Ave et vale - well, sort of

I have been a very bad blogger again, I'm afraid. As my excuse I offer the fact that I shall be retiring near the end of next month, and the business of doing so is very time-consuming, to put it mildly. With the exception of my first year in England, I have never had to worry about housing myself - and even then I found a bedsit easily enough in Holland Park within a week of my arrival.

But selling one house (from my late father's estate) and buying another (with the proceeds) I found to be a somewhat daunting prospect. However, I had the wonderful experience of walking into a house in order simply to speak to the estate agent and realising immediately that this was The One. First seen on Sunday afternoon, and purchased by the following Thursday evening. But not paid for - not until the other house was sold. If you have ever been in this position (and I understand many have) you will know it has a certain anxiety associated with it!

However, the other house did sell (just in the nick of time) and now I can look forward to living in a wonderful wooden house (good in earthquakes, I think) with a proper galvinised iron roof (so you can hear the rain) and a splendid view over the city. It even has polished (and insulated) wooden floors throughout. What more could you want?

In such a satisfactory setting, I may even become a better and more reliable blogger as well. However, only time will tell, I fear.