Friday, 27-02-26

Good morning again, everyone, and welcome to Friday's blog.  

Yesterday was very social and sociable and, yes, I was all chatted out by bedtime.  I haven't slept all that well but that's OK, it's not as if I have to do a day's work or anything, is it?

Chris and I had our usual chuckle and chat over coffee.  Then I drove over to Val's where we chatted about different stuff - Val and I go back decades and she's been a very good friend one way and another.  She used to live just down the road from me and when she and M moved away to Black Notley we lost contact for a while which was a shame.  
It's good now though and we already have next month's date in our diaries.

Then, in the evening, it was a Slim Win online chat via Messenger.  Annoyingly, about a month ago I started having a sound issue.  I can see and hear everyone else in the chat and they can see me but not hear me.  I use my laptop with a built in microphone, I've checked settings as much as I can but nope, no sounds from me.  I end up using my Kindle Fire which is OK although the sound quality is poor - not great for a hard of hearing person.
I've just ordered a webcam which should come early next week and fingers crossed.  However, do any of you know what I could do to get my laptop microphone back again, please?  It's so annoying.

Today, as it is Friday, starts with Slimming World and then Alex might be coming over, he's not sure.  I have plans both ways so that's OK.
I will need to get my things ready for the trip tomorrow and I want to do a little street walk on Google Maps, just to get my bearings a bit.  I don't know where the coach is dropping us off but it will be central, it always is.

Have a good Friday, everyone.  Stay safe and well.  xx

Thursday, 26-02-26

 Morning, everyone.  It was a glorious day yesterday around here.  A windows open, two load line drying day.  A no-need-to wear-your-coat day!  So lovely!
I hope it was just as good your way - or, at least, pleasant.

I never showed you the finished maple leaf quilt, did I?  I pegged it on the line and it had to go sideways because longways it would have draped on the ground.

Here you go.  It's not really square, it is a 4x5 rectangle.

As already mentioned, I got two loads of washing properly line dried yesterday.  The ironing pile is no more (temporarily) and everything is away where it should go (the washing stuff, I mean - there's still plenty of mess around).

After personal training, I did my weekly shop.  I had hoped to hold off until Sunday but I found I had only two apples, one orange and one pear left and absolutely NO CARROTS.  I can't manage without carrots!
So I finished my list, did an early evening shop and now I'm all stocked up again.  Yay!

Today is a social day.
It's over to Chris first for our coffee and chat.
Then I'm driving over to Val's for lunch and lots more chat.
Then, this evening, there's an online chat with friends from all over.  So nice.

The dishwasher has finished and I want to empty it and refill it with big things - the air fryer drawer, my thermomix bowl, etc, and various washing up tools that are always better for a good hot dishwash now and again.  So I will love you and leave you with good wishes for a good day to come.  xx

Wednesday, 25-02-26

Morning, everyone!  What a glorious day it was round here yesterday.  After a bit of a dull start, out came the sun, the temperature rose into the higher teens, there was a gentle breeze, a load of washing properly dried on the line and  I opened the French window to air downstairs.  Just lovely!

Thumb and wrist seem fine again now, thanks you all for your concern.  I'm considering it just a hint to be careful - or a bit more careful than before.

I took a few photos of the front 'garden' (not really a garden, just a little strip of soil really.)

We have daffs.
Not that many out yet but there's loads of buds showing.

SUuh a lovely, sunshiney colour.

Crocuses are so very pretty, aren't they.  This clump is doing well and probably could do with splitting soon..

I might make this my new heading banner

These have been beautiful but are looking a bit elderly now.  Like the crocuses above, they could do with splitting soon, I guess.

BUT

Alongside all the emerging colours, those pesky weeds are coming up between the paving slabs so I will be waking my scraper up from its hibernation and starting the ten minute scrapes.

And the little patch of 'grass' I call my lawn (ha ha) needs a mow.

I'm trying to think what I did yesterday apart from taking photos - washing, etc, of course and I spent some time in the kitchen making a big pot of vegetable - er - stuff (for things like chilli, lasagne, etc) and some gluten free pasta (no idea if it's OK yet, I'm having some this evening.

Groove was great, of course, and we got our walk there and back for the first time in quite a while.  You could tell Lindsey was back from a week's break - she was super energetic and we were shattered by the end.  It was so good though.

Today my windows are all condensed on the outside so I googled why and it said basically 'super- efficient double glazing'  That's good!

As the forecast is, again, really promising, I popped an early load of things like tea towels, muslin wipes, etc, on a hotter than usual wash.  There's about an hour to go and then they can have a good refreshing blow in the sunshine and breeze.  Much needed after so many inside dries.  I didn't get round to changing the sheets at the weekend so I will do it today and get them line dried too.  

There's a ten minute scrape and some mowing to be done.

And there's the usual housework and so on before I pop over to Lindsey's for my personal training. 

Just a pleasant, ordinary day, in fact.    With sunshine and warmth and a bit of garden.  What more could I ask for?

I hope your day is as nice as I hope mine is.  See you tomorrow.  xx

Tuesday, 24-02-26

Good afternoon, everyone!  Apologies for being late.  I slept until seven this morning (much needed after a bad night Sunday night), came back from Groove and totally forgot . . . ooops.

The bad night was because that stupid thumb/wrist/lower arm was throbbing and sore so come the morning, after grumbling to you, I took some ibuprofen before circuits.
And you know what - that did the trick.  I guess there must have been just a bit of inflammation which the meds sorted out.  So I am being careful with the crochet, timing myself and then taking a break and doing some stretching, etc, and apart from the occasional twinge, it is fine.  A warning to be careful, maybe.

Apart from that, yesterday went well.  I got the last instructions for St Albans - when to meet up for the coach, etc - so that was good.
I did a bit of housework, a bit of ironing, a bit of washing.  It was a bitty sort of day!!

We're already half way through today now but I'll keep that for tomorrow.  
Take care, hope you're enjoying the sunshine, and see you tomorrow.  xx

Monday, 23-02-26

A very good morning to you all.  It's not raining, the ground is almost dry, it is mild and we had some lovely sunshine yesterday!  Isn't that great!

Yesterday was, as expected, a bit of a lazy day.  I finished off the loaves though and took Beth and Alex's round in the afternoon (in sunshine!) and stayed for a lovely natter and a coffee.  They have plans for reconfiguring the flat and it was great fun talking about them.

Apart from that it was just the usual 'little' things.

Lindsey is back home now so classes are f2f again.  Today is circuits and I bet I will be still afterwards.  Then it is the usual stuff.  It's not a Kay-week so there's that, plus washing and so on.

Sadly, I am going to hold off from crochet for a short while.  I'm getting quite a pain in my right thumb joint and it's probably due to too much crochet - I suppose I have been doing quite a lot, one way and another.  I'm just hoping it is a strain and not RSI although I suppose that, at my age, it might be a touch of arthritis.  How can one tell?  Anyway, it hurts to crochet so . . .  I might get some sort of thumb support and look up exercises, if there are any online.

I was getting on great guns with my concentric circles to use up loads of scrappy bits too.  Oh well.

Better go and get ready.  
Happy Monday everyone - have a great day!  xx

Sunday, 22-02-26

Morning!  Guess what!  It's raining.  Surprise!!

< sigh >

Yesterday, I ended up a bit busy in an easy, weekendy sort of way.  

Neil came round, bless him, and now I have a working oven light again.  I also have a semi clean oven and intend having another go today using trusty bicarb paste.  I don't use my oven nearly as much as I used to so it wasn't nearly as bad as it could have been but still a bit embarrassing!  :-)

(I'll tackle the other oven next week but it's fine really, I mainly use it for heating plates, keeping food warm, etc.)

I dug up several white bell bulbs and they are now in the shed in a tray.  Come the warmer weather, I will pop them in a pot and see what happens.  :-)

And, this week being over and Lindsey coming home this weekend, I started off this coming week's sourdough.  It's now in two loaf tins, slowly doing it's proving thing before baking.

I did some Googling and it looks as if there's plenty to do in St Albans.

The museum and gallery

The clock tower

Verulamium museum

A hypocaust

A cathedral

A street market (the second oldest in the UK after The Shambles in York, apparently)

And loads of nice looking places to eat/shop.

All within a pretty small area too.  Nice.

I've printed off a few pages from a visitors' guide and can pick up the hard copy when I'm there.
I'm looking forward to this.  Even if it is raining, there's plenty to do by the looks of it. and I do love a bit of history.

While I was checking my banking online (to see how much those oven bulbs were), I was surprised to see that not only was my teachers' pension in, it had also gone up a bit.  It should go in every 23rd unless it's a weekend or a bank holiday so why it is early this time, I have no idea.  The increase might possibly be a tax code change, I don't know for sure and I'm not that fussed really.
Anyway, it does mean that I can do my end of month reckoning good and early.  Any St Albans expenses can go onto March's sheet!!

Today I have Beth's loaves to bake and take over to her this afternoon and I may get round to the oven.  I guess there's also some washing and some sheet changing but I may leave that for tomorrow.  I'll see how I feel.  If it wasn't raining, I might drive out to Hyde Hall - I haven't been there for ages.  Perhaps it will clear up.

In the meanwhile, take care, have a good day and stay warm and dry.  xx

Saturday, 21-02-26

Morning, everyone.  Welcome to another weekend!

Yesterday didn't quite happen according to plan as Alex wasn't able to come over.  Not to worry, there's always another Friday - they come along quite regularly, after all.

In SW group, David gave me the sheet with March's walks on them.  When I looked in my diary, I realised that there are some coach trips coming up.
Coming up next Saturday, last day of February, I will be in St Albans, somewhere I have never been before.  I need to do some research, don't I, but if you have any info about things to do there, please do post it in the comments.  I'd be grateful.  I would much rather have too many plans than not enough.  It's one of those trips where you just pay for the coach and organise your own day so . . .

The following week, the date of the first walk, I should be in Cambridge for the same sort of day.  So, as above . . . 

When I defrosted the freezer, I realised that the light had gone so I popped onto Amazon and ordered a replacement - three, in fact because my oven light has been dead for ages.  They arrived yesterday and the freezer now has a light again but the oven bulb broke as I was trying to get it out and I just couldn't get the rest out so, hopefully, Neil next door will be over later to do the necessary.  He is in that line of work (handyman, not just replacing light bulbs, obviously) and should have an appropriate tool.

It's worth mentioning because, quite apart from having nice neighbours, I have this tendency to ignore things like that - the oven light has been out for absolutely ages - so getting my act together deserves a halo polish!  

Have a lovely day, everyone.  Stay warm and dry and fingers crossed for warmer, dryer days to come.  xx