The Plumber's Apprentices and Veges Under Way

Denise just couldn't wait to get stuck in and rip things out. We had already started in the bathroom and dismantled things we intend to reuse - the old porcelain handbasin, the glass shower door over the bath, old taps, etc. Denise was very amused to find, wedged out of sight under the base of a wooden cabinet under the washbasin next to where the toilet was, a few very well worn and crumpled pages from a Playboy magazine.And the metal laundry tub ... As I was disconnecting the S bend under the basin, to my horror, I discovered some dirty joker had pi--ed in it (many times, it appears) God knows how long ago. We don't know how long the house has been vacant. We did find a packet of instant noodles with a use-by date of Feb. '07. Anyway, after copious rinses of bottled water (we have no running water yet, remember), most of a bottle of antiseptic handwash, numerous grass rubs and earth wipes, I still couldn't get rid of the damn smell on my right arm, so one disenchanted plumber's apprentice was very keen to get back to the motel for a shower.


Starting to demolish the old kitchen cabinets and resalvaging plumbing bits in the old kitchen. We have successfully removed a perfectly good and reuseable kitchen sink. That connector hose on the left goes to a gas fired stove and oven - appears very good order if anyone is interested in buying - perfect back-up in case of emergencies - you'll still be able to cook a roast.

The weather closed in at the end of the week, and we decided to 'take the day off' on Friday 16 Oct. After a disappointing visit to the weekly Friday Clareville Stock Sale, we headed into Masterton to find some more roof paint, get application forms from the Farm Equipment stores, and the like. We also picked up 6 old tyres free from Firestone, bought a bag of seed potatoes, and planted our first veges at Fossils Retreat.

Potatoes planted in free tyres in temporary position along front fence line. Instructions said feed well when planting. Plenty of horse manure still around for that. Then a couple of shovels of good top soil and topped with some old hay left lying on the property.

We had our first builder's quote in at the end of the week. Gulp. And that is just for 'Stage One' to get the place compliant as soon as possible (water, electricitiy and septic).

Fish and chips for tea from the local recommended chippie (we won't even recommend it); finished off the wine, then we packed up Saturday morning, met Wayne and Matt for a 'viewing', then loaded up the ute and tidied up inside. A HUGE thank you to Matt and Wayne for being so positive about the place and the plans. A big morale booster, as we find we are going through highs and lows frequently.

Sett off back over the hill late afternoon, picked up Tansy from the kennels in Featherston (Mike and Christine, Orton Lodge, in the country just out of Featherston. Highly recommended). As soon as we hit our street, the heavens opened and it rained. Really rained. Then we had to hightail it off to Stokes Valley to pick up two new interior bifold doors we had purchased (at an excellent price off Trade Me).

Madge was extraordinarily pleased to see us home and wailed us all the way up the drive. She and Scruffy were left and were cared for by Nikki while we were away, as Jennifer was very tardy in not remembering to take Madge for her shots in time to be boarded. Scruffy appeared indifferent. Madge was definitely fatter, having, we suspect, eaten the majority of the copious supplies of dried food left for them both. Muddy pawprints all over the sheets, basins, upright furniture, etc. She does miss Tansy terribly when they are parted.