Forever House #46

Lovey to find Jason had been and slashed

Tuesday 23rd May 2017

Steep or Less steep?
the fork in the road on the way in

 5.15pm showered and waiting for Ronnie to shower ahead of a dinner date we have up the hill. My dear friend Gab has come home to Currawinya for a few days. She and her husband Dave now own the cottage the kids and I lived in back in 2004/2005 when we started the Forever House. GabS stayed with me last Friday night, along with American Pete who came into town to shop - and they wanted to cook dinner for Ronnie and me tonight. Pasta and salad at Pete's house. Looking forward to that after a big day today.

Meet Gab

Ronnie got the last 3 metre ceiling sheet up using the sheet lifter. He only has the eaves down that final south side of the house left to do. So after four weeks of fighting with the lifter on top of the scaffolding - I will take it back to town with me tomorrow.




Ronnie will spend the remainder of the week putting pale eucalypt corrugated iron up around the top of the block wall Jeff and my kids Spencer and Danika put up back in about 2008.

I'm two rows closer to the ceiling. Ronnie has formed up for me to mud up to the opening for the glass wall that is happening above the 2nd bedroom. We measured up today for the timber I need to order to frame that glass wall. I'll order it on Thursday - for him to collect on his way through to the farm next Monday. I'm pretty excited to have those frames up - so I can wash all the glass I bought and cut it to height and mix and match the placement of the various colours and textures. It will look like jewels I reckon.





Since Friday morning's osteo appointment my arm has been very well behaved. Today I dug and sifted 4 barrows of dirt so I hope that has not set it off again. A good night's sleep tonight will be the proof in the pudding.

This afternoon I've sanded the cedar windows that will go above the sliding doors. Tomorrow they will get undercoat (Ronnie recommended Davkin Ultra Prime which will protect anything - metal, wood - forever. He had me at forever!), and two coats of dark green paint to match the green of the aluminium windows and the shed. Maybe even some of the bird window panes will get puttied in (tell her she's dreaming). That's my plan during and after laying another row of mud. 

Ronnie's staying two more weeks after this one. I will come out on Monday afternoons after work and return to town Weds eves for those couple of weeks. He'll be working with metal and windows, skylights and doors.

I'll be getting the final mud rows done and prepping the windows which all need some love and paint.

Window prepping shed when not a mosaic shed

A dozen friction hinges need rubbing with steel wool, a smeer of vaseline on the mechanisms, Davkin Ultra Primed and finally sprayed silver with rust inhibited paint. 6 windows need sanding, undercoating and painting twice or three times, reglazing with a combination of original and fresh glass, puttying and then painting the putty. With Ronnie as my task master I am trying hard to to it all my best.

mosaics waiting their turn to find a place in the Forever House

My shower before leaving the farm on Weds 24th May afternoon was probably my final swim in the river until winter is past. Oh what a gift that river is.