Cherry takes the reins

Cherryfudge

On Thursday my friend and I walked miles without leaving the town, but showed each other various little alleyways and shortcuts that the other didn't know. We got side-tracked from takeaway coffees because the coffee machine is in a garage near a bridge under which we were supposed to walk, but there were road works closing the under-bridge route and we spent a few minutes debating where to go - and totally forgot to buy coffee. We really need to sort our priorities out.

Work included the sleep over so I have been a bit short of sleep. J and L have the keys to their new house and of course we can't help them move but it's been nice seeing a photo of J's bag slung on the bannister post in the way you only do when it's your own house! The day was been about getting the keys and doing some cleaning: hopefully they can move in, in a day or so.

Friday's work had an unexpected twist with an emergency referral. After the initial feeling of the boat rocking and 'it's not fair when we are stretched to staff things as it is', it began to feel we were on home ground, getting a room ready for someone coming in to an unknown situation and trying to make it welcoming. I was very aware of how it had been for the summer's referrals, some of whom came with nothing but what they were wearing as they had been emergency admissions elsewhere and had to move on. The person would have to isolate on arrival because of Covid, so I made the room as nice as I could, and in fact when a colleague put the side lights on instead of the main light and we put some music on the telly, it was about as nice as it could be made with the resources we have... then the person didn't come!

It may be that they will arrive overnight or have a bed elsewhere. I hope so. What was interesting from my point of view was realising that what felt like returning to a norm was actually returning to what was normal over the summer. So maybe the much-mentioned 'new normal' is neither the future or the world of a year ago but something of both.

DH did the shopping so I don't know what's been spent. 

Tonight I'm thankful J and L have their keys, for the nice feeling of them having a home of their own, and for the friend I walked with the other day being up for lots of steps and exploring the area.

Honeysucklelou2

That’s good news that J and L have their keys. 

Onebrokelady

Congrats to J and L getting their new home 🎉🎉

Cherryfudge

They are cleaning and borrowing our wall paper stripper! I'm very much looking forward to when we can see it IRL.

Nothing spent in the last couple of days though I might spend £1.99 on another e-book and DH has bought groceries this morning to take with us as we're going to do more work on Mum's old house till Wednesday. There are a number of viewings booked but no new offers yet.

I've been at work a fair bit and struggling with a slump in mood. I don't want to exercise or anything, or more precisely I want not to exercise and I'm too tired around work to go on with my course but in better news my language app is pleased with me. And there are daffodils in the wall baskets by the kitchen door and I have my lucet and seem to be getting the hang of tightening the loops. Thankful for all these and for Dh's support. He even said we didn't need to go (but I need to push on with clearing and not waste the opportunity) and has managed to organise most of the family to zoom on my birthday which is coming up later in the week.

Cherryfudge

We're back, and it felt like a successful trip. I can't believe one house will have taken over four years to clear! Of course there have been significant breaks in progress: at the start there was no heating and it was winter so I didn't wade straight in (when I did I used the oven for heat and wore lots of layers), then there were months after I broke my arm before I was able to travel or use it much (complex break and slow bone growth) and of course most recently the pandemic. DH's change of job means he can now drive me there, saving lots of money and time, and I don't have to work alone so it's a lot easier now. Another factor is distance: it's too far to go for the day so I have to wait till I can get several days off together. And the house was very full, and some small but significant items are missing so I've gone through it with a fine tooth comb...

I've only spent £5 (phone top up as I use more data when away) and DH got wallpaper paste as peeling paper is something we can at least do something about. Other than that we discovered the washing machine isn't draining well: it's filling the shower tray with grey water! DH think he has traced the problem and needs to bring the drain rods again. I cleaned and tidied: my old bedroom (which I had left to one of the two last rooms to tackle as boxes and bags were heaped there) is now clean and sparkling, and I've moved furniture to uncover a bookcase that my Dad built into the chimney breast. There is still an assortment of stuff on the other side of the room but it's all either piles of books and music or shoved into the wardrobe so at least it's contained. Another area tackled was the coat hooks behind the master bedroom door - I think I did them a while ago but other stuff found its way there.

We've had a chat with the estate agent who admitted that the surveyor or builder commissioned by the previous prospective buyer shouldn't have drilled through walls etc - he's going to see if he can follow that up in terms of getting copies of the reports by way of compensation. I'm not holding my breath but at least he's admitted it was wrong. We've also effectively dropped the price from 'offers in excess of' to 'offers around' which seems more realistic. Since then of course the Chancellor has extended the favourable conditions for house buyers, which stands in our favour.

I've uncovered the dates when the double glazing was installed - useful for prospective buyers - and two handy packets of printer paper, besides newspaper accounts that are significant for family history and a heated pad that's saved both of us from back ache over the last couple of days!

We managed a local walk while there, but that's all the exercise I've had recently.

As we arrived home, the phone was ringing and it was J wanting to borrow our hoover as she's cleaning their old flat and everything's gone to their new house. DH already had it in the car so he dropped it round. While they were out, A and H appeared with a birthday card for me (in advance) so I've been able to chat though it was pretty chilly on the doorstep! H is looking quite a bit better now.

So I'm thankful for progress made and a couple more days off, for not having to go for a PCR test today as I'm on leave, for seeing A and H and for being able to bring back a small stool that is a childhood memory: we doubted it would fit in the place I had for it but it fits perfectly.

Sun_Addict

Gosh I didn’t realise it had taken 4 years to clear the house 😱 All sounding positive, I do hope you get a sale soon.

Onebrokelady

Is it your washing machine that is not draining or the one at your parents old house, if so I would leave it if you don't use it as new people will possibly rip it out anyway 

Cherryfudge

Thanks SA.

I realised there are a few financial things coming up: DH's 3bay fees were £34+ this month as he's sold some art that he had in the attic... then his phone gave up the ghost. He's borrowed an old one from A for now but the battery is almost gne so a new phone is in order. This laptop might well be next, too: the graphics card is having a wobble and it gets a phenomenal amount of use so it probably doesn't owe us anything.

Mum's old house, as I mentioned, has taken an effective price drop but as I can't visualise numbers above 100 and an asking price was never real money, I'm not too worried. There's still plenty to pay off the mortgage and leave a legacy for my sister and myself.

DH and his colleagues are finding they have more free time at work. This is a good thing as it means they are fielding fewer Covid calls but as a number of the posts were created partly to deal with these, it's possible that he will eventually have to look for another post.

I seem to have had a huge change in attitude towards money in the last year: it's a year since we paid off the mortgage, savings are attracting almost no interest and our general outgoings have decreased (unless I'm let loose on the supermarket shopping). In other words, we're part of the sector who have actually saved money recently, but in comparison with not being able to spend time with loved ones, it just doesn't grab me. I feel as though I have a bit of a duty to spend, to keep the economy going, and we do have plans to replace the back door, this laptop and DH's phone, but we haven't planned a holiday yet or anything like that. There's little reason to shop for the fun of it, when shops are shut, some things are hard to get right online (shoes for instance) and anyway I have too much stuff and need to reduce it.

Cherryfudge

Onebrokelady said:

Is it your washing machine that is not draining or the one at your parents old house, if so I would leave it if you don't use it as new people will possibly rip it out anyway 

It's the one at the old house, OBL. It's actually mine as theirs seized up when the house was empty, but the fault isn't with the machine, it's something about the drains which are very old. I guess at the end of the day, though, it won't be my problem! I just don't want it to come up on a survey and reduce the house price.  

Cherryfudge

Yesterday I had a birthday. It was a very quiet one, but the silver lining of that was that I got a lie-in: normally we try to fit in a family breakfast before everyone goes to work and I try to look awake and presentable but it's really not the best time of day for me.

I had a  lazy morning: DH had taken the day off but he knows I don't do mornings so he went out to get pastries for our lunch. It's been far too long since I had an iced custard slice and it should definitely be a new birthday tradition.

DH had baked carrot cake muffins so in the afternoon we had our exercise walking over to A and H's to deliver theirs. Only A was in and he was on a work call so I left the box on the doorstep and texted. Shortly after I had a text to say he had wanted to wish me a happy birthday in person. However when we got home we set up a z oom call for the family and amazingly everyone got onto it - including A (who was supposed to be working), L who I had thought was in work too, H when she got in from her work, DS2 who is on a run of nights and J. So it was our first gathering of the clans in many weeks, and I've promised them a real-life get-together once such things are possible. It was such a nice call that when the free half hour was up we had a text to say they were trying to get back into the room! We set it up again and talked for another half hour, and also had a virtual tour of J and L's new house.

Dinner was chip shop fish and chips followed by birthday cake - what could be better?

Right at the end of the day I remembered I had another gift to open - I knew it was a cycling helmet because I'd been to get it fitted! So I'm hoping to get better at cycling this year.

Today I've had another day off and spent some money:

Housekeeping £11.79
Stationery £1.00
Toiletries £1.99
Household £25.03 (a new bathroom blind and some saddle soap).

I was supposed to be doing the big shop but one shop were completely out of own-brand bleach and washing up gloves, another shop had shut early and when I got to the main supermarket there was a long queue curling into the door. I went to a different supermarket across the road but they didn't have everything I wanted so I'll be back out tomorrow.

I'm thankful for lovely family and friends finding ways to be in touch even if we can't be together, a freebie cookie for my birthday courtesy of an app, an unexpected bit of success on the language app (apparently my Latin is better than I thought! ), a pot of tiny daffodils blooming for my birthday and finally getting that blind ordered!