Saturday 24 March 2007

Nothing to report!

I have just read Christian's blog, and he says that he doesn't really have anything to report. Ditto here too I'm afraid. March always seems to trog along a bit. Nothing very exciting. I have managed at long last to rent the house out in Sheffield. So Monday morning will see me getting up at 4am to drive north for a day of dinner service wrapping, and getting the rest of my stuff out as the tenant is moving in on Wednesday. the tenant is an Army officer so at least he'll keep thiings clean and tidy. Emotionally it's very difficult to hand over your home to someone else - especially when you have previously spent three years decorating it room by room. But that'll improve cash flow somewhat! That'll be an opportunity to meet up with a couple of old friends and I'd better fit in a visit to Christian's house as he told me off last time!! My Mum and her twin sister Marguerita are coming to help pack boxes - yippee!!

Today we are going to Dan's first ever one-day event with Bugsy. That's dressage, show jumping and cross country all in one day. We'll be knackered by tea time.

The decorating is coming along nicely and 2 thirds of the room is now done. Last Saturday night I went to Ikea. I had 3 to choose from...Bluewater, Wembley or Croydon. I went to Croydon, but my Sat nav took me the straightest way which also happened to be the slowest!! Ikea was fun, but hellishly busy - I had no idea that so many people apart from me have no Saturday night social life and go to Ikea instead!!! I got a new desk, some lamps and stuff, 3 plants which I shall kill in a very short time, and had meatballs for tea!

I got up on Sunday morning at 6am and had the desk built by 7.30am....flatpack furniture is no problem for this girl!!!

I'm feeling a bit guilty about Phoebe because I haven't ridden her for 2 weeks since the weather changed back to winter. It's just too cold for me, and I can't motivate myself to get on board and tootle round the school. Luckily she's not bothered and is quite content to stay in her stable all cosy and warm!!! I am going to ride her tomorrow before I head off to Sheffield on Monday.

See, I told you, nothing exciting happening round here!

Friday 16 March 2007

Decorating hints and tips the Tracy Way!!

Busy Busy Busy...no time to write blog entries this week. Been decorating you see (and working of course!) Because I'm a bit contrary I decided not to paint the lounge / kitchen in a logical way. So what I have done is put up the coving, filled the cracks in the ceiling (of which there were many), but only at the top end of the room. Then I painted the ceiling (again only at the top end), and painted the wall at the end of the kitchen...and now I'm making my way steadily down the room. I get bored easily so a whole day of ceiling painting is too dull.

So I do a bit of wall, a bit of ceiling, a bit of coving, and so on until the room is finished. Everyone thinks I'm barmy but it works for me. I can see steady progress as I work! So I have a room which is two-thirds coved, two thirds crack-filled, one third ceiling painted, and has a lovely deep purple wall at the kitchen window end. I've even put the silver thin-slat venetian blind back up at the kitchen window!!! My kitchen area is now useable again with minimum disruption...perfect!!!

Every time Dan's Dad comes home he has a look and then shakes his head in disbelief and walks away chuckling!!! When he saw my new sewing machine he just laughed out loud. His solution would be to get a decorator in, and then get someone to make the curtains - but that's because he hates diy, whereas I enjoy it!!! (and I'm far too tight to pay a decorator for something I can easily do myself - especially at Surrey prices!)

When it's all finished I will put some pics on here and you can all have a look!!!

Monday 12 March 2007

234 Miles

That's how far it is to Bristol City Centre and back. I know because I drove there this afternoon in time to video a presentation by one of our directors, so that I can learn it and stand in for him when he's away. When I got there he decided - in a most "prima-donna" like way - that he didn't want to be videoed after all!!!! I personally couldn't think of a good reason why not - but I respected his wishes and spent the whole 90 minutes scribbling furiously in a vain attempt to write down the whole presentation whilst he performed it at the front of the room. Then I had a crap expensive curry from the hotel menu, and drove all the way back.

Sometimes it's like working with J-Lo.

Sunday 11 March 2007

A busy middle aged weekend.

If you read Christian's blog you'll see that he's been busy cutting down trees this weekend. I have to say that I've gone one better than that on the scale of "Things that middle aged people do in their spare time". I have bought and put up coving, bought polyfilla and filled cracks, and started with the painting. Magnolia for the ceiling, white for the coving, and a rather dashing deep purple for the kitchen window wall. I haven't chosen the paint for the other walls yet - but it will be a sort of stone colour. Then I'll be making curtains with my new sewing machine that I bought from John Lewis last week.

Whatsmore, for the first time in my life ever I have actually washed the paint brushes and rollers out and dried them, instead of just chucking them straight into the bin when I finished.

I think I'm turning into my Dad!

Beautiful New life