Here we go again...Countdown to Christmas 2026 (Thread 1)

[NoWordForFluffy]

365

Evening!

I'm a bit tipsy and very tired, but it's been a good day.

Round 2 tomorrow with the roast dinner!

I think I should have done that with the parsnips.

cabbages and red and green sprouts and a ton of other stuff has been planted. I’m hoping it will become clear what we planted wear

Its been a day ... very long story short my main pc died shortly after the fire so I bought a budget all-in-one just to keep us connected whilst dealing with the claims etc. I spent months then telling myself I would get myself a future proof high spec gaming pc soon as we were all settled home again. Said PC (desktop) arrived 2 weeks ago costing a lot of money - its gone wrong since day 1 random freezes and crashes, I've updated drivers, repaired windows, updated again, done all that the customer support asked me to do - Friday they told me to do a completely fresh install of Windows ... now I have been adamant this is a hardware issue but today I have spent HOURS trying to do the install with the bloody thing freezing and crashing part way through and assorted other issues I finally got it done but my nerves are frayed I've lost an entire day and frankly I don't trust the bloody thing not to play up again. I had 14 days under distant selling regs to reject it or otherwise I will end up stuck with it being sent back and forth for fixing if it continues playing up - so I have done a full reset and wipe and the damned things going back - email request sent and logged. So I'm back on the all-in-one for now and the hunt for a new pc starts again.

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Hope everyone is having a nice Bank Holiday Monday

Magnolia vet bills are excruciating, on top of the worry about an ill pet . Hopefully your cat can be maintained without any side effects or pain. They are such a worry .

Did some tidy up stuff , admired the garden (we did the patio , cleaned it with the pressure washer ) , some laundry till someone lit a bonfire so it had to come indoors .

I'm waiting on deliveries now - shoes , some nice toiletries , and a couple of pick ups from Sainsbury ,

Afternoon!

I'm knackered right now. 😩 I took the dog for his run/walk after we got up, then after breakfast we went into the garden to paint the fence. Dear god, what a soul destroying job that is! We got the left side (where it's the back of the fence) and the bottom (the nice side) done. So just the right side and entry / gate to do now. Hopefully before the blokes come in 2 weeks to do the paving for us.

Thankfully our garden is majority nice side, so the rest shouldn't take too long between us.

I've now cleaned the loo / bathrooms and the windows / TV / TV stand in the lounge.

When DH takes the dog in a bit, I'll strim the long grass and vacuum, as well as make dinner (lamb curry). After that, I'll be ready for an early night. 🤣

I have been working today so nothing exciting unfortunately.

@Gracesquirrel That computer stuff would have infuriated me. It would have gone out the window.

234

Morning!

Looking like a damp start to today. I am invigilating today but not starting till 9am so I am off to the gym first.

The cat has now got wise to my shoving a pill to the back of his throat while holding him in a death grip and yesterday he held it in for a REALLY long time before spitting it out. Managed to get it back in though.

My courgettes are starting to lift themselves slightly and the tomatoes are looking quite perky. Waiting for the salad leaves to grow now.

Cunning cat, Magnolia! It's a shame you can't reason with animals. 😩

Are your tomatoes outside now? I know I've thrown mine out too early, as it's not consistently 10° overnight, but they got too big for the house! I'm still bringing the chillies in overnight though.

Office day for me today, but physio first, so a trek to Broadgreen and back beforehand!

Yes tomatoes are fully out, I got fed up of them in the bathroom. I am hoping for warmer weather very soon,

233 Morning. Posting from the train as its office day. Absolutely resent every minute wasted on commuting now.

Magnolia how is your dcat?

I don’t know much about gaming PCs squirrel but I do know how much gamers rely on them so I’m sorry yours hasn’t worked out.

Fluffy we sorted out our garden and I’ve thrown a load of my plants in the cold frame. Very much ‘I hope they live but I don’t have time to faff with them’ approach being taken here 😳

I took LO to buy some new flowers on BH. He got very excited when he realised you can grow all sorts of food so now we have chilli, tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, onions, potatoes, green beans and broccoli. And possibly beetroot, I can’t remember. Good luck to me as I definitely don’t have space for all of that.

Well 2 good things happened already today wonder what the 3rd will be? lol Firstly the pc builders/suppliers have agreed to the return and have arranged collection, they have 14 days to process my refund from when they get it back but things are on the move there and I can start thinking about what to do about replacing it. Secondly my 25 yr old car with <45,000 miles on it that I love and keeps me independent as its a lot smaller than our main car and which passes its mot first time every year had an advisory this time for the brakes, I booked it in to be done today and had an estimate of around £400 (probably the same as the value of the car lol), anyway it went in at 8am and is already done and cost £170 Bargain!!

What car is it squirrel?
For a very long time I drove a 20+ year old mini and I loved it. Was not reliable in the slightest and I basically rebuilt it piece at a time as things failed but it was comfy and fun and I miss it (I’ve replaced with a very sensible ‘mum’ car). Sigh.

have skived away from my desk for 5 as my head and eyes are sore. Meetings most of the morning and intense reading/report review type of stuff since 12:30. Not helped with the bright office lights.

Cat is improving thank you Meeces. He* isn't too keen on the new low fat food but I am persevering with the *transition.

Very impressed with all your veggies - you will never need to buy any!

Good news re the PC @Gracesquirrel

I am excited to watch the new Amandaland tonight.

Dont know what's going on re the wierd asterisks.

Car is a 2 door Toyota Yaris Meeces it was my mums car and when she died I had the car and my brother had the number plate but he then moved abroad so I kept the plate as well.

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Morning!

Meeces, I resent the commute too. Thankfully I only have to go in one day a week! Most other law firms are 2-3 days a week, which puts me off moving firms.

Good news re the PC and car, Grace. 😁

DD is off to Edinburgh on a school trip today for two nights. Hopefully the weather is kind to her!

232 Morning all we were up early to go and vote before my PC is collected later. Its my 43rd wedding anniversary today and I forgot a card for DH 🙀however he will be getting a delivery of some handmade chocs later today.

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Happy Anniversary for yesterday Grace

I had a busy morning - picking up an order, taking DD to work/picking her up , did washing , vacuuming, tidy up and cooking . Took some clothes to the charity shop

I need to book a hair dresser appointment , got a dental appointment booked ,

Grace that is an amazingly low mileage -
my motor is 10yo with 44,000ish on the clock which is low .

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I've just been reading a thread about 11 egg omelettes and now feel a bit . I'm not a fan of eggs anyway . I never eat them if someone else cooks them .

I made some Soffritto , they keep harping on about it on "Sorted Food" , it is really nice , used as a base for soups and stews type . It's carrot,onion,celery chopped tiny and fried in olive oil till softened . I have impressed myself

Morning!

Impressed with your cooking 70. I just bunged pizzas in the oven last night.

Looking like a nice day so I will be gardening after the gym. DH taking the kids to Ascot, I can't decide whether to go or not. Feeling very can't be arsed at the moment.

Morning just getting ready for the weekly visit to mil its a lovely scenic drive over the mountains but now the weathers getting sunnier & dryer the cyclists motor bikers and tourists come out in force which can make it a bit of a stressful trek as there's few passing places and some of the bikers try and zip in and out on very very dangerous bends or we end up stuck behind people taking in the scenery driving well below the speed limit, at least I get a nice lunch in Trago Mills on the way.

DH had been asking for real custard for a while so I bought some Birds custard powder and made custard last night - I over did it with the powder to milk ratio and it came out thick enough to cut with a knife 😂 was very nice with sliced banana though.

Everyone is so industrious makes me feel knackered just reading what you are all up to in the garden or kitchen.

Morning!

Later than usual dog walk / run this morning as I dragged it out before we went to guarantee that the Parkrun would have left and wouldn't be blocking our route.

We're having haircuts later (though not DD, as she's in Edinburgh with school), then probably home to mooch for the afternoon!

Afternoon! I buy sofrito frozen from Ocado, it’s so useful and helpful for me.

we have been for a walk this afternoon. Tomorrow ds13 is going to try dragon boat paddling for a scout badge.

I planted the tomato plants ( opened the mini greenhouse which was like a sauna and they'd had major wilt ! Revived with water then they perked up so into their fresh compost with a tomato feed biscuit and watered in. They are happy now.
Planted up a Hebe and some ivy . I have some trailing lobelia but they're tiny so giving them another day on the windowsill .

I made a vegetarian chilli for tomorrow , a tray of Chocolate Brownie (DS and DD like this ) and an apple cake with some crumble mix on the top I had in the freezer) it might work , it might not .
As this is officially The Christmas Thread , these go into my Christmas Notebook if I want to make again.

Lots of gardening going on. I’ve planted a redcurrant. I’m hoping for enough for a tiny amount of jelly. I prefer it to cranberry with my turkey!

im on a slug prevention journey to get my brassicas to take.