What no cable

I made a pair of bedside tables sometime ago and also i made my own Table lights as well. Today i had a visitor and used my friend help me to put the bedside tables up. As they need to be fixed from the rear of the wall it's one job i need another pair of hands.

Table lamp in position and no cable hanging down. The socket is hidden under the bedside table out of sight. The one on the other side of the bed is the same as this side.

Christmas is cancelled this year

This  Christmas I'm not planning to go back to the UK this year I plan on staying here in my little piece of heaven. I have plans at the end of January  that mean I have to carry on here to complete the plans I have. So this Christmas will be different and Dave, Dee, Ashley, and one or two more will be having Christmas dinner with me this year.

Last Christmas was not the best I have had and I would rather forgive and forget last Christmas the past is long gone. The plans for the future mean I must stay here I have so much to do with my Organic Spices and now I have Organic Honey as well to plan for.

Iberianspices now does Mail order

Well it's  I had hoped but mail-order has now arrived. Today I went to the post office to get the prices of the various sizes of parcel I expect to deliver. But one thing I'm not happy with is having to display my email on Iberianspices but I will find a way to take orders without having to display my email but for now.  That's it my lord is up and running.

Below is a screenshot of part of the Iberianspices site.

The postal prices are for up to 350 gram is normal mail 1.40€ or rapid mail is 2.20€
The postal prices are for up to 1050 gram is normal mail 3.25€ or rapid mail is 4.60€

The reason for the odd 50gram is to allow for packaging so 3X 100 gram packs plus packaging comes within 350 gram.

A word of warning buyers who wish to pay via Paypal will be charged a surcharge imposed by Paypal of approximately  0.50€.

Nothing but dust.

I have been stuck in all week because my van is in for a service and won't be back till Friday. I decided as i couldn't go to Chicco's to get the timber for the jobs i am in the middle of i decided to get down on my knees and do the floor.

With my trusty belt sander i started by the fire first and it took all day to finish one section. Then it was a massive cleanup, the sander gives of so much dust everywhere was covered in dust. I expected the dust so i moved everything out of the lounge 

It's to much of a job to try and do to much due to the dust. It does look better than the picture shows. Tomorrow i will complete the area at the bottom of the stairs and then carry on by the fire.

Take care who delivers your parcel.

Much about GLS.  GLS are the Courier company who have a very very bad record for the delivery of parcels here in Portugal.  I have had problems with a  number of parcels delivered by GLS so I don't use Royalmail. Royalmail are the owners of GLS so it's no wonder that service is bad.

I needed a part for my car and the company used a Courier company called DPD. I gave the address details from a business card from the garage who will be doing the job on my car. Guess what they couldn't find the address even though the garage is very big and not a small one man band type place. Not only did they not delivery but they contacted me for address details to confirm the correct location.  Not only did they not deliver after checking the address but they sent the parcel back to the UK company who sent it to me in Portugal.

For my Spices I use UPS and have not had one problem with any delivery to date. Because I have a number of small parcels at my friends in Deal Kent I contacted UPS to deliver to him the part for my car and then he will send everything to me by UPS. Now there is a moral there use Pharosparcels and they will send the parcel via UPS.

Stuffed and mounted what a waste, a rare Liverpool beast

I go to the railway station today to see an endangered species found only in Liverpool The Superlambanana to give it it's full title. These beautiful creatures found only in the wild of Liverpool a few years ago are already on the endangered species list to to people wanting them as pets. But they are not suitable for being pets so if you see one in the wild leave them alone.

I was lucky to see this one that has been stuffed and mounted it would be better running free.

Hope Ashley likes this.

Just to many ingredients

Today I got myself a Pizza from a local supermarket as a treat to me. After reading the ingredient list on the back of the packaging I decided to leave the pizza to others to eat just look at the ingredient list below.

Is there any need to make a Pizza with so many ingrediets or am i being to fussy?

Jesus

i have been in Liverpool for the last few wet freezing days. The ground seems to be permanently wet and rain falling maybe because the rain had nothing better to do while I have been here.

I got to see my Mum today and the first thing I said was I Feel like Jesus walking on water. Well Friday I go home and can leave this rain sodden place behind.

A milestone

I am leaving on Monday morning for a fews days with my Mum in Liverpool. I had planned to get the ceiling finished and i have, apart for where the electrician has to does his work on the front and rear lights and the ceiling fan.

Lots of sanding to do but done but it will be a big help to keep the lounge warm over the coming winter.

Very economical LED lights when in place they will make the look i want in this my home.





Instead of cleaning the room i am letting all the dust settle then hopefully Sunday i can clean the lounge before i fly away on Monday morning.At the moment everything has a horrible film of dust everywhere.

A long time ago

A long time ago i posted a few pictures of templates i made to cut plasterboard. I was reminded yesterday just as i was making another template for a sheet of plasterboard for the lounge ceiling so here's another picture.

It's just as easy for more difficult shapes all i need now it to draw this on the right part of the sheet that is to get put on the ceiling and it will be a perfect job.

Another trip to Liverpool

Not long and i will be back in Liverpool to see my wonderful Mum and her new stair lift. I will get to see everybody i want but one will be away working and that's a worry at the moment as i know where he's gone.

The flight gets in mid afternoon so i have the rest of the day and the flight back leaves mid afternoon so i will get a few good days.

There is one who missed the school reunion who i would like to meet up with but i have heard nothing from Steve for a few weeks.

Ready for the winter

Does it never end. Being a home owner there is always something to do and at the moment installing my chimney for my log burner is top of the list of things to do. Each joint was drilled and riveted together now it should be toasty this winter and no rain water leaks like the last chimney was fitted by someone who was supposed to know what he was doing.

It's looking good now and it's ready for the winter months.

It started with Russia now it's the USA

A little while ago i started to get a lots of views from Russia Thousands and Thousands more than normal. These views lasted for a few weeks and then they almost stopped, now it's back to lower numbers of viewers.

The same has been happening now for a while but it's the USA. From the Statistics i get i only get to see the country. Today i noticed that a number of pages have been viewed by the same amount of people for all of the pages i can see have been read.

As each page has been read by the same amount of people then it can only be it's a school or other institution  so please if this is you please get in touch i would like to know something about the readers.

Scaffolding up in the lounge

Today i managed to get the largest part of the downstairs ceiling up and even got the lights in. I used a scaffolding tower to put the plasterboard up as each sheet is heavy. I have six LED lights for the ceiling but before i installed them i first put them all up in position to check them. I had to see first that six was the right amount for the size of room i have.

I should have took a picture before i put the plasterboard up while it was on the scaffolding tower.

At last the hard part is done i now have the sides to do and after insulating behind the aircon unit i can finish that section. Just a hole to cut now for the ceiling fan

Last insulation and plasterboard done.

After finding in my cellar today a sheet of insulation it was time to get the last wall to be insulated done and finished. Just one more joint to finish on the outside and all the parts of the chimney can be jointed together.

The gap round the hole is because of the possible heat from the chimney.
The pipe as it comes through the wall will also have insulation around it.

Plasterboard up and screwed in position now i need a tub of an adhesive type material like plaster to finish the joints etc.

Fame Fame who wants Fame

It's now been a couple of years since i met a couple in Lidl Arganil who recognized me from my Blog. They told me how they have been reading it from when i first mentioned it on Expats Portugal forum. They like others told me that the reason they moved here was because i gave my opinion of this place i call home.

Friday i was going in to pay for the Euro Millions lottery. As i walked in someone looked at me is if he knew me. I was then asked if my name was Peter again recognized but a bonus and it is a big bonus he is From LIVERPOOL. Again so it seems my Blog has helped someone to find what may be there place in the sun.

That to date makes a total of three couples and two individuals who my Blog has helped that does make me feel proud that is some small way i have been of help.

Roll out the barrel

i recently took a barrel i had in my cellar to get it cut in two. Today due to rain at the market i was forced to come home early so i decided to transplant my orange trees into the barrels.

All i need now is something better for my Lime tree, the Lime tree is the one in the middle.

Stuff what the supermarkets say in the UK

I have just been reading the news on the BBC website i read about Tesco and Unilever in dispute over prices. Unilever say they want to raise price because lots of there product comes in my outside of the UK and because of the effect of the loss in value of the £. Tesco says that they are refusing the increase because they are listening to there customers and are trying to keep prices down

I saw a food program some time ago and a family of farmers who grew Parsnips close there farm due to the supermarkets wanting perfect shaped products.
Well just look at the pepper i got from the market at Figuerio dos Vinhos a few days ago. OK not supermarket shape but tasting amazing, so if you are new to Portugal forget what the supermarkets are like in the UK and enjoy the amazing products available here in Portugal. I have already used the Tomato's but in the UK they would never have seen the supermarket shelves.

This pepper certainly tasted better than it looked but what's better taste or look's?

Today i got these at a market but what would Tesco or Asda say about them?.
Well i know they are fresh and i even know where they where grown and you don't get any fresher then these. One is already cooking in a tomato and basil sauce.

What a difference a day makes

Yesterday i found a place where i could get a short piece of chimney pipe just the length i needed.

Today i cut the hole in the wall and fitted the pipes through . When the outside pipework has been done a collar will go over the pipe and hide the gap round the pipe. There has to be a gap all round the pipe to stop heat causing damage to the plasterboard.








The plasterboard is not yet fixed as the wall behind has yet to be insulated and then the plasterboard can be finished.

Unable to find somewhere to get a short length of pipe the size i wanted i was prepared compromise and the picture i posted a few days ago was the compromise. I had to use a full length of pipe until now when i found a stockist who had short lengths of pipe.

Once i cut the hole in the wall i can fit the last sheet of plasterboard and that's the last of the plasterboard done in my bedroom.

This pipe should act like a radiator in my bedroom and when it's time for bed the room should be warm.