THOUGHTS ON THURSDAY

This is where I look back on the past week and try to find some 'right' things that may have taken place.  How has your week been?  Not too many problems I hope.

On the 'right' side it would seem our kitchen is soon to be 'mended'.  A very nice cabinetmaker came last Friday and measured up and made suggestions about how the mess I made can be fixed.  Unfortunately the wall cupboards will have to remain as is because they were not damaged.  There is now no veneer that matches the pine pattern so we've had to settle for a plain colour that hopefully will blend in.  When the renovations were done the lower part of the walls were all done in the same pine pattern as the cupboards so we are hoping it won't look mismatched when finished.  The good news is I am getting rid of the brown benchtops which have driven me potty for 30 odd years.  They were too dark and every tiny spot showed up.  I have never been a super efficient haus frau who walks around with a duster in her pocket but those benchtops were the bane of my life so will be pleased to see them replaced with a much lighter marble type pattern.  From the rough sketch the cabinetmaker made for me it seems it is going to be a much more modern design with more drawers and the ability to get right into the corners of the cupboards which before were blocked off.

We fortunately have a roll of the wallpaper left from when we did the wallpapering years ago and are not sure if there are going to be any blank spots when the work is finished.  Hopefully, if there are we will be able to make it look at least reasonably OK.

I have decided to do away with the pantry (didn't want it in the first place but my ex-husband ... who always knows everything .... decided to add one anyway....we paid him to do the renovations back in the early '80s...what were we thinking?).   The pantry was too high and I could never find anything at the back of the top shelves past about 15 inches.  Instead the lower cupboard will be extended and I can then put the microwave there and do away with the microwave cabinet giving us more room for perhaps a larger table.  There will be an open cupboard above where the microwave will sit where I can either put the coffee, tea canisters etc or perhaps just something pretty.

Another thing I wanted when the renovation was originally done was a new sink but 'he' said "you don't need one" so no new sink.  This time I am having a nice new sink (the old one is probably better quality than those you buy these days but it is over 50 years old and the area around the plug hole has worn down to the brass and I am constantly having to scrub it so it doesn't look dirty.  I found carb soda does a good job but I 'd rather not to have to do it all the time.  Unfortunately the tiles behind the sink will have to removed in order to take out the old sink but I am paying $500 upfront and that will cover the cost of the new sink and retiling behind it.  I think it will be well worth the expense.  The sink wasn't damaged so it's my choice to buy a new one.

Enough about the kitchen.  The time frame he said would be about 3 weeks so perhaps before Easter but when dealing with tradespeople one can never be sure.  Believe me I am still dreading the upheaval on top of which will be the replacement of the vinyl and the hall carpet and we are thinking of extending the vinyl into the hall as we can't get a carpet that matches the living room.  Perhaps vinyl throughout which is easier to clean than carpet when one has a husband that tends to spill 'stuff' quite frequently.  I got rid of a lot of the stains but now have patches from cleaning the stains.   I sometimes feel I can't win.   I only worry about how one would wash the vinyl around armchairs and the like.  Perhaps just a damp mop?  My cleaning lady comes this morning so perhaps ask her advice.

On the not so 'right' side of the ledger was my visit to our GP yesterday.  We had our 'flu shots and as usual Phil has no sign of having had his but 'as usual' there is a swelling on my arm about two inches long, which is pink and quite hot.  Happens every year but I'd rather put up with that than get a dose of the 'flu.  We diabetics do have to be very careful about any type of illness.

The result of my lung function test came back with the diagnosis...ASTHMA....so now I have to use a puffer twice a day (2 puffs morning and night) and have a ventolin puffer in case I have problems at other times.  I don't really feel as though I have asthma but do get very wheezy when I move around much which I put down to me having trouble moving around much or standing for long but I must be honest and say I do sometimes get a little puffed when I am talking.  I guess if one can get to 82 before suffering this problem one should count one's blessings.  I do think some of it is perhaps also caused by allergies, pollens, grasses etc.  I have one of those plastic thingies where you put the puffer in one end and your mouth on the other to make it easier.  Am I too old to lean new tricks I wonder?

I had hoped to say that one big 'right' was the rain we were promised during the week but it seems it nearly all fell in the Indian Ocean and hampered the search for the missing airliner.  If any suburbs received rain it didn't account for more than perhaps 0.2 - 0.6mm.  The ground did get wet at our place and the cat absolutely refused to go out for several hours but I'd say we too received no more than 0.4mm in total.  We still did our Tuesday watering last night.   Some areas had thunderstorms but little rain and Precious and I were both thankful there were no storms at our place.  : )