Gingerjo’s Blog

I helped rip our old bathroom out yesterday. It was quite dramatic with Mr D crowbarring tiles and wood paneling off the wall, and sawing up the old bath to fit it in his van. It’s surprising how quickly the old bathroom disappeared and we were left with a large, empty shell. It was rather a forlorn sight, but it’ll look fab very soon so I’m really excited.

He’s lining the walls with plasterboard today to make it easier (well, possible) to tile. We’ll probably be collecting the tiles tomorrow and I’ve got a day off work on Monday so I can wait for the bath to be delivered. We’re getting one of those fancy chrome towel rail radiators on Monday too. Fingers crossed, by next Thursday/Friday we’ll have a beautiful new bathroom. I can’t wait!!

Ouch, I’ve just come back from having my lower legs zapped with a hair removal laser in Bolton. It was really sore, but it will be well worth it. After only another 5 treatments I’ll never have to shave my legs again. It’s pretty expensive, but not compared to spending your whole life buying venus razor blades or getting them waxed every six weeks.

I had my underarms done last year (which also really hurts) and it’s fantastic - no more shaving, no more itchy armpits, no more thinking ‘ah, can’t wear this top, I haven’t shaved’. It’s fab, I wish I could have afforded it ten years ago.

Where do I go? Well I get it done at the Laser and Cosmetic Centre in Bolton and I’ve never had any problems. You get treated by a fully trained nurse who understands your skin and the science of how the treatment works - not some muppet who’s just finished a BTEC. They are also very friendly and you can have a laugh and a good conversation while you wince with pain. Honestly, it’s worth it though.

Well, we’re still waiting for the bath to be delivered, but at least I know it’s now in transit. Last Saturday/Sunday we went looking at tiles and have chosen some really contemporary large tiles - the bathroom will be two-tone - creamy white at the top and brown/black on the bottom, with a silver stripe and mosiac tile border. It’s going to look fab - I ordered the tiles this afternoon. We’ll probably look at flooring this weekend, but I might wait until the bathroom’s fitted and tiled before making the final decision. It’s very exciting.

Watched that programme last night with Peter and Dan Snow. Apparently only 10% of people in Britain earn more than £46,000. I’m really surprised (and in some ways depressed) by that. Their stats also showed that the vast majority of people earned less than £30,000 - most of them earning in the £10,000-£20,000 bracket. The average wage is about £24,000 - of course this is calculated by working out the total amount of salary paid in the UK each year and dividing that by the number of workers (30 million busy bees). This average wage is not therefore the wage of the average person - two thirds of the UK population earns less than the average wage. The average person’s salary must therefore be considerably lower than £24,000.

There would seem to be a huge discrepancy between what the media tells us we should earn, what advertisers tell us we should be able to afford to spend, and what our employers can afford to pay us. No wonder everyone’s in so much debt!

Still considering my options. I’m thinking 30 mins on Wii Sports a night wouldn’t hurt me. Relaxation and a smidgeon of exercise. For January we (me and Mark) are trying to eat less. Not so much diet, more return to pre-Christmas munching levels really. So far it’s not working, but there’s still loads of Christmas food left in the cupboards so that’ll probably get easier as the stores are depleted. Also thinking that frugality is a good idea. I’ve spent far too much money and February is an expensive month with the car needing servicing, taxing and insuring, oh, and with buying a new bathroom. I’m also thinking seriously about my career plans this year - I think it’s nearly time for a change, but do I stay in education or move out into the wider world of public sector work? Either way I’ve got to pass this blooming CIM course before I can do anything, so that’s on the list too. At least I don’t have to stop smoking.

To be honest, my only real plan is to survive. Survival seems good and most likely achievable.

Urggh. Basically, since I left home every bathroom I’ve had to live with has been pink. Not just the suite, no it’s worse than that, the walls too most often. Is it any wonder that I have very little interest in my appearance? Who wants to spend more than the bare minimum time preening themselves in a pink bathroom? You just want out-a-there as quick as possible.

Perhaps our lovely new white bathroom will mark the birth of a new me??

We’ve needed a new bathroom forever. The current monstrosity is dusky pink with lilac painted tiles and, well, the rest is just to hideous to describe. But since my sis owes me some favours, and her fella is a dab hand with plumbing and woodwork and electrical stuff, they are going to replace it for us. (more…)