Soop's Kitchen Extension

Can I come in ? I'm frozen. Got home tonight to find plumbers have finished repiping the house, but when they turned the boiler on it packed up on them.
I now have to wait for them to get a new one! I said I needed it replacing from the start. So no hedging! Electric fire on in lounge and open fire blazing away. The temp has risen to the giddy heights of 15degrees! Brrrrrrrrrr

Hedging? Blame the shivers . Heating!

Lovely lovely time don't know why maybe cos of daughter rejection feel nervous when invited to friends that don't know that closely. They are lovely couple who make you feel so welcome and relaxed, delicious buffet hot sausage rolls pizza delist rolls so yummy. Ice glass wine and followed by coffee eclairs and mince pies! Loved watching their hol DVD of Cornwall and we tookics of India what fantastic time cheered us both up!

Gracesmum sorry you got wet!

Soop don't stress you did right thing bound feel bit scarey.

soop I thought about equity release once and decided I couldn't cope.....but I'm sure it will work out ok for you.

I popped out to rant round the corner, about my greenhouse, but came back in the warm.
Now thinking about whether to try really hard to be off gluten, since I have been reading that that can help some people with colitis - might make for some interesting baking, since I looked at gluten free bread in Tesco's and found it all had egg in, apart from being 3 x the price!
Eggs, I stopped eating years ago.

However - wasn't there some chocolate cake somewhere here.....?

Oh - did I finish the cake?...have to make some more. Tomorrow.
G'night.

LizG I'd have had SS on my doorstep if I'd tied up a DD or DGC outside the village shop!! As it was, if she'd known how t use the phone, I would probaby have been expecting a knock from the Retired Greyhound Trust

Oh a greyhound Gracesmum well you are completely sunk, she only has to give you 'the eye' and you will suffer guilt for ever. I know these things, my lurcher has those self same eyes .

Galen what a rotten time to be without hedging heating. Pity they didn't listen to you in the first place.

Does anyone mind if I curl up on the sofa tonight. Thought about taking myself off for a long walk but it is so chilly, then I thought about how cosy and cheerful it is here and that's a much nicer idea.

Good morning to you lovely lot It's bright and sunny with a smattering of wispy clouds in the powder blue sky. Rory is pretending to be interested in something that lurks under the hydrangea bush. He'll either deal with it [if it's tiny and harmless] or rush indoors, if not

Galen Snuggle up on the sofa. I shall keep supplying you with warming brews. Percolating the coffee right now.

celebgran it's good to know that your evening cheered both you and Mr celeb. The buffet sounds super. I could eat a warm mince pie with a huge dollop of cream, right this minute. Heck! It's a fasting day. Just as well there isn't one to tempt me.

Gally happy times ahead. Good! I'm chuffed for you.

Alie I didn't lose sleep last night but I did wake up with the same niggles busying themselves in my head. Mr soop has a spring in his step. So I'm certainly not going to bang on about the "what ifs..." We've made the decision and our family support that decision. Between my Granspals and me...I really feel deflated that, after a lifetime of hard work, we're not going to have anything much to hand on to the family we love. It feels like we've failed...

I'll make the coffee and hunt for a lone mince pie

Thanks soop it is cold wet and horrid here in frinton. Braved it go acquacise despite still having sore throat just got back did me good!

Taking Rosie for anal check as she has go regularly bless her she been Scooting!

Seeing local amateur dramatics tonight they usually very good.

Hope oh recovering I gracesmum

Soop what's done is done, the die is cast, the decision made and you haven't failed them and what you can leave them is beyond cash value!
Rushing around in circles this morning. My opposite neighbour left her front door wide open - hot air escaping and possible burglars entering. Think she must have left in a hurry with the children, so after hopping from one foot to the other a bit, I took an executive decision and closed it - hope she has a key . She still isn't home after 3 hours.... Other young neighbour looked in with a box of Thornton's Advent Calendar chocs - just because. Isn't that lovely? Now all behind with my clean up operation and going to see The Butler at the pics this afternoon so may as well write today off. At least I have heat and what's more, the sun is shining.

soop - I understand how you are feeling. We made a mistake with an investment that has gone spectacularly wrong and I, too, feel we have let the children down. I have gone over and over the 'if only's' until it has nearly torn us apart, but have had to tell myself 'it's only money' ( even though it was a heck of a lot of it!) and we still have many blessings to count.

Bella x

Soop and Bellasnana it is only money and they will remember you for much more than that, I'm sure

I'm glad you are warm Gally DH turned our heating down this afternoon 'because we were both out' forgetting, it seems, that we have a big, open-plan [ish] house that takes ages to warm back up and that DD1 is arriving shortly. I do wish he wouldn't take executive decisions.

I set off to visit Mum this afternoon and, on the way, got a phone call from Mum's GP wanting to talk about her 'end of life care'. I asked if I could ring back later as I was in the car and the signal wasn't good. She said that it would be better to do it there and then So we did.

Mum was on cracking form: refusing to eat anything, refusing to drink anything, refusing to keep the oxygen thingy in her nose (I even threatened to staple it to her ears!) and telling the other residents to, variously, 's*d off', 'mind your own bl**dy business' and 'shut that bl**ding racket up'. Mrs Bucket is no more!

Home now for a and then with DD1. Can I pour anyone else one

Soop, Bellasnana don't fret yourselves, you absolutely haven't failed your lovely families. The best, bestest thing you will leave them with is all their memories of you both, which can't be bought.
Warmest hugs to you both.

Pour me one please, Kittylester. I've been to see my mother today too. She wasn't swearing at people today, just being all-purpose nasty to/about everybody. On the plus side, going round and around the same 3 or 4 topics of conversation means you don't run out of things to say.

Oh, yes please, kitty! A is just what's needed. We're off to meet lots of lovely people tomorrow, on a beautiful hotel on the south coast of Devon, For the weekend. so the wine will get me in the spirit. My packing is done, have superbised Theseus' colour coordination and I need a sit down!

"No, that is NOT blue, it's green."
"It's nearly blue."
"No it isn't." Etc. etc.

Used to have that trouble with ex-H, Ariadne. I always thought he was slightly colour-blind. Now we know that one of the GSs has a problem with that part of the spectrum, so I am more than ever convinced that ex has handed that down to the new generation.

My husband and I had that bother with a certain shade I called blue and he called green. In the end we called it Trumpeter after a class one racing yacht we both knew that was that colour.

Tonight I'm sitting herd in my tribunal dress and jacket with a log fire and an electric heater, with a fleecy wrap round me and the temperature has risen to a tropical 16 degrees!
I'm cold fed up, miserable and hope they get my new boiler soon.

Hello! Who's still here? I've not been in for nearly a week. It,s nice and warm and comfortable here. I will have a warm before I go to bed. I am looking for something comforting to eat but I don't, know what. Fruit cake I think.
Nothing on the television worth watching tonight. I am bored stiff.
In my usual manner I am now worrying about when my shoulder tendons will be mobile enough to allow me to drive my car. It's probably me in usual worry mode.

Pull yourself together Nelliem !

Four weeks on, it no longer hurts horribly, I am off the strong pain killers, The shoulder is getting far more mobile when pulled around with the other arm, but I want to drive my car myself and be able to do my seat belt up myself and I am feeling impatient again.
Why do I always see the glass as half empty?

Enjoy the comfort here. I CBA to go home at this time of night. I will join others on the infinitely large sofa. Night all.

Morning - no, afternoon. Don't think soop's up yet?
Wake up all you lot on the sofa - I've brought chocolate cake!
And I need a cup of tea.

Hello...^you lovely lot^ I've been driving the car along the road to Campbeltown. On one side are craggy rocks festooned with bronze bracken, and on the other side of the road, is the sea. The sea is almost ripple-free. It is shimmering in the sunlight. The mountainous islands look as if they've been painted in watercolours. It really is a wonderful day in bonnie Kintyre. We had coffee and dunky-crunchy biscuits in the smart lounge of The Royal hotel. It was such a treat. I looked around at the other ladies who were blethering away umpteen to the dozen and thought...this would be a grand meeting place for Granspals. It is however, at the most southerly point of the Kintyre peninsula. It's a very long way from almost all my pals. bags and I meet up again soon. We drive to the pretty wee town of Inveraray...the seat of the Duke of Argyll.
When I looked out of the window about an hour ago, I saw what I thought to be a seal. The bobbing heads of two otters alerted us to their antics just off the shoreline. Such a lovely sight. Rory is sunbathing. Rory is resting. Rory has had a difficult day...sleeping on his tartan rug ever since breakfast time.
Nellie it is good to hear that you are beginning to feel much better. Just take things easy for a wee bit longer. We want you, and all other poorly Granspals to make a full recovery.
kitty and icy I like your spirit. You both deserve an armful of real flowers...but all I can do is send and xx
Ariadne Where in Devon? I lived there for some time way back when...I hope that you have a relaxing weekend.

Here is another great-looking venue, spotted while on arran a few weeks ago.

No, I am NOT volunteering to organise this.

www.bigbeachhouse.co.uk/ I think my brain must be overloaded.

Well done, Elegran We'll meet again...sometime...
I'm about to include tonight's sunset pic in my album.

Lovely place Arran. My family had several holidays there when I was quite small, but I remember climbing Goatfell with my dad.
I played with a little girl called Avril Paton, who I recently discovered is now a well known artist! My parents remembered hers, who we stayed with, with affection.