COLD DARK ROOM

JoesMum said:

Somebody mentioned Birthday Cake that I needed to share... Lena?

I must admit that, much as I love cooking, baking isn’t my thing. The last birthday cake I made was over 20 years ago ... a Teletubbies mound complete with Teletubbies made of fondant icing.

I... ahem... got this one hand crafted by ... er ... Mr Sainsbury’s
View attachment 270721

Son will still like it. His birthday is on Monday.

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CarolM said:

I got bored, as I had some time on my hands. So enjoy and tell me if it will make a good children's story:

Hi Everybody,

My name is Tortie,


Ye ye I know it sounds terrible, but I was the last of the clutch to hatch. I have 15 brothers and sisters and a Mom and Dad. Well my Mom and Dad are not around anymore as my brothers, sisters and I are laid in a nest underground and then covered with soil. We stay in our nice and warm nest for about 90 days and then it is free for all and we start hatching and making our way to the topside.

I was the last to pip and then make my way to the topside. And boy was I glad, as it was so sunny and green on the top.


Anyway I made it to the top and found a very different world to what I was used to. It is actually very scary being on the topside, sometimes when I get very scared I burrow underground just to get away from the scary topside. Maybe when I am much bigger it will not be as scary. But for now I am just 10grams and about a ¼ inch big.

View attachment 270724

I thought that I would share some of my adventures with you. Just the other day as I was cautiously walking around looking for some nice and yummy weeds to eat, I came across another tortoise that looked very different from me. I am sure it is a tortoise as it also carries it’s house around on it’s back. But it’s house is a spiral pattern and the funny thing is that it only has one leg coming out the back and it’s head which has two antennae on it comes out the front. This is what it looked like. Luckily I had my camera with me and took a photo. He said that his name is Snelly. Snelly also told me that he is a snail and not a tortoise. I thought that tortoises were the only creatures who carried it’s house around on it’s back. But Snelly tells me that there are lots of other creatures that do the same thing.

View attachment 270725

Snelly is much smaller than me, and was eating some flowers. I like flowers too. Especially the yellow kind – I think you call them Dandelions. But the best is the red Hibiscus flower. That one is super yummy. I also like clover weeds, and plantain. And grass and endive.



I decided to leave my brothers and sisters and go out on my own, as my biggest brother (who was the first one to pip and leave the nest) was a real bully and just would not leave me alone. I don’t know what he had against me, but whatever I did he was always there getting in the way. He would not even let me eat on my own.

This is my brother

View attachment 270726



See he even looks like a bully.

It is so much better, more peaceful without my siblings. Except this morning while Snelly and I were grazing and looking for food, there was this huge shadow that flew over us.

View attachment 270727

I got such a fright that I hid in my house and as soon as I felt the shadow pass, Snelly and I went and hid under some bushes. I think that we will stay under the bushes for a while and just graze on the weeds in between. Snelly who is much, much older than me says that it was a bird that flew over us and that they like to eat us. Which is terrible, why would that bird want to eat us, are we not all vegetarians?

Snelly and I carried on eating and this very rude little creature (Snelly says it was an ant) it looks like this

View attachment 270728


Just ran right over my food that I was eating. He did shout sorry and that he was in a hurry, so could not stop to chat. I wonder why he was in such a hurry. I mean life is about taking it easy and enjoying the moment and peace around you. Oh well some creatures just have no manners whatsoever.



Snelly is taking me to the pond that he says is on the other side of the garden. I want to go drink some water and to maybe lie in the water for a little while, but I will have to find a spot which is under some bushes, as I am too scared that bird that we saw will come back and try to eat me. Snelly says that birds are not vegetarians.



Well it has taken Snelly and I a good couple of hours to get to the pond. But I cannot go in, because there is this other tortoise in there already. And I don’t like being with other tortoises. Snelly tells me that the other tortoise lives in the water in the pond. I am not sure that I want to do that. I like to lie in the water for a little while, you know to have a nice long soak – it is good for my shell, but I like living on land preferably in a burrow that I have made nice and cosy for myself.

Meet Wise one (that is her name – she told me herself) She also told me that she is a turtle and is 50 years old. I think that is why her name is Wise One! She has lived for a long time.

View attachment 270729

She said that she does not mind if I want to share a little bit of her water. Wise One told me that she makes sure that all the little creatures get to enjoy the water without being bullied. Wise One is very kind. I like her.



But now I am very tired and want to go and get some sleep. I will see you all tomorrow and tell you about all my adventures tomorrow.

Yawn.

View attachment 270730


Night Night

View attachment 270731

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Kristoff said:

Cute! This reminds me of “Maya the Bee”. I wonder if everyone knows it.

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Ben02 said:

Look who I met today at my colleges open day.

His name is Casper. He arrived at the college with severe MBD but now he is thriving, living his best life in his own field

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Maro2Bear said:

As regulars know, we’ve recently had some very tall leaning pine trees come crashing down in our back garden. In addition to their collapse and general chaos and mess, they also crushed many other lower growth trees like holly. As we trimmed, cut, shredded and burned (and continue to do so), I picked up a piece of the holly “log” and noticed how clean and pure the wood appeared.

Sooooo, I picked up a pretty straight piece to see what it might have inside...

A Representative Holly Tree in our Garden
View attachment 270736

Our Crushed Holly
View attachment 270737

Firewood or Treasure
View attachment 270738

Treasure
View attachment 270739

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CarolM said:

Awesome. Did you tell them about your torts and TFO?

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Cathie G said:

Me too. We are here waiting on pins and needles for the next chapter.

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CarolM said:

Hmm better be careful, wifey might not need you anymore soon.[emoji6]

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Ben02 said:

Yes I did, they have some young Greeks aswell

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Ray--Opo said:

Here is a pic of her routing the wires thru the soffits. View attachment 270741

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CarolM said:

Wow. Good job. And they say women cannot do a man's job.[emoji33]

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Bambam1989 said:

Hello everyone! It's been a while but I have not forgotten my friends here in the CDR[emoji16]
Things have been.. interesting.. lately.
Hope everyone is doing well?

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Ray--Opo said:

Yep she is great. She follows my directions very well. ( I mean that in a good way)

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Bambam1989 said:

Hello everyone! It's been a while but I have not forgotten my friends here in the CDR[emoji16]
Things have been.. interesting.. lately.
Hope everyone is doing well?

Click to expand...

CarolM said:

I got bored, as I had some time on my hands. So enjoy and tell me if it will make a good children's story:

Hi Everybody,

My name is Tortie,


Ye ye I know it sounds terrible, but I was the last of the clutch to hatch. I have 15 brothers and sisters and a Mom and Dad. Well my Mom and Dad are not around anymore as my brothers, sisters and I are laid in a nest underground and then covered with soil. We stay in our nice and warm nest for about 90 days and then it is free for all and we start hatching and making our way to the topside.

I was the last to pip and then make my way to the topside. And boy was I glad, as it was so sunny and green on the top.


Anyway I made it to the top and found a very different world to what I was used to. It is actually very scary being on the topside, sometimes when I get very scared I burrow underground just to get away from the scary topside. Maybe when I am much bigger it will not be as scary. But for now I am just 10grams and about a ¼ inch big.

View attachment 270724

I thought that I would share some of my adventures with you. Just the other day as I was cautiously walking around looking for some nice and yummy weeds to eat, I came across another tortoise that looked very different from me. I am sure it is a tortoise as it also carries it’s house around on it’s back. But it’s house is a spiral pattern and the funny thing is that it only has one leg coming out the back and it’s head which has two antennae on it comes out the front. This is what it looked like. Luckily I had my camera with me and took a photo. He said that his name is Snelly. Snelly also told me that he is a snail and not a tortoise. I thought that tortoises were the only creatures who carried it’s house around on it’s back. But Snelly tells me that there are lots of other creatures that do the same thing.

View attachment 270725

Snelly is much smaller than me, and was eating some flowers. I like flowers too. Especially the yellow kind – I think you call them Dandelions. But the best is the red Hibiscus flower. That one is super yummy. I also like clover weeds, and plantain. And grass and endive.



I decided to leave my brothers and sisters and go out on my own, as my biggest brother (who was the first one to pip and leave the nest) was a real bully and just would not leave me alone. I don’t know what he had against me, but whatever I did he was always there getting in the way. He would not even let me eat on my own.

This is my brother

View attachment 270726



See he even looks like a bully.

It is so much better, more peaceful without my siblings. Except this morning while Snelly and I were grazing and looking for food, there was this huge shadow that flew over us.

View attachment 270727

I got such a fright that I hid in my house and as soon as I felt the shadow pass, Snelly and I went and hid under some bushes. I think that we will stay under the bushes for a while and just graze on the weeds in between. Snelly who is much, much older than me says that it was a bird that flew over us and that they like to eat us. Which is terrible, why would that bird want to eat us, are we not all vegetarians?

Snelly and I carried on eating and this very rude little creature (Snelly says it was an ant) it looks like this

View attachment 270728


Just ran right over my food that I was eating. He did shout sorry and that he was in a hurry, so could not stop to chat. I wonder why he was in such a hurry. I mean life is about taking it easy and enjoying the moment and peace around you. Oh well some creatures just have no manners whatsoever.



Snelly is taking me to the pond that he says is on the other side of the garden. I want to go drink some water and to maybe lie in the water for a little while, but I will have to find a spot which is under some bushes, as I am too scared that bird that we saw will come back and try to eat me. Snelly says that birds are not vegetarians.



Well it has taken Snelly and I a good couple of hours to get to the pond. But I cannot go in, because there is this other tortoise in there already. And I don’t like being with other tortoises. Snelly tells me that the other tortoise lives in the water in the pond. I am not sure that I want to do that. I like to lie in the water for a little while, you know to have a nice long soak – it is good for my shell, but I like living on land preferably in a burrow that I have made nice and cosy for myself.

Meet Wise one (that is her name – she told me herself) She also told me that she is a turtle and is 50 years old. I think that is why her name is Wise One! She has lived for a long time.

View attachment 270729

She said that she does not mind if I want to share a little bit of her water. Wise One told me that she makes sure that all the little creatures get to enjoy the water without being bullied. Wise One is very kind. I like her.



But now I am very tired and want to go and get some sleep. I will see you all tomorrow and tell you about all my adventures tomorrow.

Yawn.

View attachment 270730


Night Night

View attachment 270731

Click to expand...