Val's Cafe

bosh

Hi Toni

how are you this afternoon?

it’s slightly milder here, is that the case for you too?

I’m not queasy at the moment thanks,

something horrible - smelling was cooked yesterday. I thought it was fish but it wasn’t maybe some combination of spices that’s not normally used by my mum anyway and a nasty smell was around and I’m not talking about dad for once haha, but luckily it wasn’t anything I had to eat myself thank goodness.

Nice beans on toast breakfast there by the way I’ve already had a lot of fibre today so I think I’ll just consume it virtually

Mum is doing okay today thanks as far as I know

it’s the arguments she has with dad which gets her really stressed and I can understand that, he’s going on about all sorts of silly things, just trying to get attention, he even said he’ll eat a whole packet of mince pies after the expiry date because that’s what his life amounts to the food that’s gone bad

I don’t know if he’ll really do it but I’ve tried I’ve stopped trying to tell him how dangerous and stupid this is He’s very much an adulk as LA would say and if he wants to do silly things I can’t stop him. Maybe it’s just be a threat. He likes to threaten us in this way, but anyway mum is right in that respect we just need to kind of let him get on with it and he will learn a lesson in one of these days

also, to be honest, even though he has experienced real poverty in the past isn’t it’s never been the case where he was starving or homeless so I think really that is very wrong when he says these types of things

sorry I think it will be instalments today

bye for now Toni tc xx

ps pic is of one on ETLB’s pals helping out with noise control of toady’s new neighbours lol

Skinny Keef

Back at pool with Hooli and then home to make apple crumble.

we had great fun with the new water filter I bought this morning. Who knew such simple things could be so much fun for a 3 yo. It’s not even for drinking it’s for the bunker humidifier as apparently it removes the limescale and i am fed up of buying pure water every day.

toady

Hi all 👋

Is it just me or is there something tiring about today, am half asleep, had a good night too 🤷‍♀️. Luckily nothing to do really well except go round & secure everything once again against storm Isha, all looking forward to that are we 🙄 my bin's not going over this time at any rate, have dragged it round to safety. Hope things ok with you frog, sorry you may be, well are, a bit anaemic, in which case you should feel better for some iron and yes some iron-y foods too. Do you ask for your tests results printed off or do you get them by some new fangled means. Do hope you can see nice Dr ok and get the kidney side of things sorted too. Fancy not doing your inflammatory markers though 🤔. The food waste ad, I will just say it's comic with a serious message and as that means a punchline sort of I won't say more - not brilliantly clever maybe but quite funny 😄 whether the serious message will get over as well as with another type of approach, not sure. I have taken the herrings off the shopping list, thank you, but can you have too many doughnuts 😄. I'm afraid even Sleek will not get my birthday out of me 🤐 she will have to pick another suitable 'occasion' for my surprise onesie 👍️. How lovely to see all the ducks and moorhens but not in those circumstances of course, oh dear, hopefully the freeze will be shortlived now. Not toooo much rain though pleeeease 😫. Have a good Sunday, quiet seems unlikely, but as good as poss :) xx

Hello joan, you had a 'shepherd's warning' sky then 🤔🐑 it has been quite pink here a few evenings but the mornings I'm probably not taking much notice of. Rain on the way for sure hopefully not too heavy and at least dry again after thankfully. Hope the storm doesn't affect you. I read again about Royal Mail wanting not to deliver Saturdays, then it will be 4 days a week I expect etc, I think the end is nigh for post deliveries as we know them 😔. I have to change my broadband which is a nuisance so complicated looking at all the small print 🙄. Have a good Sunday love to Sue and the dear dogs :) xx

Hi bosh, lovely cat 😍 just what you need this cold weather. As well as some of toady's special tea 😂 great poem, icicles in your W****bix indeed, bad times 😫. Hope the temps not so variable at yours today so you know if you need thermal socks or summer dresses or 6 jumpers. Glad you don't find all sleeves too itchy, surprising sometimes what does feel irritating even if it's a nice fabric, something soft but hairy can still be a bit prickly feeling. Hopefully nothing too noxious cooking either. Mince pies, well your dad could pick something worse I'm sure they're the sort of thing that wouldn't hurt unless really madly out of date, but yes just the attitude behind that is one more thing that doesn't help matters, there's a limit as you say to what you can do. Have a good afternoon/evening hope all EF are ok, and the erstwhile young plotters are not hoarding up too much secret gunpowder in their lunchboxes 😱 we must all remain on ookey alert. Btw meant to say I love 'cold as a vampire nurse's soul' 😂 xx

Sorry you had such a bad head keef it must have been a great relief to find yourself heading for the bunker = must feel better. Hope it was the car, insofar as it shouldn't be as bad again because that's the reason. What's with bad backs among you & your fellow colleagues, is there such a thing as motorcyclist's spine 🤔 or was there a fair bit of standing involved too at times. Glad everyone ok at the moment I am struggling to see the appeal of the water filter but if it amuses Sucré for 5 mins and saves forking out for water then win/win 😊. Have a better night I hope and that you get even a half decent bit of weather soon for a ride 🤞:) xx

Hello @Charlestown welcome to the cafe 😊 tea or coffee? Sorry about the relatively recent inflammatory arthritis diagnosis, hope that whatever you are doing for it at the moment is helping. I need to put weight on 💀 so I'm not much use to you there I'm afraid! All the best & take care in the upcoming stormy weather hope not too severe where you are. xx

Love to all 😘 xx

Skinny Keef

Toady, you know kids and anything that involves pouring water from one container to another. We refilled all of my 5 litre water containers (3) bit by bit.

bosh

Hi again Toni

glad you liked the poem 👍

The Hungarian dish sounds interesting. What are the main ingredients?

Sleek helped you with the socks, that’s great 😂

It’s a good job that I wasn’t the helper. My knitting skills are non-existent I am afraid.

Well I guess your idea is one way of layering lol

also I could eat an ice lolly in one room and drink piping hot sugary cheesy tea in the other? Oh no, I think I’ll let LA enjoy his sweet savoury beverage in solitude haha

Yes the cakes are nice thanks, not sure what’s in them just found a “random” image as they say

yes I agree, Lorenzo is a very bad influence especially given he’s just 5

my sis said that on the day Lorenzo had football and LA was in the after school club without him, he was very well behaved and even helped tidy up, so he’s being good when L isn’t there.

He said today to me in French that’s he’s 5, but I had to pretend that I didn’t know any French and that he perhaps was teaching me lol, as then he said, “You didn’t know what that means, mima”, oh dear this does seem like Vulcan mind control to me, I wonder if bill uses this method with this physio, “ I ate a monster - sized pizza today, mr, physio, very high glycemic index, you don’t know that means”, how very scary, how many minds are being controlled at this very moment I wonder? Haha.

I hope the doc will be back for 8th Feb 🤗

have a nice evening Toni tc xx

ps Sesame Street muppet macarons xx

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Skinny Keef

Yes. UK based these days. Used to winter in Spain but last few years just been UK.

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bosh

Hi toady

I am more than cream crackered here to be honest

i know what you mean about fabrics

for most of my life my eczema was so bad I couldn’t even wear scarves or wear my hair down when it got a bit Rapunzel - ish.

I still have to be careful with certain types of gloves

Thanks about the “cold as the…soul” description lol

gunpowder in the lunchboxes - oh dear and I thought it was just crushed peppercorns 😂

The thing is with the mince pies is that most likely my dad will eat the whole packet, not just one or two, plus he has a heart condition, but I can’t really get too involved with it now, ill let him do what he wants

im on the verge of sleep 💤

so good night toady tc

👋 SK glad you had a fun time with Sucre have a good night tc x

👋Charlestown nice to meet you, I’m called Reshmi, I’ll try and get an early night, have a good night yourself tc xx

ps pic of an introverted Kermit for you lol xx

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Skinny Keef

Just put new strings on my 2 main guitars ready for mon - wed next week when I’m on my own and will be music music music if I feel well enuff.

independence day - good film 👍

Skinny Keef

I’m do miss Spain but I wouldn’t make the trip on the bike now, too far. I have my little boy now and I would miss him too much to go away for that amount of time. 3 days is bad enough.

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Skinny Keef

No not any more. I have too much pain and I wouldn’t be reliable enough as I suffer with debilitating headaches due to degradation of my neck spine that can strike at any time, yesterday being a prime example, it’s still bubbling away now threatening to come back and when they strike all i can do is lie still and hope it goes away, not much fun.

Ive been very lucky and played in all sorts of bands from full orchestras to 3 piece blues bands, thanks to my dad who got me started at a young age.

Took me a long time to realise playing at home for ones own pleasure is infinitely better than not playing at all, but I really miss performing and definitely miss the crowd/audience.

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frogmorton

Morning Joan hope you are both doing ok. All well here a bit warmer i think although there is a storm on it's way again I think over the next 24 hours🙄 they seem almost constant these days don't they? Yes my friend is doing well even though she doesn't believe it. Thank God for her dogs they ahve kept her going. Take care ((())) xxx

Morning @Charlestown I love your username. You are so welcome here in the café we are all a little bit mad. We just chat mostly and check in on each other. Try to find silly pics or stories to entertain each other. If there are any abbreviations you don't understand please do shout we'll explain.

A tiny bit of history for you 'Val's Café ' was started by a member called @valval who had the idea probably about 15 years ago. I think I may have been one of the first 'through the door' back then the forum was extremely lively with us all using smilies to liven up our posts. Unfortunately Val died of cancer and since then this poor little café has lost two other 'regulars' @bubbles and @Mike1 Bubbles (Aidan) to a heart attack 4 years ago and Mike more recently to cancer.

Sleek is my cat. Erm...ask about anything confusing we know we are and if you miss a day or more calling in please don't feel like you need to read every post since you last called in.

Where are you based? I am UK Staffordshire.

Last night we watched a comedy series Cradle to the grave with Peter Kay based in the 70s. We found it on ITVx

I hope you'll enjoy popping in when you can just to chat and hopefully find something to make you smile.

Morning Skinny K

Hope you are ok and will be super careful out on your bike if storm Isha is very blowy. It will do you good to be back out on it though visiting Sucré and your Mum. Penelope did not get her bath yesterday as the rain came sooner than i expected. It's an Aguri? P40 I think should have been P20 but they upgraded us.

For Charlestown this is my car Penelope:

I bet Anda loves her car if it's all blinged up with JCW parts.

Interesting an old colleague also has back issues makes you wonder if the job was too hard on your joints doesn't it? Glad you saw him though I bet he was pleased to see you.

Good that the bunker survived the cold weather and 'neglect' by you it will be warmer this week (and wetter) so you should get more time out there.

take care.

Morning Reshmi Glad to here your Mum is well. How about you though today?

I agree dodge some beans if you can if you had a lot of fibre. Virtually is fine! I had loads yesterday too including kidney beans as they have iron in them. I am like Popeye now super strong.

Your Dad - what a rebel! Imagine eating out of date mince pies😂 honestly he does like to gain attention doesn't he in any way he can.

Your Mum is so right - let him get on with it if he makes himself ill eating out of date food you at least won't catch it. It really sounds much like attention seeking of a child even if he is an adulk really. Well supposedly. He probably suffered similar poverty to my own Dad. Not starving, but very very tough times.

Glad you didn't have to eat the smelly food. My cabbage smell in the kitchen has finally gone now thank goodness.

the Hungarian dish is so so so simple, caramelised onions and cabbage (diced) and homemade pasta squares. It's Hungarian peasant food really, but we all love it.

Awww is ETLB going to let Toady have that elephant to keep the noise down permanently next door? That was a funny pic.

You take care ((()))

Morning Toady hope you are well today?

It rained Yesterday it rained🙄 I knew it! Yes i was tired possibly due to the anaemia? Less than 6 it was. With a less than sign in front. I found the results on the NHS app on my phone. Kari told me it was possible and I'm glad because forewarned is forearmed. Have ordered me some iron tablets which are arriving today. Yum-eeee! Not because they will give me the two-bob-bits�Oh yes and you can't have them within an hour either side of a cuppa due to the tannins!

It was lovely that the ducks and moorhens came up to us on the ice for their food, but I also located a catapult so we can fire food near them when the weather prevents us from getting down to them. The sides of one pond are quite steep.

To be fair no-one can have too many doughnuts can they? so we can both have them on our list. Actually mine came yesterday every single thing was there! How great is that? No subs. Sleek will be on her way soon with some treats I think jammie dodgers maybe.

Right let's batten down the hatches grab one of Reshmi's macaroons and a cuppa and keep warm😊 Storm Isha do your worst😣Take care!

Breakfast:

bosh

Good morning everyone wppl xx

dachshund

Good morning everyone

Kitty (()) love to everyone take care.

Toady (()) Have a good day. We have Virgin Broadband if there’s a problem you just switch the plug off and on and that puts it right. Take care if you go out.

Barbara (()) love to you and Mr B (()) and your son (()) and Niamh (()) and your niece (()) and her fiancé (())

Toni (()) have a good day go carefully if you have to go out. It’s good your friend has the yorkies. I know a lady who’s husband died her neighbour’s wouldn’t speak to her they didn’t know what to say. Love to Paul (()) and Charley (()) and Annie (()) and Lucy (()) and Tia (()) and Kari (()) and your friend (()) and your lovely neighbours (())

Reshmi (()) isn’t your Dad worried about food poisoning. Sorry to say he seems a misery to live with. Have a good day and your mum (())

Keef (()) have a good day you have good memories of all you have done. Love to Sucr’e (()) and Loanda (())

Charlestown (()) Where do you live to have snow like that. I live with my sister and our dogs in Wiltshire. Have a good day.

Skinny Keef

Anda loves that Wonderland cup photo Reshmi. Right up her street.

toady

Hi folks 👋

Wind blowing up now but nothing as bad as the forecast for this time of day, no rain yet; probably won't be saying that in an hour or two. Hope not too bad at yours frog 🤞and you don't have to go out in it. Great idea the catapult for the bird food, might look interesting to anyone passing 😄 but I'm sure they wouldn't report you for 'moorhen bothering'. That iron does sound low, I couldn't remember what normal range is and the internet has given me 20 different figures on the first look. They were always pushing iron tabs on me at one point but I jibbed at them and just stuck to a lower dose and my last bloods were described as 'unremarkable' so I assume were normalish. No tea for two hours? 😱 yikes. You will earn your jammie dodgers with your cuppa, hope the tabs make a noriceable difference anyway and aren't tooo bad. Nothing going on here I have to finish my shop for Tues, yes I'm still doing it in a trillion instalments, doughnuts it is then if mine get subbed I'll know you're already stocked up 😸. Have a good evening, most importantly everything & everyone safe I hope! :) xx

Hello joan, I've been looking at broadband where you can already plug your landline into the box, seeing as that will be coming in soon anyway & may as well get used to it, but nothing very competitive so far 🤔 glad yours works ok mostly, would never have anything off Richard Branson, can't stand him 🤨. Hope things not too rough in Wilts at the moment 🤞love to both :) xx

Hi bosh, love the Kermit pic, you're so right Kermit, talking to people 2 days running? the very idea 😱. Mind you I won't be talking to anyone on the phone if I can't find a better broadband package 😔 can't work out if I'd be better off with some inclusive landline calls or payg, more to the point, don't want to be bothered working it out 😕. Hope things not too bad at HV today, yes I see it's the overconsumption as well as the mince pie sell by date that's the problem too, but you are right you can't get too embroiled 😔 hope your mum is ok at any rate. Nothing going on with me, just waiting to see if anything blows down, fences tv aerials or whatever 😬 not too bad round your way I hope 🤞xx

Wave to SK, hope everyone ok today and not too stormy in Essex, it hasn't quite got into its stride here yet I don't think. Sucré is welcome to come and bail my loft out bit by bit if it comes to heavy rain 😄 touch wood I seem to have it under control atm. Hope the guitar session days go to plan good to have new strings all good to go 👍️ :) xx

What beautiful beautiful scenery @Charlestown 😍 nice to see there is still a square inch of forest not built on (yet 🙄), currently mourning a nice piece of green belt land here that has been downgraded for housing 😠. Am not too far from green spaces & woodland though so am thankful for that. That's a super snowman 😀. Hope your stretches are helping keep the sciatica at bay well done for having the discipline to do them 👍️. Plenty of cappuccino sachets in the cafe and I have them myself too so if stocks run low I'll bring some in from home 😉. Have a good evening and hope not too wild weather :) xx

Love to everyone hope all ok in the storm 😘 xx

bosh

Hi Joan

how are you both today?

is your weather milder?

it’s a bit milder over here

yes exactly that’s what I was worrying about too - food poisoning

especially since mum had food poisoning once and had to be rushed to hospital

I try to be very careful in that respect about eating relatively “safe” food, but dad, well he’s definitely a law unto himself these days and definitely a misery to live with, no need to be sorry 😂

mum is ok today thanks 🙏

I’m not too bad 👍

Bye for now, i hope you both have a nice afternoon take care xx

bosh

Hi Toni

how are you this afternoon?

mums bs is ok 🙏

and she’s generally ok today as well thanks

im not too bad thank you

I went for a shorter walk today just so I could catch up on a few things at home

the Hungarian cabbage dish looks great 👍

let me just quickly post this hairdresser- related poem I wrote then I’ll do another instalment

thanks xx

This poem I wrote is called “Hairdresser - woes” 

I said to the stylist, “look my hair’s massive”

He replied, “ it’s looking very chic madam” - his face was impassive”

“It’s not what I paid for and my goodness I paid through the nose”

He said, “But now you have the elegance and beauty of a south Asian rose”

I retorted, “if you say so, but who pays for extra conditioner, clips and shampoo?

It’ll soon get uncontrollable, how can I master the up - do?”

He said, “All you need to do is learn hairstyling, the course run by Vidal Baboon”

“ I said this isn’t exactly value for money, but you do make me laugh, you stylist - buffoon”.

bosh

Hi again Toni

yes the cabbage smell can be unpleasant I understand, but I think the fish frying smell is a bit worse for me, the fish in question is always Indian fish and while I like one or two of them, they are generally an acquired taste, I find anyway, so I don’t even get to eat any tasty fish after enduring the nausea - inducing “ fragrance” ! Oh well, never mind lol.

Would it be possible to get the recipe for the cabbage dish please Toni?

it looks so tasty and I’m going to try gradually to start cooking again, I wanted to start before but the home pans are very heavy but mum said she’s found the lightweight pan 👍

When you called the cabbage preparation Hungarian peasant food, it reminded me of something quite funny my mum once told me, she said when she was a child, she would see through her window some builders eating their lunch, with great relish they were consuming chapatis with whole raw onions that they would bite into like apples, then one day she asked her mother if she could have a special lunch, so a duplicate of the builders lunch was prepared for her, but my mum of course then discovered that raw onions do not taste like apples, chocolate, R Brek or even the tasty looking breakfast in your pic😂

Yes ELTB is a generous lady, just don’t start talking to her about jam lol.

thanks about the pic

yes storm prediction- a bit worrying really isn’t it?

You be careful too, I’ll send LA over to supervise the hatch - battening - just hide the vegan lasagne lol

bye for now Toni tc xx

ps Don’t get on the wrong side of GI Physio - he’s now a barista- ookey 😱