The Lockdown Gang - Keep Calm and Carry On

I’m sitting with a glass of Sherry. It’s a bit early I know but it’s getting dark outside and a bit cold.
Bradfordlass our curry was just curry without rice. We did have it with rice but I cooked that. It was delicious.
I don’t have to worry about my iron. It’s a special (and horrendously expensive) one that DH bought for me because my wrists ache so much when ironing. Even a lightweight iron brought on pain and I iron with wrist supports. My iron is a steam iron that only produces heat when you press a button. It has no dials for temperature and irons anything from silk to denim on the same setting. I can leave it face down on fabric of any kind and it does no harm. It has been a boon. The only thing it doesn’t do unfortunately, is to do all the ironing on its own. ?
It must be lovely to see your son so happy with little Gubbins ?
Grammaretto life will indeed be different for you from now on. Cooking for one only part of it I’m afraid. I think G&T with lemon is a good way to start.
I love your description of the puppy as ‘low slung’ ?. I bet he is lovely. Hope you enjoy your walk. The roses sound nice.
I am having a potter day today when I do what I want to do. Problem is I don’t have much room to potter.
Living in an apartment at Christmas
The spare bathroom has 12 bottles of San Miguel on the floor (for the gardener who likes it) plus a box of wine for us.
The hall corridor contains two more boxes of wine (Sainsbury’s had a special offer ) on top of those boxes are tins of biscuits and chocolates for the cleaner (building cleaner) and for family.
The settee in the lounge holds two furry blankets for the DGC, some hair straighteners and one of the chairs holds my DHs new camera bag.
I am still using the dining table for my sewing and painting so the three new pictures that have arrived of DHs photos made into prints to hang on the wall are in their boxes on the floor of the lounge (Wallart had a special offer on ?)
Our bedroom is housing two boxes of gifts for our sons and DIls. We have a box containing a footstool for another relative that we have to dance round when approaching our bathroom.
The box containing the Xmas decorations is in our shower at the moment waiting to be returned to its outside storage cupboard. I haven’t bought anything for DGS yet apart from a small gadget toy. We haven’t got any Christmas food in apart from one packet of mince pies. We don’t have room for Christmas ?
Nfk I like your description of sea vegetables ?
Oh some fresh bread and cheese here please.
Hope your DH has a better night tonight. He and my DH who is often up should form a club.
I think I need a cocker spaniel all in one suit (larger size) for going out in the puddles too.?
Mamissimo I bet you had a lovely time with the children and I’m sure it was a big help to your DD and SIL. Shame it wasn’t exactly what they wanted but good it brought them ideas. Enjoy your Sherry and send all your presents signed !

Gosh love your description of your apartment Doodle. We have still not downsized so every room has something in it.

Mamissimo how lovely to spend time with the children. I would so love that but we haven't seen them since January in the flesh and it doesn't look like we can see them over Christmas either. I keep getting letters from Matt Hancock telling me dire things with happen if I mix with others over Christmas!
My DD and SiL will, however, come as they can self isolate for 2 weeks before they come and they have no children - just Dexter. That will be a treat.

Grammaretto life will indeed be different now for you. Please feel you can come on here anytime or email if you are struggling.

I hope everyone else is having a good Sunday.
Ours got off to an exciting start. Isuspect we have a small leak from my bathroom so I used the shower in the spare this morning. My DH came storming up the stairs asking what I was doing as there was water pouring through the sitting room ceiling. Our lovely plumber came rushing straight round and has detected the fault - after taking most of the tiles off the wall and floor! Fortunately it did not happen on Christmas day!

Istill managed to get the Christmas tree up though.

Thanks dragonfly ?. We actually have quite a big apartment when it’s not full of presents. Just that we have filled every space already so anything extra doesn’t have a home.
Your tree is lovely. Ours is tiny. It has to fit in a small box the rest of the year.
DH has had the Matt Hancock letters too. ?
Oh lovely to see your family at Christmas and Dexter too.
Your shower sounds quite eventful.
I had a bit of a giggle I’m afraid, because you said the plumber came rushing round ......I had visions of you still in the shower with the plumber dashing in complete with toolkit ?
Take care all ?

Attempting to post but not sure if any words will be spelt correctly ?
When I was posting on the morning thread the arm of my glasses fell off... followed by my glasses themselves ?. Now my glasses are completely armless ?.
I have my fingers firmly crossed that my new ones will be ready tomorrow ?. Off I don't post for a couple of days it will be because I'm not used to typing when the screen is a blur and my new glasses aren't ready.
I have tried the alternative of what my WP calls type speaking (sounds very 1984ish) but I don't think this tablet likes my accent so I'm keeping ? .

Hopefully back tomorrow with fandango specs. Night all ?

Sorry to hear you are armless Cherry .
My post disappeared again. I am writing on my phone so it is very easy to hit the wrong spot! or it hasn't made the cut again
I had a lovely final day with DS and various others and the low slung pup out walking in the sunshine.
I heard that grandpa still has no covid symptoms despite being tested positive on Dec 1st. He is on the covid ward though which doesn't sound too healthy.

Today's thread seems to be awash with sherry - I'm envious.
My goodness Doodle what an amazing thing is your iron! It sounds a great help.

Ah yes, the clutter situation in your home mirrors my own. Wrapped parcels, bottles of grog and bags of goodies destined to be given to friends - it feels a bit like mountaineering over it all .

dragonfly or dragonflood? Glad you got it sorted by the man with the toolkit. And how beautiful that tree looks. Really festive. Whatever we have to tolerate in this Plague Year, Christmas is still Christmas.

Grammaretto When the boys left home, it took me ages to learn to cater just for one. I was lucky that they visited often, usually giving me a quick kiss en route to the fridge! In Yorkshire, the standard greeting from male offspring when coming home is "Owt to eat?"

Mamissimo Not in any way, in this world or the next, is enjoying family regarded as a sin and I don't give a fig what the government says. I'm glad you had such a loving time.

Today, because I'd been given a $30 (just over £15) supermarket gift card which can't be redeemed online, Karen and I were forced to brave the ravening hoards actually inside the supermarket.
This is my idea of hell.
First there's the cacophony - I cannot, in all honest call it music - which some marketing guru in the '60s, decided made consumers buy more. Wrong.

Then we couldn't find what I needed, even with Karen's eyes and had to walk miles and miles round this vast place looking for a particular blue cheese - which had sold out.
I settled for a substitute, then couldn't find the next item - and so it went on.

At the checkout, the gift cards wouldn't scan, so as a queue of impatient people hopped up and down behind me, the Steam of Impatience coming out of their ears, the very sweet checkout lady persevered until she made the wretched cards do what they were designed for.

We only had 3 hours to accomplish this; collect what had been ordered online; go to the library to pick up audio books; collect an item missed off my prescription last week; call in to Whanau House with Xmas cards for the elders and get to the post office with a few more to friends in the UK.

By the time we reached home, we were both beyond help.

Karen departed, to her next client, clearly very weary, poor soul. I put away all the groceries and fell onto my bed.

So much for recovering from the wretched virus, obviously I have not quite but at least I had the luxury of a 3 hour nap.

Poetry Extra just told me it was the winter solstice in the UK.

I always thought that was December 21st. Has "Little Mattie Hancock" (love it Mamissimo forbidden that too?

Wishing you all a less exhausting, frustrating day, just one filled with calm and possibly a drop o' grog.

Good morning.....sleepless zombie here. Mr M taken into hospital in the night with irregular heartbeat and chest pains. A and E think he's been admitted but can't seem to establish where! He has sent one text saying he's cold so I'm a bit at sea this morning.

Even more than usual I'm thinking of you all.

Gosh Mamissimo what a shock for you both. I hope they can sort him out and send him home soon.

I felt worn out reading the account of your shopping expedition Bradfordlass.

Mamissimo they don't know where he is? How's that possible?
I do hope you find out quickly so you can visit (if you're allowed) and stop worrying.
If he can text that's a good sign but how miserable for both of you.
I'm sleepless too so shall certainly have you both in my thoughts.

Just popping in to send my very best wishes to you and Mr M, Mamissimo.
What a worry for you. ?

Oh mamissimo I’m so sorry that’s such a shock. As it’s now a few hours since your post I’m hoping that you have heard where he is and how he’s doing. I hope everything is ok. They will no doubt carry out a battery of tests. If he is kept in and you are allowed to visit or drop off things, don’t forget the phone charger so at least you can keep in touch (I forgot it when DH went in with sepsis). Hope you hear good news soon.
Bradfordlass that sounds like some mammoth shopping trip. No wonder you were exhausted.
I haven’t been in a supermarket for ages. I doubt if I’d remember where things are now.
Yes my iron is amazing and does help. I have almost recovered from the cost ( we actually got it at 25% discount by some bizarre means so it wasn’t as much as we were expecting)
I still don’t like ironing though ?
dragonfly hope you are doing ok.

Mamissimo, I do hope that things get sorted very soon with your husband, and that he is soon back with you. Very best wishes to you

(*Bradfordlass*, hospital visits are not allowed)

Grammaretto when I clicked into the lockdown gang this morning, yours was the first post I saw. I read the words
sorry to hear you are armless *Cherry and thought oh my goodness what on earth has happened to poor Cherry now ?
I was mightily relieved to read it was her glasses you were referring to ?
It will be a sad day for you today with your son going back to NZ. I’m glad he made it over to be with you and to have a chance to be with his dad.
I know it’s nothing like having someone around but we are here to chat to whenever you feel like it and you can PM if you want. You can always come on here for a hug.x
Cherry I am relieved you are in one piece even if your glasses are not. ?. I am still persevering with my one arm whilst watching TV. I really must get round to ordering a new pair.
I can’t wait till you get yours. Fandango specs sound as though they will suit you well.?
Have a good day all.

Doodle I too forgot the charger! A kindly nurse charged it for DH.
I also didn't pack enough of a lot of things and was unable to drop off any more.

Fanny it’s really difficult not being allowed to visit, although in the hospital DH was in they were allowing some visitors if patients were in COVID free wards. Not sure how that worked.

Stand easy troops ? Mr M is home with a discharge letter saying 'non cardio chest pain' - hospital speak for indigestion. Phew!

Thank you all for your support and concern. They increased the dose of one of his meds by 3 times last week and I think it's unbalanced him. Tonight he will chew everything twenty times.
I shall now sleep for a little while.....

Mamissimo that’s such good news, thanks for letting us know. Sometimes indigestion can be so painful it is hard to tell the difference. Good job they erred on the side of caution.
Hope you both get some sleep now. ?

Excellent news!

Good afternoon gangsters.
Firstly, phew what a relief and a horrible experience Mamissimo, so pleased he’s home. Indigestion can be really awful ... it sounds like a small issue, but it can be wretched and all encompassing.
The combination of my my meds give me hideous indigestion at times. Then I have to take more medication to combat that, which creates another set of side effects. My every sympathy goes to MrM.
Panache how are both of you? Having a decent day, I hope.
Grammaretto, did your son get safely to the airport? Is there still snow on the roads? He must be very glad he was able to travel and spend time with you and his dad.
Take things gently and be kind to yourself. Our thoughts on this thread, are with you, as you know. ?
Bradfordlass that was quite a shopping expedition.
Cherry so you’re armless, quite possibly tail-less and awaiting fandango specs. We need to see you in your ‘fandangos’ ... ?‍♀️
Dragonfly what a lovely tree.
We put our tree up on Sunday, but I couldn’t muster the energy to decorate it ... v unlike me. The poor thing is still naked today.
Doodle, I think one of the wine boxes in your hall was meant to be delivered here. I had such a grim day yesterday I feel wine will be an important element in this evening’s supper ... and it’s a non-wine night.

Have a pleasant evening all, whether it’s alcohol free or not ...?

What a drama for you Mamissimo. I am glad it had a happy ending and MrM is home.
DS got away this morning and I have had lots of calls from the other DC who are concerned about me being alone.
I haven't felt lonely yet!
Apart from a nice walk I have done nothing today but I am trying to get the TV to work and have failed so far.

Your marathon shopping trip must have been an ordeal especially not finding the cheese BradfordLass

Sorry to sound alarm bells Doodle about Cherry's arms or lack of them I will try to make myself clearer in future.

Mamissimo Phew !

Evening gangsters.
Nortsat how have you been today. I would gladly share some wine with you if you were closer. We don’t have any non wine nights. We have so many bottles because we usually buy wine casks too but we haven’t been able to get hold of any recently. I guess if the boxes of wine cause too much problem we shall have to drink them ?
I hope your naked tree gains some adornment soon. Our tree is tiny and gets packed away with all its decoration (except the lights) still attached.
We went for a late walk this afternoon and it was so cold. It was quite enjoyable though as it was dark and I could see everyone’s decorations through their windows..........not that I’m nosey you understand ?
Grammaretto I’m pleased all your children are checking you are ok. Hope you get the TV working soon. Do you have an iPad? I watch a lot of programs on mine.
Don’t worry about making things clearer, I had quite a laugh about Cherry’s armless state when I realised she was ok ?
Take care and know that we are here for a chat whenever.
Cherry are you all fandangoed up yet?
Panache wondering how MrP is getting on with the steroids? Hope you are both ok.

So pleased MrM is home.

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A highly productive day for me, helped (genuinely) by knowing MrM was safely hone with his indigestion.

I manged to slice all the pork shoulder off the bone without slicing my own.
Mixed it with ham, some smoked bacon, herbs and Allspice. It's sitting in the fridge thinking about how delicious it's going to be once I place it in its buttery pastry.

For a little light relief, went out and tidied my garden.
The Nahema rose is doing well in its new position but the other pink rose has Powdery Mildew, the 'cure' for which is a milky water spray ! It's been excessively humid, so no surprise.

The potatoes are coming along but I now feel I should have used two Spud Bags rather than one - time and liquid fertiliser, will tell.

As I can't get mistletoe here and miss it (NZ has its own native mistletoe) even in silk or plastic, I downloaded some leaf templates and am going to attempt to make a sprig, using pearls as berries.

Had a chat with Kathy, my dear ex-homecare lady and we're going for a Christmas lunch next Tuesday.
She's a new granny and adores babies so I've been sending her The Daily Gubbins pictures

And every time I sat down with a cuppa, in between all this, I thought of my gangster friends.

Panache hoping you and MrP are soldiering on with steroids and semi-starvation (makes me SO cross when I know you're paying both financially in ill health for their inefficiency and neglect of duty).

Grammaretto slowly and bravely feeling your way into a whole new mode of living.

Cherry whose temples have broken but who's anticipating fabulous fandangoes.

Missedout That thumb is still playing up. It must have been far worse than you believed but I hope it's being 'seen to' now.

And dragonfly did you manage to get a little rest today after all that Herculean effort of tree decorating?
I've cleared a space for mine - but that's all I've managed so far

Nfk I hope your DH is a little more settled.
I learned, a decade ago, that diabetes affects people in different ways.
My friend John can eat sweet things with no BS spike but if he's under stress it shoot up. His wife can't touch sugar and is careful with carbs but still needs more meds than John.
If I have so much as one biscuit I'm in a lot of pain soon after but carbs don't have that effect. I do keep to a low-carb regime because carbs make me tired and I have too much to do (and so little time ) to waste it napping.

Fanny Cornforth nice to see you posting here and indeed all of you who pop in and out and read our nonsense posts

Nortsat Slippery Elm capsules are healing for damaged mucus membranes from throat to...well, the other end.
As far as I know, but check with your GP (unless s/he is very anti alternatives), they do not compromise other meds but might help your indigestion by soothing.

Marydoll Mission accomplished, thank you.

And of course dear Doodle and MrD - you put such a lot into this thread, making sure we're all happy, like the best grandma ever.

As for you Jeeves I suspect you didn't have enough mince pie with your Brandy Butter last night, not to mention the raucous rendition of Ding Dong Merrily complete with hand-bells.

Christmas cheer is all very well but some of us were sleeping!

Hello lovely gangsters with such amusing tales to share which most certainly help dispel any gloom on our own horizons.

This momentous morning with the first of the vaccines being administered is indeed one in which we must all rejoice.........the beginning of the end was how one of our chief NHS men regarded it.........and yes it surely is.

Having been somewhat undercover of late I aim to follow a little more closely but of course not only am I governed by the attention my beloved may need,but I so easily get frayed at the edges these days!!!
Thank you for your continued understanding,very much appreciated.

Not much news to report, although fair to say the steroids are certainly helping my dear one`s appetite,whilst on these cold,but bright and sunny mornings of late we have managed a very pleasureable short stroll.
This has been missing and it is so good to have just this touch of normality.

The Chef business still remains contentious,once or twice in a week the lunch is reasonable,other times the bins are well filled!!!

One of these days I shall be sitting down quietly to reread through the last many pages of posting,to try drink in the oh! so much you are all contributing.
I am amazed at how you too have joined in Grammaretto this makes me think I really must pull up my own socks as it were..........and get on with life.

Our dear friend added mince pies to our shopping list and yes,I was sorely tempted......................much to the disgust of my poor gall bladder!
Will I ever learn?

I too had a little scare hearing of Mr M`s hospitalisation,but almost before reading he was back home again..............and I am sure there was much rejoicing in your abode Mamissimo..........talk about these things sent to give us the colly wobbles!!

Thinking of you all,loving reading your posts and I can butr wish you all much more power to your writing/computing hands!!
Thanks for accomodating us Doodle............especially loving your piece about living in an Apartment over Christmas.............amazing where we find spaces when needs must!!
I can offer to help sink a few bottles of wine by the way!!

Enjoy this great day ...vaccines ahoy!!!