Cleaning Up My Garden
My garden has been a mess since I moved here. it was rather overgrown with bamboo and a dreadful tree. Until today that is!
The two gardeners were from Cercis and I’d recommend them to anyone.
I’ll post a few more pictures, when they put in the plants.
My House Is Hot Today
When I left this house about eleven, I deliberately left the curtains open and the air-conditioning off.
As you can see the sun was also pouring in through the skylight, but the temperature on my return was over thirty degrees. After about an hour the air-coditions has got it down to 27. But it’s still hot!
i do think though, that the skylight is one of the major causes of the overheating. But no-one can make a blind to keep the sun out.
Is This The Problem I Have With My House?
I’ve just read this report on the BBC’s web site, about some research on the government’s Green Deal by Lounghborough University.
A lot of it rings true with me and my house. Take this piece.
Temperatures could soar to dangerously high levels in some homes insulated under the government’s flagship Green Deal scheme, experts have warned.
Energy-saving measures designed to save on winter fuel bills and protect the environment could pose a risk to health during summer heatwaves, they add.
The government says it is aware of the problem and is taking steps to prevent overheating in Green Deal properties.
Homes in densely populated urban areas such as London are most at risk.
Heat can build up during the day and has nowhere to escape at night leading to poor air quality and a greater risk of heat stress for the occupants which, in extreme cases, can kill.
The bit about air quality could apply to my house, as I always feel the air is not good. My son, used to come in and throw the windows open immediately.
The Bags Are Working
I’m going somewhere a bit smarter this afternoon, so I got out an old but good pair of shoes. The bags I purchased at about a pound each, had kept them immaculate since I last wore them.
It may be an odd idea to bag them individually, but it certainly works!
I Don’t Buy Cleaning Materials Any More
I live in a three-bedroomed house, with a large living room and a small kitchen, so it isn’t the most difficult place to keep clean. I use contract cleaners, who come once a week, bringing everything they need and cost me about sixty pounds.
So as I’m writing a big shopping list for the next few days, it’s very simple, as there is no cleaning materials at all. The only thing, that I buy, that isn’t food or drink, is washing up liquid, washing detergent, soap, toothpaste and toilet paper.
It certainly makes life a lot simpler, as over the last forty or so years, finding decent cleaners has always been a problem for C and myself.
Looking For A Stackable Dining Chair
In my house, I have an unusual elliptical table. I need some chairs to go with it, as the original Habitat ones C bought, are gradually giving up the ghost.
I’d seen one in a shop that might do, near to the grotty hotel, I’d spent the night in. But it was the other side of the station, between the station and the Metro station at Federiksberg. So I took the Metro to that station and then walked back. It was raining hard and my map had collapsed in the rain. I was on the point of giving up and trying to hail a taxi, when I found a parking map, and a helpful Dane, who said I could walk it in about ten minutes. I actually, ran it in five!
The chair is called Zesty and comes from PlyCollection. It is shown here.
At the price shown on the ticket, they are around 290 pounds. But the Latvian company, who makes them, don’t seem to have an agent in the UK.
In the end, I made the train with fifteen minutes to spare.
Have I Shortened My Life By Moving?
Accotrding to the new Longer Lives web site, I have moved from a healthy area, St. Edmundsbury to an unhealthy one, Hackney.
But then my lifestyle has hardly changed!
I did end up in hospital last year, but then the heating system in this house had something to do with it.
My Unique Dining Room Table
Unique is defined as being unlike anything else or one of a kind. I didn’t make it, as it was made by a furniture maker called Julian Ellis, out of Suffolk Oak. But it was to my design brief.
I wanted an elliptical table, as that gives the most space at mealtimes and also because the ellipse is the perfect shape. After all, circles are only a specific form of an ellipse with only one focus.
Note how the small leaves drop, so it can go against the wall. This was needed as at Debach, we had a long narrow kitchen.
It must be getting to be near to forty years old and all it will need to see me out is probably a proper polish.
I Locked Myself Out For The First Time Since 1969
This morning the recyclers turned up, and in the rush to dispose of my green sacks, I managed to lock myself out, as the door slammed behind me.
Luckily, I had my coat on, so I wasn’t too cold and I also had my wallet in the pocket. But my phone was in the house, so I couldn’t call my son, who has spare keys.
Eventually, I borrowed a phone, but he was in a meeting, so I had to go to Walthamstow to get them from our builder.
The journey didn’t start well, as roadworks round the corner, meant I couldn’t find a 56 bus to get to Leyton for a bus to where my son lives and the builder is working. So I went the other way to get the Victoria line from Highbury and Islington.
it was bitterly cold and I was without my hat and gloves and then the train was delayed.
But eventually, I got the keys and was able to get back into the house.
The last time, I locked myself out was in 1969 and a very pregnant C and myself called the Police to get us in. They did with a well-aimed boot. I’ve since used the technique a couple of times.
They also said never call the Fire Brigade in this sort of emergency, as they love to use their axes.
Why Have I Gone All Tidy?
It’s strange, but over the last week or so, I’ve started to tidy where I work, cook and sleep.
I was particularly tidy on the Oriana. As this post shows.
I’ve never done this at any other time in my life.
Perhaps, it’s because I’d like a girl-friend and I don’t want to invite them home to a load of chaos and mess.
The Anonymous Widower 