Routine Shopping - some PC jobs - Tel Crossword etc.

.
We got going early-ish and it seemed strange with Y not going to BJ. But they go to Scotland on holiday today.

Shopping routinely at Lidl then Morrisons and enjoyed both. I had a Magwitch spasm in Lidl but it soon passed. I had put two jacket potatoes in the oven, on the timer set for 1pm. Don't jacket potatoes smell good when they are baking in a hot oven? I just prepared a little salad garnish to accompany them. I little butter pushed in when I split them and then some grated cheddar cheese. Fit for a King etc.,. Anyway, anything to do with potatoes and Y is there. For pudding we had some sorbet which was most pleasant. I do like a sweet pudding these days - I used to be cheese & biscuits orientated, but no more. Perhaps it's the dreaded second childhood......

Just over Derek & Betty's fence is a Buddleia which is attracting bees and butterflies. I got some steps because the fence is high, but the only butterflies seemed to be tortoiseshells and a cabbage white. On our Echinaciea I saw this comma butterfly who looked as if he had come off second best in some dispute. He/she had lost almost half a wing. Could still fly though - he must have felt like Biggles limping home on a wing and a prayer.

Tomorrow we are going on a day-trip, by coach, to The Parsonage at Haworth (home of the Brontés) and we are both looking forward to it very much. Not a National Trust Trip for a change. The coach leaves Eastwood around 8.30am and we can park at the side of The Sun Inn for the day.

I don't expect we will be back till late evening so tomorow will have to be a blog-free day I'm afraid. I've downloaded a couple of hours of podcasts onto my MP3 player - so, if the weather is awful, and the coach-trip tedious, I have something to listen to.

Last night I kept looking out of my bedroom window but didn't see a single perseid. Let alone a shower. And not a word on the radio/telly/press today ! As I say "they've lost interest".

My responses to your previous comments

Bob .... Your tomatoes certainly do seem to be rather shy ! And I know you have told me that Red Alert is usually earlier than Gardeners Delight. Ah well ! Nature cannot be forced into anything. They will be even more delicious when they do ripen.

As you say your Climber/Rambler will grow again with renewed zest for life.

Jill ..... Of course the sheep knitted cosy has got to be Sheila ! Is the Australian Merino tightly curled, like old lady's hairdos or is it smoother than that ?

Sorry you are still busless and breadless. Let them eat cake .... etc.. We always think that if you have got milk and potatoes you can survive.

..............................

Quotation time .....

"It is not clear that intelligence has any long-term survival value."

Stephen Hawking

Hasn't he done well to be awarded the US Medal of Freedom by Barack Obama ? The Medal is the US's highest civilian award.

"Sleep tight - and tomorrow night too - might catch you on Saturday"



.

David & family visit - 69F and 9mph NW wind

.
I thought you might like to see an uptodate picture of our outdoor tomatoes. They are against the south-facing side wall of the garage. I think this absorbs heat during the day and realeases it steadily during the night. Whatever, they are doing well and taste delicious.

David and Helen and Sky and Brooke visited us this morning (instead of tomorrow when they are doing something with John). We had a great time. David helped me a lot with my new gadget, and I think now it is just a matter of practice and getting used to it. He showed me how to surf the internet, and also how to access my blog, and my gmail inbox.

Helen was pleased to see how well our tomatoes are doing (she grew the plants for me) and apparently the variety, Gardeners Delight, is Brooke's favourite. At home she had 6 yesterday ! The variety is renowned for producing big trusses, quite early, with excellently flavoured fruit.

Both Y and I read both school reports and both girls are doing very well indeed !

Talking of school matters I am delighted to able to report that Debra's appeal was successful and both Ruby and Elli will now go the the same school. Great result because going to a new town, and a new school it is nice to have your sister there too. So Debra, that completely unstaged bursting into tears didn't do any harm at all !

As I have previously discussed it I thought you might like to see a picture of our 'magic' Matalan teapot.

You probably don't need me to talk you through the 'collage' but I will. The top picture shows the cosy and the teapot side by side. The bottom picture shows the teapot with the cosy in situ.

I'm not exagerating if I tell you that tea an hour old is perfectly acceptable AND HOT ! Obviously it is better if you top the pot up having once poured a couple of mugs.

I have discovered a site for a good read. It is called Arts and Letters Daily and the front page is a series of introductory paragraphs to some serious reading. Ok - it caters for the 'egghead' and 'poetry lover'. Anybody who has sometimes enjoyed Granta will be at home here.

My responses to your previous comments

Bob .... Warfarin is indeed an ugly beast but without it my blood would revert to a normal persons 'thickness' and I would have either a stroke or a heart attack.

Then, if it gets too thin, I suffer internal bleeding. The latter of course is why they use it to kill rats.

Hence their scrupulous control of my dosage; sometimes changing it by as little as a ½ tablet a week. Followed of course by the frequent blood-tests until the level becomes stable again.

I sympathise with your wild fluctuations in BP ! I suppose I've got to have something that is OK - and my BP is it. Y is the BP sufferer.

Thanks for updating the Sports Desk. This please click is a link to a report of the Stags v Luton match to which you refer

The 'Ollerton of Yesteryear' also sounds good. These local history items are so important. The link is to their web-site.

Jill ..... How interesting that African Violets don't necessarily run true to colour, in leaf cuttings ! Seeds of some plants are notorious for producing siblings of a different type altogther. But I had always assumed that a cutting from a parent plant would come true to type i.e. dahlias, and chrysanths etc.of specific named varieties. There is another hour or two's research during a sleepless night !

As you know I don't watch that much television. But both of us are completely taken with the quality of Jimmy McGovern's writing. I agree that it can be downright depressing but, in a way, I am pleased he doesn't opt for a populist and artificially cheerful ending. Makes it more believable I think.

I can only sympathise with you being letterless and busless. An enforced walk of a mile is something you certainly didn't need. Wouldn't a taxi have been the answer? ..... Have a doormouse day, until the aches and pains recede.

...................................

Quotation time .....

"History, real solemn history, I cannot be interested in.... I read it a little as a duty; but it tells me nothing that does not either vex or weary me. The quarrels of popes and kings, with wars and pestilences in every page; the men all so good for nothing, and hardly any women at all - it is very tiresome."

Jane Austen - bless her !

.

Pleasant day - 73F (hottest) - Y down Nottingham

.
My day started with a blood-test at 9.05am. p.s. the Clinic has just rung and my warfarin level is all over the place again. Adjustments to dosage and further tests in quick succession unfortunately.

And starting with David and family coming over on Thursday, we have a busy weekend ahead.

Nevertheless - A lovely day. According to the Weather Centre we have a 10mph NW wind. But we haven't; it is quite still. And the weather centre is at Watnall a mere few miles away.

I took Y down to Nottingham because she was meeting Joan and they went to The Castle for The Paul Sandby Exhibition. They both enthused about it. As I needed to go to Carphone Warehouse (lets hope for the final time) with a few remaining questions about my LG Renoir KC910 which incidentally is a mobile phone like a Blackberry enabling me to surf the internet on it and send e-mails.

When I got home Karen was still here and, as the weather was so nice, she decided that, after cleaning she would mow the lawns. She did, and they look great - see Picture 1. I wish I had a quarter of her energy.

Joan sent me some more scented leaf Geraniums cuttings to try to root. I've put them in sherry glasses in the tray on the kitchen window sill where our African Violets live.

They obviously like it there because they are doing so well at the moment. Although African Violets only need v.sparse watering they seem to enjoy the moist atmosphere close to the taps and the sink. The flowers you see are a third flowering. Occasionally, with a scalpel, I prune the plants of leaves when they become overcrowded. I know it is possible to produce new plants from leaf-cuttings and I feel I want to have a go.

My responses to your previous comments

Jill... These modern orchids really are a joy. Their flowering period is so lengthy. I put the stem (that I accidentally snapped off) in a small glass of water. Only today did it wilt and have to be binned.

Anenome japonica seems to have a will of its own when it comes to flower colour. You are right that they almost seem capable of changing pink/white/back again. Tracy has a pink and doesn't seem able to get a white to prosper. Ours are mostly white, although this year we have a pink near the rear garden trellis.

With regard to a collective name for a 'flock' of Painted Lady butterflies. Could I suggest a 'Bootsmakeupcounter' of ..... ?

Y has enjoyed the Irish Police ..programme. I was at a conference some years ago in Dublin with The Garda and their General Secretary took a real shine to Y.

Bob.... See above re Japanese Anenome. Sandra could be right. But from our experience I would say that the 'reversion' was from pink to white rather than vice versa.

'The Street' was good again. He seems to be deal with disturbing subjects in a sensitive way.

...................................

Quotation time .................

"To die for an idea is unquestionably noble. But how much nobler it would be if men died for ideas that were true !"

H. L. Mencken

"Sleep tight - Catch you tomorrow"



.

At home day - best weather 6am-7am - then rainy

.
Today we enjoyed a quiet 'at home' day and managed lots of reading, crossword puzzle, computer jobs etc. And I must mention some Radio. A programme called Under The Red Duster on Radio 4. It's a history of the Merchant Navy presented by John Prescott - and he is doing it very well indeed.

The weather first thing was lovely - sunny and still, but by 7am it had started to deteriorate to windy, rainy and cold which has mostly persisted. Y walked round to the newsagents to pay the papers and buy some milk but apart from that we have simply stayed in.

For lunch I cooked some Venetian Sausages (from our Dobbies at Chesterfield trip) and initially I was worried because whilst under the grill they exuded this bright orange gunge. Lots of it. When fully cooked however we were most pleased with them. A good flavour; not over spiced and a nice texture. I served them with green beans, mashed potatoes, courgettes and a mushroom. Into the mashed potato I folded some chopped chives (Y managed two jobs together - we had chives growing in between two patio slabs so she pulled them out and I chopped them). For pudding Y did my favourite red fruit compote, with greek yoghurt.

Picture 1 is something I've been wanting to try for a day or two. A snap of this Orchid with my 50mm lens at f1.8, to achieve the very restricted depth-of-field. Like it or loathe it - thats the effect I was trying for.

Picture 2 is odd in a different way. David brought Y this Kalanchoe plant on Mothering Sunday and it had flower spikes covered in separate flowers. Although the flowers died off the plant didn't, so I pruned it and tended it.

The plant has rewarded me with a second flowering. But this time the flowers are single blooms !

Isn't nature strange ? So unpredictable.

I've just spoken to Helen about the Crabbing Championships and none of our people won anything but everybody had a great time. Helen said the atmosphere was terrific. 1,200 people registered and took part. And I'm sure the crabs found it tolerable because they were all thrown back, replete with food and none the worse for their experience.

Sky still isn't 100% but better, although she still has a nasty nocturnal cough. All being well they are coming over to see us on Thursday. That will be super. Hear all the news, and see the pictures.

I still haven't got my LG Renoir KC910 actually working yet. But I have found a web-site and a forum ! So, it is only a matter of time.

My responses to your previous comments

Jill .... Glad you enjoyed the asters; they get better each day. There are only a few plants but they look so cheery I wish we'd got a bed full. When they are approaching their prime I'll blog another snap.

How clever of you (and Martin) to recognise what butterfly will be forthcoming from which caterpillar.

Shame the stocks have to be sacrificed though. I love stocks and think the scent so typically English.

Long live Amazon. Such a slick organisation. The Govt ought to headhunt some of their IT people and pay them what it takes to have a go at the NHS.

Bob .... Sorry about confusing my right hand with my left hand again. It wasn't a deliberate 'tester' honest.

I'll always be happy to publish Sports Desk items about The Stags. It's the least I can do to support our local team.

As this caterpillar thread has aroused interest - if you would like to research the Cinnabar moth I would be delighted to publish a picture. Cinnabar sounds really exotic dunnit?

........................................

Quotation time ......

"Teaching a child not to step on a caterpillar is as valuable to the child as it is to the caterpillar"

Bradley Millar

"A bit early - but sleep tight - catch you tomorrow"




.

Quiet day - Y to Nottingham for lunch - 71F - No Wind

.
Sorry to open with yet another artichoke picture but there were lots of hoverflies and I wanted to capture one hovering.

These all seem to be settled and feeding.

The weather has been first class and Y enjoyed her trip to Nottingham to meet Sylvia for lunch. It worked out well and, although Y had booked a particular favourite table, there proved to have been no real need. When they arrived the place was empty. Their meals were good and Sylvia was in good form. She also thinks the Market Square is great, with The Beach, so I think the 'for' votes outnumber the 'against' votes. At least in our small circle.

I've done a few small jobs but mainly 'messed about', did the Crossword, listened to some radio, read the Telegraph and caught up with magazines.


In the garden the Asters are just coming out. We both like them. The colours and double-daisy type flowers are so cheerful.

My responses to your previous comments

jbw .... Re the knives.....As you say - "Well used" not sure about the vicious.

Bob .... Of course you must point out that the ham knife is fourth from the right.

I'm surprised that you are still buying tomatoes - even from Lidl.

Jill ..... I think I'm going to stop messing about with artichoke pictures and admit defeat over the 'blue'.

I'm quite keen on my kitchen knives and can usually find just the right one for whatever job. You are right about the handle of the big carving knife - I guess it is deer horn or very similar.

Morrisons do vary from store to store. Our nearest, in Eastwood is quite good but our favourite is a few miles away in Bulwell - their stuff just seems to have the edge and, being a bigger shop, there is more choice.

.........................................

No quotation tonight.

"Sleep tight - catch you tomorrow"


.

Everything occured in order, and to time - 72F - Little wind

.
I dashed out early to do the shopping, leaving Y to see to the bed-man (if he arrived) and I was back home around 9.30am. He arrived around 11.30am and in spite of my yesterday's grumpiness he proved most affable, polite and helpful. My bed is now 4½ inches higher and much easier to get up from. I no longer need to hook a walking stick round the loo door-handle to pull myself up.

Picture 1 is a collage of the artichokes - the first on my D80, under-exposed by 3 stops and then brightened and the second on Reg's D300 as a Raw file. There is, in reality, a hint of magenta in the blue. (Brian S dislikes magenta almost as much as I dislike blurred water). Reg's version of the artichoke is certainly the more realistic. As we discussed at WoW on Wednesday Adobe's 'shadows/highlights control' produces a most unrealistic looking snap.

Picture 2 is my collection of old carbon-steel knives, all of which when sharpened in the traditional manner with a 'steel', take a very sharp edge.

Perhaps the sharpest of all is the white-handled ham knife third from the right. I can produce a slice about playing card thickness.

As a general purpose kitchen knife though, my vote goes to third in from the left. You can see that, over the years, the act of sharpening has produced this crescent shape from what no doubt started life as a straight-edge. William Morris said you should only have things in your house which are both beautiful as well as useful.

I put my knives in that category because I use them all.

My new mobile phone is still beating me though. I am supposed to dial 333 and then key in my new mobile number. When I get to stage 2, the phone 'ends' the call. Back to Carphone Warehouse I'm afraid. Never mind - it will get done - eventually !

The weather seems likely to improve. A pleasant evening now - warm and no wind. Hope it is like it for Peter & Joan in Northumberland. Debra rang to tell us about her appeal yesterday to get Ruby into the same Broadstairs School as Elli. Both are good schools but it would be best for them to be together when you consider their age and that it will be strange environment and new people. The interview seemed to go well Debra said, but it will be a relief if the outcome is satisfactory.

I'm glad you all enjoyed yesterday's Nottingham snaps. There was a great atmosphere in The Beach and if I've managed to get that across I'm more than happy.

My responses to your previous comments

Yvonne .... Thanks for mentioning the Aldi teapot with its 'built-in' cosy. The 'cosy' is a solid plastic hat, lined with thermal insulating material. The pot is amazingly efficient and an hour-old mug of tea is more than acceptable. Still hot and, as if by magic, not stewed. We have occasionally seen them in Lakeland at about 3 times the price.

Congratulations on your 'googling' away at the Nottingham to Broadstairs journey. Six months ago you would have been grumpy had it even been suggested !

Enjoy Petit Paris tomorrow and I hope you have a good chin-wag with Sylvia. It will be interesting to know what she has made of the Desperate Romantics - if she's watched it at all that is. Also, remember to ask if she watched the Open University 40th Birthday programme ? She was after all, an A student.

Bob .... Matalan check-outs. The queue of 20 would probably be serving perhaps 6 check-outs. That's the way they do it and we never have to wait long. Can't think what it is about the interior which puts you in a tizz. It's never claustrophobic or noisy, and the aisles are wide.

Jill .... You are right in thinking The Beach is free. One has to pay to go on the rides though.

The painting of the old man with the magnifying glass is older than me. I grew up with it and still love it.

Glad your first experience with Morrisons was at least tolerable.

.................................

Quotation time .....

"No man is exempt from saying silly things; the mischief is to say them deliberately."

Michel de Montaigne

"Sleep tight - Catch you tomorrow - all being well"


.

Monday trip out - lunch - garden jobs - 68F - Light wind

.
We got going quite early this morning because we'd both had a better night's sleep and the weather looked promising.

Peter G had said that Dobbies Garden Centre near Chesterfield was worth a look. And so it proved. Well stocked and I found my Goldfinches a bag of their beloved thistle seed. They have been turning their beaks up at 'canary seed with thistle seed in it' which I bought in Pauls for a £1 per bag.

The whole place has a nice 'feel' to it but Oh Boy ! the prices. Picture 2 is included to give you some idea. WoWee, what a bargain, two potted fuschias for £20 eh ? How about that ?

The food hall was v.good and well stocked with high quality and interesting things. A bit reminiscent of Chatsworth. I bought some links of 'interesting' sausages. Thai sausages, some from Toulouse, and some Venetian links of a rich orange colour, and by the sniff, liberal on the garlic and tomato. A report back can be expected.

Anyway we had a pleasant lunch there. The restaurant is light and airy and although busy we found a corner table with a bench back OK. Y had a cooked lunch, centre-ing round chicken-curry while I settled for a Panini. I only ate half and wrapped the remainder in a paper napkin to bring home for my tea. Just eating it now in fact.

Picture 1 demonstrates the Artichoke plant almost in full swing. Barry Marlow, at the club, prizes his as a delicacy but we prefer to enjoy the flowers and eventually the dried out seed heads. I'm far from satisfied with the 'blue' though and am thinking of asking Reg to pop over with his new camera to see how it deals with the problem. I can change the hue in Photoshop, but none of the options I'm presented with on the slider accurately captures it. Neither my D80 nor the little Fuji A100 are better than the other. By the way - the A100 could distort barrels for England !

Y suffered some aches & pains again and needed a 'lie-down' when we got home. I certainly wasn't going to argue. When adequately rested I dealt with our food purchases, topped up the bird-feeders and fed and watered the Courgette plant and the Tomatoes. There will be at least one tomato ready for the table tomorrow and a couple of courgettes.

In idle moments we completed the Telegraph Crossword. A good team effort. A couple of clues were anagrams which Y had solved without spotting that they were anagrams. Is that a gift ? I always used to consider Monday's an easy one anyway - I think they didn't like to stretch you too much after a weekend off.

My responses to your previous comments

Pete B ..... Thanks for your good wishes and I am pleased to be so much better. Y is good too but increasingly subject to aches & pains. In her head she fells 52 but her body keeps telling her she will be 73 next. She does wonders though.

I sincerely hope that things work out so that you can retire at a reasonable age. The Good Lord didn't design us to be working in our 70s.

I really like the story about your daughters and the River Dart and it would have been lovely to be able to open the picture. Unfortunately the link in the comment didn't work and, whatever cunning wrinkles I employed I couldn't open it anyway/anywhere. Madeline discovered some days ago that you can't post links in comments-boxes and resorted to e-mailing me a Norton Hotfix I needed. I think you will have to do the same with the picture.

But please do it. Because I think other readers would like to see it too.

Bob .... The newspaper wasn't a surrogate table cloth. It was there to stand the steamer top on and I hadn't got round to moving it.

As you know - I also am a prominent member of Hoarders Anonymous. I found some bicycle clips the other day - well you never know do you .......

Pleased about your credit card. It is a fact that 99% of people are honest and will hand in anything they find.

Jill ..... Y isn't keen on gravy, and I'm trying to eat without it mainly because of its fattening effects. However, and you never know do you - if ever I have the pleasure of cooking a meal for you I shall prepare the requisite gravy pond ! And it will be good gravy too - you will need a round of bread & butter to mop it up with.

We hope that Ro's checks prove satisfactory. And it is so good when sons and things mastermind transport arangements isn't it ?

I think Y has given up on the notion of converting me into a tidy person. I do try - honest.

I'm loving all the coverage of Tennyson's Bicentenary, particularly on the radio. What a tortured soul he was. The classic serial reading of Maud was excellent, all 3 times I've listened to it. And I'm now giving his Ulysses the same treatment. The poet Sean O'Brien is reading it very well indeed. The Poetry Archive, which the link takes you to, is well worth having on your computer - mostly thanks to Andrew Motion - it is a well stocked resource. Even, by the way, an early wax cylinder recording of Tennyson himself reading The Charge of The Light Brigade.

...................................

Quotation slot .................

"Do you realize if it weren't for Edison we'd be watching TV by candlelight?"

Al Boliska

"Sleep tight - catch you tomorrow"

On the mend - 60F - heavy rain - awful

.
Firstly - I am much better today. I slept, a bit, more 0r less sitting up in bed with my hot pad in the small of my back. Food wise, I had food but have returned to Lactofree stuff and very little produce from the cow. This seems to have dealt with my upset stomach.

I seem to have what, when we were children, used to be called 'bilious bouts'. My recovery is such that I managed almost an hour in the garden first thing this morning, de-twitching a square metre or so just outside the big front window. I planted in the space a beautiful pink Phlox we got in Lidl. A fine well rooted plant and a delightful aroma. I haven't previously noted Phlox for scent.

My thanks to Y for occupying the RG editor's chair because I just didn't feel well enough. She has been very very busy clearing out the kitchen - cupboards, shelves, drawers and things. Vegetable storage, and she even found time to fit a new shower curtain. Not an easy job because she isn't very tall.

Picture 1 shows the result of my efforts to straighten an Orchid stem. I should have known better. Anyway, a good lesson learnt and I shan't try it again.

Picture 2 will be of interest to WoW-ers, particularly those who don't receive the Country Images, North Edition, August issue.

The article is about The Cliff Inn at Crich, a regular chip-cob place when we are in the area.

Whilst abed, apart from lots of kip, I've caught up on lots of radio. What a boon bbc iPlayer is. Together with their website I feel I get my licence fee's worth from those alone, not to mention the occasional hour of telly.


My responses to your previous comments

Bob .... Re ripening tomatoes. An old gardener's ruse used to be to hang a ripe tomato among the unripe trusses. Apparently it gives off some chemical which encourages ripening.

Sorry to hear about your Hospital appointment. The system is hopeless anyway and to be given a choice of time is, I agree, just window dressing. Anyway, all I can do is hope for the best for you.

Of course it isn't compulsory to open links. But, when the answer to your comment is contained in the link, it seems a bit discourteous not to have read it and then ask the question anyway. Perhaps the answer would be, if you don't want to read the links, to leave such paragraphs uncommented on .

Jill .... I certainly agree with your points about 'full disclosures'. I suppose we should count ourselves lucky that we have, more or less, a free press. But they run a story and then lose interest in it and we hear no more - certainly not a conclusion,

The M & S tomato plant does sound like an attractive bargain. But if neither of you like that type of tomato it would have been daft to buy it.

I love all sorts of jelly, but your black-currant with black pitted cherries sounds great. Our source of Mandarin Oranges is Lidl, of course, and I have spotted in their Greek section, sour black cherries. Not yet tried them but intend to.

Although it is now only 5.40pm, I aim to go back to bed - I don't want to 'push my luck'.

.......................................

Quotation slot .....

"Most conversations are simply monologues delivered in the presence of witnesses."

Margaret Millar

"Sleep tight - catch you tomorrow - God willing"




.

Better Day - Some rain some Sun - 61F

.
I think we have a couple of tomatoes 'on the turn'. Please scrutinise carefully the bottom truss of the second plant from the left. It is only the 30th July and I didn't expect them to be ripening till mid August in their outside location - even if it is a sunny spot.

I saw the Doctor this morning and she didn't seem terribly worried about my rate of weight loss. My 'kidney function' is too low on a scale where I can't even remember the acronym let alone what the letters stand for. Normal is 80, they worry if it falls below 60 and they really worry if it gets down to 30. Mine is 49, up from 45 last week, but I am to have it tested again. My 'normal' aches and pains continue, as does my sickness. But she is a sensible lady and is willing to leave things a fortnight before recommending hospital checks. I hate hospitals.

After Doctors we shopped. Lidl and Morrisons and Y didn't have a Lidl back-twinge. The I cooked a chilli for lunch which was a success. For pudding we had a Y speciality Orange jelly and our favourite Greek Yoghurt.

Picture 2 is the view out of my office window, a few minutes ago. We feel honoured by a sunny evening.

I also managed to top up the bird feeders. How awful if the goldfinches went off in a huff ?

Rick Stein appealled to me for this evening, but it's an hour and I decided to watch it another day on iPlayer. Strange to have Y at home today but Burton Joyce people are on holiday. The meet-up between David's lot and Steve's worked, We know because both texted a picture of the children. I've been trying to work out how to download them onto the computer, but I haven't managed it yet. I used to be able to transfer the snaps but I've now forgotten how.

My replies to your comments

Jill .... We don't seem to have had a good drying day for ages. If the clothes dried once the onset of torrential rain has been so sudden they easily got soaked again.

I'm really sorry your Saga holiday has been cancelled. And we sympathise with Ro. He enjoys his Country & Western so. We sympathise with you too, but you know what I mean !

Bob .... Yes. I do realise the record-shot aspect of Paul Sandby's watercolours. Like Turner's water-colour notebooks. And the WoW group people are also well up to appreciating them.

I don't really need to 'confirm' that Wiener Schnitzel is veal in crumb. Yesterday, the link to the Wiener Schnitzel wikipedia page was to the same page and described it perfectly. I guess you omitted to open the link. It isn't a big read and the words about 'veal coated in breadcrumb' are on the third line down.

Perhaps it's just not worth doing links.

..................................

Quotation slot ..............

"By far the most dangerous foe we have to fight is apathy - indifference from whatever cause, not from a lack of knowledge, but from carelessness, from absorption in other pursuits, from a contempt bred of self-satisfaction"

William Osler

.

Routine Thursday - Y at BJ - Me messing-about - 67F and 5mph W Wind

.

Having done a collage of flowers out in the front garden yesterday it seemed to naturally follow that I turn my attention to the rear garden today. And there they are. I suppose we could have a 'name that flower' competition, but then again .......

I took Y to the 9.38am tram and then went to the doctor's for 10.10am - she had had a cancellation and saw me at 10am. Dr Chamberlain, another young lady doctor who I hadn't seen before. I was quite happy with her and she put my mind at rest about certain things. She took yet another blood test and I am to see her a week today for the result.

After the doctor's I went shopping to Lidl and Morrisons - it takes the pressure off tomorrow. I know we are going to Debra's and don't want to leave a fridge full of commodities we shan't use.

Picture 2 is a photoshop drawing of The Pantiles.

For those of us who can't draw these sort of programmes create for oneself the illusion that one can - if you see what I mean.

I shall probably print it as a 10 x 8 print, just to see what it looks like.

The weather is really weird isn't it ? Here today there's been sunny spells, but all the time that niggly wind - and now it is raining again, quite heavily. So much for the bit of gardening I had promised myself this evening. And I don't know if there is anything we can watch together on the telly.

My responses to your comments

Madeline ..... Thank you very much indeed for your input. The Norton Safeweb symbols are simply Norton's equivalent to McAfee's siteadvisor symbols. Green tick for 'site clear' etc ...... Allegedly updated more often than McAfee though.

I haven't yet got round to working through your suggested 'workaround' but it all seems to make sense and I'll have a go either this evening, or in the dead of the night. By the way, I don't think one can do 'links' in the comments box.

During today there has been a 'Firefox update' to build 3.0.12 so. if that goes onto the laptop too (I'm on the PC at the moment) it may have solved the problem anyway.

I shall report back.

Thanks for the kind comments about the blog !

Bob ...... I thought Epoisses would appeal to you. It really is worth making a special trip to Sainsburys - although I don't know where your nearest is. Perhaps on one of your Newark or Retford sorties !

No problem with flies - I feel the aroma would knock-em out rather than attract them.

The bed-height isn't really a Karen type problem. There are these special cuplike devices braced across for safety. I already have some on an easy chair, and they work well.

...................................

Quotation slot ......

"There is nothing more dreadful than imagination without taste"

Johan Wolfgang von Goethe

"Sleep tight everybody - I'll try and catch you tomorrow - prior to a break over the weekend"



.

Busy Wednesday - OT - PC - Garden - 61F - Southerly Wind

.
We bought this cheese on our Monday visit to Sainsburys. All I can say is WoW ! and nothing to do with walking. Unless the delightful smell is too much for ladies of a sensitive disposition and causes them to walk briskly away from the box.

The cheese is Epoisses an apellation controlé etc., and will appeal to lovers of strong attractive cheeses. On the box it says it is runny and it is. First day I kept it at room temperature and I could have poured it on my breakfast toast. Second night I kept it in the fridge which maintained the cheese in a more manageable state i.e. spreadable. The flavour did not seem to have been impaired. The best 'new' cheese I've sampled for many years.

About 25 years ago I was at a conference in Bruges, in a good hotel, and after dinner I had an excellent cheese of a similar stamp. Y was with me, and the following morning bless her ! she went into town and bought me a box to bring home. Subsequently we had no difficulty locating our luggage on the carousel !

Our day started with a visit from the Occupation Therapist, Nicola, who is going to sort out my problems with rising from bed. She agrees that 'hooking my stick round the toilet door-handle and pulling myself upright' is not the best strategy. I am to have some things fitted under the bed legs to raise it 4½ inches exactly. She measured me, and the bed precisely.

She also wants me to have a new frame to fit round the loo because she didn't like the rusty state of the existing one. Nicola was the sort of person who inspires confidence - and attractive with it !

Then the MegaTech computer lad arrived to do the annual health check, to which I am entitled under my warranty. No problems with my PC and he also explained my Norton 'safeweb symbol' problem on the laptop. Simple really - Norton 360 and Firefox 3.5.1 are not compatible.

So - either uninstall Firefox latest version in favour of an earlier build - or live without the 'safeweb symbols'. I favour the latter. However, if Madeline, or Ray, or some other WebUser forum person knows of a workaround and is reading this - please e-mail me, or add a 'comment'.

This afternoon I managed a few minutes in the front garden. I hadn't got my watch - so I was amazed when I came back in the house and Y told me I had been 'at it' from 5pm to 6.40pm. I only tidied the 'ringaround' under the tree and then hoed it smart.

Picture 2 is a collage of some of flowers in the front garden which I took when I had finished. Just a record-shot to show what's out - nothing purports to be arty.

I spoke to Helen on the phone to find out which Caravan Site they are actually booked in it from this weekend on. It is The Wareham Forest Touring Camp and from the website it looks superb. Two swimming pools no less ! Here's hoping they are lucky weatherwise.

Tomorrow I'm due to see the Doctor at 10.10am prior to which I shall have dropped Y at Phoenix Park for the 9.38am Tram, the start of her Burton Joyce day. Then there are things I need from Aldi and Lidl, after which my day is free.

My responses to your comments

Bob .... I agree that 'transvestite' doesn't matter either way - ha ha! But the voice can be a distraction.

I agree about The Snooty Fox food. Whenever I've been with you the standard has always pleased me and I can remember some very good meals. I think I once had 'liver and onions' and jolly good it was too. All that fuss about the loos - we all remember outside ones where the urinal was just a wall with a gulley at the bottom of it.

Congrats on your level of knowledge about Macbeth. If I had to select a Shakespeare 'specialist subject' it would be The Sonnets. Although I did neither for GSE.

Hope Jill's trip went well and, when she next comments, she will perhaps give us an update on Barbara.

Yvonne ..... I agree with your 'romp' assessment of the Desperate Romantics. The Telegraph didn't like it at all did they ? Mind you, as we both know, for us that can be a plus point.

If you aren't looking for historical accuracy I thought the programme was good. The hour passed quickly and that is as good a measure as anything.

I particularly liked their use of the David Bowie 'Heroes' track as a background for their joyous marches down the street.

I agree with you about Ro's great nephew being a handsome little chap. He certainly loved the yellow duck.

Interesting info about the 'whitening of the skin' chap and Michael Jackson. Google tells me the condition is called hypopigmentation and the site I have linked you to explains.

.....................................................

I've decided to end tonight with a photograph sent me by JBW




Perhaps we need something similar for Britain - It isn't racist, in fact the precise opposite
.

Typical Tuesday - 61F - 10mph SSE wind - Jobs

.
I'm not obsessed with the front garden but, a comment alleged that my photography 'blew it up'.

Had I wished to make it look bigger I would have photographed it thus. Had I wished to 'blow it up' I would have used a well known horticultural explosive like Nitro-glycerine.

Y managed yesterday, as she notes in her comment, in the sun, to dead-head the roses and other things and you can certainly see an immediate improvement. From tatty to dapper at once. I think she has the 'twinges' to show for it though. Y now understands my Magwitch analogy - the pain does hit you that suddenly.

Our day has been fairly typical for Tuesday, which is a Karen day. My first appointment was with my blood-lady Sheila and she was delighted with the holiday postcards I took in. Her surgery doesn't have an outside window and she brightens it by encouraging her patients to send or take postcards. It is also nice for people, whilst sitting there wincing, to look how widely travelled are one's fellow patients.

Then we had several calls in Eastwood, Y's 'hair', The Library, and the Bank. We called in at Paul's for some large rubber bands but to no avail. However, later in the day, Y obtained some just-right ones from W.H.Smith's. I need broad ones to hold my collapsible sticks together - thin ones don't last five minutes. After that I took Y over to Sherwood for her Nails service.

Picture 2 features 'Dragon fruit' which we hadn't previously sampled. I can't recommend it. Not a trace of redeeming sweetness - at best bland and tasteless, for all it's exciting looks.

I still haven't fixed my Norton problem. Another go tomorrow.

This evening we aim to watch a drama/documentary 'Desperate Romantics' based on The PreRaphaelite Brotherhood. How true to history it will be ? and how much just an excuse for another costume drama is anyone's guess. The trouble is that, unlike Cranford for instance, there wasn't a well-written novel to hang it on. The programme well need plenty of 'water on its wheel' to pass muster because I know a fair bit about the PRB and Y knows even more.

My responses to your comments

Yvonne .... Well done with University Challenge ! My only recollection, from passing through the room, was the lady team captain with the male voice. Not a tenor either, more a baritone. Not that these things matter but they do draw attention rather.....

You are right about the moon-landing conspiracy theory ! Load of ....... ! Mike H has sent me this recently published photo that shows the lower half of the lunar module in situ. The bit which was left behind when Armstrong and Aldrin blasted back up off the surface.

Jill .......... You certainly were busy and anyway, you don't have to comment. It isn't like handing in homework. It is just that we all enjoy your comments so much.

In the garden I only manage to do the fiddly bits. Y does the real graft. But she does enjoy 'cutting-back' and moving things about. With these twinges though I try to persuade her to only do tiny little stints - if it gets too much for us we can always have Alex for a day or two !

The garage-door frame badly needs painting but, I mentioned it to Karen yesterday and she said "I'll do that for you - I love painting & decorating" .... So there you go.

Hope you have a good time in Sussex - and I hope that soon your hot water becomes more reliable.

Re Carrie's conspiracy theories and The Moon. Please see my note above to Y. I know it isn't conclusive evidence but ......

Bob ..... Glad The Snooty Fox has re-opened. I always enjoyed our visits to it but as you will see ( if you open the link that is) the 'reviewers' had a wide range of opinions.

"Through a glass darkly" is indeed 1 Corinthians 13. Perhaps you are getting confused with "The dark lady" of Shakespeare's sonnets ?

Thanks for the advice to address the Russian Soldier in the terms ‘привет, привет, привет. Что мы получили здесь тогда?’. That is what I was going to say to him anyway.

....................................

Quotation time ......

"Cabbage: A familiar kitchen-garden vegetable about as large and as wise as a man's head."

Ambrose Bierce

"Sleep tight - Catch you tomorrow"

'

Joan's for Coffee - Sainsbury's - 65F - Cold Wind

.
We got going early - 7am ish - when Jason (Y's Lib Dem person) arrived to erect a sign in the front garden. I was just opening the curtains in the big room and felt I ought to speak. He seems a very nice and competent young person.

It made sense to continue with the early theme and we called in at Joan's for Coffee prior to Arnold Sainsburys. We needed Vegemite and know we can get it there. Then home for Scampi and Chips with Mushy Peas, followed by a Y-made Fruit Salad with Greek Yogurt. Delicious meal.

This afternoon Karen arrived to mow because rain is forecast again tomorrow, and immediately the garden looked so much better. She does a tidy job, bless her!

I've spent hours tussling with a computer problem. On the Dell laptop I have Norton 360 Security programme and a feature is 'safeweb' symbols when you google for something. Like MacAfee Siteadvisor it checks out sites, for malware before you open them. Well, mine has gone wrong. I shall fix it however, it just needs the correct buttons to be clicked.

Tomorrow we have 'Blood test', Y's hair, and then over to Sherwood for Y's Nails service. But she wants me just to drop her there after which she intends to bus it into town. I shall drive home and mess-about trying to fix mi' Norton. Additionally there are a couple of garden jobs I would like to pull in.

This evening we aim to watch the Jimmy McGovern play "The Street" at 9pm on BBC 1. We watched the first episode of this series while we were away in Kent and I considered it v.good. Well written, directed, and acted.

My responses to your valued comments

Bob ..... All on your own this evening ! Blog-wise, I mean. I have no idea of your domestic arrangements.

You are never really incoherent. Obscure maybe but not incoherent.

Interesting about 'atom bombs' . We used to have to do 'Civil Defence Training'. Once I asked a senior bod, "As a Police Inspector, what should my attitude be to the Russian Soldier with the rifle when I emerge from my bomb-proof bunker?"

It seemed there was no clear-cut policy on this !

You make a fair point about Rye Bread going stale. But I don't have a need of Rye bread-crumbs very often.

Y says, re Arlene Phillips, that, as a Cabinet Minister she would expect Harriet Harman to have more onerous duties to attend to.

Maybe Jill will be along later --- if not, that's it I guess.

..........................

Quotation slot .....

"Barring that natural expression of villainy which we all have, the man looked honest enough"

Mark Twain

Sleep tight - Catch you tomorrow - God willing




.

Simply Sunday - 55F - still now but blustery - watched The Open

.

We have reached the time of dramatic sunsets over the garage. Surprisingly you can see quite a lot of clear sky because most of the day seems to have been heavy squally rain. I had a chat with Helen on the phone this morning - David had taken Sky to the Sailing Club to check out competitive events for her. Brooke had opted for staying at home with Mum to do quietly creative things with the Doll's House. My granddaughters personalities are quite different - but no problem with that, in fact its probably best that way.

I talked to David this evening and they go on holiday this coming weekend to a Wareham Caravan Site and, while they are down south, they are hoping to meet up with Steve and Lisa and group. Can't do a link to the actual site because I'm not sure which one it is. Tracy is taking us to London to see Debra and family because the people they are staying with are to be away and it makes an overnight stay possible for us. More detail later.

The Orchid on the left gives me great pleasure to publish because this a re-flowering from a last year's plant. I know Reg and Maureen have achieved this previously but I haven't.

I followed orchid-culture advice and cut the flowering stems back and put the plant in a cold spot which stimulates the production of new flower spikes. And it has worked. There are two more healthy plants on my toilet window-sill which look equally promising.

We watched The Open together and enjoyed it immensely. The light was favourable for good pictures and our new TV does a tidy job. Apart from the golf itself the scenery and the presentation were delightful. Stewart Cink and Tom Watson tied in first place and a playoff was necessary. For nostalgia, people hoped Tom might pull it off, at 59yrs, but it wasn't to be and Stewart proved a worthy winner. Golf appeals on the telly because everyone, players, crowd, officials etc., are invariably polite and sportsmanlike to each other which reflects so well on the sport.

My responses to your previous replies

Bob .... No apologies needed for incoherence. I didn't notice anyway.

The Iron-rich water had a slightly metallic taste, but way away from being 'foul'. It was quite pleasant in fact. Perhaps the origin of Ironbru ?

'Gunnera' is indeed a plant species. I accept though that it reminds one of the unspeakable diseases one was warned about as a recruit during National Service. The rash is quite different I understand !

I haven't seen the Halford's TV advert, so I can't comment.

Jill ..... Thank you for your praise for The Pantiles picture. The light made all the difference.

Sorry to hear of Ro's continued leg-pain problem. As you memorably said "Getting old isn't for wimps".

Your gran's recipe using left over stale bread sounded great. We never seem to get 'stale' bread these days, it goes mouldy before 'stale'.

Yvonne .... Re Bluewater and similar. I agree in general terms. But you succeeded, on a blisteringly hot afternoon, to track down an ice-cold non-alcoholic lager and a gin & tonic. Even though the bill was a tenner ? I suppose such places have a 'place' in extremis.


Isn't your Lidl sciatica strange ? (Honestly folks - we go into Lidl and 2 minutes later Y has a pain in her back and down her leg - editor)

If anyone else would like to join the 'Reinstate Arlene Phillips' campaign to which you refer, that is a live link to it.

Pete B .... I agree with your view that the RNLI should receive some govt. funding especially when you consider some of the things they do support.

Hope you enjoy your holiday, and the break. I can only wish for you the sort of weather we had. Also hope the Football Academy works well.

.................................

No quote tonight - feeling a little tired and queasy.

Sleep tight - Catch you tomorrow.



.

Getting ready for hols - 70F - 2mph SE wind

.
The weather has been mostly cloudy but with occasional sunny bits. Fortunately no rain.

On the footie-field has been a kids day with everything from a Bouncy Castle to small football matches, roundabouts and performers doing turns. You could tell they were having a good time by the unmistakable noise of kids at play.

Alex has finished Derek & Betty's picket fence and very beautiful it looks too. He is so careful with alignment and design. I asked Derek if it was to be painted because, following on from my flat-pack mastery, I could see myself in a Tom Sawyer role! ..... Go on - open the link - it's a beautiful piece of prose !

But the fence is not to be painted; the wood has been treated and is guaranteed for 25yrs - although it may darken a little with age. The light wasn't good enough to do it justice so a better effort may follow. Such a pity about that awful green Virgin media box spoiling the look of the whole thing.

While I was at the front gate I photographed some more Clematis Vulgaris but again the light didn't allow me to capture the blue 100% accurately. The colour that you see, lacks the necessary richness of hue.

I'm so pleased that my INR level is 2.9 (i.e. almost perfect) and I don't need to be tested again till the 21st July, so we can relax while on holiday. This morning we nipped out for essentials and it is good to know there is a UHT version of Lactofree. I tried the Lactofree cheese, toasted on toast (Debra's recommendation) but it didn't appeal to me.

Joan was supposed to going on her hot-air Balloon flight this evening but it was cancelled. Apparently they only fly in clear, cloudless skies. When it is re-arranged I am looking forward to taking some photographs.

My responses to your comments

Bob .... I don't understand your rather delphic 'Second post?'

Re the Casio photo. No ! There was no false modesty. I thought the snap unsharp, messy and ill-defined. Only thing going for it was that it did the job of showing what the 'viewer' looks like. You are right in a way about its Roleiflex nature and it is also equipped with a x2 diopter. It enables me to get the camera level with a flower without bending down too far or adopting a position of prayer (christian or muslim) and my efforts so far are satisfactory.

I am surprised at your ignorance of Tim Berners-Lee and www - did you think it all just happened then, spontaneously ?

Jill .... We all learn something of value every day. Or should do. Until we atrophy and begin our final decline. Anyway I bet there's hundreds of things you know that I don't. Its the way of the world.

I remember when I erected our Billy that you commented that you had one. Most impressive that Ro will still tackle a flat-pack if necessary. You are quite right that it is things with drawers, especially when they have wheels and runners - I had to enlist the help of my glamourous assistant to pronounce about wheel positions at the opposite end to me. We got there though.

You have without doubt reached the correct decision with your tree stumps. If you wanted to, you can paint them with stuff that rots the wood away, even though I think it takes some time to work. But does it really matter ? As you say you can always stick a tub or a trough on top - or even make them a wildlife feature - don't put on the poison but encourage moss and lichens and even put a few logs thereon and create a haven for creepy crawlies. If you open the link you can read about the RSPB's approach to log-piles.

I am to be allowed my Asus Eee notebook. But mainly for dealing with my photographs. Mind you, with my Vodafone dongle, I could be on the internet in a jiffy ! I don't intend to though - wouldn't be fair to Y.

Anonymous Peter G ..... Thanks for the holiday good wishes.

When we return we shall look forward to hearing about your new Order of Mercy Award. I googled from what you have told me and I just hope against hope that the link I have provided is about the correct thing. If it isn't I shall correct my error as soon as I can.

Sincerest congratulations seem in order. You do such a lot of good work, which so few know anything about.

..................................

Quotation time .......

"Come hither from the furrow and be merry:
Make holiday; your rye-straw hats put on
And these fresh nymphs encounter every one
In country footing."

Shakespeare - The Tempest 1V.i

"Sleep tight - enjoy your holiday from reading Radiogandy - I will be back towards the end of next week"




.

Fine Friday - 63F - Sunny spells - 3mph NW wind

.
Just the one picture today, taken on the old Casio. Poor old thing, it is about falling apart, literally. I had to put in new batteries and then hold the camera tightly together to enable this snap. It has been reliant on strong rubbers bands for some time, to make it usable, but that ruse doesn't work anymore. So, if the picture falls short of the usual standard on this blog I apologise.

The purpose is to illustrate the angled viewer which I purchased from my Hong Kong e-bay person Miss Wongrm. As before the original transaction was slick and the item arrived 8 days later - nicely packaged and in good condition. Most important of all, it works ! For those of us with bending problems it enables flower pictures for instance which wouldn't previously have been possible.

I have tried to put the garden in order for while we are away and have fed things that need feeding. Derek coming in daily to water indoors and he is also going to look after our outdoor tomato plants and things. I planted the new herb Savory which Nat Trst Colin had sent me a cutting of. The cutting came via Jean and she had wrapped the rooted end in a wet tissue and it looked very healthy. Fine white root hairs and a green and white growing tip.

I've sorted out most outstanding computer jobs and I still have tomorrow if other things crop up. I must download some podcasts onto my MP3 player to listen to whilst away.

Y went down town to meet Joan B for afternoon tea at some classy place near Byard Lane. Although they didn't have it, the official afternoon tea was over £15 per person - rather expensive in my opinion. However they enjoyed themselves and bumped into Tracy.

My responses to your comments

Bob ..... A pleasant meeting indeed at Wetherspoons - and such good value. They seem to be able to keep their beer prices down and it makes one wonder why others can't. ergo Reg's e-mail report from WoW of the prices in tourist Peak District.

Tackle some flatpack furniture! The challenge would do you good.

Yvonne ..... Your suggestion of Tim Berners-Lee as your second choice for the Trafalgar Square plinth is inspired. Although a Knighthood was accorded, other recognition must surely come. Order of Merit or even Companion of Honour when suitable vacancies occur.

I have made his name a link to the excellent BBC potted biography.

Jill ..... Tim Berners-Lee is a fairly self-effacing sort of chap. Although he could have patented WWW and thereby been in the Bill Gates class for millionaires, he chose not too, feeling as a scientist that he would contribute the idea for the benefit of all mankind. The last phrase isn't overblown at all because the contribution the Internet has made to life on the planet is immense.

Re Ikea flat-pack assembly. We have already used this service - when we bought our present dining table and six chairs. And it took the two experts over 2 hours - had I done it, I would by now probably been on chair 3. But I did a Billy bookcase and I thought the chest-of-drawers within my range. Which it was - just !

Nice of you to give such a complimentary reason for Millicent's 'no body' stance.

Shame your irony was lost on the waste people. Shame about the blackbird though. If we had had three rats Y would be close to being 'sectioned' by now.

Anonymous Peter G ...... How my cufflink arrived under the rear seat is a mystery. I think I must have taken a jacket off and the cufflink had become entangled in the sleeve. When I took my shirt off at bedtime I discovered it was minus one cufflink. Neither of us thought to go and look in the car. As you say though - it is great to have it back.

I think you are quite right about the availability of drinks at Thaymar - it was just a matter of asking. Y's point I think was that we shouldn't have needed to ask. But the Thaymar lady was very busy and under a little stress, with all those people.

My chest-of-drawers does look good and, I think, with its acquisition, I am supposed to become a tidier person. Perhaps ! I'll certainly try.

...................................

Quotation time .....

"The very rats Instinctively had quit it."

William Shakespeare

All being well there should be a blog-post tomorrow.

But if I get bogged-down with packing .................


.