This is random in the sense that it's not chronological, but although I want to pursue those earlier memories of single parenthood, I've been deflected to write a little about how to beat this wretched recession by having lodgers. In our case foreign language students.
The little boy who I dragged to London aged seven was now 19 and off to do an art foundation course. We needed money to pay for his fees and accommodation and brutal as it sounds we now had a double room going begging. We could put his two little brothers in together to release the little back bedroom and take in lodgers! Now this scheme is anathema to most people who wouldn't dream of sharing their house with a stranger. But needs must when the devil drives and it's actually as easy as pie. I had done it before, when as a single mother I did it, when G was little, in my wee house in Andover. I had two lodgers, swiftly but carefully vetted by me, always male, and it was fantastic. They helped with the mortgage, put up shelves and bunkbeds, even babysat sometimes, and buggered off back to their own families at weekends.
Not so foreign students, who can stay for up to six months and need food and conversation. it's not a job for the chronically anti-social or those who are married to a chronic anti-social. Most wives could do it, very few husbands, but mine is great and I've often left him having a convoluted conversation about corporal punishment or the finer points of cricket with a pair of bemused Koreans. Or, just occasionally, a very handsome Spaniard..
The little boy who I dragged to London aged seven was now 19 and off to do an art foundation course. We needed money to pay for his fees and accommodation and brutal as it sounds we now had a double room going begging. We could put his two little brothers in together to release the little back bedroom and take in lodgers! Now this scheme is anathema to most people who wouldn't dream of sharing their house with a stranger. But needs must when the devil drives and it's actually as easy as pie. I had done it before, when as a single mother I did it, when G was little, in my wee house in Andover. I had two lodgers, swiftly but carefully vetted by me, always male, and it was fantastic. They helped with the mortgage, put up shelves and bunkbeds, even babysat sometimes, and buggered off back to their own families at weekends.
Not so foreign students, who can stay for up to six months and need food and conversation. it's not a job for the chronically anti-social or those who are married to a chronic anti-social. Most wives could do it, very few husbands, but mine is great and I've often left him having a convoluted conversation about corporal punishment or the finer points of cricket with a pair of bemused Koreans. Or, just occasionally, a very handsome Spaniard..
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