8.00 Sneak out of bed early leaving Nigel to catch a few more Zs. Contrary to ‘normal’ policing hours he starts work at 9am and finishes at 5pm……. are the city cops jealous? Time to water some of the backyard (‘some’ because there are water restrictions after 9 am and very low water pressure = about 3 hours to do the whole yard); weigh self and make a mental note not to eat any more of Jackson’s chocolates – even though he did say to take whatever I wanted in his fridge (his way of getting me to clean out the fridge) while he’s away and I’m feeding Moses (cat).
Put washing on; empty the kitchen bin; despair at the number of job lists on the kitchen bench; start to compile ONE list; boil jug to make coffee; start washing up (last night’s dishes) and forget about list; make mental note to give the post office the lettuce leaves and stale bread for the chooks BEFORE Nigel throws it out. Phone rings and it’s Jamie Geddes (vet) to talk about Bear’s candidacy for Adi-cell surgery. We talk and then make a date for the surgery. Make coffee and take it with me to water the yard.
8.30 Water the yard while throwing the ball to the Bear with one hand and trying to drink coffee with the other (multi-tasking!).
9.00 Nigel goes to work (my signal that watering is no longer allowed); return to the washing up but decide to ring Nigel on the Bat Phone (police internal phone). Does he want bacon and eggs for breakfast ? Yes please. With the Police Station next door, Nigel gets home cooked breakfasts (are we very jealous?) Phone rings – sister has an assignment on Hatshepsut (you know – the one married to Thutmose). We talk while I try to find info on Google. No luck – shewill get back to me after she talks to her teacher.
9.50 Ring Nigel to explain that I haven’t started breakfast yet – in case he needs to go out. Defrost bacon and turn on stove; open / check / sort mail; return to washing up – now cold; make another coffee instead; go back to compiling notes for the day’s chores (tax, weeds, emails, fix Bear’s bed); decide this might make a fun future email, turn on computer to type it up; give up on washing up; start typing ‘A Day in the life…………”. Bacon smells like it’s burning – add eggs, tomatoes, capsicum.
10.10 Return to computer; Bear is now lying on the carpet practising his sulky face (it’s been more than half an hour since his last run); continue typing my ‘fun’ email; realise I should email conveyancer sooner rather than later to let her know that the mortgage docs should have arrived but didn’t – don’t exchange yet (unit at Tuncurry).
10.20 Breakfast is cooked; Ring Nige on bat phone to come and get breakfast; ‘Thanks for breakfast, Baby’; return, with breakfast, to computer; realise that Bear hasn’t had his breakfast (maybe that’s why he was sulking?); get Bear’s antibiotics (broken claw number 3) and manage to trick him into eating 3 tablet halves, disguised in pieces of steak; make breakfast and take it to the Bear, who has realised it’s that time of the morning and is waiting patiently on his bed (Not sure how we managed to ‘teach’ him that one????)
10.30 Return to computer, (warm) breakfast and (cold) coffee; start to update ‘A Day in the life…’
10.33 Bear’s at my side (time for another game) but I’m determined to get back to the washing up (now includes breakfast stuff); a few quick pats and Bear returns to his sulking position; I return to my (cold) breakfast and my (fun) email draft.
10.39 Realise I still haven’t rung the conveyancer so send email; finish cold breakfast; refill sink to wash up; still getting sulky looks from the Bear.
10.55 Washing and wiping up complete; make mental note to find where I put the plunger (sink is starting to block up again); Kitchen is tidy! Remember washing to hang out.
11.05 Washing hung out! (looks like rain); Nigel’s back; Oops – forgot to wash his plate!
11.10 Washing up complete! (sink still blocked). Nigel likes the email so far.
11.15 Time to vacuum. No! Just remembered I need to confirm the caravan park for Sunday night (Dental appointment for Nige on Monday). Confirmed! Time to vacuum. No! Just saw Rochelle out the window – need to say Thanks for the great lesson notes she left me (reminds me of me)
11.31 Start to vacuum
11.39 Was I bidding on something on Ebay?
11.40 Stop vacuuming to check ebay auctions. Ah yes – the casual chair to replace the ‘electric chair’ (for Nigel’s shiatsu massager), which was stolen to replace the computer chair, which was ‘stolen’ for the Police Station desk (two cops, one office chair). Luckily, there are still a couple of days to go before the ebay auctionJ.
11.46 Back to vacuuming. No! It’s raining! Time to get the washing into the dryer. That reminds me – I promised to try to sell the school dryer on ebay (they’ve obviously heard of my ebay prowess); make mental note to write an ad some time this afternoon.
11.52 Washing is in the dryer; make another mental note to clean the laundry floor tiles before the Easter guests arrive; the Bear is at my side doing his best begging tricks. Nope – not till it stops raining! Back to the vacuuming; vacuuming is done! grass free carpet! Still raining. Still sulking. Time to read conveyancer’s agreement.
12.17 Notice Mr Baird’s truck outside (everyone calls him Mr as a sign of respect); Devlin delivers the rest of the meat order; chat to Devlin about Nigel’s warning him to get the correct truck licence. No idea what he’s talking about but he seems glad to have told me that he’s getting it ‘fixed’; take delivery of meat; phone rings – good news – bank says that there’s a box to tick if we want the balance of settlement monies to be taken out of our account (avoids a 420 km round trip for a bank cheque). Also, settlement should take place early April; make mental note to pass on that info to conveyancer; unpack and bag meat; make another mental note to check whether the meat has been billed to our account yet; Bear has given up sulking and is nowhere to be seen; rain has stopped; meat is bagged; email conveyancer; dryer buzzer says that washing is cooked; unpack dryer and put clothes away; Notice bed not made; make bed.
13.00 Washing has been put away; Nigel comes in and grabs some lunch on the run – remarks that the Bear looks ‘forlorn’ (he’s actually very good at looking forlorn); Bear overhears, realises we’re talking about him and comes to plead with me again; Time to run the Bear.
13.25 Bear is exhausted but happy! (favourite toys = tennis ball + throwing stick); time to email conveyancer; go to Inbox and notice a Skype upgrade (might as well); email sent; shower time; on the way, notice water jug is empty; fill jug and replace in fridge (Bear’s ‘Special’ water); make mental note to ask Nigel to refill the water cooler (way too heavy!); notice dishes in sink (Nigel’s lunch); shower – mental note number 23 – scrub shower before visitors arrive; wash hair; get dressed; tidy house
14.41 time to feed Moses and put an end to these ramblings. I’ve learned not to leave feeding Moses too late because he will invariably punish me by spewing on the floor and then hiding till the next day, leaving me to panic about whether he’s alive. I’ve just run the Bear for the last time (until Nigel gets home and there’s someone new to manipulate). A cursory glance at my To Do list reveals that I have accomplished very little so far but then, there’s always tomorrow.
Married to a Country Cop 