Moving Day Arrived Prematurely

You know how you have all the steps to moving into your new house organised in your own mind?? Problem is the rest of the world fails to read your mind or consider your plans. Well that was how it was for Dave and I again, the inconsiderate owner of our rental property up and sold it and despite pleas for more extensions, we got one for a week, we had to get out. And as Murphy's Law dictates our house wasn't quite habitable. So once again with the help of the strong arm of the law we moved all our possessions, and Haileys and Kev's into the garages and took our little overnight bags to my sisters for a fortnight.

Dave was certain the house would once again get burglared, we had already had the builders container with his elaborate locking system broken into twice, once all the tools were recovered the second time nothing was found. So he had the house wired for an alarm. Luckily on the Monday I was up there for lunch and heard the electrician say to him  "When you get the phones on I can setup the alarm". My immediate response was I had already had the phones put on, just needed to plug a phone in. So straight away the sparkie made the alarm live and wired it to phone Dave's cellphone if we had an activation. You guessed it, 2.28am the next morning we were dead to the world in our little single beds at my sister Jazell's when his phone starts to ring. In a dazed state he flips open the phone to hear the alarm screaming down the phone. He was on with his pants and off in the car, I phoned the police calmly, well not so calmly in reality, he got there before they did but only by a minute. Sure enough the buggers had climbed in through a high window still waiting for its fixing to be put on and dropped into the lounge. Luckily the alarm which is also audible, frightened them and they shot out through one of the sliders. No damage and nothing taken. I tottled up there in the Mini, arriving just as the police were leaving, I suddenly thought the burglars might attack him if the police failed to get there, but no he was fine and as always careful.

Later that week I attended the Police annual Pay Parade in my work capacity and all the staff who used to work with Dave kept saying how lucky we were and that the burglar alarm had already paid for itself. They all knew that in 1990 when we built our Milford Downs house burglars had completely stripped all the bathroom and laundry fittings before we moved in and it could have been history repeating itself. But don't get the impression it is an unsafe place to live, it is simply that all over the country building sites are targets for burglars. Unscrupulous builders and home renovators are prepared to buy cheap hot goods to save money and therefore keep this market in stolen property alive.
Anyway that weekend we moved in, with one toilet, half a shower, some of the kitchen fitted, laundry finished, master wardrobe nearly finished but liveable.
Now three weeks later and it feels like a home, still along way to go but the bones are done and we can see where we are going. As I type this the painter is finishing off the sitting room and sewing room/office, two bedrooms are painted, the main living is finished, library and gallery finished, just the third bedroom to do.
Scullery needs cupboards and benchtop, Dave is off sourcing that now, bathrooms all require his expertise as a tiler to be tiled, big job that. I would like to employ a tiler and get it done but vetoed on that. Kitchen is waiting on back order for the stainless benches that go either side of the stove. Man I love that stove, english gem.

Outside is coming along, everything has to be done on such a large scale. We have had block walls built to surround the street side of the house to define the area and to hold back the clay. We chose to dig down to site the house low from the street and the result of course is you have banks that need retaining and finishing, but the block walls are very smart and suit the style of the house. But it all needs machinery and manpower and it all costs - don't ask, it is too frightening.

And then there is the septic tanks and stormwater, all needs digging and all needs filling.

Luckily the builder used to work for years at Ruapehu on the snow plows and all the grader type stuff and is a very competent driver. We hire the diggers and he moves the soil. We have moved tonnes of soil and he is coming back in the new year to move the remaining mounds and get the place looking sort of organised. Worst part is it is sticky clay, could make millions of pots if we knew how and had a potters wheel.

I think Road Safety Manager is going to be less strenuous. In case you haven't caught up with this news. Dave successfully applied for the position as Road Safety Manager for Wairarapa and starts on the 7th January. No more dirty work clothes to be laundered.

And look at the skies we see from virtually every room in the house. The sunsets are like something out of Africa.

 

And now a sneak preview of the

dining living space,

not finished but getting there.

The kitchen which is second hand,

or as we like to say recycled was

a trademe buy and only

about 1/3rd is in the picture.

And finally the outside from the living area side. Loads of clay, hills of topsoil yet to be spread and big dreams.