Six months on

OK, it might be seven months since we retired, but the first month we were chasing tigers in India. Which means it is six months, or thereabouts, since we returned.

I mention this as we did worry that come September, the loss of long days and plunging temperatures might lead to endless days of boredom.

That might still happen, of course, but for the moment we have the new kitchen to prepare for, the old one to empty and pnder the eternal question of "how many wooden spoons is enough?"

Mum pondered this too, and she thought at least eight was needed. We, however, have two, and that seems to work.

We do have three food mixers. Two now, as the one I have used for 18 years to make Christmas cakes, the one gifted Jools by her Mother, has gone to the great kitchen in the sky. Two is probably enough.

Two, three or four mornings a week we go to the gym. Not as long as I'd like, but then it is delivering results. I imagined I'd walk more, but with the other stuff we do, and walking round Whitfield Tesco can add 3,000 steps to the day, double that if the move the shelves around again.

But we're not bored yet.

I did some churchcrawling, we have travelled a bit, and we can play cards with Jen and John whenever we want, though these last two weeks John has either been busy or at a funeral.

The garden is looking fabulous. Mainly down to Jools, but I did some, and the lawnmeadow is properly ready for next year.

Once the kitchen is done, I will do some batch cooking so to fill the freezers up again, and then we plan the next big task: the living and dining room. 27 feet long, with the thickest cream-coloured carpet known to mankind. This will come with new dining room table and chairs, and a new sofa. Being male, I think the 23 year old sagging and scratched old sofa is good for another quarter century or so, but I am told it is to go too.

There is Christmas to prepare for. We have made cakes, I have put the order in for supplies at the butcher. So, that just leaves the cases of sill strong Belgian beer to order.

We did think there would be a chance we might go back to work, if we got bored. Well, life is not yet boring, and Jools does not want to go back t work, and I haven't heard anything from my old employer about doing so highly paid part time auditing for them.

Oh well.

Next four weeks there is football pretty much every day. Which will keep me quiet. Then it will be the middle of November, dark for twenty three and a half hours a day, but we will have a shiny new kitchen.

Which will be nince.