Down a Suffolk Lane on the Last Day of April

Walk the lane with me again, see what's changed.

My walk in the lane on the last day of March is HERE 


Plenty of Cow Parsley

and Herb Robert

Clumps of Bluebells

Oh dear, an egg shell (blackbird?) with yolk inside, this might mean it was taken by a Magpie from out of the nest

The Cowslips are just finishing, there were lovely to see all around the lanes near us.

Plenty of green now on the hawthorns, elder and this willow. Oaks are just beginning to leaf up but Ash are way behind......hope that means a good summer.

.
 How will things have changed by the end of May?

Oh, just remembered.................. we have swallows at last, we both thought we spotted them at different times week or so ago  but they were definitely a pair sitting on a wire out the back of the house yesterday.

Back Tomorrow
Sue

Looking Forward to Events in Suffolk

The RAF Battle of Britain Memorial Flight will be flying over the Mid Suffolk Light Railway tomorrow. It's the first of their two day special event ................ "The Middy in the War Years" . We shall certainly see the planes from home - which is just a few fields away

Borrowed photo from Google

 or from the museum which we'll be visiting tomorrow or Monday, depending on the weather.

In mid May there is an Antique and Vintage Fair at Stonham Barns (where I go for Sunday Car boot sale) which is close enough for a visit. I don't think it's a very big fair but as we don't get many Antique Fairs in Suffolk  I'll probably go and have a look.

At the end of May is the 2 day Suffolk Agricultural Association Show in Ipswich. It's many, many years since I last went. What I like best is to watch the show jumping and the other events in the Main Ring. I'm not sure if I'll go or not, it involves an awful lot of walking but at least I do qualify for an over 60 reduced admission ticket. I shall think on it. Maybe if Colin is still going to hospital on Wednesdays and Thursdays he could drop me off at the gate, which would at least save me the long walk from the car park. I'm not sure I would want to drive up, I'd be bound to lose the car among the 1000's parked there!

Then on September 8th the Cycle Tour of Britain is having a stage through Suffolk.  It's going by the end of the road...................where we used to live! Darn!  BUT it will be going through the village where my sister lives and right by the end of their road, so maybe we could visit her that day to watch!
When the tour was in Suffolk - must have been about 10 years ago - I cycled a couple of miles to watch them - Bradley Wiggins included - flash by in a few seconds. Apart from the cyclists  it was interesting to see all the other things involved with a stage of racing - the police, the team cars with spare bikes, the cameras etc. Although not as exciting as our friends experience of the Tour of France passing through their Essex village a couple of years ago.

Back Tomorrow or Monday
Sue

In Our Garden...............

But before the garden photos...................Heard on the news yesterday that more proper books were sold last year and less electronic. Good news indeed, I knew I wasn't the only person preferring the real thing. We are waiting for one more set of cheap pine shelves and can then get the rest (6 Boxes  ) of our books unpacked. Colin went through his canal and railway books and decided to donate a big box full to the Mid Suffolk Light Railway Museum across the fields from us, plus 3 bags so far to charity shops and two big boxes to Ziffit.


Now the garden is growing we can see what we have...............

 Clematis.
Here we have 3 although one is rather sad and has no flowers yet. These are the two that have flowered

And a White Lilac

Not in flower yet but we have Many, Many Aquiligia, I love them but they've self seeded all over one of the flower beds so I may need to take some out before next year to give everything else growing room. I'm looking forward to seeing what colours they are although maybe self-seeded go back to just one colour?



At the end of the garden is this mess.

An extremely sturdy wooden structure - huge bolts holding it together. It  has a  climbers at some of the posts although none are doing well. But underneath is a weed suppressant that has been there so long it has a mass of red dead nettle and goose grass growing on top of it. We are not sure what to do with the whole thing. For a start I'm going to cut through the mat on the ground and try and pull it out so that at least we can cut down all the weeds.
Of course if we do decide to demolish it there would be plenty of wood for the wood-burner so nothing would be wasted.
What I would really like in this area is a summerhouse to sit in out of the wind as one thing we have found in the last two months is that it's a Very Windy Spot!

Back in a trice
Sue

I love my craft room!

As soon as we looked around this house and found the 4th bedroom was really small, hardly big enough for a single bed, I knew it would make me a good craft room.

I've squeezed in everything I need and with Mrs F leaving a desk I have two surfaces to work on and

room left in between to use the ironing board too.

All I would like now is a swivel chair to turn from the table around to the desk!
 Next car boot sale I shall try to remember to look out for a a small basket/box/similar for my paper punches which are laying on the table, the only things without a home.

I spent a while in my room on Sunday morning making a few cards .

Most of these were made from bits of a Lakeland kit (although I'm sure I got it from a charity shop) that's been in my stash forever. I do like it when I can rustle up several cards with the same theme quite quickly.

Many thanks for the WI welcome from other members who read the blog and a Big Suffolk Welcome to new followers.

Back Tomorrow
Sue

Joined Up

I paid my money and joined the WI at this months meeting. Membership is now up to 12 ladies which my sister in law says is more than they've had for many, many years.

 This months speaker was from The Fishermen's Mission, a charity which helps fishermen in all sorts of ways. They can be there when a tragedy happens to support the family, for retired or injured men and immigrant fishermen too.
We were all shocked to hear just how many men are drowned or fatally injured at sea each year and many more are rescued and less seriously injured.
We had a bring and buy table to raise some much needed funds for the Mission and I bought a tiny rose bush which will be added to our rose garden. (never had a rose garden before! hope I can keep them alive)

As a member I got the Membership booklet which is full of vouchers with special offers - although I think the only one I might use is the one for free cup of coffee at Morrisons! The Suffolk East WI News has local group news and I think I will also get a national WI magazine too. I brought home a copy of The Fishermens Mission newsletter too.
Tasty cakes with coffee again - worth going just for the cake!

Back Tomorrow
Sue

Peace and Quiet

When we moved to the smallholding in 1992 it was lovely and quiet. I could wait with the children for the school bus and sometimes no other traffic would pass us.

Then the traffic increased, a road was closed for several weeks and people found going along our road was a good shortcut and carried on using it even after the other road re-opened. Waitrose and Tesco opened in Saxmundham and for several  villages coming along our road was the easiest way there. Many new houses were built in the towns and villages near us and the roads got busier. We had The A12, The A1094 and two busy B roads all within 4 miles so whichever way the wind was blowing we could often hear traffic in the distance

Living here at the cottage is just like going back to 1992 at Knodishall. We are up a lane  so no passing traffic at all but even driving on the small roads around us it's possible to go for a couple of miles and not meet another car. There is just one A road within 5 miles and we can only hear it if the wind is blowing from that direction.

If it works there is a very short video here, if it didn't work.......sorry!

Down at the bottom of our little meadow it is wonderfully quiet, the trees have all greened up and its a small mini wood already.

 

 ( Edited to say.........I can't get the video on my own post! but other people seem to be able to see it,but just in case here is a still photo taken where the footpath steps out onto the farmers field from the bottom of our meadow, looking back through the meadow to the house and lane)

Being able to stand there and hear nothing except the wind through the trees is just so restorative and  the other day  Colin cut up a pallet and made a seat, so now we can sit for a while and enjoy the peace and quiet.

Back Soon
Sue

Given £30.........................

..................................but we don't know why.

Here is a letter received on Saturday - from our water company

The man came Friday to look at the stopcock as we have asked for a water meter. As far as I know they hadn't actually said what time he would come as it didn't involve coming in the house so it didn't matter and how did a letter get from there to here in less than a day anyway?

How kind of them!

But why?

Back Tomorrow
Sue

PS. Huge welcome to new followers J Yale and Sugar Ellis.
PPS. Don't forget to cover your tender plants in case we really do get the freezing weather that's forecast
PPPS. Books read recently  have been added to my Books Read 2017 page. "The Fortnight in September" a Persephone reprint was a very good read.

The Purple Bed

This is the flower bed beside the conservatory which already had several purple/blue things growing. I've dug out some yellow flowered plants - I have no idea what they were  but they had small, weedy looking, pale yellow flowers! There are also two clumps of Crocosmia, which I've left in for now until I think of what to replace them with.
Compost has been forked into the gaps and the Osteospermum  will go here along with any other purple things I can find for later in the summer. A purple Heuchera will be something to look out for, there are a couple in another flower bed but I don't thing they like being moved.
When I weeded I came across plant labels for the two clumps of ornamental grasses which are already in situ ( I'm leaving them in). £5.20 EACH. Good grief! Grasses are not my most favourite of things to grow but they look OK here.
Front right corner of the picture is a pigs Jawbone..........Weird, I've left it there........for now

Thanks for comments yesterday and welcome to Chris a new follower
Back Soon
Sue

That List from 5th April

On 5th April I posted a list of things I needed to sort out, how's it going?

Well, the good news is that Numbers 2 and 5 haven't been needed as  the doctor decided that as his white cell count had dropped into single figures there might not be any need for him to stay in hospital each time the dose is doubled. So I didn't have to take him up to hospital on Tuesday and he is just driving himself up for  blood tests two or three times a week. IF the blood results show he needs a blood transfusion they will do it the same day and he will be able to drive home again later. IF they decide to keep him in we will have to sort someone to take me to Ipswich to collect the car.

For the rest..........Green - done, orange started or not needed for a few weeks, and red means cancelled.

1. Finish painting the inglenook where the cooker is going
2. Collecting Colin from hospital on Thursday, Friday or Saturday - not helpful for planning!
3. Need to be at home for a cupboard delivery Thursday
4. Organising Cooker delivery, electrician and gas fitter all for next Monday
5. Taking Colin to hospital next Tuesday (and repeating numbers 2 and 5 several more times!)
6. Reading the meters at number 9 next Wednesday or Thursday before completion and contacting the supplier
7. Taking the keys to Estate Agent
8. Contact Borough Council to get a bit of a refund of April Council tax at number 9
9. Going to the library van next Thursday
10. Doing the shopping
11. Collecting tablets from pharmacy
12. Need to write a letter or two
13. Col's laptop has got to go back to the computer shop.
14. Find out how to get the "two home tax" back from HMRC
15. Get the oil tank filled
16. Get the septic tank emptied
17. Prepare for visitors
18. Find book shelves 
19. Plant a tree when it arrives
20. Water new things in garden if we don't get rain anytime soon
21. Find a car to replace the Hyundai
22. Get the Fiesta repaired and MOT done
23. Weed more of the flower gardens
24. Keep grass cut
25. See neighbours about lane repairs
26. Find out  who we've not informed of new address

Other things done which were not on the original list include vegetable gardening, selling books on Ziffit, unpacking and hanging some pictures. One more side of the greenhouse was cleaned and treated - 2 left to do.Our Tax forms have come and need filling in and there are still lots of books to unpack, although I'm still waiting for another bookcase to arrive.
I'm also waiting for asparagus crowns  and need to sow more seeds as the weather warms.


Very Many Thanks for all the comments, sorry...... some days I just don't get round to answering

Back Tomorrow
Sue

Green and Smelly!

Col's brother helps a friend with clearing dead wood from a small woodland and he happened to mention that he didn't like doing it at this time of year because of the strong smell of garlic. My ears pricked up " Is it  Wild Garlic?" I asked. "I don't know" he said " but it's very Green and Smelly!"
Ramsons/wild garlic doesn't grow in many places in Suffolk, I think on the whole we are too dry.So I was very excited to hear about this place. I asked him if he could dig up a bucket full for me to plant somewhere here and last weekend he remembered to take a spade and arrived with this lot.

I've filled the bucket with water and hope to be able to plant some out later, and  made pesto with some of the leaves too using walnuts rather than pine nuts  as they are so much cheaper and in the cupboard already.

 I love pesto...........Colin doesn't! I Like garlic..........Colin doesn't! Hey Ho!

Back Soon
Sue

Coming Along Nicely

I can't begin to tell you how good it is to have a greenhouse and a garden again. Growing things to eat must be ingrained into me after all our years at the smallholding.........and before that too.

Most of the things started in the greenhouse are doing well, outside it's a much sparser start - especially the beetroot.

I've potted 4 plum tomato plants into final position and two cucumbers covered with fleece as it's quite early for them

They are up on the staging and I'm going to fix a wire up and around the greenhouse frame to train them along.

Remaining in the conservatory are two more cucumber plants( no idea where to put them), 4 cherry tomato - just pricked out, 3 aubergine, 3 sweet pepper, 3 chilli pepper,and Basil  that I've just separated into 3 pots.

Also in the greenhouse, courgettes, squash, chard, spare aubergine and peppers. Pots sown with nasturtium and 2 tries at leeks with very poor germination and I've just sown a dozen climbing French bean seeds. The fig tree I found at Wilkinsons? -  is in the big pot on the right.

Outside in the beds, the potatoes are through and have been earthed up and covered with fleece. The bed containing beetroot is also covered with fleece but we've lifted it off the beetroot onto a mesh frame to stop our neighbours cat and/or the wind from flattening the seedlings. The lettuce plants Col got at a car boot sale are under a plastic tunnel cloche, growing slowly. There are a few radishes and rocket seedlings but 3 lots of lettuce seeds have produced nothing.

In the orchard (2 apple,2 Pear and one Plum) it's now really plain to see that this is a "family" apple tree grafted with at least 2 different varieties as one branch at the front has white blossom while the rest is pink.



Back Tomorrow
Sue

Unpacking Pictures and Books

We have a lot of pictures. At the smallholding we had living room, dining room, hallway plus 4 bedrooms and there were pictures on walls everywhere. We hadn't unpacked any here except the large one Eldest did when still at school.

Eldest's painting of my pots of Hostas and Nasturtiums

Now walls are painted (mostly) it was time to unpack, sort out and hang or get rid. As I unwrapped various paintings, prints and framed cross stitch I kept finding ones I don't even like anymore! So a massive clear out, keeping just the favourites and the rest have gone into the car-boot boxes.


 An email over Easter said Ziffit were offering an extra 15% for books over the weekend and as I'd already found a few they would take decided to search through and find a few more to make a small box full. Added up they came to £25, so  much better than taking them to a car boot. I've counted the boxes behind the settee in the living room - from 25 we are down to 20 - sorting and carrying upstairs is going to be a long job.

A little gardening was done on Monday afternoon but I found myself very tired after the weekend visitors, so spent a while watching the snooker and resting.

Thank you for all the birthday wishes, another year older and no wiser! Also Happy Birthday to several other bloggers who had birthdays this weekend - a very strange happening. Must be something about Mid April! Welcome also to new followers.

Back Soon
Sue

Small Cousins Meet Again

My 62nd birthday has been and gone and eldest daughter, Son in law and Jacob have returned to Surrey after a short stay. Youngest daughter, her OH and Florence visited on Sunday for lunch.

Jacob sitting on his Auntie A takes a closer look at his little cousin Florence!

Jacob demonstrates to Florence and Grandad how he's been playing with his favourite toy at Nanna and Grandad's house.
They are both happy smiley little grandchildren..............how lucky we are.

Saturday night we tried the local (4 miles away) Indian Takeaway for the first time and found it good and not too expensive.  For Sunday Lunch eldest daughter tried out my new oven by preparing a delicious lasagne for us all so I didn't have to do much cooking all weekend. A lovely way to spend a birthday. I was blessed with lots of beautiful birthday cards, books, chocs and a CD. Two cards contained letters from penfriends  - always a treat.

Back Soon
Sue

Saturday Car Boot Sale

I'm not sure about going to the Saturday Boot Sale again, it's got SO BIG that I really can't be bothered to look round the whole lot. A long running regular boot sale in Ipswich has just closed down so this could be a reason for the huge increase at Needham Market. It was also so dusty there today with gusts of wind blowing the light sandy soil everywhere,  by the time I'd looked round half and decided that was enough, it felt as if I'd got a mouthful of grit.

Anyway, my hour  yielded a few things from a man with loads of boxes of  house clearance stuff. £1 bought me.............a  tin of tomatoes (random!), some teaspoons (where DO teaspoons go?), a roll of cooking parchment and a plastic jug ( needed for watering things indoors). From elsewhere I bought a new wash-bag for £1....could be a Christmas present and a sheet of 3D decoupage for a card was 20p.

 Then I splashed out on this pot of Osteospermum for £3, just because of the gorgeous colour, which is darker than the photo shows.

The flower bed just outside the conservatory has several purple flowers including an almost black tulip and some Aubretia. There were very dark blue hyacinths earlier. Also in the bed are two large patches of Crocosmia which are taking over, so I'll dig one clump right out, dig in some compost and plant the Osteospermum. Later in the year I'll look out for something else purple flowering and move the other clump of Crocosmia around to the bed under the front window.

Back to entertaining small Grandson ..........an easy job!

Returning forthwith
Sue

From the Library Van this month......................

.........................................and other stuff


.A lovely haul of library books from the library van yesterday. All ordered for free for me to pick up

I seem to be back to crime again, there are 6 here...........Two Agatha Christie's that I've never read, and brand new books by Chris Nickson and Deborah Crombie - both authors I enjoy and regularly check for on Fantastic Fiction to see when they produce something new. Plus the Martin Edwards book about Golden Age Crime Writers which looks a mighty tome.
Two books are about wartime Home Front. I'm not sure about the one at the bottom of the heap -London 1945, I think I've borrowed it before and struggled with it. The other "Eggs and Anarchy" is subtitled The Remarkable Story of the Man Tasked With the Impossible: To Feed the Nation at War.
 The Persephone at the top is The Fortnight in September by R.C. Sherriff and for light relief I have Ronald Blythe's  "The Artists Garden" and even lighter "Honeycote" by Veronica Henry.
These should keep me entertained for 4 weeks.........or more.

Collected Colin at 8pm last night, he is home for the weekend ............3 Loud Cheers. Eldest daughter, son in law and Jacob of course, will be arriving later today for part of the weekend and youngest daughter, OH and Florence will be popping over. Son and DIL are away........sadly.

Hello and welcome to new followers.  I've noticed that some of the bloggers I read still have the old blog in their reading list, would be ever so chuffed if you could change it to the new one. Many Thanks. Thank you also for all comments, sorry I don't get round to replying to all of them..



Back Soon
Sue

Completion and The Unpacking Begins

Yippee Do! Completion on the bungalow,  IT'S SOLD. The bungalow that was supposed to be the place we stayed in between travelling in the caravan and turned into a year in town........most of it on my own while Col was in hospital. The only down is that it's the first place in all our moves since 1979 that we have lost money on. Hey Ho.

OK, I have some shelves, not enough for 1000 books but at least I can make a start. The boxes of books are downstairs and the shelves are on the upstairs landing so my plan is to unpack bit by bit and then when family are here at the weekend we can all take a pile up every time someone goes up stairs. Failing that I think a pulley system  will have to be employed! (Which reminded me of The Lighthouse Keepers Lunch! - Loved reading that book to the children many years ago).
As I go through the boxes, anything that I don't absolutely, definitely want to keep is checked on Ziffit to see it's worth anything. Most are not, so are put into the car boot box. It's going to take quite a while to sort through.

We get to see the sunset here which is nice as at the smallholding there was a big hedge and trees in the way.
Yesterday it looked like this, the other side of a huge black cloud a strip of light, except much more orange than the photo shows.

 This morning I looked out of the bedroom window and two hares were grazing on the meadow, came down a while later and open the curtains to see in close up one of the hares just outside. We looked at each other for a second and then he/she was off back up the meadow with it's mate. Amazing to see close up how big they are.......no wonder hare was a prized meal in the past.

Thank you for all the comments on yesterdays post, as everyone says nothing has been wasted and no debt incurred so perhaps I shouldn't worry too much although I'd still like to sort out exactly what we will have to live on before we do any more work.

Back Tomorrow
Sue

The Woman Who was Once Frugal

 At last, my LPG range cooker is in and I can start making bread and cooking properly again.

It looks bigger than it did online!

An arm and a leg has been spent on this place  since we moved and there are many more things that need doing.
The garage roof needs work and the lane needs resurfacing and still  the living room and kitchen to paint and I'd really like an en-suite instead of a random shower in the bedroom plus the downstairs loo needs replacing sometime.

 All those will have to wait awhile as we work out what money  we have to live on. I'm guessing that now Col is getting his County Council pension the Employment Support Allowance will stop or at least be cut. Another four years before I'm 66 and get the State Pension and, although it's no fun to think about it, we have no idea if Col's treatment will be successful or................
The things we have spent money enhance the house or can be moved if the worst happens...........but I won't think about that either.

So spending stops now, even though the bungalow money will be through before the end of the month, we daren't keep spending how we have been over the last 6 weeks.

Back to living carefully.

Time enough for getting everything done later.

The woman who was once frugal returns!

Back Soon
Sue

Big ol' things

Last week there were lots of these, or something very much like them, flying over.




 First they went one way and then they came back again.

Sometimes 1 or 2 or even 3 at once. They are very loud and I could hear them coming from a long way away but each time I was doing something and couldn't rush out to take a photo. So this picture is from pixabay free images.
It was all to do with joint maneuvers between two air bases in Norfolk and Suffolk.
I think they use this - which is a few miles from us- to navigate by, especially at night when it is lit up. We could see the top lights from the smallholding 30+ miles away - Suffolk is pretty flat!


I'm very fond of helicopters.
 When the National Grid Helicopter, checking the High Voltage power line, flew over the smallholding I used to rush out and wave.!


In Ipswich we often saw the Police helicopter - I didn't wave to that one!

Simple pleasures!

Back Soon
Sue

A Plant and a Book

There are all sorts of flowers in the 3 bits of flower garden here, but one thing was missing......... A LADY'S MANTLE or  Alchemilla Mollis. It was one of my favourite plants at the smallholding. Not because of the flowers - they are not very interesting- but for the leaf shape and for the way that every morning there are drops of dew collected on each leaf.........a morning drink for the Flower Fairies!

This is what I found on-line about it's uses (my books being still in boxes) although I don't recommend it without a lot more information!

Also read this "To preserve their youth women would wash with the dew collected from the leaves on a May moonlit night.They had to be alone and barefoot!"
Worth a try ?  Nah ........too late!
I was pleased to find my very healthy plant for just £1.50 at the HUGE Needham Market car boot sale on Saturday

I called in at the boot sale on my way to visit Col but only looked round half - it was so busy too. Managed NOT to buy anymore toys for grandchildren although there was enough there for a thousand children to each have a share! My only other spend was £2 on some 3D decoupage card kits and  a bag of craft papers.



The Book is this, another of the Furrowed Middlebrow books






A really good read, showing how horrific it  was  in London during the Blitz.
Here is the description from Dean Street Press website

Description
‘Take off your coat,’ said the doctor. I took it off. ‘And your dress,’ he said. ‘It’s too dangerous – the folds may catch in the debris and bring the whole thing down.’ I took off the dress. ‘Fine,’ he said shortly. ‘It’ll have to be head first. We’ll hold your thighs. Go down and see if it’s possible to give an injection. Can you grip the torch with your teeth?’
Frances Faviell lived in Chelsea before and during the London Blitz, having became a Red Cross volunteer when World War II began. Chelsea was particularly heavily bombed and the author was often in the heart of the action, witnessing or involved in fascinating and horrific events through 1940 and 1941. Her memoir evokes an unforgettable cast, Londoners and refugees alike, caught up together in extraordinary and dangerous times – not forgetting the ‘Green Cat’, a Chinese statuette, standing on the author’s window sill as the home’s talismanic protector.
Frances Faviell’s memoir is powerful in its blend of humour, tenderness and horror, including the most haunting ending of any wartime memoir. A Chelsea Concerto is reprinted now for the first time since 1959, with a new introduction by Virginia Nicholson.

I've got several books about the Blitz and this is probably the one that will stick in my mind the longest.

Many more things should be crossed off the list this week - If all goes to plan. And have put myself and our books out of  misery by finally ordering some bookshelves. And Col too as he got fed up with me saying I couldn't decide what to do.

Back soon
Sue

Ticked Off

More things ticked from the list yesterday as the electrician came and put the connection in ready for the LPG cooker. Then the "cat flap man" came and took the front door to bits and remade it with a cat flap (actually that wasn't even on the list!) I'm soooo glad to get that done as I was fed up with the litter tray and being pestered by Polly to let her out at daybreak . Although she's not impressed with a cat flap again,  after  nearly 6 weeks of having the door opened for her. Also got another side of the greenhouse treated with wood preservative - two sides left, and wrote a letter to my penfriend.

Our neighbours have put their house up for sale, they've only been there for a year and a bit and the sale price has gone up £80,000 from when they bought it. Although I think they've had new kitchen and bathroom done.They are an elderly couple- aged over 80- and their son, who decided to buy an old cottage because they'd never lived in one before! Think they've found it a bit remote and hard work. It means that everyone coming for a "drive-by" viewing comes up the lane and onto our land to turn round and get out again  - so I hope it sells soon as I keep thinking I have visitors. The neighbours are nice and quiet...... hope new people will be too.

  News from hospital
 The new chemo tablets have brought down the white cell count dramatically,which is what they were supposed to do but then his red cell count and platelet levels dropped and he had to have a transfusion. The doctor here rang the hospital in the US where they have tested this drug to check these symptoms and was told it was OK just treat with blood and platelets. The upshot is Col is stuck in hospital again. He is also on intravenous antibiotics but the good news for him is that he's been moved into a room on his own so he 'll be able to keep a bit cooler. And they've had a re-vamp of the meals since last September, the food is better - more flavour and chemo hasn't affected his taste buds yet so things still taste OK. They'll keep him in now for the next round of doubling up the tablets. I'm hoping this is just a blip and he will be home for at least part of the Easter weekend.

Thank you again for all your good wishes

Back Shortly
Sue

Well wrapped

The problem with having built in cupboards ...... is that you can't take them with you when you move!

So spending more than I've ever spent on a cupboard before............

My cupboard/dresser for the dining room has arrived - On time too.

Talk about well wrapped.
From the outside in - first there was cardboard, then the edges were all protected by shaped polystyrene bits which were held firm by a sort of cling film and sticky tape wrapped round and round, then reinforced cardboard honeycomb strips front and back and base also held firm by cling film and tape, and on the inside - a thin polystyrene foam stuff.


It took me an hour to get it all off.............bit by bit

 Then on the cardboard on top I found

 "Return guarantee void if packaging is not re-usable"

How the heck anyone could get a 5 foot 9 inch tall wood cupboard out of a box without tearing the box- I do not know! Luckily it was so well wrapped there was no damage at all.

After that it was just a few minutes unscrewing the handles that were all fixed inside and putting them on the outside and fitting the shelf into the bottom cupboard.

Et Voila!

 Now at last I can unpack the 4 boxes that spent a year in the  summerhouse/shed at the bungalow.

Very exciting.

Thank you to everyone for comments about that list.........I've found some more things that should have been on it ...........

27. Finish wire brushing and  wood-staining the other 3 sides of the greenhouse that I didn't do last week
28. Watch Davis Cup tennis 7th - 9th
29.Visit youngest and Florence


Love a good list.................. 2 have been ticked off, two more are nearly done.

Thanks also for bookshelf ideas on a previous post. We had Ikea shelves at the smallholding and Col cut and altered them to fit in under the stairs and in the hall, they were good shelves but we had to leave them as they were all fixed and fitted. Could have the same again I guess, but I just had an extravagant yearning for real wood! I think it's called living beyond our means or wishful thinking.

Colin didn't get out of hospital yesterday, he's had no side effects to the increased dose, but still has a sinus infection/cough which the doctor said they wanted to sort before they let him out. He may be home today or tomorrow.


Back Soon
Sue

Juggling

Seems to be a lot of juggling needed over the next few weeks..........................
Some are in no order, some are not so important

1. Finish painting the inglenook where the cooker is going
2. Collecting Colin from hospital on Thursday, Friday or Saturday - not helpful for planning!
3. Need to be at home for a cupboard delivery Thursday
4. Organising Cooker delivery, electrician and gas fitter all for next Monday
5. Taking Colin to hospital next Tuesday (and repeating numbers 2 and 5 several more times!)
6. Reading the meters at number 9 next Wednesday or Thursday before completion and contacting the supplier
7. Taking the keys to Estate Agent
8. Contact Borough Council to get a bit of a refund of April Council tax at number 9
9. Going to the library van next Thursday
10. Doing the shopping
11. Collecting tablets from pharmacy
12. Need to write a letter or two
13. Col's laptop has got to go back to the computer shop.
14. Find out how to get the "two home tax" back from HMRC
15. Get the oil tank filled
16. Get the septic tank emptied
17. Prepare for visitors
18. Find book shelves 
19. Plant a tree when it arrives
20. Water new things in garden if we don't get rain anytime soon
21. Find a car to replace the Hyundai
22. Get the Fiesta repaired and MOT done
23. Weed more of the flower gardens
24. Keep grass cut
25. See neighbours about lane repairs
26. Find out  who we've not informed of new address  

Think I should stop writing lists and get on

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Sue

Boxes of Books

What to do with 1000+ books? That is the question.

There was no point in getting bookshelves until we'd been painted so they are still all in boxes in the corner of the living room.

I'm not sure about having shelves in the living room with the wood burner.......... I know how dusty they will get so the landing upstairs will be the place.

The painter has finished upstairs but......

What are the chances of finding the right size second-hand bookshelves?

Very unlikely but.................

Have you seen the price of decent wooden shelving?

I hate cheap shelving that bends in the middle.

Colin might have made them in the past but not now.

I shall measure up and search online but..........

Probably not room for everything so much culling will be needed.

Although I did abandon some before we moved and more went to Ziffit last year but..........

There are still 25, yes 25 boxes.

So I shall have to be very strict with myself.

I shall be glad to unpack them and they will be glad to see the light of day again........most have been in boxes for 18 months.



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Sue

More Finds for the Grandchildren

I used to hear a voice saying " you've got enough books already", then when we moved to the smallholding and bought trees and shrubs the voice said " what more things for the garden?". When I was a childminder and had a little nursery group for our youngest and some other small people, I would pick up wooden puzzles and such like from car boot and jumble sales and the voice said "why do you keep buying things for other peoples children, you won't make any money from it if you do that" Now I can still hear the voice, this time it says "you shouldn't keep buying things for them, they'll always expect it".
 It's my Mum's voice, though she's been dead 18 years!

So disregarding ghostly advice, just as I ignored it at the time, at our nearest boot sale yesterday I found the Fisher Price Airport, 'plane, cars and figures, another Little Grey Rabbit book and the  folding seat which can be used on the floor or strapped to a chair. This will save our eldest bringing a high chair at Easter and it can then

go to the youngest's  where they hardly have room for a high chair in their little flat.
Also found a cake tin saying "CAKE"! Spending much more than my usual, this lot came to £15.
 Col came and walked round slowly, he has a horrible cough and blocked sinuses, making him short of breath and very difficult when trying to sleep. Probably a side effect of the tablets. They gave him antibiotics again before he came home but they're not working yet.
He bought some lettuce plants and a couple of cowslip plants and we got them planted out later. The cowslips have gone down the meadow where we already have lots of primroses. Hopefully they'll grow and spread. We never could get cowslips to grow over at the smallholding, they would be OK for a few years and then disappear.

Back home we got the dining room curtain pole re-fixed after the painting and put the curtains up. They are ones Mrs F left and were filthy but after a cool wash have cleaned up well. I was a bit dubious because you never know with lined curtains.

I enjoyed watching the Boat Races - another annual tradition for me - and it's really good to see the ladies given equal billing although Col moans at all the chat before they actual race!

We have today at home together and then he'll be back in hospital again for a few days when they double the dose of the drug. Each week he'll stay in from Tuesday or Wednesday until Saturday, so he will be here for most of Easter weekend I hope.
I need to write myself a job list of all the things that need doing - apart from painting the inglenook where the cooker will go.

Keeping busy as usual
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Sue

April 1st and the cat ate the cucumbers

I LOVE April, Spring springs, everything turns green and gorgeous and my birthday is halfway through the month and then the cat ate the cucumber seedlings!
They were on a little table in the conservatory - well away from the windowsill, out of reach of  Polly - Ha! Two pulled out and dropped on the floor and the other two nibbled. I've covered up the two that are left  now..........a day too late.

Despite the loss of  my precious seedlings I'm feeling very upbeat, especially as I shall go and pick up Col later and he will be home until Tuesday when he'll go back and they will double the dose of the tablets and he'll be closely monitored again. This is how we will go on for the next 6 weeks until he is on maximum dose, which is 40 times the starting dose. So far, touch wood, cross fingers etc there have been no side effects although 4 days on a very low dose may not be a true test.........we'll see.

We have the house to ourselves again as the painter, who has been brilliant, has done two of the bedrooms, hall, stairs and landing and the dining room which is as much as we need for now.The rooms have all gone from dirty shades of yellow or beige to nice clean blush-white. I can get the dining room organised before visitors arrive for Easter as the cupboard ordered from Oak Furniture Land (hooray for Col's County Council lump sum pension payment!)to store all the "best" crockery and glasses, is due next week. There are 4 boxes to be unpacked and sorted. All full of things I've managed without for over a year.........do I really need them all? More sorting needed I think. The Car-boot box in the cupboard under the stairs is filling up.

 Next week I must concentrate on painting the bit behind where the LPG range cooker will go in the hope that electrician, pipework fitter and the cooker will actually arrive before Easter. Its a weird pink at the moment but I've got some bright red which will show off the cream cooker rather well I think.

Thank you for lovely comments about the lane photos. Must remember to take more at the end of each month.
And a big welcome to more followers - Hello There.

Back in a trice or two
Sue