annanotbob2's Diaryland Diary

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Homes

Thanks for the notes xx Daughter apparently has a viral upper respiratory tract infection, but she says she feels better and was up and dressed and doing things so maybe. There was this awful article in The Guardian where people with terminal illnesses talked about how they were living with that diagnosis. One of them had been feeling rough for years and finally got a diagnosis of cancer of the everywhere far too late. I really do try not to catastrophise about stuff but sometimes it creeps up and knocks me right out. Thank you though. I’m not free from the fear but I’ve put it back in its box.
I’ve been trying to find a way to leave this village and move to somewhere else. Anywhere else. I hate it here. People look at me as if I’m some kind of lunatic because I don’t wear the uniform for women of my age – short, neat, grey hair, jeans, trainers, T shirt, fleece or duvet coat. I don’t wear jeans and I don’t wear trainers and I don’t brush my hair. I wear whatever. I wondered whether I was projecting this hostility until Daughter ran out of petrol round the corner, had to walk back here and arrived quite upset/angry because she’d had the same openly disdainful stares. And you have to drive to get anywhere and we’re over the county line for good mental health care.
Anyway, there’s some new scheme, kind of equity release but instead of giving you a lump of cash you can have a house that you couldn’t otherwise afford. Then they take a chunk of the proceeds when you die. Only available to old fuckers like me and him. Turns out a woman deep in the thick of all this is someone I’ve known vaguely for years – my kids know her kids, they all knew Sammie and all that. So. I’m going to contact her – she’s cool with this, I checked – and ask the important questions. I’ve got: how much ‘money’ (in terms of extra value house) can we have? Is it true that we won’t have to pay any rent or anything at all? How much control do the new, in effect, part-owners have? Would we have to ask permission to do things to the property? How much do they take out when we die? How much will there be for Son and Daughter? If I discover that even living somewhere decent, I can’t abide living with Bloke another day, what happens then? If one of us dies and the other wants to downsize, is that ok? What if one or both of us has to go into a care home? What if I live to be 85 and the value of the house is four times as much as it is now – do Son and Daughter get four times what they would have got today or does it all go to the company? If anything else occurs to you’d be grateful if you left a note. Thanks.

12:48 a.m. - 30.01.24

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