Diary > Summary - Week ending 18th July 2021

[Roobarb]

Well it's a new week, the last one before so called freedom day. I know there are a lot of people who are anxious about that as well as the many who are looking forward to it. The infection rates have increased to a level in excess of that at the beginning of the year and I've no doubt there will be more after last night's football match. Time will tell how that affects us all.

I don't have anything particular to report but it's been good to read how everyone is getting on. Some very sad times for some Rootschatters, better news for others. Good to hear from you Carol and particularly that your son is in remission, I hope his good health continues.

Looking forward to reading everyone's news this week.

[Viktoria]

Bumble Bee posted a wonderful story  of a team of cyclists , led by a footballer who is now cured of Myeloid Leukaemia, he and a group of friends have done their own “ Tour de France “ .
Wonderful to read it .
Carol will find it very uplifting I feel sure.
 
Inspected the plants I had put in the front border re slugs and snails ,there were one or two last night but no damage this morning.
 I did plant some delphiniums in pots ,big pots but cut the bottom out and sank the pots leaving a good bit out of the soil ,room for the copper tape I got on Saturday, it is £4-99
for 4 m at our hardware shop and £9-99 in a catalogue for 4m plus postage.
 The  plants were expensive so did not want to trust to the garlic alone ,which seems to work pretty well.
Raining today , but despite all the rain we have had ,the soil is not really wet
.
Had a Tesco Free range chicken for tea last evening but it is going back
today !
!lTough and tasteless despite following the cooking instructions to the letter.

Really lacerated my arm on a sharp branch of a purple Hebe I have overpruned .
it is coming back slowly but the offending branch was rather in the way and I did not think when I stretched my arm out  to dig the hole for the big plant pot .Blood everywhere thanks to blood thinning tablets.
Just bunged some Sudocreme on it and a paper tissue and some sellotape until my bath then a proper dressing .
My gardening gloves meant my hands were not filthy but scrubbed them anyway and got the cream out of the pot with a spatula from a new unopened pack.
It is amazing how many people get ointment out of the pot / tin with an unwashed finger,anoint the wound then go in the pot for more ointment !
However,we survived and many ordinary Mums will have done just that.
You can do too finicky.
There are children I bet who have never met a germ!
It was nice and clean after my bath so just a non stick dry dressing this morning .
Oh Roobarb, I could not agree more ,all those people and just last week the advice was not to shout and yell as that propels your breath further !!!!
People travelling back home all over G,B. And Italians across Europe if by coach etc.
I am not getting my hopes up at all but I am rather fed up now and it will be
years since I saw my daughter and second son .
Time is slipping by and you get them to Uni and they never really come home after that independence and where their jobs take them .
But you set them on the road of life and you can only travel so far before  they  leave you behind.
I am consumed with guilt that I left my father but we did think in all honesty it would be two years which became almost twelve as my husband gradually unravelled the web of dishonesty and corruption  in the firm he was sent to
“ rescue” .
He then needed to see it up and running profitably for a number of years  during which time the U.K. joined The Common Market so lots of changes
again  for a British firm trading in Belgium ,that added time again ,during which my father died,very suddenly .

Hope everyone is well , I think good weather at the coming weekend .
Look after yourselves .
Viktoria.
-

[Roobarb]

Sorry to hear about your injury Viktoria, hope it heals okay. I'm sure you're sensible enough to get it checked out if it's not.
You must be really missing your daughter and son, we can only hope that things are soon better and you feel safe enough to be able to get together with them.

[Caw1]

Good gracious Viktoria you do get in the wars… do hope your arm is ok but by the sounds of it you know just what to do!
Good tip with the delphiniums…. Ours seem to do well for a couple of years and then need replacing which can’t be right… will try your method and see how we go..
Do hope you manage to see your daughter and second son soon as the years slip away and it’s time you’ll never get back… I’m sure you will soon 🤞🤞.
Hope FH’s mummy is keeping well too with the new baby due soon..

Roobarb- good you start another week as it does encourage us all to contribute….
As you say it’s good to hear from Carol and know that life for her is busy and a wedding to look forward to as well.

My week has started this morning with the funeral for our friend M’s ( who is going through cancer treatment) Dad aged 103! It was held outside ( never knew you could do that) it was the first large gathering of people I’ve been with (90) but all outside held at a large farm that normally holds weddings! He was a big noise in the Masons so it was a big turnout of older people! A tot of Whiskey was drunk by as all as we watched him go off to the local crematorium. …. A very different experience. A long life to be celebrated though.

My OH is still suffering with the virus that struck him 4 weeks ago now… more blood tests, eye tests, PCR test ( negative) but it’s just going to take its own good time to go… he’s lost half a stone but that’s more down to not eating much as he’s doing little as energy levels very low…… he’s certainly getting fed up with it!

On the bright side my sweet peas are growing well and I hope to be picking the blooms soon… I froze lots of broad beans yesterday, blue Berry bush has lots of fruit on going to bet it soon as I don’t want to loose them to the birds as I’ve lost virtually all my strawberries to the local wild life… they could have left a few…new pots taste wonderful and everything else is growing well.

My heart goes out to all those who have recently lost loved ones and I am thinking of you all…

Take care and stay safe everyone we still have a long way to go and wearing face coverings still seems the right thing to do….

Caroline

[Roobarb]

A sad occasion for you this morning Caroline but also as you say, a celebration of such a long life.
Not surprised that your OH is fed up, viruses can certainly knock the stuffing out of you. It must be doubly frustrating for him that after being careful and managing to avoid Covid for so long he's caught a different virus. Hope things improve for him soon.
Your sweet peas seem to have overtaken mine, well done!

[DianaCanada]

Many thanks to Roobarb for keeping these threads going.
Sorry to hear you have hurt yourself, Viktoria, hope it heals up quickly.  Caroline, the funeral does sound unusual, but 103, my goodness!  Hope your OH is fighting fit soon.
We did watch the England games on this side of the pond.  I spent many years watching my son play soccer into his teens (he was very good, if I do say so), funny his plays all sorts of sports but rarely watches them on TV, except hockey, well, he is Canadian.  All three of my children and son's girlfriend have now had their second shots.  None of them reacted badly as I did, one daughter got a huge red spot on her arm, but that was about it.
On Friday I got together, in the park, no masks, sitting apart, with 5 other female volunteers at our  LDS Family History Centre.  The man running it, a church member, has been out of touch with everyone.  None of us there are church members, but we make up the bulk of the volunteers.  At this point we don't know if it will open again, or when.  It was a very nice visit.
The dog has had his blood work and tomorrow he goes in to go under to have his teeth cleaned and any extractions if necessary.  The last part I don't like...they charge an arm and a leg (how do poor people afford pets and have them properly cared for, the vet fees are so high), I guess I have to trust them if they take any out.  We have to have him over there at 8 a.m.
This Thursday we both have appointments for a hair cut, at different places (OH sticks with traditional barbers), can't wait to get this mop off.  Haven't had it this long since university days. I think my last cut was Nov 2019.
Weather has improved here, still humid but at least cooler.  We are supposed to have rain most days this week. 
Have been watching Line of Duty, I started with Season 1 again, which we watched at least 5 or 6 years ago.  Am up to Season 3.  It's confusing at times, but very well done. 
Not too much else to report.  Must resume my stretches, have gotten slack with the heat.
Stay well, everyone!

[DianaCanada]

Oh, dear, I said "gotten".  Well, there's my Elizabethan colonial English  .

[Roobarb]

It's allowed for those of you at the other side of the pond Diana. 
Will you recognise each other with the hair all cropped off? And your little dog with his newly gleaming smile.    Pleased to hear everyone is safely jabbed and the heat is more manageable.

[Ruskie]

I’ve missed quite a few entries recently, but did dip in and out a few times.

So sorry to hear about the losses several of you have had over the past couple of weeks. I won’t mention people by name for fear of missing someone.

As I’m sure you’ve all heard, we are having a bit of a covid disaster here at the moment, centred on Parts of Sydney (due to people not being able to follow govt directives). Apparently according to our news reports, “the world is laughing at us” and “mocking” us because our vaccine rollout has been quite slow. Despite any faults I don’t think that many countries are in a position to criticise. Seeing the unmasked crowds at the football the other night put me on edge, and despite the high vaccination rate in the UK, surely there is bound to be an upsurge.

Everything is ticking along with me. Both daughters are planning holidays in the next couple of weeks - one to Tasmania and the other to Adelaide. As things stand at present, Tasmania is open but Adelaide is closed.

Look after your injury Viktoria. My father (who turns 90 in October) is regularly cutting himself on barbed wire when working outdoors. He had a particularly nasty injury to his leg last year which got infected. Likely he was not as vigilant as you with cleanliness and he did not go to the doctor until it got out of hand. It took ages to mend.

Caroline, Sorry to hear the your lovely Husband is poorly. I hope he doesn’t have to wait too much longer for a diagnosis, so he can receive the appropriate treatment and get back to his active self.

Roobarb, I’ve read that you have been getting out and about a bit more which must have given you a much needed lift. I just hope that you feel comfortable continuing to go out once the country opens up fully.

Your mention of ‘gotten’ made me smile Diana. I’m glad your weather has improved.

Wonderful to hear that Carol’s son is in remission.