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From Facebook Archives

12 January 2014 at 22:36 

Why does life come in fits and starts? 

Last week I had nothing. 

Tomorrow I have 3 important things/meetings to go to, and one on Wednesday and a class with Thunderthighs on Thursday.!

FifiD  Love life sometimes.  It gives you a workout !!  Hope all is well. X

Woody Smells

From Facebook archives

11 January 2015 at 11:44 

The weather and my cold determined we weren't going to Druridge Bay today as promised so Ferretfingers and I have been cutting the Xmas tree into kindling and logs for the fire.   

Don't know what tree it was but when we sawed into it there was a smell of orange peel.  In fact when you sniff the end of one of the logs there is still a definite smell of bitter orange.   

Any of you woody people (Sandy) out there know what it might be? 

I was delighted to learn some time ago from Fester that rosewood is so called because it smells of roses when you saw it (his dad was a joiner).

Later

Should have googled it.   

It's an American Concolor Fir also known as White Fir . 

So how did we end up being sold one by a greengrocer's in Benton?

Re smells.  Before Xmas Fester bought me a pot with half a dozen hyacinths on the point of flowering which we put on the windowsill in the downstairs loo.  They have been flowering their hearts out ever since scenting the hall beautifully.

Sandy The commonest tree in Britain these days is Sitka spruce (from Alaska) so I suppose distance is no object when it comes to conifers

Moving All Around Again

 

Last Saturday morning I put the link to Schak’s Moving All Around (Jumpin’) on Facebook and Twitter and got some interesting comments, and a screen grab, from friends.

On Sunday afternoon Mrs Leftfoot called for the first time this year for a cup of tea and a chat.

“Has Ferretfingers seen the music video?”

“Not yet, and I don’t think Thunderthighs is ready to see his mother dancing with a gimp.”

I brought Youtube up on the Tivo box, searched and started the movie.

Ferretfingers is aurally hypersensitive so very particular about what music he will listen to: he frequently calls out “The lady will turn the music off” in shops and cafes.

He stood stock still and silent for a few moments then said "Mum!" in a delighted voice and gurgled with laughter until the end.

After tea he was at his laptop and called out "Come and see this Mum".

Yes, he'd found it and was watching and listening to it on his headphones.

The boy who will scream to have music turned off in shops and cafes loves this track.

Well today anyway.

😇😇😇

PS  I have recently learnt that Fester doesn’t know what a flash-mob, Whack-a-mole or gimp is.  How did I end up with one so innocent?

🐱🐱🐱

PPS  Ms Doozer, who put the screengrab on Facebook from whence I nabbed it, commented “Felix looks …. Different”

Christmas Is Concluded

Christmas is all packed and put away.

The goose carcase is boiled and the stock used to make soup.  It includes all the vegetables unused, or left over, from Christmas dinner as well as pulses, pearl barley and rice.   

The bones were stripped and any meat or skin minced and added into the mix.  There are now fourteen portions in small chinese takeaway boxes in the freezer.

Thunderthighs has cut the tree up for firewood.

The choir of angels, baubles, tinsel, socks, Santa hats etc are in  boxes and bags in the top cupboard in Ferretfingers’ room.

The cards have all been listed for next year, backs cut off and fronts in a bag to take to LDNE for next year's Christmas crafts.   

The Xmas labels list document has been updated; with changes of address, some names taken off and a couple happily added.  Next year’s cards have been bought, at reduced rates, from the charity shops on Shields Road, Byker, and put away, with the list, in a big biscuit tin in the Christmas cupboard.

The candles and candleholders are back in the drawer or on the delft-rack in the hall.  Mrs Quilt has gifted me some lovely glass candlesticks which are in the glass cupboard for next year.  The redundant glass tea-light holders are washed and with them.

The angel chimes are back in their box, in the drawer.

The mantelpiece has been dusted and polished.  The clock and ornaments have returned, dusted and polished, from their holidays on the piano, the windowsill and the top of the corner cupboard.

The wicker basket of dollies to be dressed is back on the Christmas tree (and coffee) table, soon to be accompanied by the different bags Ferretfingers and I use for going to Ouseburn Farm, his day centre, knit’n’natter and the WI.

There’s even been hoovering.

The chocolates have almost all gone.

All that’s left is half the cake, denuded by Ferretfingers of any icing and sweeties.

 

Enabling

Once upon a time there was an organisation called The Adult Learning Alliance which did various practical classes for people with learning disabilities and autism.

Like many other people using this service Ferretfingers needed someone to transport him to the college and to stay nearby to handle any problems.  As his care package budget did not stretch to cover paid support for this activity I ended up as his ‘enabler’.  

To be fair it got me out of the house and I got to spend time with some pleasant care workers. 

From Facebook Archives

8 January 2019 at 23:17

It's been a funny old day. 

Ferretfingers did Abstract Art unaccompanied this morning; so I got to sit outside the classroom for two hours.  Next week I shall take my knitting, mp3player and book.

This afternoon we tried Textile Art unaccompanied but he decided to get up, walk around and stim, so I went in to keep him on the job.    

In the 90 minutes between classes we had a quick trip to Tesco to get his tv magazines, my lunch (he'd made packed) and a quick scour of the 'best before' and post Xmas offers.    

It looks like this may be the pattern for Tuesdays for the next 12 academic weeks.   

At least I'll get some reading done. 

Mrs Alexander  Sounds like a really good day. Great to see you in Tesco too X 

Woolerwoman  Sounds good. 

Bentonbag  The upside of sitting outside a classroom with nothing to do is that many old messages (both sent and received) got deleted from my mobile and my camera's memory chip got a clear out too. 

As my Uncle Charlie once said "How doth the little busy bee improve each shining hour"