Been There, Done That...And Doing It Again

We've lived in the same house (off and on) ever since we came to Madeira in 1976. The house was big, but little more than a shell, and over the years we've had to redo everything in it and on it (including the entire roof, tiles and roof joists). I've lost count of how many different projects we've had for it, the number of different builders and contractors that have helped relieve us of any money we had available. The problem is that we have often had to go back and do work over again, and again.

Today marks the official start of a new phase. Abbie---who is very good at keeping me on my toes, because I never know when I get home from work if the sofa is going to be in the same place it was when I left---has decided to not only move our bed, but to move it downstairs to where my office currently is. I am being sent upstairs to the attic. I agree with the move, but the consequences are many. Wiring for telephone and internet has to be redone; electrical outlets have to be moved. Closets have to be built. Hopefully this will be the final phase of remodelling that has been going on sporadically over a period of 28 years.

Izaías and his son, Junior, are currently out of work, so we asked them to come and start. And since the cable and phone connections come into the house on the wall that the plaster was falling from, they will have to knock off all the loose plaster before running conduits for the wiring. As we imagined, there's a lot they're going to have to redo, as you can see from these first pictures. All this dust and mess bring back memories of the good old days, when we ate, breathed and thrived on concrete and rubble in the house. As with most "good old days", we'll find these days better once they're old.