Well I can't get onto my home page or the food and exercise diaries. I have no idea why this is so.
But I'm here and we had quite a busy morning. My groceries came and then Mark. He brought the old bathroom faucet tap back to reinsert after de liming it overnight. It was dribbling before and I couldn't use the shower at all. There is some talk of my ancient bath being ripped out and just a stand up shower put in. A new stall. I do hope I get this because it means I'll be able to sit on a stool and wash the feet more easily. A lot of adaptation going on here for elderly living! Because whilst he was here I went online and ordered a magnifying makeup mirror and oven mitts to replace really old ones, and bless him, he went to the store for curb side pickup. Not sure I like what I see in the mirror though!

They came over last evening as well to pick up the dribbling faucet and we did a little gardening. Mainly cutting back dead flower stems. Much hilarity next door from the new folks in their garden but we had no idea what was being said of course. Only the appearance of one of the late and unlamented Harry's mosquitos had us scuttling back inside, but the garden looks a little tidier. So you see I am being looked after like a prize bovine in a cattle show. Ive almost forgotten what its like to go to a store to simply pick up oven mitts for instance.

I think we are all adapting to this new lifestyle pretty well.

Hate to say this PATSY but I am off to make myself a nice cup of coffee and get back to reading a new book Mary Jo brought over. American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins. Its rather horrifying what the heroine and her small son go through in Mexico with the drug lords. I will never complain again! Not a book to read if you are in a morose state of mind. Otherwise a compelling read.

Love to all, Anne and Jilly who is in seventh heaven with her next favourite people coming over frequently.

Hello, I think I mentioned it is my busy season gathering information for renewing the farm lease. I have to call back on the 12th so am listening to landowner zoom meetings and researching rental rates. So I will not be doing anything interesting enough to share.

I did make my Thursday morning call to my friend today. We talked for a long time as she will have her grandson visiting next week and we will be skipping our call.

This afternoon I had a long conversation with another friend. We hadn’t spoken for quite a while. I called her to ask some questions about the party her son is hosting later this month. He is a friend of mine but I am uncomfortable in attending. She said he doesn’t want any gifts. The party is a combo celebration of his bachelor’s degree which he has completed one class at a time as he worked and a monumental birthday ending in a ‘0’! So I guess I will be making a card. Must put on my thinking cap.

I have lots of projects in the works and I hope to check all of my deposit accounts to see if text Alerts can be added for any withdrawals. Once upon a time I added some alerts but I am not sure if I hit all accounts. Better safe than sorry.

Jackie, thanks for the additional info about the choice of user name. Makes more sense now! What a busy day you’ve had. My gosh. But what wonderful news that the gent must go. Now, how to swiftly and efficiently notify him and toss him out. Ha-ha! Good news. We had a little rain but the temperatures are increasing again with 90’s F. Sweaty weather. When you said your friend would visit in September, I thought, well, that’s a long time, but it isn’t really is it?

Anne, well you are not left on your own. Wonderful. And Jilly gets company if not lots of long walks. A new shower stall would be just the ticket. I have a built-in shower with a seat in the corner. The seat is molded right into it. Nice but I don’t actually sit on it. I put one foot at a time up on it and scrub legs and tootsies. It is great. I hope you do get the shower. 🤞🏻🤞🏻

Patsy, when does Katie have this annual physical you mentioned? Yes, we must try to be careful. I did 3 errands yesterday and all three establishments had a sign on the door to wear a mask when entering. I was out early so there were no crowds. This is certainly an endurance event and not a sprint. Covid continues to bedevil us. I quite regularly speak to friends on the phone but actually seeing friends, well, that doesn’t happen. I have had 2 people stop by my house to drop off something for me. Yes, 2 in the last what, a year and a half. I speak to any neighbor who is out getting mail at the same time I am but overall, I have been in solitary confinement. Luckily it usually doesn’t bother me but sometimes it does. I did ask a friend to go for a walk but she said no, she didn’t want to walk inside the mall. Oh well, someday things will change.

Sandy, another bouncing around busy day! Yes, I am busy but really nothing fun. So your son and girlfriend are moving. Wow. Lots of moving news. I heard from a friend yesterday and she is packing up lock, stock, and barrel leaving this Midwest state where she was born to live in Florida. She is retired now and decided to make a leap to an area where I believe she has vacationed several times. But this is it, moving everything and not looking back. She will be in Sarasota County and recently vacationed there. I think she purchased a house or condo. She is out of here in one short month. Her adult daughter is also moving on but hasn’t made a final decision on exactly where but in North Carolina. People are just leaping all over the country. Anyway, I hope your son will love the new location.

As far as not many posts, Bob has been gone for a while but we haven’t seen Barbie for a long time, Connie either and Jeri not often and Diane just once in a while. I still miss hearing from Phoebe, Shirley and Judy (her birthday today). That was a long time ago though wasn’t it.

Well, need to move along. I have another Zoom call tomorrow morning, earlier than usual.

Be well everyone.

Lin🙋🏼‍♀️
❤️❤️

“Sadler….1930s (Art Deco) Crinoline Lady Cottage Garden Chintz Teapot.”

Oh no! We seem to be having some internet hiccups everywhere. We are fine here. We had a small shower last night. So welcome! Our big wildfire is getting under control. Now we will watch and wait for things to come back to life. In an appropriate amount of time, replanting of trees will happen.

I do have a big affection for the sneakers. I hope we can get Anne back online. There is always a draggy period. For me it is usually august and March. These are “shoulder” months. I am usually yearning for either cooler weather inAugust and warmer-sunnier weather in March. I am a true wimp.

Stay safe, wear your mask, drink lots of water, social distance, stay away from crowds. With all that sage advice, know that you mean the world to me!
Patsy

Hello. Hour after hour of Zoom meetings today. I am worn out from taking notes.

After the last meeting I went outside and I found some digging around my front step. I called my handyman and he hopes to stop by later. He thinks it is a chipmunk/ground squirrel making the mess. He doesn’t think it is more wasps. Ugh.

So far the information I have heard doesn’t give a clear indication of what type of offer to make regarding rent next year. Onward to next weeks meetings.

Looks like I will have to water a bit this evening as the veggies are wilting.

I wrote a very long post yesterday and have little to add so, be safe everyone.

Jackie, this guy is not going to be easy to oust from power! I hope the new hens settle in quickly.

Patsy, I hope the fires are more under control each day.

Sandy, I have forgotten what you are doing this weekend.

Anne, I hope you are back soon.

Best wishes to all.

Lin🙋🏼‍♀️
❤️❤️

Hazy and cloudy this morning. It is cool however…nice! I wonder if we are to get an early autumn? It sort of feels like it might but I have not read any predictions on that. So much fear and apocalyptic rants. I can’t help but feel we will be attending to Mother Earth with more care.

Since we still need to curtail our activities, I am going into deep cleaning. Washing curtains, shampooing the carpet. I couldn’t find a rug cleaning service that didn’t use pretty strong chemicals. I think Katie, John and I need to use mild cleansing products. We all love our allergies! Anyway, I will go at it with an easy but constant pace. It will feel nice to have things refreshed for the coming fall and autumn. Not sure about a lockdown. Our bank just closed 2 of their branches and they now only offer drive up again. They state staff illness and reduced employee numbers. Eeeek! We are lucky our banking is pretty simple.

I had a very perplexing wedding invitation. My great nephew is finally getting officially married. He has lived with this lady for 2 years and they have a little 2 year old girl. They bought a house a year ago. Now about the wedding. The invitation included information on where and how to add to their honeymoon fund! Something about this feels strange. Is this a new thing? Is it kind of like in that movie, My Big, Fat Greek Wedding? I am out of touch and totally clueless.

Lin: your tea pot photos are a treat. I love them all. Especially the ones with funny animals. As far as the forum goes…yes I do miss those people who have moved on. I also love the small forums because I get to know everyone so well. It feels and is like family to me. I always feel happy to include a new family member. There are times when I wonder about their lives now. Wish them all well and I think the welcome mat is still out on the doorstep.

Sandy: with all your activities, I am so glad you are being careful. This variant is mean! I will be getting a booster shot when it is available for me. Might be months from now however.

Hello to all sneakers out there….be safe and stay healthy.
Patsy☘️

Hello, a busy day! I think I now have all my online banking alerts set and verified. In some cases the options weren’t exactly what I had in mind but I did my best.

I enjoyed the Facebook Live get together this morning and I have 2 of the needed August birthday cards partially completed. Just need to find what sentiment I want to add inside. I also finished stamping the first step on a Christmas card design. I will be moving on to stenciling next. I tried one idea and ruined one of my starts. Ooops. I had best not do that again.

Patsy, that wedding invitation is a bit odd but as far as a gift is concerned, I say do what you are comfortable doing. It is accommodating to give people what they want which is why wedding registries have been around for so long but people do not limit their giving to just a list or a demand from the couple. If they aren’t happy, too bad. Right?

Sandy, it was supposed to be very hot and muggy here as well but it clouded over early and the hot temperature did not arrive. It is only around 80 degrees F now, not 90. I hope you enjoyed your time at the pool. I will just say the lease is annual, at their request, I was hoping we could just do 2 or even 3 years at a time. They are not willing to lock in a rental rate for longer than one crop season. I will just say the income is important to me so I try to do my best in working out the rate. I have been relatively unhappy the last several years with the result. I hope this year is better. Enjoy movie night. Best wishes on getting together with people who are not vaccinated.

Hello Jackie and Anne!

Let’s see what I can find for a teapot today. Hot peppers!



Lin🙋🏼‍♀️
❤️❤️

Good morning dears! Sunday morning and the sun is shinning. I think our showers cleaned the air but the heat is returning this week? Yesterday and Friday we had off and on rain. It was cool and cloudy all day…both days. Not sure what this day will bring. I know the town is still full of tourists so I guess my thoughts of getting out and about should be set aside.

This is a sailing day for our Damon. We will have our chat tomorrow instead our usual Sunday chat. Regular visits with our kids keep me sane. I must drive John nuts with my constant chatter and constant music. About that strange wedding invitation, I think Lin has the most sensible idea. I will ignore the honeymoon fund and do my usual thing. A card, note and a check with my good wishes. DONE!

I hope we are all being safe and careful. The news is scary and confusing. One headline contradicts the next. The experts have no idea! We are all just guessing. So only clear choice is to be careful and avoid risky social gatherings whenever possible. Masks!

Toward that end, I am ordering a few new novels to keep me quiet and entertained. My projects and refreshing of our home is slow going but i do need a break from time to time. I love chatting with you sneakers. I hope we all will have a spare moment to drop in to chat. We are an interesting diverse little group. One new project is to learn how copy and send our chats to Anne. I don’t do Facebook, even though it sounds like it would be fun.

Katie needs a good brushing. A rather constant condition for her. I will try to dream up a Sunday dinner that interests John but has a lower calorie option for me. You can see meals are a challenge for us. Also an exercise session in my dungeon at my ballet bar. Sunday baroque and a phone chat with our daughter, Andrea are on for today as well.
A hug, and a virtual cheek kiss to all you sweet sneakers!
Patsy☘️

The hens are doing just fine so I removed the partition fence to allow them to mingle. A couple of squabbles but nothing serious and tonight I managed to get them all into the hen house without getting pecked.

It seems I’m always posting at bedtime. A full day, including a long walk, when dressed in waterproofs and even a hat, we managed to climb trails and not get too wet. Along the way I stopped to chat to a dog walker I hadn’t seen since before Covid whose little pug was having problems with her back legs so fell over a couple of times. He said he had the best vet who was doing his best to try everything available to solve the issue. It also turns out he has endured a similar renovation nightmare as me because nothing had been done to his property that he bought just before Covid, in 70 years. I now feel I was not alone!

It turned into a sunny afternoon so of course, rather than stay in with the masking tape I managed some more gardening. The recent rain has everything growing at a rapid rate including a few brambles where they don’t belong.
When I had made my afternoon cup of tea I phoned my old school friend Anne and we talked for over 2 hours. Afterwards I sent her a photo of the snug that has the plum velvet wall that I’m not too sure about but she replied she loves it.


I have to say I am getting to slowly like it too.

Not just Covid to be dealing with but dire warnings about climate change. Several British firefighters have been sent to Greece to help to clear the wild fires.

Just woke up having nodded off so must get to bed!
Jackie

Hello….

Jackie, I love the colors you used. And the deeper color is my favorite. Lovely indeed. Glad the hens are settled in. Ha, I too made a long call. This afternoon I talked to a friend for more than 2 hours. I kept saying I had to go as I did not want to ruin her afternoon but gosh, I did ruin it totally! It seems we could talk forever. I guess some friends are just that comfortable. Right?

Sandy, I am glad you enjoyed the party. No rain here and it is sorely needed. I spent the morning in another Zoom meeting. Some good information and I took notes once again. Wednesday, a half day meeting. Yipes!

Must wrangle all the trash and take it out and again, the containers need water.

I am taking a day off from stencils!

Be safe everyone.

Lin🙋🏼‍♀️
❤️❤️

“Blue Regal Peacock" from Burleigh of England

Hello dear sneakers, all is well here on Mudd Lane (the real name of our road off the main road) and we are headed for another heat bubble. It is predicted to last about three days before it moves. We don’t have a/c, as I have mentioned. We do have a small portable room a/c that helps but doesn’t really cool a room. So we are preparing as best we can. Cool foods, ice for drinks etc, fans and closing out the heat with window shades etc. Katie will have ice cubes in her water dish.

Since there is a huge surge in Covid cases and the delta variant is sweeping through Oregon, I know we will be having some restrictions soon. We are also looking at a booster shot for people like John and me. Good idea! I would be first in line!

I have clicked on every spot on this iPad trying to copy and paste our forum to email Anne. But so far, I have been totally unsuccessful! I know it can be done but how…….?

Sandy: you are one brave soul to sit for the kids and then the commute is terrifying! Tornados cannot be dealt with, if they are in your path, they will win. The accompanying wind, rain and hail is also terrifying. Be careful, my friend. Celebrating a birthday with your brother is very special. It renews a connection and there are times it makes all the difference for everyone. I had that with my mom. We were not all that close when I was growing up. I lived with grandmother but later in life, mom and i connected. It was very special for both of us.

Jackie: I am very impressed by the great job your workman did on the plaster walls. Then your paint job is splendid. Also your chosen color scheme is very sophisticated and works great in that antique cottage. It is an unusual color, but creates a positive calming atmosphere. I remember about new hens in the hen house. They can be very territorial and vicious as I remember. Watch out for little Storm. She could become a target for their battle of domination.

Lin: I fear you are in for some weather as well. Be careful.

Anne: we are leaving little bread crumbs along the way back to us. You are still a sneaker, don’t ever forget,that!

Sending love as always,
Patsy☘️

Up early to check the chooks! Not quite as disturbing as yesterday but I’ve fed and watered them and erected the fence between them while Bluebell and Lupin weren’t looking! A longish hair appointment and shopping taking up most of my day but will drop in once I’m home again and enjoying a cuppa.

Patsy, I searched how to copy and paste… after a few attempts I managed to forward my post to Anne yesterday.

Double tap first word of post with finger then keep it on the screen
Run finger down screen until blue haze covers what you want to copy
Pause and a black window appears at the top
Click on COPY
Go to new email, place finger on page and select PASTE in black box that should reappear!

Took me several attempts but then that’s me, I quickly become frustrated with most things IT!!

Happy Wednesday. Catch up later, hopefully with less hair falling in my face.
Jackie

Hello friends. I did start a post about an hour ago but you can guess where it went… whoosh!!
I looked out fog and drizzle when I first got up but after breakfast decided I would take George and Betty to the moors anyway. I’m pleased I did because when I arrived out of the fog appeared my new friend David, the man having similar experiences with his builder as I did. His little pug was missing but he told me he left her in the car because she is still collapsing so his other dog, an adorable Cavalier King Charles, needs exercise because she is putting on weight. It’s obvious he is terribly worried about his pug but the vet says she is healthy in every other way so they must patiently work through options. I walked on and took the pooches up on to the next level of track and found we were above the fog and the sun was trying to shine. Nearly back to the car when I met another dog Walker Brian. We chatted about our veggies that we grow but then something he said reminded me he worked on the outside electricity supply to my cottage about 30 years ago. A group of tourists passed by and commented on his Westie’s clean white coat so Brian said oh he never gets dirty. When we parted company going in opposite directions I could hear him whistling for his dog quite some way along the track and then, where I stood waiting to see them meet up, his dog dropped from some bracken on a verge above us absolutely filthy. I can only imagine he had rolled in a pile of cow dung!! That made me smile.
I’ve been pottering doing odd jobs this afternoon including mucking out the hen house. The chooks are slightly more relaxed with each other so I let them share the run without the fence. Poor Storm seems to get the most attention but she’s much quicker and can also fly if necessary so should be ok.

Sandy, Robby saying he liked school is a great start and he’ll be even happier when he makes some friends.
Our little group does tend to go quiet in the summer months so I’m sure we won’t break up. I for one will be here however small it gets because I feel the same as Patsy, you are family so I need to know everyone is well plus my nosey side is curious about things! 🥰

Pink hair photo just for you! My hairdresser and I had lots of fun choosing colours and she did her best to guide me away from the bright pink but I was determined.

Patsy, I do wonder if at some point we all have to get on with our lives but being careful about social distancing and masks. Whoever or whatever set this thing amongst us has a lot to answer for but humanity has been through destructive pandemics before without the help of vaccines so I’m confident we will overcome. I’m more concerned about the fires and floods that will only get worse!! Bloomin’ heck, we need to be sat around a table with a large pot of coffee putting the world to rights! 😋

Wow, the sun has disappeared behind the neighbour’s roof so time to go in and get myself an evening meal.

Take care 😍
Jackie