**********************
**********************
********************************************
Hello from the Hovel. Despite my saying I would not leave it too long before posting again two weeks have gone by since I last did so. But life has a habit of stepping in and so I became too busy. After many months of waiting for a house, my son and his family finally got a house. So packing, cleaning, more cleaning and unpacking was the order of the day (days more like). But before I ramble on about my life and it’s events I would like to take time to pay tribute to Harry Patch who died today at his nursing home in Somerset. Known as the Last Surviving British Tommy, Mr Patch was 111 years of age, having celebrated his birthday last month. A truly remarkable, private man who until he was 100 did not talk about his harrowing experiences in WW1. God Bless you Harry Patch, R.I.P...
~~~~~~~~~~
***************
Although Harry was the last surviving British WW1 soldier, a Claude Choules is the last surviving British WW1 veteran. Born in 1901 in Worcestershire, England, he now lives in Perth, Australia aged 108. Mr Choules served with the Royal Navy during World War 1.....I would also like to mention John Babcock aged 109 who was with Canada’s Boys Battalion in England in WW1. Although trained to go and fight the war ended before he turned 18... A Frank Buckles, now aged 108, was just 16 when he joined the American army and was held in reserve in England from December 1917. After six months he was sent to France but did not see action on the frontline.....These three men are the last remaining men of their generation, who at such a young age were prepared to give their lives in the name of freedom.....
***************
***************
Now to the ramblings of a middle-aged woman, or as my friends call me the Geriatric Hippy...lol...
When I last posted about life at the Hovel it appears I left poor Andy in hospital. I can assure you that he is thankfully not still there and judging by his mood the other day very much alive!!!!! He has given up smoking and I applaud him for his effort but his mood swings, oh dear. By his own admission, he is not easy to live with at the mo. I’ve threatened to go up country for six months...hehe...but good luck to him.......
***************
***************
I know I’m going over old ground and I have done so much since then but I would like to finally finish The Hovel Chronicles.....The last time I posted we saw poor Andy in hospital with a diagnosis of a possible clot on the lung and I had arrived home in the early hours after ‘hanging around’ the hospital.......
~~~~~~~~~~
Saturday May 23rd
After a very lonely night I awoke in preparation for a visit to the hospital only to receive a telephone call from Andy to say he was being discharged!!!! So I suggested he got a taxi home.... ‘What in my pyjamas’, exclaimed Andy. Being the good wife that I am I'd brought his clothes home the night before so I could wash them. Now I ask you what is wrong with coming home in PJ’s in a taxi!!!!...lol...
~~~~~~
So away I go the 25 miles to Truro via a train and bus loaded down with clean clothes for dear hubby but I had forgot one vital accessory, his belt! Oh dear, nothing else for it but to ask a nurse for some crepe bandage. Works a treat by the way, may not be the Must Have fashion accessory for the season but it did the job......So off we went by bus to the train station, although I wanted to get a taxi because Andy didn’t look too well. After all he had been given morphine and Warfarin for the suspected clot... Why was he being discharged you may ask. Well, thankfully it wasn’t a clot but he was still very poorly, he had been diagnosed with pneumonia and pleurisy. I feel he should have stayed in hospital but no he was discharged and was one hungry man. So first stop at the station was the cafe....while sitting there munching on plastic sandwiches, etc, I suddenly started laughing. There Andy sat wearing his ‘designer belt’ plus he still had his hospital wrist bands on. It looked like I’d kidnapped him from the hospital...lol... Eventually arrived home and needless to say Andy was poorly for some time. He went back to work too soon but he wouldn’t stay home......
As you can imagine by this time I am getting quite tired after weeks of unexpected stressful events. To recap: A month ago it began with the death of my friend Alma, followed by the death of my furry friend Mr Darcy. Dogs to the vets and kennels, cats to the vets, car breaking down and subsequent bill for repairs, hiring a car, attending the funeral, Arthur my dog’s operation, painful dentist visit, nasty emails from a former friend and finally, so you would think, Andy’s illness. And so I thought it would be and for the most part it was. The next planned visit to the vets was for Arthur to have his stitches out on Tuesday May 26th. All went well and we were hoping to start taking him for runs in about 10 days......On Friday May 29th we hear that Andy’s cousin’s husband had died while on holiday in Spain. Unfortunately we were unable to attend the funeral in Nottingham due to Andy still being unwell.... The following day, Saturday 30th, Andy had to take my other dog Merlin to the emergency vets because his foot had become very swollen due to a suspected snake bite. Yes we have poisonous snakes in Cornwall, especially in the sand dunes and long grass.....So no runs for the mutts for another week....
***************
Great Find
Day & Sons, Crew Ltd
Manufacturers of the World-Famed Animal Medicines.
***************
For the next week all was calm and I finally managed to get to Rosudgeon car boot on Wednesday June 3rd. You can spend the whole day here as it’s very big with lots of goodies. I went with my very good friends Una and Jan. We all go to Slimming World and were very good and took our sin free lunches with us. It was gloriously sunny and I only spent a little money!!! The above bottle was one of my buys. It’s very unusual to find such a large bottle and still in its original box, it’s ten inches high. Just had to have it....didn’t I...lol...Plus I got some lovely rusty weights for my vintage potato scales, which I will show a pic of later......
***************
Nice Rusty Weights. Sorry about the blurry image...
Praa Sands, Cornwall
***************
We went to eat our lunch at one of my favourite spots, Praa Sands. We were fortunate that the new owner of the local cafe there allowed us to eat at one of his outside tables, of course we purchased a pot of tea. The view above is what we looked out to while eating our lunch. What more could you ask for, sunny weather, good company and a beautiful view accompanied with the soothing sound of the sea...bliss...and this feeling stayed with me until the evening when a telephone call from my Din L blew it away. My granddaughter of 19 months had fallen down the stone steps at the flat where they lived and was at A&E. Fearing the worst Andy and I sped of to Truro hospital. Poor little mite, she was deathly white with at least four bruises on her face but thankfully alive. They did not keep her overnight where at one time they would have done, however they did keep her there for 3 hours to observe. So once again I was at the hospital main entrance but this time saying goodnight to my family....
***************
Korenza, what a beautiful photograph...***************
Talking about my family, here is a collection of photographs my son had professionally taken this month. Isn’t the above one of Korenza beautiful...
***************
My Handsome Grandson Dylan. Yes, he does have all five toes....lol..***************
My handsome little man looks like he wants to spar. Still very tiny but he has a big personality. I am so proud of my two grandies.....
***************
Christopher, Jane, Korenza and Dylan July 2009 ***************
We see here my son Christopher and DinL Jane with their offspring. Now Christopher looks a little ‘rough’ here and the reason he is grinning so much is because under his breath he is saying ‘You could have warned me’. He had just finished work when Jane informed him that he was going to have the photograph taken. He was put out because he would have liked to have had a shave.......but I also noticed he looks very tired, he does work hard...***************
Korenza, not shy of the camera....
***************
This child sure likes to pose.....See the dress she is wearing, that came all the way from Australia kindly sent by my dear friend Ann. Jane particularly put this on so Ann could see Korenza wearing it. A nice thought I think, thank you Jane....
***************
Well a lot happened in a space of seven weeks and it was to end with the sad news of the death of Aunty Betty. I say Aunty Betty although she was no blood relative of mine but the mother of my brother-in-law. This lady was in her nineties and I have known her for 40 years. She was a wonderful lady with a kind heart despite having had a very hard life. I have very fond memories of her and I know she will be greatly missed by my sister’s family. God Bless Aunty Betty.....
***************
Well I think I’ve rambled on long enough. The Hovel Chronicles have now finished but I will be back to tell you about what I’ve been up to since. I did finally manage to visit the Titanic exhibition so will be back soon with photographs of that plus other bits and bobs.....Until then, take care.....Hugs Chrissy x
***************
A little humour girls
***************
Me and the Grandees......
