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In our new home...
... but surrounded by boxes and chaos. Items, whether breakable or extremely not, are wrapped in so many layers of paper, they're three times their size and unrecognisable. We were searching for the electric jug and things we thought were the same size were things like glasses. This means a very large number of boxes piled in almost every room. We slept here last night but I was awake for a while worrying about everything we have to do.
We've unpacked the kitchen stuff and have only just found the box with the electric jug and the cat biscuits - in the same box which didn't make sense as I used to keep their food in the laundry, but I was so relieved since we're picking the little guys up tomorrow morning. It doesn't feel like home yet but you know about cats and boxes.
The cats...
... arrive at Dunedin Airport tomorrow, and we'll take a day off unpacking to be with them. Ha, I was just typing here and saw a tabby approaching out of the corner of my eye and thought it was Ashley out of habit. I'd left the back door open and it was Noisel from next door!
Our old home...
... went on the market today! Doesn't it look amazing (and after all that painting and stripping back to wood etc, it should)! Of course photos always look better than reality, they know how to make rooms look huge with angles, and the staging makes the best of any place, but it really is a lovely private house and I did enjoy living there. I won't miss the humidity, the traffic, and te ridiculous cost of living in Auckland though, and I have to say the weather here is gorgeous: blue skies and sunny and warm once the sun's up (but scarf and mitt time when it's not). I took some photos before the packers came and they're much more realistic.
Oamaru...
... is friendly and quirky and has great cafes and restaurants. So far I've seen three men dressed in tweed outfits complete with waistcoats and tweed flat caps, a steampunk rifle mounted in the Steam Cafe, and a woman in the bank with short, spiky magenta hair with a huge paper flower in it, and bright gypsy-style clothes. Hey, I like this place! As for the steampunk, I already have a leather jacket and pilot's helmet; I just need the goggles, a fob watch, and a raygun to be pretty much ready for the November steampunk festival.
I need a new local icon instead of the Auckland one I used. It will probably be steampunk.
We've unpacked the kitchen stuff and have only just found the box with the electric jug and the cat biscuits - in the same box which didn't make sense as I used to keep their food in the laundry, but I was so relieved since we're picking the little guys up tomorrow morning. It doesn't feel like home yet but you know about cats and boxes.
The cats...
... arrive at Dunedin Airport tomorrow, and we'll take a day off unpacking to be with them. Ha, I was just typing here and saw a tabby approaching out of the corner of my eye and thought it was Ashley out of habit. I'd left the back door open and it was Noisel from next door!
Our old home...
... went on the market today! Doesn't it look amazing (and after all that painting and stripping back to wood etc, it should)! Of course photos always look better than reality, they know how to make rooms look huge with angles, and the staging makes the best of any place, but it really is a lovely private house and I did enjoy living there. I won't miss the humidity, the traffic, and te ridiculous cost of living in Auckland though, and I have to say the weather here is gorgeous: blue skies and sunny and warm once the sun's up (but scarf and mitt time when it's not). I took some photos before the packers came and they're much more realistic.
Oamaru...
... is friendly and quirky and has great cafes and restaurants. So far I've seen three men dressed in tweed outfits complete with waistcoats and tweed flat caps, a steampunk rifle mounted in the Steam Cafe, and a woman in the bank with short, spiky magenta hair with a huge paper flower in it, and bright gypsy-style clothes. Hey, I like this place! As for the steampunk, I already have a leather jacket and pilot's helmet; I just need the goggles, a fob watch, and a raygun to be pretty much ready for the November steampunk festival.
I need a new local icon instead of the Auckland one I used. It will probably be steampunk.
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Indeed it does. Also VERY BARE! No clutter, no books... had you already packed everything when the photos were taken?
I need a new local icon instead of the Auckland one I used. It will probably be steampunk.
Of course! (grin)
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I did take some photos before the packers came, but even then we'd packed a lot including all our books (and zines).
I may use an image of this raygun I'm buying:
http://www.clockwork.kiwi/dr.-grordborts-righteous-bison
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I hope the cats arrived safely, and are settling in well.
The old house looks just like I'd expect from a real estate set-up. Between that, the re-decoration, and the passage of time, about the only part I recognise is the lovely deck suspended amongst the trees.
Oamaru used to have a pretty dowdy reputation, but it's got a lot funkier lately. Probably due to the steampunk revival. During my university days, it was just the place where the bus stopped for a tea break on the way to Christchurch! (Outside the Lagonda Tearooms, which I find to be retro in a completely different way.)
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We went into the Lagonda Tearooms today because Greg wanted to try it! Retro indeed - it reminds me of the tearooms we used to stop at on holidays: all the same sorts of food including asparagus rolls. I much prefer the Steam Cafe and Bean. Plus the local New World is the only one I've seen with not just a barista but coffee cup holders in their trolleys. It's very good coffee too.
The Auckland decor's pretty much all the same except for exposing the original rimu stairs (had we done that when you were there?) and kitchen walls, and painting the grey kitchen cupboards off-white to match the walls. Apart from that, we just painted some tired walls the same off-white they already were. Oh and there was new carpet to replace the horrible dark brown stuff, and vinyl all through the bottom level instead of the crappy painted floor, all done this year. The sparse and cool furniture the stagers put in makes a huge difference to the whole look. I took photos before the packers came and you'd probably find them more like what you remember (computer stuff and general clutter etc).
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Glad you have arrived and don't have to wait too long until the cats arrive
It sounds a very nice area you have moved to, I hope you will be very happy there
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See, even Noiser takes you for granted. I am curious about your cats and their reaction in their new place.
Ah, this place sounds amazing! I wish you good luck with everything!
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We picked the cats up today, three ours late due to ice on the runway, and they're exploring the house. Jasmin's basking in the sun on one of the wide windowsills, Sebastian's checking this room (dining room) out, and Ashley's under or on our bad, the last I saw of her. I'm giving them time to figure the place out.
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All my lizards and geckos are packed, but I'll have to work out where they will go and take the long-promised photos of them. :-)
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Like the Auckland house, it'll need a lot of work till I'm happy with it: painting, new blinds, bathroom renovation etc, but we don't have to hurry with it. Except that my sister arrives in a couple of weeks for a visit and it won't look that good as I won't have time to do much but unpack. Paint, new bathroom upstairs, renovate the old one downstairs, finish the kitchen... all that awaits us once the Auckland house is sold.
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We have a slightly similar situation. My daughter Marta is selling their small village house, her husband inherited an old village house, a bigger one and suitably situated only 6 km far from their work (now it is 27km). They made all the "desctructive" work, the house is waiting for a reconstruction and the family are waiting for getting the money to hire a construction company. They have a buyer who is waiting for a mortgage at the moment.
Marta and family will stay in a hired apartment until the house is ready.
Oh yes, everything moves!:-)
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Very cold nights at the moment, my room was 8 deg this morning (brr).
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As for the new place, it needs a lot of renovation (though the tiredness probably wouldn't show in photos, the unfortunate colour choices of previous owners would).
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It's very cool! Tonight we went to the cinema for the first time and they have a Millennium Falcon made of salvaged metal bits in the foyer. Sadly I didn't have my phone but I will next time.