When I'm Cleaning Windows

I started Monday with some window cleaning. We hadn't touched them since we moved in and one or two were looking a little grubby. I'd done about half the house when Vicky and her kids descended on us. I can't quite recall why but it took a couple of hours until I was able to finish off, not that I particularly wanted to. I managed to do all the windows, inside and out. The major pain in the arm being the blinds. These seem to be dust magnets and necessitated the use of the Dyson to rectify.

We had an email from the rental agent, who surprise surprise had not heard a peep about the mortgagee sale. Di spent several hours looking at potential new homes on the net. It's certainly the case that you get a lot more over in Papamoa for your money. The fly in the ointment with that plan is the morning school run since we really don't want to move the kids, and Rhiannon wouldn't move anyway since Mount college is still the closest school. Moving the littluns would not be a good idea as they have only just settled in. We were advised by a neighbour that if we do move, not to tell the school since they can apparently kick the kids out if they've not been there that long. Such is the problem with strict zoning/catchment areas and a popular and decent school. We would I suspect use Vicky's mailbox - at least until the year was up.

In the evening, Di dragged one of the neighbours off to Zumba. Vicky was planing to go, but came over all faint. Both made it back in one piece just in time for me to take my turn to sweat with a run into the mount and back. I took a moment to sit and survey the beach, and was acosted by a well meaning woman, concerned that I had overdone it. The truth was that I'd pushed it rather hard on the out lap. I explained that back home it was far too cold and miserable to do this sort of thing and that I was merely taking a moment to a) breathe and b) enjoy not being in England in Februrary. She found this quite amusing and wished me well.

Today we were Vickyed again. She'd had a call from the Warehouse about the vacuum and they'd agreed she could take it back. They were at one point apparently insinuating that it had been tampered with in order to make it faulty so that a refund could be claimed and wanted it taken off to a technician. Harumph! In the end they did the decent thing and exchanged it. I agreed to babysit again and this time got away without changing nappies. The only casualty being a cup of juice being dropped and its lid falling off.

Later we went into Tauranga to pay the water bill, and had a chat with the agent about all the shenanigans. Someone somewhere isn't playing by the rules, since we're supposed to be notified in writing about a sale or change of ownership. This has not happened and the only way we know is that the agent charged with the sale has let us know. Apparently under the tenancy act when ownership changes, fixed term tenancies automatically become periodic, at least from the landlord's perspective. I'm not convinced that the tenant has the same rights. Either way, someone needs to be writing to us. Looking through the legislation it is the case that we are supposed to allow potential buyers to view, but we don't have to do this at a drop of a hat. We can be a little awkward, which we probably will be and the chances of an "open home" session are about zero.

While in town, I dropped into the AA and paid for the registration on the Mirth Mobile. You can indeed pay for any number of months you like, as long as it's at least three. I decided not to be awkward (yeah, really!) and plumped for six.

Di continued to surf for houses, and made a couple of appointments. I was highly suspicious of the house that came with a structural report, expecting it to have no roof, or some other such problem and sure enough, it has an issue. It may be worth a look at the right price, since there are lots of people over here who simply do not want to do any work at all. A possible career in property development beckoned, for about thirty seconds.

We were supposed to attend the third and final meet the teachers barbecue, this time at Mount College. However, the drizzling rain put paid to that since Rhiannon returned from school with a message that the whole thing was cancelled.