Best bits: arrival of Will, Greg and Poppy
Worst bits: heating still ineffective
Distance: rest day
Days to the finish: 4
British Gas gave me a timeslot of 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. to wait for an engineer. I’m just not used to hanging around all day—it felt strangely alien after a year of constant movement. To fill the hours, I busied myself making beds, sorting through cupboards, and clearing out things that hadn’t been touched in over a year.
Cleaning and decluttering turned out to be unexpectedly emotional. There was something both dramatic and cathartic about it. Angela always loved a clean, tidy home and took great pride in keeping everything in order. She was never entirely satisfied with my cleaning efforts—though to be fair, her standards were high! I couldn’t help but wonder what she would have made of my attempts today. Perhaps she’d be quietly impressed… or maybe still shaking her head.
Living in Priscilla for a year taught me how little I actually need. When you live with only essentials, you discover how unnecessary most possessions really are. I managed perfectly well with just the basics and rarely missed anything—except, perhaps, the luxury of a hot bath. Now, back at home, I have an urge to go through the whole house item by item and create a minimalist environment. Maybe it’s a phase, a reaction to the huge contrast between the compact, simple life in Priscilla and the clutter of home.
When I opened my wardrobe, it was like Mary Poppins’ carpet bag—things just kept spilling out. Everything had been stuffed in there while I was away, and I was amazed (and slightly horrified) by how much I actually own. I found myself asking: Will I ever wear any of this again?
The gas engineer finally arrived at 3 p.m., after a long day of waiting. He ran a series of checks on the boiler and the pipes, only to conclude that there wasn’t a leak after all—the culprit was the pump. Unfortunately, it wasn’t something he could fix that day. Another engineer would need to come later in the week. So, no heating again for at least another day. I did my best to keep the house warm, lighting a fire and keeping the windows tightly closed.
In the late afternoon, I made a quick trip to Asda to pick up a few essentials. At the checkout, one of the ladies recognised me—she’d been following my coastal walk since the very beginning. It was lovely to be recognised and to see the excitement in her face. It’s funny to think that, in a small way, I’ve become a bit of a local celebrity.
Of course with the help of Amazon I had made provisions for celebrating with family and friends later in the week.
Later that evening, Will and Greg arrived after a long drive up from London, with Poppy in tow. She’s thirteen now—an old lady—and after a full day in the car, she was stiff and restless when she arrived. It took her a while to settle, but eventually she curled up and relaxed.
I hadn’t seen any of them since July, so there was plenty to catch up on. Will shared some wonderful news—he had just received his registration certificate and could officially call himself an architect. What a proud moment that was.
It wasn’t the day I’d planned, but it turned out to be full of small victories: a clean house, a warm fire, family back together, and the promise of heat on the horizon.
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