Sunday morning

Sunday morning view with coffee, Newby Bridge .

Click on the picture to enlarge and see the birds .

Mandy and the boat

Mandy , Siobhan , Oonagh, Granny,Eilish and in the foreground , Cate , on the occasion of Gerard's sixtieth birthday , on the boat .

This was to be the last time we spent any time with Mandy . Autumn 05.

Birds squabbling, Painting as therapy

This was last Friday morning , the day we got caught in the rain , this half an hour before the rain fell . Down at the ferry landing , where we stop for a breather , watch the boats and the big ferries and the seabirds nesting and shouting . Click on the picture to enlarge it and the birds are visible on the parapet of the house , squabbling and jostling for best place .

Glad of the painting last night as therapy . More teenage Angst . Wonderful to have the house to myself for a couple of hours , painting rhythmically , covering up pipes and wires and everything that comes in my way . Cover it all up in thick white clean blanket and Magic , everything looking good this morning . But , though we are taking off for the day , the knowledge that the Issues bubble away . The slate is still off , the water still creeping ( and at times lashing ) in .

But there will be a time for fixing , and its not today .

CatCalls .....

.... and a repeat booking from a new customer , for the end of July and some time in August , which is looking wonderfully busy now , and a text thanking me for my last week's services .

The two cats I had been looking after were lovely , changing from shy to inquisitive and playful . They watch as I hoover around quickly trying to leave the house tidy and sweep up the stray litter and leaves and flowers they have brought in to play with from outside . I can almost see in their faces their plans to trash the place the minute I left . I tried .

Displacement Activity

Using the blog as a record of my recent activities and whilst hunting for the date I bought my Bravissimo bra ( as a prelude to returning it yesterday as it is so tight it continues to bruise my skin ), I discovered the statement back in April that the bathroom was ready for painting , and late yesterday afternoon found me still lurking with a book and avoiding picking up the brush .

True , there are Issues ..... the most pertinent being the missing slate and the fact that the rainiest June on record has not helped our leak , and that we still have not tracked down a roofer .
But still , I could have started on the skirting boards. So , with that in mind , I made a start last night . As with all these things you no sooner open the can of paint ( bending a knife in the process ) than you realise you have the wrong paint . So , a trip to Wickes to purchase more . Picking up brochures about bathroom furniture leads us on a wild goose chase in search ( still ) of a floor standing cabinet . I know exactly what I want . Something in stainless steel , three drawers , holding all the toiletries that currently litter two window sills , and no matter how tastefully arranged in bowls and in stylish groups , still ruin the bathroom's " clean lines " . The clean lines I hope to have , I should add , as the spidery corners persist and ... well suffice to say clean lines is a dream .
There is such a cabinet , in John Lewis, but at a price , and I hang onto the belief that there is a far superior one available in a sale somewhere . Hence the wild goose chase and the two hours in town in the morning following the grappling with bra sizes and cups and bands and " How about this in hot pink then since we dont have your size in black ? "
So , when I finally lie on the tiles , paint brush in hand , attempting to reach the far spidery corner under the copper pipes ( harder than it looks ) , I manage only one length of wall before evening activities beckon .
Oh well , there 's always another day .
My new bra has to be ordered , and will take three weeks before its made , out of the warehouse and in through my letterbox . Is it really that big ? Or complex ? I still love Bravissimo though . A truly uplifting exrerience , shopping there .

Kitty , again

D , on the phone in an intense exchange with a solicitor .

He paces , finding it impossible to engage whilst sitting , or at his desk . This winds Kitty up and coupled with the fact that its after the four o clock watershed , adds to her determination to disrupt proceedings .In her eyes , food should be imminent . She yowls wildly and he proceeds to pace in the general direction of the kitchen , perhaps intending to provide a scoop of food whilst he talks .

I listen from my perch in the other sitting room , where I am lurking with a book , avoiding doing the painting .

As he approaches the kitchen the Guinea Pigs get wind of him and set up an earth shattering series of squeals .

I wonder what the solicitor makes of it . Perhaps we need a phone on a cord , attached firmly to a desk .

Toby , messing in the sink

Strict morning routine . The cats usually wait for me on the landing , unless they've manouvered the bedroom door open and started nipping . The Guinea Pigs either sense the vibrations through the house or hear movement as the very minute I cross the threshold the squealing starts downstairs . They are first to be fed and they woffle my fingers . The coffee machine goes on next and the cats swarm around , Pearl on the benches in defiance of all the rules , Kitty attacking the legs till the food is down , Jessie waiting patiently in another room and Toby at the sink , more interested in water play than in food .