h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

So, can I/we assume the nuptials are done and dusted?

The nuptials are done and dusted - we are back to the normal arguing and bitching now!

No, seriously - a great time had by all - but now I'm up to my neck in paint pots and laminate floors for the new house in Cyprus. It's hot work at the moment - 29deg C today, so I'm not enjoying it much. Give me six months and I'll break the back of work to be done.

I'll do a journal entry at some point so everyone knows all about the weddings. In the meantime, I'm just glad to have a T'internet connection back. It's *very* expensive and slower than a slow thing from slow-land, but it's the best broadband you can get in Cyprus, so it'll have to do. Having said that, it only took two days after getting here to get it organised. The last time I tried it in Portugal it took six months!

Thanks for popping in. I'll be around as and when I get bored with gloss painting...

I thought glossing was a girl's job? That's what you told me when you handed me the sanding block and toothbrush!

Hi Sho!*waves* Sewing machine should arrive in about 3 weeks and then I'll be up to my neck in curtain fabric! I'll be popping into the sewing conversations then! Got some bargain ready made voile panels the other day, only they're 3 x 3m which is a tad long for a bungalow! Going to trim the length, split the width and use the excess to make tie-backs!

Domestication is bliss

nice to see you both!

and as you know me fairly well, I think (that despite my passion for sewing) you can probably guess that out of the DIY and the curtains ... I'd be heading for the power tools.

And how is Cyprus so far?
A friend of mine (German) went there on her jollies once, and she complained bitterly that I hadn't told her how British it was

and now her (very German) boyfriend is addicted to Cheddar and it's as rare as rocking-horse-poo round these parts. (unless you know where to look and you have loads of 2cents)

Power tools - now we are talking!

I needed a chop-saw for the flooring jobby and I was about to buy one of those 'spensive ones that begin with a 'B' when I got reigned in and advised (read *told*) that 'Joe down the road has got one, use his.'

OK, it's , but not as as having your own...

Curtains? Pah!!!!!

indeed but I think we need to educate the new Mrs DDD - bless her, how could she know?

ALL power tools have to be manufactured either by B... or by B...

End of story

Oh, I agree - if the 'B' is not fitted as standard, then it'll never work and it'll annoy the hell out of you forever-more.

Did I tell you how well the 'B' skill-saw took a chunk off the bottom of the door today?

No, I never did. Another story for another day...



The curtain-woman is coming back ---------->

actually, although I'm a big fan of B-tools, I have a no-name angle grinder which is fantastic. But I hardly ever have any angles to grind.

You need axes - I've got plenty of them to grind!

chuck a couple over, then

what I'm after next, since there are some overhanging branches (from neighbours' trees) that have to be lopped, is that funky B-word branch lopper which is part manual lopper, part mini-chain-saw

Sho, looking back over my convos, this one came up.

OK, I never got the B saw, but I do have in my shed a mighty fine Ryobi "sliding compound mitre saw" that I bought with my Xmas money.

Over here the saw is the princely sum of CYP£640 which roughly translates to around €1050.

Got it on eBay for ST£290 (inc delivery) and shipped via the sister-in-laws container. OK, it took a few months but it's here, a thing of beauty and used almost daily.

I still love it and polish it and blow off the sawdust with the vacuum cleaner each time I use it. Deakie reckoned I'd never use it 'cos it was too precious when I got it. (I love shiny toys, especially when they stay shiny and unused).

This one had to work though, and it has. I also now have an angle-grinder, jigsaw, chop-saw, skill-saw and three, yep, three work benches. Oh, and a shed. Pure Heaven!

and a shed???

I've been reading your thread about the bath - I have to say that I was ready to hop on a plane and come over and help!

'tis good to see you up and around again, btw.

Sho, come over and help! I could do with some.

We are almost functional again - the bath and toilet are in place, so we can bathe and poo, but I'm not looking forward to the wall-tiling bit. Dunno why, floors never bother me and I've done 60m2 in this place - that's nearly 900 of the buggers, but there's 20m2 of walls and I don't want to start. I suppose it'll get easier when I get going, it's just the thought that puts me off. Weird eh? Happy laying floors, but not the walls...

I've never tiled anything, should be interesting.

I saw the picture of your bath in the other thread - it looks really heavy. How the heck did you get it in there?

With me, I'll get all the stuff together to start a project, that I really want to do... then procrastinate for ages.

<>

We used old car jacks and bits of wood - it took forever, but the old one was not as heavy as the new one! There was a lot of shuffling and galumphing for a few hours, but I knew it would fit. I'd been a clever boy and measured it!

And it did. Just....

There was a lot of extraneous tile removal and a large amount of Keo consumption, but we did it.

Although I can't quite remember how!

That will be down to the Keo.

Man, that name brings back... well, not exactly memories. but you know what I mean, I think.