Sunday Action (part 16)

After much pressure, telephone calls, temper tantrums, Mr Contractor has finally move into fifth gear with respect to renovations on our house.... for the last 2 days anyway.

Yesterday, Mr Wooden Flooring arrived at 8am to start work. Mr Marble Floor was here at 3pm to fill in the gaps, in preparation for polishing tomorrow, Monday. Painter boys arrived at 10.30 am started painting, and finished the second coat on the interior walls downstairs. The basins and WCs were installed, and Mr Contractor has finally gotten thinking about the fittings.

Today, Mr Plumber even attended briefly to look at an outdoor pipe. Things are finally moving. More has been achieved in the last 2 days than the last 2 weeks.

So we are finally hopeful. We are not relaxed yet, but hopeful.

Blood Sweat and Tears (Part 15.5)

Mr Wooden Floor has given a verbal, albeit personal guarantee that the uneven colour will be of the same colour once they finish polishing the floor. Mrs Kong, being so mad already, told him that she will put this down in writing. Mr Wooden Floor did not look too happy.

Too bad for him.

Blood, Sweat and Tears (Part 15)

I can quite confidently say that there has been effort and tears spent on every inch of our house,
ONCE COMPLETED! We are no where near completion in case you are wondering, with only less than 8 sq feet worked on this week - and yes, I am referring to the flooring!

Last week, Mr Wooden Floor laid wooden slabs on an uneven floor, causing a disparity in levelness of at least 1/2 an inch. At least this was the obvious mistake. Today another different landing has been subjected to even more mistakes: colour of the so called "teak" we paid for is off.. resulting in 4 different shades of wood, ranging from the darkest to the lightest... all within 5 square feet.

I wish we had better news to report. I wish we had some progress for a change.

Our Trip to Singapore

We went to Singapore last weekend, for the SUO 2007 tournament. For one weekend, we did not think about our construction site. (A Good Break!!)



Instead of the usual hotel off Orchard Road, we stayed at the Perak Hotel, which was only 10 minutes away from the fields. It was a brilliant choice, for Little India is just filled with colours, sights and sounds. It is perhaps a part of Singapore that we have not seen, which is strange since we have both been so many times over the years.


Perhaps we have never seen Little India for the essence of this place for the sake of experiencing something different on a holiday. If you squint very hard, and look down the streets and the buildings, you could think you are in Penang! The shops and people itself remind us of Brickfields. A little like Brickfields, but a little more organised and less rubbish.

It is in places like Little India that we get slightly confused. In so many ways, it is like home in Malaysia, and yet, it is so different in other ways. I think many of us forget that Singapore used to be a part of Malaysia, and that we used to be the same country. Many will say that Singapore has progressed much further on in just 48 years, and that it is now completely different from Malaysia. (though this is in itself is a point of contention between Malaysians and Singaporeans... for we don't believe progress can be measured in economic terms alone)

Then again, no matter how different Singapore becomes as a country and society, its history and culture will remain very close to that of Malaysia.

More Delays (Part 14)

Just when we think we have our house renovations done, up springs more surprises. Yesterday evening, we discovered the wrong grills installed on our doors and windows. Mr Contractor called Mr Grillman this morning and discovered that Mr Grillman had used the wrong design!!

Now is that ever possible? Well apparently so, and not surprising since no one writes anything down in this business!

Mr Kong is extremely disappointed with this outcome and Mrs Kong is thinking of buying the Mr Contractor a notebook.

Singapore

On a brighter note, Mr & Mrs Kong are off to Singapore on Friday till Sunday.

Mr Kong is going to play in a tournament where a bunch of people chase after a flat plastic disc. Mrs Kong is going along to lend her support, cheer and party.

Looking forward to it, Mr & Mrs Kong need a break.

Crazy (Part 13)

Mr and Mrs Kong - absolutely knackered - absolutely fed up with mistakes Mr Contractor is making. Too tired to list the ones made today!