We never know how long we have it for, but the sun came out for a while yesterday afternoon and now it's trying to be sunny today. It feels good and the brickie tells me it's very good for our chimney. They are adding a mortice (or something) so that, when it dries, the stone chimney face will be even prettier because the colour of the stones will show up more. Sounds very good to us.
Just when things seemed to be winding down, the decorators swept in and disrupted our cozy little world utterly. We had to empty the Welsh dresser (china cabinet to you) and the bookcase that we use strictly for CDs, DVDs, and videos, two pieces we hadn't had to do anything but cover up while the joiners were doing all their breaking through while we were in the States. So we were lulled into thinking we wouldn't need to pack anything else up. How wrong could we be?
As we were about to go out for some lunch (because painters and paint cloths were all over the kitchen and utility room along with their paint fumes), Raymond Cramb told us we'd need to empty these two pieces of furniture so they could be moved away from the wall. Honestly, you'd think we could have figured that out on our own, wouldn't you? The painter had already moved the dining room table and the chairs to the centre of the room, so we emptied the top part of the Welsh dresser (our dishes, wine glasses, candlesticks, vases, etc.) onto the dining table as they weren't going to be starting on the painting immediately. There was no place to stack the CDs and DVDs/videos so we scrounged around for boxes to pack them in. While Don was doing that, I was moving the liquor from the bottom of the Welsh dresser into the study (it's arrayed on the floor behind me as I type). We didn't leave the house for lunch until after 2 but fortunately The Granary, our village tearoom, serves all day so we were able to have a nice lunch.
Things got even more frantic in the afternoon as the painters moved into all parts of the renovated space (which left us the study, our bedroom, and the bathroom). At one point, I was using the computer and Don came into the study to sit on the futon and wait for his turn on the computer when the painters shut the door on us so they could paint the new trim on the hall side of the door. (They hadn't realized we were in here.) This was about 5 o'clock and we decided we needed to get out of here, especially when they told us they'd be here until 6, so we phoned the Hamiltons and asked if we could escape to their haven of calm for a wee while.
After an hour's chat and a glass of wine, we felt we could come back home to reconnoiter. We still had to do something with all the things we had put on the dining table as we knew the painters would be putting up ceiling paper in the sitting/dining area this morning. Fortunately, we had picked up some boxes while we were at the deli yesterday after lunch, so we could at least pack the fine glassware away that didn't fit in the cupboard in the utility room. We decided to go out to dinner to the Royal Hotel pub and then pack when we got back. It didn't take us long. Items that we use everyday fit in the utility room cupboard (where we can leave them until after the wallpaper gets put up, which won't happen until after the 31st of May). The boxes of packed items fit in a lower cupboard in the utility room. We actually managed to clear spaces so we could sit down and finish watching the film we had fallen asleep in the middle of on Monday night.
Two brickies arrived at 8:30 this morning and are working on the chimney. Two painters arrived at about 9. One is painting the shelves for my pantry and the other is putting up ceiling paper in the studio. Don is away playing golf with Peter, Graham, and Gordon. I spent the morning clearing counters in the utility room and kitchen. Soon I will be going to morning coffee at the Royal with my chorus friends.
We're still waiting for the ironmongery (door handles) to come in so Ally can put handles on the 4 remaining hallway doors. Yesterday he finished putting the molding on all the doors and putting the privacy sets (locking door handles) on the two loo doors. We're waiting for the rough-caster to come back and put a finish on our new entryway wall and for more roofing tiles to come in so that as soon as the brickies finish the chimney wall, George Ferguson can put the last bit of roof on. Once that's done, the fireplace can be made operational and, more importantly, the scaffolding can come down and then rest of the exterior wall of the sitting room extension can be added and then painted. Oh yes, we're also waiting for the man who will make the wardrobe unit for my studio extension to give us an estimate. I am certain that cupboard isn't going to get made until well after everything else is finished. The painters think they'll be done some time on Monday, so Don arranged yesterday for the floor coverings to be installed next Tuesday. We are definitely getting there.
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