26.03.2025

 ~o~

  Wednesday 26th 39F/4C. A bright start to a promising, sunny day. It could reach 13C/55F after lunch. A modest NW wind.

 Up at 5.50 after a very quiet night. I am going to visit my English friend before attending physio. Which meant shifting my usual visiting times to earlier than usual. To leave me time to drive home, change, have lunch and go onto my physio class. Which is 20-30 minute away from home by car. Depending on local road closures for district heating expansion.

 6.45 The sun is already above the horizon and flooding the garden with golden light. Small birds are flitting about. The air is full of skylarks singing overhead.

 8.00 42F/4.6C. I put some laundry into the machine. Had a shower. Just another day at the office. The brightness, tidiness and cleanliness has spurred me into doing chores. Which I usually put off or ignore. This must be the earliest I ever did the washing up. I am trying to do it every day but lapsed last night. 

 I made my lunch rolls and put them in the fridge. Which will save time later. I sorted my eight, daily tablets into the dispenser.  Found the clothes I'll need for physio. The regulars wear tight, gym orientated clothing but I prefer a loose T-shirt and fleece shorts. Which help me stay cool while exercising indoors. Where it is warmer than I'd usually have it at home.  

 8.15 Almost time to leave. The Morris started well. I checked the oil and radiator. 

 12.00 Safely back from my visit. The sunshine made it pleasant to be outside.

 12.45 About to leave for my physio class. 

 15.30 55F/13C. Returned from physio class and shopping.

 17.30 My nice neighbours came over with some of their free range eggs. They came in and we had a nice chat. In English. They are both fluent. Which is nice for me. Being able to chat effortlessly. I was able to show off my new kitchen. In fact it was perfect timing. Because I had already tidied and cleaned thoroughly. For my other visitor on Monday.

 

  ~o~

25.03.2025 Demolition restarted.

 ~o~

  Tuesday 25th 40F/4.4C. Weather change. Grey and increasingly breezy today. A high of 8C/46F. Gusting to 12m/s from the WSW. Possible rain.

 Up at 6.45 after a disturbed night. I was too cold in bed after feeling cold all evening. So finally I got up and put on a warm jumper. It was 70F/21C indoors but I still had to put on a jumper and fleece jacket. 

 7.45 62F/16.7C indoors this morning. I ought to light the stove. No sun to warm the greenhouse today. It was great while it lasted. Sunny again tomorrow. Then no proper sun for a week. Outdoor temperatures averaging 9-10C [48-50F] I'll have to fetch another trailer full of logs.

 8.00 What to do today? Back to the demolition of the observatory? Dunno. It's depressing enough when it is sunny. Not in the mood for gardening either. I'll have a walk to see how I feel.

 9.00 It felt rather chilly. Though the ground was still fairly dry. So I looped around the spray tracks again. While I still could. I saw several Yellowhammers, Wagtails and lots of Chaffinches. The neighbour's cockerels were having a scrap from both sides of a wire fence. A Long-tailed tit was investigating the shrubs in the front garden. Looking for a nest site? The wind has already picked up. With the hedges swaying and the beech leaves in the front hedge fluttering constantly.

 11.45 45F/7C. Heavy overcast. In for a badly needed rest from demolition. I wasn't in the mood for a ride nor a drive. The entire outer skeleton and plywood cladding are gone. I built this expansion in readiness for the larger [4.3m/14' fibreglass] dome. Which was eventually given away for pocket change. 

 Now I can start work on the original, octagonal, observatory building. Held together by a combination of galvanized bolts and Torx screws. As can be seen I am making no attempt to be tidy. The tidy pile of timber is out of sight to the left.

 12.15  71F/22C indoors. My nose is still bleeding. I have been pinching and plugging for half an hour but it won't stop. It is running down my throat. Which isn't recommended.

12.35 I gave it another 15 minutes of uninterrupted pinching. With tissue plugging and leaning forwards. A huge blood "worm" clot came out with the tissue. The bleeding seems to have slowed. I have probably been overdoing it on the demolition. Not helped by at least three kind of blood thinning tablets. 

 I was working hard on loading [and unloading] the brambles yesterday. Even pushing the trailer around on the soft ground but that didn't cause a nosebleed.

 12.45 It has stopped. I'll see if I can manage lunch. 

 13.15 It is raining! Short lived.

 16.00 Back for a rest after another stint on the demolition. Removing the double doors and the plywood on the central pier. More daylight is visible through the structure now. I can even see my 175m distant neighbours across the back field. 

 One large Torx screw won't come out. Making the last piece of plywood very difficult to remove. Even when levering with a long crowbar. The same occurred on the door hinges. Crap quality steel or poor production tolerances. 

 Dinner was fish fingers, peas and chips.

 

  ~o~

24.03.2025 Much ado about nothing.

 ~o~

  Monday 24th 36F/2C. A light overnight frost. Smudgy brightness in the east. Some sunshine and much lighter winds are forecast today.

 Up at 6.15 after a more disturbed night. The fire bucket beckoned all too often. Though I slept well in between.

 7.00 The sun is struggling to break through the clouds this morning. The kommune bereavement therapist is visiting at lunch time. The house is almost ready for her. As always I have been very busy tidying and cleaning. I always use her visits as a spur to self-improvement.

 I need to shop this morning. Having run out of rolls and other basics. Nothing very bulky. So I could go on the bike. Or, take the trailer full of brambles. That would be more sensible. Parking at the supermarkets is no longer a problem with trailers after the recent expansion. If I go early enough there will be no competition for space anyway. 

  7.45 The trailer is back up onto the parking space and the contents lashed down. It is going to be a two trip run to clear it all. I shall have to make a proper ramp up from the lower garden. The Morris is rear wheel drive so managed it without too much wheelspin. 

 This area used to be a vast, 20' high hedge. Initially I made it into a steep slope. To clearly mark the end of the mostly level, expanded parking space and the beginning of my wife's, gently sloping flower bed. Now my nose is bleeding! 

 8.30 Back from the recycling yard and supermarket. I was too early and caught the huge yard [20m x 25m?] still full to the brim with garden waste from a busy weekend. The garden waste area is open 24x365 but not manned except during opening hours for the full container yard. Only three days per week including Saturday.

 A giant front loader promptly arrived and started pushing everything to the back wall. Which took only seconds per run. Leaving me desperately trying to empty my trailer of prickly brambles. While he sat waiting in the machine. I had taken a rake with me but brambles do not readily let go of each other. Nor the perforated sides of the trailer. So I used the trailer's manual tipping function and that helped greatly. The supermarket car park was almost empty. So I looped around and parked easily in a double parking space.

 9.00 Morning coffee over. I'll clear the rest of the garden waste into the trailer.  

 10.15 47F/8.3C. Back from a second trip to the recycling yard. I managed to fill the trailer to the brim again. Now I have just moved the last of the large, chestnut logs to the boundary. It it warming much more slowly in the greenhouse with the sun slightly veiled by cloud. Currently 82F/28C in the greenhouse. I have opened the greenhouse door to the house anyway. The room is only at 64F/18C. So will gain some warmth by lunch time. 

 11.00 Washing up done and the kitchen cleaned again. It has reached 66F/19C in the room. I had better have my shower. 

 11.45 51F/10.6C. 92F/33C in the greenhouse. 67F/19C in the room. All the internal doors are wide open. 

 12.00 68F/20C indoors.

 13.30 53F/11.7C. I have just seen my first yellow butterfly of this year. 71F/22C indoors. My visitor hasn't arrived.   

 My visitor never turned up.

 

 ~o~