Baddelim Triumphant!

The fat lady has sung! We have a phone at last. And it even works.

The nice engineer came out and climbed into the roof and spent about an hour and a half fixing everything so it worked. I have no idea whether we'll be charged A$300 for it or whether (given there was a phone line there) we'll only be charged for his fixing the 'fault'. But at least if we are charged I'll have the (limited) satisfaction of knowing he climbed a ladder and meandered through a manhole for our money.

Of course, the blissful silence we've enjoyed, broken only by the chittering of squirrels and the hum of traffic on Banbury road will now be gone forever. But at least we should have internet access next week, which is something we both enjoy.

And the satisfaction of having proven victorious over a bureaucratic company, despite their best efforts to keep us phone-less must not be underestimated. The taste of triumph is sweet. JMB