Sounds like rain

posted in: Uncategorized | 4

All you New Zealanders would feel completely at home, instead of rain on a tin roof we have rain on a perspex roof – sounds just the same. This is the first rain for about 10 days and welcomed by those who need the stuff – personally, I can do without it. Still, it is harder for Maureen cause she has to go and put the chickens to bed. Fortunately for me it was not raining when we made sure the geese we tucked up safely away from the foxes earlier this evening.

After a very pleasant dinner at Ticton Grange on Sunday, where I had the restaurant all to myself, I spent the night from 12 till time to get up wide awake. So, I thought today would be pretty awful, and I would need to borrow matchsticks to stay awake, but no, today was VERY successful. After a shaky start where the storage man (Derek, or fabulous Derek as I came to call him) denied all knowledge of why I was there, declared the impossibility of what I wanted and generally did a lot of teeth sucking, we managed to sort 4×20 cubic metre storage containers so that 1 got sent for shipping, rubbish thrown away and the contents of the other got spread out so that the auctioneers, who are coming tomorrow, can view them – and all in 3 1/2 hours! Pretty impressive, no?

Derek is an expert shipper and teaches classes in shipping (yes it is true), had walked all the peaks in the Lake District before he was 16, has 5 siblings, one son (chronically disabled) and a wife who he adores. I told him I did not want to have any more than 1 container, and, bless him, everything I wanted to put in he said he could find room for – even after I kept adding this and that and abit of the other. So, all I have to put in is Rob’s bike, and Gary is putting that on his trailer to take from the house to Kidds on Wednesday.

It was lovely to see Gary again and to catch up on the harrowing family eventsof the last two years. But they – Gary, Ben and Bianca – all seem to becoming through and surviving. The same is not true of Anne-Marie, whose lifeis descending into alcohol and chaos from which neither she nor anyone else can save her – so, so sad.

Continuing my efficiency I saw our house management agents and got all sorts of things agreed with them; I talked to our estate agents and got good advice from, another, Derek. Because of all of this I think it might just be possible to finish here by end of business on Wednesday!

I was early to arrive at David and Maureen’s, so I took the opportunity to look around Hunmanby, a small town on the edge of the North Yorks moors. Requisite Norman church, 2 pubs, 1 hotel, 1 of most kinds of shop including a florist come fruit shop and a shop selling an eclectic mix of fresh pies/bread/pizza and home made preserve and pickles – as well as,importantly, Yorkshire Tea, for all you tea enthusiasts.

I decided to go to the pub. Have you ever walked into a room and had EVERYONE stop and look at you? I thought that only happened in bad detective films, but no, it happens in North Yorks pubs. I reckoned they were up to something illegal to do with CD/DVD’s and were just checking I was not the local police. They all turned out to be really nice and helpful and I think I was the first person ever to be served coffee in that pub. But it gave me the opportunity to sit and read and watch for a while, which was extremely pleasant.

So now I am sitting with Maureen and Polly, who is a beautiful and intelligent black lab (David is out at a Parish meeting in his role as local councillor), with the rain beating on the conservatory roof, while we inside are toasty and warm. Who could want for more. Till later, love to all. Ann

4 Responses

  1. Coralie

    Hi Ann,
    How wonderful to get through all that in such a short time. Derek, being an expert at his job certainly seems to have done very well for you and made it easier.
    31/2 certainly is impressive.
    Glad you have had time for a little tikki tour around Hunmanby, sounds very quaint.
    Hope you enjoy the rest of your stay with David and Maureen, and the dog.
    Love Coralie

  2. Sue

    Hi Ann,
    so you have managed get get online again and give us all the latest news.
    And haven’t you done well with all the sorting, throwing out and repacking, thanks to Derek and his help, what a treasure he sounds. Now you’ll have lots of extra time to spend with friends and having a good time with all the hard work nearly done. Rob will be proud of you.
    Sorry you’ve struck rain, but guess it feels just like home and nice to be inside snug and cosy with good friends to chat with.
    I’m off to the movies now, ‘The Italian’ at the Bridgeway.
    Have fun,
    love Sue.

  3. julia NZ

    Hi Ann

    Lovely to read what you’ve been up to – and all you’ve been achieving. Bravo!
    All well here. Alex had a chat with Rob this evening and we hope to see him at some point over the wkend.
    Spring is establishing itself and the garden’s looking really pretty.
    We’re certainly with you in spirit, Ann. Till next time, lots of love from us both, Julia xxxx

  4. Ann

    I am at Sarah’s now but thank you all for your encouragement and postive words. I really appreciate them and was very frustrated not to be able to write back to you and let you know what has been happening.

    Anyway, I have yet to write an update blog and don’t think I will get to that till I return to London tomorrow. So this is just a holding message to my dears friends. Thank you all. Much love. Ann

Leave a Reply to Ann Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *