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Got some of my things gathered into the kitchen ready to start putting away .. pulled a chair up ready to get started .. then decided I need a day off ... not because I was too lazy to get started .. but because I could feel the strain of the last few days 'blowing' up ...
Every morning having to be up and ready for the men to start at 8.30am .. having to get washed and dressed in a rush ... every day not getting my 'quiet time' where I usually lay down for an hour or so .. every day sat in the midst of chaos and disruption .. the constant noise of power drills in my flat or a nearby flat .. men bustling noisily around (men even walk and talk more loudly than women hahaha!) .. sooooooo ...
I've decided to shut my mind to everything today .. just sit with my feet up and allow myself some time to just 'relax' .. relax without men dashing around .. relax without constant chatter .. relax with no power drills going .. just mentally relax .. it's saturday so the mobile fish and chip van will be here at noon ... so I am going to indulge for once .. I've only been eating sandwiches and drinking cup of soup all week .. so a 'hot' meal will be a welcome and easy change ..
Then .. tomorrow I will feel refreshed and raring to go again ...
Morning Patootie
It sounds like a rest day and fish and chips is just what the doctor ordered after all the upheaval of the last few days. Your new kitchen sounds wonderful! I love the sound of the dark worktops and light maple cupboards - very sleek.
As for the story about the black mamba - well that just shows what a survivor you are - I am sure like GC I would have fainted on seeing it... what a life you have led!
Btw 10 choc-free days for me
I am amazed that I have really found it quite easy not to eat any form of chocolate thinking myself an addict, but obviously not, although I am looking forward to my easter egg! Did the weather turn wintry where you are? Here it was colder again for a couple of days but none of the forecast snow, I was running up on the South Downs yesterday and it was beautiful - come on spring you can fight off the winter!
Patootie, I'm with B. You are TOTALLY right to award yourself a day of complete rest and I hope you've had it and are feeling very tranquil now. There's plenty of time to put things away etc etc etc .
B, well done on the chox-free days! I think chocolate is a habit more than a real addition for most people, but it can be a fine line, so a big gold star to you for 1- days! Whereabouts are you? Somewhere in Sussex, maybe, if you're in the South Downs? (Our home in England is in Surrey and we love the South Downs!)
Very busy day today. Shopping for a friend (who broke her wrist in 2 places a couple of days ago---osteoporosis is really a horrid thing) then got a panic call: volunteers who were on the canteen duty in the football club hadn't showed up, so I hared up there to spend a couple of hours making sandwiches and coffee. It's always fun. Then tonight Music and Meditations at church. It was beautiful (and two friends and I sang a 16th century Spanish song that was great fun). But now I'm whacked, and have to be up pretty early tomorrow for Mattins, so sweet dreams to all! xxx
Stretches lazily ... had a lovely day .. just pottered about .. enjoyed my fish and chips treat .. only the second time in 9 months of being here I've bought some .. each time I moved towards the kitchen I took a few more things with me .. not really doing a job .. just filling my hands as I go in that direction ..
So tomorrow .. I hope I shall feel re-energised .. pretty much know where I want to put things now so I am sure it won't be too hard to do .. no rush .. I think I'll try and do it a cupboard at a time .. then have a rest ... then the next cupboard .. yes .. that sounds like a pretty good plan ..
Now, that sounds just about perfect, Patootie! A little treat from the chippy, so you didn't have to cook, then a nice pottery day. And just moving a few things in at a time is actually the ideal way to do it, I think. Allows you to put a few away, think about how things are filling up, and then adjust the next load if you feel like it. (I have occasionally made the mistake of getting everything put away as fast as possible---usually because of necessity---and then found days or weeks later that I had to rearrange it all so I do think your way is FAR better!)
And hopefully you will have had a lovely sleep, and can proceed gently with things today.
Is the weather helping? Just talked to C2 in Chester who said it was thundering with hail, while here it's bright and sunny for the first time in AAAGES. Slight breeze, but nothing too much. I shall pop out for a little chug later on. I'm still fighting a virus but know I will feel better if I get out there.
Yes .. having a 'day off' yesterday was just the ticket .. got some decent sleep .. and a nice rest in some much needed peace and quiet
All in all it's been a very strange 7-10 days .. thought I'd sold my old home to a perfect couple, then they decided not to buy .. had an old kitchen ripped out and a glorious, sleek, modern kitchen put in .. had a small band of merry men trooping in and out of my flat doing the kitchen fitting .. an elderly aunt in Canada passed away .. my sister has needed hospital treatment for mysterious leg pain .. and my car was MOT'd and serviced but the two small electrical faults I reported were not put right so it has to go back ..
And .. even as i type the weather has changed from a calm but rather dull March day .. to heavy rain with squally blustery winds .. not nice at all ..
Wow, that IS a lot of things to process in just over a week, Patootie! It's a huge shame about your buyers, cos it will be a great relief to have the house off your books, but it sounds like a wonderful place just waiting for the right people, so it's only a question of time, and since you are safe and secure where you are at least you aren't caught up in a chain or anything.
Sorry to hear about your aunt. It's not always a tragedy if they are ready and have had a good life, but it's always a change in your mental landscape. All of our parents are gone, and we now have only one of that generation left (Mr C's aunt, Tante Kit) and we do cherish her. I think the world feels just a little colder and lonelier when all your elders are gone. (On the other hand, I often think how lovely it will be to get to heaven and see them all again, and I do really think that thought will make it much easier and more cheerful whenever my time comes.)
But what about your sister? If she had to have hospital treatment it sound like more than just a leg cramp. Have they been able to find out what's wrong and treat it?
At least they managed to do that for your car....eventually! You do need transport.
As for the weather, it's the lion/lamb thing, isn't it? This morning it was tipping down, now there's a strong breeze and bright sun and butter wouldn't melt in its mouth! But rain again tomorrow. I think at this time of year you just relax and enjoy the ride!
GRRRRR .. drat and botheration .. I knew it was too good to be true .. I'd got through having the kitchen fitted relatively fine and fairly unstressed .. late Friday they had a problem getting the old (unused) radiator uncoupled and removed .. had to wait until Monday .. .. Monday came and the fitters couldn't seem to get the water turned off to remove the rad .. turned the isolator valves off in the cupboard .. nothing ... nothing they did stopped the water flowing to the rad .. with the use of some metal detector thingies it would appear that radiator is connected to the flat next door .. not my flat ..
Seems when the heating system was installed back in the '80's .. the rads were probably fitted in the cheapest possible way .. that meant some rads were 'looped' in with neighbouring flats to save pipework .. so now I have to wait until the chap next door is home .. and a fitter is around ..
I can get some kitchen things put away .. but it's not ideal .. my carefully thought out plans have gone a bit awry .. I can't seem to get 'on top' of things .. with no definite plan as to when things will get sorted it's a bit upsetting .. but ... the fibro seems mostly under control still .. just can't sleep ..
And ... it IS all going to be so beautiful when it's all finished .. hehehe ... it could only happen to me .. fancy having a radiator that's linked on my neighbours heating system .. good job it's a communal heating system and not paid for individually !!
Oh, there you are, Patootie! I was beginning to fear the fibro had kicked in something royal, so it's good to see you. Though maybe not QUITE so good at 4 am...!!
But how very peculiar that YOUR radiator is on someone else's system! I gather that the removal of this radiator is an indispensable next step in getting the kitchen organised? Even if it is, surely your neighbour hasn't gone off on a cruise to China, has he??
But as you said, annoying though it is, SOMETHING always happens, and in the end your lovely kitchen will be worth every minute of the fuss. At least the fibro is behaving itself, which is good news. I just hope you managed to get to sleep after you posted this, and are feeling a bit better after some shuteye!
I think it often happens that when a building is on a communal heating sytem short cuts get taken .. my next door neighbour doesn't seem to be here too often .. and also I now have to wait until they sort out just who is supposed to take the rad off ..
But .. it won't be long as one of the 'big bosses' is on the case ... heheheh !!!
Fatigue has gone into overdrive .. sleeping the clock round at the moment .. just had a couple of hours awake in the middle of the night .. but I am off to bed again shortly .. I can hardly keep my eyes open .. so it's off to bed with a good book .. and I doubt I'll get many pages read before I fall asleep .. hehehe
Well, if you're feeling that tired it's brilliant that you CAN sleep, Patootie. And actually it shows how sensible you are: if you were awake and staring at the kitchen you'd prolly be feeling cross and frustrated, whereas now you can kill two birds with one stone by a) catching up on rest and b) keeping your mind away from what you can't do in the kitchen till the rad is sorted!
And if one of the 'big bosses' is on the case, hopefully they will be able to deal with this quickly. If all else fails, they must have master keys to all the flats, to be used in this kind of situation where they really need access. Do they think they will be able to get this sorted before the weekend? It will be so nice if you could look at your gorgeous, tidy new new kitchen, take a deep breath of satisfaction and say 'Sorted!'
Think I'd best get out the door and get myself to work before it rains again!!
Getting one step closer now .. old radiator finally removed .. just hoping it won't leak
Then it's just the last kitchen unit to be properly fitted in .. and the flooring to lay ..
They are not getting very far .. they can't get the heating system to turn on again .. I'm ok as I have a little heater .. but most folks have nothing .. and it's going to be another cold night here in the UK ..
I think someone is heading for the sack .. wouldn't like to be in his shoes tomorrow ..
Oh dear. I hope you all got through last night OK, Patootie, and that they managed to sort out the heating in the course of today. If someone has dropped the ball on this one then I think he SHOULD be spoken to firmly, cos some of the people in this kind of residence will really suffer if they get cold.
Hopefully, though, you stayued warm last night and they managed to get things working again today??
I was toasty warm ... I've learnt that getting cold affects me badly .. so always have a secondary source of heating .. but I do know quite a few of the older ladies were feeling the cold .. we have several folks who have serious long term illnesses .. and of course they are going to feel the cold ..
Apparently it was impossible to restart the heating yesterday evening as a vital part had failed and no replacement was available .. that's fair enough and everyone understood that .. what they didn't (and I don't) understand is why supplementary heating wasn't brought in ..
But you have to laugh ... early this morning I wondered downstairs and found a 'mothers meeting' going on in the communal area kitchen ... about 7 ladies all huddled around the cooker ... oven door open and on full blast ... they were drinking tea and having a 'right good moan' ... heheheh ... those old war time values of working together and looking after each other had kicked in ... but at least they had warmed themselves up ...
Well, I'm glad YOU were warm, Toots---I know you said one of the best things about this place compared to your old house was that you were really, properly warm all winter instead of being chilly---but indeed for people who are unwell, or elderly, or certainly who are both, the cold is really painful. Good for them for gather around the modern version of the 'communal hearth'!
I'm just wondering if this is a place where you could exercise some of your new powers, and point out that there should be fallback plans in place for this sort of eventuality, given the very real difficulties (maybe in some cases even risks) that cold represents for the residents?
And all sorted just an hour or so before my monthly shopping arrives .. phew ... all done in the nick of time ..
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Now ... back to 'weird' things that have happened in my life ...
Hmm ... okay .. 'Lady' ... I entered a competition to win a title .. I used to enter about 500 online competitions a week .. won a lot of stuff too .. sadly mostly things I didn't want to win .. but I sold a few, gave some to various animal protection and battered women charities and used some as gifts for friends and family .. I only entered for a laugh .. 'wouldn't it be funny if I won' ... and lo and behold I did win ..
.. It's a legal title and I can even use it on credit cards and prefix my name with it .. 
I also won a big chunk of the moon ... or at least the mining rights to it .. and if any country lands a spacecraft on my acre of the moon they have to pay me 'parking' fees .. closest landing so far has been just 50 miles away (I was hoping for a computer malfunction that would send them slightly off course !) ... just 'one small step' away .. so I keep an eye on any space launches .. got to be ready to demand my 'outrageously expensive' parking fees lol !!
And also my name was blasted into space on a microchip .. sent there by one of America's various missions to make contact with aliens ... so one day a green or grey little man might read the microchip and wonder why the heck all these people sent names into space hahahaha
Good morning, your ladyship! As your ladyship did not deign to disclose your full title I trust any deficiency in the manner of my expression will be overlooked. Your loyal peasantry would of course be honoured were you to disclose more of your noble ancestry to enable us to use the full and correct honorific when addressing your ladyship.
Great news that the cupboards are in, AND in time to get the shopping put away! A shame they couldn't have done the floor before the weekend, but it's only another day or two, and as you said, it will deffo be worth having waited for!
As to having a carpark on the moon......only you, Patootie, only you!!! I trust you have informed NASA, the European Space Agency, and the Russian, Chinese and Indian equivalents? After all, thee days even real estate is expected to produce income
Quietish day here, thank goodness. Mr C and C3 are at a fruitbowl match. I am trying to decide whether to go for a run now (it's dry and my feet are cold so it would feel good) or late this afternoon or tomorrow afternoon (I like that time of day, and after my shower I can veg for the rest of the evening). Hmmmm....
Getting 'stuck in' sorting out my kitchen cupboards .. already filled one drawer with all my meds (!) .. one cupboard full of cleaning detergents and cloths etc .. one double cupboard should (might) hold all my bakeware and crockery ...
Have to say the cupboards are 'cavernous' though ... really deep, so I can get all the less used items put to the back .. and most frequently needed things to the front .. and I've taken the shelf out of a double cupboard so mI can put my taller gadgets in .. like the bread maker .. mini oven etc .. nice to be able to stash them away out of sight .. and much tidier ..
Then again ... by next week I may have changed my mind .. or not .. maybe .. possibly ..
Yes, one of the things about moving house (which is what you're effectively doing, at least moving kitchens!) is that you sometimes have to see how things work. A storage system that seems perfect sensible may not turn out to be, while something that you do 'just for now, to get it out of the way' may stay forever. At least it sounds as if you have plenty of room so you do have flexibility on how to use it. I like the idea of having everything tucked away neatly out of sight, though I never quie achieve it myslf
But it sounds like you do a lot of pretty serious cooking, all the way to making your own bread?!? Wow!
I do enjoy cooking and try to make as many meals as I can .. but have to fall back on foods I can just heat up or cook easily when I don't have the energy to cook completely from scratch .. I'm having quesadillas .. yummy ... I'd entered a competition to win some Mexican foods* a few years ago .. and I was lucky enough to get a big hamper of goodies and an electric quesadillas maker (quesadillas are two tortillas sandwiching either a cheese or meat filling) .. the machine presses the 'sandwich' together and crisps up the tortillas then cuts it into portions (like a toastie maker would do) .. they are just delicious .. !
* a jar of chopped cactus was included ... it's supposed to be good for you .. but I really didn't like it .. a bit slimey and strong greens tasting .. or maybe it was just the way I tried to use them lolol
PS ... I have lots of electric gadgets because I am sooooo forgetful .. I got rid of my big old cooker about 15 years ago .. I 'forgot' all about a pan of eggs I had boiling away to make hard boiled eggs for a salad .. went out to the local shops .. came home to an acrid smell and a ruined saucepan full of charred eggs ..
So .. all my gadgets have timers and/or auto switch off functions .. and they are;
Steam oven, halogen mini oven, breadmaker, toaster, quesadilla maker, sandwich maker, slow cooker with rice, steam and bake functions, steamer, induction hob, health grill, food dehydrator (to make healthy dried food snacks) .. coffee maker that uses 'pods' .. and of course an egg boiler to make perfect soft boiled and hard boiled eggs .. without flippin' burning them hahahahaha
And I make my own healthy yoghurt full of these probiotic and prebiotic things (just mix sachet of yoghurt mix with water and leave in thermos of boiling water for 12 hours
) ..
Gee, I just HATE show-offs. I would never, NEVER be able to learn how to use all that stuff, Patootie!!! I really admire folk like you who actually know what to do with these various specialised appliances and make the best of them. I'm sure you can do much more creative things, much more easily, than I will ever manage.
After about 25 years of working full time with 3 kids (spread over 8 years, so we had littlies for quite a long time) I call it a success if at the end of the day everyone has had enough to eat and most of it was either nutritious or nice to eat (occasionally both!). Bearing in mind that my daughter and I are vegetarians, both boys like meat (but one is the beef-and-lamb type and the other prefers chicken), and that Mr C doesn't like pasta or cottage cheese, planning meals can be a bit of a minefield! Oh dear, that sounds like we're picky eaters, and actually none of us are. Apart from the vegetarianism, most of us eat most stuff. But everyone is allowed a few things they really don't like: it's just that what X really doesn't like may be something that in other conditions would be a main diet staple for Y! But we're all ridiculously healthy, so I reckon it's come out all right.
Have you ever encountered one of these? I couldn't justify buying one, but they have always intrigued me.
Oooohhh ... and did I forget to mention the popcorn maker ??
Remoska .. yes, two aunts and my mum have one .. they are really good .. you can cook just about anything in them .. they are very popular and get snapped up really quickly on Ebay .. when/if my halogen mini oven breaksdown I shall probably buy one of them myself .. they use very little power so cheap to use .. you truly can cook just about anything in them . and thinking of your chuglet the mini Remoska would be perfect for Uni students .. nutritious meals .. only a small space needed and cheap to run !!!
Try here for some great Remoska recipes;
http://www.hoorayforhomecooking.co.uk/RemoskaRecipes.htm
Ohh yes .. I am 'Laird' of a small piece of land on a Scottish Estate near Caithness .. the title 'Lady' is only honorary .. but is a legal title for my lifetime all the same ..
These days I rarely use my cheque book .. but 2 small bills are 'overdue' for payment and can only be paid by cheque ..
So .. about a week ago I went to get my cheque book out .. and then realised I hadn't a clue where or when I had it last .. it wasn't where it should be kept that was for sure .. and with the kitchen things cluttering both the lounge and bedroom I didn't really know where to start looking .. hmmm
Saturday I started working my way from the lounge, past the kitchen, both storage cupboards in the hallway and towards the bedroom .. every surface checked (no pun intended), every drawer opened .. but still no cheque book .. doh!
Then .. I just had a glimmer of hope .. I vaguely remembered 'hoofing' a whole load of bits and bobs into a little storage crate just before I started slinging all the kitchen equipment into boxes and crates .. with a skip and a hop I dashed off to the bedroom .. upended the little crate onto my bed and started sorting through ... still no cheque book ... but I had looked .. everywhere ...
Then .. right at the very end of my search .. and with no place left to look .. I saw the familiar grey of my cheque book peeping out from a pile of computer disks .. the very last things I was putting back into the 'sort me sometime' crate ..
Two cheques £3.50 and £2.75 (!) quickly made out and envelopes stamped ready for posting .. but I am still left with wondering why on earth the cheque book was in that crate in the first place .. it should have been in the file cupboard with my credit cards and various store vouchers (I'd forgotten I had £65 vouchers to spend in Marks and Spencer
) ... I swear I have a little Goblin that lives with me and moves things round so I can't find them .. 
Thank you barking .. must admit I have been struggling a bit with the fibro this last week .. not surprising with all the upheaval of the wonderful new kitchen the housing association has fitted .. but I am at last getting things put away today .. the piles of crockery and baking things are slowly disappearing into the huge cupboards .. thank goodness .. !!
So .. once I get the kitchen sorted and finished I can start of putting the lounge back to rights .. hahahahh!!! Housework never stops does it .. even if you live on your own you have to keep on doing the same old dusting and sweeping .. over and over .. sigh ... I wonder how many miles we walk over a lifetime of vacuuming the floor ??