It's all go

It’s seems ages since I last wrote. It’s not as though we’ve been anywhere, or even been ill. We just seem to have had a very busy time just lately.

It began on Tuesday, not a day I usually write. Tuesdays are dominated by the presence of Linda, my home help, & the food shopping, a necessary evil. However, this Tuesday I also interviewed a new gardener, Carol, showing her around the garden & explaining our needs & hopes for the garden. No sooner had she gone when a delivery van arrived with the garden furniture we’ve bought for the walled garden at the back. Suddenly that area is looking so much more inviting to sit in. we’ve just bought a couple of chairs & a small table, enough to put a book, glass or mug down, or to play dominoes on come the summer.

Wednesday saw the arrival of the fire brigade. No, we hadn’t set the house on fire. They apparently like to check all the homes of known disabled & elderly people to check they know the latest advice on fire prevention & what to do in case of fire. We assured her the fire alarm they installed a couple of years ago is still working. We do check. We also assured her we knew our escape strategy in the event of fire, knowing where to find back & front door keys easily even if there is no lighting. 

We were given the current advice as to what to do if our chip pan catches fire. We are no longer to try to put a damp cloth or lid on. Instead we should just switch of the gas if we can safely do so, leave the room making sure all doors are closed behind us & phone 999. We were told the importance of having a phone near the bed in case a fire starts in the night & to put pillows across the bottom of the door if that should happen & we can't safely make our escape out of the house. 

The only other hazard we need to avoid is leaving plugs for things such as the washing machine on when not in use. We were praised for having filled in our emergency forms, with our medical information, which is kept in a container in the fridge door. We’ve even remembered to update medication etc. if it has changed. After she left, I realised just how shattered I was & retreated to be for a restorative lie-down.

So Thursday I thought I’d get on-line. I just had a few potatoes to prepare for dinner, do a little bit of ironing & that was it. Or rather that was it until the phone rang. It was Carol asking if it was okay for her to come for her first gardening session that morning. She arrived just as I’d finished the potatoes. The next hour was spent talking as she worked, establishing both our aspirations for the garden. She’s keen to grow some nettles for the caterpillars & a buddleia. We have no objection beyond wanting the nettles at the far end where they are less in the way & we are less likely to get stung. I then got in & did the ironing. By then it was lunch-time & I was feeling fair shattered.

The afternoon saw us going off to Claughton once more to commit to our new double glazing. They should be coming to get the finer measuring done before we go away to France. The actual instalment is due in June. So that is all organised & under way.

Now I feel I can try to relax a bit before we turn our attention to our holidays. We’re certainly feeling the need for it after this burst of activity.