RURAL VILLAGER

Getting Up Steam!

2011-06-01T17:03:00.003+01:00

Today we trundled up by train to Didcot and visited the Railway Museum. This engine was used for rides and a demonstration on the turntable. We looked around the engine sheds - there were about 10 engines all in good shape. The carriage shed was a bit different - there were several coaches under repair.

I take my turn at changing the points!

The Clematis Is Looking Good This Year

2011-04-24T10:28:00.003+01:00

The Clematis is in full flower and I am busy twining the new shoots along the wall. It has been mentioned by passing pedestrians that I must be an experienced gardener - nothing is further from the truth - the whole thing is just luck!

Tennis Shoes

2011-03-14T16:14:00.004Z

Husband has played "Roll Up" tennis at Cirencester Tennis club for the past five years. The Roll-Up tennis means members can just turn up on two designated days a week and take pot luck. There are seven courts and seven suits of cards are dealt. The people holding the aces proceed to Court one and so on.

The club is situated in the midst of The Bathurst Estate in lovely countryside. Today was a glorious day and I asked Husband whether the club would mind if I put in an appearance to watch. The roll up people were a very friendly lot and I enjoyed myself. I also took a walk on my crutches around the nearby cricket pitch. I tried to negotiate a stile that would take me onto a path that apparently meanders along the side of a wood for 13 miles. The stile was too high and I was afraid if I made over the other side I might not get back again!

Eureka !

2011-03-08T08:10:00.004Z

Our team managed to win the pub quiz last night! Great fun was had by all as usual and our thanks must go the the quizmaster for keeping us entertained each month.

Husband Had Them Rocking In the Aisles

2011-02-25T10:27:00.003Z

We have just come back from our usual friday supermarket shop. At the checkout Husband's credit card got rejected. A supervisor was called and she tapped away at the checkout screen and after some thought she turned to Husband and said "Sir, you pulled it out too quickly" Husband, as quick as a flash said "All women say that". Supervisor, check out lady and I started roaring with laughter, this then spread to the customer patiently waiting behind us and then to the neighbouring aisles. At least the supermarket staff got off to a lively start this morning!

All Geared Up!

2011-02-01T14:55:00.002Z

Gone is my gas guzzling 4x4 in part exchange for this new Suzuki Swift (swift by name but probably not that swift by nature)! Husband always judges my parking ability in marks out of ten - this, my first effort with new car, was awarded 8/10 which I did not think was too bad. I could have reversed another 10 inches before hitting the fence!

Marmalade Crazy

2011-01-19T08:32:00.003Z

Husband simply loves making marmalade. I am not so sure. The kitchen turns into a sticky mess. Husband collects old Red Current Jelly jars, Tomato Chutney jars, damson jam jars etc etc but we do not soak off the labels. It gets quite confusing to open a jar of chutney to find Husband's marmalade instead! This year Husband has made four batches , two of which worked very well, the other two batches have not set properly. Consequently the kitchen is festooned with marmalade jars (sticky) waiting to"set". Husband is convinced they will set!! I shall wait until Husband is out of the house playing tennis and stick the marmalade into a pot and reboil it all. But. . . . . . . . . . . not today, it is our 38th wedding anniversary and we are going out to lunch!

Oh No, They Are Flooding In Again!

2011-01-05T14:27:00.002Z

Is anyone else inundated with unwanted catalogues that arrive through the post? About two years ago I had a blitz to try and stem the flow. First of all I removed my name and address on each catalogue and stuck on labels "Return to Sender". Our local sorting office seemed to have a vendetta - they tore off the labels and sent the catalogues back to me! I then tried emailing the companies concerned asking them to remove my name and address, however this seemed to have a double whammy effect - I received not only one catalogue but two! Nobody had bothered to read my email, obviously the easiest thing to do was to add my name and address again! I am certainly not going to spend money on telephoning and the arrival of these catalogues seem to keep the Post Office in business.

Oh No - Not More Snow!

2011-01-03T14:18:00.004Z

In the last 30 years that I have recorded the weather there have been a handful of days when the temperature has not reached above zero - until now. The back end of last year saw a record number of consecutive days with below zero temperatures. Suddenly again today, as I write, it is minus 0.5C and snow is falling. I used to get quite excited when there was an unusal temperature occurrence, whether the weather be hot or whether the weather be cold, but now it just feels normal!

Non-skid, Non Chic

2010-12-21T08:31:00.002Z

This is the best way to ensure not to slip in the icy conditions - wear your socks! The temperatures have been down to minus 13C and yesterday it snowed again. We braved the roads all the way to the supermarket - admittedly I had my hat over my eyes - oh no, I was not the driver by the way!

Sadly my trusty socks were not man enough to get me down to the pub quiz for the special Christmas edition.

We woke up to minus 11.4C

2010-12-19T08:47:00.002Z

A view over the fields behind our house. I could hardly believe the thermometer this morning registering minus 11.4C. I have been recording the weather for over 30 years and only once have I recorded minus 12C in this neck of the woods and that was about 25 years ago.

Snowed In!

2010-12-18T08:49:00.003Z

I was right to be a "Scaredy Cat" (see yesterday's post), overnight we have had a large dumping of snow! These pictures are taken through our upstairs windows and as I write it is still snowing hard. When it has finished tipping down I will enjoy myself outdoors in the field behind our garden. I love tramping through virgin snow on my crutches as I am relatively safe from slipping. My brother, safely back in Australia, rang through, over-excited about the cricket - he turned "native" as soon as he emigrated and wholeheartely supports "Down-Under"!

Scaredy Cat!

2010-12-17T11:15:00.003Z

There was just a slight dusting of snow here overnight in North Wiltshire but quite icy roads. I decided to go swimming (this is a 20 minute drive along narrow lanes for part of the way). I was chugging away through my usual 30 lengths when I noticed a few people leaving the pool in a hurry. I looked up and found the snow was chucking it down outside. Well . . . . . . . I am nervous of driving in snow so I hurtled out of the pool, dragged on shoes, sweater and coat without stopping to dry myself or put on underwear or have the usual shower. The road was white until I reached the other side of Tetbury where it had not been snowing at all! I arrived home with sodden clothes and dripping hair - my husband was amazed at the bedraggled sight!

And I Won The Money!

2010-12-14T15:28:00.003Z

I am a member of Calcot Spa where I regularly swim and today 22 of us sat down to lunch in the hotel section. Instead of "Secret Santa" we decided that each of us should put a £1 in the kitty and our names were entered into the draw. A very nice waiter who had gamely served us raucous ladies pulled my name out of the hat! The money nicely paid for my meal so I was well pleased!

Flight Plans

2010-12-09T12:02:00.004Z

My brother flies back to Australia today so we took him up to Kemble Airfield to select a plane best suited for the job! Bye bye James hope to see you again some day!

Consolation Prize

2010-12-07T08:33:00.002Z

It was that time of the month again - The Pub Quiz. My brother, who lives in Australia joined the ranks of our team "The Street Walkers". Nine teams fronted up for a very raucous evening - Aidan, the Quizmaster, was at his very best. We came a creditable 5th (I think) due to Aidan getting his knickers in a twist. However we did win a prize of some mince pies (thanks Aidan) for two reasons - we attended each quiz over the past year and also, I am sad to say, that last night were the oldest team by a country mile!

Toughening Up

2010-12-05T10:57:00.003Z

My brother flew in from Australia, where he lives, ten days ago, leaving behind temperatures of 32C. Since then we have not experienced temperatures above freezing. I took him out on a walk when it was -5C just to toughen him up. Adding insult to injury England are doing pretty well at the Ashes cricket!

Labradoodle Do!

2010-11-20T14:51:00.003Z

My son and family spent the day with us and here is my granddaughter showing off the new addition to the family who is just 9 weeks old!

A Jumble of Jets

2010-11-10T15:46:00.003Z

Today has been fantastic weather = clear blue sky all day. We took advantage and sat in the sun eating lunch at AV8 cafe next to the control tower at Kemble Airfield. There was plenty to watch. We met a friend from the nearby village in which we used to live, he is nuts about aircraft, he was a fount of knowledge. A large four engined jet landed and our friend knew all about it! It had belonged to British Airways and had arrived at Kemble to be stripped, apparently it would then be flown in stages to Australia where it would be refitted and sold off to kangeroo hop around about Down Under.

A large convoy of enormous trucks was seen trundling off apparently carrying the recycled bits of the many aircraft being salvaged at Kemble. We witnessed two more small passenger jets zoom in - just visiting. Of course there were loads of small planes making use of the window of good weather.

Another Happy Snappy Snap!

2010-10-26T15:35:00.002+01:00

See previous post. Today it was Husband's turn to cram himself in the photo booth. The Passport Office rang today rejecting his passport photos because he was wearing glasses. (We had previously had a discussion about his glasses - so I could say "I told you so"!).

The trouble is Husband really cannot see very much without his glasses so I was called upon to push the green button and quickly remove my hand from sight! All this was achieved quite satisfactorily. Upon seeing the resulting photo I let out a very loud laugh which definitely unsettled the man behind us waiting his turn! I fear the Passport Office may reject this new photograph to be nothing like the photo (with glasses) they have already on file! Oh well - we will wait and see.

Photo Booth for Midgets

2010-10-11T16:31:00.002+01:00

I am not that tall, really I am not, about 5ft 11inches and I must admit my feet are huge for a member of the female species. I did not expect to have difficulties in having my photo taken in one of the Post Office photo booths in order to renew my Blue Badge parking disc.

My knees do not bend happily over about 75 degrees but even if they had, my feet would hardly have crammed between the seat and the wall - I can tell you it was no joke. In the end after many contortions I skewed my body around and stuck my legs and feet beyond the curtain into the main passage of the Post Office hoping that nobody in the queue for stamps would trip over me!

The resulting photo is decidedly weird, my head looks square! Oh well, I hope the Blue Badge people are not as strict as the Passport Office!

Another Autumnal Morning

2010-10-09T07:56:00.002+01:00

Cobwebs in the wrong place

2010-09-30T12:24:00.004+01:00

The first foggy morning of the autumn - lovely for photographing cobwebs. When I came to use the car I found the windscreen on the inside dripping with condensation which showed up several large cobwebs draped over the dashboard and seats. I don't think I have ever cleaned the inside of my car, let alone the outside!

Patterns

2010-09-22T17:21:00.002+01:00

Autumn is my favourite time of year especially with the sun shining on the new plough. I have never seen this herringbone pattern before - have you?

One Must Laugh At Oneself

2010-09-17T13:24:00.003+01:00

We have just come back from a holiday in Sidmouth. We had great difficulty in reaching our hotel due to road closures to enable The Round Britain Cycle Race to whizz through. However we made it to the hotel and immediately ventured out to view the great race.

There seemed to be an enormous number of people using sticks, zimmers etc - Husband looked very out of place!

We stationed ourselves at a tight bend in the road which we hoped was a tricky place for the cyclists to negotiate at speed. The actual cyclists were bunched together and flashed past in an instant - it was the police and race officials that provided the spectacle. For every cyclist there must have been three or four uniformed motor cycle riders, vans advertising the charity which the race was supporting, officious officials in high viz jackets and a spagetti of cars with spare cycles on roof racks - it was a bit of a let down!

For the rest of the holiday we enjoyed good weather. I followed Husband around Axcliffe golf course on my crutches - a bad move really. The cliffs were precipitous - I could climb up but had great difficulty on the down slopes. We spent an afternoon with a good friend of mine who lives fairly near Sidmouth which was very enjoyable.

We are home now - immediately in work mode - I am just about to peg up the washing!

A Slight Improvement

2010-09-08T08:08:00.003+01:00

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . but not much! We came second last at the monthly village pub quiz. As is the custom the Quizmaster handed out the 'booby prize' to the team that came last - drat we just missed it - what bad luck! At the end of the proceedings the Quizmaster asked our team whether we had enjoyed the film DVD's (those which come free within newspapers) which we had won as the 'booby prize' the time before - we had to confess we had not looked at one of them! This is one of the reasons we often come last in the quiz - we do not look at many films on TV and there are many questions on films, tv soaps, cartoons and pop music. Us oldies are hopeless at those kind of questions! The Quizmaster upon hearing of our lack of uptake of the films suggested we gave them back to him so that he could use them again as a future 'booby prize'. The trouble is (yes, you might have guessed it already) we might be lumbered with them back again!! Never mind, Quizmaster, we love your quiz and always have a fun evening!

Nice To See You . . . . . . . To See You Nice!

2010-08-28T16:54:00.002+01:00

I have finally got myself organised and downloaded Skype to my computer - very good for viewing family "Down Under" and other close friends in this country.

Iron Horses

2010-08-07T09:28:00.004+01:00

Kemble Steam Rally is in full throttle . The engine pictured above is powering a circular saw which is cutting up a huge log into planks.

Bottom of the Class!

2010-08-03T07:53:00.002+01:00

Monday night was the pub quiz night but we could only muster three of our team. (Husband is useless at film and pop music questions so drowned his sorrows in a large glass of red wine). The really good thing about coming last is that there is a booby prize and this month it was a large collection of film dvds - the freebie ones that arrive in the newspapers. So next month we will have no excuse - we should be able to answer some of the film questions. (I doubt it!)

Hidcote

2010-06-09T14:39:00.003+01:00

I have been neglecting this blog lately - I seem to be suffering from General Anxiety Disorder (GAD) - which is pretty horrible! My GP banned me from going abroad to Austria this week so instead we are having a few outings from home.

Today we visited Hidcote Manor which is truly beautiful (except for the tourists of course!)

Courageous Clematis

2010-05-19T10:59:00.003+01:00

Three years ago we planted a small single stranded clematis either side of our front gate - this is the result!

Aldeburgh Revisited

2010-05-07T07:56:00.002+01:00

Husband's family used to own a seaside flat at Aldeburgh where he had happy childhood memories. We decided to visit. After a meander through The Chilterns we arrived at Aldeburgh where we met up with some old friends who live in Colchester. We walked along the sea front and came across the flat - it looked sad and forlorn and needed a bit of renovation. Our spirits were soon revived with very good fresh fish and chips on the verandah at the nearby Brudenel Hotel. The weather was kind enough for us to sit outside and breathe in the sea air. We continued our journey visiting Snape Maltings and Orford Castle before returning to our friends' house in Colchester where we spent a happy evening.

Scrum Down!

2010-04-25T17:12:00.007+01:00

Today we drove to the outskirts of London to the London Irish Rugby ground to watch Son and Grandson perform at the Mini Rugby Tournament. Son is a referee and also the Head Coach of Blackheath Under 9's team with our grandson being one of the playing members. The spectators look suitably impressed?

Here is the coach imparting his words of wisdom - I hope the scrum-capped one is listening!

Volcanic Sunset

2010-04-16T20:06:00.003+01:00

My usual sunset pictures have some aircraft contrails to make the picture interesting - nothing this evening!

Another Sign of Spring

2010-04-12T16:33:00.002+01:00

This afternoon my ears detected excited hooting and bellowing- yes - the cows are out of their winter indoor quarters and excitedly prancing around the distant fields hardly stopping for a snatch of the delicious new grass. We love to see the cows outside our windows - they have a sophorific effect with their swinging, flicking tails and steady munch munching.

This golfing lark . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

2010-04-02T08:38:00.002+01:00

why do I do it I ask myself. After the clocks change to summer time Husband and three friends play golf two evenings a week and I accompany them on my crutches (good knee exercise). Well - the weather has been atrocious and I still go out with them - I must be mad. We have experienced every type of weather in the two outings so far - lots and lots of rain, strong winds, sleet and a tiny peep of the gold orb for about 5 minutes which enabled us to view a lovely double rainbow! Hats and gloves are an essential item of clothing and spectacles need windscreen wipers. The reward . . . . . . . a nice stiff drink in the bar afterwards!

A Traditionally Laid Hedge

2010-03-28T11:15:00.004+01:00

It took the craftsman six days to lay this hedge - you don't often see this skill being put to use nowadays.

The Good and The Bad about Spring

2010-03-21T09:38:00.003Z

The good are the spring bulbs which are now shooting up in our pots and in the garden due to the warm weather.

The bad thing about spring is the infestation of cluster flies - they are everywhere. The sleepy flies were pouring through our roof void hatch into the spare bedroom - Husband dampened their spirits with a smoke bomb. This caused another problem - some of the dying flies in their effort to get out of the smoky atmosphere fell into the downlighter wells in the two bathrooms. Our morning and evening ablutions are somewhat darkened by a mass of flies in the lights! Help is at hand - a local odd-job man is coming around to unscrew the lights and also to crawl through the roof void and cover the lights with pots. We find unscrewing the lights rather a task - my knees are too wobbly to stand on chairs or ladders, especially in the bath and shower and Husband has no head for heights, even three inches off the ground!!!

Argghh - The Dentist

2010-03-12T18:03:00.002Z

Today I had to have a tooth out - I have never had the experience before but nevertheless all went well and I returned home to Husband. After about an hour I remarked to Husband that there was still a lot of blood swishing around. Husband is very experienced with tooth extractions and told me "not to fuss" and off he went for a walk. I decided that all was not well and after a phone call I was summoned back to the dentist and there I received two more injections and five stitches - arghhhhh - I am now really hurting and refusing to eat anything which will not do me any harm at all!!

Catastrophic Carrots - Urghhh!

2010-03-04T16:40:00.003Z

As it was a nice sunny day, albeit very cold with a keen north-east wind, Husband suggested we made a start on the veg plot we help with in another villager's garden. When we arrived Husband divided the labour - I was given the nastiest job on god's earth. Whilst Husband gently planted out some broad beans I had to dig up and clear the remaining row of carrots (we had grown far too many). I started digging and picking up the carrots only to find a lot of them exploded into an orange mush - it was like handling sloppy cold mashed potato - it was truly awful - I shall not be eating carrots for a little while - I have been thoroughly put off!

Something to Share

2010-02-27T13:05:00.004Z

It is my birthday today and I was very amused with this card I received, so I thought I would share it with you!

Happiness is aged 74!

2010-02-26T10:46:00.003Z

It has been in the news recently that the height of happiness in one's life is reached at the age of 74. Husband is aged 73. Husband is a quiet man, a very quiet man.

We enjoy, on a regular basis, "afternoon tea" with some old friends of ours. We visited them yesterday and had a jolly good "grumpy" afternoon. We have good fun putting the world to rights - I don't know who is the grumpiest. If you get Husband on to the subjects of global warming, green energy such as wind farms and space exploration he blows a fuse! But as Husband says one can be happy being grumpy!

Shooting Sunsets

2010-02-21T09:10:00.002Z

This is my first shot of a sunset for the season. The sun is now setting over the field behind our house. At the moment there are no cattle in the fields so I do not have to dodge the pancakes!

Up, Up and Away!

2010-02-19T13:51:00.006Z

This morning one of my close friends rang up from Colchester to alert us that her husband and son, both pilots, were arriving at Kemble Airfield, to pick up their plane which they had had to leave mid journey due to bad weather earlier in the week.

We arrived just in time at the "AV8" cafe next to the control tower where we had a chinwag whilst the condensation that had built up in the plane was dispersed.

All ready to set off - a bit of map reading in progress.

A stop on the way to the main runway to fill up with fuel.

A quick taxi down the runway.

Away they went! It was good to be back on the airfield after these long winter months. We stocked up with fish and chips before heading home. One has to wind one's way through the ever increasing steel birds which have come to their final roost before being demolished on site.

Fingers and Thumbs

2010-02-18T10:16:00.002Z

I have never got dressed so quickly in my life! Early this morning I swum my usual 30 lengths keeping an eye on the weather as we were expecting snow later in the day. I took a good long time in the shower but when I came out about 10 minutes later the ground was white and I have never seen such large snowflakes thudding down. The drive home takes 20 minutes so I thought I had better get a move on but the more I hurried to get dressed, dragging clothes over my still wet body, the more I got in a tangle!

Loose Connections

2010-02-15T10:40:00.002Z

Today our local regular plumber arrived to change the water descaling filter. He was all excited. His boss's ex-wife is the person who has won the £56 euromillions!!! Do you think we can expect a gold-plated water filter cartridge next change-over time? Oh no I think not!

Patterns

2010-02-13T08:38:00.002Z

Oh no, what a horrible thought that has just come into my head whilst posting this - this tree looks as if it has varicose veins!!!

Schooldays Remembered

2010-02-10T08:07:00.003Z

Husband and I, after shopping in Waitrose, usually have a lemon yum yum and a cup of coffee and read their free newspapers! Yesterday, displayed on the counter were these buns - I think their usual name is finger buns. Well - not in our household! I attended a boarding school in the long distant days of my youth and every Tuesday and Thursday we were given these buns and a up of cocoa at break time. These buns were everyone's favourite at school, as you can imagine, us schoolgirls affectionally called them "greased rats"

A Fanfare of Fieldfares

2010-02-08T07:59:00.003Z

A flock of Redwings and Fieldfares have been swooping about recently over the field behind our house. I managed to creep up on these birds when they were having a rest in the ash tree!

What A Get Up!

2010-02-02T08:16:00.003Z

Monday Night is "Quiz Night" at our local pub. The pub is a five minute walk away which is a really nice feature of where we live. During the afternoon it rained and just about the time we were due at the pub the temperate dipped below freezing. Husband and the other member of "The Street Walkers" team actually did walk but I chickened out due the slippery conditions and pressed my trusty bike into operation. I have the extra light on my head to charge up my brain whilst weaving my merry way to the pub! The extra brain boost, alas, did not do the trick and our team came fourth out of seven - but who cares - we really enjoy ourselves - thanks to the Quizmaster! Better luck next time!

I Can Never Win!

2010-01-29T08:12:00.002Z

Here are some of my friends participating in an aqua class. I swim madly in the far lane against the swooshing current the "mermaids"? create! For some time now my arms have been giving me trouble - but I think slowly getting better due to physiotherapy. To vary my swimming I have recently added in breast stroke with a dolphin kick (being unable to utilise the proper leg movement due to my horrible wonky knees). I am now hobbling! My knees have decided to object to an unfamiliar movement - this weekend I shall have to walk with the beastly crutches most of the time to give them a rest. My brother calls me "bigfoot" for obvious reasons - I expect I shall be able to propel myself along with just my feet - I shall give it a try next week!

Little Things Please Little Minds?

2010-01-24T11:09:00.002Z

This little top spun out of one of our Christmas crackers! We love it! It is such a simple thing but beautifully balanced and it really spins well on the granite in the kitchen. Husband and I have competitions as to who can spin it the longest. Sad to say Husband holds the record - it keeps us amused while waiting for the kettle to boil!

Husband is One Up (er. . . . . . actually 36 Up)

2010-01-19T14:48:00.002Z

Today is our 37th wedding anniversary - there was a card from Husband on my breakfast plate. I have to admit I have never remembered! I did manage to turn up to the wedding itself though! Husband is so pleased with himself each year that he has remembered and I have not . . . . . . . . . . .I think I shall keep it that way because he likes being "one up"

Colourful Compost

2010-01-16T14:34:00.003Z

The heavy rain overnight melted almost all the snow and left the landscape looking rather drab and bedraggled - all except for the compost heap which is a riot of colour!

Sorry I'm Late !

2010-01-13T08:14:00.002Z

These are the words the paperboy said to us this morning! The time was 7.50am - normally he delivers the papers between 7am-7.30am. There has been another snowfall overnight and the snow is still throwing it down - the paperboy in his high viz jacket is the only person making tracks at the moment. Three cheers for the paperboy!

Hello There!

2010-01-09T08:32:00.003Z

The neighbour's snowman is determined to watch what we are doing!

Crunchy Crunchy!

2010-01-07T11:20:00.003Z

Last night the temperature dropped to minus 8.8C and another day below freezing is forecast. In compensation we have a chocolate box blue sky and sunshine. I took a walk in the fields listening to the sound of the snow crunching beneath my (large) feet - I love that sound! My second best sound is of horses contentedly munching hay!

We have introduced a bird ground feeder tray and the blackbirds love it! Today it is filled with the remains of the apple crumble we shared with our neighbours yesterday.

These two photos are taken through the kitchen window so are not the best!

Calm Before The Storm

2010-01-06T19:19:00.002Z

Yesterday I managed to walk around the field behind our house - good for taking photos. Today however we have such a heavy blanket of snow that the landscape seems to be blotted out. I would simply love to reach an alternative area to photograph but transport by crutches restricts me. Very few villagers ventured out by car. We received a cheery call from the neighbours and we joined forces and pooled our resources for lunch - we hastily baked an apple crumble!

Australia talks Perspiration, UK talks Refridgeration

2010-01-05T14:41:00.002Z

These photos taken from our bedroom windows are for my brother, Jamie and fellow blogger, Rockwallaby, who are sweltering in the heat down under in OZ.

It had only been snowing for 15 minutes when I grabbed the camera. I am stuck inside - too slippery to get really good photos outside!

Freezing Day

2010-01-04T14:49:00.003Z

I am a keen weather watcher and today has been a "freezing day". The highest temperature was minus 1.5C. I have been able to walk over the fields but not on the roads or pavements due to slippery conditions - I think we may get more snow overnight.

Too dreary to walk!

2009-12-31T09:53:00.003Z

Husband and I have slouched around these last couple of days due to the cold damp weather. Looks like hard frosts are returning tonight. Husband kindly drove me to my physio appointment. We had to tackle Dursley Hill in the whirling snow and I was too chicken to go by myself but equally determined to get some treatment for my "swimmers arm". Diagnosis - rigid spine due to hunched walking with crutches. I have now been issued with back stretching exercises which includes bending over the kitchen table with Husband pushing on spine to increase flexibility - the mind boggles!!!

Hopeless Britain - No Power!

2009-12-25T11:20:00.004Z

Happy Christmas everyone! The power went off at 8am today - our house runs absolutely entirely on electricity and we have no fireplace! The temperature outside was just above freezing. We unwrapped our presents and look what I received from my step-daughter a really lovely scarf and gloves - how very timely!!

Meanwhile Husband looks entirely deranged!!!

Please Send Me The Wool!

2009-12-23T11:06:00.003Z

Have just discovered that by cutting in half really thick long socks and placing these around my shoes I can walk without slipping on the ice! I shall have to buy some knitting needles and thick hairy wool to make a more elegant pair of "snow shoes". This morning the temperature dropped to minus 8.6C and it is still way below freezing and foggy at the time of typing. Husband is snuffling and snorting with a heavy cold - it is like living with a very disgruntled growling dog (just like the dog in Ardman's "Shaun The Sheep") !!

Frozen Fog!

2009-12-22T13:35:00.003Z

Today the weather is different yet again. Not so cold overnight - only minus 3.5C compared with minus 6.6C the night before. We now have freezing fog - still good for photo opportunities.

I Spoke Too Soon!

2009-12-21T15:27:00.003Z

Yup - we have snow! As you will see from my previous post I commented on the bright blue skies. Overnight we received a white blanket. This is the view from our garden to the field beyond and in the distance the local farm. Our village does not receive the gritter's attention too frequently so the lanes were very tricky to drive on - my physio appointment was cancelled so I am none the wiser as to how to treat my "swimmer's arm" !!

Ice and Water

2009-12-20T10:24:00.003Z

In this part of Wiltshire we seem to have escaped the recent snowfall and instead we have lovely cold frosty days with clear blue sky.

There are still signs of the heavy rain we have been experiencing a week or two back.

Whew!

2009-12-16T15:56:00.002Z

I have another swimming related injury at the moment so I am "off games". I find inactivity really frustrating so I have been helping out at a local cottage industry. Being left handed I found the sticky tape gun infuriating - the sticky side of the tape seemed to twist round backwards!! I got relegated to scrunching up newspaper!

We Won! We Won! We Won!

2009-12-12T08:46:00.003Z

Would you believe it? Thousands wouldn't! We actually won the village christmas quiz! This event is held annually in the village hall and about 80 people attended. Our team was made up of Husband's golf friends and their wives - we are all old friends. I have to admit the man we have to thank for our win is sitting in the photo above with his back to you in the green/grey sweater - he knew just about everything there is to know about pop music! (How sad is that?)

Before the quiz we invited this mighty team to a "high tea" at our place. We fed them brain food and plenty of liquid refreshments - it seems to have done the trick.

The trusty quizmaster who puts up with some of us at our pub quiz, suitably dressed in a splendid waistcoat and matching hat, officiated for the occasion and suffered the same kind of barracking that he usually gets from us locals. Nothing changes!

Don't Laugh?

2009-12-10T09:55:00.003Z

I am not known for my handicraft work - I swear it is because I am left-handed. To enter into the spirit of things Christmassy I enrolled in a christmas wreath making morning held at the local farm cosily (actually freezingly) in a stable. As you can see Husband has recovered fully from his bout of shingles - so no more sympathy comments please!

Wet, Wet, Wet!

2009-12-06T13:59:00.004Z

Another wet and windy night - the rain deluged down leaving the fields sodden but this does

not stop Husband and I enjoying a walk. By the way, Husband is recovering fast from his bout of shingles!

Sod's Law!

2009-12-04T17:34:00.003Z

I decided to send fewer christmas cards this year. Guess what . . . . . . . . . . . . . . the postman arrived today bearing the first christmas card of the year and yes, you are right, it was from one of the people I had chopped off the list!!!

They Are At It Again!

2009-12-01T11:14:00.004Z

Anyone who reads this blog regularly will remember we had a burst water main just outside our house which flooded the road. The water pipes in this rural area are very ropey indeed! Today the Water Board are back to fit a fire hydrant which was omitted in the last outburst. We feel this is a good thing as these four new houses are timber framed! Despite traffic lights and cones in the road some people driving cars are whizzing by and every so often I hear shouts and curses from the men as they get sprayed by water - I ask myself why don't they turn the mains water off?

The fire hydrant is that blue object between the two men who are posing nicely for my camera shot!?

Shingles

2009-11-29T15:57:00.003Z

Husband has succumbed to a bout of shingles - I think this is the first time he has been ill since I have known him which must be over 30 years. Anyone who has suffered from this kind of plague will know that it is very painful with nerve pains travelling down the legs etc. I have had to move a rug under his chair as he cannot keep his feet still - the carpet is getting a real beating up! Thank god he has taken himself off to bed for a rest - it is like living with a bag of ferrets!!

The Tale of the Tatty Teaspoon

2009-11-25T16:04:00.004Z

When my brother came to stay last year he used to turn his nose up at our washing up arrangments! We seem to keep the same teaspoon in use all day fishing out teabags, stirring coffee etc - I have to admit a bit sloppy really!

Husband suggested we gave ourselves £70.00 and bought our own Christmas presents - the rules were one frivolous present for oneself, one useful and one for the household. We duly entered a shopping mall today (how I hate the places). I managed to buy a cheap puzzle game for the PC and a jersey from Marks to replace the one I got covered in wet paint last week leaning against a wall in the locker room at the swimming pool. As for the present for the household I am still thinking! Husband accomplished his mission within about ten minutes. He bought a 1/2 price book, a red sweater, some garish underpants and guess what - 8 shiny shiny shiny new teaspoons - my brother would be delighted if he ever came to stay again all the way from Oz!!

Green and Pleasant Land

2009-11-20T20:56:00.001Z

This photo is for Rockwallaby who over there in Australia is suffering from dought!

They Know When I Am There!

2009-11-18T14:00:00.003Z

I swim regularly at Calcot Spa and used to participate in the Aqua Classes where I made a lot of friends. Now I prefer to swim earlier in the mornings and chug out 30 lengths of crawl. One day last week I had left the swimming a bit late and the aqua class arrived and so I was restricted to the "fast lane". As I swum against the choppy tidal waters of 100 water hog, one of my friends shouted "We knew you were here because of your shoes" !!!! Well - you actually could not miss my shoes because they are so HUGE and I do not put them into my locker, I leave them tidily under the bench. I thought this remark needed a response so I likened the aqua class to the signature picture on BBC One of the hippos that swim round and round in a circle - oh yes, I can see their fat little legs under the water through my goggles. A good time was had by all!

A Blowy Walk

2009-11-16T13:50:00.004Z

We took advantage of a sunny but very windy day today and took a walk near the village of Ashley. The above photo might be of interest to Hadriana, we park the car just off part of The Fosse Way and wind our way uphill (mostly) to the village of Ashley.

The above photo might be of interest to Gill because she has just taken a very good photo of some fungi! By the way I awarded 8 points out of 10 (see previous post) to Husband who clambered into a bramble strewn ditch to get this photo. His words whilst he was stumbling around were "What I do for you" !!

These next two photos might interest my brother Jamie who this time last year was visiting us from Australia. We used to walk this walk with him. He will recognise the Pigeon Loft (present day and this time last year). This building is now being converted - I do hope the poor pigeons are restored after the building is finished.

The Points System

2009-11-12T07:55:00.003Z

Our new build house boasted a "double garage" - what rot! Perhaps you could park two minis side by side packed like sardines with no way of entering the cars except with a tin opener. Where to park my car? (Naturally Husband bagged the garage for his car ???). We had to pave an area of garden next to the garage to park my trusty Terios.

Well - the next problem was - how good was I at reversing into this space - actually to begin with I was awful. Thank goodness my car is fitted with a reversing beeper otherwise I would have flattened the picket fence behind many many times.

Husband started "awarding me" points out of ten as to how I parked the car. Sometimes he would emerge from our front door gesticulating with his fingers and hands as to how many points I had gained for my latest effort. One day our neighbour passed whilst this ritual was being carried out - blow me down if he hasn't entered into the sport as well! Needless to say neither man has ever ever awarded me 10 out of 10. I got my own back the other day when I asked Husband to hang out the washing for me - what a fearful mess - shirts were hung up by their shoulders and not spread out, pants were drooped over the line, trousers were hung up by one peg. Guess what - I awarded him nought out of ten!

Top Brass

2009-11-04T08:28:00.003Z

Last night we visited the Wyvern Theatre in Swindon and listened to the RAF Central Band - they were fabulous. There was a mixture of music played including film scores, traditonal military marches, a trumpet solo and a flute duet. They played the rousing "633 Squadron" and of course "The Dam Busters." For me, the best piece was by Vangelis "The Conquest of Paradise", it was this music that was played over the ship's tannoy system every time "Royal Clipper" raised her sails at sunset and silently left port. The effect of the haunting music combined beautifully with this majestic ship, mast lit by a thousand lights silently sailing away into the night. Royal Clipper is the largest sailing clipper in the world and we had the privilege of sailing in her in 2008 on a cruise from Rome to Venice.

We wondered why the band consisted of so many women and eventually came to the conclusion that the very very handsome Musical Director was the reason!!! By the way, I definitely fancied him too!!

We Smell Dreadful!

2009-10-30T08:05:00.002Z

Yesterday Husband and I tackled the green algae that has conglomerated on our patio which is northfacing and never sees the sun. I started off with a cleaner called Armillatox - it was useless - I scrubbed, scrubbed and scrubbed some more. We left it over night - the patio still leered "green" at us. Husband scrubbed on dettol and we both smelt of old fashioned hospitals. Later in the day I was bent double like a giraffe (due to lack of knee bend) and scrubbed away with bleach - lovely job! Bleach and Dettol smells wafted through our clothes and hair - well my hair at least, Husband does not have too much!!!!

Inside Out!

2009-10-26T11:30:00.002Z

Husband had been looking forward to a nice gentle game of golf with his mates yesterday. The rain - it raineth, the wind - it bloweth!

Digging Has Done Me In!

2009-10-23T15:03:00.002+01:00

Last saturday Husband and I sauntered down to our local surgery for our seasonal flu jabs. At the ripe old age of 65 (not quite yet) we here in the UK are given, if so wished, a one-off pneumonia jab. I accepted this jab and thought nothing more about it. Later that day I energetically hoed some our of veg plot down the road from our house. My arm went mad with resentment and swelled up from shoulder to elbow in a large hot lump and it is no better today nearly a week later. With two wonky knees as well as a maddened arm I have only one useful limb left! I am getting quite frustrated at not being able to carry out my usual swimming or walking with my crutches - life is one long pain at the moment!

Cow Calamities

2009-10-18T14:33:00.002+01:00

I chatted to Farmer over the garden fence whilst the electric fencing was being checked. He had me cracked up with laughter as he recalled a few narrow escapes with his cows.

To move the cows to their summer pasture apparently can be hazardous, to cause the least confusion they make the move early in the morning to pass through a village. As usual, everyone's garden gates were checked to see if they were shut and look-outs were posted along the route. The cows amble through the village . . . . . . . suddenly a woman in a deep pink nightie tears out of her house, through her garden into the road shouting obscenities complaining her sleep had been disturbed. Ahah thought the cows an open gate and even better an open door into a house! Farmer had to sort out 70 cows confined in a small garden with several inquisitive cows trampling their way through the house!

Another calamity occurred when again the cows were being herded down a narrow lane. A motorist in a Ford Fiesta came upon the herd but instead of calmly waiting for the cows to amble past, the driver surged his way forward eventually grinding to a halt. The motorist wound down his window to loudly and rudely complain when all of a sudden the bull (a placid fellow I am told) came upon a nice scratching post and stuck his head through the car window. There were screams from inside the car as it was rocked too and fro with the windscreen falling out - the bull was having a good time rubbing his itchy head against the window frame. Farmer had to wrench the passenger door open and dive over both passenger and driver to push the bull out!

I must not laugh too loudly in case the cows decide to burst through into our garden - I would not be too happy!

Monotonous Moles

2009-10-15T11:47:00.004+01:00

We have had to call Mole Man twice within the last two months - the moles are playing games with us. Mole Man catches one mole and says he has finished and there are no more moles - well we know different! It is expensive = £126.50 each batch of visits. I am fed up with this! Mole Man is in the process of trying to catch the elusive mole(s). On his last visit I pretended to be very very interested in mole behaviour and whilst Mole Man was giving his mole monologue I was craftily looking how he set the traps! I have now visited a website and bought three traps for £12.50 and as soon as Mole Man finishes this current session I shall take over and lay traps myself! Husband is too scared.

If I suddenly stop posting on this blog you will know I have trapped not a mole but my fingers!

Never A Dull Moment

2009-10-13T17:01:00.002+01:00

It has been a glorious autumn day here - in the afternoon I followed Husband around the golf course. A National Grid helicopter was hovering around the nearby pylons - it looked very tiring precision work. After Husband had whacked his way around the course, on the spur of the moment we decided to have the usual cup of tea and bun at AV8 cafe on Kemble Airfield. We arrived just in timeto see the same helicopter land, refuel and lock up for the night, but the real sight was a half inflated hot air balloon just about to take off for a joy ride - it had Triumph Underwear emblazoned along its bulbous sides. Husband guessed a modest 38C whilst I went for 44DD! We were very amused to see it's call sign was "G-KNIX" !!

"Ozmosis"

2009-10-10T16:39:00.003+01:00

When my Brother, Jamie, visited us last November (he lives in Australia) he packed in his suitcase a couple of leafy twigs from his garden to start off our compost heap! Husband is seen here removing the top layer in preparation to dig out the heap onto the veg garden.

You can see the result - (oops, a lot of rose twigs, naughty me adding them to the heap over the summer).

If you like puppies please visit my brother's blog (see link above).

We Were Very Naughty!

2009-10-06T07:49:00.003+01:00

The scene of the crime was at "The Local" during the monthly quiz night. All teams were handed out, as usual, the picture round and the theme for this was identifying films. The Street Walkers team are absolutely rubbish at films. To our amazement we were handed out the sheet of paper that included the answers which had been blanked out with tippex. Well, what would you have done? I had on my person a torch and we used our initiative (very admirable we thought) and shone the torch through the blanked out areas and we were then able to read the answers!

We thought the Quizmaster would be impressed for an instant and then he would realize something was amiss because to date we have usually come last being unable to answer many questions on films, pop music and TV. We were rumbled very quickly by the team marking our papers, but despite the marks being deducted we, unusally, tied for first place. The tension mounted as a decider question was asked, but blow me down - the subject was films!!! In the circumstances the right team won.

I think we may be banned or perhaps we had better settle for coming last - oh, no, no no, the boobie prizes are brilliant so that would not do at all. The Street Walkers will try their very best to come second last next month!

A Prized Possession

2009-10-03T09:01:00.004+01:00

Husband remarked "I have never won anything in my life . . . . . . . . until now"!

Yesterday he and his 3 other partners in crime were invited to play in a company/charity golf day. Husband used to own this company (son, then about 10 years old thought we would be "rich"???? - I think not!) . The present owner invites the four old lags back every year for the golf - I expect never thinking the old boys could ever win anything! Husband and his partner came second and won a golf bag each. (Sigh) methinks yet more clutter in the garage!

Tomboy Talk

2009-09-29T16:04:00.004+01:00

Part of the line-up for scrappage at Kemble Airfield. ClickAir (never heard of them) is the blue plane, India Air, an unidentifiable and the yellow one, we guess is DHL.

Near AV8 Cafe one can see the Jumbos lined up waiting their turn for demolition - rather a sad sight we think.

We decided to visit AV8 today because of the fine weather. We were not disappointed - we had turned up to find several of the larger hangars open being used for some kind of "jolly" (the local wine merchant, we noticed, had two vans parked in the vicinity)! The hangars are usually shut and look rather myserious but today they were buzzing with people looking at aircraft on display. As we sat down with our customary bun and mug of tea at the cafe, the Rolls Royce owned Spitfire ducked, dived and screamed over the airfield giving us a wonderful display.

A Lynx helicopter arrived to entertain. Husband and I thought we had done well for an afternoon's entertainment all for the cost of a mug of tea and a bun!

Misty Morning

2009-09-25T11:42:00.002+01:00

This was the view from my bedroom window this morning - the promise of another glorious day!

Unusual Fireplace

2009-09-22T07:46:00.003+01:00

We stayed for our short break at The Priory Bay Hotel in IOW. If you look amongst the ivy clad wall you will be able to see two windows (up and down) - these are situated just over fireplaces. The smoke from the fires has to be diverted to either side in the chimney breast.

The hotel, as its name suggests, was an old priory and some of the buildings were really lovely including a dovecot (I forgot to upload that photo!!). There was a 6 hole golf course for Husband to enjoy and we could wander down to the private beach .

Within the grounds sat Churchill and Roosevelt, apparently they had many meetings there.

Distances!

2009-09-18T08:02:00.002+01:00

Owning a pair of wonky knees I haveto be very careful about distances! When in familiar territory I am fine - I know how far it is to walk where I wish to go. Not so on holiday! We arrived at Yarmouth, Isle of Wight and Husband said we must make a diversion to see The Needles. We arrived at designated car park to find it was quite a long walk (in my opinion). Husband said "Oh no - not far, we will only be walking about ten minutes". I should have known better. Husband has no such wonky knees and has never wielded a pair of crutches only thinks in his terms. We slogged up the hill in glorious hot sunshine, but it took half an hour!! As you can see from the photo we made it to the top!

Throughout the 4 day holiday I also managed walking round a 6 hole golf course twice, a 9 hole golf course, two stretches of beaches and other small forays. Knees are now boiling hot, I shall not give up and now back home again I am off swimming this morning!!

Old Friends

2009-09-11T16:15:00.003+01:00

I have had a lovely day today! My childhood playmates came to visit - I have not seen them for years and years - we had a lot of catching up to do. It is funny what one remembers and the other one does not! I remember a rather traumatic morning when Liz and I caught the usual morning train into Victoria to attend our various secretarial colleges. Just outside Wimbledon station the train ground to a halt. There was a deathly silence, the passengers did not talk to each other! After about half an hour a guard ordered us down on to the railway line and we had to walk to Wimbledon station. The news was that Clapham Junction bridge had fallen down. Liz and I could have caught the Tube into London but sensibly, we thought, it was better to find our way home to Leatherhead by various buses - we were worried we would have had a very difficult journey home in the evening if we had struggled on. We arrived home at about lunchtime. I rang up my secretarial college - they spat tin tacks at me, they were furious I had not carried on into London! Liz does not remember this incident at all!!! Richard, on the other hand, does not remember informing me, as we washed up the tea things in his house (his mother had gone out), that "crockery dries in the cupboard" !!!

Boobies Again!

2009-09-08T10:10:00.002+01:00

Last night our team "The Street Walkers" sauntered down to the local pub for the quiz. As usual, the questions dealing with TV programmes, films and pop music flummox our fairly elderly brains - we could not even remember who sat in the basket with Andy Pandy!! Can you? We answered Looby Lou but apparently this poor creature was left in a corner - it was Teddy who had the favoured spot. I think my brother, now living in Oz, used to watch Andy Pandy but I thought that a sissy programme!! My idea of TV watching in those days was Hopalong Cassidy and Champion The Wonder Horse!!!

The outcome, as is now obvious, we came last. We did not despair as the kind Quizmaster always provides super booby prizes. This time we were the recipients of Scott's Porridge Oats, a tin of rice pudding, a bottle of sun tan cream, a tub of meringues and some fancy tea. The main thing is we all had a rumbustious time!

Fish Heads?

2009-09-04T11:20:00.002+01:00

The steel bird scrappage business continues unabated at Kemble Airfield. Today I took this photo as we sped by in our car of some of the cockpits. I was not quick enough with the camera, but there are about five forlorn cockpits stacked up - they remind me of chopped off fish heads!
We also noticed another cargo type jumbo has arrived and has joined three others waiting for their final destination and disintegration.

We might be having a noisy weekend. A "bluegrass" music festival is being held on the airfield - I hope we sufficiently far enough away not to hear too much of this music at night. But, in fact, I would rather listen to "bluegrass" than "rock"!!

A Mrs Bouquet Moment!

2009-08-29T16:03:00.003+01:00

Any of you who are familiar with the BBC TV programme "Keeping Up Appearances" will know what I mean about "A Mrs Bouquet Moment". Husband and I decided, since it was a lovely sunny afteroon, to visit the "AV8" cafe on Kemble Airfield for a cup of tea. We were passing through the car park when suddenly I saw a black growling snarling bullet of a dog reach out through a car window to grab me! I am not very good at fast movements due to my wonky knees and I did not have a hedge to back into as did Hyacinth Bouquet so I very nearly fell over as I tried to escape the snapping jaws. Husband just stood and laughed his little cotton socks off!

Electrifying?

2009-08-25T07:55:00.002+01:00

The local farmer informed us, as she delivered the weekly eggs, that someone is tampering with the electric fence that borders our garden as well as others. The battery is connected to a solar panel and is discreetly hidden very near the back of our greenhouse. I was shown how the solar panelled battery system works and very definitely someone has bothered to come up and flick the switch off. The farmer says it is well known that dog walkers tamper with electric fences in fields where they think they have a right to roam. There is a footpath through this field so why on earth should someone bother to creep up in full view of our house and switch it off.

To prove a point, during that very next night the battery was switched off, the cows broke the electric fence in several places. The cows did no damage as all of us have post and rails boundaries. I have now volunteered to check the battery morning and evening. I am left wondering how people can be so petty to wander around in the night turning off electric fences. I might scare these people off if I were to sit in our greenhouse all night, jump out in my hideous nightie and say "boo". What do you think?

Ooh, I was so embarrassed!

2009-08-18T11:27:00.004+01:00

Yesterday evening, as usual, accompanied Husband and his three friends around the local golf course. I stood on the first tee whilst the four men gathered their golfing kit together. Along came a young couple who had just finished their round, they stopped in front of me and said "How can you play golf with those crutches"? I replied, with a nod of my head towards Husband and his buddies, "Oh, I am just nominated the non-playing captain"! The couple then tiraded me about the state of the course, why was there not a womens' tee position on the fifth hole? Why had the wasps' nest not be attended to, etc etc. It suddenly occurred to me that the couple thought I was the ladies captain of the golf club. I did not enlighten them but the five of us had a good laugh afterwards! By the state of their play last night I think I could have beaten Husband and the other three players if I had used my crutches!!!

I Think I Could Be An IT Expert??

2009-08-17T10:44:00.002+01:00

I have sorted out broadband connection myself. I used the wireless connection via my neighbour and accessed Virgin Media webpage. I got through to the email section and shoved in my password and received the emails. I then closed my computer down, disconnected the wireless connection, turned my usual router back on and whirred up the old computer and hey presto - all systems go! Think I might ask for a job at Virgin in their call centre - or perhaps not!!!!

Good Neighbours

2009-08-15T21:14:00.002+01:00

My neighbour is an IT whizz kid and has kindly linked my PC to his internet connection wirelessly for the time being. I think it is 12 telephone calls I have made to Virgin now! There is a move underfoot in our village (fingers crossed if a suitable mast can be sited in a suitable place) to have a wireless broadband service. Rural communities are often forgotten when it comes to amenities - but never fear the peace of the countryside makes up for it in my opinion!