Weekly Chat (Non-Osprey), 12 March 2023

Thank you Diane. Sounds like you may have a backlog of pelicans before they feel like moving on. Meanwhile, our Chinese Elm is leafing out - and we're apparently expecting yet another storm Tuesday that's supposed to bring heavy rain for the entire day. So more in store for you too.

Have a good week everyone.

DIANE – Poor pelicans. Surely your weather will improve soon.

ANNETTE – We saw CAL floods other night in our news.

HEATHER – S-i-l should have pleasant weather for a while. Qantas does have a good safety record though I have not flown overseas with them. They have been in the news since covid restrictions reduced for losing luggage and cancelling flights but that is mostly within Aussieland. Blame lack of staff and spare parts, etc.

I didn’t know they were already doing the London-Aussie flights non-stop. I think I would prefer that – once on the plane, settle in, read, eat, drink (water) and walk up & down every hour. Preferable to wandering around transit airport for hours and going nowhere. Usually 3-4 hours between flights but on my last return I had 8 hours [!} in transit; too late in day & not long enough for tour of city. Every one of my overseas flights has passed through Singapore. I have spent so many hours in transit there that I could run tours of the airport. How many duty free shops can one browse?

Diane - thank you for starting us off again. Poor pelicans. Sounds like they will need to hunker down.
AQ - I have arrived at Singapore for a stopover en route to New Zealand. It is a brilliant airport isn’t it? Mind you, I was only going through immigration etc. I never do the duty free shops. The bright lights in there make me dizzy!!
The snow is melting fast here. It is still on the drive and lawn but, if I needed to get the car out of the garage, I think I could now drive it through the snow and onto the road. I have enjoyed my short hibernation and have done lots of reading and caught up with emails. I have also made several phone calls. My bird jigsaw is coming on. I managed to do the coot yesterday. (A lot of black for those not familiar with the bird) - Google its feet. They are amazing.
Have a good week everyone.

Coots Feet....

You need to see a coots feet--
They are quite strange, they are not neat.

Feel sorry for the coot somehow
It's not much fun - you need to vow
To treasure Your Feet, however they are-
Much better than the coot, by far!!

Good Morning. Sunshine here, and warmer, hooray! I've never been on a long haul flight as my OH hates flying and it would be his idea of h***. Consequently, I need to win the lottery so that I can see Canada, The Great Lakes, New Zealand or Australia by ship......

Thank you to Diane for starting us off again.

RUSTY – My least favourite airport is Manchester. My travel adviser had booked me 3 legs - Adelaide to Singapore, Singapore to Manchester, Manchester to Dublin. As it was my first landing in Europe, it was customs, etc. I was grilled by a nasty woman who could not understand why I was travelling alone. “Where is your husband?”she demanded. Eventually I convinced her I was legit, had further plane & accommodation booked (and paid for). I refrained from Aussie humour & did not reply “Husband is home looking after the silverfish”.

I have found the photo of a coot I took at a nature reserve in Rhyl last year.

Love the poem Lindy.

AQ - Manchester Airport is no fun. Going through security to get airside en route to Portugal last year was a nightmare hour.

Sorry you had a rude welcome. Northerners are usually friendly!!! Honest!! I am from Yorkshire originally.

Great photo Rusty!!

Agree about Manchester Airport - it's got so big, its impersonal now. Its our local airport so one we are very familiar with - we'll be there early next Wednesday morning as we go off on our travels again. Agree that Northern people are much friendlier-- I was born in the South but have adopted the North!!

DIANE - thanks for starting the new week with Pelican news - I hope they - and you - stay safe in the coming weather.

ANNETTE - more rain? Oh dear!

RUSTY - snow here was hardly worth a mention - our cosy corner at the top of the Solway! I love Coots - feet and all!

Our week did not end quite according to plan. E-E and J went to deliver J's car on Thursday (E-E driving of course but J had to be there as the owner), so I had a long afternoon home alone until they came back on the bus (OH with motion sickness). Had to take a further piece of ID on Friday, so to be able to use my motability car we all had to go! So, we all had an unexpected lunch out together!

Yesterday, E-E needed a domeatic catch-up day so I didn't get into the study to join the chat. This morning he has been changing the pull switch in the big shower room due to broken string. Shower switch also needs doing for same reason, but he says he wants a professional to do it because of high voltage cable - it has a knot holding the string together!

Mild today, and so far dry - hoping for a dry day Wednesday for visit to butcher and deli, with garden centre lunch. Nobody felt like going to church this morning, so the day has been quite slow.

Flight stop-overs. Aarrgghh!!! The worst one I have had was at Nairobi - eight hours, power cut, loos blocked, shortage of food. Not pleasant. We weren't allowed outside the airport, so it was a very long wait. The most interesting was probably the new Hong Kong airport which is more like an enormous shopping centre. VERY LONG WALKS - or as we were a bit late, runs - to get to the right place, only to find there was a sort of metro/lift system which would have got us there very much more quickly, and with more breath to spare! Hope everything goes smoothly for you on Wednesday, Lindy.