More stuff...and more unpacking...

Day 8: More unpacking, Manie the Handyman arrives, and even more unpacking
Well, ADT was supposed to be here tomorrow to set up the alarm but they rocked up this morning before I even had my shower. Seems Mr. Seller “didn’t know” his alarm code, which makes me wonder why he even had the ADT account, especially since the ADT guys discovered the contacts on the front door and the kitchen door are not functional. We know he had an active ADT account because he transferred it to his new address. How did he use it if he didn’t know the alarm code? Or is that just one more thing he withheld from us? Curiously, the installation team reprogrammed the box and installed a new box next to the alarm box, but they couldn’t fix the two non-functional contact sets. Huh? So, the alarm itself is working but because the front door and the kitchen door have faulty contacts, they aren’t covered…these are the two doors most accessible from the street! Go figure…

More unpacking…good thing I have a big free standing cabinet as the kitchen doesn’t have enough cupboards for pots, pans, dishes, glasses, and food. I need a pantry and that useless space Mr. and Mrs. Seller created out of the atrium (which I wish they had left!) is prime space for it. Eventually…but for now, my big double armoire is pressed into service for the dishes and serving ware.

1 PM
Manie looks like a good find…he worked for his brother-in-law in a landscape and irrigation business and should be able to take care of the irrigation, once the bees have buggered off (there are "foraging bees" here now to harvest the honey Henri couldn't get off the pipes and valves and such). He also has more than 20 years experience with construction, both large and small, and ordinary plumbing jobs don’t challenge him, so changing some washers and stopping the toilet leaks are within his scope of work. We have jobs large and small here, and he seems to be competent for them all. Let’s see what the quote comes in at…

Got a call a couple of hours ago that the dog house is on its way…YAY! It rains here in the summer and Nash and Candy need a place to be safe from the storms.

2 PM
Something is leaking…I think it is the air conditioner. This house came with the cutest little old fashioned coal-burning iron stove set into a brick nook in the hallway, something I really looked over when we were here the first time. I do not recall seeing a large plastic jug secreted behind the stove but it was one of the first things I noticed when we moved into the house. I asked Hubby if he had any idea what it was…there was a black tube leading down the chimney space and into the jug…but he didn’t know either. Well, it seems it is for the purpose of collecting the condensation from the air conditioner…for some reason, instead of the tube leading outdoors where it could release the condensation onto the roof and into the gutters, it goes into the chimney and down into a jug hidden behind the stove. Ok, a rocket scientist I am not, but somehow I think a plastic jug behind a coal-burning stove is not the smartest choice one could make and…here’s the kicker…where was that jug when we viewed the house in March?? Had I seen it, surely I would have asked about it!

6 PM
Thandiswe and I unpacked the bathroom…this bathroom has not one single cupboard or cabinet…not one. No under-sink cupboards, not even a medicine cabinet! Fortunately we have a pair of large lined baskets that slide neatly under the sink counter and they will just have to do until the bathroom remodel brings us a real set of cupboards and some cabinets.

Hubby and I hit the supermarket…two of them to be exact…and between them there was but one sad, limp, wilted head of lettuce. Ordinarily the shelves are packed with bagged salads and fresh lettuces and other produce, but both stores were completely sold out! Never seen anything like it…oh, wait…I take that back…a couple of years ago Hubby and I must have gone to half a dozen markets looking for a bag of frozen peas and nobody had any…it was bizarre!

So, now it is time to make dinner…hopefully tomorrow will be a bit on the quiet side, with only the pool company scheduled to pitch up and disturb my peace. Time, of course, will tell…