Decision time

Despite the migraine I have been trying to decide whether or not to make some New Year resolutions. Do I need to? I ask myself. But, lacking concentration due to 'brain pain' I don't seem to get an answer and I still haven't made any decision but at least I have another twenty four hours in which to do so.
In the past I have either played safe by making none at all, or I have only made 'weak' ones that I wouldn't have broken anyway. Sometimes I wonder how many people actually make one or two and how long is it before they break them, so perhaps I should really go for it for 2011.
The biggest success I have had was not a New Year's resolution but a snap decision I made when I had decided on the date I would retire. I knew I wouldn't be able to afford to smoke once I did retire so I made an appointment to see the nurse at the surgery and after smoking on and off (more on than off) for forty or so years, I gave it up. What surprised me was how quickly I managed it too but that was mainly down to the fact that the patches kept sliding off because the weather was so warm so I only used them for about four weeks. I did use the lozenges too but again, not for long because I decided to use ordinary sugar free chewing gum instead so I am now hooked on that! Chewing the gum does have it's advantages such as keeping gums and teeth healthy and strengthening the jaw but the disadvantage is that the sweeteners used can have a laxative effect too!

A garden full of squirrels

First there was one, then two, then three and now there are four! These little furry creatures have cheered me up no end today as they played chase around the garden. I got up later this morning due to a migraine which is the result of not much sleep and also the thumping beat of music from next door which went on all day yesterday. Sometime next week the council will be installing recording equipment in my house so that they can gather evidence to prosecute the neighbours as they seem to ignore the letters.
Anyway, as I was having breakfast I was looking out of the window and noticed there were two squirrels outside tucking into the sunflower seeds. Then I saw another on the peanut box but I have had three during the very cold weather so I was surprised to see a fourth one dangling upside down by one of his back legs and raiding the birds' wire peanut cage.
During the very cold snap they would stay around the garden all day keeping their eye on the food but over the last two days it has been much milder, in fact it's almost tropical today so I think the warmer conditions have aroused their natural instincts as they seemed to have other things on their minds! A lot of people say they are just rats with fluffy tails but I disagree with that. They are little bundles of of fur with fluffy tails that seem to enjoy life to the full especially when they are chasing each other round the garden playing 'tag' or 'hide and seek'. Then there's the antics with the peanuts. One will dig a hole to bury the peanut and while he's getting another, the second squirrel will be digging up the one that's just been buried!
After fun and games and a good game of chase they will sit up along the top of the fence and have a wash then sit there like little ornaments with their front paws clasped across their tummies, heads down having a nap! I know they are not an idigenous species because the native British squirrel is red and lives in conifer forests up in the north of England and Scotland so if these little fellas had not been brought over from the USA then I would not have a lot to watch in the garden!

Not for me, thanks!

I haven't been sleeping too well for the last few days due to a combination of arthritis and sciatic pain and now the lack of proper sleep is catching up on me. My eyes are very puffy, I find it hard to concentrate and every move is painful so today I decided to go out to get some fresh air and get some more milk.
The weather is much milder now as all the snow is gone and last night we had a lot of rain too so I put on my hat, coat and gloves and set off. The local newsagents is still closed until tomorrow so I walked across Castle park to the shopping centre. There were lots of people about loaded with carrier bags from various stores taking full advantage of the sales but to be quite honest, I can never understand what people see in them.
Perhaps it's because I have rarely found anything I liked, or found clothes and shoes in my size. Usually the stuff they have on sale is either too big, too small, rubbish that has been brought in specially for the sales or things that I paid full price for a week or so before. Not only that, even the sale prices in the posh shops in the new shopping centre are way out of my reach. Neither can I understand how people here can afford to spend so much right after Christmas because I know that most of the wages around here are not high yet people seem to have an endless pot of money. Perhaps I should ask them their secret, maybe I'm missing out on free money. More than likely they've maxed out their credit and store cards which means they haven't really got any bargains but will end up paying several times as much for their goods!
Anyway, I bought my milk and walked home but I'm still feeling very tired so I think I'll have an afternoon nap when the washing machine has finished it's cycle.

Thawing out

We were lucky this year to have snow on the ground for Christmas and the sun was shining too which made it look very seasonal, but last night the thaw started and now most of the snow has gone. There hasn't been any sunshine today it's just been a very grey, gloomy day so where the snow has melted everything looks as though it could do with a jolly good wash.
I don't mind the snow or when the weather is very cold, as long as I am well wrapped up and moving around I am quite happy. This year I have even worn the snow grippers that I bought last winter and they are great for walking on the snow when it has been packed down by others walking on it. They give me a lot more confidence knowing that I am a lot less likely to slip and fall and end up breaking a few bones so I can go out to do the shopping when I need to without worrying. The other advantage is that my back doesn't hurt so much because I am not constantly bracing myself against slipping and using every muscle just to keep upright.
The weather forecast is for some rain and drizzle this week and the temperatures are supposed to stay above freezing for the most part, especially in the South West. Last week they had been forecasting heavy snowfalls for yesterday and today but the wind has moved around so we have been spared that for now at least.

Peace after the storm!

A very Happy Christmas to everyone! I have now returned to normal (if there is such a thing) as Eden is at home so I am now on my own once more. We had a very busy two days at the end of the week doing the last minute shopping on Thursday and yesterday we spent the entire day baking.
This morning Sarah's boyfriend collected us and took us back to Sarah's where I helped her to cook the Christmas dinner for everyone. We all had a really good day together and then I was brought back home at teatime. Now I am in the process of planning my week but I will miss Eden because she has been such good company this week and we have had a lot of fun together.
Never mind, I will have a lot of things to keep me busy before New Year's Day and I will have to get out for a few long walks to get rid of some of the excess calories that I have consumed!

Hooray for the brave farmers!

Despite the freezing weather the farmers' market was open for business as usual today. There were a few casualties that did not arrive because some of the more rural areas around are still having difficulties getting in or out of their villages.
Thankfully, the large fresh chicken that I ordered was there waiting and I was able to buy plenty of excellent local apples and some conference pears too. A lot of the vegetables still had the frost and snow on them and how they ever got the carrots and parsnips out of the ground, which is like iron, is beyond me.
There was plenty of poultry and locally caught game to choose from as well as the fresh vegetables, fruit, fish and meat. Last week I tried some Christmas pie from Frocester Fayre, one of the farms that I regularly buy from and it was so delicious that I ordered a small one for today. It is made with hot water crust pastry and has layers of pork sausagemeat and minced pork with a layer of turkey breast, apricots and fresh cranberries followed by another layer of the pork mixture then topped with the pastry crust. The pie is well seasoned with herbs and the only reason I don't make it myself is because I would be the only one to eat it and also I would have to collect a lot of ingredients too.
There isn't a market next week so fortunately I have stocked up enough fresh supplies to get me through into the New Year. These people deserve a medal for producing such wonderful food and especially for turning up in all winds and weather to ensure we get the very best from within a thirty mile radius of where we live.
Many thanks and a very happy Christmas to all our farmers!

This is 'plan B'

My Christmas plans have had to be changed because of the freezing weather. I will absolutely NOT drive if there is any chance of snow or ice so the plans that I had made to take Eden home on Christmas morning and stay for Christmas dinner have been shelved.
Eden was quite upset when I said that she would have to go back home with Sarah tomorrow or maybe the train on Thursday because she didn't want me to be on my own on Christmas Day and neither did she want to miss Christmas with her sister and brother and of course, Sarah. I did tell her she could stay with me on Christmas Day because I had a turkey breast joint in the freezer and would have a few other treats too so she wouldn't miss out on anything that we would normally enjoy at Christmas. She spoke to her Mum and eventually came to a decision that she would stay with me Christmas Day and Sarah would come over with her boyfriend to collect her on Boxing Day (he's used to driving in very bad conditions so it's not a problem for him).
Well, with the decision made I told her I would put 'plan B' into action because you always have to have a 'plan B'. So today we went shopping and bought some crackers to put on the Christmas dinner table and as I hadn't made puddings or cake this year I was tempted to buy a slab of iced fruit cake with marzipan in Marks and Spencer, that is until we saw they had a small decorated Christmas cake at half price which was only £1 more than the slab. With the crackers, cake and a box of clementines we are all set. I've already got a small pudding, nuts, fruit, sweets and all the other treats so tomorrow we'll be off to the farmers' market (hopefully) for the fresh vegetables and a couple of other bits and pieces.
We're both looking forward to having a really great Christmas together.

More seasonal pictures!

'Sitting on the fence with cold feet'

The squirrels know where the food is and like to sit on the fence after they've eaten just to make sure the birds don't eat it all. Today I put out a special treat for them, some sweet chestnuts that I had in my mixed nuts.

Below, the silver birch on the school field is graciously wearing a winter cloak as are the trees on the car park of the homestore. The trouble is, they don't stay this way for long because as soon as the sun breaks through the snow melts and drips off the branches very quickly. They look so beautiful in these pictures.

'The Jews Graveyard'

I hope this one's not too sombre but it has an eerie calmness about it.

A snowy day

The Christmas trees in the garden centre look very seasonal.

This morning there was a fresh fall of snow which made everything look so clean and fresh. After feeding the birds and giving them some fresh water, Eden and I went to get the paper before having breakfast and we took a few pictures.

Later we went to finish the Christmas shopping but it was very wet and slushy in the centre. I hate it when the cars churn up the roads into black slushy rivers.

Buffet for the birds

We had a really hard frost last night as well as a light covering of snow so this morning as soon as I was up I went out to do the birds' food and water. I cleared off the bird table because this is something that needs to be done regularly so that no one gets an infection and also because the squirrels sit on there. Then I got the various foods out.
As some of the birds are ground feeders I have been putting small amounts of food onto the patio stones but this morning because of the snow, it had been covered up. I found a large flowerpot saucer in the shed and decided to put the food on there. This would be easy to pick up every night and put on the bird table especially as we may get a considerable amount of snow tonight.
I put small handfuls of grated cheese, mealworm crumble, suet and insect treats, sunflower seeds and mixed seed for smaller birds onto the saucer then placed it on the patio while I put some more in smaller amounts on the bird table. While I was doing this there were a couple of hungry birds tucking into the bird buffet on the saucer.
The hanging feeders will be due to have a clean out just before Christmas and I will also need to check the hanging fat treats and clean out the squirrels' nut box. Even though I know that there is a good selection of foods for all the birds and squirrels I still worry about them getting enough to eat and a warm place to sleep. I'm going soft in the head!

Misleading adverts

With Christmas fast approaching there seems to be the usual glut of misleading advertisements on the television and the worst ones are those for perfumes. Without exception, every one of them shows women as ultra glamorous women under the age of 30 who have the perfect figure and look as though they have just emerged from a beauty salon.
They are usually dressed in designer evening wear and the effect of the perfume has them rolling around on the floor as though they are in the middle of an orgasm or they are scantily dressed and draped around the neck of some bloke who looks as though he's swallowed something that tastes foul.
Trust me, I have tried some of these perfumes and they certainly have never affected me as they do these models and neither have they ever attracted a male of the species!! The men's 'fragrances' are portrayed by young men who always look angry and I often feel that they are too much in love with themselves to be bothered with a woman and if they did they would probably not pay her much attention.
It's a great pity that they don't give us more information about the perfume such as what the main notes are or the price, or maybe even real women in proper clothes wearing the perfume instead. I know that advertising doesn't influence me when I buy perfume and it never has, I go by the smell.

A Christmas carol story!

Last night the choir from the local church came round singing carols and they were a delight to hear. I always used to go to the door with money but they don't collect, instead, for the last couple of years they have given out warm mince pies with a large dollop of brandy cream!
About nine years ago it was a bit like the wild west round here as many of the families in the council houses were well known to the local constabulary and this included some of the young lads who were always in trouble. One evening, right at the start of December, there was a knock at the door and when I opened it, three of these lads who were about ten years old were standing there singing 'We wish you a merry Christmas'. I told them that it wasn't a proper carol, they were far too early and I wasn't going to give them money for that pathetic performance! Then I told them that if they wanted to earn money for carol singing they could come back at 6:30pm on the Saturday before Christmas and sing two verses of three proper carols and I would pay £10 whether it was one person, two or thirty two!
Several times during the next couple of weeks I saw them huddled together in various places holding sheets of paper and trying hard not to be seen. Obviously they had some carol sheets from school and were practising hard. Then two weeks before I had told them to come there was a knock at the door and when I opened it I told them they were still too early and to go away and practice a bit more.
On the Saturday before Christmas I had Eden with me and I told her the boys were coming round to sing some carols to us and duly at 6:30pm there was a knock at the door. There were only two of them so I asked where their friend was only to be told he had been 'grounded'. Then they started to sing the first carol and didn't do too bad a job but I did ask them to sing a little more loudly for the next one which they did. When it came to the third carol they didn't seem very sure of the tune so I stopped them and said we would start from the beginning and I would give them some help. So there we were, all singing the last carol and at the end I told them they had done very well and gave them ten £1 coins and they went off quite happy.
I hope I they learned that you have to earn money and not just expect it but they never came back the next year!

Conspiracy

Well, I've managed to make the effort and I have written out all my Christmas cards so when I went into town today I thought I would get some stamps in the post office. I always go out fairly early, but this morning I think everyone must have taken a 'duvet day' or 'sickie' from work in order to do their Christmas shopping because it was extremely busy everywhere.
When I got to the post office the queue was well out of the door so I decided I would get the stamps in Wilkinson's. The girls on the checkouts there have been trained to ask everyone if they would like any stamps or top ups and as I needed some more suet treats for the birds and a few other bits and pieces, I could easily get the stamps too. However, when I got to the checkout and asked for a dozen second class stamps the girl didn't have any in her till and when she asked the other assistants, they too only had first class stamps as they had all sold out of the second class ones.
The cost of the first class stamps was more than I wanted to pay especially as most of my cards were only going about five miles so I thought I would try in one of the card shops. Eventually, after trying in no less than three cards shops, I managed to get some in the fourth and that was their last lot. It's the same every year, second class stamps become like gold dust from the beginning of December so next year I will have to write out my cards before the end of November and buy the stamps to put on them.
Perhaps the post office restrict the number of books that the shops are allowed to buy so that people have to go to the post office and queue for ages just to make them look busier than they actually are!

The wrong sort of Christmas break!

One evening this week I had a telephone call from Eden to say they had a 'situation' and needed my advice. It turned out that Amber had been coming down the stairs and slipped on the third one from the bottom and fell awkwardly on her foot so consequently was in a lot of pain and they wanted to know what was the best thing to do.
I'm used to diagnosing over the phone for Sarah, when the children were small she would ring up to say one or the other had a rash so I would ask her to describe it and then advise her over the phone. Being a nurse in the past sometimes has it's downsides but I think that's where they got the idea for NHS Direct!
Anyway, I asked Eden if she could gently move Amber's ankle, then each toe but it was obvious from the yelling in the background that it was very painful. I said that she would need to keep her foot up and pack it with something out of the freezer but Sarah had done that so I told her I thought she would need to go to casualty at the local hospital and would have to have an X-ray. From what Eden described it sounded as though Amber may have broken a small bone in the foot but without seeing her I couldn't be sure but I did say she may need a plaster cast up to the knee.
A little while later Eden rang to let me know that they had been to the hospital and Amber had been given crutches but she would have to go back in the morning for the X-ray. The following evening they rang again to say that she hadn't broken anything but when I spoke to her she was still in a lot of pain.
Today when I spoke to Eden she said the hospital had rang because the X-ray had been sent on to the RUH at Bath and Amber had broken a small bone in the foot so she had to go back to be plastered. Amber now has a cast to the knee, just in time for Christmas!

A message to the protesting students

Most decent civilised people would have felt as disgusted as I did at the wanton violence and destruction of property that occurred during yesterday's demonstrations in London. We are lucky to have a democracy which allows people to demonstrate peacefully but yesterday's demonstration has probably alienated a larger proportion of the voting population against the 'students' than those 'students' who have vowed not to vote for the Liberal Democrats. I sincerely hope that the government does not do a U-turn on the increase of tuition fees and perhaps they should make an additional annual statutory charge to all students which could then be kept by to pay for any damage caused as a result of violent demonstrations in the future.
Not one of those involved in yesterday's demonstration gave a thought to the thousands of pensioners who have worked hard all their lives and paid taxes which have allowed these students to receive a free education, free health treatment and a lot of their parents have probably received state benefits in the form child benefit, tax credits, housing benefits and in the past, income support for single mothers. Not only have these pensioners funded all this for you but many of them now have to try to live on the breadline because there have been no real increases in the state pension for many years and many are also paying tax even now on very modest occupational pensions. Meanwhile you continue with your hedonistic lives at university and you haven't paid a penny into the pot and I know from the last job that I had, many of you doing non-academic degrees never will. Instead, you will probably end up squatting in somebody else's property, more than likely dabbling with various substances, legal or otherwise, while claiming jobseeker's allowance and being too scruffy and smelly for any employer to want to interview you let alone employ you. Trust me, I know, I've seen it all.
The damage done to property yesterday comes to hundreds of thousands of pounds as does the bill for policing and all of this has to be paid by the taxpayer. All this at a time when many of the people in this country are going to have to do without many services such as schools, hospital facilities, libraries, care for the elderly etc. I could go on.
Those of you responsible for the disgraceful violence yesterday do not deserve a university place. If you think the fees here will be high then I suggest you find out how much it would cost you in the USA, especially in any of the ivy league colleges.
Oh, and one more thing, I noticed that there were quite a few spelling errors on some placards so perhaps you also need basic skills tests especially as many ten year olds can do better than you.

Trimming up

This year I'm finding it a bit hard to get in the mood for Christmas with some of the issues that are going on, but after doing the cleaning today I decided to put up the Christmas tree. Usually I have one in the front room, a smaller one in the dining room and I also trim down the bannister rails on the stairs. As I won't be having Sarah and the grand-children here on Christmas Day because I am going over to their house for Christmas dinner, I have only put up the tree in the front room.
It's been quite a traumatic few months and the biggest worry is not knowing when I will be lucky enough to get somewhere to live that is closer to Sarah and the grand-children. I'm on the council housing list but there is no way of knowing exactly where you come on the list especially with the strange way that they operate.
Anyway, I have made a bit of effort and I have bought a couple of Christmas presents which are already wrapped so tomorrow I must sit and write out the cards.
Hopefully next year I will be more settled and relaxed and living nearer to Sarah. I will also make sure that I start preparations much earlier because I would like to make a Christmas cake and puddings which I haven't bothered with this year, it's only Eden and I that eat them.

Powerless

For the last two days I have had problems with my electricity supply which hopefully has now been rectified. Because the situation was so dangerous yesterday evening when the electrician called, he told me that he was unable to touch the piece of equipment involved and I would have to put in an emergency call to the power supplier. He spoke to them and explained what the problem was then advised me to switch off everything except for one light. I was told that it could be up to four hours for them to attend the call out and if there was any smoke at all, I was to call the fire brigade immediately.
Fortunately, two men turned up about half an hour later, switched off the supply and worked at rectifying the problem. They had almost finished when a further two men arrived to see if they were required. The reason two lots turned up was that one lot are responsible for the supply to part of the equipment and the others are responsible for the other part (if that makes any sense!). Eventually the lights were back on and they all left and because it was too late to cook, I had a sandwich instead of the usual cooked meal.
This morning I woke up and looked at the clock and the time was about 4:30am so I turned over and went back to sleep. When I woke again I looked at the clock but it was black which meant that the electricity was off again so I stumbled out of bed, found the torch and looked at my watch. It was seven o'clock. I pulled on some clothes and came downstairs to phone the supply company again but the phone doesn't work without the power so I had to fumble around looking for my mobile. I made the call and once more I was told it could be up to 4 hours before someone would attend. Great! I couldn't have my early morning cup of tea and that makes me grumpy and have you ever tried putting in contact lenses by torchlight?!
An hour later the first man turned up and he looked in the box and found the problem was in the same place. He told me that I would keep getting this unless they changed the box because the connections were dodgy so he would have to ring someone to come and do that. As he was telling me this his phone rang and as he was speaking to the person on the other end he explained what he was doing and said what else needed to be done. Then he turned to me and asked if I would be in for the next hour or so because the other person could come around to change the box when he had finished the job he was doing which was not too far away.
Anyway, this guy got the power back on so I could have a cup of tea and he left. A short while later, two other men turned up and they did the necessary work so I hope I don't get any more problems. I hope that the neighbours weren't counting because I had eight men through the front door last night and this morning. My reputation will soar!!! :D

Snow, ice and Christmas shopping

On Friday I went to pick up Eden because most of the snow had gone frome here but there was still a covering where she lives. After we got home in the evening, it rained quite steadily for an hour or so but the forecast was for freezing temperatures overnight. We had planned to got to Tesco early on Saturday but I told her I wouldn't do that if it was icy because I made that mistake last winter and found Tesco's car park was like a giant ice skating rink as they don't salt or grit it.
When the alarm went on Saturday morning I looked out to see that there was ice sparkling on the road just as if someone had sprinkled glitter liberally over it so I set the alarm for an hour later and climbed back into my warm bed again. When we got up we decided to got to the paper shop to get the paper and after breakfast we could go to do Eden's Christmas shopping because hopefully it would be better underfoot by then. We slithered and slid to the paper shop and back, fortunately we both managed to stay upright, then we had breakfast.
By the time we went out most of the ice had gone and it didn't take us very long to buy small gifts for her friends especially as I had made her write a list beforehand. Luckily the shops were fairly quiet as I suppose the icy conditions had kept people away until later. We got home in record time and decided to dash to Tesco before lunch. It had just started raining but at least it wasn't freezing as it hit the ground so the car park at Tesco, although almost full, wasn't frozen as it must have been earlier. Tesco was packed but we got the shopping done so that meant that we wouldn't have to go on Sunday as I hate Sunday shopping unless it's an emergency.
Eden wrapped all her presents after lunch and wrote out her cards. When we woke up yesterday morning to freezing fog outside we were glad we had decided to do the grocery shopping on Saturday and enjoyed a leisurely morning in the warm.

Yippeeeeee!

I'll bet there aren't that many people who jump with joy when they receive their electricity bills, but that's just what I did today. Mine is paid every month by a direct debit but since the start of this very cold weather which has come much earlier this year, I must admit that I have been very frugal with the heating just in case there is another long, cold spell in the New Year at the time we usually get it.
The reason I was so happy is that I have built up quite a bit of credit and so the electricity company want to reduce the payments. I rang the customer services and asked them to keep them at the same level because it means I can turn up the heating without having to worry about having a huge bill at the end of the next quarter. Besides, the temperature is supposed to drop to an all time low tonight so I will need all the storage heaters on. It will also mean that I can put on the fan and convector heaters in the evenings when the temperature gets low because by the evening, there isn't any heat left in the storage heaters.
The lady in the customer services sounded a bit surprised to have a happy customer on the phone for a change but at least I can look forward to a warm Christmas and snug winter without having to worry about the cost of turning on additional heating.

What's on the menu today?

With the weather being so cold and temperatures due to dip to their lowest tonight, I make sure that I get up early to put a good selection of food out for the birds and squirrels. At least we've been quite lucky here because we only had a light covering of snow yesterday but the temperature has remained below freezing with the wind chill making it much colder.
On Saturday I went into the garden centre to get some food for the little robin and the dunnock because they both quietly hop around the garden and prefer to feed on the ground. I already buy a special seed and insect mix which has the husks removed so is 'ready to eat' and this is in the hanging feeders but I also put some on the bird table. Then I add some sunflower kernels which are quite expensive, enjoyed by both birds and squirrels, so I bought some special insect suet treats which are intended for the birds, but also enjoyed by the squirrels. Of course there are the peanuts for the birds in a wire feeder and the squirrels have them in their nut box.
I know that quite a lot of birds, including the robin, enjoy cheese because of the fat in it so I got some of Tesco's value grated cheese and the squirrels are even having some of that. The other tasty morsel that they are all enjoying are some currants which are past their best that were given to me by the old man round the corner, but the birds and squirrels are eating those too so it must be the sugar.
With such a vast menu I get the usual birds and also a few others such as a pair of magpies and the wrens. I'm glad they know where to come for a good feed and fresh water even if I do have to go out two or three times during the day to thaw out the bird bath and refill it. Yesterday, one of the squirrels had a really good feed then sat on the fence post at the top of the garden in the sun with his front paws folded on his chest, his head down, then he went off to sleep for a while!

The tale of my sagging crotch!

Because my thighs got so cold yesterday when I went out, even though I had a thick pair of denim jeans on, I thought I would be better prepared today especially as the winds are quite brisk and biting. When I woke up and opened the curtains there was a light covering of snow and I had intended to get a couple of Christmas presents today.
After having a shower I burrowed through my drawers and found a pair of thick, elastic opaque tights that are supposed to prevent varicose veins that I had bought several years ago but couldn't remember wearing them very often. I don't normally wear tights under my jeans but in the absence of long drawers or similar I decided that these might keep my thighs warm.
After breakfast I set off well wrapped up and feeling quite cosy despite the wind trying to blow straight through me. Although the pavements were just covered with snow it was fairly easy to walk and not that slippery, which meant that I didn't have to work at staying upright and so could relax and walk normally.
As I got closer to the shops I became aware that my bum and legs were beginning to feel as though I had been doing a lot of exercise in the gym and I thought my jeans were starting to slide down but I couldn't do anything about it so carried on.
On the way home things got more uncomfortable so as soon as I was through the front door I took off my outer clothes and went upstairs to re-adjust the rest. It was when I took off my jeans that I discovered the problem. The crotch of the tights was about three inches below where it should have been and if I hadn't been wearing jeans I dread to think of what might have happened. So I took the tights off and exchanged them for a pair of knee highs and thick socks. When I looked at the tights lying on the floor they seemed to be a very odd shape so I picked them up and spread them on the bed.
Now I could see the problem! From waist to crotch they measured the same as the legs which is alright if you have an inside leg of twenty four inches and a waist to crotch depth of the same dimensions. This, together with the elastication, caused my discomfort and gave me the answer as to why I hadn't worn them for so long.
They've gone in the bin now but I suppose I should be thankful that my legs have had a work out, my bum is tight and pert and I don't have a sagging crotch after all!

Will we ever learn?

Again most of the country has been caught out by the snow. I don't think we get any more than other countries on the continent, or other parts of the world, but we can never cope with it even if it is only a light covering.
It isn't that we are unaware of the imminent arrival of bad weather because the forecasters had been warning us for almost a week ahead that the temperatures would drop and we were going to get substantial amounts of snow in some areas. We have been regularly updated about the progress of the snow but still we are found wanting. Despite warnings 'not to travel unless it is really necessary' we see on the news about queues of cars for miles on the hardest hit routes, usually stuck overnight and the majority of drivers are totally unprepared for the bad weather. When interviewed they moan because the snow ploughs or the gritting lorries are not doing enough but they probably can't get through because these stupid idiots are clogging up the roads!
Of course, lorries carrying supplies have to travel but I know that if I hear the weather is going to be bad I change my plans and stay put, I will certainly not put my life or anyone else's in jeopardy. Perhaps it would help if lorries and other necessary vehicles had to change to the type of tyres that are compulsory in some countries in northern Europe or even snow chains in areas where there are heavy falls of snow.
Then there are the schools that close because of 'health and safety'. This was unheard of when I was a child, we went to school whatever the weather and we didn't have any central heating either. When I lived in Germany we had to travel about eight miles in an old coach and the snow there lasted for a couple of months. The roads were cleared regularly and we never had any problems or accidents.
I think people in this country are getting too soft!

Sunday shopping? Not Likely!

After doing a few jobs this morning I decided to go out for a walk even though it is still below freezing so I wrapped up well and set off. I like to get out every day and have a walk in order to keep myself flexible otherwise everything would get very stiff and I would end up not being able to move.
As I don't like walking the streets I went over to Castle Park and thought I could walk all around the perimeter footpaths and then back along the river. It's nice to hear the birds over there in the trees and also it's easy to watch the squirrels especially as there weren't so many people with dogs as there usually are on a Sunday.
When I got over close to the shopping centre I noticed there were quite a lot of people who had obviously been Christmas shopping as they were coming out laden with bags from various stores. Sunday shopping is something I have never been in favour of and have tried very hard not to do unless for some reason it's been a necesssity.
Anyway, I continued my walk and when I came back off Castle Green I was amazed at all the traffic. In less than half an hour there was a queue for the car park right the way back for about half a mile and as I got round the corner and crossed over the roundabout, I noticed that the queues went back even further on both the main road and the under pass. It didn't seem to be moving much either so I think that a lot of those in the queue would be very lucky if they even got near the car parks before closing time. I did feel sorry for those who might have just been passing through because they would have been stuck too.

A very nasty shock!

The postman delivered a letter today which was in a large brown envelope so I knew it was official. When I saw the address on the back I knew it was very official because it came from Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs. Not too long ago I am sure you will remember that this lot claimed that many thousands of us had either paid to much tax or not enough so eagerly hoping that I was in the first category, I opened it up.
What I read was enough to give someone of a delicate disposition like myself a heart attack. After a sharp intake of breath and a few choice expletives that I wouldn't repeat in company, I checked the name and address just to make sure that it had been delivered to the right person but sadly, it had.
When I had gathered myself together, I scanned through the document and then looked at the figures. Now I retired some eighteen months ago and I have always kept them informed of any change of circumstance, of which there have been none, and trusted my former employers, the Department for Work and Pensions to deduct the right amount of tax from my wages every month because after all, I'm not a tax expert. The money I owe them in tax is a substantial amount which is owed for the tax year starting April 2009 to April 2010 and when I only worked from April to July, I can't quite understand where they got this outrageous figure from.
There is one figure on there that puzzles me and that is a supposed bank/building society account which is paying me a couple of thousand pounds interest every year on which I have paid tax. However, I don't have a building society account and there is only a few pounds in my bank account so I am going to go through all my tax statements this weekend and I will phone them on Monday. I want to know where this so called account is so that I can get hold of the enormous amount of capital that is earning me all this interest and if they still insist I owe them this money I wonder if they have tried getting blood out of a stone!
They can't have what I haven't got!

A nip in the air

So, the northern parts of the country have had the first snow of winter and there's more to come over the next few days which means we might get a light covering here in the west country. It never ceases to amaze me when people complain about the weather being cold, after all, it is winter so we should expect it to be cold.
When I was a child every winter was cold and we didn't have central heating in those days either. The windows were very often covered in frost and ice on the inside and also had the most amazing 'feathers' which we were told had been painted by Jack Frost. When I was very small I thought he must be incredibly clever to paint such beautiful designs! In the mornings it was so cold we could see our own breath in the bedroom and sometimes we would get dressed underneath the bedclothes then go down for breakfast. This was either porridge or bacon, egg and fried bread before going out to school, it certainly kept us warm.
I can remember being dressed in so many layers it was nothing short of a miracle that I could move at all. First there was a cream woollen vest, then a liberty bodice which was stuffed with 'thermogene' which was a treated cotton wool supposed to stop us from getting 'chesty'. On top of this was a school blouse followed by gymslip and cardigan. We had to wear horrible scratchy, voluminous navy blue knickers which had legs that could be pulled down over the tops of thick stockings kept up by elastic garters. When we went outside we were topped off by a coat which had the gloves threaded through the sleeves on a long plaited piece of wool so that we didn't lose them, a scarf was tied around our neck and we wore knitted woollen 'pixie' hats. I had so many layers on I'm sure I couldn't bend my arms and I must have weighed twice as much fully clothed!
We didn't really feel the cold as we were running about far more than the children of today. Most of our time was spent outside playing, we didn't have television until I was about ten but I still preferred to be outside with my friends. Even today I much prefer to be outside when I can and I don't have proper central heating, so when I'm indoors I just put on extra layers. In some ways, I'm rather glad that we get some good cold snaps because it gives me the chance to wear some of the thick jumpers that I've had for years so I'm glad I didn't send them off to the charity shops!

They've got a cheek!

So the students are revolting again (pardon me, but I've always found the majority of them revolting!). Not only are they causing a whole lot of inconvenience to people who have to live or work in the areas where they are holding their protests, but they are also taking up police resources which cost those of us who pay council tax and taxes an enormous amount of money which is in pretty short supply at present. Then there is also the cost of injury and damage that they cause to innocent policemen, members of the public and property too. The majority of these students haven't even begun to pay money into the system yet as they are at school, college or university, so why should they think it's alright to incur huge bills on those of us who do pay?
The students (and some of the university lecturers) are demonstrating about the fact that the government is withdrawing some of the maintenance funding and increasing the tuition fees so that anyone who goes to university will either have to have extremely rich parents, or have a huge debt when they leave but which they will not have to start repaying until they earn a certain level of wages. The government has said that there will be some support for students from low income families so that they can receive a university education.
TOUGH! Have this lot not heard that our economy is in an extremely precarious position and that EVERYONE is having to make sacrifices. I haven't heard that they've come out to protest about bankers receiving large bonuses, footballers being paid obscene salaries or television personalities clawing in huge wage packets.
The problem with a lot of people in this country is that they have lived up to their necks in debt for so many years with easy credit that things have now got totally out of control. Everything has been dropped into the laps of many people with very little effort on their part and although I don't agree with everything this government is doing, I think that the input from two parties is far better than the alternatives.
I am quite sure that those demonstrating today won't be very pleased if they discover in years to come that they have to foot the bill for today's excesses and have to endure even more cutbacks. Wake up and smell the coffee! Spending money we don't have will not work.

How can I resist?

On Sunday afternoon when Sarah came over to pick up Eden she brought Harley with her because he hadn't been able to go to his Dad's. Sarah wanted to go over to the homestore shop because they have a Christmas room and all the decorations and gifts were half price and other parts of the store also had some reduced prices so Eden went with her to help her.
I don't very often get time alone with Harley who is ten, he's quite a handful sometimes and always seems to have had new batteries inserted before he comes to see me! Sunday was no different but after about ten minutes he slowed down a bit to my speed and tried to explain what the little gadget was that he was playing with. It was some electronic computerised thingy and with me being a technophobe Harley was finding it quite difficult getting me to understand. His birthday was only a couple of weeks ago so I asked him what he had received then he reeled off all the presents that had been given to him.
Then I asked him what he would like for Christmas. Usually he will start with the most expensive Lego set and say "If you haven't got enough money for that then there's......" and so he comes down in price until eventually he gives me the name of the cheapest kit and the price. This time he tried a different tactic because I gave him the Argos catalogue and he showed me two items that he wanted saying "If you get both of these then you can save £5 because they're much cheaper if you buy two so instead of thirty pounds you can get both for £25!"
This time he didn't give me an alternative but he knows that my income is limited now that I'm retired and he thinks that if I save a whole £5 I will be much better off! He'll learn as he gets older!

Squirrel antics

Since September I have had a new squirrel take over the territory left when Squidge and all the others disappeared suddenly in August. This one was very shy at first but he has become quite mischeivous and is a lot tamer in that he doesn't bother too much if I go out the back door, he'll just go behind the fence at the top of the garden and peer over to see what I am up to.
His diet is also a lot more varied because he particularly like sunflower kernels (which are quite expensive so I have called this one 'Sunny'), Tesco's cheap equivalent of hob-nob biscuits, tasty shoots off the honeysuckle and the robin seed and insect mix as well as the peanuts in the special feeder which is screwed just under the bird table.
This morning I put out some seed onto the bird table and also a small handful of sunflower kernels as usual. I have two hanging seed feeders for the birds because they make less mess so I put just a small amount on the bird table, mainly for the robin and sparrows, but for the squirrel too. Sunny came down onto the bird table and munched his way through the sunflower kernels and anything else he fancied. A few minutes later when I looked out, he was climing up one of the poles outside the kitchen window trying to work out how to get at the hole in the seed feeder. I tapped on the window and called out to him and he just looked at me for a second or two then carried on so I tapped on the window again. He ignored me so I opened the back door and told him to get down because that wasn't his food. He crept down like a scolded child and crept to the other side of the path watching me and pretending he'd done nothing wrong. As soon as I came back inside he was up the pole to the metal feeder with the peanuts in for the birds! Again I went outside and told him to get down so he stalked off to the fence at the top of the garden.
At this stage I decided the only way to keep him off the bird feeders was to put 'seconds' of seed and sunflower kernels out for him and I put a few peanuts for good measure on the bird table too. When I came in he was up on the bird table in no time stuffing his face so I don't think he will need anything else to eat until tomorrow at least!

Introducing turnips!

The excitement is starting to build because this afternoon I will be going to collect Eden for the weekend. She hasn't been down for a few weeks as she went out with her friends a couple of weeks ago to celebrate the birthday of one of them and last week she was on rememberance parade because she is in St. John's Ambulance. She actually laid the wreath of poppies at the war memorial because the person that was supposed to do it had been taken ill so did not turn up.
Anyway, I have been trying to plan the meals for the weekend and Eden has asked for prawn risotto tonight when we get back so that's quite easy. Yesterday, I sorted out the freezer and discovered a few things that need using up so I will be able to grant another of her wishes for lunch tomorrow and we will be making green pea and ham soup, then for the evening we will be making a proper beef casserole. Now, she's always keen to learn how to make different dishes and also likes to try new things so tomorrow we will be putting a proper white turnip into the casserole because it's something she has never tried. In the past she has tried all the other root vegetables such as carrot, swede and parsnip and has enjoyed them so now she will be able to try turnip as she has often asked what they are like.
As for Sunday, I had planned to do a roast shoulder of pork with crackling but Sarah has had a few dental problems this week and had a tooth removed then had to have the gum stitched so we'll be having a softer option of bolognese ragout with pasta!

Not the same

Yesterday when I went to the farmers' market one of the stalls that I usually use for my fruit and some vegetables was missing. It wasn't in the usual place, so, thinking that I had missed it, I walked halfway up the row and scanned each one in turn on both sides. Realising I hadn't made a mistake I went to the young man next to where the stall normally stood but had been replaced by one selling garlic. I asked if he knew where they were because I know the lady quite well and it was most unusual for her to miss. It turned out that her husband had to go to hospital for some tests and there wasn't anyone to do the stall this week but she was hoping to be back next week.
Now I like to spend my money by buying a little from as many stalls as possible because I feel that as local growers, they all deserve support. Besides, I like to know that my vegetables were growing in the field the previous day not too far from where I live, much fresher than any supermarket! So, I bought all my vegetables from the couple that I buy carrots, potatoes and greens from but they don't sell fruit.
Instead, I went to the only other stall that sells a lot of little known English apple varieties and they also make their own apple juice and cider too. The trouble is, their fruit is a lot more expensive and very variable, certainly organic (as is my usual stall) but the fruits on this stall have been sampled by a whole lot more insects. Anyway, I picked out a few apples that hadn't been chomped on by too many insects and hoped that I wouldn't find any inside and while there I also bought a bottle of perry (a cider made from pears) which I thought I would save for Christmas.
Well, I like to have an apple every day after my lunch so today I tried one of the apples I bought yesterday and although it's crisp, juicy and tart it's not quite the same when you have to have a small knife in your hand to remove the unknown insect 'teethmarks'!

And the main story is..........

Now that Prince William has proposed to his long time girlfriend, Katy Middleton, there will be no stopping the newspapers, magazines and television companies from pouring out acres of print and hours of boring television viewing. Their stories, all of which have been covered before in great detail, will be churned out again and again in various disguises and every part of their relationship will be analysed and dissected to within an inch oblivion.
I wish them both all the luck for their future but also fear for them because they are now very public property and they stand even less chance of privacy than they did before. OK, so he is a future King of our country but even so, surely he and his future wife should be entitled to some life away from the public eye.
After all, we all know what happened to his mother Princess Diana, so lets hope that this young lady can cope with the pressures that she is about to face.

Strange dreams and odd sounds

It must be some of the medication that I have to take because since it's been adjusted I have been having the strangest dreams and also hear the most peculiar sounds in the room that I'm in even though I am alone. I know that one lot of tablets is responsible for me gaining a lot of weight and I'm still battling with that but have only had a modest degree of success so far so I think I will have to work on some new recipes.
Perhaps I ought to start writing down some of the peculiar dreams that I am having because I feel quite sure that they would make excellent science fiction stories! In my dreams I have been to the strangest destinations in the universe and met some of the weirdest occupants of these planets and stars but have never had any problems communicating with them and neither have I ever felt scared. I know it seem strange but I have never seen Star Wars, only bits of it, and I don't watch science fiction movies or read books, so have no idea where these dreams originate. There's certainly no external influence but I'm sure that someone who 'reads' the meaning of dreams would offer an explanation, not that I care!
The medication is also responsible for the peculiar sounds I hear very often when I'm alone, but I've already worked out that it's my stomach making the noises even though the sounds seem to come from about four feet to my left! There have been the odd occasions when I have been really startled and sometimes a little frightened by the noises especially when I am in bed, but now I know where they come from it isn't quite as bad.
I am sure that Emma (and probably you) will read this post and decide that I have totally 'lost my marbles' but let me reassure you, I haven't.....not really :D

Blowing the whistle....again

Ever since my neighbours moved in just over a year ago I have had to endure loud 'rave' type music most weekends and also the screams, banging and foul language from a young teenager very early in the mornings.
Yes, I do know that something can be done about excessive noise and so I reported the matter together with a comprehensive 'noise diary' in the summer. The council noise pollution officer contacted the neighbour by letter and a couple of days later she knocked on my door and got quite nasty with me. She was also so inebriated at the time I was surprised that she could stand. Over the next few weeks there were other occasions when she shouted abuse that was directed at me late at night as she came home drunk again.
He is not very pleasant either, the sort of person who would put one arm around you while quietly twisting a knife into your ribs with the other hand and smiling as if he was your best friend. He tried pushing my fence over one weekend for no reason whatsoever and I had to call the police. When they called there they couldn't get an answer so came back the next day and he denied being in at the time. Luckily I think they knew he was lying because they were aware of the other problems I had had with them.
Since the original complaint, I have had to endure more very loud music at some time or other most weekends but I have been too afraid of reporting it because of repercussions like those I had before. The problem is, they think they are 'untouchable' because they own their own house so are not breaking any tenancy agreement and therefore cannot be evicted. This weekend was the last straw.
It started at 7:30am on Friday morning with the blood curdling screams, banging and foul language from the daughter and as she was in their bathroom which is directly next to mine (I was in the shower at the time), I heard every word and I believed that her mother had hit her. This is child abuse. Then on Saturday and Sunday there were periods of very loud music which sounded like a 'rave' but they always stop before the noise pollution teams come on duty at 7:30pm. I did complain yesterday and got them to log the call but today I have sent them a very long e-mail detailing everything that has happened this weekend so now social services will probably investigate and hopefully the council will take action so that I can return to a peaceful life.
If they even dare to try to victimise me this time I will certainly contact the police and this time, I will be making a formal complaint for harassment and victimisation.

Spicy tomato and red lentil soup

This recipe is a perfect winter warmer and is very quick and easy to make.
For about 4 servings you will need:

5 or 6 large ripe tomatoes (or 1 tin chopped tomatoes)

2 cloves of garlic - crushed

1 large onion - chopped quite small

1 tablespoon sunflower oil

1 tablespoon tomato puree

1 teaspoon each of garam masala and ground cumin

half teaspoon sambal oelek

2 pints vegetable stock

1 tablespoon chopped coriander leaves (fresh or dry)

2 cups red lentils

1. Heat the oil in a large pan and gently cook the chopped onion and garlic until soft but not coloured.
2. Add all the other ingredients and simmer gently for about 20 minutes until the lentils are cooked.
3. Leave to cool then blitz in a blender or use a stick blender but the soup does not have to be completely smooth.
4. Reheat before serving with some crusty bread. Yummy :D

Ahh! Bless.....

Very often on a Friday morning when I am coming back from doing a bit of shopping I come across a very pleasant young man dressed in a smart suit, with a shorthand notebook and pen in hand, outside of the Evening Post building.
Each week he has to stop passers by and ask for their opinions on various subjects such as the bus lanes, taxis, wearing poppies and today it was whether we think the shops prepare for Christmas too early. Each time I see him we stop and have a little chat and he tries very hard to persuade me to let him print my thoughts together with my photo in the Evening Post and each time I decline. Today was no exception, especially as my hair was pretty windswept making me resemble one of Macbeth's three witches and I don't really want to frighten the horses!
We had a little chat about Christmas goods being on display even before the children return to school in September and that many people have forgotten the real meaning of Christmas. Then I asked him why they always sent him out. Had he done something to upset someone? He laughed and said he only works on a Friday and to become a journalist this is one of the things he will have to put up with. He said the problem is, he can't find many people to talk to or they don't want to stop or have their picture in the paper. I felt both a little guilty and also sorry for him, then I suggested that he might have a bit more success in the pub just along the road.
I don't know whether he had any luck because I don't ever buy the Evening Post but I hope he did.

Shameful behaviour

I was shocked when I saw the news yesterday evening and watched the 'students' demonstrating against the plans the government has made to raise the tuition fees for universities. The thousands of pounds worth of damage that some of them caused is absolutely disgusting and if this is how the 'educated' amongst our younger generation behave then there is no hope for society in the future.
Students in this country are extremely lucky because even with this increase the fees are still nowhere near those of universities on the continent or the USA. They don't even have to start repaying their debts until they are earning far more than the average wage and for those who come from particularly disadvantaged backgrounds there will still be help. I am all for the increase because I didn't even have the opportunity to think about going to university as my family were certainly nowhere near well off and we were told that girls from our background did not need a career as we were expected to get married and rear children. If I had been able to go to university I most certainly would have jumped at the chance even if it meant that I would spend a lot of my working life repaying the cost.
The taxpayer cannot be expected to pay for the extended education of these people and besides, perhaps it will stop a lot of them doing what we used to call 'Mickey Mouse' degrees that are no use to man nor beast. I know from working in the jobcentre that those with non academic degrees usually had no idea of what work they wanted to do, preferably nothing at all if they could get away with it, and they only went to university for the 'social aspect' and because it pleased their parents. These youngsters also expected to walk into jobs paying top wages yet they had no work experience, no sense of self presentation and were some of the scruffiest, smelliest people that I have ever met. With the new changes to the welfare system some of these could be in for a very nasty shock in a few years time!

Sweet temptations

Last week at the farmers' market I bought some Bramley cooking apples because the apple crops have been excellent this year so there's no better time to take advantage of a plentiful supply of delicious fruits. There are also splendid selections of good, sweet eating apples too, including some very rare Old English varieties, so I have been spoiled for choice.
With the Bramleys, I made a French apple cake which was simply delicious so I bought a couple more Bramleys today and also some very large conference pears which I also love. The afternoon has been spent looking through the cookery books for ideas to use the fruits as I would normally eat the pears as they are and although I like a good apple pie I thought I would like something different for a change.
There are dozens of recipes for using the apples in various ways either in cakes or desserts and I haven't yet decided which one I will use but I didn't find that many for pears. One idea I did have which I will try to see if it works is a pear and almond clafoutis. I can hear the French yelling at me now saying that I should use cherries or even plums but I'm afraid they're out of season!
So this weekend I will be busy in the kitchen and if everything turns out alright I will put the recipe on the blog. Next week I will buy some more Bramleys and will probably make an apple pie for Sunday dinner when Sarah comes to collect Eden.

A day for hats

With the weather being very windy and a bit damp this morning I decided to give my hat it's first outing of the season. The trouble is, my hair is so fine and getting thinner too so even the slightest breath of wind makes a mess of it and I don't like to use too much hairspray.
Now, I have never been a 'hat' person but I bought this one a long time ago before Emma moved to Norfolk. I called it my dog walking hat because it was perfect for the odd occasion when we took the dogs for a walk in the woods after lunch when I visited her on a Sunday. For years it has been in the cupboard and last year when we had the very cold weather I decided to get it out and wear it.
At first I was a bit reluctant but eventually I decided that I didn't really care what I looked like as long as I was warm and didn't have my hair blowing all over the place. I must admit that it didn't look too bad and so I wore it quite a lot last winter and will do so again. Now I am looking for a rain hat too because this one is made of a woolly kind of material and the style is a sort of bucket shape with a flat top. The problem is, my head is quite small because I have tried on hats in several shops and they have come down over my eyes and ears so that I couldn't see out and I can't remember where I bought this one. The answer is to try a child's hat but I don't know whether they make rain hats for children but Emma suggested that I try one of the outdoor clothing shops like Milletts.
I think maybe I will wait until Eden comes down in a couple of weeks because she will give me an honest opinion on my choice and will no doubt tell me how ridiculous I look too!

A hot date with Hosay (Jose)

Since retiring I have had to change my dentist because I cannot afford to pay the fee to go privately anymore and my last visit was in March. Luckily, a new dentist has started up only twenty minutes walk away and they were taking new NHS patients so I duly trotted along last month and registered. They made an appointment for me to see the dentist for a check-up a couple of days later and afterwards, she recommended that I see the hygienist so I made the appointment but there was a couple of weeks wait.
Today I attended my appointment and the hygienist turned out to be a young dark haired man with very dark mysterious eyes. He introduced himself as Hosay (Jose). I am not sure if he was Spanish or from a South American country but his accent was very heavy.
He looked into my mouth and then breathed "Higham going to geev you a deep clean" and then proceeded to scrape away at my teeth humming quietly to himself as he worked. Now I'm not really a fan of any dentist or hygienist but I am terrified of having either false teeth or badly stained dirty looking teeth and that's why I religiously turn up on time for all my dental appointments.
After a few minutes my clasped hands were getting tighter across my middle and he stopped and asked me if I was alright. I told him I was and then he said "You haf tartar everywhere so if I hurt you just lift your hand". I nodded and he carried on scraping and humming and every so often muttered "Tartar everywhere". Eventually he finished and asked me to rinse and while I was doing this he asked me what sort of toothbrush I used, did I floss and did I use a mouthwash. I said that I used an electric toothbrush and yes, I did floss and occasionally used interdental brushes but not mouthwash (remembering that I emptied a half bottle down the drain last week because it had been on the bathroom shelf untouched for about six months).
"Don't waste your money on mouthwash" he said, "Just use toothpaste and water. There eez no need for mouthwash". Then he told me that my cleaning was very good even in the difficult areas but the reason he had given me a deep clean was because the tartar was just below the gum line. He went on to explain that this may only need to be done once a year and just a general scrape and clean in six months time.
When I got home I looked in the mirror and there is certainly a big difference. I know too many people my age and older who believe that going to the hygienist only damages the teeth and so consequently their teeth don't look very nice and I certainly wouldn't want them in my mouth!

Someone's seen the light at last

This morning I nearly choked on my muesli while I listened to the news because at last a politician has 'seen the light' so Praise be to God because it's something that's long, long overdue.
Before long those who have been unemployed for over a year will be made to carry out jobs such as cleaning the streets, gardening, painting schools etc. and if they refuse then their benefits will be sanctioned for up to three months.
I wouldn't mind betting that tomorrow morning a lot of advisers in the jobcentres up and down the country will be jumping up and down and shouting with joy. For the last seven or more years of my working life I dealt with long term unemployed and a huge majority of them had no intention of finding work, many were working cash in hand or up to other scams but they knew as long as they 'played the game' there wasn't anything we could do about it, besides, they all knew how to get round the system better than any of us. We knew all the best ways to catch them out though!
So now they will have no choice and the reason that this step is being taken is to get people into a routine of getting up and going to work. Many of the younger unemployed don't even realise that ther is more than one 9 o'clock in the day!
So at last, it's a step in the right direction and now all he has to do is to enforce a system similar to 'the green card' that was in operation many years ago where an employer had to employ ten per cent of employees with a green card. This was carried by those who had some barrier to employment and included those who had certain disabilities and those with learning difficulties who would otherwise have been unemployed. Employers today often don't want to bother with people who need repetitive menial tasks and extra supervision so these people are pushed out of normal society and are left to claim either jobseeker's allowance or employment support allowance. So, the government now needs to bring in legislation to help these people, many of whom would like to work, and make employers give them adequate support because although employers are not supposed to discriminate against people like this, they most certainly do.

The great Christmas rip off

This morning when I was out shopping I did actually buy my first Christmas present. OK, so I know it is only a little squeaky toy for Eden's dog but because she's so small it can be quite difficult to find something suitable for her. I also bought back a gift catalogue from Boots so that I could browse through it, perhaps to get some ideas and I wanted to look for a particular item that Sarah had asked for for Christmas.
When I got home I made a cup of coffee and sat down to look through and I was absolutely shocked at how much people are ripped off at Christmas. Now I know that perfumes are expensive, but when they put them in a fancy box with a small tube of body lotion then you will probably need a mortgage to buy it. Then there are the bath products, usually very small sizes of bath foam, body lotion and hand cream in a toilet bag and costing three times as much as they would if you bought each item separately. The same goes for cosmetics such as lipstick, eye shadows and nail varnish. Several different colours in smaller than usual pots but costing much more than they normally would.
Now, I've made a point of asking Sarah and my grand-children what they want for Christmas so that I can buy the right things and I know then that they won't be disappointed on Christmas Day. They also know that now I have retired I don't have as much money to spend on them as I used to and they have accepted that. I just don't understand people who spend so much on Christmas presents that it takes them the whole of next year paying for them and shops and advertising men are very good at getting them to part with their money. Spending the earth on someone does not prove that you think anymore of them because love and respect cannot be bought.
Besides, Christmas has become so commercialised that I am sure most people have forgotten the real meaning and why we have it in the first place, instead they prefer to worship at the house of retail rather than the house of God.

Say cheese!

Watching part of a television programme today where the presenter was in Wensleydale in Yorkshire, visiting a dairy that made Wensleydale cheese, I was reminded of many years ago when I had a go at making Cheddar cheese.
It was when I was nursing and working in theatres, I had a friend who came from a dairy farm in Somerset. We were both lucky enough to have the same day off one week and she wanted to go home to get some jumpers. As she didn't have a car and I did, we set off to the farm which was about thirty five miles away.
When we arrived and she had got what she needed she asked if I would like to see the dairy where her parents were both working. I didn't need to be asked twice. We met her Dad in the dairy and he started to show me around while my friend was talking to her Mum. They were in the process of making cheese so they asked me if I would like to have a go to. Of course I did, after all, it's not every day an opportunity like that comes along!
Her Dad had explained the process and now her Mum showed me how to get hands on. All the time I was helping I was asking loads of questions because I like to know how everything works and by the time my visit had come to an end I had received a full personal guided tour and also tried the end product.
The day was certainly one that I will never forget and as we were leaving I thanked her Mum and Dad for such an interesting day. Her Dad told me that I could go back any time because it had been a pleasure to find someone so interested and told me that he often had students from an agricultural college who didn't show as much interest as I had.

A brick in the box

The weather has been a bit strange to say the least this week and it has been unseasonably warm for early November. In fact I have only turned on a couple of heaters and they are on low at the moment. We did have a couple of quite cold mornings a week ago and on Monday last week I even wore my gloves when I went out. I have also noticed that during the last week there have been some quite heavy leaf falls from the trees and their colours are now changing rapidly too.
This week we have had quite a lot of sunny weather but now we have some Atlantic weather fronts which are moving across the country in waves and one of the features of these is the wind which can be quite strong and very gusty at times.
That is why I was woken at 1:15am this morning with a loud crash and in my state of half wakefulness I realised that it was probably my waste food container heading off down the street, probably following the large black re-cycling box as both had been emptied yesterday. There was no way that I was going out at that time to retrieve them and after all, even if they were in the middle of the road I didn't think that there would be that much traffic anyway.
Eventually I managed to doze off again, I had turned on the radio and the American election results were on so that sent me off to sleep! At 5am I woke again and at least the gusty winds had died down but I still could not go back to sleep so at 6am I decided that I would make a cup of tea. While I was at it, I thought I might as well put some clothes on and go out while there was no-one about to find my food bin and re-cycling box.
So there I was with no make-up and very hastily dressed, out wandering down the road at 6am looking for the box. As it turned out it was only the food waste box that had taken off and I found it in the middle of the road about thirty yards away so I picked it up and brought it home. If any cars had come along the road, they had probably driven around it and although it has my house number on it, no-one would bother to bring it back. I couldn't understand how the wind had extricated it from the big black box which I stand on it's end and then put the food waste box inside and anyway, why is it only mine that gets blown down the road?
The forecast is for more gusty and strong winds tonight so I have put a brick into a plastic bag and put it in the food waste box so hopefully it won't disappear tonight and I will get a good night's sleep. I must remember to remove the brick before the waste collection next week!

What about my human rights?

I was disgusted today to hear on the news that some b****y European court has told Britain that we are breaking the law by denying prisoners their human rights by not letting them vote in elections. The ex-prisoner that challenged the 'right to vote' a few years ago, was interviewed on the radio this morning. He had served an eight year sentence for manslaughter, he killed his landlady by smashing her head with an axe. Well, he didn't give a thought for her human rights to live did he? He should have been locked up for life even if the crime wasn't pre-planned because he took the life of another person.
The problem with prisoners is they get everything their own way because most prisons are more like luxury hotels. If someone is sent to prison for any crime, then they should expect to be denied not only their freedom, but all the luxuries that many ordinary hard working people cannot have. The living conditions in many prisons are far superior to those of many honest citizens and yet it's the taxpayer (again) that has to fund their luxury lifestyles.
Not only that, when they are discharged from prison, they go to the top of the social housing lists ahead of people who like me, have worked all their lives, paid all their taxes and get pushed down the list by someone who has deliberately made themselves homeless by comitting a crime in the first place. Many also have no intention of working either because from my time in the Jobcentre, they would nearly all say "No one will employ me because I have a record". Once again the taxpayer (including me, because my little bit of pension is taxed too) has to pay their housing benefit and Jobseeker's Allowance.
So what about the human rights of all honest and hard working people? Surely we have a right to decent, affordable accommodation and the right to keep our pensions without them being taxed.

I wonder who ate that?

Yesterday I baked some scones and later in the afternoon after Tinkerbell and I got back from our walk, I decided to have one with a cup of tea. As the dog was very interested in what I had, I buttered another one and broke a half into pieces in her bowl then I ate the other half myself.
However, she wasn't really interested and just licked some of the butter then walked away. Just before she went home I emptied the bowl onto the bird table so that the bowl could be washed ready for Sarah to take home.
I didn't give much thought to the scone on the bird table until this morning when I was cleaning the oven. I had opened the back door to let some fresh air in because I had to use a chemical spray cleaner in the top oven and I don't like the smell. It was then that I noticed the bird table was completely cleared of food including the scone. I knew that the birds wouldn't have eaten it last night because the clocks changed this weekend and it was dusk when I put it on the bird table so I wondered who had eaten it all. Sometimes a magpie comes to the table and so do a pair of collared doves but I know that they usually come around lunchtime when they know there will be food on the table.
While I waited for the oven cleaner to do it's stuff I decided to put out a little more food onto the bird table because the robin prefers the table to the bird feeders and I also included some sunflower kernels for the suirrel. Within five minutes of coming back inside the squirrel was up on the bird table stuffing his face so I think he was probably watching me from his hiding place on the wall where he can hide in the honeysuckle. Perhaps he ate the scone because he seems to have a taste for things other than nuts. Maybe I might put some more scone out another day or even a biscuit and watch to see who's eating it.

A dog-sitting weekend

Eden went away for the weekend with her Mum and brother so I was aked to look after Tinkerbell. She has stayed with me before on a couple of occasions but Eden has always been here as well. This time it was just the two of us so I had a 'shadow' for the entire weekend because she searched everywhere just in case I had hidden Eden but she couldn't find her.
Yesterday I took her out for a couple of good walks which seemed to tire her out and when I got up this morning we went out quite early so that I could bake some bread and scones when I got back. While I was baking she sat in the kitchen doorway watching my every move because I think she was worried that I might abandon her too.
After lunch I decided to take her out on quite a long walk over Castle Green and she really enjoyed this especially when she saw the squirrels and other dogs being walked too. When we got back home she was tired out and slept for an hour or so just because I wanted to take some pictures of her. Anyway, I did manage to get a couple in the end just before Eden and Sarah called to collect her so I'm reasonably pleased with the one above.

Tag from Emma

Emma wondered if I would answer eight questions sent as a tag to her on her blog so here goes. (By the way, I think she was supposed to do eight new questions but I still can't get the hang of this computer stuff so hopefully I've put in a link to her blog that works!).http://mad-chickens-and-ducks.blogspot.com/

1. What is your biggest pet peeve? Having to queue to pay in a shop with BAD customer service. If I'm giving them my custom I expect to be treated as someone who is important to them. I don't expect to have to join a queue in order to keep them in a job and their shareholders and managers in big fat dividends from the profits.


2. Do you sleep with your sheets tucked in or out? I've got a duvet but when I did have sheets I always untucked them so I could hang my legs out or throw off the covers if I got too hot.


3. Do you think it's OK for guys to wear pink? Yes, as long as it doesn't come out of my wardrobe or clash with what I'm wearing.


4. Where would you bury hidden treasure if you had some? I did once but can't remember where I put it! Seriously, if I did have treasure to bury I would keep the location secret otherwise you'd all be out there digging it up.


5. Do you have any magazine subscriptions? No. I only get a newspaper on a Saturday and hardly get the time to read that.


6. What is your song of the week? The tune stuck in my head is actually the hymn 'How Great Thou Art' but the best tune I heard this week was the song the robin was singing at five thirty on Monday morning.


7. When was the last time you wrote a letter to someone on paper? About five months ago but because I have arthritis I'm glad I can do them on this contraption and print them off and I also use e-mail occasionally. I always write birthday and Christmas cards by hand.


8. What country would you like to visit? I think I would like to visit Morocco as I haven't been there.

Mushy brains!

Despite the migraine I made my weekly trip to the farmers' market this morning, but having taken some strong pain killers I was a bit 'spaced out' and not really with it. I really hate not feeling my best and try to carry on as though there is nothing wrong with me but sometimes I end up giving in later in the day and so it was today.
As I made my way across the front of the church on Castle Green, I met the park keeper who saw me kicking up the leaves the other day and this morning he was sweeping them into big black plastic bags. I told him that I would have skipped through them again today if they hadn't been wet from the rain last night. Then he said this week was the last week he would be there as his job was seasonal, so when the rest of the leaves come down, they would have to stay there and I would be able to kick them about as much as I like. I wished him good luck with his winter job and went on my way.
Because I needed potatoes today I had taken my big shopping trolley so that I could get all the fruit and vegetables in. You'd be surprised how much room a cabbage and a large bunch of carrots take up and then there's the meat, fish and eggs etc. One of the last stalls I visit is where I get my cooked ham and I had also ordered some cooked beef for my neighbour so I got those together with a few other things. When I asked how much it came to the man told me and I handed over the money. On my way back across the green I thought that it had seemed to be a lot for what I had bought so tried to mentally add up the prices. My brain doesn't function properly when it hurts so much, so I gave up and decided to do it when I got home.
When I got back I unpacked the shopping and found that there was a small joint of boned, rolled shoulder of pork without any label in the bag with my name on which contained the beef order. Now this was something that I hadn't ordered so I thought someone else must have ordered it and it had been put in the wrong bag. I got on the phone to the farm shop which is about twenty miles away and as soon as I said who I was the man laughed and asked if by any chance I had a joint of pork. The lady who had ordered it had turned up shortly after I had left the stall and that's when the mistake was discovered so the man on the stall had rung the shop to let them know.
The man on the phone told me that the other lady had been sorted out and apologised to me so I told him that as I had paid for the joint, I would put it in the freezer to use at a later date. He did say that they don't usually get people to try their produce by forcing it on them but I told him we can all make mistakes and if I hadn't had such a headache I might have realised that there had been a mistake when I paid.

Another trip to the madhouse!

Having yet another summons to attend the surgery today, I arrived well in time for my appointment only to find they were all running late so I took a seat in the almost full waiting area. With this doctors' surgery I think there has only ever been one occasion when the waiting room was almost deserted and the people waiting were what I would call 'normal', that was some years ago when I had a very early morning appointment before I went to work and the surgery had only just opened.
This morning was the usual chaos which didn't help me because I had not slept much again and had been woken very early with a migraine which can make me 'a little sharp'. Anyway, I sat down opposite a rather large lady who, together with her three teenage daughters, seemed rather bemused at the goings on around them. I had a feeling that this may have been their first trip to this surgery.
Most of those waiting were Somali women with an assortment of children of varying ages. The women were having a loud discussion in their own language while the children were either running around or arguing over which one was going to play with which bit of the puzzle that is fixed to the table.
To my left was another family of three generations, Grandma, Grandpa, daughter with her teenage daughter and small son who could scream to burst anyone's eardrums. He had obviously had new batteries inserted before coming as he was continuously tearing around almost knocking some of the old ladies over as they were called to the treatment room. I wasn't sure which of this family were waiting to see the doctor but I don't think it was the little tearaway!
On my right was a young man with a mobile phone glued to his ear, ignoring the notices around the waiting area which request mobile phones to be turned off, he was obviously speaking to a friend because he was telling him about his exploits on a trip he had made to London at the weekend. Then there were the drug addicts who can't sit still but are up and down like yo-yo's while they wait to see the doctor and they also take frequent trips outside for a smoke. Their comings and goings are enough to make anyone dizzy.
Finally, behind me was an elderly lady and her husband. He must have been very deaf because she had to keep repeating things, eventually shouting quite loudly at him, telling him he needed a hearing aid and should ask the doctor for one. He just mumbled back at her and I got the feeling he was quite happy not to be able to hear her!
At last my name was called so I heaved a big sigh of relief and went in. Hopefully, I won't need to go there again for a long time but I think they will be requesting my company in another three months.

S

A stroll in the park

The weather forecast for today was very good, starting off with a crisp frost together with sunshine from dawn to dusk. This time of year makes me very restless because I would dearly love to be in the countryside so that I could take a good long walk and enjoy the weather and the scenery. Sadly, I'm stuck in this wretched city and if I do go for a walk, I need places where I can either sit and rest every so often, or where there is something that I can lean on for a few minutes until my legs and back have recovered a bit.
So, unable to go back to sleep after waking very early, I got up and decided that after breakfast I would go for a walk. There was nothing I needed in town except some milk, so I decided to go over to Castle Park and thought I could get the milk in the newsagent's on the way home. I got my gloves out of the cupboard, put on my jacket and walking boots and set off.
The sunshine was very bright and lit up the colours on the trees with an almost flourescent effect and I was sorry I hadn't taken my camera. When I got acrosss the park I saw a blind gentleman that I frequently stop and chat to with his guide dog. He takes his dog to the park most days and this is the time when he can be a dog and not work so he gets to play ball and do what dogs do for a while. They had been away for a holiday last week so I asked how they had got on and he told me they had had a really good time as it was in the countryside and also on a canal barge. After chatting awhile we walked on and at the top of the park the man and his dog went on their way and I continued my walk.
There is one area where there are quite a few mature trees and as I walked along the path beneath them I could hear a couple of robins singing at each other from either side of the path. It was obviously a territorial thing and then I spotted one of them and a few minutes later I saw the other one. They didn't actually square up to each other to fight but both moved along what seemed to be an imaginary boundary, each trying to outsing the other. Some parts of the park were deserted and so I was able to watch the squirrels and other birds from quite close quarters but it's always the way though, just as they get used to you and start coming a bit closer, some idiot comes along talking on a mobile at the top of their voice and frightening them all away again.
If we have another morning like today, I must take my camera with me but it won't be tomorrow as we have been forecast some rain!

Maintaining my standards

I may be retired but I will not let my usual high standards drop probably because I have a degree of 'obsessive compulsive disorder' and that's the way I am. Eden often looks at me in disbelief if we are sitting down and I suddenly jump up to straighten a picture or make the folds of the curtains look neat, but that's the way I am, everything just so.
So, I still clean up regularly and when I do the washing, I iron the same day. I still iron my sheets, pillowcases and duvet covers too but everyone else I know thinks I'm barking mad to do it but I can't stop myself. Besides, there's nothing nicer than slipping into fresh sheets that have been pressed properly.
Even when I was working full time I still did the same as I do now, except that now I can do the cleaning and washing on a week day as well as the shopping so that my weekends are free for Eden and cooking. This is why I cannot understand some of the neighbours around here. The houses are back to back so I can't avoid seeing quite a few gardens, but most of the neighbours that hang out washing seem to leave it out for a week or more.
This amuses me because very often we have a few good drying days in a row then we may get a wet day then dry again but none of them seem to be bothered. My washing has to go into the tumble dryer because I don't have enough room in the garden although I have a very small rotary clothes line, the washing hangs all over the plants. Even if I could dry the laundry outside, I would bring it in as soon as it was ready to iron because there is so much dust from building work in the area and mess from the railway that the clothes are mucky and smelly if left out too long.
Perhaps I'm too fussy for my own good but I'll continue just the way I am, thank you very much!