Author: Taiss 'xntrek' Q.

by

Pinch, punch …

It’s the first day of the month … and we are _almost_ ready to move into our new place just down the way from the farm.

Last few weekends have included the usual collection of pre-moving maintenance tasks: inserting floorboards, patching walls, painting walls, ripping out a section of the kitchen to insert a dishwasher, installing light fittings, petitioning Australia post to perform street deliveries in the area, weeding overgrown garden beds and paths, cleaning out a section of the dam … and then when we go back to the rental we do some sorting, tossing of things we haven’t used in two years, packing, packing, packing, arguing over the merits of keeping certain items, packing, unpacking of previously packed box, ruthless de-cluttering of unpacked items, re-packing items that were not placed in the ‘toss” or “charity” piles and then we pack some more and wonder what kind of idiot decided on this path … (yes, it was me … I’m the idiot.)

In between all this goodness, the cat broke a tooth, which got infected and required veterinarian care … all I can say is she is lucky that a) we feel an emotional bond towards her and b) she is not a cow, because let me tell you, if the latter, she’d be dinner right now. So, that unexpected chunk of change joined another unexpected expenditure which was the electronic steering lock on the wife’s mer-say-dees failing. This effectively means the car is dead as electronics, key identification and engine immobilisation are all tied into that wee bit of componentry. So, a three day wait for the $1100 part and four hours of labour later and well, even if we were ready to hire the moving truck, we couldn’t afford to at this point in time …

We’re planning on being in by the following weekend now. Assuming nothing else jumps to the fore. Still, it could always be worse, and I’m just glad it’s not as bad as all that: the views are wonderful, the sound of the birds and amphibian wildlife is charming, the house heats up on a single redgum log, the neighbours seem nice, we’ve inherited a friendly raven called Charlie and the farm will be a mere quarter of an hour up the road.

It will all be worth it in the end. I’m sure.