WEEKLY CHAT (non-osprey) SUNDAY, DECEMBER 6 2015

Thanks for starting the thread, Annette. It just now dawned on me that it's Saturday. The holiday and travel threw off my internal calendar. Hope Peanut is continuing to improve.

Diane: Peanut is pretty much back to normal and enjoying a new treat  suggested by the vet - red peppers (for the Vitamin C). I really must go back over Tiger's Posh Link instructions.....will put it on my list.  

Good Morning -  and I really hope it is a good morning for all our friends, after hearing how extensive the flooding has been in parts of UK.

We had a bad night for different reasons, as Bonnie was distressed (due to the high gusty winds?) and managed to force her way out of her crate. She then ripped up a corner of our dining  room carpet.  She has made a mess both in the crate and on the floor:  my OH sorted some of it out during the night and is tackling the rest of it now.

Thanks to Annette for starting us off again.

Good Morning Everyone. Wet and windy here. ( not gales)

So sorry for those who suffered the storm. A months rain in one day and extremely strong gales. I can't imagine what the poor people will find when they are allowed back to their homes. So glad that none of you have reported any damage or injuries.

Thank you, Annette for starting our week. I hope Peanut is enjoying the red peppers.

Linda, Having survived the storm, Bonnie decides to inflict some damage to your carpet and her cage. I do hope it can all be repaired. 

Up early and waiting for coffee pot then back to bed with book and a cookie. In the meantime, just looking at the Live Flood Warning Map for the UK and it's quite horrifying. Is this the "new normal" for the UK?  The only floods I remember growing up there were those in Kings Lynn in the 1950s.  Does anyone know if anyone on this thread is in the (huge!) area affected?

Hi Folks, from the very wet S Lakes!!

I am OK as my house is on a slope, and also I do not need to travel, but many roads in the area are flooded or certainly were yesterday. My neighbours were returning from a week away yesterday and they tried all sorts of roads to get here and came through floods where cars were stuck, I am not sure how they managed it. Also I have a friend in Kendal and she is badly flooded. The water is about a metre deep but her house has the garage/utility at ground level, so she is staying in her house. She had removed the car to higher ground in time!

I was out on Friday, plenty of water about on the roads,and the lake I saw was certainly very high so not surprised it would then come over the banks. It looks awful on the news, specially Keswick and Kendal, the poor people !

ChrisyB: Good to see you. I was just on the BBC UK website and looking at coverage of the flooded areas. I can't imagine. They interviewed one couple who've been through this twice before and this time it came through the windows, so their completely reasonable preparations for this storm didn't work. Also, their house is for sale and they'd just got an offer this past week. Just one story in hundreds I imagine, along with loss of power for hundreds more. Awful.  Meanwhile, an ice rink in Lincolnshire (where my sister lives) has melted due to unseasonably warm weather!  

Unknown said:

Does anyone know if anyone on this thread is in the (huge!) area affected?

ChrisyB: I'm so glad you're okay!!!

So, it rained and it blew, and it rained more and it blew more – but it didn’t get us; we were some of the lucky ones.  Friday started good and the day gradually got darker, and darker until the storm finally hit when we were on our way for our Festive Meal.  The food was excellent, the Old Toll Bar was cosy and warm, and the staff were efficient and welcoming.  The next day, they had to close because of power failure, and some of their facilities are still not up and running today!  It was very wet when we came home – surface water and rain blowing in all directions, but OH kept us safe in the car; we got very wet walking to the front door, because I move so slowly and the boys didn’t abandon me, because I was getting blown about in the wind!  Friday night both J & I were disturbed by the wind roaring around the house, but OH snored through it all (blame it on the Bailey’s Cheesecake!).  I stayed indoors all day Saturday, and the two off them went together for various messages, to keep one another safe.  The lower parts of town received their sandbags and many local roads were (and still are) closed by flooding and landslips.  Rain and wind kept up all day and into the night, then it suddenly went quiet and this morning (Sunday) we had blue sky and sunshine and very little wind.  Just one plank blew from our oldest fence, but it came inwards into the garden, so OH soon retrieved it and mended the fence.

Linda – pleased to see your new TV is installed and working.  Our little one in the dining room went on Thursday to have a stuck DVD taken out  and testing to see if the driver would work; it came back Friday, and is now only useable for TV, but J was pleased to have back the retrieved disc.  Sorry about Bonnie’s new bad behaviours; will you need to buy a new carpet?

Heather – I didn’t realise that your brother was over for such a short visit; I hope he got home safely and more conveniently than the journey northward!  It sounds as if you are far from well after the excessive exposure to the sun: do take care of yourself!  Bad about the Forth Road Bridge – but we had predicted that they would find the new one was being built too late – could have been a major disaster if they weren’t monitoring it so closely.

AQ – sorry about that increasing heat!  I hope Monday will be more comfortable for nannying!

Annette – I hope the animals are responding to your ministrations and nursing!  I know Lightning’s treatment will continue, but it sounds as if Peanut’s mush has made him well.  Visit to shore sounds nicely relaxing!  Thank you for starting our new thread.  I hope Peanut is enjoying the Red Peppers!

Rita – nowhere near as bad here as parts of Cumbria – I read today that Pooley Bridge bridge is no more, and pictures from Cockermouth and Carlisle look worse than their previous flood events, despite flood defence works since then!  Feel so sorry for them, as they must have watched it coming and there was nothing they could do.  I hope you Daughter will stay safe.

ChrisyB – pleased to see you are safe – take care when you next go out!

Diane – Terry was intending to travel to a Dog Show in Penrith today, despite the warnings!  I hope they got there and back safely.  She is on FB right now, so guess she is okay.

We are watching travel and weather forecasts for tomorrow, as OH is supposed to be going over to North Yorkshire to collect some chairs we have had made;  the A66 was closed yesterday, but looks clear now – will do a final check early in the morning!