'supporting each other through really tough times'

monnagran

Hi all,

She: The chores will always be with you so try not to spend your precious holiday springcleaning. Just do an hour a day if it makes you feel better, but then it's flat on your back with a long cool drink and a book. Go on

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you've more than earned it.

Stiltwalker: Enjoy your hols. you're another who so richly deserves a break.

Fuddle: I have always drunk peppermint tea. Do you think I'm trendy?

Popped into T*sc*s today and wandered round the drinks looking for cans of beer. As the Rev is completely teetotal and I only drink red wine when visiting my DIL (who knows my weakness) we were a bit out of our depth. I accosted a young assistant for help. Having rejected all sorts of lagers and being completely useless I explained that neither of us drank beer so didn't know what we were looking for. "Who is it for then?" asked this child. "My slugs," I sighed. His face was a picture! The Rev told him that my slugs had worked so hard on my runner bean plants that I thought they deserved a treat. "Yes," I said, "but I want it as cheap as possible, I'm not about to spoil them." I shudder to think of the conversation he had on his break. Anyway, there is now a margarine carton sunk into the ground containing half a can of beer. I hope they enjoy a happy drowning.

x

stiltwalker

Oh Monnagran! I Have wonderful visions of yours slugs departing to the hereafter in a bath of something good like abbott ale (my fave) or London Pride (one of DH's faves). Personally I'm with GQ and they get cold hard steel. They don't like it cutting them in two you know! My Dad used to get contributions from the slops tray in the local pub (along with several others) to put the slugs, or the gardeners, out of their misery.

Popperwell

Morning...Yes it really is...what was I doing in Tesco's and walking the streets of my town in the wee small hours?

I decided to get some bread and some tomatoes/salad onions.

I had plans for baked beans, sliced Jersey potatoes lightly fried and a bacon/cheese turnover for a late supper.

I walked through the door and...ended up just having some bread rolls containing egg, tomato and beetroot. Simple and quick.

What a wonderful concert earlier, so inexpensive but worthy of a larger venue. So sorry to see so few attending tonight, I hope it doesn't fold.

Copperhead Road opened and then American vocalist Catherine Craig(think Nanci Griffiths, Emmylou Harris)and guitarist Martin Willoughby(has played with the Strawbs, Joe Brown, Mary Hopkin, Roger Whittaker amongst many others over the years)and the record producer Tony Visconti.

She also came and talked to us all and shook our hands...their own music was great but her version of Dixieland and Amazing Grace really moved so many of us. She also gave a story before each song.

Later today Mum comes home...I think it will go fine...I think I am ready.

GreyQueen

:j:j:j:j:j:j:j:j:j:j:j:j:j:j:j

The sun is shining. OMG, I don't think I've seen sunshine since last Saturday, it's been horribly hot and humid but all greyed out.

Wheeee! Damn shame I have to go to work as I'd love to be on the lottie but needs must when the devil drives.

Decided I really must get up there after work, even if I only have enough juice in the system to do a little. Heaven knows what the slugs have been up to in my absence.

monnagran, I was chuckling over your slug-beer buying saga. I bought the cheapest (4 cans for £1) and the beggars managed to avoid it. Beer afficianado slugs, the cheek of the things.

Actually, I haven't seen many slugs this year, it's been more snails so perhaps the amount I sliced in half last year has thinned the population down a tad. Trouble is, I have derelict lotties on either side of mine, and over the back, and I think a lot of the trouble stems from there.

You see people sometimes on the weekend, wandering around with their offer letter and a site map, frowning at the state of the derelict plots, then you never see them again. I feel like showing them a "before" pic of mine, which was an absolute horror. You'd be pretty darned lucky to get a plot in good condition from the start, you have to be prepared to get in there and show it cold steel.

As I wrassled mine into submission, I told myself people have cleared Amazon rain forest, how hard can it be to clear a rough meadow over what seems like a landfill?

It was pretty tough but I sure it has made me a more patient person. Or a more deluded one, anyway.

Hokay, tum wants brekkie, best see what I can scare up from the depths of the fridge.

Random tip (acquired from Shirley Conran's Superwoman book, if memory serves) - if you have ordinary onions which have sprouted green tops, you can cut them off and chop them as spring onion substitutes.

Cheapskate

Morning toughies

Been MIA for a bit, caught up the last day or two, but need to go back pages yet! Congrats and cuddles to anyone who wants them, bet there have been loads of ups and downs in my absence.

My spuds are growing well, some in tubs, some in the ground, and my plum tree is looking good, but that's about it. The weather was so bad for so long here that I didn't even buy some seeds or bulbs that I was planning. We have some slugs here, but I'm training the littlies well - DD has been spied squishing them, but I suspect it's not out of concern for my veg, rather a slightly sadistic component to her character, but the net result is in my favour, so hey, ho! :rotfl:

DS' sports day today, and it's NOT raining - woo hoo!! :j Then it's down to check on mum, memory definitely going and there are certain things we have to do now for our own peace of mind - there's nowt to getting old or ill, is there?

Have a good day, peeps, will come back later on.

A xo

FairyPrincessk

:rotfl: monnagran, what a story.

I can't wait until we're in a position to apply for an allotment. I know it will be hard work, and part of me trembles a little in fear and thinks, maybe just a half plot to start out.:D

Should be finishing up a draft of this work today. It will need a fair amount more work, so the project won't be finished this week, but I've managed to knock out the bulk of it. Looking forward to getting back to my main work next week.

I've made a list of all of the suggestions made here and had a look for local funding. I haven't managed to locate any, but the resources were fab. Feel much better about it all. Thanks all!

Bit of a strange question really. The day before we moved in OH met one of our neighbours (or he came out of a house next door and shouted at him, asking what he ws doing). OH thought he was a bit drunk and ended the conversation quickly, didn't want to get off on the wrong foot. His telly was very loud and he didn't seem very pleasant. Much to our relief we didn't see him again. Well, now we've had several people coming to our door asking about him. Two different people in NHS uniform looking things, and one yesterday was a man who had come to install a boiler. We have always just said we've just moved in and haven't seen him (didn't want to say much, esp.to the guy doing the boiler as we had no way of knowing if it was true), but its been several weeks of this now and we've started to notice his bins haven't been done, curtains haven't moved etc. The boiler thing really made us wonder is it seems strange that someone would schedule a boiler installation if they were away. We're not really sure if we should report it, or who it might get reported to. We thought we'd ask the owners as they used to live here and might know the situation. But last night we had a conversation in which both of us just looked at each other with horror and said you don't think he could be...? I'd be upset if that had happened and we hadn't done anything.

To those with sun today, enjoy it! Afraid ours is gone again, so I will be getting to some of those inside chores I've been neglecting.

7_week_wonder

FairyPrincessk wrote: »

We're not really sure if we should report it, or who it might get reported to. We thought we'd ask the owners as they used to live here and might know the situation. But last night we had a conversation in which both of us just looked at each other with horror and said you don't think he could be...? I'd be upset if that had happened and we hadn't done anything.
.

We had a similar situation with our next door neighbour, who is out and out strange! He quite often disappears for months on end, but when he does he closes all the curtains. So we were a bit perturbed when he disappeared last summer leaving all the curtains open except in his bedroom. After a couple of days of checking with neighbours we called the police. They came and chatted with us, checked out the local hospitals (and I guess the prisons) and then went round there. Apparently they found a spare key under the mat (!) and let themselves in and found nothing untoward. So we still don't know where he is - but at least we know where he isn't! So I'd definitely give your local police a call and explain the situation.

Have a good day all - I'm willing my first courgette to be big enough to harvest for supper tomorrow evening.

FairyPrincessk

stiltwalker wrote: »

FPK - congrats to OH, wish my DH would get his exam result so quick! His exam was last week but he won't hear til August and I just now that by the beginning of July he'll already be plaguing me about it not having arrived yet!!

That is a long time to wait! He has one more today--this is the one we're both very nervous about, so I will be on pins and needles until he hears. I can't imagine having to wait months. He has the results of the course back and got a distinction, just has to pass these two exams and he is finished.

By all means, enjoy your holiday--it is so nice to hear when someone gets to enjoy all of their hard work and saving!

[Deleted User]

Morning Toughies, very disturbed night as we had massive thunderclap at 2 ish am and frantic lurcher, so spent the rest of the night on the sofa as he couldn't settle anywhere poor old boy, He Who Knows slept through it all, said lurcher decided 5 o'clock was up time, it's going to be a long day methinks!!!

STILTWALKER Hi HELEN glad you are all having and enjoying a well deserved break, gourmet toddlers, I LOVE IT!!!!! Are we perhaps looking at a paralympic swimming champion in a few years time I wonder, if you fuel her entirely on Eggs Benedict and Moules Mariniere she'll be unstoppable!!!!! Good luck to Mr Stiltwalker for his exam results in August, we need to know as soon as you do mind, it's important. Have a really lovely rest of the week and keep enjoying the wine by the lake, it's purely medicinal isn't it? Have another glass then!!!

KEZ it sounds like you had a lovely day yesterday as well, brilliant girlie, I think it's lovely to be able to step just a smidgen outside normal life once in a while and take a break with a pal, glad you had such a nice time.

MONNAGRAN was there ever any doubt that you're trendy? Not in our minds. Love the beer for the slugs story which I shall amuse He Who Knows with when he gets back from walkies with his boy. Hope you are feeling a bit brighter in spirit now and have your balance back.

POPS will think of you and Mum today, wishing you the resolution to bring her home, you have come such a very long way in the past year, you've turned your life around and are facing the sun again, proud of you, have a good day, Cheers Lyn xxx.

FairyPrincessk

Thanks 7week. OH is texting the owners today and if they don't get back to us saying...oh yes he works away or something similar then we'll contact the police. I don't want to cause trouble for anyone, but it is strange!