Roots for rent

A few weeks ago I spontaneously went to an art class with JJ; not a real art class but one about expressing yourself on paper (or collage etc). It was supposed to help us find work-life balance or at least identify the gaps. I think it part it helped us find out inner five-year-old – there was glitter, tissue paper, poster paints and lots of PVA everywhere. I inadvertently focused on my crafts but also on how I can’t seem to get on top of them because I don’t really live anywhere. I live with my parents while saving up to buy a place, with a flat-full of stuff in a bedroom, with more stuff in an attic of a house we rent out. It’s not stuff that should be in an attic – it’s Pterry books, craft stuff, DVDs etc. Stuff that should be in a house. So I think I feel like I don’t really live anywhere, which means I can’t settle. Plus I’m spending a lot on petrol and not having a social life near work because I always need to drive home. Parental home is moving at some point, and the thought of trying to move a flat-full of stuff from one bedroom to another is depressing both me and Mum. Plus I’ve lost so much stuff. My camera (as you know), the latest Muse CD Ding bought me, my other camera, my boss’s work CD-ROM (eep), my Passionada DVD (Jason Isaacs), my USB mouse, my iPod charger (in use), my iPhone charger (reserved for when the iPod charger eventually breaks, only to be missing when the iPod charger vanished), my wellies, my boiler suit, various items of underwear (yes, you did need to know that), a ball of green wool and my crochet hooks 🙁 – le sigh.

So in a drastic turn of events (considering our family has an issue with the idea of renting somewhere – “it’s wasted money!”) I have decided to rent somewhere near to work. Which in itself is exciting as I’ve never rented in my life. I’m hoping that having somewhere that is mine that has a full complement of rooms (i.e. my kitchen stuff can go in my kitchen instead of under my bed and in the attic) will let me feel a sense of stability. Today I visited estate agents. Tomorrow I may well visit more.

As a slight aside, I wish to highlight Toaster’s recent (ok, September, I’m a bad blog-reader) post. Clicky. I printed it for my office wall – to bring my mind back to the point occasionally. You can get accused when blogging (and often rightly so) of trying to be deep and meaningful. I like that post because it isn’t – it’s just achingly simple.

As a complete aside – new project- hay box cooker! Well, new project in my head anyway. I won’t start it until I have a place to put it in (there has been a “do not buy any new kitchen implements until you have a kitchen” edict placed upon me – I assume this also covers homemade kitchen implements…especially boxes full of hay). That link is to one particular design – they are variable – box + insulation + pot, and the insulation can be hay, wool, polystyrene etc. I envisage either wool (recycled) or polystyrene balls in pillows (not environmentally friendly but more efficient). The polystyrene one maintained 85C over many hours – amazing. Other wool ones maintain at least 65C. I would need a meat thermometer too – to be safe.