HAPPY NEW WEEK!
I hope everyone has a wonderful week!
Next Friday is Friday the 13th! LOL
I don't have a picture for this week, but some might be interested in this very short video. Just the other day, a 5.3 earthquake occurred in Southern California near Annette. The quake startled the daylights out of a bald eagle who was on a high nest with three chicks. No birds were harmed!
Hope you're okay, Annette!
Enjoy your weekend away, LINDY!!
Havn't made melba toast for years!
Wish I could have been there when you told the young man what for, on the ferry!
LINDY - I told him that if I was his mother, I would be ashamed of him. He just crumpled, and said 'Sorry'. He really was completely out of it.....
Well, I'm shutting the computer down, must wait for the party guests! The back garden looked fairly tidy, then a sparrowhawk arrived and caught a pigeon, feathers were a flying everywhere until next door's cat arrived and chased the sparrowhawk away. The pigeon, amazingly, managed to fly away and the cat went home hungry. All reported to me by Isla aged 8 who takes a great interest in these things.
ANNETTE Enjoy your visit to your sister and hope her health remains good.
Good evening all! What a fabulous spring day (don’t dwell on the change tomorrow!) Been out in the garden where OH was working. I did a few wee jobs, but it’s so frustrating that I can’t do much – and painful going in and out too.
ForestBoar – pleased you have some good news re younger daughter. Sorry about elder one – but that is normal – I am on hormone treatment since my cancer – different drug as I am post-menopause, but similar idea.
Clare – OH did our giving – and is adding since I said it wasn’t enough – he signs all our donations as he pays tax and I don’t.
Linda – sorry you have post-winter problems at the caravan – hope you can get everything up and running this weekend.
AQ - That was just a dribble of rain – probably all dried up by now in the winds!
Annette – 450 people facing redundancy at the fish factory. No fleet here now, but the town had a long fishing history – our church was known as the Fisherman’s church and holds a memorial book for those lost in our unpredictable coastal waters. Many different kinds of fishing were practiced through the years, up to the 1990s. There are a few individuals catching a few shellfish, but not much left now, and our three traditional systems of netting salmon (haaf nets, poke nets and stake nets) are heavily limited due to low fish-stocks – not sure if any licences were issued last year. The town is very connected with the Annan estuary into the Solway Firth – was known for ship-building and boat building and even some emigrants left from our waters. There are still boat-building and fishing families here – and a few of our old boats and fishermen fish from further down the coast. Our harbour silts up easily, but there are efforts to revive it as a leisure resource. A lot of the fish factory workers are from the EU and I think they are worried that they might get sent away if they don’t have work any more. Good to see you have plans for the spring visit to your sister – a special time for you both.
Heather – I hope the family had a wonderful day together for your youngest s-i-l. I am sure Isla enjoyed relaying the details of the Sparrow Hawk/Pigeon/Cat saga to the rest of the family! Our Pigeons are permanent visitors now, but they are still scared of the long beaks of the Starlings!
Time to think about the rest of the evening – and OH has to water a few things in garden and greenhouse where rain misses!
Ospreys Rule OK, but Goldfinches come a close second!
We've been out for the evening - it's our 45th Wedding Anniversary. There are few places to treat yourself to a meal around here, as we are between towns, but we have enjoyed some good meals at a place on the main road across the peninsula, called "The Goat" although I laughed and said we've had very slow service there, in the past.....
We arrived there at 7.15pm for our booked table for 7.30. We were served with our glasses of wine and given menus in the bar, as they were waiting for someone to vacate our table. Eventually, we were shown into a corner off the bar and our orders were taken: we didn't want a starter. Our mains arrived ages later, which we ate. Then no one appeared to take our plates or our dessert order. We waited... I eventually ordered a second glass of wine as we were able to ask for our desserts when an apology was offered, and free dessert and coffees, if we wanted! So we had had:
My OH - Lamb Shank with recurrent gravy, Me - Rich Braised Steak with veg., and followed by my OH enjoying fruit crumble including raspberries, and Me, lemon cheesecake with ice cream. We didn't want coffees so accepted further apologies and 25% off the bill, but although it was all delicious, it didn't make up for it being a long evening: we arrived back at base, only 20 minutes away, at 10.00pm! After only two courses and a very long wait between. As I said, it's not the 1st time we've had slow service there, but you think it can't happen again!! - oh, yes, it can!
A report on social media awaits....
OG - it's been a beautiful day here, too: we had a lovely walk this morning and by the afternoon, were sitting outside with a cuppa and my OH even put his shorts on. :-) EDIT : The boiler is OK now and he is going to replace the outside tap completely on our next visit, as he has a suitable spare at home.
Glad that EE is able to get out into the garden and keep up with the jobs. So much needs doing outside, all of a sudden!
Extra EDIT: I was thrilled to see a dear little Wren pottering around in some brambles when checking on where Bonnie had disappeared to, on our walk. We do get one occasionally in our garden, but it's a rare sighting.
STARTING NEW THREAD NOW