The Tartan Lounge has arrived

Sax how are you feeling today? Hope you are on the mend- did you get to the party for your little grandson?
I've got a really sore sandpaper throat today, that can just do one right now I haven't got time to be ill! Absolutely nothing compared to all your woes though poor you! X

Thank you I did go with scarf for in car and inhalor. I did enjoy seeing him at party very tiring and left early.  We brought him a little ties cozy coupe car he loved it.....

Hope your sore throat doesn't get worse. So many flu virus infections going round. Seeing gp tomorrow  as want to update them re my Blue Steroid regular patient card now.. I also want to advise re chest consultant and not have it forgotten....
Brrr a lot of gritters out on local news

Well hello-o-o!! Thank you for the invitation to draw up a chair I never even knew this existed!

So glad you got to your grandson's party Sax, even if you couldn't stay for as logn as you would have liked. So sorry to hear that you are still really on the mend and are needing an inhaler.

Also sorry to hear about sore throat Alls - winter is truly upon is with all its germs and battered down immune systems.

I had a lovely weekend in the Yorkshire Dales with my two lovely friends. We shopped a bit, walked on the hills a bit, snuggled up in front of the cosy fire a lot, watched Strictly, voted and saved Gemma and Mollie (phew!) and had a lovely catch up and a very convivial time :-)

Back in the Lakes now -which is still lovely and not to be sniffed at!

Hope eveyone feels better soon x

welcome Diamonds!! A quick history lesson  - I believe this room was set up way back in the mists of strictly time, when  for some unfathomable reason ITT was not on in Scotland on Thursday nights at the 'live' time! So they set up a place to talk to fill the void!
It's been a bit unloved lately as n.umbers have dwindled but now it's great for talking a bout all things  unstrictly  

I bet there's a bit of snow on the fells now isn't there? Wish we could post pics on here, I'd love to see it!
Don't worry about me, my throat's more of an irritant than anything, par for the course at this time of year.
We must've been a good team D&P as our combined votes obviously saved Gemma and Mollie going to be interesting this week as no duffers left now. Let's see what we think after the big reveal of music tonight.

Who can't post pics? Edinburgh at Xmas.

Oh yes!! WOW- Never knew this!!lovely pic- Thanks CC - greetings from the south coast!

Although we should probs be cautious as I expect they take up a lot of webspace/ memory whatever the technical term is, we don't want to break the forum I have been thinking actually that we should probably make contingency plans in case the worst should happen-I'd be gutted if we didn't have this forum every year!

allsewnonbyhand wrote:Although we should probs be cautious as I expect they take up a lot of webspace/ memory whatever the technical term is, we don't want to break the forum  I have been thinking actually that we should probably make contingency plans in case the worst should happen-I'd be gutted if we didn't have this forum every year!

I think you do get warnings of overuse of bpics by the web hosting company. Well at least the forum owners do.

Hi CC and Diamonds welcome to TTL... brrrrrrr cold. Loving the photo's beautiful... I have been thinking re if a problem would we lose site? I think having the bot logged on all time helps. Not sure if anone has tried contact a d m I n see if they would respond and/or hand over reins to one of the regulars now?
I try and log in every few weeks during the off season of SCD just to test it' still here....
So far I've succeeded today to change a single bed! Took me 30 minutes to faff wheeze sit then faff wheeze shake duvet rest come back finish off! It' frustrating. Today is day 5 of steroids and first time I have 25 more days to go..
Was due go to Brum German Market Thursday not sure to risk it and I don' think they will let me thru the security barriers (first time in operation and a bit disheartening ) with balaclava on

Oh you be careful and take care Sax, you don't want to overdo things.
I love the German market at Brum, went every year while my two were up there at uni, it looks really spread out now, that could be a bit tiring! It looks like the ice rink is indoors now? That's a shame I used to love the outdoor one by symphony hall. Funnily enough some memory pics of the market came up on my newsfeed this morning- evidently I was there two years ago today!
I think CC put a message up for ad.min somewhere, did it get a response CC? I don't know how I found this out but I think the site is hosted from somewhere in Europe- I .literally cant remember what I was doing to get this info, but I feel we should definitely think about doing something so that we retain or restart the forum if the worst comes to the worst.

saxonsiren wrote:Hi CC and Diamonds welcome to TTL... brrrrrrr cold. Loving the photo's beautiful... I have been thinking re if a problem would we lose site? I think having the bot logged on all time helps. Not sure if anone has tried contact a d m I n see if they would respond and/or hand over reins to one of the regulars now?
I try and log in every few weeks during the off season of SCD just to test it' still here....
So far I've succeeded today to change a single bed! Took me 30 minutes to faff wheeze sit then faff wheeze shake duvet rest come back finish off! It' frustrating. Today is day 5 of steroids and first time I have 25 more days to go..
Was due go to Brum German Market Thursday not sure to risk it and I don' think they will let me thru the security barriers (first time in operation and a bit disheartening ) with balaclava on

Weird. I always presumed the board was started up by and owned by one of the forum members. Likewise, during off season I pop in every so often and try to post up any celebrity guest rumours for the upcoming series and any breaking news.

I feel for you sax. Try to relax and take it easy and your recovery will be all that much better and swifter.

CaledonianCraig wrote:

Weird. I always presumed the board was started up by and owned by one of the forum members. Likewise, during off season I pop in every so often and try to post up any celebrity guest rumours for the upcoming series and any breaking news.

I feel for you sax. Try to relax and take it easy and your recovery will be all that much better and swifter.

I think it was set up by someone who used to post on the old BBC boards but I don't know who. I don't think it necessarily means much that the site is hosted from somewhere else, it's probably quite common- hark at me spouting on as if I know what I'm talking about

Just out of interest how many people here are Facebookers? Just asking as I wonder whether it is worth setting up a Facebook Group for us purely as a fall-back in case this forum was to close/crash or such-like?

Yes use Faceache

saxonsiren wrote:So far I've succeeded today to change a single bed! Took me 30 minutes to faff wheeze sit then faff wheeze shake duvet rest come back finish off! It' frustrating. Today is day 5 of steroids and first time I have 25 more days to go..

Has the GP prescribed any diuretics sax?

No he hasn't but omg I'm spending tons of pennies lol in bathroom.... Chest Dr referal being done and lung function tests after these steroids finish... Ultrasound on heart arranging too...
Are you better now? Brrr Bloomin cold I'm tucking self back to bed with book after hubby goes to work...

God it's parky out there. Saw a sign up saying they're gritting the roads tonight so could well be waking up to snow. I do love this time of year though with all the Christmas lights and getting cosy indoors.

CaledonianCraig wrote:Just out of interest how many people here are Facebookers? Just asking as I wonder whether it is worth setting up a Facebook Group for us purely as a fall-back in case this forum was to close/crash or such-like?

I'm on "Faceache" (lol Sax) but never use it CC if I'm honest. I'm Team Twitter. My handle there's @StrictlySid (now how did I come up with that name I wonder?!) - feel free to add me anyone who wants to.

Alls - how's your throat? Gargling with warm salty water always seems to get rid of sore throats for me x

Sax - I remember now you're a keen reader. Have you read anything really really good (and grippy - it's gotta be grippy) lately that you can recommend? I'm always on the look out for book recs. I'm currently reading The Dry by Jane Harper, a crime thriller, and it's proving every bit as good as everyone told me it was.

saxonsiren wrote:No he hasn't but omg I'm spending tons of pennies lol in bathroom.... Chest Dr referal being done and lung function tests after these steroids finish... Ultrasound on heart arranging too...
Are you better now? Brrr Bloomin cold I'm tucking self back to bed with book after hubby goes to work...

I'm improving slowly thanks sax. The reason I ask, is my relative had similar sounding problems (fluid at the bottom of the lungs, heart enlarged etc) He didn't want to eat, was breathless all the time. Started diuretics and lost loads of excess water which also cleared his waterlogged lungs. He felt so much better and started eating again. Hope they get you feeling better soon.

I better say something Scottish now I've snuck on here! I spent a week on Arran in September. Does that count?

Sid wrote:

I'm on "Faceache" (lol Sax) but never use it CC if I'm honest. I'm Team Twitter. My handle there's @StrictlySid (now how did I come up with that name I wonder?!) - feel free to add me anyone who wants to.

I'm on Facetube too, but use it mostly for work. I'm also on Twitter which I prefer and think is great. What other medium lets you 'talk' to S'Alan Sugar and a chance to get an instant reply (might not be the one you wanted but...). There are some nasty trolls out there but most posters I've met have been upbeat.

Sid wrote:Alls - how's your throat? Gargling with warm salty water always seems to get rid of sore throats for me x

Sore throat much better thank you, has gone south into a chesty cough ( again- I only had one 2 weeks ago!! ) still tis the season for lurgys...Sax how are you today? B4 glad you are on the mend.

I am on faceache too, also newly on Twitter but haven't really got a grip of it yet! Use it mainly to see what Marian Keyes is up to! I did see that our Sid is practically BFF with her - I didn't follow you at the time Sid, as it seemed a bit presumptuous

Keep warm everyone, it looks beautiful this morning but more ice scraping needed when I go to work

Brrrrrrr awake at 2-30 am and came down with blanket and read! I have loads of freebie books Sid as I bid for book group on Reading agency.  A good suprise book for me Silence Between Breaths, a train to Euston lots of passengers with stories/problems and a young Asian boy with a Rucksack! Brilliant. A free copy too... The Pagoda Tree I adored not a thriller but a beautiful story steeped in Indian Culture. 
I have quite a few books to share if anyone wants any...

Sid I'd suggest start a book group and get bidding for free books from new authors and a few suprise names, Graham Norton,  Miranda Hart I've had too.
Alls hope you feel better soon and B4p ty for tip ill mention it nce see chest dr.... Went out today or a treat to Lidl ! I certainly rock n roll

saxonsiren wrote:Brrrrrrr awake at 2-30 am and came down with blanket and read! I have loads of freebie books Sid as I bid for book group on Reading agency.  A good suprise book for me Silence Between Breaths, a train to Euston lots of passengers with stories/problems and a young Asian boy with a Rucksack! Brilliant. A free copy too... The Pagoda Tree I adored not a thriller but a beautiful story steeped in Indian Culture. 
I have quite a few books to share if anyone wants any...

Sid I'd suggest start a book group and get bidding for free books from new authors and a few suprise names, Graham Norton,  Miranda Hart I've had too.

Cheers sax - I've not read any of those, will be sure to check them out. I'm too slow and unreliable a reader for book groups though!

allsewnonbyhand wrote:
I am  on faceache too, also newly on Twitter but haven't really got a grip of it yet! Use it mainly to see what Marian Keyes is up to! I did see that our Sid is practically BFF with her - I didn't follow you at the time Sid, as it seemed a bit presumptuous  

follow away gorgeous x

B4p wrote:
I'm on Facetube too, but use it mostly for work. I'm also on Twitter which I prefer and think is great. What other medium lets you 'talk' to S'Alan Sugar and a chance to get an instant reply (might not be the one you wanted but...). There are some nasty trolls out there but most posters I've met have been upbeat.

Yeah I'm very selective about who I follow (and have blocked / muted my fair share of people it has to be said!). I like that it moves quickly and that you have to keep messages concise-ish. I think my most "YAAAAAS!!!" moment was JK 'favouriting' my tweet

Sid an online book group great because you can float in and out. We used to have a book group on here too. Great reviews etc and read books...

The Handmaids Tale a good book too loved the tv adaption...

saxonsiren wrote:Sid an online book group great because you can float in and out. We used to have a book group on here too. Great reviews etc and read books...

The Handmaids Tale a good book too loved the tv adaption...

Read that last year sax - it was staggeringly good.

Off to do a roast dinner now - never been so psyched for one in my life!

Lot's of discussion points raised in the last few posts so in no particular order, here's my two pennorth:

1. On FaceShowOff but generally use it now for messaging close friends

2. Yes it is parky - actually bitterly cold. Went out for a walk but the wind bit my nose off, clawed at my face, stunned my sinuses into submission and made my eyes sting and water. Turned back after a very short while!

3. Tried twitter but don;t have the charisma of our Sid, so Marian/Miranda/Sue Perkins et al didn't want to be my BFFs, which was my entire raison d'aitre of having an account. Also, unlike Sid, I prefer to write a novel where ten words will do (I expect you may have noticed...) so the 140 character limit was excruciating. Liek those answermachines which cut you off after a minute (I always have to ring back and carry on where I have left off...) So I deleted my twitter account. It is their loss I feel...

4. I am an avid reader but am quite picky, and for every ten books I read there is probably only one that I even remember a few months later. I don't like deep, intorspective books with a message, but I don't like shallow books either.... I tend to hate all the ones that are up for various prizes. Afraid I really didn't enjoy The Handmaid's Tale when I read it years ago, and have never read anything by her since. I have just read a book in one sitting which left me feeling "is that it?". It is The Fall Guy by James Lasdun. Two of the lovely library staff recommended it, but I was completely underwhelmed and wouldn't really recommend it.

5. What are you roasting Sid - and can I join you?!