The Bluestocking women's Pub- spring is sprunging and MN's name generator can do one!

[lcakethereforeIam]

Welcome to the Bluestocking women's pub. Men are directed to the Staunch Ally just down the road. Otherwise all are welcome. Pull up a chair, give your order to the Wait Gerbil or the Gerbil behind the bar.

Don't forget to name change if you wish to.

One of my mother's favourite punishments when I was young was taking me to the haberdashery department in George Henry Lee (AKA John Lewis). Hours she'd spend in there! Hours. When she knew full well every minute felt like a day to me!

I had some g-f Lebkuchen a couple of Christmases a couple of years ago, but was disappointed. Perhaps it was the brand I got. They were't pretzels in the middle, though, more like heart-shaped small cinammon sponge cakes.

Me too. Preferably the authentic ones actually from Germany. Mr Magpie is of German extraction but doesn't like Lebkuchen or Pfeffernusse (which he calls Fffffs).

I could eat 10% of my bodyweight in lebkuchen, given the chance (I never have been).

And I wasn't hungry at dinner time and didn't eat enough, and now I'm starving.

Loved the Escher tractor. It would give the lads at the agricultural engineers a nice headache, underneath their bad mullets.

And Myrtle, I share your pain with the whole Ms/ Miss/ Mrs/ not taking his name palaver.

My mum used to have a friend who worked in the material section of John Lewis in Bristol. Oh, I loved going to visit her, I'd spend ages trying to find pins and odd bits of material on the floor while mum and her friend chatted. The huge bolts of various different fabrics fascinated me for some reason, especially when the friend would serve someone and roll out the fabric against rulers which were stuck to the end of the desks, then cut it with her massive scissors. Downstairs was the haberdashery department but it was never as fun as my granny's massive sewing box cause I got to use her buttons and other bits and bobs.

@Boiledbeetle iirc Golightly Goswift was cheated out of a medal in the triple scamper. One of her opponents was a rabbit with cropped ears and a tailplasty. Everyone had their suspicions at the time but it's believed Tunnocks had changed hands. The chair of the sport's ruling body stepped down over 8oz heavier*, shortly afterwards to 'spend more time with his family' and a veil was drawn over the whole affair.

I believe Golightly Goswift and the rabbit became good friends. She's a true sports gerbil and saw the rabbit as more sinned against than sinning.

*he actually crashed down, his body weight had more than doubled and the chair couldn't take it.

Yes, the rabbit was forced into it, raised to run from such a young age when all she really yearned for was to slowly hop round fields of carrots.

That was all down to a rogue talent scout, nicknamed General Woundwort, by the bunnies. The General would purposefully scout the smaller bunnies with gerbil like facial features.

It was a low point in the Golympic history.

The gerbils appear to have engaged a survey company.

I was awoken every five minutes last night by an earnest looking gerbil with a clipboard asking me to rate my quality of sleep out of 10.

Despite repeated attempts to explain they are supposed to wait until the morning I finally got to sleep after I locked her in the cellar at 4.15 this morning.I

I'll get Gwenda to go let her out.

That'll be young Gallup.

It makes me realise what a stabilising influence the Quokkas are. Next winter we should ask them to arrange things so that they are not all down under at the same time. They could extend their stays a little to compensate, but ensure there are always a few of them around every day so that the natural gerbil enthusiastic commitment to chaos is channeled constructively, and that their wilder figaries are kept in check.

Giant Wombat might extend her influence too, she's very wise, and aware that things can go wrong if people don't take care. Also that cheese improves our existence.

😂that's brilliant, Cake!
I was already laughing at your story of Golightly Goswift and the rabbit with cropped ears and a tailplasty 😁

Between Myrtle's Gosie and your Golightly Goswift, you have created two absolutely outstanding characters in gerbil-lit😃

Interesting about BTS - back from military service, aren't they? Elvis never recovered from his, so I fear for their careers.. and has army life taken the bloom off their pretty faces?

There was a drone light show over the river forming images of them all, he said, and that the public transport was absolutely rammed today with people heading to the concert. Who knows if they will be as good as before, but the fanbase is there!

He went to the zoo instead. He sent me photos of sleepy fennec foxes.

Have we had fennecs at the Bluey yet?

That's just made me snort my tea😁Very inelegant!

I also kept my name on marriage and frequently get addressed as Mrs (husband name) instead of Dr Random (or even Ms Random). At work I tend to use first and surname in email signature to limit how many assume I'm a man. A lot still assume a woman wouldn't do my job.

I've just noticed Taztoy on another thread - hello Taz, there's still a comfy chair for you in the Bluey - or outside the Bluey now the weather is getting nice
And speaking of absent friends - I often think of our dear Swashy and hope she's well and sailing through calm waters💙

It's a bit of a hostage to fortune to 'name check' Stockingers like that because it implies that I don't care about any others, so here's a 👋to anybody who hasn't popped in for a while, for whatever reason - you're always welcome.

Having lunch in my car - forgot the the local farm is hosting a ploughing exhibition today.

There are horses this year, but couldn’t get good pics.@

@WearyAuldWumman
The one thing better than watching a tractor at work is watching a horse team.

I haven't been to a ploughing match for about 50 years.

I discovered a packet of wildflower seeds that I was given as a freebie about a year ago.

Sowing time is now!

So, I have a patch of earth under the rowan tree but the Walrus says it doesn't get sunny.

Or I could sow them in a planter. I have two spare.

Do I dig a trough about 1-2 cm deep, sow and cover to protect them from the birds? Or do I scatter them and cover with broken eggshells? The Walrus will have 30 shells after breakfast tomorrow. (He makes six omelettes on Sundays for eating through the week.)

my advice before sowing wildflower seeds is check what’s in the mix. I’m still living with the consequences of being lured by red campion and herb Robert. Charming delicate flowers in a woodland or hedgerow, but invasive and prolific in a garden.

And of course for an idea of what conditions they like if they’re not thugs. Some need sunny well drained and poor soils, others don’t.

Have we had fennecs at the Bluey yet?
I think we have had Pasta - distant relatives of SionnachRua, you know..
but the gerbils never took to them, for some reason they felt that the Fennecs were always eavesdropping on their conversations...
😄

Re BTS-
...has army life taken the bloom off their pretty faces?
It would appear not

I arrived just as many of the farmers were going into the shop/café for their sandwiches.

Some of them were a good age. It's the first time in 17 years that anyone's called me 'lass'.

Cornflower, Corn Chamomile, Poppy and Corn Marigold. No grasses.

Ah, that sounds lovely but ones for sun not shade.

Thank you. So do I scatter on top and put down eggshells and hope the birds don't eat them (though at least they would be serving a purpose rather than wasting away in a packet), or cover them with compost?