Day 2!

New project, new post!

So it has been rather a while and to say things have changed since my last post would be an understatement (!!!!!!!!!). To avoid time consuming tales let me just catch you up by saying these next posts will be about the cleaner-uppering that will be happening with the grand old gal- a new HOUSE that my HUSBAND and I just bought at woolloongabba. There. You're up to date!
Anyhow, I thought it might be nice to jump on the blog bandwagon again so we have some way of seeing how far we (hopefully!) go with our new home which definitely has good bones but has copped a bit of wear and tear in her time.
So... Day 1. Friday 22 august
The day dawned rainy and grey in brisbane yesterday (we do need the rain). My first thought was that perhaps the moisture would help with the wallpaper removal this weekend- look at me, thinking like a home renovator already!
Today mum and I worked half days in the morning so we could get over to the house and spend the afternoon 'preparing' for the weekend working bee. Really, we just both wanted to get inside after a month of looking longingly from the outside waiting for keys and settlement day!
With only a few hours up our sleeve we decided to tackle the smallest, some would say most necessary, and definitely the sows ear of the house. Yep, the bathroom. In our inspections before buying the house one of the discoveries we made was that there was an extra window on the western side of the house from the outside. Low and behold the bathroom window had been COMPLETELY sheeted over! Let me just say. Airless, windowless bathrooms in old houses are a perfect Petrie dish for mould and I let out quite a few expletives at the sense of anyone who would do such a thing while sugarsoaping my way around the bathroom and toilet!
That said mum and I made awesome inroads and she gets star of the day for cleaning our toilet... Not a pretty job but so much appreciated! Most of the mould has been scrubbed and oil-of-cloved, the old silicone joint was dug out and replaced (another delightful job that mum took on) and everything got a thorough washing. Hopefully when we return it will be ready for lashings of fresh sparkly white mould inhibitor paint!

Here are a few piccies to help get a picture... Rear elevation showing extra window!

Sunny days

Ride to conquer cancer

This weekends 220 odd km ride or the Brisbane Rode to Conquer Cancer was challenging, emotional, exhilarating, beautiful and delicious! I rode with some amazing people and we camped at Wivenhoe Dam on Saturday night. Apart from the obvious awareness around cancer research and health and fitness it also definitely raised my awareness of some of Brisbane's wonderful spaces- its time for me to get planning some more camping/riding/hiking adventures I think - this place is pretty grand!

Little moments

Little moments make you value a place, connect you to it and draw you back. Like this moment when I finished a morning river run, gasping for breath and then these stairs were there caught in the light, waiting for me to snap them- and then dash up them- a much stronger finish to a morning workout and an awesome start to the day!

Urban girls

There is something that really delights me about urban chickens! The allusions of self sufficiency, the potential that we are more than just a concrete jungle of hard edges. I've walked past this neighbour hundreds of times but today at a walk not a run (there is a lesson in that too I am sure!) and as I paused, these girls ran straight over to me to check me out. Behold the guard chooks of Highgate Hill!

Eungella