Thursday May 20 Back to the Keyboard

A fair bit has happened since the great Chiminea robbery of 2009 - I can laugh now at the thought  that some bastard with a broken foot and his mate with an irreparable hernia are being berated by their wives for coming home with a slow combustion stove that doesn't have a door and won't fit in the fireplace ... if only - anyway its gone and I can only hope that there's a child somewhere who will be warmer as a result.

On Mother's Day or it could have been Saturday,  Uncle Digby, he's actually my youngest brother and amongst many other attributes a registered builder, announced by phone, his imminent arrival from SA. As you will have noticed I've been a bit slack with the keyboard and hadn't checked my mails for a few days so it was just as well he phoned or we'd probably still have been in bed on a sleepy Sunday morning. Well Ros might have finally  got a cup of tea from me as well as her gifts from Phoebe and Angus but she missed out as we leapt out of bed.

We had previously spent some time discussing building issues with Dig when we were taking a break in SA and he'd offered to caste a professional eye over the site, design, council requirements and generally see whether or not I was heading in the right direction.  I felt pretty pleased with the design Ros & I had come up with using the draughting package he'd provided. It fitted the old footprint and had most of the things we wanted.

Monday 12

Still it's a long way from being a useful in plan until a builder had caste his eyes over it and provided some initial costings. As I hadn't done much about finding a builder,  under Dig's non- too subtle urging I rang a mate in the landscaping design business and asked if he knew any good builders. To my pleasant surprise he suggested one that he'd worked with quite a lot and recommended that I give him a call and mention his name.

Three hours later Dig & I were up at the farm waiting for Michael the builder to arrive. Bit of a new experience for me as I've never had anyone build anything for me before and had only a vague and general idea of the process to be undertaken. Michael was a quiet and thoughtful chap and after the inititial introductions, look at my "plans" and a bit of discussion about siting of the original house, views and construction materials and a quick move in budget estimates from $180k to $250k which still seemed like it might be a long way short of the "typical" $300k- $400k house build, I stood back a bit and let the two builders compare notes, materials and  find each others measure. 

The first site meeting concluded with an exchange of details and Michael's suggestion that he'd get some concept drawings prepared by a draughtsman that would give Ros and I something to work with and think about. 

Both Dig and I feel quite positive about Michael but he takes care to ensure that I will check out other builders that are known to friends and colleagues and get quotes from them once we have settled on a design.

One thing that we have to do is look at construction materials, claddings and the like to get a feel for what sort of options we may have when it comes to looking at ways to keep the cost down. I'm still keen to investigate the Hebel option as it seems to have quite a bit going for it although perhaps not so far as Michael - he seemed fairly disinterested in the product but this may just be due to the fact that he's not previously worked with it so it's an unknown quantity. 

The Landrover does not quite cometh

Got a call from Allan - the Landrover has been for its RACV & Roadworthy Check and to his obvious disappointment, they've been pretty damn thorough and there a few items that need replacement/investigation/repair. I'm also a bit disappointed but for different reasons. I'd been hoping to pick it up on Tuesday, but am  very happy to wait while it's brought up to scratch. That after all is the purpose of paying nearly $300 for a full  RACV 4WD check and requesting a Roadworthy certificate as a condition of purchase. With a bit of luck it'll be ready by the end of the week.

Dig departed on Tuesday after a longish chat and a cup of tea and I got on with working for IBM  which I'm finding harder and harder to focus on. I called Stephen to see if he could recommend a good 4WD mechanic as Allan is from Sydney and doesn't know any local firms. He's also going to similarly check with his mechanic in Sydney. As luck would have it, the company recommended by Stephen is the same as that recommended by Allan's former mechanic. That at least is a good sign.

Wednesday Night Ros & I discover that we are not the only disorganised non-perfectly communicating couple in the world. Her sister Sonya and husband Warren have organised different sets of days off so they can bring the van down. Bottom line, it will be here on Friday morning - ripper!

Thursday - one more sleep!

Friday 15 

Up bright and early as I have to go to Mitre 10 at Diamond Creek to collect a garden shed. I anticipate that I will need to borrow their trailer but with a bit of a heave ho  it all mostly fits in the back of the volvo with the tailgate held down with an "occy" strap. A quick run up to the farm, check that the generator is still there, drop off the shed and then back to Cait's to collect Ros.

Of course everything takes a little bit longer than expected and by  the time I pick her up, the Sydney crew  have arrived in St Andrews and are sent off to the general store to have a coffee while we hasten through the light fog patches and occasional rain-drop or two hoping that it will hold off for a bit or that the weather forecasters (winds of up to 100k and heavy showers) have got it wrong for today at least. 

The rain holds off and after meeting at St Andrews we take the lead to the farm and then watch as Warren's 4wd easily pulls the caravan up the hill to the flat. While Ros & I watch from a distance the van is rolled into position with only a minimum of effort. Obviously done this once or twice before.

The caravan is quickly settled into place and once we have it stabilized, Warren and I start work on the shed which is to consume most of my next three days, while Ros and Sonya organise a cuppa.

It's fantastic to finally have a place to stay at the farm - I am truly grateful.