My Monday is almost over and my feet are up while pooches and Brady snooze. It has been a leisurely day but I did walk for an hour with George and Betty after watching England ladies football team struggle in a match with the Nigerian team that was long and drawn out. It was lovely to get out and stroll across the moors then, after lunch, I struggled to split in half one of the plants I bought last week. It had a mass of roots jammed into a pot that I had to saw through before repotting one piece and planting the other in the garden. It is nearly 6’ high so difficult to handle but I’m sure I’ve done it a favour!
I’ve spoken to Sheila this evening and we plan to meet for coffee in the morning, that’s if we can avoid bedraggled tourists!

Anne, does Jilly eat kibble? (dog biscuits). I’m thinking it might be a safer option, avoiding upset tummies, especially as she has done so well with cooked chicken. I guess you will soon find out! An episode of the programme Long Lost Families was on this evening where more siblings were trying to connect and there does seem to be an immediate strong bond when they are successful. There are thousands of families with those rattling skeletons in cupboards but attitudes have changed so much now I don’t think such stories should need to be hidden. Definitely less puritanical and maybe gone too far the other way!

Isn’t it wonderful to know Patsy is contactable, although it does sound as if she has been through a lot, but hopefully on the mend.

Bedtime!
Jackie 🥰

This morning first thing I looked out of my bedroom window at thick fog! It meant another shorter dog walk round the block but George and Betty didn’t mind. What they weren’t happy about was wearing their rain coats but I’m sure they appreciated them once we set off!

I collected Sheila at 10am and in spite of the fog, drove on to the moors to visit a favourite restaurant and indulge in buttered tea cakes with coffee. It was still murky when I got home so I decided to hunt for a journal my maternal grandmother had written during her twilight years telling of her younger life and that of her parents and siblings. A cousin I hadn’t spoken to in 50 years phoned me on Sunday evening and we chatted for some time about family history so I mentioned the journal because we share this grandparent and I think she will learn all sorts of things about that side of the family. I’ve read sections to remind myself before posting it off to her. I do admire that generation because not only did they lose so many men in WW1 but faced hardships we rarely hear about today.
My next task is to clean the shower room, then move on to kitchen cupboard doors.
At that point my phone rang and it was Peter who will be repointing my stone frontage. I wasn’t expecting work to begin for a month or so but he tells me he will be here next week!! There are climbers and trellis to be removed first so I might be getting wet in the next few days!

Happy Tuesday everyone. Stay safe.
Jackie 🥰

Hello. Made a trip to the post office to mail y card to Patsy. I wanted to make sure it didn’t need extra postage. I stopped by to blow $2 on a MegaMillions ticket and then drove to the charity shop to drop off accumulation of filled bags. I just started stamping some fall images on toffee colored card stock. I have some markers scheduled to arrive on Thursday. I would like to try coloring an image or two with those markers before stamping a few dozen on this color card stock. It may not work out. I could shift to a lighter shade of tan or maybe a shift to white might be best. We will see.

Jackie, buttered tea cakes and coffee. That sounds incredibly delicious, although celiac girl couldn’t have even a morsel. It is nice of you to forward along that journal. I have been doing some of my own hunting. I had some letters from my ex-husband and I hid them well enough that I cannot find them. They wouldn’t matter to anyone else but I would prefer they be destroyed. I may have to tear apart everything in the basement!

Sandy, happy times with family again. Busy bee! Just stay safe and healthy.

Hello Diane, Jeri, Joy, Barbie, and Patsy can you hear us…!

Lin🙋🏼‍♀️
❤️❤️

Yesterday I threw myself into clearing the area Peter will be working from, probably on a scaffold tower. I completed about one half of the frontage but the rest will be more difficult and I think I will have to cut down a couple of climbers and my quince so no more jelly Christmas presents! In the evening I showered and washed my hair before an early night and did sleep well. Up early to walk George and Betty before collecting Sheila and driving to the hospital for her MRI scan. I allowed 20 extra minutes to get there which was just as well because Waze took us a convoluted way, then we found the hospital car park was heaving so had to drive round a few times, at the same time looking for the mobile scanner. We were 1 minute late for the appointment! I sat outside although it was chilly and misty and Sheila emerged an hour later having had 3 sections of spine and her head scanned and the results should be ready in a couple of weeks. On the way home we stopped at a small local garden centre for coffee and now I’m home looking at the next section of wall to be cleared, telling myself that just looking won’t get the job done!

No mega millions Lin? That’s a shame although for me it would be terrifying to find myself so rich. I gather someone from Florida won so maybe already mega rich! That’s a pretty Wedgewood tea set.

Sandy, I would be useless in an escape room because I’m feeling agoraphobic at the very thought. It does sound as if you are having fun with Babe’s family which I hope makes up for missed opportunities when he lived with his son. I thought of you this morning when I read about the wild fires in Hawaii and do hope your grandson (?) and wife are safe.

The mist is drifting in again so I must get outside to do some work.

Happy Thursday.
Jackie 🥰

Well, the saga of Harry’s old house and the 2nd owner. A removal van showed up today and the lady who bought it and sold it is gone. The first buyers stuck it out for just over a year but the Iranian lady was only in it for 10 months. She told me she couldn’t cope with it. So, I will never get to know the third owners or the buyers of Maria’s house on the other side because I too will be gone in 4 days! It’s absolutely flown the time since I decided it was my turn to move on. I’ve been here for exactly 34 years.

The bathroom here has an enclosed bath behind sliding doors so yesterday Mary Jo and I bought shower curtains, hooks, mats etc. for the new place. Might go over tomorrow to install them. I’ve solved Jillys meals, cross fingers. I’ve found a commercial dog food she appears to like. Makes you wonder what’s in it though! As Mark said, once we are established I can experiment a bit more. Mikes been loaned a van from his firm for the move on Tuesday. I’m quite overwhelmed by the packing and the throwing out! This house isn’t big and I’m not really a hoarder but it’s amazing what one acquires over the years. I don’t know if I mentioned this but I’m there for 60 days initially. Sort of a test run. If I don’t care for independent living I can return “home”. However I can’t see me doing that and that’s when the family will decide what to do with No. 15.

SANDY, I’m so glad your grandson, wife and wee baby are okay. The news is heartbreaking.

Anne.

Popping in to see how everyone is. I made an early trip to buy a few groceries and got home to question why I bought myself tomatoes when I’ve got enough ripening in my greenhouse! We’ve walked on the lower moor and the sun has burnt off the fog so I will get on with clearing the last small area in front of my shower room. There is a terracotta container that must be nearly 200 years old under the window that I don’t think I will move by myself but Peter did say he will help with anything I can’t move, thank goodness!

Anne, we share an anniversary because I moved into my cottage 34 years ago! I can feel what a wrench it is for you to pack up and move and how exhausting physically and mentally it must be so am feeling just a little tearful for you. Take lots of deep breaths sweetheart and get yourself safely into your new home knowing we Sneakers are with you in spirit. ❤️

Keep on rocking Sandy! 🎶 🎼 🎵. That’s great news your family in Hawaii is safe from the ghastly fires. I’m sure the hurricane winds must have fanned the flames so it would be terrifying to be anywhere near.

Take care Lin, if you are meeting someone to sell your bike. It is so difficult to value items we’ve had for a while because tastes change over the years. Sheila told me she has a full set of a Denby dinner service and was thinking of taking it to a charity shop but I looked it up and currently there is one on eBay asking £350 so hopefully she will auction it. Another pretty teapot!

I must get on and hopefully finish clearing outside because we are forecast thunderstorms over the weekend! 😖

Happy Friday.
Jackie 🥰

Hello all. Not much going on here and it does get kind of lonely with no neighbours on either side of me. Even Darren across the road is talking of selling up in favour of a bungalow. It’s really weird actually. Janice has vanished. I hope she is gone to her daughters miles away, but I fear the worst. She was getting awfully thin a year ago and didn’t know why. So lots of young folks with young children moving into our neighborhood. As I trundled down the long drive today with the garbage bins it struck me, not something else I want to do in the coming winter. So I AM sad to leave the cottage, but then I think of furnaces breaking down, water main backups from the oak tree roots and all the other things that can go wrong in an old house and I know it’s the logical thing to do, (but since when was I the most logical person? Lol.). My decision anyway.
The main problem for me though was the shingles. I’ve never been totally myself since. I have mixed feelings about chef prepared meals, but then sure beats burning the cottage down!
So “onward Christian soldiers” as the old hymn once sung by me and my grubby school girl friends once sang at morning assembly.
I can’t see you leaving your cottage JACKIE. You are so friendly and have tons of friends and moorland acquaintances. I wouldn’t either if the cottage could be transported back to England's green (rain?) and pleasant land.
Saturday coming up. Enjoy.
Anne.

Michael’s been over and Michael’s just left. We had an interesting meal of leftovers because the cupboard is pretty bare. I’ve just got enough food for two days! You might guess our move day is forecast rain, all day.
So, I’m going to start emptying one bookcase this afternoon, the smallest. I think it will fit in the new place but if it doesn’t Mike won’t bring it back here, he’ll take it home with him.

And that’s about it from me.
Anne.

Good evening. It has been a day of card stamping and getting organized to make cards to send to charity again. I am not sure if I have done enough so I haven’t started to assemble the cards. I will look at them again tomorrow.

I also did some sorting in the basement and found some things together in a small box that I thought I had sold but apparently I hadn’t. I just deleted the listings a while ago so I will have to decide whether to try to sell again, donate or toss!

Jackie, another busy day and a supper that sounds yummy.

Anne, not much time left. Good job on getting the book case contents packed.

Sandy, another busy day. How far is the drive to take Marisa to college?

Be safe everyone.

Lin🙋🏼‍♀️
❤️❤️

A bit of whimsy

After a long walk across the moors this morning I decided that was enough exercise so apart from mucking out the hen house I have enjoyed a quiet day. It’s another cool and wet day and I can’t believe what an awful summer it’s turning out to be so poor crops in the veggie garden and so many plans with flower beds gone awry. Perhaps I’m becoming aware of the march of time and frustrated that I haven’t carried out half the chores I wanted.
Hmmm, Brady has just enjoyed a bowl of his favourite Whiskas food, disappeared round the side of the cottage and almost immediately returned with a mouse! He was sent packing before he got close to the cat flap!

Anne, I so admire the way you’ve thrown yourself into this move. It must be that Yorkshire grit of yours! I imagine you will find it strange to not be cooking your meals, rather like a stay at a hotel but if tasty and nutritional it will remove the bother of planning. For all that, I hope you can get out with Mike for an occasional shop at your favourite grocery store and stock up on goodies.

An unusual teapot Lin that has a look of Darth Vader about it! Just needs a lightsaber to whoosh about!

The wind is picking up and the rain pouring so I will throw an evening meal together. Not well planned because it’s leftover cold chicken, cold couscous and cold green salad, followed by a pot of cold trifle!

If I turn back to Sandy I will probably lose my post so send you a wave Sandy! 🙋🏼‍♀️

Jackie 🥰

Sandy, so sorry about your priest. So young, too. But a peaceful way to go.
Good luck to all at the college drop off.

A pleasant day once the rain left us and it warmed up. We had a local doggy walk dodging debris from damaged trees after yet another storm last night. No news from Peter about starting work on the outside wall but at least I’ve done all I can to clear the area.

Anne, I’ve got a mid 20th century G Plan man’s wardrobe that is half hanging rail and half shelves so handy for coats and accessories. It’s solid teak and weighs a ton so will have to be somebody else’s problem to remove when I’m gone! I’m glad you got to see who will be moving in next door!

I’m off to bed; it’s late!
Jackie 🥰