We'd like to remind Forumites to please avoid political debate on the Forum... Read More »
📨 Have you signed up to the Forum's new Email Digest yet? Get a selection of trending threads sent straight to your inbox daily, weekly or monthly!
Flying solo
Comments
-
Phew to found keys and I hope the plumber bill is small and the water returns soon ....Start info Dec11 :eek:
H@lifax [STRIKE]£13813.45[/STRIKE] paid Sep14 paid 23 months early :T
Mortgage [STRIKE]£206400[/STRIKE] :eek: £199750 Mortgage £112500
B@rclays £[STRIKE]25000[/STRIKE] paid 4 years 5 months early. S@ntander £[STRIKE]9300[/STRIKE] paid 2 years 2 months early
2013 8lb lost 2014 need to lose 14lb. Lost 4 so far!;)0 -
Hello Diary and Gentle Readers, :hello:
Yesterday turned into a very busy day, one way and another.
Spent half an hour following my path around the garden - even climbed into the compost heap for a root about, just in case the keys had got tangled up with used tea-bags etc., and ended up lobbed in there.
No luck, so set about the house. After scouring all the surfaces and shelves, in despair I started checking pockets.. Eventually found the keys in a winter jacket which hasn't been worn since going through the wash.
Have not a clue how they ended up there.
<Is it time reserve my place at a home for the befuzzled?>Phew to found keys and I hope the plumber bill is small and the water returns soon ....
Alas it was not good news. The pump [at the bottom of the bore-hole] is kaput.
Managed to get through to the company who supplied it; a specialist Tecnico is coming out on Monday morning.
Luckily Gardener should be here too - will need help to remove everything stored in the pump-house, in order to give Tecnico enough room to work.
Plumber [who can't fix this] reckons I'm looking at a £500 bill - but then hopefully it won't need any more maintenance in my lifetime.
Meanwhile a revue of stocks reveals about 80lts of water left in the deposito, same again in the hot-water tank, and 30lts in random plastic bottles (not drinking water).
So the toilet has been disconnected from the system and hot water turned off. Contents of the deposito are now reserved for drinking, but I can use the stuff that's been languishing in bottles for months to flush the loo and wash (what Mum used to call a "Gypsy lick" - mug of water and lots of scrubbing).
Having dragged Plumber needlessly away from his weekend, took him into town so that at least he could stock up on heavy items (his car's been in the garage for ages and he lives kilometres away from the closest bus-stop; hard to get gas bottles and sacks of dog food back to his house).
Down in the valley it was a bright sunny day but we could see curtains of rain / hail / snow falling from angry purple clouds which were boiling over the mountains. Parts of the road were like ice on the way back - when just a little rain has fallen it's very dangerous, until the rubber and fuel deposited on the tarmac during long dry spells has been washed away.
The temperature dropped incredibly fast; there was nearly 10'C difference between Town and the Nest. Cue a rapid collection of fire-lighting supplies, and I wrapped up the youngest mango tree in it's 'mobile greenhouse' cover as a freezing night seemed likely.
This morning 'the tops' look fantastic, covered in a dusting of glittering snow. Storm clouds have gone leaving a few fluffy white foals frolicking across the firmament, but there is little warmth in the sunshine and every breath tastes icy.
CD and I were snug enough last night, but it was the first time I closed all the windows which has revealed another problem: Woke up with a blinding headache, aware of a strong stench of Alum - one of my stored onions must be rotting which gives off an unpleasant gas. All slung onto the patio for now, until I feel well enough to go through 'em.
Should note that it was time to refuel the van yesterday; £50 (which didn't quite fill the tank). Also spent £40 in the German supermarket, although a third of that was on xmas treats (always sell out too quickly). CD's anti-arthritis medication came to £15 for three months' supply, but yet again the human pharmacy in the village was inexplicably shut so couldn't get any more of my pills - already feeling the effects, having run out at the beginning of last week. CD's fresh chicken wings added another £10 to my spend, and five large plant pots [for this year's strawberry runners] cost £12.
So it was a spendy day, with an expensive event ahead. Beginning to wonder if I should rethink plans for the next few weeks? Must 'phone Carer-Friend and DS4..
On a brighter note, finally spoke to Offended-Mate last night. We had a lovely catch-up, although avoided the subject which had caused friction until the end of the conversation, when she said:
"Text me if you've any news," to which I replied:
"Not likely!" ..We agreed on a regular Sk7pe-date instead, so that was a good result.
Thank you to everyone who commented earlier - think the ongoing Philippine disaster deserves a separate post so will try to return later (when this blasted headache has receded).0 -
Glad you found your keys Robin. Shame that the plumber couldn't fix the water problem. £500 is a lot to pay out but at least it will be done and dusted for the foreseeable future. Why does everything cost so much to repair? Glad you and offended friend are back on speaking terms.I get knocked down but I get up again (Chumbawamba, Tubthumping)0
-
Until ten minutes ago I was sitting in coat and hat, under a fluffy blanket but still shivering.
9'C. Inside the Nest. Sometimes I wish for that easy little knob in the hallway at homehome, a simple turn of which produces one's desired ambient temperature within minutes..
The wood-burner here requires a bit more effort for more-or-less the same result, but is undeniably cheaper to run. Tonight I have recklessly loaded it with no less than three logs (as much as it can take). Can't specify exact temperature of course - now up to 22'C in the living room so no more need of outdoor clothing.
Hello Sun.A, thanks for popping in. :TSun_Addict wrote: »Glad you found your keys Robin.
Thanks; so was I! Still have no idea how they ended up where I found 'em, though.
It's a mystery. :cool:Sun_Addict wrote: »Shame that the plumber couldn't fix the water problem. £500 is a lot to pay out but at least it will be done and dusted for the foreseeable future. Why does everything cost so much to repair?
It's the cost of a new pump+motor, call-out fee and wages for either two or three blokes (they have to haul out the old kit by hand; 140mts up a water-filled tube so heavy).
Yes; a big chunk of money to find, but less than two years' worth of water bills at homehome. The current pump is about ten years old, sooo in the long term it looks like a good investment.
Apart from which there is no alternative - the Nest is too far from the village to have piped water (and bills).
Sun_Addict wrote: »Glad you and offended friend are back on speaking terms.
Oh, me too! A weight has been lifted from my soul.. :smileyhea0 -
So glad you are talking again, I hate it when there is bad feeling hanging in the air between friends
Ouch to the bill but I guess it's a must really so can't quibble
I hope your headache has gone now? You must get into town to the pharmacy and get your meds *that's an order*Seriously though, I hope you are feeling better soon xx
MORTGAGE BALANCE when we moved Aug 2024, £120,000. January 1st £118,267.06. May 1st, £116, 123, June 1st, £115,536, New mortgage added for extension- £165,000 July 1st!Mortgage Overpayments - September-December, £152.46. J- £103.27, F- £115, M- £91.50, A- £100, M- £200, J- £200. J- £200. Aug-£200.
Total- £1362.23
Goal pay off 1% of current mortgage in 1 year. £1650
EF- first goal £300
0 -
Sympathy on the borehole pump ... Ours has inexplicably stopped too, Thankfully we are still able to switch the farm back onto mains water in an emergency. Next weekend will be spend assisting number one husband to pull the pump up, we do it the easy way, attach the cable to the quad bike and I drive backwards very slowly while he guides it up the waterfilled tube (thankfully ours is only 40m down ... )! He will then look at it, swear a bit and grump off to town to buy a new one ........ well thats what happened last time this happened !Its just a bad day, Not a bad life .. :cool:0
-
Hum
TOWN AND MEDS if that is not possible send someone else
You NEED the meds these are not optional
Hope pump replacement goes ok
Back to bed for me as went to work for a whole day and flu still taking its toll so knackeredStart info Dec11 :eek:
H@lifax [STRIKE]£13813.45[/STRIKE] paid Sep14 paid 23 months early :T
Mortgage [STRIKE]£206400[/STRIKE] :eek: £199750 Mortgage £112500
B@rclays £[STRIKE]25000[/STRIKE] paid 4 years 5 months early. S@ntander £[STRIKE]9300[/STRIKE] paid 2 years 2 months early
2013 8lb lost 2014 need to lose 14lb. Lost 4 so far!;)0 -
Glad things have been sorted with your friend
Agree with above : get your B.T.M. into town for the meds!Wealth is what you're left with when all your money runs out0 -
Hello Diary and Dear Philanthropic Friends-in-the-Box,
:hello:
The awful plight of the Philippine residents has been much on my mind over the weekend,** whilst coping with my own small inconvenience re water supply.please-let-me-be-lucky wrote: »I've just made a little donation too Xx
:T Lucky - is there a "thumbs-up" icon I can add here?Sun_Addict wrote:Glad to hear your family are safe Robin. It really does make you realise how lucky we are. We might moan about our weather but we don't have anything on the scale of what's happened in the Philippines.
In so many ways we are all fortunate, despite the personal [STRIKE]disasters[/STRIKE] challenges that come our way..satchmo1 wrote:I've had the privilege of helping by taking donations and passing on news; colleagues have been working 12-18 hour days to organise relief reaching those in need: blagging space on military planes and ships so that water, tarpaulins, food, blankets etc.
I feel so grateful that I can help
Satchmo thank you for popping in; lovely to 'see' you (as it were).
I too am grateful you are in the right position to give practical help. It may not seem much, but when news reports show thousands of people queueing patiently in the rain for a small bag of food and water, surely every gesture is worth while?
** Written yesterday before RL became a tad busy at the Nest. No brain left to post afterwards; sorry.0 -
Hello Robin, I've caught up again at last.
Can I offer a possible solution to why the house keys were in the winter coat pocket?
You put them there with the fleeting thought that you might put that coat on in the morning, and therefore the coat pocket would be the logical place to put them safely.
The fleeting thought of wearing that coat was then replaced by a different plan, so you forgot about the safe place.
That is EXACTLY what I would have done (and I have indeed done very similar things).
Apologies if it wasn't what happened and you are thinking, "I'm not as bad as that!"Erma Bombeck, American writer: "If I had my life to live over again... I would have burned the pink candle, sculptured like a rose, that melted in storage." Don't keep things 'for best' - that day never comes. Use them and enjoy them now.0
This discussion has been closed.
Confirm your email address to Create Threads and Reply

Categories
- All Categories
- 351.4K Banking & Borrowing
- 253.3K Reduce Debt & Boost Income
- 453.8K Spending & Discounts
- 244.4K Work, Benefits & Business
- 599.6K Mortgages, Homes & Bills
- 177.1K Life & Family
- 257.9K Travel & Transport
- 1.5M Hobbies & Leisure
- 16.2K Discuss & Feedback
- 37.6K Read-Only Boards