Christmas was interesting for us, being on Cyclone Warning and trying to move house and some of the boat gear in torrential rain. For a while we thought we’d have to postpone celebrations in favour of spending the day securing the boat and the tiny house, which were still at the old premises.Thankfully by Christmas lunchtime it was apparent that the threat was low, and we were able to relax and have a pleasant time with the kids.
The tiny house was still under construction, and in the meantime, our son Atticus was sleeping in the kitchen of the new place. On New Year’s eve we had it transported here in its incomplete state.
Tom, Atticus and a very kind friend spent the rest of the day raising it on blocks, fitting a door, attaching corrugated iron roofing, installing air-conditioning and lighting, and connecting power, so that it would be (just) habitable that night. Outstanding tasks are: finish painting externally; sand and paint internally; and fit two large portlights (boat surplus) as windows. We plan to complete these while Atticus is away on Navy Cadet camp over Easter. The total cost to build this extra accommodation was close to $2000, including a brand new air-conditioner. The internal layout was designed to be flexible, to enable re-purposing as a workshop, studio, or storeroom. Hopefully, once we no longer need it, it can be sold to recover the costs.
On the boat front, we have not had any luck finding someone prepared to move our boat. We had an owner-operator organised to move it during the first week of January, however he pulled out at the last minute – probably nervous about the wet ground after the cyclone. We arranged with four other operators to quote – three have failed to show, and one should be coming this afternoon. If this falls through, we are considering dry-hiring a 5 tonne 7.3m tray truck and finding a suitable driver.
The Scrumble Project 