Saturday, 12 April 2025

In And Out Of The Kitchen

So the idea is, you all work together, doing your set task, following the rules and everything, and once it is all done, there it is - complete.
Strippers, plasterers. plumbers, electricians, painters, powder-coaters, floor guys, cabinet builders, counter-fitters....But it is like doing the foxtrot*, two steps forward, and then two sideways. Trouble is that the first job [the strippers, Bob and me, taking out the old fittings] revealed so many unexpected issues. O
ur home, built in 1972 has surprisingly non-straight walls, and the floor-to-ceiling distance varies. Add in the extra time for rejigging a cupboard to fit round random pipes, and time for altering the cooker hood so it can vent though the ceiling, into the loft and outside, whilst avoiding the rafters and joists, and the project soon over-runs the time schedule. If we had hired fitters, they would have got on with it, but added ££££ to the costs. We are DIYing it, and fitting the work round funerals, hospital visits and other unexpected appointments. So it is taking longer. But Bob did warn me that would happen. We plod on, doing work most days. We follow the IKEA instruction books assiduously [the only way to make it work] There are many tea-breaks







 

* I must confess, I cannot dance the foxtrot, or the cha-cha for that matter.
This little quirky guy - part of Julian's birthday gift - is making me smile.
Please can someone suggest a good name for Mr-Potato-Head-With-Aloe-Hair?

23 comments:

  1. Norman. An abbreviation for Normal for Norfolk Man.

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    1. There was a TV prog called NfN, about Desmond McCarthy [look him up]. He has a jolly expression and bushy eyebrows.

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  2. Lots of tea breaks are definitely necessary!

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  3. Rene? As in Aloe - Aloe? He's got the look of Rene with that tache!

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  4. Renovations rarely go go plan do they, we had an extra almost £1k bill due to Mum's consumer unit not meeting current building regs. But the electrician was brilliant and checked everything for us so he could issue new certification for bungalow in case we sell it.

    Norman seems a very suitable name for your Mr Potato Head, or perhaps Aloe-Norman. 😀

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    1. Getting the certification as the work is completed is wise , if you wait till the time comes to sell, it will cost even more

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  5. Our house was built in 1963 and also doesn’t have any straight walls! We had the bathroom professionally done from start to finish but now is correcting all the snagging which is driving me mad!! I am about to create some kind of plant/floral arrangement to hide the corner of the tiles behind the cistern cabinet. Very warm here and definitely needing some rain for the garden. Catriona

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  6. Now if he was mrs potatohead she could be Vera, so maybe he could be Aloe Vernon? But I do like the René suggestion!

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  7. Not sure about Aloe Vernon!!

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  8. My daughter is waiting on a plasterer to turn up, so probably like you has stuff all over the house. Apparently an aloe vera plant contains a gel polysaccharide acemannan, so maybe you could call it ACE! I didn't know this - googled it! Xx

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    1. Ace is a fun name. I think that gel is the gooey stuff you can squeeze out of a cut leaf to soothe minor burns.

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  9. Belated happy birthday wishes Angela!
    You have more stamina than I do for house renovations. Well done!
    Angie x

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  10. I thought of "Kitchen Buddy", as he could sit in your new domain, ready if you need a piece of aloe for a little cooking burn.

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  11. Renovations and remodeling always take more time and money than originally estimated, they say.
    Your new plant looks more like a Haworthia than an Aloe to me, but, I like the name "Buddy" for the planter. :)

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    1. Thank you Bless. The woman in the plant centre said it was an Aloe, I shall check the label again

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    2. Bob says mine is an aloe because the edges have "teeth" and Haworthia have smooth edges! But they are extremely similar to look at

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  12. Love it. Surely he is Spike?

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    1. Oh that's a good name. When he was at school, Julian wrote to Spike Milligan, and he actually replied!

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