WOYWW #505

If you would like to share your mess desk with like minded friends, please link up with us at Chez Julia (Stamping Ground).  There's lots of us over there, sharing all our little (or not so little) hobbies.  Come over and join in...........

This Wednesday finds me still working away at restoring my craft room to a usable state ......

All the shelving is in (and filled) and all the boxes of stash back ....... just the need to sort it.  This was the view of the corner unit late on Monday night .....

I had hoped that the room would be finished  by next weekend but ..... I have been poorly with a really bad head cold and had to spend yesterday in bed.  I am on the mend now and so will be up early and starting again tomorrow .......

In the meantime, I thought I would show you a completed ATC swap.

Remember the teabags?

Here are the ones that I sent off......

..... and here are the ones I received back......

Aren't they super?

I am so pleased with them, I will definitely make some more and hopefully find another swap to join.

Random Thoughts

1st February 2019

I never daydreamed when I was young of what I would be doing when I was such and such an age ..... too busy doing 'things', living life, trying to survive.  One thing I did know was that I would not survive into the next millennium.  How did I know this?
My life was a pretty stressed and lonely.  My parents were quite old and I arrived long after the other children were young people.  I was loved that I did know, I may not have been up to 'standard' but my parents loved me.  I always managed to keep myself amused and even found wonderment in the raindrops running down the windows, drawing the trees outside the window......
I didn't make friends easily and often only had one at a time so if the friend wasn't around then I was on my own.  
I was content within the restrictions of my life, I have always been content with what I had.  It may not have been what I wanted but it was what I got ...so....

1st February 2019

The wind is blowing at a fast rate of knots, a bitterly cold wind so I watch through the window as it tosses 'things' around.  I am pleased that I don't have to go out in this wind .....

I have just finished painting my boiler cupboard and know that to achieve anything like my dream, the hard work will now begin.... check this out......

Imagine that wall is a window ......
I follow Susan Raihala's Blog (see link above) and have been watching her refit her basement so that she has a workable space.  She is inspirational when making cards but more so now.
This is going to be a lot of hardwork ..... 

MY present workspace!

See what I mean?!?!?!??

I am living in hope that by the end of this month - February - I shall have changed the photo on the right to something similar to the photo above ...... I am not taking bets ........

WOYWW #504

This is What'sOnYourWorkdeskWednesday - checkout the tab at the top of the page for further info - and our thanks go to Julia for hosting again.

No Desk!

Yep! Still no desk ....

I DO have a bright, clean, fully stocked Pantry though.

Now ain't that nice!?!

I also have an undercoated boiler cupboard in Craftopia ......busy, busy......

Now as boilers go, sometimes it turns out that we keep it all in the family ...... today DDC is having a new boiler fitted and new pipework blah, blah, blah.  

You'd think she would've learnt from me but ......

Anyhooos, she is keeping the little one wrapped up warm.....

aaaawwwww!  kiss, kiss, hug, hug.

WOYWW #503

The idea is not a new one - what's your desk look like?  It's a bit like .... where do you live?
We gather here on a Wednesday and have a look round at everyone's desk and find out what everyone else is doing .... or not doing .... you get the idea.  If you want to join in, do feel free .... take a photo of your workplace, add it to your Blog and link it up here.  Julia won't mind ... more the merrier she says....
Thank you Julia ....







Today I am adding a different picture - I just found out the January is Thyroid awareness month and, having had this problem for a good many years, thought I would share.







My desk is still the same - hidden!  lol

We now have a cupboard in the corner but the saga of the boiler (yes, it became a saga!) continues.  We went a whole week without the Central Heating, and the Pantry, out of commission....  We had a lot of 'ding' meals, PJ learnt to cook using the microwave - very impressive - so we have survived and believe you me, survive was the word!!  We managed to find two picnic plates on which to eat our meals from, our gas fire worked overtime and we spent a lot of time in bed!!!
But .....
....we are progressing .....

The pantry is finished and we are stacking all the 'pantry' things back in - again cleaning and reducing - so you see .... 'progress' ......

I can't get over how a lick of paint has changed my pantry, it is so much brighter and roomier.

The shelving has been cleaned and left.  The covering is the original in as much as it was here when we moved in.  Our idea was to refurbish the house back to 1935 state but, when PJ's job started taking him abroad, we had to change our plans.  We are now leaving a 'nod' to the original owner, as and when we can.  

The craft room has a cupboard ready to paint and use but we want to change things around a bit first..... and reduce the amount of stash ......
The 'airing' cupboard stood in the craft room and was falling down, we think it was part of the original building.  Now there is a brand new cupboard in the same place, it will be smart and useful when it is finished completely.
So that's the state of affairs at the mo - quite a lot of progress considering the problem we had last week ...........

But today the sun is shining, the temperature outside is up to 8C and I have a pantry to restore!!

WOYWW #502

My week is marked by the passing of the WOYWW .... week by week we gather here and have a chat and share and ....... have a look ..... have a laugh .... then it's back to normal days .... or as normal as can be!  Thank you Julia for this great meet up..... if you want to join in dear Blog readers, then the deets are at the top of the page.

I am grateful for it being Wednesday today, the Engineer has transformed into a Builder for the moment ..... he never made it last week so today is the day!  Drills, plaster boards, doors, planks.... they're all there .... transforming my craft room so that I can add a bit of tidiness to the place!  lol

I bet you're wondering where my desk is hiding?

There it is!!!   

Where do I hear you say?  

Well, behind the bags, to the left of the boxes, over the magazines ...

... here it is......

I have managed to keep it clear enough to give me space to work but today - Out Of Order!

Today I am tidying up my files on this laptop and my external files, sourcing images for the upcoming swaps ......

PJ has decided to paint the pantry so he has been busy emptying everything into boxes, stacking them where he can, and is now cleaning all the shelves and walls prior to painting it all beautiful white.

There's a lot more pantry behind him!!!

T H E N 

When these two rooms are completed we start on the last remaining room, the back lounge.  

This poor room has suffered so much during this refurb, it has become a dumping ground prior to articles being removed to tip or Charity shop...... but soon ..... hopefully no more workmen will be needed (famous last words!)..... soon .... it will be 'open the French Doors and let's clean this place up!'

I do hope so.....

Just in case you wondered what I did create on my desk in the small amount of time I could reach it ....

I managed to paint and draw on my teabags for the swap, label and parcel them up.

I also found my Chinese embellishments (bought from Llandudno after the Crop) so I could also complete my Chinese New Year Swap.  

They were all posted off yesterday.

So although it is pouring down with rain as I type, I am looking forward to the wonderful Summer Days sitting in my Back Lounge watching the birds, chickens and butterflies etc.!

WOYWW #501

The idea is not a new one - what's your desk look like?  It's a bit like .... where do you live?
We gather here on a Wednesday and have a look round at everyone's desk and find out what everyone else is doing .... or not doing .... some may be lazing on a beach somewhere ... but you get the idea.  If you want to join in, do feel free .... take a photo of your workplace, add it to your Blog and link it up here.  Julia wont mind ... more the merrier she says....
Thank you Julia ....

My desk was still covered this morning.....

 The mountain is considerably lower than last week, but a couple of hours solid work moving boxes etc (and throwing out still more) and lo!  
Now the desk is here....

I have had to clear further access to the boiler as the Engineer is coming in tomorrow to service the boiler and build a cupboard round so I could be all neat and tidy at that side of the room..... 

PJ has finished his train, he was looking at buying a 'windmill', then watched Hochanda and changed his mind.
  
He quite fancied the 'car' but when he rang in they were all sold so now he has to wait for new stock.



The train runs lovely and, although it might not look different to last time, I can assure you it IS finished .....




I saw this on the web and thought I would share .......

Have fun!

WOYWW #500

What a way to start 2019 - a whole new digit ....5xx... totally unexpected by our wonderful leader, Julia, over on Stamping Ground .... who would've thought it .... so much friendship, laughter, love ....

All I can say is 'Happy New Year' to everyone!!    Mine will be a very happy one .... eventually!!

My invisible desk.....

 Just before Christmas but after PJ’s fall and the lovely day at DDC, we were afflicted with a great deal of tiredness.  We put it down to having sooo much to do, me especially with PJ not being able to drive plus getting ready for Christmas, headaches were the order of the day.

Anyhoos, it turns out that we had a gas leak.  

Not enough to be noticed as I am a ‘open window freak’ and windows are open if it isn’t raining or foggy.  Once the frost comes, said windows remain closed. 

And so it was that we slowly started sleeping much better, this insomniac was loving it! 

Then it became that I was having difficulty getting up in the mornings ...... not loving that!

Discussing the change in my sleeping habits brought forth the response – one of the ambulance men said as he was coming up the stairs (to see PJ) that he could smell gas!!

I promptly went round sniffing all appliances but could smell nothing .....

PJ phoned the gas people who sent an engineer round in about an hour ..... he tested every room..... no sign of gas.

Then he checked the meter in the pantry ...... definite leak.... quite a large one ..... all gas turned off .... like NOW.

He was very good, left us a detailed report to give to an engineer, a non returnable electric fan heater and checked we had an electric kettle to make hot drinks.

We contacted the engineer next day who came round at once and checked everywhere and said that it was probably caused by corroded pipes, which would need replacing!

So that’s where we are at the moment......

Access to boiler in craft room – clear.

Access to desk and craft equipment  - unavailable until further notice!!

I believe that the first month of 2019 will see me with a beautiful, sorted, cleaned and being-used craft room ..... and a safe gas free house!!!

In the meantime ...... I have shut the door!

Happy and Safe New Year to everyone.