It’s been about two months since we moved into our new home and started to appreciate the… what can I say?… inadequacies of the house. Down-sizing became real in ways we hadn’t anticipated. Still, we’ve done quite a bit in those eight weeks. I mentioned some before – new bathroom cupboards, new lounge because the one we had before didn’t fit, and we’ve signed on for a new kitchen next year. I’m looking forward to that – induction cooktop and a self-cleaning oven that can steam and airfry as well as bake. Woohoo.
I’m delighted to report the chooks we used to have are very happy in their new home. They’ve integrated with the flock. They’re free to roam the yard all day and are locked up securely at night and laying their little bottoms off, so that was a good move for everybody – especially them. We’ve set up a couple of raised garden beds to replace the chook ‘run’ and we’re planning to grow a lime tree and an orange tree, probably espaliered due to lack of space. We’re also planning a pawpaw. And vegies and herbs, of course.
The house itself was one of a row of spec homes. The internal fittings are pretty ordinary and routine maintenance hasn’t happened. Most of the taps need at least replaced washers and the tapware is cheap and nasty. That will be fixed/replaced. And we’ll get new toilets that are higher off the ground which is better for (ahem) older folk.
One good thing is that it gives us a few DIY projects to keep us busy between the Reading of Books and the Playing of Games.
One of the first things we tackled was cleaning the windows. The big issue was how to remove the security screens to get access to the glass. It wasn’t straight forward so we ended up having to ask Professor Google for help. Fortunately, we found a Youtube video that pointed us in the right direction. Basically, you had to take the window out to take out the screen, then put the window back to clean it. But it’s all done, one or two windows each day over a week or so.
Next cab off the rank will be window treatments. We’ve already removed most of the curtains. I can’t see any point in having curtains in toilets and bathrooms, especially where privacy is not an issue, so they were the first to go. There are vertical blinds in the rooms which are fine without curtains. We had intended to put up plantation shutters in two rooms but after much discussion and the obtaining of quotes we decided they would make the rooms too dark and weren’t worth the expense. One hundred bucks for DIY venetian blinds sounds better than $2k for plantation shutters.
Which brings me to the walk-in robe. Like everything else, it’s ordinary, one bank of open shelves and mostly hanging space with a shelf above for whatever we chucked up there in the early days. Actually, it was a bit like that in our previous home – only much larger. But here, because the bedroom is smaller the robe needs to be much more functional. This is another one where we reckon we can do it ourselves. Bunnings (and others) sells modular units that you can put together to suit your space. Again, it’ll be much cheaper – and we’ll get it before Christmas (unlike getting a tradie to do it).
We’re still going through the stage of looking for things that got shoved in a cupboard somewhere. You know the drill, “have you seen x? I’m sure I put it…” But that’s settling down now. This is not a good time of year for gardening – warm and humid – but a few bushes need to be remove and others trimmed back, and I’ll buy a few plants to fill in here and there.
I’ll admit, while we both miss a few things about the old property, we don’t miss the pool and garden maintenance. The new owners have three kids around 10-15 and they’re loving the pool and driving the ride-on mower – and he’s loving the shed. And that pleases us. They’ve made friends with the magpies, too.
Yes, we’re getting there. I’ve even been thinking about finishing writing that book I’ve left in limbo for most of this year. I’ll let you know.
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