So, today we checked in with the ring people – they’ve sent us a new design, between it and the previous one IÂ think we’re 100% there. They just need to combine the mountains from the previous design; the roots and trunk of the previous design and the spread and foliage of the tree in the current design and they’ll be there.
We have driven to Southam to get the minor looked at – they need to take the radiator out and whip the timing cover off, ‘cos it is that it’s leaking from but they think it’s holed; this is terribly frustrating as essentially we wasted 4 hours driving up there and back, but hey. Live and learn. It’s going to be a while ’til that leak gets fixed tho’. The minor’s performance is pretty spiffy though; top speed’s not hugely high (it’s very high geared), but there’s loads of torque available to get you there. A new gearbox and diff and we’ll be sorted. You can feel the slop in the diff when you let off the accelerator (throttle/gas pedal) and the gearbox just sounds awful in 2nd and 3rd. Ah well.
Anyhow, after a long drive we made it to Ikea (Wembley) which was, as you’d expect for Saturday (and Saturday after pay-day) absolutely bloody packed. We made it out alive though – carring the bathroom stool, bench, a towel rack (we didn’t expect to get that), the futon-sofa-bed and mattress (better one that we were intending to get, ‘cos the cheap one was out of stock; if anyone fancies getting us a sheet to cover it with, tho’, that’d be nice ;)Â ), a rug, napkins, a drying rack for the kitchen (I’m sick of the rusty plastic/metal one I’ve had forever), a pack of glasses…and IÂ think that’s it. The list could have been much longer.
IÂ also got stopped for my shoes – first time this has happened with a couple (both) wanting to know where to get them from. IÂ reckon Vibram should offer us free cards to dole out to people, with a number on, such that you can get a discount if enough people buy using your cards… I’m still very much enamoured with them, and impressed with the fact that I’ve spent the day driving and my shins, which normally would ache after such a long drive are absolutely peachy. They were also good for hopping around the pallets left out in Ikea where they were low on stock, and saving me waiting for the very slow people to move through the store.
It all squidged into the car fairly easily and the journey home was amazingly not too horrendous. Unfortunately, arrival home was disappointing in that the builders who’s promise for the day’s work was:
– Plaster the walls and ceiling
– Finish and level the floor
– Fit the new door
– Brick up the old door
(Essentially everything that’s left to do)… Yeah, of them, they’ve managed to brick up the old door. The outside of it is a very nice job; the salvaged bricks look really good and once it’s painted it’ll probably be barely distingishable. The inside’s blockwork, and is fine, neat enough. But for the second day in a row the door isn’t in despite promises that it would be. Possibly the mortar’s still to wet, it’s been very cold. But IÂ need some kind of update, and am very unimpressed with the way they left the back of the house.
I’m theoretically waiting on a call back from the builders, but it’s after hours on a weekend, so I imagine that I won’t hear anything until…well… Monday? When I’m at work?
*sighs in a frustrated way*
I’ve also got a headache from being in the sun without enough water…which isn’t making the world any shinier right now, which is a shame, because IÂ was quite looking forward to coming home to a nice door (well, an okay PVCUÂ door)Â and a nice ceiling (IÂ didn’t think they’d get *all* of it done, but more than that…). Not least it’d’ve been nice because there’s lots left to do in the rest of the house (including assembling a bunch of shelves which we can’t currently put up ‘cos we can’t get to the wall :-/
Poot.
*le sigh*
Anyhow, I’m going to go and try and stare at the ATNC book and ignore the headache (and yes, I’ve taken painkillers :-p )
