A Week Without Heat

It couldn't have come at a worse time of year. The week that much of Britain saw its lowest ever temperatures, our heating decided to go on the blink. It showed itself as large pools of water on the workbench below the boiler, the water visibly dripping from every corner of the boiler.

Investigation by the gas man revealed that it was actually the flue that was at fault, the moist warm air condensing in the flue and then leaking back out onto the boiler casing. And if water was leaking out then so would flue gases. The boiler was temporarily condemned and disconnected.

All we could do after that was wait for the replacement flue fitting to arrive at the depot, and given the state of the country's roads this was longer than the usual overnight wait. It took from Monday until Friday for the part to finally arrive (with one false call on Wednesday when they thought it had come but it hadn't) and then a few hours of actual fitting time. In the meanwhile we tried to stay cozy in the one room that had heating, thanks to an electric radiator kindly lent by a friend. The other electric heater that we had spent most of its time in the conservatory to prevent the pipework in there from freezing - without heating and with outside temperatures down to -8C this was a distinct possibility.

For the first couple of days it was fun - our own mini version of "the blitz spirit" - but by Friday I was really ready to have the heating back on. Internal room temperatures were dropping to 10C in the rooms with no heating, and getting washed from sinks filled from a kettle was getting a bit tedious.

All sorted in the end, and we're tankful of our service contract with British Gas. It was all sorted out with a minimum of fuss really, especially given the circumstances with the weather. It really makes you appreciate the heating too. How we managed back in my childhood with no heating in any of the rooms of the house except the one we lived in is beyond me! Well actually I remember it - I used to have the warmest of pajamas, a couple of duvets and several blankets on my bed in winter - and still felt freezing cold!

Computer Says No

According to the BBC weather site we should currently be seeing light rain out of the office window.
Sticking my head out reveals warm sunshine and clear blue skies, not a cloud in sight. If they can't even get the current weather right, what hope for a longer forecast?

Perfect Day

What a lovely day we had on Saturday. A lazy morning in bed with pastries, cappuccini, magazines, books and a snoozy cat. Then up and out to get the garden in shape (some digging, some pruning and some cutting) and a trip to the tip to get rid of the rubbish that that had generated and it was still only lunch time! It's amazing what you can get done if you wake up early.

An hour or so in the conservatory, "lunch" of cookies and more cappuccini, making the most of the afternoon sun and the snoozy cat.

Then off to Durham for dinner - albeit an early one - at Pizza Express. I had a starter of torn mozzarella, rocket & tomato, followed by one of their specialty pizzas, the one that has loads of different types of mushroom on it. Best of all, Tesco footed the bill. Every little helps.

After that we were due a trip to Newcastle Airport to pick up the in-laws, but there plane was delayed so we'd have a fair few hours to fill in. We did this by going to The Metro Centre and going to Cafe Rouge for more food! Just (yet another) Cappucino and a dessert each - mine a "pot au chocolate", a beautiful cup of semi-solid chocolate (more solid than a mousse would be) served with a glass of Sauternes on the side. Delicious. Once again Tesco footed the bill, you gotta love 'em.

We eventually did get to Newcastle Airport where the in-law's plane was early (earlier than it's later scheduled arrival time) so we didn't have to hang around too long.

By the time we got back home it had been quite a long day, but one that was nice from start to finish, where we got things done, relaxed and enjoyed ourselves all in one day!