I ache

But, every cupboard bar the one under the stairs is empty.

Bags and bags have been dropped of at various charity shops.

The wheely bin is rammed full.

There are stacks of boxes mainly packed but some are still empty.

There are piles of stuff waiting to go to the tip.

People are collecting items in dribs and drabs.

The lawn has been mown.

Tomorrow the sweeping and dusting will commence.

What The Fluff

The boat is covered in fluff, there are great swathes of it everywhere.

It rolls itself into balls that drift away if you try to pick them up.

The fluff is from the willow trees.

It plays havoc with the painting of the boat and it makes me sneeze.

Do coat hangers breed?

I decided to vary things a bit in my decluttering, so once CHS had sorted his clothes I gathered up all the coat hangers in the house, the plastic shop ones went to a friend who does a lot of fete's and fayres.
The wooden and padded ones are ready to go to the boat and the bought plastic ones have gone to DD1, with five children in the house, that means a lot of clothes so they should be useful.

Eileen to the rescue

Eileen and I were walking round the marina today we were going to throw some rubbish in the skip.

Eileen pointed to one of cars in the car park and said 'that lady is screaming help'.

We walked over to the car, she had been locked in it for an hour and it was hot and sunny.

I tried the doors but they were locked.

'Can you find my husband, he's on a boat, he has the key's.

She didn't know the name of the boat but I recognised her husband from her description.

I ran to find him and he released her from the car.

He had the central locking remote in his pocket and must have pressed it by accident, locking her in.

She came to our boat for a cool drink to recover.

We exchanged names and phone numbers, so she can come over to our boat if she's here again.

After she left  Eileen asked what the ladies name was and I told her Wendy.
She then asked what Wendy's husband's name was.

Captain Hot Stuff said 'Mud!'

Counting the pennies.

Music magpie £14
Fridge freezer £25
Gtech vacuum £35
Fish tank £32

More stuff listed on eBay.
What didn't sell on eBay is now listed in facebay.
Just a few days left but it's half term next week, so after a weekend spent painting the boat I have three full days at home.
Captain Hot Stuff has sorted his clothes, given his tools and gardening equipment to DD1 and thrown away loads of crap.

Still slogging on

I've sold my fridge freezer, someone offered me £25 and I accepted.

I had arranged to go straight to DD1's after work yesterday to look after my twin grandchildren from 2:30 until 5. But I detoured home first to switch off the freezer and put my washing up bowl in the bottom of it.

The DGC were very pleased to see me and the blueberries I took with me.
I read lots of stories, had lots of cuddles and they both tried my ID badge on.
They were 3 earlier this month so are toilet trained and talk in sentences now.

I got home about 5:30 cooked our evening meal, sliced turkey, new potatoes and assorted veg.

I was about to attack the freezer when a friend of ours turned up, it was late when he left but at least the freezer had defrosted completely.
It was almost midnight by the time I finished washing all the drawers and shelves.

I was up at 5 this morning, but no cuppa for me, I had a fasting blood test booked at 8:30.
I snuck to the post office after the Doctors as there was a card through the door yesterday to say a parcel had arrived and needed collecting, it's the final hanging rack for the kitchen.

I have a huge bruise and blood filled blister from where the nurse stabbed me, I think she was a bit ham-fisted as I don't usually mark that badly.

This evening the freezer was collected along with a chest of drawers. I've swept and mopped the kitchen floor, CHS & I have gone through 3 drawers and two baskets that CHS had filled with crap, he will sort his clothes out tomorrow.

The WM has been on twice and the lines are full, the washing will probably dry before I go to bed, mind you I shall not be going to bed very early.

A bad decision

I made a bad decision on Saturday after dropping DGD home, there are various routes back to the marina, I made the mistake of driving past Englefield house!

I thought at first there had been an accident as there were so many people lollygagging around on the side of the road.

Then I realised they were hoping to catch a glimpse of Pippa Middleton's wedding guests.

Don't buy a narrowboat

Unless you like dogs and spiders, in abundance!

Today we met Jacob the Dalmatian, Froufrou a French bulldog and Baxter, a very barky Rottweiler, he's friendly but noisy and probably quite terrifying if you are of a nervous disposition. 

Spiders we have in abundance, all small ones so far but I'm expecting larger ones in the autumn!

I managed to sprain my finger this weekend, I don't think it's broken, I tripped over a folding chair as I climbed into the cratch. As we don't want the chair I took it and another identical one round to the marina office. There is an area where people can leave things they no longer need, other boaters can then take anything they want. The 2 chairs had gone within half an hour as had some plastic plates that we didn't want.

Fecking idiots

I have items listed on eBay, one of these items is a fish tank, minus the fish obviously.

Someone has messaged me telling me that I have listed the item incorrectly!

Well it's my bloody fish tank so I think I know how big it is.

But he/she informed me that I'd made a mistake.

I replied saying that fish tanks are deceptive and hold more water that you'd think.

I have now received emails telling me I'm stupid, yada, yada.

I have reported the idiot to EBay, somehow I  don't think they will be winning the tank.

More stuff gone.

DD1 has collected all the gardening tools, a rug for DGD's room and assorted other bits and pieces.

I'm taking my sewing machine, a shoe box full of fabric, a small cutting mat and a box of haberdashery and notions to the boat. I'm also taking my crochet hooks and some yarn.

This is my current yarn stash, I'm debating how much I can fit on the boat!

Still sorting and decluttering

I have filled my bin and that of a neighbour who is away (I have her permission to use her bin).

I am taking 2 or 3 bags to various charity shops every day.

I approached my Local Project Linus about my many crochet blankets, they aren't interested as they only accept quilts, fortunately the Basingstoke group will take my blankets.

I have made the grand sum of £8.50 on Music Magpie, and donated the rest of the CD to a charity.

I need to photograph and list two more items on Ebay.

I am sending my needle-felting supplies to an MSE'r who has been very kind to me.

I have sorted my yarn and given some away, I may give more away, I just need to see how much I can smuggle aboard the boat.

DS has collected the TV, DD1 is collecting the radio, scales, rug, mirror, baskets and door hangers.

DD2 is collecting the kitchen sundries.

A little piece of heaven.

The last couple of weekends the weather has been ideal for working on the boat as it has been overcast but dry. 

Last night we had torrential rain, it hammered on the roof of the boat.

This morning, glorious sunshine so I was able to take some photo's of our home marina.

We took the boat across for a pump out, there was a widebeam already there so we breasted up against another boat until the area was clear.

Going, going gone

The rust has been treated, the old name and coachlines have been sanded off and two coats of primer finished. I helped with the masking tape and cutting in.

Four on three

Well that's four hours of my life I will never get back, four hours on the phone to 3mobile!

I am so far past the end of my tether that my tether is a small dot in the distance.

Yet again I have run out of paper at work, this makes my job not just difficult but actually bloody impossible.

I can't find the lead for my camera, the house is in turmoil, Captain Hot Stuff isn't coping, nothing unusual there, he's very bad with change.

My mobile is not working but 3mobile don't know why despite four hours on the sodding phone, the bill has been paid, it's paid by direct debit on the first of the month but it appears to have been cut off by 3.

I've had a new phone for almost 2 months but it's taken 3 mobile until today and umpteen phone calls to get a replacement sim to fit the phone.

The new phones aren't working either!

Knickers

I have just purchased 10 pairs of knickers for my 9yo DGD, she swears there are no knickers in her size at her house and that she is wearing her little sisters knickers that are too small.
She assures me she has asked Daddy (who does the shopping) to buy her some and he's refused.
I don't believe for one minute he won't buy her knickers and I'm assuming that her either doesn't know there are none in her size or that there are some and she doesn't like the colour/pattern/style.

Cancelled

I've cancelled the direct debit for the gas and electric, I'm in credit so there should be a refund winging it's way into the account in June.

I still need to cancel the BT and water rates, hopefully the bank account will look a little healthier next month.

I've filled yet more bags for the CS and the bin.

The roof of the boat has had it's final coat and looks great.

The weather was lovely on Sunday so I took some photo's, all I need to do now is find the camera lead and I'll be able to post them on my blog!

Shiny new roof.

Room for two

Well the shower cubicle is definitely big enough for two.

It wasn't until I'd finished and got out that I realised that the clothes airer was still in the shower with me. 

Who wrote it

I spent almost half an hour trying to find a book on my beloved's kindle, it was a Stuart MacBride, I'm reading A Dark so Deadly, it wasn't that one, it was an earlier one but he couldn't remember the title.
He'd started reading it and somehow lost it!
Eventually I asked for details of the plot to help me narrow down the choices.
He said 'It's the one where Rebus has retired'
No wonder I couldn't find it, the Rebus books are written by Ian Rankin!

The roof of the boat has had it's first cream coat and it's looking really good, it's had 2 coats of primer, 2 of undercoat and now needs 2 top coat, CHS would have finished it today but the chandlers hadn't got enough cream paint in stock. It should be in by Monday at the latest, so the work on the roof will continue then.

A time of adjustment

We are getting used to spending more time on the boat but I have taken the wooden rolling pin back to the house. That way I'm not tempted to brain Captain Hot Stuff!

He will keep reminding me that I need to be more tidy, as I clear away the milk and margarine he left on the side, hang up his hat and clear away his paint brushes.

This morning I set the washing machine going and tripped the electrics on the boat, I'm not sure why, maybe I can't use the machine on Wednesday's.

On Tuesday I set off for work only to find the Marina gate locked, I had to walk back to the boat to collect the key. The gate should be open from 6am but actually the first person to leave in the morning opens it. I made it to work in 16 minutes, it usually takes me 30!

Once at work a worried colleague asked how we'd managed at the weekend, I said we'd been fine. 'But it rained' she said 'did  you have to go to your house?' I assured her that the boat was ok in the rain and hadn't melted. Mind you I didn't tell her that I'd been stood in the rain holding an umbrella over part of the roof that Captain Hot Stuff had just finished painting when it started raining.

We have ordered the solar panels they are being fitted in June hence the need to get the roof painted.

Dd1 has made a start on selling the contents of my house, very kind of her but unfortunately she forgot to tell me that my stuff was being listed and it was a mad rush to get photos and measurements to her at the same time as collecting two dgd's from two schools and getting them to dance class.

Yellow sticker queen

I popped into our little local Tesco today whilst swapping one grandchild for another.
I went in for milk as we get through a lot especially when the DGC have breakfast with us.
It wasn't the normal time for reductions but I hit lucky.
I got four posh burgers, a salad bowl, a chicken and a packet of bread rolls for under £4.
DGS & CHS had 2 of the burgers in rolls with baked beans for tea, two went in the freezer, I had a hummus salad roll.
I cooked the chicken today and we had a roast dinner, I've made chicken salad rolls for lunch tomorrow and made a chicken and mushroom pie for the freezer.