Nice People 13: Nice Save

michaels

Do any NP have thoughts on matresses, WE have decided to get a super king size bed, base will probably be a slatted frame design. One possibility is memory phone but probably not in the Tempur type price range, otherwise there is box spring with memory foam layer etc etc. Also not sure whether we want medium or medium-firm, worried that with memory foam/foam layer medium may be too soft. Any recent NP experience?

Edit: Obviously given the choice all NP would chose to shop at Warren Evans but that is not in my price range.

CKhalvashi

GDB2222 wrote: »

I've given up on AirBnB for my forthcoming trip to Berlin. I booked a place, but was turned down for the zaniest reason: " I don't give the room to someone by that name because I hated the character in Game of Thrones so much! "

Next one I tried booking, they wanted a copy of my passport to be uploaded, which rang alarm bells.

So, I've booked a hotel, which is marginally more expensive, but an awful lot less trouble.

We stayed here in Berlin, and it was lovely.

I have Georgian friends living just outside the city now (same as when I mentioned the Armenians in Munich), so unable to help otherwise as it's just a one-off.

ukmaggie45

PasturesNew wrote: »

One of the reasons we picked the one we did is it's all on one level with a nice flat garden - and mum used to love wandering round her garden a few times per day (set routine/pattern, always pointed out the same flowers/said the same things at home, but we didn't know she had dementia then) .... and since she's been there she's very rarely been in the garden at all.

There's always some made up excuse or reason (probably dementia driven thoughts) - and she doesn't seem to realise it's even there. Oh well, we tried.

It's so difficult, isn't it? I've no idea if MiL will manage to get out to the garden when the weather warms up. She would have to be taken out. The home she just moved from they did encourage her to go out, sorted her in wheelchair which has to use as hip is shot and it seems unlikely that a new one is a possibility now - she's too frail. It's early days yet, we hope that the new place will be as friendly as old one was - it did have a lovely family feeling and MiL was happy there. Well, as happy as you can be in a nursing home.

PasturesNew wrote: »

That home's a lot bigger/posher than ours. New regs have the rooms bigger. Mum's room's just like a single bedroom. Just room for a single bed against the wall, bedside cabinet, double wardrobe, chest of drawers and then they shoe-horned in a sink in the corner, an upright chair and a commode. The bedroom in the photos on that website look double the size at least of ours.

MiL's room isn't terribly big, and the bed is so close to the door couldn't get my wheelchair into the room. It has an en suite, just loo and basin, and it looks out over some sort of rubbish tip at ?farm with a load of skips in it. But from bed you see the tops of trees, and it's roughly west facing so will get sunsets. It's in the middle of nowhere really.

Funny thing was I got trapped in the lift! :eek: It's a very small lift, and my wheelchair didn't fit in very well. OH couldn't come in it with me (no space) and in the end the only way could get out of it was by taking the foot rests off which was difficult as was completely jammed in by the weirdo concertina type folding doors. They have a new lift being installed, so hopefully that will be ready next time I go to visit!

Our visit was a bit strained really. MiL said nobody had been to see her she thought they'd forgotten she was there. But when we looked in her visitor's book, OH's cousin had been in the morning, and she had noted the activities manager had called in while she was there. I guess it's all very disorientating for her. But I handed over the cashmere shawl, and she loved the colour, and I think was pleased to have a gift.

Downside for us is it's much further to drive. About 50 minutes each way I think. Upside for BiL is it's much closer for him. Today we had a day off visiting, but OH did manage to get to old home for the British Heart Foundation van. They took a photo of the sideboard, but not sure if they'll take it yet, will let us know on Monday. I foresee OH spending a day ripping it to pieces and taking it to the lottie to make raised beds from or whatever...

Got home approaching 6 last night so were able to go out and wave to the ISS as it passed over just after 7pm. :j It's passing over at 6.10 this evening, but we have pretty solid cloud cover, so doubt it will clear for us to see it. Stars were fab last night, we also saw Orion and Sirius, plus Venus and Jupiter. I think the new white lights the council installed last week to replace the orange sodium ones are a little more star friendly.

I've had a day in bed today, just really knackered after the drive yesterday. Took this photo earlier, the view from my bed. That's the Mersey you can see in the distance. No far off hills today.

View from my bed by ukmaggie45, on Flickr

ukmaggie45

Anyone into Red Dwarf? Lister just got a shot of The Luck Virus! It's on Dave.

silvercar

GDB2222 wrote: »

I've given up on AirBnB for my forthcoming trip to Berlin. I booked a place, but was turned down for the zaniest reason: " I don't give the room to someone by that name because I hated the character in Game of Thrones so much! "

Next one I tried booking, they wanted a copy of my passport to be uploaded, which rang alarm bells.

So, I've booked a hotel, which is marginally more expensive, but an awful lot less trouble.

Is the purpose to see the property that you are investing in?

What are owner/occupation rates high in Berlin or do most people rent?

silvercar

michaels wrote: »

Do any NP have thoughts on matresses, WE have decided to get a super king size bed, base will probably be a slatted frame design. One possibility is memory phone but probably not in the Tempur type price range, otherwise there is box spring with memory foam layer etc etc. Also not sure whether we want medium or medium-firm, worried that with memory foam/foam layer medium may be too soft. Any recent NP experience?

Edit: Obviously given the choice all NP would chose to shop at Warren Evans but that is not in my price range.

Memory foam can get hot in summer, particularly the cheaper brands. Personal preference is for a slightly harder mattress, but everyone is different.

How wide is super king? Sounds enormous, do you need something that wide? Will you need to replace all your bedding?

Yorkie1

michaels wrote: »

Do any NP have thoughts on matresses, WE have decided to get a super king size bed, base will probably be a slatted frame design. One possibility is memory phone but probably not in the Tempur type price range, otherwise there is box spring with memory foam layer etc etc. Also not sure whether we want medium or medium-firm, worried that with memory foam/foam layer medium may be too soft. Any recent NP experience?

Edit: Obviously given the choice all NP would chose to shop at Warren Evans but that is not in my price range.

I don't have any experience with memory foam; when I replaced my spare bed I tried a MF mattress in the shop but didn't get on with it. If you've not had one before it can take some getting used to it, and some people find them too hot.

Strangely enough, I've just bought a replacement main bed this afternoon. My local independent shop is discontinuing the hand-stitched mattresses by Hypnos (I like hand-stitching because it means you don't feel as though you're going to fall off the edge of the bed if you lie as close to the edge as I tend to), so I'm being done a good deal.

I will be getting a divan base with drawers in it - I can re-use my lovely existing headboard. But I had a slatted base with built-in headboard for my spare bed.

ukmaggie45

silvercar wrote: »

How wide is super king? Sounds enormous, do you need something that wide? Will you need to replace all your bedding?

Super King is 6 foot wide. We've got one. It has 2 single mattresses (IKEA) as it wouldn't be possible to get a mattress that size up our stairs etc. I think we have seperate mattress toppers too, and then a thing that goes right across that's only thin. I can't say it's working very well for us at the mo as OH seems to toss and turn a lot so the whole caboodle becomes very unstable over a few days. <roll eyes smiley> Getting a single super king sized mattress up stairs and into bedroom is likely to be a problem in a lot of houses I suspect! The plus side though is you can have different hardness of mattress - at old home I had a hard mattress and OH had medium one.

But they don't do the ones we had then any more, they were sprung. I don't know what the h*ll the ones we've got now but I really hate them. But it was going to be £600 more for the ones I really wanted (with springs) and I was skint from the renovation. I don't think I'd go for cheapness in a mattress again as I spend so much time in bed, much more so than a "normal" adult. I'm already looking forward to getting a new bed!

LydiaJ

The bed that I sleep on when I visit my London friend is memory foam, I think. I don't find it comfortable, and would go for some kind of sprung mattress every time.

No other advice to offer, I'm afraid. Haven't bought a bed or mattress for ages. Really need to replace the one I'm sleeping on these days - the base is collapsing in the centre of the foot end (been bounced on by kids too many times, I think) so the divan drawers don't open properly, and there are stray springs sticking out of the side of the mattress to jab the unwary passer-by in the thigh. Haven't got round to doing anything about it, though.

hjd

We bought a new superkingsize bed at the end of last year.
Definitely better to have the space; yes, we had to buy new bedding but you can always find a sale..
We went for firm, not extra firm and definitely not memory foam. My body temperature is usually several degrees higher than everyone else's, so I definitely don't want anything too hot. We are both very pleased with the bed. It was certainly expensive, but worth it considering the importance of sleep.
Got ours from http://surreybeds.co.uk/