Friday, March 04, 2016

Life at Bogle Towers...

...is slightly uncomfortable at the moment, as the kitchen is being completely rebuilt - a long overdue piece of work that means that everything in it has had to be stacked elsewhere, while workmen tackle the walls, ceiling, floor, and electricity cables. Everything is covered in dust and  every room is stacked with the contents of 35 years of kitchen life - saucepans and cake-tins and trays and the ironing-board, and and my old doll from childhood, and  drying-up cloths and napkins and soap powder, tinned tomatoes and packets of pasta, random forgotten small bottles of vanilla essence and packets of peppercorns,  knives and forks and jugs and tin-openers and frying pans and old-Christmas-cards-waiting-to-be-turned-into-gift-tags, and more, and more...

Posh unread cookery books and some vases and dishes have gone to charity shops. We have thrown away the toasted sandwich-maker, and the ossified jars of obscure spices, but are still left with the things that can't be easily discarded -  the first joined-up-writing birthday cards from beloved young relatives now grown-up, the  wedding anniversary greetings and Valentine cards, the carefully embroidered traycloth that I worked on our honeymoon but has never really proved useful...

The fridge is in the bedroom along with the jugs and mixing-bowls and laundry basket and coffee-grinder and the thingummy from which you hang the muslin bag when you make jam. The bed is covered in glassware and crockery nestly safely on the duvet. J. has been despatched to his London club and I am camping out in the study accompanied by the electric kettle. and the picnic set and  a great deal of other stuff. Getting into bed is difficult, and kneeling beside it  to say prayers impossble - I kneel on the bed itself but it's a bit tricky  in case it suddenly folds up with me inside...

Tadek and Jerzy are efficient and cheerful at their tasks and I find I am starting to speak with no definite article as we discuss where put new sink unit and how electric point work best and what shelf be most useful, maybe hooks for mugs?

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