Weekly Chat (Non-Osprey), 12 February 2023

Hello all and thank you, DIANE - I'm sorry that you had such an awful and disturbing dream. As you know, I can empathise.
I hope that OG is improving now that she is at home. We will hear in due course.
Quiet here in my house as per norm but it's lovely to read about what everyone is doing. I'm getting regular updates from my son regarding his shop and customers - things normal for the time of year and a few Valentines gifts have been purchased !

Rusty Tests were done on the swans and apparently it wasn't avail flu.

I am back from today’s adventure. We went to Chirk Castle to see the snowdrops. They were gorgeous. Most uplifting. 18 of us in the group went. We had a picnic in a thatched former summer house and then had a cuppa in the cafe sitting outdoors. Maybe spring is coming. Fingers crossed.

Enlarge the first photo for the best effect.

 

Hello everyone. No communication from me for a long time. I have been rather pre occupied since moving into our new home. Downsizing, and settling our possessions in completely different locations has been a big event.
After the initial emptying of boxes, we lost the motivation to do much more, and then came C' mas, when everything comes to a halt!
We are getting our act together now though, and have organised blinds for the windows, and put up our pictures.
Also buying plant containers for the terrace, which is the nice bit.
We are glad we have made the move. It is a "retirement facility", We have the privacy of our own flat, but have a communal area downstairs if we want to have company, I usually go down for coffee in the mornings and have a natter to whoever is around. My OH has health problems and appreciates the facilities here.
I have been reading everyone's news with interest. Thanks to all. I know some of it is not so good, so best wishes to all who have illnesses or problems.

Rusty, those snowdrops are beautiful. I remember visiting Chirk Castle when we lived in Chester.

Rosy!  Good to see you and hear that you're just about settled in.  Downsizing is a big task and moving house just adds to all the discombobulation.  But as you say, buying plants is the nice bit.  Sounds like a good move for you and your OH.

Rusty:  Another nice outing for you.  Those trees at the castle look very 'contained'; what a job it must be keeping them so tidy.  I always wonder if such sculpted trees secretly dream of being allowed to grow as nature intended.  Oh well....

Heather:  I remember your son was really worried about the business when Covid struck. Is he feeling more confident now?   And how is Callum doing?   And did your daughter with the ghastly neighbor manage to find another house?   Last  year was so difficult that I missed a lot of other news and updates.....

Diane:  A treat to see you on here mid-week!  :-)   Are you still doing freelance work?  I gave up my gig; don't know how I found time for it.

Hope OG and EE are okay...

Got the all-clear from the doc at annual physical today along with dismayed comments about the state of things in Turkey, Syria and that area in general. Then it was the unreasonable price of Valentine's Day bouquets and the high carbon costs of shipping all those red roses round the world.  (Yet another of nature's wonders forced to satisfy our whims!!).  Needless to say, we didn't manage to solve anything.   :-(

Also got our second car smogged and registered so that's good for another year too.

Take care all

ANNETTE: I saw that you had given up your freelance gig. It sounded like it had become problematic.

I finished my last freelance assignment last year. Work dried up after the pandemic hit. My intention was to sign up for Social Security in August (when I turned 65) and retire. However, I realized that I could draw an additional $100 per month if I waited to sign up until this coming June. So, I'm trying to hang on until then. I'm getting a small amount in royalties for some writing I did years ago, and I have some savings that I really need to hold on to for house repairs, so I'm temporarily in a tight spot until summer.

Now I'm worried that the politicians will raise the Social Security age in order to resolve the debt ceiling crisis and/or cut the heck out of Social Security benefits.

(UK folks: Social Security is the US version of your government pensions. I've been paying into it since I took my first job at 14 years old.)

Diane:  Oh brilliant to hang on for the extra $100. Only 3.5 months away!  If anyone does raise the age for full SS benefits I image it would affect folks younger (than us!). I had to smile the other week when the French were out protesting because Macron was planning to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64.  Are you currently eligible for any home repair/maintenance assistance programs available in Indiana?

ANNETTE: Assistance??? Here in MAGA land? Clearly, you've never been to Indiana. LOL

ANNETTE: Also, here in the Great Lakes, military fighter pilots are shooting "objects" out of the sky with missiles! I'll be lucky if a danged UFO doesn't crash into my roof.
LOL! LOL!