Electronic Appliances Failures

 Tuesday. 6.30 a.m. Oh, dear! The new year hasn't started well for me. Yesterday I wanted to make some toast, so I took the toaster out of the cupboard and then discovered that it wouldn't work. I thought at first that there was a problem with the power supply, that maybe the workmen who were around Dexter House had turned off the electricity for some reason. But I tried other electronic devices that used the mains supply, such as my fridge-freezer, but it was working as normal. 

I was thinking, I want to make toast! I would need to replace the old toaster. I bought this one from Argos, and I had sufficient points on something called Consumer Pulse. I have been part of this for years, recording things I have purchased and earning points which can be converted into vouchers. So, I went onto the Consumer Pulse website and ordered Argos vouchers. Unfortunately, I will have to wait around 5 days before I receive them. They used to send you these vouchers via email and you put a code into the Argos website in order to pay for whatever you wanted and then go to the nearest Argos store to colled the item. So, I will just have to be patient and then order the new toaster.

That was the first failure. I have my main meal in the evening. I was going to have meat pie, chips and green beans. Everything was ready to cook, but then I couldn't get my electric oven to work. Again, I thought it must be the power supply, and I tried the oven several times, but it wasn't going to play ball. So, no meal. I thought I could order a take away using an app on my iPad. Deliveroo or something similar. I have used it before, with no probloems, but I could not get it to work. Password or something annoying like that. I attempted to resolve the issue, but it would not work, even trying to use the 'forgotten password' function, which is supposed to send you and email and then set up a new password, but it wasn't going to work.

So, it seems as if my devices were being decidedly awkward today.

In the end I just made myself a cheese sandwich. 

As regards the electric oven, I thought the only solution would be to replace it. I have an on-line account with Very, so I went on their website and found what looked like the perfect replacement oven, in their sale, as around £150 off the price, the right width to fit in the space in my kitchen, ceramic hob like my old one and fan-assisted. So, after some thought I went ahead and ordered it, which means I can pay in installments, which is how I bought my fridge-freezer when I moved into Dexter House. I paid extra to have the old oven removed, but I will have to find someone, probably at church, to come to my flat to install it, as I'm not able to do electrical stuff like connecting an electric cooker. The new oven isn't likely to be delivered for around two weeks, so I will have to figure out a way to cook my meals, although I can use my microwave oven.

6.20 p.m. The situation regarding the toaster and oven. I spoke to Vashti, the S.H.O at Dexter House. She spoke to someone at Mears (I imagine it was them.) about the situation and I was told it might have something to do with the fuse box, although it isn't a traditional fuse box, which was renewed a few months ago. The box contains several rows of switches, and if an appliance is faulty or fails in some way, the circuit it is connected to will fire the switch. It turned out that the oven and toaster (or, in that case, the socket in the kitchen.) had shown up with a light which was orange, so we pushed the switch and the light turned to red. As a result, the oven and toaster worked. As a result, I have cancelled the order from Very, because a new oven is no longer required. Situation resolved, thankfully.

Another Sunny Day

(Thursday) So, we're allowed to meet up with family and friends outside, since some of the pandemic lockdown restrictions have been lifted. Thank goodness. It's like being locked up in solitary confinement. Well, let's be perfectly honest, it is solitary confinement in some ways. I took Alfie out for his last walk around Oldbrook Green and there were far more people around than there have been in ages. Youths playing football and others in what appears to be family groups but some not adhering to the 2 metre social distancing regulations. Several of the notices which had been attached to various  bits of exercise equipment were laying on the ground and people sitting in the covered shelter  but it would appear that things are gradually going to return to some sort of normal.

(Friday) It's 7.10a.m. I'm waiting to take Alfie out, but I'm trying to avoid him making a noise because a certain person who lives in Dexter House again complained about his barking (Alfie, not this idiot. Although, thinking about it, Alfie behaves better.) It's sunny and warm and I don't want to have BBC Breakfast on when all they go on about is the pandemic, which seems to have totally engulfed their news broadcasts. There must surely be more to report on in the news. This 'person' (for want of a better description.) leaning out of his flat window when I came back with Alfie yesterday afternoon, and hurling abuse at me. Just not acceptable and almost like something out of a Shakespeare play or even Chaucer's Canterbury Tales.

I have had a delivery from Staples of a paper rack and a couple of pads of paper which came yesterday lunchtime. Ordered on Wednesday and surprised that the parcel was delivered barely 24 hours after the order was made, on line. I'm still waiting for the Apple pencil, which was ordered via Very almost a week ago. No notification from Very to let me know where the item is in the system, not even that it's not in stock. The iPad came within two days of ordering, so I don't see what the problem is. I realise that these businesses are working within social distancing guidelines, so some deliveries are likely to be a lot longer in arriving, but not being kept informed is not very good customer care in my opinion, The order from Weird Fish, of the shorts I ordered through their website was supposed to have arrived yesterday before 6 o'clock, but still nothing, so I assume that is on it's way.

The paper rack is now put together, but causing problems because the screws that hold it together won't tighten sufficiently so I have had to improvise making cardboard washers and putting them on the screws and tightening the screws with a Phillips screwdriver and it seems to have done the trick. It now means I can organise the handwritten pages of my writing which need putting into order so I can transcribe it all onto my MacBook and in the process make some amendments.

Later. I have 'Good Morning Britain' on, ITV's answer to the BBC's breakfast programme. I'm not sure which is better, but I think their set is a bit more imaginative. It make me laugh that it comes to the former BBC's Television Centre, which they rent from the new owners and then re-rent to ITV. It seems bonkers.

Walking with Alfie around Oldbrook Green, there was a ride-on mower cutting the grass. It seems they cut the grass several times in succession. The only problem is that they leave the cut grass and it has a tendency to get on your shoes and then walk it into the flat and there's piles of cuttings all over the floor. Nothing much you can do about it except sweep it up or pick up with the vacuum cleaner.

I have begun to sort out the handwritten pages of my written material. It's got really muddled and I will need to get some plastic wallets to put these collated pages in otherwise they will get muddled up again. Some were numbered but other are not which makes it far more difficult to sort out. I have begun to transcribe more of these hand-written pages into word processing.

(Saturday) 6.15a.m. It's another reasonably bright and sunny morning. The flat window is open and I can hear the birdies singing merrily. Alfie is expecting to be taken out, but I must wait because it will only upset someone who shall remain nameless. Just doesn't need winding up, but it's so easy. I have managed to get Alfie out by carrying him until we get round the corner into Strudwick Drive. It's preventing him making a noise and if you carry him (which he doesn't like) he can't, or simply won't, bark. It's restricting his natural tendency because that's what makes his character and I don't like stopping him. I have written a shopping list which sits on the coffee table and I intend going to Sainsbury's after 8 o'clock as there's no point going earlier because of the queuing system and I know that NHS frontline staff get preference between 7a.m and 8a.m.

Later. I was at Sainsbury's at around 8.15 this morning. The queue didn't stretch as far as when I first went when the lockdown restrictions were first put in place, when the queue was right back to the lower level of the carpark. This morning things moved reasonably quickly and I was inside the store and finished within about 30 minutes. I think it may actually have been less. I'm getting far better at using the self-service checkouts and I have a feeling that since the pandemic they are keeping them in better order so you don't get so many glitches, none of that 'unknown item in bagging area.' I'm definitely more confident and can scan each item faster. The trick I find is being able to discover where the bar code is on each item so it's easier to scan.  I have  now got the wallets so that I can sort out the different stories I have written which are in handwritten form, some of which need collating into their correct order, which, hopefully, these wallets should help with.

I got back to the flat and put all groceries away, most importantly the frozen things which needed putting in the freezer section of the fridge/freezer. I took Alfie out for a walk around Oldbrook Green and then started watching the video of 'Cats' which is being shown for 24 hours via YouTube as part of the 'Show Must Go On' project. I didn't watch the entire show but paused it and completed watching an hour or so later when I was eating my lunch. I saw the original London production at the New Theatre probably only weeks after it opened in 1981. I saw the touring production which came to the Derngate in Northampton a couple of years ago.

General Election and Fridge/Freezer Delivery

So, we had a General Election yesterday. I took Alfie out as usual after 7 o'clock yesterday and no sooner had I bought him back to the flat, I went back out and walked immediately to the Community Centre in Oldbrook, just opposite the Green and next door to The Cricketer's pub, which was being used as a Polling Station. I was amazed by how many people were coming and going. I don't think, considering the early hour (the polling station would have just opened at 7a.m.) I have seen so many people at a polling station for a General Election.

As mentioned in my last blog post, I had to deal with the fridge/freezer defrosting and failing miserably and, as a result, ruining an entire load of food, which had to be thrown away. I was scratching my head to find a solution and came up with one fairly quickly, by ordering a brand new, full-size fridge/freezer from the on-line retailer, Very.  As a result I could pay it off in instalments, and because it's a larger fridge/freezer (actually twice or even more in size to the pathetic thing I was given, and which has let me down big time by breaking down.) Fortunately I had managed to clear the account and was glad that I hadn't closed it down completely. The replacement fridge/freezer was expected to be delivered on Thursday (yesterday), but when I ordered the thing I was not sure at what time of day it was likely to be delivered.

On Wednesday I got a text message to let me know that the fridge/freezer was scheduled to be delivered between 12.15 and 2.15 on Thursday. Then yesterday, Thursday, I got another text message telling me it was going to arrive at around 12.30. Then, by following a link through an email I was sent by the delivery company, I could actually follow there the lorry was on a map. It arrived at around 12.45.

Having got the new fridge/freezer into the flat, carried by two men from the delivery company, it had to stand for several hours before plugging in. This, in order to allow the refrigerant in the system to settle, because it had been on the lorry and then carried into the flat, on it's side. It was quite a difficult job to unpack it, as it was packaged in cardboard, polystyrene and plastic, leaving a large amount of this packing, which will now have to be disposed of, probably taken to the tidy-tip in Bleak Hall. Having allowed the machine to stand for 4 hours, I plugged it into the power point and  I turned on the mains. I had to store milk and other items in the community kitchen, otherwise it would have gone off if left in the kitchen belonging to the flat.

All day the weather had been appalling. When I first went out with Alfie for his early morning walk on Thursday morning, it was cold and wet. Rain falling and a strong wind. No sooner had Alfie realised that it was raining, wet and miserable, he turned tail at the front door and more or less went back in the flat. But he seriously needed to go out, so we walked along Strudwick Drive towards Oldbrook Green, but before we'd even reached the crossing over Oldbrook Boulevard, he turned round and refused to go any further, and, honestly, who could blame him?

Today, (Friday) it is cold and windy, but it's quite bright and sunny.

Failing Fridge/Freezer

A bit of a disaster this morning. I found the fridge/freezer, which was given to me by the Council when I moved in, had defrosted, which meant all the contents had to be thrown away. A good week's worth of food and my money is running out rapidly before I get my next pension payment next week. I have now ordered a new, larger model on Very and I will pay it off by instalments. Fortunately I cleared the account before I moved to Dexter House. The thing should be delivered by the end of the week and once I am paid I will stock up on food to go in it. The old fridge/freezer was far too small, meaning it was extremely difficult to put larger items, such as frozen vegetables, in it. Also, it's so low that I have to kneel on the floor to be able to see what's inside it. The new model should therefore make life considerably easier. I will need to remove the stupid little fridge/freezer as I can't keep a redundant kitchen appliance in the flat. It will need to be taken to the tidy-tip in Bleak Hall, and they're welcome to it as far as I'm concerned. It's not even 3 months old and conked out. I'm not impressed. Just a load of total junk. The best place for it is in the skip.

Alfie is being his usual self. I went to Lidl to do some shopping and got a sandwich to eat when I got back. Alfie, as ever, sat staring at me from his position on the sofa, almost willing me to give him a bit of the sandwich. I resisted for as long as possible, but Alfie got as close to me as he could, by which time I give in and break off  a corner of the sandwich. He eats this morsel, and I continue to munch, but relent and give him  tiny bit more. He doesn't take it, pokes it with his nose. He often does this when you offer him a bit of food. I put that bit on the sofa, next to him, and he pokes it further with his nose and then pushes it on the floor. He does it with a second piece. How amusing, I think. He doesn't like cushions on the sofa, ether, and he pushes them off, again, with his nose.

I had to ring Ashfield Medical Centre to make a doctor's appointment. I started ringing at around 8.15 and eventually got through. The system would seem to be turned off until the staff can be bothered to have it on and actually answer (probably I'm wrong, but that's how it appears to me.) I had to wait for two people in the queue in front of me (the system tells you how many people are ahead of you in the queue.) How long does it take to explain to the receptionist what you need to see the doctor for? If it's me, it can't be more than 30 seconds at most.) I was told I couldn't have an appointment until a few day's ahead. Eventually they told me a doctor would ring me on Thursday (Which is General Election Day) Then, for some inexplicable reason my imagination took over and I said 'Well, as long as I'm at home because I'm expecting Boris Johnson to ring me as I'm advising him on Brexit and the way his election campaign is going.' I don't know what hit me at that specific moment, but it just came out. And the woman on the other end of the telephone said, 'Oh, really!' as if what I had just said was true- well, of course it wasn't and unlikely to be and I had to say it wasn't true, just in case, to make it clear.
Sometimes these things come into my head and I have to 'go with the flow.' I certainly did on this occasion!

Arctic Conditions

The wintry weather continues. It didn't snow over-night, but looking out of the window at the road in front of the house, it has the appearance of a Siberian wasteland. Not that I've been to Siberia, you understand. The car has a pall of snow across it. Alfie rushes out into the garden, but doesn't hang around for long, as you can imagine. Being a little dog, he doesn't take to the cold very well.

If I did want to go out in the car, I'd have to negotiate around a very annoying van which is parked in the immediate space behind the car. It's going to be quite difficult to get out and so avoid this van, made even more troublesome with the road conditions being so slippery. I don't think the grid roads in Milton Keynes are going to be too bad, but the roads in Eaglestone, the inner ring road in particular, are likely to be hazardous, with hard-packed ice. I just hope we get a decent thaw and the snow goes completely. There will be trouble if we get a hard frost and the surface of the roads around here become like an ice skating rink.

Saturday morning. There's been quite a considerable fall of snow over-night. The road at the front of the house has quite a layer of snow on it. The large van is still parked immediately behind the car as I mentioned in the post yesterday. I went out earlier to clear the snow off the car with a broom and cleared a path from the door down to the car. Quite a thick carpet of snow around the car, but it's not really a problem, you just have to be careful how you move about so to avoid slipping over.

I eventually managed to manoeuvre the car out of the drive and onto the walkway to the side of our house. I did this just to make sure I could actually get out of the house, because there was quite a deep layer of snow immediately behind the car and I wasn't sure I'd be able to get out. I had to get out to go to Sainsbury's as we were slowly running out of food, although we had some bits and pieces in the freezer just in case. The snow is making all sound very muffled, a bit like having something, such as material that absorbs sound in a recording studio or concert hall. There is a man further along our road clearing snow with a shovel.

 I drove out of the estate, leaving via the exit near the shop. The road surface along the inner ring road was covered in snow, so I had to drive very slowly as I didn't want the car to slide as it might have done if I'd braked suddenly. The grid roads going towards the centre of Milton Keynes was relatively snow-free, but you can't trust other drivers to drive at a reasonably slow speed so it was necessary to drive at less than the normal speed. The underground carpark at Sainsbury's looks like a lake. No doubt this is caused by snow that has come in via car's tyres. Just one huge mass of water. The actual store was very quiet and the carpark was virtually empty, do doubt because most people didn't want to venture out in such bad conditions. Who can blame them? Fortunately I was in and out of Sainsbury's fairly quickly.

Unless we get a further fall of snow, conditions should remain fairly reasonable to drive in. That being said, people need to reduce their speed when driving and just take a bit more care as well as respect other people. It's those who drive too fast who are responsible for accidents, running into other vehicles, sliding all over the place and possibly ending up in ditches and hitting innocent people. I just hope that we don't get a hard frost over the next few days and then we will have to contend with flooding when the thaw happens. Gary next door has been clearing snow at the front of his house. At least people are making an effort to keep going, regardless of the snow. On the television news this morning, people are complaining that there is too much coverage of the snow. Why does it have to be described as 'The Beast From The East'? Just a sort of tabloid journalism term. People being stranded in the snow, in cars on a motorway somewhere, I'm not entirely sure where, and some passengers on a train near Christchurch, Dorset. Did they not listen to the news? We had been warned about the current weather conditions, so why so surprised when things grind to a halt? Just don't go out and then expect others to risk their necks to be rescued. Although there was a more positive piece on BBC Breakfast about people who have four-wheel drive vehicles helping to ferry N.H.S. staff to various hospitals, somewhere in the West of England. It's good to see that some form of community is thriving, however small it might be.

We had a delivery from Very. We weren't expecting it until Monday at the latest. A Tassimo coffee machine and some clothes for Carol. The instructions for the coffee machine are quite complicated. It didn't come with coffee pods so we couldn't try it out, but we had to fill the water tank and flush it through so it is now ready to use. We have ordered some of the pods through Amazon which should arrive sometime before 8 this evening.

Later. It seems that the thaw has begun. By the look of things, a lot of the snow seems to be disappearing. The road at the front of the house is beginning to clear and you can see the tarmac surface. I'm just wondering whether all the snow, or some of it, will be gone by the morning, although if we get a sharp frost over-night I doubt if will mean the end of the snow.

Electric Cooker Breaksdown

So, after an eventful couple of hours attempting to get Carol's prescription of antibiotics, we arrived home and began to prepare our evening meal. On attempting to cook some potatoes in the oven, Carol discovered that the oven wasn't heating properly. We came to the conclusion that the oven had broken-down, and was, frankly, past repair. It seems that a great many household items, such as washing machines, ovens and fridge/freezers, are never built to last. I have to say, the electric oven which is a Beko, hasn't worn well. It has rusted very badly, the surfaces are not sufficiently robust enough for family life. I would say that it gets a fair amount of use and used daily. It has a ceramic hob which is it's best feature and far easier to clean than a great many other styles of cooker-hob. The cooker which was in this house when we arrived around 6-7 years ago had been installed by the landlord. As you will be aware, if you've read these blog-posts over the years, you will have discovered that our beloved landlord doesn't like parting with cash. He replaced the cooker when it broke down only a few years after we moved in. That wasn't up to much. I believe it was a Bush. Cheap and cheerful, although I can never understand why 'cheap' and 'cheerful' are placed together. Definitely nothing cheerful about that old cooker. It eventually came to a sticky end, when, one morning, I came downstairs to make tea as I usually do, to discover the thing sparking dangerously. I cautiously turned the thing off at the wall and we realised that it would need replacing. No point in contacting our landlord as he would make a fuss and anyway, most likely say that he'd already replaced the thing (thinking back, perhaps we did contact him and that was his response.) He'd just buy the cheapest model which would end up being scrapped after about two or three years. So we were left with no alternative but to buy our own. We went on Amazon and found a decent model, also, bearing in mind that we would need to buy a model to fit the space once the old cooker was removed. Always a good point to not get one too wide as it wouldn't fit the space.

We have a Very account and have bought quite a lot of items through them. So we decided to buy our new electric cooker through them and chose a suitable Hotpoint model. It will be delivered on Tuesday and will be installed and the old cooker removed and disposed of. So that is one less problem to worry about. Just have to make sure we're in on Tuesday to receive the cooker and to oversee it's installation.

Wet, Wild and Windy

The weather seems to have made a backwards step. So much for 'flaming June.' It's more like Autumn. Wind and rain. Just as well we went out when we did on Saturday, because we certainly wouldn't have bothered with the weather the way it is today. 

I went to get my hair cut early at Essential Barbers in Monkston Park. They opened at 9.30 and I was done by 9.50. Really cheered up when the lady who cut my hair asked me if I was 65 as I would get my hair cut for £6. I don't know whether I'm pleased or not, but I suppose I should be pleased. When we went to Twycross Zoo on Saturday I got my entry at reduced concession as I'm over 60.  I then drove to Sainsbury's as we had to have tonight's meal organised. I have made a mistake in thinking the new fridge/freezer was coming yesterday. I mis-read the email, which actually said 8th June. Then I got a call from Candy yesterday morning, the company who make the fridge/freezer we've ordered from Very and they say it will be delivered after Thursday and they will ring again on that day to give me more idea what time but within a 'four-hour window' which can mean anything. Just be glad when the thing is delivered and set up and running so that we can go shopping properly and put whatever needs to go into the freezer will be safe from thawing out. It's just annoying only being able to shop for food on the day, but there is no other way of managing things at the moment. 

I selected what I wanted in Sainsbury's and then went to the checkout to pay. I was intrigued by what the man in front had bought; a watermelon and a packet of balloons. What on earth was he going to do with these items? Your guess is as good as mine.

Still Waiting for the Elusive Parcel

Well, the parcel we were expecting to arrive from Very didn't arrive yesterday. It was an entirely wasted day as far as I was concerned because I couldn't leave the house, which was somewhat annoying. It is supposed to be delivered by Yodel, and, according to their website, where you can track your parcel by inputting your parcel's number, it must have been put on the wrong van at some stage and went back to the company's depot near Manchester, but, having looked at the site this morning, it is currently in Northampton, so if all goes according to plan we should have our Vax steam cleaner some time today which means I can start trying it out and cleaning the house as arranged earlier. I was hoping, had it arrived yesterday, I could have got a doctor's appointment today because I need to have a review of my medication because when I picked up my last repeat prescription from Sainsbury's pharmacy last week there was a note attached to the package telling me that my doctor needed to see me regarding my review. I don't see that there is a problem but, being on   medication which is on repeat prescription you have to have it reviewed around every six months.

It's foggy out this morning. It doesn't look particularly thick, but foggy nonetheless. It was quite warm and sunny yesterday but by the evening the temperature had dropped, meaning we had to have the central heating on. I don't think we should complain as we are only just into February.

It's Sunny and Bright

The weather has warmed up considerably. As I sit here at 2.05 p.m. on Monday 9th of February the sun is shining. It's certainly a good deal warmer than it has been for the past couple of weeks. I'm sitting here waiting for a parcel to arrive. We've ordered a steam cleaner from Very and I'm not sure exactly when it's supposed to be here but I've been informed via email that it will come through a delivery company called Yodel some time today but not exactly when, so it's more than likely to arrive at 9 o'clock or some unlikely hour when we're tucked up in bed. It means that I can't go out of the house because I imagine the moment I do the parcel will arrive and then a card will be stuck through the letter-box informing me that our parcel couldn't be delivered and the parcel has returned to their depot in some far-flung place which means we would have to drive there to get the parcel.

On Friday I did another of the exercises in the creative writing book I mentioned in an earlier post. You had to find somewhere outside an write a description of the view, be it a street, house etc. I went to the cafe in Sainsbury's and sat near the window and wrote a description of the view outside. Actually harder than I imagined but there seemed nowhere else I could think of that wasn't outside in the cold, although I had considered going down to the canal and sitting and describing the scene there. Not a total success but least I've done the exercise. I have learned from past experience that in some ways it's best to leave a piece of writing for a day or two, or even longer, before returning to it to re-read and edit as it gives you time to consider it.