Argh
Just got a series of worrying text messages from CK. First of all, it seems the water's not running in the flat. I presume it's plumbing works, but they could have warned us. I asked her to pop down to the estate agent's to see what was wrong.
Well, things sound like they're sorted and she picked up my copy of the contract. And apparently I have to bank transfer my rent tomorrow. Great. Because the Company just gave me my paycheque. Notice my use of the word cheque, which means I don't have the money now - and my cheque for the freelance work I did for them before won't be 'available balance' until Friday at the earliest. Which means no bank transfers.
Now, I can use my credit card to get out cash to pay the rent, which I'd have to give to the estate agent because I haven't even met my landlord but... aaaaaaaargh. Why does everything have to be so difficult? Why did I give the Company my bank details and a photocopy of my bank book if they're not going to use it? Why do I get one (1) day's warning of the deadline for my rent payment?
Actually, yeah, fuck that. If he was so keen to get the rent on the 1st of Febraury, he should have, I don't know, maybe told me so? He can wait.
Wednesday, January 31
Monday, January 29
More Tales of DIY
While out shopping for supplies in the Japan Home Centre (dishcloths, draining rack, that sort of thing), I was overjoyed to find two items I had been unable to buy on the mainland - Blu-tack and WD-40. CK was unconvinced as to the merits of these items.
I suspect I did not do a very good job as to explaining why they are so useful. Honestly, though, every time I wanted to put up a poster or something like that in Beijing, I found myself cursing the lack of Blu-Tack in the PRC. It really is versatile stuff - though not as much as WD-40, of course.
"But what is it for?" asked CK.
"Oh, you know," I said, "fixing things."
"Like what?"
"Squeaky hinges, car engines... and postbox locks, in my case."
"What does it do?"
"That doesn't matter. You just spray it on the problem and it fixes it. That's the magic of WD-40."
And indeed I was able to apply the magic spray to my postbox yesterday. I have the key for it, but it was stuck in an unlocked position. A few WD-40 squirts later, it was working. I returned triumphantly to the flat.
"That was quick," she said. "What did you do?"
"Just sprayed it."
"And then what?"
"No, that was it, just sprayed WD-40 over it and now it works."
See? Magic.
While out shopping for supplies in the Japan Home Centre (dishcloths, draining rack, that sort of thing), I was overjoyed to find two items I had been unable to buy on the mainland - Blu-tack and WD-40. CK was unconvinced as to the merits of these items.
I suspect I did not do a very good job as to explaining why they are so useful. Honestly, though, every time I wanted to put up a poster or something like that in Beijing, I found myself cursing the lack of Blu-Tack in the PRC. It really is versatile stuff - though not as much as WD-40, of course.
"But what is it for?" asked CK.
"Oh, you know," I said, "fixing things."
"Like what?"
"Squeaky hinges, car engines... and postbox locks, in my case."
"What does it do?"
"That doesn't matter. You just spray it on the problem and it fixes it. That's the magic of WD-40."
And indeed I was able to apply the magic spray to my postbox yesterday. I have the key for it, but it was stuck in an unlocked position. A few WD-40 squirts later, it was working. I returned triumphantly to the flat.
"That was quick," she said. "What did you do?"
"Just sprayed it."
"And then what?"
"No, that was it, just sprayed WD-40 over it and now it works."
See? Magic.
A Grand Day Out
Haven't mentioned it here, but CK has been staying here in Hong Kong with me since the 13th. It took a while for my paycheque to go through, so she ended up coming with me to get her birthday present - a Zen Neon V, I think. A small MP3 player, anyway.
Had a relaxing, walking-filled weekend this week. On Saturday we went up to the Peak and did the Peak Circle Walk, which only takes about an hour and half. And yesterday we walked southwards across Lamma, past Hung Shing Yeh beach with its grand view of the power station, over some hills and down to Lo So Shing beach, where we had a small picnic. We paddled in the sea, which was freezing cold.
Met Jenny on Lamma for dinner on Saturday evening, which was nice but far too expensive. I still haven't been paid for this month yet, so that sort of ate up my budget. I shall have to delay getting my haircut, for one thing.
In other exciting news, the family have bought their tickets and will be descending upon HK at the end of May. I shall have to investigate guesthouses on Lamma.
Haven't mentioned it here, but CK has been staying here in Hong Kong with me since the 13th. It took a while for my paycheque to go through, so she ended up coming with me to get her birthday present - a Zen Neon V, I think. A small MP3 player, anyway.
Had a relaxing, walking-filled weekend this week. On Saturday we went up to the Peak and did the Peak Circle Walk, which only takes about an hour and half. And yesterday we walked southwards across Lamma, past Hung Shing Yeh beach with its grand view of the power station, over some hills and down to Lo So Shing beach, where we had a small picnic. We paddled in the sea, which was freezing cold.
Met Jenny on Lamma for dinner on Saturday evening, which was nice but far too expensive. I still haven't been paid for this month yet, so that sort of ate up my budget. I shall have to delay getting my haircut, for one thing.
In other exciting news, the family have bought their tickets and will be descending upon HK at the end of May. I shall have to investigate guesthouses on Lamma.
Wednesday, January 10
Tuesday, January 9
Monday, January 8
So, farewell then,
Magnus Magnusson (KBE),
Famously linked with
A black leather chair.
You were probably
The most famous Icelander in Britain
Sort of a
More literary Bjork,
Translating books into English
From Icelandic and Norse.
Not only that, as well as being on TV,
You were also president of the RSPB.
I never knew there were so many strings to your bow.
I was startled to learn
You'd been World's Strongest Man
But that turned out to be
Someone else.
Magnus Magnusson (KBE),
Famously linked with
A black leather chair.
You were probably
The most famous Icelander in Britain
Sort of a
More literary Bjork,
Translating books into English
From Icelandic and Norse.
Not only that, as well as being on TV,
You were also president of the RSPB.
I never knew there were so many strings to your bow.
I was startled to learn
You'd been World's Strongest Man
But that turned out to be
Someone else.
Saturday, January 6
Handyman Extraordinary
I just repaired my own cistern.
Last night I was sitting chatting to CK on Messenger, getting increasingly annoyed by the sound of rushing water. "Who's doing that?" I thought. Turned out it was me - the little chain that connects the handle to the release cap to flush the toilet had snapped, leaving the cap open and thus making the toilet flush continuously. Once I closed the cap, of course, this still meant that pulling the handle had no effect.
One of the funny things about moving into a new house - and especially when you move out of your family home for the first time - is that you lack all sorts of tools you never thought about before. Minor kitchen utensils, second tier cleaning products such as silver polish, that sort of thing. You find yourself wandering around your home going "how is it possible we don't have a screwdriver?" Because you always had your parents' toolbox to sift through before.
I found myself in a similar situation here. Last night, after a failed attempt to fix the mechanism with some plastic twine I found in a shoebox left by the previous tenant, I was reduced to flushing the toilet by taking the lid of the cistern and lifting the cap with a coathanger.
Now, a lesser man might have gone running to his landlord for help, but not yours truly. I must admit I was planning to do so, but I happened to go past a hardware store on my way back from the laundry this morning, where I bought a desklamp and went for the long shot of going "you wouldn't have a replacement for one of these chains, would you?" The chains don't seem to come separately, but the guy recognised what I needed right away and sold me a whole replacement cap&chain set for HK$10.
So now I have a functioning toilet again. Granted, it's not pretty in the cistern. The original version had the chain cut to a perfect length, whereas mine is wound round the end of the handle a couple of times to shorten it. But what do you want? I'm a wordsmith, not a certified plumber!
I just repaired my own cistern.
Last night I was sitting chatting to CK on Messenger, getting increasingly annoyed by the sound of rushing water. "Who's doing that?" I thought. Turned out it was me - the little chain that connects the handle to the release cap to flush the toilet had snapped, leaving the cap open and thus making the toilet flush continuously. Once I closed the cap, of course, this still meant that pulling the handle had no effect.
One of the funny things about moving into a new house - and especially when you move out of your family home for the first time - is that you lack all sorts of tools you never thought about before. Minor kitchen utensils, second tier cleaning products such as silver polish, that sort of thing. You find yourself wandering around your home going "how is it possible we don't have a screwdriver?" Because you always had your parents' toolbox to sift through before.
I found myself in a similar situation here. Last night, after a failed attempt to fix the mechanism with some plastic twine I found in a shoebox left by the previous tenant, I was reduced to flushing the toilet by taking the lid of the cistern and lifting the cap with a coathanger.
Now, a lesser man might have gone running to his landlord for help, but not yours truly. I must admit I was planning to do so, but I happened to go past a hardware store on my way back from the laundry this morning, where I bought a desklamp and went for the long shot of going "you wouldn't have a replacement for one of these chains, would you?" The chains don't seem to come separately, but the guy recognised what I needed right away and sold me a whole replacement cap&chain set for HK$10.
So now I have a functioning toilet again. Granted, it's not pretty in the cistern. The original version had the chain cut to a perfect length, whereas mine is wound round the end of the handle a couple of times to shorten it. But what do you want? I'm a wordsmith, not a certified plumber!
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