Are We Nearly There Yet?

And the answer to that is 'Yes we nearly are!' In fact, had it not been for the Christmas Maddess that descends every year, we probably would be finished by now. Incredible! A Miracle - but then again it is THAT time of year!

Before we start though, the thought for the day is 'Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift'.  Perhaps we should remember that more. I certainly intend to try. Our song for the day? How could it not be 'I Believe in Father Christmas'.  My all time favourite Christmas song. Greg Lake in case you're wondering.

Now this is just a mini-blog, as I'm VERY busy, you understand. Doing all that Christmassy stuff.  I've done my shopping, wrapped that that needs wrapping, posted everything that needs posting.  Those who didn't receive either a card or my customary missive have either been severely lacking in the communication department, or I just feel enough is enough, and so you have been struck. If you really want my missive, I'll perhaps put it up on this later. I've done the decorations, fetched the turkey and made the puddings. In fact Thom and I have spent the afternoon injecting profiteroles (yes I did make them myself -choux pastry is very easy), the chocolate marquise is ready - nearly didn't get one this year, boudoir biscuits are difficult to track down and a pain to make! So that's VERY busy for those of you who wonder!  Esmerelda (the pet turkey) is still in hiding, but we expect to see her on Thursday.

So back to the house. We are nearly there. The carpets go down on 9th Jan, then it's dressing and on the market. Hurrah!  I still have to finish the front room, and paint the big porch.  But it's always the last few miles which seem the longest isn't it?  Meanwhile, here's the outside

Looks a lot better doesn't it? When we're done, I'll do a 'Spot the Difference' competition for you!  So that's your taster for how the inside will have changed!  Can you bear the anticipation? Well you'll just have to!

So what else is new? We have a new stove at home, so now the lounge is actually usable at this time of year. Not that it's that cold just now, but gone are the days of not being able to watch the telly because the breath in front of your face obscures the view!  And the chimney draws properly now, so no more smelling like a bonfire either. Only taken 15 years to sort out!  Lovely and toasty now though! Still not quite enough to relinquish my blanket however!

All the boys are home now, so it's lovely to see them, catch-up on all their news. Remember quite how noisy 3 boys can be, no matter how old they are. The petrol pixie has been a frequent visitor since Joe has returned, and I am relegated to the Land Rover.  Full winter gear is required when driving.  Heaters are obviously a modern invention.  The head chappie came to see Joe yesterday.  He was trying to find out if, indeed, anything goes on inside Joes' head.  I think he'll be looking for quite a while, and then be sadly disappointed.  A story we're all familiar with, eh girls?!

So this time of year is about friends and family, and we had a lovely evening with Deb and Shaun last night.  All of Debs family were there, although Dawn seemed to be more jet-lagged, having just flown down from Aberdeen, than Derek was, having just flown in from Malaysia.  Ah, the trials and tribulations of international travel!  Fab evening though, we even played a game and Dawns inspired miming ensured victory for us girls!  I only had one weepy moment, my first in a while so we are getting there, just in more ways than one!  Anita and I are all set for our international adventure.  I don't think jet lag will be an issue, at least on the way out.  I think it may be a different issue on the way back!  Let's hope the snow is good, we're looking forward to the champagne reception. Not sure about the rest of it though!  Hoping for good apres!

But enough! This is a mini-blog!  So here's wishing you all a fantastic Christmas, enjoy the company, make the most of those that you are with and the time you are with them. Shall we have a bit of Noddy to play us out? or would you prefer a bit of Pharrel?  Which ever, or what ever  HAVE FUN! Live, Love, Laugh. x

HAPPY CHRISTMAS TO YOU ALL!

Today I Saw the Last Butterfly of Summer ....

So here we are again, this is getting to be a habit! But don't despair, it is very nearly over, I can feel it in my bones.  So our thought for the day is 'To achieve great things, two things are needed: a plan, and not quite enough time.'  Well we started out at a disadvantage, in so much as we only had a plot rather than a plan. But perhaps a plot is merely a plan without enough time put into it! We definitely don't have enough time though, I want the whole project finished by Christmas.  Yes, I have seen flying pigs.  There's a whole herd of them living just down the road.  Our song for the day is 'The Games People Play' or 'Love Thy Will Be Done'. Take your pick.

So what have I been up to for the past couple of weeks? Well, let me see, it's all a bit of a blur, Chris, Debs friend came to help clear the garden.  So most of the hardcore has gone. Then I was gaily painting the kitchen walls one day when a rather nice young man knocked at the door. I was quite surprised, as I had never seen him before in my life.  Anyway, when I had recovered myself, he offered to take away some of the other rubbish and the cooker. After a moments' incredulity, I said yes, and him and his mate made very short work of shifting a lot of stuff.  I'm sure he only knocked to make sure that no one was in before he nicked it, but he was very pleasant and it's another job done! Deb and Chris have finished off the rest today.

We're still waiting for Chris the plumber to come and finish, but apart from that the upstairs is finished. Hurrah!  The walls that were challenged in the smoothness department have become feature walls.  Do you like my choice of paper?

I chose it mainly because it's called 'Follow Your Dreams', which of course is what I endeavouring to do.  Only one or two obstacles in my way, but time and economics should sort those.   For the other I feel a burst of esotericism (is that a real word? This computer doesn't think so!) coming on.  So watch this space.  Of course I will be ably assisted by Anita, so that could mean anything might happen!  Our holiday, sorry that should be CPD course is booked. Fear and trepidation are setting in, it could possibly be the most stupid thing I have done to date. And that takes some doing. But as we all know 'Fear, like love, is difficult to explain after it has subsided, probably because it draws away the veils of illusion as it disappears'. Good, eh? Got millions of them. That's the draw back of reading anything and everything and having a good memory!

So back to the task in hand!  So all we are waiting for to finish upstairs is the sink and the carpet. Fabulous!  So to the kitchen.  We painted it last week, we've bought the kitchen, it's been painted, and  Darren and Zak have started to fit it.  What do you think?

We think it's starting to look really good. Amazing what can be done with a tatty £500 kitchen!  Apparently it wasn't as straight forward as it could have been, but it's really starting to take shape.  Sense of deja-vu anyone? Lot of it about on this project. Best be careful!  I'll touch up the kitchen this week and give the units a top coat, then that's finished too!  Stripping the black paint off the floor tiles is proving a bit of a challenge however, I think I've tried every type of stripper known to man (no, not a double-entendre at all), and some that are less well known, all to no avail.  I think it may remain black!

Really the only room that hasn't been touched is the living room. Hopefully that will be a breeze!

Having had weeks of dry weather, I decided it was a good idea to paint the  back step.  Only to have the heavens open. So far I've tried three times to paint it. Each time the paint has washed off before it was dry. I'm going to construct a tent before I try again.  The new porch is up and just needs painting. So the excitement is mounting, a crescendo is beginning, how will we contain ourselves?!

As a slight aside, I was walking through the town centre, in search of vital supplies (that'd be a Dime bar), when this woman came up to me and asked if I drank alcohol. I wasn't really sure how to take that, did she think I was drunk? I almost said that it was just the way I walked!, or did she want my help in finding someone fitting that description?  Confused you will be!  As it turned out they were conducting some form of Market Research. I didn't help. Sorry!

So, I don't think I've got any other interesting (or otherwise) anecdotes  for you today.  It's the onset of winter I think. It's definitely getting close to Christmas, I've lit the stove at home, I've written my Christmas missive (if you want me to add it to this blog let me know!). I've thought about buying presents, and Emerelda - the pet turkey - has gone into hiding.  But I did see the last butterfly of summer today, and as I let it go it flew away with all my hopes and dreams and good wishes for you all. I hope they reach you by Christmas.....

The Road is Long ...

So here we are again, after another short interlude. I have been trying to collect myself, rationalise my thoughts, marshal my courage, amongst many other things, shall we say? Our thought or should I say thoughts for the day are 'When a person can no longer laugh at himself, it is time for others to laugh at him' and 'Isn't it nice to think that tomorrow is a new day with no mistakes in it yet?'  Those two thoughts have fortified me over the past few days following our rather unusual edition of 'Beat My Build'.   Anyone any comments? I was a bit perplexed.  I do feel, however, that prolonged close-ups require their air-brushing techniques to be improved, at very least, and are probably strictly unnecessary in any event!  Still, we did win.  I don't think my spatial awareness is at all at fault, it's the old 6 inches/ 2 inches conundrum that men seem to face on a daily basis that caused the confusion!  Any tactfulness that may have been evident, or otherwise, on my behalf, was entirely down to some radical editing.  I had quite a lot more to say!

But Hey Ho! back to the current project. I have been painting, painting and more painting. Interspersed with a bit of filling and sanding for light relief.  I try to do at least one inside job a day, and one outside.  I have only one window left to paint outside, and the porches of course. I have finished the front bedroom, all we need is the carpet in there.  Isn't the fireplace lovely?  Sense of deja vu (as my Maths master used to say, whilst banging on the board with his rubber, beneath a proof of something I was really sure I'd never seen before in my life! No euphemisms involved) with the mirror and light fitting, anyone?  So the door to that room is shut, and I've moved on.

I've painted the ceiling of the landing and stairs, no mean feat for someone of my stature, but only involved limited acrobatics!  I am, however, contemplating a feature wall.  The only wall that we didn't have plastered is somewhat rubbish in the smoothness department.  I will see what my filling and sanding skills can offer next week before resorting to the (same) cityscape paper as before.  Imaginative aren't I? Still, if it worked once, it may work again!

The bathroom continues to frustrate.  Chris and I have constructed a cupboard around the boiler, or should I say, recommissioned the old cupboard following some cosmetic surgery?  Then we moved on to the challenge of the shower enclosure. And boy! what a challenge that was!  Shall we say the instructions were somewhat limited, and clearly translated from another language with little regard for actual English.  I thought Chris was going to be reduced to tears at one point.  I was fairly close myself most of the time, but it had little to do with the shower enclosure!  But we prevailed!  Persistence overcomes resistance and all that crap! But you will have to wait until next time for an actual photo as I was so overcome with relief that I forgot to take one for you.  The moral of the tale, however, is never to buy a quadrant cubicle. When constructed it closely resembles something that should beam-you-up-Scotty.  If only there were sound effects too! The other Chris will finish the plumbing in there next Saturday, then that's another room finished. Hurrah!

We've at last managed to buy a kitchen, and I have painted it. Both the units and the kitchen itself, Deb did a great job on the walls. So Darren is also coming back on Saturday to finish the electrics and fit the units. I'll be busy that day, won't I girls? Tea and coffee all round!  Such a skill!  I also have to fit in going to work that day as well!  I'll take a photo of that for you (the kitchen that is. Work isn't interesting enough to warrant one, although Kelly and I do our best to have a laugh, and make a bit of money.). Such a lot to look forward to.  How will you contain yourselves??!!

A lot of the rubble is now gone from the garden, thanks to (yet another) Chris and Connor, so I will have to contemplate that soon. Let's hope the mild weather holds!

What else have I to tell you? Oh yes! I was watching X Factor (I know, I'm ashamed to admit it, but there we are) and I was very surprised to learn of an alternative use for suspenders!  Apparently they can be used for holding your kilts up, lads!  I was under the impression that braces were more suitable, but I stand corrected.  Either way, I am VERY partial to a man in a kilt.  Of course, it rather depends on which man it is in the kilt! So glad I shared that aren't you!

I also read a very interesting article on what makes us human.  As many of you know, I'm not sure that I am, in fact, from this planet.  I spend most of my time feeling that I must have been really bad somewhere else and have been beamed down here as punishment for doing something really terrible. What, I'm not sure. I just know it must have been really bad for punishment this great.  Perhaps that's what the shower cubicle is for!  My punishment must be nearly over, I will be departing soon.  No need to cheer quite so loudly!  Anyway, the interesting thing was that doing silly things for no apparent reason other than fun, playing in effect, is what makes us human.  Perhaps I'm closer to humanity than I thought!  So with this in mind, Anita (yes, we had another CET thing this week, which was more interesting than the last, and the fish and chip supper was great. No wine was involved. Relief all round!) and I have hatched a plan.  We're going holiday, but we're doing it under the guise of yet another CET, sorry this ones a CPD, event.  I don't think we've any intention of actually doing any CPD, but we're looking forward to the apres!  God alone knows what will happen, and I'm fairly sure we can keep even Him guessing!  Don't watch this space too closely!  What a jolly good use of that prize money, don't you think?!

So I don't think there's much else to tell you today, other than one of my peacocks has died. So if any of you has one looking for a good home, or have one in the mood for romance, please let me know.  Lucy (the one that's still with us) is getting a bit lonely. Join the club.

Our song for the day (ah-ha, thought I'd forgotten didn't you?),  Nell Bryden 'What Does it Take', because I have no idea how to re-establish communication, much as I would like to.  Anyone know if you can use the words 'implacable' and 'disingenuous' in the same sentence without giving offence?