The principals of packing up the house in theory are easy – chuck away, give away, store or pack for the boat. Unfortunately in practice it’s very different, objects that have lurked in the deeper recesses of cupboards suddenly become centre of attention. You know they are perfect candidates for the chuck pile but part of you remembers when they were bought or who gave them to you. Should they be kept?

No!

Okay, well would they like them at the charity shop, should they be recycled? Or is it straight into the skip? With the surprisingly large amount of stuff we seem to have acquired over the years this is quite a task, but the house is now rapidly beginning to look empty.

However, then there is the curious case of Rick’s never emptying shed. The shed, Rick’s pride and joy, has been an integral part of life at West Ongley Farmhouse. From it he has produced everything from built in wardrobes, to salad bowls, to that elusive and vital widget.

Over the past few months, hours have been spent “sorting screws”, numerous cases of tools have accompanied us down to the boat and van loads of equipment, benches and more tools have been transported to a friend, creating an Ongley shed clone.

But somehow the shed still looks full. More effort is obviously needed.

Dozens of times the wheel barrow has been filled and emptied into the skip, piles of wood have been taken by friends, more boxes have been packed and more screws “sorted”.

Yet when I put my head around the door this morning, bizarrely the shed is still full!