The Bluestocking: it's the season of mulled wine, conversations about pineapple and, of course, gerbils. Confused? You will be...

[EdithStourton]

Welcome to the anarchic and marvellous women-only on-line pub, the Bluestocking. The booze won't give you a hangover, the cakes won't make you fat, and the conversations are fascinating, covering knitting, health and safety, the Muppets and anything else that comes to mind.

Climb Peak Woo, have a cuddle with Rosie the Red Panda, and watch out for capybaras busy with any necessary building works.

Welcome in (and name change at the door if you need too).

I love Mary Stewart - proper stories! Happy endings so safe to read when feeling down or overwhelmed (just like Georgette Heyer). I’m missing 2 though. All the rest have been free kindles or reduced price, but 2 are still @£5 on Amazon which feels a lot. Perhaps I should treat myself for Christmas?! (Avid reader of the Bluey, occasional popper-in).

Welcome @Bowednotbroken , agree about Mary Stewart as storyteller, but also very well informed on archaeology, botany, wildlife, literature, and able to drop detailed descriptions into a paragraph without it sounding like a school essay, but creating a closely-observed and recognisable scene.

to Cake and Boily about the nork-squashing.
They don't use the same method to check for testicular cancer, do they?😡

Sorry you're not well, Woley, I mean: Your Eminence, I hope it flares down again ASAP and you don't have to go on the dreaded steroids.
Pop in whenever you feel up to it, you can just sit comfortably in a corner and observe all the carry-on

I'm intrigued now, Transcapybara, formerly...?? Don't tell me, Pike😁
Welcome back, in that case.
The short form of your name is going to have to be Capy or something, isn't it? We can't go with just the first syllable😬

Sorry about the moths getting to a fave jumper, Myrtle . Knit tiny little interesting things and sew them on as creative additions??

I didn’t recognise the name, but looking at her wiki page I did read and enjoy Touch not the Cat, in one of the Readers Digest abridged versions which were part of my teenage reading.
I must have reread it since then as I think I can still remember the gist of the story.

The irony of legs is quite something as I've always had the sort of pins that make Ernie Wise look like Angela Rippon. 😂

Sorry, I'm sure I'm being dim but I haven't figured out how to do a partial quote, which is mad.

Thank you for the timely reminder. I remember It was on the first screening letter 3 years ago, along with pages of info quoting statistics. This time I got one sheet of paper with the appointment on, no additional info so I'd have forgotten and just shoved some on.

grrrrr, second time a post has appeared while still seemingly stuck in the box.

Thanks Dean!

It's amazing what you can turn up on Daily Motion. I don't know whether it makes a difference that I have my browser set to mind your own beeswax for everything.

Do you use the app or browser? Either way afaik the only way to do a partial quote is to c&p it the bit you want and then bold or italicise it. But it’s a pain in the app because first you need to use the Copy Text option from the menu with quote etc in it, and then delete the bits you don’t want.

@MarieDeGournay well as a hint, it was a cryptic reference to the dodgy paperwork organisation in the Allison Bailey tribunal.

Have you tried to find them secondhand on Abe Books? It's my go-to for older fiction and I can often find titles for well under a fiver including postage. I have a standing agreement with our daughter that if she has a new favourite author (this year it's Rumer Godden) if she puts the titles in her Amazon wishlist I will search out as many of them as I can find on Abe Books for her Christmas present. This year it was seven, plus a stray DVD (they don't pay the TV licence)

My sympathies on the moth holes, @MyrtleLion. Are you familiar with visible mending? (Oxfam link, example pictured) Planning ahead, I bought some tiny star patches from Amazon to cover up some little holes which haven’t appeared yet.

You could try Jess de Wahl’s patches (expensive, but you said it was an expensive jumper), or these BSO ones if you are feeling very bold.

I am rigorous about moth.

In the bin.

Can't afford for anything else to be eaten.

Fortunately I knit in acrylic and out carpets are synthetic. They are very comfortable and lovely, though. If you get moth in the carpets it's expensive and you have to fumigate.

Merci beaucoup!

@ErrolTheDragon 'it’s a pain in the app'

I assumed at first that this was a euphemism for PITA, & I thought how refined you are.😂

Just sending leurve to everyone who has done medical things (I've just done the diabetic eye screening too - all OK, yay) or has them coming up. May everything go well. And for anyone currently suffering, all the best & I hope you feel better soon.

You can freeze stuff to get rid of moth.

Re the nork-squashing. I had mine done a while ago by the jolly ladies in the mobile work-squashery that travels around the countryside and clutters up the car parks of small supermarkets etc.

'Oooh,' they said, as I bared all in the not-very-warm trailer. 'Yesterday it was all ladies with BIG boobs and today it's all been ladies with SMALL boobs. You'll really have to hitch yours up and forwards for us to get a decent image...'

Thank you. Thank you so much.

Has a decision been reached about who's switching on the Christmas lights tonight?

There's currently a rather vicious and underhand fight going on behind the bar... I'm drinking a G&T and can hear the outraged squeaking.

I've had a busy day and don't want to get involved.

Sounds as if Gosie is coming out the winner...

I'm a member of the double exposure brigade, @EdithStourton (as in, one of mine is so big it takes two goes to image the whole thing). Would you like to join my proposed communal nork agreement where they sort of average out?

I have a second interview on Friday 12 December so I don't really care who turns them on. But actually it should be Maud because of all the hard work she put in at Knotty & Pistey's house, helping with Swashy's blankets.

Alas Maud said she has other commitments this evening (she's lying, She's watching soaps lounging on the sofa)

She's happy for any of the other gerbils to do so in her place though. Maybe a raffle to choose which one gets to do it. She did stipulate that non of the swines who upped the price of "The Maud" be included in the raffle.

@Magpiecomplex it would be very helpful if norkage could be shared around, so yes, I'll join.

I only ever had a decent set when breastfeeding, when I did a good impression of Dolly Parton, and became aware of just how many men are obsessed by big tits.

And Gosie says, alright then, Maud can do them TONIGHT but she, Gosie, is doing them TOMORROW!

And very good luck for the 12th, Myrtle. Very VERY good luck.

Oh, look, there goes Gosie, like a streak of lightning to the 'LIGHTS ON/OFF' switch installed by the capybaras.
And... We have lights.
Sadly my camera isn't working - can anyone get a photo?