I felt an urge for another letter, just a month after the last one. Now it's the 18th of December. Doesn't time fly when you take your eye off the clock for a minute or two?
Well the bedroom is done, at least enough for the moment, it's always the little fiddly finishing bits I find the hardest to complete, but I suppose you could say that at any stage really. I put some of the older and less effective bits of furniture on the freecycle website and disposed of some of it, but I think a bonfire and a skip may be needed sooner or later. I need a farm sized property to put all the "bits that might be useful one day" in, or an aircraft hanger at least.
They hardly ever do though, do they? "Come in useful one day", or at least it means it costs more to store them for years, than to buy when you need them again. So I try to keep only raw materials. That worked for the bedroom, I found the paint and the wallpaper to do the job without a complete re-start and I don't think you can see the join.
Christmas is almost upon us, which means life changes gear slightly for a while, and when we come out from the slightly hazy glow, the weather will have changed a bit too.
I choose to remember the winters of yesteryear, not the wet ones or the raindark damp non-events but the ones in Hampshire, when the snow fell softly and all was crisp and clear. Alright I know it wasn't always like that, but a walk in the countryside was a popular pre (Christmas) dinner activity followed by a sharpened appetite. With the added benefit of getting everybody out of the house for mysterious parcel moving and emergency catering repairs. We can still do that here in Scotland but with the added excitement of having the weather try to kill you with a sudden change to a sub zero blizzard, or a hail-storm out of a clear blue sky. 
Mind you it's been milder recently, perhaps it's worth the risk, and it does look nice out. I'll publish this before I go out, and pop in a picture of me.  That way if anything happens, you'll have a clue as to what happened, and a reminder of who was talking to you.








Well I'm back, and it turned into quite a jaunt as I'd forgotten we were going out into Edinburgh. It's a Tuesday, and I don't often get out on a Tuesday. First thing I noticed was the bright clear sunshine, something I miss in the week, 'specially Tuesdays as they took away our last window ages ago, so we get to work in the dark and leave in the dark. 
I really should take my lunch in the daylight as Fiona does, but the hospital grounds are not really conducive to a stroll, being full of slightly tetchy staff and late, worried patients sitting in cars, with their motors running, waiting for a parking space. The council have decided not to allow a multi-story car park because it would encourage motorists and thus pollution. I think they need their heads testing, but I'm sure they do mean well, if only there was an effective public alternative to make the premise work.


Never mind, I think I'll re-do that photo, 
as I obviously wasn't ready when I pushed 
the button. Now try to concentrate and look 
at the birdie.




Nope, that's not getting it, try turning this way when I say look at the birdie... the camera, look at the camera. and try to hide that thin bit at the top

 Now, one last attempt, hold...... where's he gone? Oh I give up, get a snap out of archive, nobody'll notice if I'm a bit younger.


Ah, I remember now, I'd gone to find out what that noise was.  The cats as usual, now they've decided to see if they can squeeze a bit more catnip out of me by playing the cute card, alternately with the noisy one. You know the stuff, sleeping in odd positions that only cats can achieve without dislocating something, and more recently, batting the bell in a ball about the place, getting tangled in the Christmas tree, trying to get under a carpet tile in the kitchen. Now there's a new one, dropping on each other from a great height and then pretending they weren't there at the time.  

Perhaps we could make pets of the mice. See you next time.
Jim

ps The conservatory is coming on nicely, I've decided to put a bit of decking on the end of it, to obviate the four foot drop if you go out of the North door. If you're really lucky I'll put a photo of it up soon. 
23 Dec. Amazingly warm at 5pm, 2 degrees above zero, that's 10 warmer than last night, so I got a fair bit of timber work done.