building steam with a grain of salt

three days annual leave, need to get the house sorted out, i've neglected it over the last couple of years, err, the last five years, uhhm, the last ten years, really? is it that long? under no pressure from the long suffering mrs b who patiently juggles the finances to enable us to have great holidays, pay the mortgage, get the shopping, pay the vet's bill's, gas, electric, council tax, [don't get me started..] and a thousand and other household bills and then, to indulge my passion for buying perfectly good, [but a tad tatty i grant you] motorcycles and cut the shit out of them in the shed, follow my [broken] dream to be a motorcycle racer, go to the island for the classic tt with dangerous, sweary and chalky and never, ever, moans about it. so, i have a prick of conscience, the house is a tip and begging for a lick of paint and attention, that's it then, emulsion, egg-shell and varnish, i'm on a mission me, get the house sorted out = more time to ride in the spring when the weather takes a turn for the better.
        up at sparrow fart to drop jack off at work, bollocks, where did that come from? derbyshire is under a heavy covering of the white-stuff, we dig out the car and make a treacherous journey to work, back home and i walk the dogs as dawn breaks, the two j.r terriers are full of it, rolling and tumbling in the deep snow, back home and a brew in hand,i'll just five minutes before i start painting the hall / landing / stairs, the two tins of matt-black engine paint are sitting on the radiator in the shed, i idly shake a tin and apply a quick blast to see what it would look like.... the rest of the day is spent between painting the house and painting the engine, coat after coat, upstairs, downstairs, i eventually call it a day, wash out my brushes and retire to the shed, go on then, oh alright, i pick at the masking, just to see what it looks like mind, a bootle of beer in hand and a couple of hours carefully taking off the last few nights work, white spirit see's the sticky residue gone. everything is covered with overspray, all three bikes, the bench, tools, the walls, everything, i'm coughing up black snot, my fingers and thumbs split from the combination of different paints and spirits, but, well, i'm well chuffed with the result.........