The Bluestocking: home of the ice-cold Mojito foot-bath

[MarieDeGournay]

Welcome all to the Bluestocking Women's Pub, where food and drink are free as in gluten free, calorie free, alcohol free - but still delicious. And free free too, of course.
Served by highly professional staff who are gerbils.

The Bluestocking Ice-Cold Mojito Foot-bath kept us deliciously cool through the heatwave. Come and join us, in case there's another one🌞

I've stopped giving blood since taking BP medication too. I felt a bit guilty as I'm O- like Mr Magpie and it is one of the universal donor types. I wonder if we have common ancestors in the dim and distant 😁

I've tried to give blood several times. I've either been rejected for having sex with someone from one of the listed countries, or having had a tattoo or piercing within the last however long.thevtines I've managed to pass the questions, my blood has floated instead of sunk (or the other way round, I can't remember what it should do) so they never want my blood. My sister, golden girl, has given blood hundreds of times but recently they've ended up cancelling the blood drives near her and making them 45mons drive away, like a previous poster said.

DH has spells of giving blood every month. We live near a transfusion centre next to a very big hospital, so when he goes they do something clever which takes what they need out of his blood and puts the rest back in. You can tell I’m not a scientist, can’t you?

A while ago he was turned away because something was too low, but after taking iron tablets he’s started again.

Lots of research trials happen at the hospital. I think they are pleased when fit people retire because they/we then have time to be involved with these things. They tried to get me to do some liver research, (having given me a liver biopsy before asking, I can’t think of any other reason why they would as I’d had the same liver condition for years and there is some risk attached to it) to which I happily agreed until I read that it would involve at least one MRI. They didn’t tell me that at the initial explanation of the trial, I just found it in the paperwork I was sent home with before it began.

I did a gut health trial over 30 years ago which involved drinking yoghurty things which were delivered to me at home. It must have been an early test of pre/probiotic drinks which are common now.

DH is also involved in some research which involves (MRI) brain scans. He’s soon going to have a day trip to Brighton to have one there, so that they can compare the results from different machines. Or something. I think he enjoys it.

I've given blood once. Ever since then, my blood has floated and they've refused it.

I'm thinking I should do a Tony Hancock and ask to make a withdrawal.

I used to give blood a lot more regularly but peri has buggered it up a bit. If I’m on I usually fail the blood test, & nowadays I never know when I’m going to be on 🙄.

I can't remember what the markers are ( that they test for compatibility) but some seemed quite random, like CMV ( cytomegalovirus) positive or negative.
Obviously not random...these clever people know what they are doing!

Lots of people have donors from Germany, who seem very clued up as a nation, and have loads of donors. We could learn a lot from them.

Oh fuck.

A chunk’s come off the crown on one of my front teeth & it had to happen on a day when I’ve come into the office for lots of meetings.

Still, it lasted 30 years & I have an NHS dentist round the corner from home. Hopefully if I phone at 9am they’ll be able to fit me in tomorrow,

And thinking about it, if anyone’s going to have a tooth problem I’d far rather it was me than Kitty. Simpler & probably cheaper, although still fucking annoying.

It does feel weird that the blood groups don't have to match, I agree, but it's the HLA (human leukocytes antigen) types that need to match. In some cases there can be problems early on when there a both populations of erythrocytes around and the patient might require transfusions at that point.

DH had some trouble with chimerism, where both his and donor cells had a bit of a scrap for supremacy. He needed 4 top ups of donor cells over the 6 months following transplant.
I found it all really interesting on a science level, as well as a personal one.

Bad luck, Empress. It would be wonderful if we could all grow a new set of teeth in our 40s, having learned by that stage the error of our ways of too much sugar, inadequate brushing and no flossing.

Mind you, I'm sure dentists would find a way of making £££ out of it. A whole new field of middle-aged orthodontics.

There was a glassblower at the university where I did my PhD whose wife and daughter both grew a third set of teeth. I can't remember the details, I think it actually shortened the lifespan of the first set of adult teeth but if they would come in as required and only when you loose an adult tooth that would be so useful.

And also avoiding mechanical damage - that’s what did for one of DHs and two of mine while the rest are ok. Dinghy boom, pork crackling are among the hazards.

Morning all, a very good morning for me because, to quote The Monkees [and why not?😃]
I could fly 'neath the wings
Of the bluebird as she sings
The six o'clock alarm would never ring

It didn't for the first time in aaaages a week, because yes! the work on the house is finished, the lads have gone [leaving the place immaculate] and I have my space to myself again!🍾

Angle - thank you for the good house-wishes and I return them to you for your house decision.
If you have a good builder you already know, and the time to wait while the work is ongoing, getting a house that's structurally sound but needs a lot of work is do-able I think.
But if you have to start from scratch, identifying builders, getting recommendations, getting quotes, waiting for them to be available...🤔
But you're not a newcomer to house renovs, I gather, so.. tricky one, wishing you luck with the decision!

Hopefully Capability Capybara and her team will have recovered from the trauma of Brazil being knocked out of the world cup in time to come and help with the work🙂

I tried to donate blood once, had had flu too close to the date, and developed health problems later so I never did donate. Big👏to those who have/do.

There's a condition called Haemochromatosis which is one of the genetic conditions that affect Irish people disproportionately - cystic fibrosis being another.
It's nicknamed the 'Celtic Curse' as 1 in 5 Irish people carry the gene which causes it.
The treatment for it is regular removal of blood = donating blood, which people with HH can do as many as 4 times a year. An unusual win-win where the treatment for one medical condition helps so many other medical conditions

My 6.30 alarm went off as normal today despite having the day off - junior Master Magpie needed a lift to school. So I've already achieved most of today's to-do list and can now concentrate on some serious vegetating.

A wholemeal roll did for one of mine 🙄

Marie, I know from experience how wonderful it is when workmen, however lovely, finally finish and disappear. And you're lucky they left it spotless. I recall hearing a conversation between a chippie and a plumber about what total animals they considered sparkies to be - 'Yeah, they drill into the wall and scatter shit everywhere and just leave it, they never sweep up. How about you put a cloth down, mate, like a civilised human being? I kneel down and there's a bloody big lump of wall digging into my kneecap because Sparks don't know how what a brush is, tell you, I was on site once and come first fix there was....'

But in fairness, our current sparky is much better than most, and takes his boots off at the door without being asked. He's also very quiet, whereas our plumber can be heard swearing in whatever distant part of the house he's in.

Good morning everyone! Thanks for all the good house advice. I shall be out in the garden all day, Getting Things Done, so shall have loads of time to think. At the moment, the sun is shining, I'm feeling positive, and I think it's all doable. But, little niggle in the back of my mind is: You want the house because of the garden, the (possible) apple tree, and because you are tired of looking, don't you? So, must do pros and cons list.

Thanks to Marie, and I'm glad you've got your house back! It's a lovely feeling isn't it?? I have a few people I would use, but the main contractor will need to be found, so quotes, yes. The ones I used before were from more than 15 years ago, and I think he's retired now. I'll need one who works closer to the Big City. So that's a consideration.

Ouch, sorry about your poor tooth, Kitty. Hope you can get it fixed soon!

The science talk has lost me completely! But I have very low blood pressure, and so I tend to faint if I give blood. And after all the procedures I went through during cancer treatment, it's just not a good idea to risk it - I do get very panicky still. (won't go into details, but why do they insist on doing procedures with only a local?) "Next time" I'm going to insist on a general for everything, no matter the risks.

Enough of that! HAGADAPA!

There is a man in a mini digger outside my living room window.

Bastards turned up yesterday to lay new broadband along the whole road. No one knew they were coming. Turns out there is one very small sign on a lamp post a great distance from where the work is happening.

I currently cannot leave via the front of my house due to the massive hole in front of my front door and window.

Luckily the shopping turned up before the hole did.

I fully expect them to damage my broadband at some point today.

Aghhhhhhhh!

And breathe and relax. Breathe and relax.

But at least I haven't got toothache or insect bites so it's not all bad!

Got an appointment with my NHS dentist tomorrow afternoon so that’s a relief.

All my other teeth are rock solid - no fillings, nothing. I managed to fall on my face & crack this one back in the 90s, getting a beautiful black eye in the process.

I was working as a reporter at the time so it made interviews interesting for a few days.

Boily, you’ve got to ask him if you can have a go.

Later today.........

There's a sticker on the side of the mini digger (I know this as it's so very very close to my window.)

The sticker reads "Dream big little one"

😍

😘 I'm a danger to myself and everyone around when left in charge of machinery. I don't think my neighbours would appreciate me arriving on their sofa by crashing through their front wall!

I used to be a plasma donor, when I lived in Manchester - it was great - I could give every month, and you lay there on a lovely, contoured couch, whilst your blood was taken out and spun, to extract the red blood cells, and then they were transfused back in, whilst the plasma was taken away. Interestingly, I was told that, because I was on the pill, my plasma would be greenish, not straw coloured - and it was!

I have started doing an embroidery, for ds2 and his fiancee, to celebrate their wedding. I did one for ds1 and his wife - it's dutch tiles in blackwork embroidery, with their names, wedding date and place in the centre. And it is giving my rotator cuff a bit of a rest - all the knitting I've done recently has flared it up and made it very painful.

I am sorry to hear about your tooth, @EmpressaurusKitty - that is a real embuggerance.

Those dresses are lovely @SDTGisAnEvilWolefGenius.

I need to have a go at blackwork. I'm not too bad at plain sewing, but I'm not sure I'm neat enough for embroidery.

Blackwork would be perfect for you, @Chersfrozenface - it's just backstitch. I would love to be able to embroider properly, but when I've tried, it looks like a 4 year old did it!

Thank you for the compliment on the dresses - we are going to take them with us this weekend, and I hope they will fit. At some point - maybe when there isn't a heatwave - I'm sure I'll get pictures of them in the dresses, but probably not this weekend - woolly dresses might be a bit much!