Sunday 1st January 2023

Woke around 0800. Dozed to R6Music for a bit before getting up and making tea, which we drank in bed. Aki got up to make her traditional Japanese New Years Day soup, with homemade egg roll and fish cake on the side. She cycled off to Springfield Park for a Rowing Club meet. I had a look at a couple of YouTube videos on removing/repairing integrated dishwashers, but not sure I fancy giving it a go. Aki stayed out for lunch at the cafe next door to the Rowing Club, so I made myself some lunch. 

Aki came back shortly thereafter, and began long preparations for tonight's NY feast. Managed to FaceTime Kath...she was at High View keeping an eye on dad as he cooked dinner. Ma and Pa had had a quiet night and gone to bed before midnight. Kath had stayed up to see the New Year in with Stuart. They are off to Nottingham next weekend to see his brother. Aki served up a comprehensive Japanese feast, including huge tiger prawns, black sticky rice with chestnuts, tempura vegetables, lotus root, mashed sweet potatoes, yams, fish cake, and egg roll! It was delicious! When it came to my washing up, the dishwasher dying on us yesterday, I noticed a bit of a flood in the cupboard beneath the sink.

I spent a couple of hours trying to dismantle the trap beneath the strainer basket, but couldn't work out how to remove the overflow waste from the sink waste...there is no compression nut. The leaking is coming from the rear of the sink waste immediately below the sink, and I could feel that something wasn't right with the rubber seal. I eventually unscrewed the sink strainer, which allowed the sink waste to fall away from the underside of the sink, and ease the rubber seal off...it had been cut into at the rear, which leaves a bit of a weak point once the pressure is brought to bear by the strainer screw, and this is definitely the problem...can't fathom why the installer cut away a section of the seal's rim. I cleaned loads of gunk out of the strainer basket, and cleaned up as best I could, but the leak remains because of the cut to the rubber seal! 2023 has been a mixed bag so far...!!!