Welcome to the no corona zona

[YetAnotherBeckyMumsnet]

Have you aged ten years overnight on a supermarket website?
Are you sticking to the 'two sheets' rule?
Have you had it with singing celebrities?
Are you yearning for what we will now call The Before Times?

If you've answered yes to any of the above, here's where you come to post threads about Naice Things - like ham and cats. Where The Virus That Must Not Be Named (TVTMNBM) is off-limits.

We'll do our best to keep the corona-free zone moderated - you do your best to chill out and gather strength.

Keep using the normal boards for normal stuff, but here's where to come if you need a break. We're hoping everyone will see the value of having somewhere to get away from it all.

Thanks,
MNHQ

The music links were great Dangly. They weren’t what I meant. It is the references to thighs that seems to be an in joke amongst a group of posters who had their own thread. I have no problem with there being an existing group of posters who know one another from another thread but just didn’t think starting a sort of mini thread with only things that mean anything to them, was a good idea on this one.

Oh SnakePlant you have given me something to do all night . Will dig out the shotgun and patrol my salads vigorously 🤣.

dangly i actually think it's nice when you and other thights interact on the thread, but not when you all come on a thread to be funny amongst yourselves. The fish pics were lovely though .

theoriginalmadambee do you live with others? If so could you draw up a watch rota so that the salad is patrolled at all times? If you’re on your own maybe Now’s the time to invest in a CCTV system along with a roll of barbed wire.

Thank you SchadenfreudePersonified do you actually say it out loud? At times we have a lot of magpies round here, I would be talking to myself (magpies) all the time, I guess my neighbors would think I had lost it .

Can't keep up.

SnakePlant family all home and even though they like salads, I'm not sure I can talk them in to taking the night watch (frosty). Barbed wire is a no no for the cats, because of them our garden is already fenced in hugely (and ugly) so perhaps the cctv would cover it .

SchadenfreudePersonified
Yes Cheddar would do nicely!

Is anyone watching Jamie O at 5.30pm every day? I have a feeling (but don't really know) that he is unpopular on MN but personally I have no beef with him.
Anyway, his programme is absolutely brilliant. Apparently it was put together in three days instead of three months, and it happened when CV took hold.
He is doing the most delicious family cooking and because of shortages etc, says... you haven't got mozzarella, use cheddar, you haven't got cheddar use any old cheese in your fridge. He's done some really tasty pies, curries, risottos, all sorts. I take my hat off to him getting this programme going so quickly.

As for the magpies... oh my gosh, YES you have to salute them. My DPs did, and my GPs did and bear in mind they were born in 1800s (yes really I'm that old, my DPs had me old and so on) it is not a family tradition I'm gonna be breaking anytime soon. My adult DCs do it too! So that's 4 generations

I have come back to apologise if it was my perhaps silly suggestion of a competition for best photo that sparked off the angst on this thread. It was not intended in any way to be cliquey but referencing the many competitions that MNHQ run which are good fun for every poster to enter. I find the references to Pom Bears, Mexican House Thieves and screaming at Michelangelo’s tedious but accept to some they are hilarious.

Anyway I would like to thank Becky and all others at MNHQ for starting this No Corona section. It is much appreciated and long may it continue to cheer us up.

Thanks for the tip about Jamie O Rousette. I shall tune in when the Daily Briefing gets too much.

It's always best to rinse for pussy piss then, the local clowder love pissing up my rosemary (herb, not daughter) 😂🤣

mudguts when we built our raised beds for salads etc. the cats were certain they were giant litter trays . Now the raised beds are fenced in as well .

All my herbs are in pots (other than the lemon balm which I don't eat but love the scent of). This has been the case since we got our first puppy, and on his initial venture into the garden chose the herb bed to piss on.

Fortunately as he (like the current model upthread) was a dachshund they don't have to be very tall pots.

Homity pie, that brings back memories of eating in Cranks when I was an art student in the 80’s. There was a branch just behind St Martins in the fields on Trafalgar Square. I used to have homity pie with a selection of salads and a piece of carob cake. It was a massive treat and I used to go in there on my own so as to enjoy the treat without distraction. The rest of the time I lived on toast.

I’ve still got some old Cranks recipe books somewhere, I’m going to dig them out and make something

I apologise too, for getting the hump.

We forget that we do this, it's because we chat like that to one another every in WhatsApp and it's become normal English to us now.

Anyway I'll not flounce off it's not in my nature, as I understand it now in retrospect, we are welcome in here if we try not to relate to each other on the thread in 'Thigh' because it's not relatable to others and makes others uncomfortable and we hadn't thought about that.

That's fair enough!

So back to the actual topics to say my seeds have arrived but not all of the ones I ordered, I've got my containers ready, shall i plant them indoors at first or will they be ok outside now?

I'd rather put them out if possible but I'm thinking tomatoes inside first until shoots appear?

I've got tomatoes, spring onions and a 'butterfly mix' of flowers. I'm good with flowers but never done veg before!

they don't have to be very tall pots 😁

shall i plant them indoors at first or will they be ok outside now?
Following with interest, are there rules about this or do you have to look up for each plant?

Fwiw I dont think its at all cliquey in this thread. Some stuff has gone way over my head. So I've ignored it. Sorry thigh people, but no idea what your on about.
So I'm gonna root through my shed this week. I know I've got old seeds in there. When I dig them out I'm going to randomly plant them all and see what does or doesn't happen in 6 weeks.
Am ok with a massive glut of veggies, can give away to neighbours.
Very very tempted to mix all the seeds up flowers and veggies alike and see how terrible it looks. Apart from spinach, I love spinach. Thsts going in a container by itself.

madambee just going from my experience in planting flowers from seed I think it's variable. I have grown chillies before on the window ledge but that is because they are from hotter climes.

It says on the tomatoes to plant indoors first and plant our when established but the spring onions it says to plant out and keep adding seeds throughout the year.

I read on a gardening website that tomatoes can be planted outside from March but I remember my Dad used to put them in a greenhouse.

Following with interest, are there rules about this or do you have to look up for each plant?

Absolutely depends on the type of plant. Broadly, some can tolerate frost and some can't, will just die.

I wish I could grow things successfully. The only things o don’t kill are snake plants (hence my name), spider plants and succulents. Everything else doesn’t stand a chance. I buy plants, nearly kill them, give them to friends to resurrect and then for their own wellbeing, let them keep them.

I am using the enforced time at home to try eat healthily (mainly seems to involve lentil and tomato soup and puréed apples - not together). and going for an hours walk a day. It would be too tempting to bake nice things but as I live on my own and can’t share things with friends, I’m making myself be sensible. It’s not easy though as I’m naturally lazy with a very sweet tooth. Is anyone else making an extra attempt to get or stay fit?

dangly I'm with you on the tomatoes indoors, but my most urgent issue is spinach. I would love to sew it outside now, but I don't known if it is hardy enough, or if you can sew it indoors or you just get long thin seedlings?

Fortuitously I started on an exercise and healthy eating kick at the start of the year, prompted by DH getting me an Apple Watch. I'm doing the 1000/2000 km/miles/whatever challenge - a mix of walking and rowing machine (which again, fortunately, we already had). I'm over 400km in at this point and over a stone lighter. I'm just above bmi 25 but seem to be gradually edging down without 'dieting'.
Pilates classes obviously stopped hence today finally trying a yoga video. I'm doing some fairly random squats, small weights stuff as well.

Is anyone else making an extra attempt to get or stay fit?

I was doing so well since beginning of the year but then along comes CV and it's all gone a bit to pot. I'm comfort eating. Not good.
I walk every day if I can but have missed a few days lately ho hum.
I have walked 120 miles since beginning of the year though, so must re-invigorate myself.

Wow errol you’re doing so well. I have no idea what I weight but I know when I feel and look ok In terms of heaviness and fitness. I’m 5’0” so even if I’m a bit overweight there’s nowhere to hide. I think I’m easily 1.5 stones heavier then I want to be though.

I think it is a little early to put some seeds in unless you have somewhere sheltered to do so. I would leave another few weeks, maybe Easter weekend for planting which is a traditional time to do so. I am planning lettuce, rocket and some courgettes plus some herbs. The courgettes certainly I won’t start till May probably.

SnakePlant what do snake plants look like, don’t know them. I m good with spider plants too and cacti. I like lithops - living stones too.

I am enjoying my daily walk and am taking photographs of things that appeal to me that I see whilst doing so. A quick stop every so often to catch my breath is needed as well so even if as some people feel not strictly part of ‘The Rules’ I am continuing. Spring is a lovely time of year and it is great to have the chance to walk and enjoy everything. Butterflies, spring flowers, birds, etc.

OMG sow not sew, guess it would be a lot harder .

I'm 5'1 so I know what you mean re no place to hide. I'm literally a thigh person.

Yo - if you've got photos you're willing to share please come to the Nature Notes thread on this board (I think I linked to it way upthread) . I keep forgetting to take my iPhone (I carry an old Nokia when I'm out locally as better coverage round here) . (Im sure photos are very welcome on this thread too of course, but we've got a whole board to spread little bits of joy over).