Diary summary week ending 5th May 2024

[River Tyne Lass]

Oh I'm sorry to read about all this bother Roobarb that you and your art friends have experienced.  I can imagine how frustrating this will all feel.  I hope you get your delivery asap.  I think they ought to home deliver in these circumstances and not send people to chase things up at post offices.

[louisa maud]

After such a lousy day yesterday today is beautiful, I am waiting for visitors arriving fairly soon from Poole,  only for 1 night unless I can persuade them to stay longer, if they do I will  have to rush out shopping .

I have done home made minestrone  soup, haven't done that for years,  I seem to have had disaster  after disaster,  my usual coffee and walnut cake has only risen only half the size, then my summer pudding anchored with a plate  and a bottle of wine to anchor it down, during the evening there was a wallop from the  kitchen, I ran out to see my bottle of wine rolling across the kitchen floor, the top wasn't screed up, a very nice beat line but what a mess, but this morning waiting I am quite chilled out, I need to be.

BH   weekend, not a good idea to travel and I think my relatives are stuck on the M25 as there has been some accidents, spoils travelling  but I hope whoever was involved was safe , my soup won't spoil.

Talking  about post a friend of mine  has been waiting  for a parcel for 2 weeks, it has finally been delivered but whoever posted it put old stamp on it, it was in danger of not being posted to the recipient.

Hope everyone has a good weekend.

LM

[Roobarb]

RTL, my parcel isn't so urgent, it's not art materials in my case but I just wonder how many more urgent parcels are going astray like this when there are several cases in a relatively small group of people. I think home delivery was offered to the lady who had waited a fortnight but she doesn't have a safe place to leave parcels and wouldn't want to spend most of the day waiting in for it.

LM, I'm sure the food you've prepared will be fine, I hope the wine is too. 

[River Tyne Lass]

Yes, I agree that it sounds quite unusual that there should have been all these mess ups with deliveries between a relatively small group of people.  I hope you all get to receive your items soon, Roobarb.

LM, I'm sure your guests will love your food.  It all sounds very nice.  I take it the summer pudding fell on the floor but the wine bottle was okay?  Looking forward to hearing how it goes, LM.  Glad you are feeling chilled out about it all.  I hope you all enjoy each other's company and the good food and wine.

[Roobarb]

I've now received an email from Royal Mail informing me that my parcel will be delivered on Tuesday. I could drive to Peterborough in three hours, why on earth is it taking them three days? (Rhetorical question). Useless lot. 

[Viktoria]

Sorry about the pud L.M.
Yes- !
Post —— my Mothering Sunday card arrived ten days or  so late having been delivered to Ashton Under Lyne ,M23 ,my postcode is BLO 9PU ,parcels “ In Shed”hand written, impossible as the shed is always locked ,weed killer ,potentially dangerous tools etc etc .
A bamboo screen son ordered three weeks late but supposedly delivered ,” In shed” he hasn’t got one it would fit in, just a small shelter for the boiler also locked . The hours tracing these things.!

Had a visit to my sister , we haven’t seen each other since Covid .
Is now 90 but never celebrates birthdays refusing to acknowledge the passing years .Still looks not her age.
She did have hormone replacement therapy so that will have helped I suppose.
A busy life ,and fortunate with health.


A crisp bright sunny morning ,not been outside yet so what the temperature is I don’t know .
Church this morning .
I need some black olives for salmon tagliatelle and a card for son and daughter in law’s W.A.
Did not shop yesterday with visiting my sister.

Hope those not well are feeling better.

Cheerio ,Viktoria.
Look after yourselves folks .

[Gillg]

The day started dull and wet, but this afternoon the sun has peeped through the clouds.  Let's hope it stays dry, as my son has promised to go up on the roof and do some grouting on our chimney.  Not as bad as it sounds, as the thatchers are still busy working on our (semi-detached) neighbour's roof and have put up scaffolding everywhere, which he has the permission of the thatchers and our neighbour to use over the Bank Holiday weekend.  In the meantime there is thatch everywhere, on our flat roofed extension and in our garden, not to mention in our little lane.  My husband says he will be putting it in the compost bin. They do come around and sweep up from time to time, but it gets trodden into the house, which is annoying.  The last time the neighbour's house was re-thatched the thatcher fell off the roof and was quite badly injured.  He wasn't using scaffolding, just ladders.

I wouldn't want a thatched cottage, particularly a Grade 11 listed one.  There are too many rules and regulations about the frequency of having your chimney swept, the smallest amount of work done on the house and the specified tradesmen you have to use.  Although we are semi-detached somehow our half of the building is not listed and we have a slate roof, not thatch.

[Viktoria]

My daughter lives in a thatched cottage, listed too!
The insurance is really expensive and fire insurance too, which insists on a full chimney sweep each year,last Winter the local chimney sweep did not get around to all his clients so many could not have a log fire burning at Christmas or any other time.
There are also” Chantry charges” ie householders of ancient buildings have to contribute to the cost of Church maintenance , major repairs etc of an ancient buildings are soooooo expensive.
The lead was stolen two years ago , gosh that would have been really costly.
I seem to remember they insured against that but at a hefty cost!

The thatch at my daughter’s is held in place to the rafters by plaits of horsehair ,now about 550 years old .
You can see them in the bedrooms .
The cottage is charming but also a financial nightmare .

A lovely bright day here today, crisp and not  too cold.

Our pleasant new Rector announced this morning he and his wife are expecting their first child ,how lovely .
I ‘iI have to get my knitting needles out.

Well a lazy day today and an easy tea , nice.
Cheerio
 Viktoria.

[louisa maud]

No folks, it was the wine bottle that fell, the summer pudding was fine, my visitors ate everything  there was, so that is satisfaction in my book,  from Poole it took them 4.5  hours to get here, they have returned home in less than 3 hours, we have had a wonderful weekend.

I like the look of thatched cottages but realise there is a cost involved in their upkeep but they look nice I must admit.

It has been a beautiful day but it now  looks like rain and feels jolly cold.

I am sure I will  sleep soundly this evening.

Quite a few Including the clergy are off to Malta for a week,  I could have gone but I felt it was to long to leave my husband on his own,  I have to be realistic I think.

Another week starts tomorrow.

Take  care

LM