I licked Trev's clipboard and I liked it

[PrincessConsueIaBananaHammock]

Thread number who knows , because I've lost count. We're adapting to normal 1.0 and lost our status as murderers. The grass is not off limits anymore and we can eat a bag of crisps outside with being accused of "premeditated picnics". Not a pan or pot in sight.

Oh well, there's still the second wave.

Come on I HATE talking on the phone, so far we'd just messaged (mutual friends with someone I have on FB), with one very brief phone call where I got rid of him really quickly 😂

Anyway last week I told him I'm a bit crap with calls and FaceTime, and he said well let's try one virtual date (basically him sat in his house with a bottle of wine and me in mine with gin haha) and if you're not into it then we can just message until travelling is easier. Sounded reasonable so yeah, when DD2 went to bed we had about an hour on video call just chatting and having a drink. I look awful on video calls and I was really cringey and awkward (even with gin in my system!) but it wasn't as bad as I imagined. And he's a bit phwoar. After an hour my dogs were all going bonkers at a someone letting off fireworks which gave me a reason to go. He messaged me after to say he'd really enjoyed it but if I just wanted to message from now on that's totally cool. And we chatted all day today 😏

Yay me 😂

Aww that sounds really lovely. Yay you!

Is there a reason why you seem to pick the really far away ones?

Honestly I think it's part of my defence mechanism. After a pretty horrific marriage and still struggling to set boundaries with exh that he'll actually respect, distance to me means safety. It means they can't just be in my space unless it's properly organised and I'm ok with it. If that makes sense?

Fair enough. I wasn't judging, just curious. After all I found OH in a whole different country!

It makes total sense. It means there's no rushing into things, any meetings need to be planned,organised and it can be in your own terms , no impromptu visits/surprises or demanding your time more than you are willing to give.

My ex was a massive abusive arsehole that worked in a different country and only was home a few months a year. Things went to proper shit once he quit that job and was home full time. We lasted about 6 months after that and that's with me being away at uni for half the time.

No it's fine I didn't mind you asking. I don't think I'd fully realised quite why I was doing it until recently. I'm ok with it though. It works for now. I was quite impulsive when I met exh, jumped in both feet because I thought he was so fab. It's only from reading MN that I realised he'd been love bombing me in those first months to get me hooked.

If and when I'm ready to take the plunge again, I need it to be more on my terms.

Exh worked away a lot and yeah when he quit that job and was home all the time, just how much of an abusive arsehole he was really came into sharp focus!!

I do find myself looking for red flags, but I think that's ok until someone shows you they don't have anything up their sleeve. I mean even then you can't be 100% sure because when I met exh he appeared to be absolutely red flag free! But I'm certainly more cautious these days and the minute something feels off with someone, I'm gone.

Going to see dps family in Belgium next month. I'm excited but also very nervous the thought of wearing masks everywhere daunts me

DarkHelmet that sounds a good evening. He sounds nice and supportive too. Fingers crossed😉

Knackered from work not enough staff for how busy it is and how much extra we have to do. Sick of not being able to hear customers and them not being able to hear me through 2 layers of plastic and kitchen noise! It's bloody nuts.

Oh Banana that sounds very exciting.

We're tentatively looking at a week in Ireland with friends, but keeping an eye on restrictions/self isolating rules.

Willow that sounds shit on both counts. Hope you get some chill time soon.

Willow considering how awkward I felt, yeah it was pretty good. I think I'd do it again.

That must be insanely difficult!! DD1 works retail and whether they wear masks from the 24th is up to the management. Her particular outlet has decided staff will wear masks, which she's really not looking forward to because she's a fainter so if her breathing is restricted she's worried about passing out on the shop floor.

Which reminds me someone passed out in the queue for the tills at primark when I was in last week! I'm sure they're not the first!

Yeah we have to wear them too even though retail staff do not have to! Must be seen to be 'conforming' I suppose.
No wonder people faint, lack of O2 and excessive amounts of co2 behind the masks to rebreath in its crazy.

I hadnt thought about the possibity of CO2 build up behind the mask.

DarkHelmet how did the live virtual tour go? What you want is the person who does the 'after' filming for Homes Under The Hammer. They always manage to get the shots which show where something doesnt quite line up or the paintwork is a little messy.

This whole modern dating thing terrifies me. I never look good on screen (or for that matter in real life).

Morning all!

Ah the virtual tour was cancelled Gnome, the agent said there were technical issues at the property, not a clue what that means! It's put me off slightly, makes me wonder if the virtual tour only showed what they wanted people to see! Or they could just be having WiFi problems? They were very non-specific in the email. Meh.

Yeah virtual dating is a new one on me! The only people I ever FaceTime are my DC and they've seen me in all kinds of disarray so it doesn't matter if it's all double chin and pjs when I video call them! He's been very chatty since though, and he hasn't pushed for another virtual date either. I'm hoping that's because he respects the fact that I was a bit uncomfortable and not because he's not interested. Oof. Unless he's waiting for me to suggest we do it again? And if I don't he'll think I'm the one not interested? Hm. I'm so out of practice with all this malarkey 😂

DarkHelmet technical issues does cover a multitude of sins. Some people arent comfortable with having people in their houses at the best of times. Perhaps the vendor got the wind up and wanted to be able to control everything.

Alternatively the technical reason was that the agent simply couldnt get the camera to work. I imagine there is a special estate agents camera where the wide angle is so wide you practically see behind the agent's ears. Perhaps somebody had forgotten to put it on charge!

DD1's completion date is creeping closer. She and her partner are now at the stage of having to fend off people wanting to offload their unwanted furnishings. While there may be some gems amongst them most of the time it is people not wanting to take stuff to the tip.

DD2's wedding also moves closer. A few small scale family spats are causing unnecessary stress. The wedding is only the couple plus witnesses followed by lunch in uni town then back to us for dinner but even with that small plan a couple of people are being awkward.

Hey ho, DD2 & DF are sticking to their guns which I am glad about.

They are amused to find themselves bang on trend. Small wedding celebrated with a few close relatives. Big party to follow later. This was what they were planning anyway!

Gnome well the property had been sat empty for 6 months now, so there's no sitting tenant or anything like that. I emailed them earlier and they said someone has made an application for it!! Which is odd because they told me I couldn't make an application without the live tour first. I'm going to step away from this property I think. Back to the drawing board!

DarkHelmet that's a shame and a bit strange. Probably best to step away.

House sales do seem to bring out the weirdness in (some) people. To be fair, if it's empty, were the technical problems simply that there's no wi-fi and the mobile internet isn't strong enough? Very odd about someone else having made an application though.

Ah that's shit Dark house sales can get really weird at times, a conspiracy theorist wet dream.

Good luck with your search.

First week of the holidays and we've been pretty busy. Started gutting the flat and sorting/ throwing stuff out. How can there be so much shit in a tiny little flat?

Another hair adventure tonight... I'll either be crying or grinning like an idiot!

How can there be so much shit in a tiny little flat?

It just grows. I cleared out some old clothes & shoes and ended up with a couple of black bags full. When DCs do a room tidy they can come out with sack fulls of just rubbish.

In the last five years I've done four house moves (shouldn't be moving again for ages, thank goodness). Every time I have thrown loads of rubbish away, and given away loads of stuff that's not rubbish but I wasn't using. The next time I moved, I found I still had both rubbish and things I wasn't using. How??

Dark magic, I can't explain it otherwise.

Hi all! Hm it seems there's a few threads about estate agents telling people places are under offer or sold when they're actually not. Hm. I'm definitely back to the drawing board anyway. No rush. Well.. I'd like to have been settled somewhere else before September but if it doesn't happen then it doesn't happen.

When DD1 and DS moved out we couldn't believe how much crap they'd accumulated!! Bags and bags of stuff for the charity shop or bin! I had a massive clear out at the same time and I bet if I did it again there'd be more crap to bag up 😅

I threw away two bin bags, have some stuff for sale and the cupboard is still full.

Dark magic I tell you!

That's a bummer about the house hunting Dark. Good luck.