GOING BACK

Yesterday we went over to see my daughter over at Allerton Bywater we took over some bubbles and Easter eggs just in case  we don't get over there again , she cut and coloured Helen's hair and she also cut mine which is great as I go back to work on the 10th of April , my last three cuts my daughter as done it is also a great way of catching up , she is a great hostess and always gives us something to eat cant believe how she has grown and matured from the little girl in roller skates .

On the way back home mid afternoon the sun was out we called in at the supermarket and bought pizza for tea along with three different boxes of breakfast cereal , juice Ribenna and mango and orange  , a jar of coffee for me and a large box of  cat food and just in case a 24 packet of toilet rolls and one large packet of grass seed and feed I spent £58 money soon goes unbelievable fast .

THURSDAY
Went for a meeting at work to discuss my phased return to work .it went ok and over the first four weeks back I will be doing reduced hours phased return my first week I am starting at four instead of two in the afternoon and finishing at nine rather than ten , second week back four finish at nine thirty etc etc until on the fifth week I am back to normal hours which suites me fine .

After I walked back in to town and meet up with Helen and went around the new Victoria Gate Shopping Mall it opened last November and I have been wanting to visit I am not sure what it cost to build but it is ultra modern and clean  , the best shop by far is John Lewis it is built on what was originally a car park opposite the Market , and already has won design awards Leeds is becoming a great place to shop with it's cafe's coffee shops and restaurants all in a few square miles.

IN KNOTS

Last night we cooked noodles with chicken and stir fries veggies with a black bean sauce must have cost use less than £8.00 it was absolutely delicious only thing missing prawn crackers but even so top marks .

SATURDAY
Up at half past five Bentley been out all night unlike him he likes his home comforts like our bed and the radiator being on .
Six in the morning Helen gets up Bentley's returned safe she makes us a coffee Bentleys has been feed and is on our bed.
Seven in the morning have a shower get dressed make a bowl of porridge and another coffee , the sky is blue the birds are singing and its a beautiful morning .

I have been paid its fifty pounds short I guess it is because I am no longer getting SSP for a few of the days prior to me having these three weeks on annual leave oh well never mind soon be back to normal .

Eight in the morning paid my speeding fine £100 sent of my license for three points to be added the offence was in November last year anyway I have a month free from paying the council tax so it balances it out I guess kidding myself would have been £100 better of without the fine any ways hopefully lesson leaned I average one  ticket every three years.

Eleven  in the morning at Ossett Helen is getting her nails done and I am eating an awarding winning sausage sandwich with onions which cost £3 and was worth every penny , as  I have an hour to kill its sunny and I am just wandering about Ossett town centre for the very first , time it is only a few miles away Friday we were  in Horbury for the first time and thats is only a few miles away from where we live .

SUNDAY
Mother's day Helen has three son's one sent a Funky pigeon.com card , and the other two never bothered fcuking shit , but saying that it's the same every year and her birthdays mean  jack shit to them as well  , they only live in Leeds two of the them have cars .We went to Helen's mother's house in Leeds to deliver her a card and flower arrangements  we could be arsed .
Stopped off at the farm shop and  bought a large tray of braised steak and dumplings and some roast potatoes dinner sorted .

Have bee watching and drawing Celtic knots following artists and sketches on You Tube  , it is quite easy and very relaxing and therapeutic to do ,  highly recommended this is a very simple on to start off with  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xce8NSx3AKo

100K , THAT WOULD DO NICELY .

Helen bought a ten packet of cigarettes Monday and another twenty packet today she is still not smoking as much but it is creeping up and she is smoking way too many than someone who is trying to quit .

The Tree surgeons are back today and it has done nothing but rain they are literally soaked , I asked them if I could put our old pine tree from last Christmas through the wood chipper they agreed it is aimed in next door garden they have a wood burning stove .

I have been Watching  on You Tube "Fun For Louis " for the last eight months or so he is a guy from England you creates content from his travel across continents and the Americas . He owns an American school bus that is fitted out as a mobile home previously owned by "Expedition Happiness"
He also owns a black London double decker bus which on the upper deck there is a hot tub and tv another vehicle he owns is a bright orange vintage VW camper van , all have appeared and featured in his You Tube videos.

He is now on kickstart asking for £100k so he can fly across the continents in a twin engined plane for ninety days  check it out here https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1349068120/beyond-borders-a-film-celebrating-unity . I have not had one holiday in the last twelve years perhaps I should do something similar I could raise enough to buy a camper van and travel all the coast of England , Wales , Ireland and Scotland I would be more than happy and £100k would be more than enough .

I could also take photographs of blue green turquoise crashing waves and golden beaches , well waves and beaches  and upload daily videos to You Tube specially of me tucking in to  my fish and chips and curry sauce  whilst in my camper van steaming up the windows drinking diet coke  , visiting every decent coastal fish and chip shop along the way for their finest catch of the day I can smell it now .

SUCH IS LIFE

Done a deal to stay off work on annual leave rather than sick Leave I am using my remaining annual leave and holidays ( I would have lost them anyway ) to come off sick leave and go on to annual leave and on holiday pay  for the next three weeks which means I am back on full pay and off the sick, but more or less the time I need off to bring me up to twelve weeks recovery post op in my eyes a result.

My return to work will be on the 10th of April on a phased return which is less hours but I get paid in full going back on the 10th which means  I also get to work two bank holidays which equates to double time and days off  in lieu .

I seem to  have been off work forever which has took me over the winter period and well in to spring , going back to work means we can also get back to some normality and after a couple of weeks back  it won't seem that  I have been off at all , so for the next three weeks starting this coming Monday I will no longer be on sick but on annual leave ,

SATURDAY
Washed out a typical Yorkshire start to the weekend it grey but a threading grey which means winds and rain or at least rain .

SUNDAY
Boring day cleaned the oven and cooked a lambs liver and sausage casserole for dinner with sprouts and peas .

MONDAY
I  have now got twenty eight days to pay my speeding ticket when I was caught on camera last November its £100 and send of my license to be awarded three penalty points such is life no point bitching.

YES OR NO

Drove over to Wentworth to the garden centre its about 18 miles away it was quite sunny there is an historic walled garden and it quite a nice walk which we will do later in the year when the weather improves .Helen bought another Laura Ashley planter and a purple flowering plant to go on the decking .

On the drive back we stopped at Blacker Hall Farm and bought a leek and ham quiche and black forest gateau .

WEDNESDAY
Woke up at stupid O'clock once again had an early shave and shower the my first coffee of the day it feels like it will be a warm day and that we might get some sun.
Went to work to visit occupational health I had a meeting at one it went ok they cant argue with the recommendation from my surgeon that I am off work until twelve weeks after the op that's how it is take it or leave it . I have annual leave owing I could take time off using this and avoid going on to half pay giving me nearly as much time to recover and get me back to work earlier than previously planned , this can only happen if my line manager agrees it which i doubt he will  , It will be yes or a big fat no .

SLIPPERY SLOPE

Helen must have slept on her hand the hand  with the henna marking and it has transferred to the  left side of her face she was not amused when I said she looked like Mike Tyson.
The weather Sunday morning was sunny we drove over to Gordon Rigg Garden centre and bought a round glass orb the size of a large fish bowl filled with greenery ,  hopefully the cats won't dig the plants up .There is a burger van there we had cheese burger with onions you will always find a queue of people guess it is the smell of the frying onions .

From there we drove back to Uppermill went to Dobcross Garden centre where Helen bought a light blue Laura Ashley planter and a daffodil plant , she likes everything Laura Ashley.

Cooked steak pie,  fries , sprouts and Yorkshire pudding with plenty of gravy for our Sunday dinner /tea .

MONDAY
The weather in the morning was great , warm sunny with blue skies we planned on going over to the reservoirs over at Saddleworth Moor but  it didn't happen . The afternoon was more grey and cold so I made baked and iced a dozen  buns , the buns I bake are excellent the icing tastes ok but look totally crap.
Helen has been smoking on the QT five cigarettes have gone from her open packet of ten I , don't think she smoked them all but squatted them in the out buildings for when she is craving nicotine , in my eyes this is not stopping but getting back on the slippery slope to smoking again .

INDIAN HENNA

The tree surgeons have finally arrived to top the five oak trees near to and around our van , we have been asking for well over six months .
Received an email from occupational health for a follow up I will phone them up next week to make an appointment .
We had an estate agent come round to value the van £69.950 I paid £36000 a nice profit Helen is under the impression we can buy a small cottage for under £70,000 , I doubt it we will need surveyor fees , mining fees , and solicitors fee.

Helen  continues to stop smoking and it will be two weeks tomorrow that she stopped , which is a great achievement along way to go but the only way to do it is one day at a time .

Went over to Holmfirth back to where we use to live ,  on Upper Bank End Road visiting our friend Samantha  . We all ordered a Indian take away for later in the evening from very small shack on Dunford Road a half mile away .
Sam did a henna tattoo on the back of Helen's hand using a stencil it took just over twenty minutes the result was quite good .

FINAL DESTINATION

Went to Skipton travelled via the M62 , we went to look at a Park home sire Helen's parents are moving to when they have sold their house . Driving to the town centre Helen heard a noise coming form the rear I pulled over on some double yellow lines , the car had been driving fine I got out to inspect the tyre and it was totally  flat , I cant bend down change the spare I run the risk of hip dislocation so I called the AA out .About forty minutes later the breakdown van arrived the rear tyre was totally bald it was down to the thread the other rear tyre was nearly as bad  ,but the front tyres are fine I am not sure why or what caused the rear tyres to end up in such a state , I have not  driving it for nearly six weeks I have been of sick since September when we got the car last year it had 24k on the clock and it is just over 30k now .

The AA mechanic said in his 23 years experience its got to be one of the worst tyres he has ever seen
I felt a total dick head ,  what could I say it was no good arguing the evidence was staring me in the face no excuses , we could have had a major accident we could have killed someone including ourselves I felt bad , he put the spare on and I drove it to the nearest tyre shop and got two new rear tyres at a cost of £107.  I filled the car up this morning with petrol at a cost of £32 if I had been stopped by the police it would have been £1000 fine for each illegal  tyre ,  the joys of motoring .
Needless to say I am happy that we have two new tyres and  I am even more happier I am alive to write about .
Three years ago to this very day The Nissan Juke I had was involved in a crash we were lucky to walk away from , it cost well over £5000 to repair the Juke  , today could have been so much a case of deja vu , scary very scary it is like being in our own episode of Final Destination .

DISCHARGED

MONDAY
Back to the physiotherapist this morning my appointment at 08.30 my neighbour across the way is taking me once again .
i need to know if I can kneel down and if I can walk permanently with out the aid of my sticks I also need to ask about eventually bending down .
From this Thursday I can sleep on my operated side only , I can drive the car as long as I am able to  complete   an emergency stop . In twelve weeks post op I will more or less be back to normal and be able to do most things within reason.That is less than six weeks away so I will be back at work .

TUESDAY
For the second morning running I was woken up at half past four by the cats no wonder I am constantly knackered .
Had a refreshing shower before I left the house to drive over to Dewsbury to attend an appointment with my consultant who did my hip replacement surgery , he is more than happy to discharge me. I have to stay off work another six weeks , than all should be back to normal including going back to work , Which to be fair I have been of work too long the way it is going any longer and I would find it hard going back at all.

When I was in a road traffic accident years ago I was told eventually I would need a new hip I did get paid out £9000 in today's rate it would be in excess of £21000.

Went for a drive in the car went over to Holmfirth bought fish and chips and drove on  to a couple of  our favourite reservoirs .

Once back home we cooked a roast lamb dinner with all the trimmings and made an Bramley apple pie crumble with ice cream .

Listening to "Ed Sheeran" new album Subtract , IT'S GOOD.

YES OR NO

Last night I drove to the  Kaye Arms a few miles away for a meal out the first time i n over five weeks. I reserved a table for half past five for Helen and myself it was my first time there and it was nice just how you expect a country pub to be open fires stone floor exposed beams etc etc .

I order a pint of cider and a chicken fajita with a side of hand cut chips it came with wraps and sour cream and it was served sizzling hot Helen ordered the fish and chips both dishes excellent I was extremely happy with my dish it was spicy enough without it being over kill for desert I had the chocolate fondant pudding with salted caramel sauce fudge ice cream and praline tuille.

Today Helen's parent came over to view one of the homes that is now up for sale priced at £79,950 it is a three bedroom park home with separate kitchen which needs replacing a separate hallway and a usable garage it is twice the size of ours it is fully double glazed and central heated my main concern would be the roof .
Helen's parent's today put their house on the market for £170k but are looking at a move to a park home in Skipton ideally Helen wants them to buy ours and we move into the three bed, but I  doubt its that easy .

Not sure about the lion heads guarding the entrance way and the red shutters would need to be re painted  black , a new roof would be in the region of £3.5k

The floor plan above is what we would be getting the ground rent is slightly more than what we are paying because it is a bigger plot .

The kitchen is totally separate I reckon £1.5k spent at Ikea would sort this out no problem .

 There is a big question , the 10% selling fee which the buyer pays to the land owner , so even if we got the same selling price there is the question of having to find another £8k to cover the fee , and for that reason I cant see it happening , Another reason Helen's parents don't want to live here . they love our van totally but they want to live in Skipton  a small town , with a lot more going for it , than there is here .

BEHIND THE WHEEL

Helen cleaned out the wardrobes in our the bedroom , when we moved out of the little cottage at  Holmfirth the bedroom we had there was very damp as the cottage was dug into an embankment  more or less up to the roof level , and the wardrobe was stood against  an outfacing wall and as a result a lot of clothes and shoes had green mildew spores on them some not visible which have since transferred to the wardrobes here , not that she moans much .

So Helen removed all the clothes doing one corner wardrobe at a time she machined washed them all and tumbler dried them all . Whilst she sprayed the inside with white vinegar .The citric acid in the vinegar kills the mould but it must be left on for a few hours ago you can guess all you can smell is vinegar , any stubborn marks are removed with sodium bicarbonate with added water to make a paste this is then used as an abrasive scrub  . So for two or three night s our bedroom smells like the Wetherby Whaler at peak time the smell will disperse in a few days hopefully with the mould , a man can only do with so much moaning

One of my steri strips on my wound came away more or less on its own which is good news only another eleven to go . Still not put back on the support socks don't think I will bother . I also manage to get  in to the little Fiat 500 I drive it was a lot easier than what I imagine , I was able to work the pedals move my foot ok big question is do I dare drive it , and if so where do we go .

We are both going stir crazy there is places we need to go to just to get out do something different I am very tempted . Helen is still not smoking I said just smoke after sex  , she has not had one cigarette it is been over five days a massive achievement she has never gone this long in the ten years we have been together , I mean without a cigarette not sex.

I did take the car out today in the afternoon the cars wheels were seized but I manage to free them it felt like the brakes where on and the wheels wouldn't turn . I had to reverse it out and I made it to the garage a few miles away , it did feel weird and it did feel uncomfortable to say the least I think I was also a bit paranoid , I think getting out of the car is a lot worse then getting in , and  if anything was to happen I reckon it would be when I was exiting the vehicle but that is just my opinion , tonight we are supposed to be going to a little country Inn  which is just a few miles away and tomorrow I have to take Helen to the doctors .

2ND SHOWER

Was watching tv in bed until two o clock in the morning finished was the 2nd part of Prime Suspect then  got up to make a tuna and mayo sandwich not sure why all i knew was I was totally Hank Marvin.
As soon as I opened the tuna both cats were at my side they both had a tuna feast too , like me they too were both happy eating early in the morning.

Trouble is I am always up at the same time in the morning I can never sleep past six I reckon it is because I am still sleeping on my back .

TUESDAY
One of the neigh-boughs asked me if I would like to use her shower is a walk in one I said yes I had one whilst she was walking her dog , the second shower I have had in nearly five weeks I left my support socks off the rest off the day they are too tight and have been cutting in to my skin on the tops of my feet  .

Cooked a ox tail and braised steak stew with leeks mushrooms and carrots Helen cooked a load of pancakes .

I go to see the physiotherapist next Monday I hope he will tell me I can drive meaning we get our freedom back .My sister cant come over this weekend she is travelling down to Brighton we will miss her .I have still not tried to get behind the wheel of the car  the little Fiat 500 first trip I need to make is to the petrol station to fill her up.

Watching - "Jumpers For Goal posts".