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Post by 3piggles on Oct 16, 2017 14:36:09 GMT
That's why I think of the lights more as winter lights or evening lights, than Christmas lights. We have Christmas lights that are intertwined with garlands, bows, Christmas balls, fruit clusters, etc., that I consider holiday lights. The strings of white lights are, to me, just pretty lights in the darkness.
Cold, windy and not too sunny, today. We have about 10 days of bright sunshine and no rain coming, so it will be nice to be greeted by morning sunshine, after todays gloomy start.
We're slowly setting up places for the plants to come inside for the winter. The Rios are still blooming, so they are definitely coming in for the winter, and I'm saving the begonias for now, though I doubt they will make it too much longer. I just can't bring myself to toss living, blooming plants, just because they won't bloom very long into the restricted levels of winter sun.
Hubby has pulled most of the veggie plants, in preparation for winterizing the raised planters. He will clean out any old roots, and cover the planter surfaces with black plastic. The black plastic will warm the dirt much faster, in the spring, and give us a safe surface for putting seedlings out to harden, before planting. I doubt we'll use the green house this year, though we might, if we can find a place to put it where the wind doesn't destroy it. We think using the raised planters as cold frames is a better option.
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Post by Bean on Oct 17, 2017 8:12:05 GMT
It's been a windy old night here - even though we out of the most intense areas we've had power cuts (not us) and there are loads of trees down. The local trains are in chaos this morning because of blocked lines.
My son texted me on his way to school to say there was a tree on the pavement and he couldn't get past (there's only pavement on one side of the road at this point), and then again about 30 seconds later to say it was okay, someone had stopped their car to let him walk round it on the road!
How long have you been in your house, 3piggles? Just can't quite figure out how long it's been!
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Post by jolovespiggies on Oct 17, 2017 8:21:26 GMT
I would love to see a picture of that garland Piggles love, it sounds gorgeous. The wind has calmed down here Bean hunni and we are actually seeing some sun but I don't know how long for.
Hugs Jo xx
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Post by 3piggles on Oct 17, 2017 18:51:35 GMT
I will try to post a picture of the garland, once it's up, Jo We moved here a year ago in June, why I want to say June 24 I'm not sure, but I think that was the day the movers moved us. We were moving items in for about a week before that. I love the house, but the appliances are junk! The stove is probably the best we can get for that space, and it's an incredibly tight space, but the dishwasher and fridge have to go! There is a place in Nashua called Restore, which is connected to Habitat for Humanity. I think they collect appliances, so I will call them for details. We may need to replace the dishwasher and fridge at the same time, to get them to pick up the appliances. The appliances would be great for someone with very little money to use as starter appliances. The dishwasher is okay, as long as it's always under filled, and never has any big pots or pans in it, so kind of useless for me. Hubby had the heat on overnight last night. Temp got down to around 20F. We don't heat it much overnight, but he increases the heat in the morning to take his shower and get dressed. Windows open now, and for the next several days, I think. It's 59F outside, so great weather to get out and cycle around the neighborhood
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Post by jolovespiggies on Oct 18, 2017 8:11:54 GMT
That would be lovely Piggles hunni, am trying to imagine what it looks like. We haven't had to put our heating on yet so far which is just as well as these night storage heaters are expensive to run. We are still waiting for our gas central heating!
Hugs Jo xx
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Post by 3piggles on Oct 18, 2017 23:52:09 GMT
I hope you get the gas central heating soon, though I wouldn't hold my breath. With Brexit and all that, no one knows where the funding will come from. It's a good thing you don't have the cold winters we have.
I got out to cycle this morning, and hubby got home in time to go out with me again, after dinner, so I'm feeling pretty good about having done two circuits of the neighborhood today. With the heat waves, rain and shorter days, I haven't been out cycling as much as I'd like.
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Post by Bean on Oct 19, 2017 8:15:41 GMT
Glad you got two circuits in, it sounds like it's a kind of exercise that really suits you when the conditions outdoors are right for it.
I thought you'd been there over a year, 3piggles - must be nice going into your second winter knowing what to expect. I think the first of each season in a new place can throw out a few surprises as you get used to it compared to what you were used to at your last place.
I'm sorry you're still waiting for central heating, Jo. Modern boilers are pretty efficient so making things cosy will be so much cheaper than with electric storage heaters. Did they give you a time scale for it? Might be worth getting Paul to chase them up, make sure they know you're still waiting, especially given your health problems. I'm sure you'd not be misleading them if you said that being cold makes your symptoms that much harder to manage. Things like that often have the best chance of kicking them up the bum!
Our heating has clicked on a few times with the coldest nights (it's on a thermostat), as we've had some frosty ones already.
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Post by jolovespiggies on Oct 19, 2017 10:42:32 GMT
Thank you, ladies, but it won't be anytime soon as, guess what, the council have run out of money? Now doesn't that make a change? You are so right Bean hunni, they do need a kick up the bum as we are waiting for our bathroom to be done also. Glad you had a nice cycle Piggles love, I would enjoy that if I were fit but I cannot risk falling off anything. It is certainly getting chillier here Bean sweetie but as yet we only have the one heater on and that is the one in my bedroom where all the babies are at night so they are always warm.
Hugs Jo xx
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Post by 3piggles on Oct 19, 2017 19:58:27 GMT
That's awful news about the council funding, Jo So sorry about that. I worry that it will only get worse, before it gets better. However, if the council's lack of action is making your sick, or sicker, the least they can do is move you to a better flat, one without the problems! I fear the council is using lack of funds to take no action I have a tricycle, Jo, so I can stop and sit on, talking to friends I often do that, as it's about the only time I get to talk to people. Being allergic to perfume makes it hard to go into people's houses, so talking to them outside, while I'm biking, is my schmoozing time Yes, Bean, we've been through one of each season, and are starting to repeat. Our neighbors, who go to Florida for the winter, said we could park our cars under their carport, when it's going to snow. That way we don't have to clear all the snow off our cars just to move them to clear the driveway. Our neighbors were laughing because the old twin ladies across the street email them about everything everyone does, while their gone, and will definitely email them about us parking in the carport. Nothing better to do with their days, I guess. Of course, once we finish clearing our driveway, we'll clear the neighbors driveway. Then we can get our cars back to our driveway, and it looks to anyone casing the neighborhood, as many residents go to Florida for the winter, and figure the empty house are easy targets. Clearing the snow from the driveway and walkway make the house look inhabited. We have heating and cooling on a thermostat, too, but I have the thermostat turned off. I turn it back on overnight, so the house won't get too cold. We're having worm days and cool nights, down in the 40sF, for the next week, and up in the 70s during the day. Unseasonably warm for us, but not unheard of. I think it was in the 80s on Halloween, 1981, if I recall correctly. Other Halloweens have been so cold, parents drove their kids from house to house. There really isn't a norm in New England, anymore. Central heating is usually much more efficient, but I've found it's also hard to govern. There's a reason why old houses had heavy drapes to keep out the cold and drafts. I just hope you can stay warm and dry through the winter, and not get any sicker
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Post by Bean on Oct 20, 2017 8:16:47 GMT
That's a great idea about using your neighbours' carport. Although if you end up shovelling two driveways, I'm not sure it saves you much work from not having snow on your cars! But for them, it makes their house looked lived in. Funny that the sisters tell them everything that's going on while they're away - I'm definitely familiar with that newsy sort!
We don't have much of a draft anywhere with the double glazing. Our house is prone to condensation problems, but we just air the house for a bit every morning (by opening a few windows a crack for a bit - not enough to make the house feel unpleasant) and in the evenings, we run a dehumidifier on the landing. It removes enough moisture to stop it building up.
With four people in the house and cooking/ showers (even though we use an extractor hood in the kitchen and open the window after showers, and the bathroom also has an extractor fan in), it's all too easy for moisture levels to build up. If you have any cold spots on the walls (which in our house is under the eaves, even though it's insulated - it was worse before we did that) the moisture is drawn there and if there's not enough air circulation, mould develops quite quickly. It amazes me how much water we pour out of the dehumidifier, but I'm always grateful it's in there and not on the walls!
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Post by jolovespiggies on Oct 20, 2017 9:43:34 GMT
You are right Piggles love, it is always their answer and yet they can afford to build fancy new offices. I like the sound of a trike I just don't know how my back would cope. I am glad you are able to see and speak to people hunni, it is such a shame about your allergies but every home is going to smell of one disinfectant or another so it must be very hard for you. That is what the council keep saying Bean hunni, that it is condensation and to open windows. We tried that and still that black mould persists. Tracey cleaned all the walls in my bedroom not long ago and it is back already. If only I thought giving the council a kick up the arse would do any good. I have thought of a dehumidifier but I am not sure if it would hurt my little invertebrates, I would have to look into that.
Hugs Jo xx
Hugs JO xx
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Post by 3piggles on Oct 20, 2017 14:32:23 GMT
Because of my back problems, I sometimes have trouble getting on and off the bike, but pedaling actually helps, even if for only a short time. I'm having a lot of back trouble right now, but went biking twice yesterday. Both times it helped loosen the muscles for a little while. I'm definitely thinking of getting a stationary bike for the winter, just to keep those leg and lower back muscles moving. I did need to order the bigger seat, which the stationary bike isn't likely to have. Both of us did, as our butts aren't as small as they used to be There are pros and cons with every means of removing moisture. Opening a window is free, but only works if it's dryer outside than in, and it can't let in too much cold or heat. Otherwise it's fans and dehumidifiers, which run up the electric bill. Jo, I realize buying anything isn't really an option right now, but there are dehumidifiers that can be hung in closets, put on shelves, etc. I don't think they are too expensive to buy, but once they've absorbed all the moisture they can hold, they have to be replaced. noodor.com/p/moisture-absorbing-dehumidifier-control-remove-dry.htmlI'm hoping it doesn't happen, but temps could hit 80F again, on Sunday. We are past mid October. Come on, Mother Nature, snap out of it! At least it does cool down over night, and on these hotter days, it doesn't cool down enough to need the heat turned on. I'm just already in cold weather cooking mode, and haven't had enough cold weather to do my cooking! I think the twins across the street feel very possessive or our neighbors. They don't get out much, don't have people over there very often, so I think they pay a lot of attention to what other in the neighborhood are doing. From what I can tell, they only leave the house to buy groceries. There is an older sister who is extremely arthritic, and probably needs a lot of care from the twins. This is a 55 or older neighborhood, so no one here is really young. When we first moved here, the twins showed up at my door. When I answered, they shoved a potted plant at me. I thanked them profusely several times before they finally left. I was working on the computer, so wasn't really at a point where I could take a long break and visit, but since they never said a word, I couldn't tell if they were welcoming me to the neighborhood, or thought I had lost the plant and were returning it. I talked to the neighbors, and they said the ladies didn't seem to really understand social graces very well. If they had their kitchen door open during the summer, the ladies just walked in. The neighbors tried explaining that they were eating breakfast, so really weren't available to visit right then, but the ladies didn't seem to understand. They seem like nice ladies, limited in perspective, and possessive of the Porters next door. One time this summer, when the Porters were away camping, one of the twins was across the street pulling the Porters wheelie bin back into their carport, and casting furtive looks at my house, practically before the trash collector had put the bin back down on the road. It was as if she made sure she beat me to doing it. As I said, nice, but a bit strange. The Porters joked that the girls would email them every time we parked our cars in their carport.
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Post by jolovespiggies on Oct 21, 2017 14:45:18 GMT
Thanks for that link Piggles love, they are sure to have something similar here, I will look them up. There are some very strange people about aren't there, the twins being a prime example? I wonder why they felt that way towards their neighbours. I cannot stand competition between neighbours in any way at all and all this "keeping up with the Joneses" is just such a waste of life, it is too short.
Hugs JO xx
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Post by 3piggles on Oct 21, 2017 17:01:32 GMT
Lol! If I lived in a keeping up with the Jones neighborhood, I would feel compelled to fill my front yard with obnoxious modern art statues, or something I think the twins just have a very limited life. They seem to be close to their next door neighbor on one side, but complained a lot about the neighbors on the other side. Nothing the owners would do anything about, just don't like them, for some reason. The Porters are nice to the twins, tolerate them just barging in when the door is unlocked, etc., so I think the Porters are very special to the twins. The twins want to do things to warrant the Porters liking them, and apparently consider us to be a threat. We clear the snow from the Porters drive and walk, as does the neighbor the twins don't like at all, and apparently the twins rat us out to the Porters for doing that, lol It keeps them busy, and gives them purpose, so I'm okay with it. Not sure why we didn't do this last year, but we're off to the home store for a light sensor that will turn the porch light on when it gets dark, and off when it gets light. We've always had those on our outdoor lights, yet we didn't do it here? Also going to try to get the Rios planted in the big pots I bought for them. Might need to get more sponges, as if we fill pots that size with all dirt, I won't even be able to roll them around on their wheels. So I put a layer or two of those big sponges used for removing excess grout, and it takes about 6 inches out of what could be filled with dirt. We're also going to get our corn stalks tied with orange ribbon, and secured to the lamp post. I just have to make a bow out of the ribbon, so make it look nice. We will plant more corn next year, as this bunch of stalks isn't very thick.
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Post by jolovespiggies on Oct 22, 2017 14:13:43 GMT
Haha, yes Piggles love, that would give them something to talk about. The twins so sound as if they have latched onto the Porters but I don't think I would like people just walking into my house. It happened a lot in the Midlands when I visiting my auntie in Stoke-in-Trent, it is just something everybody did. I love corn on the cob Piggles hunni but it has to be dripping with butter LOL!
Hugs JO xx
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Post by 3piggles on Oct 22, 2017 19:04:55 GMT
Here in New England it was never done, when I was growing up. I don't know if that's changed. On the Dick Van Dyke Show, they were always walking into each others houses. My daughters friends used to walk into the house without knocking, but that was after was said it was okay to do that. One of her friends stopped by one time, to pick up a change of clothes for our daughter, and called out "Hi, honey, I'm home," as she came in the door, lol I think this is more a matter of not having very strong social graces. When they brought me the plant, they just shoved it at me, as if I were supposed to know what they were thinking. The Porters said the twins did the same with them, when they moved in. The Porters just worked harder than I have to include the ladies. We got our corn stalks tied to the lamp post with sparkly orange ribbon, so that's done and looking very Fall-like. Hubby still has to get the ribbon of colored leaves up around the front door. It would be nice if he'd get it done before it's time to do the Christmas decorations.
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Post by jolovespiggies on Oct 23, 2017 7:44:47 GMT
It was never done where I lived as a child either Piggles love, in fact, we hardly knew who our neighbours were. Oh, the Dick Van Dyke show, I am afraid I wasn't much for it but I seem to remember something vaguely about neighbours virtually living in each other's houses. I bet the corn stalks look great hunni.
Hugs JO xx
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Post by 3piggles on Oct 23, 2017 13:35:15 GMT
On the Dick Van Dyke Show, they did all live in and out of each others houses. Granted, that was probably to save time acting out the script, but it did imply that no one ever knocked before entering, and that everyone's business was everyone else's business, another thing New Englanders never used to do. Granted, New England used to be most British. It's very international, now, though still very conservative.
Our last sunny day before three days of much needed rain. We got rain this summer, and pretty much broke the drought, but it doesn't seem to take very long not having rain, before we're back in it. I'm going to try to hang the plant growing lights from the curtain rods, for now, just so the plants get some decent sun while it's raining. Going to look ugly, but hopefully it will be effective. I'm still waiting for the sun to burn through the clouds, this morning.
Last night during the New England Patriots football game against the Atlanta Falcons, played in Massachusetts, the fog started to come in, slowly at first, but by the end of the first half of the game, it was getting hard to see from one side of the stadium to the other. By the end of the game, the fog had settled almost to the field. The players said they could see well enough to play, but the commentators in the booth were watching the camera feeds, because they couldn't see the field.
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Post by bazookagoof on Oct 24, 2017 2:15:00 GMT
Here in New England it was never done, when I was growing up. I don't know if that's changed. On the Dick Van Dyke Show, they were always walking into each others houses. My daughters friends used to walk into the house without knocking, but that was after was said it was okay to do that. One of her friends stopped by one time, to pick up a change of clothes for our daughter, and called out "Hi, honey, I'm home," as she came in the door, lol My friend that used to live in Indiana (that nice house I've posted pictures of before) would have friends come over and let themselves in, sometimes before we got back from wherever we were. (We'd go for a walk, come home to his place and find his other buddies lounging in the living room, cool as you please.) Nobody seemed to mind, but where I live we lock our doors when we're not home. Over in his neck of the woods, it's a quiet neighborhood and I suppose you could get away with that. Totally unrelated, but I'm so proud of myself for being able to spare a spider in my basement bathroom! He was in the sink, and I was trying to get him out without squashing him- I blew into the sink, he flew up and landed in the toilet! I was frustrated, until I realized he hadn't broken the surface tension of the water, and was standing unharmed! So I grabbed a plunger, lowered it into the bowl until he snagged it with his web, raised him up and put him on the floor where he scurried away to safety! A little thing, really, but I scored some points with Arachne! (I dislike killing spiders.)
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Post by jolovespiggies on Oct 24, 2017 8:56:13 GMT
It does entirely depend on where you live I think, the closer communities tend to just walk into each other's houses whereas when we lived in Surrey, we barely knew our neighbours. That is brilliant Baz love, I cannot bear the little things to be harmed, Well done you. They have as much right to their little lives as we do.
Hugs Jo xx
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