Dirty Rotten Scoundrels

James and I set off to Dundee yesterday morning to retrieve Davie and all of his worldly possessions from his University hall of residence. He will not get the keys to move into the flat that he has arranged for next session with friends until 1st August, which is why the worldly possessions had to accompany him home for the summer. 

We made a short diversion on the way to drop off my sat nav to Heather and Ewan for their forthcoming holiday in America, James forgot to bring it with him when we met up with them for a very enjoyable dinner on Thursday. We didn't want to disturb them so we arranged to place it in their recycling bin and then I texted Heather to double check that they had found it. James was very pleased to accomplish this errand because he was annoyed with himself for forgetting.

When we arrived in Dundee we found that Davie had made a good start at packing up, and we brought cardboard boxes and a suitcase with us. Soon the car was jam packed - how on earth has he accumulated so much stuff? But that wasn't the main problem - that was the disgusting state of the flat. Davie's room was quite clean - the floor still needed hoovered and Chanel very kindly cleaned his bathroom for him which I think was above and beyond the call of duty! (He must never let her go!) But every surface in the living / kitchen area was sticky and dirty. The oven, hob and fridges were filthy. The flat was full of rubbish which no one had taken down to the bins, and the cupboards were full of unwashed dishes (not Davie's dishes - the other occupants have all left the flat before him and just abandoned them.) Why would anyone put dirty dishes into a cupboard? The walls were grimy and the carpet was stained. The worst damage was to a radiator. One of Davie's flat mates had thrown a knife at it and it is leaking. Apparently it was an accident but why was he throwing a knife at all? James and I were furious at the state of the place. David is a clean boy and he would never treat a flat like this, but his flat mates must live like animals. I got juice from some rotten bananas all down my leg. We cleared all the rubbish out out and cleaned the surfaces but the flat's cleanliness was still far from satisfactory. When we left, a team of cleaners (students employed for the summer) were waiting to go in. I couldn't even look them in the eye; I bet we will get a hefty cleaning bill * and it will be deserved. 

Anyway, we then took Davie and Chanel for lunch at the Dundee Arts centre which was very convivial. Unfortunately Chanel's Mum's car had broken down on the way north and she had to get it towed back to Warrington by the AA and then hire a car. So Davie stayed with Chanel for the afternoon while James and I set off home. By mid afternoon I was in my hammock in the garden - bliss!

* We didn't.