Moving House - The Cleaning

Things are now starting to happen at half the speed of light!!!! Today indeed marks two weeks remaining at this house!!!!!

Last Friday's schedule meeting with my potential rooming host didn't take place. She got held up in one of her many jobs so was running late. And with a busy week ahead this week for her, we agreed to wait until the following weekend - this weekend - when she is scheduled to contact me again, and have our meetup at the house early the following week. With me due to vacate this house on the 7th, this still leaves a little over a week, cutting a wee bit fine for this Virgo who likes to be organised as soon as possible and not leave things to the last minute, however, I really like her energies, and her room offer all sounds good on all counts from location to room rate with all utilities included.

So now to channel my over-anxious energies into organising for the house to be cleaned. It's in the DNA of Virgos to be over anxious about things, we like to be organised as soon as possible, we hate leaving things to the last minute, and the task of sourcing cleaners for the various tasks seemed overwhelming!!!

OK let's take three deep breaths and begin with the oven cleaning. I googled for a list of oven cleaners. So I tried to call the first of them but no one answered. Then I went back online and happened to find a company that coordinates the various cleaning jobs and one of their specialties is cleaning for vacating rental properties. OK sounds good!!!!!!

So I called them, and told them I need cleaning for the oven, carpets, windows, and general cleaning. At first the sheila told me she would need to source four different people for these four jobs, and each one would call me within two hours. Me the Virgo sceptic, we Virgos are sceptical creatures, thinking that no one would call in two hours and I'd be waiting all day for those calls. And we impatient Virgos hates waiting, we like things organised as soon as possible!!!!!!

Well much to my surprise the carpet cleaner called me within the first hour!!!! And after giving details of the house, he gave me a quote which I thought was most reasonable. In truth I would not have cared how much it would cost, I just wanted this whole affair over and done with, to get out of this house and never see it again!!!!! This whole affair of cleaning and moving is bringing up too much previously suppressed memories of my wife and how sick she was, the worst of her sickness and the hell years of being her carer took place in this house. So yes I just want to get out ASAP!!!!!! Anyway, after giving the quote, we agreed for him to come do the carpet cleaning on the 5th, leaving me two days for tying up loose ends.

And a little while later, actually just inside the promised two hours, the cleaning lady called me, and so we arranged for her to come to the house after work to scope out the place and then give me a quote. It turns out she also cleans the oven, so the oven cleaner problem is solved. And so she arrived at exactly the agreed time, and we went through the house as she checked out what needed to be cleaned. Then she said she would email me the quote.

This left the problem with the window cleaner. I was told the general house cleaner does the inside of the windows but I would need to book a separate cleaner who does the outside of the window, and was told by the sheila on the phone that no window cleaner was currently available, so I would probably have to arrange one from elsewhere.

However the next day I received the quote via email along with a list of cleaning tasks to be done. The quote again was very reasonable, and was impressed at the list of cleaning jobs. I was surprised to learn that she would also do the outside of the windows. Furthermore she included the garage, what I didn't think would occur. I was just going to clean the garage myself which would be nothing more than just sweeping it out. However I was most appreciative of the fact that she also includes the garage, and also the front and back porches. So basically that is all of my cleaning jobs done!!! There would be no more cleaning that I would need to do.

So this happy Virgo now have arranged for the cleaning lady to come on the 3rd which is a Saturday, then the carpet cleaners on the 5th a Monday. Basically the whole house will be cleaned in time for that final inspection.

This leaves me with the task of doing the wall repairs courtesy of that infernal hospital who installed mobility devices for my wife but left a mess on the walls with holes. There were two bolts in the wall which I couldn't remove, so I thought I would have to call for a home handyman to come remove the bolts. I searched online for such a handyman, then something told me to try the bolts again, and this time after a few well timed blows with the hammer was able to work the bolts loose and to remove them!!!! I was so happy!!!!

So now I can repair the walls myself. First fill in the holes and cracks with a wall filler, then to paint it over. Fortunately the wall filler now comes premixed in a tube, you simply apply the paste to the holes in the same way one would squeeze a toothpaste onto the toothbrush. Gone are the days when our only choice was to get the powder and mix it with water ourselves, making sure we do it in the correct proportions. Nowadays we can still get the powder and it is cheaper. But I take convenience over economics, so I opted for the more expensive premixed paste option!!!!!

Next to source the paints matching as close as possible to the wall colors. Repairs needed to be done to the toilet wall which is a dark cream, the bathroom wall which is white, and the bedroom wall which I thought was white but it turned out to be a more off-white color. So while I had gotten the paints for the first two rooms, I will this weekend have to go back to the hardware store to source an off-white paint for the bedroom wall.

Plan is to repair and fill in the holes and cracks this weekend, then wait until the cleaners have done their jobs the following weekend before painting the walls. They would clean any marks off the wall and deal with the cracked and flaking paint near where the hospital did their thing. Then afterwards I would paint the walls at the site of the repairs.

Last but not least the gardens and lawns. This is relatively simple, just a matter of keeping the lawns mowed, the edges trimmed, and the weeds under control - and of course as well watered as possible within the restrictive frame of our rostered watering nights!!!!! So basically just have to keep the lawns alive during these very dry times for the next two weeks!!!!!

Now basically I need to get all of my remaining furniture out of this house by Friday the 2nd so the cleaners could come in on the 3rd. This includes my washing machine, fridge, and bed. If I take the room offer, the room is fully furnished and all facilities provided so I won't need any of these items, so will just transport them to my storage unit and figure out what to do with them later. There is also a cupboard, a couple of tables with my laptop and other electronics, and the TV also used for my PC. I will begin to remove these this weekend then over the following week, hoping by then I will know where I will be going by the end of that week.

So next major point in what is turning out to be a very interesting series of events of my move is making contact with my potential roomie host this weekend, possibly arranging to meetup at the house early in the week. If for some reason this falls through, well it leaves me just a week to find another abode.

This is the story of my life....... nothing ever happens by conventional means!!! Everyone else would just contact a real estate agent and source some flats to rent, inspect them, apply for the rental, and wait for the decision. But me.... no..... I just have to be different..... unconventional..... out of the ordinary....... that adventurous Uranus natal in my Sun sign really kicking in!!!!!!!!!!

All I can say is...... watch this space!!!!!!!!!