Weekly Chat, Sunday September 19,2010

Weather here started off damp and breezy.  Has stopped raining but is very breezy and feeling a lot cooler.

Lindybird - did you see all three programmes on Lost World of the Tiger - shown Tues,Wed,and Thurs nights   Fantastic film footage and to capture the tigers themselves.  Just amazing.  Lets hope the government of Bhutan will recognize the importance of the conservation of the "corridor" for the movement of these magnificent animals.

Again our endeaing friend!

Just been watching part of the evenin game drive from Duuma game park in Botswana.  They do a morning and eveing one apparently. Pics of a mongoose, I think , and of a wild dog.

We haven't got the tiger but have a wild dog instead.

Evening all.  Haven't had time to do more than read posts until now but am going to take time to reply.

Valc I'm in Newtownards.  I seem to remember from last year that you are in Bangor. 

Annette So sorry to hear about your g-d's problems.  hope your daughter will be able to ensure that she and the baby will be OK.  Awful that her OH can force her to stay in Arizona.

Emma Peel Glad your OH passed his HGV test.  I've taken part 3 times in a Ladies' Driving Challenge to raise funds for Marie Curie Cancer Care.  Really enjoyed driving the big vehicles!  My first was a fire engine, which was a bit scary but then proceeded to a coach, a fuel tanker (my favourite) and a range of others.  Don't know if I'd ever have been up to driving them for a living.

HeatherB Praying for the safe return of your S-i-L and his colleagues.

OG Loved the pic of Fatty!  Don't envy you having to do the Church magazine - Minister does ours.  I'm Hon. Sec. of the Church which is bad enough!  Also sing in the choir.  We've just started rehearsing for our Carol Service as choirmaster sets high standards and we perfform some very difficult stuff.  Do you make your cards by hand or on your computer?  I bought Hallmark Card-Maker software but don't know what would be the best kind of paper for printing the finished product.

Just popped in to say goodnight.  Will not be able to come here in the morning – should be back to read and hopefully write Sat evening – depends partly where we eat on the way home and how long we take over it!

Lynette – lots of lovely pictures again.  Nice cat!  What are their names?  Will Daughter be looking after them next week?  I do like those African Wild Dogs – they are so “Doggy” living in the bush.  Have a great party and a lovely holiday – I hope you know Scotland often has all four seasons in one day, so pack a variety of clothes – layers are the thing!

Patricia – Did our Choir bit with Daughters many years ago, then Admin as treasurer!  I make cards by hand  - sticking bits on!  It’s relaxing and mentally therapeutic – as well being a good thing to use the old hands!  I actually did ten cards this afternoon, using up some bits and pieces, a few similar but no two exactly alike.  I do use the computer to make inserts - that way I can type greeting instead of scribbling, then just add our names in handwriting.

Well, that’s all – it’s good night from me – and good night to you.  Have a good Saturday, everyone.

Cirrus - I can see why you were disappointed with your mug when it arrived. Hey, what a talking point for visitors!!!

Diane - Jasper’s snooze button only works late afternoons and again evenings. LOL. Who knows what he is up to after I go to bed. The past 2 days we have allowed him outside late morning for 10 mins (when he is hungry yet again). He’s very scared of every sound, but determined to explore. I’m scared we shall lose him.

Woop Woop - invented name for any small unimportant town - "he lives in Woop Woop". OH thinks of it in the sense "gone bush" or "gone to the donga", another Aussie term. Donga is a term for ‘thick bush or scrub’ (among other meanings).
Some other terms: "Back of Bourke" - somewhere remote, a long way from any towns. Bourke is a town in northern New South Wales.
"Beyond the Black Stump" - the Black Stump is an imaginary point beyond which the country is considered remote or uncivilised."
Sometime or other, I made up an imaginary town for an imaginary person, using Oodnadatta, an outback town in northern South Australia, plus woop-woop, thus "Fred Nerk lives in Oonawoopwoop".

A clothes horse has 2 meanings. 1) the device on which we drape washing to dry indoors (yes, sometimes it is too wet outside!) and 2) someone who buys lots of clothes. Also a "fashion plate" (slightly derogatory) is someone who has lots of clothes of the latest fashion, always well-dressed.

Vegemite is similar to marmite. Devotees of one hate the other. LOL. My flatmate loved marmite - I thought it awful. I love vegemite.

I disagree with some terms in that list. "Patty cakes", also called fairy cakes, are small - the nearest is mini-muffin. Chips are thick, while French fries are thin skimpy things. Bubble and squeak was leftover potato and cabbage fried. A busker is a street musician, of good or bad ability! If you Google "Australian slang" you get heaps of lists.

Heather - On a bus trip through northern Scotland we saw signs "Warning Heavy Plant Crossing". Someone asked the guide what it meant. Did they think big fat triffids or something were traipsing across the road. LOL

Evening all: Well managed to borrow a monitor from a techy friend and now can be online and watch telly!  Brilliant.    Finally, it got truly summer-like around here - temps are forecast to be in the mid 80s at the coast the next few days and just over 100 over the hill. Thanks heaven it won't last beyond Monday.  Moon was spectacularly clear last night

OG. I hadn't heard about the steroid-weight loss connection - just as long as you're not bulking up like Arnold Schwarzenegger.  Seems like young finch is telling huge fat woodpigeon something really interesting judging from the look on the latter's face!

Lindybird: Hat museum sounds like a hoot - what fun to try some on.  I have a friend who wears hats and always looks fantastic - she has real flair and always manages to look a bit outrageous but it works on her. Geez. "Bump" is already on the Olympic swimming team? Can a Nobel prize be far behind? :-)

Margobird: Oh dear, that friend of OH is very young - that's sad.  Nice that your OH is going to visit.  But what's this?? OH does his own ironing??   Your OH sounds like a true renaissance man!!   Good for you convincing the frog to move outdoors.

Lynette: Hope the birthday went well and that you have a wonderful holiday with no hangover!  :-)  I've watched that Duuma game drive from time to time but haven't seen a lot. What's a "moggie" (apart from a cat)?

Spent the morning with daughter then tried new place in her little town for lunch - wasn't bad for a change. Then home and to rose garden for a couple of sunny and pleasant hours before picking up yummy take-out salads from local eatery. 

Take care all; have a wonderful - Saturday - again!!

Just read this week's thread and oh Alan, I am so, so sorry. My deepest condolences to you, Lady P and all your family

Saturday everyone! Glad you had a nice holiday, Margo! AQ, pleased the big day went well and thanks for sharing those pics! You look very chic in your golden shoes and what can one say about the bride - so stylish, that photo where she is putting her shoes on reminded me about a painting of a Ballet dancer (by Degas?) Annette, loved that pic of Lighting - I have always envied cat’s ability to relax even in strange looking positions. Re your Gdau’s situation - I’m sure things will be OK with her - she has some great genes! Diane, thanks for Autumn-card, what amazing colouring, kind of ”blue in the face” eh? I haven’t realized you have such warm weather this time of year, hope you and your dad are OK. Lindybird, what a cleaver poem (once again) You really do have a way with words. OG, love the pictures of Fatty. Very dull weather here today, slight drizzle but warm(ish), but I don't complain - I should wash my windows but since it is raining -> no can do! Instead I can continue reading P. Brown's osprey book ;) Each and everyone: smiles and take care :)

Hello, Everyone!    (just looked and that came out as "Hell, Everyone!"  so good job I noticed, but maybe on the other hand, some of you are already having a bad day! )

The sun is out!  But its much much colder today, and I've had to put the heating on.  Looked out of the window to a wonderful sight first thing today - the field behind our house, which had wheat on it until the harvest, was full of two dozen or so large Canada Geese all looking for something to eat amongst the stubble.  Our bedroom window was steamed up due to the sudden coldness, so couldn't photograph them   :-(

Had a lovely Chinese meal last night at our Friends' -  a nice gossip with the old friends staying with them, (who left here 15 years ago to live in Devon) and lots of Aaaah's over the baby pictures as their new grandaughter is now about 9 months.  Finished the meal with fruit as per the usual tradition of a proper Chinese banquet. (Friend made spare ribs for starters, which she had soaked for two days in orange juice amongst other things, it made a very effective marinade.)

Lynette:  Hope you have a nice holiday.  Lovely pic of your 'moggie'.  Yes, I saw all of the 'Tiger' series of programmes - I recommend that everyone see the series as they were very good, and included lots of other wildlife too besides the Big Cats - it was called "Lost Land of the Tiger" and was filmed in Bhutan, on the Tibetan border.

margobird:   Oh how I do hate all that laundry when you get home, all relaxed after a break away!  -  a Laundry Fairy sounds a good idea, to me. Perhaps we should set up an agency.

Glad you had a nice lunch with your daughter, Annette. I am thinking of you right now.  Yes, we are off to the Canaries again - we really wanted to go to a Greek Island but were unable to get away earlier because of work commitments, and now its too late in the season for good weather in those parts, so its off to one of our favourite haunts, at least we know we can sit in the sun and relax. (& I can at last wear the new sun hat I bought, if you remember!)

Off to do the Saturday shopping, now.  Fingers crossed the sun will keep shining for a bit.  Have a Good Weekend, Everyone.