Thursday, 20 May 2021

It's taking a while..............

.......................for me to feel like I'm  living a normal life again. 9 weeks in holiday lets with nothing much to do has upset my rhythm. 

Also holding me up is not having a decent sized freezer. The one that came here was the small one I had in the back porch and my fridge is the teeny one we had during our year in Ipswich so I need to order a bigger fridge-freezer sooner rather than later. I've had chest freezers since even before we got married so I'm used to batch baking and cooking. 

At least I can start weeding the garden as my brown garden waste bin has arrived. It came on Tuesday afternoon in between showers of rain and hail, the water was running down the road. The bloke delivering it said he'd been in the South of the county with no rain. A while later my Sister's husband dropped some puzzle pages into me on his way to the doctors and he said they'd had no rain 4 miles away in their village and then later BiL Andrew (3 miles away) rang to say his neighbour's were getting rid of some paving slabs which he knew I wanted for putting under my 'dalek' compost bin and he said he'd been up a ladder painting his house  all day with no interruptions for rain and definitely no hail!
 I seem to have moved across the A140 from one village that always caught any showers to another the same. So very different to the 23 years at the smallholding near the coast where we often missed the rain.

One little bit of normal was going swimming again after a couple of weeks missed through the move. While I was out it had been dry here but then it started raining again - seems to have been rinse and repeat all week!  On the way home I called in at the charity shop in Eye and found another Persephone - this time I knew I'd not read it and that it would fit on my shelves so snapped it up for £1. Persephone 23 -Reuban Sachs by Amy Levy - originally published in 1888.........older than most books I read.


Here's how my book shelves are looking now I'm all unpacked. Even my cookery books are here in the living room as there is nowhere for them in the kitchen



I've gone against my library assistant instinct .....where everything is pulled forward to the front of the shelves. Instead all the books are pushed to the back of shelves to make room for all my bits and bobs that used to live on my dresser (that wasn't really a dresser) and on the mantel-piece. 
No more seasonal mantle shelf decoration! 
Although I could do a display on the top of the pine shelf unit to the left of photo which holds all my books that I use for finding out about weather sayings, folklore and trees and all the other things I sometimes write about. 
Because of wood-burners and endless dust it's been 30 years since I dared have all my books in the living room................ nice to have them close at hand again and I'm pleased at how many I got rid of (so there is room for more?!)
 
Thanks for all the comments yesterday about the yew hedge - it's honestly very, very ugly but no, even if it's mine I'll not be digging it up anytime soon.

Back Tomorrow
Sue



35 comments:

  1. I can imagine it does feel strange but hopefully in a few weeks, your brain will realise you aren’t moving again. Very wet here as well, so unusual for us.

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    1. I hope my brain sorts itself out soon. It might help if things warmed up and dried out then I would know that I could get on with gardening.

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  2. In our old home I had a chest freezer, a small upright freezer and the top half of a fridge-freezer, all full with fruit and veg and batch-baking (and everyday foods in the fridge-freezer bit). Now there are no fruit trees or soft fruit here and so we need to pass the chest freezer on at least. I hope you can get your new one soon.

    A shame you are in another wet spot. I have a friend who lives near Ross-on-Wye and they regularly watch the weather pass them by!

    The bookshelves look very tidy. I bet you miss that mantlepiece though - could you get a fire surround fitted or is there no fireplace?

    Well done on your Persephone book find. Never seen any down this way!

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    1. We once had 2 big chest freezers but that was back when we needed space for our lambs coming back from the butchers. I've never had so little freezer space since 1979!
      No, no fireplace - just the oil central heating

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  3. I had hail and it laid in the garden like snow. Then heavy rain. The roads ran like rivers. This was on and off through the morning. My brother came to cut the grass and hadn't seen any rain or hail 5 miles away. I didn't bother to ring him to tell him because I knew this would be how it was and he would only have said "well I'm coming anyway". He said I always get different weather to him, which is true.

    You'll soon get into a routine again, and once we've met next week there will be no looking back!

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    1. Huge downpour when I was swimming in Stradbrooke yesterday, dry back here but then it rained again before I got the chance to do anything outside.
      Hope you are right about getting into a normal routine again soon

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  4. So pleased you are keeping the Yew hedge the birds will love it.
    Good you got another book and your book shelves look great I had to leave mine behind when I moved i still have quite a few books mostly reference ones which I can look at I cannot get rid of them - who knows I might be able to read properly once again.
    Had a nice lunch yesterday with my D and DinL in the local pub only a few people were there.
    Hazel 🌈🌈

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    1. These book shelves were upstairs on the landing at Clay Cottage so not so visible to enjoy.

      I've not eaten out yet or even a coffee out but will remedy that on Saturday

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  5. I have severe bookcase envy,Sue, there's just no room for one in the new house. I've never seen any persephone books here but I'll be keeping an eye open now the charity shops are open again.
    Rain here on and off again yesterday. Our daughter visited (wonderful to sit inside drinking tea and chatting again at long last 💕)
    Hope you find a good freezer so that you can get back to normal food planning. Enjoy settling in x

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    1. I was so pleased with the size of this living/dining room as it didn't really show up well in the photos and between viewing twice and actually moving in I'd forgotten!

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  6. I like your bookshelves Sue.

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  7. Such gorgeous bookshelves. I've pushed my books to the back too - but resisting the urge to put too many small items on the space in front. And then yesterday, we found yet another box of books to unpack, which had somehow got put with the boxes of tools [I had been thinking we were short of a few poetry books, and 'S' fiction...I couldn't believe I'd got rid of my Dorothy L Sayers]

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    1. I've not got many ornaments now just a few special bits to display.
      I'm now all unpacked!

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  8. Glad you have settled in, and at last have a home over your head.

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    1. Yes its good to know I don't need to load things into my car again

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  9. When you get time could you show a floorplan/photos of your new home?
    Love the mix of favourite books and trinkets.

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    1. I've never really liked doing photos of the inside of my home(s). but I could do a floor plan if I think of it

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  10. Wow! Love your book shelves! So much to read!

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  11. You sound to be almost totally settled in. I am so pleased Sue.

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    1. I still keep opening the wrong cupboards in the kitchen to find things but I'm just waiting for some better weather to do things in the garden. So cold and windy today

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  12. Your book shelves are superb and look beautifully organized. Having books used regularly nearby is important to me too. My books on trees, shrubs and vines and garden design are kept in the living room. No rain here and it is very dusty with lots of pine pollen everywhere. Have you seen the fridge freezer combination, side-by-side? I like the space and clean design.

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    1. Sadly the kitchen has no room for a large side by side F/F so it will be an upright fridge over freezer

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  13. How nice that you had a chance to go swimming again and found a Persephone! It takes a bit to get settled in a new home but before you know it you will have established a new routine and feel you are at home. I'm so happy that you are finally moved in!

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    1. I'm just a couple of miles further from the pool so still easy to get there.
      It's nice to get settled again

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  14. It takes a while to settle in to a new place.We have been here three weeks now and at the start of the week I had a serious spell of homesickness for our old place.OH just doesn’t understand it.
    I have 13 Persephone books but all bought new.I need to visit some charity shops and up my collection.
    You sound to be settling in and getting sorted.You are such a strong woman!Serious envy from me.Barbara

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    1. I've not felt too bad about leaving Clay Cottage mainly because of the work involved with everything there and knowing it's all someone else's problem.
      I've sometimes gone years without finding any Persephone books in charity shops but have found 3 in the last month - very odd.

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  15. I am glad you are happy with your new home. I do not have many books at all as I am a library user and don't buy books. Too cheap probably!
    Enjoy your home!

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  16. Love the colour of your bookcases. It won't be long before it feels like your home, not someone else's, especially once you can get in the garden. xx

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  17. That yew hedge looks like a lot of work. They are only nice if they are kept well trimmed.

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  18. I hope you start feeling more yourself very soon. Love the colour of your bookcase. Just beautiful.

    God bless.

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  19. I expect it will take a little while for you to feel completely settled. It might take you by surprise when you do. X

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  20. Yay ... the books are out, it's home :-)

    Love the bookshelves and YES there is room for some more, especially £1 Percy Phones.

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  21. What an exciting time for you -- and it sure looks like you were busy and getting settled. Between lockdown and then your moving situation I can see why it feels odd! But you're getting back in the groove!

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  22. It sounds like you are settling in - getting the books onto shelves is a good priority, I think.

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