Wow

Busy day, so got almost no work done and only 550 words of my "novel" (but that's put me over 28,000 words - my target is 30,000 tomorrow night, which will have me 2 days ahead of schedule), but we did get to visit the new house of some very good friends of ours.

First of all, it should be known that the flat they lived in before was already considerably bigger than ours (and there are only 3 of them), and was always impeccably tidy (not in an uptight kind of way, just stylish and tidy).

The husband, S, has been talking about moving to somewhere "bigger" and "with a garden or something" for a couple of years. His wife, P, was more reluctant, but finally came round to the idea and so they bought their new place, not that far from their old and still quite close to us (years ago, before we moved, they were our neighbours, their son and C have known each other since they were 2 years old!). They moved in about 2 weeks ago, but today was our first visit.

Well. What can I say? They've only just moved in and already the place looks lived in (we, of course, had cardboard boxes everywhere - including right in the middle of the sitting room - for weeks, if not months). And it is HUGE! The main part has a surface area of 226 m², plus there's a further 80 m² in the attic (though it needs work done). The garage is 60 m² (you could fit 4 cars in it) and there's also a cellar and a two-room flat (50 m²). It's like something from a magazine, it really is.

And there's a small, but cute, garden, too.

Wow.

That said, they haven't sold their old flat so they have a bridging loan that is essentially costing them 1,200 Euros a month, their new place must have cost a fortune, the council taxes and stuff are monstruous and the two-room flat (which could if need be be rented out) isn't actually inhabitable (no kitchen, no bathroom, lots of bricked-up windows) and they have no means whatsoever to renovate it, so it's basically a white elephant. It wasn't initially included in the sale, and although I think they've made a good choice, I do believe the two-room flat was a mistake. They don't need the space, and they could probably do with the money...

But I'm happy for them, and they really do have a beautiful home. No, I'm not even jealous - it's beautiful, but it wouldn't be what I'd choose if I had that kind of money. What I am jealous of is the fact that they have that kind of money - my financial status is still dire beyond belief and there doesn't seem to be any respite in sight...

And oh, how I long to get this place looking truly presentable! If only D would show some enthusiasm for DIY and home improvements...

OK, enough. Back to work!