Val's Cafe

frogmorton

Morning Joan hope town was good yesterday? Did you buy anything exciting and get to a cafe for a cuppa or a spot of lunch? I got as far as the supermarket yesterday that was about it. Take care ((())) xxx

Morning Skinny Keef wow that's got to be nearly 8 hours sleep! Brilliant I hope once all meds are taken that you'll be able to get out in the bunker and play with your new toy. What is it i wonder🤔

So the bins weren't the council ones. I didn't think they could be they are too nice.

Sucré went a bit like a cat or dog with the zoomies did he? I think lots of small children do that when they get home (or visit someone like LA) they just have so much energy it needs burning off for a bit. My Mum used to say 'It will all end in tears' she was often right too. You could be right though he is home home now not at Nannie's so can relax a bit.

Raining again yes well what's new sure we've done 40 days and 40 nights already....

Take care and I hope you feel well enough to have a good weekend.

Morning Reshmi how are you today?

I'm glad your Mum is ok and that her bloods look fine to her. Hopefully her T/C on Thursday is just to have a proper catch up on the phone🤞

Not so sure about BR's porridge😥 I think it might be bearable with the biccies but cheese too? Mind before i was vegan (and when my stomach was more tolerant) I did quite like a digestive biccy with butter and cheese on top...sigh

So LA wants to be a Grandad as he perceives they have more authority? Hah! That makes sense.

I am very impressed with his question to the TV presenter at school though! Well done LA maybe he will add meteorology to his list of future careers? 'Scientist of the week' 🤗 👏

Nice slice of artistic toast thank you very much too good to eat though.

Would be nice to have a meal out just the 3 of you hope your stomach copes with Japenese food.

It is warmer I am wearing the thin waterproof coat ATM it's an old one of Lucy's a Superdry one? It's bright pink too so no-one should run me over all being well. It also has a hood just in case it should rain🤣yeah right!

Take care

Morning Toady

How are you? I see not caught up in the spam queue today.

I thought the weather was slightly better too yesterday and got outside for a bit (walked too) but was waiting for a call from the dentist. I have a big problem with a wisdom tooth trying to remove itself. honestly so am on a soft food diet until my appt on 19th April. Apparently it is very unlikely to drop out into my throat in my sleep and choke me as I (hypochondriacally) feared😳 They have periodontal ligaments which make them difficult for even dentists to remove. Who knew?

Your pots look fabulous and so uplifting to see. Self seeding violas little Vi lives on into the future😊 The tulips too still a lovely purple shade. Don't worry my moving plants up into the next size doesn't always work out as well as I'd hope, but it is the plan.

I rather imagined you'd chat to your plants as you went along. They need a bit of nurturing don't they? The now King Charles used to advocate it I think. Muttering under my breath too is a habit of mine.

Not sure what to do about the stupid craft group honestly! Me? I am not at all arty. Just leave me alone!!! Tell 'em will you please Toad? I need to learn how to say NO!I might send Sleek to do it for me maybe. She can be quite firm.

Anyway back to normal Toni - cuppa?

Hope Charlestown is ok? Didn't see a post yesterday sending some ((()))

Going to do Aidan (Bubble's) favourite Saturday brunch of croissants and coffee

Skinny Keef

No way, thats 3 first new page posts in a row Toni, not fair!!!!!

Skinny Keef

The new toy is a new speaker cab just for the bass guitar to go through. It is tiny, about the size and a half of a regular shoe box with two 5 inch speakers. I don’t like the backing track and whatever instrument I am playing to go through the same set of speakers and the sub woofer is too much for the bass, if I turn the sub down so the bass is correct then I lose the kick drum in the mix again, so by splitting them into different speakers it should sound better.

warning - LONG BORING POST ABOUT TECHNICAL STUFF 😁

another thing I have found is whatever electronic trickery the AI robot uses to remove the bass from the original track, causes a drop in volume of my own bass when I am playing, again by feeding my bass signal to a different cab I am hoping this will be reduced or gone completely.

I don’t know how the artificial intelligence removes the bass, but I suspect it puts another audio signal, exactly the same as the bass in respect of tone and volume etc etc but 180 degrees out of phase so the two cancel out. It is the same technology that allowed them to tidy up that recent Beetles song they released with John Lennon singing. The website I use for this is brilliant and probably the best site ever, apart from this one of course, probably got the AI to design it. I got 800 minutes of track splitting time half price yesterday too on a deal so I should never need anymore coz that is like 200 songs worth.

when I just read that through the voice in my head sounded like the German male pig character from Sing the animated film. Weird. Must be the drugs man.

bosh

Good morning everyone wppl xx

ps strawberry and cream pancakes (variation on Hong Kong style mango and cream pancakes) xx

dachshund

Good morning everyone

Toady (()) I hope you have a dry day to day we had a downpour yesterday. We like smooth peanut butter. Lovely plant. Have a good weekend

Toni (()) How is your eye I know you said it will stay has it is but how does it feel. Have a good day and weekend love to Paul (()) and Charley (()) and Annie (()) and Lucy (()) and Tia (()) and Kari (()) and your friend (()) and your lovely neighbours (())

Reshmi (()) have a good day and weekend love to your mum (())

Skinny Keef (()) I hope your head feels better for the weekend love to Sucr’e (()) and Loanda (())

love to Charlestown (()) have a good weekend

love to Barbara (()) and Kitty and Julie Mig

Skinny Keef

Well speaker cab is going back.

Sucré headbutted me earlier whilst I was carrying him in from bunker. Bad head now, doesnt take much 🙄

toady

Hi all 👋

Lovely & sunny this morning when I brought the milk in, made a cafe pot of tea, left the cosy on & half drafted a post. Looking forward to a quite nice day but it went really downhill, dull breezy drizzly and uninviting. Gave up the idea of being outdoors (anyway DIY Dad was making some kind of racket; that's the trouble with Spring, they'll all be coming out of the woodwork soon like salmon, to mix my metaphors), so made a cake, and sulked, basically. Now have several hours heavy rain to look forward to 🙄. Hope your day was less grotty frog. I am so sorry about your tooth, why is there always something 😒 stupid wisdom teeth they are no use nor ornament as they say. Hope you get on ok til the appt 😞. Thank you I was pleased to find those sweet little violets, Vi herself is ok too btw, but also needs a new pot (or to be planted out, not sure which 🤔). Lots of lovely new green on my salvia, I suspect their older companion tulips might be just leaves this year. The ones I planted this winter need some sun, fat chance. No seedlings yet 🙁. Soon I hope. Sleek and I will do our best to get you excused from crafting with a bit of divine intervention, maybe a world felt & raffia shortage, blah to 'things you can't get out of' (shudders at memory of being pressganged into the javelin at a school sports day 😱😂). Hope you have as good a Sunday as possible :) xx

Hello joan, no hardly any dry weather at all today 😣 rain overnight, my favourite 🙄. Some better weather coming in the week but you can't rely on it and plan accordingly can you. Hope you both had a good day, I have not really done anything useful except a bit of housework. Yes smooth peanut butter is nice I have never had it with jam/jelly like the Americans. Have a good Sunday :) xx

Hi to bosh and will nip in a bit later and see what's going on with you 👋 :)

Oh no SK, what's up with the cab 😣 I was following the technical stuff, to the best of my ability anyway, and hoping for part 2 the glowing review, ugh to shopping disappointments 😕. Sorry about the bad head too hope it's easing off. V impressed by the 8 hours sleep as Toni said, mine was broken into a couple of chunks could have been better but at least I got the milk in off the doorstep early. Ah right I see about the bins, it's different in the real world not like round here in semi-detached bins out like clockwork land. Hope you have a good night again🤞xx

Hi to everyone not in at the moment 👋 xx

Skinny Keef

Well the cab was expensive and it doesn’t sound as good as the tiny speakers plus sub, so I did a return. They do free returns, no quibble so taking full advantage. I spent loads of money on acoustic damping foam to get the room sounding perfect when I moved it all out to the bunker when what I should have done was buy a studio quality pair of headphones, but at the time I was playing more guitar and I do love my little valve amp, but for bass I think headphones will be the best solution.

i have had a poor day pain wise much to Sucré’s disappointment hoping to be able to do more with him tomorrow.

at least the voice in my head is back to normal. No more German piggie!

bosh

Hi Toni

how are you this evening?

mums ok bs wise thanks

she’s being a bit more careful with her diet now like having less white rice

to be honest she’s fairly careful with her diet most of the time but my dad tries to tempt her with sugary and fatty foods just in an attempt to bully her and I find that very cruel

im ok thanks on my morning walk I bought these hand - made type cakes from the supermarket, they’re actually a lot nicer than they sound, they taste like homemade without being as costly as the bakery, it was a bit evil I admit, but Toni I held the packet of white choc chip cookies in my hand but then I put it back, shouting at an operatic volume , “ Mama Mia Im turning into bill, what’s happening?” or something like that lol.

Superdry coat very nice, I have a rucksack from the same brand, that I got in the sale, it’s lightweight and practical but it’s retreated somewhere to the back of the top portion of the wardrobe, there’s so much rubbish in there that it’s blocking my escape route to Narnia lol, but never mind.

That’s good that the jacket is luminous pink, just as well really, as I know how fast the scientist of the week drives his little car to get to the lab before the birthday party - related rush hour traffic starts haha

My stomach is just about ok thanks Toni the (probably) Japanese meal is of course stomach- health dependent you’re absolutely right there 👍

but this time at least it looks like I won’t be forced to eat outside if I’m not well enough- no cheesy pizza - related torture - thank goodness

By the way I sent you and toady a message on here about a poem I wrote - I felt a bit shy about sharing it with everyone- thanks

yes hopefully mum’s telephone appointment will be just a catch up type thing 🙏

some friends got in touch today by phone etc, it was ok but some online people think that I’m some kind of agony aunt or wise woman of the woods or something like that, in other words they think I have the answer to everything lol, I said to one person for example “ yes i understand you want to stop your alcoholism but i don’t drink at all, I never have, I’m not the best person to advise you on this” and so on, haha life can really get very strange. In the end I just switched off all devices as they say and after a bit of a break from antisocial media or whatever it’s called these days I just switched on the (unsalted) tablet to write to my friends on here 🤗

sensible people who don’t think I’m a divine presence- just an all - knowing mima / auntie from time to time 😂

ok have a nice night Toni take care xx

ps moon goddess pic - I’m glad I’m not her HD lol xx

bosh

Hi SK

thanks about the tea cup storm pic

im glad you had a fairly decent sleep 👍

thanks about mums bs

hope you have an ok night tc

bosh

Hi Joan

How are you both doing today? Mum isn’t too bad thank you and I’m okay just a little bit tired but that’s understandable.

I hope you both have a nice night take care xx

ps painting by Fabienne Delacroix- not sure if the title xx

Skinny Keef

Wow Toady, I would love to be able to have milk delivered. I didn’t think milkmen still existed. Or do we have to call them milk people or milk delivery operatives now?

Sucré now knows that a dairy is where they put the milk in milk bottles thanks to me reading him the Hairy McClairy books.

bosh

Hi toady

how are you tonight?

I’m glad you got the nosegay multitasking done 👍

IF is just mum dad and I - no scientists of the millennium or anyone like that lol

mum and I are ok today thanks

Sorry the weather turned nasty for you

on my walk I just had a few drops of rain luckily

yes muffin monitors aren’t welcome lol

boredom is indeed relative I agree, but just imagine if we didn’t have VC to chat in, it would be so much worse

my mum said she saw in the news that a patient was run over in the car park of The Royal Berkshire Hospital here in Reading, the patient died, it was “just” an extremely careless driver apparently, it’s quite shocking though, mum and I walk through that car park all the time, anyway we obviously can’t worry about all eventualities but I’d not heard of that before.

On to a lighter matter that naughty LA hasn’t given mima a proper cuddle for a long time, during half term he was on his lordly high horse and when he came here last time he gave me a kind of “social distancing cuddle” which involved him lightly patting my arms lol, I think he was showing BR how to do a covid - aware embrace or something like that lol - what a funny scientist.

I sent you a message by the way - poem - related

have a nice night toady tc xx

👋 C - how are you tonight?

good night to everyone take care xx

ps alternative sandwich lol xx

frogmorton

https://community.versusarthritis.org/discussion/comment/719787#Comment_719787

hah!🤣

frogmorton

Morning Joan thanks for asking my eye actually feels fine. Odd isn't it but no problem at all with how it felt apart from the headache to start with which has long gone. Thanks for asking. Have you got any appts looming? Love to you and Sue ((())) xxx

Morning Skinny Keef

Shame Sucré headbutted you 😖 he's good at that for some reason I've noticed bless him. Now you must have spent time together if it was carrying him back from the bunker. You'll manage some more time today I'm sure.

Well done sending the cab back. No quibble returns is good and yes u got the techie stuff too. Well explained Keef. Your set up in the bunker sounds great although you always want to improve it just a bit more don't you?

Glad German piggie has gone never to return I hope.😯

Have the family got to leave today or can you keep them a little longer this time after last week?

Morning Reshmi

How are you? Your Mum too is very sensible cutting down on white rice. I would do that too only Paul moans if i use it. He isn't keen on pasta at all but copes ok with the pea pasta just about which is better than white. I've told you before that my Dad was the same with my mum buying cakes and then complaining if she didn't eat hers? Odd behaviour a bit controlling don't you 🤔

Well done dodging the white chocolate and not getting infected with BIL's dietary habits! The homemade cakes sound lovely probably less preservatives too.

Wouldn't it be lovely if we could get to Narnia through our wardrobes? sigh....worth tidying up for I think. Yes pink is an ideal colour as our lane has no paths on it so I want to be visible. At least the mornings are lighter now though. My very warm winter coat is a dark great so not so safe.

Hope your stomach can cope with the Japanese food today it would be so tasty I want to come too!

So you are the world's agony aunt are you? I know how you feel I have similar problems with the village expecting me to help with everything from making scarecrows to sweeping Church steps. Making cups of tea to storing the Village cart🙄I hope you can look after yourself and not get too full of other people's problems. Nice to support a bit but that's enough. Alcoholism is a tricky one to help with being addiction and certainly not your area of expertise!

Much more peaceful here.

I loved your poem BTW thank you and well the pic of the moon Goddess so appropriate 😊

Installing British summer time though Brilliant!🤣

Take care ((())) xxx

Morning Toady

Sleek seemed very happy indeed that DIY Dad was making a racket and it was drizzly because you made cake! She came home with crumbs round her chops and a tupperware full of more cake. Glad to hear you are both thinking of things to do to help with getting me out of crafting I mean crafting me? honestly!

Some people had a dry day yesterday you know they really did! Hmmmppph🙄 Paul is miserable because he can't drive his cars as the village is still muddy and wet.

Didn't you just love Reshmi's pic about the installation of British summertime. The clocks do go forwards soon though don't they? End of the month. Something at least to look forward to.

My aubretia is trying to flower too although it's dark on the lane i do so love it. Glad to hear Vi is still doing so well. Maybe repot her this year if you have a spare pot? Any sign yet of Mousie I am a bit worried about Mousie. And Mr B? has he been back and is he your Mr B?

Looking for my pusskin and she is missing so she must already be at yours. She has bought herself a straw hat for in the garden(s)

Have a good day put some headphones on if you can get outside. I do that so i can't hear my neighbour calling me!

I think Charlestown you have been busy with family stuff this weekend well I hope so anyway and that nothing is wrong ((()))

and a wave 👋 to Julie if she pops by

Skinny Keef

Morning all.

Toni, yes they here today, leaving tomorrow evening. Although I have a bad head/neck this morning and Sucré woke up screaming for daddad twice in the early hours. I was awake anyway so I just went in and settled him down. He snoring now.

I had one of my worst nightmares about my old job last night, I woke up in a right panic, has to give myself a good talking to, to convince myself it was just a dream. I don’t think the Naproxen helps with the bad dreams, although sometimes the dreams are just more vivid. I was driving a Ferarari the other night at something like 400mph.

right head getting worse typing, wppl later if i feel better. (I always think of Reshmi when I use wppl😁) x

dachshund

Good morning everyone

Toady (()) when your milk is delivered is it in the glass bottles or carton’s. Have a good day. I have peanut butter on a piece of bread nothing else.

Toni (()) that’s good your eye is alright (()) sorry about your tooth. My appointment has moved to May now. Have a good day. Love to Paul (()) and Charley (()) and Annie (()) and Lucy (()) and Tia (()) and Kari (()) and your friend (()) and your lovely neighbours (())

Reshmi (()) that’s true the summer can’t be found love to your mum (())

Skinny Keef (()) sorry about your headache I hope it’s a bit better now. Have a good day. Love to Sucr’e (()) and Loanda (())

Charlestown (()) have a good day love to your family.

love to Barbara Kitty and Mig(())

bosh

Good morning everyone wppl xx

bosh

Hi Toni

how are you today?

mums bs is ok 👍

im ok too thanks so is my stomach

we are indeed going out for the Japanese meal

I’ll bring you a doggy bag - or catty bag? - but it might cold by the time take it there in my rocket with scientist of the century

Bye for now Toni tc xx

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bosh

Hi Toni

the meal was nice thanks but very filling

but now mum is in the most horrendous mood on the planet and I’m hiding upstairs, what’s provoked it no one really knows, everything’s my fault as usual, I’m thinking she’s probably just tired and needs to rest, but sometimes she refuses to rest 🤷‍♀️

actually I think she’s on the verge of resting now

dad was hostile in the restaurant again, because he had to use chip and pin instead of contactless payment method but not so rude that he’s got us thrown out - which has almost happened before, he’s such a difficult character

we had the little moon pancakes Toni!

mine were strawberry cheesecake flavour and tasted lovely, mum had one of the chocolate - flavoured ones, but said it was too sweet.

ok I’ll leave it there for now

bye Toni tc xx

ps they pancakes looked a bit like these ones xx

toady

Hi all 👋 hope your Sundays are going well.

Quiet here today frog no DIY noise 👍️ I could do headphones I suppose but it's the quiet I'm after ideally, still, might be the lesser of 2 evils I could play tweety birdsong 😀 neighbours calling you, in your own garden, oh no, at least mine aren't doing that 😱😱 quelle horreur! Have had a little while out there today but it came out the most sunny when I had least energy like you the other day. Still I did some tidying, & Sleek made some very helpful pot suggestions (I love her sunhat!) Glad the cake went down well, that made me laugh, every cloud has a silver lining 😄 being a loaf cake it's best next day with the buttery spread of your choice, tell her 👍️. I have bananas going black before I can keep pace with them so they will be going into cake as well at this rate. No sign of Mr or Mrs B today, just robin; given little mousie life spans I would be surprised if I saw my own back this year 😔 but I would certainly know him if I did. A pansy has flowered in that pot I posted, and I have sweet pea seedlings today 😊 they will not go leggy and feeble this year, I swear. Hope there are more things happening at yours. I have sent Sleek back with my grandad's pocket watch & chain, she is going to swing it in front of you until you repeat "No.. I can say no.." funny that Kari got more of the crafting side than you. Hope everyone well, and have a good Monday :) xx

Hello joan, I have the glass milk bottles sometimes they aren't much more expensive, sometimes I buy the filtered milk that lasts longer and that only comes in 2L plastic. I try not to use them that much anyway now that they aren't as good but it does save going to the shop for just for 2 things. Hope you are having a good day, sunny here & dry (after last night - rained enough then though!) Glad your appointment has moved up👍️. Have a good Monday :) xx

Hi bosh, I saw your post & PM last night thanks, I was a bit past my best had been doing a couple of things online which I should have left til today really 🙄. Glad you find it nice & restful in the cafe with no-one asking for your valuable advice, well only on what tinopener to buy & what coat to wear 😉, the problem is good listeners are a bit of a minority I suppose so friends probably gravitate towards you as someone who does (but as frog says there has to be a happy medium). Hope the Sunday family doings are going ok as poss 🤞no EF so you will not have to leave LA outside on a lead 😄 I dread to think how that would go down if anyone tried it! 😱 A light patting of the arm instead of a hug, oh very civilized, perhaps little scientists have a code of behaviour befitting their sober & serious professions. I'll have the moon goddesses hair if you don't want it, and the HD would just have to lump it 😄. Sorry to hear about the car park incident, how sad 😔 I dread passing some sort of accident scene glad you were not there. Have a good evening & start to the week :) xx

Hi SK, yes the milk service is worth having but it was so much better before it was taken over; used to have all sorts of handy basics, now they fancy themselves as some sort of artisan set-up & although some of it is organic etc & eco packaging the rest is madly overpriced as well (£2.50 for 5 bananas, £3.99 for two fancy pastries, 4 quid for 1L fresh OJ etc). Thing is lots of people including myself really were probably v glad to put together a decent little basket of stuff to tide you over til a bigger shop, & no need to see anyone (a big advantage when you just want to drag yourself to the doorstep half awake), but it's no use for that now. Shame. Sounds like the cab was not ideal for your particular setup so I guess not worth trying again with a different one. Hope things going ok today family-wise and a better night for you, Sucré too, perhaps there was something in the air last night 🤔. xx

That's a ceanothus and a half @Charlestown 😄 sometimes a fast grower is what you want but I don't think I need anything taking off quite that much! Good plan to see what you've got and what you need before buying more I'll try & do the same. I have sweet pea seedlings today that's the first indoors things to come up 😊 more stuff to sow though when I get to it. Nosegay is cafe 'code' for ebay, just to avoid mentioning them too much by name. Brand names are ok in the cafe more or less but I do mention them a lot so it saves looking like I'm recommending them (even though I criticize them as well haha). Have a good evening I hope and some fine weather this week :) xx

Kettle on, love to all 😘 xx

toady

btw SK according to the website my 'friendly local milkman will deliver' so no, no careful wording of milkpersons - or they simply don't have any milkwomen (sorry Granville 😉). Never seen mine, but he can not worry about friendly as far as I care, if he'd bring some cheap hot x buns 😄

hi again, bosh, sorry missed your interim post, hope things have settled down at HV now. Glad the meal was ok, and you weren't thrown out, that's a plus 😬 have a good night xx

Skinny Keef

Hi Charlestown, it’s a well known online auction/retailer that rhymes with nosegay.

we are lucky that we just take our black bin bags / recycle bags out for collection. So our bins can stay put. We had an old bin with an automatic open close lid that i long ago ripped the lid off one day when it wouldn’t open for me, so we were due some nice new ones.