10th June

Steve came today and measured up the decking. It won't be done for a fortnight but at least things are moving. I unpacked the last two boxes of books and photo albums and am relieved to say that there are enough shelves to hold everything. I also unpacked my Egyptian Gods collection (over 100 models) - diehard followers of this blog may remember my quandries in Stockton, whether to bring them with me; how to pack them etc. I have been wondering just where I would put them and today I set them up  on the bookshelves, in front of the books. So, if you want to take a book from the shelf, firstly you must displace the gods! Not too smart but it looks interesting!

Across the street, outside the Lock-Up Gallery, some wonderfully colourful "balls" have been placed over the streetlights as decoration / art. At night they are brilliant. I have some daytime shots here.

Just want it on record that Lester are still rising at 5.45am and having our beachside walk - even in this freezing weather. Both pairs of Lester's walking shoes have worn through and he had to race up to Mountain Designs the other day to get new ones. Can you believe that!

I realised another routine that I have fallen into is the Saturday Morning Stroll down the Mall to pick up SMH, some portugese tarts and a bunch of flowers from the street market; the essentials of life! 

It's the Long Weekend. Always freezing and notable over time for momentous events...

From our balcony - coloured light

the coloured lights on the lamp posts

The Egyptian God collection positioned on the bookshelves

Gods up close

 

An interesting lot!

Last Saturday's flowers

6th June

On Friday the bed arrived and over the weekend we have continued to re-arrange things.

The bed arrived,  mostly in pieces, however, the foot end was  already assembled. This made lifting it around the corner of the stairs was difficult. Luckily, Liam and Kieran descended upon Newastle for the evening and were able to help lift it over the hand rails for us. After they left, Lester and I set about assembling of the rest of the bed. We had some difficulty dragging the slats upstairs because they were joined together with hessian strips but I think that now, between us, we can  juggle any object upstairs. It must have been hilarious to watch us. Even we were laughing at how ridiculous we muct have looked.

Anyway, the bed looks magnificant.  The knobs on the ends have been  replaced and it is extended to be king size simply by placing extra vertical rods and the design looks perfectly balanced. It now has the proper canopy fitting with the addition of an outer brass rod, which it had never had before.

This bed used to belong to our neighbour in Gosford, Granny Settree. Granny brought it to Australia when she married. She died when I was five years old and she was 95.  Her son gave me the bed, along with some old chairs (now restored and being used downstairs), when I was eighteen. At that time it was positioned in a corner of Granny Settree's then derelict house and an old scrub turkey had taken up residence in the horse hair mattress. I had the bed restored in 1970's but over time some of the knobs deteriorated and it became loose and wobbly. Double beds seemed to be too small when queen and king sized beds became common, so it was relegated to various kids' rooms. Knowing its history and age has made it special for me and I am delighted to be snoozing in the old dear again.

We picked up the previously ordered little red armchair, on Sunday. I first saw this chair at Chris's in Stockton and after having looked for a small armchair for months, I bought the same one. Yes, I copied! However, Chris says that is a compliment to her good taste.

We bought two pots and some pansies, another little black glass desk and some storage boxes which double as square seats. So, gradually, things are sorting out. Ruth and Ian came over and semi-sorted some communications  problems with  TV signals which still persist. Ruth made us a house-warming tea cosy! It is cute and I love it.  Geelong won again - Lester is happy. Rowan played for the Thailand Tigers against Cambodia and is now preparing for the Asian Cup!!

Old old bed extended to king size - all sparkling and repaired!

Repaired canopy

Canopy detail - outer brass bar is now in place

The two new vertical brass rods look to be as though they have always been there!

Nothing like Indian floor cushions to brighten up the garden

The bed certainly takes up  some space upstairs and only just fits  under the ceiling!

Ruth's tea-cosy

Little red arm chair and new pot and pansies on the sill downstairs

pansies

Another pot of pansies upstairs

So, this is where is house is at: at the moment the Defects List has about 15 items on it. Most are tiny adjustments but the bathroom floor has to be re-done where the toilet leaked and cupped the boards and the matter of removing the floor covering on the roof garden and its replacement with a timber deck has to be organised. So, these are still two fairly big things.

2nd June

Today, whilst I slogged away at the desk at work, (I've got a few games of Words With Friends going - it's great but I am sure Liam is getting help!) many things happened "upstairs". Actually, it was a pretty bleak day at the office. A ninety year old "madam", who should have developed some manners by now one would think, hung up on me. Then, later,  I had to put up with her making aspersions about me loudly in the waiting room. I am fed up with old bitches. I want to spend my days with Sally!)

The awning man came, the electrician came, Steve came and the mirror blokes came. The result is that we have a finished awning - well almost. It still needs a brace of some sort. We have a fixed light in the kitchen ; we have an embryonic plan for a timber deck to replace the green slop and we have a wall of mirror in the bathroom.

Added to this I have the lovely news that our brass bed is finished and will arrive tomorrow evening. The man who worked on it in Sydney has been excellent in organising transport for the old dear. He has sent me photos of the bed and wants me to tell him how we like it when it is in place.

So, here are some quick night photos. (Lester is still downstairs dealing with the paperwork and we are going to eat Spanish tonight - to make up for a day with ninety year old "madams"...) Quality of photos dubious.

Awning looking east

Awning looking west - all the louvres are moveable



Sally likes the cover so much her eyes turned green!



It's hard to show this bathroom without a wide angle: The piece of wood, of course, is temporary

The whole wall is glass: green in the shower and two clear abutting mirrors complete the wall

The mirror on the left is the one that broke two weeks ago. I will have to do something with those towels now they are in duplicate.

1st June - Winter is here!

It has been feeling decidedly wintery for the past two weeks and we have burned quite a bit of metho - sorry, I mean ethanol - in that time. The Ecosmart fire works very well but it does burn more fuel that I had been told.

Today we were  "certified". The inspection by The Certifier took about ten minutes He was very pleased with everything. Told me that he thinks Steve is a terrific builder who always does a good job. He did say though, that we need to put blocks in the windows on the back wall, at 120 mm high,  in case children "your grandchildren", fall out. That is a bit of a bummer because we like having them wide open to maximise the breeze.  I informed him that there wasn't much likelihood of grandchildren in my lifetime!  Remember the low windows at Stockton? All the kids had them in their rooms - their beds under the low sills, and no-one fell out. These windows are more than a metre off the ground!  Kids these days..........

We have bought some stools for the kitchen (see pic)

New kitchen stools

The arrivals of the mirror, the rest of the curtains/cushions, the brass bed are, apparently,  imminent. I am becoming a bit cynical over time though. I think it will be a few more weeks yet.

The awning remains incomplete...and the  BIG problem, the artificial grass which is, in effect, green slop, has prevented our going outside for the past two weeks. It is like wet carpet. It just does not dry out and water can't drain through it. It will have to be replaced with something more practical, the nature of which is being constantly debated; tiles, pavers, more rubbery stuff or timber decking?