Weekly update – lagging behind!

So I’m lagging behind with blogging.  Quite a lot has happened and I must admit to feeling a little unsettled with the need to be at home; wherever ‘home’ might be.  Also, we have had a little holiday which I’ll tell you about first of all.

Aside from wanting to feel ‘at home’ we had felt the need to have a little holiday, to get away just before the summer finally gave up in favour of the perpetual rain we are experiencing right now.

We (that’s Rachel, Hannah and myself) went to the Isle of Wight for our little break.  Thing is, I had been promising Rachel we’d go back as we had our honeymoon there, way back in the last century.  We stayed in a mobile home, of all things, which belonged to someone known to Rachel and kinda talked her into it.  Not that it was a free gift for us – for the amount we paid to stay in that chilly tin box with crap wifi, we could have stayed in a nice hotel and been waited on hand and foot.  But then, it’s not what it’s all about, is it?

It was a chance for us to have a change of scenery, eat plenty of junk food and generally to have some R&R.  It was also an opportunity for Hannah to thoroughly digest her summer spent looking at the island from her water sports job.  We also enjoyed the drive there and also the ferry (purposely we took a slightly longer than necessary crossing from Portsmouth to Fishbourne).

I know it sounds posh – we had access to a private beach – but actually it was no different to any other beach apart from being smaller than most; even smaller at high tide and the two cafes were permanently closed.  I had a stroll along the beach on my own one day.  It was lovely hearing the waves rush in over the pebbles and instantly I felt relaxed with that lovely soothing sound.  There were multi coloured cliffs, nice but fast disappearing I suspect.  I should think the fella who lived at the top with his garden shed six inches from the edge must be a tad nervous these days.

You might wonder who was looking after my mother-in-law, since she’s far too fragile to travel, not that she’d ever want to these days.  It was Becky and her hubby who did some Grandma sitting, well supported by other carers coming in at various points through the day.  Thankfully Grandma was on her best behaviour, no concerns at all and Becky was sweet in looking after her.  We know this from the Grannie Cams we had set up before we left!

Since our little holiday, life has continued at apace.  Jeff fitted a lovely carpet in Hannah’s bedroom.  The washing machine has leaked twice (thankfully fixed by Andersons) and we had a water pipe leak causing ceiling paper to fall down.  Thank you to Steve the plumber who came this morning.  The freezer is on its last legs.  I have needed to clear some debris from a roof and gutter, plus we have a little leak in an attic.  Rachel has, today, broken a tooth and we are filling up with STUFF as we move things over from our house in Dunstable.  If all this wasn’t enough to remind me how I’m too busy to work, I have two weeks of jury service coming up.

But we’re having an adventure

Framing this huge change in our life can only be framed as an adventure, or we would find it difficult at best and at worst it would tear us apart.  We didn’t plan our move, it just happened, although we always knew it was a possibility.

So the adventure has a number of sides.

We have Grandma to look after.  A cantankerous 94 year old who can entertain us with her funny little ways and how we have those lighter moments when we all chuckle as she tries to remember a word.  There’s also an inevitable sadness in the twilight years.

As regular readers will know, we have moved into this dusty museum; Rachel’s childhood home.  One half built in the early 1700s and a Victorian front.  There are nooks and crannies in the house, three stair cases, a cellar with a capped well, attic rooms with wonky walls and floors everywhere.  It has a lovely charm and a house which needs constant maintenance and, most of all, to be lived in.

To maintain our sanity we agreed early on that we would sympathetically restore the rooms which we will use.  So far we are pleased with the results although its taking longer than we would like.  The pace does, however, allow time for mulling over the inevitable problem solving and the need to nicely balance the heritage of the building with living in 2020.  We hope to get it right.

The garden was re-landscaped about 25-30 years ago with the aim of making easier to look after.  This is helped by a very pleasant and knowledgeable lady gardener who, we suspect, might have been concerned we were no longer requiring her services.  Instead her hours have increased as the task goes from merely firefighting the weeds to planting new shrubs and considering what-goes-with-what.  My request for a fern bed has been granted – I love ferns – and the shady part of the garden should enable them to flourish.

We both enjoy pottering round in the garden ourselves as it helps with our own well being and stress relief.  I feel a real amateur especially up against the gardener and Rachel as they bring up all the botanical names in their conversation.  Me, I’m just the labourer!

Being retired?

The world of work seems a distant memory now.  I can hardly believe it is a little over two years ago that I left the blummin Council and stepped into the world of retirement.

While I like to have a nominal plan, it is nice when different things crop up and take us off in a different direction.  It keeps life interesting and I think we should all have room for some spontaneity.  Although I have some regrets (health is the number one) I can honestly say this is consistently the happiest time in my life – certainly the most stress-free.

I think I am enjoying this interior design lark.  The process of getting it out of my head and turning into reality involves some skills which I lack.  I don’t know if I want to learn about plumbing, plastering and so on.  Sure I have dabbled but this house needs a careful approach owing to its age, unusual construction and the unpredictable nature of things.

Other times I think to myself “I’m retired.  Shouldn’t I be putting my feet up a bit?”.  The answer?  Nah, that would be boring.  I need to keep doing things to keep my mind active.  I love doing a bit of painting and DIY – it is satisfying and I can allow my mind to wander off to all kinds of places in the world.  So for now, restoring the dusty museum, looking after Grandma and being on this roller coaster with Rachel is brilliant.

I need to carve out time for my own hobbies.  I will when as we gradually  get on top of things.  My art stuff hasn’t seen any action in 6+ months.  My new camera has hardly been used.  I have books waiting to be read.  I need to engage more with the RSA and the dusty museum lends itself to some other hobbies.

Stop press

This afternoon we called an ambulance.  It’s possible Grandma may have had a stroke so she’s in hospital for tests etc and has been admitted.  We will know more tomorrow.