Renovations and relaxation

It's a while since I posted anything about my renovation activities on the Vereeniging, so I thought I'd do a bit of a catch up. My posting has been a bit erratic, I know, mainly because I've been so busy trying to get everything done before work starts in earnest. I haven't succeeded of course, but then (as always), everything takes at least three times longer than you think it will! Still I'm not doing too badly.

So first up was the floor in the Vereeniging. I've painted it in stages as I've had to keep moving things around to clear different sections of it. It looks unnaturally bright and shiny in the photo below, but you get the idea. The paint does dull down to a satin finish after a while which I must say I'm very pleased with.

One re-painted floor

Then there was the great couch destruction episode. My daughter had left an old leather sofa on board when she moved out because it was too big and heavy to remove (lord know how she got it in in the first place). For a while it served a purpose as somewhere for me to sit and ponder on my plans. But, it was not very pretty, it was very badly worn and it wasn't what I really wanted. I therefore decided it had to be dismembered in order to get it through the hatch without destroying other things. This I did with the able assistance and enthusiasm of both my daughters. Then we carted the remains off to the skip on one of the yard's rather old and rickety trolleys (see evidence below). The best thing about this exercise was the fun I had with my two girls as we hacked the thing to pieces.

How to demolish and dispose of an old sofa, harbour style

Following its removal, I was able to finish painting the floor much more easily, as well as re-painting the ceiling throughout the boat. I've also renovated the bathroom, which was looking a bit sad. Now I just need to do all the walls and cupboards.

Meanwhile, other things were happening in the harbour, one of which was a summer festival. The residents of the Oude Haven did their bit by putting on a viking day for the children. The photos below give a glimpse of the festivities and the last one shows the local kids playing with mini viking ships in a paddling pool.

Photos of the summer festival and viking day

Of course, my activities were also interrupted by my week on the helling which focused all my attention on the Vereeniging's exterior, but I've already written about this. The most recent and (I personally feel) crowning achievement has been the construction of my new stairs. The old set that I built back in 2003 or thereabouts was designed for younger versions of us (K and me), and an even younger version of Sindy. Recently she hasn't been able to come on board if I haven't had help. She's just too old and arthritic. The stairs were also getting pretty shabby and so I decided it was time to make some new ones with an easier slope and a bit more substance. Five planks of pine and two thin sheets of plywood later (along with the help of a youtube 'how to' video), this is (queue drum roll) the result. 

Daughter, Jo, playing the fool behind
my new stairs

I still have to finish varnishing them and putting anti-slip strips on them before I test Sindy's abilities to get up and down, but I'm praying she can manage it. I should say the slope looks sharper in the photo than it really is, so wish me luck.

My daughter  came to help me screw all the treads in and again, we had a lot of fun. Then since the afternoon was so gorgeous, we also went for a spuddle in my rowing boat. This became quite hilarious as Jo is a stronger rower than I am (I should also mention my oar had holes in it…it did!) Added to that, the current was running very fast so much of the time we were going either round in circles, veering into other barges or even going backwards. I think we provided quite a bit of entertainment for the other harbour residents too (note to self: must practise). So to sign off, here are a few pics of our spuddle taken with the ubiquitous smart phone. Have a good weekend allemaal! 

Spuddling on a gorgeous September afternoon