5 OS pleasures in your day today - part 3

Purple_kitten

Ouchy Highdays

The house is cleaner than normal.

The ferret washing has been done and is still hanging on the line.

We walked around to aldi, forgetting it is just too hot, but we felt virtuous.

I was uninspired by food so tonight I just cooked chicken and chips.

Booked in for some camping, we are doing it on a budget and looking forward to it

DigForVictory

Frith - sounds like a wonderful party! 

Happycas - "mostly sitting around" sounds blissful. Most frustrating, this human lark.

Highdays - three new baby girls?! Blimey... Brain scan just to make sure it Isn't things - and cookie dough brownies sound fab! Ooops - all best with tooth!

mhagster - argh, the ouchy massages. Rain so no need to water, bliss! "bright and sunny and lush" - wonderful! They returned ladders, not getting the hint?! You star, chosing wallpaper & ordering it from the shop. Keeping local business afloat uniek oters who use the hsop to pick the paper then order online... I don't mind heights, it's the drops that scare me. So right to take it easy if not feeling the article.

topsyturphy - 36? How? Child bride, obviously. Delighted to hear of tomato progress! Crumpet with honey - yum & quit sniggering at the back. (O my filthy mind.) Argh traffic & accidents & living with not knowing.

ampersand - HC at Ely after Delhi must have been an amazing culture shift, then a glorious lunch as well. Oooh, Canon Clement!

PaulieHerts - oh the colours - thank you for my vicarious sea bathing holiday!

OS Pleasures recently

Middleson nipped south & took mum out to lunch. (He keeps taking her to a snazzy gastropub as I don’t know any other local eateries other than McDonalds.)

Stood watering indoor citrus, I was aware of a little brown shape investigating the pots outside. Pulled my focus & it was a wren! Smaller than a fat ball - couldn’t see the eyebrow line so may be wrong but still aglow with feeling privileged.

Youngest is occasionally unbraided as temptress (& today, minx) & I am stumped for the appropriate male version of the term. Not least as to call your own son a lothario seems a bit much, but incubus has too many syllables. (Pest too few & brat insufficiently appreciative.) He suggests Puck… (which will have any eavesdroppers clutching their pearls & the grin says he knows that just fine.)

Linen has arrived & been flung straight into the laundry. In part as the vendors choice of wrapping didn’t take the pressure & ripped so the post office delivered it in a plastic sack. Four pillowcases though! Decadence! (Now on the line.)

Ah the sound of Middleson cooking… various hmmms & the occasional yip!

A vehement sisterly bicker over tomato plants (I was politely laughed at by four local nurseries & actively helped by a till assistant at Home Bargains) means I now have five little plants in the bathtub under a grow light, ready to be united with growbags being couriered straight to mum. (Also bagged a bottle of tomato food.)

Aw, one of the Asda staff had a son be awarded with the MBE & proudly showed me photos. Awarded by Princess Anne (who’s met the chap before & so they laughed together & his father, awash with pride, still has no idea why.) Lovely moment for a rightly proud father & we bonded further over the wonder that is Princess Anne. (Apparently she’s short - I’ll not let fact interfere with my awed respect.)

Local rag has headline “werewolf spotted in Bridlington” & I am laughing so hard I can barely walk. Oh the tourist market for a genuinely inclusive holiday destination. What would you advertise?! (Youngest firm, “you can Google it when you get home”.)

Re-read the ‘seize the day’ reminder to ‘use the good China’ etc & thought I could stop apologising to myself for my linen habit. It’s beautiful, it’s comfortable, & rightly tended it’s good for decades.

Oh my, mum’s cat has had a seizure. He’ll be off to the vet on Thursday for a once over. (He’s eating drinking etc normally so the initial appalled panic can settle down.)

Apparently a familiar trauma response recognised amongst refugee communities etc may be less hugs & ‘I love you’s & more home cooked meals Every Single Day. A couple of colleagues went a bit pensive - I hope I didn’t stir a pot unwittingly.

QI introduces me to a new species, the vegetarian spiritualist. (Thankful for iplayer, gives me time to boggle.) One such, Charles Isham, ‘invented’ the garden gnome & I suspect has contaminated my thinking on what else a vegetarian spiritualist might get up to. (Fraudulent spiritualists are a splendid trope in vintage fiction, the vegetarian aspect just adds a whole new twist.)

It would have been Himself’s birthday today. No tools. No cake. No takeaway, just the same old Sunday (albeit the Japanese quince seeds appear to be germinating wildly). I’ve a hazy feeling he understands but then he almost always did. <flails hands weakly>

Team meeting, all the more popular as air con in that meeting room, after which we scattered!

Oooh QI & Ambrose Bierce “war is God’s way of teaching Americans geography”.(Broadcast 2011 and still disconcertingly on the money.)

Inspects weather forecast & delighted to see rain. Thank Heavens! The return of relative coolth…

“That unearthly purple glow is really growing on me” Youngest approves of the grow light in the bathtub on the tomato plants.

QI, Rabelais & the use of a goose. Frankly loo roll is more convenient, practical, affordable etc & I don’t entirely trust Rabelais not to have arranged for the goose to be sedated with burgundy or something, whilst he listens to the sounds of followers screaming…

Darn. According to “couch glue” (which sounds a trustworthy media channel, not particularly) I apparently behave like someone with real wealth.  Because I mend & care for things, I care about quality, I am grateful. (Amongst other solid Old Style virtues.) Has me pondering how many of us are richer than we realise or quietly comfortable with the modest amount we have. That latter being something very OS to treasure as it should last.  

Colleague going for an EEG hadn’t read the hospital letter so got my cheerful introduction to sitting still (whilst the electrodes are placed) then doing as he’s told (probably still sitting very still) since they want to see his brain ticking over. A bit under an hour, painless & probably fairly boring - he was charmed to have it laid out so plainly & so ‘no point fussing about it’ !

Ooh, I do love the smooth crisp comfort of fresh line dried linen on my own bed. 

Sisters having an orgy of preparedness by spending money... I cooperate with a first aid kit & jib hard at a camping stove that’s outdoors only, the wrong height for mum to work with & anyway we’ve a small gas hob plumbed in that we currently use as a pan shelf - if we tested that, we could save a lot of nervous wear & tear. They’re not thinking food or water or comms or entertainment for 72 hours at all. (Yet.) {I checked ir, both rings fine, needs a replacement knob..}

Gosh Youngest’s general knowledge is amusing - I’d never heard of “ambien” a prescription sleeping pill/aid to dropping off, but since I’m out to see a client in Liverpool he’s said he’ll not add it to my next meal…. (I am so lucky in my wonderful sons.)

Coaching colleague in the arcana that constitute travel & subsistence!

It’s cool, it’s quiet & mum & I are enjoying the first brew of the day discussing travel, tomato plants, the sculpture of Antony Gormley at Crosby and Jaffa cakes. We’re both going back to bed!

It is fun to watch the effect of Good Housekeeping on mum. Like catnip. Curls up with it, ignores coffee & food & dives fascinated in. Promptly quizzing me “what is ramen?” (Noodles! But also pop culture male coder snack - mum prefers the pizza & coffee trope, leaves me pondering what do Russian geeks snack on?)

Mum has decided she’s going to start the day on dark chocolate with hazelnuts. When I consider all the healthy eating advice she’s dished out as a GP, I could snort, but she’s comfortably over 80 & different rules apply.

Aldi had lilies discounted again. Mum smiling like a cat locked in a dairy.

There are five little tomato plants in growbags & mum is Just So chuffed.

Odd how cheap Chinese folding paper pans cause such wafts of delight! Carers, sisters, all crooning.

The to do list of little chores is complete, the unexpected bonus yerwot of a CIFAS marker where my family didn’t expect one is under investigation; tomorrow we can just play.

Health Strength Love & Courage to all as have need, plus dry socks for those soggy moments.

topsyturphy

Pleasures for Friday.

1. giggling at DFV post about crumpet & honey.
2. A lovely long lie in as I had to work a part night shift.
3. Enjoyed another pasta salad made by me
4. Had a cheeseburger & milkshake at work for dinner - very bad for me but tasted so good
5. to be greeted on return home by little dog.

LaineyT

Recent pleasures,

A wonderful weeks holiday in beautiful Dorset, we stayed in a lovely village right on the coast.

A walk along the headland on our first evening, let us really stretch our legs and blow away the cobwebs of the long drive.

Our cottage had a big garden with plenty of areas to sit in both sun or shade and read a book, perfect.

Visits to Symondsbury estate, Abbotsley gardens, Max Gate ( home of Thomas Hardy ) and my favourite of all the Donkey Sanctuary at Sidmouth, Capt S was hard pushed to get me away from the donks!

The weather was very warm, a bit too at times but the cottage was cool and there was usually a decent sea breeze, didn’t get burnt thankfully but my freckles have freckles!

Fish & chips, why do they always taste better at the sea, even better when the cooking times is punctuated by a cold cider in the beer garden of the nearby pub.

Listening to the cricket, eating strawberries and watching the blackbirds doing their thing.

Lots of early morning walks along the beach before breakfast in the beach cafe.

Skimming stones like we did as kids, I got a fiver.

All in all a fab holiday and Dorset we will be back ❤️

PaulieHerts

Morning all 😊

Your Dorset holiday sounded lovely Lainey.  You mentioned a couple of places we haven’t been too, we’re off to Swanage next Saturday, a week in a caravan.  OH’s mum and dad had a caravan there for years and he wants to relive some memories and we will also meet up with my friend who lives in Poole.
It was cooler yesterday, thank goodness and cooler and showery today, so hopefully will get some household jobs done today,  kitchen windows and oven cleaned!  

I was very excited yesterday as I managed to get a dinner booking at the Farmers Dog (fans of Clarkson’s Farm will know what I’m talking about ).  It happens to be 22nd August, which is our anniversary, so I also booked a cottage for the week in the Cotswolds.  Can’t say we’re not making the most of our retirement 🤣
Last week also included lots of tennis 🎾 watching, dips in the cooler hot tub, meet up with friend at garden centre and a periodontist appointment ☹️
Have a lovely Sunday everyone 😊

mhagster

For Saturday we were up early and had a rainy walk and said good morning to the ducklings. 

Supermarket for a few bits.
General tidy up. Cleaned bathrooms, hoovered.
Sister and BIL arrived on way back from their holiday. 

Had sausages, new potatoes cut in wedges and veg for tea. Had prepped the veg and had it sitting in the steamer pan…meanwhile dog had been sick and I’d dealt with that and popped to supermarket to get some chicken for him for later /this morning and then came home as oven timer was bleeping ( either it had just went off or my guests couldn’t hear it!) so clicked on the gas on hob. Kept checking veg and wondering why it wasn’t cooking…there was no water in the bottom pan! Just a lot of very hot metal! Yikes! 

Peach crumble and ice cream for pud. 

And this morning we went an early morning visit to the CP so I could show them the caravan. Had a nice walk and then home…the quick way! 

And then they were gone and my peace and solitude has returned 😆

mhagster

And for the rest of the day.

Garden centre with DD2 and the chap. Bought a new rhubarb plant…see if this will grow.

Nice chat to DD1 on phone.

Went for a lie down as I really didn’t get much sleep last night but just kind of dozed and woke up feeling worse.

Chat to niece and then friend called from her holiday where it’s sunny…here it was absolutely lashing though the sun has just keeked out now.

Had a toastie for tea and I’m just about to have leftover crumble for a pud. 

LaineyT

For yesterday,

A good nights sleep in our bed, the holiday one was perfectly comfortable but oh the pleasure of your own pillows.

Lots of lovely steady rain, our veg and flowers survived being left alone for a week but the grass was very brown so good to have some.

Reuniting with the beautiful grey one, she heard me say hello to someone in the barn and called out in greeting, cuddles and carrots then a long groom.

Home, change and then our last treat of the holiday week, Sunday lunch out. We went to a local pub that was recently taken over and recommended by my hairdresser. Very tasty food and we will be back.

Disappointing end to the test match but levels the series.

LaineyT

Me again?
For yesterday,

Back to normal routine after our week away so into horsey town for a food shop plus coffee and a catch up with pal.

The juvenile raptors were calling to their parents and flying around the beech trees, not sure if they are kestrels or sparrow hawks, need to get the bins out.

Long chat with my bf.

Equine pal had the farrier so afternoon spent at yard, it was a cool day and was grateful for my jacket. My girlie was as good as ever while having her feet done and was pleased to hear farrier say that a small chip in left hind hoof that’s been hanging around for a while has now started growing out, I’ve been using a barrier cream to prevent any nasties stopping growth.

Easy tea of chicken stir fry.

mhagster

Good afternoon!  iPad fully recharged again! Charging cable wasn’t working and bought a new one but it’s teeny tiny in length. And no longer fits where I would charge phone at same time! Anyway took it down to CP at his morning and charged it whilst I was out swimming.


For Monday which up till this point is the same as today 😆 down to CP early , nice walk and lovely swim with a bit of a chatter. Home by lunchtime.

Yesterday there was several loads of washing to do as I had bedding etc to catch up on. Mostly dried in between showers but all now on clothes horses so need to empty them and iron.

Had French toast for tea, using up some bread I’d bought for my visitors.

Work chat on phone and then chat with friend on holiday. 

And up early after my usual night before the night before I do a service dreams which are always anxiety filled and quite ridiculous in what goes wrong in them. 

Out to CP this morning. Walk. Swim. Chatter. 

Home as The Pup is here. 

Hung small washing out. 

Went to supermarket , got a few RTC plants including 2 very sad dahlias for 35p each! Currently soaking . 

Just put baking potatoes in the airfryer for later. They don’t take that much less time than in the oven. But will be nice.

And The Pup is now out with his walker in the time I’ve been out and back in.

Got a few books from the charity shelf in supermarket. Our library chap has been on holiday so no library bus!

Sun is shining so I’m hoping to potter around the garden.