When I got up this morning I felt more tired than when I went to bed. Knowing that an extra lie-in would be to no advantage I continued to dress and go downstairs for breakfast. I had no plans to do anything and by and large that’s more or less what happened, I did nothing. Of course by nothing I mean work of any kind. I have indulged in other things, reading, watching television, checking the Internet and emails, playing guitar and preparing food. All run-of-the-mill stuff. It has been a very quiet day which was much welcomed. I plan to exercise on the treadmill later and to give my body an excuse for sleep.

Shirley Anne

Did you ever build ‘self-assembly’ furniture? Aside from the observation that it cannot assemble itself (LOL), the task is sometimes quite daunting. Common sense prevails and hopefully at the end of the job you are not left with an extra nut, bolt, screw etc.. Last year, or it may have been the one before, I cannot quite remember, I ‘loaned’ my garden furniture and a portable barbecue trolley to our eldest son and his wife as we were not using it. This furniture is very sturdily built and can be left outside throughout the year if so desired. The trolley however is best left either indoors or covered with a waterproof sheet. My son and his wife looked after the furniture but eventually bought a set for themselves. When I delivered the furniture it was already assembled as it had been used at home and I transported it in an empty van. However when my son wanted to return my furniture he had dismantled it to make room for his own furniture then brought mine back dismantled. That happened a couple of months ago and today I finally got round to re-assembling it all, without a plan. There is a large table, two bench seats, two armchairs, the trolley and all the nuts, bolts and washers came in a plastic bag. After an hour or so I had them all re-assembled and stored in one of the garages until they are required. At this point in time we do not have a hard-standing patio area in the garden so when it is in use the furniture has to stand on the grass for the day and returned indoors later. E an I don’t have barbecues often, not like we once did years ago when we built a patio and our own barbecue. Whilst I have been doing that job E has been busy painting the walls of the small cloakroom we have downstairs. We tired of the colour so she used a magnolia paint. It will need a couple of coats though as the previous colour was a dark pink. The room looks brighter already and she’s only done it once! I was going to do it but she insisted on doing it herself. The problem is she cannot stand too long because of her ailment so she has very much taken her time doing it. At least it gives her an interest. I sometimes wonder how she must cope being at home for the most part and having little or nothing to do. One of the reasons we go dining out is to give her something of interest in her life. Another good thing is the greenhouse I bought a few months back. It has given her something else to keep her occupied and she has grown and is growing various things like tomatoes, cucumbers, strawberries, peppers, celery, even carrots and potatoes (outdoors of course). She planted beetroot and spinach in a couple of old purpose-built flowerbed units and I planted some turnip in the spare one. It is quite amazing what we actually do grow in the greenhouse and garden. Apart from the things I’ve just mentioned we have two apple trees, four plum trees, several gooseberry bushes and a raspberry bush. There is also lots of mint and some rhubarb to be had. Almost self-sufficient, not really but if nothing else it all helps ease the burden on my purse!

Shirley Anne