Today I shall be Mainly...

[Marilyn]

Must be harder for young couples with young kids and real issues like job loss and small flats with no gardens.
( suck it up Maz...I hear you)

[Sue]

Yes Maz I agree. I am glad my sisters partner is staying elsewhere. They split up nearly two years ago but still technically live together as neither can buy the other out. He is hardly ever there so its not normally a problem and I don’t think there would have been any nastiness just difficulty.

[Cathy]

Sue, this is for you, sister Jane and friends...

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[Sue]

Phew, at last our prescriptions have arrived.

[Sue]

Sue, this is for you, sister Jane and friends...

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Thanks Cathy, I like that one

[Stanley]

P, don't hang about, put a new battery on it. I think a bum battery on a car is the best way to take the pleasure out of motoring! (I well remember all those years of penury and coil-robbing!)
The shed missed yesterday and might again today because I have some industrial scale cooking to do! Butcher's delivery went well yesterday. Today I'd better find out what's happening at the chemists.

[Wendyf]

Let somebody else go to the chemist for you Stanley!!

[Marilyn]

The chemist should deliver...

[Stanley]

That's why I shall talk to them Wendy. My policy as far as possible is to keep away from everyone!
Just sat down after over an hour of honest endeavour preparing veggies and building my roast. The wings and veggies are in the oven and the carrots are boiling on the hob for mashing. It's a matter of time now.

[Sue]

Morning all.

As I said yesterday Stanley, I am glad you have stopped going to the shops

Well I spent two hours shredding wood yesterday, producing only two barrow loads of chippings and made hardly a hole in the pile of wood. Some pieces were just too big to go through the machine, some too fine, coming through as twigs rather than chippings. So when I have the fire in the incinerator ( which may or may not be today) I will need to do some more sorting for the wood store.

I also spent an hour on my hands and knees tidying the edges of the lawn next to the gravel with hand held garden shears . I gave up trying to edge it with the spade, far too tough and strenuous. I have one patch left to do now, but with todays temperatures forecast perhaps today is not the day. I may simply sit at the outside table and do some art or some writing on the laptop. Bob is sifting sand out of the gravel near the house wall. This is another strenuous tedious job. When the pointing was done (twice) the sand mix has slowly dried and shed sand into the gravel, such that it looks more like a sandpit and encourages the growth of too many weeds. The sand will be used to help level the railway track

Other than that I have no major plans apart from perhaps dusting. I went in the study yesterday to look for something. Its not a room we use much, so got a shock when I left an imprint of my hand in the dust on a chair. Even more of a shock because I dusted every room when we arrived and even polished . I think it is because we have had the front door open every day and it has been so windy.

So not a particularly planned out day, just a day to enjoy as the weather changes here again tomorrow. Back to that cold wind and showers are expected.

Think positive, stay cheerful, keep busy and stay safe, and have as good a day as you can, indeed enjoy your sunny weekend in the UK

[Cathy]

Absolutely the Chemist should deliver.
What would it take in a small town , to organise deliveries for retired folk... not much!
If the Chemist staff can’t do it, I’m sure they have friends / family staying at home, who would be only too happy to help the retired in their community.
Sometimes people just need to have things pointed out to them, and asked if they can help.

Duty of Care.

[Marilyn]

We have one chemist in town (out of about 5 that I know of) that will deliver for free. Our usual scripts/whatever are usually done at another chemist though. My hubby has a script that can only be legally be filled every 28 days ( strict heart medication, a serious anti-coagulant on steroids!) so we are both ok for another 26 days I guess
We often have to drive around from chemist to chemist to see if it is even in stock. We have been known to drive 2 hours to get it. And it is so strictly controlled, you can only get it when they have counted on fingers and toes that he is down to his last pill.
We have been doing this for over 10 years now, and are sick of the hunt to get it. Our one chemist has been quite reliable, so we do not wish to switch.
He must take this medication or he will die ( as quoted by his heart surgeon). GP’s don’t want to write scripts for it, but over time his GP does ( quoting every time that he hates this drug and doesn’t like prescribing it. Time and time again he sends hubby back to the heart surgeon, who flatly refuses to allow him off it...once again quoting death as he shakes his finger.)
Makes it very difficult if we want to travel anywhere. We cannot stockpile it, yet cannot be assured we can get our hands on it if we travel...Russian Roulette!

[plaques]

I gave up trying to edge it with the spade, far too tough and strenuous.

Have you tried one of the rounded edging spades. these make life a lot easier where you can overlap the cuts taking advantage of the previous cut. If you have a lot of lawn they are well worth the investment.
edging spade

[Stanley]

The chemist will deliver so don't get wound up about them. As I said I will talk to them. I need to know what the procedure is. It won't be a problem!
Just mashed the veggies..... Then a walk and breakfast. I might vacuum as well! Standards must be maintained!
Sue, one thing that can make a lot of difference is to get the angle grinder out and sharpen the cutting edge whether it's a spade or a half moon edging cutter.

[Sue]

I gave up trying to edge it with the spade, far too tough and strenuous.

Have you tried one of the rounded edging spades. these make life a lot easier where you can overlap the cuts taking advantage of the previous cut. If you have a lot of lawn they are well worth the investment.
edging spade

That is what I have been using. The soil here is awful, I have been known to water it just so I can weed it. Some of these edges haven’t been done for years and the soil and grass roots are very matted together. Often I hit stones underneath, builders rubble from the initial renovation and from the old Breton farmyard paths. It's a real nightmare in places.

[Sue]

The chemist will deliver so don't get wound up about them. As I said I will talk to them. I need to know what the procedure is. It won't be a problem!
Just mashed the veggies..... Then a walk and breakfast. I might vacuum as well! Standards must be maintained!
Sue, one thing that can make a lot of difference is to get the angle grinder out and sharpen the cutting edge whether it's a spade or a half moon edging cutter.

All well and good Stanley if you have the tools here.I think Bob has had a go once. We have some rough old garden equipment here, inherited from aged parents.

[Stanley]

A friendly garage will do it for you Sue.
As always, aiming for the shed but it's amazing how things get in the way! Jack and I are high maintenance!

[Sue]

A friendly garage will do it for you Sue.
As always, aiming for the shed but it's amazing how things get in the way! Jack and I are high maintenance!

Not round here Stanley. Everywhere is closed, and its hard enough to find one to get a repair done on your car, like a puncture. It would be easier to take it home to do it, but of course we can’t go home, and when we go home I won’t be here to edge the lawn I think the ground is too tough really. It worked beautifully round the flower beds
Just woken up, will write longer after my morning cuppa

[Sue]

Morning all

Now I have my morning cup of tea I have woken enough to write. Its a sunny morning and at the moment yesterdays cold wind has died down. The forecast is for it to get cloudier with a high of 19 degrees, and a breeze returning.

In the end yesterday I did not have the garden fire. Instead I spent a couple of hours cleaning inside and then washing the garden table and bench outside, plus the outside window cills. Then I set up my art stuff on the table outside to tackle my U3A art challenge. This was to draw or paint the view from my window, or in my case from under the wisteria pergola. I did a sketch which promptly blew away! I had to anchor everything down as it kept blowing over or off the table. It was that cold wind too. Although the sun was beautiful and warm, the wind made it impossible to paint outside. So with a new sketch I retreated into the kitchen with the door open. It was cooler in the kitchen, but at least things stayed where I put them There I remained for the rest of the day, apart from the obvious meals and drink breaks. Oh yes and the requisite glass of wine sat in the sun mid afternoon.

Despite a day painting I had nothing to show for it. I was trying a new technique that I did in my last art lesson, with Jeremy Ford ( professional artist, teacher and friend ) unfortunately I couldn’t remember how to do it. It was using gouache in the style of a poster. Included is what I did in class the day before we came. My attempt yesterday was dreadful. I tore it up and chucked it in the bin. I did however find some art pens which I forgot I had here, and converted my pencil drawing into an ink drawing which I will do a watercolour wash over, perhaps today.

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Bob finished his sifting of the gravel and retrieved 8 barrow loads of sand , from a patch of gravel 4x1.5 m The sand has been transported down to the railway construction area in the orchard. I think there is to be more construction down there today

No major plans for the day, I will take it as it comes.

Think positive, stay cheerful, keep busy, and stay safe and have as good a day as you can

[Marilyn]

I have had such a wonderful day, compared to you, Sue.
An early start ( due to daylight savings ending today). Coffee AND toast in bed ( haven’t had toast in bed for about 20 years!)
A lovely walk in beautiful sunshine today.
A rather intriguing Midday Movie ( more hubby’s style than mine). Strongly resisted an afternoon sleep ( because I want to get body clock right now daylight savings has ended).
Tea has just been had, a wonderful Chicken Burger with a small serve of French Fries.
Just about to do the washing up.
Think we may be in bed early tonight as daylight still doesn’t match our internal clock.

It could be worse in semi-isolation!

[Sue]

This is going to take a few fires in the incinerator. That is the smallest of three piles. This is the waste wood. We already have half a barn full of useful stuff, and piles round by the pizza oven. I have done my energetic bit for the day. The wind is really whipping up. So glad my fire is now out

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By the way the grass around the incinerator had been thoroughly soaked with water before I started and I had three watering cans full of water on emergency stand by

[Big Kev]

Eating a roast beef dinner, safely delivered by Mcculloughs on Rainhall Rd. Piping hot and delicious.

[Wendyf]

With that glass of wine I hope?

[Big Kev]

With that glass of wine I hope?

Of course, it would be rude not to

[Sue]

We are having roast lamb and home grown asparagus. It's very rare to get lamb round here. Bob bought it on Wednesday in a bargain meat tray. Meat is really expensive so every day SUPER U, the supermarket does bargain trays of meat at much less than the normal meat on the counter. It's a different meat tray each day.

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G&T before we eat, wine with it.