The buck stops with Z

The day started with dispiriting news.  No, let’s start again.

The day started with another nearly sleepless night.  I woke after an hour’s sleep and several hours later I went down to make some tea.  Sometimes, that sends me off again, but not this time.  Nor did reading, nor listening to the radio.  I eventually nodded off for another hour or so and will be shattered tomorrow.  And then I received an email giving me dispiriting news, which I had to relay to others, thus spoiling their day too.

Then I came downstairs and, as Weeza used to say as a small child, I smelled a smell.  Ben had had a rare accident and, if he’d asked to go out, it was in the brief period when I was asleep and didn’t hear him.

We spent the morning at Weeza’s new house, doing some preliminary work.  The man who owned it left it in a state.  He had never got around to putting down floors and the chipboard panels that are there have evidently never been swept.

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I’m not really bandy-legged, it was the effect of bending over to take a selfie.  But this does indicate the dustiness of the floor.  And you should see the kitchen!

 

 

 

 

I picked a sprig of the plant I asked about and brought it indoors to take some photos.  I hope this detail helps.

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I think it’s a herbaceous plant rather than self-seeded but I can’t be sure, it grew very quickly. It’s a single many-stemmed plant, about 2 feet tall and the same diameter (this sprig is about 10 inches tall). It has a sweet scent but not a strong one. It is certainly not Himalayan Balsam, I know that well.

 

 

 

In other news, I have finally bought Russell his birthday present.  Yes, his birthday was the middle of June.  And your point is?  Anyway, there is a point.  He had a bit of an accident with his laptop and since then it has been very noisy.  If we could replace the fan simply, it might be ok but we can’t and it’s four years old, so probably not worth spending a lot on.  I was going to buy him a new laptop but thought again and lent him my iPad for a couple of days.  He loves it.  It’s so much easier to use a touch screen than a mouse and the apps for eBay and so on are very straightforward.  He even types more accurately, interestingly enough.

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And now I have to send out some emails, some of the most difficult I’ve had to write. Or rather one, sent to a number of people. I’ll tell you another day.

10 comments on “The buck stops with Z

  1. Z Post author

    Thanks love. Right decision, right reasons but really difficult to do. I’m assured I write a good letter though and I’ve had to write several of them tonight.

    Reply
  2. Blue Witch

    Phlox family?

    Have you done your motorcycle CBT yet? You mentioned lower down starting to ride on private land – unless the person guiding you is a qualified instructor, I’d very strongly advise against that. It’s far too easy to get into really bad/dangerous habits. Far better to learn the correct way from the outset. As most CBT training is done off-road anyway, there’s plenty of room for errors. I doubt anyone can pass CBT and Direct Access in fewer than 5 days of tuition (assuming you’re doing DA?) – and, even then, I’d strongly advise some advanced training as a follow-on. Best money I ever spent – and I doubt I’d be alive now if I hadn’t done it and learned advanced techniques for dealing with daft motorists. Good luck!

    Reply
  3. Z Post author

    Could well be, BW, I’ll investigate further.

    No I haven’t and I am going to take plenty of lessons with a qualified instructor before I take my CBT. If I’m going to do this, I have to put a lot of work into it. I’m not underestimating it. All I did was gently go down the drive, my friend turned the bike round at the end and I rode back. It has indicated just how much practice I need before I’m safe to venture on the road. I loved it, but found throttle control extremely hard, even at a low speed. Trust me, love, I’m not losing my inbuilt caution or common sense – but not my enjoyment of a challenge either. I love to learn something new but I get appropriate tuition, especially for something like this.

    Reply
  4. Blue Witch

    Ah – no – CBT is what you do *before* you do anything else. It’s the first day of your quest. It tells you all the fundamentals and saves you getting into bad habits. Which is why I asked whether you’d done it yet, as you said you were riding on your own land.

    Reply
  5. Z Post author

    I was planning lessons with the firm with which I do the CBT. I know you don’t move from one part of the test to the next until you’ve mastered it – I haven’t been to talk to them yet as I have been so busy. ‘Riding on my own land’ implies more than really happened and was a one-off anyway. My understanding is that a small group does the CBT – I can do the theory bit with others but I have a feeling I’m going to want extra lessons all by myself. But maybe not, we’ll see.

    Reply
  6. janerowena

    Sorry Z, I can’t see the photos, they aren’t working for me. Hope you have a brilliant holiday, I haven’t been around because of big family problems and son going to Uni.

    Reply
  7. Z Post author

    Hello Jane, sorry to hear about the problems. I removed some photos in the hope that others would load because it’s taking several attempts, but it hasn’t helped – there’s plenty of space and memory, I’ll have to consult Ronan. Can’t quite face the thought of reloading them all, though, Hope things are getting better now xxx

    Reply

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