31st Jan
We’ve seen a strange bright light with a blue background for the last two mornings which the web identified as the sun. Together with a single snowdrop peeping out on the grass, I think this must signify spring has arrived. I will have to get my shorts and sunscreen ready as I remember summer follows next and I don’t want to miss that day.
Well that was an action packed fortnight. Painted the walls in the lobby to freshen them up, removed the alarm panel and plastered the A4 sized patch of bare wall underneath and then put a key rack in its place. On a bright sunny day a week later, yes it’s true, I realised my painting was a bit patchy due to the original gloss-ish covering, so it will need redoing in better light next time.
A one days job turned into two when I sorted the mains power in my bedroom. The problem was that there was just one double socket which ended up behind a wardrobe. At the time I put in a “temporary” extension lead that ran 10 feet to a multi-way block for the printer and another 12ft one to the side of my bed where another two multi-way blocks powered the bedside light, cctv system (3 plugs), a few phone chargers, my raspberry pi and a spare. I now have enough surplus leads etc to supply the village! But in order to run the cable, fix the trunking and mount the sockets, the wardrobe, chest of drawers, book case, console and anything else at floor level needed emptying, moving from A to B to A, and re-filling. And that’s what took the time.
Our old neighbour has been sending us pictures and updates of our old house. It’s sad to see what we did to the old place dismantled, ripped up and filled in, but there again that’s just what we’re doing here, so move on. While sorting out a change of address with a previous bank this week, they quizzed me on our new home status. It gave me great satisfaction to say that we owned the property and had no mortgage – KERCHING. A great relief after over 45 years of joint ownerships with banks and building societies.
June’s sessions with the chiropractor are paying off and she is getting greater mobility in her leg/knee, even to the extent of going on a solo walk about around the garden with just a walking stick.
We (June) decided we needed a blind up at the side window of the sitting room as the light from above the previously trimmed hedge, catches your eyes while reading or watching tv. Locating a 2.1m blind at a sensible price is a nightmare, but eBay came to the rescue again. It arrived in reasonable condition, but lacked any form of rigidity when unpacked. As it needed to be trimmed down slightly to fit, it was like handling a bundle of cooked spaghetti. I ended up using a pair of bungies to support the bulk from the curtain pole, while juggling the top rail. As I went through my third high speed steel drill-bit making fixing holes into the RSJ, I wondered why house builders hadn’t solved the age old problem of fixing things around a window? Blind finally sorted after two and a half hours and got seal of approval.
In preparation for sorting June’s bathroom, I practiced my plumbing skills on mine by replacing the sink. It had been annoying me since moving in as the pedestal was loose, water gathered behind the tap and the plumbing was all exposed. This was solved over two days with a sink and cabinet unit. I cleaned up the existing tap and sink outlet and it only cost me 82p for an in-line pipe joint. Oh and £9 for a piece of Contiboard and £100 for the sink thing. Still a bargain and much better looking.
I have been fortunate to be loaned a thermal camera by a friend to try and identify where the even colder spots are in the bungalow. The ventilation vent in June’s bedroom is directly in line with the outside air brick and on a rather cold morning, had a surface temperature of 2 degrees C. I inserted a 25mm block of thermal board behind the vent and sealed around with aluminium tape and now the vent is warmer than the surrounding wall.
Mid Jan – happy new year to you all.
Well here we are in another groundhog year, still in lockdown and if you believe the government, it’s going to last until 2022! I can’t believe the vaccine companies were certified with half the information i.e, yes we have a vaccine that is safe and will protect but we don’t know for how long. Almost as bad as an anti-virus software package which only works for six months. Rant over….
Started stacking some of the logs/firewood in the garden. So far, two done with at least six to go. I read recently that the Welsh government are planning on introducing a bill which bans burning wet wood and coal for domestic heating. For a country who’s roots and prosperity was based on coal, it seems a bit hypocritical. Regarding the wood, I recall being told never trying to light a fire with anything other than dry wood, that is unless it’s wet due to being soaked in something flammable! So when we change our wood burner later this year, we will have to ensure it will be compliant with the possible regulations coming out in 2023. That’s going to be an interesting conversation with the salesperson.
After seeing a few videos on chainsaw carving, I have attempted a boar, two hedgehogs and a mushroom. The boar is called Mark, coz he’s the mark one version. The carving is not difficult, but bending over with the chainsaw is, so I need to construct an elevated work area before making any more objet firewood. Just need some wood!
Back into the diy after the Christmas break with the utility room getting the treatment. Room emptied, tiles stripped, wall rendered, repositioning of pipework, paint, put up shelves, re-connect washer and tumble dryer. Three days gone in a flash and a few groans. I realised the stupidity of drilling the other side of a 52mm hole in the wall when the drill finally cut through. I was leaning against the SDS drill which gave way and the outside wall stopped me falling forward. Shame it has a stucco finish – one nil to the wall.
I have finally got a reliable internet connection into the garage via a cable, shame the connection to the web is still rubbish. It required drilling two outside walls and crawling through two loft areas to complete, but at least I can print again.
After finding some hedgehog scat by the front door, I purchased a bag of Spike hedgehog food. So far, I have captured some blackbirds and a cat eating the food on the cctv but the hedgehog must have gone back into hibernation.
