WEEKLY CHAT (non-osprey) SUNDAY JUNE 28, 2015

'Allo all.  Hope it's a good week for everyone.  Ghastly news from Tunisia - those poor people, sitting on the beach enjoying the sunshine....

Heather:  There's at least one situation like yours in every family (sometimes two or three!).  Makes you wonder where these folks came from  I mean, can they really be related to sensible grown-up like us?  :-)  

Diane: We're on the edges of a tropical storm system heading into the Southwest which could end up in your neighborhood in a few days.  What a pain. It must keep on on edge the whole time.  I do hope the trees around your house are sound   We don't have many needs when it comes to cars, but we just have our trusty Honda Accord and our lovely old 73 Ford Ranger, which guzzles gas big time and is a bear to drive down Santa Barbara's narrow streets (narrow because of parking on both sides - and not narrow at all compared to some roads in England!).  The truck is in great shape but sits out most of the time and it's is beginning to rust in a few places. It takes up the entire garage and I'm the one who takes it and the stepladder to the do-it-yourself car wash where I nearly get blown off the ladder by the water pressure. Truck is too big for a drive-through wash.  Anyway, it's slowly deteriorating and I'd rather see it go to someone who will really care for it - it's pretty much a classic a this point.  I'm thinking sort of long term for a newer SUV with minimal bells and whistles that is versatile and economical.  We're looking at hybrids, but there's not a big choice in the smaller SUVs.  The Toyota RAV 4 will come in a hybrid version for 2016 - at a cost of about $30K!  Typically we buy newer used vehicles but with the recession, folks seem to have hung on to the popular models much longer than usual and the ones advertised on, say, craigslist, have lots of miles on them.  Still, there are much, much worse dilemmas to deal with in the world.

Lindybird: Good news from Glaslyn then.  Ha! Liked the 1-in-5 joke.

That tropical storm that's east of us has brought clouds, humidity - and a sprinkling of rain!  More sprinkling possible in the next two days. Hey!  It's wet. we'll take it.

  • Your flowers are beautiful, Lindy.  I'm pleased that Bonnie has left a few things in your home and garden intact!!

    Our herring gulls are red listed birds.  Think about that the next time you hear some flaming idiot calling for a cull of them.

  • By the way, are there any Arnie fans on here?  You've got to watch this!

    This is hilarious!

    Our herring gulls are red listed birds.  Think about that the next time you hear some flaming idiot calling for a cull of them.

  • Unknown said:

    Hi, all. I forgot to mention that I saw the white-tail deer (doe) that has been staying behind my garage. I only saw her for a moment; she's very skittish, but so pretty. Also, while I mowed yesterday, two turkey vultures kept circling me, around and around. I think they were betting that mowing all that wet, long grass was going to kill me. At one point, I reckoned they were right. :-)))

    Hellen: Welcome! I hope you enjoy this thread. Folks here are friendly.

    Rita: What a scare! I'm glad Amber is okay. I have friends whose dog did that, except he did jump. They were terrified and raced around the house expecting to find him severely injured, but he was happily peeing as if nothing had happened. :-) LOL

    AQ: That's pretty chilly. I always think of your region as being so hot.

    Clare: Nice to see you!

    OG: Hope your lunch was very good.

    Annette: I don't blame you for wanting minimal bells and whistles on the new vehicle. The more features, the more things that can break down. I'd like to have a hybrid, but you're right that they charge such a premium for them. I'm not at all surprised that people are holding onto their cars longer, since the economic collapse. I'm driving a 2002. LOL I hope you find a perfect vehicle. Also, hope that the tropical storm doesn't cause any damage but gives you lots of rain.

    I just read an article about the huge numbers of red tuna crabs invading Southern California for the first time. You mentioned them last week. Colorful, but funny looking little fellas. There's a lot of them!

    All: Is anyone watching Wayward Pines? I read that it's being shown in U.K., as well as the U.S. That's the scariest show I've watched in years! I just finished episode 4.

    Take care, all.

    diane we are watching Wayward pines, as you say very spooky.

  • Good morning all just a quick look in as Billie spending a lot of time in the garden and she likes me to be with her.

    Lindy very pretty flower pics. See Bonnie is still on an unusual diet.

  • Clare Bailey said:

    By the way, are there any Arnie fans on here?  You've got to watch this!

    This is hilarious!

    I saw this on TV somewhere....... v. funny!!  They must have been terrified!!

  • Hello Margo:  Hope you have a pleasant day with good weather for sitting outside.  Its clouded over here but at least we have no excuse not to get on with housework & gardening!

    Bonnie is bringing in various sticks and weeds, and eating them on the carpet!  Thank goodness we invested in a dog gate to keep her at the back of the house!

    EDIT  - not heard of Wayward Pines, but used to love Twin Peaks, years ago!!

  • Lindybird said:

    EDIT  - not heard of Wayward Pines, but used to love Twin Peaks, years ago!!

    Lindy and Annette: The visual effects and character development in Wayward Pines are a lot like Twin Peaks, but Wayward Pines has a science fiction theme. It's being shown on Fox network on both sides of the pond. Annette: You can watch online here, but you'll need to register on your cable provider's site to get a password before you can watch Episode 1. (I watched it early on when it was still free for anyone.)
  • Morning all:

    Clare: Ha! You don't have to be an Arnie fan to get a smile out of that.  So sorry to hear that the job search is still proving a pain in the derriere.  Hope that isn't why you've been AWOL.  We miss you.  

    Lindybird: Proms can be a huge expense - prom dresses, corsages for girlfriends.  Not my style at all, but then the nuns at the Catholic school I went to thought Sports Day was quite social enough thank you.  :-)  The poppy is spectacular!

    Margo: Great to see you; nice to know that Billie is keeping an eye on you.

    Diane: Will take a look at Wayward Pines, but have multiple DVDs of the latest House of Cards in my Netflix queue ("queue" is a very weird looking word - just looked it up. It has multiple origins, but I was amused to read, according to the Online Etymology Dictionary, that "Churchill is said to have coined Queuetopia (1950), to describe Britain under Labour or Socialist rule."   Apparently it didn't catch on....

    OK, off to start the day while wondering how the financial crisis with Greece is going to work out - doesn't sound like it is right now....  :-(

  • Laughing at the strange Churchill quote, Annette! Sad to see the ordinary people in Greece queueing up for their own money, to use the word again in another context. Hope they can find a solution to their huge money woes.
  • I was pleased with the poppy pic, as they are such a fleeting treat, like rainbows and butterflies - its the only way I can enjoy my many different kinds of poppy, all year round, when I look at my photos.