Fixing stuff up etc

This blog is being posted late as last night I was hit by a migraine which kept me in bed all day today (yesterday as you read this) so sorry for the delay... I'm still not 100% but at least I can sit up and see without too much trouble now.

So, part two of the blog about the weekend is about all the odds and sods and bits and pieces which I did all aiming towards the fact that this was my last planned extended period of time in Blackpool with Julian and the trailer and all my kit before I am there on the last weekend.

The old, and very damaged, trailer plug

If you look back a couple of days you'll see the list I put together of tasks I needed to complete for the weekend. The first thing I did was fix the hookup cable from the trailer to Thomas which had become burned out and was causing half the back board to not light up. The only pictures I have for this blog come from this job and the other wiring task (fixing the hookup cable for Julian) so they'll be scattered through the update not carefully placed in the relevant places as normal.

All fingers and thumbs

I am normally really rubbish at fiddly tasks as I have quite fat fingers (as people who I type to regularly will attest to) however I managed to strip off and reattach the new connector without too much problem, something I was very proud of.

The hookup for Julian was less of a success as I was hoping to reuse the connector, and just reseat the wires. This was not possible as the short had caused damage to the joints and as I had not ordered a new plug I was stuck. I have since just ordered a new, and much longer, cable for the hookup in stead of fixing this one however I won't be throwing it away; I can almost certainly make use of it again over there.

Trimming a wire to length

The other bit of electrical work that was needed involved changing the uk style plug off the air conditioning unit and putting an american three pin on, so it would plug into the transformer I had bought. This was done in the dark and cold by Sarah however, when I plugged the unit in the fuses still went, despite the transformer; my feeling is that the unit has been damaged by all the damp from the leaks in Julian's roof and I have decided to not spend any more time or money on it at all.

Talking of leaks, Julian was bone dry when I picked him up on Saturday; I'd gone past to collect him Friday after work but the garage hadn't left the keys out with him so I went early Saturday morning and collected the sizable bill for Thomas at the same time. Ouch. Anyway, I was woken on Sunday morning by the horrendous sound of "drip.... drip..... drip..... drip....." and sure enough water was flooding through the same part of the roof, but additionally in one of the cupboards where there was a blanking plate I'd not seen before (which fell off in my hands) and a bare wire (scarily!).

Proud of my re-wiring

I stuffed a rag into the hole behind the blanking plate, spread towels around to catch the worst of the water, and went back to sleep to think on it; my only resolution was to stop later on Sunday than originally planned and try and find out what had happened on the roof to cause what had obviously been a good fix (it had rained a lot in Blackpool while he was in the garage and he had been outside and no leak had been apparent then at all) to break.

The rags were soaked through very quickly and I had to keep ringing them out and returning them throughout the Sunday as I tried to ensure as little damp as possible got inside.

It wasn't until very late on Sunday that I finally managed to get up to look at the roof and I spotted pretty quickly that there was a section where the sealant I put on appeared to either not have been applied, or fallen off. As I was exhausted I quickly applied the sealant and gave up on the ideas of PVAing a load of plastic right over the top and covering the aircon unit (my biggest suspicion being around that, however there was no water coming through the unit inside so maybe it isn't there) so maybe I'll do that if I get a chance to get back over before the leaving weekend.

The hookup for Julian being worked on

Fingers crossed it doesn't rain on the journey in case I haven't actually fixed the leak; I'll be putting everything that goes in those side cupboards into waterproof containers though for sure. It was only affecting the one side which is a really good thing as the cupboards on the other side contained pictures rolled up in tubes and not all of them inside a tube; they would have been totally ruined if it had come through on the other side.

The final itsy bitsy thing achieved was getting the other bike rack on Thomas which was achieved by comparing and contrasting with the first one, and then finally helped with the instructions which I managed to find as they had fallen through the bottom of the box where it had been stored. I am now fully ready for taking both bikes with me, one of which works the other will be a long project to get back up and running again.

A halogen bulb which went in my lights

Time conspired against me in my wish to put both roof boxes on Julian (partly as I was concerned about the roof again) and doing the removable tray for Sassy with a fixed food bowl however these things won't take long and I will prioritise the Sassy thing for the next time I'm there.

Things which I didn't add to the list and therefore completely forgot about include checking the size of the tires on Julian so I can order the snow chains, and checking the number of passenger seat belts in Pierre as a friend has asked about him (he's still not sold, sadly). I've asked my long suffering business partner to pop out and check these for me so hopefully my forgetfulness won't impact me too much there.

Right, I'm going back to bed now to sleep for another 10 hours in the hope that tomorrow I'll be well enough to get back into the office. I hate migraines.

Well I have another contract for another architect

It seems like I have been here before...

.... apart from the first architect took about four months to send me a contract and when it arrived it was a load of rubbish.

Over the weekend I sent the Bulgarian versions of the Contract and Power of Attorney which arrived last week to Dilyana and she, good to her word, sent back a dual-language of the Power of Attorney (as this needs the Apostille) and a quick translation of the contract (which does not need the Apostille). I struggled a little bit to understand the contract but with some extra translation help from Dilyana I am confident that Lubo is quoting me an acceptable price and will cope with the PuP as well.

Contract Time!

This is really good news.

I have contacted the same Notary as I used for the purchase and he is going to let me know a time this week to go in and get the process started; I am wondering if there is any chance of me getting this back this side of Christmas now but at least the process is moving forwards again.

Whatever happens it seems I may be back on track to arrive and nearly be ready to start... against all the odds.

A couple of other little bits to cover off.

Now that is packed well

I've loaded LOADS of things into Julian (the house was getting to be a mess with me packing bits and pieces and piling them at random) and my weekend plans have shifted to mean that I can head back over the Blackpool again and take all this stuff to storage. I'm amazed how much stuff I have managed to fit in the back and I will probably put even more in on Friday before I leave.

I've managed to arrange overtime over the Christmas holidays so that'll help the bank account; which is taking a hammering with all the costs I am incurring on the vehicles.

For Sale

I'm still trying to sell Pierre so please, if you know someone who is looking for an excellent camper van for next year get them to contact me. I have stopped advertising this side of Christmas anyway, this isn't the best time of year to try selling a camper van, but I do still have the person who was expressing an interest from down south texting me. Also on the way back from Blackpool on Saturday I went into my old regular petrol station and the regular guy was there (who I hadn't seen for years) and he is interested in hearing about Pierre so fingers crossed for that too.

So there it is, today (yesterday as you are reading this) is three months until I leave Blackpool and tomorrow (today as you are reading this) is three months until I'm on the ferry out of the country.

Time flies....

Wow.

eBay shennanigans

Having listed Pierre on eBay and gumtree I had a good response.

I advertised on these sites

I had a nice chap texting me from the gumtree advert and I promised to hold the sale until Tuesday as he tried to work out a plan for collecting him and storing him at his house. I then received an offer via eBay for the entire amount and this time-limited offer was due to expire around midnight on Tuesday.

Sadly the first person text to say that he hadn't been able to sort out a location and so I accepted the offer and thought "I wonder if this will actually work out".

Of course, and you guessed it, I have had an email from the eBay offer person saying that the offer had been put in by their granddaughter and they don't want to buy even though they really like the look etc etc etc. I am now in the situation where I need to contact eBay to get Pierre relisted (without additional charges as this is certainly not my problem) and I have told the first person who is still interested but still struggling with a parking space.

Life is complicated

Nothing is simple, but then I didn't expect it to be.

My eBay is asking for confirmation that I am who I say I am (apparently my password isn't enough) and is asking me questions I have no answer to ("what is your dream occupation?" well, what drugs was I taking when I answered THAT question...?) so I have to ring them up to gain access to my account. This isn't such a dreadful thing because I will use the same call to get the listing made current again.

Another little update; the shutter is moving forwards and now I am just having to find a neighbouring unit with electricity so the men can do the installation. Hopefully this will be done soon; I want to start getting my things over there and sorted them for most efficient packing. I also need to attach the Laycorn boxes to the front of the trailer and do the drilling and bolting to make them fully secure.

Just a short update today as I'm still feeling a little delicate from my night out on Wednesday night.

Challenges with Julian

The chap came out to look at Julian yesterday to quote for removing the fridge (it being plumbed into the gas means its a bit more than a task I want to undertake) and updating all the electrics to run off 240V from the hookup.

He was early which is something I really like in a business (Veselka take note haha) and had to come back later as no one was there to unlock the gate and allow him access.

His feedback was not the greatest, specifically regarding the gas system and getting the fridge out.

Stupid Americans

To cut a long story short because Julian is an American vehicle (damn those yanks) his pipe work is not standard size (well, not European size). Not only this but there is no isolation valve for the supply to the fridge. This is what I found out myself when I was trying to get it working (which is nice; I was questioning myself) but the problem is, with non standard pipes and no existing isolation valve, he is going to struggle to cap off the fridge supply so I can continue to use the water heater and cooker.

He is trying to get hold of a plumber who may be able to help but my suggestion of "just getting it welded shut" was not looked on with favour.

It was better news regarding the electrics and he has suggested a cheaper method of having a battery charger with a small house distribution box and a mains powered battery charger to charge the leisure battery from the mains, and hopefully the alternator charging into the leisure battery still working.

I have told him to fix the electrics immediately and to not worry too much about removing the fridge. If I can't remove it I will just put books in it or something, use it as a cupboard, and never mind.

Pierre

In other news the nice couple who were texting me all weekend about Pierre unfortunately came back to me yesterday saying they were unable to find a place to store him so I have accepted the offer for the full amount on eBay. Now I wait to hear from this person (who is actually in Down and will therefore have to come over on a ferry to collect him) and arrange for them to collect him.

I am not totally convinced that this will work out; I've not sold anything via "Best Offer" before and it feels a little less certain than the bidding process. All I can do now is wait (again).

I'm selling Pierre

Having waited for several months to receive the V5 for Pierre (and eventually having to send off for this myself; gotta love it when the seller doesn't bother telling the DVLA they have sold you the vehicle) I have finally managed to get onto Gumtree and eBay and list him for sale.

Pierre, in all his glory

This is quite a bitter sweet moment as he is an awesome vehicle, however I do NOT need two camper vans and there is no point in keeping him, sadly.

Interior shots

So, there are two listings now live on t'interwebs where you can purchase Pierre the Gorgeous Camper Van for the merest £3000.

Sleeping accommodation

You can see the listings below and if you are interested then please do get in touch.

Storage

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/190937404906?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649

That there milage is genuine

http://www.gumtree.com/p/cars-vans-motorbikes/superb-camper-van-excellent-condition-hes-called-pierre-and-he-will-love-you-back/1036024521

Some other updates for you from the other frustrations in my life. First of all, the translator has replied saying that nothing else has happened, Veselka has been busy and hopefully will be making an appointment next time she decides to go to see the Obshtina. I just hope that this is this week because the time, it is passing and soon it'll only be four months and then three....

I get the feeling that I should have gone over to chase Veselka earlier than this last trip, and I also have this sinking feeling that I may have to go over again between now and moving for that purpose too.

Oh well, when in Bulgaria and all that...