Forever House #21

Monday 22nd July, 2013
Over July August and September I won't be able to get to the Forever House as often as I have been recently, due to family commitments largely. I'm heading out for four days at the end of this week - and will be doing mud in the bathroom area up to the lovely new ceiling that is now in situ in that area. The weekend after that is the Byron Bay Writer's Festival - a three day weekend that my husband Jeff and I never miss. Then, my Mum is turning eighty and we are having a week long celebration at Evans Head which will take up the following two weekends. During that week my rock-wall-building-sister Peita, her daughter Hannah and my daughter Danika - who are all descending on the far north coast from Sydney, the Central Coast and Melbourne for Grandma's birthday - and I, will head out to the Forever House for two days/one sleep, so that the girls can make a mosaic each and Peit and I can make a start on the paving that will compliment the rock wall in that sun drenched front courtyard we are making. We may also be graced by Peita's husband Ivor's presence - five in the caravan will be a true test - we managed four one night during my recent week out there - so I guess one on the floor and we'll be wall to wall bodies.

Glass bead flower for the dunny window

And another

By the time I get out to the farm next it will be almost three weeks since I was last there. (Sounds like my last confession! If you were raised Catholic you'll know what I mean.) I have been trying to be productive towards the Forever House during that time - around my four-day-a-week-job and commitments at home. I had hoped to have the stained glass window for the Forever House loo done and ready to install. I got a bit further along with that - soldering together the glass bead flowers so that I can tweak the cut lines around the flowers. I ordered some more copper foil, solder and flux on-line, but it has not arrived over a week later. So that has held that project up a little.

Thank you Suzy and Peter for our firebox

I did manage to write three blog posts which takes time of course. I was at my friend Suzy's on the weekend collecting the fire box that she and her husband Peter are donating to the Forever House. It has lived in their shed for six years, so they are pleased it will find a new home. Peter was saying that he likes looking at the blog pictures but is not sure he wants to read all the writing! He thought keeping the blog going must be a full time job. It is a commitment for sure - and for the record, the pageviews surpassed two thousand this week - I guess the written record is for me in the end, and if any of you out there in blog land are enjoying reading it then that's great - or maybe its the pictures that tell the story for many. These stats blow me away actually - over the five months I have been writing the blog the break up of pageviews per country are:

• Australia 1647
• United States 112
• United Kingdom 97
• Russia 73
• Germany 37
• South Korea 16
• Spain 8
• Mexico 5
• Indonesia 4
• India 3

So hello to you, whoever and wherever you are. Thank you for your interest in my Forever House.

reminiscent of park furniture when I was a kid

to sit outside French door windows at front of house

On Thursday this week I'll attach the trailer to my trusty Mitsubishi Triton, and tow a number of items out to the farm. this is the final trip for my Triton - I am going to leave it out at my block to use as my farm car. So while I can I am towing as much as possible out there. My new car will tow a trailer but it is not the ute my Triton is. I'm taking the firebox from Suzy, and two outdoor settings I bought at McKees Antiques at Casino several weeks ago. I will collect those on the way out. One consists of two white wrought iron seats and matching table, which will sit outside the French door windows at the entry to the house. The other is a coloured timber outdoor setting, very reminiscent of park benches that used to be around when I was a kid. I think that set will sit on the front verandah where we have been burning the brazier.


I also bought a sweet green cupboard that I will use in the mud room outside the bathroom door, to hold linen. I'm conscious of having cupboards that are vermin proof - because although I will be making every effort to keep the house itself vermin proof - those pesky little mice and the Australian native version called antichinus, can pop up anywhere they can squeeze through a tiny gap.

to hold linen in the mud room outside bathroom door

This Thursday I will also try to fit on board a four door/four drawer kitchen bench/cupboard I bought from Revolve at the Lismore tip to set up as a camp kitchen in the Forever House, where we can boil a kettle and make a cuppa without having to use the caravan stove and cart cups and stuff back and forth between the house and the caravan. Mum and Dad have loaned me a little two burner gas stove which will sit on the bench. Eventually that cupboard may be used anywhere - it too seems quite vermin proof, and painted up it could be quite a sweet piece. Maybe in the laundry end of the bathroom or maybe in the mosaic shed.

Wicker lounge to be refreshed for the Forever House loungeroom

There is a further piece I bought from McKees that will make its way out to the farm eventually - but it is a bit premature yet. It is a wicker lounge that I need to sand gently and re-paint white, and then cover a foam mattress which I will cut from the old mattress off the caravan bed which we replaced with an innerspring mattress. It will be a lounge by day and a spare bed by night should it be needed. It has the same rolled arms as the armchair that is also earmarked for the farm - one of two that Jeff brought with him when he moved in with me. We can't fit it in our Tucki home - so it will love to go to Currawinya I am sure. It is currently in the garage awaiting it's final resting place like several other pieces of furniture that will go out to the farm.



Jeff will follow me out on Friday and spend two days continuing on with the difficult job of putting up the insulation and ceiling sheets, with Currawinya Dave and my help. I will spend Friday preparing materials so that I can mud should Jeff and Dave not really need me for the ceiling. I'll be able to spread my time between mudding and ceiling anyway - it's all contributing towards progress.