Skip diving again

Hands up who did the Park Run this morning. Me me me. Yes I did it. I arrived within 5 seconds of it starting, I even had to sprint across the car park to tag on to the end of the line. No porridge this morning, I reckoned bran flakes wouldn't be as filling. Fine, except that the liquid sloshing about in my stomach was a bit uncomfortable. I think I need to limit myself to half a mug of coffee next week. 

I left the fleece off this week, instead had a vest, thin teeshirt, and a long sleeved polo shirt on. I was flippin freezing, my poor hands were looking distinctly blue with cold. I should have put my gloves on, but I got out the car in such a rush, I forgot. Oh well, it's all a learning curve, I'll get it right eventually. 

I was so cold I didn't run all the way round the first circuit, I started adding short bursts of fast walking sooner than last week. I kept checking my watch to see how I was doing, at the halfway stage I was on 18 minutes, slightly faster than before, even with the walking. My walking is pretty fast. 

I've just checked my time on the web site and I'm pleased to say I completed it in 38 minutes 48 seconds, so a bit better than last week. There was a lot more runners today, and we had to wait a minute to get scanned at the end. 284 in total. The woman next to me said she used me as a pacemaker and I kept her going. She was a similar age to me, I also kept her in my sight all the way, we kept overtaking each other. I asked her how long she has been coming, she said, since it started, a year ago. I asked if she felt she was fitter for it, and she said yes, definitely. So that promising, there's hope for me then. Are there any more who want to add their times here? Let's see if we can encourage each other. 

On the way out of the village this morning I saw that there was another skip at the house which was being emptied. It has been up for sale, and they did say they would need to clear everything out of the house once it was sold. I didn't have time to stop, so I made a point of driving past on the way back to see if the skip was still there. It was. They had laid some garden stuff out on the front lawn with a notice on for people to take what they wanted. Of course I had to have a look. I was there for an hour picking my way through the contents of the skip. They said I could gladly take anything, it was all going to be dumped.

I shifted things around to see what was underneath, they had laid some heavy things on top so I couldn't see to the bottom, but I had a good rummage. The woman kept bringing things out of the house and asking me if I wanted them. I took anything that was offered because we can sell it to raise funds for the cats. A few items I will keep for myself, some I will give to friends, and the rest I will take to charity shops. 

I wish I had been there yesterday when the skip arrived, and watched as they filled it. It was very sad to see how things had been thrown in, perfectly good household items which had broken. Someone could have made good use of them.

The woman was clearly very emotional as she brought things out. She told me about the two plates she had in her hand, how her mother had served cakes up on them at the tea table when she was a little girl. It was like she didn't want to let go of them. I suggested she keep them, but she said they had taken as much as they can, and they can't keep everything. I couldn't let her throw them away so I took them from her and said I would find a good home for them. I was almost in tears with her. Her mother has gone into a care home and is not very well at all.

So now my newly de cluttered spare room is once more cluttered. I could open my own charity shop here. This is only a fraction of what there was. Some items are brand new, still boxed, and never been used. I rang my friend B, he came to have a look and took two saucepans, and other bits that he could make use of. I have some nice fabric for my sewing projects, and a fleece throw.

My car loaded up.  

I will give everything a wash and make sure it is clean ready for sale or to give away.

House clearance is de cluttering on a big scale. It would be better if people would pass on things they don't need when they are still fit and able. There's a lot to be said for sorting out your affairs before you go. Relatives often don't have the time to go through every single item and distribute it to the many different places it could go. Such a shame that people are going out and buying new, when there is so much second hand which could be put to good use. Sad, that someone's life possessions end up in a skip.
Catch you tomorrow. Toodle pip.