Baby Steps

Technically the move is done. That is… the stuff is moved. The unpacking, however, will continue for a long time. My office is now usable, as is my usual computer. I have yet to fix all the typos reported in last week’s post, but I will do that shortly after publishing this one.

I know some of you are expecting photos of the house. They’re coming, but not here. Send me an email and I will share a link to a photo album with some images. Security first, you know. They won’t be great photos — the house is far from a showplace in general, and definitely not while we’re in the middle of unpacking — but they will give you a taste of where we’re at.

Related to that, it is finally time to share our address & phone number with those who want it. As with the photos, all you have to do is email me and I will share the info with you. We plan on being in this house for plenty of time, so now we can finally share where we are with those who need to know.

For the first time in a couple of weeks I took a walk on the local trails. While out and about I came across a couple of these:

I’m told it was just a couple of years ago that they found some unexploded ordnance out in the woods just north and east of us. There are a lot of trails — mostly not documented on Google Maps, sadly — and that’s where I saw these signs. The trails are well used despite their lack of readily available documentation. I had company in several places, and didn’t feel particularly worried about blowing myself up. This was just a walk to the local green grocer, but I plan to experience more of the local trail network — without UXOs — in the coming months.

In other news, I’ve talked to a plumber about replacing the water heater and to two roofers about re-roofing part of our new home. Not sure when those things will get started, but they need to get done. Waiting for the second roof quote now.

The rental is all cleaned out and ready to give back to the landlord, but she’s out of town for a couple of days so that will happen early next week. At that point, we’re off the hook for everything there. Only one house to maintain and unpack and clean and … yeah.

In terms of projects, I have a huge list that only gets bigger each day. Some are simple things, like replace a toilet flapper valve, but others are much larger, like drywall the garage, get my shop in working order, and build some furniture. (We need a headboard for the bed, lights, a railing extension, and who knows what else.) And of course there are all the outside jobs, like taking up all the long-dead outdoor lighting, recycling more boxes & packing materials, and on and on and on. You get the idea. Art is on my list, but it may be a while despite my best efforts.

The dogs are definitely settling into the new house:

That’s Tinkerbelle in her new favourite cave, under my desk. Lately, if I am working on the computer, that’s where she is.

Maybe next week I will be better organized and have something more interesting to say. Alas, given the level of chaos, probably not.