Gullible's Travels
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Our house is not Georgian
But not too far off. We had previously thought that "Our house may be Georgian". Subsequent research shows that it is at least 1861. It is looking unlikely that it is earlier but we (that is Mary) has not definitively ruled it out.
We have been using http://www.ancestry.co.uk/ to research family history but it is also very handy for house detective work using the census records.
We know that our house and our immediate neighbours were Myrtle Villas in the 1860's; we have a reproduction Stanford map of 1862 which shows that clearly. And there in the 1861 census are 1, 2 and 3 Myrtle Villas. Living at number 2 are:
Sarah Banister 44 [ ] Coffee House Keeper
Elizabeth Banister 40 [Sister] Coffee House Keeper
Isiah Carver 62 [Head] Land Proprieter
Julia Carver 24 [Daughter]
Ervan Williams 20 [Lodger] Chemist
Working forwards, 2 Myrtle Villas turned into 28 North Street in 1871 and then, sometime in the early 20th century, turned into Fairfield Street.
Working backwards, the 1851 census shows the adjacent terrace 1-8 North Terrace (now the site of Fairfield Drive) but the next property listed is Tonsley Hall with no Myrtle Villas.
However some of the people at 3 Myrtle Villas in 1861 turn up in the earlier 1851 census at Ebenzer Place, also in Wandsworth. It is faintly possible they renamed the houses, took the census in a different sequence and we were still there. So the final jury is still out.
But not too far off. We had previously thought that "Our house may be Georgian". Subsequent research shows that it is at least 1861. It is looking unlikely that it is earlier but we (that is Mary) has not definitively ruled it out.
We have been using http://www.ancestry.co.uk/ to research family history but it is also very handy for house detective work using the census records.
We know that our house and our immediate neighbours were Myrtle Villas in the 1860's; we have a reproduction Stanford map of 1862 which shows that clearly. And there in the 1861 census are 1, 2 and 3 Myrtle Villas. Living at number 2 are:
Sarah Banister 44 [ ] Coffee House Keeper
Elizabeth Banister 40 [Sister] Coffee House Keeper
Isiah Carver 62 [Head] Land Proprieter
Julia Carver 24 [Daughter]
Ervan Williams 20 [Lodger] Chemist
Working forwards, 2 Myrtle Villas turned into 28 North Street in 1871 and then, sometime in the early 20th century, turned into Fairfield Street.
Working backwards, the 1851 census shows the adjacent terrace 1-8 North Terrace (now the site of Fairfield Drive) but the next property listed is Tonsley Hall with no Myrtle Villas.
However some of the people at 3 Myrtle Villas in 1861 turn up in the earlier 1851 census at Ebenzer Place, also in Wandsworth. It is faintly possible they renamed the houses, took the census in a different sequence and we were still there. So the final jury is still out.
Labels: wandsworth
¶ Permanent link: 1:43 PM 1 comments
Sunday, September 09, 2007
Bathroom Update (4)
Almost done! Andy came yesterday and fitted the second mirror door plus fixed one of the lights. We had our first bath yesterday and first shower this morning. All seems to be working just fine and dandy.
Bathroom before and after
Note the curve of the bath. That allowed us to move the bath to the wall side and hang the door the other way without bashing the corner. Having to buy a bath with a corner missing just about trebled the cost of the unit!
Previously: Bathroom Update (3), (2), (1), (0)
Almost done! Andy came yesterday and fitted the second mirror door plus fixed one of the lights. We had our first bath yesterday and first shower this morning. All seems to be working just fine and dandy.
Bathroom before and after
Note the curve of the bath. That allowed us to move the bath to the wall side and hang the door the other way without bashing the corner. Having to buy a bath with a corner missing just about trebled the cost of the unit!
Previously: Bathroom Update (3), (2), (1), (0)
Labels: wandsworth
¶ Permanent link: 11:35 AM 2 comments
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Maps Ancient and Modern
Ever since we took ownership of the Hovel-in-the-Hills™ we have been looking for decent scale maps of the local area.
The "Istituto Geografico Militare" http://www.igmi.org/ promised 1:25,000 (4 cm to 1 km or 2½ inches to 1 mile) but when we investigated they turned out to be discontinued. So instead we went for the 1:50,000. We are near an edge and so ordered two; one arrived and the other was out of print. And the level of detail is nothing like as clear as the Ordnance Survey maps. Pretty useless but we framed it and put it on the wall anyway.
Conversely the Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 series are readily available in all good bookshops, specialist leisure shops and online from their website. In fact the OS go all the way to 1:1250 for business purposes and also do historical maps. For Wandsworth they even do an 1866 map at a quite extraordinary 1:1,056, that is 5 feet to the statute mile! Which I bought.
You can see every outbuilding, drinking fountain, fence and field boundary, even the garden paths are marked in the bigger houses. Our house is there - both the original building and the later rear extension. So we now know that extension is at least 1866 and the main house, obviously, older than that.
Now all I need to do is get back down to the library and that 1851 survey to get a positive fix on our property. Easier to do now I can match the census house numbers to the buildings on the map.
Ever since we took ownership of the Hovel-in-the-Hills™ we have been looking for decent scale maps of the local area.
The "Istituto Geografico Militare" http://www.igmi.org/ promised 1:25,000 (4 cm to 1 km or 2½ inches to 1 mile) but when we investigated they turned out to be discontinued. So instead we went for the 1:50,000. We are near an edge and so ordered two; one arrived and the other was out of print. And the level of detail is nothing like as clear as the Ordnance Survey maps. Pretty useless but we framed it and put it on the wall anyway.
Conversely the Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 series are readily available in all good bookshops, specialist leisure shops and online from their website. In fact the OS go all the way to 1:1250 for business purposes and also do historical maps. For Wandsworth they even do an 1866 map at a quite extraordinary 1:1,056, that is 5 feet to the statute mile! Which I bought.
You can see every outbuilding, drinking fountain, fence and field boundary, even the garden paths are marked in the bigger houses. Our house is there - both the original building and the later rear extension. So we now know that extension is at least 1866 and the main house, obviously, older than that.
Now all I need to do is get back down to the library and that 1851 survey to get a positive fix on our property. Easier to do now I can match the census house numbers to the buildings on the map.
Labels: italy, wandsworth
¶ Permanent link: 4:59 PM 0 comments
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Bathroom Update (3)
Friday the bath arrived and the plaster starts to dry out. Monday the shelving unit was installed over the cistern. Tuesday the tiler started work on the walls.
Bathroom with bath, shelving and tiles
Even though they are moving along it is good that we have a shower and a second loo downstairs otherwise it would be off to work via the gym for a shower.
Previously: Bathroom Update (2), (1), (0)
Friday the bath arrived and the plaster starts to dry out. Monday the shelving unit was installed over the cistern. Tuesday the tiler started work on the walls.
Bathroom with bath, shelving and tiles
Even though they are moving along it is good that we have a shower and a second loo downstairs otherwise it would be off to work via the gym for a shower.
Previously: Bathroom Update (2), (1), (0)
Labels: wandsworth
¶ Permanent link: 9:08 AM 1 comments
Thursday, August 23, 2007
Bathroom Update (2)
The shower plumbing is complete and the cistern for the loo* is there. The walls are all re-plastered as are most of the holes in the ceiling where the old lights were. Yesterday a pallet load of tiles arrived for the floor and walls. But still no bath!
* Checking with my American colleague on the next desk perhaps I should translate this as: "the water reservoir for the toilet"
Previously: Bathroom Update (1), (0)
The shower plumbing is complete and the cistern for the loo* is there. The walls are all re-plastered as are most of the holes in the ceiling where the old lights were. Yesterday a pallet load of tiles arrived for the floor and walls. But still no bath!
* Checking with my American colleague on the next desk perhaps I should translate this as: "the water reservoir for the toilet"
Previously: Bathroom Update (1), (0)
Labels: wandsworth
¶ Permanent link: 8:35 AM 0 comments
Monday, August 20, 2007
Bathroom Update (1)
The lads are cracking on. Andy brought in a couple of electricians on Wednesday so we now have new ceiling lights: a couple of blue ones over the bath and five white ones across the rest of the ceiling. They are operated by a twin dimmer switch and all laid out in a neat diagonal pattern. Plus various other switches and boxes of unkown function, probably for the extractor fan and fuses and such like.
The plumbing also moves forward. The pipework for the basin is now plastered over and some new pipework has appeared where the shower will go. Now all we need is a bath. It was supposed to be delivered last Wednesday. Apparently it is in the country but not yet with the shop (Colourwash).
Previously: Bathroom Update (0)
The lads are cracking on. Andy brought in a couple of electricians on Wednesday so we now have new ceiling lights: a couple of blue ones over the bath and five white ones across the rest of the ceiling. They are operated by a twin dimmer switch and all laid out in a neat diagonal pattern. Plus various other switches and boxes of unkown function, probably for the extractor fan and fuses and such like.
The plumbing also moves forward. The pipework for the basin is now plastered over and some new pipework has appeared where the shower will go. Now all we need is a bath. It was supposed to be delivered last Wednesday. Apparently it is in the country but not yet with the shop (Colourwash).
Previously: Bathroom Update (0)
Labels: wandsworth
¶ Permanent link: 8:32 AM 1 comments
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
Bathroom Work Starts
Having agreed the design for the new bathroom in Wandsworth we commissioned the work and Andy started on Monday:
Bathroom before and after Monday
Of course it has to be "Demolition Derby" first!
Having agreed the design for the new bathroom in Wandsworth we commissioned the work and Andy started on Monday:
Bathroom before and after Monday
Of course it has to be "Demolition Derby" first!
Labels: wandsworth
¶ Permanent link: 12:57 PM 3 comments
Thursday, June 14, 2007
Our house may be Georgian
I am beginning to suspect our house may not be Victorian (1837-1902) but in fact Georgian (1714-1830).
When we bought the house the vendor told us it was 1890 but there is nothing in the legal paperwork to confirm this date. Stylistically nothing about it really looks late-Victorian: the cube-like overall shape of the building, the horizontal (not-arched) window lintels, the small panes in the sashes, the original wooden shutters, the tall (12 foot, 3.66 meter) ceilings. We have been describing the house to our friends as Victorian but with Georgian dimensions.
On Sunday I was chatting to Jo next door and she tells me we are listed in the 1851 census. Suddenly that makes more sense of the Victorian extension at the back. Why build a house and almost immediately extend it? But if the original property was built at least 40 years earlier that is far more plausible scenario.
Wednesday evening I called in at Battersea Library Local History Service near Clapham Junction to inspect the census which they had on microfilm. It was not possible to identify our property exactly as the street had changed name and length. It was previously North Street and ran all the way to the river.
Apparently a lot of street naming went on at the request of the emergency services because there were so many North Streets, Victoria Roads, etc. There used to be a field where B & Q now stands which was the site of Wandsworth Fair, marked on the 1894 OS map as "Fairfield" hence the new name of our street. I will chat to Jo again then go back armed with the original address.
Further evidence came last night when Mike from The Original Box Sash Windows Company came round to quote for refurbishing the side and back windows. He looked at the bathroom window and exclaimed "Good Lord, I have never seen a window that old!" This from a man whose company specializes in repairing Victorian windows.
He explained that the thin profile of the wood and quality of the joinery spoke to an earlier age of craftsmanship. This was repeated around the house. He also, interestingly pointed out the slightly opaque pane in our bedroom window as "sugar glass" - low quality glass from a repair sometime during WW2.
Wandsworth in 1786
This map from 1786 shows a street there and buildings. North street runs from just above the "W" of Wandsworth to the "r" in Creek. Pickpocket Lane is now, more prosaically, York Road. Unfortunately the scale and detail are not sufficient to confirm anything useful, merely to encourage. Now I am getting excited at the prospect of playing House Detective and researching the true age of our home. Watch this space...
I am beginning to suspect our house may not be Victorian (1837-1902) but in fact Georgian (1714-1830).
When we bought the house the vendor told us it was 1890 but there is nothing in the legal paperwork to confirm this date. Stylistically nothing about it really looks late-Victorian: the cube-like overall shape of the building, the horizontal (not-arched) window lintels, the small panes in the sashes, the original wooden shutters, the tall (12 foot, 3.66 meter) ceilings. We have been describing the house to our friends as Victorian but with Georgian dimensions.
On Sunday I was chatting to Jo next door and she tells me we are listed in the 1851 census. Suddenly that makes more sense of the Victorian extension at the back. Why build a house and almost immediately extend it? But if the original property was built at least 40 years earlier that is far more plausible scenario.
Wednesday evening I called in at Battersea Library Local History Service near Clapham Junction to inspect the census which they had on microfilm. It was not possible to identify our property exactly as the street had changed name and length. It was previously North Street and ran all the way to the river.
Apparently a lot of street naming went on at the request of the emergency services because there were so many North Streets, Victoria Roads, etc. There used to be a field where B & Q now stands which was the site of Wandsworth Fair, marked on the 1894 OS map as "Fairfield" hence the new name of our street. I will chat to Jo again then go back armed with the original address.
Further evidence came last night when Mike from The Original Box Sash Windows Company came round to quote for refurbishing the side and back windows. He looked at the bathroom window and exclaimed "Good Lord, I have never seen a window that old!" This from a man whose company specializes in repairing Victorian windows.
He explained that the thin profile of the wood and quality of the joinery spoke to an earlier age of craftsmanship. This was repeated around the house. He also, interestingly pointed out the slightly opaque pane in our bedroom window as "sugar glass" - low quality glass from a repair sometime during WW2.
Wandsworth in 1786
This map from 1786 shows a street there and buildings. North street runs from just above the "W" of Wandsworth to the "r" in Creek. Pickpocket Lane is now, more prosaically, York Road. Unfortunately the scale and detail are not sufficient to confirm anything useful, merely to encourage. Now I am getting excited at the prospect of playing House Detective and researching the true age of our home. Watch this space...
Labels: wandsworth
¶ Permanent link: 1:04 PM 3 comments
Monday, June 11, 2007
'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe *
The weekend was mostly spent in the garden completing the installation of an irrigation system to keep the plants watered while we are on holiday. This means we will return to a blooming garden unlike last year when absences and hose-pipe bans meant the spring planting did not survive the summer and we had a load of dead and dessicated plants.
It is also a fine example of "constructive laziness". My thighs may ache from hours hopping about in the shrubbery like a frog but that now means no more watering! At the appointed hour the hissing of summer lawns will announce the timer unleashing a trickle of drippers all around the garden.
I also realised that we now have a "wabe": The grass plot around a sundial. It is called a "wabe" because it goes a long way before it, and a long way behind it, and a long way beyond it on each side. This sundial was my 50th birthday present from the family and lived on the patio at Avon Cottage. Now it is on the Wandsworth lawn I have a "wabe". So that's nice.
* "Jabberwocky" by Lewis Carroll
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe *
The weekend was mostly spent in the garden completing the installation of an irrigation system to keep the plants watered while we are on holiday. This means we will return to a blooming garden unlike last year when absences and hose-pipe bans meant the spring planting did not survive the summer and we had a load of dead and dessicated plants.
It is also a fine example of "constructive laziness". My thighs may ache from hours hopping about in the shrubbery like a frog but that now means no more watering! At the appointed hour the hissing of summer lawns will announce the timer unleashing a trickle of drippers all around the garden.
I also realised that we now have a "wabe": The grass plot around a sundial. It is called a "wabe" because it goes a long way before it, and a long way behind it, and a long way beyond it on each side. This sundial was my 50th birthday present from the family and lived on the patio at Avon Cottage. Now it is on the Wandsworth lawn I have a "wabe". So that's nice.
* "Jabberwocky" by Lewis Carroll
Labels: garden, wandsworth
¶ Permanent link: 8:47 PM 0 comments
Tuesday, June 05, 2007
Sunday in the Garden
At the weekend we bought *three* trolley-loads of plants and spent Sunday planting them in the beds.
Planting the lower bed
Mary did the planting, I did the big weeds and cutting the lawn.
The lower bed planted up
I also spiked all over the front lawn with a fork and now the muscles in my fingers ache. "My hand's can't feel to grip" - opening screw top bottles is real a challenge.
At the weekend we bought *three* trolley-loads of plants and spent Sunday planting them in the beds.
Planting the lower bed
Mary did the planting, I did the big weeds and cutting the lawn.
The lower bed planted up
I also spiked all over the front lawn with a fork and now the muscles in my fingers ache. "My hand's can't feel to grip" - opening screw top bottles is real a challenge.
Labels: wandsworth
¶ Permanent link: 8:37 AM 1 comments
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
A New Bathroom for Wandsworth
Plan for new bathroom
Our bathroom is small and a previous owner has not made best use of the space.
The "before" as it is now has the bath against the window wall, the basin top left and the loo currently where the basin will be, bottom right.
The door opens the other way so, if you are sitting on the loo you get knee-capped as the door opens. Plus the shower window-side means the sill gets soaked and all the paint peels off.
This "after" was designed for us by the team at "H2OLondon". Hanging the door the other way and rearranging the units as you see here will make a big difference. Plus new everything and tiles and accessories will make a transformation. Well done chaps.
We have a final visit to the warehouse on Friday to see the bath in the flesh and choose tiles and colours. Then a six week lead time on the bath so the work won't be done till the end of July. Fortunately we have a shower room downstairs otherwise that might have meant a week of showering at work.
Plan for new bathroom
Our bathroom is small and a previous owner has not made best use of the space.
The "before" as it is now has the bath against the window wall, the basin top left and the loo currently where the basin will be, bottom right.
The door opens the other way so, if you are sitting on the loo you get knee-capped as the door opens. Plus the shower window-side means the sill gets soaked and all the paint peels off.
This "after" was designed for us by the team at "H2OLondon". Hanging the door the other way and rearranging the units as you see here will make a big difference. Plus new everything and tiles and accessories will make a transformation. Well done chaps.
We have a final visit to the warehouse on Friday to see the bath in the flesh and choose tiles and colours. Then a six week lead time on the bath so the work won't be done till the end of July. Fortunately we have a shower room downstairs otherwise that might have meant a week of showering at work.
Labels: wandsworth
¶ Permanent link: 9:07 PM 1 comments
Thursday, April 05, 2007
American Visitors
Over the weekend Mary was in Scotland with her Mum and I was playing host to a couple of American visitors: Elizabeth (an old colleague) and Baylor, a friend of hers.
They arrived Friday morning and we immediately set off to Stonehenge with a couple of minor detours to look at where Elizabeth and I worked together for a while. Stonehenge was pretty chilly, grey and overcast but an unexpected bonus for Baylor; E and I have been there before but it is still an impressive sight.
Saturday they did not want to do the tourist thing so we chilled out around Wandsworth. We went to the farmers' market by the station and then for a walk along the Thames-side path. We took a route Mary and I do often over Wandle Creek, through the park (Grade 2 listed) to Putney Bridge and back through the residential streets. I was pointing out all the typical Victorian terraced housing. Then quick visits to Ros and to Sarah to drop off stuff for our visit to Italy on Saturday and finally home for a meal with the food from the market.
Over the weekend Mary was in Scotland with her Mum and I was playing host to a couple of American visitors: Elizabeth (an old colleague) and Baylor, a friend of hers.
They arrived Friday morning and we immediately set off to Stonehenge with a couple of minor detours to look at where Elizabeth and I worked together for a while. Stonehenge was pretty chilly, grey and overcast but an unexpected bonus for Baylor; E and I have been there before but it is still an impressive sight.
Saturday they did not want to do the tourist thing so we chilled out around Wandsworth. We went to the farmers' market by the station and then for a walk along the Thames-side path. We took a route Mary and I do often over Wandle Creek, through the park (Grade 2 listed) to Putney Bridge and back through the residential streets. I was pointing out all the typical Victorian terraced housing. Then quick visits to Ros and to Sarah to drop off stuff for our visit to Italy on Saturday and finally home for a meal with the food from the market.
Labels: social, wandsworth
¶ Permanent link: 2:36 PM 0 comments
Friday, February 16, 2007
Avon Cottage Empty ...
... but Wandsworth house full!
"Well the move seemed to go smoothly" he said, looking at the chaos around him.
Breakfast room full of packing boxes
Dining room full of packing boxes
Living room full of packing boxes
It took the movers four and a half hours to pack up the cottage. The 17 metre van was full, we literally could not get another item in. And it is now all in our Wandsworth home!
We cannot move; we have two complete sets of *everything*. The bedrooms upstairs are just as bad. It will take a while to digest this lot. A few trips to the local auction house and municipal dump will help. And expect to see quite a few items appearing on eBay, we have already sold a washing machine and a day bed. There will be more to follow...
Oh, yes, and we had a lovely meal at The Food Room and fell exhausted out of the taxi and into bed.
... but Wandsworth house full!
"Well the move seemed to go smoothly" he said, looking at the chaos around him.
Breakfast room full of packing boxes
Dining room full of packing boxes
Living room full of packing boxes
It took the movers four and a half hours to pack up the cottage. The 17 metre van was full, we literally could not get another item in. And it is now all in our Wandsworth home!
We cannot move; we have two complete sets of *everything*. The bedrooms upstairs are just as bad. It will take a while to digest this lot. A few trips to the local auction house and municipal dump will help. And expect to see quite a few items appearing on eBay, we have already sold a washing machine and a day bed. There will be more to follow...
Oh, yes, and we had a lovely meal at The Food Room and fell exhausted out of the taxi and into bed.
Labels: avon cottage, moving house, wandsworth
¶ Permanent link: 8:32 AM 2 comments
Monday, February 05, 2007
House Clearance
Did you know you can get sixteen and a half cases of wine in a BMW 330Ci Sport? That's 198 bottles with no room for passengers! Mind you it doesn't do much for the handling and acceleration. I was breaking gently well in advance of junctions and roundabouts (US: circles).
When we met our buyers two weekends ago ["Avon Cottage Under Offer"] the talk was of completion by Easter, last weekend this turned into "third week of Feb" and by last Tuesday it was Friday 16th. O-o-oh ****, that's less than three weeks away. We still had to clear the house, dump the rubbish, move the wine, ship the furniture, spring clean the place and complete the actual sale.
So we brought the skip hire forward and this weekend, while Mary was in Scotland, I was down the cottage in my blue overalls filling the skip. I thought 3.5 cubic metres (4.5 cubic yards) would see us through the next two weekends. But no. By 11:30 the thing was full.
The rest of the day was spent clearing Jabba the Shed, disassembling the shelving in the loft and casing up the wine from the Vinosafe. The VSP 214 holds a thousand bottles and that means quite a few round trips.
Sunday was preparing the Wandsworth house for the furniture onslaught. Moving furniture from room to room so we can free up the back bedroom as a temporary furniture depository. The 16.5 cases are all safely in the cellar but boy are my back muscles aching today.
Did you know you can get sixteen and a half cases of wine in a BMW 330Ci Sport? That's 198 bottles with no room for passengers! Mind you it doesn't do much for the handling and acceleration. I was breaking gently well in advance of junctions and roundabouts (US: circles).
When we met our buyers two weekends ago ["Avon Cottage Under Offer"] the talk was of completion by Easter, last weekend this turned into "third week of Feb" and by last Tuesday it was Friday 16th. O-o-oh ****, that's less than three weeks away. We still had to clear the house, dump the rubbish, move the wine, ship the furniture, spring clean the place and complete the actual sale.
So we brought the skip hire forward and this weekend, while Mary was in Scotland, I was down the cottage in my blue overalls filling the skip. I thought 3.5 cubic metres (4.5 cubic yards) would see us through the next two weekends. But no. By 11:30 the thing was full.
The rest of the day was spent clearing Jabba the Shed, disassembling the shelving in the loft and casing up the wine from the Vinosafe. The VSP 214 holds a thousand bottles and that means quite a few round trips.
Sunday was preparing the Wandsworth house for the furniture onslaught. Moving furniture from room to room so we can free up the back bedroom as a temporary furniture depository. The 16.5 cases are all safely in the cellar but boy are my back muscles aching today.
Labels: avon cottage, moving house, wandsworth
¶ Permanent link: 1:11 PM 1 comments
Sunday, January 21, 2007
Wandsworth Chainsaw Massacre
We got off lightly in Thursday's winds. One tree down and it was one we had wanted to remove as it was three quarters dead. Ours fell sideways and landed on the garages at the bottom of the garden. I was able to wrestle it back into the garden as it was only 8 in (23 cm) diameter. Next door's was three or four times that size and took out a lamppost in the street, they were lucky it fell sideways as well.
Nature has saved us the cost of a tree surgeon but it did leave us with the problem of disposal. As luck would have it we were going down to the cottage this week end to start the rubbish clear our - better to chuck it that move it - and so I brought the chainsaw up to London. Boys', big-cheesey-grin, kind of work.
The logs will go to Bob&Lynn next time we go down to the cottage.
Wallace and Grommit watched from the safety of the shrubbery.
We got off lightly in Thursday's winds. One tree down and it was one we had wanted to remove as it was three quarters dead. Ours fell sideways and landed on the garages at the bottom of the garden. I was able to wrestle it back into the garden as it was only 8 in (23 cm) diameter. Next door's was three or four times that size and took out a lamppost in the street, they were lucky it fell sideways as well.
Nature has saved us the cost of a tree surgeon but it did leave us with the problem of disposal. As luck would have it we were going down to the cottage this week end to start the rubbish clear our - better to chuck it that move it - and so I brought the chainsaw up to London. Boys', big-cheesey-grin, kind of work.
The logs will go to Bob&Lynn next time we go down to the cottage.
Wallace and Grommit watched from the safety of the shrubbery.
Labels: garden, wandsworth
¶ Permanent link: 5:53 PM 1 comments
Saturday, April 15, 2006
Arthur "Two Sheds" Jackson
I have written previously of the challenges in naming our bike shed (see "Jabba the Shed". Now the problem has been solved, the inspiration has been found.
We decided we needed a second shed in which to store our garden furniture that we won at auction. So off we went to Homebase this week to order a second bike shed. Of their range it seemed the best size and shape to accommodate our wooden folding chairs.
So now we will have two identical sheds and then I remembered the old Monty Python sketch about Arthur "Two Sheds" Jackson.
So I will be calling one shed "Arthur" and the other shed "Jackson". Excellent! <grin>
I have written previously of the challenges in naming our bike shed (see "Jabba the Shed". Now the problem has been solved, the inspiration has been found.
We decided we needed a second shed in which to store our garden furniture that we won at auction. So off we went to Homebase this week to order a second bike shed. Of their range it seemed the best size and shape to accommodate our wooden folding chairs.
So now we will have two identical sheds and then I remembered the old Monty Python sketch about Arthur "Two Sheds" Jackson.
So I will be calling one shed "Arthur" and the other shed "Jackson". Excellent! <grin>
Labels: humour, wandsworth
¶ Permanent link: 9:22 AM 0 comments
