Help calm me. House buying and selling stress. Part 6

Thanks all. They made it through the rain and are now happily unpacking. So who is next on here?
Shandy the seas are very rough. Tomorrow's ferries are cancelled here, hope you daughter gets back ok. The summer months are often choppier than the winter ones.
Hope you enjoyed Cribbs Franbern. The John Lewis there is good, better than at Westfield.

Back home now feeling exhausted. So difficult these days just to go somewhere for lunch. We did not want to go to any of the food hall eateries, so decided to go over to TGI etc. Could not get into any of them, has to be pre-booked and all were full up for the day. Eventually returned to The Mall for M&S cafeteria, long queue there, but at least we were able to join that - well, at least my daughter did as I had to ask for somewhere to sit, as I am unable to stand for more that a few minutes. They were vry h elpful,a nd I was taken in and sat down to wait or my daughter to get to front of queue. What a palavar!!!

It was pouring with rain this morning, right upto past midday - brings thoughts of the whole queuing system outside system as it will be in the coming colder and damp weather.

Nice in Cribbs, yes, excellent John Lewis and M&S but did not actually purchase anything.

I have needed a small repair to one of my windows. I love leaving windows open, and this is the top one in my bedroom. One of the little hingers broke, and this meant that if I tried to open the window it fell to one side, and I was nervous of it actually falling out. Difficult to find who to contact to do this repair.
Finally managed to track someone down, who came this afternoon, had to take the window out to do the repair. He then needed a second pair of hands to hold it square (and it is heavy) to hold it in place whilst he refixed- it all back. I telephoned my daughter to come over, but - fortunately, the DFS upholsterer was here repairing a button that had come off on my sofa bed, and he went in to become the window repairers mate.
I did find it all a little over-whelming, having both repairers here at the same time although I was glad they were - kept reminding myself that I need to get used to it as this is how it will be for the next two weeks.
Both jobs done, complete and my daughter came over and calmed me down and made me a welcome cup of coffee.
Just to wish the very best of luck to Shandy for (hopefully) a successful trip next week. Do keep us all informed how it goes.

Ellianne, I'm glad your daughter's move all went well.

Franbern that was handy having an extra pair of hands in the flat at the time.
Don't worry about having the workmen in your home for a couple of of weeks. Just be prepared for the mess. Unfortunately the dust will go everywhere. Cover as much as possible . It can't be helped but believe me it will be worth it when it is finished.

How are your daughter and family settling into their new home Ellianne?

Had a nice morning catching up with a friend and got the arm put back on one of my pair of glasses. Otherwise a quiet day.

Hopefully it will be nice tomorrow and I can get in the garden

Have a good evening everyone.

Having workmen in is unsettling, even in normal times, but it is all worth it in the end. Good luck with your bathroom next week Franbern, I shall be listening to any tips for when it is our turn next month.
I think you have to be prepared for many comings and goings during the first year of buying a new home.
The movers are on their first day and their smiles get bigger by the hour. Escaping London to the country is a big relief and having twice the space is an added bonus. They are going to have the weekend "off" to go to the beach and discover their new surroundings. The jobs can wait. As their holiday to Greece was cancelled, they can use the next fortnight to have some quality time as a family in between decorating the house.
Yes Shandy, hope all goes well for your trip.

That's great Ellianne not about their holiday being cancelled but by having the time to explore their new surroundings as a family.

Afternoon all, sunny humid day here today.

I've had a day of going backwards and forwards to the charity shop with my daughter's decluttering, and very kindly, they emptied the boxes and returned them to me. I think I might have told you I had some original railway signs - I went to the railway society who are re- establishing a local line, and donated them anonymously, thankfully there was someone there, I've had this very large massively heavy cast sign in my car for ten weeks. They were delighted with two others I also donated. I told them about my buyer, and they told me to look at York station - apparently turned into a hotel, with two train coaches. They didn't appear impressed with the 'conversion', I'm not going to look.

Spending the next couple of days repacking boxes in the garage, cleaning the cottage, preparing for my dog and cats 'holiday' as well as my own, then I'm off on Monday for four days. Thanks for the good wishes . I'll be leaving home in a taxi at 8.15 am for the 9 am train, and get into Kings Cross about 12.30, to change at St Pancras to the Birchington train. I am glad I have booked assistance, I travel really light so will only have my backpack, just need the button pressed and my elbow held to get on. I'll get down there about 2.30 pm and will be going straight onto the 'Loop' bus which takes you around Broadstairs, Margate and Ramsgate. I'll be able to have a good look at the area, hopefully. Unfortunately the open top bus isn't running yet with Covid. I can book into my Airbnb by 4 pm, they need the extra time for cleaning.

I'll report back and take some photos to show you next week, hopefully I won't get poo-ed on by a seagull, which most of the locals refer to as 'flying rats'. Not sure about that attitude towards wildlife, they are only like rats because of the humans who leave so much food litter.

The very best of luck shandy, don`t forget a notebook, the mind gets boggled by looking at lots of properties

I have had such a nice relaxing couple of days, this cooler weather suits me. I have been gardening, baking and knitting, lots of knitting and finished off a jumper, at long last. It was just the sewing together but it was complicated

I am back to making a couple of to-do notes for the following day and am storing my laptop in another room, less tempting to pick up. I watched Ruth Mott yesterday, the wartime kitchen and garden, on youtube. It was straight back to a much slower way of life, very busy but focussed on making food. A lot of things have changed for the better and given us much more time to ourselves

The wet and blustery weather continues here. I feel sorry for those on holiday this week. Our son and his wife had to cut their holiday short on the Isles of Scilly because the ferry has been cancelled for two days. They said the boat was packed with people leaving, no social distancing. I don't think I could do bumpy seas and sick bags any more these days.
Shandy a nice bungalow came on in Exmouth yesterday. The top floor is the lounge with estuary views but I wondered if you could make it into a room for your daughter/son to stay? There is enough space for you to live on the ground floor. I'm only suggesting at this stage so that you have some comparisons for when you go on your trip, (although the Exmouth one may be gone by then). I'll keep my eyes peeled.

Shandy just a thought, but if you have your mobile or iPad fully charged ask your EA if you can take lots of photos on your house visits, try to take pics from the windows (of the views) plus the insides of the houses, it’s always useful when you get back home to be able to see what storage spaces you have.

As you are going so far away to see properties, I think it will be difficult for you to get back later because you can’t quite remember something, so pics of each room plus the gardens ( especially to see how the sun comes into the gardens ). Remember to make a note of each property, so that you remember which photos are for which house.

Don’t forget you can use your mobile to take voice notes of anything you can think of whilst you are walking around, quicker than writing things down, don’t worry about the agent I’m sure he’s used to people talking into their phones!

Take a bottle of water and hand sanitizer, gloves etc. just in case.

Have fun and take your notes with you to tick off all of your must haves after you visit each house and if you want a second visit, let the EA know while you are still there, if the owners are interested in selling they will let you go back at short notice I’m sure.

Sorry forgot to say good morning to everyone, batten down the hatches and stay dry!

Regarding taking photos of a property you are viewing, my brother helped me when moving and he took photos of the boiler, meters, radiator controls and guttering/roof. This covered maintenance issues and showed whether these items might need to be replaced soon.

Morning all, bit rainy here but not the gales yet.

Thanks for all the helpful tips and good wishes for my trip, I am looking forward to visiting the area and learning a lot about it from the locals commenting on the Facebook community page. Latest is a beheaded baby seagull left outside someone's house, looks like a machete was used.

Ellianne, I had a look at that bungalow in Exmouth, thank you. I expect it will have gone, but they do seem to be popping up regularly. Sorry your daughter's holiday was curtailed because of the sea conditions - I texted my daughter and she is still waiting, the 7 am ferry was cancelled - she hopes to get on within the hour. She said the hail stones last night were huge. So glad the little car has made it so far, I hated the road to Stranraer with huge lorries behind me all the time.

I don't know why I don't want to rewrap everything today to make it safe for moving, I must force myself. Also forgot the bath was full with charity shop stuff, so another run then I'm clear.

Enjoy your day whatever you are doing

Shandy57 hope all goes well with your house hunting. Take note of the advice everyone has given you. My worry is you will be dishearten by what you see that you can afford. I hope I am wrong. And you will find the perfect place. As you didn't reply to my PM you took offence of what I said. It wasn't mean unkindly. But I worry you are wanting the perfect home without you having to do anything to it. Unfortunately it does not exist. You have said in previous posts you like quiet. I don't know how you will cope if you buy a terraced house surrounded with neighbours. Also there is the parking issue. And no I am not against terraced houses our first house was one built in 1908.

You are only a year older than me and can not afford to buy somewhere which doesn't have what you want. Don't forget to factor in all costs plus £30k for home improvements.

I wish all the luck in the world . And hope I am wrong being pessimistic.

Hey Whiff, thanks for the good luck wishes - I didn't know you'd written, I never get any notifications? I'll read it now. thank you for thinking of me. I haven't got enough money to do anywhere up, will probably end up in a ground floor flat, and why not, it is just me

I've just come on to say my daughter is safely on dry land, they both felt sick on the boat it was so rough and rained really heavily the whole crossing. I haven't been able to relax not knowing, can now get on with my jobs!

Enjoy your day, hope Storm Ellen goes quickly, rain is lashing at the lovely double glazed windows and dropping down the chimney onto the fire grate.

Shandy, I notice there are a couple of flats and a bungalow for sale at a reasonable price in the Kingsgate area of Broadstairs, which is one of the nicest parts of the area - there are £1 million houses nearby! I don't think the loop bus goes around that area.

I want to add my best wishes to Shandy and hope that she finds something suitable next week.
The wind down here is frightening, I live on the coast in S.West Wales. I was going to go out today but I've decided against it. Safer to stay in.
I want to share with you all a tip that I used today. Because of the incoming gale, I brought a pot plant indoors for safety and placed it on a small teak coffee table. I did not realise that the bottom of the pot was wet and it left a water mark on the coffee table. I wiped it down to dry it and then rubbed a walnut kernal all over it. The oil from the kernal has lifted the "ring" from the table and it looks as good as new.
I picked up tip from gransnet a few weeks ago. Someone mentioned (sorry I can't remember who) that neat vinegar on a cloth got rid of finger marks on glass. I have a dining table made from glass and it seems to be a magnet for my young grandchildren. But the vinegar does work wonders without a lot of buffing, of lifting all the marks.
Just thought I would share these tips, as someone might find them useful.

Nuts are brilliant, brazil is good for rubbing over pet scratch marks on unpainted wooden doors and furniture

whiff my parkers came today with a nice small and very well rooted free red azalea, I have bunged it in the soil, will possibly move it over winter. Likes semi-shade

I am tweaking stuff today, more knitting and watching youtube and thanks to mrs Mott, made a good old fashioned coleslaw, sometimes I do need reminding about the stuff I used to make. Plenty left for tomorrow

Sorted some chiaogoo interchangeable needles, collected over quite a while, mini tips, shorties, normal etc. As always a tweak here and there. Garden planning in my head too, what I shall move and what I shall not grow again, aiming for low flowers in general, except for by the walls, low will show off the obelisks and water feature better. Dahlias and calendula this year are too big in my diddy garden.

Maytime2 that's a good tip with the walnut. I have always used white vinegar for cleaning glass. Windows and shower cubicle always sparkle without smears .

I ordered 3 shrubs from Thompson and Morgan which came today. So I popped out when it stopped raining. Only got one in and it tipped it down but put the other 2 in. My greenhouse arrived as well. I ordered some bulbs from Parker's so they should be here in a few days. Saw the gardener who does some of the bungalows and asked if he did slabbing but doesn't . But gave me the name and number of 2 who do. So I will call them on Monday . Don't need anything fancy doing. Get a price of each of them.
Haven't done much today . Had my monthly chat with my best friend. We text daily but it's nice to have a natter. Housework and cross stitch and that's it . Be glad when this storm has passed.

Up early, a good sleep and am glad the wind has dropped. I expect the waves are still rough and an attraction for many, although it seems that the rough seas have disrupted the sewage systems and many waters are polluted around the shores right now

I have to psyche myself to get some bags of compost into my boot, I have lowered the seats and covered the boot with a small tarpaulin, 14 bags up from a pallet. I havea precise 15 minutes in a time slot, to reverse to the pallet and lift these in. I am going to put 3 near the failgate and then slide another 3 backwards over those 3. I am sure I will manage. They make their own compost, it is cheap and very good so this is something I will put up with. It is £2 a bag and I would pay 3 x that. It is the only way I can get it

I have to finally finish paperwork later today, I got up to the last leg so it won`t be too bad. I still use the accountant, he was very good and got me refunds a few times

It is becoming autumnal now so it is just maintenance and garden, I like to be prepped for winter ahead of time, so I will be pottering later

Don't hurt yourself with those bags Craftyone. Got a chicken stew on the go. And once I have finished my tea. Making strawberry jam. Weather awful again. Finished the cross stitch yesterday just got to make them into birthday cards. As I can't go out I will sort out my charts to decide what my Christmas card will be this year. I like to plan ahead. Check what threads I will need to order as used quite a load so far this year. Otherwise it's a lazy day.

Starting my last two really relaxing day for the next fortnight. Just some very small jobs to do - when I cooked some corn on the corb could not find where I had put the little forks for those - must have a good search for them today. Will clear out bathroom ready for Monday.
Sunshine and showers here. Looked up local virus figures 3 in every 100,000 -not exactly causing me to panic!!!

The bags were all on high pallets, loading them was easy, thankfully. I scattered 4 around the roses, started digging it in and started hitting rocks lower down, again. I never did clear the whole bed last year, just enough for the roses, I remember that I was almost waist deep last year, was so disappointed to find some much compaction and rocks. I got tired last year and I ended up bunging some roses in. I had to get my crowbar out again today, concentrated around the roses in areas that resulted in a clang when the bar went down

So no paperwork today, that was tiring and I do try and stop around lunchtime. The front has to be better for the roses, they have looked gorgeous for 2 summers and this bit of tlc will be bound to help. I am sure now that the worm population will increase. The ground will retain more moisture next year

Franbern and only detected due to much better testing

Glad the bags were easy to load Craftyone. Made 4lb of strawberry jam. Made the birthday cards and made 2 cross stitch coasters as wedding anniversary gifts. Otherwise a lazy day. Be glad when the sun comes back and can get into the garden.

Shandy57 don't forget your masks. And suntan cream just in case it gets hot while you are away. Don't forget plenty of water and food for the journey. Also a good book.