Not because they’re a sin, I don’t mean anything wrong. Just, in this case, fairly straightforward plumbing. I’ve discovered that a flexible pipe has perished – not the whole thing, the top of the curve when it’s come from the kitchen sink, through the solid plastic pipes and then up and down again towards the drain. The top of the top of that curve. So water mostly flows down it, but it can splash over.

It looks quite straightforward. It doesn’t even need the water supply to be turned off. I could buy the pipe, put plugs in the sinks, remove the old and replace it. Bet it isn’t as straightforward in practice though. And I’m not even going to try. I’m game for a blocked drain, I sorted out Tim’s kitchen drain for him the last time we were in Reading together, ten days before he died. I cautiously took a photo before I started, in case I forgot how to reassemble it, because I’m a sensible woman who knows I’m not very smart and it was really quite satisfying. And I often have to rod out my drains here, because there’s very little drop towards the septic tank and any debris builds up. No fatbergs here, I am very careful but, especially now we avoid wasting water, it seems mostly to be gunk from the dishwasher in the drain outside the kitchen.

But anyway, I can’t go that far wrong there. But in this instance, I feel the need to call in my friendly local plumber and pay him an extraordinary amount of money instead. I’ve never thought of male and female jobs around the house and garden (let’s not call them the cringeworthy ‘blue and pink’, please) and just get on with whatever needs doing, but I have clear limits. Nothing electrical unless it’s wiring a plug or changing a fuse or a lightbulb, that level of ordinariness. Nothing with power tools, except an electric screwdriver or sander. Or the log splitter. Nothing to do with drills or saws, anyway, unless they’re hand tools. I’m fine with lawnmowers and similar, of course. I don’t do carpentry. That’s probably because the Sage was so good at it, but I limit myself to self-assembly furniture, not that I have much of that. A few wardrobes and bookshelves.

I find myself at an awkward loose end this evening. I didn’t get around to breakfast until around 11 o’clock this morning and then didn’t want any lunch. I ate an orange, sometime in the afternoon and then went to cook a spiced tomato sauce, which I intend to use for various purposes this week. By 6pm, I was very hungry. I used some of the leftover roasted vegetables, some of the tomato sauce, the remains of the fish from the other day and a spoonful of leftover rice and had an early meal. It’s only 8 o’clock, I finished eating for the day an hour ago and I have no idea what to do with myself. I’m vaguely hungry, but that’s because I left it too long before eating. The ‘full’ message hasn’t hit my brain. I sensibly didn’t have any wine with dinner, because I’d have been too tempted to fill myself up with another glass or two now. I ate a pear after dinner and I’m not going to snack. Evening snacking is a bad thing and I could polish off far too much cheese.

I wish I hadn’t mentioned cheese. I wonder if there’s anything I want to watch on the ludicrous number of channels, through various freeview and streaming services I have. Too much choice means that I usually watch nothing at all.

Just one glass of wine, perhaps? I wonder if my self-control will hold out.