The Laundry Man Returns

It has been a week of getting back to normal, and the weather has assisted by being good all week (apart from a damp Wednesday) enabling me to return to my laundry duties. Nicky commented that the two green laundry baskets (which were used one inside the other because of their condition) that I use to keep the ironing in were well past their sell-by date, so I replaced them with a spanking new white one this week. Such excitement!

Tuesday was a good day as for the first time since my return I actually felt awake when getting up - the jet lag finally fading away. It was a bit of a shame it hadn’t happened a day earlier as I had my longest Mac job of the week in Takapuna on Monday morning, and concentrating was a bit of a struggle. However, I think it went OK, and I did a couple of other jobs this week too. So, all in all, it feels like a week where things have been achieved.

I had major problems with my left knee on Tuesday evening, so had to give it some TLC for for the next couple of days. I think it was just a strain, but my housemaid’s knees and tennis elbows seem to take it in turns to remind me that my joints are not what they used to be.

I spent much of Wednesday in the office putting our annual photo book together, and digitising audiobooks for Nicky. She took the afternoon off to attend the funeral of June Melsop, a neighbour from Matata Street who finally died last Friday. The time off work also enabled Nicky and I to talk to Gerald the pensions man about Nicky’s UK pensions and make some decisions.

After doing a job in St Marys Bay on Thursday morning, I stopped in Mt Eden to have lunch with Claire (though her coming over to pinch my coffee and bananas would have been cheaper). She is still apply for jobs and having interviews.

I missed out on the Heritage Festival fortnight while I was in England, but the “last” event was planned for this coming weekend - a celebration of Tall Ships for the long Labour weekend. They arrived on Friday afternoon, so I grabbed a bus and popped down to the harbour to watch some of the happening.

I bought croissants for Saturday breakfast to celebrate the start of the long weekend. It was a lovely sunny day so we got three loads of washing on the line, and a trip down to the JP for Nicky to get her pension documents notarised. We spent the rest of the day pottering round the house, reading on the Ratigan, and preparing bacon and egg salad (N) and apple strudel (me) to take over to a family gathering at Paul and Jenny’s. It was good to see everybody, but Paul had an ulterior motive: he has got together all the old family photos and wanted them seen and distributed round the family. It was quite interesting even for me to go back to the beginning of last century, as well as many dates between then and now. Stella picked us and Steve up and drove us their and back, which was great as I was able to have some wine for a change.

Today has been fine but not as sunny. After church Nicky went over to Stella’s with Steve for Scrabble, and then I met her at St Lukes where we saw “About Time”, the latest Richard Curtis rom-com. We quite enjoyed it, in-spite of it being a little sentimental.

Tomorrow we might go to the museum. Not sure yet - you’ll find out next week.

Take care Dear Reader,

Rick