Sat, Sept 30

Today our plumber finally popped in and was able to look at our air lock. However, as we had an 11am appointment, he only had time to locate the problem, alleviate part of the problem and turn the boiler on. He plans to come back later this coming week to finish the work. Dawn can't wait as she so much wants to put the heater on for when she wakes up in the morning.

As for our 11am appointment, we headed into town to get our hair cut at a local hairdresser. This was the third place we had been to since we arrived back home in March. Hopefully, now that we're here, we can stay with this one. It's amazing how much we miss being able to depend on Mary Beth at Hairdooz in Dunedin!

Fri, Sept 29

Yesterday, between Paul's trips to and from train stations, he also found time to strip the wallpaper from the small bedroom upstairs. However, even this didn't go without a little drama. First he found a power cable being held down by masking tape underneath some wallpaper. Then we had all the electric sockets trip after water Paul was using to dampen the wallpaper got into one of the bedroom sockets. Luckily for us, it didn't take long to dry out and he had the electricity back on before picking Dawn up at the station.

Oh yea, the bracket holding the curtain snapped, so the curtain came down, and the hook holding the net curtain also came out of the wall. So today Paul had a ride over to B&Q (like Home Depot) to pick up some hooks to fix the net curtains, brackets to re-hang the window curtains, and for Dawn a new lampshade for the landing because the one that was there was too bright. It's a long story.

Thur, Sept 28

Today did not go as planned. Although, like the saying goes, all's well that ends well. Paul dropped Dawn off at the station early this morning, so she caught an earlier train than usual. However, after that the schedule went up the wall. Within 10 minutes of leaving Hertford, and after arriving at Cuffley (the next station), the train came to a halt and stayed there for a while because there was a power line down further along the track. A little while later the train moved to Crewes Hill so that the train behind could pull into Cuffley. However, Dawn's arrival in London was no where in sight. To cut the story short, after Dawn had called Paul to tell him about her luck, Paul drove to Crewes Hill station to pick her up and drive her to work. However, in order to avoid the £8 ($15) congestion charge, Dawn suggested that he drop her off at a local tube station instead where she could use her train ticket. He did this instead. Dawn finally arrived at work around 11am, which was nearly 4 hours after she had left home. Luckily, the track was open for the homebound journey, and with her bosses allowing her to leave early, she got home half an hour earlier than usual.

Wed, 27th Sept

Today was Paul's dad's 79th birthday, and Paul was so pleased to have been able to spend some time with as the last time he spent with his dad on his birthday was 1998. Paul had a ride up to his dad's flat and with his other brother's George and Philip took him up to the Gatehouse in Highgate for lunch. Paul also gave his Dad a gift card from WH Smith from the two of us. He already has countless odds and ends around the flat and didn't need another ornament to dust.

Tues, Sept 26

Yesterday Paul went out for a long run in preparation for his race on Sunday and pulled a calf muscle. He had tried to take it easy by alternating walking and jogging, but must have overdone it.

Today Paul headed into town and registered at a few employment agencies. He hasn't been able to get fully into looking for work until we sort out the shed, the plumber, get a doctor sorted, and car serviced. Oh yea, he also had a ride up to Welwyn Garden City to get some grocery shopping done. He was blown away by the scenic route he took. It's GREAT living out in the country. Check out the photo above.

Sun, Sept 24

We spent the weekend at home this weekend, seeing as Paul had been to see his Dad on Friday. This gave us a chance to do some local shopping and allowed Dawn to spend some time with Tiny.

On Saturday we popped into town and placed an order for a five-drawer pine dresser for our bedroom. The handmade furniture will be delivered in a few weeks, but at least we got a discount for a cash deal. We picked up some fruit and veg on a street stall, before popping into the Marks & Spencer food hall to pick up a sandwich for lunch.

On Sunday we spent the day at home doing things around the house. It was so nice to take it easy for a change. Not to mention Tiny loved having us both around all day.

Fri, Sept 22

On Wednesday Paul grabbed a broom, dustpan and brush and attacked the cobwebs and vines in the shed. It took him a couple of hours to get rid of all the crap in the shed, but it was worth it. By the time he had finished, it looked ten times better. All we need to do now is replace the roof and windows, add a door and seal the cracks and the shed will be ready for our upright freezer and treadmill. In fact, we even called a builder and placed an order with him to get the work done for us.

On Friday Paul went to Wood Green Shopping Centre with his dad and George to get some net curtains for the windows at the front of the house, a platform valance for our bedroom, and some other odds and ends. While there, the 3 of them had fish and chips at Pearson's (department store).

Tues, Sept 19

Yesterday Paul ripped out the wooden door frame on our shed at the bottom of our garden and finally got the old chest freezer out. Then he had a ride into town to pick up an antique wall mirror that we had seen shopping in town at the weekend.

Today he loaded the freezer into the boot of our Astra and dropped it off at one of the two local recycle centres we have within driving distance of the house.

Sun, Sept 17

Today was the ninth anniversary of Paul's mum's burial. As his dad always goes to the cemetary this day, we picked him and George up and had a ride up there with them. Then we dropped into The Gatehouse pub in Highgate for a roast dinner for lunch before heading back to the Paul's dad's flat for a little while.

Sat, Sept 16

Dawn was relieved to see the weekend, after the last three days at work. Ironically, it’s not the train journey that is getting to her. It’s all the crap she has to deal with once she gets to work.

Today we had a ride into town and picked up some fruit and vegetables from the street market. We also dropped into Castle Hall where we had a walk around an antique fair. He had hoped to pick up a dresser for our bedroom at one of the street stalls. However, just our luck the guy who runs the stall wasn’t out this weekend. We also did a little grocery shopping in Waitrose before grabbing lunch at Café Rouge. Then it was back home to continue with unpacking our many boxes. The good news is that we have now opened 45 of the 47 we arrived at the house with. The bad news is that we now have framed photos and paintings of all sizes that we need to hang. This in itself will be a challenge, as we’re not sure we have enough space to hang them.

We ended today with Dawn spending the best part of an hour on the phone with her sister Kelly, and with Paul spending the best part of half an hour on the phone with his brother Phil.

Fri, Sept 15

Again Paul dropped Dawn off at Hertford North, with Dawn catching an even earlier train into work. Back at the house Paul met a couple of guys from a construction company to get a quote on repairing the shed. However, their recommendation was to tear it down and replace it with a new wooden shed. We’ll see what the other quote comes back at before deciding on that one.

Dawn’s journey home tonight was the best so far. Not only did she enjoy the rolling fields, farms and animals, but she was even able to see our house as the train pulled into Hertford.

Thu, Sept 14

Again Paul dropped Dawn off at the station. However, this time Dawn caught an earlier train that originated at Hertford North, which not only meant that it was almost empty, but that Dawn was able to pick a window seat so she could enjoy the scenery on the way to work.

Paul continued to organize the mess that we call our prized belongings, got on the phone to try and arrange a second quote for repairing our shed, and to arrange for a plumber to look at our boiler and radiators. Paul also took some time out to do some exercise on the treadmill. This time he was able to complete 10km (partly walking). This is the same distance he will be doing in just over two weeks for cancer research charity. In the afternoon we had an electrician come round and replace our old fuse-board with a new one. After the electrician left, Paul picked Dawn up from the station again and prepared dinner. He then settled down in front of the television to watch Spurs.

Wed, Sept 13

This morning Paul dropped Dawn off at Hertford North so she could catch her train into work. Unfortunately for Dawn, the train she chose to get was already packed like sardines when it arrived, so her extra long journey was not as comfortable as she had hoped.

Paul, on the other hand, spent the best part of the day unpacking countless boxes full of photos, photo albums, books, bears, ornaments, and paperwork. Needless to say, he found it totalling depressing as he had no idea where all the stuff was going to go. He even had to make another trip to a recycle center to get rid of all the empty cardboard boxes and newspaper. We also had a handyman come round and look at our garden shed so he can give us a quote to replace the roof, windows and door.

Dawn had a better journey home, as she had a seat by the window on the ride back and was able to enjoy the awesome view of the countryside as farms and fields with horses and cows passed her by before Paul picked her up from the station again.

Tues, Sept 12

Dawn’s last day before she returns to work. IKEA delivered the bookcases from yesterday, which meant Paul had his work cut out completing the 4 chairs he still had to put together, plus the two six-foot tall bookcases. We did pop out for a bit to drop off some recycle stuff at one of our two local recycle sites. On the way home we dropped into town and had a cup of coffee in Café Nero after doing some window shopping.

Mon, Sept 11

Today we had another ride over to IKEA to pick out some bookcases for our countless photo albums. However, we needed tall ones that wouldn't fit in the car, so we had to arrange for them to be delivered. Then it was on to the B&Q (like a Home Depot) to pick up some household stuff. We definitely needed something to store our recycables, as the bin we have will be just about big enough for the newspapers alone. We also dropped into our local grocery store, Tesco, to pick up some odds and ends.

Sun, Sept 10

At last a day of rest (somewhat). Paul popped down to the local newsagent to pick up the Sunday Times for Dawn before we chilled out for the day. Paul finally got to try out his treadmill before loading the car with a load of crap that we need to take to the recycle centre, and unpacking some more boxes while Dawn did even more cleaning. However, we did find the time to sit down and watch the film Notting Hill on television (along with the Falcons win over the Panthers LIVE) before Dawn’s mum Brady called.

Sat, Sept 9

We finally had a day to rest a little, or so we thought. First Paul had a ride into town to pick up some fruit and veg at the street market before getting stuck into putting the table and chairs together. However, halfway through the table, he found that one of the pieces didn’t have enough holes for him to bolt it together to the leg. This meant he had to make a special trip back to Enfield to get a replacement part. While there, he also dropped into Argos to pick up a couple of telephones. Back home, Paul then completed putting the table together before putting 2 chairs together while he watched his team Spurs play Manchester United live on television. After which we were able to finally enjoy our first meal seated at a table rather than sitting on the floor.

Fri, Sept 8

After our big day yesterday, Paul prepared some mushrooms and bacon in milk for breakfast before we got stuck into unpacking some of our boxes. However, before that could really get moving, Dawn continued with some much needed cleaning. We forgot to mention Dawn had already spent over two hours yesterday cleaning, too. While all this was going on, we had BT arrive to connect our telephone line and broadband connection, and a satellite guy to install our satellite dish and connect it to our Sky+ box. Our dining table and chairs also arrived, although Paul will have to put them together tomorrow. After lunch Paul had a ride up to the cemetery on his own to visit his mum’s grave as she had passed away 9 years ago today. He then popped up to see his dad for a little while. Dawn, on the other hand, continued to clean the house and unpack some of the boxes, while Tiny continued to play on the stairs. She certainly loves running up and down them.

Thu, Sep 7 - MOVING DAY

Our moving day was finally here. Paul drove to the house and waited for our washer-dryer and bed to be delivered, while Dawn waited at the house for the movers to come and collect the few pieces of furniture we were taking with us, plus the 47 boxes we had packed up, most of which had been wrapped since February before we left Florida. At the house, though, Paul had to call out the plumber again because the wall that was damaged on Monday when Paul hit the pipe under the floor board was still wet. The plumber arrived within the hour, fixed the leak a second time, then blamed the carpet guy for loosening his joint when he laid the carpet. A disagreement followed which resulted in the plumber telling Paul he would take the £100 deposit Paul had paid for next week’s job in compensation for his time. Paul protested to no avail.

Shortly after midday our bed arrived from Bensons, so Paul could drive back to the flat in Winchmore Hill to collect Dawn and Tiny for the final trip to our new house. However, he still had to take down our satellite dish and make a couple of trips to the recycle plant to get rid of two car loads of crap. When we arrived at the house, Tiny checked out every inch of the house and seemed to feel at home immediately. She especially loved the stairs. As for our first meal in our new home, Paul picked up some Chinese from the Sun Light take-out in town.

Wed, Sep 6

Today John Lewis delivered the replacement fridge that we are pleased to report fit perfectly in the gap under the counter. Then Paul’s treadmill arrived. Two guys set it up in the second bedroom, which once decorated will become an exercise/spare bedroom. Shortly after that the furniture from IKEA arrived. Paul then spent a good hour or so fitting the legs and covering the chairs and fitted cushions. He then drove up to Tescos (grocery store) to get the ingredients he needed for Friday’s breakfast. Shortly after 4pm the electrician arrived to check out the cabling in the shed at the bottom of the back yard. He said that it was all in order and only really needed to be moved once we had replaced the roof. The flooded light fitting in the main bedroom was a different kettle of fish, though. When he took the fitting down it was still full of water. Worse though was that the fuse in the fuse-board hadn’t tripped when the water hit the live wires. Paul decided there and then it was better to be safe than sorry and arranged for the electrician to replace the whole fuse box.

Tue, Sept 5

Today Paul went to IKEA and ordered a 3-seater sofa and single seat chair to be delivered on Wednesday, and picked up an ottoman. Then it was back to our house in Hertford to wait for the carpet guy and electrician. As promised, it didn’t take too long to lay the carpet in the room that will be a storage room. Paul hooked up our Sky+ box to the old satellite dish and that worked. He then called a couple of telephone numbers in the Thomson directory to find an electrician to come and check out the flooded light fitting in the bedroom that sizzled each time he turned the electricity back on upstairs.

One other interesting thing to note happened today. Paul got a call from the MD of the company he quit last Monday to discuss the contents of his resignation letter. This proved interesting all round as the MD was unaware of several issues that Paul raised. Even more interesting was that the MD asked why the Operations Director had not called Paul in the previous 8 days to question the allegations that he had referred to in his notice letter.

Oh yea, Paul enjoyed some fish and chips from his favourite fish and chip shop in Enfield, too.

Mon, Sept 4

Now this is getting ridiculous. This morning Paul drove to our house in Hertford early so he could fix some floorboards before the guy from Carpetright arrived to lay our carpet. Unfortunately, while nailing down a loose floorboard, he also hit a hidden radiator pipe resulting in water seeping downstairs into the entrance hall. Luckily Paul was able to stem the waterflow by using a screw that had come out of the door handle that locked him in the same room last week.

Paul made several phone calls to plumbers out of the Thomson Directory before finding someone who would come out within the hour. But, with a half-hourly rate of £45, it wasn't going to be a cheap fix. At least the plumber drained all our radiators and then replaced the damaged part of the pipe.

Meanwhile, the guy arrived to lay the carpet. However, because the floorboards were damp in the small room, he suggested coming back Tuesday to finish the job.

But the drama didn't end there. While all this was going on, the water tank in the loft overflowed when the plumber turned the water mains back on to refill the radiators. Not, however, before the water came through the bedroom ceiling, started dripping on the new carpet and causing the ceiling light fitting to start to crackle.

This wasn't the worst of it. The plumber could not refill the radiators because there was a blockage somewhere in the system and now has to come back next week to resolve that problem. And the cost of that will run between £300 and £1000.

Things could be worse.

Sun, Sept 3

Today we took things a little easier than we had the last few days. We picked Paul's dad and brother George up and took them to see our house in Hertford, before popping into town where Paul's dad bought us dinner at the White Hart. The roast beef meal was excellent, but the dessert left a bad taste in Dawn's mouth. She ordered the cheesecake that came covered with figs and pear. However, much to Dawn's horror, it arrived warm and tasted more like a quiche with not even a sign of cream cheese. We'll definately be back there for a meal in future. However, Dawn will probably go for the caramel-covered apple crumble instead next time.

Sat, Sept 2

Yes, you've guessed it. Paul was back at the house again today. However, today Dawn went too, as we had plenty of work to do. First, though, we dropped into Carpet Right in Waltham Abbey to look at some carpet for the bedrooms. We left there 30 minutes later having picked out some silver carpet for the two smaller rooms, and a green carpet for the main bedroom.

At the house, Dawn got stuck into cleaning the kitchen cupboards, while Paul again attacked the wall closet in the main bedroom. This time he was successful in getting the remainder of the wood up that had been glued to the floorboards. He also removed the carpet from the second bedroom. Which is a good job seeing as we've got the new carpet scheduled to be laid on Monday.

Fri, Sept 1

Again Paul had a ride up to our house in Hertford. However, after the trauma of the last few days, things finally went a little more to plan. First he tore up the carpet in the main bedroom. Then he tore INTO one of the fitted wall closets. As we feared, the panelling afixed inside the closet was GLUED to the wall, ceiling and floor. This means that Paul will have fun over the next day or so filling holes. He still needs to pull up some of the wood battens that had been glued to the floor boards. But, as he only had a claw hammer, he had to buy a crowbar and chisel at Homebase. That should hopefully make completing that part of the job a little easier.