I wrote last January that a written list of tasks can be a bit depressing as it just looks insurmountable and has the opposite
effect to what is intended. I had a realistic list of a few jobs planned for the year, so I thought that I should update my progress (this is also a self test as I haven't already checked!):
a. Finish the small brick wall and the barbecue stand at the back of the garden - Done
b. Get some more limestone and finish the wall down the side of the house/lawn - Done apart from the far end
c.
Get some more limestone and do the other end of that wall, where I want
to make a ramp up to the lawn with a retaining wall in front of the
shed. - Done except the coping
d. Finish decorating indoors (includes lime plaster repairs) - Done except for painting the repair at the kitchen door
e. Plaster the walls of the wardrobe - No
f. Fit the bath panel properly - No
g. Refurbish at least one of the sash windows - Still not even one!
h. Construct an 8' x 12' shed in the side garden - Done, and painted
i. Construct a store (for camping equipment and rarely used tools etc) round the back - Well, I rebuilt the earlier shed for that purpose
j. Repaint various bits outside where the black paint is peeling off (why?) - No
Other minor jobs here included a new lounge carpet (or was that last year?), finishing the tiling in the kitchen, laying some more turf, cleaning all the secondary glazing. I also fulfilled the promise to my oldest brother to go and help him do a job on his equally
old house for a few days. That involved four days to remove a flat concrete roof built on corrugated iron, mostly using an angle grinder, mallets and bolsters...
In a sense, that's a lot of work achieved here as we had a £200k job done in the Grade I listed church opposite - fitting a limecrete floor, new boiler and toilets (Whoopee!) - as well as planning for next year's £200k of stonework repairs (thanks to an HLF grant). Anyone who has ever been churchwarden at the time of having no vicar, and had to take on the treasurer job as well, will understand how busy I have been, even before the fight through the hoops of the CofE and the HLF and at the same time managing a contractor on site.
I should add a brief word on my operation - everyone (including the surgeon - "is it really a year?") thinks that the year since that event has just flown past. My brother is in excellent health and my old kidney is now helping him to enjoy life as he used to (i.e. pre 2006 or so). He really does have his life back. As his daughter said to me: "we have had a good time doing things as a family this year - we had got used to Dad just being asleep every afternoon!" I too am in excellent health and have had no real issues at all; the nephrectomy was effectively just two days of discomfort followed by a week or so of feeling delicate. I cannot even say that I had any pain as I just avoided doing certain things for the few weeks, like stretching in an odd direction, or lifting things etc. For the whole story see http://diaryofakidneydonor.blogspot.co.uk/
I have to confess to one downside - although I recovered my strength very well, I do feel that I have lost some stamina and get tired (or fed up) quite easily. Or is that old age just creeping up more quickly than I would like?
Showing posts with label project management. Show all posts
Showing posts with label project management. Show all posts
Tuesday, 23 December 2014
Sunday, 26 January 2014
Plans for the Year
A belated happy New Year to you all! I've just about got over my operation and my brother is doing very well with his new kidney. The convalescence has been a good excuse for a couple of months but now I've got to focus on the house again. Even so, I've not posted here for a few weeks as there was really nothing to say; the weather has generally been so bad that I have been avoiding the idea of going out in the garden - it's just cold, wet and muddy.
However, I know from past experience that to make progress on a large job like a house, you have to "eat an elephant" - i.e. do a little bit at a time, but just keep on doing it. So I need a plan and a set of targets; I'm hoping that by writing them down here they will cause me to actually do them, whereas a written list at home is easily lost (and I do lose things easily anyway!). Also, a written list can be a bit depressing (especially if you put in too much detail) as it just looks insurmountable and has the opposite effect to what is intended.
So, here's my realistic list for what I want to do on this house and garden this year:
a. Finish the small brick wall and the barbecue stand at the back of the garden
b. Get some more limestone and finish the wall down the side of the house/lawn
c. Get some more limestone and do the other end of that wall, where I want to make a ramp up to the lawn with a retaining wallin front of the shed.
d. Finish decorating indoors (includes lime plaster repairs)
e. Plaster the walls of the wardrobe
f. Fit the bath panel properly
g. Refurbish at least one of the sash windows
h. Construct an 8' x 12' shed in the side garden
i. Construct a store (for camping equipment and rarely used tools etc) round the back
j. Repaint various bits outside where the black paint is peeling off (why?)
Now, I've been pretty brief on the detail and left out completely a lot of small jobs but even so it slightly depresses me. However, the next stage is to decide the priorities and hence what to do in each month (trying to pretend that the weather will be great). I've also omitted a promise to my oldest brother to go and help him do a job on his equally old house for a few days.
The main priority is the shed as that will give me a home for all my tools and also allow me to do dirty jobs (like sanding a door) when it's wet. In fact the first job then is to do the retaining wall as the lawn and shed are higher than the ground around the house. Of course, the shed is an outside job so all I can do on that right now is to plan and wait for some decent weather. So the next jobs to be tackled are the internal ones like the re-decorating - somehow I find I have difficulty in mustering any enthusiasm for that but I know that once I start it won't seem so bad.
All this makes me realise just how much work I got done in Nov 2010 - June 2011, how well I did the project management and how committed I must have been then: I think I worked 9 or 10 hour days, six days out of seven in most weeks, initially in very cold weather (remember that snow?) and then it brightened up in the Spring. Looking back I am impressed with my own performance but I doubt that I could do it again.
However, I know from past experience that to make progress on a large job like a house, you have to "eat an elephant" - i.e. do a little bit at a time, but just keep on doing it. So I need a plan and a set of targets; I'm hoping that by writing them down here they will cause me to actually do them, whereas a written list at home is easily lost (and I do lose things easily anyway!). Also, a written list can be a bit depressing (especially if you put in too much detail) as it just looks insurmountable and has the opposite effect to what is intended.
So, here's my realistic list for what I want to do on this house and garden this year:
a. Finish the small brick wall and the barbecue stand at the back of the garden
b. Get some more limestone and finish the wall down the side of the house/lawn
c. Get some more limestone and do the other end of that wall, where I want to make a ramp up to the lawn with a retaining wallin front of the shed.
d. Finish decorating indoors (includes lime plaster repairs)
e. Plaster the walls of the wardrobe
f. Fit the bath panel properly
g. Refurbish at least one of the sash windows
h. Construct an 8' x 12' shed in the side garden
i. Construct a store (for camping equipment and rarely used tools etc) round the back
j. Repaint various bits outside where the black paint is peeling off (why?)
Now, I've been pretty brief on the detail and left out completely a lot of small jobs but even so it slightly depresses me. However, the next stage is to decide the priorities and hence what to do in each month (trying to pretend that the weather will be great). I've also omitted a promise to my oldest brother to go and help him do a job on his equally old house for a few days.
The main priority is the shed as that will give me a home for all my tools and also allow me to do dirty jobs (like sanding a door) when it's wet. In fact the first job then is to do the retaining wall as the lawn and shed are higher than the ground around the house. Of course, the shed is an outside job so all I can do on that right now is to plan and wait for some decent weather. So the next jobs to be tackled are the internal ones like the re-decorating - somehow I find I have difficulty in mustering any enthusiasm for that but I know that once I start it won't seem so bad.
All this makes me realise just how much work I got done in Nov 2010 - June 2011, how well I did the project management and how committed I must have been then: I think I worked 9 or 10 hour days, six days out of seven in most weeks, initially in very cold weather (remember that snow?) and then it brightened up in the Spring. Looking back I am impressed with my own performance but I doubt that I could do it again.
Tuesday, 10 July 2012
Walls, Weather and the Olympic Torch
Since I last posted more than two weeks ago, I really have been trying to stop getting annoyed with the weather and just get on with the various walls which I need to build. However, I have to report, just in case it's not obvious or you're lucky enough to not have been in the UK recently, that progress on walls has been frustratingly slow because since then I've only done about three days work thanks to our "summer".
One achievement is that I have done a good bit of work on the second wall end in the front gateway of the driveway. This was an essential precursor to doing the main wall beside the house as it needed to have first choice of the available stone in order to match the rest of the wall. It isn't finished or perfect but I am quite satisfied with it. Its public position means that it gets more attention than I might like and it will still need more work such as setting the coping stone. The weather has been so bad that I've not even taken a photo yet, but will do so soon.
Such is the rarity of decent weather that I recently had to choose between using a fine day to maximum benefit by doing more walling or going and see the Olympic torch which passed nearby. In fact, we were living in London not far from Tower Bridge when the Olympics were "won" in 2005 and we decided then that it would be a good idea to have moved out of London before the event happened. Somehow one knows that the public disruption will be quite intolerable for those residents who have a reasonable desire to actually work almost as normal. You won't be surprised that such is my level of enthusiasm for the Olympics that the wall won and I spent a productive and tiring afternoon doing half a course of the wall beside the front door.
OK, yes the Olympic torch passing is a once in a lifetime event, but there are many other things I wish that I had done in my life, and I have learned to have few regrets. One thing that I do still regret was when Concorde was returned to service (in 2002 I think) after the Paris accident; passenger numbers were low so they were offering a day trip to New York (with one way on Concorde) for £1,000 but, even though I could have afforded it, I persuaded myself that there would be other opportunities. Of course, when they suddenly pulled the plug less than two years later, there were no good deals then!
Finally, I should record the first anniversary of our actual move into this property. This causes me firstly to ask where the year has actually gone? There still seems so much to do and, as far as I am concerned, relatively little seems to have been accomplished of what I expected to do (but when I say this, Jane says that I shouldn't be so hard on myself). I know I can't blame it all on the weather. Once you are actually living in your house, the priorities all change and I have deliberately told myself that I am retired so what is the hurry? I still refuse to have a huge list of tasks as that would be too depressing, but I do try to decide at the start of each week exactly what I'd like to achieve in that week; however, that brings me back to the vagaries of the current weather...
One achievement is that I have done a good bit of work on the second wall end in the front gateway of the driveway. This was an essential precursor to doing the main wall beside the house as it needed to have first choice of the available stone in order to match the rest of the wall. It isn't finished or perfect but I am quite satisfied with it. Its public position means that it gets more attention than I might like and it will still need more work such as setting the coping stone. The weather has been so bad that I've not even taken a photo yet, but will do so soon.
Such is the rarity of decent weather that I recently had to choose between using a fine day to maximum benefit by doing more walling or going and see the Olympic torch which passed nearby. In fact, we were living in London not far from Tower Bridge when the Olympics were "won" in 2005 and we decided then that it would be a good idea to have moved out of London before the event happened. Somehow one knows that the public disruption will be quite intolerable for those residents who have a reasonable desire to actually work almost as normal. You won't be surprised that such is my level of enthusiasm for the Olympics that the wall won and I spent a productive and tiring afternoon doing half a course of the wall beside the front door.
OK, yes the Olympic torch passing is a once in a lifetime event, but there are many other things I wish that I had done in my life, and I have learned to have few regrets. One thing that I do still regret was when Concorde was returned to service (in 2002 I think) after the Paris accident; passenger numbers were low so they were offering a day trip to New York (with one way on Concorde) for £1,000 but, even though I could have afforded it, I persuaded myself that there would be other opportunities. Of course, when they suddenly pulled the plug less than two years later, there were no good deals then!
Finally, I should record the first anniversary of our actual move into this property. This causes me firstly to ask where the year has actually gone? There still seems so much to do and, as far as I am concerned, relatively little seems to have been accomplished of what I expected to do (but when I say this, Jane says that I shouldn't be so hard on myself). I know I can't blame it all on the weather. Once you are actually living in your house, the priorities all change and I have deliberately told myself that I am retired so what is the hurry? I still refuse to have a huge list of tasks as that would be too depressing, but I do try to decide at the start of each week exactly what I'd like to achieve in that week; however, that brings me back to the vagaries of the current weather...
Monday, 19 March 2012
Project Management
One of the dangers of doing a restoration is that it might never finish. You know, you just keep on doing jobs and bits, and never quite reach the end. I really would like to avoid the feeling, in five or ten years time, of still having jobs which have been outstanding all that time! However, I have no intention of actually having a project plan as, after all, I'm retired and would like to take it slightly easy! (Also, I have memories of project managers who couldn't manage, or who seemed to think that a plan on MS Project was the answer to everything... don't get me started.) Therefore, here are my thoughts on how I will manage the jobs that are left; these fall into at least three four categories:
1. The really important ones which affect our ability to live in the house. The completion of the extension falls into this category, as we can't tidy up the main house until we have the extension to put things in!
2. The major ones which are awaiting some suitable opportunity (e.g. jobs that need good weather, like refurbishing sash windows), need some item to be bought (when I find it at a reclamation yard) or need some special information (i.e. require internet research)
3. The quite important ones which just need to be done somewhen soon, like finish the bathroom and the bedroom wardrobe (both left from last July when we moved in).
4. The rest, which are mostly small tasks scattered around the entire estate, but which includes ones like the toilet roll holder and towel rail in the new loo.
The temptation is to concentrate on the last category as they are relatively easy and quite satisfying, so the trick is to decide on a Sunday evening which tasks in the first three categories will get my attentionin the following week. I will also pick off a few of the easy ones just to keep those ticking over so that they don't become more important and move up the list! One of my techniques as an engineering manager in the RAF was to try to make sure that once a week - often Friday afternoons - I spent two or three hours doing all the routine things (unless a crisis came along). This is how I shall manage the minor jobs here.
In the RAF nearly all of my job was management in some form or other. As an engineer I once worked at a headquarters where I managed two aircraft fleets - servicing schedules, technical defects, modifications, that sort of thing. Some people in similar jobs used to thrive on crises, and in fact only ever seemed to attend to one crisis after another - all routine stuff was ignored as being of no consequence. They would work long hours (they said) or even go in at weekends. Of course, one day, that neglected routine stuff would become a new crisis and so the circle continued. The really annoying thing was that lots of these people got promoted for doing crisis management well, which rather ignored the fact that most of these crises were of their own making. The high priced help never really looked at the whole job you were doing, just the really visible parts of it (i.e. the crises), so those of us who were able to make sure that crises occurred less often by doing our job properly were not rewarded for doing the job well as we hardly ever had a crisis to shine in! You can start to see why I was delighted to leave...
1. The really important ones which affect our ability to live in the house. The completion of the extension falls into this category, as we can't tidy up the main house until we have the extension to put things in!
2. The major ones which are awaiting some suitable opportunity (e.g. jobs that need good weather, like refurbishing sash windows), need some item to be bought (when I find it at a reclamation yard) or need some special information (i.e. require internet research)
3. The quite important ones which just need to be done somewhen soon, like finish the bathroom and the bedroom wardrobe (both left from last July when we moved in).
4. The rest, which are mostly small tasks scattered around the entire estate, but which includes ones like the toilet roll holder and towel rail in the new loo.
The temptation is to concentrate on the last category as they are relatively easy and quite satisfying, so the trick is to decide on a Sunday evening which tasks in the first three categories will get my attentionin the following week. I will also pick off a few of the easy ones just to keep those ticking over so that they don't become more important and move up the list! One of my techniques as an engineering manager in the RAF was to try to make sure that once a week - often Friday afternoons - I spent two or three hours doing all the routine things (unless a crisis came along). This is how I shall manage the minor jobs here.
In the RAF nearly all of my job was management in some form or other. As an engineer I once worked at a headquarters where I managed two aircraft fleets - servicing schedules, technical defects, modifications, that sort of thing. Some people in similar jobs used to thrive on crises, and in fact only ever seemed to attend to one crisis after another - all routine stuff was ignored as being of no consequence. They would work long hours (they said) or even go in at weekends. Of course, one day, that neglected routine stuff would become a new crisis and so the circle continued. The really annoying thing was that lots of these people got promoted for doing crisis management well, which rather ignored the fact that most of these crises were of their own making. The high priced help never really looked at the whole job you were doing, just the really visible parts of it (i.e. the crises), so those of us who were able to make sure that crises occurred less often by doing our job properly were not rewarded for doing the job well as we hardly ever had a crisis to shine in! You can start to see why I was delighted to leave...
Friday, 2 March 2012
Wheelbarrows and Contractors
The wheelbarrow is dead; long live the wheelbarrow!
I forgot to mention my new wheelbarrow. The old one (above left) suffered fatal injuries at the hands of various contractors last year; clearly it wasn't as resilient as I first thought (in this link). You can see the frame and bucket are only attached by the front brackets - all four welds have gone, as have the sides where the stiffeners are kinked. I actually saw that happen when we were doing the floor last April (see this link) - a full load of mortar from the mixer was being settled down by shaking the whole thing from side to side and both sides suddenly went outwards by an inch or two with a kink in the middle of each side. This was most noticeable as from then on the wheelbarrow scraped on both sides of the old French window as we pushed the next mix inside for Chris to lay.
Of course, the sideways action described above is unlikely to be in the design specification, and I'm sure that this action is what caused the welds to go as well. Everyone who has mixed a load in my mixer has done it, so why don't the designers think of it? It soldiered on but eventually died in the autumn, so I'll take it to the metal recycling somewhen - anyone want a used wheel in good condition?
Anyway, I needed to have a useable one so I found one of a different design (above right) which hopefully will prove more durable - and I don't intend to have any contractors misuse it! It has already helped move several tons of materials from the front to the back and carried the mix for the floor in the extension, plus more recently the mixed lime plaster for the wall.
Talking of contractors, we have had possibly the last contractor job done this week, as Kurt the sparky has done the 2nd fix in the new extension; we now have light and power - and hence a working washing machine as well! When I've tidied up I will post a few photos of what it looks like, but right now it's rather messy. I lost count a long time ago of the number of different workers there has been on this building in the last 16 months, but a quick count reveals at least 39 people from 18 different "organisations" (and I'm bound to have forgotten some!). Most have been excellent, and I have had very few reasons to complain.
So, although I can't hear a fat lady singing, it's all over bar the shouting. This is actually quite a milestone, I realize: everything left to do on the house and garden will be done by my own fair hands. There are hundreds of jobs around the pace and I don't have a list - that would be too depressing! My project management technique is to decide at the weekend what I think are the most important tasks to be done, and make a list of what I would like to achieve in the week. Thus the next weekend, if I have done nearly everything on the list, I can feel pretty happy with myself and make a new list for the next week. And so on...
PS In case you hadn't noticed, it's spring. I am very happy to report that my hedge and trees, planted at the end of last November (see this link), have survived the (admittedly mild) winter and are now about to burst forth with lots of new shoots.
Of course, the sideways action described above is unlikely to be in the design specification, and I'm sure that this action is what caused the welds to go as well. Everyone who has mixed a load in my mixer has done it, so why don't the designers think of it? It soldiered on but eventually died in the autumn, so I'll take it to the metal recycling somewhen - anyone want a used wheel in good condition?
Anyway, I needed to have a useable one so I found one of a different design (above right) which hopefully will prove more durable - and I don't intend to have any contractors misuse it! It has already helped move several tons of materials from the front to the back and carried the mix for the floor in the extension, plus more recently the mixed lime plaster for the wall.
Talking of contractors, we have had possibly the last contractor job done this week, as Kurt the sparky has done the 2nd fix in the new extension; we now have light and power - and hence a working washing machine as well! When I've tidied up I will post a few photos of what it looks like, but right now it's rather messy. I lost count a long time ago of the number of different workers there has been on this building in the last 16 months, but a quick count reveals at least 39 people from 18 different "organisations" (and I'm bound to have forgotten some!). Most have been excellent, and I have had very few reasons to complain.
So, although I can't hear a fat lady singing, it's all over bar the shouting. This is actually quite a milestone, I realize: everything left to do on the house and garden will be done by my own fair hands. There are hundreds of jobs around the pace and I don't have a list - that would be too depressing! My project management technique is to decide at the weekend what I think are the most important tasks to be done, and make a list of what I would like to achieve in the week. Thus the next weekend, if I have done nearly everything on the list, I can feel pretty happy with myself and make a new list for the next week. And so on...
PS In case you hadn't noticed, it's spring. I am very happy to report that my hedge and trees, planted at the end of last November (see this link), have survived the (admittedly mild) winter and are now about to burst forth with lots of new shoots.
Sunday, 13 November 2011
Doors, Roofing and Insulation
I've had the replacement chippie (who did the rafters last week) back to fix our new FLB (***see below) external back door, complete with a rim lock and brass knobs, into the frame. Of course, I forgot to buy a weatherboard so I'll do that myself later this week. He also did a new frame for the old door from the kitchen into the extension, which was hanging
Tuesday, 9 August 2011
We actually live here now
Never move house just before you have a holiday. We have just returned from a 16 night camping holiday to our "new" house, and it just feels so strange; after all, we had only spent 13 nights here before the holiday, so we didn't really know what it was like to live in this house after spending so long restoring it. We came inside and walked around admiring the handiwork as though we had never seen it before! Do we actually live here now? We own it, it's all ours! We had even forgotten where things were - which drawer contained the cling film in the kitchen; more importantly, where was my clean underwear? I didn't realise how bad it was until Jane came home tonight and asked why there was so much stuff in the sink. "Have you forgotten that we now have a dishwasher again?" Or is that just my age?
Apart from my memory, the other trouble now is motivation. For the last nine months I have been working to a plan (sort of) which basically was to do all the necessary things so that we could move in. Having achieved that, I now have serious problems in personal motivation and prioritization. There is so much to do in the house, quite apart from our plan to re-build the brick extension (which is about to fall down) and sort out the garden/drive. I can see why people talk about taking ten or more years on their period property renovation, so I must stick with the weekly lists of tasks and make sure that I achieve what I aim for each week. There are also loads of boxes containing the assorted miscellanea of 37 years of marriage, and for once I do not have a storeroom or garage to hide them in; in fact, I don't even have a store for my tools which are now getting in the way.
The good news is that we have submitted our revised planning application for the brick extension and conservatory; my aim is to start the repair of the existing building in September (for which we don't need planning permission) and hope that the full approval is forthcoming soon after. However, after previous encounters, I am not counting any chickens as far as the council are concerned!
Apart from my memory, the other trouble now is motivation. For the last nine months I have been working to a plan (sort of) which basically was to do all the necessary things so that we could move in. Having achieved that, I now have serious problems in personal motivation and prioritization. There is so much to do in the house, quite apart from our plan to re-build the brick extension (which is about to fall down) and sort out the garden/drive. I can see why people talk about taking ten or more years on their period property renovation, so I must stick with the weekly lists of tasks and make sure that I achieve what I aim for each week. There are also loads of boxes containing the assorted miscellanea of 37 years of marriage, and for once I do not have a storeroom or garage to hide them in; in fact, I don't even have a store for my tools which are now getting in the way.
The good news is that we have submitted our revised planning application for the brick extension and conservatory; my aim is to start the repair of the existing building in September (for which we don't need planning permission) and hope that the full approval is forthcoming soon after. However, after previous encounters, I am not counting any chickens as far as the council are concerned!
Sunday, 12 June 2011
It's getting stressful
I suppose it had to get stressful somewhen, and in many ways I have done well to avoid the stress for seven months. However, we plan to move in by July 8th (and this is June 11th), there is still so much to do in four weeks, and the stress is now getting to me. I've just been let down by a contractor who was going to clear the front garden for the driveway, so I'm overcoming the stress of that by doing it myself and saving the money. I've written before about people who have tight project plans which cause them extra stress as well as costing them extra money, and it was my deliberate policy to try to avoid a similar situation. So much for that idea!
The photo (left) shows some electrical switches and sockets. Not just any switches and sockets, but OUR switches and sockets, which are all now live! On Friday I had the pleasure of plugging my electrical tools into the proper socket - away with the long extension leads, just plug it in! It is surprising how tidying up the loose wires coming out from every wall makes the whole place seem so much more completed.
Also, the kitchen has arrived (photo right). Looking at the huge pile of boxes, I am really glad that I am not fitting it all myself.
I'd like to think that all remaining work is organised with contractors planned to come along and do their bit at the right moment, but I know that life is not like that. Every time that I have had even two contractors at the same time, it has been quite a strain with their conflicting requirements, but over the next two weeks I expect to have seven different contractors working, so I anticipate some severe conflict. The other work to be done is completion of the second fix plumbing and electrics, installation of a newly made window cill, fitting the kitchen sash window, fitting the lounge fire, doing the driveway (with a dropped kerb) and (significantly) fitting the entire kitchen. Additionally, I have to do certain tasks myself such as grouting the kitchen floor, painting the kitchen walls and finishing the bathroom tiling; then, before moving in, I also have to finish the decorating upstairs and make a wardrobe for the main bedroom, plus then get a couple of carpets fitted. There is also a slight worry about whether we actually have space for everything, and so I'm wondering if I should buy a large shed or even a big tent!
I'd like to think that all remaining work is organised with contractors planned to come along and do their bit at the right moment, but I know that life is not like that. Every time that I have had even two contractors at the same time, it has been quite a strain with their conflicting requirements, but over the next two weeks I expect to have seven different contractors working, so I anticipate some severe conflict. The other work to be done is completion of the second fix plumbing and electrics, installation of a newly made window cill, fitting the kitchen sash window, fitting the lounge fire, doing the driveway (with a dropped kerb) and (significantly) fitting the entire kitchen. Additionally, I have to do certain tasks myself such as grouting the kitchen floor, painting the kitchen walls and finishing the bathroom tiling; then, before moving in, I also have to finish the decorating upstairs and make a wardrobe for the main bedroom, plus then get a couple of carpets fitted. There is also a slight worry about whether we actually have space for everything, and so I'm wondering if I should buy a large shed or even a big tent!
Wednesday, 22 December 2010
Snow, snow, snow
Of course, this had obvious implications for my project management plans for the week: basically, nothing has happened. The carefully laid plans for the collection of our rooflight, the fitment of the rooflight and the finishing of the roof around it, the finishing of replacing laths on two bedroom ceilings, plastering of those two ceilings, and the removal of the scaffolding - NOTHING. Apart from the snow, it really has been very cold, with minus 11 deg C one morning this week, when the hot water system in our 10-year old rented house froze!
The good news was that our first grandchild was safely born (early) on Sunday evening, and the snow did not prevent us from driving to visit on both Monday and Tuesday. So, work is suspended whilst we attend to more important issues in life, like supporting our son and daughter-in-law with their new responsibilities, and celebrating Christmas with our daughter plus partner, who arrived here today.
Friday, 26 November 2010
Project Management
You know those house shows on TV where someone says that he/she is going to do the Project Management for their project, whilst also doing a full-time job, and not having enough money so they decide to do a lot of work themselves? And usually the couple decide that this is also a good time to have their first baby? Well, now I know for sure that they are absolutely stark staring mad!
Often the people on TV end up making poor decisions, paying more for work because of their tight schedule, and getting very stressed about everything. I know I'm not in the first flush of youth but once you start the pressure is relentless and it is all so tiring and time-consuming. All I have been doing is some work on the joists in the lounge but I keep getting interrupted, and so have not been able to do the loft access or plaster removal which I thought I would have done by the end of November. I wanted to do this project at my own speed so I didn't get stressed and could enjoy the whole process. The reality is that as soon as you get a contractor in, you are working to HIS schedule, not your own, and normally contractors want to get things finished pretty quickly (assuming that you haven't paid them in full up front and they just clear off with your money!).
Anyway, we've been having a few scheduling issues with the chimneys which have impacted the roofer's schedule. Hopefully the rendering on the back chimney will be done this weekend which will allow a bit more scaffolding to come down, leaving the way clear for completion of the leadwork, followed by the last of the slating then the "mucky work" which is where the roofers have to use cement to fix all the ridge tiles. We might even get the rest of the scaffolding down in the next two weeks; the upper front lift has already come down, revealing the newly rendered front chimney (which will weather soon, I hope!):
In all that work there will also be the installation of our new cast-iron gutters and downpipes, which all arrived yesterday. These are VERY expensive and are what you should fit on a listed building; people were counselling me to use a form of plastic which is said to look like cast-iron (really?). For me this was a conscious decision made in advance of purchase of the house, and it was also an argument that I did not want to have with the Conservation Officer. In my view, if I say that I will do a project properly, and then suggest using plastic guttering, I will immediately lose all credibility and that will impact all future proposals that I make to the Council. So, pick your arguments and build up your credibility by being conscientious in what you are doing with your bit of heritage. Possibly, later, they might just be more sympathetic when you ask for a major decision in your favour...
Often the people on TV end up making poor decisions, paying more for work because of their tight schedule, and getting very stressed about everything. I know I'm not in the first flush of youth but once you start the pressure is relentless and it is all so tiring and time-consuming. All I have been doing is some work on the joists in the lounge but I keep getting interrupted, and so have not been able to do the loft access or plaster removal which I thought I would have done by the end of November. I wanted to do this project at my own speed so I didn't get stressed and could enjoy the whole process. The reality is that as soon as you get a contractor in, you are working to HIS schedule, not your own, and normally contractors want to get things finished pretty quickly (assuming that you haven't paid them in full up front and they just clear off with your money!).
Anyway, we've been having a few scheduling issues with the chimneys which have impacted the roofer's schedule. Hopefully the rendering on the back chimney will be done this weekend which will allow a bit more scaffolding to come down, leaving the way clear for completion of the leadwork, followed by the last of the slating then the "mucky work" which is where the roofers have to use cement to fix all the ridge tiles. We might even get the rest of the scaffolding down in the next two weeks; the upper front lift has already come down, revealing the newly rendered front chimney (which will weather soon, I hope!):
In all that work there will also be the installation of our new cast-iron gutters and downpipes, which all arrived yesterday. These are VERY expensive and are what you should fit on a listed building; people were counselling me to use a form of plastic which is said to look like cast-iron (really?). For me this was a conscious decision made in advance of purchase of the house, and it was also an argument that I did not want to have with the Conservation Officer. In my view, if I say that I will do a project properly, and then suggest using plastic guttering, I will immediately lose all credibility and that will impact all future proposals that I make to the Council. So, pick your arguments and build up your credibility by being conscientious in what you are doing with your bit of heritage. Possibly, later, they might just be more sympathetic when you ask for a major decision in your favour...
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