Tongue & Groove

Cut the grass on Saturday, took 1 hour exactly

Great idea, thanks for setting this up Nick.

I just add to the White woodwork painting required is all the windows. Ie three on hut nearest path, four on the middle hut plus door and the side windows and one inner one on the kitchen hut. All are badly needing sanding down, filling, undercoat and gloss.

After the main things have been seen to, there are a number of things I feel would be fun things to add. Feedback welcome:

• Flowers! Either flower beds or flower blocs ouside the middle hut and around the garden
• 2 x new/second hand modern canoes for trips down-river (plus life jackets)
• Fix the bike and perhaps get another (plus locks), for trips to town
• Build an outdoor permanent brick/concrete barbeque and possibly sitting area in the garden, such as this or this
• Install a Philips high-efficiency electrip strip-heater into the semi-outdoor sitting area
• Get a guest book!

The following things need doing as highest priority:

• Final Creosoting
• Roof on end hut needs complete re-felting to stop rotting (1-2 days)
• Corrogated iron roof over kitchen hut needs to be sanded/scraped down and repainted (1-2 days)
• Trees by entrance to river landing and by entrance need lopping down to 2/3 the current height (whole day)
• 1 x old canoe needs burning (totally had it)
• Windows and door on middle hut need sanding and painting white (1-2 days)
• Wooden landing on middle hut needs fixing (one of the supports has rotted) (1/2 days)
• Entrance door to middle hut needs fixing/adjusting

At The Withies we have a basic but functional chemical toilet. There’s no gold plated pull-flush or scented candles, there is however a toilet-roll holder. I believe that the toilet experience can be changed from “OK” to “Good”.

Here’s the current state for that “before and after” comparison.

I believe this space can benefit from the toilet having a good ol’ clean, and the interior being painted white. The main problem is the interior has been previously Creosoted. However, a quick look at eHow shows it can be done with some effort.

Another idea would be to place some mains or battery powered lighting both inside and out, plus some new artwork or photography to spruce it up.

The door needs fixing as the hut is lopsided and making it difficult to open the door.

Finally, some formal instructions on use, framed and hung up for guests who haven’t yet had the low-down.

I can’t call this day 1, as this man has already spent many a laborous day with varnish brush, chainsaw or lawnmover in hand, year after year in recent times. Relentless dedication to task!

However, this is day one of the blog-log, and I’m happy to say we managed to creosote (or Creocote as it is now called) about 80% of the huts which will allow the wood to be protected for another 5 years.

We also managed to get a lot of it in our eyes which I’m sure isn’t healthy, but does make you feel worthy of a beer at the end of a day.

Cuppa?

A blog is the perfect solution, answer, reflection of our thoughts, actions and ideas. Here we celebrate our little piece of land complete with 100 year old cottages once used as a fishing spot by a forefather. Here we stand today, making use of the gem to invite friends, family, girlfriends/boyfriends and share the peace it offers.

Here we also stand with a dilemna. For this place was not built to last this long. Slowly but surely the seasons, the woodworm and the river-water take their toll. But our fun is not over yet.

Running water, a portaloo and beds fit for sleep. The kitchen has everything you need, and a slightly battered rowing boat makes for a quick row upstream to the wier.

As it is today, The Withies has been described by our friends as beautiful, novel, diferrent, unique, peaceful, the list goes on. But why settle for just that.

Enough talk, on with the action.