Life as a tenant-a price to pay to roam the world

"If you want to roam the world, you got to put up with the life as a tenant, ie renting your home."

That is what I have been telling myself, bravely. Sigh.. at one point, I almost cried on my while walking home, thinking how every step would bring me closer to a hell hole, a toxic home which might do unrepairable damage to my health, both in the near future and in years to come.

The mould is still there, and it still bothers me. With the advice of people from CAB, we managed to coaxed/persuade/threatened (haha) landlord to come and check it out and do something about it, and not just push the blame to "the way we live".

It was very clear when they came in, that we live in horrible conditions. Just look at the way his wife and son rubbed their noses!!

They brought along their dehumidifier, and the indicator showed how damp the flat is was! The readiniwas high seventies, when teh humidity outside is only in the sixties! That was with the windows slightly open, and the heaters blasting away.

They also found dampness in the loft, and promised us to call the management of the estate to check it out. They did not give very conclusive answers to what they are going to do with the broken/loose tiles which logs water in the bathroom, and the faulty washing machine. (Typical of LANDLORD, very very unwilling to fork $$$ or £££ for anything!!!)

Hope it will all turn out well. With the dehumidifier cum air purifier on, this place is more livable. I am less itchy, sneezy, and cough less. From last afternoon to the time before we went to bed (about 12), the dehumidifer extracted about 3 litres of water (some our small flat!!), and it is still going crazy trying to extract more. I shudder when I think of the electricity bills. 400W machine, running 24 hours a day. No joke.

I paid only £1 for that pile of books......

"£1 for 1 bag of books"

Saw this in my local library. I walked pass it, and thought that from previous experience, I might not be able to find anything there. But.. slowly, one by one, the gems appeared.

The stuff I got:

1. SAVE KARYN-a true life shopaholic's journey to debt and back. (Scary book, but I better read this before I become a TRUE shopaholic. My sis needs it too i think)
2. The officers' ward-Marc Dugain. Heard of this book before. Now I get to own it.
3. Children and trauma- I almost spent a lot of money on this one a year ago.
4. Your rights at work-no harm knowing
5. Buying a second hand car- for my hubby and buddy!
6. What to do when the doc says it is IBS
7. Perfect Mothers-invisible women: need this for my new project
8. Top 10 ALgarve--- I want to visit this place!
9. Insights guide to Switzerland! 2002- a bit old, but good bed time reading
10. Children's food bible--- really easy peasy recipes inside!!! Hahaha

All that for 1 quid. If I was greedy, I could have stuffed more into the bag. Ok, the actual reason is because i could not carry so many books, as I have already borrowed a few other books, including The Constant Gardener :), and The Devil Wears Prada. Now I am going to go through all this books, plus a few others related to my project.

That bargain had temporarily alleviated my cravings for more shopping. The satisfaction that came with it :) I think there are hardly more depressive things in a cold, Christmas season for a woman who just started a new job and desperately need more clothes than stopping her from buying the good bargains. I could just stare at the window displays of shoes, coats, and bags things which I had waited for a discount (and now there is a discount!), but I cant buy now because it might all turn mouldy at home! Hubby needs a new coat too! And some sweaters! He really need new clothes! Sigh...

On the positive side, life seems normal again. I could read. I am finding time to read. I am now catching up with all the readings which I should have done.

Back to my books now...