Tag Archives: Building a house on a mountainside

Foundations for the Foundations

Posted on March 26, 2019 by Helga

That’s what’s busy happening at Echo Road. Mike and I went and hung out on the hill for a short while today, watching the quiet and orderly process take place. A few workers were throwing slabs for the piling. They … Continue reading →

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Still No Generator

Posted on March 21, 2019 by Helga

I was all excited about having continuous power during load shedding today, but alas, it was not to be. The battery still didn’t have enough charge to power up the old girl, so we had to make a plan B … Continue reading →

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More Clearing Done

Posted on March 16, 2019 by Helga

Today the builder said he would be at Echo at 8-30am and he was. He had his labourers working on two main areas…they were clearing the primary building site and they were dismantling the stone planters either side of the … Continue reading →

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A Land Mark Day

Posted on March 15, 2019 by Helga

Yesterday, I took a walk up the mountain recording it with my cell phone. It’s not a very good recording and if I had a chance to do it again, I would but today the builder started clearing the land, … Continue reading →

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Before Photos

Posted on March 14, 2019 by Helga

By 8-30am this morning, Mike and I were at Echo waiting for the Land Surveyor. I took a whole lot of photos. The Land Surveyor came and got started. Mike and I left so I could get back to work. … Continue reading →

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Two Major Building Payments

Posted on March 13, 2019 by Helga

Today we made two major building payments.  I had a call from Werner the builder who said the company that will be doing the foundations needs to order what’s required from Johannesburg and wants the deposit. I went through our … Continue reading →

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Scrambling Around Half Built Houses

Posted on March 8, 2019 by Helga

Late this afternoon, Julian and I walked up Echo road looking at all the building that is going on. There are a number of half built houses and we went scrambling around them. There is this house that is being … Continue reading →

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I Know You Are Doing Your Best…

Posted on March 6, 2019 by Helga

It’s the kindest way to reprimand. “I know you are doing your best, but….” The guy I report to didn’t even say but. He just forwarded me an email with this statement, “I know you are doing your best.” The … Continue reading →

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Foundation Costs

Posted on March 5, 2019 by Helga

Today we got the final quote and invoice for the foundations. These will be serious foundations. We initially thought we would need a dozen piles at R20 000 each, but the piling company in liaison with the builder and engineer … Continue reading →

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The Quote Came

Posted on March 4, 2019 by Helga

Building a house on the mountainside is becoming very real. Today Werner came with the quote and we have the next steps. He quotes R3.1 million for our 325m2 build, which is about R9500 per square metre. Half the house … Continue reading →

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Two Building Steps Forward

Posted on February 27, 2019 by Helga

Today two things happened related to the building of our house on the mountainside.  We got notification from the City that we needed to pay 5 amounts for storm water, water, solid waste, sewerage and transport and roads, all amounting to R23 128.41. It … Continue reading →

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Most Amazing Story

Posted on February 24, 2019 by Helga

Today I watched the most amazing story. It’s the story of what seems like a remarkable coincidence; a story of how a red gingham dress united a couple in a frenetic adoption centre in China and led to an inter-continental friendship … Continue reading →

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Dam Levels

Posted on February 20, 2019 by Helga

This time last year, the water shortage in Cape Town was dire. The dam levels were only 24.5% full. We were carrying buckets to the toilet and using tank water for as much as possible. We had no idea of … Continue reading →

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Tax is Done!

Posted on February 18, 2019 by Helga

That’s always a load off my mind. Today Stacey put the finishing touches to the calculations and it spat out what I need to pay SARS. That hopefully will be done in the next week or so. I’ve learned a … Continue reading →

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Discombobulated

Posted on February 13, 2019 by Helga

Discombobulated Discombobulated is a good description of me this morning. It means “confused and disconcerted.” That’s exactly how I felt when the power went off at 8am and only came back at 10-20am. It went off again at 4pm and … Continue reading →

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