Free as a bird (almost)

In the last three weeks I have
1. moved my clothes out of cupboard in my bedroom that is a little awkward to access (door opens wrong way for my tastes) into the office
I remembered I prefer to sleep in an emptyish room, so all the clothes clutter now shares space with books, printer etc
2 . moved a pile of office stuff that I don't need to use very often to that cupboard in my bedroom, out of sight, out of mind
3. reclaimed my sitting room from all the writing paraphernalia that I had to move in there to create a writing nook at the main computer when damp suddenly invaded the office last winter (sorted now, took an age) and my laptop packed in, so I couldn't write in bed the way I like - just like Winston Churchill :) Laptop replaced now and that makes a huge difference to how I use the space in this house.
4. Emptied all the kitchen cupboards and drawers, washed everything down and put everything where it belongs
5. Cleaned and repainted the mobile pantry (one of my favourite items of furniture, but it doesn't half collect grime)
6. Rehung the fridge door so it would close properly
7. Repainted the cupboard that got stained in a boiler malfunction in the Spring
8. Got on top of a bunch of minor electrical repairs and replaced all the light bulbs that had blown at the first hint of Autumn
9. Moved my sewing kit into the office
10. Tidied the hall cupboard which just seems to collect STUFF that I can't decide what to do with
11. Gave the bathroom its autumn deep clean
12. Washed all the bed quilts, and winter jumpers, put away most of the summer clothes
13. Gave my little patch of garden a much needed tidy up
14. Forgot to mention the cooker/oven, least favourite job, never as bad as I expect.
15. Edit: have now decided all the curtains need doing after the great amount of stonework done on the exterior of the building this summer.

All that whilst being a little distracted by enjoying the phenomenally good weather we have been having.

Today I started on the admin backlog, six months since I even looked in my in-tray. Still all the glass to clean, a mound of ironing to tackle and some stuff to get rid of on Freecycle and eBay, but I'm getting there. Hoping to be able to forget domesticity/have all decks cleared by the time the equinox rolls around, possibly sooner. All this by way of explaining to myself what the heck has taken me so unbelievably long. But it has. Bring on the Autumn, I'm very nearly ready for it.

I was utterly charmed by these starlings singing their happy little hearts out along at the development . They have always perched on the top of this turret (as you can see) but now they're taking full advantage of the scaffolding to get an even higher perch. I so admire their adaptability.

One other thing: listening to Poetry Please on the radio as I waded through admin I was stopped in my tracks by Daniel Day Lewis reading his father, Cecil Day Lewis' poem 'Children Leaving Home.' One of my favourite actors reading one of my favourite poet's best poems, of which he, Daniel, is one of the subjects. Starts about 15 minutes 50 seconds in. Sublime and heart-wrenching.