Q. I live in Balham but work in Mayfair. Twice recently I have had to take whole days off work to wait in for deliveries of online purchases that could only be scheduled for ‘some time between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m.’ My son says this is the hidden price I must pay for shopping at low-cost outlets. I have a cleaner but she doesn’t work a 12-hour day. What do other people do?
—J.F., London SW12
A. Other people have had the sense to make friends with retired neighbours. Many of these long for the chance to get away from their partners and sit quietly reading in a neighbour’s house all day instead of being bothered in their own. You can recruit likely candidates by attending jubilee street parties, pub quizzes, planning meetings and Women’s Institute meetings (which take place once a month in Balham). Just as with speed-dating, you will be able to tell instinctively which neighbour would fit the bill.
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