Saturday 3 June 2017

Carpetbagger

The last few days have gone by like something akin to a whirlwind; long story short (regular readers, feel free to stifle a yawn) - we finally vacated God's Waiting Room on Thursday and have reconnected with civilisation. So, for the last few days all* my possessions, barring the clothes I'm standing up in, are now in storage - where they will remain until next Friday, by which time we will have deep cleaned and decorated the new gaff from top to bottom.

The above preamble is by way of explaining why the milk bottles** have been piling up outside this blog and the neighbours have been reporting me as a missing person. Though not a prolific writer by any stretch of the imagination, I do like to check in two or three times a week and record the random thoughts that invariably blindside me at 4:00 pm on an idle Tuesday***.

Now that Amazon have my new address I was pleased to take in my first parcel yesterday morning: a recommendation from one of the bloggers**** you'll see over in the right hand margin, led me to a wonderful book - Spoon's Carpets. Kit Caless was sitting in a Wetherspoon's pub reading The Way Inn by Will Wiles in which the main character travels the country living in a low budget chain of hotels. Every time he gets out of the hotel lift he sees a different painting which he soon works out form part of a giant collage. Kit then had a lightbulb moment and realised that every Spoon's carpet is totally unique. A hit blog was born - which members of the public embraced and became willing participants and photographers; not to mention enthusiastic beer sommeliers. As a guide it's every bit as important as the Good Beer Guide. And much funnier. I'm heading out later today into our new bustling high street and know that when I cross the threshold of the (huge) Spoons (The Samuel Hall) I will be keeping my head down and my chin up.

Finally today, I've always been fascinated by numbers and sequencing of numbers - Fibonacci being one that has always intrigued me: 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89...

But far and away the most personal of sequences (and everyone reading this will have their own unique sequence) now has a new addition: 86, 11, 20, 17, 108, 25, 29, 17, 79, 111, 24, 90. You don't need to be an employee at Bletchley Park to crack this particular code: I was born in No. 86, and 90 now sits on all our new correspondence - nicely rounding off today's offering.

Feel free to share your unique set of (house) numbers.

* The packers even packed my glasses. I'd only put them down for five minutes
** Do milkmen still deliver bottles?
*** With thanks to Baz Luhrmann
**** Pete Brown - the UK's finest beer writer


Girl - My Number


14 comments:

  1. Congratulations John - may you be very happy in your new home!
    I never knew that about Spoons carpets and I feel strangely satisfied with this new piece of knowledge. (Plus it saves me having to venture into any for real.)
    There's something satisfying about your last number sequence too. Some nice patterns in there, with the 20s and the 17s and 11 and 111. Perhaps a formula for a new carpet weave!
    In answer to one of your questions - yes, milkmen still deliver real bottles! We have one - he drives the fastest milk-cart in the East.

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  2. Thank you C. House numbers, 12 in all. I don't know if that's high, low, or just average? It means, I guess that I've lived in each for just over four and a half years (though 79 was just shy of 20 years). We're here for the foreseeable though - I'm not planning on moving again for a long time!

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    1. I've no idea what the average might be. I've just worked out that I have 7 in my life so far (13, 2, 44, 19, 8, 157, 15) varying amounts of time in each, but current one is now nearly as long as my main childhood one, and it feels right that that should be the case, with all the shorter term (and to be honest, mostly pretty shitty!) residencies being in those interim years as we find our way around!

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    2. C - I'm hoping No. 90 will be our anchor for a good while. Interestingly a really good friend of mine has only ever moved the once - and that was only about 50 yards further up the road. 'I live in my head' says Steve.

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    3. On the same subject. Forgive me if you've read this one before. http://unthoughtofthoughsomehow.blogspot.co.uk/2014/11/on-street-where-you-live.html

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  3. A post from 2014 tells me I'm currently living in the 14th place that I've called home in my life to date. Sadly, many of the numbers on the various front doors have slipped from my ever diminishing memory, even though, for some bizarre reason, I can instantly recall the catalogue number of 'Face Value' by Phil Collins (V.2185 fact fans).
    All good wishes to yourself and Mrs M for a long and happy life in your new gaff.

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    1. TS - Thank you. I won't delve into Phil Collins. Probably best for everyone's sake.

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  4. All the best to you and Mrs M for a happy life in the new abode - I have definitely fewer numbers in my list and excluding student residences it would only amount to 5. Sadly I am a bit of a hoarder and have kept far too many of my grandparents and parents possessions as they pass on. Although well-organised, my loft is fit to burst so not planning on moving anywhere soon or it would mean having a ruthless clear-out! My current number is an 18 which is ironically how long we've lived here and how long I lived in my childhood home.

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  5. Wishing you and Mrs M a happy new home ��

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  6. Hope the cleaning/ decorating goes well without the glasses and may you both be very happy in your new home. In one move the removal men literally packed every single pair of shoes I had, I had to walk up the road in my bare feet.

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    1. SFSG Suzie. When are you coming up to Nottingham then? x

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    2. I'll let you catalogue your shelves and put up your pictures first !

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