Soop's comfortable and friendly kitchen...

I wonder if he has a surprise tucked his sleeve and if so - do you call his bluff, put your size 4 1/2 down firmly and insist that September is in fact an excellent time to go away?
A couple of ideas if you are not to go too far might be a city break somewhere like Bruges or Brussels (which the DDs gave me for my birthday, because we could do it on Eurostar and not have to fly) Or alternatively Dublin or Belfast? Or one of the Baltic ports?
Or come further south and go to somewhere lovely like Ludlow in Shropshire or York or Harrogate.
You could also play the pathos card that you do not know if you will necessarily feel fit to stray far from home in another10 months time, carpe diem and all that. Or he could be winding you up.

Soop that sounds like exactly the sort of thing I would get from DH. I am with Panache. I rather think that MacS is an old romantic who might just have a plan. Keep your powder dry for a bit, and sniff the wind!
I have G&T on an intravenous drip as I revel in the vaccuum left by the family gone home. Lunch was very much appreciated and GS made a piglet of himself, but it was still a bridge too far on a day like this. But they are lovely people and I am blessed (especially since I don’t have to do the clearing up!).

We should all do things as soon as possible, without sounding morbid ,time is not on our side.
September seems to me to be an ideal time to go away, stand by your instincts and insist. Book it now and stand no nonsense.
Seriously you must celebrate at the right time.
We have just had a Pimms in the garden, it was early but I was trying to keep H awake and motivated.
At the moment he doesn't want to eat, but as it is cold it doesn't really matter.

Excuse me whilst I literally crawl in to cool myself with another magnum.
Not my day,although planning on a little wander along our coastal path hoping for that breeze before I totally melt............I had another "turn" so lunch was again late whilst I grabbed all the attention.
Too many of these attention grabbing moments of late.............grrrrrrrrrrr.
Not my day for sure...........but a magnum a day helps keep the Doc away........... and I faithfully promise to top up your store soop

Oh deary me soop.....Now I am about to have another turn after reading of your disappointment with MacSporran.............he may obviously have something "up his sleeve" .....a plan incorporating a holiday for two.....I would think well before you rush in,just tactfully find out has he really any secret plans for you both.........then perhaps you can enjoy your knicker drawer savings on just yourself!!
Catch my drift???

Ta everso for the virtual Magnum. It's doing me a power of good. Easily pleased - me.

corner A spot of pondering is good for the soul. Ponder away...

you lot know that I love dear MacSporran. We make a good team. However, I need a wee let off of steam. Since we arrived in Scotland - almost 16 years ago, we've had a couple of long weekends exploring this beautiful country, and one four day break on Mull. We are very lucky to live here beside the sea and I am totally happy with our gentle daily routines...
In October we'll be celebrating our 30th wedding anniversary. We've been talking about having a wee break in the Highlands to celebrate the event. I work at my ironing job and earn £20 for a two and a half hour shift. The £20 has been tucked away in my knicker drawer and now amounts to almost £200. By late Sept, I'll have squirrelled away enough to take us somewhere pleasant. Well...MacSporran now casually tells me that - "September is not a good time to go anywhere" "We should, instead, wait for next Spring. I almost choked with disappointment over my tea. I know that in the big scheme of things a few days away shouldn't seem that important. Sadly, it does. I just wished to vent my disappointment with my pals in the kitchen. I shall report back to you after I given the matter some serious thought. And, of course, I shall be "adult" and not make a fuss. That sort of behaviour is not what I'm about.

LOL Oh Grey I was thinking of you with your full on roast today !! Passes the magnums......

I never want to see any kitchen but this one ever again!!!?

crawls into the kitchen...….. magnums??????

There is much jubilation here. A very kind person in Germany and an even kinder person in the States talked us through reinstallation of the data, it's all there, it was easy (no, I couldn't do it on my own ) took about an hour in total and all is well in our world again. Now, why did I worry about it?

Goodness ann, that's an odd neighbour you have there, as you say, least said and all that. Feet up is a seriously good plan soop, how lovely to just relax.

Your day sounds manic greyd, no shame in ready made Yorkshire puds when necessary and this was one of those times. Hope lunch has gone well and you can have a well deserved rest.

I'm off to sit in the garden and ponder the arrival of that lily, I really have no idea how it got there, wonder if it brought any friends?

I have big apologies to make for my tardiness. Yesterday was somewhat busy. Mostly watching tennis busy and a football match busy. My feet were elevated. I had a pot of tea and thoroughly enjoyed doing nowt.

ann You certainly are blest with a good sense of humour. Is your husband's infection responding better to the medication? It certainly seems so.

Greyduster NO need for shame. You are a gold star grannie. Cut corners whenever possible. I raise my sun hat to you in admiration.

corner The lily is a magnificent specimen. The colour is delicious.

Panache Did the engineer leave with a smile on his face? Are you best buddies? Will he return? MacSporran has more engineer friends than the average man aboot the hoos. They seem to take a shine to him. I keep well out of the way. Technical matters are not my forte.

Charleyg I do not like the thought that a stranger has entered your garden. Do you have any neighbours who might have seen something suspicious? You are right not to leave doors unlocked. Even if MacSporran leaves the house for just a couple of hours to attend a meeting, I always lock the doors.

Hmm and very hmm Annsixty
I think there some people (I might say “men” but leave you to think it if you want) who can regard any tools or practical items as their preserve. Little woman next door won’t need it or know how to use it.
In other words Bl**dy cheek!

I had a similar incident yesterday charliegirl my H said our side gate was open, like you 2 bolts, the bottom of which can only be open or closed from the garden,.
In the middle of the afternoon, my neighbour appeared at the front door and said he had come to retrieve a garden tool.
In my innocence I assumed he had dropped over the fence whilst gardening.
Oh no, he said he had lent it to me and he wanted it back.
I pointed out that in fact he had purchased one for me and
I had paid him for it.
I fetched it from the shed saying he could borrow it , it had hardly been used and he was back in five minutes saying he had found his, no apology just a joke about unveiling his new decking and I could go to the grand opening.
Afterwards it occurred to me that in fact he might have gone into the garden in the hope of finding said tool.
In the spirit of neighbourlyness??? I will not mention it .

Well it is only half past ten and I am already exhausted from chivvying everyone (mostly The Boy) to get out of bed, get dressed, leave the jigsaw, get off the phone, come for breakfast...... Grandad is nearly as bad. I have just asked him to go down to the supermarket to get some ready made Yorkshire Puddings. (?‍♀️This is the nearest emoticon I could find to someone holding their head in shame. ?‍♀️This is the nearest I could find to my mother looking down and saying you’ve let the side down, lass!). DH said “What if they don’t have any?” I told him not to worry - I am probably the only idiot in Christendom cooking a roast dinner in sub Saharan temperatures! There will be plenty! We were planning a trip to the country park to take a canoe out this morning, but parents are on the way home and would it be possible to have an early lunch, so all plans have to be revised. Just as well. We went swimming yesterday and played cricket in the evening and I must report that my dodgy hip likes neither activity. All I am good for at the moment is walking in a straight line!! I doubt if I could get into and out of a canoe! Docs appointment on the horizon ?.

Charley the security breach must have put you on edge. Since we had our laurel hedge taken out it would not be beyond some agile person to get over our garden wall either. I hope it was a one off incident and doesn’t happen to you again.

Corner you are lucky to get suchlike a lovely “freebie” - I bought one exactly like that this year. It has just about gone over now, but it has done well. My roses are gone too now. In fact, I need to gloss over my garden this year.

N&G lily beetles are an absolute nightmare. They ravaged two of mine this year, and I managed to keep them off the others but only by diligent inspection, picking them off and stamping on them. Poor old Sam! He does have some stuff to put up with. He must be so much more comfortable for your tender ministrations! I remember when we were children we used to drop those burrs down each other’s backs when we could find them!

Well I never thought I would say this but we have some much welcomed cloud bubbling up, which should cool things down a bit. I have a fish pie to make for DD’s lunch so I had better get on with it. I will look in later.

It is a lily n&g or so those with more understanding than I tell me. No idea where it came from but pleased it appeared. Poor Sam, feel for him and you, it reminded me of when we had dogs (Apsos) except they didn’t have a patient bone between them. Relief to know grampy escaped unscathed.

We really enjoyed the sea breezes yesterday panache, came back both rested and energised. Hope the same happens for you today.

Right, loins to be girded before the Man from Apple phones. Slightly less terrified than I was yesterday but could still do with some luck

Absolutely scorching here and there`s no doubt about it after a rotten sleepless night I am not up to another burn out!!!!

However yes Corner ......we have lift off! It seems that already we have much improved BB...........so one headache less.
What a gorgous lily............we had a garage/garden sale prior to Christmas thinking we were moving...........alas all our pots and flowering plants were the first to go so we are lily less if you catch my drift!

Indeed Charley time to recheck your security,very difficult in this heat when we need our windows open.

Sam is certainly well catered for N & G...........they do get all sorts tangled up in their coats if not on the ball..........you obviously are.

Hoping you are having one of your better days Ann

I would have had a P.J day for sure but mny man insists we have to have some sea air in our lungs.......so I guess I must obey ........see you folks....... and here`s hoping you all have a pleasureable day,plus staying reasonably cool

N&G I am fanatical about windows being closed and I was only a few yards away. If I go upstairs I always close the downstairs French doors.

It must be very hot again for Tara because she has crept in the door and flopped on the ceramic floor in the kitchen. I have ordered a fan for her so it should arrive today.

Poor Sam, I hope that he is now back to normal- he needs extra cuddles.

Morning all !!

Its another hot one forecast for here today. I'm not complaining though because winter will be here soon enough and drag on and on as it always does !

Granniequeenie , dating is so tough these days. The 'rules' are so different from when we dated. I feel for young women, it was very cut and dried in my day and of course we married so much younger.

That's not good Charley , big padlock methinks and closing up your downstairs windows when you're out and about.

Sam needs a good cuddle, he went routing down the side of the house yesterday in pursuit of the lions he saw on the TV and came back covered in what I call 'Fuzzy burrs' . Teeny tiny prickly things embedded in his coat which if not removed turn into big tangles. Worst off were his ears , which he hates me fussing with. He was a good lad and sat relatively patiently while I pulled them all out.

Grampy then got sent down the path with the strimmer to cut down the offending culprits ( he has little hair so he was safe :-) ) !!

Corner is that glorious picture a lily? I love it!! We brought some of our lilies in pots but have succumbed to the Lily leaf bug so I think we will have to start again next year.

Glad to hear you did your bit for World Chocolate Day - I did more than my share :-)

A lazy day forecast here , I hope all of you have a shady spot and plentiful supply of ice lollies !!

https://signal-corridor.live/uploads/talk/201807/medium-193538-aedad6ef-e67a-4ec8-a895-c6e7163df955.jpeg%3C/span%3E https://signal-corridor.live/uploads/talk/201807/medium-741563-b013deec-3f8d-4ff1-8741-885562596ee9.jpeg%3C/span%3E https://signal-corridor.live/uploads/talk/201807/medium-8367-55fa8bc6-f460-4aa0-b956-dfd5bbb35622.jpeg%3C/span%3E

Hmm. That’s not good charley, definitely a padlock.

Well, didn’t watch the football as we were communing with the big computer. Pleased with the football outcome and pleased with us, we’ve done a lot without our remote hand holder. Much more confident about tomorrow.

Sounds a step forward panache, lets hope your broadband is nicely settled in very soon.

Your daughter sounds very sensible mcem, you must be relieved that today has been better than anticipated. Hope you can relax for a while.

Been wondering how today has gone ann, hope a peaceful one. You progressing kitty? These things take a while to recover from. The heat won’t help.

Spent a very enjoyable morning sitting on a different beach, very relaxing. Did my bit for world chocolate day to support n&g

It’s not as hot here as in many places, a mere 28 degrees this afternoon, enough for the garden to struggle though. The roses are doing their best to enjoy the weather and a lily has appeared from nowhere. Oh well, not complaining.

Two bolts plus a padlock in future I think Charleygirl

N&G if Sam is not fussed about walks and prefers cuddles he and I would get along just fine. What a pity we live so far away.

A tad frightening but somebody- whether a child or adult, leapt over my garden wall and undid the two bolts, top and bottom. My side door was swinging in the wind when I went out to hang out my washing. A look around my garden and they would see that there is nothing to steal.

I watched the football this afternoon and loved every minute of it. I must sort out my supper and then watch the other match to discover who we will be playing next Wednesday. It was amazing today to see a game that had no fouls played- what a change.

I will be polite "Maw" but back in the day (which yes you might just remember what you have just described is the act of "A dirty stop out!!"..................however nice knowing someone else who will happily loll in their P.J`s, ............especially after a rotten night........you were right to dress up for the match though,which ever one you choose!!

Well one Engineer has been soop and it was so hot he was busily stripping.............I bet that gets the hot flushes ladies!!.............and it seems (fingers well crossed) that lightening had struck our socket where the broadband enters our place.
Hence hardly enough steam to boot up my machine,let alone our other two.
We have been warned it will take up to 3 days to repower and settle.............so we sit in hope yet again.
All this activity on a scorcher of a day.
Sincerely hoping he does not have to return though nice as he was.

Ok,Ok I can take a hint,I will pick up another Magnum and skedaddle out of your way as you enjoy the match............Byeeeeeeeeee

Thank you for your understanding posts.
A couple of phone calls and she's keeping it together!
I'm taking the DGCs away next week (booked back in February to let them away on honeymoon!)
DD plans to head up to Elgin to spend a couple of days with a good friend and is looking forward to spending this evening with friends.

mcem a hard day for your daughter, my heart goes out to her. I hope she finds a place of peace with it all and, if in the fullness of time, she does meet someone else she will be loved and cherished as she deserves. It’s what I hope for our youngest who at 36 has recently split from the man she thought was “the one” - she made a brave decision for which I respect her hugely.
for your daughter and you too - it’s hard on the sidelines holding the tissues and picking your words carefully!

Tennis whites (but watching the football)
Anything is better than bra and undercrackers!

will you be wearing football kit or tennis whites Maw ? :-)