The Bluestocking, where we look forward to good things happening, both soon and later.

[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 other interesting things. Any curious menfolk are welcome at the Staunch Ally down the road.

Previous thread: here.

Nice to be back from Paris, the gerbils were such good travelling companions! Though I did have to intervene diplomatically when Gendarme started firmly telling a gendarme - in surprisingly competent French - that his hat was All Wrong😬

The Gerbil Three are so brave and sensible, aren't they? I hope six seeds will be enough....

her hat...

I felt reassured by this section

“Did MyrtleLion go?” asked Marie.
“With a clipboard.”
“Then they will be fine,” Marie said.

I agree, Myrtle+clipboard and/or Edith+dogs could probably solve most of the world's problems!

Sorry for thinking the gendarme was a he, Myrtle - if she was a she, then her hat really was all wrong, Gendarme was absolutely right - instead of the képi, female gendarmes wear hideous hats with upturned brims instead of the képi, though I think on active duty they wear the same 'calot' [like a Glengarry] as the men.

Amusing typo: I wrote 'Sorry for thinking the genderarme was a he'😁

I'm wondering if Boily saw this on the previous thread?
In case she didn't, here it is again, credit where credit it due

Oh buggerit. We’ve got to go to the eye hospital in Manchester tomorrow for DH to have some tests. Plan was to get there in plenty of time, park and mosey around the nearby Whitworth Gallery or the Manchester Museum, and I could spend more time there while he’s being tested. Except I just found out they’re closed on Mondays, as are some of the other museums. The MSIM and Peoples history museum are open but a 40-45 min walk away (or half hour on the bus) on the other side of town.

Small comfort, but if he's asked to go back you'll know which day to avoid. 😥

It’s a one off there, hopefully, special kit - he’s been waiting for it for over a year! Still, forecast is dry which is a bonus for Manchester.😂

Oh, don't worry! I try very hard to eliminate all male characters and AI tries very hard to default to them.

Colin and Kevin slip in occasionally.

And Gendarme was convinced gendarmes wear berets because she wears a beret - c'est tres francais...

Hoping I've not jiggered my back.

Thought the new wifi/telephone thingy would go in the same place as the current one. According to the email I got from Openreach today, this is not necessarily the case - double socket needed.

Instructed to move furniture out of the way....

Have tried to figure out where in the house it might go. Some bits of furniture I cannot clear. Have freed up 4 areas and there's a possibility of a 5th, but I'm not convinced they'll do. Shall have to see in the morning.

Currently have the old telephone table sitting on top of another bit of furniture and my parents' "African Table" - no idea if it originates from there or not: they bought it with their flat in 1959 - shoved down the tother end of the living room . Thought my back was gong to go.

We shall see.

I wouldn't have bothered, but have been told i have no choice if I want to keep my landline.

Also, I keep finding loose cables wot I do not understand.

They were tucked behind the furniture. Summat to do with the speakers that DH changed at one point, I think. I'm past caring.

I completely missed transport to the new thread! I suspect it isn’t one of the services Emirates offer.

We are safely in Australia, though dh had almost completely lost the ability to sleep ( no more than an hour on each flight, a few during the layover and 3.5 last night) - hopefully a gentle day and an early night will set him straight. Jet lag and lack of sleep have sent him into a worry spiral so I had to do a lot of reassuring at midnight to convince him we will manage to cope for the next two weeks.

Glad you got there ok, Woley! I'm having another difficult time sleeping again, so was also up absurdly early. Early night tonight for me as well.

10 acres of land, with a bluebell woodland, a chalk stream, an orchard, and a wildflower meadow sounds perfect. I'll be moving in next plot over, kids! <sigh>

I do hope that after your labours they can sort out your telephony, @WearyAuldWummanand your back is ok.

Glad you’re safely in Oz, Woley - hopefully if he can get a dose of sunshine MrWolef’s clock will reset and he can get some proper sleep tonight.

Who else isn’t here yet?
@Boiledbeetle
@swashbuckled
@fuzzypuffling
@hedgehogforshort
@ChristmasStars

Do you remember several threads ago that there was an island for sale and we all walked round it on Google, and some of us worked out how much we'd have to contribute to fund its purchase?

Now it looks as if we need to find a farm for sale, with lots of woods and streams, as so far three 10-acre plots have gone, Magpie is checking out the availability of trees for cider apples, I'm planning sheep and Angle is probably calculating what weight of seeds per hectare she needs to get a wildflower meadow going.

Woley, good to know that you have arrived in Australia. I found the jetlag an absolute sod, the worst I have ever experienced - it took my system about 3 days to sort itself out.

Hello! Thanks for thinking of me. Life outside the BS has been a bit busy so I've not been able to keep up with much and have dropped a few balls generally. Hoping that things will slow down a bit now. Sorry I missed the move to the new place!

I'm up for a farm. We need chickens and maybe some alpacas for the yarnie people in the pub.

Oof yeah the jetlag can be murder (but it isn't always, so fingers crossed for you @SDTGisAnEvilWolefGenius !).

My worst jetlag lasted nearly a week last time I did the trip to Aus - alas, that was on my honeymoon... 😴😆

Still waiting for phone chap.

Did a bin run. Didn't put on trainers properly.

Spotted humungous slug on path. "Oh. Better not step on that. Hope he's away before the phone engineer arrives."
Stepped out of one trainer. Fell down on path. Did a spectacular twist and turn worthy of Robin Cousins and avoided the slug.

Have changed out of damp clothes. Have sore bits. Now drinking coffee.

For my next trick...

Hi all i have been buy IRL and what time i have is being spent in the SP court.

off to do some gardens in a bit

Oh Weary, this morning is being a real trial, poor you!
I hope the day improves.
I'm slightly fond of slugs - yes they are yukkie, but if you look closely, they have rather sweet little faces - so I'm happy for the slug and there must be a bit of good karma going around for having so carefully spared its life.
On the more cynical side - they are yukkie and slimy and if you hadn't so carefully and nobly avoided it, you would probably have slipped on it and fallen with a thump, so either way, Save The Slug was the Right Side of History

Delighted you've arrived safely, Woley! Let the adventure begin!
Poor DH, [and you] fretting about lack of sleep - that's so self-reinforcing, isn't it?
I hope some kind of short-circuit of the worry happens, whether he is just so exhausted he falls asleep, or he comes up with some trick like a pattern of breathing which focuses the mind on something other than the fact that he's still awake. Or counting wombats or something...

Hello Hedgey, and Stars, and everybody forced to spend more time in the world outside the Bluey👋

I like the idea of adjacent plots of land. I need a small wood with an orchard section so I can have free range pigs alongside my existing poultry. There must be a stream with a pond so I can sit on a rock and watch dragonflies in the summer. I will be industrious in keeping Himalayan balsam out and only have native trees and plants to best support the wildlife.

My ginger pigs will be for companionship only, not for slaughter. I like scratching pigs behind the ears. They are nice beasts.

Poor Weary! Have a nice restorative cup of tea/coffee/chocolate and a chocolate biscuit.

Hope jetlag isn't too awful, Woley. Sorry about the museum closures in Mondays, Errol. I remember liking the Manchester galleries very much last time I was there.

I have booked MsPastaJnr and I a treat for next summer and it's put a real spring in her step. We're going to see a theatre production we both love.

In the true spirit of MN, does anyone know where a pencil longer than 1.5 inches and with an unbroken lead might be in my house? And a pencil sharpener?

I suppose I could pop round to the post office and buy the necessary. Unless they've sold out because it's September.

Sending arnica to Weary, camomile to Woley's DH and a supply of invective to Errol.

They are nice beasts.

They can be vicious (I have seen the aftermath). But also cute. My walks sometimes take me past a paddock with a pet pig in it, who is very partial to acorns.