A bright spot

How wonderful. Two awards in as many weeks, aren't I lucky? Thank you, Sarah, and Fern for thinking of me. It's been a rough old week this week for various reasons. Firstly, last Friday, the car had to go for its service and MOT, it should have been done in a day but - you knew there was a but - it needed some work on the brakes, the parts had to come from Shrewsbury and they couldn't fetch them until Saturday so couldn't do the work until Monday etc, etc. We had a courtesy car which was useful but we are used to the higher seats in our sweet little Agila and this one was a two door Corsa with very low seats and doors that you had to open wide to get out of, so parking was an issue and getting out in the garage was a struggle. Also the tax was due on Monday and to buy this you need an MOT certificate so we were on tenterhooks that it would be finished before the post office closed at 5.30p.m. otherwise we couldn't bring it home. It was finally ready for 4.30p.m. on Monday and Paul dashed across to the Post Office to get the tax disc and back to the garage to pick the car up. We had to get up at 5a.m. the next day for work so needed the car to get there. In the meantime that evening we noticed that the fridge/freezer wasn't working, just after we'd spent all the week before preserving plums from the tree and making curries and hot pots with the glut of courgettes, needless to say most of this was ruined. I managed to make even more pots of jam with the plums but we said goodbye to everything else except a few bits our kind neighbours were able to put in their freezer. We've been struggling all week without a fridge, making up powdered milk and fetching our cheese and margarine from next door. On top of this Paul had an interview so we couldn't order a new fridge straight away but finally managed to find a cheap and cheerful one which we have to wait until tomorrow for because being at work all this week we couldn't guarantee being in for a delivery. Only niggling problems, I know, but I've felt so tired this week and depressed with the constant rain lashing against the windows and completely ruining the garden; plus the fact that we've spent the money we put aside for a Home Information Pack on the car and fridge. We were going to take the house off the market as soon as we needed to buy a HIP but then we felt that we still needed to sell the house to rid ourselves of the mortgage, but the fact that it has been on sale for over a year and that work is intermittent and our savings are fast disappearing is a constant worry. When is this going to end? I don't think the measures put in place recently by the government will make any difference to us at all so where do we go from here?

Oh, dear, I'm sorry, I'm twittering and wittering and moaning and groaning and there are far worse things going on in the world that I don't really have the right to complain but at least you can see how nice it was to receive the award from Sarah and Fern in amongst all the gloom. I have to award it to others so I'll come back with that later. Meanwhile, it is still raining........