This week hasn’t been as nearly as bad as I was expecting (thank god). I have started climbing that mountain and am making progress. There is still a long way to go but at least I have made a start and things, at the end of the week, don’t seem anywhere nearly as impossible as they did on Monday. Actually Monday didn’t get off to a brilliant start; I was late setting out because I needed to write a blog and I then decided it was best to wait until after 9am to avoid the traffic. Phil had got into work for 7am and at half nine he drove his car to the garage in Whaddon. I was half expecting there to be a problem , and sure enough, at 10am just as I pulled up outside the gym, my mobile phone rang. It was Phil to say that he was at the garage and they didn’t have a loan car to give him so could I possibly come and pick him up? I had no choice, but first, I had to fill up with fuel at Asda and then I stopped off at Screwfix to be pick up a catalogue. I picked up Phil, dropped him back at work and then went to the gym.
There wasn’t time for a long work-out but I managed a 5k run, I had a shower and then went home for lunch. Phil decided not to come home for lunch but instead, decided to stay at work and grab a sandwich. I had a bowl of Sue’s homemade Shepherd’s pie and very nice it was too. In the afternoon I did the rounds of DIY shops in MK with my main objective of collecting brochures for fitted bedroom furniture for Phil’s mum. She needs a wardrobe in her bedroom but she’s not really sure what she wants. I also went to the flat to put some Oven Pride in the oven to leave overnight. This is by far, the best oven cleaning product on the market. I adore it but it kills your hands if you’re not careful. My last job of the day was to pick up Phil and take him to the garage to collect and pay for his car. I forget what the problem was, but it cost £225.00 to fix, although expensive, Phil says that the Land Rover is running much better and his engine warning light doesn't come on anymore and that can only be a good thing.
On Tuesday, I managed a session in the gym and was home in time to get Phil his lunch. In the afternoon I went to Tesco’s in Wolverton. This particular branch of Tesco’s always depresses me and Tuesday’s visit was no different. It’s been quite a while since I went to Tesco’s at Wolverton and I struggled to find what I wanted. After Tesco’s, I went to the flat to clean off the Oven Pride and put the racks back in the oven. It felt pretty cold in the flat and when I checked the meter cupboard, I saw that we were out of credit. I went to the little shop in Fishermead to buy some more gas but although I tried several times, I couldn’t get the pilot light on. In the end I gave up and went home. Phil wasn’t impressed when he got home as he had to go to the OB flat to light the boiler. Phil was out for a couple of hours in the evening and so was Sue, which left me home alone which felt pretty strange. I had a pile of ironing to do which took me a while and then I watched a couple of my soaps with a glass of wine. It was supposed to be a ‘dry’ night but I felt like a glass of red. Actually I only had a glass and a half which wasn’t too terrible. Still, I haven’t done very well in the alcohol free nights department this week so I really much try harder next week.
Instead of going to the gym on Wednesday morning I went with Sue to Carpet Right in the city to help her choose new carpet for the office (bedroom 4). We were a little early as the shop didn’t open until nine thirty but they let us in and Sue had chosen a carpet, arranged a date for fitting and we were out of the shop in no time. Whilst we were in the area, we had a quick look in Homebase and Dunelm’s. Next stop was B&Q as I needed white emulsion and gloss for the OB flat. Our last stop was the Oriental shop at Stacey Bushes as I need some ingredients to make Thai Green curry. Sue had never been in the oriental shop before and it was the first time I had seen the restaurant which is a recent new addition. Phil & Steve have eaten lunch there and said it was fine. Sue & I took a peek and grabbed a menu. The restaurant looked okay, quite small with no frills or fancies, but we have decided that sometime we will give it a try.
At lunchtime, I picked up Phil and we went to Burger King as we had some two-for-one vouchers. It made sense because Sue & I were eating in the evening and Phil was out with the Wednesday night boys so chances were that he was eating too. After dropping Phil off, I went to Downs Barn to pick up post and old newspapers from Christine’s house. There was a ton of free newspapers to pick up from the floor and some junk mail but this didn’t take me too long. From Downs Barn, I drove to Oldbrook to drop off paints and some other bits and pieces at the flat. I was home at half three which gave me time to cook my green curry and a pan of basmati rice ready for lunch on Thursday. Wednesday evening was pleasant, I dropped Phil at The Ship Ashore at Willen and when I got back, Sue cooked me lamb chops with mash, carrots and broccoli. As usual, we had lots of girlie chat and too much of the red stuff and ended up dancing in the kitchen but it wasn’t a really late night.
I found it a struggle to get up on Thursday but I did rise at half six to make Phil a mug of tea and to throw some snacks and a drink in his plastic bag. I did take my tea back to bed to read for a bit but I was back downstairs by half seven. We had a busy day planned, so staying in bed just wasn’t an option. After tea and toast, answering emails and a tidy up, Sue & I left the house after rush hour and went to work in the OB flat. Our remit was to clean the lounge and kitchen and prep them ready for painting. We had a kettle, tea, coffee and milk in the fridge, plus we had heat and a radio so it wasn’t too bad. It took a good couple of hours to scrub all of the walls, windows and skirting. Sue gave the sofas a good clean and I scrubbed all of the wood work.
We scrubbed and we scrubbed for the best part of 5 and a half hours. The kitchen was covered in grease; I don’t think I have seen walls and woodwork so dirty. Sue cleaned the front door inside and out with special UPVC cleaner and it has come up a treat. I had to laugh when she said the outside of the door was actually cleaner that the inside! From that statement, you can get an idea of just how dirty the flat actually is. We finished our working day with a hoover everywhere downstairs and a clean of the kitchen floor. It was about 3pm by the time we got back to Newport. It was very kind of Sue to give up a whole day and come and help me scrub and scrubbed we did. Sue was insistent that she wanted to help me, and actually, I was very glad of the company. I don’t mind cleaning or painting and decorating, but sometimes, it can get kind of lonely when you’ve only got yourself to talk to. It’s not the first flat project that Sue has helped me with and we work really well together as we go at the same pace and have pretty much the same cleaning standards.
I was really knackered by the time we got back to number 2. Both Sue and I jumped in the shower (not together I might add) and after showering, I got changed straight into my pyjamas. Phil got home about quarter past four and I am sure he just wanted to recline on the new sofas but I had other plans for him. I needed him to have a go at getting the drawers out of Sue’s filing cabinet in the office. For one, she had jammed one drawer up and needed to get the stuff out and secondly the new carpet is being fitted today and the unit needed to be taken out of the room. It wasn’t straightforward (is anything?) but eventually Phil worked out how to get the drawers out and together, all three of us managed to get the unit down the stairs and onto the drive. I got up the old beige carpet and Sue came upstairs just as I was folding it into a neat pile in the middle of the room to see what all the noise was about. I was standing on the folded carpet to try and flatten it and Sue stepped onto it with me and started jumping up and down on it waving her arms. God knows what the neighbours must think of us here at number 2! I don’t care because I have long stopped caring about what other people think about me, and besides, I will only be here for another month or so but Sue will be here for some time to come and I do worry about her street cred. Sue, I might add, doesn’t give a f**k which maybe be just as well.
I may have made baby steps this week, but Sue on the other hand, has made great big giant steps. I think she would agree that she has had a very positive week. She has ordered new furniture for the office, she’s cleared out the bedroom in readiness for the office furniture and she has ordered new carpet which is being delivered and fitted today. On Monday, she sent a rather long and carefully worded email to her financial adviser which she has been putting off for ages because it was complicated. Also she has organised a handyman to come and clear out her gutters which has been on her ‘to do’ list for quite a while. At long last, she has finally managed to sort her electric and gas accounts with E-on, putting up a fight and standing her ground with regards to the final bill after her b*****d tenants left. And unlike me, she has managed 3 wine free nights. There have been other achievements this week albeit them small, all of which she can be proud of, plus she has cooked meals for me and Phil for more than half the week. So well done Sue, and thanks for helping me scrub yesterday, you never fail to amaze me.
And so here we come to another Friday, another end of the week, another week gone out of my life. It’s not been a bad one and I do at least feel that I have achieved something. I have managed 4 visits to the gym, well that’s if you count today’s visit in a minute. Progress has been made at the OB flat together with the help of Sue and I feel that we are well on the way to reforming the flat to its former glory. What a nice change to be ending the week on a positive note. I have got a full day planned and tonight, me and Sue, and Phil if he’s up for it, are off to Robinson's wine bar for a couple of glasses of vino to celebrate the end of the week. Thank god it’s Friday.
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