Hi all: Thanks for chat and Ernie info - don't forget to read the last few posts of last week to catch up on folks.
Brenda: My sister has been to the Chelsea Flower Show several times and has always loved it. Do hope the weather is kind on your day.
Patriciat: How nice that people were so generous with your fund-raising efforts. Good for you - you must have a winning way!!
dibnlib: Thanks for spelling out Ernie's "real" name. Doesn't sound half as much fun as his more familiar name. Actually, I remember now - Premium Bonds - they were being sold when I was still in the UK. I think my sister also has some that she bought way back when....
Emma: Painting is done - although just noticed a smudge of Pot of Cream (the paint) on a wood ceiling beam. How did it get there!! Took all the blue painter's tape off the glass panes this afternoon and put the hardware back on and it looks pretty nice. Do need to do some tidying up where paint trickled under the tape and also onto the hinges a bit, but all pretty minimal.
Have been keeping tabs on Trucker Steve, whose cat has an eye problem. He's going to take her to the vet. He's got a hard trip this time - three days of 11 hours a day to the next stop in Wisconsin. He's in Montana now, where it's well into the evening.
Off to see how EJ is doing. Have a nice Sunday morning all.
HelloBrehdaH and all and yes we got back from Venice although it looked yesterday morning as though we would have problems when we woke up to the news that Gatwick was shut. Forunately it opened and we were only delayed for an hour and as you can guess we were somewhat relieved. We arrived home at about 4pm still hardly believing that we got back. What really worried us was that BA were supposed to be on strile the next day but in the event this did not happen. Could think of worse places to be stuck though although it would have cost quite a bit to prolong our stay. One thing that Venice is not is cheap but we knew that when we went and did all the things we planned to do. 5 days is not enough so I am sure we will be going again.
Thanks for all tne hews though i was sad to read about the Brighton peregrines, they are ususally so successful.
Cirrus glad you had a good time and enjoyed yourself. If it is any consolation it was none to warm in Venice and on Saturday it rained from first thing and was still raining when we went to bed that night. We were told that the weather was very unusual for the time of year and although I took some cardigans with me I could have done with more. Having said that it did not stop us doing all the things we had planned to do. Obviously had a good look round St Marks Square together with the palace which was just stunning. Also visited an art gallery which just had the most beautful paintings. I am very fond of religious art and find it astounding that these painings painted such a long time ago have mostly retaqined the beautiful colours. Also went to the Venetian glass museum and then a tour of all the shops where you can buy,. We did not go on a gondala as I was not going to let OH pay £105 for the pleasure. Instead I brought some small pieces of glass back as a lasting momento of a wonderful visit. We travelled about quite a lot on the water buses which are an excellent way of seeing things. Of course we also ate very well in little restaurants that we found down side streets where the Italians eat as we know they are going to be good. It is for sure we will be going again in a couple of years or so. It is like nowhere I have ever been, just magical.
Venice was wonderful and what a beautiful city. So much to see and do and I am just about walked off my feet.
Back to normality now with washing etc, only went for 5 days and amazed at how much washing there is. Fortunately it is dry here so 2 lines of washing out and drying and of course then there is the ironing.
Have come back to a garden full of baby starlings and sparrows which are keeping me busy with bird batch filling and putting food out. I must admit what a lot of pleasure i get from watching them.
Have a good day and thanks again for all the news.
Margobird
MARGOBIRD Glad you got back safe and sound without too much trouble, and had a good time in Venice. We had a trip in a gondola when we visited Venice but only because we had paid for it as part of an organised tour. Not very exciting and definitely a rip off. One thing I do regret not doing though is a balloon flight over the Kenyan bush and a champagne breakfast included. We decided we could only afford for one of us to go and OH said it should be me. I said it was both of us or neither so that was the end of it. In hindsight we should just have got out the credit card and we should both have gone...........hang the expense.
dibnlib said: MARGOBIRD Glad you got back safe and sound without too much trouble, and had a good time in Venice. We had a trip in a gondola when we visited Venice but only because we had paid for it as part of an organised tour. Not very exciting and definitely a rip off. One thing I do regret not doing though is a balloon flight over the Kenyan bush and a champagne breakfast included. We decided we could only afford for one of us to go and OH said it should be me. I said it was both of us or neither so that was the end of it. In hindsight we should just have got out the credit card and we should both have gone...........hang the expense.
Thanks dibnlib had to laugh at OH because he said people would think he was being a bit tight with money but honestly £105 is a bit over the top I think. We did get the ferry across the canal in something similar for 50c which is a bit different price wise. Made a real pigs ear of getting into it though with all the swaying about. Had visions of falling into the canal.
My thnaks to all for all the news, daily and weekly plus all the pics. Have now caught up at long last and it really is time for Odin to bring fish.
Hi everyone, thought I'd pop up over here and annoy you for a sec!!
I just wanted to say, hope people don't take it personally I'm not active in the weekly chat. It's just that I can;t do it justice and I don't want to do it half heartedly. So, it's good to read all that's going on and I try and keep up but sorry I don't:((
However, continuing the theme of wildlife in the Connecticut Bush ......, I took a video of some chipmunks for a friend and thought you may be interested.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dxJwep3eKWE
Catch you later:)
gary a said: Hi everyone, thought I'd pop up over here and annoy you for a sec!! I just wanted to say, hope people don't take it personally I'm not active in the weekly chat. It's just that I can;t do it justice and I don't want to do it half heartedly. So, it's good to read all that's going on and I try and keep up but sorry I don't:(( However, continuing the theme of wildlife in the Connecticut Bush ......, I took a video of some chipmunks for a friend and thought you may be interested. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dxJwep3eKWE Catch you later:)
Hi Gary I am sure nobody really minds where we post, I must admit it is hard to keep up with all the blogs. Having just come from my Venice trip it has taken a whole morning and part of the afternoon to read everything. Loved the video of the chipmunks, they are so small.
Here's TV footage of the banding of the Indianapolis peregrine falcon chicks. It better shows what I described in my post of last night.
http://www.theindychannel.com/news/23582810/detail.html
Thanks to all for your comments about this. I wondered whether I would feel guilty for being critical of this event, but I don't after re-watching this footage.
Unknown said: Here's TV footage of the banding of the Indianapolis peregrine falcon chicks. It better shows what I described in my post of last night. http://www.theindychannel.com/news/23582810/detail.html Thanks to all for your comments about this. I wondered whether I would feel guilty for being critical of this event, but I don't after re-watching this footage.
Thanks Diane for the link and what a good video of the banding. Such lovely close ups of the chicks.
Hope you are keeping well and not still having storms.
Have just been catching up with everything today after my Venice trip which was wonderful.
Thanks Diane. I feel even more strongly, after watching the video, that nobody seemed to be thinking of the poor , obviously frightened birds. They were handled, stroked etc in a noisy and crowded room. I wonder how long they were off the nest. I am sure they will receive many protests from viewers.
Morning all: Another rainy morning in SoCal. What is the world coming to?
Margobird: Welcome back. Weather unusual for this time of year here too. The Venice trip sounds lovely...I was there when I was 14 - way too young to appreciate what I was seeing....
Cirrus: Yes indeed, the whale breach was special; what made it even more so is that we were all watching that spot through the binocs and were just lucky to catch it.
Gary: We're happy to see you any time and don't fret about keeping up. I tend to do the Daily Update, but mostly at night; and this page. (Plus Trucker Steve who's currently heading south on rural roads through South Dakota.) Do appreciate your videos on the Daily Update.
Lindybird: This book group is made up of women who've known each other for more than 20 years. I go along because I've known one of them for almost that long. (If this were an "uptight" group that slapped wrists I'd be long gone.)
Djoan: Congrats on the new boiler and brilliant you got a good crew. It's nice to be able to recommend contractors who do a good job.
dibnlib: Thanks for reminder to "hang the expense" on some occasions. So true. I'm thinking of doing just that for OH's 70th, which is next weekend. He's going to the UK in July (to take a Cambridge seminar) for three weeks and has booked himself a coach class seat. I have a "secret" stash of cash and am seriously considering upgrading him to Business Class (we'd have to mortgage the house for a First Class upgrade!!) so he can stretch out and be pampered a bit. He deserves it. I looked into hot-air balloon rides (at the crack of dawn and OH is no morning person); even airship rides (!!) but then we'd have to drive either to L.A. (for a ride over the city? I don't think so.) or to San Francisco, which would be wonderful but then there's hotel rooms on top of the ride, which costs an arm and two legs all by itself. So the upgrade idea is looking better all the time.
Off to start the day. The only I must do is return some books to the library or they'll send out a SWAT team to get me! Take care all.