Heat and Other Highlights

Fall has officially arrived here in gay Paree, and although the days can occasionally be sunny and cool, the nights tend to be more on the damp and cold side. I was thrilled to discover that the heat had been turned on at school this morning, and even more excited to discover that the heat in our apartment has also been turned on. It's the small things that tend to make my days lately.

Small things like the lights in the toilet and the bathroom. This is old news for Howard, because he and Erik took care of this more than a week ago, but I thought you would all like to see photos of these great lights.




Other highlights in apartment land include the installation of the freezer (still not plugged in, but pretty looking)


The construction of our closet by moi (no doors yet, and they will eventually be placed properly against the wall and in the corner but there's still wallpaper hiding behind there...)


And I think I mentioned in the previous post how Ross and Katie had fun de-wallpapering our toilet. They also had fun signing it. :)

Visitor's Part Deux

We just said goodbye to our second wave of visitors this morning. Our good friends Katie and Ross were here for a week, and were kind enough to say many nice things about the construction site that we were all living in.

No construction this week, although Ross did a great job of peeling the wallpaper out of the bathroom. They can come back anytime!




The wine harvest in Montmartre was being celebrated this weekend, so we headed up there last night for the fireworks. We had a snack of escargots before the show.


A really bad shot, but the fireworks were amazing! None of us had ever been so close before. We were sitting on the hill in front of Sacre Coeur, and they must have been lit from the big park just below. It was great!


We had dinner after at the Zebre. Champagne for the ladies.


I'm not sure what to say about this shot. Let's just say that it was an entertaining night.

More photos

The photo tour continues with some more realistic shots of our humble abode. The place is a mess, and I make no apologies. As soon as this post is finished, I'm going to dump the contents of the bedroom on the bed to make room for the assembly of our new wardrobe. Fun.

You know what else is fun? Spending seven hours at Ikea on a Saturday. Anja and I went out for what I thought would be a well organized quick pick up trip. Hah. We got there around 12:30, and by 6:00 we were just lining up for delivery. An unexpected problem at the cash had me picking up the pieces for our wardrobe by myself in the warehouse. The main pieces are about 50kgs and 230 cm long. I like to think I'm strong, but there was no way I could get those suckers onto the stupid rolling cart by myself. Anyway, I eventually got everything through the cash, and we got out of there a lot later and a lot more tired than we had expected. The kicker is that I didn't get everything we need, so we'll have to go back at least another time. Fun.


Let's start the tour in the 'living' area of the main room. Please note the original style of wallpaper removal.


The 'work' area of the main room. Howard has taken to calling it his 'studio'. Or more appropriately his 'atelier'. This is where the magic happens. It also seems like the freezer (on the left, in it's box) is being used as a workbench.


The entry way, leading into the kitchen.


I wonder if this is up to code??


My lovely kitchen. The only room that is almost completely unpacked, and with electricity. No light though.


Please note the counter that Howard made for us. The freezer will eventually go in the space next to the stove. I'm not sure why it hasn't been installed yet. I try not to ask too many questions.


The bedroom. The arrival of the armoire should help tame the many clothes monsters that we have developed. The cord hanging down the middle of the shot is for the temporary light hanging from the ceiling. Best to ignore that and just appreciate the view of the courtyard.


The bathroom with our temporary shower fixture and plastic sheeting coverred walls. Surprisingly I haven't seen this look in any of the decorating magazines I've been reading.


Howard's handywork removing the bidet and installing a drain and vent for our washing machine. The lead drain pipe was bent into shape with a hair dryer, and he bent the taps back by hand to allow the machine to sit more completely in the corner. You can also see the wire casings propped up in the corner. The goal this weekend is to get light into the toilet and bathroom. Cross your fingers!!

Photos

Here are some photos of the boys hard at work.  Obviously taken before we moved, it's hard to remember how clean and big the place looked.  I'll have to take some more today so you can see how we've evolved.  And no, there still isn't any light in the bathroom.  Or any room other than the kitchen.  But we do have a working washing machine and a makeshift counter.  As one of the teachers at school said to me yesterday: "petit a petit, l'oiseau fait son nid."*  I have however completely unpacked the kitchen, and had Anja over for dinner.  There is so much cupboard space that one whole side and most of the upper shelves are empty.  And the kitchen is so big, all three of us were able to be in there as I finished making the meal.  What a treat!  One other advantage to our new place is the huge shower.  And I used to think the shower stalls at the gym were spacious!

*"little by little, the bird makes it's nest.