1. Charge Keith's mobility scooter, and then advertise it for sale.
2. Advertise the ramps, and both wheelchairs.
3. Put half used bag of cement in plastic to go to Tip next time (taken damp in and unusable).
4. Put on my Big Girls' Pants and venture into the attic. All bar one of the suitcases need to go to the Charity shop. That's just the start . . . it needs much less up there!
5. Take the rocking chair outside and stain the new rockers that Keith had our carpenter put on for him. Keith advised me on how to put the clamps on its turned bits when I had to glue it recently (loose joints) and also how to make the stain by putting wire wool in a tub of white spirit.
6. Get the Penny chair out of the stables, rub down and Briwax.
7. Glue all the loose joints on two Windsor chairs.
8. Give yourself a date with clearing the undergrowth on the bank, daily.
9. Back to those cobbles again too . . .
10. Inform friends etc about landline going and give mobile number.
11. List some of Keith Militaria books to help cash flow.
12. Find paint used so I can touch up the kitchen walls.
13. Consider doing a Car Boot Sale on Sunday. There are several sundry boxes of Pre-Covid stock which need clearing.
14. Plant anything which has been sitting around for weeks waiting to go in the ground when I have decided where . . .
15. Wipe and then Briwax kitchen table.
16. Get Danny or Jon to move the spare tv up into the attic and use the front bedroom as my sewing room again.
17. Harden heart and go through sewing bits in the stack of drawers - so much stuff I will never use. I need to give someone else the chance.
18. Get our friend with a shop in Hay to value and sell some militaria for us (already agreed, just need to get him out here).
19. Tidy up in Library - I may be gone some time.
20. Sit outside in sunshine with a good book. Currently reading Thicways and Athirt - A Countryman's Diary by Norman Goodland. I remember him well - he was a good Hampshire countryman from just outside of mum's home town of Romsey. The book is very comforting and he had a way with prose.
Right, that's enough to be going on with . . .
20 is very good! Getting rid of landline...is your signal for mobile phone and internet reliable?
ReplyDeleteNo rush, prioritise that last one first!
ReplyDeleteAnd take some time when you need it. Thinking of you
ReplyDeleteThat is quite a list. Really glad to see item twenty!
ReplyDeleteTake good care of yourself, BB.
Elaine
x
That’s a list and a half! Take it easy BB (it’s going to be hot today) and remember that Rome wasn’t built in a day. I would suggest sitting in a shady spot with your book and just resting today. A very good friend once told me that grief is a bit like childbirth, you need to give your body time to recover. Mind you, although I talk the talk I rarely walk the walk and I gardened and mowed all day yesterday (once I got back from yoga so I was nicely limbered up) interspersed with sitting in a deckchair and eating all our meals outside. I had toast and marmalade, homemade humus with celery, Choc ice cream, red gooseberry jam on honey and spelt bread in my mowing breaks. Our solar-powered battery mower holds the charge for up to an hour before needing to go back on charge for an hour so it forces me to have a break. I stopped at 5.45, had a shower, ironed the bed linen and made the bed, prepped our salad supper and then enjoyed a glass of wine watching the synchronised diving with S. A pretty perfect day and I slept soundly for eight hours. I wonder if you could tackle the bank undergrowth with a lightweight battery strimmer? Also have you got one of those folding stools that can also be turned upside down and used as a kneeler? Saves the knees and lower back. Would Danny be interested in helping you with those woodwork jobs and buy a stiff brush and get Danny sweeping those cobbles - and saving on gym membership! And how about asking Emma if she would help clear the attic and tidy the library with you and doing a car boot together with anything saleable? If you have a nearby Men’s Shed group they might love the opportunity to go through the stable workshop. Our son has some of my grandad’s woodworking tools in a corner of our garage. My paternal grandparents were a bit like you in that after my grandad retired they bought very good quality furniture and beautiful clocks from auction, restored and mended them and sold them onto antique shops in Brighton. Good luck with everything on your plate. I assume the Registrar will tell you about the Tell Us Once service which is a gov.uk initiative and saves a lot of time and phone calls. We’ve just ditched the BT landline and I have reduced our BT broadband and various TV packages from £170/month (paid for by our business) to £60/month (now paid by us). I negotiated with Sky and a chap from Sky came to the house to set us up with a Q box (tiny) and remove the horrid dish. The other thing I have done recently is consolidate our savings to give us a monthly income paid into our bank account. I used NS&I for this. Since last December we have been living more or less on S’s state pension so after scarily adding up all our expenditure I know now where I am. It feels good to take charge of these things and I know you are more than capable of doing the same. Take care BB. Sarah x
ReplyDeleteYou don’t have to do it all now! I expect keeping busy is a good way to distract yourself, but that’s a pretty big list. It will all wait, give yourself some time to just be and to acknowledge what’s happened. I’m so sorry for your loss.
ReplyDeleteThat's a lot to be getting on with! Plenty to dip in and out of as your energy allows...one day, one task at a time. You've got this. sending love ~ Melanie xo
ReplyDeleteI thought the same as anonymous. I suppose it helps to be busy and productive, but this is also a time to be gentle with yourself.
ReplyDeleteI'm with Sue, do the last one first. You can always sit making notes of 'things to do' when you get fed up with reading.
ReplyDeleteOne thing I would do is to go through the car boot stock and think about anything you are adding to it and try not to take anything that will bring memories rushing back during your first sale. I had a pretty major melt down over a jar of sweets that Dad had kept close all through his illness, when we did a car boot sale for my Mum selling off lots of Dad's things a month or so after his death. Alan thought I had gone completely mad when he sold it for a couple of pounds and I realised that it had gone as the lady walked away.
Hugs and love. I understand your need to be busy but please allow a lot of time with the book. More hugs.
ReplyDeleteLast post from Marjorie.
ReplyDeleteYou don't need me to assert that you've created a formidable list! Doubtless all of it needs to done both from a practical standpoint and as a way of preparing yourself for whatever comes next. I think we 'work through' grief and worry--not with the idea of resolving either, but as a way of keeping on, not allowing ourselves to utterly break down.
ReplyDeleteLikely my caution, added to that of others, that you not push your depleted reserves of physical and emotional strength, is something of which you are also aware. Taking proper care of ourselves, letting go to rest and regroup--it doesn't come naturally, does it?
That is a long list. It looks like a "brain dump" of to-dos though. Be sure to prioritize as suits you, but I do agree with others: the last should be first. It's good to have distractions, just be sure to take care of yourself.
ReplyDeleteHi there, I am sorry for your loss. I understand the need to keep busy as it stops you having to think but be careful you don't over do things and make yourself ill. It is important you give your body time to recover from the stresses, both physical and mental, of what you have been through over the last few months. My mum didn't heed this advice which was given after the death of my dad and had a heart attack.
ReplyDeleteI don't know how you are planning to reduce your stash but this lady, https://thesnailofhappiness.com/ has a shop selling second hand craft items (and a few new items).
Jane a regular reader.
When my husband died I think I ran on adrenaline for considerable time, often jumping up mid-meal to sort something out. I would just say listen to your body for it will soon tell you when it needs a rest. I don't think there's a right or wrong way to deal with losing someone, everyone is different. What works for some may not work for others. Take care. (From Anon in Wiltshire)
ReplyDeleteI have no 3 and 14 on a mental list too and if I’m honest 17 is there as well That’s a pretty formidable list, tackle it slowly, interspersed with no 20 and plenty of relaxation.
ReplyDeleteThank you for continuing to post and keep in touch with us. Take it easy and for most of the things in your list you have the rest of your life to do them and don't cut yourself off from a magazine or a tv channel in order to save a few pounds which may seem prudent just now but you may need them for a small comfort soon when you are sitting on your own. xx
ReplyDeletePlease, slow down, ease up and go easy on yourself or you'll be burned out. I am concerned that you are overdoing things. Take some time out and go through photos and remember with love all the happy times you shared. Think twice before having your landline taken out!
ReplyDeleteThat is quite the list going on. I need to get started on re-painting a few doors. Perhaps in the fall when it is a bit cooler.
ReplyDeleteGod bless.
The advice is one way, take it Jennie, everything can be done in the future. Take it easy and read that book, and plant your plants, the rest can come later.
ReplyDelete