I toyed - briefly - today with the idea of attempting to follow the progress of my flat in more detail, with regular postings about what's happened and when... but then I realised that I haven't been blogging a great deal lately, so it'd probably just slowly fade out.
Still, there has been progress, and it's somewhat blogworthy (hell, belly button fluff is blogworthy to some...) so I may as well relate it here.
I have decided to have wood-laminate floor in the hall and bedroom, with carpet in the lounge and lino or laminate in the kitchen and bathroom. Wood-laminate flooring has been ordered (delivery expected on Monday, any time between 8am and 6.30pm). Carpet has been chosen, but not yet ordered. Bedroom furniture (bar bed) is on order (delivery expected 10th Sept). Beds have been investigated (though not exhaustively - just enough to have a vague idea that I'd like a double if possible, and preferably something with storage in the base) but nothing ordered. The gas boiler is being serviced on Friday.
Today, my folks and I tripped over to the flat to start ripping up the old (vile, orange) carpet to investigate the pits, hollow-sounding sections and occasional squeak. About three hours of that revealed that the wood board will probably make a better base for the wood-laminate flooring than the hardboard that had been laid beneath the carpet, as long as those boards that need it are more firmly secured with nails or screws.
We also discovered that whoever did the plumbing swept their mess underneath the floorboards rather than take it away (classy). There are piles of all kinds of crap that, frankly, are a bit of a fire hazard.
On which subject, it could well be that someone in the past (since the maisonettes were converted into flats) decided to pour petrol through the letterbox, as there is a large, oily stain to the wood spreading out from the doorway.
Still, some good progress was made and the more hardboard we pull up, the better idea we have of what really needs doing before the floor can be laid.
Aside from the shoddy work on the flooring, the most bizarre find today was a small plushie flying elephant, which had been stuffed behind the hallway radiator. It has a plastic hook on the end of a cord, suggesting that it was meant to be suspended on a pram or cot.
Annoyingly, we heard nothing from the window people last week until my mother paid them a visit. We had the impression that all was ready, but my unfortunate first choice of door had caused a delay. Not so. The door is on display in their window... the glass for everything else has not yet been delivered. Until that happens, I won't have anything like a firm installation date, so I won't be able to warn the neighbours and shops below that the windows are being replaced.
On a more positive note, yesterday I trotted around Harrow and Rayners Lane looking into beds, bathrooms and kitchens. A shop just down the road from the flat is putting together a couple of designs for the bathroom (one keeping everything where it is, another moving things around), and another local business will be popping by next Tuesday afternoon to look into the kitchen.
It would be very cool to use the local businesses wherever possible, because it's better to help them thrive than let the bigger chains put everyone out of business. Plus, there's the outside chance they'll actually be cheaper.
I'm going through phases, lately, where I'm either ambivalent toward the flat or just plain dreading everything to do with it. I want to choose all the decor myself (specifically avoiding anything my mother likes), and yet I'm either bewildered by choice or inspired by nothing, and would prefer someone else to make the choices. Simultaneously, I want to move in straight away, or not at all. That might seem strange, but I am full of such contradictions.
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