In or Out...

It would be hard to post this week without at least mentioning the result of the EU referendum. Whether your vote was for In or Out I think most would say they were shocked by the outcome. As someone who’s new home lost 10% of its monetary value overnight I felt somewhat abashed by the result and wholly guilty when talking to my lovely Romanian plasterer - lets face it most people voted with immigration issues at the forefront of their minds.

 Under different circumstances I may well have voted out, I get that Britain could be stronger as an independent unit and it certainly might cut some of the red tape that surrounds farming and animal rearing, but right now ‘Brexit’ is a wasp at my proverbial picnic and it has stung.

Anyway, onwards...

Far more important to me are the changes to our little slice of the pie. As I type this our builders are laying our new kitchen floor – an actual real, solid floor that you can actually walk on!! We have smooth, glossy, freshly plastered walls in our bedroom and bathroom simply awaiting a coat of well-chosen paint. A whole portion of the garden is now weed free and it’s genuinely starting to look like something we can live in. We are there so often now that the dogs turn in straight through the gate rather than carrying on up the street to go back to the ‘half way house’ when we go for a walk. It’s nice, it’s like we are already settled to some extent.

With our countdown to move in day still ticking, I find myself getting frustrated with the day to day running of the here and now. I noticed a leak in the chicken house last week and hastily retrieved some unwanted plastic sheeting from work to patch the roof - really?? It couldn't hold out just a few more weeks??! My car needed new front tyres before they got so bad I was heading for an accident - £60 we could have used elsewhere! I'm all too aware the dogs are due their boosters and annual check up next month and MOT's are on the horizon too. In short, though our little world has been put on hold to focus entirely on The Keep, the wider world keeps on spinning and demands to be obeyed and paid. Annoying, but grounding.

With things really taking shape we are contemplating starting to bring some of our belongings out of storage. First will probably come the chicken sheds and outdoor stuff so that it's all set up for the girls on move in day. Following that it will be wardrobes and bookshelves and tables. Then the time will come to rediscover all the little niknaks I have forgotten I packed so carefully away almost 18 months ago - I'm wondering now where my somewhat huge collection of ornamental chickens is going to go... 

With the future of the country (and my well loved ornaments) in limbo, I feel a certain resolve to roll up my sleeves and push on. We didn't take The Keep on for the money, help will always be gratefully received by us no matter the country of it's origin and tomorrow will no doubt bring a new challenge, a new turn of events. Either way, I'm IN.

Come rain or shine, it'll still be mine.

G