I’m still feeling positive this morning, and am determined to take advantage of this feeling while it lasts. My wife has been feeling a bit swamped of late – trying to build up her soft furnishings business, deal with the reality of my Parkinson’s Disease, run the house (because, frankly, I haven’t been much help), help her sons out (because that’s what mothers do) and 101 other things besides. I know that she hates driving around in a dirty car, and her car is minging at the moment – covered in bird shit from when she parked under a tree in the village hall car park last week, full of fabric sample books and desperately in need of a good vacuuming out, upholstery in need of cleaning – so I made up my mind to give her car a thorough clean today, make her feel a bit better about it. Before we have even finished our morning tea/coffee it’s chucking it down. There’s no space outside the house to park her car while I wash it. Obstacles to my achieving my goal. Normally this wouldn’t be a problem – my lack of motivation would welcome the excuse to do nothing – but the fact that I’m feeling more positive, more motivated, has to be taken advantage of. My wife has gone to North Walsham to pay some cheques into the business account. When she returns I am going to move my car to the village hall car park and park her car outside the house, and I’m going to wash the bloody thing even if it is raining!
My wife returns and I get her to park her car in place of mine. It’s absolutely hammering it down. She wants me to hang some pictures in the lounge, so I get on with that while I wait for the weather to improve. I hang a couple of pictures that my aunt, Carolyn Graham, gave to me – lino cuts that she did when she and my uncle, Bob Graham, were living in Somerset before returning to Australia.
She is from the artistic side of the family. My uncle is a cartoonist and illustrator, and has many successful children’s books under his belt. Their son (my cousin), Peter Graham, is a well known artist. My other aunt paints for her own pleasure. My older brother is a graphic designer. Me? I have difficulty painting a wall.
I also hang a couple of old metal enamel signs that we saw, liked and bought many moons ago.
By this time it has stopped raining and the sun is trying to put in an appearance, so I get stuck in and wash my wife’s car. By the time I’m finished (outside only) I’m completely exhausted, but pleased that I have managed to achieve what I had set out to do. I take the dog for her afternoon walk, and then collapse (honestly) into a bath.
My wife dishes up dinner, and I realise that I really have overdone it when I scarcely have the strength to eat. Time to collapse on the sofa, have a beer, switch my device over to Group ‘B’ (superior tremor control) and watch an episode of House Of Cards before bedtime.