Home Owners

Finally, yesterday, after some tense last-minute hitches, we've become proud home owners.  It's not the first time for me as I used to own a house in Bristol before but for P it is a new experience.  Sadly, it is not one he's going to get to relish for too long as we will be moving in next Thursday (the long-distance move takes place over two days) and on Friday - barring an absolute miracle - he will have to fly to the Far East. 

One of the jobs he was pinning his hopes on in Switzerland has turned out to be a 'no', but he is going over there for a whistle-stop visit on Monday and Tuesday for another interview.  We know he won't get an answer on that job very quickly (the recent 'no' decision from Switzerland took almost six weeks!!) so the Far East it will be - at least for a while.

We are both up to our hocks in cardboard boxes, bubble wrap and parcel tape, and in clearing eight-years worth of accumulated clutter and detritis from the house.  At the moment it seems like we're on a never-ending packing treadmill - with a scarily looming deadline of 8.00 am next Wednesday.  Still, it's quite good fun to put old items out on the pavement - two very ancient portable TV's and a clunky old microwave dug out of the loft - and see how long before someone takes them.  This evening the microwave lasted less than an hour and a half!!  We suspect most of it is being snaffled by the lad with the scrap metal lorry who lives across the road.  I've often wished him somewhere else when he's been out in the road loudly re-arranging his scrap in the back of the wagon at totally inconsiderate times like 8.00 am on a Sunday morning or 11.00 pm in the evening, but now he's saving us a fortune in 'special collection' fees from the council.   Plus he also took a rodent chewed sun lounger (with metal frame), two totally dangerous rickety old stools (with metal legs) and a rusted metal clothes rail (cheapo tat from Argos) which we dug out of the shed at the weekend.  If he'd like to knock, he could also have our totally knackered wooden garden bench with heavy cast iron ends, otherwise it'll have to stay where it is - if we tried to move it I think the wooden planks would disintegrate.

Last night, we were mentally going through what we've bought new in the eight years we've lived here - the list is pretty short.  Two TV's - one when we first moved in to replace a teeny portable TV and the second a few weeks ago to replace that, one laptop - bought in the summer, and a washing machine - bought when we moved in.  I'm pretty impressed with that - only four new, retail items bought for the house in all those years.  Plenty of other things have joined us here, of course, but they've all come from boot sales or charity shops.  And will we be buying anything new for our new abode - not if I can help it, no!!

Thank you all so much for your kind comments on my last post - it is lovely to know so many people are rooting for us during this crappity crap crap time.

Comments

[Loo]

Still rooting for you, Elizabeth. Good luck.

[Maureen]

Best of luck with your move, Elizabeth. If you had to go somewhere then Bristol is the place as it's a great city. I never got down to the posher parts where there may be hidden gems in the charity shops.

Being near your family will, hopefully, help ease the missing of P.

[gill]

Best of luck with the move Elizabeth. Have you tried putting unwanted items on freecycle? It's great for getting rid of large stuff to save taking up the dump or arranging collection. People collect very quickly, often within hours if you say you're moving...just a thought.
Gill x

[Caroline]

Best of luck with the move, Elizabeth, and safe travels for P.

[fiona]

Good luck with your move Elizabeth, one good thing about moving is that it makes you ruthless about clearing out stuff that's accumulated over the years.
x

[Mum]

Good luck with the move.
Love from Mum
xx

[sharie]

Good luck Elizabeth with the move. I hope everything goes smoothly for you both

[kathleen]

I hope your move goes smoothly. I'm sorry to learn that P has to work away. My husband's work has kept him away about half the time for the last twenty plus years. I joke that it is the secret to our long and happy marriage, but it's not really fair to him as I know he doesn't like being away.

Wishing the best to you both! kathleen

[Vix]

Best of luck with everything. xxx

[Sue]

Congratulations on buying your house and good luck with the move.