Another Lifetime to go

20th March 2018

I had a day of dumping rubbish, a mixture of rubble, wood and cardboard, can life get any better.

I ordered the floor levelling compound, and boy that was expensive. Thirty four bags of the stuff due for delivery on Thursday, that will sure be fun carrying that lot up the slope.

Andy wasn’t in today, so the pipework didn’t get finished as planned.

I then started thinking about the whole episode. First you have all the wires and pipes ripped out, then you spend a lot of money to get it all back again. There are many benefits to going back to basics, including hiding all the pipework, this was my choice, and I can see the project finishing in May.

19th March Monday

The drive up to Bradford on Avon was challenging, just getting out of Barrington required the four wheel drive capability of the Shogun. Once on the main road the going was better. I had to be at the garage by ten for the work to be done to the front and rear brakes.

The walk from the garage to the house took twenty wind blustering minutes, but Andy was already well into the pipework. I farted about for a while waiting for him to finish in the old fireplace, so I could refit the frame and finish it off.

As the last of the large drill bits emerged into the bathroom space, and the copper tube appeared, the job was done. A quick brush up and the space was mine.

With a bit of careful manipulation the frame lodged in position, and I was able to fix the securing blocks to keep it vertical.

Finally it was finished , I stood back to admire the simple elegance of the structure that will soon be covered in plasterboard.

By the end of the day the snow had practically gone, and the walk back to the garage was much more pleasant.

18th March Sunday

Well blow be down, there was a blanket of snow in the sleepy vale of Barrington.

I had plans to take Nicola and Colin for Sunday lunch, but it meant going out in the cold. Nicola had booked a table at The Greyhound Country Inn at some obscure place call Fenny Bridges. This was a thirty minute drive away in the dry, but with the snow it was forty- five. Colin was not very confident in bad weather, so I was not a good back seat passenger.

17th March Saturday

Kelli is continually sending ideas for our wedding, they are very unconventional and unique. I smile each time a new batch of pictures arrive, this may not have the pomp and glitter of Harry and Meghan’s wedding, but it will have colour, music and laughter.

We want to have as many of the most valued people that we know, to share the day with us. We hope that they will remember it for as long as we will.

There was a flurry of snow in Barrington, part of the expected cold snap, but it didn’t last long. It was cold enough to keep me indoors to do some reading, and catch-up on the news.

16th March 2018

Picked up the radiators, and ordered the ones for the upstairs and the bathroom.

I managed to add a new timber to the rotten joist in the bathroom, bolting it to the existing one, there was a spare piece of five by two, (that I obviously paid for,) and long nuts and bolts (I also paid for) that were just right for the job.

The next job was to tidy up the window surround, this needed some timber to build out and support the plasterboard. At lunchtime I walked into the town, passed the ripped-up road to collect my shoes from the cobbler, and to have a veggie breakfast. Then fully fuelled headed back up the hill to the building site.

I think Pompeii is in better condition, but Andy is doing a good neat job with the pipes, nicely aligned and all corners square. Diplomatically he asked if I could remove the wooden frame AGAIN to make the routing of the pipes easier. So I swept up again, removed the frame and waited for the next pile of rubble to fall.

Ten minutes later the first of the new rocks and debris hit the floor, as Andy chipped away the stone hindering the way for his pipes. My hand twitched, the brush was moving towards the fresh pile, raising up as if to assume a sweeping position, but I regained control, and just waited for him to finish his soldering. I hadn’t seen Louis the builder for a few days, I was a but worried that I might have swept him up and emptied him into a black bag.

15th March 2018

I was supposed to collect two radiators from The House of Radiators, but unfortunately they had not arrived. This was not convenient as I had dusted myself off especially for the trip.

The highlight of the day was placing the order for the bathroom furniture, now the countdown to mid April has begun.

By the time I got back to the house the bathroom ceiling had been removed to reveal the condition of the joists. Only one was affected by rot, so not as serious as I thought.

The bathroom joist is just an example of the rot that seems to be happening around the world. Listening to the news on the radio whilst I’m working, makes me want to distance myself from everything. I just get on with building a cocoon to hide away.

On a lighter note, Kelli is finding some really good things to up-cycle, and make her space look inspiring. Even though I am not there to take any credit, she finds some great things, although I do try to take credit for those as well.

She has roped in her father to help with the woodwork repairs, where “Bondo” won’t work.

We give him the line that we needed a real craftsman to do the work, but we couldn’t find one, so we gave it to him. It’s an old joke, but always gets a chuckle. He replied by sending me a bill for twenty seven dollars.

14th March 2018

I put right the mistake to the frame that I made yesterday. It took me a while because of the bloody complicated way I made it. I agreed with myself that at the time it was the best way to construct the frame. To make the changes I had to dismantle part of the structure.

I was calm, and took a methodical approach.

Firstly I swept the floor, noticing the length of the bristles were much shorter now from when it was new. I must have swept nearly a thousand times, and every day I can always find more to collect. Next, I cleaned the makeshift bench, uncovering unopened post covered in tools and rubble. The letters, including one from TV licensing advising me of a impending visit, good luck to them. The other was a padded envelope containing a CD from my old tenant. I thought he had disappeared into a dark hole of filth, but no, he had thought to send me a copy as I had helped to produce it. That arrived at the end of January, so I felt bad that I hadn’t acknowledged it. So I rushed off an email apologising for the lateness of my reply, which eased my conscience.

Once my workspace was clean, I was able to start the revision to my framework, only to find my Mikita’s battery was flat.

Eventually the change was complete, and I re-fitted the frame back in position, a job well done.

Andy the plumber turned up to work on the piping. We agree that the bathroom ceiling should come down so that we could check the condition on the joists, and do a proper repair.

I keep telling myself that it will be okay in the end.

13th March 2018

The truck failed its MOT on worn rear brakes, boo! So that is booked in for repair next week.

Bradford on Avon was in chaos due to one of the main roads closed for resurfacing, there was traffic everywhere not sure where to go.

This made me late, and reduced my chances of getting a parking space.

I had the house to myself for a day, I had my job list and I had my chop saw.

I started on the wood frame to fill in the old fireplace. I spent a lot of time chipping stone that was in the way. I used a chisel that did not have a hand protector, and discovered the advantages of one that has. It baffles me why a large headed hammer still misses the top of the chisel, fortunately I had the soft part of my hand to absorb the shock.

It took me most of the day to build the frame, and it fitted really well until I remembered the a service box needed to go where I had place a batten. I couldn’t be bothered to rework it, so that was carried over to tomorrow.

They say that talking to yourself is a sign of madness, but I disagree, the madness manifests itself when you answer yourself, then argue. Therefore I am mad.

12th March 2018

Three trips to the Trowbridge tip cleared all the concrete bits, the Shogun is certainly earning its keep.

Gavin continued to create more dust chasing the boxes into the walls. It seems the current method for attachment is squirting expanding foam into the gap, this apparently allows a bit of movement when the plasterboard is fitted, I say it’s just bloody laziness.

He fitted extraction ducting into the bathroom ceiling, but first he removed a portion of the plasterboard. When he tried to refit it, he discovered part of the joist was rotten. I dug around to see the extent of the rot, and concluded that I need to cutout the bad wood, and set-in a new piece. This is going to be a time consuming task. I also wanted to establish the squareness of the kitchen now that the fireplace has been removed. As a rough guide I used a sheet of plaster board laid on the floor. Taking measurements, found it was about half an inch difference over eight foot, not bad as I thought.

11th March 2018

It is wonderful just to rest with no fixed plan for the day. I have come to value this time, the work on the cottage has been going on for a long time, it’s progressing, but there is still a long way to go. It is so relaxing to take a walk in the country, the breeze cleanses my lungs and I feel purged of all the dust and dirt. A quick drive into Ilminster, and a dash around the supermarket was the extent of my activity.

My sister had found a copy of The Design of Herman Miller, in the Barrington Court book barn, and bought it for me. I have a copy packed away, so I settled down and started re-reading it again, the yellowing pages holding the legacy of the company I remember.