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Slowly, slowly…
June 22, 2013
Longest day was dull and cold, today is also windy and wet. Nights are drawing in!
May 19, 2013 – Ladies Wot Walk
Oh dear, oh dear! And all in the BEST possible taste.
See the incriminating pictures
May 5, 2013 – the madness continues
Sun, at last and the morris sides are out in force.
Drummers are congregating in red and black, feathers in their top hats, will need to sedate Midge!
See Gallery
May 4, 2013
Oo-er!
Jack in the Green weekend has kicked of in traditional poor weather. We were having a quiet one in The Stag when singers Rattlebag made an entrance. All keen for a drink before singing!
April 13, 2013
Oh we do like to be…
Marcia has a break from work and we have managed 4 sets of guests visiting the ‘mouse house’. Here’s Pauline and James enjoying a rare sunny interval!
January 18, 2013
Snow on the way from Beachy Head
Holiday season out of the way and here comes snow. This is the top of East Hill before it started.
December 21, 2012
A month of awful colds and occasional Santa-ing (some cancelled because of ill-health) has wiped out December to date. A few jobs have been tacked, many not yet finished, and many more added to the list. Beginning to realise that this house has spent 500 years falling down (also 500 years standing up).
On the plus side, we now have two operational guest rooms, both of which have been put to good use. The Herring Fair was highly successful, despite poor weather, so we now have another annual reason to visit Hastings!
October 20, 2012
Lots of rain, but it’s warm for October and we still get to the top of East Hill every day. This is the view of Old Town and you can just see our place. The main Guest Nest is now habitable, nay, comfortable, so book your visit before it is too late!
September 19, 2012
This is the view from the bench I sit on after climbing East Hill with the dogs. I would pay for the view if it wasn’t free!
September 14 2012
At last, broadband installed and up and running! Boxes still everywhere, cupboards to be built and filled, and cabinets, curtains and things still to arrive, but we’re getting there.
The chimney for the stove was checked this morning and didn’t need sweeping, so now we can look forward to cosy winter evenings. The dogs are loving the proximity of West Hill for long walk and we will both be much fitter – if the exercise doesn’t kill us first!
29 August 2012
The removers did a grand job yesterday and all the major stuff has arrived. We have one bed erected and made, and one wardrobe put back together (the components only just fitted through the upstairs bedroom window) but mainly it’s now packing cases all round. We also have several items of furniture that don’t or won’t fit, so the local auction house it coming round to collect on Friday. Unfortunately there is much remaining at our temporary house in Bexhill and I will start to collect it once I have installed a big larder cupboard and the final bookshelves have arrived (I ordered too few).
Delivery of things ordered on the internet has been astounding. We are expecting three more today, which should help us get organised. Unfortunately a couple of sideboards for the dining room (much needed for things that were kept in the old kitchen) and a fridge will not be here for a while.
Our first night here was remarkably quiet, despite Tuesdays being ‘folk evening’ at the Stag, opposite. The computer is set up (hence this update) but BT Open Reach failed to install our telephone line and broadband, as planned. What a surprise! Fortunately I can get some internet access using a mobile connection.
Craig and Paul completed the removal of paving and hardcore, and installation of 4 tonnes of topsoil, in record time, so we now have the rudiments of a garden (mud).
Pictures coming soon!
14 August 2012
Getting ready for completion. Craig is lined-up to return the majority of the garden from paving to growing space before we move the furniture in. Loads to do, not much time.
3 August 2012
TODAY WE EXCHANGED CONTRACTS! Completion on 17th, then removal of paving and hardcore through the house before we can move furniture in on 28th August.
2 August 2012
Ditto, ditto and bloody ditto. On tenterhooks for Exchange tomorrow or may have to bid for an alternative.
10 July 2012
Ditto. Marcia has NEW JOB! Starts in August at an association affiliated to the Royal College of Surgeons.
6 July 2012
More of the same. All seems to be going well for a 17 August completion.
3 July 2012
Shredding, clearing and compacting – that’s all we seem to be doing, in the hope that we can find some space between the boxes and really sort ourselves out. Borrowed broadband access has been a problem in our rented accommodation, as the router is in the offices of an engineering works and either electrical or radio activity appears to knock out the connection several times a day. So I invested in a wireless 3G dongle and seem to have little trouble editing this with it.
29 June 2012
We are now at 74a, more-or-less sane but feeling rather battered by the experience of shoehorning a 4-bedroom house plus loft, garage and sheds into a 2-bed house with none of the above.
22 June 2012
Furious packing and moving things to 74a Windsor Road, Bexhill-on-Sea TN30 3PE where we will reside for a couple of months. Please use 079171 76267 from Monday 25th until we have a number for All Saints Street.
17 June 2012
Aaaghhh… Piles for the tip, piles for charity shops, piles for the lock-up store, piles to be driven over to the temporary house. Loads to remove from the loft still and also a lot from the garage. M doing a sterling job on filling boxes!
15 June 2012
Exchanged, just before close of play! Quite a good garage sale but a lot more to sell tomorrow.
14 June 2012
After a worrying start, when we doubted we would actually get to exchange on Little Manor, it now seems that we will do so tomorrow. Fingers crossed, too, for a dry morning on Friday and Saturday for our 2nd and 3rd Garage Sales!
Better still! We just heard that D & P at All Saints Street have reached a deal on the house they want to buy.
13 June 2012
Running round in circles, unable to decide whether to pack something, organise something, sell something or walk the dogs! No exchange yet on Little Manor (told it’s imminent) and D & P at All Saints Street are waiting to hear if they have a deal on their next house, but have said they they are aiming for completion on 17 August.
Yesterday I was talking to a maker of traditional dining tables and mentioned that we had first to find a way to sell our Italian glass job. He said that he was moving into a modern house and was looking for just such a thing! Unfortunately he subsequently decided that he wanted something rectangular. Meanwhile the impromptu garage sale on Sunday got rid of a lot of things we cannot possibly find homes for and, on the strength of it I have another one planned for this Friday and Saturday.
7 June 2012
Great weekend of opera, fireworks and garden party. Now back to reality with nothing more on a move-in date. Hoping for some indication by the weekend. Meanwhile M is planning her garden and I foolishly volunteered to do some of the grunt. once the paving and hardcore has been removed.
2 June 2012
The owners of All Saints House are a little closer to deciding where to move. We need to be patient over the Jubilee weekend. Off to Glyndebourne tomorrow, then a beacon lighting and firework display to marshal on Monday and a Garden Party to sort out on Tuesday – it should fly by!
31 May, 2012
Mr Williams, the surveyor, gave the house a clean bill of health today – all as expected for a building over 500 year old. We have identified a temporary home in Bexhill, which is a good job since the vendors of ASH have yet to identify and bid for their new home and it looks likely that we will not move in until August.
So, July could be a good month to pay some visits to our friends!
30 May, 2012
Little Manor sold (STC), offer on All Saints House accepted 36 hours ago. We have agreed to complete in Bexhill on 26 June but have no idea when we can reach the same stage on the Hastings house.
Marcia thinks that for this money we could have bought a real house (not a Wendy house) but the surveyor thinks it could date from Henry VII, which means that it is very old if very small.
No idea where we will live between houses, especially as ‘holiday lets’ are full for the summer and most places don’t take dogs. Any offers?
Watch this space for progress, pics and maybe an invite to a house-warming or some other local pagan bash. Visitors over 5’8″ are advised to bring a hard hat or remove their legs before entering.