Gally and Galen 
What's one health habit you've started that's actually made a difference?
This is now open for cakes and coffee and hot buttered toast. I am donating the new batch of marmalade. Enjoy.
Gally and Galen 
Thanks Galen I'll see what the body-shop man says tomorrow. What really pisses me off is that the person who caused the damage knows that he/she did it!
to you and a string of swear words to the culprit!
Granny23 - just watched the Eddi Reader Dragonflies video you gave the link for - and I'm in bits! What a lovely song. Has a lot of meaning for me. 
Dragonfly1 The song can be your signature tune. Lucky you. 
Oldgreymare you have every right to be pissed off with whoever it was that damaged your car...^and scarpered.^ That is so mean. I know how angry you must feel. Some time ago, something similar happened to our car in a one of the motorway stopovers. The side of the car was badly scraped and dented by what appeared to be a heavy goods vehicle. It cost us dear to get it fixed. No way did the driver responsible not know what he'd done. Galen's advice is sound. A warm hug from me to you. Tell us what happens.
Charleygirl Talking of being a "door person" - Rory doesn't have a cat flap. When he decides that he wishes to sit on the utility room door mat - the perfect place from which to keep an eye on what's not happening outside, we open that door and close the kitchen door. He waits, more or less, for as long as it takes either of us to sit down and open a book or newspaper, before opting to barge through the kitchen door [he's strong] leaving the back door wide open...which means that someone needs to get up to close it. This quaint routine can be repeated on and off for as long as Rory thinks fit. Daft thing is, we both love him in spite of it. 
The lyrics remind me of my daughter Soop. She was like a dragonfly in lots of ways. When she was ill, she adopted the dragonfly as her symbol of hope. At her funeral folks wore dragonfly clothes, jewellery - one friend even had a dragonfly tattoo.
Dragonfly1 then it is most surely your signature tune. The people at your daughter's funeral, must have loved her very much.
Dragonflies are amazing. One landed on my daughter-in-law's shoulder during a walk through some lovely gardens. At first she was a little nervous. Of course, it wouldn't have hurt her. Perhaps some people wrongly believe that they have a sting the tail.
soop I know exactly what you mean. When I am using my computer or cooking, Tara is fast asleep. The minute I sit down to eat and/or watch TV, that is when madam decides that she would like to go out. She cannot open the door in the living room leading to the hall and front door where her cat flap is so I have to get up and open the door. She then turns her head to make sure that I am following her so that I can let her out the front door. Then she is in and out like the proverbial yo- yo, similar to Rory's antics. I would not be without her either. At least you and I (and MacSporran) get exercise, pandering to our 4 legged friends.
A gale is blowing outside the window. It is pitch black and the rain is hammering down. Tortoiseshell kitten had her supper an hour ago. Rory is anxious for some of his own. It is time to bank up the fire and relax with the newspapers. MacSporran is slicing some lime for my Sunday evening G&T treat. We do wait until six o'clock before raising our glasses and saying Slainte! When I do, I shall be thinking of my Granspals and wishing you a peaceful evening.

Charleygirl Tara sounds like a right little madam. The term yo-yo sums both cats up perfectly. 
Ooooh. (stretch)
I am back in the land of the living after a rather heavy day at a Family History Fair. Commercial but I found a lot of CD freebies!
Now relaxing and full of tuna baked potato....might run to some haggis later!
Charley I have a yoyo cat too!
for you both Gally and Galen
So pleased to hear of your GS's success Granny23 Good for him! It takes a great deal of confidence 'to stand and deliver'. Learning poetry by heart is so important and worthwhile. And once a piece is learnt, it is there in your brain for ever. I am very happy with the weird mixture I have in mine, there to add support, comfort and humour whenever needed. It's great that he (and the rest of your family by the sound of it) feel the same and are following such a proud tradition.
Thank You Icy. DGD, also aged six, still has her poetry competition to come later this week. She told me today that they had to choose a poem from a book of Scottish Poems for Children, so she picked the shortest. Would GP and I like to hear it? Well of course we would and so she recited -
Skinny Malinky Long Legs, Big Banana Feet
Went to the pictures an couldnae find a seat
When the picture started, Skinny Malinky FARTED
Skinny Malinky Longlegs, Big Banana Feet.
I kind of gasped
and blurted out 'You can't say FARTED at the school', to which her (somewhat worrying) reply was, 'Don't be silly Granny, I won't SAY it, I'll just make the noise'.
I SO hope she was joking.
Granny
I think she should win a prize.
Granny23 I laughed out loud when I read what your GC had read and said. She will be deadly serious!
I reckon your DGD will go far Granny23 I should love to hear her performance 
Granny23
Reminds me of my little sister's performance (possibly mentioned before!)in Church, children were invited to stand up and recite a 'verse' (Vicar ommitted to say, 'from the bible') they had learned.
Most got away with 'God is love'.
She stood on the pew and sang a song popular in the 50s, but probably earlier too:
On the baby's knuckle
On the baby's knee
Where will the baby's dimple be......
...On the baby's cheek or the baby's chin...
Granny23 Your granddaughter's comment made me chuckle. It's the sort of "basic humour" that tickles all children. I shall upload a photo of the wee man and me, if I can locate it. He sat me down on his bed and suggested that I should read a very particular book...
Also, I shall upload a rather good photo of Rory and his best mate...taken last evening.
Success! Two photos uploaded without difficulty [for a change!] 
Heart warming pictures Soop. I've just seen your sunset 'skyscapes' - they are absolutely out of this world. If you had painted them people would think they were exaggerated 
Granny23 True! The skies have been flooded with "garish" colours from time to time. Crimson fading to rose and a purple sea. We have albums dedicated to Kintyre sunsets.
The latest photos are stunning soop. How old is Rory?
Charleygirl The vet guessed that he's at least ten and had had a "hard life". He's certainly been around a long time. Locals recall seeing him making his way alongside the verge between our home and the village...a 3 mile stroll, over a long period of time. The Campbeltown cat rescue man [who let her borrow the traps so that the vet could neuter the cats that visited us] believes that there is a fair size colony living in the area. To date, apart from Rory, we know of his wifelet, a ginger kitten, a tabby kitten, a tortoiseshell kitten and a young male black cat. The three so-called kittens are by now about three years old. 
soop like Tara, Rory has fallen on all 4 paws. Tara is now around 8 years old and I have had her for 6 years. She had two previous homes where she was "difficult" and I chose her from the Cat Protection League.
To me she is a loving cat, intelligent, self centred and thoroughly gorgeous. I would not part with her for anything. I think though that she will be my last cat.
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