Today we started the mass exodus of suitcases out to Swavesey. We're still using the rental car which we drove out from Heathrow (although we negotiated a better rate on it) and when we drove out here we were so sleep deprived we couldn't figure out how to put the back seats down. Not surprisingly, when we tried it this time it seemed very simple. :) So we managed to fit 6 of our 15 suitcases along with our guitar, 2 backpacks, etc. Right now I have 7 more in the car- we're planning one more big trip out tonight.
Nelly will be free from the cattery at 5pm today! The landlords are having the carpet cleaned and it needs time to air out I guess. The cottage is only carpeted upstairs- the living room and entry way is cobblestone, the kitchen is a sort of laminate, and the dining room area (which was added on to the cottage recently) is brick. Lots of sweeping in store. :) Tonight we'll be getting settled in and spending time with Nelly exploring our new home.
Today I spent about an hour talking to our wonderful landlords- they are so nice! Swavesey is a wonderful small village, and our neighborhood is an everyone knows each other type of place, which I was hoping for. Today I met the mailman, whose name is John. He and the landlady were catching up on some local gossip in which the previous tenant was involved, though apparently not of his own volition. It seems he has a violent ex-wife, and that's why he moved into the cottage to get away from her. Now he's found someone and has moved in with her. That's the only thing about such a small town- your business is everyone else's business. :) In any case it makes it safer as well because everyone knows everyone. Tomorrow we'll probably go around and be introduced by the landlady. :) It's great- I love it already!
The landlady is quite a gardener- she has a big walled in garden, a veggie/holding/weed area, and besides that the 2 cottages she's letting have front and rear gardens. Tenants are supposed to take care of the gardens which adjoin their places, but no one has taken care of ours or the one which is next to ours. I'll be doing quite a lot of gardening, which is fine by me. :) Also possibly some house repair- the house is very old, made in the 1700s, and so it needs new paint here and there, the floor stones could use a coat of something, and the exposed beams could use some oiling. Anyway the landlords are thrilled to have us there.
Did I mention that the cottage already has a cat door installed? I thought to myself that Father is so good at taking care of us- He even thought of Nelly, providing us a place with a cat door. We didn't know that it had one- it was hidden behind a curtain! That will make our lives much easier, since Nelly won't have to yowl at night to go out. :) Plus our street is so slow and quiet that I don't worry at all about her going farther than the yard, although I doubt she'll do that. And of course we'll mention her to all the neighbors. :)
One more interesting thing- our neighbors next door are from India, I haven't met them yet, but he wears one of those turban looking head pieces. I've never actually met someone who wore one of those, and I hope that we'll have the chance to get to know them and share the Good News with them as well. I'll be interacting with them a lot since it's their garden that is horribly overgrown in the front. :)
We are taking care of the switching of utilities over and should have internet already, if not it'll be a few days. I can't wait to get things set up so we can call and talk to everyone! For those who have web cams, we'll be giving web cam tours of our cottage and surroundings as soon as the internet is working. :)
I hear it's hot in Michigan- try to stay cool there and drink lots of water. :)
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