If it is wet, soggy, damp, dismal and you've had simply the worst week!

Monday: Pipes at the back of the washing machine had been dripping for a while, we couldn't get a plumber until Monday, but by then a whole army of slugs have made their home in our kitchen, because of the dampness. I kid you not, there were slug-slime trails all over the floors. The cupboard under the sink was one of the worst places effected, housing a good few slugs. I spent the entire day scrubbing anything that might've come into contact with said slugs. Plumber comes, fixes the pipes, but forgets to reconnect the outlet hose on the back of the washing machine. So when it got used, the kitchen floor got a good ol' covering of sudsy water to boot. The dog vomited, on the one-year anniversary of us getting her.

Tuesday: Was a really really long day, it went on forever, and it wasn't helped in the slightest by watching Groundhog Day. It rains like cats and dogs, Fiancé takes the dog out for a walk, when she lunges for another dog, breaks free from her collar and runs after said dog. Fiancé loses the torch (it was pitch black at the time) and also his engagement ring (we both had engagement rings when we first got engaged) which he was devastated about. He comes back, after getting the dog on the lead again, then goes out to look for the ring and the torch in the pouring rain. He can't find either object. In the evening, I felt unwell (with the same 24-hour bug Fiancé had last week), went to bed at 7pm for a 12 hour sleep. I never wake up feeling refreshed, but i did the next day.

Wednesday: Rain, rain and more rain. It pours. After cleaning out the cupboard to find another cupboard affected by slugs, and scrubbing everything with bleachy water until my hands ached (I ran out of rubber gloves at a vital point), I was left with a dining room full of stuff that should be housed in our tiny kitchen, but can't because i won't put anything more in those cupboards. Fiancé comes home, we both feel 'bleh', and we chat and hug on the sofa until he breaks the news to me that because the programming team are behind on their work (he works as a computer programmer, but his team isn't the one that is behind), the whole company is being made to do at least 10 hours unpaid overtime. Which will put him up to 48 hours a week, and mean that 2 nights a week he'll be working until 9pm at night, and also 4 hours on Saturday. After that little bombshell cue me crying for an hour or so, blubbing into the phone to my mother, and then having 2 more blubs before going to our local supermarket in the dark and rain, because the fluorescent lighting might make me feel better. Either that or the fact they stock custard and Jaffa Cakes (cakey/biscuity, chocolatey, orangey and yummy, for any Americans). I did manage to not cry in the supermarket, although once the flood gates have been opened, there is no remedy. So, after many hours of feeling pants, I went to bed.

Thursday: It is raining, less so, and is supposed to stop. I'm not holding my breath. Thursday is usually my decadent day, my day for going out and spending small amounts of money in charity shops, in our local town. Unfortunately, due to 'the fear', I decided to not push my non-existent luck. Instead, I decided to concentrate on getting the house ready for a visit from my mother on Friday.

Friday: Things seem much better. The sun is shining, and I had my mother coming up to stay for the weekend. The Fiancé managed to find the torch he lost at the same time as the ring, but still no sign of the ring. He marked the general place, so that he could spend time looking later. I went out, around midday, and to my utter surprise, I found the ring! I was brimming, smiling from ear to ear. Talk about needle in a haystack, though! My mother arrived, and we spent many hours out shopping, drinking lots of tea and eating cakes. Wonderful.

Saturday: Today has been such a wonderful day. We all went out to a local town, had yet more tea and cakes (a thoroughly British institution, one which I could not do without!) and got some early Xmas shopping done. I am about to start preparing food for our dinner tonight, and all seems rather rosier now than it did a couple of days ago!