(no subject)

[blackberry444]

Yesterday while I was in the bathroom, I heard what sounded like a kitten in distress.  When I rushed into the back bedroom to see what was happening, I found that Adrian-next-door had acquired a dear little kitten, mostly white, but with black ears, a couple of black patches on her body and a couple of black bands on her tail.  She looks hardly old enough to have left her mother really.

What troubled me was that Bramble was watching her from the top of the garden wall.  At first I thought it was just interest, but then I saw his backside wiggling and he was preparing to pounce, so I hammered on the window and then rushed downstairs as fast as I could.  I brought him indoors and shouted over the wall to Adrian's finacée Sandra that I would keep him in for a bit while the kitten had an airing.  She's obviously not used to cats, because she had been flapping her hand at Bramble telling him to go away, and he took no notice of her whatsoever.

Bramble was very angry that I'd brought him in and spoilt his fun so he spent the rest of the day attacking poor Phoebe.  We're going to have to be careful for the next few weeks until the kitten is able to take care of itself.  Later on I took round the large tin of dried kitten milk we bought while Bramble still drank it.  It was still well within it's use-by date.

We got everything done yesterday that we had planned to do, even though we all felt awful.

John developed a migraine while we were out shopping and Charles had to go out with his Mental Elf even though he didn't feel very well.  I wasn't really very well, either.  Everything seemed to be terribly exhausting and even though I always religiously take my medication, yesterday it felt as though it wasn't working at all.

First we went to B&Q for plastic boxes and floor paint.  They didn't have much choice, so I had to buy terracotta.  I hope it covers the dark red OK.  I felt very breathless and my knee and back were aching.  We actually stopped in B&Q's cafe for a cup of coffee and a bun as I felt so horrid.  After that we went to Costco and I felt so tired and exhausted, and my back and knees were so painful that I didn't feel able to do any more shopping till I'd been home and had a rest.  Of course, I forgot a couple of important things, too.  After a couple of hours I felt OK, although John had gone to bed with a migraine, but no sooner had I got to Lidl than I started feeling awful again.  It was really hot in all the shops, as well, which made everything worse.

Fortunately Charles was cooking dinner, so I just sat at the table and watched him, although I did chop an onion and a few small things to help.  He cooked a wonderful Arroz con Pollo, and it may have been the best one he's done yet.

This morning I woke at 6.00 am feeling rotten.  I was breathless again.  I haven't woken up feeling breathless for years, not since shortly after I came back from hospital after I was first diagnosed.  I felt as though I couldn't breathe properly lying down, so I propped myself up on pillows and cushions and listened to the radio till 8.00 am, by which time I felt a bit better.  When I feel like that, it's really difficult not to panic and make it even worse.  Thank goodness I have a doctor's appointment on Thursday as well as an appointment with the cardiologist on Friday.  I hope they can sort something out for me.

I really want to go to the Baltic to see the Beryl Cook exhibition this coming week, but I think I might have to give in and ring up to see if I can book an electric scooter to go round the gallery.  From the pictures on the website it doesn't look as though they have many benches where people can sit, like they do in most old-fashioned galleries.

I haven't been feeling too bad today, but I've been absolutely useless with the cleaning and decorating, because I have to keep sitting down for a rest.  We gave the room a good dusting and vacuuming and mopped the floor.  The worst thing was the Velux window.  It seems to have developed a a hole in the seal somewhere, because it's full of condensation between the two sheets of glass.  I don't have a clue whether it's possible to do anything about it, but it's a shame because the view up in that room is so spectacular and now you can't see it properly without opening the window, blast it.

Just as we finished the cleaning and dusting,there was an explosion right over my head and the light bulb shattered all over the room.  I still have ringing in my ears, hours later.  Strangely the lamp had not only blown up, but had actually blown out the end of the bulb from the socket.   Amazingly none of us got cut by flying glass, but it certainly frightened the cats away.  Just as they were getting interested in the paint, as well!

In the end we found that the wallpaper was just too awfully lumpy to paint over, so we've stripped half the room and will finish the rest tomorrow as well as starting the painting.  Of course, the ghastly people who lived here before, when it was a rooming house, had written illiterate messages all over the walls in txtspeak with what appears to be permanent black felt tip. I'm pretty sure we'll be able to cover it, although it might take more than one coat over those particular places.  With the three of us working, even though I'm so useless, it shouldn't take very long. 

Today I eventually decided I'd be better employed down in the kitchen making the kofte kebabs for tonight's dinner, and before I'd finished John and Charles had called it a day.  At least we've broken the back of the job and know what we're doing now.  And tomorrow as we have one of Costco's wonderful huge pizzas for dinner, no-one will have to stop to cook anything.

Hmmm!  Time I went down to grill the kebabs and make the salad.

Comments

[oldbloke.livejournal.com]

A coat of varnish over anything you need to hide works wonders. Your ordinary paint will go over that quite nicely, and nothing will bleed through.

[blackberry44.livejournal.com]

Oh! Really?

Thanks for that OB. Will do.

[oldbloke.livejournal.com]

Back in Stockport, I had spots of some kind of grease that had been used up in the roofspace for something, coming through one ceiling. Local builder who was doing the bathroom told me about varnish. It stopped the grease completely - created an impenetrable barrier, but one that will take paint on top.

[blackberry44.livejournal.com]

Goodness! That's useful to know. There's a place on the bathroom ceiling which seems irretrievably stained so we mught try it there.

Ta OB!

[cat63.livejournal.com]

Commiserations about the wallpaper - I hope it's not woodchip, that stuff's vile to get off walls - like self-inflicted bamboo-under-the-fingernails :-(

[blackberry44.livejournal.com]

No, it's not woodchip, thank goodness!

It's merely a hideously misconceived blue random patterned paper. It's not actually too difficult to get off. We found that if we used the rollers with water instead of paint, and left it for a few minutes, it was quite easy to get off. I imagine it wasn't very good quality anyway. Fortunately the plaster underneath is in not too bad condition.

[hooloovoo_42]

What's wrong with booking a scooter? If you want to see the exhibition, you should see it and enjoy it, so book the scooter. I know you said the doc had changed your med levels again recently, so is it worth talking to her to see if they need changing again, or if this is just a temporary thing due to the warmer weather.

My varicose veins are playing up like anything at the moment. When I went to Leftpondia they were bad enough that I didn't do things like go round the Gugenheim because I just couldn't face the walk. I may get another chance, but I need to get my veins sorted first. I keep putting off going to the doctor, but I really ought to see whether they can do something about the pain I'm in.

[blackberry44.livejournal.com]

I think I will book the scooter. I've been discussing it with the chaps this evening over dinner and they both think I should. My friend David has had to give in and acquire one recently, and I know it was an awful struggle for him to come to terms with it.

I'm really sorry to hear that your veins stopped you going to the Guggenheim. Have you heard of Horse Chestnut remedies? There are so many products that it's a bit difficult to point you to an URL, but I used to take something which contained it and it helped a lot. I would still be taking it, if I dared take herbal medications along with all the other stuff I have to take now. I'm sure you can find something to try at Holland & Barrett or somewhere similar until you and your doctor can get you sorted out.

Ma had awful varicose veins, but she had them done and never looked back.

[hooloovoo_42]

I'm going to see if the doc can do anything for me, but at the moment, I'm just taking pain killers. Ma had her veins done when she was younger than I am now. Pa had his done a couple of years ago. I know that these days, surgery is seen as a last resort, but there are times when I feel like hacking my leg off with a carving knife.

[blackberry44.livejournal.com]

Take the pain killers by all means, and have the surgery. As I said it really helped Ma. But if you're going the NHS route, you might have to wait a while. In the meantime, do try a Horse chestnut remedy as well. It's harmless and you might find it really helps.

It can't be much fun standing in front of a blackboard all day with aching legs.