What are you doing today?

[FABlux]

I thought we were busy but you lot are really hectic. Very glad you are able to get out on your scooter Grandad.

I like exposed beams too

We have been trying to get the garden ready to survive us being away for 3 weeks so Barry has set up an irrigation system with a timer. Last week I picked 2.5kg of cherry tomatoes & 5 kg of grapes which I processed into sauce & juice respectively.

We were invited to 1 birthday party & 2 wedding receptions this weekend, plus Barry's Model Flying Club's BBQ, all were very nice but why are events like buses, nothing at all then 4 together? The darned toms & cue's have grown & ripened like mad so have picked almost another kg today & no time to process so just wash & chuck in the freezer until we come back

We are taking the car to the UK so taking 3 cases. One ready to leave with our son & take back to Luxor next month, 1 for clothes for El Gouna & 1 for the UK plus their Xmas pressies so had to try to get really organised

[Horus]

You too have been very busy

[LovelyLadyLux]

@FabLux - I hear you re: schedules with seemingly everything always happening at the same time. I can spend weeks not doing anything then suddenly I've got 5 things to do and all on the same evening. Never fails.

I picked quite a few tomatoes and ended up giving them to the daughter's in-laws. Can't eat one more tomato right now. The beets are all ready for picking but making pickled beets has gone off me so I'm now giving away beets as well. The carrot crop has also done really well and carrots I can keep them for months so they're not yet on the 'to give away' list.

[Horus]

I am currently dog sitting, Annies cousin Marley is now with us for two weeks as his mum and dad are going on holiday. Luckily they get on quite well together and he is a friendly dog (Cocker Spaniel) so he also follows me around everywhere. My biggest problem at the moment is trying to do everything in two's, two pats on the head, two dinners at the same time, two treats together and of course two doggies seeking attention at the same time. I have to make him feel settled in whilst not letting Annie think her nose is being pushed out, especially when it comes to who will sit the closest to me.

[LovelyLadyLux]

Dog jealousy is never a good thing so hard to make a good balance. On the surface it seems to me that the terrier types can be more independent yet more possessive of their person while spaniels seem more needing of company all the time/ Just how I see the breeds.

[Horus]

That about sums them up, but up to now they are getting along fine and as I post my daughter and family have just landed in Morocco 20.26 my time, I have been following them on Skytracker. Both doggies have had their dinner and are busy snoozing.

[Grandad]

In the past I have mentioned Fordwich, the smallest town in Britain. Fordwich is just 4 miles from Canterbury and as our eldest has a birthday in a few days (56) we invited him and his wife to lunch at The George and Dragon Inn in the town.
We had a lovely lunch but more to the point I wanted to introduce you to this delightful 15th century hostelry.
This is its location on the corner of the main street of the town.


And this is the snug where we had our meal.


And if you are interested this is a brief history of Fordwich and The George and Dragon. Just click the 'Read on' button to continue.
http://www.brunningandprice.co.uk/georg ... n/history/

[Kiya]

Happy Birthday to your son, wow! I'd love to have a place like that in my town.

It looks lovely & cosy

[LovelyLadyLux]

Very interesting and in the history - "A dunking chair for women into the river"! Geez what I find most fascinating is that in those days men didn't gossip... Never knew that!

In photo #2 what is on the wall? To me it looks like oyster shells but ??

Is it just a havily patterned paper or is it actually something with texture to it?

Can you imagine living that long ago and how different life must have been then? I can only compare how life was when I was a child to now and life has changed very dramatically (and not too sure for the good).

[Grandad]

@LovelyLadyLux
Ducking stools or dumping chairs were very common in the middle ages. They were normally used when a woman was accused of witchcraft and she would be dumped or ducked to rid her of her evil.
In this picture there is one in the middle of the city right next to a cottage that we lived in on the river. It can be seen above the heads of the people in the boat.
In the pub we actually sat in the furthest area and I sat with my back to that wall so did not notice it. I believe it is an original flint wall left uncovered as a feature.
The river there is now quite narrow and you can walk across. Hard to believe that in Roman times and later it was an important port at which all the thousands of tons of stone arrived from France, for the building of the Cathedral 4 miles away at Canterbury.

[Horus]

Definately Flint Grandad I just couldn't make up my mind if it wsa a wallpaper or not.

[LovelyLadyLux]

Me either re: the wall. It looked like it had texture but it also could have been wallpaper. Definitely looked interesting and did add character to the wall.

Today I was off in the morning to a social group of Professional Retired people. They do activities most of which I'm not terribly interested in (golf, cards, wine tasting) but I don't mind the meetings which feature a speaker (today was how this group of 5 men from the UK came to this area and then every year on exactly July 16th leave the Island for the interior for 1 week and hike about the various Parks in the north interior of BC ABOVE the tree line. They'd put together a slide show of their experiences along with the flora & fauna and gave an in-person narration of their exploits particularly noting how freezing cold the water is up on the mountains and how big the horseflies area).

I will go once a month to a retired professional luncheon at various restaurants and am thinking on going to the craft afternoon as well as their version of a garden club.

In the afternoon I was at the Pottery Studio. My clay was a tad to the dry side but I made a whole swack of buttons. Not sure what I'll try next week but will have to continue on with my houses and something else. Not sure what the something else will be but hopefully inspiration will strike.

[Mad Dilys]

Today I'm attacking the hoard of bags of all descriptions that lurk unused. It's a couple of years I'm ashamed to say since I last had a big clear out

I don't collect small thin bags, well not many and they are under control, but I do collect shopping bags quite unintentionally.

I go shopping and buy more that can be carried in the bag I've taken, then I'm lured by the appeal of a new design near the cash till. I've only recently realised that I'm as much of a hoarder as my mother and both my daughters are showing worrying signs of being similarly affected.

My bags range from 1 pint capacity up to more than 5 gallons! I also have a large number of the plastic 10p "bag for life" bags that have only been used once. There is a limit to the number of ways one can re-cycle in them in the home. Since I've been having my groceries delivered I haven't bought any bags, my groceries are delivered in paper carriers which go straight into the re-cycling and very thin small bags which go into a cloth container like a sleeve with open ends that hangs on the larder door. When it's full any spare bags go straight in the bin.

It's the big useful bags that are the problem - with the exception of the wonderful new very strong big green bags that are great for garden use.


But was it really necessary to buy two packs of three?

[Horus]

I save up my 10p bags for life as I always have to buy one when visiting a certain store, I then use them in my caravan as rubbish bags to hang behind the door.

[Grandad]

I like to use one branded bag for life in another store just to make them look up their nose. An M & S bag in Lidls or vice versa does the trick

We only buy one newspaper each week and that is the Saturday Daily Mail. Simply because it has a good supplement with all the TV and radio times. Otherwise we read news online.

I have just been to the Sainsburys 'Local', a 10/15 minute scooter ride away and the thought occurred that I will perhaps mount my little sports action camera on the scooter and do a high speed vid of my trip. Watch this space I suppose.

[Horus]

It will be great seeing all those terrified fleeing pedestrians

[Grandad]

Something else that occurred today. I received my renewal notice from Homeserve for plumbing and drainage cover. Last year I questioned their quote for £99 and their magic pencil reduced it to £64. I always ask them to sharpen their pencil and try again.
Todays quote was £138 and again after sharpening his pencil the nice man in the north east suggested I register as a new account with all the same cover for £48.
A no brainer but I do feel for those elderly people who simply accept things like insurance renewals without question.

[Ruby Slippers]

Have you ever had cause to call out Homeserve, Grandad? I hope you never have to, if not! They are absolutely useless! Mention of Homeserve is enough to send DH and my eldest son rocketing through the ceiling!

[Grandad]

Yes I have heard stories of their 'service' RS

[LovelyLadyLux]

Since I started to toss and turn at 3am I finally got up at 4:30am and came out to reheat a cup of tea in the microwave. Opened the door, heard/felt a click and the door latch broke and now even the door won't stay closed so until I go into the garage and find some tape to tape it closed it is swinging open in the kitchen. I tried to hold the door closed and turn it on but that is a no go so it is broke.

Now the dilemma is (although not much of a dilemma) to fix it which means repair man, trying to find what is wrong with it OR just going right away for a new one. I looked in the door and it was made in 2011 so not overly old but I kinda have a feeling it isn't worth the cost of fixing so now I'll have to find a new one and then bother the son-in-law to come and install it. It is an over-the-range type so does require extra installation efforts.

After the washer dryer experience of the summer I'm rather broken appliance tapped out.

Wasn't too sure what all I was going to do today once my day actually gets going but I guess I'm going appliance shopping.............