I wanted to see the house again! I had had a rather quick look the first time around. But now that I was considering buying it I needed an idea of how much work it needed. And I wanted to know if I would be as enamoured with it the second time around.
I was greeted by Rose, the owner, and an estate agent. This time Rose stayed in the kitchen and I went around with the estate agent. This time I looked at all the walls; did any wallpaper need stripping? Did anything need repainting? I also looked at the floors. Did they need renewal? I like wooden floors but the are expensive. And in the lounge, the carpet looked fine, and was a fine colour, so I probably leave that as is. The master bedroom needs another floor, though! It has cork now, and I don't like it. And that room borders on a landing with somewhat dubious floor; carpet tiles here, come carpet cut-offs (that were too small) there. Extend that new floor! Wood, I think.
The two hearths should be opened up I think; they must have been massive in the past. Pubs are like that! And then I need two wood burners. Or maybe one? Open fire in the other one? Not sure yet. But not this tiling!
I also don't like the top two doors but that's not urgent. Replacing wallpaper once you've moved in is a pain; replacing a door isn't! So that can wait.
Rose also confirmed I would have the same parking agreement with the adjacent chapel-turned-music-venue. Excellent! And she would take the cat with her. I can see why! But I have already googled the nearby pet shelters so I suppose that when the time is right they could pair me up with a suitable moggy. And then we can lie in front of the wood burner together!
30 January 2018
29 January 2018
Not digging
I thought I would be digging! But then a message from Miles arrived. Stuff was not going as planned at work, and he thought he might not manage to come out digging. Later he confirmed that. A pity! But that meant I could come with the Thursdaynighters. And that probably meant being in bed considerably later, but it would be nice to see them again. We would go to some mine not too far from Cwm and have a Simon-lead wander!
I first went for a second viewing of my favourite house. Then I went on. I knew I would be a bit early at the gathering place but that was alright, I had my Welsh homework with me. But when I got there, a lot of the others were already there! No need for the homework.
Simon was the last to appear. We piled into two vehicles and drove on, closer to the entrance, where parking was tight. And there Simon left us! He was a bit under the weather and decided to go home. Oh dear. Oh well; we would go without him. We walked up in intermittent moonlight, but before we got underground it started raining quite forcefully. Oh dear.
We got in. Dry again! And we decided to do and find a steep passage the men had found earlier, and put a handline in. There are water hoses through the place, and we used one of those. It worked! Then we went on a bit of a scamper. Paul did his own thing and appeared now and then.
At some point we came to a flooded bit. David stuck a torch into the water. We could see a whole level below! That was nice. David and Ed teamed up to take a picture of it. Success!
Then we went on. A lot of scampering followed. Finally we came out! A bit late for me, but not particularly late for the Thursdaynighters. The men wanted to go to the nearest takeaway, but as I had come from a viewing and was in my own car, I could skip that. I went home! And it had been nice to be out with the old gang again!
I first went for a second viewing of my favourite house. Then I went on. I knew I would be a bit early at the gathering place but that was alright, I had my Welsh homework with me. But when I got there, a lot of the others were already there! No need for the homework.
Simon was the last to appear. We piled into two vehicles and drove on, closer to the entrance, where parking was tight. And there Simon left us! He was a bit under the weather and decided to go home. Oh dear. Oh well; we would go without him. We walked up in intermittent moonlight, but before we got underground it started raining quite forcefully. Oh dear.
We got in. Dry again! And we decided to do and find a steep passage the men had found earlier, and put a handline in. There are water hoses through the place, and we used one of those. It worked! Then we went on a bit of a scamper. Paul did his own thing and appeared now and then.
At some point we came to a flooded bit. David stuck a torch into the water. We could see a whole level below! That was nice. David and Ed teamed up to take a picture of it. Success!
Then we went on. A lot of scampering followed. Finally we came out! A bit late for me, but not particularly late for the Thursdaynighters. The men wanted to go to the nearest takeaway, but as I had come from a viewing and was in my own car, I could skip that. I went home! And it had been nice to be out with the old gang again!
28 January 2018
Welsh in the workplace
Last year I couldn't do my Welsh A level. This year I can't either! It's scheduled in the same week each year, and that is the same week as our Laugharne fieldwork. But Jenny suggested I could do something else; there are the 'Welsh in the workplace' qualifications, and she suggested I do one of these. They go up to at least level six. She suggested I start at five. And she tends to be able to guess what I'm capable of so I agreed. She explained I would have to talk with one colleague about one relevant topic of my choosing, and then talk to them on the phone. Then another colleague would come into the office to talk about something I wouldn't know of in advance. And I would have to talk to a tutor, and I would get a call from HR about something or other. All would get recorded. I roped in Dei, the most usual suspect, and he was willing. I suggested our salty sea dog Big Gwynne as the person to walk in.
When the day approached Jenny told me she had problems contacting Gwynne, but I found Ian, our head technician, and he was willing and available. Good!
On the day itself I heard Bethan, one of the tutors, approach. It's always nice to see her! We had a little chat and then Dei came in. We talked about me potentially taking over some of his dissertation students. It went well! Then he went away and I phoned him. We talked a bit more about a new fieldwork module. It sounds lovely! Both conversations ran for longer than needed as we had so much to say.
Then we brought in Ian, who spoke of several fieldworks. That was nice too! Then I spoke on the phone to the HR woman and had a chat with Bethan. All was sorted within the hour. And it had been a pleasure! And I finally got to talk about the dissertation topic with Dei; I had suggested it but he had been too busy to do anything with that suggestion. Or even remember it. Everybody wins!
Next week I'll hear if I've passed! I do think so to be honest, it went well...
When the day approached Jenny told me she had problems contacting Gwynne, but I found Ian, our head technician, and he was willing and available. Good!
On the day itself I heard Bethan, one of the tutors, approach. It's always nice to see her! We had a little chat and then Dei came in. We talked about me potentially taking over some of his dissertation students. It went well! Then he went away and I phoned him. We talked a bit more about a new fieldwork module. It sounds lovely! Both conversations ran for longer than needed as we had so much to say.
Then we brought in Ian, who spoke of several fieldworks. That was nice too! Then I spoke on the phone to the HR woman and had a chat with Bethan. All was sorted within the hour. And it had been a pleasure! And I finally got to talk about the dissertation topic with Dei; I had suggested it but he had been too busy to do anything with that suggestion. Or even remember it. Everybody wins!
Next week I'll hear if I've passed! I do think so to be honest, it went well...
27 January 2018
Successful weekend before term starts
I was a bit tense at the end of the last week before the lectures started. I had been spending most of my time marking! I had made sure the Blackboard site of my module was online, but that didn't mean I had prepared the lectures. And I had stuff to organise for my tutorials. And I had to prepare a report for a meeting. I knew that on Monday I would have time, but Tuesday would be entirely consumed by scheduled activities. I wanted to have stuff done before the week started!
On Friday I prepared for my tutorial before I went home. I had dinner with me so it was OK! And then the weekend started. First there was the viewing. Then the rest of the weekend started.
On Saturday I prepared the first lecture, and on Sunday the second. Enough for one week! And I started on marking. The latter was exams, so that's paper; that was done comfortably on the sofa. Nice! And the weather was quite shite anyway.
I also managed to repair my digging knee pads and a pair of socks, give myself a haircut, do car maintenance, update the blog, think about finances, ask advice from Phil regarding what kind of tradesperson can do the things I might want done in the house I may buy, go for a run, phone my mum, do my Welsh homework, and prepare for a Welsh in the Workplace qualification I want to try and acquire on Wednesday. Not a weekend with a lot of fun, but surely a weekend that took the strain of the start of term!
On Friday I prepared for my tutorial before I went home. I had dinner with me so it was OK! And then the weekend started. First there was the viewing. Then the rest of the weekend started.
On Saturday I prepared the first lecture, and on Sunday the second. Enough for one week! And I started on marking. The latter was exams, so that's paper; that was done comfortably on the sofa. Nice! And the weather was quite shite anyway.
Gas fire on, candles lit: excellent circumstances for marking! The wine only came out afterwards, BTW!
26 January 2018
Time to think money
Choosing a house is one thing; choosing how to pay for it is another. It's been a long time since I had to worry about money! I remember I was pretty skint in my first year in Amsterdam, but that was in 1993. And as my PhD overran and I wasn't paid for a while, I was skint again at the end of that, in 2007. I remember having to borrow some money from Roelof (who had a regular job) to get to my first paycheck! But as my first postdoc job was in Norway, as soon as that paycheck arrived I was sorted. Since then I haven't been unemployed for appreciable periods of time. And my wages tended to go down rather than up, but as long as they didn't run out altogether I was OK. I don't have a very expensive life!
But now I wanted to know how much money I wanted to plonk into a deposit. And how much would I want to spend per month? I did a small check; I looked at my bank statements for the last 8 months and checked how much money was left over each month. It varied a bit, of course! It looked like I have cheap months and expensive months, but both result in a net saving. Taking the lower saving and adding it to what I currently pay in rent left me with what I think would be good to pay each month (correcting for a house insurance, possibly increased council tax, increased fuel costs, etc). And I wondered how much money I should keep in my bank account. I mean, I can't empty it out! I need to pay a surveyor and a mortgage advisor and stamp duty and a removal company and whatnot. And I will want a faster bicycle! With narrow tyres! And I may want to do some small improvements on the house. And there will be costs I haven't thought of yet. Oh and I will probably want to get a different car, but that doesn't have to be much of a cost, as I am sure I can flog the current one for not much less than I would buy another one for. I want something smaller! It will get more to do so I don't want a car that's unnecessarily big and heavy. When I bought it it lugged four Thursdaynighters plus kit to Tanygrisiau all the time, but these days are over! But anyway, I think I've done the math regarding a mortgage. Time for a second viewing maybe?
But now I wanted to know how much money I wanted to plonk into a deposit. And how much would I want to spend per month? I did a small check; I looked at my bank statements for the last 8 months and checked how much money was left over each month. It varied a bit, of course! It looked like I have cheap months and expensive months, but both result in a net saving. Taking the lower saving and adding it to what I currently pay in rent left me with what I think would be good to pay each month (correcting for a house insurance, possibly increased council tax, increased fuel costs, etc). And I wondered how much money I should keep in my bank account. I mean, I can't empty it out! I need to pay a surveyor and a mortgage advisor and stamp duty and a removal company and whatnot. And I will want a faster bicycle! With narrow tyres! And I may want to do some small improvements on the house. And there will be costs I haven't thought of yet. Oh and I will probably want to get a different car, but that doesn't have to be much of a cost, as I am sure I can flog the current one for not much less than I would buy another one for. I want something smaller! It will get more to do so I don't want a car that's unnecessarily big and heavy. When I bought it it lugged four Thursdaynighters plus kit to Tanygrisiau all the time, but these days are over! But anyway, I think I've done the math regarding a mortgage. Time for a second viewing maybe?
25 January 2018
Yes I know, another viewing, it gets dull
I make sure I get alerts when houses of my preferred size and price category come onto the market in my search area. Generally these alerts don't make my hearts race. I am, when you think of it, quite specific about what I want! But you can't really feed all your wishes into Rightmove. But then one cottage came up. It looked lovely, it was at the bottom of the valley, and it was cheap. Worth seeing!
I went on Saturday morning. It was raining! The valley looked gloomy, but that's a look it wears well. I walked up the row of houses. They're not even on a street! There is a path in front of the houses, and a small one at the back, and that's it. Parking is on a layby nearby. I easily found the right house and knocked. A friendly-looking lady opened. She showed me around. It was such a snug little house! The ground floor was living room, kitchen and bathroom; all looked both really well-maintained but also still like the cottage it was. A nice balance between keeping the soul but also keeping it well!
Stairs led to a mezzanine level (high enough for me to stand, but for anyone considerably taller it wouldn't work) which doubled as a second bedroom. Only in the middle was it high enough to stand! And off that was a 'proper' bedroom; the same size, but with a door. A hobbit door! It was all extremely cute but also very small. You couldn't put a cupboard in either room!
The lady also showed me the garden, with its wood storage, bike shed, tool shed (formerly the outdoor toilet) and the external office/ hobby room. The garden was gorgeous, even in January. And the extra room was clearly what a house like that needs! I was all impressed.
Back indoors the woman's husband appeared as well. He was full of enthusiasm; he had done it all up himself! All of it! And he had reason to be proud of himself. We chatted a bit until the next viewers appeared. They were more local; it was a couple of which the woman lived in Bethesda and the man in Waunfawr. They were also looking for their first home to buy! They were nice too. Some bilingual chat followed.
When the other viewers went outside to see the garden I left. I was all in love with the house! I'm sure I could pare down my belongings to make it fit. But I went home, had a coffee and a ponder, and slowly I came back to Earth. I figured I would need a house that's practical. Where you don't have to stay on top of things all the time because you have some room to spread out. I often come home late and tired! Often, my kitchen table is impeccable early on in the week, and entirely covered by stuff later on. And then in the weekend I have some time to sort it out again. In this house, I'm not sure you could have a kitchen table. And if so, you need to keep it tidy! So after a few hours of cooling down my love for the house on the river re-emerged on top. Time to do some number crunching!
I went on Saturday morning. It was raining! The valley looked gloomy, but that's a look it wears well. I walked up the row of houses. They're not even on a street! There is a path in front of the houses, and a small one at the back, and that's it. Parking is on a layby nearby. I easily found the right house and knocked. A friendly-looking lady opened. She showed me around. It was such a snug little house! The ground floor was living room, kitchen and bathroom; all looked both really well-maintained but also still like the cottage it was. A nice balance between keeping the soul but also keeping it well!
Stairs led to a mezzanine level (high enough for me to stand, but for anyone considerably taller it wouldn't work) which doubled as a second bedroom. Only in the middle was it high enough to stand! And off that was a 'proper' bedroom; the same size, but with a door. A hobbit door! It was all extremely cute but also very small. You couldn't put a cupboard in either room!
The lady also showed me the garden, with its wood storage, bike shed, tool shed (formerly the outdoor toilet) and the external office/ hobby room. The garden was gorgeous, even in January. And the extra room was clearly what a house like that needs! I was all impressed.
Back indoors the woman's husband appeared as well. He was full of enthusiasm; he had done it all up himself! All of it! And he had reason to be proud of himself. We chatted a bit until the next viewers appeared. They were more local; it was a couple of which the woman lived in Bethesda and the man in Waunfawr. They were also looking for their first home to buy! They were nice too. Some bilingual chat followed.
When the other viewers went outside to see the garden I left. I was all in love with the house! I'm sure I could pare down my belongings to make it fit. But I went home, had a coffee and a ponder, and slowly I came back to Earth. I figured I would need a house that's practical. Where you don't have to stay on top of things all the time because you have some room to spread out. I often come home late and tired! Often, my kitchen table is impeccable early on in the week, and entirely covered by stuff later on. And then in the weekend I have some time to sort it out again. In this house, I'm not sure you could have a kitchen table. And if so, you need to keep it tidy! So after a few hours of cooling down my love for the house on the river re-emerged on top. Time to do some number crunching!
24 January 2018
Exams - and then lectures
I managed to get my Palaeoceanography exams marked quickly. By Thursday they were in Lynda's pigeon hole, ready for her to moderate them! But one pile is out of your hands and the other arrived. First I got the small task of marking my part of a shared module. I only had one question in it, and it was optional. Not many students had chosen it! So that was quickly sorted.
Friday, though, was the exam of the glaciology module. That would be a big pile again! And it's a smaller exam; the students do 5 short answer questions and 2 essay questions; about 70% of these are mine and the rest is someone else's to mark. And the palaeoceanography exam was 10 short answer questions and 2 essay questions; 100% of them mine! These students also get 3 hours instead of 2. So this was a bigger cohort but it's less work nonetheless.
That exam took me to Friday 4PM. After signing them out and biking back I could start another things. Such as: getting ready for the start of term! With all that marking, lecture preparation hasn't really happened. My first lecture is on Monday morning! Hm. Well the weather forecast for Sunday isn't very good. Weekend lecture prep here I come!
Friday, though, was the exam of the glaciology module. That would be a big pile again! And it's a smaller exam; the students do 5 short answer questions and 2 essay questions; about 70% of these are mine and the rest is someone else's to mark. And the palaeoceanography exam was 10 short answer questions and 2 essay questions; 100% of them mine! These students also get 3 hours instead of 2. So this was a bigger cohort but it's less work nonetheless.
PJ Hall, where the exam took place
That exam took me to Friday 4PM. After signing them out and biking back I could start another things. Such as: getting ready for the start of term! With all that marking, lecture preparation hasn't really happened. My first lecture is on Monday morning! Hm. Well the weather forecast for Sunday isn't very good. Weekend lecture prep here I come!
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