I agree, a fantastic community of support. Difficult to tell which diary you're on sometimes as they all seem to be inter-linked somewhat :rotfl:

Grasp the Nettle - Brilliant, absolutely Brilliant. You know that I have been nagging - I mean gently urging - you to pursue this talent and passion of yours for a while now, and (trust me, the Dorothy is never wrong) I just KNOW that you can really make this work.

Nagging is fine, to be honest, I need a lot of pushing at the moment. Confidence is at an all time low. Anything that requires effort has been put on the back burner for a while now. Even now, I'm resisting doing this, afraid of failure and I have no gardening qualifications

Pitching your price is crucial - learn from my mistakes - go in too cheap and your potential customers will think you are not very good. You can always offer a handsome discount to older folks to attract customers and get your name out there and get some fodder for your portfolio. Serendipity - spot on as always Robin - that word must have occurred to me just as it did to you when you read of the wonderful opportunity that you grasped.

Lady, you can do this. If you need some start up capital then you PM me - you hear? I can not imagine a safer haven for my few hundred quid
that is languishing in my current ac gaining not a penny of interest than investing it in a fledgling business that I KNOW is going to be a success.

That made me weep, that is just about the kindest thing ever. Thank you!

Piquant_2

twiglet98 wrote: »

Oh Piquant, this sounds full of possibility... :j I hope you enjoy researching some of the options during your well-earned time off!

Trying to remember the exact phrase my mother used to recite, I googled... and have copied and pasted extracts of the result - the first is the wording I heard from her when I was a child; the second, new to me, is surely more than sheer coincidence with it's inclusion of t'Cap?

Oxford Dictionary of Proverbs:


Home > Library > Religion & Spirituality > Proverbs
The metaphorical phrase to grasp the nettle, to tackle a difficulty boldly, is often found.


Tender-handed stroke a nettle, And it stings you, for your pains: Grasp it like a man of mettle, And it soft as silk remains. [1753 A. Hill Works IV. 120]

Be firm, Captain. ‥If you gently touch a nettle it'll sting you for your pains; grasp it like a lad of mettle, an' as soft as silk remains.

[1925 S. O'casey Juno & Paycock i. 35]

Related to: boldness

It does seem 'meant to be'

I will use 'The metaphorical phrase to grasp the nettle, to tackle a difficulty boldly, is often found' As part of the flyer header or footer, but I'm way ahead of myself there!

Piquant_2

...and onto my diary update...

Yesterday was spent reading, thinking and eating chocolate. In fact I ate nothing but chocolate all day. Sometimes a girl needs a chocolate day :j

It rained all day so I didn't do any gardening, didn't do the yo garden and didn't ride the Captain. I played with him in the indoor school when I knew nobody else would be around.

I'm very taken with grasp the nettle. I have broken up an already broken pot to use for it as a company header. However, think as I might, I can't find a way of using a dragonfly stencil for the pots as a link back. Nettles do not transfer well into a stencil. I spent a good two hours trying to create an attractive nettle stencil, too complex in design. I've done the dragonfly stencil and it works very well indeed.

Today, as it's raining again I'm going to pick up some primer and very cheap pots for painting. I thought I'd do a couple for herbs and a couple with pinks in. They should look very nice.

Another huge problem is that I don't have some very essential gardening equipment such as a lawnmower....let alone a vehicle that can transport such things. I suppose I'd better get a customer first then worry about it later. I could always borrow my dad's lawnmower.

I'm giving myself today for myself, I've put the Captain out and will go and bring him back in later, I'll pick up the diy stuff on the way back. It's a bit strange not being at work, Friday is always the hardest day of the week workwise.

It will not be a chocolate day, back to proper food! Courgette and pea soup for lunch and roast tomato pasta for dinner. I picked up some wrinkled tomatoes for 20p they will be fine slow roasted with garlic and olive oil. Incidentally, I've had to give up on the giving up bread for Lent Finances dictate that bread makes a soup meal more filling and the soup goes further. Plus I have quite a lot of bread flour which I don't want to waste and I like bread!

Internet providers haven't come back to me as they promised. I will chase that next week. I am not paying an extra £10 for rubbish connection. I've researched Sky and BT and they do a better deal that includes phone and TV for the same price as TalkTalk are offering for 2mb connection only!

NewLeaf_2

Piq, I bet you could get a working although used lawn mower on freecycle. x

Skint_but_Optimistic

I am so so pleased for you.
Also, please dont demean your writing skills, you do have a way with words which people love.

lucielle

If you see anything garden machinery wise let me know and I'll get OH to have a look/phone to check it out for you. Shame you're not nearer we could've sorted you out.
L

allybee101

Ditto what Skint said - love your way of writing. I wish I was as talented.
Don't worry about Lent. Not going hungry is more important right now. Alas I have no excuse to give up on my no chocolate or sweets promise.

gallygirl

Piquant wrote: »

Incidentally, I've had to give up on the giving up bread for Lent [STRIKE]Finances dictate that bread makes a soup meal more filling and the soup goes
further. Plus I have quite a lot of bread flour which I don't want to waste and [/STRIKE]I like bread!

That's a good enough reason on its own. Be kind to yourself my lovely :kisses3:(in a very platonic kind of way )

suzeesu2000

Piq, brilliant that you are thinking positively. for the stencil....why not go for a nettle...then a dead nettle...then a seedling...then a pretty flower all in a row so it goes from problem to solution and outcome? Not easy to explain a picture in words - other way round would be MUCH easier!

Also echoing that you try Feecycle for garden tools - do you have any allotments near you where you could get to know the lovely old chaps who would be delighted to give a gal a bit of knowledge and left over tools/cuttings/seeds etc? :idea: Also have you linked up with the national seed exchange? you can swap what you have too much of with like minded folk, so much cheaper! maybe, when you have established your self a bit you would then have the option to supply your customers with plants too? At a profit of course! heck, Piq, we could have you turned into a garden centre with a huge paddock for The Captain who would love all the nice visitors who would, of course, want to feed him carrots and apples while they sit and watch him from the :coffee: cafe terrace - see? I built you an extension already!! :rotfl: