Swagger Inn thread 165 - wenches get --locked-- down with the HBFs (ylt)

[SisterHelenoftheEternalCatchUp]

Lockdown rolls on, so we're staying in and isolating with the FAF.
The bar is stocked, the floor has been mopped, the tables have been wiped, and the HBFs are however you want them

(We're also doing lots of washing and gardening.)

Also, FMTypos

Evening.

Oh dear, swan wars at the lakes up the road. There are two lakes and two pairs of breeding swans which seems ideal, but DaddyLargeLake wants both lakes and has attacked DaddySmallLake who has been taken away by the RSPCA for treatment. MummySmallLake was sitting on eggs but DaddyLargeLake has driven her off and she was found wandering the roads. She's a lovely gentle swan who I photographed last year with her cygnets. She has been taken to be reunited with her mate and the eggs are now in an incubater at another wildlife centre. I don't suppose she will be able to be reunited with them if they hatch. Nature can be very cruel.

I've finished knitting the latest jumper and am now having to sew it up which I hate. I broke the cardinal rule of starting another one last night but have resisted the temptation to carry on with it today.

at drunken gardening and Athos' sausage.

Chicken curry and calls.

Evening wenches.

at Aramis making the compost bin overheat. And we knew what you meant Helen.

One wardrobe done and the “new” clothes which I got down from the loft. There’s now a bin bag full of clothes waiting to be passed on.

I love your way of describing the conflict with DaddyLargeLake and the others Apricot, although the subject matter wasn’t that fun. Here’s hoping that the SmallLakes are back and healthy.

at the cardinal rule

Lots of washing done, much ironing to do. I’m watching Inspector Morse.

Well hello France Eurovision entry

France's Eurovision Entry?! Are they broadcasting previous years, or doing something virtual?

Oh well, anyway. Evening all. I have been busy today, just not sure what I was doing - again. Have found a wonderful website - onthegomap.com/#/create where you can plot your route and find out how far you went (5 mile bike ride today). I was out today and passed a house selling aubergine plants. I smirked and thought of them being planted into Fancy's dubious drunken garden

at the SwanLakeWars and at DaddyLargeLake. Should we send Vinnie in to keep the peace? I hope that Mr&MrsSmallLake find a nice new home together There was a wonderful twitter thread recently about 'things that you expected to be a large part of your life when you were, which actually aren't'. Swans breaking arms was one of them. "I thought there'd be loads of people wandering around the parks with broken arms!" (someone also expected that quicksand - and being able to escape from it would play a much larger part in their lives )

I'm well impressed with your drawer sorting LetUs I should do something similar, but DS has finally started to realise that his homework is massively overdue and I don't want to distract him from that. Even though it was 9:45pm when he suddenly decided to crack on with it and he's just raced downstairs to ask questions about some of it...

Tonight we have mostly been watching Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure It's very silly and 80s and an utterly shocking lack of non-Caucasian students at their school

There was a sort of Eurovision with bits of all the songs and a message from each of the acts, mixed in with other bits and bobs, all with fabulous commentary by Graham Norton.

Excellent effort with the bike ride. Five miles?! Also at aubergines

That’s the thing that even when they start homework at a stupid time, it gets to the point where you think “sod it, at least he’s doing it”.

Most excellent television viewing there Helen

I’ve been knackered all day so the sensible thing to do would be to go to the hayloft now. Seeing as how DH is watching MOTD and is doing the usual chatting along with the tv and trying to involve me, hayloft it is.

@ Swan Wars apricot - I hope the Small Lakes family settle in their new home

I bet MrHelen was gutted at Eurovision being cancelled helen?

MrHelen is indeed gutted Fancy - he has talked about nothing else since lockdown was announced

Is lovely here - warm and sunny. I got distracted on the way back from feeding the chickens and did some weeding . Also noticed all the marrows courgettes etc that the late frost has killed off Fortunately, because DH planted such a bonkers amount of seeds, we have plenty getting pot-bound in the greenhouse that can go out to replace them. Phew!

DS insists that he can manage him own time today and get 'most of' his homework done. But I have to stay indoors with him and be on hand to winge at help. I have told him I will be gardening and he can call if he needs me. Does that make me a neglectful mother - prioritising the garden over my child's needs, or am I helping his personal development and making him take responsibility for his own work? I'm going with the latter. He has had weeks of me being indoors to help him Monday-Friday when he's skived off to play on the xbox because he's 'done' all his school work...

Morning wenches.

Absolutely the latter Helen. Also I’m always impressed with people who grow vegetables successfully. If it was just a matter of following instructions and paying attention to stuff like weather, I’d probably be okay but there’s obviously more to it like a talent you’d have for other things . BestFriend always has an excellent crop of vegetables, and DH is legendary in my extended family (especially those who’ve been doing it for years) for his tomato growing skills.

Upshot, I’m impressed.

I’m sure the Eurovision programmes will be on iPlayer so MrHelen can settle down to watch those

Sunny here. Second wardrobe done and we’ve established that DS2 is lacking in jeans/trousers.

I have ironing to tackle.

Morning - brightening up here. I have lots of new plants to er, plant. Bin temperature rising a little after yesterday's intervention.

Definitely the second option helen. And tell MrHelen not to be too downhearted - he's got a whole year to plan next year's Eurovision-fest

Hurrah for raising bin temperature!

I have spent most of the day ironing and now I’m tired. It had better be true that ironing burns calories, or is it just that when I’m ironing I can’t snack?

Afternoon. It's gone sunny here but still not warm enough to sit outside.

I can just see Vinnie sitting at the side of the lake peacekeeping amongst the swans, with a broken arm.

Not neglectful at all Helen, although they never change. We've heard more from DS since lockdown than ever before as he's finally learning how to DIY. He never had to before as he had DH, but he's now having lessons by phone and WhatsApp. He's also good at growing vegetables. They had an allotment before but he's incorporating one into their new garden.

Evening all. It has been lovely and sunny today, and warm - out on bike in shorts and t-shirt! Fabulous!

Less fabulous is DS still not finishing all his work, but he's done a fair bit of it. And now we're watching a film, which is actually doubling as school work because they're been told to watch it

Planted out sunflowers today which are a bit stretched and wibbly-wobbly Still, I'm sure they'll fall over be fine Checked over the frost-bitten plants too - they may survive, so we'll see... Also, DH has built an arch, so now we can rescue the fallen-over climbing rose and let it climb/mow the lawn - hurrah!

Is it really Monday tomorrow - already? FFS. Oh well. Hope Fancy has got all her plants planted, and LetUs has all the clothes ironed, and Wicked is... (where is wicked)? and Apricot isn't being driven demented by MrA's remote DIY tutorials

I quite the sound of MrApricot’s DIY tutorials. I see a YouTube career beckoning.

All clothes are ironed. Allllllllll of them I think. Some possibly more than once.

That sounds an extra-productive day Helen

Well done to MiniHelen for getting a fair bit of schoolwork done. Some of DS2’s work is finding 10 songs with a specific topic, eg a colour in the title, a place name. I’m assisting by trying to shoehorn in as many Killers or Paella tracks as I can and saying “no, we have to watch the full video”. Devoted parenting

I'm here, just to lazy to post anything

I've planted about half of the plants & have worked out where the others are going, so am progressing. Slowly.

LetUs - I aspire to your levels of devoted parenting. DS has had to do something similar, but refuses to listen to any of my suggestions about music. FML.

Also, Porthos has been sent sort of DaddyLargeLake... twitter.com/MrHowardCharles/status/1262114676181053441

Sort OUT, not 'sort of'. FMTyping.

DS is still awake and DH has decided to stay in in his room and chatter away to him, because that will get him to sleep. Well that's fine. I'm going to the hayloft with Athos, via a hot shower. Also with Athos.

Don’t worry if you’re feeling a bit lazy Wicked, Kylo’s all about taking charge

I bet it’ll look beautiful Fancy

I threw in a football song to distract him Helen

Hayloft for me

Morning wenches.

Crikey I don’t feel quite with it this morning. Bit hangover like but without the headache and drinking.

Need to call at the supermarket on the way in for a few bits and also stuff for the parents.

Morning. all round, and matchsticks as necessary...

Went to feed chickens as usual this morning, accompanied by cats. Houdini barrelled out - not unusual. Inconvenient Cat made the point that their water was dry by drinking from the chicken's water, then headed off. Finished feeding/cleaning. Couldn't find Houdini - unusual. Gave up looking, fetched the recycling which I'd left by the door. Half a dozen steps out and there was a complete cacophony... from the house. WTF?! Thinks I. I went back in and found that Houdini was having an alarmed face-off with a bemused Inconvenient Cat, since she was stuck in the Utility room with the Cat in the doorway. Fortunately she was not that scared and I didn't have to clean up after her.

And now - work, home-school, take cakes out of oven, etc... hope that everywench has a agood day.

Morning
That was me yesterday letus - wonder if mine was mild hayfever? Or maybe I was just slowly losing the will to live as I was looking into home insurance renewals.......
It's looking lovely out there - gardening & a walk beckons. Just like every other day.

Has Houdini calmed down now helen?

Houdini calmed down greatly with a handful of bird food and being shut in the run... they've all produced eggs now, so she's doubtless rampaging around the garden again by now...
I need to find a good, free PDF editor for DS...

(I also need to look at car insurance... )

Evening.

Oh God what a day. I sold something on eBay last week which should have been picked up by the courier on Saturday but he never came. The tracking said it was delayed, wait 24 hours. Anyway it wasn't collected this morning so I looked at the tracking again and it said ' collection has been cancelled'. No it hasn't. I couldn't get through to them so had no choice but to take it to the parcel shop which was terrifying. No-one was keeping two metres apart.

Then I had a food delivery. Yay! I put the cupboard stuff on a table in the decontamination zone laundry, and then made the mistake of leaning on the table which fell over taking me with it and all the tins and packets fell on top of me. DH was there but couldn't get to me quickly enough. I shall be covered in bruises tomorrow.

at Porthos sorting out DaddyLargeLake.

Oh poor Houdini, she's too inquisitive for her own good.

Don't worry about being lazy WW, I feel like that all the time.

Hope it's hayfever LetUs and Fancy and nothing else.