How brave is my man, seen here cleaning out the gutters!!
You might take one look at these photos and think 'that's not too bad I could do that!' But Alan has a real fear of heights, so much so that he could not even walk the lower ramparts around the edge of Conwy Castle, he froze completely on the London Eye ... and our souvenir photo shows a white ghost of a man clutching the handrail and me with the whitest of knuckles.
We've had one of the dry verge ends of the roof hanging off the side of Alan's house for months now. We were going to do something about it in Spring and then our neighbour spotted that some birds had built a nest in the space behind the edging cap. We both witnessed them flitting in and out feeding their young for quite a while, so we left things as they were and just prayed that the large piece didn't fall off completely before the babies fledged.
Alan working under the watchful eye of the guy who owns the cherry picker.
He did great and the job was done in ten minutes, although I'm sure it felt a lot longer than that for Alan. He did manage a tentative wave when I asked him to ... yes, I'm cruel like that.
And before long he was being slowly lowered back down to earth ...
... knuckles not quite so white, but still looking a little worse for the high-rise experience.
The guy with the cherry picker took pity on Alan and went up himself to check all the back flat roof part of Alan's house and clean that up before he left. So that's both our homes nice and safe for Winter, gutters cleared, loose bits reattached, flat roof clear. Because while he was in the maintenance mode Alan also cleared out the gutters on my Lodge ... which luckily are only about eight foot off the ground and reachable with a small ladder.
I also have interior winter prep in full swing as it's been getting so much colder in the evenings this past week. Today I am washing the 4.5tog duvet and putting the warmer 10.5 duvet in the cover instead, these last few nights have seen me piling the bed up with additional lightweight covers to try and keep warm. While I'm at it I will also be packing away the lightest of my summer clothes. It will be so nice to see some of my old faithful woolly jumpers and some darker colours again.
Are you starting to plan for the coming cooler months?
Sue xx
Huge congrats to Alan for achieving something so uncomfortable to him.
ReplyDeleteYou should have called me - I would have loved to play with that cherry-picker and would happily have fixed your gutters for the chance to spend time up there ☺️.
He did really well, I thought it might have 'cured' him, but he just came down and said, 'NEVER AGAIN!!'
DeleteI did offer to go up, but he was already in the harness etc and said he would give it a try. I have no fear of heights much to Alan's dismay in high places ... he nearly had a heart attack when I jumped on the glass floor at the top of Blackpool Tower!
There are definite benefits of living in a bungalow - cheaper to have the windows cleaned, cheaper to have my woodburner done and I really ought to get the ladder out and have a go at my guttering too....can I borrow Alan please?!!
ReplyDeleteYes, there are lots of perks to low level living, the only drawback for me is as my ceilings go up to the point of the roof, I really struggle to reach the cobwebs that accumulate up there. I could definintely hire Alan out for bungalow work for sure. :-)
DeleteKeith is the only one with a head for heights in our household, oh and middle daughter, but we don't see much of her as she's always so busy. The rest of us inherited my mum's fear of heights - which has worsened the older I get. WELL DONE to Alan for being well outside of his comfort zone doing that job. I hope he got a cream cake for being so brave.
ReplyDeleteI changed the bed yesterday, still with the summer-weight duvet on, but with the addition of a home-made patchwork quilt. Then of course we were too hot in the night! Will have to find a thinner quilt for tonight. I used to have winter-weight curtains in our last house, which was very cold in winter. Here I don't, but have a roller blind over the big kitchen window and in the library, and the two north-facing bedrooms have wooden shutters inside. We have BIG windows (it's an old house) and those shutters make a big difference in winter.
He's had his evening meals cooked by me most days this week so he's doing okay :-)
DeleteYes, window coverings make a huge difference don't they. I have been closing my curtains as soon as the sun is off the glass this past week to trap any heat I have gathered inside before it goes chilly again.
Oh, my word - very brave man indeed. I tend to freeze under those circumstances although I'm better than I used to be, so I think he is amazing. xx
ReplyDeleteI only found out that Alan was scared of heights when we went on the London Eye about a year after we met, as you say he just stepped on and then froze in fear. I had to literally pull him over to the benches and sit him down. At the top he just had his eyes closed. I thought he did exceptionally well to be able to get the roof edges mended.
DeleteWell done Alan!! Good to have a man you can look up to!!
ReplyDeleteI definitely do in every way ... especially as there is a bigger difference in our heights now. :-)
DeleteI am afraid of heights as well, so I know just how much it took to get in that cherry picker. Well done. Getting ready for fall? Every time there is a cool day, there is a pot of soup going. Today will only be in the sixties. Soup of the day: Chicken and rice, a nice loaf of wheat bread to go with it. (I'm also getting my bread mojo back.)
ReplyDeleteOh, it's so nice to be getting back to soup season isn't it. I need to get back to bread making too, it's a long time since I made a loaf.
DeleteWow, yes those cherry pickers are scary things - I wouldn't fancy being right up there!
ReplyDeleteI'm looking forward to getting the winter woolies out soon I remember thinking, when I was packing them away last spring, that a few bits needed replacing, I've got a feeling that will be put off for another season now due this budget restraints
Alison in Wales x
I love getting out the winter woollies and warm fleeces, I'm hoping I can get away with not buying anything new this year. I know I am okay for winter shoes; I just can't remember how many jumpers I packed away earlier this year.
DeleteCrikey Alan was so brave there. I couldn't have gone up in the cherry picker. I don't think I could climb the ladder to check the guttering on the bungalow! It will need to be done though because we have a lot of trees quite close by which are going to shed loads of leaves and pine needles any day now.
ReplyDeleteThe garden is being tidied up for Winter, a Winter hanging basket has been planted with pansies and ivy, the garage freezer has been defrosted and cleaned ready for stocking up too. We still have our Summer duvets on the beds but it's getting much cooler at night now so we'll soon need to change them to the thicker ones. G hates the onset of Autumn but I love this time of year. I was born in November and love battening down the hatches for Winter. Hot soup and chunky bread, warming veggie stews, rice pudding, crumble and hot custard ;) Yummy!
Exactly that, battening down the hatches is my favourite thing to do, and oh yes, all those lovely warming foods. We have a lot to look forward to.
DeleteWe have a bungalow so all cleaning duties are quite easy thank goodness. I’ve just put the 4.5 duvet on the bed this week having folded away the 1.5 tog! Catriona
ReplyDeleteOooh, I didn't even know that there was a 1.5tog duvet, I don't think that would be enough for me even in Summer though. I love single floor living, although I do miss the exercise of stairs.
DeleteGood for Alan!
ReplyDeleteI wish my DH were a bit more cautious. In general, he doesn't like high heights, but he cleans the gutters on our two story house, at least monthly with a blower, more often if there are heavy rains/storms predicted (too many overhanging trees, most not ours--so lots of tree debris year-round). He uses a tall ladder set on our second story deck to climb up on the roof and then he walks up and over the peak to clear the front gutter (about 15.5 meters long). Returns back over the peak and down to clear the back gutter. Sometimes has to get on hands and knees to clear stubborn/stuck debris. However, he got a major tongue-lashing from me when he once cleared the gutters in the midst of a tropical storm with pouring rain and 50mph+ winds. In flip flops. Brave, yes. Bonkers sometimes, yes.
In flip flops!! Yes, definitely bonkers, what are men like. It's a good job we love them even if they do turn our hair grey with worry. :-)
DeleteThis time of year always sees me with renewed energy so I’m joining our neighborhood garage sale this weekend. Out go various bits and pieces, and fall and winter clothing that no longer appeals (or fits!)
ReplyDeleteOh, I would love our little cul-de-sac to have a garage sale, what a perfect way to get rid of stuff without having to travel.
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