Just mundane slog, mumble mumble.

No drama, disaster or anything much.

Thank goodness, the painter has been & done our ceilings very neatly, & efficiently. A man of pride in his work. He told me he was 'Not a messy painter.' And he was right. He told me he came from Serbia originally.

I was amazed to see he drove a Mercedes Benz, & had his ladder, & general paraphenalia in the back seat, and his painting equipment, & drop sheets in the boot When I mentioned it was a fancy car to carry painting gear, he shrugged & smiled & told me it would only sit in the garage otherwise. I thought, what a good attitude!

And now, my 'sewing room' is no more. We have packed most of it away, so I feel a little naked without my clutter about me. Bare bookshelves, & the machine all folded away. GOM carted all my books downstairs. The room down there looks like a bomb has exploded.

The dogs have had an anxious day. Very concerned when the painter came, so GOM took Leo into our room, & I had Honey in here with me.

My arm is very sore. I have used that spray on bandage, which is amazing. It is even water proof. Leo didnt mean to do the damage, he was struggling to get free while I was brushing him, a task which he does not like much. Just an unlucky strike with his claw.

There has been no more sign of the mouse, so we are hoping he has eaten his fill & gone off to seek water, which is supposedly how the bait works.

It is darkly gloomy with clouds & a cold wind, so a day inside has been my choice. We have had the Airconditioner going to warm the cold rooms.

Reading over at Stomper's about lovely linens, has reminded me of how much I miss having flanellette sheets. GOM claims he cant abide them, they irritate him, & so we are 'not allowed' to have them. I could never survive without my electric blanket! If we have to have cold cotton at least it needs to be warmed up before I get into bed.

I was reminded of a wedding present we received when we first got married. They were 2 sets of horrible white sheets, whose giver shall remain nameless. Let's just say it was not from my side of the family. ( Yes that is a little nasty! heh!) About the 3rd time we used them our feet plunged through the very fabric! ( And no comments about newly weds vigourously ripping them, need to be made here!)

I think they must have been so old they had just about rotted away in their packages! I am sure they were a recycled gift, & they were supposedly twill cotton. I was happy to toss them out!

As I have aged, I have got much braver about such things too. When we first married, I agonised over some chairs we were given. They had been gifted to GOM for his first marriage. I am sure most of you could relate to how much I detested those chairs! I couldnt wait to get rid of them. And to add insult to injury, one had a hole in it! And a canteen of cultery, that my MIL had given the first 'happy couple' as a wedding present. I was apalled. I never used them, & preferred my cheap collection of odds & ends, from my single days. At least they were mine, & had no sad history.

It never seemed to bother GOM, I suppose because they had been gifts from his mother, but I felt it in bloody poor taste to inflict them on me. Sure we were paupers when we married. Had about 25 pounds between us, but we were happy, & both worked, so we could save, & get things gradually.

Well tomorrow is another day. Let us hope it is a bit warmer.


Shane Nicholson, Keep It Together.