h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Hi Sal

Chris popped up the hospital very briefly yesterday evening and his Dad's leg is still swollen and he still can't walk. They think it is badly bruised from his fall. No one knows how long it will take to heal.

It was quite pleasant here yesterday weatherwise. It started off dull but turned into a rather nice spring day. It was so mild that I went out at lunchtime without my coat for the first time this year. It's tiddling down with rain today though. Still, we have had some lovely sunny weather earlier this week and Chris cut our grass on Wednesday. We put some new seed down last autumn and this is the first cut the lawn has had since then. It gets very damp during the winter (the garden faces west and gets very little sunlight between November and March) and so there is a lot of moss out there. Last year I put down some stuff to kill the moss and got bare patches everywhere instead. I don't think the forecast is too great for the weekend, which is a shame as I was hoping to nag Chris into fixing the fence. Mind you, he is at work tomorrow afternoon anyway. He was supposed to be playing the final of a golf competition in the morning and had swapped shifts to ensure he would be free but now his opponent has injured himself and the match has been postponed for two weeks!

Anyway, I hope you have a nice weekend.

Chat next week.

Liz
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hi liz,I wonder if it could be all the rain that's caused the moss?We have lived here over thirty years ,and never had moss ,but this year there are patches in the back garden that are qute large.We have a few small patches appeard in the front as well,and on the front garden wall.The wall was newly built two years ago,i would have expected to see it on old rickwork,but not on this.
I hope the bruising goes down soon on chriss dads leg,it must have been one heck of a fall.
The wather here is horrid again,no rain,just dull and drab,it doesn't encourage me to get my summer tops out,but i did bring them to the front of the drawers yesterday,living in hope of more sunshine.
Have a nice weekend.chat next week.luv salxx

Are people replying to my messages really quickly this morning, or is it just that I have spent rather a long time on hootoo? Can you tell that my boss is in a meeting?

It's still raining here - I think my teeshirts can stay in the drawers for now.

I don't know about you, but I've got plenty of jobs to do indoors this weekend, so perhaps it wont be such a bad thing if the weather is rotten.

Liz
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good morning liz.here i go again,.I missed your last posting.I seem to spending my time apologising the last few days!!Did you have a good weekend,and was the weather up to much? We went shopping on sunday,so i pretended that the sun was due to appear before too long,and got some strappy tops ,just in case.They look good hung in the wardrobe,but if this week is anything to go by,they won't be coming off the hangers until we decide where and when were going away!!It looks as though it'll be florida again,i doit,but the fight is so long!!!We shall see,when his lordship decides where he fancies.
The sun has just come out here,but it isn't warm,it just makes everyone feel more cheerful,doesn't it.i hope you have a nice lunch mine is just about ready...or should i say the kettle has just boiled for my cup-a-soup.chat soon.luv sal

Hello Sal. I've just had my lunch, I brought in some left-over mushroom bake that I made for tea on Monday night and re-heated that. Jolly tasty it was too. I couldn't eat the same lunch every day, I'd just find that depressing. I like a bit of variety, me.

Um, last weekend? I don't remember doing much but I did get a bit of washing dry so we must have had some sunshine. It's very showery here this week, which does not bode well for the Easter weekend. Stuff last weekend, I'm already thinking about the next one!

I haven't bought any new clothes for ages. I haven't seen anything that I like for months and months. I don't think I need much in the way of summer clothes at the moment and anyway, it's too cold to try anything on! We're still talking about moving house in the next few months so I am not keen to do a lot of shopping anyway, it will just mean more stuff to pack.

hi liz...mmmmmmm,the mushroom bake sounds lovely,one of my favourite foods!!i might not have the chance to get on here tomorrow...bily is finishing tonight until wednesday morning,one pf the joys of having your own business i suppose,so i wanted to wish you a lovely easter holiday.Are you doing anything special..or just taking the chance to relax?I went to the garden centre yesterday,so i have my pots to do now..before the plants start to droop!!Why do i do these things ..anyone ne would thinkit was spring!!!!!!!!luv salx

My parents are supposed to be coming on Sunday. My Dad still isn't really very well, so I envisage a day of him complaining endlessly about his ailments while my mother acts in an excessively cheery manner to try and compensate Mum's attempts to jolly Dad along usually only make him even more bad tempered!

Other than that, we have nothing planned. If the weather is good enough I shall nag Chris about finishing some outside jobs. I have some painting to do indoors, but as it is doorframes I will only be able to do it if it is warm enough to have the doors open, which looks unlikely.

I hope you have a nice weekend. Chat next week.

Liz
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hi liz..i hope you had a good easter,and enjoyed the break.It is lovely here today,real gardening weather,the sun is shining,andit's lovely and warm.How did the visit with your parents go down???Or would it be better not to ask??
I can't believe we actually have the base down for the greenhouse at long last......still no glass in it,but were half way there
we didn't do a great deal,just generally enjoyed the childred been around,and we took of to look at gravestones i know,but this family tree thing is harder than i thought it would be.It's time for for lunch now,,,gonna make a soup,and get a yoghurt,there are some very nice new ones in the supermarket....lemon cheesecake ,and they're just like the real thing.chat soon.luv salxxxp.s how's chriss' dad ???

Hiya there.

Easter weekend went OK. I just pottered about doing housey things on Friday and Saturday, entertained the parents on Sunday (went well, I thought) and then on Monday we got carried away working outside as it was such a lovely day. We managed to transport a new fence panel home from B&Q on the roof of Chris's car. Chris did a bit of cementing, I put down a load of weedkiller and we started painting the fence but had to stop when we ran out of timber care. An hour after going indoors it b****y well rained so a lot of the work we did now needs doing again.

My parents still think they are coming to my house for a weekend in June to celebrate their 40th wedding anniversary. In reality, we are all going to London. Today I have booked a hotel for the London trip . And I've paid for it , and it's non-refundable. I feel really traumatised now. I hate spending money. I want to go home and have a but I've got another two hours of sitting here pretending to work to look forward to. It's so boring at work today. I put a coat of paint on some door frames last night and it is really annoying me to have to sit here and fiddle about when I really want to be at home putting on the next coat of paint.

Chris's Dad is still in hospital. Chris's Auntie rang me on Saturday and bent my ear about how Reg needs more help at home (aparently he has apologised to Auntie June for being so mean to her when she went to visit him the other week) but there is not much I can do about it. Quite apart from the fact that Reg wont let anyone in, Chris and his brother (as next-of-kin) are the only people that can organise stuff like that anyway.

I think I have tried the Lemon Cheesecake yoghurt you mentioned and it was yummy. The trouble is it comes in a four pack with another flavour that I am not so keen on.

Liz
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hi liz,,i tried to post before you finished for the weekend,but for some reason everything was on a go slow.Still,you might come on from home..if you do, have a good weekend.I can't say i hate spending money,'cos i quite enjoy it,but i think it's a lovely idea for your mum and dads anniversary.and i'm sure they'll every minute of it.
The weather here today is horrible,it is depressing because it's so dull.i don't mind it been a bit chilly ,but the sun peeping through cheers me up!>I am expecting the family arriving at any moment.then it will be all loud and busy for the rest of the afternoon.
They make those yoghurts in packs of two,,and they are delicious,but i like the the red fruit crumble ones as well.my dear other half was fas going to put the glass in the greenhouse today..but i di dont think he'll fancy sy standing in the rain to do it,,so maybe tomorrow if it's fine,Better get on with a now,he is home from work.chat soon.luv salxxx

Morning!

Yes, it poured with rain here all day yesterday too. Still, Saturday was nice and we finally finished sorting out the fence. It's all painted and everything! Well, on our side anyway.

I didn't do much yesterday - it's hard to get any motivation going when the weather is grim. I managed a bit of housework and cooked a spicey beef and vegetable stir-fry for lunch but other than that I just dossed about reading or watching the telly. Chris went out three times yesterday and he just can't understand how I can spend an entire day in the house and be happy about it.

I love being at home and I really hate Monday mornings when I have to come back to work I'm already planning what to do in my lunch break when I walk into work each morning.

Liz
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hi liz..well.the weather on sunday was lovely,and we had an invitation to go out to lunch a few weeks ago,so we decided seen as it was a nice day...i bet you can guess the rest!!We left home and headed for the motorway,which i hate even in nice weather,and it started raining.We drove all the way to lincoln and back in pouring rain,the only good thing about the day was the meal,and the company of course!!!It was dry when we home,i couldn't believe it hadn't rained here!!I havent done much since then,and i don't blame you one bit for not going out.Let's hope the sun shines tomorrow!!!luv salxx

It's lovely here today. Nothing like the weatherforecast, which is annoying because I want to try putting down some more weedkiller on my front paving. I put some down on Easter Monday and it rained and washed it away. I thought I would try again yesterday evening as it was pleasant, but the weather forecast said rain overnigt and showers on Tuesday, so I didn't bother. No rain last night. Glorious spring day today. Well, at least my washing should be dry

The forecast is for wet weather tomorrow too. Chris is playing in a golf competition at Felixstowe (right on the coast) tomorrow, so lets hope the forecasters have got it wrong again.

Liz
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hi liz,how are you today?The weather is lovely again,ive even got a strappy top out(talk about iving in hope),so maybe the sun will keep shining all day.I think billy is feeling optimistic,he's
talking about planting things,and he's even got the hanging baskets out for
me.The tomatoes are in their large
tubs now,i think the forecast must have
been good for the weekend!!No doubt we shall spend
some time at the garden centre during the weekend.
Do you have anything planneed???More painting by any chance????I hope chriss' dad is improving....it might be an idea for chris to ask to see the social worker before he is discharged...they can
arrange extra care in the community if needed...or at
least that's how it's suppose to work.
I think i'm a little earlier than usual today,thought i'd try and
wish you a good weekend,i seem to be all at sixes and sevens the last few weeks.chat next week.luv salx

Hello there. I'm very well thank you and enjoying this lovely warm sunny weather.

Apart from getting my hair cut tomorrow morning, I don't have much planned for the weekend. I asked Chris last night if he had anything planned and he said no, so I have suggested we might go out somewhere over the weekend if the weather holds. He thinks we should go and walk along the path that runs next to Felixstowe Golf Course and see if we can find any of the balls he lost there on Wednesday!

I need to try and clean up the concrete outside my back door so perhaps I shall see what cleaning products I can find at the supermarket tomorrow and then I can get outside and do that job. Maybe I can try applying the weedkiller again and hopefully it wont rain this time.

Chris's Dad is still in hospital and I don't think Chris has been up this week. He has been on a late turn and so has been at work when it was visiting time. He plans to go up and see Reg tomorrow. If he looks like remaining where he is for another few weeks, Chris is contemplating doing some decorating at his Dad's house. Chris is on annual leave next week. I would rather he decorated my stairs, but I guess Reg's needs are greater (his house probably hasn't been decorated since before Chris's mother died 12 years ago). I'm trying to persuade Chris that he could spare an hour one lunch time to go and see the mortgage lady at our building society to find out what our options are with regard to jointly purchasing a bigger house. However, he is being very elusive about that at the moment. I will not be put off and I have arranged for someone to come and value my house next Wednesday in the hope of moving things on a little.

Anyway, I hope you have a good weekend. Enjoy your garden.

Liz
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hi liz.you might not get this until monday,but i forget to reply if i don't do it straight away!!!!It sounds like the commitment thing again love....well i think you're doing the right thing.Were off to view a house tomorrow,but i must admit i'm a proper ditherer when it coms to making major decisions.I think weve lived here so long,and what if the stairs are too steep,and what if i can't manage to get around like i do in familiar surroundings???I bet i don't sleep too well tonight.I hope you enjoy whatever you decide to do with the weekend.we'll be looking for a high pressure hose f it's anything to do with me....but we'll see!!!chat soon tke care luv salx

Hi Sal

I hope you had a good weekend. What was the house like? Did you buy your hose? I bought some stuff to try and clean my concrete because I feel green concrete is ot really a selling feature! I’m not sure if it has worked, it was a bit damp out there this morning so hard to tell really whether the concrete looks any lighter.

I really enjoyed my weekend. We went down to Dedham Vale (Constable Country in case you didn't know) late on Saturday morning. Dedham itself is only about half an hours drive from Ipswich. We parked at Dedham and wondered around the village a bit and then went and had a scrummy lunch in the Essex Rose Tea Rooms. Then we walked along the river Stour to Flatford Mill, which is only about a mile-and-a-half. We sat on a wall near Willy Lotts Cottage for a while and then we walked back. We had to take a slightly different route back because a cow had decided she wanted to go across one of the little footbridges. She couldn't get through the kissing gate so she just stood there blocking the way so we had to walk back on the other side of the river. When we got back to Dedham we had a little wonder around the church yard (I think gravestones are fascinating) and had a look inside the church. We have been inside the church before and it's rather a nice one. There are engravings on the end of each pew, either to commemorate some event or more usually, in memory of someone who has died. Then we went and had an ice-cream before trundling back home.

I just did house/garden/groceries type of stuff yesterday (and made a delicious chicken salad with a honey and mustard dressing), but it was still a nice day. Life always seems so much better when the sun shines, don't you think?

Anyway, I had better get on. I’ve actually got some work to do today.

Liz
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good morning liz,your weekend sounds perfect to me ,what a lovely way to spend saturday in the sunshine.I h ope stuff on the concrete works,i had something a while ago from kleeneze,and it worked a treat,but it's a matter of finding someone that sells their products.The house that we looked at was awful,the walls looked like a dogs hind leg,and the kitchen was a mush pea green artex!!Not that i object to that,each to his own,and i'm sure they must have liked that shade of green,but i think the bubbled bit of ceiling and the cracks in the bedroom wall,together with the mould round the windows put me off a little.Were off to see another one on wednesday.
I have spent a fair bit of time over the last co couple of years looking at graveyards,as ive been doing the family tree,but iut i got stuck with my gt x 4 granmother,,,she seems to have just appeared from nowhere,so i could only get back to her birth in 1768.I wont be beat thoug,i'm still trying!!
The weather has spoiled itself today,but i'm optimistic that it'll improve again,so can get my hanging baskets done.
Time for the soup i think,enjoy the rest of your day.chat later .take care,luv salx

hi liz,it's friday,and still no sign of you.I do hope that your'e okay,it seems strange that you haven't left a posting.Maybe work is keeping you busy??Look forward to hearing fom you soon.luv salx

Hiya

Yes, I've been mad busy at work. This is the first time since Monday that I have been on hootoo.

I had my house valued this week and they reckon about £94k, which seems like insane money for a two bed terrace, particularly one with no central heating and no parking space.

My brother and his girlfriend are coming to stay at the weekend, so I am looking forward to that. They are coming Sunday and just staying the one night. I spent yesterday evening writing an enormous shopping list and I expect to spend tomorrow cleaning the house ready for their arrival.

Hopefully I will have more time to chat next week.

Liz
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