Chitchat thread #24

[Nicos]

Mornin n’alln’all
Ta muchly for the warming cuppa MH …perfect timing as it’s cold and very frosty here too.

The fire kept in from last night so we’ve got that roaring away.

Today is the campervan inspection….it’s going to be a 3-4 hr round trip so Ihope we don’t get called back because they aren’t happy with something.
Please keep your fingers and toes crossed for us as we’ve already had our pre assessment drama with it.

A couple of days ago I gave it a thorough clean out and suddenly noticed the work surface where the sink and hob are inset had warped it was fine pre Xmas so it’s only recently started warping.
One corner of the hob wasn’t in contact with the surface by about 1/2 cm and the sealant had pulled away …and the sink had completely popped out from its sealant by 1cm all around

So 2 reinforcing bars attached underneath , all resealed, and drainage system reattached. All good to go!…phew!
Good job I didn’t leave the cleaning until last thing as OH had to go and buy the sealant and it was a bit of a long job,

Its definitely a learning curve converting a van into a camper and there are one or two minor things we might have done slightly differently in retrospect but we’re more than chuffed with our results.
Still got the seat covers to make so throws are taking their place at the moment.

I wonder how Snadge is getting on with his ?

Must go and top up the bird feeders and leave out some fresh water for the wildlife before I forget.
Looks like it’s going to be a thermals day today ( steady on there boys!)

Have a great day peeps!

[Bren In Pots]

Morning no frost here either Flo.

Fingers crossed for you Nicos just wondering what does Hibou think to the camper?

I've had my thermals and lined trousers on for a while I do like to feel warm when I'm out and about.

Enjoy your day.

[Nicos]

She’ll go inside for 10 mins max so long as the sliding door is left open.
Cant see her joining us for quite a while tbh...she cries and scrabbles all the way to the vets and back and always had , but since she was hit by that tractor she’s been worse - just the sound of a distant engine and she’s on full alert

Maybe when she’s an old lass she’ll be more comfortable with the idea?

Having said that, I’ve been looking into body harnesses and leads for her - there’s quite a choice these days!

[greenishfing]

Good morning all. We woke up late this morning. I was having a really weird and now half forgotten dream when Mr GF interrupted it. I read somewhere that the brain uses more energy when we're sleeping than when we're awake.

Fingers and toes crossed for your inspection Nicos.

The car has still got a frozen roof and windscreen despite the fact that the sun is shining brightly.

[lottie dolly]

Morning all,what a shock this morning,SNOW,it is bitter cold out there,stay safe peeps

[Snoop Puss]

Morning all.

Good luck with the camper, Nicos. Fingers and legs crossed for you. I'd cross my arms too, but that makes typing a bit difficult. And yes, I keep wondering how Snadger and Kato are doing. Difficult times.

Thanks for the offer of a brew, mothhawk. But Mr Snoop has made me a fantastic coffee this morning. Rather than 5-2, we're trying 4-3, but I struggled a bit yesterday. Couldn't concentrate on work, so need to make some adjustments I think. Rather than one large meal, which suits Mr Snoop, I think I'd be better with two small ones. Anyway, I'm sure we'll find a compromise.

So, as I couldn't concentrate yesterday, I've got double the amount to do today. I wanted to do some work outdoors too, but there's such a cold wind blowing, that might have to wait.

The weather report reminds me: the birds must know when bad weather's coming. We've had more move into the garage. Last night I went in to close the back door to stop the gale blowing through and freezing them all. I must pass about four feet from number three bird on his perch, but he barely even bothers to keep a wary eye on me now. We also had two move into the barn next to the house. When I opened the door, a juvenile male blackbird took fright and flew into a pane of glass. I rescued him off the floor but he looked like he might have damaged a leg. Anyway, he flew off eventually, so I hope he makes it through the winter. I love blackbirds. The other bird, a redstart, wasn't in a hurry to leave at all. Unless there's snow on the ground, I don't put food out for them because of the cats and rats. As far as I can tell, there should be plenty about for them in the wild and in my veg patch. Quite a lot of birds fly up when I pass by the veg patch and only the black kale shows signs of what could possibly be bird rather than snail or slug damage. So with any luck, the snail and slug population should be somewhat depleted next year.

Anyway, that's more than enough blabbing. Hope you all have a lovely day.

[Snoop Puss]

Lovely to see a picture of Hibou, Nicos. For some reason, I thought she was a tabby.

[Nicos]

Snoop - Her brother was a grey tabby ( if that’s an official colour?)
She is so so sweet, but one heck of a hunter. In her old age ( 12 this year) she’s stopped chasing dogs walking past with their owners )
We live on a circuit of 4km which is part of a designated area of natural beauty and in summer and at weekends we get lots of people walking past the house. Hibou has been in her element over the years ambushing pet dogs on leads
20 mice on the doorstep over 24 hrs was nothing unusual in her youth…goodness knows how many others she ate as well.


Anyway….I digress!
We’re back home.
And the camper passed all her tests!
yippee, yippee yippee!
Thanks so much for all the finger and toe crossing…it clearly helped xx
Now comes the wait of 2 weeks for the certificate and then the 2-4 week wait for our equivalent of the DVLA to change her log book to that of a campervan.
Rules here for camper vans are so incredibly more complicated for conversions..it’s been a huuuuge learning curve!

One year of research, hard planning, hard work and quite a bit of stress due to the incompetence of officials….all paid off!…phew and phew again

And yes…we’re breaking our diet and opening a bottle of well earned fizz!
Do please join us if you need an excuse! X

[Nicos]

Did I mention we’re celebrating?

[Nicos]

Yippeeeeee!

[Bren In Pots]

Really pleased for you and Mr Nicos xx

[rary]

She’ll go inside for 10 mins max so long as the sliding door is left open.
Cant see her joining us for quite a while tbh...she cries and scrabbles all the way to the vets and back and always had , but since she was hit by that tractor she’s been worse - just the sound of a distant engine and she’s on full alert

Maybe when she’s an old lass she’ll be more comfortable with the idea?

Quite a relief for Mr. Nicos, no doubt getting it past, congratulations on that and worth celibrating
On reading the last paragraph on your post above, made me wonder if you are comfortable with it Nicos

[rary]

Good evening, a dry sunny but cold day today, first thing this morning I had to go up to church and put some heating on as we were taking the tree down at ten o'clock, back down and took the dog for a quick walk, then made breakfast, OH is now showing signs of improvement, hopefully things will get back to normal soon. Once I was finished in the church, I had to do some shopping for our daughter, grandson wanted some ice-cream, if I want anything when I don't feel well, I get told, you will get that when you are up and moving, anyway as I was doing shopping for daughter I did some for ourselves, so dinners for the next three or four days are what I want also had a look at some rubs for OHs hips where she has some severe pain, now trying one of those ones which chills the skin, there was a choice of a rub or a spray, so decided to tak the?????, you can just guess what one once back home I had to change a tyer on the car as one was losing pressure, first tyer change for a good number of years, and found a nail in the punctured one, then some salmon for tea and after tea got a phone call from daughter to say her youngest was coming down for the dog as he was missing her, so that's her back home and the house feels empty, however we will get her back Dow for a couple of days nex week as she need a bit of a rest from the pup. Keep warm and safe, and pass on a smile Goodnight

[lottie dolly]

eeevening all,so happy for you Nicos,may you have many adventures in her,even if it is just sitting in it with tea for a change,i nearly said biscits but
stopped,ti's a nice looking pussy cat,all the best to MRS rary

[bramble]

Great to hear all the hard work paid off Nicos.

Rary, I use a rub as well. I suppose it helps somewhat.
Good days and bad days.
I wish Mrs Rary a speedy recovery.