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What's Up in July 2017?


Athena

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It's July already, we're in the second half of 2017 :o!

 

The past few days I've been busy getting my room ready for the new book cases that I'm getting next week. I've also been doing a lot of the more usual things around the house and taking care of the animals. It's July, but today it's cloudy and rainy here. It's good for nature though, as we had a few dry weeks in June. Tonight we're having dinner with my parents.

 

What are you up to?

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Hey y'all!

 

Took the two oldest grands to the main street open market. They get a kick out of all the street music, balloon making, dogs, food, etc. Its our special treat that only the big kids can do with grandma. We then made a side trip to Barnes and Noble for a sweet treat and a look around the books. Now I'm back home and can barely keep my eyes open. Not sure what's going on because I got enough sleep but I just feel utterly drained. 

 

I bought a started loom from Hobby Lobby a few days ago and yesterday I broke it in. I had to go through my very small stash of yarn to determine what I wanted to work with. This first piece will be a scarf. Seeing as I'm pretty much confined with the little people for the summer, I may as well be productive. Not to mention it'll keep me sane. It's been raining for the past few days so cabin fever is setting in.

 

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I hope everyone is having a good weekend. I will try not to get jealous of Brian visiting the Lake District. It was only a week ago after all that Coran and I got back from our summer holiday - it doesn't feel like it though, I could do with another one already.

 

Yesterday we went on another protest march - this time it was against austerity. We were in 2 minds about whether to go or not, but after everything that has happened in recent weeks in the end we decided it was too important not to. We didn't go to the start this time, which was at Broadcasting House, but rather waited for them to walk past Piccadilly and joined them there for the last mile or so to Parliament Square. Somehow the atmosphere didn't seem the same as the last one we went on - whether this was because we weren't in the thick of it I am not sure, but it just didn't have the same feel. It was also definitely a lot smaller - I didn't have to queue for the toilets hardly at all at the coffee shop we stopped at near Trafalgar Square. I am still glad we went though, as it is always an interesting experience.

 

Today we are having a quieter day catching up with things at home. We will probably go to Polesden Lacey later on for the jazz. 

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22 hours ago, Madeleine said:

Quite dull and cloudy here too, and it rained last night, which means the garden is growing like mad!

 

Same here! My tomato and cucumber plants have grown a lot the past week.

 

19 hours ago, Brian. said:

Stuck at work today and then off to the Lake District for 5 days to do some hiking and climbing. I've got my fingers crossed that I get good weather while I am up there.

 

I wish you lots of fun :).

 

16 hours ago, Virginia said:

Took the two oldest grands to the main street open market. They get a kick out of all the street music, balloon making, dogs, food, etc. Its our special treat that only the big kids can do with grandma. We then made a side trip to Barnes and Noble for a sweet treat and a look around the books. Now I'm back home and can barely keep my eyes open. Not sure what's going on because I got enough sleep but I just feel utterly drained. 

 

I bought a started loom from Hobby Lobby a few days ago and yesterday I broke it in. I had to go through my very small stash of yarn to determine what I wanted to work with. This first piece will be a scarf. Seeing as I'm pretty much confined with the little people for the summer, I may as well be productive. Not to mention it'll keep me sane. It's been raining for the past few days so cabin fever is setting in.

 

I hope you'll feel less drained soon. Have fun with your loom :).

 

40 minutes ago, Talisman said:

I hope everyone is having a good weekend. I will try not to get jealous of Brian visiting the Lake District. It was only a week ago after all that Coran and I got back from our summer holiday - it doesn't feel like it though, I could do with another one already.

 

Yesterday we went on another protest march - this time it was against austerity. We were in 2 minds about whether to go or not, but after everything that has happened in recent weeks in the end we decided it was too important not to. We didn't go to the start this time, which was at Broadcasting House, but rather waited for them to walk past Piccadilly and joined them there for the last mile or so to Parliament Square. Somehow the atmosphere didn't seem the same as the last one we went on - whether this was because we weren't in the thick of it I am not sure, but it just didn't have the same feel. It was also definitely a lot smaller - I didn't have to queue for the toilets hardly at all at the coffee shop we stopped at near Trafalgar Square. I am still glad we went though, as it is always an interesting experience.

 

Today we are having a quieter day catching up with things at home. We will probably go to Polesden Lacey later on for the jazz. 

 

Shame the protest march wasn't as nice as the last one you went on, but I'm glad you found it an interesting experience. I hope you have a nice Sunday :).

 

My parents and I went for a long walk with our dogs in a forest nearby. It was lovely. The dogs had a great time and so did we. It didn't rain much while we were out. About 15 minutes ago there was some heavy rain going on though, but we were already back.

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Well done Lau Lou

 

Not much happened this month yet, had two days off work poorly last week which was not good but at least I got a bit of reading done, So there was a bonus.  Enjoyed sitting out in the garden over the weekend and dead heading the rose bushes but other than that I did nothing.

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Well done Lau Lau and hope you are feeling better Shirley.

 

It has been very hot and muggy here these past few days, and set to get hotter still. They are forecasting temperatures of up to 91 degrees by the end of tomorrow. I hope that's wrong as I really don't like having to work in those sort of conditions. It will be busy for me for a few days, as my lady cleaner has finished work for a few weeks now to have her shoulder operation and my other cleaner is also away for a week, working at a music festival in Poland that he does every year. That leaves me working on my own for a few days. Thankfully our new gardener has agreed to help with cleaning on Friday and Monday next week, the days that he doesn't do gardening. I think he is glad of the overtime, and I am certainly glad of his help. By the end of this week I will probably want to collapse in a heap!

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Hey y'all!

 

Quiet and hellish hot here in the U.S. especially in my part. I did manage a 3 mile walk during midday. Not my prime time to walk but since the little people are here, I have to wait til hubby wakes (he works nights) which is around lunch time. 

 

Our country is celebrating the 4th of July but its not a holiday I hold to. Most African Americans who know our history don't get patriotic about it, I mean, why should we when our ancestors were slaves? I will celebrate Juneteenth (June 19) Here is a link for those who are interested.  

 

http://www.juneteenth.com/history.htm

 

Because its hellish hot, pools and lakes are packed. We're just staying close to home.

 

 

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The last while I've been looking into study options for medical admin, and found an entry point into a 1 year full time course (quite a low level, like between second and third level, but that's all you need for admin, nobody goes to university for data-entry, which is what I want to do!) wherein the course and everything would be paid for, and I'd get a training allowance the equivalent of a full social welfare payment for the year. The catch is you're meant to have been unemployed for 6 months, and I haven't. I emailed, outlined my case for doing it (previous long-term unemployment and not wanting that again at the end of this contract, which is ending in september ANYWAY) and a woman is calling me about it today. I dunno if she can make an exception, but I'm hoping the fact that she didn't outright dismiss me is a good sign.

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On 3-7-2017 at 11:52 PM, Lau_Lou said:

Did the Race For Life yesterday at Clumber Park. Was a great day out and good to see my family, my brother in law's family as well as my brother's girlfriend's family.

 

I don't know what the Race For Life is, but I'm glad you had a good time.

 

23 hours ago, shirley said:

Not much happened this month yet, had two days off work poorly last week which was not good but at least I got a bit of reading done, So there was a bonus.  Enjoyed sitting out in the garden over the weekend and dead heading the rose bushes but other than that I did nothing.

 

I hope you feel better soon. It's nice you enjoyed spending time sitting in the garden.

 

16 hours ago, Talisman said:

It has been very hot and muggy here these past few days, and set to get hotter still. They are forecasting temperatures of up to 91 degrees by the end of tomorrow. I hope that's wrong as I really don't like having to work in those sort of conditions. It will be busy for me for a few days, as my lady cleaner has finished work for a few weeks now to have her shoulder operation and my other cleaner is also away for a week, working at a music festival in Poland that he does every year. That leaves me working on my own for a few days. Thankfully our new gardener has agreed to help with cleaning on Friday and Monday next week, the days that he doesn't do gardening. I think he is glad of the overtime, and I am certainly glad of his help. By the end of this week I will probably want to collapse in a heap!

 

I hope the weather won't get too hot over there. Here they predict a few hotter days, but after a few days it should cool down again.

 

13 hours ago, Virginia said:

Quiet and hellish hot here in the U.S. especially in my part. I did manage a 3 mile walk during midday. Not my prime time to walk but since the little people are here, I have to wait til hubby wakes (he works nights) which is around lunch time. 

 

Our country is celebrating the 4th of July but its not a holiday I hold to. Most African Americans who know our history don't get patriotic about it, I mean, why should we when our ancestors were slaves? I will celebrate Juneteenth (June 19) Here is a link for those who are interested.  

 

http://www.juneteenth.com/history.htm

 

Because its hellish hot, pools and lakes are packed. We're just staying close to home.

 

I hope it will cool down again soon. I hope you enjoy your Juneteenth celebration. The reasoning behind it makes sense.

 

33 minutes ago, Nollaig said:

The last while I've been looking into study options for medical admin, and found an entry point into a 1 year full time course (quite a low level, like between second and third level, but that's all you need for admin, nobody goes to university for data-entry, which is what I want to do!) wherein the course and everything would be paid for, and I'd get a training allowance the equivalent of a full social welfare payment for the year. The catch is you're meant to have been unemployed for 6 months, and I haven't. I emailed, outlined my case for doing it (previous long-term unemployment and not wanting that again at the end of this contract, which is ending in september ANYWAY) and a woman is calling me about it today. I dunno if she can make an exception, but I'm hoping the fact that she didn't outright dismiss me is a good sign.

 

Good luck, I hope they will be able to make an exception for you.

 

Here things are okay. I'm going to start my new medication tomorrow, so fingers crossed. Most of my new book shelves have been put together. I'm also busy cataloguing books. My sister had some happy news to share, she got engaged. I'm excited about it, as I've only ever attended one wedding in my life and that's when I was 10. I wish them both lots of happiness.

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14 hours ago, Virginia said:

Our country is celebrating the 4th of July but its not a holiday I hold to. Most African Americans who know our history don't get patriotic about it, I mean, why should we when our ancestors were slaves? I will celebrate Juneteenth (June 19) 

 

 

I don't blame you for celebrating that one rather than July 4th! June 19th is a good date too - it's my son's birthday! :D  

 

46 minutes ago, Athena said:

I don't know what the Race For Life is, but I'm glad you had a good time.

 

Race for Life is a women-only 5K, 10K or Pretty Muddy run in aid of Cancer Research.  It's a UK wide thing held at various venues at different dates in June/July.  I nearly did it last weekend (I was intrigued by the muddy one) but that would have been the day after I attended a dinner/dance/drinking night out, so I didn't think I'd cope too well with running the next day. ;) 

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3 minutes ago, More reading time required said:

Race for Life is a women-only 5K, 10K or Pretty Muddy run in aid of Cancer Research.  It's a UK wide thing held at various venues at different dates in June/July.  I nearly did it last weekend (I was intrigued by the muddy one) but that would have been the day after I attended a dinner/dance/drinking night out, so I didn't think I'd cope too well with running the next day. ;) 

 

Thanks for that :)!

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Morning, all, and happy halfway-to-the-weekend.  It's very warm and humid here as well, and is currently thundering and lightning outside but not raining, curiously enough.  I was at the cabin this weekend and came home yesterday in time for my town's firework display.  I enjoy celebrating the Independence Day holiday, mostly because it's a personal thanks to my ancestors who fought in the Revolutionary, Civil, and World Wars, because without them I might not be here posting on BCF :)

 

I'm off to the cities tomorrow for an appt and then a trip planning session with my friends.  We are finalizing all of our B&B bookings and car rental, so that's exciting.  I can't believe the trip is less than 2 months away!  We've been planning on this the last year or so.

 

Hope you all have a great rest of your week and that it cools off!

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3 hours ago, Peacefield said:

Morning, all, and happy halfway-to-the-weekend.  It's very warm and humid here as well, and is currently thundering and lightning outside but not raining, curiously enough.  I was at the cabin this weekend and came home yesterday in time for my town's firework display.  I enjoy celebrating the Independence Day holiday, mostly because it's a personal thanks to my ancestors who fought in the Revolutionary, Civil, and World Wars, because without them I might not be here posting on BCF :)

 

I'm off to the cities tomorrow for an appt and then a trip planning session with my friends.  We are finalizing all of our B&B bookings and car rental, so that's exciting.  I can't believe the trip is less than 2 months away!  We've been planning on this the last year or so.

 

Hope you all have a great rest of your week and that it cools off!

You're ancestors were able to celebrate. Mine couldn't. Not to mention the fact that even though people of color fought in ALL the wars, we get little recognition and the Americans still begrudge us the shortest month in the year to recognize our contributions, you'll excuse me for not caring about the 4th. 

 

Took the kiddies to a park that has a water feature for them to play in. They are SO cute! They are running between the feature and the kiddie zip line. It's a secluded park and I wouldn't have known about it had a library patron not told me it existed. It's very nice and quiet. 

 

The goal is to tire them out and then take them home, wash them off and watch them nap peacefully!! 

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On ‎05‎/‎07‎/‎2017 at 1:24 PM, Peacefield said:

I'm off to the cities tomorrow for an appt and then a trip planning session with my friends.  We are finalizing all of our B&B bookings and car rental, so that's exciting.  I can't believe the trip is less than 2 months away!  We've been planning on this the last year or so.

 

Hope you all have a great rest of your week and that it cools off!

 

Where are you planning to go? It all sounds very exciting. I am going to Croatia in September and had booked a room in Split which at the time sounded quite nice with good reviews. Thankfully I chose the option with free cancellation as when I checked again a few days ago they had some awful reviews saying how it had gone downhill since last summer and that you should avoid staying there at all costs. I searched then for a different place and found a brilliant 2 bed apartment all to myself at 56 percent off - just £62 for 4 nights. That really is amazing value and was far too good to pass up, so I have booked that and cancelled the other place. :D           

 

I hope it cools down too. The temperature at work today must have well into the 80's which is far too hot for me, especially when like me you are doing the work of 3 people. At least I have some help tomorrow, which is just as well as at the moment even with the fan on I feel as if I am about to melt. I might have to something drastic like cracking open one of those cold beers I have in the fridge! 

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On 5-7-2017 at 2:24 PM, Peacefield said:

I'm off to the cities tomorrow for an appt and then a trip planning session with my friends.  We are finalizing all of our B&B bookings and car rental, so that's exciting.  I can't believe the trip is less than 2 months away!  We've been planning on this the last year or so.

 

How exciting :)!

 

On 5-7-2017 at 5:41 PM, Virginia said:

Took the kiddies to a park that has a water feature for them to play in. They are SO cute! They are running between the feature and the kiddie zip line. It's a secluded park and I wouldn't have known about it had a library patron not told me it existed. It's very nice and quiet. 

 

The goal is to tire them out and then take them home, wash them off and watch them nap peacefully!! 

 

I'm glad you're doing well and I'm glad the baby is coming home :) (you posted that in another thread).

 

14 hours ago, Talisman said:

Where are you planning to go? It all sounds very exciting. I am going to Croatia in September and had booked a room in Split which at the time sounded quite nice with good reviews. Thankfully I chose the option with free cancellation as when I checked again a few days ago they had some awful reviews saying how it had gone downhill since last summer and that you should avoid staying there at all costs. I searched then for a different place and found a brilliant 2 bed apartment all to myself at 56 percent off - just £62 for 4 nights. That really is amazing value and was far too good to pass up, so I have booked that and cancelled the other place. :D           

 

I hope it cools down too. The temperature at work today must have well into the 80's which is far too hot for me, especially when like me you are doing the work of 3 people. At least I have some help tomorrow, which is just as well as at the moment even with the fan on I feel as if I am about to melt. I might have to something drastic like cracking open one of those cold beers I have in the fridge! 

 

It's nice you were able to cancel your booking and that you found an apartment for such good value.

 

It's hot here too, it was around 30 °C yesterday. But last night we had some massive thunderstorms and heavy rain, so I think it's cooled down a bit now, 28 °C max today (predictions). It should cool down some more in a few days, which will be nice as it's a bit too hot in our bedroom, to comfortably sleep.

 

Almost all of my new book cases have been put together now, so I can start re-organising my books :D.

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I worked last weekend, so I've the day off today.  Was hoping for a day out, but OH needs me to take a load of rubbish to the tip, and it's heavy stuff so I can't go on my own, and means I have to fit in with his schedule. :dry:

 

Still, will hopefully have the rest of the weekend free, so might try and do something more interesting then!

 

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That's hot Athena, we had that a couple of weeks ago and it was horrible, especially at night.  It's cooled down a bit here now, and we had a storm yesterday evening, bit breezier today.

 

 

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21 hours ago, Talisman said:

 

Where are you planning to go? It all sounds very exciting. I am going to Croatia in September and had booked a room in Split which at the time sounded quite nice with good reviews. Thankfully I chose the option with free cancellation as when I checked again a few days ago they had some awful reviews saying how it had gone downhill since last summer and that you should avoid staying there at all costs. I searched then for a different place and found a brilliant 2 bed apartment all to myself at 56 percent off - just £62 for 4 nights. That really is amazing value and was far too good to pass up, so I have booked that and cancelled the other place. :D           

 

Wow, Talisman, that IS an excellent deal for an apt!  I would love to visit Croatia one day and am looking forward to hearing how your trip went.

 

We are going to be in England, Scotland and Ireland for a little over 2 weeks.  Last night we managed to book our car hire in Ireland for 3 days, our ferry tickets from Holyhead to Dublin, and our airline tickets from Cork to Heathrow, which is the day before we come home.  We are pretty much doing a big clockwise circle of travel.  We still have most of the hotels to book, but have so far booked B&Bs in Derby and Southampton.  Oh, and we booked rooms in Melville Castle in Edinburgh for a night!  We're very excited!

 

Have fun organizing your books, Athena, and you as well with the rubbish, Chesil! :lol:  I hope everyone has a lovely weekend.

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44 minutes ago, Peacefield said:

 

Wow, Talisman, that IS an excellent deal for an apt!  I would love to visit Croatia one day and am looking forward to hearing how your trip went.

 

We are going to be in England, Scotland and Ireland for a little over 2 weeks.  Last night we managed to book our car hire in Ireland for 3 days, our ferry tickets from Holyhead to Dublin, and our airline tickets from Cork to Heathrow, which is the day before we come home.  We are pretty much doing a big clockwise circle of travel.  We still have most of the hotels to book, but have so far booked B&Bs in Derby and Southampton.  Oh, and we booked rooms in Melville Castle in Edinburgh for a night!  We're very excited!

 

Have fun organizing your books, Athena, and you as well with the rubbish, Chesil! :lol:  I hope everyone has a lovely weekend.

 

That sounds like a great trip. I look forward to reading all about it. I agree though, that is a very good deal I got - which is why I snapped it up quick before anyone else did!  

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