After buying my house I decided to remove the two ponds and the large greenhouse from the garden. The garden is quite large around 85 feet in length and with sunshine all day long. The ponds were outdated and the greenhouse was never going to be used. After removing the ponds and the greenhouse I was left with three different patches of soil with grass growing around it. I really wanted to do the entire garden but I then realised that it was too much of a big job to do myself.
Lawn seed
I then decided to plant the seeds and the grass grow naturally rather than buying turf. There were so many different brands and seeds to choose from so in the end I went with Homebase Family Quick Growing Lawn Seed 500g. It only cost £6.99 and could cover an area of 10m² other lawn seed brands were costing in excess of £9 so it thought I’d give it a try. It says it takes around 7 days to germinate but this was not the case.
After preparing the areas that needed lawn seed we planted them and made sure it was well watered. A week went by and nothing, then after 3 months we started to see some growth. The grass grows very quickly overtaking the existing lawn we have already. When cutting the grass its fine for about two weeks until it starts to overgrow again much faster than what I already have.
If you must use Homebase lawn seed then I would advise that you do the whole garden not just patches as it looks odd when growing. It will take longer that the 7 days it says on the box so be prepared to wait a while. Like mentioned before the grass will grow extremely quick and you may need to cut it every two weeks so that it looks neat and tidy.
If I could go back in time I would have gotten turf instead! Although it is pricier I know that the whole garden would look better than it does with lawn seed. There’s no waiting around time for the grass to grow and there is no back breaking task of sowing the seeds. For the price I paid I shouldn’t really complain but beware that the grass may not grow in all areas as I have found in my garden.
If you’ve ever been to the dentist and have been told that you’ve got gum disease, then most likely you’ll be given a treatment which involves Corsodyl mouthwash. Many people suffer from gum disease but do not know it. The symptoms are bleeding gums when you’re brushing your teeth and bad breadth. Although you can live with the bleeding gum, a smelly mouth on the other hand can be quite embarassing. Imagine talking to your friends and noticing them turn their faces away because of the bad odour in your mouth! This can often lead to seclusion and stop you from laughing and socialising. Corsodyl mouthwash helps to treat gum disease and is quite efficient provided you do not use it just after you’ve brushed your teeth with a normal toothpaste.
Finding time to use Corsodyl mouthwash during the day can be hard but fortunately there’s Corsodyl Daily Toothpaste which keep your gums and teeth heathier. You can have the toothpaste in mint as well as the original one. The mint toothpaste was supposed to be better than the other one but guess what? Corsodyl Daily Toothpaste will give you a funny feeling in your mouth. It tastes like taste, horribly disgusting and will make you want to puke. You’re better off using the mouth wash rather than the toothpaste. You cannot even taste the mint and if you’re used to regular toothpastes like Colgate, Aquafresh, Macleans or Pearl Drops, you’ll immediately feel the difference.
The whole idea of using Corsodyl toothpaste was to save time by not having to use the mouth wash at a later period after brushing but the nauseous sensation from it will definitely refrain you from using it again. It costs around £4.50, so it’s quite expensive compared to other toothpaste which you can get for around £2 but if you want to give it a try, you can purchase it from Boots or Superdrug.
For healthy gums and teeth, you need to have a good oral care routine like brushing, flossing and using mouth wash to get rid of plaque. Corsodyl may stop or reduce gum disease but it will come back again if you’re not looking after your gums and teeth properly. So oral hygiene should be on your priority list if you want to get rid of gum disease.
A few weeks ago I saw an advert about the release of Super Mario Galaxy 2, as I bought the first and was very impressed I really wanted to purchase the second one as well. After Super Mario Galaxy 1 I bought New Super Mario Bros and reached the last level. I have been stuck on this level for over 3 months now and it’s just getting silly. I couldn’t resist and went online to find a walkthrough of the last level; I can’t believe how easy it looks, so why have I been struggling for 3 months? So getting back to Super Mario Galaxy 2 I decided to pre-order it because I wanted to get it before anyone else. It arrived one day before the official release date!
I purchased Super Mario Galaxy 2 through Game and got it at a reduced rate and with a Limited Edition Super Mario tin money box. Although I won’t actually use it I can give it to my nephew and it was the game that I really wanted.
Super Mario Galaxy 2 has exceeded my expectations, the first one was fantastic and flawless so I couldn’t even imagine how they could make it better, but they did. The graphics are exceptional and the levels are even more exhilarating. The only thing I have noticed is that it seems a little too easy; within an hour I had already completed the first level (world). Saying that it is aimed for the younger market and I am much older than most of the teenagers who will go out and buy it. The game itself costs around £40 buy you can get it cheaper if you shop around, it seems expensive but it is well worth it.
All Mario games also retain their value so if you finish it and trade it in you can still get enough money off another game you want to purchase. To be honest Mari is such a lovely game to play that you can play it again and again. When you finish the game you can always go back and collect all the things you missed like coins, medals and question marks.
If you have played Super Mario Galaxy then do not hesitate in purchasing the second one it is just as fun and the graphics are superb. It not only appeals to youngsters but adults can also have a fun time trying to conquer levels and beat the monsters. It truly is a fantastic game to play with no faults or any need for improvements.
As we know the RSPCA are an independent charity that rescue stray animals, care for injured animals and give out general information about caring or finding abandoned, injured or lost animals. Very rarely do people take the time to find out more about charities but there may be a day when you will need to use their services. The RSPCA website has changed over the years, as a child I remember that they used to have a whole library of information for all small pets and animals we may come across. Just the other day I needed some information and even the RSPCA website couldn’t help me. I felt bad about phoning but in the end I had no choice.
My RSPCA concern
While I was in the garden I noticed that my cat was acting strange he seemed like he was playing with something. As I took a closer look I realised he had caught a little bird and it was trying to escape. I managed to rescue it from the claws of my cat and put him in a little box. He was breathing and didn’t look injured at all but he wasn’t moving. Luckily we had straw from when we use to keep chickens so put some in a little box and waited for it to start moving again. As I went to get some information on the internet I realised that there isn’t any information about rescuing birds from cats. I couldn’t find any guidance to what I should do.
I did read that sometimes the bird suffers from shock but after it recovers it will fly off on its own. The little bird I found seemed to be too small to fly so I waited until it could give me some indication that it was ok. After an hour I decided I needed to call the RSPCA to find out what I needed to do, as I was getting up off the sofa the bird leapt out of its box and starting jumping everywhere. As it was only little I was trying not to step on it, eventually it hid under the sofa. I have a very large custom made U shape sofa so moving it was out of the question. I managed to get it out and put it back into the box. As it seemed to have recovered I decided to place him outside and see if he flies off.
I put him on my garden table and left after 10 minutes he was still there, I went so see him and he jumped out his box and hid in one of my fuchsia plants. I managed to get him and though if I threw him in the air he would start flying, he didn’t and fell straight back down again onto the grass. I then noticed he had hurt his wing.
I decided to call the RSPCA for some advice, the caller I had was an older man who thought he knew everything. When I told him I was calling about a little bird he went on to tell me things that I already knew, like it was a fledgling, it needs to be left alone blah blah blah. After he finished I the proceeded to tell him that I rescued it from my cat not that I found it, he wasn’t very helpful and told me to take it to my vets the first thing in the morning and they would look after it. I even had to ask if I had to feed it, he was very abrupt and simply said it should survive the night without food but some water should be left out.
First thing in the morning I went to check on the little bird, he spilt he water everywhere and was huddled in a corner trying to keep warm. I took him out and put him in a new box so he could dry off and warm up again. After 10 minutes I went to check up on him and he had died. I also discovered what I think may have been his mum; my cat had brought a bigger bird into the garden overnight. So after all that I couldn’t rescue a bird from the clutches of my cat.
As my partner and I work from home its quite annoying when the phone or the doorbell rings because you know you haven’t ordered anything or expecting any phone calls. Usually I’ll get people who are from the church, utility companies and sometimes canvassers trying to sell a product or service. Well today that’s exactly what I got, whilst I was busy working there was a knock on the door I wasn’t sure whether I should answer it or not, then the doorbell rang so I thought I’d have a quick look.
There was a well dressed man holding a leaflet, he asked if the house was bought or council owned before proceeding. He was trying to get me and my partner to buy new uPVC windows and doors, although we had considered doing this we decided to hold off until we were financially able to pay for them cash not on credit. As the man was going through his sale pitch I just couldn’t help but laugh, he was getting our phone number because the head office had to verify the call before sending someone out to give a quote. My partner gave a fake number and the sales man left.
I told my partner that he should’ve told him straight that he didn’t need new windows and that would have been the end of that. I told him that they would be back as the number he had given was fake. Sure enough in half an hour the salesman was back to verify our number, my partner then told the salesman that he changed his mind and to cancel the appointment. The sales man then said that the appointment had already been booked in for a quote at 4.30 – 5pm. He said that they would be turning up and we would have to deal with it ourselves. I found this really hard to take in as it is supposed to be a no obligation quote and we couldn’t cancel our ‘free’ appointment.
After the second visit from the salesman I searched the internet to find we had a lucky escape, there have been many people who have had to sign paperwork in order for the sales reps to leave the house! Some are still being bombarded with phone calls asking them to accept the quote; it’s really upsetting that such a large company can make you think twice before opening your door.