Fingers, Flats & Desperate Housewives

Life has been fairly quiet which was a bit of a relief, after the previous week.  Phil went and did the final check out with the agent at the Oldbrook flat on Tuesday morning.  He wasn’t happy doing it because he said I am much better at inspections and he is right, I am much better as I notice so much more than Phil does.  But the trouble is, I get very emotional about the flats and no one ever cleans to my standards.  The trouble is you have to allow for some wear and tear especially if the tenant has been there for a while.

I did go the flat after the tenant had gone and met Adam (our agent) with Phil.  I was dismayed to see the mould problem had returned after a total redecoration job only 18 months ago.  It was nowhere as bad as last time just the odd spot here and there.  The bathroom ceiling was bad though and needed treatment and repainting.  Otherwise the flat wasn’t too bad, just needed a thorough clean. I had Sue and Ian on standby to help with cleaning but Adam had booked the cleaners at the tenants’ expense so I thought I may as well let them do it.  The cleaners were due to start at midday but in actual fact they didn’t go into until 2pm, Phil and I had lunch in The Cricketers and then headed home.

I went back to the flat on Wednesday morning and was surprised to see the cleaner still there.  Apparently a team had gone in the previous afternoon and the clean took longer than expected.  I couldn’t do much but I did strip the beds as I wasn’t sure if the bedding was clean.  It smelt okay but I couldn’t chance it.  The cleaner left after an hour and it wasn’t long after he left when Paul the handyman turned up.  Paul painted the bathroom ceiling and a patch behind the front door; he fixed one of the kitchen cupboards and also fixed a leak under the sink.  I left him weeding the garden and went to the gym.  I spent the evening washing, drying and ironing the bedding for the flat.

Nothing much happened on Thursday; I went to the flat to make up the beds and then went to the gym.  Phil came back from work on Friday and said that his boss was laying him off for a bit because they didn’t have much work for him.  This is not good news although Phil didn’t seem too bothered.

I went to Melton Mowbray on Saturday to see mum leaving Phil to catch up on his paperwork.  The traffic wasn’t too bad and I got to mum’s by quarter past nine.  I did say to mum that I would take her to see a friend or to a garden centre but she didn’t want to go anywhere other than a trip to Morrisons which took 20 minutes max.   Mum didn’t have any jobs for me so I pretty much sat around all day; I was pretty bored and was glad to get home.  Saturday night was X-Factor and early to bed.

Jim has been recommending box sets to Phil and his latest was Desperate Housewives, I was certain that I would like it but didn’t think it would be Phil’s cup of tea. How wrong was I, he absolutely loves it! Only one week in and we are now on Series 3.  We have such sad lives and too much of it is spent in front of the telly.  I keep threatening to get myself a life but I never do anything about it.

My hand is still sore although it is slowly getting a little less painful; last week I tried a few light weights and I had a swim in the pool without any difficulty, I’ve also stopped the pain killers.  I am ashamed to say though I didn’t go to the gym at all over the weekend.  We picked up Harriet and Billy from Caldecotte on Sunday and met Jim & Shirley for lunch at The Ship.  The pub was surprisingly quiet for a Sunday.  I think the food there isn’t as good as it used to me, I had the roast chicken which was alright but I was disappointed with the frozen roast potatoes.  Still it was good afternoon and finished off with a nap on the sofa. Happy days.

Harriet came round yesterday morning before work to sign a form for her flat sale.  The sale on the flat is still going through but it is painfully slow.  This is mainly due to Guinness, the housing association.  It also hasn’t helped that the buyers changed their solicitor half way through.  Harriet is also still waiting for the buyers to arrange the survey on the flat and I have not been very impressed with the conveyencer, Convey Law that we are using.  I really wished that we had gone through our normal solicitor but too late to change now. 

Harriet and Billy have offered on a house in Great Linford which needs lots of work, they are still waiting to hear if their offer has been accepted.  If all goes to plan, the flat sale should complete by the 21^st of May but there is no way their house purchase will be sorted by then so Harriet and Billy will be temporarily homeless.  It’s a shame that the agent has a new tenant moving into the Oldbrook flat on Thursday, if not they could have moved in there. Timing is not perfect but if the worse comes to the worse, they can always move into the caravan and put their belongings into storage.

A challenging Easter

With 2 fractures in my right hand, last week was a challenge.  It was little things like drying my hair, getting lids off bottles and pressing the button on my electric toothbrush that I found difficult. The pain was also bad so I had to up the pain killers.  If that weren’t bad enough, 3 days of wearing a sling, well Sue’s old tights to be accurate, kicked off my sciatica.  The pain went through into my legs which I have never had before.  Add into the equation, 3 ulcers in my mouth which were so sore that I couldn’t put in my false tooth for 4 days, well suffice to say, I felt a little sorry for myself.

Danielle came round on Tuesday to do my hair which badly needed doing but 2 hours of sitting on my cheap, hard kitchen chair wasn’t very comfortable with my bad back.  Still at least I got my hair washed and blow dried without any agro.  After the hair I took myself off to the gym.  I had only been on the cross-trainer for 2 minutes and my hip hurt like hell, thought I would have to give up but I worked through the pain and managed to do 50 minutes.  Something is better than nothing I suppose.

On Wednesday I picked up my niece Louise from the Co-op in Wolverton and we went over to see her sister and the kids in Broughton.  Louise has got a new puppy, Bailey and she took him to show the kids for the first time.  The puppy was called Bailey and was only 8 weeks old but don’t ask me what breed it was.  Sure it was cute, but Louise didn’t have a clue about rearing a puppy and I am not sure makes the best sense when living in a cramped flat without a garden.

Anyway the puppy went crazy with the little ones and as soon as we got through the door, Bailey had jumped up, managing to scratch all their faces.  Needless to say they all burst into tears and it was mayhem.  Bailey, who is not yet house trained, peed on the new rug several times and did a poop which really stank.  The visit was not really a success and we left after an hour and a half.

I had intended dropping Louise back off in Wolverton but somehow ended up in the pet shop in Westcroft so young Bailey could have his first injections. Every man, woman and their dog were there and we queued for an hour and a half.  Not my idea of fun and I was glad when I finally got home.  It’s not working out very well with my nieces, conversations are strained and awkward and I feel that I can’t make up for the last 20 years.  They come from a world that is completely alien to me. It doesn’t help that I have severed all contact with their dad.  He sent me a text asking if I would act as guarantor for a flat rental and when I politely refused; he sent me a couple if abusive texts. I have deleted him on Facebook and deleted his number.

On Thursday I went to the Fracture Clinic at MKG for a 9.10 am appointment.  The clinic was packed with standing room only.  Luckily I saw the doctor quite quickly; she took off my splint and taped up my fingers which hurt.  Apparently I need to keep my fingers taped for 4 weeks when I have to then return to the clinic.  Then they should be able to tell me how much movement and rotation I will have.  After the hospital, I did some shopping in Newport, went home for some lunch and then went to the gym for an hour.  Sue & Ian invited me for dinner. I did feel a little guilty because they had a horrendous drive back from Southampton (4 hours) and they’d only arrived at the house 5 minutes before I got there.  Sue called a beautiful dinner but it wasn’t a late night as they were both knackered,

I am sure Phil would have loved to have chilled on Good Friday but it wasn’t allowed because I had a stack of jobs for him to do.  He was very reluctant but he managed to get things done.  Rental and Company accounts are now all done and by Friday lunch time Phil had managed to get half the attic floor boarded. On Friday evening we walked to Newport Pagnell as we’d been invited to Ed’s (Maddy & Steven’s son) 30^th birthday party at Robinson’s wine bar.  We went a funny way and it took us over an hour.  The party didn’t start until 7.30 pm and we were early so we stopped for a drink at The Coachmakers.  The house wine was nice but boy what a dive this place is, rough clientele as well and no I don’t mean me and Phil!

I though that Robinson’s wine bar was a strange venue for a party and I was right, being a thin, narrow building, it really didn’t work.  Ed had booked a Michael Buble singer who was brilliant and also a disco and a DJ who was also good.  Just a shame that there wasn’t much room to dance, I gave it a go though.  Unfortunately the food wasn’t served until half nine and I was starving.  The food, curries, rice and bread were a little disappointing, wish I had of sneaked over the road and brought a bag of chips.  The drinks are always expensive at Robbie’s and Phil spent a fortune.  It was a good evening but spoilt at the end by a family fall-out.  I don’t advocate indulging in idle gossip so I won’t spill the beans but I do so hope they manage to sort it out.

It was gone midnight by the time we got home.  I felt fine the following morning but Phil felt rough so I left him in bed and went to Sue’s for a cup of tea.  When I got back to the flat Phil and I went to Wickes to buy more floor boards for the loft but Phil really wasn’t in the mood to fit them. We met Georgina in the Snowzone and we had lunch at the Flame steak grill restaurant.  Certainly not cheap but what we were served, was very nice.  Phil drove Georgina back home to Roade and I went to the gym.  It was gone 4 pm and the late night had begun to catch up with me.

Sad old gits that we are, it would have been so lovely to curl up on the sofa and watch the X-Factor but we’d been invited to Carolyne’s 65^th birthday at her house in Shenley.  Carolyne is one of Sue’s friends so I don’t really know her very well.  The party was fun even though we didn’t really know very many people.  It was another late night which involved more drama.  Unfortunately I was the cause of this drama.  We got a taxi home with Sue and Ian and we hadn’t been in very long when Sue phoned to say that I had gone home with Helens coat which had her house keys in her pocket.  Poor Sue had to turn the taxi round, come back to our flat to pick up the borrowed coat and take it back over to Shenley.  Lucky for me, Sue has a sense of humour and could see the funny side.

We both felt really weary on Easter Sunday morning and would have loved a duvet day but no option because we had promised to go to Melton to take mum out for lunch.  The roads were fairly quiet and speedy Gonzales got us there in just over the hour. We went to The Bowls club for lunch and being Easter it was packed out.  I think mum would have loved us to stay the night but we were anxious to get home.  We were back in MK for 4 pm.

Yesterday morning Phil fitted the rest of the floor boards in the loft.  We decided to go the Super Sausage for lunch/brunch.  We haven’t been there for years; it was busy and more expensive than I remembered.  We went back to the flat and then drove over to Harriet’s flat to get some of our stuff from her attic.  Billy was home from work so he helped Phil, I helped where I could but was limited with my hand.  We pretty much got most of our stuff down and both cars where full.  Of course when we got back to the flat, we then had to take it up the steps and get it up into our loft. Phil did the lions share of the work. It was quarter to five by the time we finished and we were more than ready to chill out and watch some telly.

And it’s another busy one today.  We have a tenant checking out of one of the Oldbrook flats and Phil is meeting the agent for the final inspection at 11am.  The cleaners are going in at midday and Phil and I will back in to see what needs doing after they have finished.  I am hoping that it’s not much.  We have a new tenant moving in on the 1^st of May so at least I have a good window to do works if needs be.  Trouble is, I am knackered before I even begin.

I am such a plonker

Last week started out good; Phil and I kicked off on Monday morning with a visit to The Will Writing Company in Newport Pagnell.  I had seen an ad in the MK Flyer offering free mirror wills.  We saw a guy called Russ Kerry, I didn’t rate him much, aside from his false eye and his very prominent tick, he was also a bit thick and also slimey.  Phil liked him though but you don’t ever get anything for nothing and we ended up paying £250 quid for will storage.  The slime ball was asking us about our assets and was pushing us to see his financial advisor friend but we resisted and made an appointment with him to come back and sign our wills the following week.

Still, it got us thinking and on Monday afternoon we got out the files and started a spreadsheet.  It may sound a bit gloomy but it actually felt quite good sorting out our affairs.  Its funny, Phil does his side of things and I do mine but we’d be struggling if one went before the other so the spreadsheet will help.  It will also help our executors; our estate is complicated so they will probably be better getting a solicitor to do probate.

On Tuesday I decided to spring clean the flat.  It is only small but it took me the best part of 3 hours.  I cleaned out all the kitchen cupboards, pulled up the rugs, moved furniture and cleaned the laminate floor.  I haven’t done this since we first moved in so it was pretty filthy.  I felt pleased with myself when it was all spick and span.  I went to the gym in the afternoon even though my back was killing me.

I did some more work in the spreadsheet on Wednesday morning and then went to the gym in the afternoon.  I didn’t get home until nearly 4 pm and was surprised to find my sister Julia waiting outside in her car.  Now I was expecting her, but not until 5pm, she had cancelled her appointment and had actually arrived in MK at 3pm.  Never mind, better late than never, I made tea and we had a good catch up.

No diagnosis had been made for my other sister Lou and she is still really poorly and off work.  She has seen the rheumatoid arthritis consultant and was given a prescription of steroids but was told she couldn’t take them until they had conferred with the heart specialist.  It is all rather worrying.

Harriet came round after work so she could see Auntie Julia.  She and Billy got the results of the survey on the house that they are trying to buy in Newport and it wasn’t good news.  They have decided to pull out, £400 down the drain but better safe than sorry.

I picked up Mike (mum’s friend) and Sue and Ian and we went to the Giffard for a bite to eat.  Phil was out with the Wednesday night boys but he did stop off for a pint en route to the Nags Head.  The pub was packed and we had to wait ages for food and when it eventually came, it wasn’t very good. It wasn’t a late night and we were home for half ten.  I made up a bed for Ju on the sofa, we had a quick chat before turning in and that’s when it got messy.  I got up from Phil’s chair, kicked back the reclining foot stall but it didn’t quite click in and flipped back, catching me on my shin and sent me sprawling.  Luckily with the anaesthetic (red wine) I didn’t feel a thing but the next morning it was a different story.

Phil got up first and made bacon sandwiches.  It was only after he went to work and when I had difficulty refilling the kettle when I realised my right hand was swollen and actually quite painful.  My sister who is a nurse said I ought to go to A&E to get it checked out.  At this point I thought my hand was just bruised but after Ju left I did drive myself to the urgent care unit at MK General. I waited for ages but eventually saw a nurse who  did a letter and referred me to A&E.  A&E was packed out, there was a chap honking up a cardboard bowl so I decided to sit at the back next to a convict chained to 2 prison officers.  I had to wait for hours but eventually got seen by a nurse who said I needed an x-ray.

Before they could do the x-ray, I had to have my ring cut off. It wasn’t an expensive ring but boy it was painful getting it off.  I had another wait to get my x-ray but eventually it got done and then I saw the doctor.  The x-ray showed a broken knuckle and a broken bone, it also showed some damage from when I broken my wrist before.  An orthopaedic consultant came to look at my x-ray but decided that I didn’t need to be plastered. The doc gave me pain killers, put a splint on my fingers, taped 2 fingers together and put me a sling and this is when Sue and Ian turned up.

At a push, I probably could have managed to drive home but I felt a bit shaky by this point.  Sue drove my car back to the flat and then took me back to her house.  She made me tea and a sandwich and made me a new sling with a pair of her tights. I would have liked to stay home and have an early night but we were invited out to a meal at Zen Gardens to celebrate Cameron n Pauline’s birthdays.  In normal circumstances I would have cancelled but we have cancelled on them so many times that I felt obliged to go.

Sue drove us there and back; it was a buffet so Phil got me plates of food.  It was a challenge eating but somehow I managed. I planned to sit on the sofa and rest up on Friday (doctors orders) but it was such a lovely day that I got Phil to drop me off at the city centre so I could get buy some dressings from Boots for my hand.  The centre was packed; I went to the chemist and then walked home, down through Campbell Park and along the canal.

My hand felt a bit better on Saturday morning.  I took my splint off and managed to have a bath and wash my hair, a major feat in itself.  Saturday was the day of Pats party so there was a few things to do.  Thankfully Phil offered to help.  Our first job was a trip to Waitrose to collect wine glasses that I had hired. Next stop was Costco to pick up the birthday cake that I had ordered.  Then we went to Asda to buy some groceries and also helium balloons. Bought these and took them to customer services only to discover that they didn’t have any helium.  We ended up getting the balloons from the Card Factory in Bletchley.

Phil did us nice salad baguettes for lunch and at half one, Sue and Ian picked me up.  They had volunteered to help set up the room at the sheltered housing place.  Pat, Janice and Ann were already there setting things up when we arrived. Sue, bless her had made flower table arrangements and very nice they looked.  Ian put up banners and blew up balloons and we were all set up in just over the hour.

Phil picked up Sue and Ian and Mike and we got to the party about quarter to seven.  The DJ was having problems with his equipment and I did think for one moment that this is not going to go well.  But I am pleased to say, that collectively, we managed to pull it off.  It was nice to see that lots of Pat’s family, some of which had travelled quite far, come to celebrate her birthday.  It was difficult to tell who were family and who were residents, Phil said they all looked like homeless people to him.  I had to give some guidance to the DJ with regards to music but then we were rocking and rolling. Sue and I danced all night but most people got up on the dance floor, even Phil.  We left at 11pm, I felt a little guilty leaving Pat and her family to clean up but to be honest, I was cream crackered.

Phil dropped me off the following morning to help me clean up.  Pat and Janice were already there; Phil moved some chairs and tables and took the glasses home.  To be fair there wasn’t much to do as the majority of cleaning had been done the night before. Poor Pat, looked dead on her feet bless her, she kept thanking me for a lovely party.  The main thing is that she enjoyed it.  Phil did liver and bacon for lunch and we had a very quiet Sunday. My hand was really killing me and I had to up the pain killers.

Yesterday we were back at the slime balls to sign our wills.  Our appointment was for 9.30 am and he kept us waiting for 15 minutes.  When we got in the office he was printing off our wills and both had mistakes so had be redone.  There was some pressure to talk to his financial advisor mate and also to put our life assurance policy into trust but we have little faith in FA’s and trusts so we dug our heels in.

After wills we went to Waitrose to drop off the hire glasses.  Phil couldn’t believe you could hire them for free so I had to explain that they probably expect you to buy the wine from Waitrose for your party.  We had time to kill before Phil’s hospital appointment so we went to the city centre.  Phil wanted ear drops and Hopi ear candles and I needed to get a wrist support.  Phil got some bread from Lidl’s and we got to the hospital 20 minutes early.

We saw a new consultant, Dr Stuart who was very nice. He explained that all prostate patients now have to go to Oxford for their treatment; we thought Northampton was bad enough.  Anyway Phil’s PSA is normal and Dr Stuart said that if this was the case next year, then he would sign him off.  This is good news.  We went to the carvery at Peartree Bridge for lunch; it was okay, no where as good as it used to be though.

Phil did the VAT return and did his Hopi ear candle but it didn’t do any good, if anything it made it worse.  Personally I think he is going to have to go the nurse to have his ears syringed. I could really do without broken bones, I’ve got a lot on this week and the next and last Friday I should have gone to mum’s in Melton to paint her passageway floor.  I am such an idiot and I so hate letting people down. Still it’s time to stop feeling sorry for myself and get my arse into gear. Today I am getting back to the gym although goodness knows what I am going to be able to do. At the very least, it will get me off the sofa.

A week where the jobs get done

I had a very productive week last week; it was a week where things got achieved.  Last Monday I made a start on the end of year accounts; I hate doing them but I do update the accounts on a weekly basis, so it wasn’t such a big deal once I got started.  We’ve been having problems with the printer and I had months of rental statements to print out but Phil helped me and I eventually got all 12 months.  I have virtually finished my work on the accounts so can now hand them over to Phil to do his bits and then we will be ready to see our accountant.  We’ve had a good rental year so I already envisage that there will be a fair amount of money to pay the taxman.

I went over to the caravan on Tuesday morning, my remit was taking the double bed frame and I also wanted to paint the steps.  It was touch and go whether the bed would actually fit in my little car but I got it in, albeit that I had to drive with part of the headboard resting under my chin.  I also got the 2 new garden chairs which I ordered from Groupon.  I love Groupon and have enjoyed many offers.  These two garden chairs were only £79.99 for two, we already had one similar from John Lewis which Phil paid £100 for but this chair is fairly knackered as we’ve left it out in the rain.  I don’t intend to do the same with the new ones.

It was a bit damp and grey when I set out but the sun did come out in Overstone and it was quite enjoyable painting my steps, it took me almost 3 hours but they came up brilliantly.  As did my patio, I’d asked Dennis next door to jet spray it and I was really pleased with the results.  He wanted £120 but I can imagine it must have taken him the best part of 2 days and perhaps more.   I went to the gym in the afternoon back in MK and was knackered by the time I got home.

On Wednesday I went to check on Sue’s house, did some more work on the accounts and then took myself to the gym.  I am desperately trying to loose the half a stone that I put on after Christmas but it’s hard.  Sue and Ian got back from Dublin late on Wednesday evening and I went to catch up with them on Thursday morning.   Ian showed me the photos and they had an amazing time.   Sue said it was cold and they had rain on the last day, I think we had much better weather here at home.  There was post at The Manor so I went over to collect that and then went for lunch at The Nags Head with Sue and Ian.  I forced myself to the gym in the afternoon.

I was wide awake before 4 am on Friday morning and got up so as not to disturb Phil.  I was ready to go back to bed at half six but couldn’t as I had to drive to Melton.  I was on the M1 before quarter to seven and thought I would miss the traffic but alas no, the motorway was really busy.  Melton Mowbray town centre was busy as well and I arrived at mums about twenty past eight.  I sorted through her post, put the clocks forward by an hour and then we went out.  Our first stop was B&Q to try and find concrete paint for her passageway.  We spotted a big tin but it was £44.99 so we decided not to bother.  I did however find some tile red concrete paint for the steps at the caravan so it wasn’t a wasted visit.

Our next stop was Morrisons for a few bits of shopping and then I took mum to the doctor’s surgery for a blood test.  Then it was home for the usual lunch, salmon and boiled potatoes.  I quite like this but last week I had eaten salmon Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.  I was a little late leaving Melton, I got stuck in the temporary traffic lights in the centre of town and it was almost five o’clock by the time I got back to the flat.

Phil had some paperwork to do on Saturday morning so I left him to it and went to the gym.  When I got back we had quiche and beans for lunch and then we took ourselves off the caravan.  Unfortunately I had a list of jobs to do, the first of which was putting up the gazebo which we managed to do before a few spots of rain came down.  Actually it didn’t really rain, it tried but it didn’t come to anything.  The next job was to assemble the bed which took a while, there was one bolt missing and a couple of the slats were broken but it will do.  Phil’s last job was to fit a blind in Sue’s caravan, this should have been straight forward but it was fiddly because the fittings were different.  Still the boy managed to do it.

While Phil was fitting the blind I started painting the steps, I was only going to one side but I ended up doing both sides which was a bit crazy because it wasn’t quick drying paint so everything had to take off their shoes because they had tile red pain on their soles as they walked in the caravan.  Still they now look fantastic and I was pleased with my efforts.

Sue & Ian arrived at the caravan just in time to watch the Grand National.  They had both placed bets but unfortunately they didn’t win, in fact I think that one of Sue’s horses fell at the first fence.  We ate at the caravan, I did lasagne and salad and Phil did home made garlic bread.  We walked down to the club house to listen to the group.  We were a little hardly and we were surprised it was fairly empty as normally it’s packed.  Still we had a good evening and didn’t get back to the vans until 1am. 

Phil felt rough the next day and both Sue and I said they had awoken with headaches but I felt fine.  The forecast for Sunday was rain but it remained fine which was just as well because the plan for yesterday was to jet spray Sue’s side.  I did a bit, Sue did a bit but then Ian took over, he seemed to be in his element so we left him to it and started cleaning Sue’s decking.  It was filthy but we had finished it by lunch time.  Sue cooked steak and kidney pie, with mash and veggies for lunch and it was very nice. After lunch we packed up and headed for home leaving Sue and Ian to do some more cleaning of the patio.  I am not sure how much more they did because it was raining lightly by the time we got back to MK.  I don’t know whether it was the late night or the fresh air but I was knackered last night and more than ready for my bed.  This morning I have woken up with a really stiff back. I really want to go to the gym this afternoon but I am not sure I am going to be able to.  I am definitely feeling my age today.