Weekly Chat (Non-Osprey), 20 January 2019

HAPPY NEW WEEK! 

I hope everyone has a wonderful week. Don't miss the Total Lunar Eclipse on Sunday night/Monday morning. The moon will be especially close to earth, a so-called supermoon, so the eclipse should be a beautiful sight. Totality (the "blood" moon) begins at:

4:41 a.m. Monday morning in the U.K. 

11:41 p.m. Sunday night in the eastern U.S.

10:41 p.m. Sunday night in Iowa

8:41 p.m. Sunday night in California

Totality (the "blood" moon) will last 62 minutes. The duration of the entire eclipse from beginning to end is 5 hours, 12 minutes. The eclipse is visible in the U.K. and the U.S. Sorry, AQ, not in Australia. 

  • Wendy - Hope you were careful, walking in the icy conditions.  

    Heather, OOh!! -  I just love dumplings!  Going to make a stew tomorrow, so might make some ;-) Sounds as if you're being sensible, trying to cut down on garden work. We have very few roses because they need lots of care. Also, the Cheshire air can be damp and so roses can get all kinds of mildew- ish diseases.

    Have been doing housework and sorting stuff out - we just seem to accumulate things.

  • Well, mixed news! The plumber has fixed the cistern. Unfortunately eldest son in law has been taken ill, looks like it is gallstones. Plumbing of a different kind :-(

    Just as well that I happened to know where to turn the water off! I always knew these things when living independently but came here, OH was the man in charge of all that kind of thing and it was all too easy to let it stay that way. 

  • Lynette:  Happy Birthday, though a tad belated by this point.  (And thank you Diane for the reminder.)

    Heather: Sorry - is this the SiL who was so ill last year?   Gallstones are painful.   When I was in the garden yesterday, I was looking at all the alleged low-maintenance shrubs that also need tidying up. 

    I just watched last night's weather forecast and there had - earlier in the day - been talk of possible light rain, with winds forecast for Tuesday/Wednesday.  Nobody said anything about the fierce wind we got last night, which lifted our patio umbrella, tossed it around the garden and left it upside down in the corner.  The fabric somehow survived but the mechanism where it tilts is completely torn up.  Also perversely, all the leaves I raked into the gutter for the street sweeping truck (due this morning) have disappeared completely, but none of the leaves I still had to rake disappeared; instead, they're all piled up by the patio and front doors and between pots of plants.  Grrrr.   Still, in the greater scheme of things.....

  • Well, came down about 3am to see if I could view the eclipse but to no avail - cloud cover where we are so missed it but it was seen in other parts of the country.

    Have had a lovely birthday doing very little. Been blessed with some lovely flowers from OH and Dau and Son and D-in-L so house looking like a florists.

    Heather - glad to see the plumber has sorted things for you.  Sorry to hear about your S-in-L hope he soon recovers.

    Another overcast day, they say that wintry weather is on the way south, wonder whether we'll get any!!

  • Good Morning. Damp looking today, after a cold night. Glad you enjoyed your birthday, Lynette.

    Heather, sorry to hear about your son in law. I expect he's in good hands, so hope his recovery is swift.

    I'm doing more housework this morning, everywhere seems grubby. After, we hope to go to the cinema.

  • Hello - 

    A beautiful, if coldish day here.

    What film did you see, LINDY?

    ANNETTE- it is my eldest son in law, last year it was the youngest son in law who was ill. He had an appointment to see consultant today, so far I've not heard anything, nobody at home...

    LYNETTE - glad that you had a good birthday with lots of flowers x

    Quote came this morning for garden work. I've accepted it, he thinks that he/they will start in the next month or so. 

  • Good that you've got the garden work organised, Heather. You'll be glad you've done something about it, later on. :-)

    We've been out in the drizzle to the cinema (OH and I, my Friend is too poorly to go out at the moment). We saw Stan & Ollie, which is a beautifully crafted film about the famous duo in their later years. I've always been a big fan but was nervous about finding it a bit of a parody of their delicate performances. Not to worry, it's a great film and a wonderful tribute to them. Good acting from the two playing Stan and Ollie. Had to get my hankie out at the end!!

  • Film sounds good, LINDY. I'll look out for it. Yes, it will be good to get the front garden sorted, a relief, in fact!

    Son in law is in hospital, gall bladder to be removed tomorrow. 

  • Sorry I didn't mention your son in law, Heather, I was rushing off to tend to the stew I'd left for our dinner. Glad he's getting treatment soon. 

  • Annette-I am on a laptop so I guess the smaller type is normal (?) I am in Iowa and due for 3-6 more inches of snow tonight. I hope it's the lesser amount as my drive looks like a tunnel with snow piled up. We are expecting  minus 20 degrees Friday night. My feral cat that I feed has been sleeping in the cat shelter at night so I don't have to worry about him as much as it has a heated mat. I also have a heated feed bowl and heated birdbaths. Saw the eclipse but saw it better on the TV as we had a few clouds. Happy belated Birthday to Lynette. Hope son in law does well after surgery Heather.