Well it goes without saying that we are still fire fighting with little chance of things abating. Are we winning you may ask, I’m not sure, ask me next Monday which is the last day before we fly away. Friday morning was admin jobs. Phil was on the phone by 8am and on the phone for the next 3 and a half hours trying to get us a loan to pay for the caravan. He finally got Nationwide to lend us the money and this (fingers crossed) should come through this week. This will take pressure of us slightly because it means we can pay for the caravan as soon as we get back from Malaysia and start moving stuff in. Once we exchange contracts on our house, we intend to get a van and move stuff into a storage unit. This will mean that on completion day, all we need to do is clean and load our belongings into both cars and head to Overstone. Sound easy doesn’t it, but I’m sure it won’t be; moves and marriages never are. And I should know, I’ve done both several times!
Whilst Phil was on the phone, I was busy on the internet sorting things. It took a while but I organised insurance for the new caravan, contents insurance for the CF, annual world-wide travel insurance because I suddenly realised our policy expired at the end of July. I also set up a standing order with Anglian Water for the CF as well as a TV licence. And I’ve sorted out a 40ft storage unit with Arrows in Bletchley. It doesn’t sound much but it took me almost as long as it took Phil to get a loan. With tasks accomplished we loaded up the land rover and went over to store stuff in the attic at the CF. We just had enough time to go to DW for a Jacuzzi and a shower and then we went over to Newport Pagnell to view a bungalow for Phil’s mum and dad. It was a 3 bedroom on the Poets estate in Newport. The size was good but needed decoration throughout not to mention a new kitchen and bathroom, also it didn’t have a conservatory and I didn’t like the access. After viewing we went to The Giffard for a leisurely lunch and then it was back in the car for an appointment at Milton Keynes hospital for Phil’s annual diabetic eye-check. And that was Friday, another busy one.
Phil didn’t sleep well on Friday night so on Saturday morning I left him to sleep and popped to the health-club for a swim. Well I was going to have a workout but I forgot my kit. He was up when I got home and so was Harriet which was good because we had allocated Saturday to ‘Project Harriet’. She has decided to move into the CF early because of us going away. It’s not that we can’t wait to get rid of her but we want her to spend a few nights in the flat so we can sort out any problems before we go. So on Saturday we wanted her to sort her clothes and pack most of them so we could take them over to Caldecotte. We went over with a load of her stuff and also a load of stuff for the attic. We left Harriet’s stuff for her to sort and got down the ladder to put our rubbish in her attic. Time was of the essence because Phil had arranged a bungalow viewing,
Phil had his gym kit so he dropped me off at BM in Bletchley to browse whilst he went for a quick steam and shower. BM was good and I brought 2 cushions but not as good as the Pound Saver in Westcroft, which is my favourite bargain shop by far. I walked back to DW to meet Phil and we drove straight over to Furzton to view a bungalow. It was nice, well maintained, good floor space, lovely gardens, both front and back and ticked all of the things on mum and dads wish list. The only slight worry is that it is semi-detached, but the price was good (under £200k) and I can see mum and dad living very happily there. BUT, and this is the thing, whether they like it, is another matter.
After Furzton we had to go over to see Aaron from O’Riordan Bond as Phil had asked him to come over to give us a valuation. Aaron has arrived at the flat early and was just in time to help Harriet up the stairs with her stuff. He is such a nice young man and well anyway he said that the value wouldn’t have changed with the refurbishment but we could charge a higher premium. What we hadn’t realised is that the housing association decide on the sale price and obviously because it is low cost housing this doesn’t go up much. But Aaron thought that if we sold, we can charge £10k for the premium; we paid £2k when we brought it so at least we have covered our costs and made a couple of grand. Well, in theory. Of course we have no intention of selling because the CF is going to be Harriet’s home for the next couple of years but it still good to know that we are on track. We did a few more jobs when we got home then it was a quiet evening in front of the telly.
Phil has been suffering with his bowel and his bladder which has been interrupting his sleep. He had such a pain free week until the latter part last week but things started to get worse on Thursday and as such, he has had 3 nights of very broken sleep and Saturday night was particularly bad. Unfortunately I fell asleep on the sofa at 8pm (lightweight) and woke him up when I came to bed at 2pm; he couldn’t go back to sleep so he got up and started doing some research for our trip to Malaysia. Phil is so excited and can’t wait to go. He’s been emailing Tom asking for advice and hints and tips, poor Tom, he must be exhausted with Phil’s questioning! We shall have to treat him and his girlfriend to a few nice meals and quite a few beers as repayment.
Tired and exhausted, I’m sure Phil would have loved an easy Sunday with no jobs and papers and telly but there was no chance because he’d arranged to pick up G and drive over to Melton Mowbray to spend the day with his mum and dad. It left me with a free day which I spent clearing out filing cabinets and folders. Much as I adore Phil, he can be very demanding on my time and it was nice to have a chance to be able to get on and work without constant interruptions. I did get to the gym and was able to take some stuff over to Caldecotte which will need to go up in the attic. Sunday afternoon was relatively easy, some cleaning, rubbish sorting and I also cleaned my car and cut the lawn.
Today is rubbish collection day and what with my sorting and Harriet clearing out her bedroom, we have 20 black and red sacks ready to be picked up. I’ve pretty much now done all the cupboards and drawers, what’s left is every day stuff that is still in use. In terms of sorting, the only big job left is the tools which Phil started but had to abandon because of the rain. It’s not going to be lazy day today; chance would be a fine thing. I need to get going and take my car into the garage for an MOT and service and Phil has to be over at Cranfield to let Pete into fit the window board in the bathroom. Not too sure about the rest of the day without consulting my ‘to do list’ but no doubt, we will be busy. Mustn’t complain too much, doing too much of that these days, we’re taking the afternoon off tomorrow and I’ve managed to schedule in meeting up with 3 girlfriends in the week so it’s not all work and no play, even if I make it sound like it is.
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