HAPPY NEW WEEK!
Last week's chat thread is here.
Hi, everyone.
Cold, grey, and rainy here, with gusty winds coming from the east coast.
Autumn has begun in Indiana, and I thought I'd post these fall foliage maps for the U.K. and the U.S.
Here's the Autumn Colours 2015 U.K.
Here's the Fall Foliage Prediction Map 2015 for the U.S.
I don't have a nice photo to start this week. I'm off to wrap up in my electric blanket and eat some hot northern bean soup.
Everyone have a wonderful week!!!
Morning all:
Rosy: I'm assuming you haven't had a chance to visit your son in the U.S. yet - has he managed to get home since they moved? I know they have good RT fares from Heathrow to the U.S. East Coast from time to time. My sister (I was born in the UK), lives in Lincolnshire. She and her OH are coming for a visit next April - they're flying into Chicago and taking the train west. The plan at this point is for me to meet them in Santa Fe, New Mexico. I have here a husband, daughter, two grandchildren and now a great-granddaughter (who lives with granddaughter in Arizona). We're all too spread out!
dibnlib: I avoid the library at certain times for the same reason you'll avoid the pool - love the kiddies, but lots of excited shrieking (would be much more echoey in a swimming pool), combined with a few somewhat indulgent young mothers does not make for good browsing.
Quiet on here today - I forget when Lindy and OG get back from their trips...
Speaking of family, we (daughter and I) were hoping to meet granddaughter in Palm Springs this week, but the temps for those days will be close to 100F, so we've tabled that idea. Now, the poor girl is insisting on driving (yet again!) to spend a few days here to celebrate - belatedly - hers and her Mom's b/days. We offered to pay airfare but - no kidding! - it costs more to fly round trip from Phoenix to Santa Barbara right now than from Phoenix to Chicago. My OH suggested (he was just kidding) we all fly to Chicago! I do worry about gdaughteron the road, especially as she heads for home in the middle of the night to avoid Los Angeles area early morning traffic. I suspect daughter will be heading to AZ soon. I was hoping to go for a few days, but timing is all wrong at the moment.
Hello everyone and Rosy - I have been following this forum for years but rarely post but I do read it every day and feel I know all of you as well as my own family. Just wanted to say I am also in SW London - Surbiton to be precise and go regularly to Richmond Park so maybe we could meet up some day Rosy. Also want to say a special hello and GO GIRL to Margo for her dancing at the Bryan Ferry concert - now that's the way to do things.
Tried to take Benson out this afternoon, but it was no go. He dug his feet in so that was that. The first time it was just spitting and the second time it wasn't raining at all. My Goldies would have laughed themselves silly at him.
Hey Harelady: Nice to know you're still lurking happily in Surbiton. :-)
dibnlib: My OH and Benson would get on just fine.
Annette – ‘Chelsea’ is the name of the ancestor’s house in the suburb of Salisbury (then a country town). The house had several owners before my James Thompson bought it in 1898, after his death one of his sons & family lived there, ending in 1975 with James’ unmarried grand-dau. When she became too ill to care for herself & moved to a nursing home, the house was sold. It has had several more owners since then. One considered turning it into a restaurant – it didn’t happen. Before one of the sales, we did sneak a look through at the open inspection. The original name of house was ‘Shirley Hall”, I don’t know why James changed it. Too much info? Well, you did ask LOL.
Rosy – Over many years I have done many adult education classes – spinning, weaving, dressmaking, German, forget the others. Now I just go along on the history bus trips (day or weekend & the occasional interstate 10-day). I live in Adelaide. We have 2 daus, 5 g-chn - 2 are teens, the other 3 are aged 4 y & twins 16 m. As Dau2 isn’t coping with babies, we have a roster to help, hence my grizzles about nanny duty.
Dibnlib – I can sympathize with your swimming “disturbance”. I find the libraries are taken over by mums & toddlers when I want peace & quiet!
I blundered yesterday, turning up as usual to nanny duty before 10 am, when my calendar said 1 pm. I noted Dau’s list on kitchen bench and started chores without anyone underfoot. And had time for sit-down rests. Dau had said she would cope til after lunch as they were going to PlayGroup. Just as well I was there when Dau returned at 11.30 as twins were cranky & tired. MissJ fell asleep in my arms in 3 mins – unbelievable. However she failed to have a 2nd nap later despite me pacing the floor, humming soothingly for ages. MissL rejected me but Dau managed to put her down for a long nap. Over all it wasn’t too bad a day, so why did I fall into bed before 8 pm?
AQ: No, not too much info. I like "small" histories. In fact there's a sort of niche business here for people who research the history of houses for the owners. I love nonfiction history books that focus not only on the backgrounds and internal lives of the main characters, but also the supporting characters who are often not well explored.
Have a good Wednesday everyone.
Hi, all.
Margo: I'm so glad you enjoyed your concert!
dibnlib: The boxer dog that I used to have would resolutely refuse to go outdoors if it was raining. That poor dog so hated getting wet! He would roll his eyes at me, sit down, and would not go out no matter how I coaxed. Your photos you posted are lovely.
Rosy: Welcome! I envy you; I would love to be able to see beautiful water birds every day. I'm especially fond of herons. You're lucky. I do have a couple of red-tailed hawks that stay around my patch, as well as several species of noisy woodpeckers.
Harelady: So nice to see you!
Heather: Glad Amy is okay. Hope the pump learning process goes well.
Brenda: Hope you won at bowls!
George: Best wishes to you for good results on your scans.
Clare: Nice to see you. I saw a bunch of crows yesterday and thought of you. :-)))
AQ: I bookmarked your recent photos to look at tomorrow.
Annette: I want that job researching the history of people's houses! Awful that the flights from Phoenix to Santa Barbara are so expensive. Hope your granddaughter has a safe journey driving both ways. By the way, there's a rocket launch scheduled for very early Thursday morning from Vandenberg Air Force Base. I can't remember whether you can see those launches or your daughter can -- or my memory is faulty!
Take care, all!
Annette: Here's a cartoon for you. Not really funny, given the seriousness of the situation. :-(
Good Morning. The rain seems to have stopped, but it is grey and overcast.
Margo, Linda sends {{hugs}} to you. She is still in Wales and enjoying herself.
Linda saw dolphins yesterday, but I will let her describe the scene when she returns.
Neighbour asked me to join her on a walk with her pup yesterday, when the rain stopped for a couple of hours. The pup didn't get tired so we carried on walking and walking for 2 hours and then the rain started again. Needless to say we got very wet, as we were on footpaths through farmland !! I grew taller as the mud clung to my boots and we had to carry the pup back home. LOL
Just had to laugh at a message from our son, discussing a lager that he remembered his Dad having in our house.
" I had one last night. A Spanish beer, bottled in the Philippines, served to us by Indians, at a Mexican restaurant, in Singapore. The modern world !! "