As the great GLaDOS once sang, I’m still alive.

So.

The Ginger and I successfully moved house and, after two weeks of scrubbing with tooth brushes, having allergic reactions to cleaning products, and painting over 6 years of wear and tear, we’re finally shot of the old place.

It’s nice to live in a house for which insulation, working electrics, and sound proofing aren’t a distant, dull daydream. We don’t even have slugs invading the kitchen. It’s like a summer miracle.

The cats were moved over and I can honestly say I’ve never seen them so contented. Despite this house being a lot smaller than the last, the sheer amount of greenery for them to explore outside means they have real, meaningful space. We have a garden now, not just a stunted, weed-infested little yard-come-bin store. They’ve settled in well. We’re treated to daily deliveries of freshly caught wildlife (mostly shrews, voles, and mice), and despite some initial clinginess when we relocated, they’re as happy and independent as I’ve ever seen them.

Money is still a concern, but that’s to be expected. Moving house is expensive, yo. No doubt we’ll be treading water for a good long while before our finances start to resemble anything like stable again, but that’s fine. So long as we can pay the bills and afford to eat, I’m happy. I think that’s basically the dream.

Most of the moving-related stress came from clearing up the old house. Every time we scrubbed a little too hard to remove mould, or ran a paint-saturated roller over a wall, something threatened to peel off or crumble. That poor house. I’ve been told that the owners are selling it, and I’m grateful for that. As is, I don’t think they could legally let it to anyone else until a considerable amount of work has been done on it. At least if they’re selling it, I can be confident that the new owner will be prepared to invest much-needed time and money. Probably about £100k of the latter, if my assessment is anything to go by. Still, all the hard work was not in vain: We’ve managed to get back most of our security deposit and the sense of satisfaction from a hard job well done is immense.

We still don’t have Internet at the new house, but that’s okay. Truth be told, I’ve enjoyed the break from it. I’m too easily distracted and if the temptation to wile away a day reading old Cracked.com articles, or watching junk on YouTube is there, I’m going to take it. I’m going to grab it roughly and pour my weekends down its maw. I’m going to wake up shitty and depressed on Monday morning, skulk my way into work and wonder where all the time went as it waves me goodbye.

I’ve managed to do a fuck tonne of stuff over the last few months. Partly through necessity, partly through circumstances inviting New and Exciting projects, and partly because I haven’t fallen victim to the Internet time sink.

Rather than go into depth about everything (and fail to complete this update as a result), here’s an overview:

I’ve watched…

…Band of Brothers. Not sure why it rates so highly on IMDB, but it was powerful. Even if I was confused most of the time. It’s not my fault I’m crap at recognising faces – especially faces with mud and blood spattered on them and helmets pulled low over eyes. Might give it a second watch at some point.

…Game of Thrones. Just in time for season 7 to come out, I managed to watch 1 to 6. I bloody love it. Could do with less rape in my fantasy, escapist entertainment, though. Some characters I hate, some characters I love. Despite knowing what’s going to happen, I have enjoyed watching it all play out. The costumes and set designs are really quite stunning.

…Alien: Covenant. I thought it was abject shit.

…The Chase. It’s a quiz show. I’m addicted to it.

… The last three Harry Potter movies. I hadn’t got around to watching them before. The Ginger hadn’t seen any of them, so over the course of a fortnight we watched them from start to finish. It was adorable watching the cast grow up. They were …fine.

I’ve read…

A lot of instruction manuals, legal paperwork, and warning labels. Nothing more exciting or enriching than that.

I’ve made…

…Many bookshelves. I’ve learned how to use oil and wax on wood, and I even tried my hand at making “furniture” for my tiny office space. It’s nothing more than shelves, some of which are vertical to give the impression of something more impressive/deliberate, but I’m proud of it.

…A lot of mess with paint. As this is a new-build house, we’re not meant to paint the walls for 9 to 12 months to give the plaster a chance to dry out. I, however, am not known for my impulse control.

…Attempts at gardening. I don’t really like gardening. The fact it’s rained nearly non-stop for the last month has put a halt to any major time investments. Mowing the lawn and planting a tree has been the best I’ve managed.

…A cat ladder.

I’ve played…

…No new games. No Internet and too many odd-jobs scuppers that. I have continued attending my Monday night tabletop game though, so that’s good.

I’ve also…

…Been promoted at work. It’s basically doing what I did before, but with more clout. I’m technically a manager. It’s been a fantastic boost to my confidence all told, and it’s done wonders for my sense of responsibility. Despite having unmonitored Internet access during office hours, I’ve found myself very occupied with doing the stuff I’m actually paid for. Remarkable stuff.

–

There are loads of other things I’ve done/experienced, but they’re too fiddly and extensive for me to write out. I had a heinous smear test that none of you deserve to know about, I’ve levelled up in an array of little, basic DIY skills, I’ve basically subsisted on cheap hummus and bread for weeks at a time, and I’ve developed opinions on curtain rails.

My life is not exciting at the moment, but it is pretty damned good all told. I could do with fewer headaches, but I’ll take that. That’s acceptable payment for everything else.

I can’t promise when I’ll update next given how uncertain the Internet situation is. I’ll try and write something more interesting next time.

On that note, if there’s anything you’d like me to write about – about myself or a wider reaching subject – then feel free to drop me a comment or send me a message on Twitter.