The Bluestocking, a unique location for daughters and sisters of earth, frost, feathers, fur, scales and spines

[AsWithGlad]

Welcome to The Bluestocking, the best (perhaps only) online women's pub. Nothing in the food or drink can harm you, everything is served by a very enthusiastic crew of gerbils, who enjoy doing this, and any curious menfolk are welcome at the Staunch Ally down the road.

Previous thread: https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/feminism/5568996-the-bluestocking-pub-where-we-continue-to-read-about-gerbils-nobly-and-bravely-working-undercover-in-the-fen?page=1

I’ve just looked up tilth. Why is the roller good for it, Edith?

The photos are lovely, Kitty and I'm glad you've had some good weather today.

I was watching King Harald's funeral earlier and it all looked very calm and dignified. The backdrop of Oslo, especially the castle area, looked quite beautiful.

I'm so pleased Gubbins has found fame with her triangle. She looked very calm and dignified too! 😁

I was taught about machinery by someone with a strong local accent. It took me a while to work out that a paar arra was a power harrow.

He made the mistake of not reading the class profile before teaching us, and singled me out for the instructional "doing something mucky but harmless to a tractor" activity, quite obviously thinking I'd get a bit precious about breaking a nail or summat. He should have read the class profile and realised that the chemistry degree holding mum of two small children was absolutely not going to get precious about changing the dust filter on a tractor.

It breaks the big clumps of soil down even more than the disc harrows. It also leaves long, shallow, slightly rounded ridges, which apparently reduce erosion - I suppose because the wind blows the dust down into the dips between the ridges, rather than chasing it all the way across the field.

One of the many things I enjoy about this pub is the ability of its wise patrons to tie several specifically Bluestocking ideas together, and the dry sense of humour.

Example from Marie
Audiences around the world were thrilled, until they realised that she wasn't just bringing it to the concert platform, she was going to play it as well😬

Thank you also for the photo of the sign, and of Gubbins on her stage, Kitty.

Currently 3 hours delay but it's been changing back and forth regularly.

Good luck.

My Trusty Steed is doing a fine job of taking me around the airport and the PastasVarious are enjoying the queue jumping of having an Assistance Coordinator sorting us out. It's the first time at an airport with my own wheelchair, and I am hoping she fares well in the hold.

I've rectified the parlous Not Enough Books holiday packing by buying three at the airport (one sci-fi, one fantasy, one crime) that should be ok to be passed around between several of us.

Kitty, I think Bergen looks wonderful. Rest up your legs, though.

Lovely to see the photos and hear about your holiday @EmpressaurusKitty

I did love Bergen - we spent about a week there, but one of those days was the Flåm trip and one was just swimming and sauna in the outdoor heated sea pool.

@EmpressaurusKitty Sorry if you already said this but are you on a tour/organised holiday or are you making your own way around Norway? I just sent my Dad the trilogy recommendation and told him some places you have been. I'm sure he's feeling a bit envious but sadly I don't think there will be any more holidays to Norway in his future. It's too much for him now as he struggles to walk very far. The last time he went, I think they did a cruise which followed the postal route along the Norwegian coast, but he didn't really get off the boat due to his mobility. He still managed to take some stunning photos though.

That sounds nice, @ChristmasStars. I’ve only had one day in Bergen during a cruise a couple of years ago, which was very enjoyable and we only had slight drizzle.
I think Norway is the only place we’d want to do a cruise - stunning scenery as you go whether on or off the boat - but interested in hearing about the more land based options too.

Feeling very tired here in deepest Mid-Wales after a couple of very poor nights, but one thing that cheered me up today was my own bit of wildlife-watching.The pyracantha bush in the corner between our front porch and the kitchen window is getting really rather big and is smothered with berries this year, Today's entertainment while working at or near the sink has been twice catching sight of a young and very energetic male blackbird perching on a twig and vigorously feasting on this year's harvest. Talk about a fast food joint.... 😁

I feel the same @ErrolTheDragon - only place I would want to do a cruise.

Meanwhile we’ve been chilling with dinner bought from nearby M&S and tv in the hotel. We’ve a bad habit of bingeing streamed series at home so it was rather nice to have half an episode of Star Trek voyager followed by one of Next Generation and then bbc4 Dan Snow recreating Powell’s Grand Canyon expedition in wooden boats. Back in about 1990 when we lived in the US we did the trip - but in big rafts with powerful engines and good crew driving not us rowing! Still an adventure of a lifetime though.

Not opened either of the books I brought with me yet

Sadly the one and only time it's within reasonable travel distance to us is the exact time we're in the UK for the month of October. Ah well.

Portland Stage Company is also staging a production of Tom Stoppard's "Arcadia", which I last saw when it was first produced at the National Theatre in London and loved - and that's on in October too.

Wait what! You have decided to leave the beauty of the New England Fall in order to experience the greyest month that the UK has to offer! Your money, your choice.

I know, I know! But that was the month we could manage to get away. And the end of September is often glorious too.

Pyra-fucking-cantha I hate the beast of a plant with its evil spikes.

as a professional gardener I can speak of injuries from the bloody things.

just ignore my rant @AsWithGlad

🫢

@RumNotRun I used Norway in a Nutshell on
https://www.fjordtours.com/en . You pick options & it builds you a personalised tour. I decided I wanted 2 nights in Bergen & to have a 2nd night in Oslo rather than going straight to the airport & it factored that in, then a month before the trip it sent me an email with all the tickets & timings.

There’s the option of it booking hotels too, but I preferred to do that myself.

If I were in Bergen for a week then I’d have day trips & go up on the funicular. I’m about ready to get home to Kitty now though!

I saw cruise ships parked at Oslo & Flåm - I had no idea how bloody huge the things were.

I value your rant, Hedgie.

Was it perhaps Not you meant to mention instead, as she had written warmly about the fierce plant's generosity of berries?

Yes but you are the controller lol sorry not too

Any chance of your seeing it while you’re here, Chickadee?

Pasta, my Barcelona song is Hotel California because on my long weekend there a few years ago, the first and last thing I did was to go up to the Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya, the first time to sit outside & celebrate my arrival with a glass of wine & the last time to enjoy the view from the roof. Both times a busker was playing Hotel California on his guitar.

Will you be anywhere near Norwich, Halifax or High Wycombe, @Chickadeeinme? You could watch Operation Mincemeat nearer where it happened. I don't recommend seeing it in Cambridge, though, as when it says "limited availability" it means 2 seats remain for the entire week's run.
(You could possibly meet a Bluestocking patron or two, though)

Or Covent Garden in London?

Thanks @@AsWithGlad - I will be within easy reach of High Wycombe between October 17th and 22nd.

That’s not going to work ☹️.

operationmincemeat.com/tour/uk/