home from home

Look look, its a bed, a BED, something comfortable to sleep on tonight...when I get it built..I'll have to leave it in the lounge for now, since I've not finished decorating the bedroom yet, plus it'll be hot and moist as the paper is dying so best to wait till paper is up and dry...but tonight I sleep on a bed...bliss.

Also Ikea (I love that place soooo much) are delivering a new couch sometime before 11pm...(brilliant service) and also I have clean clothes thanks to the washing machine that arrived yesterday and dried in 10 mins flat when hung over the balcony in the blazing sun yesterday.

Decorating wise I've got all the walls prepped and ready to slap the paper up there in a big splurge this weekend, and I've bought this fantastic looking autopasting gadget from the Formido DIY shop I've been going to, if it works as it should it will make the job a lot easier. But I've not started doing the paper as I've discovered I need a long thin Philips screwdriver to take off the wall mounted thermostats and also the power units so I can keep the paper neat and tidy behind them. Anyone know how to get the switches off? They seem to be snap on and stay for life types over here rather than the screw on/off once we have in the UK... ah well not to worry. if I make a mess of cutting round them you can buy little overlays from the DIY shops I noticed.

Despite the general lack of finished things, the place is starting to feel homey, carpet a fridge full of food and a few bits in the cupboard help that feeling along. The fact I can get BBC1 and 2 and a whole range of English/US progs on with dutch subtitles makes it much easier to chill out in the evenings. My laptop is now almost permanently on top of an empty kitchen bin box in the absence of any suitable tv cabinet, the box is just perfect. :D

And now to top that off a bed...I might even have an early night tonight.

Budget wise that’s it for now, cash has run out now and I need to keep a few hundred back to buy food and stuff till I can claim back the outlay as part of my relocation package then I can buy the remaining bits and bobs I need, lick units, wardrobes, TV etc, but I'll have to wait till the university staff are back (on the 18th I think but I'm going to check)

I had to decide between a dirty great big TV or a decent sofa (the sofa bed is ok, but long term its not the most comfortable thing to sit on for hours at a time), and sitting on a TV seemed to be a waste and would make it hard to view anything! Hence my trip to ikea again (if nothing else this 14km cycling trip every day must be helping me get fit). And knowing I was getting something delivered I picked up a clothes dryer (to put on the balcony) and a laundry basket which would have been a wee bit hard to carry on the bike...mind you I saw one enterprising young Dutch man, load up a very large microwave on to his rear carrier then head off home holding it in place with one arm behind him.....amazing these people are as comfortable on 2 wheels as we are in cars...I've even forgotten how to ride no handed....but at least I can get up to 3rd gear now without wheezing.

I didn't add any pics last time as I was in a bit of a hurry and hadn't uploaded them to the laptop before I headed off to the train station to hook up the the wireless net there. But here you go I’ll edit the posts now ...and here’s a few more pics for you to get excited about....whatd'yamean you're not excited?

Arrghhh fantastic..Ikea just delivered my sofa...how's that for service..order and pay for at 4.40pm delivered same day at 8.pm I'll get it built and add pics.
It'll look s lot better when its built...I hope.

Right off to the train station to post this, pick up mail and catch up on the gossip.

Ahthankyew