Tangential Thread

Yesterday’s blog mentioned minds going tangentially, Facebook threads do too.

This time last year things were beginning to open up slightly.

From Facebook archives

31 March 2021

2nd Jab done at 1.30 this afternoon.

First tadpoles out today, teenytiny things, so some of the frogspawn survived even though it vanished.

There was also a small tortoishell butterfly in the garden - Teddycat ate it!

Cowslip, violets and grape hyacinth all flowering next to the drive.

Emile has used up all his owed holidays and Ferretfingers will start going out with him again on Thursday 1st April, then every Thursday and Friday from 8th.

Thunderthighs to start going back into college on Monday 19th.

Miss Doozer  OH TEDDY??!!

Bentonbag  And there have been some very suspicious looking grey feathers decorating the lawn for the past couple of days - it looks as if a pigeon has had a lucky escape.

Miss Doozer  He's welcome to the woodpigeons.  They just sit on the birdtable being fat and annoying and there's no room for anything else.  Sometimes they're not even eating, they're just sat there like piffy on a toadstool... I'm all for contemplating your surroundings, but can't they do it somewhere that isn't the bird table?

Bentonbag   At least he's not leaving them on your back doorstep.

This one chose our garden bench last July

Miss Doozer Contemplating it's navel

Bentonbag  I don't think birds have navels.

Drummerman Just seabirds...

Bentonbag  Eh?

Drummerman Naval?

Bentonbag  The one with an Ee is the bellybutton the one with an Eh? is seamen. McChurch can explain.

McChurch  Ah,but will he?

 

The Devil Finds Work

I’d have used this yesterday if I’d found it in time.

Since we married in 2013 Fester has not trimmed his beard and only had one haircut (2018 I’ve forgotten what for).

He says it’s my fault because I said I preferred a beard to stubble first thing in the morning.

I say there’s a happy medium between clean shaven and looking like something from a Norse saga.

From Facebook Archives.

29 March 2020 

The Devil finds work for idle hands.

"Idle minds" says Dr F.

“The mind is never idle, it may go around in circles ..”

"… or even tangentially ..."

“… but it is never idle.”

Miss GH  Just needs a bow

Dicky Brown  Rats!!

Mr Monkshood  No!!No!!No!!

Miss Fiddle  How about doing the beard?

Bentonbag  I have offered.  He says he politely declined.  If he didn't have his cpap I might be able to do it while he slept.

Miss Fiddle  I'm surprised the cpap works with the beard...

Ms LNR  Class!! xxx

 

 

"Looking like something from a Norse saga"

 

Cold Caller Baiting #21 Oh No It Isn't

Yesterday morning I was having breakfast when the phone rang.

I picked up, there was such a long satellite delay that I very nearly gave up.

Then a male oriental voice said “Hello?”

“Hello.”

“Hello ma'am it’s Robin here, calling from Microsoft’s office in Reading, am I speaking to Ms Bentonbag?”

“Robin what?”

“Robin Smith, I’m calling about your Microsoft computer.”

“There’s no such thing as a Microsoft computer, Microsoft is a software system that is used to operate computers.”

“I know that.”

“Then why do you say you are calling me about a Microsoft computer when you know such a thing does not exist?”

Long silence with call centre noises in the background.

Then the dialling tone

And there he was gone.

Squirrel Casserole

Grey squirrels are an invasive species (they belong in North America) and carry a pox which kills red squirrels.   

They also outcompete them for food.

Around the Millennium Northumbrian landowners took it upon themselves to cull the greys and, to help raise funds, they sold the meat for eating in the same way as they do with rabbits.   

At one time you could buy “Squabbit pie” on local game stalls.   

I haven’t seen any squirrel meat or squabbit pie for sale recently.

From Facebook archives

28 March 2010 at 21:23

Discovered wild grey Northumbrian squirrel on the game stall on the Quayside market.  We had it casseroled for tea and it was very tasty indeed - almost worth £4 for something half the size of a rabbit.  Came from near Hexham so low food mileage as well as being organic and natural.

FifiD  Got some of them in me garden.  Not for consumption I know what they eat!!!!

Miss Fiddle  Well if you have to eat meat......

Bentonbag  …it's far better to eat an animal that's led a free, natural life eating what nature intended, followed by a swift death, than some poor creature that's been brought up in battery conditions, fed processed crap and slaughtered in abattoir conditions

FifiD  Sounds like a veggie diet might be good for you!!!!

March Weather

As I type this we are experiencing a wonderful sunny warm March morning.  Spring flowers are blooming and I have just put a line of washing out.   But March is a moody month, and there's no guarantee it's going to last.. 

From Facebook Archives

27 March 2014 at 08:48

Back on the street for Marie CurieCancer Care, 11am-1pm probably at the Haymarket end of Northumberland St.   

Yesterday's haul £114 -  that's the cost of about five and a half hours of care for someone in a hospice.

Bess Cavalier  £114 in small change must weigh a bit!

Bentonbag  Surprising number of £1 and £2 coins - but noticed not as much paper money as in previous years.

Later that day

Bentonbag  Had to give in after an hour and a bit.   

Cold I can stand, a bit of drizzle maybe, even hail; but thunder, monsoon and driving rain defeated me. I tried sheltering in the entrance to Haymarket metro but my gloves got wet, my tray got full of water and my boots started leaking. 

Hey ho - indoors tomorrow.

Awareness

Before the present unpleasantness I would enable Ferretfingers to attend classes in art, craft, gardening or flower arranging with the Adult Learning Alliance.

In early 2019 we managed to get into two classes, both on a Tuesday.

From Facebook archives

26 March 2019 at 16:11

Hats off to Tesco, Norham Rd North Shields.

Ferretfingers and I go in there Tuesday lunchtimes between Adult Learning Alliance classes to buy his telly magazines and any half price/bogoffs/best befores we can find.   

A few weeks ago the piped music drove him, and me, into despair.   

I complained about it to the ladies at the self-service tills (he loves using them so I allow it even though it goes against the grain).   

Anyway…

Today there was no music.  

On the way out I mentioned how nice it was for us to the security guard and he said 

"We noticed that, for some reason, we get a lot of learning disabled people in on a Tuesday morning, so we're turning the music off to make it nicer for them."

No great fuss, no self-congratulatory Autism Hour hype; just observant, caring and considerate staff and management.   

Which is how it should be but so seldom is.