Category: personal

I’ve just applied the final dollop of paint to the last door in the flat. The redecorating is, finally, complete. Here’s a tally of what we have done:

• repainted the front door
• replaced all five internal doors, fitted new door furniture and painted them
• repainted the bathroom, hallway, bedroom, kitchen and living room
• ripped up the carpet in the living room and repaired the floorboards
• new carpet in the living room and hallway
• new carpet tiles in the kitchen and bathroom
• refitted the curtain pole and added new curtains in the living room
• replaced the bath panel
• painted the kitchen cupboard doors
• added two new prints and a large mirror in the living room, plus a new potted plant
• removed shelves and considerable amounts of "stuff" to storage
• removed old sofabed and taken loan of groovy green sofa from Lord Percy

As Hels says – basically, the place has been gutted, and it looks a gazillion times brighter and fresher, which has certainly added many times more to the value than the £800 – £900 that it has cost me.
Estate agents on Tuesday – let’s see what they have to say.

One year ago today, I played an April Fool on you lot and quite a few of you took the bait. Then it came true, which was as big a surprise to me as it was to just about everyone else.
I did toy with putting an April Fool up today about Hels expecting our first child, but then thought better of it!

I could write a long and not particularly interesting moan here at the moment, but to do so would leave me open to accusations of being an ungrateful, complaining, miserable git. I’d be less inclined to moan if certain people would undertake to fulfil the promises that they have made within the timeframe that they suggested without offering weak excuses and then getting on with their own thing, a thing that their weak excuse should preclude them from doing. As it is, I’m feeling cheesed off and a little under-supported.

It is strange that Hels and I often experience the same moods at the same time. She’s fed up too, and being 65 miles apart renders offering solace somewhat difficult. You can’t hug over the telephone, no matter how hard you try.

Anyway, it seems that the flat will not be finished, or even close, by the time the estate agents come round on Wednesday morning. For those that hadn’t realised, that is the source of my pissed-offness. Comments like "at least they’ll be able to see that the work is being done" do not help at all – the whole idea was to make the flat look its absolute best in order to make the best impression.
On the good news front, Greg has made available a sofa for loan that will look good in the living room, and give me something soft to sit on for the first time in weeks.

UPDATE: I’ve decided to defer the estate agents until after the weekend.

At last, a major step forward has been taken in the refurbishment of the flat – new carpet has been laid today in the hallway and living room, and it looks really good. I’m kicking myself for not touching up the paint on the skirting whilst there was no carpet here, but I’m sure that can be overcome. As it is, I’m padding back and forth around the flat, enjoying the warm softness underneath my socks. All good stuff.
With that hurdle overcome, and the carpet in the bathroom and kitchen likely to be finished by tomorrow night, or Saturday at the latest, I’ve arranged for two estate agents to come around next Wednesday and give me their best patter. One of them will be rewarded with the chance to sell this place, unless I get a cash offer in the meantime from one of you lot (I’m not holding my breath). I think the flat looks cracking, and once the windows are done (application going in just as soon as Dave sends me the drawings), I reckon that this will be one of the best one bed flats in Chichester.

Yesterday, we stirred ourselves early in the day in order to go for a walk at Bedgebury Pinetum, followed by lunch at the Oak and Ivy. In the afternoon, we explored Rye before embarking on some windswept stone-throwing silliness on Winchelsea Beach, followed by a visit to my future brother-in-law and his family on the way home.
The main thing is that we actually spent a day relaxing, just ambling about. We need more days like that, but I don’t see many of them being possible this side of moving home and the wedding.

I’ve got a grotty cold. Can’t be arsed to write anything here. I’m off to bed.

Over the weekend, the following was achieved:

• lunch was attended
• our mortgage was secured – house-hunting can now begin in earnest
• we travelled to London to meet up with my cousin Gemma to celebrate her birthday, meet a few of her friends and then head to Brick Lane for a splendid Bangladeshi meal
• we explored new home possibilities
• we introduced my parents to Hels’s parents over lunch, which turned out to be much easier than we had anticipated
• we clambered around the ramparts of Lewes Castle
• we went for drinks with Lord Percy and Lady Bren, with sightings of Malcolm and Paul F
• we did some painting in the kitchen (oooo! paint! rollers! emulsion! gloss!) whilst Dad fitted replacement taps and a new bath panel in my bathroom
• we ripped up the carpet in the living room (not a euphemism for anything, honest)

Fun. Packed. I can tell you.

I’ve just got my latest mobile phone bill, which includes the periods that I was in France and Germany. It’s a good job that I was sitting down. It seems that when I’m abroad, calls home work out at around £1 per minute, including VAT. It seems that I made around 100 minutes of calls whilst I was away. Hmmmm.

Sometimes, bad news comes along in bunches. One of Hels’s friends has lost a baby late in pregnancy. Her sister has lost her job. Her sister’s husband has cut his hand badly in a DIY accident and will be off work for at least ten weeks. Another of her friends is feeling a bit down and depressed with life.
It’s easy to focus on the bad news, to get maudlin, depressed and discouraged by it all. There is only so much support and counselling that a person can give without it taking a toll. But I think it is important to focus on the positive. Hels’s sister is resourceful, so I’m sure she’ll find new work soon. Her brother-in-law’s accident could have been far more serious, and he will make a good recovery given time. Her friend is well in spite of the loss of her baby, and has much to look forward to. The other friend is attractive, strong and intelligent, and will find things improve in time, I’ll be bound.
And there are lots of good things going on, much to anticipate. Another of Hels’s friends has just got a good new job close to home, so will no longer need to commute to The Smoke each day. Other friends have a happy healthy new baby. Yet other friends have the excitement of a new puppy in the house. And then there are all the things going on in our own lives too.

The question is, how do you avoid the negative aspects of life swelling up to overshadow the positives? It’s easy to get swamped by the negativity, particularly when others are seeking support and solace in their own difficulties. Should you even try to be everyone’s counsellor? It’s difficult to say no to a loved one.

I’ve just completed the first stage of the grand repainting of the flat. All of the matt emulsion has now been applied, which means two coats on the walls of the living room, bedroom and hallway. This leaves the kitchen and bathroom paint to be applied in (unsurprisingly) the kitchen and bathroom, which is to be preceded by a session with sugar soap. That will be painting stage II.
I’ve also begun preparation for the other decorating stages. Dave is working on the drawings for the planning application for the windows (aren’t you, Dave?). Yesterday, I purchased five new (but cheap) doors to replace the monstrosities that have been here since I moved in (including the famous kitchen door featuring the hole where some previous occupant put their fist through it). I’ve also been researching carpet for the living room and hallway. Dad has been working on making a replacement bath panel, and at some point he’ll help me lay the new carpet tiles (which I’ve had for, um, five years) in the kitchen and bathroom. Mum is going to take up my new curtains for the living room, and, tomorrow, Hels and I will go to IKEA to purchase some prints and odds-and-ends to make the place look a little brighter and more attractive (Hels believes that it needs the woman’s touch. I’ll not disagree, if it helps to sell the thing!).
So, it’s full speed ahead. Anyone interested in buying it? Only £150,000. Discount if we do it privately, without an agent.