The sun was shining this morning, and the temperature reached eight degrees, although the real temperature apparently felt like four degrees. However the temperature felt like a heat wave compared to the recent few weeks.
It has been cold, bitterly cold, with winds coming from the north east. Siberian temperatures. The Beast from the East according to the weather people.
Sunshine this morning.
The completion of the sale of the house continues to move along very slowly. Tomorrow I will take the third lot of paper work into the solicitors, the answer to more queries. I answer all emails and questions promptly but it would appear that not everyone in the chain is so conscientious, with different buyers and sellers still completing initial forms. For people living in Australia and New Zealand, selling houses here involves much paperwork, which justifies the solicitors' existence I think.
Our estate agent employs someone with the title of 'Progresser'. I looked the word up in the Collins dictionary, and it appears to be a French word, which basically means 'to move over a period of time to a stronger, more advanced, or more desirable state'. The 'Progresser' in the real estate firm keeps everyone involved in a house sale moving along with their paper work, and then reports back to the seller. A personal approach, and one which I appreciate very much. Mind you, if house sales here were less complicated there would be no need for a 'Progresser'.
Last week the 'Progresser' found out that there were more people in the chain than first thought, so we now have an extra house at the bottom of the chain, and this house plus the one above it, are still at the beginning of the process, in that their solicitors have only just started the land title searches. Apparently the searches will take some time due to the fact that both houses are in the London Borough of Greenwich.
And of course it could all end in a non sale with a buyer or seller pulling out of their house sale and then the whole chain collapses. And we will be back to square one.
How did we get caught up in a chain, one may ask? Well it was due to the estate agent assuring us there were only two other houses in the chain, and the people buying the first house were first home buyers and were nearly ready to complete the process. So not true!
In the meantime life goes on.
Emma and Steve completed their house sale, and moved in with us for ten days while the paperwork was being completed for their rented house, a huge vicarage in Orpington. They are loving having so much space.
Two weeks ago Bobbi went to the groomers, and now sports a Chinese Crested hairstyle. The groomer followed the instructions set out in her grooming book. Poor Bobbi came back without fur on most of her body, just in time for the snow. Apparently she has not been keen to go outside, even with a coat on.
Bobbi sitting on the chair in the conservatory, hoping that the sun will shine, so that she can begin her sun tan.
The Faesten Dic, looking bare and desolate in the winter. I love this area of the woods, regardless of the weather.
Bobbi, in her warm coat, enjoying a walk in the woods.
Kylie came to visit for a few days last week, at a time when the snow was at its worst. However, we carried on regardless, and had a really lovely time.
We went in to London to see the stage production of 'Matilda' which we enjoyed very much.
Kylie, Emma and me, all lined up in the theatre before the show. It was actually lovely and warm, but we had not taken off our coats when the photograph was taken. It was certainly bitterly cold outside, with icy streets.
The snow, so beautiful to look at, but with temperatures as low as minus five, no fun to be out in it. The main roads were mainly well gritted, and the four wheel drive in our Skoda meant the car gripped the ground very well on all other roads. This made driving very easy. And the fact that the number of cars on the road was greatly reduced, made a huge difference too.
The view from the front of the house. The photograph was taken through the front window, in the warmth of our centrally heated house. Everything looks perfect in the morning sunshine.
Kylie and I went shopping in Bluewater, the huge shopping complex about a ten minute drive from our house. There were hardly any shoppers there so we had a very pleasant and quiet time. This does not happen often in Bluewater.
Kylie standing in the nearly deserted carpark.
I went for a couple of walks in the woods, which I thought I should do, as this will probably be the last time I will walk there in the snow. Again breathtakingly beautiful, with the stark outline of the trees standing out against the white snow. Most of the schools around us were closed, so the woods were filled with families enjoying sledging on the slopes.
The Faesten Dic area of the woods.
Our back garden, with the rhubarb trying to survive the cold temperatures.
On the last day of the snow, we had a bitingly cold strong wind, caused when the 'Beast from the East' temperatures met with 'Storm Emma' from the west. Everything froze, including our new towels which I hung on the line, forgetting that the strong wind would freeze them rather than dry them.
I have mended my old possum wool gloves, just in case. I hope they last for the next few months. I would like to explain that these gloves came from New Zealand where the imported possums, who cause havoc in the bush there, are allowed to be killed and their fur used in woollen hats and gloves. I know many people will tut, tut over this. However in their native Australian environment, possums are a protected species. The possums cannot be sent back to Australia either, due to the diseases and pests they may have picked up in New Zealand.
Very warm gloves though.
The snow has melted, and when I went up to the garden today I found the daffodils beginning to open up and the purple crocuses in full bloom.
Hopefully Spring has arrived and we can look forward to some warmer weather.
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