Some of the stresses I talked about in my last post have calmed down a bit. After a long struggle with banks and HMRC and accountants, I finally managed to get a business bank account opened and was able to invoice for my hours. The sense of relief was palpable. By the looks of things, all should proceed smoothly from here on in. I'm keeping stuff ( Read more... )

Well, this year hasn't really gone as planned. I had hoped to be in secure employment, to have taken an overseas holiday, and have moved to a larger/nicer flat. Unfortunately none of these things have happened ( Read more... )

Decluttering - for sale!

Green and gold tapestry Renaissance doublet-style jacket/top with olive-green imitation snakeskin front panel, by now-defunct US costume designer Von Lancelot. Detachable bell sleeves with olive satin lined turnups, lace-up front. Women's size 18, would probably fit a man up to about 40" chest too. Will get some pics done ( Read more... )

In lieu of actual content, here's that kitchen meme that's doing the rounds:

Bold the ones you have and use at least once a year, italicize the ones you have and don't use, strike through the ones you have had but got rid of.

I wonder how many pasta machines, breadmakers, juicers, blenders, deep fat fryers, egg boilers, melon ballers, sandwich makers ( Read more... )

It would almost be worth moving to Hull to have this as your home address:

Second star on the right and straight on til morning
Land of Green Ginger
Hull
HU1 2EA

Not to mention that it's a very pretty little flat!

Mmm. Just had a wonderful, relaxing, luxurious bath that cost mere pennies, and was every bit as good as some fancy stuff you'd spend a fortune on in a trendy soap shop ( Read more... )

Can someone tell me what's wrong with this property (other than it being in Dagenham)? It seems outrageously cheap!

Edited to add: Bah, apparently it is shared ownership (25%) - they've just managed to hide that information quite cleverly.

This might seem like an odd question, but has anyone bought me a present lately? That might have come by courier, not Royal Mail ( Read more... )

Think my upstairs neighbours might have had a bust-up. When Simon dropped me off last night, the girl was sitting outside the flat on the doorstep talking on her mobile and visibly distressed. Even though she had her keys, she waited until I opened the door and then followed me in. I could hear her still talking and crying all the way up the stairs ( Read more... )

Most of you probably know by now that I subscribe to William Morris's mantra that one should not have anything in one's home that one does not know to be useful, nor believe to be beautiful. It's also an aspect of my eco credentials that I usually prefer to buy something that costs slightly more, but which is made of good quality and preferably ( Read more... )