Category
House & Home
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05.10.02StructureIs May National Scaffolding Month or something? Every other house in our street seems to have building work going on, and it's all sprung up in the last two weeks. This morning, we were woken by builders dismantling the framework outside the house two doors down, and at some point today they'll be erecting a new structure at the back of our place (something to do with plumbing, don't ask). What fun. I'm certainly looking forward to having big hairy builders peering into our bathroom for the next week.*Sigh*
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04.29.02Really Jonathan? That’s wonderful!P thinks that it's impossible to talk for twenty minutes about a pair of unfashionable crinkle drawstring trousers, but he's wrong. We've just discovered that we can access QVC, and they've managed it perfectly easily - in fact, I rather fancy that the presenters (permatanned, vacant behind the eyes) could probably go on all night if required. Please, won't someone buy these ugly trousers and shut them up?But that's it. We've got QVC and BBC4 and BBCi (and other random digital channels, c/o of a digital box left behind by our kiwi chum which he got from one of his ...
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04.26.02Press StopSo, last night, the music started again. Not in a Phantom of The Opera way, in a Loud Shouty Rap And Big Bass Dub Form Across The Street way. One o'clock came, and we decided to call the local police station. The rozzers showed up a split second later (don't they have anything else to do?) en masse (two cars and a van) and rang the loud neighbour's doorbell. The music stopped immediately. The police drove off into the balmy night. Precisely four minutes after their departure, the music started up again. We put preventative measures in place - fan, low Necks ...
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04.10.02So, recently, I mentioned thatSo, recently, I mentioned that there was some filming going on on our street. I automatically assumed that it was for a drama series, or similar, because that's all that seems to be on the telly at the moment, apart from news and soaps. Turns out I was wrong. There's something else on after all. No, not instead of dramas and soaps. Between them. So there I was, idly getting my weekly dose of ER, when the adverts came on. Blah blah blah washing up liquid, yadda yadda yadda new car, great shampoo, no more piles, whatever. Then suddenly, small boy and mother ...
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03.31.02ScrewYou know, I've I don't think I've ever actually kissed a piece of mail before, but that's what I did this afternoon, returning home from the long train journey from Newcastle (remind me to rant later about the precise and perceived meanings of "Quiet Coach"). See, when we moved in a month ago, we bought a chest of drawers, which came in two ginormous boxes. One contained the main body, the other, the drawers. We assembled the body in mere hours (twelve pages of instructions posing no hurdle to us, wily technical types that we are), and then came completely unstuck ...
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03.23.02Decisions, decisions…Saturday night, and there's a large group of tuxedo-ed twenty-somethings singing raucously in what appears to be Romanian outside a house just down the street. Closer inspection (well, a quick nosey out the window) reveals that they are not wearing tuxedos, but school uniforms (the girl in the St Trinian's get-up gave it all away), which leads to the unavoidable conclusion that they are, in fact, off to shake their groove thangs at the not-too-distant School Disco nightclub. Ahhhhhhh. Explains a lot. Aside: What does it take to be a good neighbour? I love this flat, I love this street, I ...
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03.04.02ExhaleThis feels like coming up for breath after a long dive - my head breaks the surface, and I suck in cool moist air, and rub the salt water out of my eyes. Breathe in. Breathe out. Breathe in. The phone finally got connected this afternoon - it's wonderful to have that lifeline again, although with all the moving and carrying and packing we've been doing for the last four days, it's probably a good thing that we weren't able to get connected - far too tempting a distraction, especially when there's books to put on shelves... The move went well, but ...
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02.22.02ChecklistVan booked for move: check Consumable media (Books, DVDs, Videos) packed into crates and dispatched to secret Hertfordshire storage location: check Unwanted clothes/books given to charity: check Contract approved: check Clothes packed into crates: er, nearly Plates and fragile things wrapped and packed: not even close Huge piles of possessions shoveled into crates: nope PC backed up safely for move: hahaha Toenails painted a nice shade of purple: check We move in t-1 week. This time next week, we'll be standing in the new gaff wondering where we're going to put everything, and waiting for the bed to be delivered. I can't wait. In other news, I appear to be ...
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02.16.02Bing BangWords we have come to dread:"Dear neighbours....we are having a big party tonight, please be understanding about the noise..."Understanding is one thing, bongos in the wee small hours is quite another.This is not a preview of tonight's festivities; this is a review of last night, when I didn't get to sleep until half four. They were playing bongos.I'm not anti-music or anti-fun, dear readers, I'm anti-bongos.
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02.09.02OnwardsMoving house, parts one and two: complete.Things I realised today.Seven a.m. actually exists on a SaturdayIt should, however, be bannedP likes pretending to be a WVMI hate stairsWe have a lot of booksThey are all heavyChinese food can be sort of slimyThe road to Harpenden is very darkSometimes, it's best not to speak to the people you love the most until after you've had some breakfast.You can get bike oil marks off walls with fairy liquidThe Olympia Cafe do wonderful bacon buttiesThe freezing rain will wait until the precise moment you are unloading the van to thrash downI need more ...
