The wet spot inspector came and left - which sounds like it should be on a t-shirt in an 80s movie. Thankfully, after testing all the places to test, the house is still bone dry, however there is a patch of very soggy soil that will have to be dug up and resurfaced this summer, another unexpected creep to the scope of our little project.
I guess that since we are likely going to get earthmoving equipment in, the driveway will also be added to the list too, as well as replacing the border hedge. It is getting silly.
Luckily, we have cherries to eat.
These are from our garden and are a little unripe,but the birds are getting them first, so we have to be earlier than the early birds. There has also been a couple strawberries devoured, so I grabbed these two so at least we got to taste what we have been growing. The strawberries are fantastic. The cherries are a little tart, but not bad at all and my daughter loved them, since she doesn't mind sour. This was her first time trying cherries and fresh strawberries are also very iffy and since we have to test to see, today is as good a day as any, since if she reacts, it is the weekend.
The inspector seemed like a decent chap and after a little bit, he plucked up the courage to speak English with me and we ended up having a bit of a laugh together as we explored the drainage systems around the house. Normally the workers (even though they speak English fine) don't want to interact much with me, which I assume is because my wife is a little prettier than myself.
He is the same guy who did the original inspection before we bought and was younger than I expected, since I wasn't available the first time. He seemed genuinely interested in his job and curious to work out what was going on. It was refreshing, even though the initial issue, a smell (I didn't smell) remains a mystery. My sense of smell is not as good as my wife's, so while I argued, I deferred to her on this one. Better to be safe than sorry when it comes to mold in homes, as they can cause all kinds of health issues and our daughter already has asthma.
Now we have some scheduling issues and risks though, as the house will start getting painted next week, but where the digging has to happen is pretty close to the walls and that isn't likely to be able to get started before the painting, since we haven't even started looking and booking yet. This is a risk since it really won't be great if the digging work throws mud up against freshly painted walls. We have postponed the painting of the plinth (the bottom bit of the house wall) and are hoping that it is high enough that when they are close to the edge, it doesn't flick up further. I think we might have to hand dig against the wall though.
Again, none of this is ideal, but it is also best to take care of it now, rather than let it sit and wait so that we have a construction site for the next several years on the outside of the house. These changes are going to make quite an extreme difference to the exterior look of the property, so I am going to have to take a lot of pictures to be able to do a before and after, but the after is going to take some time to settle in.
Currently in the summer, not much can be seen from the road as the house is surrounded by a hodgepodge of plants that make up the hedge, but in the winter there are no leaves on them so everything can be seen. We will put in a ceder tree hedge, which takes some time to develop, but should be presentable sometime in 2046. It should look quite nice though, for the retirement years.
The previous owners also dropped by, as they might be liable for some of the costs, since in Finland there is a 5 year period for these kinds of things when selling an old house. It was apparent that they didn't really know what was going on where in the place and were making "guesses" at things - but they definitely don't want to shoulder any of the costs. As expected of course. It was interesting to see them look at what we have done on the outside , but they didn't come in - perhaps once we have finished a lot more, we will invite them around, but they mentioned that they didn't want to come back at all, because they had said their goodbyes and it had been hard. Fair enough
Well, now I have to get onto planning what is going to happen with the drainage system as well as try to do a rough plan of the entire house so I can perhaps do a bit of a render to see what it might look like if we do this, that or the other thing. Pretty soon though, i am going to need to get a third job to cover the costs of all of this - perhaps McDonald's is hiring, as I am pretty bloody sure I can still flip burgers faster than most, even at my age.
Taraz
[ Gen1: Hive ]
These were shot on an Olympus EM-1 with a 60mm prime macro.
Dang! Repairing an old house can be very risky huh?
It's great that there's law to protect you against the major previous damages. :)
But hey! I'm sure when all of these are done, the feeling of accomplishment will definitely be very rewarding brother. <3
Yeah, not the end of the world though - just of the wallet :D
The laws are pretty good here for some things, but it also means that if we sell, we are bound too, so we have to make sure that we take care of things now.
Should be really nice if we ever get around to finishing it
I'm sure you will man! :) <3
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ENGAGEtokens.Dealing with home and garden is always interesting, eh @tarazkp . We've just had the workmen FINALLY come and install our new water line. After a month of hubby hand digging the 4 foot deep by 125 foot long trench by hand with a shovel lol. The well men were impressed.
I use bird netting on my strawberries and this year I built a 'fruit cage' to plant my new fruit trees in. It was work but I see them trying to get in past the chicken wire and laugh to myself. :)
hahah, aww.. I have this to look forward to - about the same I think, probably 50 metres of trenches.
Do the birds get hurt at all? If so, it isn't going to pass by the wife :D
No, they land on it, as I drape it over the strawberry raspberry plants and if they do, they're just confused. And my fruit cage is covered with plastic chicken wire , I know plastic is bad, but it doesn't rust and the birds CAN land on it like little perches and all they can do is look down into the cage longingly LOL.
My goal is to make it bigger next year and the Strawberries and other soft fruits will live in there.
I think we will have to do the same, otherwise we aren't going to get a meal out of anything as the garden is chock full of birds now :)
We will build a glass house out of the old windows too, so hopefully that gives us a small place to grow a few things.
Yes, I'm going to eventually do the same. Between the Deer and the rabbits then the birds, even wild turkeys, it's all a challenge to keep anything for ourselves!
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ENGAGEtokens.Really happy it was more good news than bad news. looks like they found you some more manual labour with a spot of digging. Lets hope smallsteps doesn't react to the fruit as that can then be added to the list of things she can snack on safely.
Yeah, it is definitely better not to find moisture in the structure and this is the second inspection and he went through the original drawings. It seems this house has fail safes built into the design that many others around the time did not. Would love it if she can eat a bit more fresh and good food.
!ENGAGE 25
ENGAGEtokens.The cherries and strawberries look just wonderful. Good enough to eat!
Just think how much enjoyment @smallsteps will get out of that cedar hedge!
I'd go ahead and paint. A good dirt crew won't get any on your house. I just happen to know that most guys that run equipment like to show off their skills in that sort of situation. Maybe particularly if your wife asks them to be careful of the new paint...
It's funny (to me. I realize you are not amused) how those sort of situations just keep coming in a hard remodel. It's just amazing that every single thing leads to three more. Just think how much the new driveway and hedge will add to your valuation when it's time...
Due to the climate, the Finnish strawberries are some of the best in the world, but they aren't grown to be uniform or pretty. In Australia, they look like perfect little hearts, but taste like water.
Batting the eyelids might help here for sure.
All of these things were on "the list" but the plan definitely wasn't to do them all at once. When is Bitcoin gonna be 1 million? :D
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ENGAGEtokens.Hahaha. At McDonald's? I think you'd make a good dance teacher in Finland! Hahaha. Remodeling an old house requires a lot of work and money. Some people have the patience to deal with the workers, others not so much. As for the humidity, if your child suffers from asthma, you have to be careful and take precautions. Like the one you had when you reached for the cherries and strawberries. A little more and you have for a good red fruit shake, the best of the antioxidants. ;) A good Friday, @tarazkp
Once upon a time I used to be a trainer at McDonald's - I was pretty good at it :D
This is a great idea - just have to wait til they grow a bit more :P
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ENGAGEtokens.Those feathered friends always go ahead to cultivate, they are supposed to be faster than us hahaha. I hope your daughter enjoys the fruits, her asthma is over soon, and the freshly painted walls are kept pristine. Happy day friend, I like your writing. I will have to go through your good content more often. Greetings from Venezuela.
They wait til the moment just before they are ripe - then steal them - the bastards.
Have a nice evening :)
Hahaha every tree with fruit for them is a subsidized supermarket. Good night
Looters.
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ENGAGEtokens.I can see the unicorn and neon colors hahahaha!!!
...Oh how inappropriate! :D
Apologies for being distracted by the images, but they really are AWESOME captures....
Especially this one!!!
I know it has been a rough time for you and I can relate. Good to see you are being productive. I also want to go and get some paint next week, but for internal purpose - not external. Want to give my moms room a revamp so we can remove it of the negative stigma it currently holds - giving it new life and new memories.
Oh, and I want to see pics of you in that Mc D's uniform ;) - KIDDING!!! You know we have dporn? (or whatever it is called now lol) juuuuust kidding! Your house will be awesome and your dignity will remain in tact :)
Have an awesome weekend! xxx
!tip
I should get a shirt made for him.
This was my version of a photography post - a few photos and 1000 words :D
Sorry again about your mum and hopefully the fresh paint will be a good start for more stories. I am personally pragmatic with these things however hard and like to use the opportunity the best I can. Loss of loved ones is a great point to reflect and look forward. I wish you the best in this.
McD's was one of the best jobs I had. The pay sucked, but I learned a lot about process and most of the people were great. The worst was my smell after a shift...
Talk soon :*
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Thanks - and sorry about your dad. Goodness, there seems to be an awful lot of this around lately... left, right and centre.
In real life, I am inclined to be the same - but being a woman ( :P ) I need some kind of outlet... hence the "furiously expressive" writing haha!
As for Mc D's... I concur! I stand adamantly in the belief (with reason) that every SINGLE place of employ I have occupied over the years has been some kind of addition to my tool kit - "aka" my skill set, and not surprisingly, the facets learnt from each has proven useful at one point or another.
Enjoy the renovation and re-invention - and have a LEKKER weekend!
xxx
!tip
The writing is a great outlet for many things, whether dealing with negative or building upon positive :)
In finland a lot of parents don't want their kids to have jobs so they can "focus on school" yet most kids play 4 hours of whatever a day. A couple shifts flipping burgers would do them wonders for their understanding of personal finance.
A LEKKER weekend?
The definition is either pleasant or tipsy :D
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ENGAGEtokens.!ENGAGE 25
Yep, it is a real pain when new costly discoveries are made in a new place.
Real budget destroyers.
Here's a tip about the cherries, I rise before sunrise in the morning to beat the squirrels to the macadamia trees. They shed nuts overnight and I am the first at the scene in the mornings.
Of course Ib don't takec all of the nuts, as I leave some for the squirrels.
Same with the gooseberry bush, but the problem there is that the birds peck at them when they are still green and spoil them. So I have covered the bush with shade netting and the plan worked.
Hope that you guys will survive all of the additional costs.
The sun rises far too early for me to beat the birds - at the moment, it is getting up at 4.06.
I should cover them in nets, the gooseberry bushes too. I don't mind the birds getting a meal.
I thought macadamias were Australian.
We'll survive, will work it out somehow. I would rob a bank, but they don't have any money on hand either :)
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Weird hours that your sun rises, but yeah maybe not cover all of the trees with shade netting, as leave one or two for the birds.
Somehow macadamias and many other nuts found their way here.
You are a born survivor and life has trained you well how to overcome.
Look back and see that you have overcome many things that the average man would balk at.
So, this is just another challenge that you can beat!
Hope that you guys have a good weekend and thank you for the tokens.
The holiday has started for me, and I have spent 8 hours tearing down walls and up floors :)
Good, as it keeps you busy, which is always a good thing.
Just hope that you are not tempted to tear down any supporting structures.
We still want a house frame left you know hahaha
Hard work that you are doing there mate.
I have been advised what I have to leave, otherwise I probably wood take out supports :D
I like the pun here, as whenever "wood" take out supports happen, aunty calamity always follows!
ENGAGEtokens.Thank you @tarazkp
Lovely to have cherries from your own garden! Ah I am sure you can flip so many burgers, you have more determination that most of the youngsters have now
We have two trees, so hopefully there will be enough for a cherry pie :D
One of the "joys" of McD's was getting very good at very repetitive tasks. The speed of delivery can be pretty amazing with a little good training.
Hahaha. Taraz the machine. A force to be reckoned with. Humans are capable of great effort if they have a strong why
Most of the time I was on the counter, serving - I think it was because of my good looks ;P
Hihi, I must agree with you on this😊 Good looks come in handy when serving cherries, it is only natural🍒😊
After these stories of yours, I want my own home more and more :) Neither, everything will be soon. Next year I’ll definitely write the article in which I will show my first personal housing.
Good luck with it and don't rush too much - we have been pretty lucky considering that we really did end up rushing.
Unexpected costs and scope creep in every possible direction and some impossible wtf ones definitely sounds like a reno XD
How did small go on the strawberries? They look delicious :D
I think a synonym for renovation is scope creep.
So far so good on both the strawberries and the cherries it looks, but they were pretty small amounts so we have to build up from here. She was happy though :)
lol, who doesn't love cherries...
Ahh...already planning for the retirement...cool...
Age is just a number....you can flip two burgers at a time, I am pretty sure about that...lol...get double salary!
I am at the age where I have to plan for retirement - I wish I has started 20 years ago :D
2 burgers at a time? cheeseburgers are made 9 at a time :)
Lol, never tried making burgers, I have just learned how to make sandwiches in the lockdown.😄
McD's is hiring Kiosks. Do You do Kiosk Maint.?
Great post, love the house stuff with the Lil' Bugger also. We love @smallsteps stuff too.!
Kiosks?
She is good value - I am glad she is mine - especially after meeting some of the other ones at her daycare :D
Most of the McDs over here are moving to the self serve touch screens to order. The flipping of the burgers will be next, robotic in a few more years.
This is what we know as cherry in Nigeria. Locally known as agbalumo or udara. Today I found out its real name is African star apple.
What does it taste like? is there something similar I would know?
I really don't know anything that tastes similar but it's really sweet
Wonderful picture with a meaning !!
Thanks !
excellent photographs
Thanks :)
Want to eat after seeing this pictures! :)
cherries?
i loge this color. 😍😍😍😍
great!
That's a good law.
I had a mold smell in my house on a canyon that no inspector was ever able to identify the source of (out of 5 inspectors). I finally chalked it up to the moist air coming off the canyon actually holding mold directly in the air.
There are many crappy laws, that one is decent.
That is interesting with the moist air being blown in (not our issue as ours is localized to a corner). How bad was the smell?
I had to have a whole house air filtration system. It wasn't noticeable as long as I left it on. But if I ever turned it off you could smell mold within just a couple hours. After a day it was something inescapable any time you returned to the house, though I would get used to it mostly while being inside. I foggy place just smells like mold, it seems.
Perhaps - Maybe for us it is the moisture coming out of the soft ground. We are removing it and replacing it with better soil (and an angle for drainage) so hopefully it helps. I have always wanted an air filtration system, but in an old house I don't know if it is worth it.
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I can't distinguish cherry and cherry. This is funny ... Why do they look alike?