Sunday, February 26, 2006

We fixed it all by ourselves
We bought the pipe, turned off the water, put a bucket underneath and no water came out. The new pipe was exactly what we needed and now no drips. I still keep checking just incase.

Would you believe a lightbulb now needs changing?

Friday, February 24, 2006

Drip, drip …flood
I measured the water which is leaking from the tube to the washing machine. Half a liter in 24 hours. When Rob came home yesterday evening we decided to change the washer. Despite both having fathers who could make, mend and invent (yes really!), Rob and I come out in a cold sweat and draw straws if a light bulb needs changing. He remembered to turn the tap off at the wall. The tap doesn’t work, so as he unscrewed the tube, water came gushing out. The force of the water was too great to get the tube back on again so he tried to stop the flow with his thumb. Water showered everywhere, he was soaked, so he had to run round the back and turn off the water at the mains. You wouldn’t believe how far water can stretch, as Rob said (he’s been on a fire fighter’s course) ‘A little bit of blood, fire and water goes a long way’. I really needed to know that. Anyway we mopped up and I put the measuring jug back. It’s now leaking three quarters of a liter in 12 hours.

Tomorrow we’re off in search of a now tube. How much would you like to bet we get it wrong again?

Thursday, February 23, 2006

Another birthday!
Yesterday was Olivier’s 15th birthday. Last night I dreamt that he was small again and holding my hand ‘sigh’.

Wednesday, February 22, 2006

Drip….drip, moan
We live in a region that has lots of sunshine. Unfortunately the winters are either cold and damp or mild and damp.

We have a lot of condensation, for most of the winter we can’t see out of the windows without wiping them off because they are steamed up. The front door is warped because it spends most of the winter damp on the INSIDE. I can’t lock it from the outside, I have to lock it from the inside and leave through the ‘French’ windows at the back of the house.

We live in a bungalow and our ventilation system causes lots of problems. The roof is open to the elements and the insulation lies on top of the ceilings as it were. This does work well, if we have a frost I check to see that no heat is escaping via the roof and it isn’t. Unfortunately when the steam from the shower is sucked up into the roof space it cools very quickly and water pools in the ventilation tubes, especially by the ventilators which means they drip. Rob goes up into the roof from time to time to empty them. Any water in the tubes weighs them down onto the insulation which becomes damp and makes wet patches on the ceilings which go moldy pretty quickly. Yesterday I discovered the floor was wet around the washing machine. The tube which connects to the water is leaking, very slowly but enough to wet the floor over a period of time.

If you read about a woman in France who has webbed feet, it will be me.

Sunday, February 19, 2006

Unconscious Mutterings

  1. Right time:: now

  2. Funeral:: the end

  3. Calculate:: sums

  4. Believe me:: truth

  5. Chat:: small talk

  6. Anniversary:: birthday

  7. Let you down:: typical

  8. Shout:: noise

  9. Sweatsock:: ?

  10. Prayer:: sleep

Thursday, February 16, 2006

Home again
Sometimes Rob gets a bit of feedback from the people buying the postcards he sells. They tell him why they bought the card, like the lady who regularly eats at the restaurant on the corner of the street featured on one card. Other people let him know how the buildings have changed. A lot of places disappeared during the second world war.

He received a lovely email from one buyer the other day who was so pleased with his card; it had been sent by his wife’s Grandmother. His mother-in-law had confirmed the handwriting. When he bought the card he didn’t know what was on the back, just that it had been used. Nice to spread a little happiness, isn’t it?

Wednesday, February 15, 2006

New Century Notebook
If you’re interested, there is a fascinating blog about blogging. You can take part in a survey too. Have a look at New Century Notebook.

Wednesday, February 08, 2006

Yet another one whizzes by
I don’t know where the time goes, but it certainly goes. The only advantage is that it’s slightly lighter in the evenings now, the mornings seem to stay as dark as ever. We’ve been having very cold weather again and fog. Funnily enough, even as we live near the sea, I’m sure I saw more fog when I lived in the middle of England!

Olivier set his alarm and caught the last half of the super bowl. He was in a reasonable mood Monday morning so he must have enjoyed it; Dom is sitting a mock philosophy exam this morning. 4 hours long. She’s arranged to see a film with her friends this afternoon, hope they can sit still. She received a new date for her military service and they’ve finally realized that she is a she. It does make you wonder how they would cope with a real war if they take so long sorting out the sex of someone. Yesterday was Christian’s 19th birthday. I didn’t have time to post yesterday so belated Happy Birthday to Christian. I’ve just looked in my diary for 197* to see what I did on my 19th birthday, not a lot, but the girls at work bought me ‘Teaser and the firecat’.