What did you do today.

[Lovejoy]

East Meg Judges wouldn't take up much room in that free cupboard space either..

Slow day at work after frantic STEP test prep. It's famine or feast with this job (as Yoshimo from Baldur's Gate II used to say whenever you clicked on him too much). Found the Gorkamorka pdf's online and had a read through. Realised I had better start thinking about Nagoyahammer painting, if I plan to take something I own that isn't ready yet.

[job]

Well, it is done. The Purple Perverts are gone. I shipped 'em off in a huge box this afternoon. I got a pretty good price for them (and my titan) but a little part of me wishes I hadn't sold them. I put a lot of blood, sweat and tears (and dosh) into that army.....<sigh>....oh well....

Well, break ups are always hard, but, really, is it really a competition? The Slaneesh macho dudes or those slender but amply curved chicks from Raging Heroes? I'd totally ditch the marines.

Today I worked. Now I eat dinner. Afterwards I'll dry brush lighter shades of brown on brown on the tree stands I am building.

[kojibear]

Well, it is done. The Purple Perverts are gone. I shipped 'em off in a huge box this afternoon. I got a pretty good price for them (and my titan) but a little part of me wishes I hadn't sold them. I put a lot of blood, sweat and tears (and dosh) into that army.....<sigh>....oh well....

Well, break ups are always hard, but, really, is it really a competition? The Slaneesh macho dudes or those slender but amply curved chicks from Raging Heroes? I'd totally ditch the marines.

The man makes a fine point!

Glad you could sell them at a good price Mike. You'll feel better after you spend the money on more models. It is just that empty space that makes you feel so blue, till you fill it with something new!

[me_in_japan]

Did a bit more painting today. I'm at the stage where it feels like it's going on forever with very little to show for it (details) but actually when I stick it all together and step back, it's lookin' pretty funky, if I do say so meself. I reckon it'll be finished within January. I certainly hope so, because like lovejoy I've got stuff that needs doing before NagoyaHammer comes along. Busybusybusy...

[Primarch]

@Prim, must be a relief. At least you can get started on with the business of finding a home for everything now.

My wife and I looked at a house in the Tsushima area today. Nice neighbourhood, small garden area and built to last a bit more long-term than the standard 35 years. Oh, and 5 rooms with decent sized closets. Plenty of room for a couple of children, a hobby room etc. Of course, this is just a step on the journey but we were surprised at the difference in price if you are prepared to live a bit further from civilisation.

Massively different mate. If you don't mind a 30 minute commute to work, you'll save a lot.

Yep, there are savings to be had if you buy somewhere out of town. Pre-built houses are also a bit cheaper than order made ones as well, though you lose the flexibility of getting to choose exactly what you want. Mind you, if you were living in the UK, you probably wouldn't be getting an order made house anyway, so it's probably more of an issue for our better halves. (It was for mine). Land prices around Kiyosu, Tsushima and that region tend to be pretty cheap in comparison to other places, because a lot of that area is a flood plain with no solid foundation to build on. If you are buying in that area, get as much info as possible on the foundations as they generally need to be stronger and deeper if you don't want your house to sink in the event of a major quake. (Most companies should do this as a matter of course, but there are rogues in every business). The 35 year houses are being phased out from what we could tell when we were looking. 50+ years with low maintenance parts were pretty much standard across the big makers. There are a lot of new-ish building codes they have to follow, with tax incentives for buyers if the house has a long lifespan.
Balancing convenience and cost can be tough though. Adding too much to your commute can be a real pain in the bum if you aren't careful. I've added 30 mins each way to most of my commuting, which is about as much as I can realistically manage.
I guess you aren't in any rush to buy, but spending time now looking at what is available and talking to building companies will pay off in the future.

[The Other Dave]

Got started this morning on another unit of line infantry, plus a couple of commanders, for my Napoleonics. Mike and I decided to play by summer, so that actually gives me a deadline and some motivation, heh.

Likewise (since we're playing some DzC next month) got the final bits of my Scourge primed up on one side, to be finished up tonight, weather and laundry permitting.

[Dekana]

No hobby work done since Zengo and I don't expect to continue work on the ladies any time soon.
My 2 year Japanese school is wrapping up, so I'm starting my job hunt. Aside from that, I've been staying out late with friends almost every day recently, which doesn't leave much time for hobby stuff.

[Lovejoy]

@Prim, must be a relief. At least you can get started on with the business of finding a home for everything now.

My wife and I looked at a house in the Tsushima area today. Nice neighbourhood, small garden area and built to last a bit more long-term than the standard 35 years. Oh, and 5 rooms with decent sized closets. Plenty of room for a couple of children, a hobby room etc. Of course, this is just a step on the journey but we were surprised at the difference in price if you are prepared to live a bit further from civilisation.

Massively different mate. If you don't mind a 30 minute commute to work, you'll save a lot.

Yep, there are savings to be had if you buy somewhere out of town. Pre-built houses are also a bit cheaper than order made ones as well, though you lose the flexibility of getting to choose exactly what you want. Mind you, if you were living in the UK, you probably wouldn't be getting an order made house anyway, so it's probably more of an issue for our better halves. (It was for mine). Land prices around Kiyosu, Tsushima and that region tend to be pretty cheap in comparison to other places, because a lot of that area is a flood plain with no solid foundation to build on. If you are buying in that area, get as much info as possible on the foundations as they generally need to be stronger and deeper if you don't want your house to sink in the event of a major quake. (Most companies should do this as a matter of course, but there are rogues in every business). The 35 year houses are being phased out from what we could tell when we were looking. 50+ years with low maintenance parts were pretty much standard across the big makers. There are a lot of new-ish building codes they have to follow, with tax incentives for buyers if the house has a long lifespan.
Balancing convenience and cost can be tough though. Adding too much to your commute can be a real pain in the bum if you aren't careful. I've added 30 mins each way to most of my commuting, which is about as much as I can realistically manage.
I guess you aren't in any rush to buy, but spending time now looking at what is available and talking to building companies will pay off in the future.

Thanks gents. This tallies with a lot we've been learning recently. We are happy to go with a pre-built house, as you say, in the UK it would be expected. We looked at 2 locations so far, Tsushima and Kiyosu, each had 4 or 5 houses with 5 rooms (we'd like 4 minimum). We were quite excited about Tsushima, until we dug a bit deeper and realised that the area been under water for 4 months back in 1959..I mean, it may not happen again, but, pause for thought and all that. The price was right, though. The Kiyosu houses were lovely, roomy, nice interiors and well made, but we realised that we'd struggle to pay it off as the price was about 15% more than the Tsushima ones. Always a chance they said, that they might discount before March season though, so you never know. That area is also slightly prone to flooding however (scoring 7 out of 10 on a local map..mind you, where we live now is a 10).
We'll keep looking and may have to cast nets farther. We're reconciled to the idea though that nowhere round here is 100% safe from natural disaster. We are a bit bound by job locations too(Me in Tsushima, for the next 3 years probably, wife will work in Meieki) and kindergarten (Kiyosu) is hard to line up, so that is now a factor too.
Hopefully before the year is out though!

[job]

@ Lovejoy: best of luck with finding a nice house.

I worked on some terminators and trees before bed.

[ashmie]

Hey Lovejoy, yeah I think if buying in Japan nowhere is 100 percent fool proof. Sure you can find stuff but most places get damages with quakes. It really is a case of just biting the bullet and finding what feels right for you. For ages I was thinking high land and away from the sea but then it really isn't all that practical to our daily lives to do that so I will probably end up living around the corner from my wife's family. We already have my parents leagues away so why not at least have one set of oldies close. No it's not safe and yes I'm sure it was flooded before but in the end you just got to do whats right for the wife and kid I feel. No matter how insane or against common sense that may be. I actually suggested this to her yesterday and I haven't seen her look so happy in a long time. That made me happy to see. I guess she's a homebody.
We will be looking at second hand soon also. Less money to borrow and less repayments as we are a bit older than most new house buyers.
Good luck house hunting.