Tell Me Something............Anything!

[Pigmy Pony]

thats why my house hasnt been decorated for a while

If it were up to me it would stay as it is, but Anita has been pecking my head about it for 2 years now. I'm hoping the pecking will stop next Tuesday... who am I kidding, there'll always be something else!

The complications I suppose are all my own doing though, it's the price of aspiring beyond a portable telly and a Dansette

[struth]

If it were up to me it would stay as it is, but Anita has been pecking my head about it for 2 years now. I'm hoping the pecking will stop next Tuesday... who am I kidding, there'll always be something else!

The complications I suppose are all my own doing though, it's the price of aspiring beyond a portable telly and a Dansette

Last time I did living room was about 16yrs ago. Wife was bedbound so I could leave room a pit for a few months and do the job in my own time. Papering took an age as walls were knackered. So 2 coats of thick stuff, one a thick undersheet to level the surface a bit. Also fitted coving an such like. Then go the guys in to put a quality carpet and underlay after the fireplace was fitted. Took me 3 months

[Barry]

True - it's the distaff side that is more interested in home decor. However, if they are willing to pitch in, it can all be done relatively quickly, cheaply, and with minimal interruption.

When we decorated the lounge, everything was moved to one end and put under dust covers, whilst half the ceiling was painted (two coats). Then everything was moved to the other end to paint the second half of the ceiling. When it came to the walls, we just painted over the textured wallpaper with emulsion, but it did mean dismantling the shelving and storing all the books up the stairs.

Before we had new carpets fitted, I had an electrician round to install a separate ring main for the audio system, which allowed me to run balanced-line audio cables under the floor between the sources and preamps to the monobloc amplifiers and speakers. I dislike the look of cables trailing around the sides and skirting boards.

In all, we were without the audio system for only two days, whilst the floor was clear for the electrician and the carpet fitter; though at times the setup was nowhere near acoustically optimum.

The TV has always been in a separate room, as I didn't want to compete with the hi-fi - but my partner has other ideas in that quarter. I think we will have to come to some sort of compromise, even though I probably watch more TV than she does.

[walpurgis]

My family can't be let loose to decorate. It just makes more work for me putting it all right!

[Pigmy Pony]

All the painting's done now, and the carpets go down on Monday. I won't have a problem re-installing the hifi gear, but the TV related stuff will be another matter. TV, blu ray player, Sky Q box, Sky broadband router, 'Hive' heating controller, a/v amp, 5 surround speakers plus sub, printer... I don't see all that going back together without a few tears and a lot of swearing.

[Macca]

You know I've been dreading the day when we have to redecorate and get new carpets in the lounge and dining room, and all the upheaval that would entail, but now that time has come it's really not that bad... that's a lie, it's a bloody nightmare!

All of my hifi gear, records, CDs and associated audio crap have completely filled the spare bedroom (our only available space), while the a/v stuff is sharing our bedroom with us, with the big telly leaning on the wardrobe. I got the telly off the wall this morning, and inadvertently unplugged the heating's 'Hive' unit. Which now refuses to go bacl online... fortunately Mrs. P was able to get heating on manually.

And two days ago we left the house for a few hours while the painter sanded the lounge and dining room's window boards ready for painting, a process I'd assumed would involve some sandpaper sheets and elbow grease. Turns out he'd used an orbital sander with a torn dust bag. So I returned to find my speakers and hifi units looking like the aftermath of Pompeii's worst day. The painter was apologetic and offered to clean them with his rag, an offer I politely declined with a smile on my face even though I'd died a little bit inside Seeing the little radio he brought with him that looked like, well, a painter's radio should have set off warning bells

Through all this Mrs. P is still having packages delivered from Amazon etc., one of which I sent to a fellow forum member. Contained a selection of hoover parts instead of the record sleeves he was expecting So there's that as well...

I've been tempted to come out of my semi-retirement and go back to work to get away from all this, if only a while. But then I'd be leaving Anita to deal with all this on her own. And who knows what fresh hell I'd be coming home to?

Can't wait for next Tuesday to come, when the carpets have been fitted, and I can begin the unenviable task of putting all this stuff back together. And if it still works I'll show my arse in Woollies' shop window. Onwards and upwards eh?

bloody hell, sounds like a right nightmare. I take after my father, he wouldn't even get double glazing fitted because he didn't want 'All the upheaval.'

Makes me think back in the stone age, living in caves. Then some bloke is the first one to knock-up a log hut or whatever. I wonder what the initial take-up was on that idea?

The cave man sat around saying 'No, we're not moving to one of those log hut things, love. Nowt wrong with this cave. We've made ourselves comfortable here - and besides it took me bloody months to paint all those hunting scenes on the walls. You wanted them! I wasn't bothered.'

And the cave woman kicks his arse and says 'Get chopping down some trees you idle bastard.'

[Pigmy Pony]

bloody hell, sounds like a right nightmare. I take after my father, he wouldn't even get double glazing fitted because he didn't want 'All the upheaval.'

Makes me think back in the stone age, living in caves. Then some bloke is the first one to knock-up a log hut or whatever. I wonder what the initial take-up was on that idea?

The cave man sat around saying 'No, we're not moving to one of those log hut things, love. Nowt wrong with this cave. We've made ourselves comfortable here - and besides it took me bloody months to paint all those hunting scenes on the walls. You wanted them! I wasn't bothered.'

And the cave woman kicks his arse and says 'Get chopping down some trees you idle bastard.'

Love it, and so true! I suspect the evolution of our living spaces has been largely driven by the wallpaper manufacturers, who to be fair had a quiet time of it for the first few thousand years.

[walpurgis]

Had a rubbish night. Tossing and turning with waterworks discomfort (bloody prostatitis flaring up again ). Dozed off about 2am and woke again at 4.22, tossing and turning for anther hour or so before dozing off again and finally surfaced at 8am with a headache, bunged up sinuses and toothache. Bollocks!

[Pigmy Pony]

Had a rubbish night. Tossing and turning with waterworks discomfort (bloody prostatitis flaring up again ). Dozed off about 2am and woke again at 4.22, tossing and turning for anther hour or so before dozing off again and finally surfaced at 8am with a headache, bunged up sinuses and toothache. Bollocks!

Prostatitis, that sounds grim - what's the treatment? Antibiotics?

[walpurgis]

Prostatitis, that sounds grim - what's the treatment? Antibiotics?

Yup. It comes and goes.