I will be more careful from now on and maybe keep an eye open for if the .com one comes back up for buying through the usual channels. I am sure it costs them something to keep it and when they see that I am not willing to buy they will probably let it go. I don't mind playing the long game.
I do see that I lack an SSL cert. Of course that is an optional extra that I need to purchase. I thought it came free before.
Thanks for the reply.
I publish my websites on Weebly, got a pro account, so the SSL comes with it for free (but you actually must enable it, not automatic). I think it is free on Wix also, but not sure.