Monday, May 30, 2011

I do not like my new computer

I do not like my new computer! Some of the things from my old computer will not open and it has reverted to only giving me one choice of programs to open them in. If I get it wrong I don't get a second guess. XP didn't do that and allowed as many guesses as it took to find the correct program.

And I don't particularly like the new keyboard which goes with it - although I am getting used to it. And I don't like the ghost version of XP so I'll probably get The computer Whisperer to take it off and upgrade my Family Tree Maker instead.

The house sale has gone through and the money is sitting in my bank account, although it still doesn't show online, and still I am sitting here waiting for the OK to move house. As far as I know, the titles have not yet been issued although they are supposed to all be done "towards the end of May". My settlement agent says that as soon as the titles are issued I should be able to settle because it is a cash transaction but I am not holding my breath on that one. If everything I have been told is true then I will be on the move tomorrow; another fairy story.

Saturday, May 28, 2011

Five computers seems to be a bit excessive

Techie arrived this morning with a new computer for me; it is tiny - about the size of a thick laptop so that makes five computers I currently own. He is going to get me an external drive or something to load all the data onto just in case I want something which was not transferred across.

The new one, Hex, has Win 7 as its operating system but has a virtual XP as well so that I can still use my Family Tree Maker. I haven't learnt how to work it properly yet and had to do a forced shutdown this evening as I could not get rid of it.

The settlement for the house went off without a hitch and I have two weeks rent money to hand over. I am hoping that it will be enough and that I will be out of here by that time; but I am not holding my breath. Himself has offered to cross his toes, not having a great deal of hair to braid, bless him ...

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Promises, promises ...

Things are moving along here finally. The titles for the new apartments are set to be issued at the end of this month but they are still collecting data such as names of banks and mortgages so I am not holding my breath on that one. My settlement agent for the apartment says that, because I don't have a mortgage I should be able to settle as soon as the titles are issued. I'm not holding my breath on that one either as that takes us to Wednesday or Thursday of next week.

The Removalists have given me an acceptable quote but their delivery destination is impossibly incorrect. They would have to charge me for storage while they searched the suburbs for it.

My internet provider says that I will have to downgrade to ADSL-1 as the new place cannot sustain ADSL-2 but they have all the details and are ready to connect me when I move. Techie will set things up for me and build me a new computer which is much smaller and can carry both Win 7 abnd XP. He has fixed my main computer, which lost Internet Explorer, by getting in via Firefox and downloading IE8. However, it is noticably slow compared to my little Win 7 laptop, which I rather like. It has a 'compatibility' button.

Tomorrow the buyers of this house will be coming for a pre-settlement check. I am not sure what that will involve; I suppose that it will depend on what they intend to do with the house in the short term. If they are going to demolish it when I move out then it may be foolish to have the windows cleaned and the carpets shampooed. But I have a little list ...

Friday, May 13, 2011

Still no news regarding settlement

Multiplex knows that I don't want to settle until after 27th May but it would be nice to have some sort of idea when I will be able to move from here and into the apartment. We are almost halfway through May and settlement is supposed to be by the end of this month.

Although their website still says "towards the end of May 2011" I have suddenly had this sinking feeling that they will be able to spread their tax burden if we can't settle until after 30th June. I can't believe that they would really do that to us, but ...

An assessor from Grace Removalists is coming next Friday morning to give me some idea of how much it is going to cost me to move all my stuff so something is happening. I have also nearly finished painting the outdoor chairs and table. They look very nice but it has been a paintbrush wrecking exercise trying to get into all the nooks and crannies.

D2 is going on a rally-venue trip to Europe at the end of the month with the Porsche Club. It sounds a lot of fun ... driving fast cars around Europe for a couple of weeks. However, she is going to have to move the 'Organ Donor' before she goes and it is barely driveable. She has booked both her VWs into what she describes as a holiday camp which is, on fact, a storage unit in Subiaco. This is a brilliant solution but I hope that she manages to get the car there safely and without resorting to a tow-truck.

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Letting go slowly

Yesterday I signed the property transfer papers so the house is hardly mine any more. When the buyers settle on 27th it will be properly gone. However, I am allowed to rent back for two weeks with the option of another two weeks extension if I need it. Hopefully I won't.

I also decided yesterday to bury the ashes of the two cats in the garden where they spent so much of their lives. I worked out a place which is unlikely to be disturbed by whatever is to be done with the property. As I still had their little silk bags and their boxes I have kept back a small sample of the ashes which I will take with me. I can't just throw them in the bin.

Yesterday I also received a letter from the Water Corporation informing me that I would have to re-apply for concessions on water and Council rates. Information from the Multiplex spokesperson appears to point to pooled rates which become part of the Strata fees so I will lose the concessions. Water and electricity useage is paid separately via remotely read meters but gas is billed for the whole building jointly.