White with one

Sunday morning's are pretty low key at Number 10, especially when Mont's at Bonnie Doon with "the lodger" and it's just me and "the girls" at home

This is when I break out my favourite cup and saucer

Make a cuppa in one of my little pots

Pop a piece of sour dough into the toaster

Put on some soothing music....

... and open the Paper to check out the latest news (and sport of course) Yes, the Cats had a rather convincing win yesterday

I love Sundays!

My ship appears to have come in...

BIG TIME BABY.....BIG TIME ! !

Look at the email that arrived in my inbox today. Actually, I've received a few of these in the past week, so maybe I'm a multi gazillionaire by now. Who would've thought, huh?

The British National Lottery

P O Box 1010
3b Olympic Way, Sefton Business Park,
Aintree, Liverpool , L30 1RD
(Customer Services)

Ref: UK/9420X2/68
Batch: 074/05/ZY369
Ticket number:56475600545 188
Lucky Numbers: 05,06,17,20,28,42(Bonus33)

WINNING NOTIFICATION:

We wish to congratulate and inform you on the selection of cash prize
£1,000,000.00 (British Pounds) held on the 24th June 2011
in London Uk.The selection process was carried out through random
selection in Our computerized email selection system (ess) from a
database of over 250,000 email addresses drawn from which you were
selected. And Your e-mail address attached to ticket number:
56475600545 188 with Serial number 5368/02 drew the lucky numbers:
05, 06, 17, 20, 28, 42 (Bonus 33) ,which subsequently won you the
lottery in the 1st category i.e match 5 plus bonus.

You have therefore been approved to claim a total sum of 1 Million
Pounds,(One Million Pounds) in cash credited to fileKTU/ 9023118308/03.
This is from a total cash prize of £1,000,000 Million Pounds,shared
amongst the (4)lucky winners in this category i.e Match 6 plus bonus.

For due processing of your winning claim,please contact the
FIDUCIARY AGENT Information Officer Mr. Fred Peters who has been
assigned to assist you. You are to contact him with the following
details for the release of your winnings.

Agent Name: Mr. Fred Peters
Tel: +447024051534
+447024013832
Email: mr.fredpeters10@yahoo.ie

Contact him, please provide him with the following Requirements below:
Claims Requirements:

1.Name in full----------------------
2.Address---------------------------
3.Nationality-----------------------
4.Age-------------------------------
5.Occupation------------------------
6.Sex ------------------------------
7.Phone/Fax-------------------------
8.Present Country-------------------

If you do not contact your claims agent within 5 working days of this
Notification, your winnings would be revoked. Winners are advised to
keep their winning details/information from the public to avoid
Fraudulent claim (IMPORTANT) pending the prize claim by Winner.

*Winner under the age of 18 are automatically disqualified. *Staff of
the British Lottery are not to partake in this Lottery.

Accept my hearty congratulations once again!

Regards

Mrs. Stella Ellis
(Group Coordinator
Note that you are not to reply to this E-mail,please contact your
claims officer directly to start the processing of your claims
application form.

Now...what to buy with my winnings....

HMMMMMM... decisions, decisions

Life really is fantastic isn't it?

A new day dawns

I want to move away from quotes and blinds and silly salesmen for a little while with a little shot of nature at Number 10

Welcome to July. We're a couple of days into the new financial year here in this great brown land of OZ...and here's what the new day looked like

This is the view from the infamous Number 10 back deck

What's the old saying....Red sky at night, shepherds delight, red sky at morning, shepherds warning...

It was a nice day all the same

Have a wonderful day... heck have a wonderful July wherever you are in the world!

A tale of 2 quotes...

...and two selling approaches.

As I wrote the other day, I've been in the market for a cafe blind for our back deck and as you know, I had a rather interesting conversation with one of the companies about getting someone out to Number 10 to provide a quote.

Well Wednesday was the day...two quotes, two very different approaches.

#1. At midday, the first person arrived armed with a working (sample size) model of the cafe blind we'd like. He had brochures, tape measure, samples of other material used in blinds and lots of information. I asked questions he answered them in a friendly manner. We had a discussion; a conversation about the pros and cons of the various methods used to raise and lower the blind. He told me we'd have to put a piece of timber down one of the posts to make it even with the other end. No problem. He knew what he was talking about

He measured the area, asked me if I was happy with it, wrote up the quote, we shook hands and he left
He was friendly without trying to be my friend.

Here's the side wall of the deck where the blind will be ... excuse the chaotic mess. My painting and refurbishment projects are there and everything's been moved closer to the French doors because of the rain and wind...It's an area approx 3.6 metres across, by 2.6 metres high.

#2. I got a call at 3pm to (yet again) confirm that a person would be here at 4pm. He turned up on time and carried a metal pelmet, (that covers the top of the blind) and a couple of pieces of different quality PVC. He also had a white metal thing but didn't really explain what that was used for.

He started his spiel....started explaining the virtues of the better quality PVC, told me about the different ways the blind could be hung and be secured. He wasn't rude or really pushy... he was simply doing what he'd been trained to do. We weren't having a conversation, I was simply there to hear about the virtues of his companys' products.

At one point he told me that if I ordered today he would "bump" me ahead of some other orders to make sure I got it installed quickly. I looked at him incredulously and stated he had to be kidding, that if he was saying that to me he was certainly telling other potential customers the same thing. He back tracked

He then told me that as he was leaving his office to come to Number 10, his boss had authorised him to offer me free installation (and something else, but I can't remember what it was).

That's when I asked him to please not "bullshit" me! He back tracked again

He gave me a price then tried to call his office to get it discounted, but apparently couldn't get through...so gave me the discount anyway. The so-called quote he wrote was simply written on the back of a brochure. No measurements, no signature, no official quote/order sheet, just the price and the colour of the pelmet and trim on the back of the brochure

When I told him I was getting another quote and wouldn't be committing myself that day, he couldn't get out of here fast enough.

There were some other things said during his 35 minutes at Number 10...but he never did explain what that white metal thing was. It turns out it's the metal bracket the crank handle slips into so we can raise and lower the blind. I discovered that when I went to the store (from quote #1) to order and put a deposit on the blind.

So there you have it. Two very different methods. I guess there are some people out there who warm to method #2, but not me.

The new cafe blind will be here in a few weeks...can't wait!