Progress - mainly

After much wailing and gnashing of teeth, we finally have our summerhouse.  After the earlier sequence of fiascos, the suppliers agreed to send a complete replacement kit, and replace the mixture that came in the first and second deliveries.  It came as little surprise that the new kit was about as crap as the old one, with even more damage to some panels than before.  Well, we managed to make one good kit out of the two on site, and the fitters arrived early next morning (having telephoned at 06:45, fer chrissakes, to say they were half an hour away).  They did a good job, and were off site soon after 09:00, off to Croydon to repair another shed. It looked a bit lurid at first in its yellow dip coat with variously pink and green paint'n'peel film over the window panes.  It has since had two coats of green cuprinol (well, on the bits that show, anyway).  It was a shame that we had to source and fit things that ought to have been included, given what we were charged: hooks and eyes to hold the doors open, a keyhole plate and some brass plates to secure the bolts top and bottom.  Well, they're bought and fitted now, and the whole deal looks pretty respectable, I'd say.

While I've been flapping about with the summerhouse, Martyn has calmly re-profiled and relined the pond, building a new rockery surround to it.  He carefully removed the wildlife from the old pond before starting on  the work, and we think they're settling back in.  (We have an extended family of newts in residence - or did.)  So far we've replanted some bits of thrift and iris sibirica, and we'll add more as the spirit moves us.

The place has been pretty busy today, what with us adding some finishing touches by the pond, Dave from the farm down the road giving the hedges a long overdue trim, and a chap from the landscapers refixing a paving slab that had come loose.  Proper little hive of industry, eh?

This all follows an early start: we were out in convoy soon after 08:00 to take Martyn's car to his preferred fettlers in the undustrial estate.  It is getting a fresh pan of oil and a recharge of the air-conditioning gas, since the chiller had gone AWOL.  Not bad though: eight years on one charge.  But at 16:00, we still haven't had the call to say it's ready.  That's the closest I can get to a cliffhanger this time, I'm afraid!