Setting up Robbie's new company has involved a lot of hard work but at last all the essential things have been dealt with and we can focus on some of the tasks that we had been putting off until we had time. One of those jobs was to choose a suitable office chair for Robbie, so one day last week I rang Verve Workspace for advice about the best choice of chair. They offer a wide range of chairs (as well as a diverse range of other quality office furniture) and they suggested that we should pop into their office so that Robbie could try some of the chairs. It sounds simple enough, but with Robbie nothing is simple!
When we got to their office Robbie was very impressed by the quirky design features. He hardly had a chance to react to the life sized sheep in the reception area, before he spotted an old red phone box set into the wall. Steve Allen, the owner of the company showed Robbie around. The phone box opened to reveal a walk in cupboard, then Steve showed him the kitchen, it has a map of London printed on the floor covering and it looks amazing. Robbie loved the boardroom which has a very bright spacious feel, one wall is painted with a special paint so that you can write on it as if it is a white board. Everywhere he looked there was something else to admire, so it was very hard to get him to focus on chairs but eventually he tried out a selection of chairs and he chose one that would give him plenty of support for his back.
He was very happy with his choice and I thought that the hard part was over - but I was wrong, he still had to choose the colour and fabric for the chair. He was given a chart with colour and fabric samples, he had a whole rainbow of colours to choose from, but being Robbie he chose the loudest, brightest red. He had got that determined look in his eye, but this was one of those occasions rare occasions when I was even more determined that Robbie wasn't going to get his own way. I can't live with a red chair, it would be like a permanent party political broadcast! Tense negotiations followed and Robbie drove a hard bargain, when it was clear that my veto on the red chair would not we lifted he insisted having his chair in a bright 'leprechaun' green instead. Unfortunately they don't make covers for office chairs, but I think it will be covered in a dust sheet when not in use because I am not a fan of green.
So now we are awaiting delivery of the chair and a large 'industrial strength' bookcase to replace the one that has collapsed under the weight of the Burgess book collection. It will be lovely to have things looking more organised.
There is more information about the Verve Workspace Offices on their blog
I had an unusually silent day yesterday, because Robbie decided he wasn't talking to me and I decided to leave him to stew in his own juice. We have plenty of children in our family already, I really don't have the time or the energy to deal with a 37 year old kid. Wednesday is a very busy day for me so I wasn't really troubled by his silence, I hardly noticed it. He didn't arrive home at his usual time, in fact he didn't arrive home at all so his dinner went in the dog and the apple and blackberry crumble I had made remained uneaten. When I had done all my work I went to bed and I was woken at around half past eleven by Robbie, still in a strop commanding me to make sure I didn't leave the key in the door. I think that was a coded message for please can you pick me up from the station, but since he couldn't even be civil I wasn't going to offer. I went straight back to sleep, so I don't know when he got home or how he got there, but he didn't manage to get himself to bed until just before 4am - I suspect he fell asleep in the lounge.This morning he was silent and his lip was sticking out so far that he was in danger of tripping over it. I didn't have anything to say but eventually Robbie broke the silence, he almost spat out the words “Look I'm sorry”. I was quiet for a moment, I told him I was glad he was sorry but to have any meaning an apology needs to sound sincere, he tried again and came a bit closer to a recognisable apology. He knew he had been completely out of order, but in true Robbie style when he found himself in a hole he kept on digging – if he wants to dig there is a whole garden outside in need of his attention!He went to London last night to see a group called The Editors, I believe he had mentioned it to me last week, but he really should have reminded me yesterday. Never mind, he missed out on a nice meal and he made his own life unnecessarily difficult; maybe he has learnt a lesson but somehow I doubt it. He now acknowledges that the bookcase resembles the Leaning Tower of Pisa, he says he is going to repair it – I wonder why Heath Robinson springs to mind! I know that he is deeply attached to his railway books, but why do they all have to be in the lounge?
To say that I am angry is a huge understatement. Robbie was home late last night because he had been to the North, I messed up my evening in order to pick him up and everything was fine - until we got home! An innocent remark about his bookcase caused him to throw his toys out of the pram. The bookcase is already full and groaning under the weight of books and a simple request not to load any more books on to it was all it took for Robbie to fizz up and bang. Anyway he clamped on his headphones, plugged himself into his laptop and tried to annoy me with his music that was so loud it spilled out int the room. Failing to get a reaction he turned to Facebook and advertised for a good home for all his railway books, my comment that he should grow up prompted him to add his model deltics to the list (because I had bought them for him). I am not sure how he thought getting rid of that much clutter was going to hurt me, but I was sick of his childish games and decided not to succumb to the temptation to advertise 'Annoying husband free to a good home'. I gave up and went to bed and the silence has been 'golden' ever since! He must know he was being ridiculous and regret his actions because he deleted his facebook comments, but so far the 's' word has eluded him!
Usually, I don't see much of Robbie during the week, by the time he gets home from work I have already left, so it is about 10.40pm before I see him. Yesterday was different, he had been to a meeting in Cambridge and he arrived home half an hour or so before I left. I was worried about him because his leg had been misbehaving and I would have liked to stay at home with him, but we can't always do what we want. By the time I left, Robbie was busy reorganizing his bookcase and making the case for yet another bookcase because he cant fit all his railway books on the one he has – one day there will be no room for me because of his books! He told me that he was going to sort out the collection of books and magazines that he had amassed at the side of his bed, so I was hopeful that I would come home to find a little more space in the bedroom.
When I returned later that evening, I was tired and hungry and I had forgotten all about Robbie's books, his bookcase looked much the same and I didn't go up to the bedroom until it was time for bed. I was late heading up to bed and when I came out of the bathroom I was looking forward to a few hours sleep, but that was to prove difficult. Robbie had piled all sorts of junk on the bed – it was his junk (except for a pile of my books that had been displaced by his railway books and were now homeless). I love my bed and taking liberties like that was not a wise move by Robbie. I rescued my books and piled the rest of the junk on Robbie's side of the bed, then I got in and settled down to sleep. I vaguely remember him waking me up to apologise for the mess on the bed and he must have moved it because when the alarm went off this morning Robbie was in bed and the junk was gone.
I am pleased to report that normal service has been resumed, Robbie is his usual cheerful self again after a very challenging weekend. It was his birthday on Saturday, he was 36 and he was an absolute pain. I'm not sure what got into him, he said he wasn't happy about getting old and I came very close to solving that problem for him - there is only so much moaning one person can take in a day! He had some nice presents and cards, two expensive railway books from me, binoculars from the children, another railway mug and money. He'd asked for money because he is saving up for an a camera, not just any old camera, the one he has his eye on does everything except make a cup of tea - and it has a price to match, so he will have to save up. We had a lovely afternoon at my mum's, she spoils Robbie, she cooked him his favourite meal and she made him a lovely birthday cake, so he managed to feel a little better about getting old by the end of the day.
On Sunday I put him in a bad mood by listening to the morning service on Radio 4, I was enjoying it but Mr Moan announced that it was too 'happy clappy' and he sat up in bed with his arms folded and his bottom lip sticking out like a toddler having a strop. He irritated me so much that I was almost tempted to sing along and join in with the service, but maybe that would have been too much for him to bear. I had a couple of errands to do, but I when I got back I made sure that I had some peace and quiet to listen to the Archers. Robbie was kept busy with mending the fence (just the job for a rainy day) and then building his new bookcase (at last).
So now it is Monday evening and the bookcase is positioned neatly in the corner of the lounge with just two books on it. Having waited weeks for Robbie to build it, I thought it would be a simple matter to put the books on it, but there appears to be some delay. He says he has to work out how to arrange the books but I think he has suddenly realised that he will not be able to read his Quail Maps in bed anymore. I have a feeling that this isn't going to be as easy as I thought!Favourite Railway Books
At last a weekend without Robbie dashing of to 'play trains'. It was nice to have a bit of time to ourselves without having to dash around. After so many very early mornings and late nights it was nice to have a lazy start to Saturday morning, but Robbie's dad had other ideas, he phoned soon after 9am and was scandalised because Robbie was still in bed! We were awake and listening to Radio 4 (with a cup of tea of course!) and I was determined to read my family history magazine before tackling the next round of the laundry marathon and all the other jobs that seem to compete for my attention. Sometimes it is nice just to have time to talk without having to watch the clock.
Robbie did his usual 'wrong time wrong place' thing when he announced that there was an interesting article in one of his railway modelling magazines about buildings for a railway layout based on shops in Northampton - I could hardly contain my excitement (yawn). It wasn't quite such a turn of as when Barry Doe popped up in conversation, I like reading his column in Rail magazine but I certainly don't want to think of him when I am in bed! I am probably doing the poor chap an injustice but something about his head and shoulder photo in Rail always makes me imagine him wearing bicycle clips. Usually the mention of his name causes Robbie to swear so it was a shock to find Robbie conjuring him up at the most inappropriate time.
Yesterday I took some time to work on my family tree and after months of frustration (and with a bit of help from a friend) I have managed to trace back another two generations. I may have mentioned before that I have been researching someone called Jones who married someone called Johns, his father it turns out married someone called Jones so it has been like looking for a needle in a haystack when tracing this particular line, but I have now got back to 1790's so I am quite pleased.
Robbie promised to build the bookcase that we bought several weeks ago to house his massive collection of railway books. I am certain he said it would be done by Saturday evening, but his words proved about as reliable as Network Rail promises, it is now Sunday evening and the bookcase is still in it's box awaiting the attention of Bob the Builder!
We had tea at my mums today because it is Mother's Day. Mum seemed very pleased with her presents, plants for the garden from my brother and DVD's from us. I had nice presents from the children too, but the nicest thing is to be together and to enjoy a few hours of family time.
