(1) Our washing machine has lost its bearings – or some such ailment which makes it ridiculously noisy when spinning. After consulting an engineer, we have determined that the costs of repair outweigh the benefit and we are best advised to buy a new one. Irritating because that will be expensive, but exciting because we will have a new machine to play with (and anything to distract us in our currently restricted lives is exciting – perhaps that’s a bit sad).
I spent more than an hour researching what replacement model to buy. Not at all exciting, and completely irritating because they all have very slightly different dimensions and plus/minus points. Gave up in the end, and will no doubt only renew my efforts when the current machine gives up the ghost entirely. Irritated with myself for this, of course.
(2) We expected snow again today, and sure enough mid-morning there was a first flurry and an immediate ping from the neighbourhood WhatsApp group as someone spotted it. Exciting! But nearly two hours later, the pathetic swirls of tiny flakes continue to wet the ground and serve only to keep us indoors – how irritating even though we should be pleased not to have the disruption a massive dump of snow would undoubtedly entail.
(3) I thought it was lunchtime. My stomach told me it was hours since breakfast. There’s a Scotch Egg in the fridge that needs eating. Exciting. Then I looked at my clock and discovered I still had more than half an hour before I could legitimately accept the time could be described as ‘lunch’. Irritating in the extreme – and had to fill that time with writing this stupid post.