BSW01

Good morning everyone 

Up early again today, this time for a blood letting appointment at the surgery, thankfully it’s not raining, so at least I won’t get wet! Once back from the surgery I’ll pick up my wallet and head off to the butchers for the weekly meat rations and a pork pie for my dinner. This will be followed by a quick visit to the Trafford Centre for a few more bits and pieces. 
 

Land grabs! Yes, yes, I’ve also suffered from land grabs. I originally planned to put my railway layout in the big attic room, as at the time, I was using the small attic room as a modelling room and model store room. Then Sheila decided that the small attic room was needed for household storage and as I had the cellar, she’d and workshop, she was going to use the large attic room as a sewing room. This was the main reason for all the refurbishment work I’ve done in the two cellar rooms. However, when I sat back and thought about it, the idea of carrying all the timber etc needed to build a layout and the fact that it gets very hot in the attic during the summer and quite cool (Sheila would say ‘cold’) in the winter. I’m now glad to be using the cellar, the ambient temperature is far more stable, which has a variation is just a few degrees AND I also have valuable direct external access to the cellar from the back garden. This negates the need to carry ‘stuff’ (particularly large sheets of plywood) through house, risking the possibly of damaging things as I do so. As a bonus, the cellar is slightly larger than the attic, albeit an odd shape, but I think it’s a win win really. Sheila has been down to the cellar and had a look, she’s very impressed with how it looks now, compared to how it looked 5 years ago, but I’m saved from further land grabs, as she doesn’t like the stairs, as the hand rail doesn’t reach the top, stopping when it reaches the ceiling, as seen in the photo below!
 

The hand rail and spindles were all added by myself, the cellar originally had none at all. 
 

Back later. 
 

Brian

Good evening everyone 

We were very lucky with the weather today, the sun shone whilst we were out and continued until early evening, when it started to rain. As expected, we made a few purchases in the garden centre, so, weather permitting, I’m going to be busy at weekend.

Our house, which was built in 1897, now has 11 rooms, but it originally had 12. On the ground floor we have 3 rooms, a front room, a middle or dining room and kitchen. This was originally 2 rooms, a kitchen for preparing the food and a scullery, for cleaning pans and dishes etc. This was the smaller of the 2 rooms and had been removed to turn the kitchen one larger room before we bought the house. Upstairs on the first floor we have 3 bedrooms and a bathroom, which unusually, an original feature, not a latter addition. On the second floor we have 2 attic rooms, the small room was for storage, the larger room was possibly the servants bedroom. Finally in the cellar we have another 2 rooms, again the smaller was for storage, possibly a larder, the bigger room was a laundry room, complete with built in coal fired copper for doing the laundry. The small room is now an office, the large room is going to be my railway room. 
 

I forgot to add that the house was originally gas lit, this was in place until the mid 30’s. When I was renovating the cellar rooms and pulled down the original ceilings, I the remains of the bell system used to contact the servant/s as well as a newspaper from July 1935. This was probably left by the electrician when the house first received an electrical supply. 

Good morning everyone 

Another dull start to the day, but thankfully it isn’t raining, which is good, as We are going to collect Ava soon and then head off to RHS Bridgewater for a walk round the gardens then a drink and a slice, mmmmm, what’s not to like. Following that, we’ll have a look in the garden centre then return home for some dinner.
 

After dinner, Ava will assist me in completing the fruit tea loaf that I left soaking overnight, it’ll fill the kitchen with both a nice aroma and some warmth too. Not that it’s cold, it’s just that nice warm aroma you get from home baking, mmmmmmmm.

Back later. 
 

Brian