We have our own resident nutter!

Ann met him wandering the grounds. He was actually employed by the previous owner as a 'hermit'. I knew there were some outbuildings in the grounds, but they were described as 'in poor repair', and I hadn’t gotten the enthusiasm up to have a look at them. But there he is, in this bloody house or hermitage, (which is basically two rooms with a cold water tap and electric), living in our back garden. Shirley knew all about him, takes him food and stuff, and says he's harmless, but I can't get any sense out of him! Thing is, I'd seen him in the village pub, sitting in the corner and muttering. Now I need to find out how much we pay him!

I may be back to buying lottery tickets the way things are going. My 'basic' repairs (which I'm obligated to make, and then pay VAT on) are going to cost a fortune. There is one saving grace--the toffee-nosed twit who's the local inspector apparently isn't going to 'allow' me to make any other changes to the house. Since the house was built, they have changed walls, added rooms, even stuck a whole bloody wing on one side, but now since we've moved in I'm not allowed to put up a garden shed without a Congress of World Architects discussing it. Actually a garden shed may be O.K. since he didn't seem to care about the landscape as much, just the house. We can't do anything that would "materially affect the character'' and he decides what that is. He obviously thinks I'm an idiot, ready to tear down the building and put up Disneyland. We bought this place because of what it is, but I think buildings are organic, they grow with their owners. Why should it fossilize now? My one revenge was asking the guy, Chester Vyse, if his name was American. He was quite put out, and said it was an old family name.