New Home - update

Hola Blogers,

Well we now know how to work the oven ......but when you set it - it overides all the electricity in the flat and turns all the lights out! To add to this only 2 of the 4 rings on the hob are working. After a lengthy argument with the decorator and kitchen shop people I have got them to agree to send the technicians at their cost. They were trying to get me to pay as I haven't got a guarantee! But I only don't have a guarantee because they decided to put ex - display stuff in my kitchen. Their argument is that they have done me a favour because the good price meant that they could put fancy high tech german appliances. My argument is that I'd rather have bog standard crap if that means that it will work! I think we are begining to see eye to eye though and they say that the technicians will come this week and sort it out - at the expense of the kitchen shop.

We now have a leaking waste pipe that is dripping water into the store room downstairs, which means that the neighbour nags me daily for it to be fixed. However, its been raining and they apparently need it to be dry in order to fix it.

It has seemed like we havebeen going backwards over the last few weeks but I am hoping this week will be s step forward. The sofas arrive tomorrow and the wash basin is being put in in the little bathrrom tomorrow also. There are about five other little jobs that I am hoping I'll see done this week too. Not banking on it though. And to think I originally talked about buying a flat to completley do up! God no way. Its bad enough having to live here when its virtually finished. I can 't imagine a full do up job (which this flat was - but we bought it at the end of the process).

We are going down to my apartment near Alicante for a long weekend as of Thursday so that should sort us out for a while. Its amazing what a sofa and a washing machine can do for you. We stayed on the farm this weekend and it was heaven. Just what I needed as I had been feeling quite down the week before.

I am sick of the sight of me in the same clothes! Although I can wash them at the farm, I can't get a wide range of clothes out because there is no where to put them in the flat. So I just rotate the same things in a small bag. Everyone here in Valencia must think I haven't got anything else. I'm probably known as that new girl with the brown top and gold trainers.

Oh I've bagged a cleaning lady who is working her magic right now. Its the first time she has come today and seems like a good sort - getting stuck in straight away. She has been here three hours and has not finished the kitchen and the outside kitchen yet - that tells you how much dust there is everywhere. They have been cutting marble and tiles this morning and its just amazing how much dust is created. she wants to work for me everyday and be a housekeeper but I have told her we are unfortunatley not that rich! She had an all day job before but the lady has died so she's in need of work. I'm going for a big clean now whilst its like a work site then a more usual 3 or 4 hours a week. So if she finds an all day job then she'll probably dump my measely job. We'll see. She's from Ecuador and calls me Senora (with a squiggly n - but there isn't one on my keyboard). I must admit I rather like that. I feel like a proper ex pat.

S xx