Saving daylight (just can't remember where I put it)
Our activities this week have been dictated by the weather. When it has been dry we have been outside; Nicky continuing with her populating of the garden, and me with filling the gaps under the fence on the western boundary. I have now got as far as the northern boundary, but still have a couple more to do at the southern end of the fence before embarking on the eastern boundary. Just in case there is any confusion over my filling of gaps, here is a photo:
We have discussed at length our two main options for the path from the carport down past the shed and into the garden. One option is to get Simon and his crew to construct it in concrete. His estimate to do as far as the shed was reasonable and so we have asked him now to quote for the whole thing. The advantages of this option are a durable and slip resistant surface built by people who know what they are doing. The downside is the cost. The other option is to do it ourselves by building a boardwalk. This has become a more viable consideration with my increased confidence in the use of power tools, which has come about with filling the fence gaps. The big advantage is that the cost would be much less, but durability, build quality and slip resistance could be an issue.
During these conversations we have also segued into the house build and garden project as a whole. I commented at one point that if we were to start this project now, a little over two years later than we originally started looking for our “retirement home”, we wouldn’t be here in Whanganui because the median house price is now more than our original budget. It’s actually more than what we have already spent and plan to spend! Nicky responded by saying we past that point around a year ago, and I realised she was quite right. It is startling how house and building costs have risen, partially fuelled by Covid restricting supply of product and labour. We have been very lucky.
To end the week we have had a couple of culinary treats. Fish and chips on Friday (also to support our local establishment as we came out of lockdown) which were lovely and felt like a real treat. Yesterday for tea we had some more of the goodies which we had purchased from The Burrow, primarily the chicken liver paté and double cream brie. They were absolutely gorgeous and were throughly over-enjoyed (by me at any rate). Fortunately, I still managed to put the clocks forward an hour before going to bed.
The weather has been better today than we expected, as a day of rain was forecast, so we have been sitting in the sun reading, though the breeze is chilly. Nicky went to “home church streaming” again this morning after making scones, and we have had a quiet day because that is what we fancied. The dogwood is coming along nicely too!
Take care, Rick
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