POST BEGUN MON 25 MAY 2026 1228HRS BST
THINGS WE DO FOR LOVE
Sigh. Being married to Asperger's is challenging. Latest (ok, on-going) challenge? Housing.
Long story short my darling Aspie and I agreed an end to my deeply held cherished dream of moving to a slightly bigger home so I can stop living in the living room and get a second bedroom and bath (shower room, I am tired of risking a fall climbing in and out of these British ridiculously high and deep bathtubs with shower over). We've instead agreed a major renovation and 2 small extensions to our current home.
Complete re-wire including raising the mains outlets to hip-height (no. more. bending. to plug in the vacuum, no more snaking lamps and components cables behind furniture I can't move...).
Walk-in shower cabinet and a stacking clothes washer-dryer in the bathroom, conversion of one of the cupboards in the study (sigh, formerly the sole bedroom in this bloody little shoebox cottage) to a WC and hand-wash basin he can shave at. Kitchen footprint retained with better appliance placement (raised oven, 2-hob cooktop, narrow side-by-side fridge-freezer), easy-clean laminate worktops and equally easy clean cabinetry as pull-out under-worktop drawers and pull-down uppers. Bifold doors to enclose the rear porch (which will cut energy bills:) and I can use as a mini-home gym.
The two extensions? One at the front as a good old fashioned New England style storm porch and the second as a small conservatory off the side of the living room - close to the kitchen and will be used as a dining room.
Sigh. Now we wait for plans to be drawn up and then planning permission to be granted. And then finding and trusting a reliable team of renovation stars.
The only reason I agreed to this rather than the easier-simpler move to a turn-key property? My adorable Aspie came close to tears whilst informing me another house move would kill him.
Why in the hell didn't he tell me during the run-up to the last house move he'd suffered chest pains and multiple panic attacks until yesterday during playback of the taped F1 sprint and qualies highlights??!! I feel like a monster over both about my stoopid heart thingies mandating to that move and my push to find a slightly bigger house now.
Once he made that confession (and we got past the 'WHY didn't you say anything?!' bit), we talked, really talked and the end result was the compromise of 'doing-up' this house to avoid a house move whilst giving me the important things (except a bedroom, heigh ho, I'll make do with a large flat-pack wardrobe and daybed to double as a sofa during the day).
The things we do for love.
POSTED MON 25 MAY 2026 1313HRS BST
