Thursday 9 November 2023
I wanted and needed a walk yesterday but didn’t get around to it until quarter of an hour before sunset. I wore my new £32.99 fluorescent yellow, Dunlop-workwear, waterproof bomber jacket. I glowed. Before we moved here, had anyone told me I’d choose to be out walking in the middle of nowhere after sunset, I’d have roared with laughter. Absolutely no way. I am happy to walk in familiar parts of London at night, but most definitely not in the countryside or along country roads. Last night, I loved it. I saw bats, the air was cool, the increasing darkness made me much more aware of my other senses and wearing the hi-vis jacket made me feel considerably safer when a few logging trucks and delivery vans passed by.
As it happened, the DHL van that passed me was on its way to our house. One of the other vans that passed me was also on its way to or from our house. In the hour I was out walking, Chris took in two deliveries for me. My friend Becky is setting off from Birmingham soon and we will be preparing for the long-awaited construction of the cabin (delayed again by the wood not arriving this week as hoped). We will largely be assembling a mitre saw, a handheld circular saw and a collapsible workbench to use with the mitre saw. All I see is a mass of confusing parts. We have various scraps of wood and two pallets we can practise on. I messaged Becky last night to see if she had an axe. She expressed surprise at the question. I am increasingly realising that power tools and the axe are possibly part of a mid-life crisis. I just hope we come out of all this with our fingers and hands intact and, ultimately, a completed cabin. In my defence, I did used to enjoy and do woodwork until about the age of twenty so I’m not coming at it for the first time. My mum has also pointed out that on her side of the family there is a long tradition of woodwork and engineering (including working on the invention of the jet engine with Frank Whittle).
Since starting this, it has started raining, the kind of rain not at all conducive to working outdoors. However, the forecast for Friday and Saturday is cold but sunny, so I’m hoping we can make some good progress getting used to using the power saws and axe. It is mos definitely accurate to say that they are words I did not expect to be writing a year ago while still living solely in a flat in London.