I don’t think I’ve mentioned it before, but there has been a very bad smell in my kitchen and I haven’t been able to find out what’s causing it. I first noticed it when we got back from Gran Canarias. Of course, I blamed it on Harriet, thinking she hadn’t emptied the bin whilst we were away, but she had, so I couldn’t blame her. Over the last few weeks, I have scrubbed worktops, bleached floors, disinfected the bins several times, cleaned out the fridge and squeezed myself underneath my freestanding units. I’ve even pulled out my cooker and the fridge thinking some old food stuffs may have been lurking behind them but I found nothing. I’m not a keen fan of air freshener but I’ve invested in several scents but none of them have worked.
My kitchen smell smells of cat pee. And before you ask, I do know what cat pee smells like because when we moved into the kebab flat we had a cat that used to pee every day on our doormat as it was marking his territory. Anyway I diverse, yesterday I finally discovered that the smell was coming from the fridge. We inherited the fridge when we brought the house, there was nothing wrong with it and initially it was fine. But last year it started leaking at the bottom. Phil put a baking tray underneath the feet to catch the water and then a bit later I played about with the drain and the leak stopped. I don’t know what is causing the fridge to smell, but it’s got to go. Today I’m going out to price up a replacement, stainless steel I fancy.
My week didn’t start well. Monday is rubbish day in our cul-de-sac and whilst I was placing my sacks alongside Emma’s I noticed that my car door wasn’t shut properly. On further inspection, I saw that my glove box was open and my Adele 21 CD box was open on my driving seat. I was still half asleep but then the penny clicked, someone had been in my car. I have central locking so I’d pressed the button to lock the car but the problem was, I hadn’t shut the driver’s door properly. Normally this wouldn’t have been obvious to any passers-by because my car is sandwiched between Phil’s & Harriet’s but Harriet had gone out late so anyone lurking would have easily noticed that my car was an easy target. I was not happy when I saw that the bloody b*****ds had nicked our sat nav. Just shows what a lovely neighbourhood we live in, NOT. Maybe it really is time to move.
Speaking of moving, we had 3 viewings on the house whilst we were in Tenerife. We received feedback from the agent yesterday to say none of these viewings was positive, 2 perspective buyers thought our house was overpriced and the third couple thought our house was to, and I quote “futuristic”. I agree that our house, in the current market, is overpriced but futuristic, I just don’t get. It’s not modern enough for my liking and if I had the money there are lots of things that I would change. We’ve been on the market for nearly a year now and I’m thinking perhaps it’s time to take it off the market. With all the projects we’ve got coming up, a house move would not be practical, and if I am honest, I don’t really want to move, I like it here. If the worst comes to the worst and Phil is unable to work, we could always bung it on the market again and be prepared to take a hit. I know that if we market at a realistic price and sort out the shower, it would sell straight away.
Learning about my car burglars rather upset me on Monday morning if I am honest and put me in rather a bad mood for the remainder of the day. It was back to the gym after holiday and surprisingly, it wasn’t too painful after our break. Afterwards, I went to HSBC in Newport to try and sort out one of our accounts. We need to add Harriet to one account and I thought it was be easy enough just to add another person, just get a form, sign it and Bob’s your Uncle. But so wrong was I; the cashier told me that both Phil & Harriet would need to make an appointment and come into the branch and also provide a stream of documents as proof of identification. This seemed ridiculous to me, when Phil has 6 accounts which he has held with HSBC for nearly 30 years. We also have a joint account with them, plus a business account, a company credit card account and also Harriet has banked with them all her banking life. I said all this to the cashier but she was adamant there was no other way. But there is; Phil was outraged so he phoned the customer care line and I went in yesterday to pick up 2 forms which they both have signed. I still need to provide proof of identification and need to take this in with the signed forms today. We really should have sorted this out before going away and if time wasn’t of the essence, I would be tempted to take our banking elsewhere. Brave words Clairabella65, but in reality, I’ve already got enough hassle in my life without getting on my high horse and adding to it. I bumped into Vanessa outside Boots in Newport who was taking Shannon in to see an orthopaedic surgeon which was great and we arranged a wine rendezvous. I went with them to the doctor’s surgery because I was picking up Phil’s prescription which I’d ordered on line on Saturday. Another frustration, it wasn’t ready, so I had to go back again at teatime to collect it.
Sue, as in Sue & Alan, phoned me on Monday evening; I’d emailed her on Sunday and had no reply, which is so very unlike her. I think I already knew before we talked, that something was seriously wrong and sure enough, Alan went back into Willen Hospice on Monday morning. His health is really deteriorating fast and he now needs a hoist because of his poor mobility. As usual, Sue wasn’t feeling sorry for herself, even though, from what she said, it hadn’t been a good week. Alan’s body maybe failing him but he is lucid and coherent and although I don’t know him that well, I do know that his loss of dignity and helplessness will be unbearable to him. I am hoping to meet up with Sue today but it all depends on how Alan is. It’s all so very tragically sad.
After the gym yesterday, I went to Asda for a big shop. I need to make sure that we are fully stocked up before starting on the flat. I was in there for a whole hour. I just about had enough time to put away my shopping, wolf down my lunch and get to Kingston to meet Jan at the M&S café at Kingston. It was good to see her and catch up because I hadn’t seen her for ages. She is back at work, albeit part time and has come on leaps and bounds since her operation. Jan hasn’t had it easy and it’s been a slow journey to recovery; I know that she is frustrated that its taking so long but I thought she looked really well, if a little tired. It is funny, Jan always asks after Alan & Sue, and vice versa, Sue always asks about Jan. It is like they are friends by proxy and I am the common denominator. But they will meet up one day I am sure. I wish I could have stayed and chatted to Jan for longer but unfortunately I had to nip into Tesco and then get my forms to the bank.
And guess who I happened to bump into in the electric section upstairs? None other than mad Betty from Cranfield who was out shopping with husband Adrian who BTW is just as mad; they were looking for a sandwich toaster which just about says it all really. I have been avoiding Betty’s texts for ages so I had no choice but to linger and listen to 20 minutes of total crap. Shame really, because I was feeling so happy after seeing Jan. Needless to say, after our encounter, I came away from Tesco minus the stuff that I went in for. My second to last job of the day was to go back to HSBC to pick up the forms for the joint account then when I got home I cooked a big batch of vegetarian chilli for the freezer. This dish, by default, is a big part of our staple cancer diets and we have it at least twice a week. Fortunately Phil really loves my tweaked recipe but try as I may, I’m not so keen.
I have been putting my house in order (literally) this week because I know that when I get the keys, the renovation of the OB flat, it will literally take over my life. I have cooked, cleaned, washed, ironed; all the paperwork is up-to-date, accounts are near to completion, menus are planned and Phil has got enough pills to last him for a couple of months. I think I’ve thought of everything to enable me to focus on the flat solidly for the next 10 days. But I don’t suppose it will matter much if there is something that I’ve forgotten, it won’t be the end of the world. Sometimes I hate myself for being so anal and right up my own arse. Its frustrating and I wish I could change but somehow I think it’s far too late for at. I am as I am.
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