Yawn Yawn Wakey Wakey 2024

Just saying hello and good night between Aunty duties. We ‘saved’ a dragonfly from a cat today! A friendly neighbourhood cat had it in its paws on the grass! We grabbed a cat treat to distract the puss and that worked! I nudged the dragonfly, and off it flew. Phew!

I haven’t had time to read through today’s episode so hope everyone is ok.

 

Thanks for the suggestion, @Obelix-Vendée - though the first time we saw the rat at the hedgehog food, it was emerging from under the shed where the hedgehog was nesting. However, I've tried a suggestion I found on the Internet. The entrance to the feeder is near the left corner of the box; I've made an internal "wall" from semi-rigid plastic 12cm from the outer wall, with a hedgehog-sized hole in the right hand corner. Only very small and nimble cats can negotiate the S-shaped entrance - or so they say... however, the rat will have no trouble, so I'm hoping that a different dish might allow the little hedgehog access but exclude the rat. Watch this space...

That's great news, @Badly_Maintained ! It's lovely for those six children to have a relative who will look after them, but so kind of you to show them love and care in the meantime. Great news also about your neighbour. It's heart warming to know there are people like you in the world.

 

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What a wonderful picture of Anu @Penny_Forthem - beautiful!
Good morning everyone. @Liriodendron I hope that cunning plan C works for your resident hedgehog. Rats are such determined creatures. They chewed a hole in the side of my shed to get inside - not that there is anything inside that they would want.
I am visiting my sis and BIL this morning for coffee as it is their Golden Wedding Anniversary tomorrow and we are both busy on that day so decided today would be a good catch up day. I think my handy brother (nicknamed that because he comes in handy to help with jobs I can't manage) is also going to be there.

 

Good morning everyone. Bright and sunny again here - 28C expected - and I'm on parade earlier than usual because himself left before dawn to get to a club competition at Pornic. It's only 90 mins away but involved pickups and, no doubt, coffee and croissants in La Roche plus the need for a practice swing.

Sewing duties for me today now that I've done the chooks and set the sprinkler on my nursery. Supposed to have lots of rain on Friday and Saturday but that's gone away. Just a dribble expected tomorrow.

Possum finally got around to tackling a stylish but battered chest of drawers she bought in a junk shop a couple of months ago. She's never done anything DIY before so a learning curve - remove handles and any linings, wash down, sanding and treat for woodworm. Next step is repairs and then undercoat and topcoats and cleaned handles. I'll make a crafty person out of her yet!

Garden club committee this evening so I'd better crack on.

Have fun, whatever you're doing, especially if feeling poorly or looking after loved ones and/or critters.

 

We seem to have quite a lot of dragonflies, even though we don't have a pond. None of our immediate neighbours have one either, so I've no idea where they are coming from.

And before anyone asks, no, I'm absolutely certain that we don't have any pond in a hidden corner of the garden somewhere - although I'll admit I can't see behind all the hedges.

 

Morning all.

The repaired dishwasher came back yesterday, small spare part replaced.

We had a quiet day and probably will have again today. I must carry on cleaning windows and I haven't finished pruning the lavender.

 

Good morning everyone!

A rather exciting evening lat night. A fire was declared at the local tip where a field of compacted plastic rubbish was. Great billows of black smoke and once the firemen started to douse it, the smell wasn't very nice. Luckily, it wasn't windy and the light breeze was taking the smoke away from my house. It was a little too close for comfort for me!!!! It is under control this morning with billows of white smoke. What a toxic mess! Apparently, started intentionally. Here is a photo:

 

Whoops pressed send too early!!

 

And now for something completely different:

 

Good afternoon ladies & gentlemen,

Another overcast, breezy day, but fairly mild and no rain so far.

Glad to hear you had good news at your ophthalmologist check-up @Tui34 .

Thank-you for the wonderful photo of your beautiful spaniel @Penny_Forthem , I'm happy to hear that your middle dog is now improving and that all went OK for you at the dentist.

Nice to hear that your lunch meeting was enjoyable and successful @Obelix-Vendée . Wishes for success to Possum as she restores the chest of drawers.

I hope your very ingenious solution for feeding the hedgehogs and hoglets is successful @Liriodendron .

My congratulations and best wishes to your Brother and your Sister-in-law as you help them celebrate a wonderful milestone @Ladybird4 .

Here is a, potentially at least, helpful tip (which I am certainly not claiming to be the discoverer of). I have myopia and have thus needed glasses for distance-vision since I was about 8 years old. In the last few years I have also needed reading glasses, and (of course) I do have a pair. However, here is the tip: if I move my distance-vision glasses down my nose (away from my face) they act as reading glasses. The optician assures me this will eventually stop working, but it currently does work, and saves me the trouble of taking the reading glasses everywhere. Worth a try for anyone else who already wears distance-vision glasses.

Best wishes to all as always.

 

Good tip @Badly_Maintained but the need for reading gasses came 25 years ahead of the need for long sight. I therefore have progressive lenses, rather than bifocals. Took me ages to get used to wearing them when I did the supermarket run. Lots of head bobbing as I tried to focus on contents labels, watching out for the dreaded palm oil and sugar and so on. I also have stronger reading glasses for embroidery and hand sewing.

Glad you escaped those nasty fumes @Tui34 and hope you enjoyed your family natter @Ladybird4. Quite something getting to 50 years so congrats to BIL and sis.

Sewing continues but I've also made a coconut and raspberry cake to take to the garden club committee meeting tonight. We start at 6pm, usually finish by 8:30 and then share supper. I've also made a barley and lentil salad with freshly chopped red pepper and courgette and lots of mint and chives as we never know who's bringing what. I expect there'll be a lot of home grown tomatoes........

 

Good afternoon,

We had a short, sharp shower this morning when I was outside giving two flowering shrubs a good haircut now they've finished flowering. Luckily it didn’t last long enough to stop me in my tracks. The shrubs look better for it. Not sure if it’s the right time of year to have done it, but I’m pretty sure I did them at this time last year.

The rain passed by so I’ve been able to get a load of washing on the line, and it looks about dry.

I cooked a gammon joint on Sunday in the slow cooker, and, to save us eating ham all week, I’ve spent this afternoon chopping most of it into cubes and making two “piggy pies” (my name for them, as the recipe is a take on shepherds pie and cottage pie, using ham instead of beef or lamb). My OH suggested I could call it “swineherd pie”, but that’s a bit of a mouthful . Anyway, whatever name it’s given, it tastes good (I’ve made them in the past), and saves wasting the ham. As soon as they’re cool enough, they’re going into the freezer. The small amount of ham left will make a pasta dish for tonight.

A gorgeous photo of your dog @Penny_Forthem.

 

Glad that fire was brought under control @Tui34. It certainly did look close by .

 

Good afternoon all!

Interesting tip, @Badly_Maintained - though now I wear varifocals, which saves me forgetting my reading glasses. (Snap, @Obelix-Vendée !)

That was rather too exciting an evening, I guess, @Tui34 ! Glad the wind was blowing away from your house.

Plan C for the hedgehog feeder was successful, in one way... but not in another. The cat didn't try to get in; no sign of a rat; but no sign of a hedgehog either. It could be that the china dish I put food in, for the first time last night, didn't allow out enough scent to attract anyone. I think I'll put the food back into the plastic ex-cat dish tonight and see what happens.

The rain has stopped, but I'll have to clean the house this afternoon. Visitors coming tomorrow - only family, but it's a good incentive to do a bit of tidying and hoovering. OH is off to the UK now for a few days, so I'll have the visitors to myself.

 

That looked a very scary situation @Tui34 and glad it didn't develop into anything worse.
We are going out with the neighbours tonight. She suggested a chain with a rather poor rep., so I countered with a local pub/eatery, not a chain and which has good reviews. Have to say, we haven't been to either, so I'm basing my knowledge purely on people I know who have been. Will report back.
We are back into summer... just as I'd 'draped' the last item from 2 washes on the rack in the spare room, the sun appeared.
Hub has been gainfully employed potting up some new herbs and I've done the greenhouse.
I have a yen to make Tarragon vinegar, so suitable quality white wine vinegar has been purchased. This lead on to Raspberry vinegar. That will be my quest tomorrow.
BTW, anyone in the UK, it is Lidl's Italian week, starting tomorrow. I have my list already!
I hope that young man will have a lot of support with his young family, @Badly_Maintained. It cannot be easy. I'm sure you'll be there for them 'in the background'.
Love the sound of Piggy pies, @Blue arbour