Alt.Mustardland

Yes, horses and ponies are deemed to have been born on 1 January. A silly idea especially for those born in the autumn. I grew up on a farm where all the lambs were born in spring. All my dogs seem to have been born in April, and kittens anytime, but often late spring. I had a litter of kittens to rehome and it was deemed a good idea to do it at the church fete held in our garden that year. Having taken money for one, I had a strop and it was agreed they could go free to good homes, with the adopter donating to the Church fund. I kept the ginger one, the mother was neutered, but the kitten went feral on the farm giving birth to several litters. The rat and mouse population never recovered. My daughter's kitten was looked after on the farm until adulthood but fed herself on rabbit, a seemingly endless supply. She continued to give pet services all her life in return for continual supplies of fresh water and was healthy and if anything overfed on her food of choice. Not all cats are hunters, but it can't be denied that they are the top of the food chain.

We have had snow this morning, but it didn't settle. I never thought it would, but we are promised more rain. I saw a Great white Egret by the flood lake the other day. but the lake dried up the next day. The lake is back bit I haven't seen the egret again yet. It looks like a Heron only white. If it had pink feathers down its front it would be a cattle egret, but I haven't seen any pink feathers, and there haven't been any cattle around lately. There were 3 pheasants in the garden which panicked and fled hastily when I let Cassie out. She ignored them but they left anyway. They sometimes take an interest, and when I was warned off a local park by a game warden I forbore to mention that they were pursuing her.

After my Covid vaccination on Friday afternoon I have caught up on my sleep quite a bit. The shoulder swelled a bit but the crashing headache yesterday was more likely due to caffeine withdrawal. I had a paracetamol and a black coffee which did the trick. 6 of one and half a dozen of the other I think.

Ginger George owned ... I mean, HE was owned ... by a Lady who had suffered from Dementia, and had to relinquish George to her Daughter when she went into a care home. Her Daughter had found George as a Rescue cat nine years earlier, for Her Mum.

The Daughter only found that she was allergic to cats when He came to live in her home, so She had to re-home him
Of Course, no one knows the D.o.B of a rescue cat, but My Vet suggested dating him as First of January, nine years earlier when he was a kitten (Vet is also an Equestrian Vet, and that is how they date Horses.......?????). Hence His Gingerness is now 24 yrs old.
I was never convinced that Her Mum actually wanted a cat, as George tended to stay aloof: very aloof, almost fearful. - It took Much work to get him comfortable with people. My Boss's wife told me of How Her Rescue cat behaved the same way, always avoiding peoples feet/shoes as if He had been Kicked.
His annual vet exam is Due, but Covid and Transport Difficulty during sundry Lockdowns for visiting Vet, (and my own ailments) have left me a little Tardy in getting his appoint - Will try again tomorrow, and fit Ginger Georges appoints between my own medic needs.... Vet had also suggested a Teeth Decoke - which is a sleeping injection and take some time.

Snow.... Local News Website Keeps going on about Snow, but seems to be looking further away to find some .. The nearest so far was Somewhere - no identity where - on The M25, (which has probably thawed). Paths are wet, not snow, and not frozen.

Very little mail here (Incl no Covid Innoc). Seems that Sorting Office is suffering staff absence due to Covid. Kid Sister tells me that she had sent me a card...

Goodnight .... I needs my Beautysleeps........

No need to squeam. The bread arrived safely. Hovis Granary thick sliced is only available locally if the farmers haven't descended from the hills to stuff their freezers or if Tesco's have ordered enough. They told me by email about two things they didn't have but they didn't matter. Everything else turned up 5 minutes early. The only ready meal I have is Pizza reliably made in Germany with lots of pesto.

I had a tidy up of my desk yesterday, and found my missing camera I also found the vet folder sans Cassie's vaccination passport which I assume is in the passport wallet. I checked her age. We adopted her in February 2006 from the Border Collie Trust when she was 10 months old. That makes her 16 in April. 24 sounds young for a vet, and old for a cat. I thought George was quite young when he adopted you. I do remember you saying the vet told you he was older than you thought, but maybe that was longer ago than I thought. I found my Motor wallet and put my repair receipts in diminishing date order. I must have had 12 new tyres since 2014. The rear shockers were done around 3 years ago and the Cam and aux chains the same year.

Looking out of the window there was a little snow on the hill opposite. There'll be more on Exmoor, but it rained here. It nearly always snows at the end of January.

Hi...
Please don't Squeam and Squeem. Wasn't that the Troublesome Kid, Violent Elizabeth Bott?

Not responding promptly - sorry - Lots of things clogging my brainwaves at present - Brain waves almost came to a stop.
Never been in for Deliveries - The Council Love of changing addresses at random puts me off such things. The best deliverer was Mark and Spencer - but also the most expensive - I wonder if my predilection to them was influenced that a Former Colleague (a dietician) did some of the work on their ready-meals. ... they are almost edible.

So confuzled at present that I always seem to contact Nursey, Dentist, Consultant (who wont talk to me anyway), outfit that are supplying my medic supplies, and Moggy Vet all seems to be falling into "toolatedness"

Yup, a year older ... My Moggies birthday was three weeks earlier.. Although now 24, my vet (errr - Cat's Vet, not mine) tells me that they have many feline patients well into their late '20's.

Local newspaper is daily threats that Snow is due on each day ... they Have now found an hour of snow - now melted - in a couple of photo's in the North of the County.


I'm off ..... Merry Christmas.

Happy Birthday. We were neck and neck yesterday, but now you've forged ahead and are a year older than me again. I used to have a couple of months levelling with Blunders but I'm 6 years ahead of him now.

I'm still waiting for my Covid appointment, but I'm in no hurry. I had another letter about shielding a few days ago, and thought perhaps I should do an online order. Tesco's don't have any useful dates, so I had to get one from Sainsbury's delivering tomorrow. If they don't deliver my bread I'll thcream and thrcream until I'm thick.

I hope your appointments line up but maybe you can renegotiate vet appointments if our own medical appointments clash and can't be changed. My persistent toothache turned out to be sinus. My dentist confirmed it after my pharmacist neighbour suggested that might be the case. It was apparently medical etiquette but annoying, that because I'd moved my GP to Somerset I had to go and wait 3 hours in the drop in centre in Brum for a prescription for antibiotics. I hadn't moved my dentist and still owned the house in Brum.

Had no invitations to Covid Innocs yet, but I'm knee deep in other medical matters at present - mainly caused by a certain "Consultanct" who wont talk to me, (and if He could, only by phone), so I'm involved with the Nursey Ladies in a nearby town, and I really need to get a Dental Appointment. (thinks: also got to make annual appoint for Big Ginger Cat). I have this feeling that If I ever make a booking, one or more of the others will already be booked.
Oh dear: now an earache - I feel that might be another toothache.

Hads enough of today, so I'll have a good scream and retire for tonight....


MATRON - Wheres my Box of Pills's.

My memory is going a bit. I have missed 2 zoom meetings this week, but it's because the calendar on my phone only shows if I look at it. Because I want to avoid car breakdowns, I keep the phone in my handbag and don't get it out in a hurry. I must set up a few subroutines about bringing my bag into the study when I get back and getting the mobile out. I taught myself to take off my specs when I leave the room so that they are still here when I need them.

The nocturnal interruptions from Cassie mean that about 6 am I go to sleep properly, and even though I meant to get up today at 8am, I slept in until 9am when my cleaners came. I waited until my study was cleaned, then got up so they could do the bedroom. Usually I tidy up before they come, so I was a little cross with myself. Maybe I'll have to start having an afternoon nap.

I have a lot of rooks here and some have started nesting so a corvid inoculation wouldn't help. I had another letter to say I'm supposed to be shielding so I'm ignoring it based as it is on the premise that I had cancer but it hasn't come back, and I'm doing my own shopping because I can only get the bread I want from one shop. I think it will be a matter of going to the Minor Injuries Unit known locally as Minehead hospital near Tescos for Covid 19 vaccine. Some have been invited to go to Taunton racecourse 20 miles away so I won't be responding to that. Minehead is only 6 miles away so it's obvious which is more sensible.

The drunk lady now has a Fine for the expense .... £78,000 I think it was...

The young Rich German Pilot had to make his explanations to ATC at Stanstead.... I thought his Grandad might have warned him about crossing RAF Patrol through an international controlled space .... Imaging A Supersonic Bang as a 100 ton 3,000MPH Tornado draws up alongside with more canon, rockets and munitions than one could ever imagine, breaking down to ones own pedestrian speed asking "Can I see your Licence, sir".

No great "thunder and Lightening" storm here, but definitely a great rainstorm during Friday night... A few main roads flooded to a standstill (A12, A13, M25 to/from Dartford crossing, etc) But have also closed the station near be because of Floods across the Line at Horndon ... Horndon already became newsworthy when an Old Church was commandeered for a "Raid" by some noisemongers. ... fancy Horndon having two news stories within a few days?

I can understand the lack of attendance for your friends booksigning.. The "Tier Four" lockdown is extended quite a bit here - I ventured out to Town Centre late one afternoon to Raid, and hunter/gathering at the Supermarket (Not my Favourite supermarket, but the only one available via One busride from here) - But the damn place closes now at Five o'clock. Pretty well everything else is closed too. Nevermind 16th is (one of) my Pensions and Monday is state and ... and ... well some other payment that The Geezer from Age Concern got for me. - I don't understand it, but He said I should get it ... afraid the Backlogs are confusing me as to the actual regular payments.

Kid Sister (working at a London Hospital*) got her Covid injection - She works for an NHS Contractor, but the NHS Boss of her dept sent her to the "shuttle-bus" to Bigger Hospital of the group for her (first of x2) 'nocculation. OK, But left her feeling Cold an hour or two later.

[i]* equals A London Hosp - not THE London Hosp - Nothing to do with Jack of Whitechapel.[/i]

Are you getting - or yet to get, Corvid 'nocculation.. I know there are Two places set up in The Town Centre - One is a Church (although I suspect it is the Meeting rooms rear of it) and at the other side of the Town Centre is a Club/Hobby club (Chess, painting/etc) for those of a certain vintage. The Military were setting up a place in a nearby suburb, But the Military Police were there first to examing the Border fence - found that the "Travellers" were using it for their caravans .... and The RAF police weren't getting involved in civil matters - so they "Borrowed" the parking place when Ford had a UK "Bus & Truck" sales for Covid testing only. (Ford offices now converted to Flats)

It was much quieter here for a while, but we had another storm which got exciting. I sometimes wonder if we'll get another Tsunami in the West Country, and I don't relish having to head for the hills if it happens. The last time was in the 1600s so I should be safe enough.

When I stood with a friend doing a book signing in a poorly attended information centre she told me about her experiences with post natal psychosis, so maybe the woman trying to get out of the plane wasn't drunk after all.

A "bit of noise" Here.... A Sonic Boom....... The Local e-mail Newspaper was that an aircraft had Approached UK on a meandering route, and did not respond to Airtraffic Control?? An RAF crew was instructed to fly at Supersonic speed to find and "Escort" the plane to Stanstead International.... No idea where the RAF plane came from, but Previous problems means that from more-than-one airfield are on instant call. The Previous one that us mere populace heard of, was when a Drunk woman decided to get off her plane and tried to open the door....... (on that occasion a flight stewardess decided upon a "Citizen Arrest" until the Landing)

I was chatting once to a man at a look out point above Porlock bay who told me that up the coast between Porlock Hill and the Devon border, there was a small beach non accessible from land where the U boat fleet used to get fresh water supplies. Nobody knew until after the war and people became more friendly. I was telling a friend who said "Lucky my dad didn't know about that when he was guarding the beach at Blue Anchor for the Home Guard". He'd have been on his own most of the time. There is a gun emplacement near here, long relegated to picnic use.

It seems a pity that nobody thought of camouflage for tractors. My only excuse was that no doubt they had a lot of other things to think about. My father was using Shire horses well into the 1950s and had to get different towing linkages for the tractor. They never thought of making them to work with shafts. And they were hopeless at gurning too.

There is a Playground at Southend, known at some time as "Peter Pan's Playground" - right on the seafront, beside the pier. In that playground is "The House that Jack Built" - a series of warped floors and distorted mirrors, BUT... There is a Line painted about 15 feet above ground level indicating the Tide of the 31/12/1952 - 01/01/1953 night.

No, the explosives are gone (or I hope so?). But many of the old buildings are preserved and/or replaced by the Bird Hides, and their museum - great fun with the (very controlled) "explosion" where a very loose framed hut self-demolishes. They (rspb) have a classroom of cctv pictures of a particular Nest around one of the Lakes.
They also had a film from a Luftwaffe route down the Thames to London.... You may have heard of a Car Factory in Dagenham, that In wartime was making Military Ambulances, and Tractors for the food industry. Tractors had always been in conspicuous Orange, but a Field of Orange tractors for delivery was a good sighting point tor Raiders..??? There is/was a long story of being unable to get "Olive-Drab" paint as it was reserved solely for Military NOT to be available for civilian products. At that point Ford Tractors became "Ford Blue" ..... No one seems to reminded anybody that on the same site, Ford had Convinced Rolls-Royce that their Flow lines could/did produced Merlin Engines? A somewhat more military target than London.....

Yes, I remember the floods of 1953. It gets revisited from time to time on Radio 4. The heroism of the wireless operator on the mailboat from Scotland to Belfast. He stayed at his post and went down with the boat. The loss of life at Southend, but perhaps the Essex Marshes weren't as highly populated so a smaller toll experienced. There is no number greater than one in such circumstances.

Did they move the explosives out or is birdwatching in Essex an extreme sport? I like the notion of a repurposed lightship. I'll need an experienced guide in my next visit to Essex. I chiefly recall the Blackwater where my husband liked to sail his small dinghy, and the Blue Boar in Maldon where they used to brew their own beer for sale. Although they denied it, one of their beers had the taste of elderflowers in it. There was an elder tree outside the brewhouse.

My cleaner told me that her daughter is working on the testing for Covid at Hinckley Point. Although it is a sad situation, she loves the job because there is a wonderful esprit de corps on the team and leadership is shared around from day to day.

Hi!
I should have got back to you, but I'm a bit Overwhelmed - Too, much Whelm?
I don't know of Legsy's address, but it is Somewhere in the exotically named "Pitsea". It is in/on edge of The Essex Marshes. My Mum referred to this area as Vange - but I'm afraid the Hundreds of years of the Changing nature of the Marsh has moved the Map, Names. and usefulness of the area. The last change that I remember was The 1953 Floodes - The Military Flood protection had been the Wartime Gun placements protecting The Thames. Unfortunately, the 1952 floods were Held in by the Seewall Gunnery, and thus more changes in the Geography (at least two Barge canals, and two Barge Docks were destroyed) so "Pitsea" was a dump from Londons rubbish to reclaim the Land (Barges from Westminster and East London). - there were occasional visits from London police searching for a particular body. There had also been a few railways that are lost - Think of the Brickyards that Built London.

One of the Older remaining roads (Pitea Hall Lane) goes down to the Thames - Once a High-enough patch of Land to enable Industrial works to be built - Mr Nobel (as in The peace medals) built several small workshops several yards distant from each other .... The Yanks didn't seem able to build their railroads around their flatlands, and Gellignight was unreliable for demolishing mountains, so He devised Dynamite that was much more reliable that could be transported by sea - Hence the need for the Workshops being widely spaced (and Staff searches, and instant dismisal for anyone carrying a match???) - Now know as Wat Tyler Park - one of the revolting peasants - The Recycle dump is on that road - But includes a Diversion for Dustcart access to a later part of the reclaim, including the Spoil from the displaced London Clay from the New underground Tube lines. The Explosives (used a bit in two x world wars) now uses the widely spaced huts converted to Bird Hides, around the flooded Brick clay pits.

So, NO... No one living there, but it is still a walk from the Town of Pitsea/Vange to the Nature reserve. Interesting History there .... A Lightship was parked there in the war - Rather the same principle of removing direction signs to fool the enemy - But that Lightship has been colonised by foliage - Painters love it. The Populace of this "New Town" are all in the Ladword side of the Railway - away from former floodes

The tip was quiet because of the rain. Does Mr Legs live by the tip or does the tip operate near him? One of my favourite walks was at Sheepwash by Dudley Port. It used to be a brickworks, then a tip then the pits were allowed to fill with water and about 50 acres became a nature reserve. There was a lake with dozens of swans, geese, 20 or so herons and hundreds of ducks of all kinds. Is Wat Tyler Nature Park worth a visit?

You can ask your pharmacist for a medication review. It helps a lot to have someone who knows which fights with what and will argue the case with your doctor. Often you get prescribed one thing to work against the side effects of something you are only taking to minimise side effects of something else or is no longer needed anyway. It got a bit exciting when I came out of hospital, but I had already stripped out the things I no longer needed. I'd lost a lot of weight to make myself eligible for surgery, and my blood pressure monitor said it had come down to normal levels so I stopped taking the pills. I'd told the pharmacist who'd prescribed them that when I was down to 120/72 over a few days to a week I'd stop them.

I can leave my supermarket visit until tomorrow. We've finished Cassie's brie, but she won't mind slumming it with Red Leicester.

Hi.
No going to the tip here... You may remember that Mr Legs of Mustard fame lives near the tip - (The tip is, in fact, a Cul-de-sac that leads down to Wat Tylers Nature Park), but the private Vehicles (NOT Dustcarts) has a queue of hours on that road; so there is an accumulation of post-Christmas debris. Not from my house.
The problem with pills is that each consultant orders that some should be omitted, and that His selection added. Which reminds me - I have a "Telephone appointment" sometime this week - I really must find my diary to keep up on the Appoint changes.
Think I'd better go Hunter-Gathering at Supermarket again.

No, Don't worry, that was yesterday. I've been home for over 24 hours now. RAC have asked for the receipt for the new tyre and call out charge, which was sent to my gardener's mobile phone. He and I had just taken a couple of bags of brambles to the tip when the puncture was spotted. I must go out during the week, always in daylight. This town closes at 3pm.

Cassie was a bit better, but I still got woken twice, so needed to sleep and read to get my brain in gear. I had breakfast at 2pm, Christmas cake at 5pm and bean stew at 8 pm. I have all the meals just a bit closer together. Sometimes I skip the cake.

My pharmacist told me to have one lot of pills in the morning and the rest at bedtime. Only 2 lots, and it's sensible to have the anti cramp ones at night.

Oh deary me... The RAC was always an Upmarket affair. The AA for nonentities Like me., Yes I must get myself mobile again, Trouble is the taxi to my garage is a bit of a trial.
Are you actually out somewhere pending a Puncture reply?

I hardly slept last night, but when I eventually got up, I was so tired that I went back for a "lie-down" - then suddenly it was 4 pm. I an still feeling tired. Big Ginger cat is now reminding me that I haven't presented all his food demands. He is also sulking that I didn't get him a 24th birthday present.

Trying to decide whether to have breakfast, lunch, teatime, or evening meal. The various pills are now out of sequence - or perhaps I'll put them all into a sandwich.

Maybe things will get better. On "Not the Nine o Clock News', they did an item about extensive research into recent ills and found itwas all the fault of the little man in the off licence. The poor chap was aghast by the news but there was no appeal. The voiceover (Pamela Stephenson) continued "After he went, things did get better".

In other news, I may change from RAC to AA at renewal time. It's a long and unedifying story, but I wish I knew how my tyres know I have left my mobile phone at home?