Thread 11 - TalkLair: “The candle flame gutters. Its little pool of light trembles.”

[Kucinghitam]

Whoops, missed the filling up of the previous thread! (thread 10).

Although the nights are gradually drawing in, the new lair of JTT escapees is all cosy and homey inside. The hearth is glowing, the walls covered in dubious artwork, books by non-approved authors line the shelves, rugs are down on the floors (and assorted pets curled up on them).

We just won’t mention the gnawed bones of our prey over there in the corner of the cave…

I also love carols, especially sung in a church - although church services always make me sneeze.

As long as nobody tries to make me sing the descant, as they did in our lower school choir. They assigned parts by height, which did not work at all for a tall low alto. I was much happier when I moved to upper school where they did the parts properly (and were always short of tenors, so I could help them out if I fancied a change).

Vegemiteandhoneyontoast · Today 09:37

We had a bird rescue drama here the other morning. Heard a loud thud against the living room window and looked out to see a bluetit face down, wings spread...

I read something earlier this year (possibly here) that it's always worth picking them up and blowing gently into them, in cupped hands. They may well recover, but if left on the cold ground, are likely to go into cold shock.

I had a woodpigeon fly into my kitchen window once. The bang gave me a huge fright, but I suspect the pigeon had the fright of its life. I did have a look down but I couldn't see anything so hopefully s/he was ok. I love birds.

@MouseMinge I'm really glad you've got a treatment plan in place, and that you got to enjoy Christmas Dinner Soup.

Also, just sharing some sparkly and festive Kasper.

@BinturongsSmellOfPopcorn They assigned parts by height, which did not work at all for a tall low alto.

The concept that the taller you are, the higher your voice is hilariously bonkers. Did they think it was an altitude thing? I was told when I was 11 that I sang flat, and should therefore mime at school events. 50 years of not-singing later, I mentioned it to a musician friend who harrumphed and said at that age it was far more likely that the kids with the loudest voices were singing sharp. She tested first my ear, then my ability to sing back random sequences, then I sang along while she played and continued when she stopped. She declared me spot-on! I still don't sing, obviously, having rather got out of the habit of it.

Lovely to read your epistle over breakfast, Mouse! Kasper looking singularly unimpressed, there!

The concept that the taller you are, the higher your voice is hilariously bonkers. Did they think it was an altitude thing?

I doubt they'd given it that degree of thought. They assumed everyone under 15 had a high voice and could therefore sing either part, people singing the tune stood at the front, tall people stood at the back.

That sounds like a brilliant day, Mouse!

I am rubbish at singing and a committed atheist so I can’t remember the last time I went to a carol concert but I seem to know the words to carols when I hear them.

No bird/window interactions here but the resident robin did hit my trail camera with quite a thud once. I think he was fine though as I think it was the regular one who appears every time I do a bit of digging.

We had a cardinal fly into our kitchen window a few weeks ago. I heard the bang and went outside to see it on the ground but left it alone to recover and a few minutes later it did and flew away.

Not very musically-inclined teachers, then

I love Kasper's disdainful expression @VictorianBigot - he clearly doesn't think much of your decorative efforts. Me, I love your tree! ChezKuc I (partly in jest) suggested a similarly minimalist tree for this year and was met with utter horror by the rest of the family.

The choir was run by the head of the music department.

Kasper’s expression is wonderful.

I love the minimalist tree. I know I’d just keep adding stuff until it looked awful though!

I've had that tree for years. I bought it in House of Fraser back when it was a nice shop

It doesn't have a proper base though, I think it's meant to be screwed into something heavy, so it's currently weighed down with neurobiology textbooks. The covers of which look quite similar to the tree itself.

Kasper looks rather dour to me, bless him, but some cats always do look dour.

There's only the two of us and we don't have a tree, partly because there's nowhere to put one. If we did have space and the inclination to have one, I'd like it to be full-on sparkliness and tiny white lights.

Kasper looks suitably horrified by the twinkling!

I am a great great aunt (she says, in a modest and elderly fashion).

"I read something earlier this year (possibly here) that it's always worth picking them up and blowing gently into them, in cupped hands. They may well recover, but if left on the cold ground, are likely to go into cold shock."

I am something of an expert bird and mouse catcher, what with my youngest cat's habit of bringing them into the house then letting them go so he can hunt/torture them at his lesiure. So a couple of months ago when I heard my name shrieked from the ward manager's office, because a little sparrow had flown in through the window by mistake, I employed my technique of using a towel/tea-towel to fling over them. The little thing was terrified and in shock so when I took it to the balcony lay and down and unwrapped the towel to let it free, it just sat there. We left it alone and twenty minutes later it hopped up and flew away.

<tries to remember everything>

Huzzah and thanks to the saviors of birds. I love birds and so does Django. Unfortunately he loves them in a serial killer stylee.

Because of the little lamp/lampshade behind him Kasper looks like he's wearing a yarmulke which makes his disdain more amusing. "Do you people never listen to me?! Where is the menorah? I thought we agreed we were celebrating Hanukkah this year!"

Thanks for more good wishes. I am much more cheerful since Tuesday because now that things are on the verge of starting I feel I have a little control back, have a better idea what I'm up against and know I'll probably be feeling like 50 shades of shite once treatment does start so I want to make the best of my inner Pollyanna whilst I'm not being dumped with poison.

@Dotellhimpike please give big love to Mrs Pike. She's such a fine person and I'm so glad things have worked for you both.

If I've missed anything, I've read it all, smiled, giggled, was moved, snorted, or any or all of the above in response to everything posted. And late as it is I now need to get my day properly started. Yesterday left me a little knackered - worth it - so I've been making the best of my warm and cosy bed.

Haha! I scrolled back and Kasper does indeed look like he’s wearing a yarmulke. I love the idea that he’s looking on in disappointment at the lack of a menorah.

Hurrah for warm and cosy beds, Mouse, and here's to more Christmas dinner soups.

Good to hear that we're a bunch of bird rescuers. The Right Sort and all that.

Today, I saw the same horse out on the road twice, with the same human too, a very cheerful woman. Then, on the way home, all the fields had mist rising from them up to about 1m and it was beautiful to see. Mist rising from the fields is something I tend to forget about outside the mist-rising season so it's always a pleasant surprise.

Just been out for dinner.

MouseMinge · Today 15:31

Thanks for more good wishes. I am much more cheerful since Tuesday because now that things are on the verge of starting I feel I have a little control back, have a better idea what I'm up against and know I'll probably be feeling like 50 shades of shite once treatment does start...

It may not be so bad, a relative of ours finished combined chemo and radio last week, for stage 3 oesophageal. He had (I think) 5 chemo and 35 radio and they can't now detect a mass on the scan, he's due an operation next month.

Apart from feeling tired and washed out, he's lost his nose hairs and eyelashes.

So, fingers crossed for you!

Nice menu, bint! What did you go for?

Everything! It was a set menu of all 5 courses. I'm quite full.

It all looks lovely, Bint, glad you enjoyed it.

Oh wow! No terrible struggle to decide and not a mushroom risotto in sight!