Boys, Toys & Lethal Weapons!

After a very over indulgent bank holiday weekend, I am ashamed to say that we’ve had a fairly lazy week. It wasn’t meant to turn out that way but for some reason we just haven’t been able to get motivated. I’ve mentioned it on the blog before, but we function best when we have a million major things to conquer but when we’ve only got little bits and pieces, we procrastinate. Never mind. On Tuesday Phil spent most of the day working on his TMA which although he managed to finish, he has yet to submit. He spent the whole day in his pyjamas and didn’t even make it to the shower. Stinky boy!

Poor Harriet, still without car, was back to work on Tuesday so I had to pick her up from home and ferry her to work. After I dropped her off, I went to David Lloyd for a fairly pathetic workout. I just had time to jump in the shower and make my way for my appointment with the chiropractor. Eight minutes of spine poking and 35 pounds lighter I just had time to get out and get to the OU to fetch Harriet from work in her lunch hour so she could walk the dog. Unfortunately my back is no better and I have decided that I’m not going back to the chiropractor. I’m not sure what the way forward is - wine, chocolate and painkillers help so maybe I shall carry on with this and hope the discomfort will fade away with time.

Phil did manage to get dressed on Wednesday because he had to go and let the man in from Stony Stratfield aerials in to the OB flat so he could put up the digital aerial and get connections in the lounge and the bedroom. The tenant was still at home when he arrived so it gave Phil an opportunity to introduce himself as the landlord. Our new tenant is all the way from Texas and Phil said he seemed very nice. Unfortunately his microwave had blown up that same morning so Phil had to go to Curry’s and buy him a new one. I made a Thai green curry early in the morning and even managed to get to the gym. On Wednesday Phil spent the entire afternoon watching travel DVD’s that he’d got out from the library. Don’t even ask!!!!!!! On Wednesday night Jim picked up Phil and they went to meet up with the usual ‘Wednesday night’ crew and I went to supper with Christine. It was a miserable, wet evening and Christine served up cottage pie and green veggies, real comfort food. It went well with the wine and the evening was soon gone, catching up and having a general moan and a groan about life. (As you do).

Yesterday was a little more productive even though we got up later than usual. After breakfast we got stuck into the paperwork in readiness for our move to the GP house at the end of the month. Phil sorted out the house insurance; we have to cancel our contents insurance here at the NH house and change our Buy-to-Let insurance at the GP house back to a domestic policy. The lady from Legal & General asked Phil if we had a smoke alarm, to which Phil replied "yes we have two fitted but we don't smoke". Silly boy but made me lol though! I phoned BT to change over the broadband, landline and BT Vision package. Both calls were well over half an hour long and makes you wonder why it can’t be done on line. Life is never simple. We also had to send off our Vehicle Registration Forms and the Driving Licences to the DVLA to put both vehicles back at the GP house. We have a post redirection already in place from the GP house going to the PO Box so it helps being able to change some things over now rather than having to do everything on move-out day.

After lunch (left over curry and rice) we went to pick up the PO box post from Kiln Farm and then went on to Stony Stratford so Phil could choose a new ruck-sack from The Outdoor Shop. He had a good look round, picking up every single gadget in the shop and eventually came away with a brand new ruck-sack which luckily was reduced in the sale. He was in a very excitable state; what is it with boys and toys??? We drove to the centre and picked up his watch which had been in for repair. Phil has been waiting for his watch for well over a month and has been getting most impatient.

Phil was itching to go and buy some miniature travel toiletries so he could put in his new ruck-sack but I said “slow down cowboy, we’ve got plenty of time for that”. It’s nowhere certain that we’re going anywhere! We got some other bits and pieces at the city centre and eventually made our way back to the car which we’d parked outside the kebab flat because we still have our resident’s permits which are valid until October. As we approached our car we noticed that a washing machine along with several shopping trolleys had been tipped by the side of the entrance of the block. On closer inspection we saw that it wasn’t any old washing machine, it was in fact, only the old decrepit machine from our flat!!! We were surprised that it has taken the new owner 4 months to find out that the machine was crap and needed replacing. Phil said it served her right and hoped that it had given her a lot of hassle. I still feel a bit guilty that we swapped the new machine for an old one but at the end of the day,reducing her offer on exchange day is downright dirty dealing. What goes round, comes round as they say.

The last excitement of the day was a courier turning up late yesterday afternoon with my delivery that I’d been waiting for from Lakeland. It was a special ceramic blade and cleaner that I’d ordered ages ago. I placed the order on line and the following day I had a call on my mobile from a customer service representative from Lakeland asking some security questions. They had to get evidence that I was on the electoral role (which I am at the kebab flat) as the ceramic blade cleaner was considered a dangerous item and had been flagged under their ‘terrorist’ rules and regulations. I ask you, how ridiculous!!!!!! I nearly told them where to go on the phone but I’ve been dying to get hold one of these special blades ever since we got the new glass hob so I bit my tongue. Unfortunately, Phil wanted was eager to open my package before me and no sooner had he got it out of the packet, he’d cut himself on the blade! I had to laugh but maybe I shall let him do the first scrape of the hob just in case; maybe this is a lethal weapon after all!