Run Ragged This Week

06 May 2011

So, that is the end of bank holidays and I am glad to get back into a normal routine. If you can call working seven days a week, 14 hours a day, “normal”. I have been run ragged this week.

The kitchen is going OK. Loads of haggling and running backwards and forwards to the supplier to get the bits I need has meant I am running overtime. But this isn't unusual and I have been wise enough to leave myself quite a bit of space before my next job. Of course that is supposed to be for the little house. But hey.

So I have been fitting the kitchen until about 5.30pm, then home for a quick dinner then off to the little house until the light starts to fade. It really has been exhausting, but I am making good progress.

The damp-proofing has been done and I have been up on the roof sorting out the tiles and the chimney. It seemed to make sense to do both together while I had the scaffolding up. The chimney was a bit of a nightmare. All I had to do was lean on it and the top of the thing toppled over. Thankfully it didn't damage the roof but the bricks were all over the place.

I had done a little research on how to rebuild the top of the stack and make good the lining and I followed the instructions to a T. Thankfully it looked OK. Then I got an expert in to clean the rest of the flue and make sure it was all in good order. The reason we decided to do this was because we had pulled off the board in front of the fire and discovered a pretty much intact period fireplace! We couldn't believe our luck. The plan had been to buy a replica, but the real thing cannot be beaten. So we need to make a real feature of it.

John did a great job of the damp-proofing, so I have been able to confidently put back all the floors. We would like to reuse as much of the old floorboards as possible, but we do have a few patches where I had to buy new ones. But once they have been sanded down and re-stained they should blend in fine.

During the day when I am doing the kitchen Claire has been sourcing materials, arranging and accepting deliveries and all the other admin stuff which is required. When she has the time she has also been sorting out the upstairs. Turns out she can both measure and cut plasterboard to size and even screw it in place. Wonders will never cease!

So the bedrooms upstairs are ready for new plaster once the windows have been put in. They have been delivered and it is my job for the weekend. I might be just a little ambitious thinking I can do it in two days, but you never know! I have been in touch with the council about the building regs and they just needed to know the type of double glazing being installed at this stage. But they will come and have a look and will issue me with a compliance certificate.

So it has been all go. How I managed to find the time to write this I will never know!