Slow Times...

Although I've been very busy not blogging, things have been moving along slowly here at Golem HQ. We are mostly still mired in the saga of the garden wall, which promises to go on for quite some more time yet. Every time we do something to it, more issues arise which we couldn't have foreseen, and send us scurrying back to the drawing board, sapping our energy for other projects in the process.

There was another digger day, which there are no pictures of as I wasn't here, in which a skip was very laboriously filled with completely rubbish-free rubble and soil. Much as I agree with the legislation preventing inert waste such as rubble from being mixed with old batteries, suitcases and geotextiles (just some of the delightful substances abounding in our garden), I do feel for Lloyd and Joe, who had to sort through every scoop of mixed garden detritus by hand in order to make sure we weren't breaking the law. This was apparently very time-consuming, and by the looks on their faces when they recounted their day's work, not something they wish to repeat.

The fact still remains that there is too much stuff on the garden for us to clear enough space to dig the footings for the new wall, and that leaves us still stuck in a wall-less limbo, constantly hoping our garden doesn't make a break for it into the alleyway.

The digger was here on the same day as the planned work on the spare room was being done, and due to a number of diverse circumstances, much of the work in the day was done by Flick alone, with further work apparently happening later once Sven and a bottle of wine joined in. Loads did get done though, and it feels much more like a potential bedroom/sitting room now that all the tiles are off.

I've added a little bit of work since, but there is still lots to do. If any of you feel like popping around for a few hours, it'd be hugely appreciated, and I'd be happy to feed you in return. The next jobs are building the studwork for the boiler cupboard, or filling the holes left in the wall by the tile removal. Or, if you're so inclined, looking after the toddler while I get stuck in to some DIY.

We're also on the lookout for a tile cutter which can cut thick, large floor tiles, as nothing we've borrowed or bought so far is up the job, and it's stopping me taking the "Finish the kitchen" card off of our epic workflow wall chart.

More updates on future work weekends, and the grim saga of the wall will be forthcoming when I've got some photos to enliven them with!

- Hannah