resurrected

nine months later the case is finally settled and the stop work order is lifted and we are looking to renewed efforts in the new week.

HOM and i are amazed humbled and grateful for the manifold mercies that lead to this. at the same time unfortunately the old stresses of hustling the various players also self-resurrect. 

but if God can lead us thru the one surely he can lead us thru the other. exodus 14:14, isaiah 43:2, psalm 31:15. all OT verses. there is a pattern here.

looking back

relatively insulated from christmas ho-ho-hos this year from doing fewer mall and grocery runs although the storefronts are all gaily bedecked and the weather is suitably cold. looking back on a full year:

• the (stalled) renovations dominate 
• with evolving thoughts priorities and wishes about our home(s) 
• and a new understanding of what a thorn in the flesh and waiting upon God feel like

• farewelled a number of long-time patients
• people always say, thank you for your care. and i always think, how privileged i am!
• my honor to be able to do what i do and get paid for it, i think

• farewelled prof C, totally unexpectedly and too soon

on more cheerful notes:

• a number of trips, all welcome and enjoyed!
• visits from J1 Y J2 A, all treasured!

and ten thousand beside

feeling just a tad weepy thinking about the stalled renovation up-ended schedules and tussles with the unhappy management committee and then remembering that:

• J2 and A are here! and A likes us!
• J1 and Y are here soon!
• we've entered the season of dinners to renew friendships and fellowship!
• we have the resources to have dinners and friends to rejoice with!

reno woes meet sweater-weather-autumn-feels.

reno woes: nada yada

stop work order.

3 little words to chill the intrepid home owner's heart.

'nuff said.

reno woes 3

pressing on with the count:

11. the main con continues to be elusive

12. HOM to the rescue as de facto project manager troubleshooting guy and part-time electrician. his earlier education coming in useful, i say

13. another permit appears to be missing 

14. and the cabinet measurements need rescuing

in other news, and in the fine tradition of murphy's law as applied to home renovations, the car breaks down today in the course of duty.

plan b

kbt at bao er instead of jb. it turns out to be a smashing alternative. cool weather after the pre-dawn shower ice cold kaya and 'fridge solid butter in toast that stands up unaided topped off with a lazy stroll through the saturday fair at the market. pleasures seem to get simpler as we get older.

reno news: the electrical wall boxes arrive today, which is great timing indeed.

lookin' nice

today i notice that they try to make even the temporary pathway to the MRT station look welcoming and living room-like. which is very good of them and almost makes up for the additional 10 minutes i have to walk to get to where i want.

in additional news, the cement screed is finally poured. yesssss. one month late, but i tell HOM it definitely feels like we are renovating and progressing now.

new robot

the new guy in town, who by virtue of his provenance almost gets the entire shipment halted at the border. not a drone! we text the guy at the customs, all agog. a vacuum cleaner!!

first fruits

the first lot of our home electronics lights and various other paraphernalia arrives from china! this is a most exciting validation of our leap into the dark this renovation round with direct dealings with vendors and shippers.

the credit goes to HOM without whose research language skills tenacity and sheer bone-headedness i would have helplessly devolved and happily deferred to the local guys.

in other news, the old place is starting to resemble a warehouse.

reno woes 2

continuing the list:

6. we discover neighbor's pipes in our home (ikr, who designs things this way?)

7. neighbor's pipes (in our home) might be leaking. cue near-apoplexy on everyone's part

8. work stops because you need water to cut the walls, apparently (duh?)

9. smart wall switches are sized differently from regular switches (the wall cutter did not know this either)

10. and the dji robot vacuum narrowly avoids being barred from export due to them thinking we are processing a drone 

this is a good place to quote Ps. 94:17, slightly out of context: unless the LORD had given me help, i would soon have dwelt in the silence of death.

night into day

 

and there was evening, and there was morning, another day. quite breathtaking.

and the renovations plod on.

reno woes

1. stop work order 

2. main con sprains his back

3. a/c con punctures the water pipe

4. main con's grandma dies

5. super typhoon ragasa

and counting.

unless the LORD build the house, those who build it labor in vain.

Ps. 127:1

day's end

long day long week long months. the renovation drags on apace. HOM coughs on unabated. i cough along.

and yet God closes the day with gentleness and strength.

renovation stress

he: i want to correct all the known faults and make this home future ready.

she: i like wabi-sabi.

there you go. that's why renovation ranks up there with major illness divorce and death.

demolition

begone, thou bathtub! in whom i have taken nary a bath! for whose demise i have waited twenty long years!

on the cusp

the workmen start hacking tomorrow!

things we discover as we prepare for our sixteenth move:

• young people* are savvy responsive down-to-earth and hungry. at least the ones it's been our good fortune to meet so far
• whatsapp groupchat discussions make communication and collaboration miles easier
• prices have soared since our last foray into the building industry. yikes
• the renovation budget can become a black hole of nothingness if you don't watch out
• China is the new source for well-priced high quality stuff. the days of cheap badly-made-in-China goods are over

*the builder the designers the flooring lady the aluminum guy the smarthome guys the fellow who sells us the appliances and the a/c man. and thankful we are to have been led to them too!

may God be pleased to build this house.

decision-ed!

HOM and i bite the bullet put down the deposit and sign on to our biggest scale renovation yet and realize with gradually-growing equal-parts delight and trepidation that we are committed to moving back to the old place. by year's end, if all goes well.

may God bless this next phase.

yee-hah!

early thanksgiving

considering we missed most of the end of last year in preparation of our fifteenth house removal and then lost much of the rest of it in hospital with HOM's dad's fractured hip, now is a nice time to take a breather. 

i'm thankful that we are established in a new home with new routines new inconveniences great breezes and a (marginally) downsized inventory. the gas is finally connected the leaking pipe is fixed the hole in the wall is patched and the kitchen sink no longer bubbles from the joint. E seems to like it. (that is to say E does not seem to dislike it.)

i'm thankful for the mechanics of the move. deferring the date three times due to contractor delays actually worked out better for us timing-wise. and the decluttering was more draconian too. we had J1 move with us during his winter break, poor fellow, but that was our great gain.

i'm thankful for our contractor mr. H, who has built parts of pretty much every one of our previous local homes. that's twenty-six years of business for you. 

and it looks like HOM's dad will be discharged from a lovely rehabilitation facility soon. it's lovely to me anyway. the staff are gentle and cheerful and available and kind. although that does not stop the HOM's dad from incessant griping. but hey, patient unhappiness is par for the course, right. 

in other news, the world outside rocks with Trump's inauguration healthcare restructuring and a new trend of cars driving at speed against the flow of traffic. J1 starts a blog and E has diarrhea.

getting stuff 2

this is the shop that sells tiles.

if you ask me, it is vaguely reminiscent of a stock exchange.

the commodities floor perhaps?

getting stuff

we spend the day traversing balestier road hunting down the perfect tiles lights bathroom and kitchen implements. it is a soul-sapping endeavor. remind me why we engage interior designers, i murmur to HOM. so that he can take over from here, HOM murmurs back. if we manage this properly we only need to hassle one person, not the entire construction crew. we hope.