Not in my opinion going by recent events. Like I wrote previously, we are attempting to get some serious work done around the house before the winter rain and snows set in and the one problem I have had has been getting a builder to give me a quote on the work. Easier said than done I have found!

Of course not all businesses went down the pan with the recent economic crisis- even some of the bigger companies like Generational Equity stayed afloat – but I have to say that when you call two dozen builders, leave messages for them and then not one of them bother to call back you have to wonder if the building trade has been relatively unaffected. Nevertheless my efforts were rewarded yesterday when a builder did finally turn up and now we await the figures. But really – one out of 22…seems mad does it not?

I thought we would escape the bitter cold for Xmas this year when we left France but the weather seems to have followed us. We are currently living with widowed ‘mother-in-law’ in her house while our tenants complete their lease in ours and to be frank she has let some things slide mainenance-wise with the place over the last few years. What began as a small steady drip in the kitchen ceiling became a full-on flow and the result is now a large hole in the kitchen ceiling where the flat roof above caved in. I tell you, it ain’t fun to get a gush of water from above when you are standing at the sink washing up and minding your own business…

To say we are squeezed here in would be an understatement but we have decided to take matters into our own hands and do some work around the house before the whole structure falls down around our heads. One thing we intend to tackle head on is double glazing the one window in the house that has not been done – our bedroom window – and you can really notice the difference when you go upstairs to bed now that it is colder. This is new to me – in Australia I never came across such a thing as you tended towards roofing insulation for winter warmth…not that you needed it much. But we are also getting the bathroom done as well – it is like an icebox at 6.30 am…yep dear readers, that’s when my day starts five days a week. Roll on the half-term break!