Goodbye Africa

Lol, good to have you back HOME Karen, safe and sound! Can't wait to hear all about your adventures!
:)))))

Sorry you loist your plants - but welcome back to Europe. :o)

So pleased to hear from you,Karen..been worried about you..don't know if you got my PM at all,but glad to hear you are back too..
"Normal" service will be resumed as soon as possible,I hope...over and out :o))

Lovely to see you back, I was wondering how you were getting on.
That sad about your plants.
Are you back in your old house and garden in France?
Anyway, welcome back!

Yeah nice to have you back! we were all worried about you!!!!!!!!!! Glad you are safe. DOnt worry about losing plants..you can always buy lots more!!!! shopping shopping K! xx

Thanks girls!

I can't even begin to tell you how happy I am to be home, even tho' there's been a bit of freezing devastation in the garden and two huge holes in the roof!

- all the more reason to get out there, immediately! Same house and garden Sticki - just a little bit worse of the wear, at the moment.

Hoho - just remembered that it's market day on Monday -think I'll take the cure! BLISS!!!

I'm not sure if I my 'adventures' are worth recounting any more, Lil - after the car window was smashed by armed robbers for the second time, I stopped even trying to go out...apart from when I ended up in hospital (an experience I don't want to repeat) - suspected malaria, but in reality just a cold virus and chronic indigestion, I think!! Anyway, I'd rather find out here than there...

I'm really,really sorry, Bloomer - I haven't been able to use my computer in Africa since we went to Scotland (for different reasons). It stopped working properly when I got back and I got a message saying that another computer had acquired my IP address...so, I just left it alone...it has not stopped updating since I landed yesterday morning! I think that I'll have to do the same thing today! lol!

What's your weather been like, Nariz? Apparently, there was a couple of weeks here, recently, when the temperatures dropped to minus 20!! Hence, sadly, no more cordylines...

Hiya, Pixi! Didn't see you there!

Heehee - starting this morning - coffee in town with the girls...via a spot of retail therapy in the 'high street' (which just happens to have that nice little garden shop)! lol!

Hi Karen ..

Welcome back. Good that you are safe. :o)

Thanks, TT - it's good to be back - I've missed you all!

No problem,Karen..you just sound so happy to be home,and that's the main thing..put Africa behind you,and get out there girl,and spend spend spend! ..enjoy your girly day out..I bet you missed that .Lol :o))

lovely to see you back, sorry you had some horrible times but hopefully they are all behind you and you can have a wonderful time where you are!!!

now out you go and get more coffee and chats and plants!!!

nice to see you again Karen. sorry it's not been the best of times out there, but it's good to have you back :-)

Great to have you back KarenF and feeling safe, im looking forward to seeing what you will do with your garden, sorry to hear about your cordy's, i wonder what you will replace them with! Have a good day with the girls. Love Dee.

I,m relieved that you,re back safe......I still think about your wall bursting into flames......
Your garden seems a bit of a mess but its spring and all that lovely growing weather to lookforwards too....xxx

Karen its a relief to know you are safe and back home again, it was a worry when you just disappeared on us, sorry your experiences were bad at the end, will look forward to hearing of your garden and exploits in France I'm sure they will be just as enjoyable even though not as hairy as Africa, enjoy your therapy session in the market.
Take care and hope you settle back into your home and garden very soon....

Oh thank goodness! We have all been worried about you Karen! So glad that you are home again and 'out of Africa' at last. I hope you will soon have your garden (and home) back ship shape and I bet you are hugely relieved to be safe again. Welcome home! :)))))

Oh, thank you everyone for all your good wishes! It's so nice to be back in the fold! :)))))

Just got back from a nice 'normal' day out in lovely uneventful Chalais...and I'm never, ever going to complain about life ever again (well maybe a little bit - but, shh! don't tell my other half! lol!).

However, after a more thorough post-mortem on the garden, it looks like I'm going to need your advice, folks...

...but, hey ho, here we go again...what could be better? :))))))

And...it's going to take me a few days to catch up on all of you!!! Looking forward to it, immensely! :)))))))))

It won't take that long,Karen...only few months of pics and blogs to wade through ! Lol...nothing much else to do have you ? ha ha..

:))))))

lol! No, Bloomer, I'll just get my wellies on (only way to safely get through the kitchen at the moment) and knuckle down!!! :DDD

OMG, here you go again ! Lol..no hole in the wall,I hope !!!

Glad to hear you are back home and safe.

Welcome back! What a time you've have had off it and are still having by the sounds of things. Best of luck with everything in the house and the garden...I've no doubt you'll have it all in order asap!
If it wiznae fur yir wellies wir wid yae be!!!!!

Great to have you back safe and well, Hope you get your roof fixed soon if you are getting as much rain as us you'll need too! Dont worry about the dead plants think of them as planting opportunities :o)))

It's been wet, windy and cold, Karen! We had Summer in March (actually wore flip-flops in the garden!) but we're back to Winter now! Sounds like you're happy to be where you are - no matter what the conditions! Enjoy! :o)

Thanks DRC, Scottish and Planto - it's good to see you all again too :)))

...market day on Monday - will get a start made then...if it stops raining!!!

Lol! Hopefully, it'll no 'be in the hospital or infirmeree' again any time soon, Scottish!! :))

I'd noticed your absence some time ago and hoped it wasn't something serious, just a glitch in communications. We've missed you and your lovely, exotic news, but it's so good to know you're safe. You'll notice a difference in the weather! Welcome back! We're ready and waiting with all the gardening advice you could possibly want. And probably more.

welcome back :o)

It sounds like it's been the same thing here, Nariz. Camille took all the protection off and then when he went to put it all back on before the snow (which froze to minus 20), he discovered that someone else had accidentally removed the garden gate key and couldn't get in!

Thanks Gattina and Sanbaz - I'm definitely a European girl at heart. :)))

I missed your return Karen, but my it's good to know that you are safely home. Gardens can be fixed and mended...Welcome home.

Thanks Pimpernel :))
- my return was unscheduled - but necessary to mind, body and soul.

I must say I definitely prefer getting my hands dirty to just giving instructions, lol!

Hello hun \o/\o/\o/!! Missed you lots and so pleased to see your name come up when I logged in this morning. You are now officially our French correspondent! xx

Hi Annella! Nice to see you too :)) xx

I'll get right to it, just as soon as the rain stops - which according to the latest forecast is sometime in May...!

May next year by the sound of it!

Oh, you're not kidding, Annie - and now the wind's got up and is trying to blow all the covers off the garden furniture!!!

You have the covers on your garden furniture already? Wow, I'm impressed, KF. Ours are all still up in the loft waiting for some sign of summer. Also, if there's something nice and welcoming to lounge on, the garden work gets neglected......

LOL! No I mean the protective covers, Gattina! Most of it was too heavy for me to move by myself before I went away so I wrapped it all up...mind you at this time last year we'd been sitting out for ages...

Mustn't complain though - we really need the water!

I actually got a couple of cushions out for the swing-seat in March, when it got so warm, but they went back again sharpish when April blew in (or should I say "swam" in?)

Not sure which verbs can be used for 'horizontal rain', Gattina...('swimming's definitely working at the moment...but doesn't describe the 'wading' part! lol!)

...would quite like it to go back to 'straight down' though, then I wouldn't need to wear my wellies in the kitchen...lol! :))

Oh DEAR! To be honest, we could do with higher temperatures and MORE rain. Would you believe that Italy has a hose-pipe ban? No, nor did I. The reservoirs have been at around 40% of normal since September. Mind you, not everybody chooses to have heard about it. :o)

Hmm...us too, Gattina. Last year, we had NO rain between Febuary and July... although April and May had always been wet in my years here...

The reservoirs are still really low...

So, I don't really mind the rain - as long as it does the 'straight down' thing and not the 'horizontal up and under the roof tiles' thing! Wellies should really only be for outdoors, in my book! :)

Mine, too. Luckily, our cellars have to be pretty damp (i.e. 10' deep in rain) before the house itself gets wet.

Unfortunately, we don't have a cellar (water less than a metre down at the back of the house)...and I have to wait until the roof tiles are dry before anyone can go up and fix them...ah, well - I'll just have to be patient...the ceiling plaster's already damaged...a few more gallons won't make that much difference! :(

Lovely to hear that you are so happy to be home . I was wondering where you had got to .
You gave Africa your best shot , you would only have wondered if you hadn't tried it .

Hi Driad, long time no see...and thank you :)
You are right...I've been there and bought the tee-shirt...

Can't say that I'll ever wear it tho'...lol