Chitchat thread #24

[rary]

Good evening, it been sunny periods today, I cut down a couple of trees, not very big ones but I needed to clear them out the way as I was fitting a new gate and finally got it fitted just before a light rain started, I also filled a drum with nettles and I am just about to head out and fill the drum with water and leave it to make a nettle tea, basically to see if it makes a good a feed for plants, need to move as OH is starting to make noises about doing too much, enjoy the evening and pass on smiles

[Snoop Puss]

Just a thought - have you thought of doing a DNA test on Jack?
My DIL did one on her rescue dog and it was really interesting.
I think they cost around £100?
Did his sister look similar or completely different?
That might allay the concern of your friends and neighbours?

In fact, the friends who have been talking about it think it would be quite a good thing if he were a doberman. The vet was adamant he isn't and she was the one that went to pick up the abandoned litter. They all look very different, but she's quite sure they were a single litter as they were all the same age - still didn't have their eyes open. Same mum, probably, different dads.

I have no idea if we could have a DNA test done here. i know they're popular in the States. I guess we could ask to see if they're a thing here - maybe in a big city but unlikely at our vet's - but would it make a difference to what we did with him? Probably not, so we might as well spend the money on dog food!

[lottie dolly]

Evening all,how nice to have had some rain,the garden looks better for it,sorry been absent a bit,first not well,then a bit heckic,my mouth is so much better,i am now eating more things,alltho the cornfakes i had this morning were a bit sharp untill they soaked a bit,still a bother on and off with the voice box,and as for the other thing,still not heard anything from the medics,it is not nice when the pain is on duty,as it is so sore and tender,but i do feel a lot better again,i seem to have lost a good half a stone the last week,i think from not being able to eat things,my walking is a bit better just now,so some possitives,
Snoop i hope all goes well with Jack,my mellons are growing well thus far in the greenhouse,several toms,but none ripening,cues seem to be on a no go as well now,started off ok,one is going yellow,so it must need a feed,i have been given a bag of manure,tis older stuff,so will get some in water and use to feed things, more brick waste was skiped by famil on friday,and leveling up of top patio started,i now have a designated plan off slab formation to site the little table and chairs on,also either gravel or slate chips,yet to be chosen,at last life is on the move again,if only for a while,hope those watching football are happy,it is on here,but i not bothered about it,i just will not deprive my mister,i am not like that

[bramble]

Goodnight all. Just to say, my physio went very well and the pa8n has reduced significantly.
Another app next Monday.Now waiting for MRI results.

Snoop, don't laugh, but would you consider buying dog shoes for Jack.
I see them for sale on Temu, and they are waterproof as well.

[cariann88]

Morning,

Lottie hope you're feeling better soon. You had me for a min then I thought you was talking about Jacks Mellons 🤣 Glad the pain is not as bad Bramble.
Met Office has just told me pollen is going to be high today, so will need take plenty of tissue out with me. Suppose to be really sunny today but at the moment sun is trying to come out but the clouds look like its going to rain.
Not had a email or text back from the guy who is running our allotment site so I am going to be getting in touch with his senior today, had to do a bit of googling yesterday to find out.

Have a good day 😀

[Bren In Pots]

Morning

Snoop dog DNA tests are done by post as well as at some vets so should be available in every country, but like you say will it make any difference.

Good that you're able to eat more Lottie xx

enjoy your day

[Snoop Puss]

Morning all.

Glad to hear you're on the mend, LD. You too, bramble. Sounds like you've got a great physio. Well worth going to see the doctor by the sounds of it. And no, I won't laugh because I had the self-same thought!

And good luck, Carrie. Well worth doing.

As for here, all quiet at last. Mr Snoop got up to keep Jack busy about 5.30 am till I got up around 7 am and took over. Mr Snoop has gone for a top-up nap, Jack had at last flopped down for a sleep under the settee and I can at last get down to business.

Hope the smiles do their rounds at their normal pace. They were a bit exhausted after all the early morning ruckus.

Plenty for me to be doing, as per. But one very unusual blessing to be counting: the tax office has already paid me my refund. Feels like only yesterday I submitted my declaration. Normally they take months and months to get around to it.

Have a great day, everyone.

[Florence Fennel]

Good Morning All Glad you're feeling a bit better Lottie and you too Bramble. It's a bit cooler here today, but sunny so far. Have a good day

[Nicos]

Mornin n’alln’all
busy day ahead, so just wanted to pop in to say hi!

Good luck today Carrie.
Great news Bramble…remember to ask what you can do at home to maintain the pain relief if it gets worse again!
Lottie!…that’s great news!…are you able to sing yet?

Snoop- I don’t know about DNA tests for pets here either …but I do know it’s illegal for human testing to go on family tree data bases

Rary…talking of nettles…we have a field full next to our house. Most are about 3-4 ft heigh and I’m thinking of cutting some and making cordage . I’ve made small lengths previously - very successfully tbh- but I thought it might be worth making enough to use for tying back plants etc in the garden.
No idea how long it would last exposed to the elements but there’s only one way to find out!
te he…goodness knows where I’ll find the time either!…always full of good intentions…

Right…time to get a wiggle on….

Enjoy your day peeps

[lottie dolly]

Morning all,just got up,sun trying,sorry to confuse you about mellons,to clarify,the mellons are in my greenhouse doing well,i am proud off them,hope to eat one very soon,glad you getting some relief Bramble,nothing worse than pain,snoop Jack sounds full off bounce,and good luck Carrieann,i think maybe the chap running the site will be for the high jump or more,as it has been deliberatly concealed,on council land,have a good day all,

[bramble]

Good morning all, it's dull and overcast and not even a sign of the sun,
It will be more comfortable working in the garden while it's cooler.

Lottie, well done eith thr Melloqqns, I might give them a try next year,

Carrie, you are doing the right thing, keep complaining until you get some answers.

Have a good day all.$r

[greenishfing]

Good morning all.

A very disrupted night's sleep (can you believe that I could hear a bird twittering away at 3.30 am?), but eventually a few peaceful hours until after 9 am and a natural awakening. I almost feel like I've won the lottery.

I'm expecting my online grory hop any time in the next hour, including 2 more boxes of my favourite Biscoff ice cream lollies. Also an Amazon order due this morning, nothing exciting in that however.

I've promised my brother in law that I'll call round either today or tomorrow to sort out a hospital appointment for him.

I think that it's time now to get the washer earning it's living. It looks like a sunny, breezy drying day. I've just made Mr GF remove his cornflake covered fleece! It was starting to look like an Andy Warhol creation.

I'm going to make more coffee now.

[Andraste]

Do think carefully about how you approach the issue Carrie. Hopefully the asbestos (if you're 100% sure that's what it is) is isolated to one plot & I agree I certainly wouldn't want it anywhere near my veggies. I'm inclined to think there's a former tenant of that plot who decided to bury their rubbish on the plot rather than take it to the tip

However, going down a very official route with a firm stance could well result in a 'by the book' response e.g. closing down the entire allotment site while investigations, environmental testing etc. are undertaken. Quite rightly if it's a site-wide issue, but I wouldn't be happy to be barred from my plot smack bang in the middle of the growing & harvesting season. Even though I think you're totally in the right, you wouldn't be my favourite plotter - you wouldn't be the only one unable to grow/harvest anything until the matter is resolved.

I'd be tempted to persevere with contacting your guy at the site, maybe popping to see him in person/at the site for a chat, especially as you have a lot on your plate already at the moment. Ideally, this problem will be limited to the one plot, you can be offered an alternative. I'd push for an agreement that no one else will be offered the plot in question & an 'official' report be made later in the year so the proper procedures/investigations can take place then where it's less likely to cause quite so much of a bother.

[Snoop Puss]

There are still 2,700 new diagnoses of mesothelioma each year, primarily caused by asbestos and mostly among older people exposed as a result of their jobs. However, other people not exposed at work do get mesothelioma through exposure to fibres in their environment, either breathed in or less commonly ingested. Exposure to asbestos today might not show up for decades, but the disease itself is life-changing for a very long period, as well as life-ending.

If you've got a lot on your plate, Carrie, rather than wasting time chasing people up, send a recorded letter to the site manager or his boss and to the environmental department of your local authority and include photographs. Ask them to come and verify the nature of the waste, which you believe to be and have been told is asbestos. State that you've tried repeatedly without success to talk to the site manager about it.

To be honest, it's most likely asbestos cement, which is not typically treated as hazardous waste if it's undamaged. Even so, removing it is still quite a difficult job as you have to make sure that no asbestos fibres are released. As you're the new plot holder, it's not unreasonable to ask for it to be removed at the expense and effort of whichever organisation runs the site. They should certainly do so, if not for you then for whoever comes after you.

If it is asbestos, everyone is better off knowing as soon as possible. Asbestos fibres are not easily contained. Depending on the state of the asbestos, fibres could have travelled far and wide on the wind or on boots, clothing and tools that may have been shared, as well as produce.

If I were on your site, I'd be glad to know. And I wouldn't be blaming you, Carrie, but whoever put it there.

Edited: Apologies for being so forthright. I used to work for a housing department and the discovery of asbestos was a huge concern, not just in terms of disposing of it, but also tenants' fears over possible exposure and the council's potential liability. Those worries have perhaps affected my tone, but asbestos isn't something I would expose anyone to if it could be avoided.

[Nicos]

Interesting info Snoop. Good to hear a professional view.

One of our local towns was a major manufacturer of brake pads for decades.
The factory was finally shut down a few years ago but the number of workers and residents in the immediate locality suffering from mesothelioma has been, and still is , enormous. Apparently the whole valley used to have a fine layer of white ‘dust’ in the trees, rocks, houses, veggie plots ().
Absolutely awful

I recall as a youngster playing in old , uncleared , bomb sites from the Blitz , and there was plenty of asbestos sheeting around the place . Obviously, we used to play in there completely unsupervised