Update end March 2011

Hi Blog readers.. thanks for logging on again... ;-) Lots has happened since last time I went online to blog, and like to share it with you ...

First of all.. I'm IN the cottage now, and no longer living at the wooden garden table outside under the 'patio' roof.. I even moved a bed from the storage into the cottage, where for now it's standing near the kitchen, but in the house none the less.. so no more walks up the hill to the milking shed for my night's rests..

Lots happened since the move... the most worrying of all, was the fact that the puppy Max all of a sudden was limping and had a stretched knee tendon.. had to keep him quiet otherwise it would tear and an operation would then have been inevitable.. not a good thing for a puppy since that automatically would result in him developing rheumatism at a very early age.. so keeping a Jack Russel puppy quiet ??.. well.. kind of worked somehow and after a week he was improving again, so no op.. something to be very grateful for, it did affect my mood I must say !

In the meantime had to continue work on the cottage itself, and that still is a bit of a mission.. the floor with the black screed is in, but definitely not a success, so have to come up with an alternative plan. Maybe visit the Earth Cote store sometime to see what they have on offer !

Notice the difference with the first picture of the blog ?.. Color of house, Terrace doors, retaining wall in front for terrace, Chimney for wood burner, solar geyser, we're getting there.. yay !

 

 

 

 

 

Did somehow manage to move some of my stuff into the cottage but had to choose anything black, since the floor still gives off that black stuff that is supposed to stay on it, and with dogs and wind, light colored furniture for now is a no no.. so that has to stay in my storage for a bit longer..

DSTV or Satellite tv has been installed and works like a dream, so after weeks of no tv, can now enjoy my favorite programmes again... nice !

Solar geyser installed on the roof, which now provides the house with lovely hot water.. the first step towards the eco friendly enterprise.. also connected to washing machine and dishwasher to the solar system, so they don't have to heat up their water from the grid anymore, which should also save electricity is my guess.. Gas hob installed, so no electrical cooking, so I'm slowly weaning myself off electricity as much as possible (yeah, I know, still that dishwasher, but hey, let me sin just a little bit)

Solid fuel heater also installed and works very well.. tested and approved... looks really nice and happy its there..

No more electricity for heating the cottage either, and yes, you can cook on it too !

yep, I know,  its now wood that I'm burning during the winter months, but at least its the alien vegetation that is disappearing into the stove, and will replace that vegetation with the indigenous stuff from time to time.... I promise !

And for now finishing the painting of the house.. sorting out the stored stuff in the garage and I can't wait to re do the flooring ! but.. have been at it for 8 weeks now, and next week its time for some rest and relaxation.. 'smelling of the roses' time ! And.. am I lonely in the country ??.. NO ! not at all.. had lots of visitors, actually more than I ever had in Cape Town, which is kind of amazing I think .. and this weekend again having 6 friends over from the Cape for a braai on sunday afternoon, so that is yet again something to look forward to..

Best regards all... and c u on the next blog... from a happy chappy in 'the country'

Rick
xxx

11 days later ;-)

Well good morning world ! Been a while since the last blog and been out of touch for a bit during this period.. Concentrating on the finishing of the cottage.. which of course was not ready when I had to 'vacate' my house in Sea Point... building and renovating always takes a bit longer than one would want...

So moving 'house' was not quite what I anticipated.. packing with help and driving it all out myself was quite a bigger mission and should have done that differently, but once things got underway, there was no turning back.. Rented a 2 ton trailer and with the space in the bakkie I thought it would be a few drives and a done deal... well,,, the few drives turned out to be 5 drives in total (2 hrs out, half hour unloading, 2 hrs back with that heavy thing through mountainous terrain, limits your speed) so one drive was done saturday 5 march, and thinking it would be a quick drive, hardly traffic, we (Ronald my house help and me) drove straight into a huge traffic jam near Grabouw, where, due to an even huger accident, we were re routed through a small village, all traffic off the highway.. well.. that took anohter hour and a half, so once on the farm, we unloaded all in my double garage with no doors.. the Plan was to store my stuff in the big shed of my neighbor here, but alas.. the keys were there, the neighbor was not, and slid his sliding door the wrong way and it almost tumbled off its wheels.. Got it closed, but only just, and decided to dump all my furniture on my own smallholding. .... where, after a week, all is still standing, under a roof, yes, in between walls, yes, and that's about it.. hmm, not to be repeated either..   Only day before yesterday the concrete floor was 'thrown' in the cottage..

The floor is level now, there was a difference from the back of the cottage to the front of almost 10 cm !

Makes it quite wet inside and the humidity even creeps up the, now finished, walls.. well, it has to dry slightly more and to morrow, Monday, the top layer will finally be put on.. That needs to dry for a bit, but thinking of putting my furniture in next weekend, on a cement floor, which will be finished in black, with the walls and ceilings white.. This is what it looks like, on the 13th of March..

Potted plants outside the future guest cottage ;)))) What a difference a plant makes....

But.. back to the move, which was finally done on the 8th of March..  and I was quite tired I can tell you.. never ever again will I attempt to do it myself.. ! It would have been difficult if not impossible for a moving truck to reach the garage here on the property, but thinking back I should have let that truck drive as far as it could go, and then reload onto the bakkie (pickup truck) and unload from there..  Much shorter distances indeed to go back and forth.. this was clearly a moment of not thinking clearly.. and now I have difficulty finding my stuff in the over 40 boxes that are stacked up, between the 8 bedsets, couches, chars, dining tables and what have you.. hmmm... will take that easy and simply not 'miss' anything, its then nice when you find what you have not been looking for.. The pantry is taking shape, if not quite the way I want it in the end, but, the fridge works, the washing machine and dishwasher work, and the oven/microwave is connected... what a luxury ! The first batch of clothes is on the washing line and the first batch of sheets is happily churning away in the machine as I write this, what a wonderful sound !

Herewith pic of the pantry the way it is..

Pantry in progress.. machines working, the most important one.. the coffee machine of course ;-))))

So very very slowly life is getting a bit more comfortable on die plaas here.. ! And then the  9th of March.. which is the memorial day for Roland, he passed away that day exactly a year ago, and I moved 'officially' onto the small holding on that very same date a year later... coincidence ?.. I don't know about that.. but strange it is indeed, of all the 365 days in a year, I move into the country on that very day..

That day I drove out to Cape Town again, picked up his sister Gini who was lucky enough to be on a flight out of Amsterdam (she is a stewardess), and together with Mirella and Gooitzen, I was a passenger for a change, we drove out to Cape Point, to visit the place where Roland's ashes lie scattered.. And what a great day it turned out to be.. .. we spent quality time at Cape Point just chatting, and sometimes just being quiet and having our own thoughts at that beautiful spot, where we laid roses and a beautiful Protea.. his favorite flower..

Me at Roland's spot.. time to reflect and remember..

 We had a lovely lunch in Kalk Bay on the way back to Cape Town.. and from there, loaded the very last stuff into the bakkie and off to the farm I went again.. after a wonderful day, with great friends, thanks !!

And now, first weekend on the small holding.. strange feeling that the home in Cape Town now really has been swapped for being at home over here.. finally after a long time, on a farm of my own..  Its still far from finished but the first guests have already visited.. Two friends from Rotterdam brought their two friends and a lovely afternoon/evening with braai and fieldwalks was had last thursday, that was just great and a better 'roof wetting' could not be had.! Thanks Jasper and Dik, Ron and Dennis !!

Will have roof wettings with all who come and visit of course.. and the second visitors were my MD and in the meantime friend, with his husband, Ashraf and Kim... that was on Saturday early afternoon and they brought the best home made chicken/veggie something soup with stunning bread and butter! Lovely company, and what a great afternoon.. they wanted to see some small holdings in the area, so the agent came after lunch and off we went to see some 'plots' in this area.. That kept us busy for a few hours and after all the viewings, we were thirsty so we finished the very last white wine (Kim and me that is, Ashraf had some fruit juice ;-) It would be great of course if they could find something to their liking in this area, but for now they have a weekend getaway not too far from me, about half an hour drive direction Hermanus.. where I could come visit as well, if it weren't for the fact that its in a bird sanctuary where no dogs are allowed.. so have to make a plan when that is on the cards..

So on to the next week.. when Scott and Lloyd, who are in SA from London will visit and see what this idiot is up to again  .... ! Cant wait ! And of course Monday lunch with the girls from the horse riding group, in Cape Town.. great so I can sort out some remaining stuff in the City while there....

Going to take it easy this Sunday and relax for a bit and maybe try to locate my clipper, since my facial hair could do with a trim by now ! Shaving does not do the trick anymore ;-)

Enjoy your Sunday everyone !!!

xx
Rick

WEdnesday week 4 - not too hot today...

Hehe.. not too hot to day as far as the weather is concerned.. lovely actually and hope to morrow will be the same.. nice !

Wonderful sunrise and with a nice cup of coffee something to enjoy, early in the morning (as in 6 am) Took a lovely pic to celebrate the new day..

From the house upwards.. future guestcottage, and milking shed which will turn into a studio apartment

View from the 'deck' and future stables in the background, most of those tall trees will go, enhances the view of the mountain behind it with the protea's, and the faithful 'bakkie'

So to day.. the wall with the new windows was screeded,.. took the entire day and the pebbles for the concrete were delivered with a huge truck.. opened up and unloaded and ...... DUST everywhere.. was too late to close the house, so a mist moved through it, and left it at that.. its dusty inside,, again ;-))

Attached some hooks to the terrace doors to keep them from blowing off their hinges, and sorted out the water system for the washing machine and dishwasher,  on the outside of the pantry, will not be seen in future because creepers will cover that up later

Went better and faster than anticipated (pic taken during, not after) so assembled the new 'braai' and used that just now. Neighbor popped round to announce he was off to Caledon and did I need anything from the village.. yes... some steaks for  the braai please.. and just as I had taken a bath and lit the thing, the meat was delivered, .. so ate like my life depended on it, was sooo hungry..

The new braai, may I use it often , with friends it always tastes better but for now it was great !

And now a rose.. lovely wine from a nearby winery, one has to support the locals of course.. and tired so off to bed. Sleep welll... zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Rick

Tuesday 1st march, 38 degrees c.. what a heat !!!!!

My my.. not complaining but working with such a heat is just almost impossible.. but we did work to day anyway....  The outside of the house now looks quite nicer than ever before.. the screeds are on and the 'only' thing left do do is change the front door and finish around the window frames,, but concentrating on the inside of die huisie (the small house) is now more important, since the 'move' is only days away.. not going to be ready so have to continue to sleep in the milking shed for some time to come, and put the furniture in the 'garage' that has no doors ;-) But hey, all the happier and content will I be once I CAN move the furniture in..

outside of the house with the new windows here ;

So that makes me the owner of a huisie with nice windows hey...

The lounge/dining area are situated on the ground floor, the pantry is on the other side of the house, which makes the living area quite nice ! More than adequate for a 1 person household I would say..  And yes, of course I could have knocked it down and built a bigger house, but then the bank would have to get involved, and I'd like to prevent that at all cost....

What was actually a very very nice surprise yesterday evening when I neared the house in the dark is this, a visitor a few hundred meters from the property, country life I tell you.. think its a duiker, the smallest antelope in SA which you can still find here in the 'veld'....  he was saying, welcome home I'd like to think ;-)))

The 'duiker' does not move when hit by light in the dark, so had time to take this picture with the iPhone, a bit grainy but you get the idea ;-)

Running a bath as we speak using the old geyser and low water pressure by the way, so that usually takes about 20 minutes to fill up to a decent level, but what the heck.. a bath is a bath in the end.. looking forward to that I must say.. but to continue with the story...

Fitted a new polystyrene isolating ceiling in the 'pantry' which immediately made it lots cooler there, and to prove it, pic here ! Don't look that bad at all ..... have to finish the edges but the ceiling is in.. what remains now is the bathroom and the outside little terrace.. that will really keep the temps down when the sun is beating on the roof..

And inside the lounge area the walls with the double doors are done.. we thought to do the entire house quick quick, but again, there is no such thing as quick when renovating, I keep having to remind myself, not enough cement !!! So off I went to Caledon, where stocks were low as well, but the owner of Wimpie's DIY, meneer Wimpie himself, ordered one of his guys to pop out to Hermanus and drop it off at the farm. The poor guy got lost on the way, was cooking in his non airconditioned 'bakkie' (pick up) but found it in the end, and we're now the proud owners here of 50 bags of ready mix.. easier to use and mix.

part of the inside wall double door area as it is now, nicely done and smooth like a whistle.. so to morrow the second wall with the window frames, and let's see how far we get. already certain that I'll not be ready when I have to move over here.. but will make a plan, as a goede boer does... !

Bath ready, I'm off.. have a nice eve !!
Rick