Boundaries - Physical & Metaphysical

I don't think I have ever had to think about this before. Obviously I know what my personal boundaries are. I try to tell the truth, unless the truth will hurt someone, I feel I have a strong eithical sense, I believe in equality & equal opportinity, I am assertive, but try not to be aggressive, I don't believe in physical violence, I don't believe in ignoring wrongs, so I am quite political & lobby a lot, I don't believe in inherited wealth & privilege, I do believe in fairness, I try to respect everyone even if I disagree with them.(I do find that hard - I don't tolerate fools well). Basically I follow societies rules & comply with the law.

Since I have been renovating my house & building an extension I have had several issues with property boundaries. My party wall caused problems & was very expensive to resolve. Fortunately I had employed a Party Wall Surveyor. Now there is an issue with a fence & also 2 walls in the garden which I have discovered are dangerously unstable. 

I thought fences were clearly marked on deeds & plans held by the Land Registry, but it appears this is not the case. However, for anyone who isn't sure which fence is theirs, this is what the Land registry says.

​Boundary Structures

​Fences

The following Boundary Presumptions or Conventions will normally apply, subject to rebuttal by evidence to the contrary:

1. The fence is on the land of the fence owner. This means that the boundary will be presumed to be on the outer side of the fence.

2. Struts. Where a fence has struts on one of its sides it is presumed that the owner of the fence is the owner of the land upon which the struts stand.

3. Upright Posts. Where a fence is supported by upright posts on one side it is likewise presumed that the upright posts stand upon the fence owner's land.

4. Fences with Footings. The Party Wall Act 1996 allows for a fence footing to be laid underground, partly under the adjoining property.

5. Wooden Panel Fences. Where the wooden panels are fitted between the posts the convention is for the external face of the posts to be placed on the owner's land against or close to the boundary.

6. Wire Fences. Where wire fences are supported by concrete posts the convention is for the outer face of the post to be against or close to the boundary, and for the wires to be passed through holes in the centre of the posts. Where the posts are of wood, the outer face would be against or close to the boundary and the wires would be stapled into the outer face of the post.
    

   Walls are different. 

   Unless the title deeds make specific reference to responsibility for a wall, it is generally accepted that the person whose land is retained by the wall is responsible for its repair and maintenance.

    
   The mark on Land Registry plans which denotes responsibility is like a sideways T 
   
   
   
   This is just one of the many unexpected problems my house project has thrown up. It's a microcosm of the situation with Nation States - everyone protecting their own piece of land. Going to war doesn't solve anything though. I feel I have been on a huge learning curve. 
    
   The end is hopefully in sight. I just hope that I will feel it has all been worth the time, effort, stress & cost. 10 months or more of constant fire fighting has taken it's toll.
   
    
    
    
    

   
    

    

    

    

The Arts - Feeding the Soul

I went to an exhibition at Compton Verney on Saturday. Both my daughter & I have birthdays in January & we always try to do something together. We managed to do 2 exhibitions - John Nash (1893 - 1977) plus Grinling Gibbons (1648 - 1721). Totally different in every way. The paintings were oils & watercolours plus engravings & lithographs. The Gibbons is obviously carving, both wood & stone.  One dimensional as opposed to two dimensional. Nash depicted the two world wars & the landscapes of the UK. Gibbons created masterpieces of carving for the wealthy from the King downwards.

The Nash was interesting because it showed his development as an untrained artist. His early oils are quite crude. I really liked the famous paintings of the first world war though.

There is a mural like, naive, quality to the work. His watercolours however are my favourite. The watercolours are much subtler in tone.

 

The Gibbons is shows stunning carving skill. It is hard to understand how a lump of wood can be made into an image of a lace cravat. But the joy of this exhibition was that I did show how the work was done.

 

I wasn't feeling particularly well, but I really enjoyed both of these exhibitions & came away feeling inspired, uplifted & informed. The creative arts are so important to humanity. Grayson Perry has shown more than most artists just how creative ordinary people can be. As has "Portrait & Landscape Artist of the year" on TV. 

Over the past years the Arts have dwindled in our education system. The ruthless march to numeracy & literacy has pushed art to a subsidiary role. It's a mistake. We can't all be highly intelligent. This is the normal IQ curve.

 

We can all appreciate beautiful things & I believe we can all be creative. 

We need to feed the soul as well as the mind.

 

Renting a House

On Wednesday I had been renting for 8 months, while the house I have bought was being completely renovated & an extension built. I gave my notice to move in 2 months time. So come what may, early March will see me in my own home. It's a big leap of faith.

So far I am possibly on my 4th projected moving date. I doubt the house will be finished, but it should be livable in. At least I will have all my stuff out of storage & I will be back in Summertown with everything that makes it convenient.

I am not looking forward to moving house again. It's exhausting & a huge amount of work. But the removers are booked. 

Planning, research & buying everything from the flooring up to make the house habitable has been a full time job. But I haven't had to do any physical work. I have a really good team of 5, (R, H, R, J & C + a plasterer & V who did the ground works), who all work very hard, sometimes in dreadful conditions & always seem to actually enjoy what they do. I certainly have no complaints about the quality of the work & I'm really looking forward to seeing it when it is finished.

It has been a steep learning curve because of the unique circumstances caused by Brexit & Covid in the building trade. Very little has gone smoothly. I have had to be far more flexible than I anticipated & find solutions to problems I couldn't forsee. I have always thought it was worth doing though & have been confident in the vision. I do have new sash windows in the 1930's house & a new side door now.

I've absolutely no idea whether it will prove to be cost effective to have done all the work. The property market is volatile & unpredictable. But I hope that won't be my problem. This is my long term home, not an investment. I don't anticipate moving again voluntarily.

I have actually enjoyed a big project, even if it was a particularly risky thing to do at this time. It has to be better than sitting at home vegitating. It has kept me active & engaged. What will I do when it ends? The garden will keep me going for a couple of years.

It's a new beginning & at 77 that is a good thing.    

Covid 19 - Anniversary

The 31st January is the 2nd anniversary of the Covid 19 virus appearing in the UK. I have to admit that I lost a year somewhere & didn't realise it was 2 years. In that time we have had several variants - Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta & Omicron. The virus is playing cat & mouse with us & has morphed from a pandemic to a worldwide endemic disease.

Populations have gone from drastic Lockdown measures, particularly for more vulnerable people who had to shield because they are more prone to serious symptoms & outcomes, to attempts at a more normalised life. 173,248 people died in the UK  up to the 24th December 2021 with Covid on the death certificate. Total UK deaths in 2019 = 604,707. Total UK deaths in 2020 = 689,629.

https://coronavirus.data.gov.uk/details/deaths

Covid has affected every aspect of everyone's life, work, leisure, home, education, health...It has also impacted every aspect of the world economy, business, supply chains & availability of goods, transport & communication, financial structures, politics....None of us who had not experienced SARS which emerged in China in 2003 & spread to 29 countries were prepared. MERS jumped from animals to humans in the Middle East in 2012. Both are Corona viruses.

We do not know what 2022 will bring. There does seem to be agreement that this will not be the last pandemic. We need to be better prepared for the next than we were for this one. Governments & Politicians varied hugely in how well they dealt with the decision making & control of Covid. The Lowy Institute has an interesting performance index on their website. Europe & America did worst. The Middle East / Africa & Asia / Pacific did best. 

https://interactives.lowyinstitute.org/features/covid-performance/

The scientific response to Covid 19 has been exceptional. I'm very grateful that I have been fully vaccinated & boosted in the UK. The response of the NHS, Carers, Teachers & many others has kept everyone going. The volunteer co-operatives who have supported thousands of people truly restore faith in human nature. The vast majority of people have complied with guidelines to keep others safe.

We have shown what we individually can do. It is a personal choice whether to behave well. We do all have rights. But alongside that there are responsibilities to others.