April 2018 Chat Thread

[shades]

[shades]

Pleasant start to the month

[Bean]

Whoah, I wouldn't say no to 23c! We're only getting to 3c, but at least there's no snow (which was forecast earlier in the week) as I need to get out and about today.

Happy Easter to anyone celebrating it! And hope some of you have done some good April Fool pranks to tell us about!

[3piggles]

Same here, temperature wise, but we are supposed to get into the 60sF later this week. Going to be unsettled weather, as April should be a rainy month for us. That's okay. We need the rain We shouldn't be getting that warm until May. Then we can have a heat wave

We had a snow storm this morning. It coated the ground but not the pavement with maybe half an inch of snow. Then the sun came out, melted all that show, and all the snow that was left from the winter. So after the snow storm, we have less snow than we had before, lol

[Bean]

We're due a reasonable lift in temperatures (and a reduction in rain) at the end of the week, which will be very welcome. We've got quite a few rivers on flood alert, so don't need any more rain here!

[jolovespiggies]

The sun is out here at the moment and Paul says it is quite warm. I think it is the first day since I don't know when that it hasn't rained. I still don't want a heatwave though, I am not very good at those lol!

Hugs
JO xx

[bazookagoof]

We're still around 40 degrees Fahrenheit, and it's cold and rainy. Snow is predicted later this week, and the temps are going to drop.

So far, a pretty poor show for April around here.

[jolovespiggies]

Oh Baz love, that is not good but it is pretty much the same here. Very dull and windy. I think we are all waiting for spring to be sprung

Hugs
Jo xx

[3piggles]

The last year+ has been all screwed up, weatherwise. First we had heat waves in April and May last year. Then Fall lasted until about December, before we had any winter cold and snow. Then we had Spring/Summer weather in January and February, and Winter returned in March. April has been more rain than snow, though I think we have some snow in the Friday forecast. It won't last, as the temps are in the 40s, and are going to get warmer, but average April temps in the 50s here, not the 40s. I hope we have a decent growing season this summer, though I'll be happy to have it end when Fall arrives, or soon after. I'd like to have a Fall and a Winter, this year, and not be air conditioning in December!

[jolovespiggies]

The seasons are all to pot here too Piggles love. We had snow here in March which is unheard of. We got off lightly though in comparison to people further north. Spring is supposed to be well on its way now and as I write this I am looking at a grey wet day. I say the seasons used to on the whole behave themselves and people say it is just my childhood memories. I remember things from childhood more accurately than I do recent things because half of me is still living there and wanting to go back. The seasons were quite well defined and it was always sunny at Easter, even if it were early and we always had snow at Christmas.

Hugs
JO xx

[3piggles]

I remember Christmases when we had no snow, when we had a little snow, and when we had a lot of snow. I went to the municipal swimming pool in July once, and it was closed due to snow. I think the weather has always been fickle, or cyclical. El Nino or la nina. We've also had droughts. I think our drought periods have been getting longer. I hope we've broken that cycle, as we've had summer drought problems for years. I think we were more adaptable when we were young, too.

[jolovespiggies]

We are more adaptable when young Piggles love that is very true. We also just saw snow as a fun, novelty thing and didn't think of the dangers or the adverse effects it can have. I certainly remember summers being nicer except in 1962 when it did nothing but rain and we came home early, I was furious!

Hugs
JO xx

[3piggles]

I remember one summer when it rained so much, it drowned all the container veggies we were growing, except the lettuce. Turns out lettuce loves water. Maybe it thinks it's rice, because it was definitely growing in flooded planters!

I'm thawing the veggie seeds I bought last year, but didn't use. I'm going to put them in wet paper towels, and see if they germinate. If they do, I can get plants started now, which will be great. Could be in the 70sF on Saturday. I hope not, but if it is, hubby will be working outside getting the gardens ready, and cleaning up the yard.

I've also learned that putting cinnamon on the seedlings helps them germinate and fight off predators. I'm going to try it on the plants that have the tiny flying bugs on them. Can't get rid of those pesky little monsters!

[jolovespiggies]

I didn't know that about lettuce Piggles love but I am sorry to hear about the rest of your veggies. I hope you get rid of those nasty bugs, I know the ones you mean I think, they are a pain!

Hugs
JO xx

[Bean]

Interesting about the cinnamon. I'd heard of people using chilli powder to deter certain pests, so I suppose it must be a similar way of heat and aroma putting bugs off coming too close.

A good reminder to start my seedlings. This gloomy weather just doesn't remind me that it's time to get growing! I need to venture into the shed today (to find a window fitting which I fear is right at the back - and my shed is ridiculously packed and disorganised at the moment as I tend to just shove anything in roughly that needs storing in winter!) so I'll keep an eye out for my veg and flower seeds. I definitely want to grow some sweetpeas this year.

[3piggles]

I should have gotten some starter flats for the seedlings. I don't need many of each type of veg I'm going to plant, just enough so I have as many plants as I need, ever if a few don't make it. I'm hoping I have corn seeds, as we only found one type of corn in seedings, and it wasn't my favorite. I'd like to try growing my own seedlings to transplant, which should greatly reduce the growing time before we get any corn.

I finally got the kitchen back to normal, so haven't had a chance to try germinating any veggie seeds. Maybe tomorrow.

Hubby tends to do the same thing with our shed, as if it's his domain, and if he keeps it too messy for me to go in, he keeps it as his domain, lol I would have a perfectly neat shed, which would drive him nuts

Sun just came out here about an hour ago, and we're not slated to get much sun for the next few days. Mostly cloudy At least the threat of temps in teh 70s on Saturday has dropped to the 60s, which is far more reasonable.

[Bean]

I'd like my shed to be neat and tidy, but don't take the necessary time when putting things in it, so a tidy up never lasts! I think it just has too much stuff in it now, so making everything accessible would be hard. I usually have a good sort out when the weather improves, so I can get everything out on the (totally dry) lawn and decide what's staying! I don't think that'll be for a while yet...

[jolovespiggies]

The chap next door but one to us Piggles love has a shed and there is a big notice on it saying "Mancave" lol! Sweetpeas are pretty little things Bean hunni, we used to have some many moons ago.

Hugs
JO xx

[3piggles]

That's about the only type of mancave I think men should have. I can understand wanting a place to get away once in a while, but it has to work both ways. Mancave and woman tower. That's what hubby and I called our respective sides of the couch, lol

Hubby is that way, too, Bean, and it drives me nuts that he blocks what I need to access. He'll tell me to just ask him to get it. I don't think he wants me calling him at work and telling him to come home and get something for me out of the shed

I would like to build something on to the side of the shed, where we could keep the bikes, as hubby wouldn't get the block and tackle set ups to get them off the shed floor. If there's a sneeze worth of space between items, he figures they fit. Couldn't get them out if I tried, but he's happy with it.

[Bean]

Haha! If my husband's talking about getting something from the shed, I'll usually pipe up 'I'll get it!' just to avoid a lecture about what a tip it is! He'll rarely start to do a house job without me having asked him to, so I don't need to worry about him wanting to find stuff when I'm out. Plus I'm smaller than my husband so can squeeze through the gaps in between bales of hay!

Also, I am also pretty good at knowing what's where, despite the apparent mess. When we had the kitchen done, the fitter often asked 'Have you got a piece of wood this big?' or 'Have you got a spare radiator bracket?' and I'd have it in his hand within a couple of minutes! My husband wouldn't have even remembered if we had it, even if he'd put it there!

Anyway, I've really got to go into it today to find the window fitting...