I think I may be becoming somewhat obsessed. I was in the kitchen on Wednesday or Thursday of last week making a sandwich for lunch. (And, before you think it outloud, I was not obsessing about what to put in my sandwich). As I was slicing the bread I was thinking about when I would next need to make a loaf of sourdough bread. I’ve been making it for well over a year now and my process has become increasingly reliable as the days & months have passed. However, the process is very time sensitive at certain points in the procedure. So, whenever I make bread I have to ensure that I am going to be home or close at hand at certain points during the day.
So, how obsessed have I become about producing the most wondrously tasty sourdough bread known in the Western world? I actually pulled out my phone and checked my calendar commitments for the next few days to ensure that I could schedule my sourdough production around my existing responsibilities. Hmm. Maybe I’m taking this all a bit too seriously. Still, it’s damned good bread.
I had to have some documents notarised the other day relating to my father’s estate in the States. I’ve had things notarised in the past but not for very many years now. Indeed, the notary public which I used all those years ago has long since retired. So, I phoned around a few places to get an up to date price for the work I had to have done and to make an appointment.
My goodness! Being a Notary Public is certainly nice work if you can get it! The first office I contacted quoted me £800 for notarising the document which needed witnessing. £800 for meeting me in his office, looking at my passport and driving licence to determine that I am indeed the person I claim to be and live at the address I claim to occupy, watching me sign the document and then him signing the document confirming that I signed it in his presence and stamping it with a large and very impressive stamping device! Five minutes – tops.
You will be relieved to know that I very kindly thanked the receptionist with whom I was speaking and said that I would get back to them if I wanted to proceed. Inside, my brain was saying, “WTF! £800 for five minutes work – you have got to be sh**ing me!” Stunned, I rang a couple more and eventually found one who was prepared to witness me scrawling my signature for a mere £50. And, I was wrong – it took at least ten minutes of his time which I suppose is just about right for a solicitor’s time – £300 per hour. I wonder what stunning added-value the £800 solicitor (£4800 per hour) would have provided? I guess I’ll never know.
We had a nice visit to Bristol on Tuesday. Ms Playchute has been researching the possibilities for carpeting the lounge now that it is virtually finished and she has been tempted by the “natural” carpets, i.e., sisal, seagrass, hemp, coir, jute, bamboo, or, indeed, paper. (Yes, you can actually have a carpet made out of paper). The one currently covering the lounge floor is coir and is very hard wearing but it is quite heavily stained in places and bleached by the sun in others so it definitely needs replacing. Having found what seemed like the nearest supplier in Bristol we made the trek down on Tuesday and had a very interesting (and useful) conversation with the woman running the shop. We came away with a few samples but also with a somewhat heavy heart – the price we were quoted is larger than the national debt of several small developing countries. Back to the drawing board, I guess but if any of you have any experience with sisal or other “natural” carpets, good or bad, drop us a line.
Decent enough weather this week – a stroll across the fields in the evening sun with Penelope and her sister J was a delight.
We also had a lovely time on Sunday on the occasion of an impromptu “reunion” of several members of the Oxfordshire ICT Team from all those years ago organised by our friends Les and Christine Hall and Dave Stansfield. Lovely sunny afternoon, delicious food, excellent wine and a couple of rounds of “golf” made for a splendid occasion. Our friend Stuart kindly shared this photo – would you trust your ICT services to this bunch of clowns?
Neither would I!
Much love to you all,
Greg
I’ve had to get many documents notarized recently, and the standard rate here in LA seems to be $10!