Work in Progress....

With 2 extra pairs of hands on Wednesday and Thursday, we made good progress at the OB flat. It didn’t start very well on Wednesday morning though. Phil had gone to the flat early and I arrived at quarter past eight just as Home Base were delivering the new kitchen. Just before I got there, the driver had knocked on the neighbour’s door in the house on the corner and asked her to move her car. Her husband said she was in the bath but somehow they managed to back their large lorry into the entrance. Unfortunately the neighbours below us were waiting to go to work but couldn’t get their car out because we had blocked them in. They weren’t very happy bunnies and I could only apologise profusely. Phil stayed well out of the way (typical) and I helped unload the stuff off their van.

After it was all off I signed to say I had received the goods and the delivery van tried to get out of the entrance. It got to the road but couldn’t turn because the corner lady’s car was blocking the way. By this time she was out of the bath and screaming her head off in the road. Eventually the driver persuaded her to move it back a bit and they managed to get away. Nightmare!! I apologised to the lady on the corner who was complaining bitterly about the number of deliveries over the last couple of months. I explained who we were, what we owned and what we were doing in both flats. Eventually I calmed her down and we left on first name terms. Public relations, before 9am, is most certainly, not a good way to start the day!!

Mad Betty and I got stuck into the painting while Shane and Phil built up all the base units. There was a bit of sighing and confusion at first because I gather the instructions weren’t very clear but they more or less had them built up in a few hours. I had meant to have Thursday off but once I was round the flat I got stuck in. As I said, progress has been fast. The kitchen floor has been tiled and grouted, all of the walls and ceiling are finished, all that’s left, is the gloss work downstairs and in the landing. Phil has fitted some of the kitchen units plus the sink and today the plumber is going in to fit the waste pipe and the taps and he’s also going to rip out the bathroom. It’s only half past six in the morning and Phil is already in the flat. I’ve had to remind him not to start on any banging jobs but I bet you, he will forget. I have decided to stay in the NH house today and make a start on the garden fence. Earlier this week the gardener came in to cut the grass down; he’s down a good job and he’s even taken away all the grass cuttings. I think we maybe need to put some lawn feeder down to revive it a bit; I don’t have very green fingers and neither does Phil so think I need to do some research on the internet.

We were going to have today off but then the plumber said he would work and then Phil had made an appointment this afternoon to go and look at the damage from the leak in the TWA flat. This was the leak from the toilet waste pipe from our flat into the downstairs so I don’t think it’s going to be a pretty site. The landlord wants us to repair the damage rather than claim on the insurance which is fair enough. After Phil’s assessed the damage he then has to make his way to the GP flat to take a look at the subsidence problem. We have been ignoring this issue for weeks but we bumped into Carl, our tenant, outside the Bletchley B&Q so we promised faithfully that we go round and have a look. Carl is also complaining about the overgrown bushes and is also saying he would like to have his lounge decorated. This is not an unreasonable request because he’s been living there for years but he’s got so much stuff that unless he moves out lock, stock and barrel, there’s no way I can decorate.

It hasn’t been hard work all week; there have been a couple of nice surprises. When Jimmy turned up on Wednesday night to pick up Phil, he gave us a great house warming present. It was a canvas print of a picture he’d downloaded from the blog site. It was a shot of me walking in front of Phil along the sandy beaches in southern Goa. The beach looks pretty deserted and this photo is a particular favourite of Phil’s. I don’t know where Jimmy finds these websites but it was a particularly thoughtful gift and one that we shall treasure. Thanks Jimmy!

The other surprise was a phone call on Thursday evening from Howard who we met on our disastrous canal boat break. Howard helped out a great deal with the boat, he actually saved our lives and we went out for dinner with him on our last night. Anyway, Howard was on the Grand Union and was moored up at Stoke Bruene and he invited us for lunch yesterday. We met at The Navigation and walked a few yards to where his boat was moored. It was lovely to see him and Rosie his dog again. Howard had prepared salad with chicken chilli flatbreads, sandwiches, which we washed down with a chilled bottle of white wine all aboard his boat Rosie Tickle. He did rhubarb and custard for afterwards. It would have been nice to have stayed the whole afternoon but we had to get back to the flat to do the last few bits ready for the plumber.

We worked until half four and then it was back home for a shower and a slump in front of the telly. The end of the week and we are both feeling knackered. Poor Phil can barely walk, his knee is so painful. It’s a good job really that we have Shane helping as he can take on some of the heavy stuff on. We are taking the whole day off tomorrow but Phil will be on his hands and knees again on Monday he has to tile the bathroom and hall floors. Hey ho, no pain, no gain and as we know, it will all be worth it in the end.