Monday, September 22, 2008
Mother and father move to Cardiff.
Today my mother and father have moved from their old home in Claverham , a small village in North Somerset, situated half way between Bristol and Weston-super-Mare, to a small sheltered housing flat here in Cardiff. My parents used to live 53 miles away from our home and now they are just 2 miles down the hill from us.
Their life in Claverham has changed over the years. First the only local convenience shop closed, then the Post Office closed. Now even the Post Box has gone in this very quiet dormitory village. There never has been a village pub. The nearest doctors is in the next village of Yatton. There really is nothing in this sleepy village so you need to get the bus into Yatton, Congresbury or Weston-super-Mare. Trouble is that bus is only once every 60 minutes. Mother is now 71 and father is 75 - they were feeling very cut off from things and thought that if they did not move this year, then they never would and things could deteriorate further. Their current housing provider was far, far away. To get any work done was drawn out and a surveyor is coming all the way from Brighton, of all places, tomorrow to wind up their tenancy.
From now on things will be very different for them. They have one of 41 units in a sheltered housing complex. Any trouble and you see the on-site warden. You do not have to see to any maintenance, just tell the warden what needs doing. There is no garden to tender but a communal garden to enjoy with the other residents. There is a communal lounge where they can gossip to other old people. Visiting them will be a doddle with them living just 2 miles down the hill. We can see them more often, we used to visit once every 4 weeks. We can take mother shopping every week. They can jump on the local bus and have dinner with us in our home. There is a Post Office with a convenience store just around the corner. There is a nearby - walking distance, Spar, Farmfoods and Aldi. There is a bus stop around the corner with buses running every 10 minutes to our house, their doctors, Canton and Cardiff City Centre. Their new home is smaller but it is large enough for them. All the hassle of living in Claverham has gone forever. The rent is cheaper too and the gas heating is included in their rent, so they are saving money as well.
It is a challenge moving home in your 70's but it has been well worth the effort. Welcome to Cardiff and the buzz of city life - enjoy your retirement in this vibrant and cosmopolitan city.
Today my mother and father have moved from their old home in Claverham , a small village in North Somerset, situated half way between Bristol and Weston-super-Mare, to a small sheltered housing flat here in Cardiff. My parents used to live 53 miles away from our home and now they are just 2 miles down the hill from us.
Their life in Claverham has changed over the years. First the only local convenience shop closed, then the Post Office closed. Now even the Post Box has gone in this very quiet dormitory village. There never has been a village pub. The nearest doctors is in the next village of Yatton. There really is nothing in this sleepy village so you need to get the bus into Yatton, Congresbury or Weston-super-Mare. Trouble is that bus is only once every 60 minutes. Mother is now 71 and father is 75 - they were feeling very cut off from things and thought that if they did not move this year, then they never would and things could deteriorate further. Their current housing provider was far, far away. To get any work done was drawn out and a surveyor is coming all the way from Brighton, of all places, tomorrow to wind up their tenancy.
From now on things will be very different for them. They have one of 41 units in a sheltered housing complex. Any trouble and you see the on-site warden. You do not have to see to any maintenance, just tell the warden what needs doing. There is no garden to tender but a communal garden to enjoy with the other residents. There is a communal lounge where they can gossip to other old people. Visiting them will be a doddle with them living just 2 miles down the hill. We can see them more often, we used to visit once every 4 weeks. We can take mother shopping every week. They can jump on the local bus and have dinner with us in our home. There is a Post Office with a convenience store just around the corner. There is a nearby - walking distance, Spar, Farmfoods and Aldi. There is a bus stop around the corner with buses running every 10 minutes to our house, their doctors, Canton and Cardiff City Centre. Their new home is smaller but it is large enough for them. All the hassle of living in Claverham has gone forever. The rent is cheaper too and the gas heating is included in their rent, so they are saving money as well.
It is a challenge moving home in your 70's but it has been well worth the effort. Welcome to Cardiff and the buzz of city life - enjoy your retirement in this vibrant and cosmopolitan city.
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