Bee Orchid's articles

Money, we’re told, is the root of all evil, meaning all wrongdoings can be traced back to the excessive attachment of money. But what is excessive? Is wanting enough money, and more, to live a comfortable life excessive? What level of comfort are we talking? I wouldn’t want a mansion to be honest, but something with a bigger garden and kitchen would be nice. The popular song by the Flying Lizards states ‘what it don’t get, I can’t use.’ Whilst love is good, it doesn’t pay the bills and there’…

Today, Thursday, was the Deckhand’s Birthday. 23 years old. Where does the time go? I offered to pay for a meal out, however after last year’s mediocre fayre, and the cost of eating out, he decided we’d stay home. He chose the menu: ribs in BBQ sauce, jerk chicken, coconut rice, and grilled pineapple (made even sweeter as it was free - the checkout man couldn't put it through the till, no matter how many times he tried, so he just gave it to me. Nice!) followed by chocolate brownie gateau (I mad…

This week, the Ship’s Dog was fired. He was having a little nap in the sun, outside the back door which is a lovely little sun trap for him. I don’t mind him napping, however, next door’s cat was also napping in the sunshine, in my garden, on the decking nearby. I’d gone out to check on the laundry, and scared the cat, inadvertently, and she ran off to her own garden. So much for the guard dog! Truth be told, he likes cats and will try and get up close to them which of course most cats don’t app…

I posted some photos of my limited plant collection, and some descriptions however this is more detailed. The bluebells are ‘native’ to the garden, along with the fatsia japonica – thanks Jenny. The rest are my plants and consist of: Large 23-year-old Japanese Azalea, large flowering shrub – unknown though I suspect it’s an azalea – it was bought cheaply from a garden centre ‘reject’ trolley as it badly needed love and attention, a hellebore – free from a garden centre as it was in poor shape, a…

Inspired by Jenny and her terrific neighbours. Over the years I’ve lived in a number of houses with a ‘rum do’ assortment of neighbours. As a teenager, we lived in a new terraced house on a housing estate that had limited access for cars. With underpasses aplenty, you could walk for a number of miles without ever having to cross a road. Anyway, on one side was a neighbour we barely knew or saw, and on the other was a family with what is now called a special needs child. Man, they were often n…

Some time ago I applied for a part time post in a well-known pet supplies store. Not my ideal choice, however getting an admin job in these parts is proving tricky as they’re as rare as rocking horse sh*t. Anyway, I thought nothing more of it, until I received an email stating someone would call me for a telephone interview on Monday. Monday came, and I spoke to a woman from the company who asked me questions and then stated she’d like me to attend a training session and interview the next day o…

This week some spit of a girl has had the pleasure of treating me to electric shocks. My son wanted to do it instead, but no, much to his chagrin, I thought I’d leave it to a professional to torture me instead lol. I have to say, I didn’t much care for it. In reality, I’ve had nerve conducive tests to see if I have any trapped nerves which could be causing my peripheral neuropathy. It was okay, if a tad unpleasant. It’s really weird watching fingers, hands, muscles, spasm of their own accord as…

Or rather, he doesn’t. Usually Henry follows me around like a dog, sucking up all the Ship’s Dog hair and generally keeping the Ship tidy and clean. Lately he’s been listless, gets overheated quickly, and basically, isn’t doing his job properly. This has been going on since I vacuumed the Deckhand’s room and I suspected a blockage. I dismantled the pipes, could see through them, so no blockage. The hose seemed okay if a little less power and I was starting to wonder if Henry needed to walk the p…

So, I’ll start by saying I haven’t been drinking. Honestly, I haven’t. Far too early for one thing. This morning (Sunday) I popped over to our local supermarket to get a few items I need for dinner. Initially we were going to have beef curry, however after making Chinese food recently, we decided we’d rather have beef casserole, so a few veggies were needed. At the crossing I waited for 6 or 7 motorbikes to pass, 2 of which were huge and very nice indeed. I used to ride a bike, in another lifet…

…As a sack of cats. Well, I take back everything good I’ve ever said about our NHS. As regular readers will know, my eye appointment was brought forward 5 weeks, which obviously is good news. Days later, I’ve received a letter saying the appointment has been cancelled, and my new appointment is now 3 weeks later than my original one! I’m so angry and feel totally frustrated and vexed by this. I’ve written asking for an explanation for the cancellation as none has been given. If this farce car…

Despite having driven around only 2,000 miles since my MOT (road worthiness test) a year ago, my d*mn car failed and I had to have new brakes; an expense I didn’t need. It’s been 4 weeks now since my neurology appointment and I’ve heard nothing whatsoever from them. I’d made an appointment to see my GP which I’ve waited 2 weeks for. I arrived 5 minutes early, booked in, and was told they were running on time. 30 minutes later I asked how much longer they would be and was told I was next. In…

Recently I was unable to slice some beef nicely, and my son commented that my ‘favourite’ knife didn’t have a shiny edge to it anymore. I used a different knife, one that I don’t use often, and it was very sharp and did the job nicely. My then partner used to regularly sharpen all my knives, and he did a great job though I doubt he’d be willing to come back from Oz to sharpen my knives LMAO. My son volunteered for the task however with his track record (see Awards blog) I decided to do the job m…

I’m a dreamer, always was, always will be. I don’t see it as a character flaw, or something to be proud of, I just am. In my youth, I’d like nothing better than window shopping in stores I couldn’t afford; just looking at nice things and hoping one day that I’d be able to afford them. My then husband was so down to earth it was scary, and I do seem to attract that type; so opposite to myself. I once went to a shopping mall, a few years ago, and simply wandered around a department store looking a…

Although I’m part of the human race – a declaration my son does occasionally doubt – I often find myself people watching in a rather detached manner. Wednesday, my son had to attend a ‘module choice’ talk in readiness for year 3, the final year of his degree. He was only going to be about half hour, so I parked up, had a wander around the shops in the area, then sat in the car to wait. Before long I received a text stating he’d be at least another 20 minutes, so I angled my car mirrors, and simp…

Steak and Ale Pie Ingredients: 1 tbsp oil 1 medium onion – sliced Mushrooms – sliced (optional) 2 tbsp plain flour Salt, black pepper 1 tsp dried mixed herbs 500g diced beef – I like Aberdeen Angus from Lidl 1 bay leaf 300ml dark ale or stout – I use Guiness Lardons – as many/little as you like (optional, though I find it gives a good depth of flavour) 125ml beef stock 1 tbsp tomato puree 1 generous tsp blackcurrant conserve – again, gives good depth of flavour, or use 1tsp…

These past few days I wouldn’t say that I’m bored, however I have felt at a loose end. The weather has improved somewhat and whilst glorious sunshine hasn’t been much in abundance, neither has wind and rain for which I’m grateful. Since Thursday I’ve dusted and vacuumed the whole house, cleaned the bathroom, been grocery shopping, done laundry including the ironing… I’ve taken the Ship’s Dog for a good walk to the further park today, the TV is boring me, I’m almost finished yet another book and…

I’ve commented before about the pro’s of living near a town centre; easy access to shops, library, GP and so on, the con of living here, is also proximity to all the shops and of course the people. For over a week, the freaking circus was in town and we had our ears assaulted by an a-hole with a megaphone and pounding music. The music might have been nice, but all we heard was the boom-boom of it due to the bass being turned up too high. Each night there were 2 shows by the sounds of it, with ev…

The billing systems in England, or at least my part, are very different from where I used to live in Wales. In Wales, we had Welsh Water, no choice, that was it, however the annual bill could be paid over 12 months by direct debit which made it less painful. The council tax bill could be paid over 10 months; the reason being, the other 2 months were used by the council to track down and prosecute non-payers. It felt like you had 2 months off, which was always nice, just after the expense of Chri…