16th
Black eye, engagement and plastic boxes
Happy new year to all.
I decided to try and see our doctor and actually got a face to face appointment, mind you it took over 20 calls starting at 08:00 to achieve this. While waiting my turn on socially distanced, diy wipe clean chairs, I thought I’d pop to the loo. On my way out of the loo, the door jammed as I opened it, but due to the inertia of by body I kept me moving forward, at which point my forehead made contact with said door edge. No red stuff, so carry on regardless. The following day while on video call with Emma, I get the sudden question of “what the hell, where did you get that black eye”. After a look across at June, a quick think of DIY jobs over the last few days, hadn’t got a clue. After further interrogation, I remembered the visit to the doctors and the incident with the door – durr! I contacted the surgery to let them know about the door sticking incase some other dimwit fell foul of it, and was assured it would be reported to NHS building services and I was going to be written up in the accident book “retrospectively”. Finally, mentioned in dispatches and have become an actual non Covid NHS statistic.
We were very pleased to hear that Emma and Martin have got engaged and are planning a spring 2023 wedding. We look forward to seeing them next weekend for a face to face natter instead of video chats. Then the realisation dawned on me that a) we foot the bill for the wedding. I had hoped to get away with a ladder at her bedroom window and a map of Scotland. And b) I have to give a speech, still it’s over a year away, so I’m sure some tales and nuggets will be put to paper. “I remember when Emma was 5 ……….”
While designing and building a greenhouse controller, may as well before the greenhouse is built, I bought two plastic enclosures as I wasn’t sure which would be the most suitable for wires, switches, etc. So after 3 days of intermittent measuring, drilling, filing and checking the individual pieces, I finally put the box together only to discover I had used to top of one and the bottom of the other! Well all I could do was laugh at my stupidity and admit that my one functioning brain cell can’t multitask.
Mum reached the grand old age of 97 at the beginning of the month, but because it’s an odd number, she decided it keep celebrations to a minimum. So look out 100, telegram from HRH, balloons, party etc
Work on lumberjack enclosure has begun with a couple of guys clearing the debris and brambles. I need some brackets to attach upright wood posts to the old metal gate and wonder about having a go at welding them on. The local tool rental outfit charge £6 a day for a “stick” welder, so it should only take me a day to weld 5 pieces of metal – shouldn’t it?
I’ve got a critter watching me write this – a young scatty squirrel chomping on seeds and bread, less than a metre away.
29th
Decorating, blisters and John Deere
I realise after sitting on my laurels for a while that a spiders web had appeared on my step ladder. A subtle hint to get ones arse moving as spring is in the air and DYI jobs don’t do themselves. So into the kitchen and lobby I ventured, brush in one hand and roller in tother. The bi-fold doors for the pantry and utility room have received Rust-Oleum furniture “mineral grey” facing out and “cotton” inside, a water based, low odour paint that gives a great finish. The lobby walls were rubbed down by hand, giving a sort of shabby chic finish and await a coat of “antique cream” emulsion for the walls and vinyl around the upvc door frame. I found that vinyl paint sticks to upvc and makes the brown frames easier on the eye. While I was at it, the kitchen door also got finished off, leaving only the Roman blind to hang.
We visited Emma and Martin last Saturday. It took 2 hrs to get there and again 3 hrs to get back. All clear through to the M49 slip road at Avonmouth, which was closed for roadworks, and no warning or diversion signposted! After setting the satnag to Cribbs Causway, we crossed Bristol on roads I never visited before and joined the M5 with standard s-l-o-w traffic from Newport to Cardiff. In days gone by, we used to “pop” down to Swansea from Wiltshire for the day to see my parents, a total of 5 hrs in the car. Now, it’s a case of “are we there yet” after an hour’s driving. My old leg is in need of replacing and I’ve been putting off a visit to the Limb Centre for a while – Covid, CBA etc, so I forgot about how easy it is to overdo walking. The pub was further away than expected and I ended up with a blister on my right instep which is still giving issues a week later. I have partially solved it by wearing a thick sock plus a padded dressing over the blister. Ah, relief. I will have to get a new leg in time for the wedding as the rattle and clanking as I give Emma away might be a bit off-putting for the those gathered. We are pleased to report that the wedding venue has been booked for April 14th next year and Emma has kindly sent me a link for the duties of the brides father. But with the warning of no Welsh jokes, no embarrassing tales of young Emma and such, it might be a very short speech.
After 18 months of service, my trusty ride-on mower has gone off for a service. According to the next service label, it was due in August 2019 and the hours run counter has been flashing for attention. Having got the mower out of the garage for about 10 days, I can finally finish the mower section with an assortment of brackets and shelves to hold chainsaw, hole borer, strimmer, garden tools, etc out of the way. Following a quick brush of the floor, I foolishly lifted one of the planks over the inspection pit. No water in the bottom of the hole, but wet walls and ceiling planks, not good. It now means that I will have to install a ventilation system to try and dry out and keep dry the pit to ensure the floor (ceiling) timbers don’t rot and cause undue smells. I feel a solar panel system is going to be the best option to save a good couple of quid in running costs. I did see a diesel heater for £87 on eBay that would warm up the workshop, is legal to run on red diesel and will be cheaper than the 2.5kW electric fan heater I currently use. With all these additional holes in the garage, it’s going to look like a Swiss cheese.
