New bedding

I fancied a cooked breakfast this morning. Chop an onion, add some Quorn mince, some frozen peas, and egg noodles. Two teaspoons of sweet and sour sauce, and add some garlic granules. Blooming lovely. 

It was a sunny start to the day, so I stripped the bed and did two loads of washing. Out on the line and it dried quickly. My pillow cases are looking a bit worn out, so I thought, why not treat myself to some new ones. I went to Dunelm, They have a fantastic selection to choose from. They had some sale items so I had a look through them and found this bargain. I can have a duvet cover and two pillowcases for £10. Thank you that will be perfect. 

I have four pillows on my bed, so I might as well get these covers for £4. Job done. 

I also wanted some tea towels. As with everything in my house they are looking scruffy. I make things last until they are no longer fit for purpose. These will do nicely. 5 for £6. 

There was a bit of excitement in the village tonight. A lorry got stuck on a hill and had to be pulled out. Road blocked for about an hour. I did my bit by stopping traffic and diverting them around the obstruction. People weren't happy. Some of them ignored my flashing torch and waving arms, only to go round the corner and have to turn round and come back. 

I still have two hedgehogs coming every night. Not a very good picture. I don't like to get too close to them or they might run away. 

A lunch out in a pub is planned for tomorrow. Something different. 

Thanks for popping in. Toodle pip.  ilona

Bus out, walk back.

I had an urge to walk today. It's been dull and overcast and strangely mild. I thought it might rain but it didn't. I checked the bus time table and caught the 3.30pm to town. Only me and one other person on it. What a bumpy ride that was. The bus was rattling and banging, sounded like it was ready for the knackers yard. They don't make them like they used to. I don't remember the old buses like this. The windows were filthy, so I couldn't watch the world go by. Nothing to see here.  

The driver changed his destination board to Not in Service, as we pulled into the bus station. There he goes. Probably finishing his shift. No wonder he was driving fast over the potholes. 

It was 4pm when I set off walking back. Once clear of the town and the Industrial Estate I was out in the countryside. Past the Blue Lagoon. Not sure why they call it that because it isn't blue. There used to be a steel works here years ago. It closed and they dug it all out and made a pond. 

Past the fishing pond. 

The footpath goes around the turf fields. 

The playing fields were very busy, several groups of school kids of different ages playing football. The fish and chip van on the car park was doing a good trade. 

And home for 6pm. Five miles to add to my total. 

Tonight two hedgehogs are munching away on the food just outside the back door. 

It's still warm so no heating needed. Thanks for popping in. Toodle pip.   ilona

Scam alert?

 Is this a scam. A car park payment machine has a fake QR code sticker placed over the original one on the sign. Is this a scam? What will happen if you scan it with your mobile phone? Will money go missing from your bank account? 

Quote. Be careful scanning ANYTHING and putting in your card details. People are getting scammed out of thousands by fake QR codes.

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My response. Question everything. Has this video been set up to scare people, or is it a genuine cover up by the parking company to update their computer records?

Quote. Have you checked that's actually a scam, or have the council just updated the URL of their payment app and used a sticker instead of replacing all the signs?

Quote. Just checked, and it is a scam. The fake URL now doesn't work.

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My response. This comment is concerning. Proof of how people are so vulnerable and can easily be sucked in.

Quote. This is a real concern. The council car parks in my area have these machines. Some of the machines don’t take cash. We are being forced into having smartphones.

My response. This is what they want you to think. You do have a choice. It may appear that this is the way to go, everything must be computerised, everything will be digital. But we still have a choice. It's up to you whether you hand over your life to those that wish to own you. 

Everyone should be doing their own risk assessment. Fakery is everywhere, and the laziest sloppiest way to deal with changes is to question nothing and go along with everything that is presented to you. If the wrong decision is made and things go pear shaped, you obviously didn't think it through enough. 

I know that I will miss out on some things because I still use cash. I take that responsibility. That suits me fine because it gives me peace of mind. 

Now it's time for breakfast. Then coffee morning. Have a good day. Toodle pip.   ilona

I will tidy this up later. Got to go now. 

Running out of daylight.

I'm glad I went for a walk yesterday. It's been pretty miserable today. I did manage to get in two dog walks later this afternoon. Rocky's dad is at home now, back from hospital. He won't be able to walk him just yet as he needs time to recover from his operation. I will call in and help when I have an hour or two to spare. The next door neighbour will also take him for a walk. 

I took Billy for a walk as well. Might as well do both, not at the same time though because I am not sure if they would get on together. There are two Beagles which Billy hates. For some reason he goes bonkers, barking like crazy. 

I made this video yesterday. Uploaded today. I did get caught out in the dark. Good job I took a torch with me. I don't like these shorter days. 

My dinner tonight was a lovely stir fry, washed down with half a bottle of beer. 

Let's see what tomorrow brings. Sunny or dull, we shall see. No plans, I'll make something up. 

Thanks for popping in. Toodle pip.   ilona

Crafty Club party

There wasn't much stitching, or knitting going on this morning at Crafty Club. We had a birthday to celebrate. A big one. I must say, she doesn't look 80, nowhere near it. We had home made mushroom soup, quiche, nibbles, cake, and ice cream. 

Afterwards the ladies played Bingo. I opted out of that and did the washing up instead. 

This afternoon I went a walk, The sun came out and it was good to be out in the fields. I came across a young lady riding her horse. It was a bit frisky at first because the track is usually quiet. It came closer to inspect me, then we were friends. 

As I approach this group of trees, from a distance that square in between the trees looks like a picture frame. 

Remember the walk on Friday, the photograph looking across the river to Brough on the other side. This is that same view, from much further away. As the crow flies I am 4.5 miles away. Friday I was 1.4 miles away. Good zoom on the camera. 

I saw Trevor. He is the man who looks after the memorial bench. I told him about the tree and hedge cutting around it, and how much of a mess it looks. He said he will go and check it out in a week or two, when he has time. 

I stopped off at Junes house for a natter and kept an eye on the time. It was a good job I remembered to take a torch as it was getting dark very quickly. I had the sun going down on my right, and over on the left behind the trees the moon was coming up. It doesn't look dark in this picture but ten minutes later it was. I don't like the short days. 

Thanks for popping in. Toodle pip.   ilona