We are 7!

Today’s our anniversary; John and I have been together for seven years this Hallowe’en! We met at Uni (we were in the same tutorial) and I asked him out for a beer and a game of darts, in an attempt to appeal to his Northern sensibilities. We’ve been together ever since, and have had so many laughs, good times, and adventures together. John’s the best!

What on earth happened to all those years? It just goes to show that time flies when you’re having fun!

And another catastrophe

My poor little cats have been in the wars recently. They’ve had to put up with so much disruption, with moving; having a catty holiday at John’s parents; being driven to distraction by power tools; having a stream of new people coming in and out of their new home… the list goes on. Poor old Sol has been worst affected. When cats get agitated, they try to pee a lot, whether they actually need to or not. The constant strain on his bladder gave him an infection, which had to be treated with some seriously strong drugs. Then, the vets’ ordered in the wrong food for them, which is bad as Sol has an extra-sensitive tummy. We gave him some substitute food whilst the new stuff came in, but this just made him expel as much as possible out of both ends. Then to make it worse, he’s been looking rather thin and all his hind quarters are bony.

And then I notice that he’s biting himself. For the first few days I put this down to his highly-strung ways. But then his dopey little brother Mr Victor, who is the most laid-back thing in the world, starts doing the same. Yup, they’ve got fleas. I am so upset about this. My cats are housecats and have never been outside, so in the 8 years that we’ve had them, they’ve never been in fights, risked car accidents or picked up any nasty infections. After scratching my head (actually I have felt rather itchy…) I realise that they picked them up during their holiday to John’s parents’, as his mum used to let this mangy cat from down the street into her house.

Fortunately, there’s a good petshop near us, so I was able to quickly stock up on de-fleaing goodies. I’m now in the process of nuking the house. Their beds have been boil washed and every single plush surface has been sprayed so much that the hole in the o-zone layer has reappeared. I also had to treat the cats. I had to comb their hair using one of those fine tooth combs – a bit like the nit combs you had when you were a kid. I got tons of eggs off and a few live ‘uns, several of which jumped straight onto me, eeeewwwww Fleas are hardy little buggers and near impossible to kill. I even quartered one with scissors and part of it was still jumping around. The worst bit was administering the treatment. Mr Victor’s fur is so thick that I couldn’t get to the skin, so I had to cut it right back to the flesh on his head before I could apply the drops. This really upset me and I’m worried the treatment will be less effective, as I think I diluted it with some big, ploppy tears I love my cats so much and feel so bad for putting them through this. I do hope that they return to their normal, happy, fluffy, snoozly, non-itchy selves very soon.

Plumbing Pandemonium

As ever, the never-ending DIY train is hurtling on at full speed, stopping this week at Bathroom Central. Yes, I’ve had the plumbers in all week and no, that’s not a euphemism for that time of the month (you know, ‘I’ve got the painters in’, as your Nan might say). Nowadays John and I are posh, fancy types, and have two bathrooms (main and en-suite) so that’s double the effort and double the expense, oh yay. You’ve heard of John ‘Two Jags’ Prescott? Well I’m Flissy ‘Two Bogs’ 666! There was nothing wrong with the old bathrooms – they were white, clean and quite new. But there was nothing right about them either – just complete B&Q cheapy nonsense. Oh, and they were painted blue. Yeuch – I hate that colour on walls sooooo much. If I were the PM, I’d make blue bathrooms illegal. Sorry – I realise that the majority of the world adores blue bathrooms but I DON’T. So there Oh, and there would be a series of by-laws which banned the sale of the attendant nautical-themed accessories. Punishable by death. I have a half-demolished photo to show you, but avert your gaze quickly if your aesthetic sensibilities are easily offended. BTW – those wavy lines on the wall are where some hideously naff wavy Ikea mirrors had been stuck up with no-nails. I told you it was bad.Progress has been okay this week. In the en-suite, the shower cubicle has been fitted and tiled out and the new lav is in. In the main bathroom it is all fitted, and the chrome towel rail has been installed. There have been a few problems – the shower cubicle needed to be re-built because the walls were out, the en-suite sink had been cast poorly so needs replacing and the pipework to the heated towel rails had to be re-routed. Oh, and the house flooded. I kid ye not. It’s Friday night and I’m plonked in the new bath, and suddenly I notice a ‘tap, tap, tap’ sound. Then I realised it was a ‘drip, drip, drip’ sound. John runs down the stairs and water is rushing out of the ceiling into my lovely new kitchen! He shot outside to turn of the water; and I jumped straight out of the bath to start bailing out the water using the bathroom bin into the basin, as I knew that didn’t leak. Fortunately the plumber came back in 5 minutes and the problem was easily fixed (dodgy plug seal). Nonetheless, it was a scarring experience. It could have been a lot worse though and at least I remembered to put my clothes back on admist the chaos!In non-house related news, I’m still plugging away at Mum’s Christmas present. I can’t understand why it’s taking me so long! Curse those 3mm needles! Is there some secret knitting skill that no-one’s told me about? I look at the sites of such talented people as Julie and Jenny and wonder how the hell they do it! Perhaps they have special prosthetic limbs that they wear for knitting to speed the whole process up. Anyhow, I’m so slow that the Christmas WIP list is going to have to be reviewed.Also had a little spend on some fabric. I’m getting a sewing machine for Christmas, so am gathering supplies akin to a squirrel gathers nuts. The spotty cord is going to be used to line Mum’s bag.Right – off to crack on with that bag. We’ve an extra hour today because the clocks went back, so I may get at least an extra centimetre done. If anyone would like to share the knitting secret, please do!

Henry’s Cat…

…was cool. Especially the theme tune. Enjoy

8 Random Things

Recently I have had a new blogging experience! I’ve been tagged! The very talented Jenny has tagged me to reveal 8 random things about l’il ole me. I have given this much thought, and have finally found 8 things, although the fact it took so long worries me and makes me feel a boring, non-random old sort >:(

The Rules:

Once tagged, you must link to the person who tagged you. Then post the rules before your list, and list 8 random things about yourself. At the end of the post, you must tag and link to 8 other people, visit their sites, and leave a comment letting them know they’ve been tagged.

So, here’s me:

1. I used to work in a betting shop – To me this isn’t random, but I know so many people haven’t even set foot in one so I guess it is! I spent 4 long, but happy, years working in Ladbrokes between the ages of 18-22. I learned how to gamble – not just your straightforward wins and each-ways, but the obscure bets too, such as Goliaths, round robins, Lucky 15s, Yankees and Canadians. I also honed many other skills during this time including cleaning ashtrays, swearing at obnoxious punters, booting smackheads out of toilets and pinning pieces of newspapers to notice boards. All good CV-building stuff

2. I have a massive scar on my tummy – I had an operation to correct a stomach blockage when I was 5 weeks old, which left me with this scar. When I was a little girl, it sat above my belly button. Now it sits along my right side ribs, which reveals the way my skin has moved and grown over the past 20 years. It doesn’t hurt, although sometimes I need to pluck it out of my ribs when I do sit-ups. I wanted to get a zip and zip pull tattoo’d along it, but changed my mind. Needless to say, I am pleased about that decision

3. I like to make lists – they make me feel organised. Even this post was written on a list before I typed it. I may have inherited my love of lists from my late Grandad as my mum inherited BOOKS of lists he made about his numerous caravan holidays, where he’d ranked them according to cost and facilities along with comments.

4. I hate to throw things away – the aforementioned list was even written on the back of an old receipt. I’m not a hoarder at all, but the idea of something sitting in landfill when it still has a useful life upsets me very much I’ve been recycling since 1988 when I was 8, when I used to go along the beach across from where I lived to collect aluminium cans for the Blue Peter appeal. I never stopped, and now work hard to convert all the non-believers I ever encounter. I guess I was one of the original green pioneers

5. I ADORE lowbrow culture – and not in an ironic way. It’s a miracle I’ve got as far as I have, it really is. I don’t like the theatre (unless it’s standup comedy), I won’t watch anything with subtitles and/or in black and white (Schindler’s List had a wee bit of colour, so it just made the grade), and won’t read thick books with small print. On the other hand, I LOVE trashy shelebritee stuff, LOVE daytime telly (especially the Silver Fox Philip Schofield), and LOVE going to the cinema to see kids’ films. I have a special weakness for the 3-hour long shelebritee specials on E! My fave was the Cher one.

6. The carb is king – it’s my fave food group of all time. No Aitkins nonsense in our household. In fact I rarely eat meat or cheese as this leaves more room for CARBS!!!! My fave of all is bread. I could wolf a loaf a day, no probs. I am drooling all over my computer at just the thought of it. My fave takeaway is chips, mmmmmmmmm.

7. I once drank so much cider and blackcurrent that I peed purple – it’s not big, it’s not clever, but it’s true. That’s the perils of all-day drinking when you’re 18 (in case you’re interested, that was 11 pints – OMG!!!!). And I still worked a double shift at Ladbrokes in mighty, mighty Fleetwood first thing the next day

8. I live for Christmas – it’s my absolute favourite time of year. I get completely giddy about it and can’t sleep in anticipation. And I don’t mean just on Christmas Eve. The festivities always start on Dec 1st in our house! Although last year my tree had shrivelled up and died by Christmas Day, so I will hold back a couple of weeks this time round. If it’s Christmas themed I have to have it – I’ve even got a Christmas crockery set! Already this year I’ve had 3 mince pies to get me in the mood

Right, I’m sure none of this was exciting in the slightest, so my humble apologies for that. Onto the tagging business. The rules say 8, but I don’t know 8 people who haven’t done this. I am not sure if Nin, Oiyi, Isa or Becca have done this, so I’m nominating them. Girls – I am so sorry to burden you with this

The finished article

Yesterday was a good day and we finally got the kitchen finished! I actually thought we had it in the bag last weekend, but the electrician came in the week and put a load of holes in the ceiling. Whilst he did fill them in, neatness was not his forte (to say the least). So I had the pleasant task of sanding them back and refilling them. Sanding’s a doddle to me – I stripped and sanded all the doors, some floors and the bannister in our last house. But sanding on the ceiling (isn’t that a Lionel Ritchie record?) is a completely different thing. The dust comes straight down but you need to look up to see what you are doing, so it ends up in your eyes, your nose and your throat. I thought I was going to have an asthma attack!

The dust settled on my hair and John said it made the peroxide uber-blonde, a bit like Debbie Harry. This pleased me greatly

Anyway, here it is! My lovely, shiny, new and fabulous kitchen! It’s been a month of hard graft, but it’s definietly been worth it:

And, that well-known essential item of kitchen furniture – the sideboard. On top of the sideboard is John’s vintage Bang and Olufsen Beomaster 900. It’s the first radio he ever bought around 5 years ago and has been obsessed with B&O ever since. He now has six radios, two steroes, one TV, various merchandise and another radio on the way! Lucky me. But as my mum said, he could spend it all on alcohol and womanising so I should think myself lucky.

Because we did the work ourselves, we saved enough money for these. I <3 <3 <3 the Smeggy so much! The canvas is a vintage advertising poster from my hometown that I had put onto a canvas. I love the way it makes it look like a desirable place for a family holiday, when the truth is soooo different.

We also had time for a bit of light retail therapy yesterday. I love charity shops so much, as you can’t go with a predefined list and end up with the most random and unexpected things. Yesterday we found this haul of vintage bottles from a tenner! The little brown ones are Bovril jars, so these will live in the kitchen. The rest are a mixture of local beers, minerals, poisons (!) and medicines (including magnesia and lung tonic!). They’re going to be spread across my landing, main bathroom and en-suite bathroom (two bogs – yes I’m posh).

Going to spend the afternoon in the park and enjoy a day of taking it easy. The bathrooms are being fitted all next week, so I’ll be back on the DIY merry-go-round in the blink of an eye.

I really have finished my kitchen!

I’m just still feeling too rough to take piccies. But here’s an ‘in action’ shot from last weekend to prove that I have done it!

Gah – I hope to be blogging more interesting and less grumpy things (see yesterday’s moan, for example) in the next couple of days. I’ve been double-whammied with illness this week. A long-standing stomach complaint flared up over the weekend, which led to my arm being treated as a pin cushion whilst tests are carried out to find the cause. Then I managed to catch the mini-cold that John had, only much worse, whilst still feeling cruddy with stomach. I do feel much better now though – and all your kind messages have certainly helped – so just need to shake off those final few cobwebs. Thanks so much guys

I hate Katie Melua

I’m still ill and grumpy, and I have just seen a bloody Katie Melua ad on telly and remembered how much and why I can’t stand her. Read these lyrics:

If you were a cowboy I would trail you,
If you were a piece of wood I’d nail you to the floor.
If you were a sailboat I would sail you to the shore.
If you were a river I would swim you,
If you were a house I would live in you all my days.
If you were a preacher I’d begin to change my ways.

These are actually more insipid and cringe-worthy than these:

This is the closest thing to crazy I have ever been
Feeling twenty-two, acting seventeen,
This is the nearest thing to crazy I have ever known,
I was never crazy on my own…
And now I know that there’s a link between the two,
Being close to craziness and being close to you.

Or these:

There are nine million bicycles in Beijing
That’s a fact

Well, love, it isn’t really is it? It’s a rough approximation based on crude stereotypes. And even if there were, what if one of them got a puncture that day? Or the poor little biker got knocked off by an errant lorry, mangling his trusty pushbike in the process? Ha – that wouldn’t make for schmaltzy, sickly lyrics, would it?

However, she does somewhat magnanimously admit to her statistical shortcomings later in the ’song’:

There are six billion people in the world
More or less

She’s soooo shitty and sets my teeth on edge. Nuff said really.

PS – Sorry to Katie Meluah fans, but I do know a good brand of earplugs I can recommend. I’d also suggest superglueing them in, lest the temptation to listen to your latest Tesco purchase becomes to much.

The Name Game

Feel cruddy still, but well enough for a bit of gentle blogging. I found this game over at SewPixie, and it amused me greatly. So in the spirit of sharing, I give you my alter-egos:

1. YOUR ROCK STAR NAME: (first pet,current car), Oscar Polo
2. YOUR GANGSTA NAME: (fave ice cream flavor, favorite cookie), Strawberry Smartie
3. YOUR “FLY Guy/Girl” NAME: (first initial of first name, first three letters of your last name), F-Mat
4. YOUR DETECTIVE NAME: (favorite color, favorite animal), Black Donkey
5. YOUR SOAP OPERA NAME: (middle name, city where you were born), Mary Margate (yay, that’s well cool and soooo Corrie!)
6. YOUR STAR WARS NAME: (the first 3 letters of your last name, first 2 letters of your first), Mat-Fe
7. SUPERHERO NAME: (”The” + 2nd favorite color, favorite drink), The Pink Beer
8. NASCAR NAME: (the first names of your grandfathers), Ray Anthony
9. STRIPPER NAME: ( the name of your favorite perfume/cologne/scent, favorite candy), Baby Doll Chocolate
10. WITNESS PROTECTION NAME: (mother’s & father’s middle names ), Mary John
11. TV WEATHER ANCHOR NAME: (Your 5th grade teacher’s last name, a major city that starts with the same letter), Coleman Chester
12. SPY NAME/BOND GIRL: (your favorite season/holiday, flower). Christmas Freesia
13. CARTOON NAME: (favorite fruit, article of clothing you’re wearing right now + “ie” or “y”) Strawberry Hoodie
14. HIPPY NAME: (What you ate for breakfast, your favorite tree), Weetabix Oak
15. YOUR ROCKSTAR TOUR NAME: (”The” + Your fave hobby/craft, fave weather element + “Tour”), The Crochet Snow Tour.

Out of order…

…normal service will resume as soon as possible.

That’s me, not the blog itself of course. Illness has reared its ugly head and it’s zapping all my energy to keep on top of my work at the moment, let alone this blog. And I soooo wanted to show you my finished kitchen too

Please keep popping by as I do hope to be back to normal very shortly xxx

PS – full credit to http://www.flickr.com/photos/grantshellen/210747530/ for the photo, which I blatantly lifted. Haven’t even the energy to click the shutter button