Saw first bluebells on bank near the steep hill yesterday. Sunny but howling, foul, cold winds. 9 deg at 1020hrs. Hand warmers STILL in use at end of March.
Our great Leader has the CV. So does Chris Whitty, Chief Medical Officer of all people. So much for saying we could all do our bit if only we sang happy birthday twice and washed hands for 20 seconds.
F and I watched scary thing on germ transmission and touching household objects and faces with fake germ gel and UV light last night. Put fear of God into us. F asked me what I would like inscribed on my headstone.
Cheerful.
Thought about it later. It would be,
Here lies.. (riverfiles blogger) 1959 – ?
“At least I wont have to get up anymore” ( the deceased was not a morning person)
Also, “No Tenant can whinge at me here” and “Thank God I will never have to sit through another boring, school play”
Talking of tenants had to get very stern with cheeky, spoiled, student boy who rents my flat in town. Rent from Feb March way overdue (27 days).
Said after many days of not replying to my querying email that he had been busy on an “intense academic assignment” and that he would rectify “soon”. He ended his email “Sorry for any inconvenience and have a nice day” !
Having conferred with National Landlords Association advice helpline on Friday I had to send him a fierce email yesterday saying rent to be “brought up to date” and this “not to happen again for any reason.” Those apparently are the buzzwords.
Money in account this morning. Phew. Daddy has come good.
Cheeky-boy tenant may think he can try to blag a rent holiday, due to Covid 19 chaos but my mortgage provider does not feel inclined to do same. Was about to have to contact his co-tenant’s rich Mother who acts as Guarantor to the Lease. No doubt the fur would have flown then. “Have a nice day” indeed!.
Being a Landlady has been without doubt the most trying and disagreeable episode of my life, hence Headstone reference.
Onto nicer things. Picked and identified some wild flowers with the children. Common dog violet, celandine, wood anenome and a pale violet (Viola reichenbachiana)
Put them in a Colmans English mustard jar. OFT is maddened by my obsession with washing out old jars and re-using* but they are so useful. He puts them in bottle recycling bin I discover this and extract … so we go on. Grrrrr!
Cooked a Mary Berry lentil and Shepherds pie last night and whole family watched Born Free. Tears trickled down my cheeks when Elsa came staggering back from her week left alone to fend for herself, just as they did when the film came out I remember watching it aged 7 in the Ipswich Gaumont with my Mum – what seems a lifetime ago. Oh and more tears on hearing the lovely Matt Monro soundtrack with images of Mount Kenya in the background as the camera panned over the plains.
Missing my parents and bygone days so much lately. Strange how images of them flood back. Not sure you ever really get over it, no matter how old.
* My favourite is an empty Whole Earth Crunchy peanut butter jar. I have drawn an eye on it and use it to store contact lens blister packs for recycling. (My optician has a contact lens recycling project)- that is if I ever get out to the opticians again.
The River Files 