Preparing for Winter V

pollyanna_26

MingVase said:

Talk on the Scottish weather forums of much colder weather end of next week, poss some snow.

It's very cold here Mar but being so close to the sea we don't often get snow. We had a really heavy fall a few years ago that stopped the traffic and hung about for ages . We've had a few falls in recent times but usually gone in a few days.

Are you less exposed to the elements where you are now?

pollyx

Whitefiver

littlemoney said:

MrsCD said:

Managed to cut our lawn on Wednesday when it was nice and sunny, but the grass was still a bit claggy on the underside of the mower, so I had to give it a good clean before I put it away.  Anyhow it's done and won't be done again until next year.

I have said that before at this time of year, been proved wrong and had to get the mower out again.

Oh heck, I hope not. Managed to do my lawn yesterday as the breeze dried it out nicely after the morning storm. The advantage of mowing this late is that you can pick up a lot of leaves and pine needles (in our case), that otherwise would be blowing around all winter. Trouble is, if I drain down the mower now, I fear littlemoney could be correct!

Laura_Elsewhere

A farmer on the Scottish weather forums ( btw, hiya, @MingVase, just worked out who you are!) said once that grass won't grow once it goes to being below 6 degrees centigrade at night. So if you have a look at your area's forecast for the next fortnight, that should give you some indication of whether you'll need to mow again, ie if your area is staying above 6C most nights for the next fortnight, then your grass will continue to grow, but if it's only 6 or above on one or two nights, or not at all, then probably that's growth stopped now for the winter... 

MingVase

pollyanna_26 said:

It's very cold here Mar but being so close to the sea we don't often get snow. We had a really heavy fall a few years ago that stopped the traffic and hung about for ages . We've had a few falls in recent times but usually gone in a few days.

Are you less exposed to the elements where you are now?

pollyx

It's very sheltered here yes. Dropped from 1000ft to 200ft asl. Tucked in among other houses now with an actual fence around my garden! I'll get claustrophobic!

littlemoney

The grass temperature here is currently 12 degrees with one or two nights in the next 14 days below 6 degrees. I haven't run the mower dry yet and may need to buy more petrol for a final cut. That wil be a pain as I will have to buy 2 litres minimum and I don't have a car I can  use the excess in.

3secondmemory

Suffering a little bit due to the flu jab yesterday – my glands were very tender until I took an extra painkiller. I’d still recommend Flu Jab to anyone – i’ve been hospitalised year on year after rapidly developing pneumonia following normal winter coughs and colds (not even flu!) i’ve got lungs like an old carrier bag 🙁

Immune compromised people like me always had to shield over the winter months in the past but not to this extent. 

 Dealing with my health and unending seclusion/boredom is the basis of my current prep plans - I have enough food and loo rolls to last me 6 months -  that’s not enough though. Managing is not the same as thriving. my lesson from 2020 is that without good health, I am nothing. 

I’m Mentally preparing for Christmas alone here if the worst comes to the worst. It shouldn’t be too bad! I am enjoying windowshopping online and our family are good gift givers. If I know a friend of Neighbour is going to a specific shop, I get them to pick up the odd luxury Christmas items 😃 for people who are complaining, I sometimes mention that no one knew how long the war was going to go on for, they just had to make the best of it. 

PipneyJane

3secondmemory said:

Suffering a little bit due to the flu jab yesterday – my glands were very tender until I took an extra painkiller. I’d still recommend Flu Jab to anyone – i’ve been hospitalised year on year after rapidly developing pneumonia following normal winter coughs and colds (not even flu!) i’ve got lungs like an old carrier bag 🙁

Immune compromised people like me always had to shield over the winter months in the past but not to this extent. 

 Dealing with my health and unending seclusion/boredom is the basis of my current prep plans - I have enough food and loo rolls to last me 6 months -  that’s not enough though. Managing is not the same as thriving. my lesson from 2020 is that without good health, I am nothing. 

I’m Mentally preparing for Christmas alone here if the worst comes to the worst. It shouldn’t be too bad! I am enjoying windowshopping online and our family are good gift givers. If I know a friend of Neighbour is going to a specific shop, I get them to pick up the odd luxury Christmas items 😃 for people who are complaining, I sometimes mention that no one knew how long the war was going to go on for, they just had to make the best of it. 

I have to quote you twice:  Managing is not the same as thriving. my lesson from 2020 is that without good health, I am nothing. "   Too true.  We are currently healthy, but I am well aware that conductive heart disease runs in my family - my mother had it and now my sister - so like @Laura_Elsewhere,  I am focusing my Lockdown on getting physically fitter.   We're both working from home and if we didn't focus on taking a daily walk after work, and my morning runs, it'd be possible not to leave these four walls for days at a time.

I'm finding I need the exercise for my mental health as well.  It breaks up the day and burns off the stress hormones. 

- Pip

Laura_Elsewhere

Yes, I am not drastically lighter or thinner than I was in March - less than half a stone, I think. But what IS different is that I can keep up with My Intended on our three-mornings-a-week trots locally, about 1.3 miles, mostly level, ending with a stonking great cliff-face of an uphill.... in March I had to stop halfway for a breather; now I do it in one AND can stand upright at the top, grin and speak, even if a bit breathlessly, before carrying on the last hundred yards. 
It is one hundred and ten paces in length, and we used serious mapping to pinpoint each end - it climbs eight metres in those 110 paces...! 

It isn't running a marathon, but for an obese, 50-something, ex-smoker it could mean the difference between home and hospital, or between two more stark and dreadful outcomes... anything we can do to improve our health is worth doing...

Laura_Elsewhere

We still have the window open overnight in the bedroom, but it's definitely chillier now, and we've got the small stone pig nice and hot at our feet in the bed, to stay hot til the morning! 

3secondmemory

Laura_Elsewhere said:

Yes, I am not drastically lighter or thinner than I was in March - less than half a stone, I think. But what IS different is that I can keep up with My Intended on our three-mornings-a-week trots locally, about 1.3 miles, mostly level, ending with a stonking great cliff-face of an uphill.... in March I had to stop halfway for a breather; now I do it in one AND can stand upright at the top, grin and speak, even if a bit breathlessly, before carrying on the last hundred yards. 
It is one hundred and ten paces in length, and we used serious mapping to pinpoint each end - it climbs eight metres in those 110 paces...! 

It isn't running a marathon, but for an obese, 50-something, ex-smoker it could mean the difference between home and hospital, or between two more stark and dreadful outcomes... anything we can do to improve our health is worth doing...

I’ve lost the strength to do anything - I had a fairly easy 2 hour return  bus ride to get my Covid test but got home exhausted and slept for 7 hours on the sofa this afternoon. I’m already dreading the same thing tomorrow as I have to go for a blood test. 

The tests I’ve been having have shown swollen glands in my abdomen which I’m not shocked about as I know how much I’ve suffered with these latent UTIs this but I have to have a biopsy to make sure. I have déjà vu as exactly the same thing has happened before so I’m not too worried. All my symptoms point to menopause which no one prepped me for! 😂😂 maybe we should start prepping for menopause thread somewhere?😂😂