recoveringacademic

Cat flap....... Out you go

@Ian D, have you thought about ICF? Read my stuff on BH about it (most of tagged as Durisol ) : warts and all. There are several ICF systems, Durisol isn't perfect, but then no system is.

Ah shaaadup you old codger...

"Ah, well maaaaaate, tha' wunts an 'ilti guuun ter fix they bolts ter 't steels lahk " It was another of those 'If I were you, I'd ' conversations. And I'm sick of them. Sick, sick, sick up to here I tell ya. Except today: oh delicious today, today's the day this Teddy Bear had a brief picnic. "Oh really, that's interesting: fancy a trip up the ladder to have a look at these then ?" At first they don't look much, until you drill one in a steel beam in less than 20 seconds with a Bosch impact , and bingo..... Well, give the old codger his due, he wheezed up the steps and inspected the self-drilling facade screws " Would sir care to drill another one in for me? It'll take sir less than 20 seconds ? " Nahhh, yer awreyet : bet that cost a bob-or-two." said Mr By Now Shame Face. " Bob or two yes, erm... Minus the cost of hiring a Hilti and the special bolts they spit..... Didn't tell him that they work better if you spit on the end of the screw. "Mind you don't fall off the ladder, (you miserable git) I muttered under my breath.

Very firmly, tell the architect to get some thinking about stinking done. He (I bet your architect isn't a woman) would not make that mistake about his own house. Lazy sod.

Exercise: too much damage from over-indulgence in exercise - crazy amounts of competitive fell-running between 1970s and the early 2000s saw to it that my knee and hip are now (politely) declaring their intention to quit Alohol: One or two beers in the evening, three evenings a week is all I allow myself usually. Yes I break that rule sometimes, but not drinking is a real focus for me recently.

Only another Making time for that job is a pleasure when you aren't already exhausted. I could spend a complete day clearing up - but I try to spend a few moments here and there during the day doing that. But even that's gone by the board these days. I'm going to snap out of this loop soon I hope.

This weekend, for the first time in God knows how long, I had a weekend off. I was amused at how, when trapped in a long traffic queue, I found myself enjoying it. A friggin' traffic jam! I didn't need to (couldn't ) do anything other than operate the clutch, and blip the accelerator as appropriate. It was as if I'd come out from under a rock, blinking into the sunlight. Weird.

Yes: 4 days off in June when I have a significant birthday..........

...... getting myself motivated is another : sometimes. Especially today for some reason. 3 full years in and the frayed edges are starting to show. Living with my mistakes and the mistakes of others. I'm tired. Dog tired. Bone tired. And all the things that I hate about myself bubble up to the surface too readily. I stamp hard on those annoying niggles when I can, and try to take pleasure in the very real achievements. But sometimes I just bloody well can't. Today, I can't. I used to teach students how to motivate themselves (!Ha!): so, in line with what I taught, I set SMART targets (Small Achievable Realistic Time-bound) for the next day, the next few hours, the next few minutes. But I recognise from previous experience ( marathon running, fell running ) that all too quickly, I have my eyes fixed on the floor, looking at the next few paces. I'm knackered. Had enough. Tearful sometimes. Big girl. I'm in that ungrateful, self-indulgent, whining mode. And I bet I'm not alone. If you recognise my description, how did you dig yourself out of a similar hole?

Calm down dear. ( = @lizzie) Charity shops, relatives' sheds, mates' spare rooms, local storage, local tip, recycling containers..... I'll get me coat.

Try booking a long weekend holiday in a timber frame house / lodge. Plenty on MrGoogle

Terrific! Some really well-chosen colour schemes on show. Let me guess.... you love Paynes Grey Let me guess further; #536878 (ish) The simplicity of line and form, and the lack of clutter does it for me: exactly what we're aiming for.

Ice cube trays : concrete?

Ditto.