For those you'll never meet, but want to chat with anyway...

Just the other day, Scrobs was peering at his PC screen, blinking at the various messages one gets from the bank, (sod'em), Ebay etc., and a message came up 'just asking how everything was going at The Turrets'! It came from a chum with whom I've had numerous chats, but have never met, and sadly never will - probably...

Well, it's not all bad really, and the heat is hurting Senora O'Blene more than somewhat, but the upside is that for the first time, I let our hound, Lily off the lead for the first time since we got her!

This morning, as we started off on her early walk, I met two lovely ladies who live just down the road, and they were on a trek around the fields and orchards we are lucky to still have, and I was invited along!

Scrobs never says no to that sort of invitation, and so we ended up in some fields about half an hour away, and just while I was thinking about perhaps trusting her not to run away, the girls suggested that I let her off the lead!

So I did, and she had a whale of a time, darting here and there, playing with the other two dogs all the way, and getting exhausted in the process - as did I!

It's odd really, always thinking she might have just toddled off, but she stayed close, had some great games, and was great company for all of us!

So Linda, it was so nice of you to write and ask how we are; it's prompted me to get up and go forward just a little more now, and we'll certainly chat again soon!

Understanding Sturmey-Archer is next...

 

Instructions for driving normal, petrol or diesel cars...

Fiddle-de-dee...

Off to the supermarkets this morning, to be confused yet again at how they try and cheat their customers...

I need to buy some spuds, as at this time of year, we have Jersey Royals, Cornish Smalls, Mallorcan News etc., plus a load of bakers, 'essentials', ordinary whites, reds etc.,, and they'll all be priced in different ways!

Some of the big ones will be priced as 'each', with no weight shown, some will be priced in ready-packaged bags by the kg, while other similar spuds will be charged in lbs. I even shot myself in the foot the other day, as I saw some Cornish News in a bag, but they weren't priced at all, so I 'zapped' the bag with the little gun, and got a label printed. Then I thought that the deal was OK, so got another bag, and did the same! I didn't see that the packaging was so similar, but I'd bought different bags, and after I got home realised that I could have got exactly what I wanted cheaper had I bought a loose lot...

I know all the habits of market trading back in the old days still control the 'ethics'* of supermarkets, i.e. sell as much as you can fiddle, and I even tried to take a hand-held Ipaq PC with me some years ago, so I could pop in the numbers, and calculate the price differentials, but it took ages, and I still thought I was being ripped off!

We're watching 'Open all hours' at the moment, and Arkwright is in full swing, so that's why I'm going to tremble when that little tin falls off the top of the crashing till, or rather more when the lovely Julia comes across to help me check out on the self-service till...

* There are no ethics in supermarket trading - Ed

Cinema show...

 

I've had several copies of this fabulous song for well over forty years, and it's still as fresh and vibrant as it must have been when it was played in Paris in 1976!

I've always admired Bill Bruford as one of the greatest drummers ever, but he and Phil Collins just bring the house down with this version, and the keyboard work by Tony Banks is mesmerising, especially when you think that this was all 'live'!

Apparently, when the song was first thought of, Mike Rutherford a started a small, simple riff, Peter Gabriel changed the characters to 'Romeo and Juliet' and the end piece was just built on a few phrases, but what a performance!

(The graphics are just hilarious as well...)!

Aunt Doris and the Jennings story...

 

When Scrobs was quite young, around six or seven, he used to know several ladies in the village, who were kindly, generous, good friends on his Mum and Dad - and Sister, and he often popped round after church on a Sunday, because there were always some sixpences in a jar on the mantelpiece for an ice-cream at the local shop for us both...

One day, I was chatting with Aunt Doris - she wasn't really an aunt, but a lovely lady who ran a small guest house, and seemed to have lots of elderly visitors staying all the time, although we never saw them. One day, my dear Sister and I had secured the funds for the ice-cream, and wandered though to the main parlour, which was empty except for a huge ticking grandfather clock!

On a side table was a book, 'Jennings follows a clue', which had been casually left out for me to notice, and Aunt Doris airily said that it was meant as a gift for a 'nephew of hers', but I could read it if I wanted to borrow it and take good care of it!

And so I did...

It was probably the first real full-length story I'd ever read, apart from Rupert Bear annuals, and a few other books which my sister owned and treasured. This Jennings book shaped my whole life for ages, as I was indeed carted off to prep school a few years later, and the tones of these magical stories were ringing in my ears for several months - years even!

Our good friend AK Haart has a comment on here by DAD, and of course, AKH responds as he always does! I eventually bought, or was given, most of the Jennings stories, and handed them on to some other young lads a few years ago, when they needed a bit of advice!

Aunt Doris was the J.K.Rowling lady for me, although she never actually wrote the stories, she just 'got me reading', which was never going to be a bad thing, and a few posts back I mention all the Nevil Shute stories, which are a joy to visit these days!

Thank you Aunt Doris - you watched a young Scrobs learn to understand a real story!

Nine trays in an hour...

At this time of year, there is always a frantic panic about planting flowers and other plants out, and this year's been no exception! 

I always get far too many bedding plants, and grew about 130 tomato plants as well, mainly for chums, but it's been a nightmare this month trying to reorganise everything for getting the garden straight! The weather has been firmly against us.

Having walked the dog after lunch, and rested the inside of the eyelids, it occurred to me around 5.00pm, that I should really get my arse in gear and actually do something! The sun was shining, the weather was kind, and a revitalised Scrobs bounced outside to the green house, and potted on nine long planters in ONE HOUR! This is a record, and is now recorded for posterity!

So the colourful displays are ready for their resting places, and I've used up all the compost, so will have to revisit our lovely garden centre yet again for refills, and a chat with the owners, who are all firm friends!

I really do think I've started the season at long last...

Reflection...

 

It was a touching moment, and by some sort of coincidence, I was playing my favourite track from Peter Gabriel's album, 'Ovo', yesterday, and something really did click!