General Chat

I think or should I say I hope they said they would put a stop on our meter reading till the leaks done. Foro those of you who don't know where I live we need 300 metres of pipe to get the water down to the house. What we have now is very old small black pipe and oh said I should pay to have new stuff put in.

The water board sent me a list of people who do the work on the pipes and said I was to get it done within 30 days.

The two men today looked at the tap on the outside of the potting sheds up the top and oh said they had capped that tap off. Just as well I am not using the greenhouse up there whcih is 53 foot long. Its the old vinery and still has the grape vine in there and it still produces grapes if I go and look after it. Its such a trek up there though now I am older.

So pleased it all went well today Jane and that bits over now anyway. I have never heard of a Joint School either.

When the men had gone and oh's parcel had arried we went to Hatherleigh for more petrol for the mowers and I fogot to buy milk in the garage so when we got back and unloaded the cans I went up the shop and bought some. I will never save deiel or my legs with a brain like mine.

I feel really tired tonight so I am signing out now.

That's a heck of a lot of pipe to replace Mel! I suppose if one bit is leaking though and the pipe is old it means other parts of it may not be in good shape either. Does the pipe run along the edge of your garden? I hope it isn't across your lovely lawn although I expect they would lay a new pipe where you wanted them too and leave the old one where it is. Will you be able to claim back the cost from your house insurance? I'm not sure if they cover this sort of thing though. What a nuisance having this to sort out. There's always something with houses isn't there.

Off to bed myself now.

Morning all,

Raining this morning and dull and dreary. Also shopping day so I don't mind going in the rain as I can't get out in the garden.

Forcast for the weeks not that good either so oh tells me as he always watches the weather for his mowing.

Hope you all had a good nights sleep last night.

Morning Mel, morning all

Damp and dull here today. I'm glad we got all the pots moved into place yesterday before the rain came last night. We just have a bit more weeding to do then the back garden will be finished, until the weeds grow back again and the grass needs cutting.

I see the water leak is no closer to being fixed yet Mel, I think you might be entitled to a reduction in your water bill because of the leak, it might be worth asking them about it. It doesn't seem fair that you should be paying for all that water from the leak. I must admit I don't like having a water meter and won't be getting another one if we ever move and there isn't one there.

Pleased to see your pre op went well Jane, I bet the high BP was a shock for them until you explained it might happen.

Well, next door's side gate has finally be done, we heard a lot of banging around 6pm last night, so OH went to see what it was and they were trying to put a post in the ground. The first words the workman said was It's not touching your fence. They did however lean the heavy gate on our flimsy fence, so OH asked them to move it, which they did. We don't think the fence they've put up at the side of the gate is going to stay put with all the wind we have around here, but at least if it blows down it won't take our fence with it. They haven't done the 5ft gates in the front yet, but when they do OH is going to make sure they put some kind of stopper on the floor so when the gate is open it doesn't get blown against our front fence, we don't think it'll go to one of the concrete posts but the bits of wood in between the posts which would break if the gate hit it hard enough. I know it sounds like we're being awkward, but unlike the new neighbour we know how strong the wind is and what damage it can do, so we don't want our fence to be damaged any more than it's already been due to the wind blowing the heavy gates around.

Morning All,

We had heavy rain earlier but it is sunny now. We had a disturbed night as OH had a night of the 'trots' and is still in his dressing gown. I hope I don't get it as I want to go to a talk at the hospital tonight. It is about eye things like cataracts, glaucoma etc so will be interesting as I have cataracts that will need sorting at some point.

I don't blame you asking the neighbour to put a stop for the gate Gill. Mum and dad's house where I lived as a teenager had strong winds across the fields in the winter. Snow never settled between the house and garage, even if it was over a foot deep elsewhere. When we moved there we noticed the garage door had had extra braces fixed to it and you could see previous damage from it blowing open.

Donkey day soon comes round Mel! I have to pop out and do a few errands next.

Good morning all

At the moment we’ve got sunny spells and cloud with a slight breeze so I’ve washed and hung out 2 king size duvet covers. Then I looked at my weather app and see we are forecast drizzle for the rest of the day so I might be drying my covers indoors after all.

It’s a housework day today (boring!!!). So far I’ve vacuumed all the downstairs and have done the stairs themselves. Now I’m having a cup of tea before tackling the upstairs. Then it’ll be the ironing. I know how to have a good time :-D

Tonight we’re going to see the film of Mary, Queen of Scots at our local theatre. We don’t have a cinema but the theatre regularly shows films. It’s a 150 seat converted granary by the river and really is a community asset, much of the basic stuff being done by volunteers. It gets some good professional productions and some big names but is also home to the local am dram and musical societies. It has lots on for young children in the hols and regularly has film showings specially for people with dementia and their carers. I would hate to lose it so we try to support it as much as possible.

Right, cup of tea drunk so it’s back to the hoovering.

afternoon all, Thank you al for our Anniversary greetings.

I came over feeling as sick as a pig yesterday morning, with a full blown headache. When Conrad came home at lunchtime he cooked the steaks and made a salad. I could't even look at it. So didn't eat. As the girls had a lovely meal, included inter SPA DAY, we didn't eat last night, So I haven't had anything passed my lips food wise since Sunday Lunchtime. I was in bed by 7.30 last night. I am pleased to say I feel much better this morning, even though I haven't eaten.

As we didn't do anything last night, we are going a rather up market restaurant on a GOLF COMPLEX tonight. It is the same place that we went last year to celebrate our fortieth Anniversary.

We had a masive shock this morning, with all the doors and sliding doors open, the pups were out of their box, and wondering around the lounge and kitchen. The smallest of them decided to escape onto the patio, and DIVE INTO THE POOL. Good job Jan and Ros were sitting out there. Jan had just come out of the pool, so jumped back in to retrieve it. No harm done, just a shaking, soaking wet puppy. Jan wrapped her in a towel and dried her off, and she is fine now.

I see the leak is still on going Mel, I feel there should be a compensation coming your way. !!! My you have been busy little bees, with all your gardening and housework. I would have thought with all this worm weather, you will be glad of a drop of rain, to cool things down and give the gardens a bit of recovery. We have 30 degrees today, and it looks like getting hotter, as the week goes on.

I have had 10 minutes in the sun, and I have been reading my kindle, with a different book to the one I have been reading on my tablet. Gets a bit confusing, I keep expecting something different to happen in the story. !!!

Jan has just made coffee and cooked a Bacon Sarnie for me, so will have that now. Then back to my book for a while. I will shower and shave and get dressed later in the day. At the moment I only have a pair of shorts on. ;-) ;-) ;-) ;-) Have a nice afternoon xxxx

Just about ready for the off now so will BBL. Hope you enjoy your bacon sarnie Frank and you feel ready for the nice meal tonight.

I have insurance for the water pipes so I am hoping I can claim on that as I have never had a claim before. The SWW said they would put a stop on the meter till the pipe was fixed and I am just hoping they did that.

You would really think they would check things out when you get a much bigger bill than usual. Oh said the water bill has been high for quite a while now and they only read the meter once a year I think and then the next bill is estimated.

That was lucky the adventurous pup was found quickly and fished out of the pool Frank! They need a playpen now don't they, like toddlers. lol I'm glad you are feeling better ready for your sarnie and then your meal later. I wonder if it was to do with the seafood you had? OH is feeling better now but not ready for food yet so I am having some breaded cod with a microwave pack of mixed green veg. I'll do him some scrambled egg on toast when he feels like it.

You would think they would check if you think you've used more water when you get big bills Nel. I know the utility people are quick off the mark if they think you haven't used enough gas and have been underpaying, as we've had that queried before!!

Well done on the HW front Vera! It's what I should be doing but I'm sorting the house insurance instead at the moment!

The sun's gone now and rainy looking clouds have appeared. :-(

Hope you are feeling a bit better now Frank after your Bacon Sandwich and you enjoy you evening out. Maybe you've had a bit to much sun, it sounds very hot, so won't help your headache and sickness. Thank goodness Jan was outside to get the little puppy, the poor thing must of wondered what was happening as I doubt they've had a bath yet., so all that water must of been a shock.

That's good Mel that SWW are putting a stop on your water meter, at least that's something you don't need to worry about for now, lets hope they sort the leak out soon for you.

Your poor OH Ann, I hope his tummy is feeling better now. It sounds like the talk is going to be interesting, especially if it helps you understand problems you have yourself. Yes, I think the new neighbour is going to have a shock when the weather is really windy. If he hasn't anchored his things down they won't be there for long. We noticed he's got a bit umbrella which we think is put into a table, thankfully he's not put it up, but when he does, if he forgets to put it down again, he'll wake up one morning and it won't be there. We've tried to let him know what the weather is like around here, but like a typical man, he won't be told. So I guess he'll have to learn the hard way. Maybe then he'll listen to what us and the rest of the neighbours have told him.

The one thing that's better for us now we've taken the old garage down, the wind doesn't blow onto our Sky dish anymore, so we don't keep losing our signal, the wind used to whip around in a circle as it hit the roof on the front of the garage then circle around hitting the Sky dish, it was a real nuisance and something we definitely don't miss.

I wish we had a local theatre like you Vera, it sounds great. There's nothing like that around here. I believe there used to be a cinema way back in the 1940's, but that's long gone now. Enjoy your film tonight. Hope the weather stays nice long enough for your washing to dry. Love the photo's of your garden, it was very big and well kept, the views beyond was lovely to and a nice backdrop to your garden.

It's pouring with rain here today, so the garden is having a good watering. I'd staked some flowers up yesterday but the rain has made them look like they are on their way out and they don't look as good as they did last night. I'm hoping once the rain stops and they dry out they'll go back to looking good again. It took me ages yesterday to fluff them all up and make them pretty, so I'm a bit disappointed today at the look of them. At least this rain keeps the children and men in doors, my word they do make a racket between them, so it's nice to have a bit of peace and quiet with no footballs, or the men knocking and banging all the time :-D :-D

Vera, what a lovely garden you had, although a lot of work needed I am sure. Thank you for the photos.

Frank, pleased you are feeling better. Did you have too much sun do you think? Anyway, enjoy your meal this evening.

Mel, hope your insurance does cover the leak as it sounds as if it will be expensive.

Annx hope OH's 'bug is not infectious.

I missed your post Ann, pleased to hear your OH is feeling better now, I should imagine he'll be tired today with not having a good night's sleep last night. Good idea to make him scrambled eggs later, it should be easy on his tum.

What a lovely garden, or should I say GROUNDS Vera. It was a credit to you and your hubby, but I can see that it would take a lot of time and effort to keep it up to that standard. How nice to have that view over the field too. Thank you for sharing the pics.

AnnG, I hope it's not infectious as well. It seems as if it was a bug as he felt his face was very hot in the night. I've been over all the switches and door handles with antiseptic wipes and he is using hand gel as well as extra thorough hand washing and the loo has been bleached and there is a kissing ban on for now!! lol. :-) :-) Probably all too late but there is a limit to what I'm happy to share with him. :-D He's typed up some notes this morning and has stopped 'trotting' now and has gone for a lie down and taken a glass of water with him. I can hardly keep my eyes open so hope I don't nod off at this talk. It's pouring with rain now so it won't be much fun driving across to the other side of the city. I only got my WHITE car washed yesterday as well.

Afternoon Everyone
I think it must be tummy bug time as I was up last night being sick and still feel a bitgrim now. Hope OH is feeling a bit better now Ann. I have a chicken to go in the oven with some Lemon and Herb Roast potatoes but somehow I dont think I shall be having any . I will try a little bit as I do feel hungry and havent been sick since about 3am.

What a shame you felt too bad to enjoy your steak Frank, Not what you wanted on your anniversary :-(.. Oh gosh, good job Jan was there to see the Pup fall in the pool.They will have to try and have some kind of make shift barrier or something as once they all get going the chances are it will happen again! :-S

Vera what a beautiful garden you had at your old house.It looks amazing(and BIG) .Did you and OH look after it yourselves or did you have to have some help? I bet you were sad t oleave all that behind when you moved. What a view too. Thanks for sending the photos :-D

Heck Mel. I do hope your insurance is going to cover the cost of having the new pipe put in. That is going to be a big job there with the digging down ,and then replacing the pipe . When we had that leak going on under our kitchen and we had to have all the tiled floor dug up ,dehumidifiers in for weeks etc we were covered .I am trying to think what it would have cost us and seem to think it would have been about £5,000.
I think it was over 2 months before we were back to normal.Nightmare !!!

I am going to sit and watch Place in the Sun and then 4 in a Bed.A bit of sun would have been welcome here today but it has been dark and dismal.

Glad you got my message Ann :-D I wasnt sure .

I might not be back again today .I will be in bed early and hopefully can stay awake to watch 63 Up :-D

Im still here :-D

Vera ,we have The Castle Theatre in Wellingborough that sounds similar to yours.It did close for a while due to lack of support. But I think it is up and running well again now.
Enjoy the film tonight :-D

Gill,it sounds like a bit of a wind tunnel between you and next door. I find here when it is windy just going around the side of the house to the bins you nearly get your head blown off.Our Sky dish is at the side and I am sure it takes a bit of a battering sometimes. I am keeping everything crossed for you when the big gate is finally put up. They do need to listen to you.

I did a very silly thing today. Chris had gone to Cambridge and Fitz was going to come up for a spot of lunch so I put a bottle of wine in the freezer just to chill quickly . But then realising I wasnt up to eating or drinking I rang Fitz and told him not to come. BUT I forgot the bottle in the freezer !!!!!. I only remembered just now ,but too late, The bottom of the bottle had blown right off and there is frozen wine all in the bottom drawer :-S :-S A joint of Beef Frozen to the wine plus a few other things. That will be a job for the morning :-| :-|.
On a positive thing..I have booked an appointment to get my toenails cut :-D :-D a few days before my op.

I can hardly see a thing here .It is so dark. There is not a breath of wind and it is light kind of drizzle . It feels almost like 9pm.

Jane thats very unusual for a bottle of wine to freeze in the freezer. It could'nt have had much alcohol in it as I have five bottles of wine we threw out down in the wood and they have been in freezing conditions for years and all the snow and they are still ok. I wonder if the bottle was damaged. Sorry you have mbeen poorly too and poor G and Frank. Thats three of you now so the ret of us should be ok!!!!!!!! :-D :-D

I do hope it dos'nt cost me £5,000 to have the water leak found and repaired and the insurance does cover it. They have put a stop on the bill thats owed and not the meter reading as someone rang this evening to see what we were doing about it.

It never brightened up here today and has just been clouds and rain. All shopping put away. I thought I was'nt going to get it all in the fridge and freezer but I managed in the end.

Lovely photos Vera your garden certainly did you credit when you lived there. How on earth did you manage to keep all those plants in a koi pond. Our koi just eat everything in sight if we put plants in it. We did have a lily and iris in it once but they made such a mess of the iris oh took it out. Then when they started taken all the big stones off the lily he put that in my pond. Now they have nothing in there in the way of plant life at all.

I burnt, or should I say, the toaster burnt oh's toast this morning so I was going to give it to the birds but he threw one slice in the pond and the koi fell on it like there was no tomorrow so they had the other two slices too and the birds lost out.

Enjoy your evening out Vera and you too Ann and I hope the talk is as interesting as it sounds.

It sounds like Conrad is going to have to get a baby gate to stop the pups going outside. The little pup must have thought she could walk on the water. It must have been such a chock for her, bless. Just as well Jan saw it happen and could rescue her.

Good morning to all my lovely ladies. xxxx
\
Conrad has made a large wooden partition, that fits across the drive from the next doors wall, to the villa wall. It's about 30 inches high. LOLA can jump into the closed off area. to feed and take care of her babies. and of course it gives her a bit of free time come them, and they have a large area to play in. They have blankets and beds in there, so they are very comfy. One of the babies Ros has named "WHITE CLAWS" she never leaves Ros's toes alone, whenever Ros goes into the area, she is straight on to her toes ;-) ;-) ;-) ;-)

We went out last night to the golf complex, for our celebration meal. Conrad, jan and I had a paella and Ros fillet steak. I only had a few mouthfuls of my meal, as I felt it was far too salty, but the other two tucked in and cleared the plates. I then shared an ice cream with Ros. There were only 3 other tables with dinners. I think it might be a bit early in the season for the Hotel to be filling up. The property on the complex are very expensive, Conrad said the dearest one he has heard of cost £3,400,000.00. He would love to buy a building plot and build his own. He says the cost would be nothing like buying one ready built. We got home here around 10.30 pm I sat with Ros for a while, but Conrad and Jan went straight up to be,

Sorry to hear there is a bug going around, I hope it clears up soon. All this weather you are having also, must be getting you gardeners down lol lol

Mel, I hope you get this water problem sorted out. I know when we had a leak in the lawn from the meter. Tony next door blames us for it, as he was adamant that the roots from our trees had caused it.Totally WRONG. The leek was due to a pipe deterioration under TONY'S LAWN, and nothing do with ours. :-| :-| :-|

I have never had that experience Jane, where a bottle has exploded in the freezer. I would have thought if you just remove anything that has been in contact with it, leave it to thaw a bit, and give it a wash, they should be fine to eat.

Ros has gone with Jan to meet the girls they went to the Spa Day with. Jan is thinking of joining them on some sort of diet scheme. They are then going to the Vets, to arrange for the puppies nails to be trimmed. Ros has done them once, but is scared to do them again, in case she cuts them too short, and makes them bleed.

I slept like a log last night, only went to the loo once, and didn't wake until 8.45. Ros was up, she bought me my Aspirin and a COT. I laid there and got up at 10.15. Now going to have a coffee and a slice of toast.

No plans for tonight, so will see what Conrad says at lunchtime. Bye for now. xxxx

I just noticed our Shirl. has posted a photo on FB of the snow they have in Canada. I had to comment that I was sitting in 30 degrees of sunshine in Spain. I bet that didn't please her. lol lol

The builders are working on another villa across the other side of the park, Noisy Bu@@@@s, banging and slamming things about. Just sounded like something has collapsed. So will go and see whats happened in a mo. !!!

Have just enjoyed a nice cup of Colombian Coffee. Conrad gets it from one of the many supermarkets around here. He says you can get it in Waitrose in the UK. So next time we want instant coffee, I know where to send ROS !!!!.

Everywhere seems to have gone quiet, It could be their LUNCH break. So I expect it will start up again later. I'm going to grab a bit of sunshine, then come in and read my book. Spoke to soon, banging started again. :-P :-P :-P :-P

Morning Frank and all,

We have a bit of sunshine this morning but big grey and white clouds also.

You slept well last night Frank and its good to know your getting a fair share of shut eye. It must make you feel a lot better. How's the head now?

There are a lot of orchids coming up in next doors field and I heard the mower thing going so I rang Jane who owns it and told her about them so they don't get mown off this afternoon. She said she would tell Dave who does the mowing for them. I know its silly but the orignal orchids came with me from Suffolk in pond plants I brought down 27 years ago. I feel like they are my babies. I have kept them going in pots down here and the seed blows over next door and even to the big house who thought they were just natural but I know different.

Oh has put his bath robe in the washing machine with his towels and he has put it on a 40 wash for 2HOURS something instead of the 20 minuet wash. I don't know what thats all about but its stopping me doing any more washing.

Forgot to post this as oh came out and we have been talking to Jane from next door and she's put canes around the orchids so they don't get mown off.

Afternoon Mel, and all.

A lot cooler thisfternoon with a good breeze, but still 30 degrees.

I have been sitting outside reading my kindle, which I am able to do when there isn't bright sunshine.

Both Jan and Ros were giving out the zzzz. Jan outside and Ros on the sofa indoors, when the noise started up from the builders. It looks, and sounds like. they are taking down the scaffolding, Not bothering to hand the poles down to the one on the ground , but just letting them fall. and clatter against the ground and anything they might hit on the way down. No consideration for us holiday makers. ;-) ;-) ;-).

Conrad said he is stopping off at the Supermarket, to get things for a BBQ. tonight. With this breeze,I think we will have to eat indoors.

Lola and the pups are fast asleep, curled up in the inside box. I think I will try to get 40 winks myself, if the noise lets me. Fortunately my head is feeling much better today, the swelling has gone down on my bumps, and touch wood I haven't han any signs of a headache.

That is so nice Mel, about the story of the orchids. I bet they give a lovely display, and must be nice for you to see them every year. How many do you think there are ?? That's a long time for the washing machine to be on, if he is only doing a few bits. Typical men, but I must admit I don't do the settings on the Machine. I only turn it off when it finishes and empty it in to the basket, ready for hanging out, which Ros likes to do, as she says I don't do it properly..