Taking a break.

I'm staying at my daughter's for a couple of days. She has a little annex that the foster children move into to get them ready to live independently. It's just two rooms and a bathroom, I brought my own kettle so I can make a cuppa.

I've had fun as it needs a bit of a clean and there is stuff that previous foster children have left behind when they moved out. So I've been sorting and cleaning, interspersed with reading my kindle and doing some sewing.

Beano is quite content, he's currently snoozing beside me. I can take him for a walk around the streets or we can go to the park without risking the busy road where I live. It's very quiet here with only a few cars. Beano's a bit confused by the lack of food, just his standard two meals. No endless treats from Steve.

Cass is happy for me to visit again to have a break from Steve and his endless complaining. We went to the local village fete, I bought some smelly candles and lip balm. I'm going home tomorrow, not particularly looking forward to it but the break has done me good.

It's an ill wind!

We've had almost no rain here for a while now so the grass is dry and yellow.

I know it will recover as soon as we have rain.

The good news is that the lack of green grass, that Beano is allergic to, means that Beano's stomach isn't red and inflamed.

Stil here.

It been too hot to do anything, even to post on here. Beano is being walked very early when it's still cool and mid morning when we go to the nearest patch of grass for him.

Apart from that we've just lazed  about doing nothing.

We have a few cooler days coming up which will be better for him. I don't mind the heat  but I do try to keep Beano cool. 

Unfortunately he hates water so I can't put a paddling pool out for him or use a cool coat. I've tried many things and he does have a couple of cool mats to lay on, but he'd rather sleep pressed against my legs.

I have a toerection!

One of my big toes has been red, hot and very stiff.

It happens occasionally and it is only my big toes that are affected and it can be either big toe. It slows me down when walking Beano and is uncomfortable, I don't take painkillers very often by I did over a couple of days, take two ibuprofen and two paracetamol. I assume it's arthritis and I shall just keep buggering on.

Steve has managed to mess up the TV, he can't tune it in to the channel he wants. He phoned his friend Bob so many times that Bob has agreed to come over to sort it out. I am extremely grateful as I'm sick to death of Steve's constant stropping around.

Sewing again.

I've purchased some quilt wedding and started making a lap quilt. I'm using long strips of fabric and hand sewing them onto the wadding. The fabric I'm using is dress fabric, from a couple of my dresses that had developed rips.

It is most definitely not the proper way to quilt but I don't care, it keeps me busy. I'll potter along with it over the next few weeks.

It's a distraction from Steve's endless ranting and swearing, what with his bad knee, the neighbours who are getting on his nerves, his bad shoulder, the TV not tuning in correctly and the rest of the world not doing as he thinks they should. His complaints are endless.

Part of the problem with me sewing is that he knows there is a craft group here. If I join he will have to spend time getting it closed down, and he'd much rather spend time drinking himself into a stupor!

Rant over, I shall return to my sewing.

Feed the birds

A few of my neighbours feed the birds, one neighbour has a pear tree across from her window. She keeps this tree laden with bird feeders. 

Most recently  I've seen a Jay and now a pair of green parakeets. My son lives in Ealing and his garden is often full of these parakeets.

Someone on site keeps complaining about the birds being fed, they want it stopped, but everyone carries on.

Steve's been to the Drs about his knee and this morning went for an x-ray, he was annoyed that the x-ray tech couldn't give him a diagnosis. There are signs up explaining that the techs can't comment on the x-rays but a lot of people ask anyway.

He has to go for a blood test in a couple of weeks, it will probably be 100% proof!

Books, books and more books.

I've read the Elly Griffiths, Ruth Galloway books, all bar the latest one and I've read one  of her Harbinder Kaur series.

I've bought and just started to read the first William Monk book by Anne Parry. 

I will gradually work my way through your other suggestions.

I can't see well enough to read real books so I depend on my kindle and enlarge the font.

I am a voracious reader and always have been, I had to serve a detention when I was in school as I was caught reading the Carpetbaggers by Harold Robbins. I was about 13 years old, the school phoned my mother to complain but as it was her book I had borrowed I don't think she was bothered. 

When my children were small and before my eyesight started to deteriorate, I read in the the bath and when washing up I always had a book resting against the taps.

Now I have very little to do apart from walking Beano and some housework, Steve tries to restrict my socialising so I read for hours, I read as many freebie books as I can, otherwise all my pension would be spent on books.

I am relatively indiscriminate about the sort of books I read, I enjoy sci-fi, murder mysteries, thrillers etc. I do not read romances, I have never really enjoyed them.

I have an online friend called Lyssa Medana who writes about vampires and golems, I love her books. I've read all of Sir Terry Pratchetts books despite one of my neighbours telling me that Sir Terry didn't write for people like me!!