2019 August – Improvements, Temporary Accommodation, All Tooled Up, Floor – No Floor, Defrag, Weekend off

Improvements

This is a picture of me taking stock.

Things are definitely getting worse.

We don’t have a kitchen at all now and we’ve lost a wall.  And quite a bit of wall came away with the old tiles under the windows too, so it will need new plasterboard.

For some reason, Mum isn’t fazed – c’est la vie Saffron.

 

What is left of the kitchen (basically the microwave) is in the living room.

See what I mean?

Plus all of the other junk of course.  There is barely space for a worn out doggo to lie down.

 

Temporary Accommodation

This is a picture of me escaping all the noise and mess.

This is my temporary daytime lodgings.

It catches the afternoon sunshine nicely.

 

 

All Tooled Up

This is a picture of me helping Mum remove the old flooring.

It is a mix of carpet and sheet vinyl.  Mum is armed with a Stanley knife (and a load of blades) and she is properly destroying the vinyl, carpet and underlay.   Unfortunately, she has discovered that underneath this there are old lino tiles which have been glued down.  Glued down solid.

Given the type of flooring she wants to put down, this will also have to be removed.   And that looks like it will be a hammer and chisel job.

I have the hammer and chisel, however, since I don’t have opposable thumbs, Mum is going to have to do the hard work.  It all has to be done by tomorrow to fit the install schedule.

Mum can be quite destructive if she puts her mind to it.

Given the time pressure, I feel this could be a good opportunity for her to demonstrate her skills in that regard.

 

Floor – No Floor

This is a picture of me giving moral support.

Mum has removed the offending lino tiles.  It’s all in the skip now.  It took all day and into a very late night.  Mum was trying not to gouge the concrete underneath, which slowed her down a little.

Some of it was very stuck down and Mum had a few choice words to say about that.

Generally speaking, I stayed out of her way.

As usual, Mum won’t be defeated, so it’s all gone now.

Whether it wanted to or not.

 

Defrag

This is a picture of me taking Mum out to defrag after the lino experience.

We had a nice walk, thank you and Mum seems quite chipper about things. We also didn’t meet anyone, so that always helps.

 

Weekend off

This is a picture of me keeping an eye on things.

We’ve headed north to stay with offspring #2 and boyfriend in their new house.   It’s very nice.  Their house isn’t dusty and it has a kitchen.

I’ve had some nice treats too.  So all good really.

 

Saffron’s recommendations this month:

Music:  Shall we go for a bit of Sir Elton Hercules John? His career spans 6 decades and he’s produced more than 30 albums and is one of the best selling artists of all time. Go Reg.  Here are what I feel are some of his best.

Your Song

Rocket Man

Crocodile Rock

Daniel

Don’t Let the Sun go Down on Me  (try the 1991 version with George Michael)

Bennie and the Jets

Song for Guy   (this is just lovely, mostly instrumental, give it a go if you haven’t heard this one before. Guy Burchett was a messenger for Elton’s label, Rocket Records who died in a motorcycle accident)

 

Reading: Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, published in 1937 and about 2 migrant workers during the Great Depression in the USA.   The title is taken from a Robbie Burns poem ‘To a Mouse’  – The best laid schemes of mice and men / Often go awry. 

It is one of the most challenged books due to what could be considered vulgar, offensive and racist language.  However, exceptionally well written.  A story of injustice, loneliness and companionship, oppression and abuse.  Not to be taken lightly,  but what a book.    Despite all of this, one of Mum’s all time best reads.

 

Film:  Has to be Rocketman doesn’t it?  Starring Taron Egerton who re-recorded the songs himself – no lip syncing here.  Given this is Elton, that’s no mean achievement Taron.  If you like anything Elton’s done, you’ll like this film.  

 

In the news:

The historic shipyard Harland and Wolff, which built the RMS Titanic and other well-known ships, ceases trading

Bury FC are expelled from the English Football League as a takeover bid collapses

Political manoeuvring – demonstrations are held across the UK in protest at Boris Johnson’s decision to suspend parliament and the word prorogation comes into common parlance

The UK experiences its hottest late August bank holiday weekend on record, with temperatures reaching 33.3 °C (91.9 °F). The record for August bank holiday Monday is also broken the following day.